Mahendra Singh Dhoni has decided to retire from Test Cricket citing the strain of playing all formats of cricket, according to a statement on the Indian cricket governing body's website. The decision is to have immediate effect, meaning Virat Kohli will be the captain of the Indian team for the fourth test against Australia, to be played in Sydney from January 6, 2015.

The announcement comes just weeks before India are due to begin their defense of the 50-over World Cup trophy that Dhoni lifted on home soil in 2011.

The statement on the BCCI website said Dhoni had chosen to retire from Test Cricket with immediate effect in order to concentrate on the One Day International and T20 formats. It also thanked him for his "enormous contribution to Test Cricket and the laurels that he has brought to India."

In 60 tests in charge, Dhoni won 27 tests as captain, taking India to the coveted position of number one test country between November 2009 and August 2011.

In the post-match press conference in Melbourne, Dhoni had made no mention himself of retiring from tests.

A heated match

Dhoni's decision came just hours after Australia drew with India in the third test of the four game Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, a result which saw the hosts take the series after winning the first two matches.

Set a target of 384 to win on the last day in 70 overs, India's batsman struggled at times to know whether they should chase the runs on offer on a docile Melbourne pitch, or play for a draw which would have meant a series loss. In the end, they ended well short of the target on 174, with just four wickets in hand.

The match, which was the first to be drawn at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in 17 years, was punctuated by constant bickering between the two sides, both on and off the pitch.

al/pfd (AFP, Reuters)