Team India ban open net practice sessions after crowd distracts players: Report

Adelaide [Australia], December 4 (ANI): Team India on Wednesday banned open net practice sessions after more than 5000 spectators came to the Adelaide Oval to watch the side, according to a report from The Age.

According to the report, the tourists felt uncomfortable during the open net session amid a carnival atmosphere on the ground. However, Australia’s sessions will be open to the fans.

A Cricket Australia spokesperson said that India expressed their preference for the remaining training sessions, and wants it to be under closed doors to minimise potential noise or distractions.

“India have expressed a preference for their remaining training sessions not to be open to the public to minimise potential noise or distractions,” a CA spokesperson was quoted by The Age as saying.

With India ramping up its preparations for the second Test, players engaged in fierce throwdown sessions and bowlers took on star players on Tuesday. The highlight of the entire session was the moment when Kohli stepped up to face Bumrah at the other end.

The battle started with Kohli letting a couple of balls go away. Then Bumrah upped the ante as Kohli, who was covering his stumps, saw the ball go past the off-stump.

Kohli showed his class with an impeccable backfoot punch, showcasing how switched on he was while going up against India’s ace quick.

One of the most notable things throughout the training session was the movement off the pitch Bumrah was able to generate. While bowling around the wicket, Bumrah was able to beat Rishabh Pant’s outside edge with ease.

India are currently 1-0 up in the BGT series following their record-shattering 295-run victory in Perth. The second Test will be played in a day-night format in Adelaide, beginning from Friday.

Australia squad (for second Test): Pat Cummins (C), Scott Boland, Alex Carey (WK), Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Nathan McSweeney, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster.

India squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Devdutt Padikkal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar.

Reserves: Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Khaleel Ahmed, Yash Dayal.