Indian cricketers arrive in batches for first test against Bangladesh on September 19

Chennai: Members of the Indian cricket team led by Rohit Sharma started arriving in batches for the first test against Bangladesh to be played at the M A Chidambram stadium here from September 19 as pat of the World Test Championship series.

Start batsman Virat Kohli will arrive on Friday and join the squad, Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) sources told UNI.

The Bangladesh team, high on confidence after its first ever historic 2-0 series win over Pakistan on his home soil a few days back, will arrive on Sunday afternoon, the sources said.

The Indian team members started arriving from their respective home states in batches.

The team is expected to start their training and net sessions from tomorrow, ahead of the first of the two test series as part of World Test Championship series, beginning next Thursday.

Apart from the two tests, Bangladesh will also play three T20s.

India, with six wins, two losses and a draw in nine matches, at present leads the WTC Points table with a winning percentage of 68.52 (74 pts) followed by Australia (eight wins from 12 matches) and New Zealand (3 wins from six matches).

India was placed second in the ICC's official test rankings.

India will be fielding a full strength team that saw return of dashing wicket-keeper/batsman left hander Rishab Pant--back into the team nearly 20 months after he suffered injuries in a car accident--and K L Rahul, while left arm seamer Yash Dayal earned his first ever Test call-up.

Pant has returned to the Test cricket for the first time since December 2022, when India last played in Bangladesh.

Since then, Pant was out of action after he suffered injuries in a car accident after the Bangladesh Tour.

He made a come back to cricketing action in the domestic cricket, scoring a half century for India-Bin the Duleep Trophy a few days back.

Rahul, too returned from injury after being sidelined following the first Test against England this year in Hyderabad.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh will miss the services of experienced seamer Shoriful Islam who was recovering from a groin injury he sustained during the Pakistan tour.

Bangladesh had made only one one change to the squad that defeated Pakistan 2-0 last week. Wicket keeper-batter Jaker Ali Anik was drafted into the side for Shoriful Islam.

Indian team :

Rohit Sharma (Capt), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), R.Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah, Yash Dayal.

Bangladesh team :

Najmul Hossain Shanto (captain), Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Zakir Hasan, Shadman Islam, Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, Litton Das, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam, Nayeem Hasan, Nahid Rana, Hasan Mahmud, Taskin Ahmed, Syed Khaled Ahmed, Jaker Ali Anik.