Virat might be saving himself for IPL by skipping Test: Brad Hodge

Former Australia batsman Brad Hodge has suggested that Indian captain Virat Kohli, who missed the fourth Test in Dharamsala due to an injury, could be saving himself for the IPL 10.

Hodge, the coach of IPL side Gujarat Lions, said it would be "pretty dirty" of Kohli if he turns out for the IPL opening match as Royal Challengers Bangalore captain against David Warner's Sunrisers Hyderabad on 5 April.

You'd hope as a sportsman that he's seriously injured. I'm hopeful, as a Gujarat Lions coach, that when we play RCB in a couple of weeks, that he's not playing.

Because if you miss one game of Test match cricket and you're fronting up the next week for RCB versus whoever, Bangalore, at Chinnaswamy Stadium - you'd be pretty dirty if he did not front up to a Test match and try and win a valuable series against Australia - which has been pretty spiteful as well. Brad Hodge to Fox Sports News'



Gameday Live

He added:

You would think that your captain would get out there and get among the fight and get in there.

Kohli pulled out of the series-deciding fourth Test against Australia as he was not 100 percent fit after injuring his shoulder during the third match in Ranchi.

Hodge hoped the Indian skipper would not turn out to be like the many cricketers who have "limped" into the lucrative IPL.

It's happened before. Not just Virat but there's many players that have come up to IPL time and... look, we know it's a cash-rich tournament, there's some money up for grabs. He (Kohli) gets paid a helluva lot of money, he gets paid a helluva lot of money anyway, so it does not matter, but there are certain players that will limp in, to IPL time, to make sure they get there and perform well, because it is an important tournament for everyone around the world.