(July 24), Once their first practice in Sri Lanka was over, India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir and Hardik Pandya sat next to each other in the team bus.
The Indian cricketers were in a cheerful mood during their first practise session under new head coach Gautam Gambhir, especially T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav and star all-rounder Hardik Pandya. The cricketers seemed to benefit greatly from the break following the T20 World Cup, as they returned to the team for the three T20I and three ODI matches in Sri Lanka. The Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) will start the tour on July 27 and the ODIs on August 2.
This tour of Sri Lanka is a new beginning for Indian cricket in many ways. Following their thrilling victory in the T20 World Cup—their first ICC trophy in eleven years—Rahul Dravid’s time as head coach came to an end. Veteran players Ravindra Jadeja and Virat Kohli, along with captain Rohit Sharma, declared their retirement from the shortest format.
The immediate task of selecting a new captain for the Twenty20 Internationals fell to the selectors and new coach Gambhir.
Though it was difficult, they chose to start Suryakumar Yadav over vice-captain Hardik Pandya, who led India to victory in the T20 World Cup, because they believed Surya had a greater chance of avoiding injuries and being available for as many games as possible.
During Inda’s first nets session in Pallekele on Tuesday, there was no indication of any tension surrounding that. The majority of the training session focused on one-on-one interactions, running, and catching. Additionally, Captain Suryakumar Yadav engaged in conversation with the players.
Gambhir was observed conversing with all-rounder Shivam Dube and offering some batting advice to Sanju Samson.
