'It (the pitch) wasn't free-flowing. You felt comfortable, but the scoreboard wasn't going anywhere.'
Simon Harmer led South Africa's lion-hearted bowling effort as the Proteas registered a thrilling 30-run victory against India inside three days of the low-scoring opening Test.
Rishabh Pant's wicket was more than just another dismissal on the scorecard -- it was the moment Delhi's chase began to collapse
In India's first innings, only Yashasvi Jaiswal (58 off 97 balls) and Washington Sundar (48 off 92 balls) could contribute substantially as the home team suffered a batting collapse after starting the day at 9 for no loss.
'He is explosive, dangerous, and capable of shots like these. Where do you even bowl to him?'
Jadeja returned to haunt South Africa with the ball after the Proteas came out to bat for the second time in the match.
The overwhelmingly bowler-friendly Melbourne pitch on which 20 wickets fell on Day 1 of the Boxing Day Test has prompted Kevin Pietersen and Dinesh Kartik to point out the selective criticism of Indian tracks when spinners get wickets in a heap.
The 34-year-old mystery spinner rewrote the record books during the fifth and final T20I against South Africa at Ahmedabad on Friday, casting a spell of his bamboozling spin magic on the Proteas batters, four of them surrendering to his bowling.
Simon Harmer picked up four wickets as South Africa staged an incredible fightback to shock India by 30 runs in a low-scoring first Test match.
Tilak Varma says out-of-form India T20I skipper Suryakumar Yadav 'needs just one innings' to rediscover the mojo with which he once dominated bowlers like a marauder.
Openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and K L Rahul perished early as India fumbled in the chase of a mammoth 549-run target on Day 4 of the second Test.
India clinched the five-match T20I series against Australia 2-1 after the fifth and final game was abandoned due to rain, in Brisbane, on Saturday.
Patel stayed unbeaten on the crease in India's innings, scoring 21 off 11 balls to power his side to 167 and then took two wickets, removing Matthew Short and Josh Inglis.
India opener Rohit Sharma bettered Pakistan's Shahid Afridi's record for maximum sixes (352) by a batter in the history of One-Day Internationals in the first ODI against South Africa, in Ranchi, on Sunday.
Senuran Muthusamy and Marco Jansen made Indian finger spinners' look ordinary in good batting conditions with invaluable lower-order contributions as South Africa seized control of the second Test.
'It was just put the ball in the right areas, don't try too much and see what happens.'
'I'll tell you one thing straight away, that trust me, these two guys are going to win matches in World Cup (in February-March) and in this series as well.'
Images from Day 1 of the first Test between India and South Africa, in Kolkata, on Friday.
Sarfaraz Khan was a part of the Indian side on the tour of Australia where he didn't play any match and since then has not been considered for any of the 'A' team assignments as well.
Guwahati made its debut as the newest Test match centre as India took on South Africa in the second and final game of the two-match series on Saturday.
Joe Root's Australian hoodoo is over. The England batter scored his first Test century in Australia, an unbeaten 135 off 202 balls, rescuing his side after a shaky start in the second Ashes Test at Brisbane's Gabba and steering England to 325 for nine following captain Ben Stokes' decision to bat first.
Deepti Sharma and Shafali Verma's superb all-round showing powered India to a historic first-ever Women's ODI World Cup title after they outclassed South Africa by 52 runs in the final.
IMAGES from the fourth T20I between Australia and India played in Carrara, Gold Coast on Thursday
Washington Sundar enhanced his reputation as a T20 hitter with India batting in top gear through the innings to comfortably chase down a target of 187 for a series levelling five-wicket win over Australia.
Leading international cricketers, including Laura Wolvaardt and India's World Cup hero Deepti Sharma, will go under the hammer at the Women's Premier League auction in Delhi on Thursday, with bidding wars also expected for homegrown Kranti Gaud and Shree Charani.
Deepti Sharma and Shafali Verma guided India to a historic 52-run victory over South Africa which saw the ICC Women's World Cup 2025 hosts lift the trophy for the first time.
India remained on course for a 2-0 series sweep after enforcing the follow-on but West Indies produced a much better batting display in their second innings to reach 173-2 on day three of the second and final Test in New Delhi on Sunday.
Jemimah Rodrigues struck a sensational century as hosts India reached the ICC Women's World Cup Final with a magical run-chase against Australia
IMAGES from Day 5 of the 2nd Test between India and West Indies in New Delhi on Tuesday.
Sarfaraz fell to Manav Suthar (4-0-23-3) after a whirlwind knock laden with powerful hits down the ground which saw Mumbai stutter as they lost wickets in heaps.
Leg-spinner Alana King's spellbinding wizardry formed the cornerstone of Australia's seven-wicket triumph over South Africa as the defending champions concluded the Women's World Cup league stage firmly on top of the table in Indore on Saturday.
Rain forces abandonment of India's match against Bangladesh; Rawal injury scare for hosts
Shubman Gill retired hurt after suffering a neck sprain while attempting a slog-sweep off Simon Harmer on the second day of the first Test against South Africa, in Kolkata, on Saturday.
'It was good fun. I was obviously really nervous. Super stoked for the boys to get the win.'
India beat West Indies by seven wickets in the second and final Test to complete a 2-0 series sweep at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Tuesday.
'Tomorrow we can just focus on doing a good warm-up, get the boys ready to hopefully get the ball in the right area and create a little bit of excitement again.'
Senior batter Virat Kohli's awesome genius in 50-over format was on full view during his 52nd hundred that guided India to a strong 349 for eight against South Africa in the first ODI of the three-match series in Ranchi on Sunday.
India captain Harmanpreet Kaur was at a loss for words after her team stormed into the Women's ODI World Cup final but she did make a point to say that the players have already set their sights on the summit clash and are determined to "give their best" against first-timers South Africa.
Jemimah Rodrigues played the innings of her life, slamming a century for the ages as India pulled off a record chase to storm into the Women's World Cup final after a five-wicket victory over defending champions Australia in Navi Mumbai on Thursday.
'I am getting used to managing this side.'
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