Indian players practice at Dharamshala © PTI
Dharamshala: Indian cricket team, led by skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, arrived here this evening, four days before the tour-opener of the Mahatma Gandhi Mandela series against against South Africa. The team will undergo a rigorous physical fitness training to prepare for the first Twenty20 International, scheduled for October 2. It was Team Director Ravi Shastri’s idea to arrive here early so that the players can work on endurance enhancement at high altitude venue. Mohit Sood, Press Secretary of the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA), said the players and the coaching staff actually had planned to reach Dharamshala only on September 30. Before reaching Dharamsala, the Indian team had a skill conditioning camp at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore. Read:India opt for boot camp ahead of South Africa series
According to a top official of HPCA, the team may also go for hiking of 7000 feet (above sea level). “After the Indian team came back from Sri Lanka, Ravi Shastri had a talk with Anurag Thakur – the president of HPCA, and requested him to grant the team necessary logistics for the high-altitude training. Anuragji gave a thumbs-up to Shastri’s plan and told us (at the HPCA) to make sure that arrangements were made,” the official said. Read:Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel key for South Africa against India: Russell Domingo
“The whole exercise is being done to help the team cope with and understand pressure situations, which they might find themselves in aplenty during the South Africa series and the season ahead that also includes the T20 WC. Such activities make a sportsman mentally tough. There is no room for any negativity,” said a national selector. The Dharamshala T20 is scheduled to be played on October 2. India will play three T20Is, five ODIs and four Tests. Read: Ray Jennings: Virat Kohli brings new energy to this Indian side