Indian batsman Virat Kohli has extended his international break and will miss the remaining three Tests against England. Virat has opted out of the series due to personal reasons. This will be the first time in the last 13 years that Virat will miss a Test series. Kohli also did not play the first T20I against Afghanistan in January this year due to personal reasons.
Former Indian cricketer Harbhajan Singh, who was reviewing the Indian team for the last three Tests against England, praised Virat Kohli. While speaking on his YouTube channel, Harbhajan stated that he prays that everything is fine with Virat Kohli’s family. He added that without Virat the Test match is not a match as he brings the main flavor to the red ball format. Kohli is a brand that has taken the format forward, the legendary spinner said.
Harbhajan Singh on Virat Kohli’s absence from England Tests
Harbhajan Singh said: “Virat Kohli is not yet available for selection. Reasons no one knows, I hope Virat, his family and everyone are fine. I hope he returns soon because the Test match seems incomplete without him. It is a mark in Test cricket that has taken Test cricket forward. “Virat Kohli will not feature in the next three matches, but we hope everything goes well and he returns soon.”
Virat Kohli is one of the greatest batsmen of the modern era and is known for his dedication to the game in the Test format. Virat has always mentioned that the red ball format is the favorite format of his and he has scored runs in all corners of the world while playing for the Indian Test team.
Also, during his captaincy days, Virat Kohli transformed the Indian Test team. India was number one in Tests for almost five years. Virat changed India’s strategy to play matches abroad and Indian pacers became the main reason for India’s success abroad.
Virat Kohli was part of the Test series against South Africa and played some decent innings in both games of the series. The last one and a half years have been brilliant for Virat as a batsman. Kohli finished as one of the best run-getters of the year and scored 2048 runs in 35 games with eight centuries at an average of 66.06. Kohli was also awarded the ICC ODI Player of the Year award for his brilliant performance in the 50-over format throughout the year.
Virat Kohli smashed 1377 runs in 27 games with seven hundreds, of which three came during the ODI World Cup 2023. Kohli was the top scorer of the tournament and was also awarded the Player of the Tournament award.
On the other hand, the Indian selectors have dropped Shreyas Iyer from the squad due to his poor performance in the first two matches. Akash Deep got a call-up, while KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja also returned to the team. The Indian team needs to address their middle-order problem as they have not been able to score runs to their full potential.