Fans urge retirement of Virat Kohli’s jersey No.18 after Mukesh Kumar wears the iconic number

Mukesh Kumar is currently on a tour of England with India A for two unofficial Tests against the England Lions. In the ongoing first unofficial Test, the Indian bowler was seen wearing jersey No. 18, which sparked a debate on social media. Virat Kohli has worn jersey no.18 since the beginning of his international career. No other Indian batter has donned this number during Kohli’s playing days.

Mukesh Kumar faces backlash for wearing jersey No. 18

However, Mukesh Kumar’s sudden switch from jersey No. 49 to No. 18, right after Virat Kohli’s retirement has irked many fans. They are now demanding that the BCCI immediately retire the No. 18 jersey across all formats to honour Kohli’s legacy.

BCCI had taken similar action in the past. In 2017, when Shardul Thakur wore Sachin Tendulkar’s iconic No. 10 jersey in a match, fans expressed their displeasure. Respecting their emotions, the BCCI decided to retire the No. 10 jersey. In 2013, MS Dhoni’s No. 7 jersey was also retired by the BCCI.

Mukesh Kumar is wearing Virat's No 18 Jersey 💔 pic.twitter.com/V8jIxRaUhr

— Sohel. (@SohelVkf) May 31, 2025

Although there have been calls to retire Virat Kohli’s No. 18 and Rohit Sharma’s No. 45 jerseys since their T20I retirements, the BCCI has not made any official decision yet. As a result, players are currently free to choose those numbers in T20Is and Tests after Kohli and Rohit stepped away from the formats.

Meanwhile, some fans view Mukesh Kumar wearing the No. 18 jersey in this series as a tribute to Virat Kohli. While many see this as disrespectful towards Virat Kohli for someone else to take over his iconic jersey. Mukesh Kumar is facing criticism and mockery on social media for his decision.

ALSO READ: Karun Nair’s Century against England Lions arrives right on cue after National Call-Up

Although fans are unhappy with Mukesh Kumar wearing jersey No. 18, he has managed to impress with his performance in the ongoing unofficial Test. He has been the go-to bowler for the team and is currently India A’s highest wicket-taker in the match with 3 wickets. However, his IPL 2025 season with Delhi Capitals wasn’t particularly impressive, he took 12 wickets in 12 matches but struggled with a poor economy rate of 10.32.