India arrive for 3rd ODI at Barabati sans Dhoni

Bhubaneswar:

The Indian team sans regular skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, his replacement Dinesh Karthik and Ishant Sharma and the full Sri Lankan squad have arrived here on Saturday afternoon for the third one-dayer to be played in Cuttack's Barbati stadium on December 21.

Dhoni did not accompany the team as he has been suspended for two ODIs for his India's slow over-rate during the second ODI in Nagpur on Friday.

Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper batsman Dinesh Karthik, who has been named as Dhoni's replacement, and pacer Ishant Shrama, drafted in the squad for the third and fourth ODIs in place of ill S Sreesanth, also did not come with the team and is expected to join the squad on Sunday.

Both the teams arrived at the Biju Patnaik Airport here from Nagpur by a chartered flight.

Police personnel in strength had been deployed at the airport as a precautionary measure and the players were escorted by commandos and jawans of the elite Special Operation Group (SOG) to a luxury hotel in the city.

A tight security net has been thrown over the twin cities of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack and police were put on high alert in view of the terrorist attack on Sri Lankan players in Pakistan, Commissioner of police B K Sharma said.

Swashbuckling opener Virender Sehwag will be the stand-in skipper in Dhoni's absence in the next two one-dayers of the five-match series, which is currently tied 1-1.