(Cricket News) The senior India batsman Virat Kohli is expected to miss the third and fourth Tests in Rajkot and Ranchi, respectively, which means his absence from the England series will get longer.

Sources mention that there are concerns about Kohli’s availability for the fifth Test in Dharmasala, which begins on March 6. The selectors will take this into consideration when they meet this week to choose the India squad for the remaining three Tests.

After landing in Hyderabad, the same morning to join the Indian squad, Kohli left the same day. The BCCI announced on January 22, three days before the England series began, that Kohli had withdrawn from the first two Tests for “personal reasons.”

Since then, the BCCI has not commented on Kohli’s absence. The statement read, “Virat has spoken to Captain Rohit Sharma, the team management, and the selectors and has emphasized that while representing the country has always been his top priority, certain personal situations demand his presence and undivided attention.”

Mohammed Siraj is one of the players who will be returning from his precautionary rest. KL Rahul, who missed the second Test due to a quad strain, and Ravindra Jadeja, who hurt his hamstring in the first Test, are both being monitored for fitness at the NCA in Bangalore.

Although the final report from the NCA physiotherapist is still pending, both players’ prognoses are good. With the third Test not starting for another week, India is hopeful that at least one, if not both, of Rahul and Jadeja will be available for the match, pending fitness clearance.

Rahul, who replaced Kohli at No. 4 and would bring experience to the middle order, was the only confirmed returnee for the Rajkot Test. Siraj, the fast bowler who bowled 11 overs in the first Test defeat at his home ground in Hyderabad, was rested for the second Test due to workload concerns. Jadeja and Rahul were India’s best batters in the first Test, though both missed out on centuries.

The bowling line-up, which depended on the genius of Jasprit Bumrah to win the second Test, will benefit from Siraj’s return. Bumrah, who is the only bowler in the world to have reached the top of the ICC rankings in all formats, recovered from a stress fracture of his back beginning with the World Cup last year. The management of the team will have to manage his workload, but he is expected to play in the Rajkot Test on Thursday.

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