Indian stalwart Virat Kohli undergoes fitness test in England: Report
What's the story
Star Indian batter Virat Kohli has taken his mandatory fitness test ahead of the impending Australia tour in England. According to Dainik Jagran's Abhishek Tripathi, Kohli was the only Indian from the current ODI squad to undergo the test abroad. All other Team India players, including ODI captain Rohit Sharma, underwent this assessment at the BCCI's Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru.
Approval details
Kohli's return to international cricket
According to Dainik Jagaran, Kohli must have received the Indian cricket board's nod to take his fitness test in England. The star batter last featured in the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL), powering Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to their maiden title. He is set to make his international comeback in October, in the ODI series against Australia, Down Under. Notably, Kohli has retired from Test and T20I cricket but continues to play the 50-over format.
Players
These players complete fitness assessment
The report included the players who have cleared the fitness test at the CoE. These include Rohit, Mohammed Siraj, Shubman Gill, Jitesh Sharma, Prasidh Krishna, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Abhishek Sharma, Harshit Rana, Shreyas Iyer, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Rajat Patidar, Ravi Bishnoi, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Mohammed Shami, Varun Chakravarthy, Mukesh Kumar, Hardik Pandya, Sarfaraz Khan, Tilak Varma, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Dhruv Jurel, Shardul Thakur, Washington Sundar, and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
Upcoming tests
Other players to take tests in September
Other Indian players such as Ravindra Jadeja, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Akash Deep, and Nitish Kumar Reddy are scheduled to undergo their fitness assessments in September. These players missed the first round of assessment due to either injury or illness. The first round of tests evaluated players' recovery patterns and basic strength, with most meeting the required parameters.
Exception
Exemption for Kohli?
Kohli has been in England with his family following the 2025 IPL season. According to the Dainik Jagran report, he was permitted to undergo his fitness test under the BCCI supervision in London. The report added that a senior BCCI official confirmed that Kohli "would have taken prior approval" for taking the test abroad. With busy cricket calendars across formats, coping with fitness has been of paramount importance. The fitness bar within Indian cricket keeps on rising.