Riyan Parag, the talented all-rounder from Assam, experienced a moment of panic before joining the Indian cricket team for their tour of Zimbabwe. In the excitement of preparing for the trip, Parag misplaced his passport and 2 mobile phones.
Despite the stressful situation, he managed to recover all the lost items just in time. This allowed him to reunite with the rest of the Indian squad and board the flight to Harare without further delay. Parag later shared that the mishap occurred due to the overwhelming excitement he felt about the upcoming tour.
The India tour of Zimbabwe will start on 6 July, with a T20 match between the two teams at Harare sports club. The matches are scheduled until 14 July, after which team India will be preparing for the Sri Lanka tour.
It is well knows how Rohit Sharma is used to losing and misplacing his passports. In a similar fashion, Riyan Parag, who is making his debut for the men in blue lost and found his passport and 2 mobile phones in “excitement”.
“So excited that I’ve forgotten my passport. I’ve forgotten my phone. I’ve not forgotten, I’ve misplaced them. But I have it now,” Parag, who has earned his maiden India call-up, said in a video posted by BCCI.
“After misplacing my passport, I two phones. We’re finally here. A 20-hour journey. I have got the room keys,” he said after landing in Harare
Speaking about the feeling of finally fulfilling his lifelong dream of donning the Indian jersey, the young Rajasthan Royals player opened up.
“The feel of donning India jersey, travelling with the side is different. Coming from Assam, I had this dream of playing for India. Really happy. There will be a special connection for Zimbabwe when I play my first match.” Riyan said.
“That will be a special moment for that ground and myself, which would be very sacred,” he added.
Parag had a terrific IPL 2024, scoring 573 runs for Rajasthan Royals in 15 matches at an average of 52 scored at a strike rate of 149.22
“I got a call from shubman” Abhishek Sharma on his selection
SunRisers Hyderabad star opener Abhishek Sharma is also making his debut for India with the Zimbabwe tour. In the video, Abhishek stated how surreal it is to be playing his first match as a man in blue in Zimbabwe.
Abhishek has been a close friend of Shubman Gill, who will be the captain for the India tour of Zimbabwe. Sharma admitted that Gill called him, congratulating on getting selected for the series.
“I know if I continue working hard, I will get an opportunity but I didn’t know I will get it outside India in Zimbabwe.” The left handed batting star said.
“I got a call from (skipper and captain) Shubman after my name was announced in the squad. Everyone has been giving me so much of affection. For me it was a very big thing,” added Sharma.
“When I reached home after my name had been announced, I saw my family members giving interviews. So, I think, that was one moment I will always remember,” he said.
India squad for the Zimbabwe tour
An essentially youthful Indian team will play Zimbabwe in five Twenty20 Internationals and three One-Day Internationals (ODIs) following the announcement of veteran players Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravindra Jadeja’s T20I retirements and the resting of other key World Cup players. For the duration of the series, Shubman Gill will lead the Men in Blue as captain.
Here’s the squad: Ꮪhubman Gill (Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Abhishek Sharma, Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), Shivam Dube, Riyan Parag, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Khaleel Ahmed, Mukesh Kumar, Tushar Deshpande. For first two T20Is: Sai Sudharsan, Jitesh Sharma and Harshit Rana.
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