'Will miss quality player Virat Kohli' - Rahul Dravid's honest admission

Indian batsman Virat Kohli is an unbreakable part of the national team and is one of the greats of modern-day cricket. Virat will miss the first two Tests of the five-match Test series against England due to personal reasons. BCCI has accepted Virat’s request and has requested the fans and the media to give respect to his private life. Kohli has always brought his ‘A’ game against England and has scored 1991 runs from 28 Test matches at an average of 42.36.

India have reached Hyderabad and are preparing for the first Test match. Indian head coach Rahul Dravid stated while addressing the press conference that India will miss someone with the quality of Virat Kohli. Dravid further added that it is now the time for someone to step up and perform for the team.

Rahul Dravid on the absence of Virat Kohli from the first two England Tests

Rahul Dravid said, “I think you know any team will miss the quality of a player of the Virat. There’s no doubt about it. You know, he’s a phenomenal player. His record speaks for him. On the field, his presence is a huge boost to the side. But having said that, you know, I think, it just presents another opportunity for somebody else to be able to step up and to be able to put in some performances.”

“And of course, you know, for reasons I can’t be helped, he is not available for us in the first couple of games, But certainly like I said it, you know, while he will be missed. It’s a great opportunity for somebody else to really, sort of show us what they’ve got in this conditions.”

The five-match Test series is all set to start from January 25 and it will be after 3 years, that England will tour India. England visited India back in 2021 but faced a 3-1 loss in the series. England won the first Test in Chennai dominantly but the Indian spinners never really allowed the three lions to come back in the series and displayed brilliant performance in the rest of the games.

However, one fact cannot be denied England are the only side to defeat India in India in the last 12 years. England defeated India in a Test series back in 2012 when Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar ripped through the Indian batting lineup with their spin.

England have also been a different team under Ben Stokes and have not lost a single Test series. England were under immense pressure after facing defeats in Ashes 2023 in the first two Tests against Australia. However, the three lions came back strong and won the last 2 of the three Tests and levelled the series 2-2.

The IND vs ENG Test series is very important from the perspective of the World Test Championship 2023-25. India are currently placed in the 2nd spot of the WTC standings and will look forward to winning the series and adding necessary points on the board. England are also in need of a Test series win as after the Ashes 2023 series, this will be the team’s first Test series.