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On Saturday (June 6), the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the squads for the upcoming T20I series and Asian Games 2026, but not for the ODI series, which will begin against England from July 14. Why did BCCI not announce the ODI team for the England series?
Team India is currently struggling with many injuries and fitness concerns. Some of their top-class players, like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Harshit Rana and Varun Chakravarthy, are a matter of concern due to their fitness status. As per the current update, the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee did not announce the ODI squad due to injuries to Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
Team India is struggling with the problem of many injuries.
Virat Kohli is completely out of the three-match ODI series against Afghanistan. Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya’s participation in the competition is dependent on their fitness before the series.
On the morning of 6th June, news came that Hardik Pandya is all set to play in the ODI series against Afghanistan. According to the latest reports, BCCI’s Center of Excellence has declared the fast bowling all-rounder fit and the board has also received the clearance certificate.
Rohit Sharma has not been able to prove his fitness yet
While there are positive updates on Pandya, other notable players, who have been struggling with their fitness, are yet to get the go-ahead from the medical team. Rohit Sharma is in a recovery session and is expected to regain match fitness before the ODI series.
If reports are to be believed, Rohit Sharma can join the ODI team a few days before the first match of the three-match ODI series against Afghanistan. Before that, he has to complete all the required sessions during the recovery period.
Kohli’s situation is more serious. He has torn his hamstring muscle, which will require a lot of time to get back to normal shape. Confirming Virat Kohli’s injury during the press conference, Ajit Agarkar claimed that he has not yet received the detailed report from the medical team regarding Virat Kohli’s injury. As of now he has no idea when the charismatic batsman can make a comeback for Team India.
Why the delay in announcing the ODI team for the England series?
It is believed that due to uncertainties regarding Rohit and Virat, BCCI is taking extra time in announcing the team for the ODI series against England.
Dainik Jagran’s report on Abhishek Tripathi’s ‘X’ post claims, “Due to the fitness report of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, the team has not been announced for the ODI series against England.”
In a separate ‘X’ post on June 4, he claimed that Virat Kohli would be available for the England series. However, the national cricket team selector did not give any specific timeline for Virat’s return.
England’s squad for the Forty series has not been announced due to the fitness reports of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. https://t.co/3O8u558qEz
– Abhishek Tripathi/Abhishek Tripitaka (@abishereporter) June 6, 2026
“With Virat at the moment, it’s been less than a week since he injured himself [IPL] Final. We don’t know the timeline yet, but it looks like he could be fit for the England ODI series. This is not a definitive answer, so don’t hold me to it. “I have not received any clear timeline from the physio yet,” Agarkar told the media.
Since Virat Kohli has been ruled out of the Afghanistan series, BCCI has announced his replacement. Yashasvi Jaiswal has been included in the ODI squad as a replacement for the injured batsman to face Afghanistan in the white-ball format.
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