IND vs SA: Virat Kohli to be rested from ODI & T20I series against South Africa: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is likely to extend a breather to Virat Kohli as the cricketer is unlikely to feature in the upcoming white-ball assignments against South Africa. Kohli has reportedly asked for a short break after playing non-stop cricket for months.
Virat Kohli, notably, has made himself unavailable for selection for the upcoming India tour of South Africa’s ODI & T20I format. However, he is likely to return for the Test fixtures. He has informed the BCCI of his decision, said the report.
“He (Kohli) has informed the BCCI and selectors that he needs a break from white-ball cricket and he will get back to them about when he wants to play white-ball cricket next. At the moment he has informed the BCCI that he will be playing red-ball cricket, which means he is available for selection for the two Test matches in South Africa,” a source said.
Virat Kohli, along with other senior Indian cricketers, was on the run for several months in the lead-up to the ODI World Cup 2023, which became a superhit tournament for the cricketer individually.
Kohli managed to score over 700 runs in the tournament at a fantastic average of 95.62. The Indian batter managed to hit three centuries in 11 appearances and became the leading run-getter for the event.
The India tour of South Africa is set to begin on December 10 with a three-game T20I series. The shortest format series will be followed by as many games ODI series and to conclude the tour the two sides will lock horns in the two test fixtures.
The all-India senior selection committee headed by former cricketer Ajit Agarkar is expected to announce the squad for the South Africa tour in the coming days.
Notably, there is still no clarity on skipper Rohit Sharma’s availability. It was earlier informed that the BCCI officials would meet the Indian captain to discuss his future on the Indian side along with the future roadmap for the team for the upcoming big events, however, no developments have been made along those lines.
Rohit Sharma took India to a record 10 wins in the recently held ICC World Cup 2023, however, things didn’t pan out as the Indians would have expected in the summit clash in Ahmedabad. India, after winning 10 games on the bounce, faltered against Australia in the final to lose their very own World Cup title.
Team India is currently locked with Australia in the five games T20I series. After getting defeated in the first two games convincingly, Australia managed to keep the 5 game T20I series alive with a last-ball win in the third fixture. Now the series is 2-1 in India’s favour after three games as both sides gear up for the fourth T20I in Raipur.
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