Team India Arrives in Cuttack Ahead of 2nd ODI Against England
Team India, led by Rohit Sharma, arrived in Cuttack early on Saturday morning ahead of the second ODI against England, scheduled at Barabati Stadium.
Cuttack: Team India, led by Rohit Sharma, arrived in Cuttack early on Saturday morning ahead of the second ODI against England, scheduled at Barabati Stadium.
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India’s Strong Start to the Series
India had an emphatic start to the three-match series with a dominant four-wicket victory over England in the series opener in Nagpur.
The BCCI’s official X handle shared a video of the Indian team’s travel from Nagpur to Cuttack. The team landed at Bhubaneswar airport before taking a bus to their hotel.
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Warm Welcome for Indian Team in Cuttack
The Indian players were warmly welcomed by fans upon their arrival in Odisha’s capital. In the video, wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer even took a moment to sign an autograph for a young fan before boarding a flight to Bhubaneswar.
Shubman Gill’s Stellar Performance in the First ODI
In the series opener, Shubman Gill played a crucial role in India’s 249-run chase, scoring 87 runs and winning the Player of the Match award. The hosts played without senior batter Virat Kohli, who was unavailable due to a sore right knee.
However, Kohli is expected to return for the second ODI on Sunday. “It’s nothing serious. He was fine during yesterday’s practice, but he woke up with some swelling in his knee this morning. He’ll definitely be back for the second ODI,” Gill stated after the first match.
Potential Changes in the Playing XI
If Kohli makes his return, it remains to be seen who will be benched to accommodate him in the playing XI. Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer, and Axar Patel could be contenders for exclusion. Jaiswal failed to build on his debut knock, scoring only 15 runs, while Iyer (59) and Axar (52) both played important knocks in the previous encounter.
Barabati Stadium ODI Record
India and England have faced off five times in ODIs at Barabati Stadium, with England winning three of those encounters and India securing victories in two. As of February 2025, the stadium has hosted 21 ODI matches, 19 of which involved India. India has won 12 of these games, losing seven. The highest team total at the venue is 381/6, set by India against England in 2017, while the lowest completed innings is 85 all out, achieved by South Africa against India in 1993.
