India Vs Afghanistan : Dravid said that Virat Kohli would miss the first T20 international match at Mohali for personal reasons.

Virat Kohli will not be eligible for selection for the opening game of the next three-match T20I series against Afghanistan, head coach Rahul Dravid announced on Wednesday, January 10. This decision was made for personal reasons. The first game of the bilateral series between Afghanistan and India is scheduled to take place in Mohali on January 11. The veteran batsman will play in the final two T20 International Series games, according to the head coach.

Cricket fans are devastated by the news that veteran players Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have rejoined India’s T20 team for the home series against Afghanistan, following a year-long absence due to uncertainty over their futures in the format.

Ever since India lost to England in the World Cup semi-finals in Australia in November 2022, none of the batters have participated in any T20 international matches.
During the press conference, Dravid said that Rohit Sharma, the captain of India, will begin with Yashasvi Jaiswal.

The head coach of India disclosed that although the country will only participate in one T20 International Series prior to the T20 World Cup in 2024, the Indian Premier League (IPL) performance of players will influence the side that is selected for the competition.

Both Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have returned to T20I cricket after weeks of speculation over their futures in the league. Their attention was diverted to ODIs and Tests in the 50-over World Cup year of 2023 after they had not played a T20 International together since November 2022, at the T20 World Cup semi-final in Adelaide.

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Why Did Virat Kohli Skip Afghanistan’s First T20I ?

Although there has been no official word on Virat Kohli’s decision to skip the first Twenty20 international match, rumours have it that he took the break to spend time with his daughter Vamika, who turns three on January 11.

“Shreyas Iyer missed out due to lots of batters in the mix – no disciplinary actions, these are fake (news reports),” Dravid stated in the PC.

Rahul Dravid has since verified that Virat Kohli would be available for selection in the second and third T20 international matches. Shubman Gill may bat at No. 3 in place of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rohit Sharma, who will begin the innings in Kohli’s absence.

India head coach Rahul Dravid says Virat Kohli will miss the first T20I against Afghanistan in Mohali due to personal reasons.#INDvsAFG pic.twitter.com/FJ61emN83W
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) January 10, 2024

India’s Squad for three T20Is against Afghanistan

Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan and Mukesh Kumar.