"BCCI should clarify the reason.."- Twitter reacts to Virat Kohli opting out of England Tests

Updated - 22 Jan 2024, 05:30 PM

Former England Captains React To Virat Kohli's Withdrawl From First Two Tests
Photo Credit: (AFP)

Former Indian skipper Virat Kohli has decided to skip the first two Tests against England due to personal reasons. The BCCI included him in the 16-man squad that was announced for the first two Tests.

Kohli has reportedly informed the Indian skipper Rohit Sharma and the BCCI regarding his decision to withdraw from the first two Tests. With the first Test starting on January 25, Virat Kohli’s decision to skip the first two Tests was made public by the BCCI on Monday, January 22.

Virat Kohli earlier skipped the the first T20I against Afghanistan citing personal reasons. however, he came back to play the second and the third T20I. Kohli’s absence will be a big miss for team India against England. With the likes of Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane not a part of the team and Kohli now out of the games, the onus will be on the likes of Shreyas Iyer, Shubman Gill, and Rahul to deliver.

The BCCI has agreed to his request and has asked the fans to respect Kohli’s decision and respect his privacy. The BCCI has not yet named Kohli’s replacement for the first two Test matches. It will be interesting to see who is named as the replacement for Kohli for the first two Tests. The return of one among Pujara or Rahane now becomes a viable option.

Twitter Reacts To Virat Kohli Skipping First Two Tests Against England

 

— Tejashav. (@kohli_admirer1) January 22, 2024

Meanwhile, England arrived in Hyderabad for the first Test on January 21. Batter Harry Brook has withdrawn from the Test series citing personal reasons as well. England have named Dan Lawrence as his replacement.

Also Read: ICC announces T20 team of the year 2023!! Indian player named captain, 3 other Indian teammates included

The tour starts with the first test in Hyderabad from January 25-29. Visakhapatnam hosts the second Test from February 2-6, followed by the third Test in Rajkot from February 15-19. Ranchi hosts the fourth Test in challenging conditions from February 23-27. The tour concludes with the fifth and final Test in Dharamsala from March 7-11.

Australia are currently leading the points table with a PCT point of 61.11. India are placed second followed by South Africa and New Zealand. England are placed eighth on the table. They endured a difficult World Cup edition and now will be tested in Indian conditions.

There have been already a lot of talks about what kind of conditions might be presented for the England team. Rohit Sharma after winning the second Test against South Africa spoke about how the pitch behaved in the second Test when 23 wickets fell on Day 1 in Cape Town.

He further said that cricketers should expect turning tracks when they come to India and there should not be any confusion about the same. Speaking about Virat Kohli, Kohli, has scored 1991 Test runs against England at an average of 42.36. He has scored five hundreds and nine fifties and England and also scored six ducks.

With Kohli set to miss the first two Tests, Shreyas Iyer can be asked to bat at four followed by KL Rahul at five, KS Bharat or Dhruv Jurel at six and Ravindra Jadeja at seven followed by Ravichandran Ashwin and three pacers.

Also Read: Virat Kohli ditches Rohit Sharma and Team India; BCCI forced to remind people of Virat’s commitment for Cricket

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BCCI England National Cricket Team England tour of India 2024 IND vs ENG 2024 India National Cricket Team India vs England 2024 Rohit Sharma Virat Kohli