IND vs WI: "You Don't Know If He Has Asked For Rest Or Has Been Asked To Rest" - Aakash Chopra On Virat Kohli Missing The West Indies T20Is

Whether Virat Kohli has sought to take a vacation during the limited-overs series against the West Indies or whether it has been requested of him is unknown to Aakash Chopra. 

Virat was not included in the ODI team for the series against the West Indies, along with a few other experienced players, including Team India captain Rohit Sharma. While Rohit was chosen in the T20I lineup that was decided thereafter, Virat was granted a rest for the whole limited-overs series. 

Aakash Chopra Questions Virat Kohli’s Absence

In a video posted to his YouTube account, Chopra questioned Virat’s absence and the rationale behind it. 

He said: “When you picked the ODI team, you didn’t pick the T20I team. At that time, the biggest discussion point was that there is probably some concern regarding Virat’s injury.

But when you didn’t have to put Virat Kohli’s name at all, even though he played the second ODI, either he has asked for rest, that’s another thing, you don’t know if he has asked for rest or has been asked to rest because of his injury or workload management.”  

Virat has missed a big amount of cricket since the previous T20 World Cup, the cricketer-turned-commentator said. 

He expressed: “How much cricket has Virat Kohli played or missed after the T20 World Cup 2021, he hasn’t played a lot of cricket honestly. He was rested for the three-match T20I series versus New Zealand and first Test against New Zealand, and then he was injured for the second Test against South Africa.” 

He continued by highlighting the number of games the former Indian captain has missed.

“He was rested for the 3rd T20I versus West Indies, rested for the three-match series versus Sri Lanka before the IPL, he was not part of the South Africa T20Is as he had gone for the Test match, was injured for the first ODI against England and now he is missing the three-match ODI series and the five-match T20I series against West Indies.” 

Aakash Chopra Hopes The West Indies Series Is The Last Virat Kohli Misses Before T20 World Cup

Choosing how much cricket the star hitter should play presents a catch-22 problem for the Indian selectors and team management. Experts in the game of cricket have also offered contrasting opinions on the choice made. Some believe he made the correct decision, while others want him to participate in as many games as possible. 

Aakash Chopra also voiced the wish that Virat’s vacation during the West Indies series will be his final one until the T20 World Cup later in the year. 

He reasoned: “It seems that he is missing a lot of cricket. It is not that he is in amazing form. This is an extended break, I hope this is the last one because you will get chances to score runs if you keep on playing. If you stop, the story gets stuck, there are difficulties for the wagon to again gather pace after that.” 

According to Chopra, the limited-overs series against West Indies would have been a fantastic opportunity for Virat to rediscover his form because the Caribbean team is perhaps not as strong. 

Also Read: Navdeep Saini All Set To Play For Kent In Ongoing Season