Team India skipper Virat Kohli reached Chennai on Thursday to join his Indian Premier League franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore. Kohli, who recently led India to a series win over England in all three formats, will undergo a seven-day quarantine.

The Bangalore-based franchise announced the arrival of their captain with a social media post.

“Captain Virat Kohli has arrived in Chennai,” RCB said, announcing Kohli’s arrival in a tweet, along with a picture of their captain wearing a mask.


Unlike the other Indian players who were part of the England series, Kohli will undergo quarantine as he quit the bio-bubble in Pune on Monday after the final match of the ODI series against World Champions.

He has been part of bio-secure bubbles since the end of January, ahead of the England series, and was part of each of the four Tests, five T20 Internationals and three ODIs.

The RCB team has already started its training camp on Tuesday for the upcoming season which begins on April 9.

Mike Hesson, RCB’s Director of Cricket, on Wednesday confirmed that skipper Kohli will bat at the top of the order in the upcoming IPL 2021. India skipper Kohli’s masterclass in the series decider against England came when he decided to open the batting in the fifth T20I along with Rohit Sharma. Kohli hammered 80 runs off 52 balls to steer India to 224/2 in the allotted 20 overs. After the win, Kohli had said he is going to open in IPL and Hesson confirmed that the RCB skipper will bat at the top of the order.

“Look for me, form is important. More importantly, it’s about the confidence that they bring in. Some players need performance to get that confidence. Some don’t. Virat is so experienced with RCB. He is going to bat at the top of the order. It’s a position that he knows well,” Hesson said in a virtual press conference

The Kohli-led side will lock horns against Rohit Sharma’s Mumbai Indians in the opening clash of the 2021 season in Chennai.

Apart from Kohli, another RCB mainstay and former South Africa captain AB de Villiers also joined the bio-bubble on Thursday.

“BREAKING THE INTERNET: The spaceship has landed! AB de Villiers has joined the RCB bubble in Chennai. #PlayBold #WeAreChallengers #IPL2021 #AllInForAB,” RCB posted on Twitter.


The 37-year-old batting great has been a key player for the team since he joined the franchise in 2011.

Head coach Simon Katich also came out of quarantine, along with pacer Navdeep Saini as the RCB team underwent another practice session.