Virat Kohli to withdraw from South Africa ODIs: Reports
Team India's Test captain Virat Kohli is set to opt out of the ODI series in South Africa, as reported by NDTV. The report added that Rohit Sharma will likely recover from his hamstring injury in time for the three ODIs. On Monday, the BCCI informed that Rohit will miss the three-Test series in South Africa due to a left hamstring injury.
Last week, Rohit took over as captain of India's ODI side from Kohli. Rohit had earlier replaced Kohli as the T20I skipper. The former was also appointed the vice-captain of India's Test side. On Monday, Rohit was ruled out of the SA Test series after he sustained a left hamstring injury while training. Reportedly, he will be fit in time for the ODI series.
Another report in the TOI suggested that India's Test captain, Virat Kohli, has taken a break and will not feature in the South Africa ODI series. According to the report, Kohli had informed the BCCI before that he would take a break in January. It is understood that Kohli will be away due to the first birthday of his daughter.
Kohli and Rohit are two of India's biggest stars in international cricket. Over the past few years, the senior members of Team India have often found it difficult to get along with each other, as reported by several publications. However, their relations are believed to be stable now. The recent developments relating to the SA tour can initiate a fresh wave of rumors.
"Over the years, the Indian dressing room has been fraught with egos. Be it Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar, Mohammad Azharuddin and Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid, MS Dhoni and Virender Sehwag," a source told TOI. "That doesn't mean it has boiled over to what they go and do out there. They're professionals and are required to behave in a certain fashion."
Last week, BCCI president Sourav Ganguly had revealed he urged Kohli to hold the T20I captaincy. The Indian cricket board wasn't in favor of split-captaincy in white-ball cricket. Hence, Rohit was made in charge of India's limited-overs sides. As per TOI, Kohli "understands" why the BCCI made this change. However, he is yet to comment on the same officially.
