Team India is set to face Australia in the 1st ODI in Perth on Sunday, October 19. The match will also mark the return of Virat Kohli to international cricket. Kohli, who retired from Test and T20I formats, will be playing his first ODI post Champions Trophy win in 2025.
During his interview with Ravi Shastri and Adam Gilchrist on Fox Cricket, the Indian cricket stalwart spoke about spending time with family in UK. He spoke about how refreshing it was to slow down and reconnect with family.
Reflecting on his time in the UK, Kohli said,“I got to spend some real quality time with my kids and family something I haven’t been able to do much over the years. It’s been a beautiful phase, one that I deeply cherish,”.
Kohli recently returned to India from UK and was snapped at Delhi airport on his way to join the team down under. He had earlier left for London, along with his wife, Anushka Sharma, and their two children, immediately after the conclusion of the IPL 2025 season, during which he won the title for the first time with the Royal Challengers Bangalore.
India bat first against Australia
Shubman Gill lost his first toss as ODI skipper as Team India were asked to bat first by Australia skipper Mitchell Marsh. Nitish Kumar Reddy was handed his maiden ODI cap by Rohit SHarma.
Australia, however, will be without several key players due to injury, including regular ODI captain Pat Cummins, Cameron Green, and Josh Inglis. Adam Zampa will also be absent, as he remains on paternity leave.
India Playing XI: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (capt), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Nitish Reddy, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj