County Ground date for Virat Kohli this summer as India confirm warm-up match in Northampton

Ahead of the five-match Test series against England in August, it has been confirmed that India will play India A at Wantage Road as part of the tourists' warm-up for the clash against Joe Root's men.

Skipper Kohli is currently ranked the fourth best batsman in the world in the latest ICC Test rankings, and he is joined in the top 10 by team-mates Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane.

They also possess top 10 ranked bowlers such as Ravichandran Ashwin and Jasprit Bumrah, while Ravindra Jadeja is the rated as the third best Test all-rounder in the world.

The squads also possess a wealth of other talented players, and the India versus India A match will take place across four days from July 21-24.

A statement on nccc.co.uk read: "Some of the world’s finest international cricketers will be on show at the County Ground this summer as we welcome India and India A.

"Virat Kohli’s Indian side take on India A in a four-day warm-up fixture that promises to be a showcase of high-quality cricket.

"With six Indian players currently occupying places in the top 10 of the ICC’s world test rankings this is an incredible opportunity for cricket fans in Northamptonshire to watch some of the very best the game has to offer."

It is hoped that Covid-19 restrictions will have eased enough by then to allow supporters into the County Ground, and tickets for all four days of the fixture are set to be made available in March.

Cricket fans can register their interest at https://nccc.co.uk/news/the-county-ground-to-host-india-in-2021/

Following on from the match at Northampton, India and India A will meet again in another four-day game at Grace Road in Leicester on July 28 before the first Test against England at Trent Bridge from August 4.