India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak confirms Virat Kohli’s participation in second ODI v England today; star batter trains for almost an hour with no signs of knee discomfort
India’s Virat Kohli during a training session on the eve of the second ODI against England in Cuttack, Odisha, on Saturday. Pic/PTI
The barren run of skipper Rohit Sharma and the selection conundrum that a fit-again Virat Kohli’s return poses are the towering obstacles in India’s quest for a series win against England in the second ODI here on Sunday.
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India had taken a 1-0 lead after their four-wicket win at Nagpur and there was good news for the fans as batting coach Sitanshu Kotak confirmed that Virat Kohli is “completely fit and good to go” for Sunday’s game.
India’s batting megastar was in fact first to enter the nets during the optional session on Saturday evening and batted close to an hour with no apparent signs of discomfort. Kohli was ruled out of the first game due to a sore right knee.
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Sitanshu Kotak
The vice-captain Shubman Gill had indicated after the opening game that Kohli could be back for the second match, which will be played at a venue where the latter made a match-winning 85 against the West Indies in 2019.
The Indian team will certainly welcome that sign, but it also raises a challenge in terms of selection.
Iyer to be left out?
Shreyas Iyer, who came in for Kohli at the last minute by his own admission, made a rollicking 36-ball 59 that has made dropping him an almost unthinkable act.
If the past norms are followed, then Kohli will walk in for Shreyas, but it is more likely that Yashasvi Jaiswal could be the one who will have to make way for the batting icon.
“That’s something for the head coach [Gautam Gambhir] and captain [Rohit Sharma] to decide. Yes, the left-right combination is an important factor, but that’s not a question for me to answer,” Kotak said when asked about the possible rejigging of the batting order.
It means that Gill might rejoin Rohit at the top, and Jaiswal did not have a blazing match either at Nagpur. It remains to be seen how the team think tank led by Gautam Gambhir, which has shown a penchant for left-right combination, navigates this situation.
Combination questions apart, Kohli too is in need of runs, and he will need a good outing here if he indeed makes a return.
Kohli’s form has been under scrutiny in recent months, especially after his struggles in Australia, where he repeatedly nicked deliveries to the slip cordon or wicketkeeper.
His last competitive outing — for Delhi in the Ranji Trophy — too was a low-yielding one, managing just six before getting bowled by Railways pacer Himanshu Sangwan.
Kohli’s staple format
But one-day cricket is Kohli’s staple format, and the 36-year-old needs just 94 runs to become the third batter to reach 14,000 runs in the format after Sachin Tendulkar (18,426) and Kumar Sangakkara (14,234).
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