14-member Team India, 46-member non-playing team for India – West Indies T20Is in USA?

In a first, the likely 14-member Team India will be joined by a non-playing team more than three times bigger for its first-ever series in the United States of America (USA). The two-match Twenty20 International (T20I) series, which will mark India’s first foray in USA, will be played against West Indies at Fort Lauderdale in Florida on August 27 and 28. This will be for the first time that the non-playing contingent will outnumber the playing contingent by this big a number. ALSO READ: BCCI upset with Team India players after image with ‘beer pint in hand’ goes viral.

A report in IndianExpress stated that the BCCI has decided to reward its members with a trip to the USA. During its Special General Meeting (SGM) on August 5, board President Anurag Thakur made an announcement in this regard. He said that the BCCI would be taking a person from each of its affiliated units, and also members from the state associations in the North-East. With at least six BCCI staff members joining them, team’s ‘non-playing’ contingent could reach upto 46, according to the report.

The report further claimed that BCCI has fixed a budget in excess of Rs 3 crore for the trip, which will include a business class flight ticket to Florida for each member, along with $250 as allowance. The duration of stay is expected to be six days. “We have been told that one member from each association will be taken to the US for the India-West Indies T20 internationals. It’s an all expenses paid trip sponsored by the BCCI,” report quoted a cricket board member, who attended the SGM, as saying. It’s not yet known if the national selectors, currently in the Caribbean, would also be travelling to USA. If that happens, the ’non-playing’ team may well score a fifty!

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