India have recalled Virat Kohli to their squad for next month’s one-day international series in England, subject to a fitness clearance, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said on Sunday.
The veteran batter missed this month’s ODI series against Afghanistan after sustaining an injury while playing for Royal Challengers Bengaluru during their Indian Premier League title-winning campaign.
Kohli was hurt in Bengaluru’s victory over Gujarat Titans in the IPL final in May, helping the franchise secure a second successive championship.
India will play a three-match ODI series against England, with fixtures scheduled at Edgbaston on July 14, Sophia Gardens on July 16 and Lord’s on July 19.
The return of Kohli is a major boost for the visitors as they prepare for a challenging tour against England, although his participation remains dependent on receiving final medical clearance.
Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, who replaced Kohli during the Afghanistan series, was left out despite scoring a century in the third ODI on Saturday.
Fast bowler Harshit Rana also returns to the squad after recovering from a knee injury that ruled him out of both the IPL season and the Twenty20 World Cup.
Rana was included in India’s squad for the third ODI against Afghanistan but did not feature in the playing XI.
Shubman Gill will captain the side, with Rohit Sharma and Kohli providing experience in the batting lineup alongside Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan.
India squad: Shubman Gill (captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh and Gurnoor Brar.
