In what has come as a significant setback for the Indian cricket team and its fans, in particular for those who were excitedly awaiting the return of Virat Kohli in national colors, the 37-year-old has reportedly been ruled out from the upcoming ODI series against Afghanistan.
India are set to host Afghanistan in a one-off Test match in Mullanpur from June 6. That will be followed by a three-match ODI series, beginning on June 13 in Dharamsala.
The second and third IND vs AFG ODIs are scheduled for June 17 and 20 in Lucknow and Chennai, respectively.
Ever since the retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli from Test cricket last year, India’s ODI series have been highly anticipated events with the two stalwarts now in the last phases of their international careers and both eyeing the 2027 World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia.
Kohli is fresh off another terrific IPL season, where he helped his franchise, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), lift a second consecutive IPL trophy.
The right-hander was his side’s leading run-scorer with 675 runs at an average of 56 and a strike rate of 165. Kohli notched up one century and five fifties. He was the Man of the Match in the final against Gujarat Titans for his 75*, and hit the winning six as well. However, in the final, he suffered an injury that will reportedly keep him out of a return to international cricket this month.
IND vs AFG: Why will Virat Kohli miss the ODI series against Afghanistan?
As per a PTI report, Kohli will sit out the ODI series against Afghanistan due to a hamstring injury that he sustained during the IPL final against Gujarat Titans. “He is out of the ODI series due to a hamstring injury,” a BCCI source told PTI.
Further, even Rohit is dealing with a hamstring issue. Sharma missed a few games for the Mumbai Indians in the middle of the season and played the last five league matches as an Impact Player as he wasn’t completely fit to field for 20 overs.
Rohit reportedly has been asked by the BCCI to report to the Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru for fitness tests, and his participation in the IND vs AFG ODI series is subject to fitness clearance.
Kohli had a bumper 2025 in ODIs. Last year, he scored 651 runs in 13 ODI knocks at an average of 65, notching up three hundreds and four half-centuries. This included a memorable ICC Champions Trophy campaign where he slammed a century against Pakistan in the group stage and an 84 against Australia in the semi-final as India had an invincible tournament.
He also began 2026 with a bang with scores of 93 and 124 against New Zealand in the home ODI series.
If Kohli doesn’t feature in the ODIs against Afghanistan, his next opportunity will come in July when England will host India for a three-match ODI series.
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