ODI World Cup 2023: Team India Seen Sporting Vibrant Orange Training Kit Ahead of Australia Clash
The World Cup kicked off on Thursday with a thrilling game between New Zealand and England. Meanwhile, the Indian cricket team arrived in Chennai to prepare for their highly anticipated match against Australia on October 8 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.
Team India was observed in a strenuous training session prior to their first match.The Indian team, led by Coach Rahul Dravid and Captain Rohit Sharma, as well as ace batter Virat Kohli, were spotted at Chepauk in their new orange training gear.
After the arrival of Adidas, their official clothing partner, the Men in Blue were previously spotted wearing black training kit. The German company recently presented a new World Cup kit in the traditional blue colour, which was only released last month.
India wore saffron-colored shirts and navy-blue trousers at the 2019 World Cup, where the ICC mandated home and away outfits. Cricket Australia recently reviewed team jerseys from the tournament's long history, rating India's 2019 ODI World Cup Orange jersey fifth in the rankings.
Virat Kohli was spotted throwing down with head coach Rahul Dravid before facing a tough delivery from Mohammed Shami in practise. R Ashwin also batted in the nets for an extended period of time, while Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav bowled to Shreyas Iyer in the adjacent net.
The World Cup is returning to India after a 12-year absence, with the Men in Blue winning the previous edition under MS Dhoni's leadership.
"Not thinking too much about that stuff but yeah, in the last three editions hosting teams won the World Cups and we will give our everything in this World Cup and enjoy the tournament," Rohit Sharma said of the tournament.
"Everyone is going to enjoy this tournament. The stadiums will be crowded to capacity. Indians adore cricket. "It's going to be an amazing tournament," Rohit continued.
India took some risky decisions in picking its World Cup squad, with top selector Ajit Agarkar and Captain Rohit Sharma expressing complete faith in the players chosen for the mega-event. R Ashwin was called up at the last minute as all-rounder Axar Patel was ruled out owing to injury.
India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya (vc), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav.