India vs England 1st Test: When fans chanted 'Kohli', who is not playing the game

HE is not playing in the first Test between India and England that started in Hyderabad on Thursday (25) but ace batter Virat Kohli is never away whenever his country is playing cricket. The name of the cricketer, who has pulled out of the first two matches due to personal reasons, echoed across Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium on the first day as fans chanted "Kohli", "Kohli" as the day progressed.

The Bharat Army, a group of Indian cricket supporters, came up with a post on X that read, "Hyderabad misses you, King. #ViratKohli #INDvENG #INDvsENG #TeamIndia #BharatArmy #COTI."

Kohli, who recently returned to international cricket in the two-Test series in South Africa, took a leave during the recent T20 series at home against Afghanistan when he skipped the first match.

Read: Drama in Hyderabad as England lose 1 run in 1st Test vs India

The 35-year-old batter, who scored a record 50th hundred in the 50-over format during the World Cup last November, is nearing 9,000 runs in the longest format and needs one century to go past the iconic Don Bradman's tally of 29 centuries.

Read: Sunak office reacts as Pakistan-origin cricketer Shoaib Bashir struggles to get India visa

Kohli fan touches Rohit Sharma's feet on ground

In another incident, a fan was see running on the ground wearing the No.18 jersey of Kohli when India came out to bat and tried to touch the feet of Rohit Sharma, the home captain. Security officials caught him and took him away even as Sharma was trying to dissuade the fan.

India finished the day on a dominant position by reaching 119 for the loss of just Sharma's (24) wicket after England were bowled out for 246 in their first innings. Left-hand opener Yashasvi Jaiswal was batting on 76 while Shubman Gill was unbeaten on 14. India's spinners bowled out England after their captain Ben Stokes won the toss and elected to bat. Stokes was the highest scorer with 70.