Published 12:28 IST, February 3rd 2021
Virat Kohli marks fine return to batting in India nets with inspiring caption: WATCH
Ahead of the India vs England series, Virat Kohli was seen sweating it out in the nets on Tuesday after serving the mandatory six-day quarantine.
Indian captain Virat Kohli who was on paternity leave after the first Test against Australia for the birth of his first child with wife and Bollywood actor Anushka Sharma has joined the Indian team ahead of their series against England. The Men in Blue are set to take on England in a four-match Test series which is slated to start on February 5 in Chennai.
Virat Kohli sweats it out in first net session after long break
Ahead of the high-octane contest, Kohli was seen sweating it out in the nets on Tuesday after serving the mandatory six-day quarantine. The Indian captain took to Instagram and shared a couple of posts from his first net session after the break. The first of the two slides is a beautiful picture of Kohli's impeccable front foot defence. The second slide is a clip of Kohli's net session where the batsman is seen grinding it out against Indian bowlers. Kohli put an inspiring caption as he write, "Keep your head down and keep working 🇮🇳."
The upcoming India vs England series is crucial for India as it will decide if the Indian team manages to qualify for the WTC final at Lord's. Virat Kohli's men will have to win at least two Tests against England without losing the other two matches to ensure a spot in the WTC final against New Zealand which is slated to be played from June 18 to 22.
Virat Kohli needs just one ton to create world record and move past Ricky Ponting
Kohli is on the cusp of creating yet another world record as he is set to become the captain with the most number of centuries in international cricket. The dynamic batsman is just one ton away from becoming the captain with most international centuries. If Kohli manages to do so in the upcoming India vs England series, he will move past Australian great Ricky Ponting. Both are currently tied with 41 centuries to their names while leading their respective nations. Notably, Kohli has taken just 191 innings to notch 41 tons as compared to Ponting's 376 innings.
As far as Kohli's centuries as captain are concerned, 21 have come in ODIs whereas the remaining 20 have come in Test match cricket. The Indian captain is on a century drought as he failed to score a single ton in the year 2020. However, if Kohli's form against England is anything to go by, he is likely to achieve the feat in the upcoming series. The Indian batting mainstay has smashed five centuries against England out of which four have come as skipper of the side.
The India vs England series is set to get underway with the first Test in Chennai starting February 5. The second match will be played at the same venue from February 13-17 whereas the final two Tests will be played at the newly constructed Sardar Patel Stadium (the biggest cricket stadium in the world) in Ahmedabad from February 24-28 and March 4-8. The Test series will be followed by a five-match T20I series that will be played in Ahmedabad on March 12, 14, 16, 18 and 20. On the other hand, the three ODIs will be played in Pune on March 23, 26 and 28.
India squad for England Tests 2021: Virat Kohli (Captain), Ajinkya Rahane (Vice-captain), Rishabh Pant (Wicket-keeper), Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, KL Rahul, Hardik, Wriddhiman Saha, R Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ishant Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Md. Siraj, Shardul Thakur.
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SOURCE: VIRAT KOHLI INSTAGRAM
Updated 12:28 IST, February 3rd 2021