Virat Kohli has opted out of the first two Tests of a five-match series against England that gets underway later this week.
According to BCCI, Kohli cited personal reasons behind making himself unavailable for the two matches to played in Hyderabad and Vizag. A replacement will be named soon.
“Virat has spoken to captain Rohit Sharma, the team management and the selectors and has emphasized that while representing the country has always been his top priority, certain personal situations demand his presence and undivided attention,” BCCI said in a media release on Monday.
“The BCCI respects his decision and the Board and team management has extended its support to the star batter and is confident in the abilities of the remaining squad members to step up and deliver commendable performances in the Test series,” BCCI added.
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BCCI has requested privacy for their star batter, asking media and fans to refrain from speculating the reasons behind his absence.
“The BCCI requests the media and fans to respect Virat Kohli’s privacy during this time and refrain from speculating on the nature of his personal reasons. The focus should remain on supporting the Indian cricket team as they embark on the upcoming challenges in the Test series,” the statement read.
Earlier this month, BCCI had named a 16-man squad for the first two Tests of the England series with wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel given a maiden India call-up.
Kohli had also skipped the first T20I of a three-match series against Afghanistan earlier this month and played in the next two games as India clean swept the series 3-0.
India squad for first 2 Tests vs England: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), KS Bharat (wk), Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Avesh Khan
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