Chief selector Ajit Agarkar identified Shubman Gill's recent lack of runs and combination compulsions as reasons for his omission from India's squad for the T20 World Cup.
'The runs from his bat at the top of the order will be crucial for India's success in this five-match series against South Africa.'
'They are up their own backsides convinced that Test cricket has changed so much that only they know anything about the modern game.'
'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.'
Rinku smashed a career-best 176 runs from 247 balls, his 100 coming off 157 balls against Tamil Nadu on Wednesday.
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The next two Indian batters in the list after Mandhana are Jemimah Rodrigues and skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, who are placed 14th and 15th respectively.
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With India set to name their T20 World Cup 2026 squad on Saturday in Mumbai, the spotlight has firmly shifted to Shubman Gill and Suryakumar Yadav, whose recent struggles have turned the selection meeting into a high-stakes call.
Out-of-form India vice-captain Shubman Gill has been ruled out of the last two T20I games against South Africa with a toe injury, sources close to the team told PTI.
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India beat South Africa by seven wickets on Sunday to take a 2-1 lead in the T20 series after their bowlers skittled the tourists for 117, with Indian pacer Arshdeep Singh's performance setting up the platform for a dominant win for the hosts in Dharamsala.
Marnus Labuschagne, who was dropped from the Test side during the tour of West Indies in June-July, has since hit three centuries in one-dayers and a couple more in Sheffield Shield for Queensland.
IMAGES from Day 1 of the 3rd Ashes Test played in Adelaide on Wednesday
India skipper KL Rahul said his side needed to be sharper in key moments but felt the toss played a decisive role in the home team's four-wicket loss to South Africa in the second ODI, in Raipur, on Tuesday.
India has now won each of the seven T20I series it has been part of since winning the 2024 T20 World Cup.
Uncapped players who cashed in at the IPL auction in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
Jemimah stars in India's comprehensive eight-wicket win against Sri Lanka in first women's T20I
Expect some fireworks for the highly-versatile Cameron Green along with Quinton de Kock, Matheesha Pathirana, Venkatesh Iyer and Ravi Bishnoi.
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With the T20 World Cup less than two months away, India would want their captain Suryakumar Yadav to rediscover his rhythm sooner rather than later.
Images from the second T20 International between India and South Africa, at the PCA's New Chandigarh Stadium, Mullanpur.
K L Rahul on Saturday conceded that Indian batters' repeated struggles against spin, especially on home tracks, remain a concern.
IMAGES of the Asia Cup Final played between India and Pakistan in Dubai on Sunday
Travis Head smashed a blistering century at the top of the order to set up an eight-wicket win in the Ashes series opener in Perth.
The controversial decision to select Shubman Gill in place of a well-settled Sanju Samson as the opener has backfired for the Indian team so far.
Samson tried to whip Donovan Ferreira down the ground but the ball hit umpire Rohan Pandit on the shin and he required medical assistance before he was able to continue.
Dhruv Jurel continued his remarkable form in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26 with an unbeaten 160 for Uttar Pradesh against Baroda, a knock that sends a clear message to selectors ahead of India's New Zealand ODI series.
'A lot of work starts behind the scenes. Like I said, in preparation. I have to go back again to that because that is where it all starts.'
Rohit Sharma falls for golden duck against Uttarakhand, while Virat Kohli scores brisk 77 against Gujarat.
Australia's Jake Weatherald says he is excited about the possibility of opening the batting with Usman Khawaja in the first Ashes Test against England later this month.
Graeme Smith emphasised the importance of getting off to a strong start in the upcoming Test series against India
They weren't up for a windfall even after the trophy but life was certain to get a lot better as some sponsors and state governments stepped up to lift them financially.
All-rounder Axar Patel was named vice-captain of the squad, which also saw the return of in-form Ishan Kishan, who pipped Jitesh Sharma as the second wicketkeeper behind Sanju Samson.
Cummins has been sidelined with a lumbar stress injury since Australia swept West Indies in the Caribbean in July.
The Indian women's team is set to leave for New Delhi from Mumbai on Tuesday for a special meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to celebrate their World Cup triumph.
India's strategy of playing two fast bowlers, one pace bowling all-rounder, and three spinners could possibly come in handy on this surface.
'It (the pitch) wasn't free-flowing. You felt comfortable, but the scoreboard wasn't going anywhere.'
In every Test match Root plays, the prolific right-hander continues chasing legends and breaking records - and more milestones could be within reach during the second Test against India at Edgbaston.
The answers are now in the hands of young cricketers in Pocos de Caldas, a small city in central Brazil that is the home of Brazilian cricket.
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