Virat Kohli announced his retirement from Test cricket on Monday (May 12), leaving India scrambling to answer a question that has not been asked of them for the last three and a half decades.
The Adelaide Test of India's 1991-92 tour of Australia was the first time Sachin Tendulkar batted at No.4 in the format. For the next 33 years, Tendulkar and then Kohli turned No.4 into a fortress like no other. India have played 318 Tests since then. No one else has batted at No.4 in more than 20 of those.
When Tendulkar went, Kohli was more than ready to take over, replacing him at four in the very next Test India played after his retirement. The position became a symbol of safety and strength for the India Test team through all their highs and lows over the last three decades. That is about to change.
For the first time since Tendulkar made the spot his own, India have to choose between several options to decide who will be their next No.4. And this time, there's no easy answer, no Kohli-like replacement ready to take over.
Also read: Virat Kohli retires from Test cricket: His stellar career in numbers
The familiar faces
Shubman Gill has largely been expected to take over from Rohit Sharma as the next Test captain following the latter's retirement. However, from long before that, he has been expected to take over from Kohli as the next face of Indian cricket. And tradition dictates that faces of Indian cricket bat at No.4 in whites. Gill, having started his career as an opener, has stabilised himself (sort of) at No.3, but is yet to make the big runs outside Asia. A move down to No.4 could unlock the best of Gill, the Test cricketer, but it would then require the team to fill the gap at No.3, for which, again, there are multiple but no obvious single candidate.
When Kohli missed the England Tests at home last year, KL Rahul started at No.4 at his place. Forever shuffling around the order, Rahul will now enter the upcoming England tour as the senior-most batter of the side. While he has a good opening record in England, India might consider him for the No.4 role to add stability and experience to the middle order. Two factors that go in favour of Rahul at four: India have a ready, albeit uncapped, replacement at top for him in Sai Sudharsan, and Rahul has made a home in the middle order in both white-ball formats now.
India's last Test against England in England featured Shreyas Iyer batting at No.6. He's been out of the Test setup or a year now but has made emphatic returns to both the white-ball formats. If he were to make a comeback to Test cricket, now would be as good a time as any. His naturally aggressive style of batting would also be characteristic of typical Test No.4s. However, an unproven record outside India and a list of younger batters ahead of him in the pecking order makes Iyer replacing Kohli an improbable scenario.
The bold gambles
Since 2024, five batters (including an all-rounder: Nitish Kumar Reddy) have made their Test debuts for India. If India decide not to mess with Gill and Rahul's positions and are not confident enough with Iyer, they could gamble on any of Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar, Dhruv Jurel, and Sarfaraz Khan.
None of them have played more than six Tests, and they have a combined experience of only one Test outside India. Jurel, who played the Perth Test in Australia last year, is perhaps best placed among the lot to make the XI if selectors decide to groom one of the youngsters at No.4. Padikkal might also be considered given his impressive India A performances and Test debut, while Sarfaraz and Patidar have no more than an outside chance at getting a go at No.4.
The unlikely but not impossible
It was during the 2018 England tour where Karun Nair's international career virtually ended when he was overlooked for Hanuma Vihari despite Vihari not being in the original squad. Since then, Nair has reinvented himself and has plundered runs at an absurd rate across formats in domestic cricket. He even started off his IPL resurgence with a glorious knock before fizzling out.
If domestic performances are considered significant enough, Nair might just have an outside chance following the retirements of two senior batters. At 33, however, Nair doesn't have age on his side and might not even make it to the squad despite breaking the door down as hard as it can possibly be broken.
Finally, as strange as it sounds, Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara are still available for selection while Kohli and Rohit Sharma have retired from the format. Pujara last played for India in June 2023, Rahane in July 2023. Neither has done anything spectacular to warrant a comeback. Going back to either of them would be a backward step, but with a dearth of experience in the batting lineup, both Pujara and Rahane might have a non-zero chance of making the team.
Whoever India chose for the time being, they'll have to contend with a period of uncertainty till the chosen player establishes himself in the new role. That will be an uncomfortable experience at best, and chaotic at worst.
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