Tired Virat Kohli may skip Bangladesh tour

Kohli, who replaced MS Dhoni as the Test captain last year, has requested BCCI secretary for rest once the IPL gets over. (Source: File Photo)

The Indian team is likely to travel to Bangladesh with a new Test captain. Virat Kohli has requested the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to exclude him from the tour as he is keen on taking a break following a long cricket season. It is learnt that the team is unlikely to include a head coach with the board yet to shortlist names for the role vacated by Duncan Fletcher. The tour to Bangladesh begins on June 10 with India set to play a lone Test and three ODIs.

Kohli replaced Mahendra Singh Dhoni as full-time Test captain after the long-standing skipper pulled the curtains on his career in the long format following the Boxing Day Test at the MCG last year. But sources have informed The Indian Express that Kohli has already spoken to BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur about wanting rest once the Indian Premier League gets over.

Sources in the BCCI said that barring Fletcher, the rest of the coaching staff, who were there in Australia, are likely to be retained with Ravi Shastri set to remain as team director alongside Sanjay Bangar, Bharat Arun and R Sridhar.

Other players also hesitant

Kohli, though, is not the only senior cricketer with hesitations over touring Bangladesh next month. The BCCI senior selection committee headed by Sandeep Patil is scheduled to pick the squad on May 20, and it’s likely that they will go with a second-string outfit, an outcome that the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is dreading. “Kohli has confirmed that he wants a break. Many senior players don’t want to travel to Bangladesh as they already have been touring a lot over the past one year. Few of them have requested for a break but the BCB wants at least some of the key players to be sent to Bangladesh as it will keep some interest alive with the TV viewers,” a BCCI source said.

The source also confirmed that Fletcher’s replacement is unlikely to be named in the coming days. “We haven’t short-listed names of potential candidates who we think can coach the Indian team. The process is still in progress and it will take another month or so.”

Following the short tour to Bangladesh, India will travel to Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka over the next two months. But for now, it will be interesting to see who takes over from Kohli. Ajinkya Rahane could be in the fray despite not having much experience of leading a team at the senior level, domestic or otherwise. But there is no clear front-runner in the race yet. Cheteshwar Pujara, who returned to India after a stint with Yorkshire in the county circuit, has led India A on a few occasions but hasn’t been among the runs in international cricket of late. Rohit Sharma has won an IPL with Mumbai Indians while Suresh Raina has led India in the ODIs, but neither have impressed enough in five-day cricket to be handed the responsibility of leading the Test team.

‘Round 2 of Pak talks soon’

Ever since the new dispensation came to power in the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), there has been a buzz about resumption of cricketing ties between India and Pakistan. It lend credence with Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Shaharyar Khan’s recent visit to India. On Thursday, BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur said there were major issues that need to be addressed before the board can send a formal letter to the Indian government for clearance.

“There is a possibility that in the coming days or weeks the second round of talks will take place between the two boards to discuss the proposed series,” Thakur said during a visit to the BCCI zonal academy at the Sector 16 cricket stadium, in Chandigarh.

Thakur said the talks are at a very early stage and that “no conclusion can be derived yet”. The PCB chief spoke to the BCCI about the possibility of playing a series in December but a final call will only be taken by the Indian government. “There are many things between the BCCI and the PCB that need to be discussed. Shaharyar visited India and met the president, Jagmohan Dalmiya, and also spoke to me about the proposed cricket series. But whether it will take place or not, and if it happens, then in which country will it take place since the situation in Pakistan is not conducive, and if the series will be held then how many matches are to be played, these are some things on which talks are going on. All these need to be taken into account,” the BCCI secretary said.

When asked about the BCCI having issues with the PCB-Ten Sports broadcasting deal, Thakur said: “As far as Ten Sports is concerned, the talk is on between the BCCI and the PCB. There are certain issues related to the Essel Group which are pending in court, I would not like to comment on that as of now. But the ball is in the PCB’s court as it is their turn to host the series and it is their prerogative, so we will have to work out the nitty gritties.”

Ten Sports is owned by the Essel group, owned by Subhash Chandra, who had previously launched the ‘rebel’ Indian Cricket League and rumours of another such league being in the pipeline have gathered momentum.

Source:: Indian Express