Former India captain Sourav Ganguly, currently the president of BCCI, has confirmed that India will come up with a second-string side against Sri Lanka for the limited-overs series in July.
Ganguly has revealed that both the teams will play three One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and five T20 Internationals (T20Is) in the Island nation. However, the schedule wasn’t announced yet. The BCCI boss said the Indian side would be different from the one touring England in June-September.
“We have planned a white ball series for the senior men’s team during the month of July where they will play T20 Internationals and ODIs in Sri Lanka. Yes, it will be a team of white-ball specialists. It will be a different team,” Ganguly told PTI.
The decision to send a ‘B’ team in Sri Lanka also points out the fact that the apex Indian board is eyeing the upcoming T20 World Cup and wants to prepare an alternate XI.
“The BCCI president is very keen that all our top players are match ready, and since England doesn’t have a white ball leg, the month of July can be utilized well,” a source told PTI.
Since the senior side, including some promising youngsters, have already been named in the Test squad for the upcoming England Tests, this clearly means that the likes of Prithvi Shaw, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan and some other white ball specialists could get an opportunity to impress selectors in order to get a place in the national T20 side.
Ganguly has also confirmed that the remainder of the recently postponed Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 will not occur in India.
“No. India is supposed to go to Sri Lanka for three ODIs and five T20Is. There are lots of organizational hazards like 14-day quarantine. It can’t happen in India. This quarantine is tough to handle. Too early to say how we can find a slot to complete the IPL,” Ganguly told Sportstar.
