Team India will clash with New Zealand in the World Test Championship (WTC) final at Southampton starting from June 18, followed by a five-match red-ball series against the hosts. When India’s Test team would be in England, another side would be touring Sri Lanka to participate in three T20Is and as many ODIs.
Considering head coach Ravi Shastri will be unavailable for tSri Lanka tour, Rahul Dravid will be the head mentor for the series against the Islanders.
Paras Mhambrey and T Dilip have been appointed the bowling and fielding coaches for the second string Indian squad.
While Mhambrey was in contention to be Dravid’s deputy, Dilip’s inclusion in the side comes as a surprise. The 39-year-old has completed a Level III coaching course and was the fielding coach of the Hyderabad team and also associated with India A side.
For the unversed, Mhambrey is a former Indian cricketer who played 2 Tests and 3 ODIs for his national team.
The 20-member India squad will begin their mandatory quarantine in Mumbai on Monday and board the flight for Colombo after 14 days. The Shikhar Dhawan-led side, on reaching Sri Lanka, will undergo a three-day hard quarantine followed by its softer version where restrictions will be relaxed, and the players can start their practice.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has also scrapped off the fitness test- mainly the Yo-Yo test and the 2 km run- keeping in mind the pandemic situation that has made it difficult for cricketers to practice.
India’s apex cricketing body had already stated that all the six encounters would be played at the R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium in Colombo. The series would start with ODIs from July 13.
