According to Times of India, Rohit Sharma, captain of the Indian cricket team, was the sole front-line batsman not to go into the nets during a warm-up session on Wednesday in anticipation of the 2025 Champions Trophy match against New Zealand. After the victory over Pakistan, Indian players first practiced at the International Cricket Council (ICC) Academy and, while every player warmed up by running laps and playing football, Rohit did not engage in any hard physical activity.
According to the write-up, he “jogged softly under the supervision of Strength and Conditioning coach Soham Desai” but was not moving freely. During the presentation following the game with Pakistan, he claimed everything was good and there was no need for concern, though he had a hamstring injury in the game.
Rohit had talks with head coach Gautam Gambhir and the rest of the coaching staff while doing some shadow batting and not facing any throwdowns, the report says.
Virat Kohli, meanwhile, spent much time facing spinners as bowling coach Morne Morkel returned from home after addressing a personal emergency.
Apart from spending more than half an hour playing the net bowlers before the Sunday match vs New Zealand, Virat also encountered Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, and Ravindra Jadeja during the training.
While Harshit Rana and Arshdeep Singh also seemed committed to delivering their best during the session, pace bowling staple Mohammed Shami was spotted bowling at full speed, swinging the ball both ways and rousing Kohl twice on his pads.
All bowlers looked well prepared and sharp under Morkel’s gaze for the New Zealand challenge.
Morkel had to go the Indian camp a few days before the Champions Trophy opener of the team against Bangladesh on February 20.
Head coach Gautam Gambhir was seen engaging in a lengthy conversation with the ex South Africa pacer at the ICC Academy while the team warmed up. The only player not to appear for practice was Shubman Gill, India’s outstanding batsman in the competition.