Pallekele: The India team kicked off their preparations to gear up for their upcoming white-ball series against Sri Lanka in Pallekele under new head coach Gautam Gambhir.
Under the watchful eyes of the new head coach, Indian players performed various drills. Gambhir observed the players with a smile on his face.
In a video shared by the BCCI, Gambir was engaged in a conversation with Sanju Samson, seemingly discussing the tactical aspect of the game.
The Indian team arrived in Pallekele on Monday after holding a press conference alongside chief selector Ajit Agarkar in Mumbai.
Later in the day, the 15-member India team along with the support staff left Mumbai and arrived in Sri Lanka on Monday night.
The three T20Is will be held on July 27, July 28 and July 30, which will be followed by a three-match ODI series that will start from August 1.
The Pallekele International Stadium will be hosting the T20I leg of the series, while the R Premadasa is getting to host the 50-over matches.
Suryakumar Yadav will lead the Indian team in the T20I series, while Rohit Sharma will serve as the captain in the three 50-over games.
Shubman Gill, who led the Men in Blue in the 4-1 T20I series triumph over Zimbabwe, will be Suryakumar’s deputy in the forthcoming three T20Is against Sri Lanka.
Star India all-rounder Hardik Pandya, who acted as the deputy of Rohit Sharma in India’s successful T20 World Cup run, won’t handle the leadership responsibilities.
India’s last tour of Sri Lanka for a bilateral white-ball series came back in July 2021, with Dravid coaching the Shikhar Dhawan-led side. India won the ODI series 2-1, while Sri Lanka secured the T20I series by the same margin.
India’s T20I Squad: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Suhubman Gill (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rinku Singh, Riyan Parag, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Khaleel Ahmed, and Mohammed Siraj.
