India to lock horns with English T20 champions

India will not have it easy in today's practice game against reigning English Twenty20 Champions, Leicestershire ahead of Wednesday's T20 International Versus England

A giant mosaic of Sachin Tendulkar has been created at Highcross Leicester shopping centre -- designed to welcome the 2007 World Twenty20 champions for their T20 match against Leicestershire County Cricket club here today.


R Ashwin (L) celebrates a wicket with Virat Kohli against Sussex
at Hove recently. PIC/Getty Images

Mahendra Singh Dhoni's Indians will lock horns with the reigning English T20 champions in their final warm-up ahead of the one-off Twenty20 international against England at Old Trafford on Wednesday followed by the five-match ODI series.

Leicestershire, who won the T20 championship for the third time on Saturday, also clinched a berth in next month's Champions League T20. Their skipper Matthew Hoggard felt the Monday holiday crowd would be thoroughly entertained.

"There's going to be a holiday crowd in ufffd a great occasion. I would like to pass on my congratulations to England's Test team. They are just superb at the moment and they thoroughly deserve to be ranked No 1 in the world after their 4-0 thumping of India. It'd be nice to go up against the Indians," he wrote in the Independent yesterday.

Hoggard & Co are apparently still recovering from the T20 title victory hangover. "Need to get my kit and wash it as I need it for tomorrow (against India)! I am soaked in champagne," the former England fast bowler wrote on his twitter account yesterday.

Dhoni's sore hands
Veteran wicketkeeper batsman Paul Nixon, who will play against the tourists despite announcing his retirementu00a0 on Saturday night after Leicestershire's T20 triumph, said yesterday that sore hands were behind Dhoni's poor glove work.

"It looks like he (Dhoni) has sore hands. He's too proud a guy to show it but he has sore hands. Otherwise, he is very aggressive and sure in his catching but (on this tour) he's been giving a lot," Nixon said ahead of his team's clash against India. The 40-year old stumper had helped Dhoni with his keeping during India's tour here in 2007.

Meanwhile, the news from the Indian camp is that Gautam Gambhir batted in the nets yesterday but could sit out again in today's match. "Gambhir had nets this morning though it was largely restricted to throw downs from bowling coach Eric Simons," manager Shivlal Yadav said yesterday.
u00a0
Fresh faces
Newcomers Ajinkya Rahane and Varun Aaron are almost certain to play today, it is learnt. This will be their first-ever outing in India colours. Senior batsmen Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid, who will not play the T20 international at Old Trafford on Wednesday, are set to miss the game too.