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Virat Kohli directly lands in Chennai at 4 am from London, set for home Test return after 18 months in IND vs BAN

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Virat Kohli directly lands in Chennai at 4 am from London, set for home Test return after 18 months in IND vs BAN

When there is Virat Kohli, there is buzz. There is excitement and there is intensity. The place and time are irrelevant on most days but Chennai might have a say in this. After all, it is set to host Virat Kohli in whites for the first time at home in 18 months. Kohli’s last Test in India was in March last year. The excitement around his arrival at the Chennai airport in the early hours of Friday narrated exactly that.

Virat Kohli directly lands in Chennai at 4 am from London, ready for first home Test in 18 months(REUTERS)

Kohli flew directly from London to join the rest of the Indian players for a pre-season preparatory camp ahead of the two-match Test series against Bangladesh that would mark the beginning of India’s home season. Surrounded by security personnel, Kohli landed at the Chennai airport around 4 am on Friday and made his way to the hotel.

Since winning the T20 World Cup in June, he has spent most of his time in London. In between, he did turn up for a three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka but again went back as there was a long gap between that white-ball series and the home Test series.

A lot has changed since Kohli last played a Test match for India in South Africa in January of this year. After becoming a world champion in the format for the first time, he has decided to quit T20Is, just like captain Rohit Sharma. But the similarities end there. Unlike Rohit, who captained India in the home series against England earlier this year, Kohli hasn’t featured in the longest format for a long time now.

He took a break from the entire five-match series against England due to the birth of his second child. Naturally, the anticipation to see Kohli back in the Test side is rising.

Eyes on Pant and KL Rahul too

Kohli, however, is not the only attraction for the Bangladesh series. Star players Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant, and KL Rahul were spotted boarding the team bus at the airport on Thursday.

Pant is making a comeback after a life-threatening accident in December 2022.

The team also features newcomers Akash Deep and Yash Dayal, who received their maiden call-ups. The spin quartet of Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Kuldeep Yadav will provide a strong bowling attack, supported by pacers Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Yash Dayal.

Bangladesh, led by Najmul Hossain Shanto, is looking to build on their recent historic Test win against Pakistan. The team has made one change, replacing injured pacer Shoriful Islam with uncapped batter Jaker Ali.

This series is part of a busy schedule for India, followed by a three-Test series against New Zealand and the highly-anticipated Border-Gavaskar Trophy series in Australia.

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