"He will surely play a practice match" - Former India batter's massive statement on Virat Kohli's place in IND vs ENG 2025 Tests
Former India cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu believes Virat Kohli will be well-prepared for the side's upcoming England tour. He suggested that the ace batter would reach England early and take part in practice matches to gear up for the challenging assignment.
Sidhu emphasized the importance of playing practice matches in England and opined that it would help Kohli adapt to the conditions. The cricketer-turned-commentator's remarks came during an interview with Sports Tak. He said (from 7:34):
"Virat Kohli will also go there. He will surely play a practice match there before 15 days of the series, even if it is against a county team, because you need to adapt yourself according to the conditions."
India's World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27 campaign will kick off with a five-match away series in England. The opening encounter will be played at Headingley in Leeds on June 20.
Kohli has scored 1096 runs across 17 Test matches on the English soil at an average of 33.21. The right-handed batter had a horrific England tour in 2014, where he managed just 134 runs in 10 innings at an average of 13.40.
He redeemed himself in the 2018 tour. He was the highest run-getter in the five-match series, amassing 593 runs from 10 innings at an average of 59.30. The side last toured England for a Test series in 2021. Kohli finished with 249 runs in nine innings, averaging 29.66.
"Is it mandatory for them to play in the IPL?" - Navjot Singh Sidhu wants senior batters to be part of India 'A' tour of England
Navjot Singh Sidhu stated that the think tank should look to send a strong India 'A' team to England. He reckoned that it would help them identify the players they would want in the main squad for the away series.
The 61-year-old urged team management to consider the likes of Karun Nair, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane in the India 'A' team. Indiciating that some of these players should be sent to England early instead of making them play in the Indian Premier League (IPL), Sidhu added in the aforementioned interview (from 8:50):
"If you don't take five players from domestic cricket, there are guys like Karun Nair, Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara. Is it mandatory for them to play in the IPL? You take them and build the India A team beforehand. Have a few days of net practice there, and then play matches. You ask them for the schedule and tell them we want to play these matches."
Rohit Sharma and Co. suffered a whitewash at home in the three-match Test series against New Zealand, followed by an unsuccessful campaign in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia. The back-to-back Test series shattered the team's hopes of making it to the WTC final.