It’s simulation time

Virat Kohli at a practice match in Alur on Sunday. (Photo: PTI)

On a cloudy Sunday afternoon, new coach Anil Kumble spiced things up as he took the national team to the Alur grounds to create a match simulation session ahead of the upcoming West Indies tour.

Having played the shortest format over the past few months, it was a refreshing sight when the Indian team took to the field donning whites in lieu of the longest format of the game.

While the preparatory camp was at the NCA, the match had to be held in Alur as the M Chinnaswamy outfield has been dug up owing to renovation work, and this came as a delight to the handful fans at Alur, who could only dream of seeing the stalwarts so up close.

Holding a match simulation session for Tests has never been the practice and with the twists added by Kumble the Indian team went through a different experience on the field. The batsmen were paired up and given the task of lasting for an hour at the crease along with two life-lines.

With the team up against each other, all the batsmen, with the exception of Ajinkya Rahane, failed to stay at the crease without using their lifeline.

The likes of openers Shikhar Dhawan, Murali Vijay, skipper Virat Kohli, K.L. Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Wriddhiman Saha and Rohit Sharma faced the bowlers, with Rahane being the only one to remain unbeaten.

In the second session, the India A team were also seen taking to the field with the stalwarts, while the likes of Ishant Sharma and Amit Mishra got in some batting practice at the nets on the adjacent ground.

It was a refreshing change for the team as well as the handful fans who managed to get a glimpse of their heroes.