India in Perth: Touring stars led by Virat Kohli touch down in WA ahead of ODI opener at Optus Stadium

Virat Kohli and his Indian teammates touched down in WA after a flight delay overnight, with the star veteran set for what is likely to be his final tour of Australia.

The visitors’ flight was reportedly delayed by three hours, with the squad arriving at Burswood’s Crown Towers in the early hours of Thursday morning.

Kohli and fellow batting great Rohit Sharma were among those snapped by waiting media as they arrived ahead of Sunday’s opening ODI fixture against Australia at Optus Stadium.

Kohli turns 37 next month, and having already retired from Test and T20 international formats, the legendary figure could well be making his final appearance Down Under as a player. Former skipper Rohit, 38, is in the same boat as he approaches the end of an 18-year international career.

India are scheduled to have a light training session on Thursday evening at Optus Stadium, but it is unclear if this will go ahead following the squad’s late arrival.

It comes as the Australian squad took to the Optus turf on Thursday morning for an optional training session ahead of the first match of the best-of-three ODI series that continues on to Adelaide and Sydney.

Mitch Marsh will lead an Aussie squad that will be without both Adam Zampa and Josh Inglis in Perth.

Veteran pace stars Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood are both among the 14 players in the frame to feature in Sunday’s match, with both among the squad going through their paces at Optus Stadium on Thursday.

West Aussie quick Jhye Richardson was a notable participant in the nets despite not being in the squad as he works his way back from the shoulder surgery that impacted his 2024-25 summer.

“I’m bowling off my full run, I’m just waiting for some ball speed to come back. But returning to some sort of competitive cricket, whether it’s club cricket or second XI, sometime mid-November would be a good start,” Richardson said last week.