The world champions, Team India, and the visiting England squad arrived in batches on Saturday evening ahead of their series-opening T20I here on Wednesday. With a slight nip in the air, cricket fever is set to grip Kolkata once again as the iconic Eden Gardens prepares to host its first T20 International in nearly three years. Beginning with the Eden T20I, the two teams will fight it out in a full white ball series, consisting five T20Is and three ODIs, which will serve as a crucial warm-up for the Champions Trophy, slated to begin on February 19 in Pakistan and Dubai.
English all-rounder Liam Livingstone, fresh from his stint with Pretoria Capitals in the ongoing SA20, was the first to check in, flying directly from South Africa.
The Jos Buttler-led rest of the England squad, which had been training in Dubai, arrived later in the evening.
Being a fresh series, Team India players also trickled in from their respective hometowns.
Rising stars Nitish Kumar Reddy and Rinku Singh were among the first to arrive in Kolkata at 4:30 pm.
Later in the evening, captain Suryakumar Yadav landed along with Tilak Varma, who shared a photo of the duo sitting together on the flight in his Instagram story.
Head coach Gautam Gambhir and rest of the players checked in later in the evening.
Making his international comeback after more than 14 months, pacer Mohammed Shami and all-rounder Hardik Pandya are slated to land around midnight, said the local team manager.
Both teams will have three training sessions ahead of the opening T20I.
The England squad is scheduled for an afternoon practice session on Sunday, while Team India will take the field in the evening.
From here the teams will travel to Chennai for the second T20I (January 25) and the five-match series will conclude in Mumbai on February 2.
It will be followed by ODIs in Nagpur (February 6), Cuttack (February 9), and Ahmedabad (February 12).
India enter the series on a high after a commanding 3-1 victory against South Africa in their previous T20I series, led by Suryakumar Yadav.
Rohit Sharma will return to captain the ODI squad, which was announced in Mumbai on Saturday along with India’s Champions Trophy roster.
This marks Eden Gardens’ first International match since hosting the ODI World Cup clash between Australia and South Africa on November 16, 2023.
The historic venue last hosted a T20I on February 20, 2022, when India faced the West Indies.
The Cricket Association of Bengal expects a full-capacity crowd for the series opener.
“With a bit of chill in the air and the festive season just behind us, it’s the perfect time to enjoy cricket,” said CAB president Snehasish Ganguly. “The response for tickets has been overwhelming, with queues stretching all the way to the High Court when counter sales began the other day. We are expecting a full house for the match.” To make the occasion even more memorable, the CAB has organised a special felicitation ceremony on Monday evening.
The event will honour the Under-15 women’s champions team, as well as the senior women’s side, who finished as runners-up in both the domestic T20 and one-day tournaments.
Former India captain Mithali Raj will be the chief guest, joined by iconic city legends Sourav Ganguly and Jhulan Goswami.
The CAB also hopes the presence of Indian T20I skipper Suryakumar to add further star power.
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