New Delhi: India captain Virat Kohli’s much-hyped participation for Surrey in English County Championship was Thursday ruled out due to a neck sprain he received during the fag end of IPL-XI, throwing his meticulously planned build-up for the tour of UK into disarray.
“Team India Captain Mr Virat Kohli suffered a neck injury while fielding during Match 51 of the VIVO IPL between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Sunrisers Hyderabad on 17th May 2018 at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru,” BCCI acting secretary Amitabh Choudhary said in a press release.
“Kohli, who was scheduled to play for Surrey CCC in the month of June, has been ruled out from participating. This decision was taken following assessments by the BCCI Medical team, subsequent scans, and a specialist visit,” the release further stated. It further added that Kohli will require a three-week rehabilitation to recover from the injury.
The 29-year-old right-handed Kohli had scored 530 runs in 14 games he played in IPL-XI and will now undergo a period of rehabilitation under the supervision of BCCI medical team before appearing for the fitness test June 15 at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore.
However, Virat’s availability for the initial phase of the UK limited-overs tour will only be confirmed after the tests. India begins the series against England with T20Is in early July.
“The BCCI Medical Team is confident that Kohli will regain full fitness ahead of India’s upcoming tours to Ireland and England,” Choudhary stated.