Team India fans and the cricket analysts across the globe were utterly bemused when the BCCI announced India’s T20 squad for the upcoming series against New Zealand without former skipper Virat Kohli ! Not even a day has passed since Virat played his final match as India’s T20 captain and him being dropped from the team so fast is something that many cannot process. However, the reality is not anything like the fans are thinking it to be and a BCCI official has announced the full truth yesterday.
Speaking about why Virat Kohli is not present in the squad, a BCCI official said, “VIRAT KOHLI HAS REQUESTED FOR ADDITIONAL DAYS OFF. WE EXPECT HIM TO JOIN IN MUMBAI FOR THE 2ND TEST. HE HAS EARNED THE BREAK. HE NEEDS SOME FREE TIME TO FOCUS ON HIMSELF.”
India suffered a tragic downfall in the T20 World Cup 2021. However, Kohli stepping down from captaincy had nothing to do with it as the skipper had announced his decision a lot before, almost a month ahead of the tournament.
Alongside the squad that BCCI announced last night, they also announced that Rohit Sharma is the new captain of the Indian T20 Team and KL Rahul is the new Vice-captain which was a special moment for both the players. However, in no way is it the end of Kohli’s tenure in the T20 team. He is still the ODI captain and will soon return to the T20 team as well after serving his break.