Virat Kohli Not a Certainty for T20 World Cup, Selectors May Take Harsh Calls: Report

After not playing any T20I for over a year, the duo of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli made a surprising return to the India squad for a three-match series against Afghanistan earlier this year at home.

Rohit, who played in all those three games as captain, peeled off a sensational hundred in the third and final contest as India completed a 3-0 clean sweep.

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On the other hand, Kohli missed the series opener, made his T20I return with a quick 29 in Bengaluru and then recording a golden duck in the following game.

Last month, BCCI secretary Jay Shah had said Rohit will lead the team at the 2024 T20 World Cup to be co-hosted by USA and West Indies, and thereby confirming the 36-year-old’s inclusion in India’s squad.

However, he said discussion on Kohli will be held later on.

Now according to a report in Telegraph India, the BCCI has left the final decision to its selection committee headed by Ajit Agarkar.

The publication quoted a source as saying that Kohli’s selection “remains a very delicate matter and not many are willing to get involved.”

As per the report, Agarkar has spoken to Kohli about changing his approach in T20Is something which reflected in how the superstar batted during the 2nd T20I against Afghanistan in Bengaluru. He scored 29 off 16 with the help of five fours.

With 4037 runs, Kohli is the leading run-getter in T20I history and is followed by Rohit at the second spot who has 3974 runs to his name.

Agarkar, a former India fast bowler, will reportedly have to convince Kohli to make way for the next generation of players. However, this could change if Kohli ends up having a superlative IPL 2024.

During IPL 2023, Kohli scored 639 runs while representing Royal Challengers Bangalore to finish fourth among the leading run-getters of the season.

Kohli hasn’t played any competitive cricket since the Afghanistan T20Is as he was unavailable for the five-match Test series against England at home due to personal reasons. He’s expected to make his return with the IPL that gets underway later this month.