Indian Jersey. (Source – BCCI)
As India’s second-string squad took on Zimbabwe in the first T20I of the five-match T20I series on July 6, fans noticed an intriguing detail on the team’s jersey, a single star above the BCCI crest.
Traditionally, the stars on a cricket team’s jersey represent the number of World Cup titles won in that particular format. India recently clinched its second T20 World Cup title after a gap of 17 years. Interestingly, the Indian squad that carried a victory parade had two stars on their jerseys, but that seems to be missing from the match-day jersey of the Shubman Gill-led Indian side.
The explanation for the single star on the India jersey lies in the timing of events. The second-string Indian squad had already flown to Zimbabwe before India’s victorious campaign in the T20 World Cup 2024, which concluded on June 29 in Barbados. This early departure means that the team is wearing jerseys that were designed and manufactured before India’s latest World Cup triumph.
This situation also highlights the logistical challenges faced by cricket boards in keeping team kits updated, especially when multiple squads are in action simultaneously or in quick succession. The rapid turnaround between the World Cup final and the Zimbabwe series didn’t allow for new jerseys to be produced and shipped to the team wll within time.
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Hosts Zimbabwe took on India for the first T20I of the series at the Harare Sports Club. The visitors won the toss and opted to bowl first, while India announced three debutants for this match. Dhruv Jurel made his T20I debut, while Abhishek Sharma and Riyan Parag made their respective international debuts.
The squad for the initial two T20Is differs from the originally announced squad. Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson, and Shivam Dube, who are part of the main squad, are currently in India participating in T20 World Cup celebrations. They are expected to join the team after the second T20I match.
“We will field first. I think it looks like a good surface. It won’t change much later. It has been a long coming. We won an ICC event after 11 years. You always have some expectations from yourself. We have three debutants. Sharma, Jurel, and Parag make their debuts,” Indian skipper Gill said at the toss.
India (Playing XI): Shubman Gill (c), Abhishek Sharma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Riyan Parag, Rinku Singh, Dhruv Jurel(w), Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Mukesh Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed
Zimbabwe (Playing XI): Wessly Madhevere, Innocent Kaia, Brian Bennett, Sikandar Raza(c), Dion Myers, Johnathan Campbell, Clive Madande(w), Wellington Masakadza, Luke Jongwe, Blessing Muzarabani, Tendai Chatara