IPL will not influence World Cup selection, says Indian captain Virat Kohli

What's the story?

Indian captain Virat Kohli on Friday revealed that the performances of players in the Indian Premier League (IPL) will not have any have any effect on their chances to secure a berth in the World Cup squad.

"No, I don't see the IPL having any influence on World Cup selection. I think that will be very, very radical sort of analysis," Virat was quoted as saying by TOI ahead of the first ODI against Australia.

In case you didn't know...

With the 2019 World Cup scheduled to start in a couple of months, all the participating teams are busy finalising their respective squads for the marquee tournament.

India have been in quite good form in ODI cricket in recent times, with as many as 12 players' spots confirmed for the World Cup. There were speculations that the Indian team management might take IPL performances into consideration to select the final few members, but captain Kohli has ruled that out.

The heart of the matter

"We need to have a solid team. Before we head into the IPL, we need to be absolutely clear of what team we want for the World Cup. I don't see anything changing on how the IPL goes for any of the players," he said.

Kohli also affirmed that if some players fail to perform in the IPL, it will not cost them their World Cup dream.

"If one or two players do not have a good IPL season, it doesn't mean that they are out of the picture for the World Cup. Those things are not going to matter," Kohli added.

What's next?

India recently lost the two-match T20I series against Australia, but will get an opportunity to redeem themselves when they take the field in the first ODI on Saturday at Hyderabad.