Former cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra on Saturday (February 10) acknowledged that the Indian team is missing the services of Virat Kohli in the ongoing home Test series against England.
However, Chopra doesn’t feel that the star batter's absence will cost India the five-match series against England.
Notably, Kohli didn’t participate in the first two Tests due to ‘personal reasons’. In his absence, India lost the series opener in Hyderabad by 28 runs but bounced back to win the second Test in Vizag by 106 runs.
When the BCCI announced India’s squad for the remaining three Tests against England on Saturday, Kohli’s name didn’t feature in it, much to the disappointment of the Indian fans.
“Virat Kohli will remain unavailable for selection for the remainder of the series due to personal reasons. The Board fully respects and supports Mr. Kohli’s decision,” the BCCI said in a statement.
After the squad announcement, Aakash Chopra addressed a query about whether Kohli’s absence would cost India the series.
"I won't go that far. Let's be honest, life doesn't stop because of someone coming or going. Life must go on, the show must go on. We are feeling Kohli's absence a lot, I will be very honest," Chopra said while speaking on his YouTube channel.
Chopra then cited the example of the 2021 Gabba Test win, where Kohli wasn't part of the side but India went on to win the game and clinched the series on Australian soil.
Notably, Virat Kohli had departed from the team after the first Test in Adelaide to attend the birth of his first child. He couldn’t join the team for the remaining three Tests because of the strict COVID-19 protocols back then.
"You are definitely missing him but his absence doesn't mean that you will lose the series if he isn't there because you defeated Australia in Australia in his absence. India actually lost in the match he was there, that was the Adelaide Test match, but after that, we broke Gabba's pride as well," said Chopra.
According to Aakash Chopra, Kohli would have feasted on the inexperienced England bowling line-up in the ongoing Test series.
"Considering the bowling standards and the sort of pitch that was there in Vizag and when we got to bat for the first time in Hyderabad, Kohli would have scored at least one 150 in the two matches because he wouldn't have stopped against this ordinary bowling, in which Rehan Ahmed gets bored," he remarked.
With the series evenly poised at 1-1, India and England will now square off in the third Test in Rajkot from February 15.
