Virat Kohli.
Credit: Reuters Photo
Cricket fans in Bengaluru will get to see Virat Kohli play in a domestic game in the city after a long time after it was confirmed that the star batter will turn up for Delhi in the Vijay Hazare Elite Group D tie against Andhra on December 24.
Karnataka will be taking on Kerala in Ahmedabad on the same day though all eyes will be on the Delhi vs Andhra tie, which will be held at the Alur Cricket Stadium on the outskirts of the city .
The 37-year-old had recently racked up his 52nd ODI hundred against South Africa in the series opener at Ranchi, showing he remains sharp as ever despite playing just one version of the game.
"He has confirmed his availability to play in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. How many games he will feature in, that is not clear yet. Obviously, him being around will be a massive boost to the Delhi dressing room," Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) chief Rohan Jaitley was quoted as saying by PTI news agency.
Gujarat, Saurashtra, Odisha, Services, Railways and Haryana are the other teams in Delhi's group.
The league matches are currently scheduled to be played at Alur, while
the knockout matches, including the final, are set to be to be played in the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) Centre of Excellence Ground.
However, Kohli will not be part of the knockouts should Delhi reach that far as he is set to play in India’s three-match ODI series against New Zealand between January 11 and 18, 2026.
Fans are expected to turn up in numbers to watch the action at the ground when Kohli is around.
Earlier this year, Kohli made a grand spectacle of an otherwise drab Ranji Trophy game when he played his first first-class match in more than 12 years.
More than 12,000 people came to watch Kohli play, numbers unheard of for a domestic fixture in a long while.
He returned to Ranji Trophy as part of preparation for international duty but in a surprise decision, he announced his retirement from Test cricket ahead of the England tour.
BCCI has made playing domestic cricket mandatory for contracted cricketers unless they are injured or on national duty.
(with inputs from agencies)