How the Indian team is spending their time away from cricket

The Indian team played badminton regularly during the preparatory camp (Source: Wisden India)

The Indian team is currently preparing themselves for the big test against the visiting South African side with their ongoing week-long preparatory camp at the M Chinnaswamy stadium, Bangalore. The two teams will be taking on each other in three T20s, five ODIs and four Test matches in what is expected to be a closely-fought affair.

The 72-long tour will be South Africa’s biggest away tour in history and the series will undoubtedly put both teams under immense mental and physical stress. The home team is leaving no stone unturned in their efforts to ensure that both factors are taken care of

Dhoni & Kohli’s badminton style mirrors the way they play cricket

After engaging in cricket practice at the nets, the majority of the Indian team including the likes of ODI & T20 skipper MS Dhoni, Test skipper Virat Kohli, Ishant Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, R Ashwin, Shikhar Dhawan, Ambati Rayudu, Karun Nair and M Vijay, among others, used to regularly engage in a game or two of badminton with the members of the KSCA badminton section. But if you thought it was all fun and games, it was still part of the Indian team’s workout regime and warranted necessary focus.

The spotlight certainly was on Dhoni & Kohli and Sridhar Venkateshmurty, one of the few who were lucky enough to play against two of India’s greatest modern day cricketers, threw some light into the way the two play badminton, comparing them to their respective cricket styles.

“Both Kohli and Dhoni play badminton exactly the way they play their cricket. Both are intense on the court and eager to win, but their styles are different. Dhoni plays a waiting game and sets up points. His wrist work is more evident, and the delicate drops are quite similar to the way he steals singles while batting. Kohli, on the other hand, is more aggressive and goes for the smash shots more often than the drops. He aims to close out points quickly,” Venkateshmurthy said, as reported by WisdenIndia.

There was space for banter after the day’s play with one of the highly enterprising opinions being that the racquet with which Dhoni played with be auctioned. Dhoni’s heroics in last week’s charity match had helped the Indian Army receive a sum of Rs. 20 lakh.

Indian team takes time out to watch Bollywood movie

The Indian team enjoying the premiere of ‘Kis Kisko Pyaar Karoon’ (Source: PTI)

The whole team relieved the physical exertions of the long day by catching up with popular comedian & TV host Kapil Sharma’s debut feature film, “Kis Kisko Pyaar Karoon’ in Bengaluru on Thursday night, reports The Indian Express.

Several high profile cricketers like Sunil Gavaskar, Virender Sehwag and most recently Suresh Raina, who ironically had a tryst with Bollywood turning singer for the movie, ‘Meeruthiya Gangsters’, have been guest on Kapil's TV show and the Indian team returned the favour in what was an exclusive premiere of the movie.

Virat Kohli visits fitness center

Kohli is one of the most marketable athletes in the world at present and he has successfully ventured into the modern business trend of celebrity-backed entities with his partnership with Chisel, a chain of gym and fitness centers. He made the most of his time in Bangalore taking time out to visit the upcoming center in Bangalore.

Visited the new @chisel_india gym at Bangalore yesterday. Incredible to see the hard work put by the team. #NeverStop pic.twitter.com/RG0k2kssTv

— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) September 26, 2015