IND vs ENG: Virat Kohli has a series to forget in the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024/25 in Australia. Despite the century in the second innings of the first Test match in Perth, he fell for a cheap score in all the other innings of the series. The former Indian captain could only score 190 runs in the nine innings in the series.
Kohli has been suffering in Test cricket for quite a long time. He has only scored just three centuries in the last five years in Test cricket. His weakness around the off stump persisted as he nicked fifth and sixth stump deliveries and got out in the same fashion in every inning of the BGT. His test average has gone below 47, and calls have been made for him to be dropped in the upcoming five-match Test series in England.
Shubman Gill has not yet replaced Virat Kohli in the Test team
The selection committee, headed by Ajit Agarkar, organised a meeting in the BCCI headquarters on January 11 to discuss the team selection for the upcoming T20I series against England. There were intense discussions about the place of Kohli and Rohit Sharma on the Test side, given that neither of them has performed in the longest format for quite some time.
However, Kohli’s inclusion in the England series will depend upon Shubman Gill‘s form. Gill himself hasn’t cemented his place in the Test team, especially in the SENA conditions. When the great Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid retired from Test cricket, Kohli seemed the ideal choice to replace them, while Gill is nowhere near to replace him in India’s Test 11.
“With the five-Test series against England still five months away, the selectors are likely to sit over the matter before forming an opinion. Shubman Gill hasn’t settled into the Kohli role as he was expected to; nowhere close to how ready Kohli was when Sachin Tendulkar hung up his boots. This is something that will be factored in by Agarkar’s selection committee,”
the report said
Kohli and Sharma will definitely be part of the ICC Champions Trophy in 2025. It is the final ICC tournament for both the stalwarts of the game. Team India will look to win the tournament for these two legends of the game.
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