To say Joe Root has been galvanised since being dropped for the fifth Ashes Test that completed England's dismal 5-0 rout in Australia in the early days of last year would be an understatement.
'They have a belief that they can go and win anywhere.'
Sri Lanka great Kumar Sangakkara has been named as the Leading Cricketer in the World in the 2015 Wisden Cricketers' Almanack.
Ravi Bopara and captain Stuart Broad put on 58 unbroken runs to guide England to a nerve-jangling, three-wicket victory over the West Indies in the second One-day international in North Sound, Antigua, on Sunday. Bopara, 38 not out, and Broad, 28 not out, combined in a patient stand for the eighth wicket as England reached 163 for seven in 44.5 overs, in reply to the West Indies total of 159 all out at the Vivian Richards Cricket Ground.
Sunil Narine and Kemar Roach took three wickets each as Bangladesh were bowled out for 70 to give West Indies victory in the second one-day international by 177 runs on Friday.
Exiled England batsman Kevin Pietersen believes his former teammates can win the World Cup if they play with freedom even though their dreadful record in the last five tournaments suggests otherwise.
Virat the batsman wins, Virat the captain loses
Check out the detailed statistical analysis of Mahendra Singh Dhoni's record in Test cricket.
A hard-hitting 92 by Marlon Samuels, which included three consecutive sixes in the 42nd over, helped lift West Indies to a four-wicket over Australia in the fifth game of a triangular one-day international (ODI) series in St Kitts on Monday.
As India and Sri Lanka get set to duel in the make-shift ODI series, starting Sunday, Rajneesh Gupta gives us a look at how both teams stand in One-dayers.
Captain AB de Villiers smashed an unbeaten 101 in his 200th One-Day International to lead South Africa to a five-wicket victory over England and a 3-2 series win at Newlands on Sunday.
Opener Kieran Powell's half century along with spinners Veerasammy Permaul and Nikita Miller's magical spell, tightened the West Indies A grip over India A on the third day of the first unofficial Test at Gangothri Glades Cricket Grounds in Mysore on Friday.
India's star batsman Virat Kohli has maintained his No 1 position in the ICC T20 batsmen rankings and so have India in the team charts after the conclusion of the World T20.
West Ham United maintained their impressive start to the season when they beat champions Manchester City 2-1 at Upton Park on Saturday to consolidate their place in the top four of the Premier League.
India and England will play three ODI games beginning Sunday. Rajneesh Gupta surveys the career figures of the players who will head to battle in Pune.
When South Africa lost to India on Sunday, they cemented their reputation for 'choking' in ICC tournaments. Rajneesh Gupta tells us why South Africa's record for freezing in important ICC contests is, alas, well deserved.
Skipper Cheteshwar Pujara scored his third triple hundred in first-class cricket as India gained a stranglehold over the West Indies 'A' in the third unofficial 'Test' in Hubli n Friday. The Saurashtra batsman registered an unbeaten 306 as the home side declared their first innings at 564 for 9, just at the stroke of tea, in reply to the West Indies' 268, to take a 296-run lead.
Hard-hitting left-hander Chris Gayle will return to the West Indies squad for their tour of South Africa after recovering from a back injury.
Stuart Binny, who has lost his place in the Indian Test and ODI teams, struck his ninth first class hundred -- a blistering 156 -- as Karnataka grabbed a huge first innings lead over Assam on day three of their Group B Ranji Trophy match on Saturday.
Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan made half-centuries as Pakistan ambled to 222 for three at the close on day three of the second Test on Saturday, 358 runs ahead of England after Wahab Riaz and Yasir Shah had scuttled the tourists lower order before lunch.
Very impressed with India's tearaway quick Umesh Yadav, legendary West Indies fast bowler Andy Roberts feels he is the "first genuine" pacer from the country but needs to be a tad more aggressive.
South Africa will have to dig deep if they are to avoid defeat in the first Test after being reduced to 72 for four wickets in their second innings, still trailing Pakistan by 121 runs, in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi produced a brilliant performance with both bat and ball to lead his team to a thumping 126-run victory over West Indies in their first One-day International on Sunday.
Chelsea were given a stiff examination by Stoke City at Stamford Bridge on Saturday before extending their lead at the top of the Premier League.
Rajneesh Gupta brings all Yuvraj Singh's numbers from different formats of cricket.
With only a day to go for the start of the much-anticipated five-match Test series between India and England, all eyes would be on aggressive skipper Virat Kohli as he readies to motivate his boys and avenge the 2012 home series loss against Alastair Cook's men.
Bayern Munich and Barcelona registered easy wins, while Manchester United came from behind to beat CSKA Moscow 2-1 and Chelsea surrendered the top spot after a 1-1 at home against Atletico Madrid.
As we write this we still await the crucial India-Australia knock-out in Mohali. But India's individual performances in the T20 World Cup so far haven't been truly impressive. A look at the most valuable player index (MVPI) table reveals that there's no Indian player in the top 20. MVPI merges a player's batting + bowling + fielding performance into a single 'run equivalent'. The formula to compute the MVP is devised to reward batsmen who score runs at a high strike rate, bowlers who take wickets at low economy rate and fielders who field the best (take a lot of catches and participate in run-outs). Since this is a relatively low scoring tournament we have assumed a team's par score to be 150, and each wicket to be worth 15 'runs'. It isn't a surprise that players from New Zealand dominate the rankings so far, although Joe Root tops the table after his 83 in 44 balls against South Africa.
In Rio, over 10,000 athletes will compete for the biggest prize in sport -- an Olympic gold medal.
Only the Board of Control for Cricket in India, says Haresh Pandya, could have thought of inviting a team like the West Indies to provide practice to the Indian cricketers before they embark on a difficult tour of Australia for a four-Test series later this year.
