Team India flies to Australia for T20 World Cup
The Rohit Sharma-led Team India departed for Australia in the early morning hours of October 6 to take part in the T20 World Cup.
A 14-member Indian squad flied to Australia, as the side’s premier fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah was ruled out of the marquee tournament with a back injury. His replacement will be announced in the next few days.
The official Twitter account of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) shared a picture of all members of the Team India, including the team management posing for a group photograph before departing for Australia.
“Picture perfect. Let’s do this #TeamIndia. @cricketworldcup, here we come,” the BCCI wrote as they shared the picture.
Former India captain Virat Kohli also shared a selfie picture with fellow teammates Harshal Patel and Yuzvendra Chahal. “Australia bound. Exciting times ahead. @yuzi_chahal @HarshalPatel23,” Kohli wrote.
India’s star batter Suryakumar Yadav, who produced some magnificent performances for the side in the shortest format of the game of late, took to his official Instagram profile to share a picture with wicketkeeping duo Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik, as well as captain Rohit Sharma.
Team India recently defeated South Africa 2-1 in a three-match T20I series, that marked their final bilateral appearance in the shortest format before the World Cup, that begins on October 22. India will begin their campaign at the marquee tournament a day later against arch-rivals Pakistan in Melbourne.
Earlier, India suffered two big blows before the tournament as their all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and Jasprit Bumrah were ruled due to injuries. In Jadeja’s absence, Axar Patel stepped in with consistent performances but speculations remain over Bumrah’s replacement in the squad. Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, and Deepak Chahar are among the frontrunners to replace the 28-year-old pacer, according to reports.
Team India will take part in practice games against Western Australia, as well as two ICC warm-up matches against Australia and New Zealand on October 17 and 19 respectively.