Key facts
- Virat Kohli returns to the India squad for the England ODI series
- The Guardian notes he 'keeps getting better' ahead of the series
- His form closely watched as India assess 50-over batting combinations
Virat Kohli's return to the England versus India ODI series has set the cricket world alight, with The Guardian summing up the mood succinctly: 'He keeps getting better.' The headline signals both the excitement around Kohli's comeback to the 50-over format and the sense that, even at this stage of his career, he remains the defining figure of the series.
Kohli's presence transforms any bilateral series into a marquee event, particularly in England, where his record and his battles against English conditions have produced some of the most memorable innings in modern cricket. His return comes at a time when India are also navigating questions around their T20I form, making his ODI performances doubly significant as a measure of the team's overall batting health.
For English fans and broadcasters alike, Kohli in an ODI whites on English soil is a box-office certainty. For the Indian team management, his return offers the chance to assess his form and fitness in a competitive international environment as the team looks to build its 50-over combinations.
The series against England provides Kohli with a stage he clearly relishes, and early indications suggest his appetite for big performances remains undimmed. How he fares across the ODIs will be scrutinised as closely as anything else happening in world cricket right now.