Kohli fit to lead India after back injury
Virat Kohli has been passed fit to play in the third Test and took a full part in India’s training session yesterday despite suffering a back injury at the weekend during the innings defeat at Lord’s.
Kohli was off the field during England’s innings at Lord’s after complaining of lower-back pain. He also had treatment on the field while batting on Sunday.
He said after the match he would bat through the pain in Nottingham but expected the injury to limit him in the field, so it was an encouraging sign for India that he was able to take part in slip-fielding practice yesterday. “He is feeling much better. You saw him in the nets, he is moving much better and improving by the day,” said Ravi Shastri, the India coach.
India have selected the wrong team for both Tests so far. At Edgbaston, they went for the extra seamer, and, at Lord’s, picked left-arm wristspinner Kuldeep Yadav in conditions suited to seam and swing. For this Test, they are likely to revert to three seamers, with Jasprit Bumrah fit again after missing the first two Tests with a hand injury.
“In hindsight, it was an error,” said Shastri about the Kuldeep selection. “We should have gone, seeing the conditions, with an extra seamer.”
Rishabh Pant is set for a Test debut as wicketkeeper, replacing Dinesh Karthik, who has kept tidily but had two ducks in four innings. The 20-year-old Pant has been a sensation in the Indian Premier League and did well on the India A tour to England before this series, prompting the A team’s coach, Rahul Dravid, to back him to adapt his game to the longer format.