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It's going to be a packed schedule for the Indian cricketers in the coming months especially those who are part of the national reckoning as a busy international calendar is lineup up. While the Men in Blue came back from their tour of South Africa which ended in nothing but disappointment as the Indian team succumbed to a defeat in both the Test and the ODI series. To make matters worse, one of India's most decorated Test captains, Virat Kohli, decided to step down as the leader.
The team is set to go under a transition with a new captain coming in and several senior players not being in their prime form. Moreover, new head coach Rahul Dravid has already played with four captains (KL Rahul, Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma), in what is certainly a tumultuous time in Indian cricket.
Entire T20I series could happen in Lucknow
Amid all this, sources close to SportsTiger have claimed that the T20I series against Sri Lanka could now kick off on February 24 in Lucknow. It is further being learned that the entire T20I leg of Sri Lanka's tour could happen in Uttar Pradesh's capital city depending upon the COVID-19 situation in the country.
Although the focus of the Indian team will be on the West Indies home series first, eyes are also on the Sri Lanka series since a new Test skipper is set to be appointed for the Test matches on this home series. In another major development, the Tests, which were earlier scheduled ahead of the T20Is, have been pushed back to March with the white-ball fixtures preceding them in late February.
Sri Lanka Cricket request BCCI to organise the T20Is first
Sources suggest that this decision is likely to be made based on a request from Sri Lanka Cricket who want the limited-overs leg to be played earlier since it will allow their T20I team an easier bubble to bubble transfer. Notably, Sri Lanka are scheduled to play 5 T20Is in Australia, the last of which is scheduled on February 20. In addition, Lucknow will be done with the polls for the Uttar Pradesh State Elections on February 23, which would ensure proper availability of administration mechanism on match day.