Why Is Virat Kohli Not Playing the 1st ODI Against England in Nagpur? Rohit Sharma Reveals

The biggest news from the first ODI between India and England is that Virat Kohli won’t participate in the fixture. He sustained an injury to his right knee on the match eve and was in a knee strap as he was in the training session before the contest.

This news is a major concern just a few weeks before the Champions Trophy 2025 as Virat is integral to the ODI team. The management hopes this injury is minor, so excluding him from the game is precautionary to avoid exacerbating his injury.

Kohli has been enduring a lean patch in international cricket but is a master in ODIs, as his numbers suggest. At No.3, he has achieved ample success and is the best batter of the side, so his fitness is crucial for the team.

India have not played this format enough since the World Cup 2023 as T20Is and Tests galore, so Kohli needs to play at some stage to get into the ODI groove. He failed badly in the ODI series against Sri Lanka last year and will need more game time on true batting decks to redeem himself before the ICC event.

Yashasvi Jaiswal replaces Virat Kohli in the XI for the first ODI

An injury to Virat Kohli paved the way for Yashasvi Jaiswal’s ODI debut in the first ODI against England. He boasts a fabulous List A record, accumulating 1511 runs at an average of 53.96 and a strike rate of 86.19 in 32 innings, with the help of seven fifties and five centuries.

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It remains to be seen where Jaiswal bats later in the day because India have a settled opening pair in Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill. Jaiswal is naturally an opener and thrives at the top.

So, India can shift Gill to No.3 for this game and open with Rohit and Jaiswal. The team sheet posted by the official handle of BCCI had Gill at No.4, which is interesting in several ways.

Shreyas Iyer has done a fine job at this position and should continue if he is in the XI. Even if India have to change the order for a few matches, they should slot Gill at No.3 and not disturb other batting positions.

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