Along with the Indian skipper, Virat Kohli, six other Indian players have been included in the Asia XI squad for their T20I series against a World XI squad in Dhaka next month as approved by the BCCI. Kohli’s name was announced alongside those of KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Rishabh Pant, Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Shami by the BCB president Nazmul Hassan for the two-match series.
However, as per the latest reports, one of the top BCCI officials stated that the India captain has not yet given his consent for the series. Kohli’s exhausting workload will certainly be considered when BCCI decides its final list of players to feature in the Asia XI for the two-match T20I series, which will be played on March 21 and 22.
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Earlier, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has recently stated that Virat will at least play one match. The Indian team will return from a gruelling six-week tour of New Zealand on March 6 and are set to assemble in Dharamsala on March 10. The first ODI against South Africa will be played on March 12 followed up by the second ODI which in Lucknow on March 15. The third and final game of the series will be played on March 18 in Kolkata.
One of the sources of PTI in BCCI said, “The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has sent a wish list of 10 names and we are supposed to send five players. As of now, we have not confirmed any names. All the players including the skipper will undergo tests to check their level of workload. Only then we will give the names.”
Virat recently spoke about the workload issues and how matches along with practice and travel schedule take a toll on international players. The BCCI has always maintained that if any top player who is regularly playing wants a break, he will certainly be given time to physically recover.
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Talking about the same a senior BCCI official said, “It will now depend whether Kohli gives his consent or not. Don’t forget that the IPL will involve extensive traveling and once it’s over, there are a number of overseas T20 series lined up.”
