Amid reports that the ICC is considering reducing all matches in the Test Championship to four days from its next cycle 2023 onwards, Kohli, who has been one of the most vocal advocates for Test cricket, joined the voices against the proposal.

“I don’t endorse that at all,” Kohli declared ahead of the first T20I against Sri Lanka. “I don’t think that is fair to the purest format of the game.”

Tinkering with Test cricket for “commercialising” the game risks diluting and eventually killing off the essence of the format, Kohli argued. Day-night Test cricket is where governing bodies should draw the line in their bid to find a balance between making Test cricket more marketable and retaining the sanctity of the format, he said.

[caption id=”attachment_133706″ align=”alignnone” width=”800″] Virat Kohli fears that tinkering with Tests will open up the possibility of eventually doing way with the format altogether[/caption]

“It should not be altered … It can’t be tinkered with too much. I don’t believe so,” the skipper reiterated. “The day-night Test is the most that should be changed about Test cricket. [With more drastic measures] you are purely only talking about getting numbers, entertainment … I think the intent will not be right then because then you will speak of three-day Tests. I mean where do you end? Then you will speak of Test cricket disappearing.”

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Kohli, the No.1 batsman in whites, has ensured time and again that India “respects” the format on their way to the top of the rankings. Last year, after India won their inaugural day-night Test, he said, “I think it is very, very crucial to market Test cricket like we do for T20 and one-day cricket … If there’s enough buzz created around Test cricket, then there will be a lot more keenness to come to the stadiums.”

“Ridiculous … I’m not a fan. I believe you’ll get so many more draws and day five is crucial.”https://t.co/7h01cMwYH8

— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) January 2, 2020

The idea for four-day Tests has got mixed response among players. While England’s Jos Buttler and Joe Root have acknowledged the importance of keeping an open mind, bowlers such as South Africa’s Vernon Philander and Australia’s Nathan Lyon are not fans.

Australia quick Josh Hazlewood too pointed out recently that the reduction of one day might be detrimental to spinners. “In England, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, you’d think about playing four quicks rather than a spinner,” he said. “They only come in [to play] in Australia on day five – same as Dubai, there’s no spin for three and a half days.”