India captain Virat Kohli shrugged off concerns about his team's lower-middle order ahead of their ICC Champions Trophy semi-final with Bangladesh on Thursday and called for complete focus against their "dangerous" opponents.
Kings XI Punjab speedster Andrew Tye heaped praise on his side's explosive opener Chris Gayle, saying the West Indian played to perfection during his unbeaten knock of 104 against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Thursday's IPL match in Mohali.
Sunday's clash at Old Trafford is the most eagerly-anticipated of all the group-stage matches at this ICC men's cricket World Cup.
The former India captain made a slow 51 from 96 balls in India's 34-run defeat to Australia in the first ODI, sparking another debate about his current form in a World Cup year.
'We played a lot of cricket throughout the year, so injuries are bound to happen. And there will be some concerns about form and fitness. I don't see there will be any drastic changes to the squad'
Indian vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane feels that the batsmen will have to show a lot of patience if they are to find success in the upcoming four-Test series against the West Indies.
India opener Shikhar Dhawan said suspended fast-bowling all-rounder Hardik Pandya is 'crucial' for the team's balance.
'We don't want to confuse him, he is in a happy space and he knows whenever someone is not going through a good phase or there is an injury, he is there, right at the door steps waiting to play a game whenever the team requires him to'
Notwithstanding India's shock defeat in the first Test against Sri Lanka, Team Director Ravi Shastri has made it clear that the team will not change its style of play in the remaining two Tests, saying the endeavour has always been to play "fearless cricket".
Indian captain Virat Kohli, on Thursday, staunchly supported Ravi Shastri, saying the growing perception of head coach being a 'yes' man to the skipper 'is the most bizarre thing he has ever heard'.
Looking to salvage pride in the third Test beginning, in Johannesburg, on Wednesday, team India got down to business at the Wanderers with a practice session that lasted just under four hours.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni is at the fag end of his career but opener K L Rahul said the former skipper is still a match-winner for India and continues to be an an inspiration in the dressing room.
India coach Ravi Shastri has tweaked team's preparation style.
Out-of-form opener Shikhar Dhawan's place in the team will be one of the main discussion points when the Indian team management zeroes in on the playing eleven for the ICC World Cup match against arch rivals Pakistan in Adelaide on Sunday.
India will look for another colossal victory and inch closer to the semi-finals when they square off against an embattled Bangladesh.
Pant is likely to do simulation training in Bengaluru by keeping on tracks that offer turn, in order to get ready for the decks that will be on offer in Rajkot and Hyderabad.
Unfazed despite four successive defeats, a defiant Virat Kohli insisted that the Indian cricket team is "not mentally bogged down" and would like to win the next four matches, including Saturday's fifth and final One-day international against Australia.
Australia captain Steve Smith, while tipping his hat to a brilliant innings from India's Virat Kohli, was left ruing his team's middle overs malaise after their sixth attempt to win the World Twenty20 came up short in Mohali.
India's assistant coach Sanjay Bangar came to the defence of the under-fire Mahendra Singh Dhoni, saying losing wickets at regular intervals did not allow the veteran campaigner to play freely in the second ODI at Lord's.
Ravichandran Ashwin may not be India's highest wicket-taker in the World Cup but the lanky off-spinner is not complaining.
'I mean, I certainly wasn't looking at how many innings I haven't scored, because when you are playing all formats you are not thinking which format you have not scored runs in how many innings. You cannot utilise so much energy in that but it always feels good to score runs especially when the team wins'
Mahendra Singh Dhoni has blamed the injuries and niggles being the reason for his team's poor show in the tri-nation tournament where they failed to reach the final after losing three out of the four league matches with a game being abandoned.
Young all-rounder Pawan Negi was the surprise inclusion in India's squad for the World Twenty20 and Asia Cup even as the selectors reposed faith in old warhorses Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh for the two tournaments.
However, if anyone has unfinished business over a decade of IPL, it is India captain Virat Kohli. He made his intent amply clear earlier this week.
'If you have a partnership then you can build on. I think it was the partnership which was important' 'If the margin of defeat was less it would have been better'
'I am always in favour of playing five bowlers, because if we play more batsmen, you can score 700 runs in a Test but that doesn't help in any way' 'We want to start the series with that same mindset, that our bowling should be strong enough to take 20 wickets' 'We have committed some mistakes we cannot afford in Test cricket if you want to be a champion side'
Mahendra Singh Dhoni might have paved the way for India's victory with an unbeaten 92 in the second cricket ODI, but the skipper preferred to credit his bowlers for the series-levelling win against South Africa in Indore on Wednesday.
Not quite convinced about the idea of counting the positives after a lost match, India's new Test captain Virat Kohli has said the days of learning are long over and his cricket team would be solely focused on delivering results.
Australian pacer Kane Richardson, who grabbed a five-for felt that the dismissal of Mahendra Singh Dhoni proved to be a turning point as the home team recorded a 25-run win against India.
Former South African fast bowler Fanie De Villiers has praised Mohammed Shami as India's best Test bowler and added that the Proteas could easily fit him in their highly-competitive pace attack.
India skipper Virat Kohli on Wednesday questioned his team's commitment after the series loss to South Africa, saying that the repeated fielding mistakes and soft dismissals by the batsmen were simply unacceptable.
Sunrisers Hyderabad won their maiden Indian Premier League trophy. Even as the team from Hyderabad celebrates their triumph, let's analyse the four major turning points of the match.
After bagging back-to-back man of the match awards in the ongoing cricket tri-series, left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Starc said he is relishing the opportunity of leading Australia's bowling attack in the absence of pace spearhead Mitchell Johnson.
The superb build-up run has made India the clear favourites for an unprecedented second World Twenty20 title but the in-form hosts will have to guard against complacency when they take on a spirited New Zealand in their campaign-opener in Nagpur on Tuesday.
With the cricket world still mourning the tragic death of Phillip Hughes, the first Test between India and Australia next week was on Saturday put off to an unspecified date and might even be cancelled to pay homage to the young batsman.
India captain Virat Kohli said that his team would be "ruthless" in the final Test making it clear that the team has not reached a phase where they can experiment with the playing eleven.
Spoilt for choice with a pool of top quality performers in their ranks, formidable India are overwhelming favourites against minnows Bangladesh in a proverbial 'David vs Goliath' one-off cricket Test that starts in Hyderabad on Thursday.
'It's definitely a sense of sadness, a sense of disappointment. Sad in a way that I'm leaving my teammates, leaving my home country for a number of years'
Right now, our mindset is very similar, to go out there and enjoy our cricket, which we have done in the past few years, says Kohli at a press conference before the defending champions' departure to England for the Champions Trophy. Rediff.com's Harish Kotian listens in as the young Indian captain speaks.
The series already in their pocket, India would aim for a clean sweep against the hosts and end the tour of Australia on a high when the two teams clash in the third and final Twenty20.
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