Nagpur: The Indian cricket team has an important opportunity to finalize its preparations ahead of the upcoming T20 World Cup through the five-match T20 series against New Zealand. This much-anticipated series will begin on January 21, with the first match to be played on Wednesday at the VCA's Jamtha Stadium in Jamtha, Nagpur. The reigning world champion Indian team arrived in Nagpur on Saturday and took part in an optional practice session on Sunday.
Star all-rounder Hardik Pandya did not participate in the optional session due to fatigue. Apart from him, all other players sweated it out during the nearly two-and-a-half-hour-long practice. The session began with warm-up and catching drills. Thereafter, except for fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah and mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy, the rest of the players practiced batting under the supervision of fielding coach T. Dilip.
In the first net session, opening batters Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson faced Bumrah and Vidarbha’s net bowlers. Bumrah bowled with accurate line and length. Abhishek looked aggressive and played several attractive shots over long-on and long-off. Samson, however, appeared to struggle initially, but in the second net he found better rhythm against the spinners. India’s spin attack in the nets included Chakravarthy, Axar Patel, and Ravi Bishnoi.
Ishan looks most impressive batter
Ishan Kishan and captain Suryakumar Yadav began batting against the spinners. Ishan, who is in excellent form in domestic cricket, emerged as the most impressive batter in the nets. Along with playing attacking shots, he also respected good deliveries. Vidarbha fast bowler Kunal Kungwani challenged him for some time. Suryakumar showed patience early on and later found his rhythm with his trademark shots. Ishan praised some of Suryakumar’s shots played against the fast bowlers. Meanwhile, Abhishek was seen giving batting tips to Shivam at the nets and also bowled a little towards the end. Bishnoi, too, played a few shots with the bat.
All-rounder Shivam Dubey bowled first and then, in the final half hour, played some big shots while batting. Axar looked in excellent rhythm with both bat and ball. Rinku Singh displayed aggressive intent while batting after bowling spin. Samson, after wicketkeeping practice, batted against throwdowns and was the last player to leave the nets. Overall, during this optional practice session, the team appeared confident and ready to take the field ahead of the T20 series against New Zealand. The remaining players and support staff will arrive in Nagpur from Indore on Monday.
Captain and vice-captain hold discussion
After net practice, Indian captain Suryakumar and vice-captain Axar Patel sat near the center wicket and held a long discussion. The center wicket prepared for the match was covered at the time. During this period, the Indian captain was also seen having an extended conversation with pitch curator Abhijit Piprode.
Learning opportunity for net bowlers
Fast and spin bowlers from various clubs in Nagpur bowled in the nets to India’s star players. This gave the young bowlers an excellent opportunity to spend time with and learn from international cricketers. The net bowlers included Sammesh Deshmukh, Gaurav Dhoble, Shantanu Chikhale, Vikram Patel, Rahul Dongarawar, Kunal Kungwani, Adhyayan Daga, Aditya Khiloute, Arya Durugkar, and Mandar Godmare.