BCCI cracks a whip for England Tests as Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma likely to play India A games; Karun Nair to be in team

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) cracked a whip ahead of the all-important tour of England in June as some of the frontline players of the Indian Test team are likely to be part of the 'A' squad, which will face the Lions in two four-day matches. These pre-tour games will be played in the May-June window, in preparation for the five-match Test series against England. Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma could play India A games before England Tests(PTI)

The senior team's campaign will begin on June 20, with the opening game at Headingley. Ahead of the series, which will mark the beginning of the 2025/27 World Test Championship cycle, India A will play two tour games starting May 30. "The first four-day match will be hosted at The Spitfire Ground, St Lawrence in Canterbury from May 30. The second match is scheduled to begin a week later on June 6 at the County Ground in Northampton," the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said in a statement.

According to a report in the PTI, a few mainstay India Test players will be part of the 'A' team for the tour games. This could put pressure on these players, who are all contracted with their respective IPL franchises at the moment. The playoffs for IPL 2025 will be played on May 20, 21, and 23 before the final on May 25.

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma could be asked to play for India A, especially after their poor run of form in red-ball cricket. The India captain managed just 164 runs in the three Test series the team played since September, including just 31 runs in the tour of Australia. Kohli, on the other hand, averaged just 23.75 in the series against Australia despite scoring a century in the opening in Perth.

Karun Nair to be picked for England tour

The report added that Nair could be included in the India A team for the two games against the Lions. The veteran India batter had capped off a fabulous domestic season, where he emerged as the leading run-getter in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the fourth-highest run-maker in the Ranji Trophy with 863 runs from nine matches at an average of 54 with four hundred and two fifties.

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