Jay Shah opens up on Kohli, Rohit’s absence from Duleep Trophy

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretary Jay Shah revealed the reason behind the absence of star batters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma from this year’s edition of the Duleep Trophy.

When probed about the absence of senior batters from the domestic tournament, the BCCI Secretary gave a blunt reply, stating that they may sustain injury.

Shah’s statement came when India are set to play 10 Tests from September to January. The upcoming busy schedule commences next month when the two-time World Test Championship (WTC) finalists take on Bangladesh in a two-match series.

Jay Shah also coined examples of top cricket-playing nations like Australia and England, asserting that not all of their key players domestic cricket often.

However, contrary to Shah’s claims, England Test captain Ben Stokes recently featured in the County Championship, representing Durham while his Australian counterpart Pat Cummins, is likely to feature in the Sheffield Series, according to a report by ESPN Cricinfo.

“We should not insist on players like Rohit and Virat to play in the Duleep Trophy. They will risk injury. If you have noticed, in Australia and England, every international player does not play domestic cricket. We have to treat the players with respect,” Jay Shah was quoted as saying by ANI.

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For the unversed, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma last played Indian domestic cricket back in 2012 and 2016 respectively.

Jay Shah then went on to highlight that most of the Indian international players are featuring in domestic cricket before lauding Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer for their participation in the Buchi Babu Tournament.

“Apart from them, everyone else is playing. You should appreciate that,” said Shah.

“One must note that Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer are playing in the Buchi Babu tournament.”

READ: Jay Shah breaks silence on India visiting Pakistan for Champions Trophy