TimesofIndia.com in Birmingham: Virat Kohli A lively one-on-one discussion of nearly 30 minutes with the ODI skipper Shubman Gill The Indian team held its first training session at Edgbaston on Saturday to begin preparations for the three-match series against England.The lengthy exchange appeared to revolve around the batting plan for the series, with Kohli providing input on batting selection, strategy and approaches to England’s bowling attack in the three-match series starting on July 14. The senior batsman demonstrated different batting styles and discussed possible scoring options with Gill before the two departed after two hours of fielding drills and batting sessions in the nets.The rest of the Indian team was in Southampton for the fifth and final T20I against England – a match in which India eventually lost the series 0-4 by 56 runs – with only seven ODI players training in Birmingham.Kohli, Gill, Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul are the batsmen in this tournament, while Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav and Gurnoor Brar are the leading bowlers. India have also utilized the services of local spinners, including two spin bowlers and a fast bowler, to replicate different match scenarios.Kohli and Rohit looked particularly smooth during their time with the Nets. Kohli, in particular, displayed a range of batting moves, confidently hitting the ball, paddling and hitting his trademark flick down the leg side. Bumrah and Brar ensured a blistering opening session as they constantly tested the batsmen by hitting the deck hard and extracting bounce.Kuldeep’s innings was also long and the local spinner provided the batsmen with more variety to prepare themselves for the English conditions.India’s support staff, including fielding coach T Dilip, spin bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule and bowling specialist Dayasagar, oversaw the training session as the visitors began fine-tuning their preparations.The ODI series now offers India an opportunity to reposition themselves after a disappointing run in the shortest format. The team arrived in England after suffering a 0-2 defeat in the T20I series in Ireland and were then comprehensively beaten 0-4 by England.The Indian team will begin the ODI series at Edgbaston on July 14 before heading to Sophia Gardens in Cardiff for the second match on July 16. The series will conclude at Lord’s on July 19.
