Why Is Virat Kohli Not Playing Today's 1st India Vs Afghanistan ODI?

Senior batter Virat Kohli will miss India’s first ODI against Afghanistan at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala on Saturday (June 13) due to a rare hamstring injury. The 37-year-old was ruled out of the three-match series last week.

Kohli suffered the injury — called the distal semimembranosus tendon tear — while batting in the IPL 2026 final against the Gujarat Titans at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The injury involves a rupture of a hamstring tendon near the knee, an uncommon occurrence in athletes.

However, reports have suggested he only needed a couple of weeks for recovery. That means he could have played the final ODI against Afghanistan on June 20 but the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)

didn’t want to risk rushing him, considering the team is supposed to travel to Europe later this month and play an ODI series against England in July.

Who has replaced Virat Kohli in India’s 11?

When Kohli was ruled out of the series, the BCCI called up Yashasvi Jaiswal as his replacement. Before the match, bowling coach Morne Morkel chose to maintain the suspense around Kohli.

“In terms of that number three slot, that’s something that in this series we’ll play around with. Even if it’s Ishan or KL (Rahul) or Yashasvi (Jaiswal), it’s a nice opportunity now. We’ve got a couple of one-day games coming up and we’ll give guys opportunity in different slots. Just to give ourselves a better idea in terms of how we can go and structure the team and have different options,” Morkel said.

India’s playing 11 without Virat Kohli: To be updated