India captain Virat Kohli held on to his second position while stand-in skipper Ajinkya Rahane broke into the top 10 after gaining five places in the latest ICC men's Test batting ranking released on Thursday.
Swing and seam friendly conditions, a lack of truly scary Australian bowlers and New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum's retirement are all themes that will resonate when the first Test gets underway in Wellington on Friday.
Debutant spinner Ajaz Patel claimed five wickets in the second innings as New Zealand beat Pakistan by four runs on a dramatic fourth day of the opening Test in Abu Dhabi on Monday.
Alastair Cook and Ian Bell survived a torrid final hour to guide England to 74 for two at the close on the third day of the first Test against New Zealand on Saturday.
Conway remained unbeaten 136 as New Zealand finished the first day at a solid 246 for three
One of the most consistent teams in the Indian Premier League over the last few years, Sunrisers Hyderabad will be one of the teams to watch out for in IPL 2021.
South Africa were 224 for six at the close of play in a chilly Dunedin with a lead of 191 runs entering the final day on a pitch that is turning but offering little assistance for the pace bowlers and is proving difficult to score from.
New Zealand head into the final day still facing a five-run deficit after England were dismissed in their first innings for 476
Towering fast bowler Kyle Jamieson will make his international debut for New Zealand against India in the second one-day match in Auckland on Saturday. The 2.03m (6'8") tall Jamieson was called into the national squad for the final two Tests against Australia but did not play and was not in the side for the opening one-day match against India in Hamilton on Wednesday.
Steve Smith and Usman Khawaja hammered home the advantage their bowlers had established when they took Australia to 147-3, a deficit of just 36 runs, at the close of the opening day's play in the first Test against New Zealand on Friday.
Statistical highlights on day 2 of the first cricket Test between India and New Zealand in Kanpur on Friday.
Australia's Steve Smith is back on top of the list of batsmen in the MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings after India captain Virat Kohli could manage only 21 runs in his two innings in the first Test against New Zealand in Wellington, which his side lost by 10 wickets to concede a 1-0 lead in the two-match series. This is the eighth time that Smith is on top of the rankings after first occupying the top position in June 2015.
Shikhar Dhawan is a big match player and he proved it yet again
Mominul Haque's fine knock of 181 took Bangladesh close to New Zealand's first-innings total of 469 on the third day of the first Test in Chittagong on Friday.
Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan picked all three New Zealand wickets to fall as the visitors put up 107 for three before rain returned to halt play on Day 2 of the second and final Test on Tuesday.
Dean Elgar and Hashim Amla had given South Africa a slender lead over New Zealand at the end of the third day of the first Test on Friday, which was disrupted for 30 minutes by a fire alarm at University Oval.
Let us look at the batters who finally managed to hit three figures after a prolonged period of time.
A hobbling Kane Williamson guided New Zealand to 142 for five at the close of play on the third day of the second Test against Sri Lanka in Hamilton, with the hosts needing another 47 runs to seal a 2-0 series sweep.
Corey Anderson smashed his first Test century as New Zealand reached 419 for eight against Bangladesh to take a first innings lead of 137 on the third day of the second and final Test in Dhaka on Wednesday.
KL Rahul leads a pack of India players who have shot up the MRF Tyres ICC Men's T20I Player Rankings after the visitors stormed to a 5-0 series win in New Zealand. Rahul's series topping aggregate of 224 runs has lifted him four places to a career best-equaling second place.
Rajneesh Gupta presents statistical summary of Sunrisers Hyderabad and much more.
India skipper Virat Kohli was pushed to the fifth spot by his English counterpart Joe Root, who rose two rungs to third in the latest ICC Test rankings for batsmen, even as Jasprit Bumrah and Ravichandran Ashwin moved up in the bowlers' chart.
At stumps on day four, with an hour's play lost because of the weather, Sri Lanka were 109 for three, requiring a further 296 runs to pull off an epic victory.
Rajneesh Gupta presents Sunrisers Hyderabad's IPL record over the years.
The two-Test series between Bangladesh and New Zealand ended in a draw after the fifth day of play in the second and final match in Mirpur was abandoned due to rain on Friday.
Joe Burns and Usman Khawaja reduced Australia's victory target to 131 runs with nine wickets in hand at the end of the fourth day of the second Test against New Zealand at Hagley Oval on Tuesday.
Virat Kohli held centrestage with a delightful unbeaten 85 after a collective bowling effort as India cruised to an easy six-wicket victory over New Zealand taking a 1-0 lead in the five-match ODI series in Dharamsala on Sunday. After bowling out New Zealand for 190 in 43.5 overs, India reached the target in a mere 33.1 overs in a match that turned out to be thoroughly one-sided.
Injuries to frontline fast bowlers have forced New Zealand to opt for fresh blood in their pace attack for the three-match ODI series against India starting February 5 in Hamilton. Kyle Jamieson could be in for a potential debut, while Scott Kuggeleijn and Hamish Bennett return to the squad after a long absence. Injury has meant the likes of Trent Boult, Lockie Ferguson and Matt Henry are unavailable for the series.
A tenth-wicket stand of 127 between BJ Watling (103) and Trent Boult (52 not out) helped New Zealand to a first innings total of 469 on the second day of the opening match in a two-Test series against Bangladesh on Thursday.
The left-handed batsman now has 497 points in the all-rounder rankings, while second-placed Jason Holder has 459 points.
Marcus Stoinis scored his maiden one-day century but it was not enough to give an undermanned Australia an astonishing victory in the opening match of their one-day series against New Zealand at Eden Park on Monday.
Images from Day 5 of the 1st Test between England and New Zealand played at Lord's on Sunday.
IMAGES from the 1st Test played between Australia and New Zealand in Melbourne on Thursday
Bangladesh paceman Al-Amin Hossain has become the laTest bowler to be reported for a suspect action and has to undergo biomechanical Tests within 21 days, the International Cricket Council (ICC) said on Wednesday.
Images from Wednesday's World Cup match between England and New Zealand, at Chester-le-street.
Opener Tamim Iqbal survived two dropped catches to hit an entertaining 95 as Bangladesh reached 228 for five wickets before rain stopped play after tea on the opening day of the second and final Test against New Zealand.
James Pattinson grabbed three wickets to brighten Australia's prospects of a comprehensive victory in the second Test against New Zealand with the hosts reeling at 121 for four by the end of the third day on Monday.
Talented youngster Shai Hope smashed his way to a blistering 101 while Andre Russell scored a quickfire 54 down the order to set up a 91-run win for World Cup dark horses West Indies in their warm-up game against New Zealand.
Ross Taylor scored the first double century by a New Zealander against Australia to drive the tourists to within 49 runs of the hosts' tally on 510 for six at the close of play on the third day of the second Test on Sunday.
Captain Virat Kohli admitted that India were at least 30 runs short while lauding the application shown by New Zealand's batsmen, especially Tom Latham, in the first One-Day International at the Wankhede stadium, in Mumbai, on Sunday.
