Pakistan bowling came to the fore after Mohammad Hafeez's unbeaten fifty as they defeated World T20 defending champions Sri Lanka by 15 runs in their warmup match at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Monday. Hafeez struck an unbeaten 70 from 49 balls to help Pakistan post 157/5 before they restricted Sri Lanka for 142/9 in front of a cheering crowd of more than 10,000. Sri Lanka were wayward with their bowling especially in the death overs and bowled eight wide balls, including five from Dushmantha Chamara, further helping Pakistan's cause.
Australia warmed up for the limited-overs series against India in style by crushing Board President's (BP) XI by 103 runs in the lone practice match, in Chennai, on Tuesday.
Shane Watson scored a quick fifty and Mitchell Johnson claimed three wickets as Australia beat Bangladesh by 38 runs in an ICC World Twenty20 warm-up game in Nottingham on Monday.
The Indian cricket team will square off against South Africa and the West Indies in the warm-up matches before the World Twenty20 Championships to be held in India from March 8.
France, Japan and United States recorded solid victories on Tuesday as the finalists continued their preparations with the start of the World Cup just over two weeks away.
'Beating India here is never easy, in any format. To do it with this group makes it very special for New Zealand cricket.'
Rain forced the abandonment of Monday's cricket World Cup warm-up match between New Zealand and Zimbabwe.
"He has been sprinting and the knee is absolutely no issue for the World Cup. We still have a bit of time and it is nothing dramatic."
The West Indies established itself as one of the teams to beat in the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup with an impressive five-wicket victory over Australia at Club Aman, Kuala Lumpur, in the last round of warm-up matches before the tournament proper gets underway on February 17.
England surprised two-time defending champion Pakistan by six wickets while India was stretched to the limits by New Zealand before claiming a six-run victory in warm-up matches ahead of the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup.
England beat Nigeria 2-1 in a friendly on Saturday that provided some clues as to how coach Gareth Southgate will line up his still experimental side when the World Cup gets underway in two weeks' time.
Some of the globe's best para athletes, including blade runners, prosthetic jumpers and wheelchair-bound competitors, will showcase their awe-inspiring grit and resilience on the sporting field when the biggest ever World Para Athletics Championships begins in New Delhi on Saturday.
He has since returned for key assignments, including the 2022 T20 World Cup victory and both the Ashes and ODI World Cup campaigns in 2023.
The T20 WC champions will look to enter this phase with clarity of intent as they refine roles, streamline combinations and settle the XI that will carry the weight of expectations in front of home crowds.
The India Under-19 team's World Cup title defence was dealt another blow on Wednesday when it suffered its second straight defeat in a warm-up game against South Africa, losing by five wickets, at the ICC Academy ground n Dubai.
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England pacer Mark Wood feels Australia will start as favourites in the upcoming Ashes series, but insists that there is a "quiet confidence" within the English camp about doing well in the marquee contest, starting later this month.
Mexico's World Cup squad endured a three-hour delay in Germany after a bird crashed into the windscreen of the plane due to take them to London for a World Cup warm-up match against England.
Long before Vaishnavi Sharma picked up a cricket ball, she says her future as a cricketer was known to her astrologer father, Narendra Sharma.
A listless Indian team failed in all departments of the game and was handed a five-wicket defeat by Australia in their second warm-up ahead of the ICC women's World Cup, in Mumbai, on Tuesday. India scored 222 for 8 after opting to bat. The Australians chased down the target of 223 runs in 37.3 overs, despite losing a wicket in the first over.
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Debutants Afghanistan made an impressive start to their World Twenty20 campaign, beating Ireland by five wickets in a warm-up match in Guyana on Wednesday.
IMAGES of the T20 World Cup warm up match played between India and Australia at the Gabba in Brisbane on Monday
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While the Pakistan-Bangladesh match in Cardiff was abandoned without a ball being bowled, the tie between South Africa and West Indies saw very little action.
While Kedar injured his left shoulder during the IPL, Shankar was hit in the nets by a Khaleel Ahmed short ball.
Images from the World Cup warm-up match between India and New Zealand in Chennai on Wednesday.
India has submitted bids to host the 2028 Asian Indoor Athletics Championships as well as the 2026 Asian Relays, in line with the country's efforts to stage continental and global events in the coming years.
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Bavuma believes this group, unbeaten in full-strength Test series since coach Shukri Conrad took charge in 2023, has the maturity and belief to mount a serious challenge and win their only second series in India after 25 years.
New Zealand have been denied warm-up matches by the weather for the second time in a row on a tour of Bangladesh in an early setback to their preparations for next year's 50 overs World Cup on the Indian subcontinent.
Smriti Mandhana, a 19-year-old left-hander from Mumbai, hit an unbeaten 73 off 52 balls to lift India to 147 for four after home team captain Mithali Raj won the toss and elected to bat.
Dubai spoils you, discovers Rishika Shah, and you don't even realise it until you leave.
Australia face India in Dubai on Wednesday ahead of their World Cup opener against South Africa on Saturday in Abu Dhabi.
a red-ball warm-up game will be the most welcome distraction for Virat Kohli and his men as a precursor to the two-match Test series starting next week.
Yarraji also competed in the women's 200m event in Warsaw and clocked 23.53 to finish second behind compatriot Kiran Pahal, who timed her run at 23.33.
The focus will be on K L Rahul and Vijay Shankar, contenders for the number four slot, in the World Cup warm up match against New Zealand, in London, on Saturday.
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Batting first, West Indies scored 229 in 49.2 overs after being reduced to 104 for 6 at one stage.
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