Napier, Jan 23: India captain Virat Kohli was on Wednesday rested for the last two games of the five-match ODI series against New Zealand and the following T20 series owing to his "workload in the last few months".
Vice-captain Rohit Sharma will lead the side in his absence.
The selection committee and the team management took the call in view of his packed schedule over the past couple of months when he led India to their maiden Test and bilateral ODI series wins in Australia.
"Considering his workload in the last few months, the team management and Senior selection committee is of the view that it would be ideal for him to get adequate rest ahead of the home series against Australia," said the BCCI in a statement.
"There will be no replacement for Mr. Kohli in the squad for the New Zealand series. Rohit Sharma will captain the side in the final two ODIs and T20I series," it added.
Prior to the Australia tour, Kohli was rested for the home T20 series against the West Indies.
He was also given a break for the Asia Cup in September and Rohit led the team to the title in the event held in the UAE.
The Indian players have a hectic schedule going into the World Cup scheduled to be held in May-July.
After the ongoing New Zealand tour, India will host Australia for five ODIs starting February 24 and soon after the IPL follows.
India lead the ongoing ODI series against New Zealand 1-0 after winning the opening match by eight wickets here Wednesday.
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Hyderabad (PTI): Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi on Wednesday night and urged him to increase the sanctioned strength of IPS officers to the state in view of its growing administrative and security needs.
The two leaders also discussed the recent surrender of several senior Maoist leaders before the Telangana Police and other issues.
"During the meeting, the two leaders discussed the issue of Maoist surrenders and their rehabilitation. The chief minister informed Shah that significant improvements in policing have taken place in Telangana over the past two years," an official release here said.
Highlighting that 591 Maoists have laid down their arms and joined the mainstream of society during this period, the chief minister said the state government was providing them compensation and rehabilitation assistance as per the rules.
He requested the Union home minister to extend financial support from the central government for development works in the backward regions of the state.
Reddy also urged Shah to increase the sanctioned strength of IPS officers to the state from 83 to 105 in line with the state's growing administrative and security needs, the statement said.
The first cadre review after the formation of Telangana was conducted in 2016, while the next review, due in 2021, was delayed and finally carried out in 2025. Even then, only seven additional IPS officers were allocated to the state, the chief minister informed Shah and requested that the third cadre review be conducted in 2026 as per the schedule.
Reddy explained that Telangana, like the rest of the country, is facing several modern challenges, including cybercrime, drug trafficking, white-collar crimes, and other emerging security threats.
He highlighted the reorganisation of the Hyderabad, Cyberabad, and Malkajgiri Police Commissionerates, the proposed formation of the Future City Commissionerate and the rapidly growing population in Hyderabad to underline the increasing administrative requirements of the state.
