India, Feb. 20 -- There was a time, not very long ago, when no matter the format India were playing, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma were effervescent and ever-present. They could lord it over five days of Test cricket, waltz through the 100 overs of an ODI and turn it up for a Twenty20 match.

They weren't alone either. Around the world, South Africa's A B de Villiers, Australia's David Warner, New Zealand's Kane Williamson and a few others were doing the same or trying to do it. To some, all-format success defined greatness in the modern era.

To be able to straddle all three formats successfully was not for the meek. It required mental strength and a drive that increasingly few cricketers (and even fewer batters) have.

Take for instance,...