Fans couldn't keep calm even as Virat Kohli was heading for an optional practice session at the Optus Stadium in Perth ahead of the opening ODI against Australia on October 19, Sunday. Fans were seen cheering loudly for the 36-year-old, who will make a comeback to international cricket after seven months.
The Delhi-born cricketer has drawn spectators at large numbers even for the practice sessions, given he is all set to play at the international level for the first time since Champions Trophy 2025 final. As a result, stadiums for all three matches are likely to be packed and Kohli will hope to get big scores to stay in contention to play in the 2027 World Cup.
The former Indian captain has a good record in ODIs in Australia, aggregating 1327 runs at 53.12 in 29 matches.
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"Hopefully, those two guys will have a successful tour" - Gautam Gambhir on Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma
Following the Test series against the West Indies, head coach Gautam Gambhir was asked about the chances of Kohli and Rohit featuring in the 2027 World Cup. He responded the below, as quoted by ESPN Cricinfo:
"Look, 50-over World Cup is still two-and-a-half years away, and I think it is very important to stay in the present. That is very important. Obviously, they are quality players, they are coming back, their experience is going to be a handful in Australia as well. Hopefully, those two guys will have a successful tour, and more importantly, as a team, we will have a successful series."
India’s ODI squad: Shubman Gill (Captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (VC), Axar Patel, KL Rahul (WK), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Yashasvi Jaiswal.
