"Must Respect His Privacy": Ex-India Star's Take On Virat Kohli's Absence From India vs England Tests

Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra opened up on Virat Kohli missing the ongoing Test series against England and said that everyone should "respect his privacy." While speaking to Jio Cinema, Chopra said that no one told the reasons why the former India skipper will be missing the entire Test series against England. "He has requested not to be considered for the whole series, no one has told us the reasons for which he sought this leave, and we must respect his privacy," Chopra said.

Virat had earlier missed the first two Tests. Now, his absence is extended to three more games. His last appearance came in the T20I series against Afghanistan earlier in January.

"Virat Kohli will remain unavailable for selection for the remainder of the series due to personal reasons. The Board fully respects and supports Mr. Kohli's decision," said a statement from the board.

On Monday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed that India wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul will miss the upcoming third Test match against England in Rajkot due to a sore knee. Left-handed batter Devdutt Padikkal will replace Rahul in the squad.

After the end of the first two matches, the five-game series stands at 1-1, with England winning in Hyderabad and India clinching a victory in Visakhapatnam. The next three matches of the series will be played in Rajkot, Ranchi, and Dharamshala respectively.

India's updated Squad for the third Test: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), KS Bharat (WK), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja*, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep, Devdutt Padikkal.