Messi to unveil his statue for the first time; Luis Suarez might accompany him to Kolkata-trip
Lionel Messi will be unveiling his 70-fit bronze statue during his visit to Kolkata on 13th December. Shatadru Dutta, the prominent sports entrepreneur whose effort is going make Messi’s Kolkata-visit happen after 14 years, revealed on Saturday that this will be the first time Lionel Messi will unveil his statue. “There are a few more statues of Messi. But this will be the first time the legend will unveil his statue on 13th December during his visit to Kolkata. The 70-foot bronze statue will be placed beside ‘Big Ben’ at Lake Town in the north of Kolkata,” stated Dutta. A 12-member team led by Messi is scheduled to arrive in Kolkata on 12th December night. The icon will watch a 40-minute exhibition football match at the Salt Lake Stadium on 13th December. Then, before receiving felicitation, Messi is scheduled to make a brief inter-action with a few kids. After departing from Salt Lake Stadium, Messi will unveil his statue and start for Netaji Subhas International Airport to go to Mumbai. Luis Suarez, the Uruguay World-Cupper who is also playing alongside Messi in Inter Miami currently, is likely to be one among the 12-member team. Significantly, Dutta who announced that PR Solution, the country’s one of the leading broadcasting companies, has been selected as the official broadcaster of Messi’s Kolkata trip, pointed out that the exhibition football match is likely to feature current Indian footballers and a few foreigners also. The winner of the exhibition match will receive the GOAT Cup trophy from Messi.
BCCI likely to select Shubman Gill as captain; Virat and Rohit likely to be in the squad for the ODI series
All eyes will be on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli ahead of Team India’s selection for the forthcoming T-20 and three One Day Internationals series against Australia. According to the Indian Express, there is no doubt about the selection of Rohit and Virat for the ODI series, but BCCI is likely to continue with Shubman Gill as Team India’s captain for the forthcoming ODI and T-20 series in Australia. According to reports, the reason behind BCCI plans to choose Gill as captain is that the Board also wants Gill to lead Team India in the ICC ODI World Cup, to be held in South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe in 2027. Gill was also in the selection committee meeting. According to the Indian Express, the coach Gautam Gambhir has also been informed about the change of leadership in ODI captaincy from Rohit Sharma to Shubman Gill. Team India’s Test captain has scored 2775 runs in 55 ODIs at an average of 59.04, including a 208 against New Zealand in Hyderabad in 2003. However, Rohit and Kohli remain in the scheme of things for ODIs for now but will be playing their first competitive matches in eight months. Their last game was the Champions Trophy final against New Zealand, which India won under Rohit’s captaincy by beating New Zealand by four wickets in Dubai. Rohit captained the Indian white-ball team to two ICC trophies, the T20 World Cup in the West Indies last year and the Champions Trophy title this year. However, Rohit and Kohli remain in the scheme of things for ODIs for now but will be playing their first competitive matches in eight months. Their last game was the Champions Trophy final against New Zealand, which India won under Rohit’s captaincy by beating New Zealand by four wickets in Dubai. Rohit captained the Indian white-ball team to two ICC trophies, the T20 World Cup in the West Indies last year and the Champions Trophy title this year. However, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s inclusion does not have any doubt so far but both the cricketers will be participating in an international match after a gap of eight months. Their last match was the Champions Trophy final against New Zealand, which they won by four wickets in Dubai. Rohit Sharma stepped down from captaincy after a poor show against Australia. While remembering that, Rohit commented recently, “Runs are not coming but there is no guarantee that you won’t be able to score two months down the line or six months down the line. I am mature enough to know what I am doing.”
Khalid reveals footballers look inspired by Sunil’s presence in the camp before Singapore-qualifier
In an interview with The Indian Express, chief national coach Khalid Jamil has predicted that playing against Singapore in India’s crucial upcoming Asian Cup qualifier will not be easy. He stated, “It won’t be easy to play against them in front of their fans. We have to play according to the situation. We need to be patient. They will have some momentum at home. But we need to concentrate on our strategies and play accordingly.” Khalid, who led the senior team to an impressive CAFA Nations Cup performance, described the team’s main strength as their sincerity, hunger, and unity. “We focused on building team spirit, and I was pleased with how seniors and juniors cooperated and gave their all. The players work hard in training and remain hungry. That attitude matters. We must push ourselves every game and never relax,” he said. Scoring goals in international matches has been a major problem for the senior national team for the last two years. Khalid, while commenting on the issue, claimed that he is working out to bring out a solution, especially trying to transmit the calmness among the strikers during the training and preparatory matches so that they can apply it in the matches. Citing the example of Sunil Chhetri, chief national coach asserted that Sunil’s presence in the camp has boosted the strength of the footballers. Sunil’s huge experience, playing international matches has been example of the youngsters and they according ro Khalid are following Sunil’s advice also.
