After a well-deserved month-long break, Rohit Sharma and his team are back in action, kicking off their preparations for the upcoming two-Test series against Bangladesh. Under the guidance of new head coach Gautam Gambhir, the squad began training at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Friday, as they gear up for the first Test scheduled on September 19.
The entire team, including captain Rohit Sharma and batting maestro Virat Kohli, reunited for the practice session, joined by new bowling coach Morne Morkel and batting coach Vikram Rathour. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) shared images from the practice session, captioning them, "The countdown starts as Team India begin their preps for an exciting home season." The images captured the squad attentively listening to instructions from Gambhir, his support staff, and skipper Rohit.
Rohit arrived in Chennai on Thursday, while Kohli, fresh from his trip to London, flew in early on Friday. Video footage showed Rohit, wearing a yellow jersey, leaving the airport under the protection of security personnel, while Kohli landed in Chennai in the early hours. Several other key players, including pacer Jasprit Bumrah, KL Rahul, and wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant, had already arrived in the city on Thursday.
After a lengthy break, the players are keen to move past the disappointment of losing the ODI series to Sri Lanka in August and focus on bouncing back under the leadership of Gambhir. This will be India's first Test series under Gambhir’s tenure as head coach, and it will be intriguing to see how Rohit’s side tackles Bangladesh, who are on a high after their 2-0 Test series victory over Pakistan.
With crucial World Test Championship (WTC) points on the line, India aims to maintain their lead in the standings. India currently tops the table with 68.52 percentage points, closely followed by Australia with 62.50 percentage points. Bangladesh, buoyed by their recent success against Pakistan, has climbed to fourth place with 45.83 percentage points.
The second Test of the series will take place in Kanpur, starting on September 27. This two-Test series marks the beginning of India's grueling 10-match Test season, which includes a home series against New Zealand and the highly anticipated five-match Border-Gavaskar series in Australia later this year. With WTC points and momentum on the line, all eyes will be on how India performs in this crucial home season opener against Bangladesh.
