Virat Kohli likely to miss Duleep Trophy final

Indian Test skipper Virat Kohli might be rested for the Duleep Trophy final scheduled to be held under the lights from September 10 to September 14. The pink ball match will be played at Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik stadium in Greater Noida, the venue chosen for all the Duleep Trophy matches this year.

Interestingly, the big names like Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina and Gautam Gambhir were ignored for the selections for the 2 T20Is against West Indies, keeping in mind that they would be given a chance to play with the pink ball under the lights. The BCCI was keen on giving its top players a feel of the newest trend in Test cricket. Moreover, the reactions from the senior players were on the agenda of the BCCI.

Speculations were being made that Virat Kohli might also feature in the Duleep Trophy final and get his hands at the pink ball under lights. However, with a gruelling and a long home Test season coming India’s way in the next 12 months, Virat Kohli is likely to be given some rest for his preparation for the national duties.

India is scheduled to play 3 Tests and 5 ODIs against New Zealand starting on September 22 before hosting England for 5 Tests, 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is in November this year. With such heavyweight games lined up, not just Kohli but other senior players like Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammad Shami and Ishant Sharma are also likely to be rested for the Duleep Trophy game.

Kohli and co have just returned from the 4 match Test series against West Indies. The newly appointed Indian Test skipper became the first ever captain to win more than one match in the Caribbean islands after a thumping 2-0 victory in the Tests against West Indies.

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However, for the domestic cricket fans, the finals might well still feature some of the international stars like Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin and Amit Mishra.

The BCCI upgraded the zonal format of Duleep Trophy to a format similar to that of Challenger Series this year. India Red under the leadership of Yuvraj Singh have already made it to the finals. The winner of India Green and India Blue, that kicks off on September 4, will play India Red in the finals.