Virat Kohli doubtful for start of IPL 2017

Dharamsala: Indian skipper Virat Kohli, who is still recovering from a shoulder injury he sustained during the recently-concluded Test series against Australia, is doubtful for the start of the tenth edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), beginning April 5.

Kohli, who captains Royal Challengers Bangalore side in IPL, faces a battle to be fit for the lucrativeT20 tournament after being ruled out of India's eight-wicket win against Australia in the fourth Test in Dharamsala.

After India reclaimed the Border-Gavaskar series 2-1 against the Steve Smith-led side, Kohli revealed that he needs few more weeks to be back in action.

"It's still a few weeks to go before I can be 100% on the field. But these things happen in your career. You have to take it in your stride and move forward," he said in a post-match presentation.

The 28-year-old sustained the right shoulder injury while putting in a dive on the first day of the drawn third Test in Ranchi.

Previously, Kohli had missed only one game for the RCB, which was way back in the inaugural season in 2008.

The Royal Challengers Bangalore will kick start their IPL campaign against defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad.