Indian superstar Virat Kohli is reportedly a major doubt to feature at all in the remainder of the Test series against England.
Kohli was absent from the first two Tests due to personal reasons but according to multiple reports, he could now miss the series entirely.
The loss of the megastar for what is one of the biggest series India can possibly play was once unthinkable, but according to friend AB de Villiers, he is putting his family first with a second child reportedly on the way.
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The absence of Kohli comes as a bitter blow for the hosts who, according to The Telegraph, had thought he could return at some stage during the series.
Shreyas Iyer, Kohli’s replacement for the first two Tests against England, has largely struggled to impress having failed to score more than 35 runs in the four innings he has played.
There’s also a chance Kohli won’t be the only big name absentee for India in the third Test, with The Telegraph and The Guardian reporting star bowler Jasprit Bumrah could be rested.
Bumrah was in blistering form for India in the second Test as he earned player of the match honours thanks to his figures of 6/45 and 3/46 in the first and second innings respectively.
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Those figures helped take Bumrah’s overall tally of wickets from the first two Tests to 15.
In the likely event of Bumrah missing the third Test, he’s likely to be replaced by Mohammad Siraj.
Part of India’s rationale for giving Bumrah a breather is because they want the star seamer to be fresh for the fifth Test in Dharamsala, which looks set to be the most seam-friendly wicket of the entire series.
Throughout the series Bumrah has bowled nearly 57 overs, prompting India’s need to manage the star given he underwent surgery on his back last year.
The third Test between India and England will take place at Rajkot and gets underway at 3pm AEDT on February 15.
