Virat Kohli sustains groin strain; likely to miss first ODI against England - Reports

Former India captain Virat Kohli will reportedly not partake in the first ODI against England at The Oval tomorrow (July 12). The 33-year-old is said to have suffered a groin strain during the third T20I at Trent Bridge, Nottingham.

According to sources, Kohli was not part of the contingent that traveled to London. The ace batter is instead likely to have made his way to get a medical check-up to assess the extent of the injury.

Team management have no issues with Kohli, who was involved in the last two T20Is, taking a break.

As things stand, the player is still expected to be involved in the second and third ODIs that will conclude the tour. A BCCI source told PTI on condition of anonymity:

"Virat has a groin strain during the last game. It can't be confirmed whether it happened during fielding or while batting. He will probably miss the first ODI tomorrow at Oval as the groin needs rest."

He suffered a back spasm earlier this year which caused him to miss the second Test against South Africa in Johannesburg.

Kohli's injury woes have forced the BCCI to delay the squad selection for the upcoming five-match T20I series against the West Indies. The selection committee is expected to announce the squad on Tuesday (July 12).

With the majority of the ODI squad playing a role in the three-match T20I series, the optional practice net session at The Oval saw a light turnout. Shikhar Dhawan, Prasidh Krishna and Shardul Thakur were present during the session to prepare for the series.

Keeping the COVID-19 situtation in mind, Team India are slated to depart from Manchester to the Port of Spain in a chartered flight upon the culmination of the ODI series. The source added:

"The Indian team will be taking a charter flight to the Caribbean."

Kohli scored a sublime 82 in his last ODI at The Oval

Averaging 38.40 across seven innings at the Kennington Oval, Kohli also holds two fifties at the historic venue.

With the ace batter in desperate need of runs under his belt, he will miss out on batting on a surface where he has looked comfortable in the recent past.

Virat Kohli might still have the chance to make amends during the remainder of the series. The second and third ODIs are scheduled to be hosted by Lord's and Old Trafford respectively.