'He wouldn't ask for leave without any reason' - Jay Shah on Virat Kohli's absence from England Test series

Star India batter Virat Kohli recently extended his leave from the Test team as he remained unavailable for the remaining three Tests against England in the ongoing five-match series. Notably, Kohli had earlier pulled out of the first two Tests in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam due to personal reasons which remain unknown.

Following Kohli’s request for leave, there were widespread reports claiming that his mother was unwell. However, his brother Vikas Kohli put all the rumours to rest giving an update on his mother’s health. Recently, BCCI secretary Jay Shah also commented on Kohli’s long leave from the format he loves playing and said that a player of his quality won’t ask for time off without any reason. He further said that the Board fully trusts him.

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“If somebody is asking for a personal leave in 15 years then it is his right to ask for it. Virat is not that kind of a player that he would ask for a leave without any reason. We must back and trust our players. We will talk about Virat later,” Jay Shah was quoted as saying by India Today.

Adding another twist in the tale, Kohli’s good friend and former South Africa cricketer AB de Villiers had revealed that the India star is expecting his second child with Bollywood actor wife Anushka Sharma. However, De Villiers ate his words and issued an apology for spreading wrong information through his YouTube channel.

Virat Kohli only played one Test against Australia in 2021

Notably, it’s the first time since his debut in 2011, that Kohli has missed an entire Test series. Earlier, back in 2020 ahead of the Border Gavaskar Trophy series against Australia, he had announced that he would feature in the first Test of the series and return home for the remaining three Tests.

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Meanwhile, with the series tied 1-1, India started well on Day 1 of the third Test in Rajkot scoring 326/5. Captain Rohit Sharma (131 off 196) and Ravindra Jadeja (110* off 212) starred with centuries while debutant Sarfaraz Khan also scored 62 (66).