India To Face India A In Beckenham Town Ahead Of Five-Test Series Vs England: Report
India are expected to use a ground under Kent's jurisdiction, at a suburban outpost near London, for their preparations for the five-Test series.
The Indian Test team, which will play England in a five-Test series from June 20 at Headingley, are all set to play a closed door warm-up game against India A in Beckenham, a town in Greater London, before their campaign in the 2025-27 World Test Championship begins, according to a report in Cricbuzz.
India are expected to use a ground under Kent’s jurisdiction, at a suburban outpost near London, for their preparations for the five-Test series.
related stories
According to the report, discussions took place regarding the possibility of broadcasting the intra-squad game, an India vs India A match.
The proposal didn’t find approval from the concerned authorities, as the Indian side preferred to keep the game off-camera, behind closed doors.
According to the report, the intra-squad game is the sole practice match scheduled ahead of the first Test at Headingley in Leeds, beginning on June 20.
As of now, no games against local county sides have been planned. The Beckenham venue, located in the southeastern part of London, is said to have good facilities.
The practice match is all set to take place around June 13, with the Indian side expected to reach England around June 9.
Some cricketers may opt to travel earlier after completing their Indian Premier League commitments, as seen in earlier years, but there is no confirmation on this as yet.
Ahead of the five-Test series, the India A side will travel to England and will play two four-day matches against the England Lions besides the one against India.
The first match will be at Canterbury, Kent’s main ground, from May 30 to June 2 and the second match will be from June 6 to 9 at the Northamptonshire Cricket County Club field.
The Indian side is expected to be selected sometime next month and there will be a discussion on whether India skipper Rohit Sharma will lead the team or not.
There have been contrasting reports on this. According to a certain report, a lot will depend on how Rohit’s Indian Premier League season pans out. Till now, he has scored 0, 8 and 13 in three games, with 21 runs at a miserable average of seven.
- Location :
- First Published: