Virat Kohli will soon be seen wearing No 18 on his white flannels as the International Cricket Council has allowed Test-playing nations to have the players sport their names and numbers on their jerseys. This move is aimed at popularising the longest format of the game.
The English county sides as well as the Australian state sides playing the Sheffield Shield are used to wearing whites with names and numbers on the back of their jersey but this will be a new experience for the Indian team, who will play the second Test of the World Championship against West Indies wearing numbered white shirts.
“Yes, it starts from August 1 for the World Test Championship. It is a part of the wider plan to promote Test cricket,” Claire Furlong, ICC’s GM Manager [Strategic Communications] said on Friday.
It is widely expected that the Indian team will not use two jersey numbers in Test cricket – No 10 which was used by batting great Sachin Tendulkar and No 7 used by Mahendra Singh Dhoni, PTI reported. The Indian team has unofficially retired jersey No 10, which Tendulkar wore in limited-overs. In all probability, the same will happen with Dhoni’s jersey as well.