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India likely to play two warm-up matches ahead of England series

Somya Kapoor

The Indian team is likely to play two warm-up matches ahead of their five-match Test series against England. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCC) secretary Jay Shah would be talking to the England and Wales Cricket Board about the same. 

“Jay (Shah) will be speaking to ECB and its Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Tom Harrison to make an arrangement for two warm-up games before the five Test match series,” BCCI treasurer Arun Dhumal told The Indian Express. 

“The secretary felt that the BCCI should request the ECB to give at least two warm-up games so that players can get in some good match practice before the series starts.”

Skipper Virat Kohli had also emphasised on having at least one first-class match before going into the series. 

"We obviously wanted first-class games, which I believe have not been given to us. I don't know what the reasons for that are. But yeah, other than that I think our preparation time will be ample for us to be ready for the first Test,” Kohli had said. 

The Indian team didn’t really get any match practice before the final of the inaugural World Test Championship against New Zealand. India suffered a defeat after the Kiwis chased down a target of 139 runs by 8 wickets on the reserve day of the match in Southampton. 

The Blackcaps captain Kane Williamson struck a vital half-century to see his side home. The Kiwis had played a two-match Test series against England and won it by 1-0 before the WTC final. 

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3rd T20I Preview: England to experiment with combination, SL forced to make alterations

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