Why Kohli is rested for Asia Cup; MSK Prasad discloses the reason

Dixit Bhargav | 01/09/2018

Why Kohli is rested for Asia Cup: Chief selector MSK Prasad discloses the reason behind the captain given rest.

The highlight of the squad announced for the upcoming Asia Cup remained the rest given to captain Virat Kohli. India will enter the field in a bid to defend the title with star opener Rohit Sharma as captain and his opening partner, Shikhar Dhawan, announced as his deputy.

Another major announcement was the axe given to senior all-rounder Suresh Raina, the return of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kedar Jadhav, Manish Pandey, Ambati Rayudu and the maiden call-up given to Rajasthan’s 20-year old left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed.

The rest given to Kohli was somewhere on the expected lines given his packed schedule throughout the year. Speaking on the matter, chief selector MSK Prasad was quoted, “Considering the workload, we have given Virat Kohli rest. He has been
playing continuously for quite some time.

“I’ve been to England for the third Test match, we sat for a discussion regarding workload management, so we need preserve some players who are playing all three formats. Looking at that workload, we have started with Virat. Other all-format players will also be rested in due course.”

Renowned TV journalist Vikrant Gupta retweeted a post on Twitter which said that the rest given to Kohli might be because of a back injury, something which has disturbed him (Kohli) in the recent past. Read the full tweet:

 

Prasad was also vocal about India’s preparation for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2018. “Two to three slots we are yet to finalise, so for those slots we are trying and we’ll look at these 24 matches [for the World Cup]. You’ll come to know the slots more specifically as we go ahead … Among those, one of those seamers’ slots is open. We are looking at a left-arm option in Khaleel”, he added.

 

Post Edited By: Dixit Bhargav
asia cup 2018 India Virat Kohli

About the author

Dixit Bhargav

Born and brought up in Pathankot, Dixit Bhargav is an engineering and sports management graduate who works as a Cricket Editor at The SportsRush. Having written more than 10,000 articles across more than five years at TSR, his first cricketing memory dates back to 2002 when former India captain Sourav Ganguly had waved his jersey at the historic Lord’s balcony. What followed for an 8-year-old was an instant adulation for both Ganguly and the sport. The optimist in him is waiting for the day when Punjab Kings will win their maiden Indian Premier League title. When not watching cricket, he is mostly found in a cinema hall watching a Punjabi movie.

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