Batting superstar Virat Kohli will play for Delhi in their sixth Elite Group D match of the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26 against the Railways at the BCCI Centre of Excellence (COE) in Bengaluru on January 6. The development was confirmed by Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) President Rohan Jaitley on Monday (December 29).
According to Jaitley, as quoted by news agency PTI, Kohli gave his availability for three matches of the premier domestic one-day tournament, and as of now, he is playing.
“As of now, he is playing. Virat has given his availability for three games,” Delhi and Districts Cricket Association (DDCA) President Rohan Jaitley told PTI.
The BCCI diktat for all centrally contracted players was to take part in at least two Vijay Hazare games, but Kohli wants to play a third match as he gears up for the home series against New Zealand this month.
Kohli was in good form in the first two games for Delhi. He scored 131 runs against Andhra Pradesh in the run chase of 299 on December 24 and then made 77 runs from 61 balls against Gujarat in Delhi’s 7-run win on Friday (December 26).
During the first match against Andhra at BCCI’s CoE, Virat also became the fastest batter to score 16,000 List A runs. He reached the milestone in his 330th innings, surpassing the iconic Sachin Tendulkar, who touched the landmark in 391 innings.
A BCCI source said that while the Indian ODI squad for the New Zealand series is assembling in Vadodara by January 8, there is a possibility that Kohli might arrive a day earlier and train.
The three-match ODI series against the Black Caps will begin at the same venue on January 11.
Meanwhile, as PTI had reported earlier, star all-rounder Hardik Pandya and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah will be rested from the ODIs as per their workload management routine created by the sports science team.
The two will be crucial for India during the home T20 World Cup starting on February 7.