Following a rain-marred warm-up clash against reigning champions England in Guwahati, where not a single ball was bowled, Team India is gearing up for their second and final warm-up match ahead of the 2023 ODI World Cup. Their opponents are the Netherlands, making their fifth World Cup appearance after securing the second spot in the Qualifiers event, trailing only Sri Lanka. However, there might be a notable absence from the Indian squad for this match.
Virat Kohli, the former Indian captain and a key No. 3 batsman, could be missing from the lineup due to a personal emergency. As per reports from Cricbuzz, the Indian team traveled to Thiruvananthapuram, a four-hour flight from Guwahati, on a special aircraft, but Kohli was not among them. He had requested leave from the team management and subsequently flew back to Mumbai from Guwahati.
However, there’s good news for Indian fans as Kohli is expected to join the team in Thiruvananthapuram later on Monday.
While India is looking forward to some cricket action in their final warm-up game, the weather forecast for Thiruvananthapuram seems a bit gloomy. Accuweather predicts a cloudy day with a couple of showers and the possibility of a thunderstorm. The chances of precipitation stand at 96 percent, with a 46 percent chance of a thunderstorm. So far, rain has affected three warm-up matches, two of which were held in Thiruvananthapuram. The South Africa-Afghanistan game was washed out, and the Australia-Netherlands contest was reduced to a 23-overs per side affair before being abandoned.
Despite the weather uncertainties, captain Rohit Sharma remains unfazed, referring to these warm-up fixtures as mere formalities. Team India has been in fine form recently, winning the Asia Cup and triumphing over Australia in a three-match series. They will commence their World Cup journey on October 8th against Australia in Chennai. 🏏🌦️ #CricketFever #WarmUpDrama
