IND vs BAN: Virat Kohli bats for 45 minutes in first practice session, Bumrah bowls with full power

The Indian cricket team began preparations for the upcoming two-match Test series against Bangladesh on Friday. The Men in Blue took to the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai to start their practice for the Test challenge. 

Veteran India batter Virat Kohli spent around 45 minutes in the nets, while pace ace Jasprit Bumrah bowled at full intensity during the practice session. With the first Test set to begin on September 19, the entire squad, including captain Rohit Sharma and Kohli, gathered for a closed-door training session.

This series marks the first home assignment for newly appointed head coach Gautam Gambhir . Joining him at the session were bowling coach Morne Morkel, the South African legend, and assistant coach Abhishek Nayar.

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Virat Kohli gives his all in first practice session

"Virat was there for 45 minutes and Bumrah also bowled full throttle," a local source told PTI.

Wearing a yellow jersey, Rohit was seen emerging from the airport escorted by security personnel, in a PTI Video on Thursday night, while Kohli came from London in an early-morning flight.

The likes of Bumrah, KL Rahul and wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant had reached the city on Thursday. Batter Sarfaraz Khan will join the squad after the Duleep Trophy game in Anantapur, where he is playing for India B right now.

It would be interesting to see how Rohit's side approaches the game against a Bangladesh side, which is on a high following its 2-0 Test series win over Pakistan recently.

Vital World Test Championship (WTC) points are at stake in the two-match series as India get ready for a a gruelling 10-match Test season, which also includes a three-Test series at home against New Zealand and the five-match Border-Gavaskar series later this year in Australia.

India are currently heading the table with 68.52 percentage points, while Australia are a close second with 62.50 percentage points.

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Bangladesh have jumped to fourth spot with 45.83 percentage points following their 10-wicket win over Pakistan in the opening Test and their amazing fightback in the second Test where wicketkeeper-batter Litton Das scored a century to singlehandedly guide the side to a series triumph.

The second Test of the India- Bangladesh series will be played in Kanpur from September 27. 

(With PTI inputs)