India vs England: ‘Family is very, very important’, Kevin Pietersen drops hint on why Virat Kohli missed first two Tests

Former England batter Kevin Pietersen dropped a hint around the reason behind Virat Kohli’s withdrawal from the first two Tests in the England series. However, Pietersen did not give out any information, but suggested that for Kohli, family remains very important. Pietersen did not want to fuel any speculation that has been doing the rounds after former South Africa captain AB de Villiers suggested that Kohli might be expecting his second child.

Speculations regarding Kohli’s availability for the final three Tests against England in Rajkot, Ranchi, and Dharamshala have been doing the rounds and the selectors too are not very certain. During a conversation with fellow commentator Harsha Bhogle on TalkSport, Pietersen did acknowledge that he might be aware of the reason behind Kohli’s withdrawal from the Tests in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam, but then stopped short of going into specific details.

He also did say that Kohli and his wife Anushka Sharma are expecting their second child. Responding to a query on whether or not Kohli will be present for the third Test in Rajkot, Pietersen said, “I might”, before quickly adding: “But I don’t know these things can change in a dime. He was in Hyderabad, then he left Hyderabad.”

“Family is very, very important for Virat Kohli and he’s achieved what he has in the game. Many wish they could achieve half of what Virat Kohli has in the game and he is allowed to spend time with his family and allowed the luxury to almost pick and choose because of what he has achieved in the game,” he said.

The doubts over Kohli’s availability have indeed left India’s selection committee waiting to announce the squad for the last three Test matches. After a loss in Hyderabad, India bounced back in some style to clinch the second Test match at Visakhapatnam by 106 runs to draw level in the series.

KL Rahul, who too was out of the second Test, could make a return for the third Test, but it will be interesting to see who makes way. Shreyas Iyer has been struggling to get going after getting starts, while Shubman Gill cracked an important ton in the second innings. Rajat Patidar, who replaced Kohli in the squad, looked quite good in his brief stay during this second Test at Visakhapatnam.