IND vs NZ, 2023: KL Rahul Wedding BCCI grants KL Rahul’s personal leave for WEDDING with Athiya Shetty
Indian cricketer KL Rahul does not feature in the squads for the ODIs and T20Is versus the touring New Zealand side. The series begins on January 18 with ODIs in Hyderabad. “KL Rahul & Axar Patel were unavailable for the New Zealand Home series due to family commitments,” read the BCCI release which announced the squads late on Friday night.
This wedding has been hugely awaited in both the worlds of bollywood and cricket. After Virat Kohli married Anushka Sharma, this is the second time that a bollywood actress will be getting hitched to a an Indian cricketer in recent times. Athiya’s father Suniel Shetty had said last year: “She is my daughter, she will get married sometime. I would want my son to also get married, the sooner the better. It’s their choice. As far as KL Rahul is concerned, I love the boy. And it is for them to decide what they want to do because times have changed.”
The couple has been dating for more than three years and is ready to take their relationship to the next level. The two were thinking of getting married in December 2022 but Rahul is a part of the squad for the upcoming tour of Bangladesh. Rahul failed to perform in the ICC T20 World Cup in Australia. Meanwhile, India will host Sri Lanka for three T20Is and as many ODIs. If the Rahul’s wedding rumours are true, he will miss the six white-ball matches in December and January.
KL Rahul is all set to miss out due to personal commitments, but it is well documented that he has his wedding lined up with Bollywood actress Athiya Shetty in the busy cricket season. The reports say that KL Rahul and Athiya Shetty met each other through common friends. However, there is no official confirmation about the same. On the special occasion of Athiya Shetty’s birthday last year, KL Rahul finally made their relationship Instagram official. KL Rahul took to social media to share mushy photos of the two alongside a short yet romantic caption In all likelihood, he is set to get married and then return for the two match Test series against Australia starting February 9 in Nagpur. However, there is no confirmation for which Axar has pulled out of the series.
KL Rahul and Athiya Shetty’s marriage rumors have come true. The cricketer is all set to marry the Bollywood actress in January 2023. The wedding venue and dates have been decided and KL Rahul’s application to grant him leave for the special occasion has been approved by BCCI. However, the cricketer cited the reason as ‘personal work’ but a report from News18 has confirmed that he wants off days for his wedding. A BCCI source confirmed the news. “KL informed me a few days back that he will marry Athiya next year. After that, a close family member from the girl’s side also told me the same. After the T20 World Cup, the team will go for a New Zealand tour and after this, the wedding will take place in Maharashtra.,” says the report.
Athiya’s father and veteran actor Suniel Shetty in his interview to an entertainment portal last month said: “She is my daughter, she will get married sometime. I would want my son to also get married, the sooner the better. It’s their choice. As far as KL Rahul is concerned, I love the boy. And it is for them to decide what they want to do because times have changed.”As per the reports, Rahul and Athiya met each other for the first through a common friend named Akansha Ranjan Kapoor. On the special occasion of Valentine’s Day last year, the celebrity couple made their relationship official via Instagram. Rahul and Athiya took to the photo and video sharing app to upload mushy photos of each other alongwith romantic captions.
- The couple are set to take their wedding vows in Sunil Shetty’s Khandala Mansion.
- The power couple have ditched five-star hotels and instead opted for a cozy homely wedding
- As for now, the date is not finalized, January 2023 is the month that the couple will become husband and wife after dating for three years.

Suniel Shetty, veteran actor and Athiya’s father, has revealed that he is looking at the possible dates as his family members have to consider the schedules of both Athiya and Rahul before planning out for the big occasion. As per the reports, Rahul and Athiya are planning to ditch 5-hotels for their wedding. Instead, the much-in-love couple has chosen to tie the knot at Suniel’s mansion, Jahaan, in Khandala. A famous wedding organizer has frequently been visiting the actor’s lavish house to finalize the decorations and other arrangements.
This is the third time in 2022 that Dhawan will be leading the Indian side. He has earlier captained during the West Indies ODI series, followed by the home ODI fixtures against South Africa. Dhawan had also led the Indian troops last year during the Sri Lanka tour when the main side was in England for the Test series. Notably, Dhawan was also named as captain during the Zimbabwe series, but at the last minute, KL Rahul was given the responsibility after the latter came back into the side, having recovered from his injury. Ahead of the upcoming first ODI against the Black Caps, Dhawan was quizzed regarding how he felt after being removed from captaincy ahead of the Zimbabwe series.