Team India arrived at the Nava Raipur Mayfair Hotel on Monday evening directly from Swami Vivekananda Airport in Raipur, the capital of Chhattisgarh. Upon arrival, they were warmly welcomed by small children, and these pictures are going viral on social media. The children are seen winning Virat’s heart by presenting him with roses.

Kids welcome team India with flowers

Nearly three years ago, in January 2023, India played its only ODI at this ground, against New Zealand. In that match, six bowlers, including Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, and Washington Sundar, bundled out the Kiwis for 108 runs in 35 overs. Riding on Rohit Sharma’s half-century and Shubman Gill’s unbeaten 40, India easily won the match by eight wickets. Virat Kohli scored 11 runs in that match.

Tickets were sold out within 15-20 minutes.
The Veer Shaheed Narayan Singh Stadium in Raipur, with a population of around 1 million, has a capacity of approximately 60,000. Like Ranchi, there’s a mad rush for tickets. The craze for Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma is so intense that tickets for the match were sold online twice. However, all tickets were sold within 15-20 minutes. There are reports of some tickets being sold in black.

The stadium is named after freedom fighter Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh, who took part in the 1857 rebellion. Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh was renowned as a Robin Hood against the British at the time. The series can be captured in Raipur.

 

Team India will look to seal the series in Raipur. However, after South Africa’s impressive fightback in Ranchi, former captain Sunil Gavaskar advised Team India to be cautious in the next two matches.

The BCCI compares the Raipur ground and stadium to the Gabba (Brisbane) in Australia. It has large boundaries but is considered a balanced pitch for batting and bowling. The BCCI named it the best IPL pitch in 2013 and the best Central Zone pitch in 2017-18.