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SPORTS FEBRUARY 16, 2024 | The Indian Eye 44

India missing the aggression in batting as

Virat Kohli takes a break for family reasons

Right-handed batter Rajat Patidar was called up to replace Virat Kohli

in India’s first two Test matches against England

OUR BUREAU
Mumbai
ndia’s batting talisman Virat
Kohli is set to miss the third and
Ifourth Test matches against En-
gland in Rajkot and Ranchi. The for-
mer India skipper also stays doubt-
ful for the final match of the series
against England in Dharamshala.
Kohli had earlier withdrawn from the
first two Tests against England due to
personal reasons.
“Virat Kohli has requested the
Board of Control for Cricket in India
(BCCI) to be withdrawn from the first
two Tests of the upcoming Test series
against England, citing personal rea-
sons,” BCCI said had said in a state-
ment.
Meanwhile, the cricket’s top gov-
erning body in the country requested
the media and fans to respect Kohli’s
privacy during this time.
“The BCCI requests the media
and fans to respect Virat Kohli’s pri-
vacy during this time and refrain from
speculating on the nature of his per-
sonal reasons. The focus should re-
main on supporting the Indian cricket Virat Kohli last saw action in the 3rd T20I match against Afghanistan (ANI)
team as they embark on the upcoming
challenges in the Test series.” India has drawn level the five- ted well, and Shubman Gill and young reer which has spanned over 15 years
Right-handed batter Rajat Pa- match series 1-1 and Virat missed the Jaiswal, with his double hundred, and feels that any team would miss the
tidar was called up to replace Virat first two Tests due to personal reasons. played brilliantly.” presence of a batter who has a stature
Kohli in India’s first two Test matches The batter is set to miss the third and He also said that the Indian bat- like the 3-year-old.
against England. Patidar made his in- fourth Test matches against England ters are facing a lot of soft dismissals KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja
ternational debut on December 21 last in Rajkot and Ranchi as well, ac- in the series, something Virat does not also missed the second Test due to in-
year against South Africa in the 3rd cording to a report from ESPNcricin- face as he is “driven by runs and win- juries. For Nasser if Rahul is fit and is
ODI match, where he opened for the fo. The former India skipper also is ning games.” able to regain fitness for the third Test,
‘Men in Blue’ and scored 22 runs from doubtful for the final match of the se- “There have been some soft dis- he would be a player who could add to
16 balls with a strike rate of 137.50. ries against England in Dharamshala, missals in that Indian batting lineup, India’s batting depth.
India lost the first Test by 28 runs the report said. and it has left him vulnerable at times. “Kohli and his family and his
and won the second by 106 runs in Speaking to Sky Sports, Nasser One thing Kohli is with batting is private life have to come first, so it’s
the five-match series. Virat was last in said that without Virat’s aggression ruthless. He does not do soft dismiss- a blow for India, but as we’ve seen,
action during the T20I series against and “in-your-face” attitude, India has als. He is driven by getting runs and they’ve got a lot of very good young
Afghanistan last month, in which he suffered in their batting. winning games. So, they will miss that. batters. But KL Rahul, who was in-
scored a quickfire 29 and a golden “He is [Virat Kohli] an aggressive Any side would miss the class of Virat jured for the last game, played bril-
duck in two matches he played. cricketer. He is an in-your-face crick- Kohli,” he said. liantly in the last few months for India
Meanwhile, former England cap- eter, but actually, I think with the bat, Nasser Hussain backed Virat and in all formats. I think he’ll come
tain Nasser Hussain said that India in three of the four innings, India have Kohli’s decision to prioritise his pri- back in, so he’ll add to their batting,”
has not been as ruthless with the bat in not quite been ruthless as they would vate life but believes that his absence Hussain added.
the absence of star Indian batter Virat have liked to be,” said Nasser. will be a big “blow” for India. India have also an option to hand
Kohli during the first two Tests against “It is 1-1 and they have batted Nasser hailed Kohli for the con- Sarfaraz Khan a Test debut who has been
England at home. very well. The likes of KL Rahul bat- tribution that he has made in his ca- in a blistering form in domestic cricket.

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