Shikhar Dhawan-led Team India arrived in Trinidad for the white-ball leg of their tour to the Caribbean. After a successful tour to the United Kingdom (UK), the Rohit Sharma-less Team India will take on the West Indies in the upcoming three-match One Day International (ODI) series. On Wednesday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed the arrival of Indian players in Trinidad for the ODI series opener.
Team India is touring the Caribbean for three-match ODI series and five T20Is against the West Indies. Indian opener Dhawan will lead the ODI side of the visitors while all-format skipper Rohit is expected to make his return to the national side in the T20I series. Interestingly, the apex cricket board of India reportedly spent INR 3.5 crore for Team India’s chartered flight to reach the West Indies from England.
BCCI spent Rs 3.5 crore on chartered flight
According to a report filed by the TimesofIndia, it has been learned that the BCCI booked a chartered flight for the members of the men’s cricket team to arrive in the Caribbean. “The BCCI spent Rs 3.5 crore on the chartered flight which took Team India from Manchester on Tuesday afternoon to Port of Spain (the capital of Trinidad and Tobago) by 11.30 pm IST. The reason a chartered flight was booked for the team was not Covid-19. It’s difficult to book so many tickets in a commercial flight-the Indian contingent includes 16 players and members of the support staff, including head coach Rahul Dravid. There are players’ wives who have travelled to the Caribbean too,” the source told TOI on Wednesday.
‘Chartered flight logical option to take’
Besides Rohit and Kohli, star batter KL Rahul and wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant will also miss the ODI series against the West Indies. All three games of the ODI series will be contested at Queen’s Park Oval. India will play the series opener on Friday. “Normally, in a commercial flight, this expense would’ve been around Rs 2 crore. A business class ticket from Manchester to Port of Spain would be around Rs 2 lakh. A chartered flight is more expensive, but it’s a logical option to take. Most top football teams have a charter now,” the source added.
