Virat Kohli has been rested for the first two matches of the three-match ODI series against Australia, set to begin on Friday, September 22, 2023, at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali. This decision has disappointed many Kohli fans who were looking forward to seeing him play ahead of the upcoming World Cup. Ajit Agarkar, the chief selector of the BCCI, cited ‘workload management’ as one of the primary reasons for giving the former India captain a much-needed break.
Ajit Agarkar explained the situation by saying, “Few of the players have been given a breather, including Rohit, who has also taken a break. Fortunately, we had a fair amount of cricket during the Asia Cup,” during the squad announcement for the ODI series against Australia.
In the days following the announcement of the ODI squad, there were reports circulating on social media suggesting that Virat Kohli had unfollowed the India Cricket Team on Instagram. Some even speculated that this action was in response to him being rested for the first two matches of the ODI series without his consent.
It’s important to note that Timesnownews.com cannot independently verify such claims, and they appear to be based on assumptions without concrete evidence to support them. Additionally, it’s worth mentioning that the 34-year-old Kohli was not following the India Cricket Team on Instagram to begin with, so whether or not he followed Team India’s official account previously cannot be verified. In conclusion, there is no substantiated truth to any of the reports making such sweeping claims.
Virat Kohli, who has played 280 ODIs for India, has an impressive record with 47 centuries to his name. He is just two centuries away from equaling Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 49 centuries, which is the most by any batter in the world.
The four players rested for the first two matches against Australia include India captain Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav, and Virat Kohli. However, all four of them have been included in the squad for the third and final ODI against Australia, which is scheduled for Wednesday, September 27, 2023.
India Squad For First Two ODIs vs Australia:
- KL Rahul (c)
- Shubman Gill
- Ruturaj Gaikwad
- Shreyas Iyer
- Suryakumar Yadav
- Ravindra Jadeja (vc)
- Shardul Thakur
- Jasprit Bumrah
- Mohammed Siraj
- Mohammed Shami
- Tilak Varma
- Prasidh Krishna
- Ravichandran Ashwin
- Washington Sundar
- Ishan Kishan
India Squad For 3rd ODI vs Australia:
- Rohit Sharma (c)
- Hardik Pandya (vc)
- Shubman Gill
- Virat Kohli
- Shreyas Iyer
- KL Rahul
- Ravindra Jadeja
- Shardul Thakur
- Jasprit Bumrah
- Mohammed Siraj
- Kuldeep Yadav
- Mohammed Shami
- Axar Patel (subject to fitness)
- Ishan Kishan
- Suryakumar Yadav
- Washington Sundar
- Ravichandran Ashwin
