After a successful start to his tenure as the head coach of the Indian men's cricket team, with a 3-0 T20I series clean sweep against Sri Lanka earlier this week, Gautam Gambhir now has his focus on the three-match ODI series against the Islanders, which begin from August 2 onwards in Colombo. The contest will mark the start of India's preparation for the Champions Trophy next year, and will also hold of utmost importance, given it remains the team's only series in the format in 2024.

Ahead of the big opening contest at the R.Premadasa Stadium, the Indian team hit the nets in Colombo, where the likes of captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, were both present. The pair are set to play their first game since lifting the T20 World Cup in June in Barbados and will make their first appearance in the format since the heartbreaking loss to Australia in the 2023 World Cup final last November.

BCCI, on Thursday, released a video on India's net session where both Kohli and Rohit were spotted hitting monstrous sixes. While Kohli smashed it against Kuldeep Yadav towards the long-on region, Rohit hit it straight down the ground. But it was Gambhir's reaction that was worth watching, for both the sixes.

Earlier last month, it was reported that Kohli and Rohit won't be part of the white-ball tour of Sri Lanka as they requested the board for an extended break from cricket, having gruelling three months, which included the arduous IPL 2024 season. However, a PTI report revealed that Gambhir had convinced both the senior batters to participate in the ODI series against Sri Lanka.

It was only logical for Gambhir to make the request given the contest will remain India's only fixture in the format in 2024. Their next ODI series is against England at home in February 2025, a week before they depart for Pakistan for the Champions Trophy. Hence, for Gambhir to get a clearer picture of the ODI line-up, he needed all his best options at his disposal.

Jasprit Bumrah, the only certainty for the Champions Trophy squad, will miss the series against Sri Lanka. The fast bowler has been rested, given that India are slated to play 10 Test matches this year - five at home against Bangladesh and New Zealand and five in Australia.

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