India (Commonwealth) _ Reliable Indian media sources suggest that Virat Kohli would most likely be left off of India’s T20 World team. The likelihood that Virat Kohli will play in his final T20 World Cup for India will only be confirmed by his outstanding performance in the IPL 2024 which will be featured in India before the world cup.
Ajit Agarkar’s selection panel was given the task by BCCI authorities, according to the report. Given Virat Kohli’s style of play, the selectors are skeptical that the former Indian hitter would be able to provide the kind of innings the team needs on the slow wickets of the West Indies and the United States.
The national panel of selectors and the team administration are prepared to make some tough choices prior to the ICC main event, which begins on June 1, according to sources who spoke with The Telegraph. Notably, India lost the 2023 World Cup final to Australia and hasn’t won an ICC championship since 2013.
The management is now considering giving young people like Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Tilak Varma, and Yashasvi Jaiswal opportunities. Both Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya have fully healed from their injuries and are expected to return. Jay Shah had already stated that Rohit Sharma will captain the Indian squad in the 2024 T20 World Cup, but he said nothing about Kohli. “Virat’s role will be discussed in due course,” stated Shah.
According to the media source, Agarkar will be the one having the last talk with Kohli since not many others are prepared to get involved in the “very delicate matter”. The RCB player is also rumored to have discussed with Ajit Agarkar a much-needed adjustment in strategy to meet the demands of the T20I format.
During India’s three-match Twenty20 International Series against Afghanistan, Kohli showed an aggressive attitude and reacted favorably. In the first game, he scored 29 off 16 and was out for a duck in the second.When asked if they would be interested in playing Twenty20 Internationals, both of the team’s mainstays, Rohit and Kohli, responded in the positive.
During the home series against Afghanistan, Rohit and Kohli made their T20I comebacks for the Indian team, after an absence of almost 15 months. Right present, the selectors are agitated over Virat Kohli’s starting spot in Twenty20 Internationals. Following India’s defeat in the 2022 T20 World Cup semi-final in Australia, both Rohit and Kohli made the decision to step away from the shortest format.
The T20I team was captained by Hardik Pandya, but their position changed after the all-round player was forced to miss the ODI World Cup due to an ankle injury. But Kohli’s place in the starting XI was never very certain. Kohli stuck to his tried and stern policy, while Rohit led India’s drive with his aggressive style at the top of the order throughout the ODI World Cup, demonstrating obvious signs of being an exceptional opener even in T20Is. He was supposed to be the batting unit’s rock. While that strategy is necessary for ODIs, is an anchor necessary for T20Is as well?
Virat Kohli is not the preferred choice of selectors for the T20 World Cup; Ajit Agarkar will make the final decision. The selection committee was a little dubious about Kohli’s position since young players were arguing their points and the format was evolving quickly. The uncertainty has only become deeper if the most recent story published in The Telegraph is to be trusted.
The report claims that Kohli hasn’t been able to meet the demands of the squad in the quickest manner. If he plays a “superlative IPL” for the Royal Challengers Bangalore, only then will he be taken into consideration.
Our sources stated that the team management and national selectors are prepared to make some tough choices with the T20 World Cup in mind. Top BCCI officials don’t want to get engaged in this, therefore head selector Ajit Agarkar may make the final decision. According to the source, it’s still a really sensitive issue, and not many people are eager to become involved.
To be fair, in the two T20Is he played against Afghanistan, Kohli—the only cricket player to score more than 4000 runs in T20Is—did attempt to break free from the anchoring tag by having to be aggressive right away. But when there are other people who are capable of the same game naturally, is it really essential to urge someone like Virat Kohli to radically alter his style?
