Kolkata: Virat Kohli will get into groove ahead of India's tour of England by playing county cricket for Surrey. India's captain is set to be available for the London-based side across all formats throughout June, meaning he will miss his country's inaugural Test match against Afghanistan, starting in Bengaluru on June 14, an ICC report on Thursday said.
The 29-year-old averaged 13.40 across 10 innings on his only previous Test tour of England
in 2014 and has made no secret of his desire to acclimatise to conditions by playing county
cricket in the lead-up to a five-match series which begins at Edgbaston on August 1. India also
have three T20Is and three ODIs in July before the long-format battle commences.
"It has long been an ambition of mine to play county cricket and I am thankful to Alec Stewart
and Surrey for allowing me the opportunity to join them during their 2018 season," said Kohli.
"I can't wait to get to The Oval (Surrey's home ground)."
Alec Stewart, former England captain and now Surrey's director of cricket, said: "We are thrilled to have signed the biggest name in world cricket for the month of June. Playing and training alongside Virat will be a massive benefit for our players who will have the opportunity to learn so much from him.
"At a time when there is much discussion around the future of county cricket, the arrival of
Virat should give our domestic game a massive boost and positive exposure around the
cricketing world which in turn can benefit every county."
Kohli is expected to make his debut for Surrey on June 1 in a One-Day Cup fixture against
Kent at Beckenham, and there are at least two further 50-over matches as well as three
four-day County Championship games during his time with the club.
Kohli will become the fourth Indian Test player in English county cricket this season, with
Ishant Sharma and Cheteshwar Pujara preparing for the series against England at Sussex and Yorkshire respectively, while Varun Aaron, who played the last of his nine Test matches in 2015, is representing Leicestershire. (UNI)
