Virat Kohli is set to make his highly anticipated return to the Ranji Trophy after 12 years and is expected for Delhi against Railways in their next fixture scheduled to begin on January 30.
Kohli was excluded from Delhi’s squad for the January 23 match against Saurashtra due to neck stiffness. However, sources within the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) that he will be available for the upcoming clash against Railways.
“Virat Kohli is available for the Ranji Trophy fixture against Railways on January 30. He had some neck stiffness, so he wasn’t available for the match against Saurashtra. We are really happy that he has decided to represent Delhi after all these years,” said sources.
Kohli has played 23 Ranji Trophy matches for Delhi scoring 1574 runs at an average of 50.77. He has smashed five centuries, with his peak form comes in 2009-10 when Kohli scored 374 runs in three matches with an average of 93.50.
Virat scored 57 runs in his last Ranji appearance during the 2012-13 season against Uttar Pradesh. One of the moments of Kohli’s early career came in 2006 while playing for Delhi against Karnataka at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.
During the match, Kohli’s father Prem Kohli passed away from a heart attack. Kohli was unbeaten with 40 overnight, was deeply shaken by the news.
Despite the circumstance he returned to the field the next day and scored a crucial 90 runs for his teammates and attended his father’s funeral.
Kohli has struggled to score consistently in test cricket. Despite his century in Perth test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy, his overall performance in the five match series was underwhelming, managing just 190 runs in total.
His technical flaw has haunted him throughout the series as he repeatedly chased deliveries outside the off stump, leading to his eight dismissals in the similar way.
Being one of the ‘Fab Four’, Virat Kohli managed to scored only three centuries over past four years. However, Kohli is expected to shine in the upcoming ODI series in England’s tour of India and Champions Trophy 2025.
India will play their first match of the CT campaign against Bangladesh on February 20 at Dubai International Stadium.
