India’s star batter Virat Kohli had to fly back to Mumbai from Guwahati due to a reported ‘personal emergency’ while the rest of the Indian squad traveled to Trivandrum for their second warm-up game against the Netherlands. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has not confirmed if Kohli will miss the warm-up game, but a report suggests that he will return in time for the Netherlands clash on October 2.
Kohli is a crucial player in the Indian team, and although the Netherlands warm-up game may not be of utmost importance, the batter would want to get some runs under his belt, especially since the last match against England was abandoned due to rain.
According to a source from the BCCI, “He went to Mumbai for personal reasons. Virat will rejoin the team soon,” as quoted by Cricbuzz. The nature of the personal emergency has not been disclosed, but it is expected that Kohli will be back with the team in due course.
Recently, Kohli only featured in one of the three ODIs against Australia in a series that just concluded. However, he showed his form in the 3rd ODI, scoring 56 runs despite India’s defeat in the contest.
Over the past three years, Kohli has not had the best phase in his cricketing career. However, in 2023, he has made a strong comeback, scoring runs consistently, just in time for the ODI World Cup campaign.
“The last two and a half years have taught me a lot. Those angry celebrations are a thing of the past. I have had many suggestions, lots of advice has come my way; people were telling me I was doing this wrong, that wrong,” Kohli shared, as per ICC.
“In analyzing my performance, I reviewed videos from the best time I had. I replicated the same initial movement and approach towards the ball. It was just what was happening inside my head that I wasn’t able to explain to anyone,” he added.
In the upcoming Cricket World Cup, Kohli has the potential to break several all-time records and solidify his place in history.
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