First Test of England's tour of India starts in Hyderabad on Thursday; a BCCI statement says star batter Virat Kohli "emphasised that while representing the country has always been his top priority, certain personal situations demand his presence and undivided attention"
Monday 22 January 2024 16:19, UK
Virat Kohli has withdrawn from India's side for the first two Tests against England for personal reasons.
The first Test of the five-match series between the two sides starts on Thursday in Hyderabad.
Former captain Kohli, who is India's star batter in the middle-order, will also miss the second Test in Vizag from February 2-6.
"Virat has spoken to captain Rohit Sharma, the team management and the selectors and has emphasised that while representing the country has always been his top priority, certain personal situations demand his presence and undivided attention," a statement from Jay Shah, honorary secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India read.
"The BCCI respects his decision and the board and team management has extended its support to the star batter and is confident in the abilities of the remaining squad members to step up and deliver commendable performances in the Test series.
"The BCCI requests the media and fans to respect Virat Kohli's privacy during this time and refrain from speculating on the nature of his personal reasons.
"The focus should remain on supporting the Indian cricket team as they embark on the upcoming challenges in the Test series."
India said that a replacement for Kohli would be named soon.
The 35-year-old has played in 113 Test matches since his debut in 2011 and is just 152 runs away from becoming the fourth Indian batter to reach the 9,000-run landmark.
Kohli also missed two T20s against Afghanistan earlier this month for personal reasons, but came back to the side to complete the series.
Kohli's withdrawal comes a day after England announced batter Harry Brook had withdrawn from the tour due for personal reasons. Dan Lawrence has been called up in Brook's place, with it understood the latter could yet return to the five-Test tour at some point before its conclusion in mid-March.
First Test - January 25-29 (Hyderabad)
Second Test - February 2-6 (Vizag)
Third Test - February 15-19 (Rajkot)
Fourth Test - February 23-27 (Ranchi)
Fifth Test - March 7-11 (Dharamshala)
