T20 World Cup 2024: Virat Kohli reaches New York, warm-up game participation uncertain

Star cricketer Virat Kohli joined his India teammates at the hotel in New York after his 16-hour-long flight landed on Friday, May 31. However, his participation in India’s solitary warm-up match against Bangladesh on Saturday, June 01, is still uncertain.

The former India skipper was allowed a short break by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) after Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s elimination from the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 Playoffs. While the other members of the squad reached the States in a couple of batches, the New Delhi-born took a breather and stayed back in India before embarking on the trip to the ‘Big Apple’ city. He could not take part in India’s optional practice session. The veteran checked in at the hotel and decided to rest.

“Virat Kohli has checked in at the team hotel, and after a long flight, he will be taking a rest,” a senior BCCI source was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.

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There was an optional training session on Friday morning, in which the likes of Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube and Mohammed Siraj sweated it out under the watchful eyes of the support staff.

Kohli has missed three training sessions so far, as India look to end their 11-year wait for an elusive ICC title. However, he won’t be too perturbed as he was in scintillating form in IPL 2024, finishing as the highest run-getter, with 741 runs from 15 matches at 61.75. Even if he skips the warm-up match, the Delhi batter will get three quality training sessions ahead of India’s tournament opener against Ireland on June 5.

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The Men in Blue have played only three T20Is this year. They whitewashed Afghanistan in a three-match home series in January. In the previous edition in 2022, the Rohit Sharma’s men lost to England in the semifinals. Last year, India faced defeat in the ODI World Cup and World Test Championship finals against Australia. They would be gutted to win the silverware in this year’s T20 World Cup, which begins on June 2.

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