No Sign Of Virat Kohli As Rohit Sharma, 6 Others Take BCCI's Fitness Test. Report Says: "Mandatory..."

Several top cricketers like Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Jasprit Bumrah, Washington Sundar, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Mohammad Siraj, and Shardul Thakur will undertake a pre-season fitness test at the Centre of Excellence (COE) in Bengaluru on Saturday, according to a report. A DEXA scan, used for testing bone density, and blood tests will also be conducted before the start of the new season. However, there is no clarity regarding Virat Kohli, who is currently active only in ODIs, the Indian Express report said.

"All players have to undergo a pre-season fitness test — it's mandatory as per the contract. These tests help the COE understand the areas the players have to work on or where they are lacking. As there was a big break (after the England Test series), the players were given sets of exercises to do at home,” a BCCI official said.

There is a lot of intrigue surrounding Rohit, 38, and the 36-year-old Kohli's future, as the duo have already retired from Tests and T20Is. Their ODI future is also under a cloud, as the next big ODI event — the World Cup — is close to two years away.

The Yo-Yo Test is a fitness test that was introduced during Virat Kohli's tenure as captain.

Recently, reports suggested that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is set to introduce the Bronco Test for the Indian cricket team. The Bronco Test involves multiple shuttle runs of 20 metres, 40 metres, and 60 metres. Head coach Gautam Gambhir was reportedly on the same page regarding the test, and this decision was taken following fitness concerns during the five-match Test series against England.

With Indian stalwarts Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli aiming to play in the 2027 World Cup, former India batter Manoj Tiwary stated that the introduction of the Bronco Test could make things difficult for the ODI skipper.

Speaking to CricTracker, Tiwary stated that the Bronco Test might have been introduced just to filter out Rohit from the 2027 ODI World Cup.

"I think it will be very difficult to keep out Virat Kohli from the plans for the 2027 World Cup. But I have a doubt that they are going to look at Rohit Sharma in the scheme of things because... See, I'm a very keen observer of what's going on in Indian cricket. And I believe this Bronco Test, which was introduced a few days back, is for players like Rohit Sharma — someone who I believe they don't want to be a part of the team in the future. And that's why it has been introduced," said Tiwary.

"You know, the Bronco Test will be one of the toughest fitness parameters that has been introduced in Indian cricket. But the only question is — why now? Why not when your new head coach got the assignment from the very first series? Whose idea is it? Who introduced this? Who enforced this Bronco Test a few days back? So it is a question for which I don't have an answer, but my observation says that it is going to be difficult for Rohit Sharma if he doesn't work really hard on his fitness. And I think he will be stopped at the Bronco Test," he added.

Topics mentioned in this article

Virat Kohli Rohit Sharma India Cricket Team Shubman Gill Cricket