Six players, including top batsmen Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and KL Rahul, arrived in Colombo on Sunday, July 28, and booked into the ITC Ratnadipa Hotel in preparation for the forthcoming ODI series against Sri Lanka. Others had already gathered, with Rohit and Virat arriving in the capital city last. Prior to the next ODI series, they were originally supposed to hold their first practice session at the R. Premadasa Stadium on Monday. This stadium is roughly six miles away from their lodging.
The Colombo weather on Monday morning was cloudy with a slight drizzle. But by the time the Indian force reached the ground in the late afternoon, the rain had turned very heavy. The sky parted, unleashing a deluge that made the distinctive blue and yellow benches pitter-patter unceasingly. It did not aid their cause that a few members of the Sri Lankan team were also in attendance.
Also Read: Rohit, Virat, and their teammates arrive in Colombo for the ODI series against Sri Lanka
The information was posted on the X (formerly known as Twitter) feed of journalist Vimal Kumar, who is now in the island nation. He also claimed that the practice session had to be cancelled due to the ongoing rain and wet outfield. “Rain greets Rohit Sharma and his teammates as soon as they enter the stadium for their first practise session,” Vimal wrote.
Rain welcomes Rohit Sharma and his teammates just when they arrived in stadium for first practice session! pic.twitter.com/kO1IDCu2JM
— Vimal कुमार (@Vimalwa) July 29, 2024
Experienced all-rounders from Sri Lanka, Angelo Mathews, Abhishek Nayar, and Rohit were seen chatting on the stairs of the stadium that led to the dressing room on the upper deck while they helplessly watched the downpour.
First practice session of ODI team canceled due to heavy rain and wet outfield. pic.twitter.com/oiK4u4k3vj
— Vimal कुमार (@Vimalwa) July 29, 2024
Nayar, Gautam Gambhir’s deputy as head coach, was given the task of overseeing the Colombo session by the Indian team management. After the second Twenty20 International, the assistant coach had left for Colombo early on Monday morning.
India’s ODI squad vs Sri Lanka: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (wk), Rishabh Pant (wk), Riyan Parag, Shreyas Iyer, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Khaleel Ahmed, Harshit Rana
India
