Rohit Sharma (left) and Virat Kohli.
Credit: PTI Photo
Senior players -- Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma -- were among the first batch of Indian cricketers who flew off on Wednesday (October 15) for a three-match One-day International (ODIs) series against Australia beginning at Sydney Cricket Ground on Sunday (October 19).
Kohli and Rohit were joined by Test and ODI skipper Shubman Gill, opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy, and pacers Arshdeep Singh and Prasidh Krishna along with some members of the support staff.
The group made their way into the Indira Gandhi International Airport in the morning with a handful adoring fans lining up outside the entrance to catch a glimpse of them.
Head coach Gautam Gambhir and some other members of the coaching staff will leave in the evening.
India is due to play three ODIs starting Sunday in Perth followed by Adelaide and Sydney.
It will be followed by a five-match T20 International series and the format specialists will leave on October 22 tentatively. The series will begin on October 29.
The ODI series has generated significant buzz due to the chatter surrounding the future of Rohit and Kohli, both of whom are now retired from Tests and T20Is.
Gambhir, after the 2-0 Test series sweep over the West Indies here on Tuesday, had said that he hoped for the two to have a good outing in the upcoming assignment, while being evasive about their 2027 World Cup prospects.
"The 50-over World Cup is still two and a half years away. It is very important to stay in the present. Obviously they are quality players. They are coming back. Their experience is going to be valuable in Australia," Gambhir had said in the post-series press conference.
Rohit, along with Kohli, were named in the 15-member squad announced by the BCCI, signalling a gradual shift in leadership without fully sacrificing the experience.
Shreyas Iyer was named vice-captain for the three-match series. Pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah has been rested for the ODI leg of the tour to manage his workload, while promising left-hander Jaiswal has been recalled to the 50-over setup.
ODI squad: Shubman Gill (captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (vice captyain), Axar Patel, KL Rahul (wicketkeeper), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel (wicketkeeper), Yashasvi Jaiswal
T20 squad: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill (vice captain), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (wicketkeeper), Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar
(with inputs from agencies)