India will look to overcome batting inconsistencies and finish the tour of Australia with authority when the two sides clash in the fifth and final T20 International in Brisbane on Saturday.
This was India's fourth defeat in the last six Tests at home and in all four Tests -- including three against New Zealand -- their batters have flopped against spin.
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.
India's mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy retained his place among the world's top T20I bowlers, sitting just ahead of New Zealand's Jacob Duffy in the latest ICC Men's Rankings update.
Cummins has been sidelined with a lumbar stress injury since Australia swept West Indies in the Caribbean in July.
Images from the fifth T20 International between India and South Africa, in Ahmedabad, on Friday.
India's strategy of playing two fast bowlers, one pace bowling all-rounder, and three spinners could possibly come in handy on this surface.
Kings XI Punjab skipper George Bailey rued making changes to the batting order, saying it played a part in their defeat to Rajasthan Royals in Friday night's IPL match in Pune.
Australia dominated day two of the second Ashes Test on Friday with a punishing batting assault on a lifeless Gabba pitch as England fumbled their chances in the field.
K L Rahul on Saturday conceded that Indian batters' repeated struggles against spin, especially on home tracks, remain a concern.
Suryakumar Yadav on Sunday acknowledged the shortage of runs from him but India's T20I skipper did not count it as lack of form, saying that runs will come sooner than later.
Domestic veterans Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rajat Patidar and Rinku Singh could keep the team management interested going forward in Test cricket.
When Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill bat together at the top of the order, they put smiles on the faces of everyone and are learning the different facets of dealing with various match situations in the shortest format, skipper Suryakumar Yadav said after his team won the five-match T20I series against Australia on Saturday.
'It was just bad decisions. All of the teams have that at some point. It was us today. We didn't make the best shot selections.'
'The moment was right': Head floors England with match-winning hundred
'They are up their own backsides convinced that Test cricket has changed so much that only they know anything about the modern game.'
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.
Skipper Vihaan Malhotra (13) was dismissed in the fourth over by medium pacer Salam Khan (3/35), who also removed Abhigyan Kundu (12) and Mohamed Enaam (1), reducing India A to 85 for five inside 11 overs.
Abhishek Sharma admitted that India's batting unit was caught slightly off guard by the extra bounce and disciplined bowling in Australian conditions in the second T20I in Melbourne.
Speaking on the RCB Podcast, the English cricketer revealed that the team's style and clarity of communication made the transition seamless.
South Africa head coach Shukri Conrad wholeheartedly admitted that the use of the word 'grovel' took the sheen away from his team's landmark Test victory over India.
Australia have tried and tested five openers in the format since David Warner had his last dance after last year's Caribbean World Cup. Marsh remained tight-lipped about the appearance of the rest of the batting unit but confirmed there were discussions about Tim David's place.
Indian all-rounder Deepti Sharma was crowned Player of the Tournament in India's maiden ICC Women's World Cup triumph, says she still cannot believe she bowled the title-winning delivery.
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.
'We would like to believe and back ourselves to know these conditions or adapt to these conditions a lot faster even if we find them slightly different, as compared to, say, somebody who is brought up in Johannesburg and has played all his cricket at the Wanderers ground.'
Pace bowling all-rounders always come at a premium and therefore, the troika of Green, Venkatesh Iyer and West Indies' Jason Holder, all coming at the highest base price of Rs 2 crore (US$220,000), are set to headline the bidding war.
Rinku smashed 17 fours and six sixes during his stay in the middle. He was batting on 98 at stumps on the third evening and faced a total of 247 balls across two days.
Steve Smith said the decision to drop Nathan Lyonwas taken to strengthen the pace-bowling department.
Virat Kohli has two hundreds and a fifty in his last three innings, while Rohit Sharma has a hundred and two fifties in his last four outings.
India will be desperate for a quality replacement for the crucial No. 4 slot with Shubman Gill likely to be ruled out for the must-win second and final Test against South Africa.
I'd like India to have extra bowling depth against Australia: Ian bishop
The series promises a fascinating duel between the two modern-day pace greats.
It was also his third hundred in the last seven innings after going past three digits against Australia A at Lucknow and the West Indies at Ahmedabad.
The former CSK stalwart also noted that Axar Patel's consistency over recent years positions him as a natural leader within the DC core. But the trickier decision, according to Raina, concerns veteran opener Faf du Plessis, who endured a lean run with just 202 runs from nine games.
With no ODI series in Australia in the next two years, it is impossible to think that the legendary duo will again be seen Down Under in India blues.
SMAT: Haryana beat Bengal to enter Super 8s, Punjab also qualify
At stumps, Sai Sudharsan and Kuldeep Yadav were at the crease with India requiring another 522 runs to win and level the two-Test series.
West Indies batting great Brian Lara believes CSK's Mahendra Singh Dhoni won't consider a promotion in the batting order.
India crushed West Indies by an innings and 140 runs inside three days in the first Test to take a 1-0 lead in the two-match series, in Ahmedabad, on Saturday.
Tanush Kotian once again showcased his ability to absorb pressure with a fighting fifty to shore up West Zone against Central Zone in the Duleep Trophy semifinals
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances