New Delhi: India beat England in the fourth Test to clinch the series 3-1 with one Test remaining in the series. The Rohit Sharma-led were without Virat Kohli, who is in London as he recently became father for the second time. India did not miss Virat in this series and the question on everyone’s mind is will Virat Kohli play in the upcoming IPL 2024? The cricketer opted out of the IND vs ENG Test series due to the birth of his second child Akaay Kohli, leading to speculations about his participation in the Royal Challengers Bangalore team.
Kohli is expected to return to action for IPL 2024, with RCB scheduled to play against defending champions Chennai Super Kings on March 22. However, since the India-England 5th Test will end just a week before the T20 tournament, doubts have been raised about Kohli’s participation.
Sunil Gavaskar, a former India star, raised some doubts about Kohli’s participation, saying, “Kya woh khelenge… kuchh reason ke liye khel nahin rahe hain, shaayad ho sakta hai ke IPL ke liye bhi na khele.” (“Will he play… He is not playing because of some reason, perhaps he may not play in IPL as well.”)
Kohli initially opted out of the first two Tests match due to personal reasons, but the BCCI later clarified that he wouldn’t play any match in the series. Last week, Kohli announced the birth of his child in London, where he is currently staying. Virat also ended his social media silence recently as he congratulated the side after their series win.
On February 22, BCCI released the partial schedule for IPL 2024 keeping the Lok Sabha elections in mind. CSK will take on RCB on March 22 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Right after the IPL, all teams will travel to USA & West Indies for the T20 World Cup 2024.
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