Former India captain Virat Kohli’s poor performance continues. He has not been able to score a century in international cricket for the last two and a half years. Meanwhile, there are reports that if he performs poorly in the T20 and ODI series against England, then his T20 career may be put on hold. He left the captaincy from T20 cricket 9 months ago. On Wednesday, the selectors picked the ODI squad for the three-match series in the West Indies later this month. The team will be led by Shikhar Dhawan while Ravindra Jadeja will be the vice-captain.
Team India’s regular captain Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah have been rested in all three formats. However, according to a Times India report, Rohit, Pant and Pandya are likely to tour the Caribbean with the team for a five-match T20I series after the ODIs. Kohli’s future in T20s will depend on how he performs in the next 10 days in England in two T20Is and one ODI.
According to sources, the Indian team management and selectors are skeptical about the fit of Kohli in the T20 middle order. A source said, “The T20 squad has not been announced to evaluate the rest of the top players. Rohit, Pant and Pandya are likely to play T20 matches in West Indies. There is also a possibility that Bumrah will not go on the Caribbean tour. As far as Kohli is concerned, it needs to be seen what the team management decides for the T20 World Cup. This limited overs series in England is very important for Kohli.
Kohli has not been in good form in any format for over a year now. His struggle in T20 cricket was also seen in this year’s IPL. Team India has many young options in the middle order in the form of Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Deepak Hooda, Sanju Samson and Shreyas Iyer. In such a situation, Kohli can be behind in the race.
The source further added, “The issue of workload management comes up in every selection meeting. Players like Rohit, Kohli, Pandya, Bumrah and Shami are always discussed that they need rest. All these players have always got priority in this matter. The coaches and physios send notes to the selectors through the team management that these players need to be rested.