BCCI reacts to Mukesh Kumar wearing 'Jersey No 18' in India A vs England Lions match, says 'there are no fixed numbers as jerseys don't...'

Former India Test captain Virat Kohli called time on his red-ball career on England tour. After the retirement announcement, there were calls to retire the 'Jersey No. 18'. However, pacer Mukesh Kumar was seen donning the jersey no.18 during the first unofficial Test between India A and England Lions in Canterbury which ended in a draw on June 2.

Mukesh is not a part of India's Test squad as Akash Deep was preferred over him for five-Test series against Ben Stokes' England. However, even if he comes as a replacement player, he won't be donning Kohli's jersey number. The Bengal pacer will continue to wear the no.49 jersey which he was wore in three Tests, six ODIs and 17 T20Is.

"Mukesh wore No. 18 during the opening 'Test' match versus Lions. But when it comes to India A squad, there are no fixed numbers as jerseys don't have names. Anyone can pick any random number. The jersey numbers are only sacrosanct for international games," a senior BCCI official told PTI.

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This is not the first time a bowler has worn the jersey number of a legendary player. Once Shardul Thakur wore the jersey no.10 that belongs to Sachin Tendulkar. He faced backlash for wearing the jersey no.10 in the ODI clash against Sri Lanka. On the other hand, no Indian player has worn the jersey no.7 since MS Dhoni's retirement from international cricket.

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Mukesh's performance against England Lions -

After a lacklustre run in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 for Delhi Capitals (DC), Mukesh was selected in the India A squad. He bowled a total of 25 overs including five maidens, conceded 92 runs and claimed three wickets. His most prized wicket of the match was Max Holden who scored a run-a-ball 101. His other two scalps were England Lions captain James Rew and the senior team's leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed. Mukesh had the best bowling figures among India A bowlers.

India A batters score big

While three England Lions batter scored centuries to help the hosts post 587, India A batters were impressive. Karun Nair justified his comeback to Test squad with a 204-run knock. Sarfaraz Khan and Dhruv Jurel were dismissed in 90s. In India A's second innings, Yashasvi Jaiswal, captain Abhimanyu Easwaran, Jurel and Nitish Kumar Reddy scored fifties. India had a 211-run lead when the match ended in a draw.