The Indian team’s first T20I of the year is scheduled to be played against Sri Lanka on Sunday in Guwahati. Indian skipper Virat Kohli, who will be leading the side has finally spoken up about Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
India vs Sri Lanka amid Assam protest
Assam is one such place where major protests were witnessed across the state regarding the Citizenship Amendment Act. Sighting the security concerns, the Assam Cricket Association has adopted strict measures in Guwahati ahead of the first T20I between India and Sri Lanka at the Barsapara Stadium on Sunday.
India captain Virat Kohli on Saturday said they are feeling “absolutely safe” in Guwahati despite the state-wide protests in Assam because of the Citizenship Amendment Act.
Last month, in between the violence the state Police had detained 3,000 people and had arrested 190 persons for indulging in violent protests in Assam over the anew law.
Kohli’s opinion over CAA
On being asked about his opinion on CAA, the captain abstained from making any comment on the sensitive topic.
Kohli said: “On the subject, I do not want to be careless and speak on something that has, you know, radical opinions both sides. I need to have total knowledge, total understanding of what it means and what is going on and then be qualified to give my opinion on it.”
The skipper made it obvious that he will not like to get stuck in controversy by commenting on a subject that he is not well informed of. “Because you can say one thing and then someone can say another thing. So, I would not like to get involved in something that I don’t have total knowledge of and it’s not going to be responsible on my part to comment on it.”
In fact, Kohli in his view was satisfied with the security arrangements and said that the city is ‘absolutely safe’. “The city is safe. We didn’t see any difficulties on the roads,” Kohli said.
Tight Security arrangments
Assam Cricket Association (ACA) officials on Friday declared that posters, banners, and message boards will not be permitted inside the Barsapara Cricket Stadium for Sunday’s T20I between India and Sri Lanka.
Placards displaying “4” and “6” too will not be allowed because they could be practiced for unfavorable advertisements, he added. No marker pens will be allowed inside as well, the statement further said.
There has been the deployment of Rapid Action Force for the teams and ACA secretary Devajit Saikia has said the spectators will not even be permitted to bring along handkerchiefs and towels on the match-day as they may be used for protests against CAA.
India will play three T20Is against Sri Lanka. The first match will kick start on Sunday, January 05, 2020, at 01:30 PM.
India’s squad: Virat Kohli (captain), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Sanju Samson, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Shivam Dube, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Navdeep Saini, Jasprit Bumrah, Washington Sundar.
Sri Lanka’s squad: Lasith Malinga (captain), Danushka Gunathilaka, Avishka Fernando, Angelo Mathews, Dasun Shanaka, Kusal Janith Perera, Niroshan Dickwella, Dhananjaya De Silva, Isuru Udana, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Oshada Fernando, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lahiru Kumara, Kusal Mendis, Lakshan Sandakan.
