India, June 11 -- No one in Indian cricket has been more closely aligned with, or vocal in admiration of, Virat Kohli than Ravi Shastri. From watching his meteoric rise to guiding him through triumphs and turmoil, Shastri has witnessed Kohli's Test journey unfold from point-blank range. If there was one person who believed Kohli still had miles to go in the whites, it was the former India head coach.

But on Wednesday, in an unusually emotional moment, Shastri let his guard down. Speaking on Sony Sports ahead of India's five-match Test series against England, the veteran couldn't hide the lump in his throat as he opened up about Kohli's sudden retirement from Test cricket.

It wasn't a decision made overnight. Kohli had, in fact, confided...