Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma Turned Down BCCI's Request To Play Duleep Trophy Ahead Of Crucial Home Season: Report

India were handed a reality check by New Zealand ahead of the much anticipated Border-Gavaskar Trophy. After a prolonged 20 years, India were whitewashed on home soil in a Test series. Chasing a modest target of 147, The famed Indian batting lineup fell down like a pack of cards losing the final and third Test by 25 runs. Rishabh Pant stood tall with a valiant 64 but his contribution wasn't enough as the home side was submerged to a new low. The loss has now put India's position in the World Test Championship in a spot of bother as Australia leapfrogged them to the first place. They now need to win four out of the five Tests against Australia to keep their WTC final hopes alive. As per an Indian Express report, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja were offered the chance by the Ajit Agarkar-led BCCI selection committee to take part in the Duleep Trophy but none of them participated in the red ball tournament citing "fatigue” as the reason. However, a few of the prominent Indian players with the likes of KL Rahul, Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant warmed up in the tournament in a bid to get into the groove for the upcoming home season. A camp in Chennai ahead of the five home Test matches was mooted enough to tackle the opponent on home soil but that wasn't the case. Rohit Sharma led the Indian team to a comfortable 2-0 series win but against the Kiwis, they faltered in every aspect. Ahead of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, alarm bells have already started ringing as any mistakes in the five-match Test series would end India's hopes in the current WTC cycle. Washington Sundar turned out to be a rare shining light in what proved to be a disastrous display by the Indian team. The all-rounder will travel to Australia as a part lf the Indian squad and will hope to replicate his magic on Australian soil.