Virat Kohli ends 5-year Ranji Trophy break as Delhi includes Indian batting superstar in list of probable players

The Delhi District Cricket Association (DDCA) has added Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant to their list of 30 probable players for the upcoming Ranji Trophy season. The 2024-25 domestic cricket season in India is set to kick off on October 11, with Delhi facing off against Chhattisgarh in their opening match. It marks a significant return for Kohli, who last featured in the Ranji Trophy in 2019. However, his inclusion in the probable's list may be short-lived as he will be gearing up for the upcoming Test series against New Zealand, which is scheduled to start on October 16. Despite this, it's a positive sign for DDCA to have the star batter back in the mix, even if only temporarily.

With the BCCI tightening the leash on Indian cricketers, the idea is to make sure more established players return to play domestic cricket is whatever capacity possible and prioritise the same. It was a mighty serious decision given how Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan were stripped of their central contracts for not following the norms. Even Hardik Pandya reportedly promised the BCCI to turn up for domestic cricket – either Ranji or Vijay Hazare – whenever the calendar is slightly open.

"The committee has selected the following probables for consideration in the Delhi Men's Senior Squad for the upcoming Ranji Trophy tournament in the 2024-25 domestic season. A fitness test for the selected players will take place on September 26 2024, with the venue details to be communicated by the team manager," the release said with names of 84 cricketers in the list including the likes of Navdeep Saini, Ayush Badoni, Yash Dhull and Anuj Rawat.

But putting Kohli in the list makes little sense as it's given that at 35 years of age and all that he has earned over the years, Kohli needs to be used judiciously by Indian cricket. With a long Test season ahead, Kohli will channel all his energy and focus on the upcoming five-Test series in Australia starting November, the Champions Trophy and the World Test Championship final next year. The same goes for Pant as he is just making a comeback into the Indian team after a year away due to injury. Pant did, however, play one game in the Delhi Premier League, so never say never. He even played the first-round Duleep Trophy game.

It was way back in 2012, 12 year ago that Kohli last played a Ranji Trophy match. He scored 14 and 42 against Uttar Pradesh before getting out to Bhuvneshwar Kumar in both innings.