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Team India's batting maestro Virat Kohli touched down in New York on Friday, May 31 to join the India squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024. While Sports Tak has confirmed the arrival of Kohli five days after his India teammates, his participation in the upcoming warm-up game against Bangladesh on Saturday, June 1 remains unclear. Following a long 16-hour flight, Kohli will prioritise rest initially. A decision on his participation in India versus Bangladesh's practice match at the Nassau County Cricket Ground on June 1 will depend on his physical state.
Virat Kohli arrives in New York for T20 World Cup
Despite arriving later than his teammates, Virat Kohli's recent strong IPL performance (741 runs in 15 games) suggests he might not need extensive match practice. He'll also have three focused net sessions before their opening match against Ireland on June 5. This isn't the first time Kohli has joined India squad a little late. He was previously granted a break before the South Africa Test series, traveling to South Africa initially before leaving for personal reasons in the UK and then rejoining the squad later.
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Prior to the T20 World Cup, Kohli opted to miss the entire home Test series against England in February-March to be present for the birth of his second child. This pattern of prioritising family commitments continued as he arrived later than the first group of players (May 25) who flew in on May 28.
Despite missing three training sessions, the team management seems unfazed. They trust Kohli's experience and established routines, suggesting they won't interfere with his preparations.
India's T20 World Cup schedule for Group Stage
India kick off their T20 World Cup 2024 campaign on June 5 against Ireland at the New York stadium. They'll then face their arch-rivals Pakistan on June 9, followed by a clash with co-hosts USA on June 12. All three group stage matches will be played in New York, with a start time of 8:00 PM IST.
With India favored to qualify for the Super 8 stage alongside likely contenders Pakistan, their final group match against Canada on June 15 will be held in Lauderhill.
Assuming they progress, India will be scheduled for the second semi-final on June 27th at 8:00 PM IST, following the first knockout match happening earlier that day at 6:00 AM IST.
The grand finale of the T20 World Cup will be played on June 29 at the Kennington Oval in Barbados. The defending champions, England, who defeated Pakistan in the 2022 final, will be looking to retain their title.
India's T20 World Cup squad
Rohit Sharma (Captain), Hardik Pandya (Vice-Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
Reserve players: Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Khaleel Ahmed and Avesh Khan
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