Indi will be missing Virat Kohli in the first ODI against England in Nagpur on Thursday after the star batter had a discomfort in his knee during the training on Wednesday. Coming after a month-long break post Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Virat Kohli needed the ODI series against England in his bid to return to form. However, with Virat Kohli missing, Yashasvi Jaiswal made his debut in ODIs.
The former India captain, Virat Kohli, was seen with a strapping on his right knee and had a light training session in the lead up to the first ODI. “Unfortunately Virat isn’t playing, he had a knee problem last night,” India captain Rohit Sharma revealed during the coin toss.
The three-match ODI series against England is India’s final preparation for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. Meanwhile, pacer Mohammed Shami returns to ODI action for the first time since India’s World Cup final against Australia on November 19.
Mohammed Shami, who was the leading wicket-taker (24) for India in the tournament, made his International comeback in the T20I series against England, which India recently won 4-1. This is India’s first ODI since August 2024, when they lost a three-match series 0-2 to Sri Lanka.
According to Ravi Shastri on commentary, Virat Kohli had a sore knee and swelling last night. With the mega Champions Trophy in line, the Indian think-tank don’t want to take any risk with the star batter.
Last month, Virat Kohli was in action for Delhi in the Ranji Trophy against Railways. He could score only six off 15 balls on his return to domestic cricket after more than 12 years.
India vs England first ODI playing XIs
India: Rohit Sharma(c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul(w), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami
England: Ben Duckett, Philip Salt(w), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jos Buttler(c), Liam Livingstone, Jacob Bethell, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Saqib Mahmood
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