Net gains

By Paritosh Pramanik

THE chinks were ironed out for one last time by both the teams as India and England cricketers did their nets on the eve of the first ODI at VCA’s Jamtha Stadium on Wednesday.

India, who preferred to practice in the afternoon on Tuesday, decided to have a feel of the ground under lights on Wednesday.

“We would like to see how much dew will be there in the evening and then only we will decide on the team composition,” India vice-captain Shubman Gill had said on Tuesday.

Though there was no dew when the lights were put on, the Indian nets was in full flow. The pace department was given rest and was not seen bowling. India batters took the services of net bowlers and throw-down specialists even as bowling coach Morne Morkel watched them bat with chief coach Gautam Gambhir.

PITCH UNDER COVER

The match pitch which was kept open on Tuesday was under cover for most part of the day on the eve of the match. The groundsmen were seen shaving off the last blade of grass on Tuesday and on Wednesday nothing such activity was seen as the 22-yard track kept wrapped under red blankets.

HIT-MAN ARRIVES

It was the 50-over format where Rohit Sharma got the name of Hit-Man for his swashbuckling batting. In the nets, Rohit showed his brute side hitting deliveries after deliveries into the stands announcing ‘Hit-man’s arrival’. He connected the ball beautifully, from the middle of his bat as the ball sailed into the stands on several occasions. Even the carpet driven shots were unstoppable. Hope he continues in the same vein on the morrow.

LIGHT WORKOUT

BY ENGLAND 

CRICKETERS

The England cricketers played it safe and did not slog it out for long under the sun.

There was a bit of running and stretching on the field before the players ventured back into the pavilion. A few, including captain Jos Buttler and Joe Root, hit the batting nets but most of them were inside the cool environs of the dressing room. The afternoon temperature on Wednesday in Nagpur hovered around 30 degree Celsius.

Later clouds brought some respite for them and Root was seen taking some throw-downs. He tried to fine-tune his pull shots, hitting them to quite a distance. The next batters followed him and they too freed their arms.

BUTTLER VISITS RR’S TALEGAON HPC

England captain Jos Buttler made a special visit to the Rajasthan Royals High Performance Centre (HPC) in Talegaon. Jos also took the opportunity to step onto the field, playing a few balls with the the IMSE tribal kids’ cricket team. 

The young cricketers were thrilled to bowl and bat alongside the England captain, making it an unforgettable experience for them. Buttler also inspected the pitches at the HPC, taking a keen interest in the training conditions and infrastructure.