
New Delhi: India captain Virat Kohli is all set to play County cricket in his bid
to prepare for the upcoming Test series against England in
August-September.
While it is yet to be ascertained which county Kohli will represent, it could be Surrey in all likelihood.
"Virat will be playing for a division one county side for sure. I
wouldn't like to add anything more to it. There were talks with Surrey
and Essex," a senior BCCI official told PTI today.
It is learnt
that the Indian captain's sole focus is on the five Test series against
England and he is ready to miss the one off Test against Afghanistan
starting June 14 as he will be busy with his county stint.
He
will leave for England after completing his assignment for Royal
Challengers Bangalore in the 11th edition of Indian Premier League.
Kohli didn't have a great Test series in England in 2014 when he failed to get even a single half century.
He was found vulnerable outside the off-stump and Stuart Broad and James Anderson troubled him a lot.
The BCCI is putting in a lot of effort for the upcoming Test series and
want more and more players to get accustomed to English conditions.
Accordingly, Cheteshwar Pujara will be turning up for Yorkshire while Ishant Sharma will be playing for Durham.
It is also learnt that some of the senior India players will also turn
up for India A in England in their bid to prepare for the tour.
The likes of Murali Vijay, Ajinkya Rahane are also expected to prop up their preparations.
PTI