Kohli hasn't made official request for break yet: BCCI official

A TOP official of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Tuesday (14) confirmed that India Test captain Virat Kohli has not formally requested the board to seek a break from the one-day international series in South Africa next month.

The ace batter, who will lead India in the three-Test series against the Proteas starting in Centurion on December 26 has reportedly sought to skip the 50-over series due to family reasons. His daughter Bhamika is set to turn one around the same time. The one-day series is scheduled to begin on January 19, four days after the Test series concludes.

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The reports about Kohli planning to skip the one-day international series surfaced after Test vice-captain and limited-over captain Rohit Sharma was ruled out of the Test series on Monday (13) due to a hamstring injury.

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“As of now, Kohli hasn’t sent any formal request to skip the ODIs to either BCCI president Sourav Ganguly or secretary Jay Shah. If something is decided at a later date or God forbid, he sustains an injury, then it's a different matter,” the senior BCCI official privy to developments told Press Trust of India on conditions of anonymity.

“As things stand today, he is playing the three ODIs on January 19, 21, 23,” he added.

The official added that families of all the players are travelling to South Africa aboard the same charter flight due to bio-bubble restrictions.

“The skipper is travelling with his family. But yes, if he feels bubble fatigue after the Test series and wants to take a break, he would definitely inform the chairman of selectors and secretary (Shah), who is the convenor of the selection committee,” the source added.

It may be recalled here that Kohli did not play the T20 series that India recently played at home against New Zealand and also the first Test. He returned to lead the side in the second match and led India to a 1-0 victory in the two-match series.

While certain sections believe not all is well in the Indian dressing room ever since Sharma replaced Kohli as the captain in the 50-over format, one reason for the speculation over Kohli seeking to skip the one-day international series is bio-bubble fatigue. The Indian players will be in an extended bubble for three weeks once they return from South Africa to prepare for a home series against Sri Lanka.

Kohli has in the past spoken over workload management in bubble life which he feels is not sustainable for long periods of time as it can affect one’s mental health.