IND vs SA: Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik buys first ticket for 2nd T20I to be played in Cuttack

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik bought the first ticket for the second T20 international to be played at Barabati Stadium in Cuttack between India and South Africa on June 12. This will be the second time India will play South Africa at the venue as the first meeting in 2015 did not go the home side’s way and the visitors thrashed the hosts with a six-wicket victory to seal the series. However, a lot of things have changed now, and India has been dominant in home conditions in recent times.

According to the sources from Business Standard, it has been learned that Pankaj Lochan Mohanty, the president of Odisha Cricket Association (OCA), and Sanjay Behera, the secretary of OCA have handed over the ticket to the CM at his home on Monday (June 6). The source also added about, Behera briefing the CM about the arrangements made for the smooth sale of tickets at the venue.

After a long time, India will not have bio bubble restrictions for the upcoming series after the pandemic situation in the country has improved massively. The IPL 2022 was a huge success story for BCCI in India as the tournament returned home completely after two years. With the crowds back at full capacity for the upcoming series, the entertainment factor is certainly guaranteed.

Here’s the schedule for the IND vs SA T20I series

1st T20I- June, 9 – Delhi

2nd T20- June 12 – Cuttack

3rd T20I- June 14 – Visakhapatnam

4th T20I- June 17 – Rajkot

5th T20I- June 19 – Bengaluru

Meanwhile, the selectors have named KL Rahul as the captain of the Indian side for the upcoming five-match series, while Rishabh Pant will be his deputy. The likes of Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, and Rohit Sharma have all been rested while impressive youngsters like Arshdeep Singh and Umran Malik have earned their maiden call ups.

IND Squad for SA T20Is: KL Rahul (Capt), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Deepak Hooda, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant(VC) (wk), Dinesh Karthik (wk), Hardik Pandya, Venkatesh Iyer, Y Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, R Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar, Harshal Patel, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik