Virat Kohli's T20I future hangs in the balance

Virat Kohli finds himself in a situation where he may have to fight hard to retain his place in the upcoming T20 World Cup in October. On Wednesday, the national selectors picked an ODI team for three matches in West Indies later this month. The team will be led by Shikhar Dhawan with Ravindra Jadeja as his deputy. Regular all-format captain Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah have all been rested. However, TOI understands that Rohit, Pant and Pandya are likely to travel with the team to the Caribbean for the subsequent fivematch T20I series. As for Kohli, his T20I future will depend on how he performs in the two T20Is and ODIs in England over the next 10 days. According to sources, the Indian team management and selectors are not clear about fitting Kohli in the T20I middle-order. “The T20I team has been withheld to evaluate the rest needed to be given to the top players. Rohit, Pant and Pandya are likely to play the T20Is in West Indies. Bumrah most likely will not be travelling to the Caribbean. As for Kohli, one needs to see what the team management decides on what it needs for the T20 World Cup. This limited-overs series in England is very crucial for Kohli,” a source said on Wednesday.

Kohli’s form across formats has not been convincing for over a year now. His struggles in T20 cricket surfaced even in this year’s IPL. He has looked a shadow of his free-flowing self. With India having multiple young and dynamic middle-order options in Suryakumar Yadav, Pant, Pandya, Jadeja, Deepak Hooda, Sanju Samson and Shreyas Iyer, Kohli may be falling behind in the race. The Indian team management and selectors have been planning to play a full-strength core team in limited-overs cricket —