Virat Kohli vs Naveen-ul-Haq unlikely to feature in India vs Afghanistan ODI series for this reason

India are gearing up for a rare three-match ODI series against Afghanistan next month. One of the biggest talking points of the series could have been a possible face-off between former India skipper Virat Kohli and Afghanistan pacer Naveen-ul-Haq. The two clashed after an IPL 2023 match between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) earlier this month.

Both Kohli and Naveen were fined by the IPL for their clash – Virat lost 100 per cent of his match fee while the Afghanistan pacer lost 50 per cent of his match fee. After the RCB-LSG game, Naveen posted Instagram stories of sweet mangoes whenever the Bangalore-based franchise didn’t do well in other matches. Naveen had also uploaded a hilarious meme video on his Instagram story after RCB were knocked out of the tournament after losing to Gujarat Titans in their last match.

But now, contrary to reports in some circles that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is planning to cancel the proposed home series against Afghanistan due to a busy calendar, there is a possibility that the second-tier team will feature all senior players, including ODIs. can play along And senior player Virat Kohli along with Test captain Rohit Sharma rested ahead of the West Indies tour.

Lucknow, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and now Chennai crowd chanting Kohli Kohli just before Naveen ul Haq

pic.twitter.com/HhJnw3TAeL— Angel (@BluntIndianGal) May 24, 2023

All the Indian players were involved in IPL 2023 for about two months and will be in England for a WTC final, but after that, most of the senior players like Kohli and Rohit will need rest before leaving for the West Indies tour where all three formats will be played. Will go Kohli and Rohit will definitely play two Tests and one ODI and will need adequate rest.

With the only window for the Afghanistan series between June 20-30, the BCCI may shorten the series or convert it into a T20I or ODI-only series and play a second-string team led by Hardik Pandya. Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) chairman Mirwaiz Ashraf is in India for the IPL final and with a meeting between members of the Asian Cricket Council set to take place, the India and Afghanistan cricket boards may also finalize details of their proposed white-ball series. In.

The Indian team has a busy schedule after the conclusion of IPL 2023. The coaching staff and some members of the team have already left for England to prepare for the World Test Championship final against Australia, starting June 7. There is also a full tour of the Caribbean lined up next.

India will play two Tests, three ODIs and five T20Is against the West Indies from July 12 to August 13, after which the team is expected to play a three-match T20I series in Ireland. The Ireland series will feature mostly IPL performers and even Pandya may be rested from that series keeping the Asia Cup in mind.

The ACC board members will meet on the sidelines of the IPL final to finalize the future of Asia Cup 2023, which means the workload for the Indian players will increase considering that 50-overs is a crucial World Cup. By October-November. If the final goes through, the Asia Cup 2023 is expected to be played in September, which means Indian players will be hard-pressed to find time to rest and recuperate, and a packed calendar is already in full swing for key players. Like Jasprit has seen Bumrah and big injuries. There is no set timeline for Shreyas Iyer’s return.

Additionally, in September, India is also set to play a three-match ODI series against Australia – the second such series this year – to finalize preparations for the ODI World Cup 2023.

According to ‘Cricbuzz’, the BCCI is finding it difficult to schedule the Afghanistan series, which is scheduled to have three ODIs, due to time constraints and the termination of the broadcast deal with Disney Star and the issue of new tenders. proposed to be organized.

However, BCCI secretary Jay Shah during an earlier interaction with the media in Mumbai had said, “The BCCI media rights tender will be on schedule this year (June-July) and it will depend on the Afghanistan tour, but more likely the process will start next month.” Will start from.” Australia Series. The board will talk to all the stakeholders concerned and come up with an interim decision.

(With PTI inputs)