Gautam Gambhir visits Kamakhya temple before IND vs WI ODI

The Indian team, fresh from their eight-wicket victory in the opening ODI of the three-match series against West Indies at the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram, opted to skip their training session ahead of the second ODI at the ACA stadium in Guwahati as their head coach, Gautam Gambhir, visited Kamakhya temple.

India registered a dominating eight-wicket victory in the opening clash of the 50-over format when they chased a massive score of 396 runs with 50 balls to spare, thanks to the unbeaten 139 run-knockoff just 88 balls from Virat Kohli.

Gautam Gambhir spotted paying his respects at the historic Kamakhya Temple

Gambhir, on the eve of the second ODI on September 30 in Guwahati, went to the Kamakhya temple in the morning amidst massive security. He was spotted paying his respects at the historic temple, as it went viral on social media platforms. There was a huge crowd gathering around the former Indian opener.

Watch Gautam Gambhir paying his respects here-

The temple is one of the oldest and most revered Shakti Peethas, which is celebrated globally as a supreme centre for the divine feminine energy and Tantric worship. It is the sacred site where the womb and genitalia of the goddess Sati fell when Lord Shiva performed the cosmic dance of destruction.

It has become a new ritual where the players of the Indian side visit the temple at the venue where the game is scheduled to be played. In the past, many players have done well along with the head coach.

India look to seal an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series after opening win vs West Indies

It remains to be seen if the Indian management decides to make any changes in the playing XI. Mohammed Siraj was left out of the opening ODI as Naman Dhir was handed his ODI debut. With many key players, including Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel, and Arshdeep Singh, being unavailable due to the Asian Games 2026, they used other options.

For the West Indies, Sherfane Rutherford is likely to join the squad in Guwahati. Justin Greaves, who celebrated a fine century in the opening game, hopes to continue the same form in the second encounter of the series.

Kohli and Rohit Sharma will also be focused on the last two games as they aim to continue till the ODI World Cup 2027 in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia and earn the all-important and most-awaited World Cup title.