The Board of Control for Cricket in India has announced that captain Virat Kohli will be rested for the last 2 ODIs and the T20I series against New Zealand citing his workload concerns.
Rohit Sharma will captain India in his absence. As of now, no replacement player has been named.
"Considering his workload in the last few months, the team management and Senior selection committee is of the view that it would be ideal for him to get adequate rest ahead of the home series against Australia," the board said in a media statement.
The workload of the Indian captain has been closely monitored by the board and he has been given rests at frequent intervals. Rohit captained the side in his absence during the Nidahas Trophy and the Asia Cup last year.
Kohli's schedule has been very hectic
Kohli, who swept all the ICC awards on offer, has played 14 of the 15 Tests India played since the start of 2018. He scored 1345 runs in this period. He also featured in 18 ODIs and scored 1400 runs.
The board has not named any replacement as of now, which could mean Shubman Gill might get to make his debut in one of the aforementioned matches.
Jasprit Bumrah, another player who plays for India across all the three formats, was rested for the ODI series in Australia and New Zealand and with the World Cup being the sole focus for all the teams, this is a move which is well thought out.
India lead the ODI series 1-0 after an eight-wicket win in Napier.
"It was one of our more balanced performances in the last few games. When I lost the toss, I thought it was going to be 300 par. One-fifty-odd on that wicket was superb," the captain said after the match.
Mohammed Shami, who has been brilliant with the ball, drew special praise for the captain for his man of the match performance.
"The fast bowling group together believe they can knock any side over. And the belief in his own ability and his fitness - this is the fittest I've seen him in his career. And his Test form has translated into one-day cricket. The pitch got slow in the second half of the innings but in the first half the spinners bowled well, cramped the batsmen and they still made it difficult despite the dimensions on the field," he added.
