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The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) chief selector Ajit Agarkar has issued an official statement on the injury status of the India National Cricket Team batting great Virat Kohli.
Just days after helping Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) lift their second straight IPL trophy, the Indian batting superstar has been ruled out of India's upcoming ODI series against Afghanistan.
It is a big blow, especially after Kohli was in outstanding form throughout the IPL 2026 season. He played a crucial role in RCB's title-winning campaign.
Virat Kohli suffers injury blow after IPL 2026 glory
Virat Kohli injured his right hamstring during the IPL 2026 final on May 31 between RCB and Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad. Despite being in discomfort, the RCB icon continued batting and played a match-winning knock of 75* to help the franchise secure back-to-back IPL titles.
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Initially, many felt the former Indian captain was dealing with cramps, but scans later confirmed that he suffered a hamstring injury, which has now forced him to miss the three-match ODI series against Afghanistan, which begins on June 13 in Dharamshala.
Kohli scored 675 runs in 16 matches at an impressive average of over 56 and the best strike rate of his IPL career—167. However, the big relief is that he is expected to be fit for India's next ODI assignment in England next month.
I haven't had a clear timeline from the physio yet - Ajit Agarkar on Virat Kohli
Ajit Agarkar said that Virat Kohli "might be fit" for India's ODI series against the England National Cricket Team, but there is no clear timeline for his recovery currently. Agarkar is also hoping to see the batter in action in England ODIs.
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"With Virat at this point, it's just been less than a week since he injured himself in the [IPL] finals. We don't know the timelines yet, but it looks like he might be fit for that England ODI series. It's not a definitive answer, so don't hold me to it. I haven't had a clear timeline from the physio yet," Agarkar said at the press conference at the BCCI office in Mumbai.
India has already named Virat Kohli's replacement, with Yashasvi Jaiswal getting the opportunity for the Afghanistan series. The left-handed batter has been in impressive form and made a strong impact in his previous ODI appearance, where he scored a century against South Africa. The selectors now hope he will make a big impact against Afghanistan.
The selectors have a tough job: Devajit Saikia
On the other hand, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said India has a huge pool of talented white-ball players, which makes team selection very challenging. He added that the selectors have picked the squads based on recent performances and believe these teams can do well in Ireland, England and the Asian Games.
Saikia said in the press conference: “We have a very large white-ball player pool. A couple of years ago we had multiple Indian teams playing simultaneously in different tournaments. The selectors have a tough job. You can never keep everybody happy.
There will always be discussions about who should or shouldn’t have been picked. But based on recent performances, the selectors have done their job and we hope these teams do very well in Ireland, England and the Asian Games."
