VIP Treatment? Virat Kohli's Fitness Test in England Sparks Controversy, BCCI's Decision Under Scrutiny

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): A big controversy has arisen over the mandatory fitness test before the start of the new season of the Indian cricket team. While almost all the top players of the team, including ODI captain Rohit Sharma, Jaspreet Bumrah and Test captain Shubman Gill, are giving fitness tests at the BCCI's new Center of Excellence in Bengaluru, veteran batsman Virat Kohli has been given an unprecedented 'royal exemption' and his test has been conducted in England itself.

According to a report published in a private newspaper, this is probably the first time in the history of Indian cricket that a player's fitness test has taken place outside India. This special exemption has raised many questions and is being seen as the beginning of a "VIP culture". Kohli, who is focusing only on the ODI format after retiring from T20 and Test cricket, has been living in London with his family for quite some time.

According to the report, a BCCI official said that Virat Kohli must have definitely taken permission from the board for this and his fitness report has been sent to the BCCI by the physio.

Except Virat Kohli, almost all the big players including captain Rohit Sharma, fast bowler Jaspreet Bumrah, Mohammad Siraj, T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav and Test captain Shubman Gill have given fitness tests in Bengaluru. However, some players like KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja and Akash Deep, who are suffering from injuries, are yet to be tested. Other players who have given tests in Bengaluru include Hardik Pandya, Shreyas Iyer, Mohammad Shami, Sanju Samson and Yashasvi Jaiswal among others.