The Decision Was Made Before Selection Meeting: Virat Kohli Breaks Silence On Paternity Leave

Virat Kohli, on Thursday, broke his silence on his much talked about paternity leave. The India skipper would miss the three of the four-match Test series against Australia to be at the birth of his first child.

Anushka Sharma is due to give birth in January and thus Virat Kohli has decided to return to India right after the first Test in Adelaide ends. He is also unlikely to return for the later Tests because of the strict quarantine rules. Anyone arriving in Australia must quarantine for 14 days, making it impractical for the India captain to rejoin the squad.

Virat Kohli’s decision to skip three Tests in Australia has drawn mixed reaction from the cricketing fraternity. While the majority has supported the 32-year old for his decision of putting family ahead of the country, few have also criticised him for the same.

Former Australia skipper Steve Waugh had expressed his surprise over Kohli’s decision too. And on the eve of the first ODI against Australia, Virat Kohli spoke on the same. The right-handed batsman explained that the decision was taken even before the team was selected last month.

“The decision was made before we had the selection meeting. I had told the selectors that I would fly back after the first Test as we have a quarantine period both ways,” said Virat Kohli.

“I wanted to be back home in time to be with my wife [Anushka Sharma] for the birth of our first child. It is a special and a beautiful moment in my life,” he added.

I wanted to be back home in time to be with my wife for the birth of our first child: @imVkohli #TeamIndia pic.twitter.com/oyYHMA6Vtt

— BCCI (@BCCI) November 26, 2020

Missing Kohli will be a huge blow for India. Arguably the best batsman in the world at the moment, he has a stunning Test record in Australia. In 12 Tests so far, he has amassed 1,274 runs at an average of more than 55 with the help of six hundreds and three fifties.

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