English county Surrey confirms signing of Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli tops the ODI batsmen rankings. File Pic
Virat Kohli has signed a six match contract with Surrey in June.
File Pic

Xtra Time Web Desk: Indian captain Virat Kohli has signed a six match contract with county side Surrey. Kohli will be seen in action for the English county in June. The Indian captain will join the likes of Pujara and Ishant Sharma who are currently plying the trade with county sides Yorkshire and Sussex respectively.

Kohli will be the sixth Indian to play for Surrey. The Indian captain had expressed his willingness to have a county stint ahead of the tour of England which includes five Tests after the ODI and T20I series.

Kohli is currently busy leading Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League but is expected to join Surrey as soon as the T20 league is over.

Speaking after signing for the club, Kohli said: “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. I can’t wait to get to the Kia Oval.”

He added, “It’s long been an ambition of mine to play county cricket and I’m thankful to Alec Stewart and Surrey for allowing me the opportunity.”

Kohli signing for Surrey will mean he will miss India’s one off test match against Afghanistan which will be played out in Bangalore.

Alec Stewart, the Director of the county said in a statement, “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.”

India start the 72 day long tour of England with a three match T20I series followed by a 3-match ODI series. Both teams will then face-off for a five-match Test series which begins on August 1 at Birmingham.

Before the England trip, the Indian team will play two T20Is against Ireland. The matches will be played in Dublin on June 27 and 29 respectively.