Bhubaneswar: Three players from Odisha – Debaraj Behera, Pankaj Bhue and Sukhram Majhi – have made it to the final 17-member Indian squad for the 4th edition of T20 World Cup for the Blind, scheduled to be played at Lahore and Multan from November 22 to December 3.
The team was picked after 26 players underwent a 12-day selection trials in Gurugram, according to reports.
The 17-member squad has got the NOC, with no cost to the government, from the Sport Ministry and now awaits clearance from Home and External Affairs ministries to travel to Pakistan via the Wagah Border on November 21.
India has won all three previous editions of T20 World Cup, defeating Pakistan twice and Bangladesh once. Besides these three teams, the tournament will also feature Afghanistan, South Africa, Nepal and Sri Lanka.
This has come against the backdrop of the ICC’s email, informing the PCB that India would not be traveling to Pakistan to participate in the Champions Trophy, scheduled to be held in Pakistan in early 2025.
Indian team for T20 Blind WC: Ajay Kumar Reddy, Debaraj Behera, Nareshbhai Tumda, Nilesh Yadav, Sanjay Kumar Shah, Praveen Kumar Sharma, Venkateswara Rao, Pankaj Bhue, Lokesha, Rambir Singh, Irfan Diwan, Durga Rao Tompaki, Sunil Ramesh, Sukhram Majhi, Ravi Amiti, Dineshbhai Rathva, Dhingar Gopu.
