Virat Kohli To Play Vijay Hazare Trophy Starting December 24, Confirms DDCA Secretary Rohan Jaitley

Vijay Hazare Trophy: Indian talismanic batter Virat Kohli will play the upcoming edition of the Vijay Hazare Trophy, confirmed by DDCA President Rohan Jaitley on Tuesday. As per a report by PTI, Kohli will mark his return to the domestic tournament for the first time since 2010. However, Jaitley also stated that there is suspense around how many matches Kohli will play in the VHT.

Interestingly, Kohli has already retired from Tests and T20Is, with regular appearances in the ODI format. Recently, the 37-year-old showcased his incredible batting form as he scored his 52nd hundred in the series opener at Ranchi.

Kohli's domestic side, Delhi, will kick off their campaign against Andhra in Bengaluru on December 24. In total, they will play six games.

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"He has confirmed his availability to play in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. How many games he will feature in, that is not clear yet. Obviously, him being around will be a massive boost to the Delhi dressing room," Jaitley told PTI.

With Kohli around, fans are expected to flock to the stadium to watch him in action at the ground. Before the England tour in 2025, Kohli made an appearance in a Ranji game against Jammu and Kashmir at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. More than 12000 people came to watch Kohli play, numbers unheard of for a domestic fixture in a long while.

He returned to the Ranji Trophy as part of preparation for international duty but in a surprise decision, he announced his retirement from Test cricket ahead of the England tour.

BCCI has made playing domestic cricket mandatory for contracted cricketers unless they are injured or on national duty.

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Rohit Sharma, who too retired from Tests ahead of the England tour, is expected to play for Mumbai in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

Both Kohli and Rohit were amongst the runs in the series opener against Proteas in Ranchi. They played their first international game in months during the tour of Australia last month.