New Zealand beat India by 19 runs in the fourth one-day international to level the five-match series at 2-2 as the hosts suffered a mid-innings collapse at Ranchi on Wednesday. - Scorecard: Chasing 261 for a series clinching win, India were all out for 241 with eight balls to spare. Opener Ajinkya Rahane's fluent 57 put India on course for the chase and the right-handed batsman added 79 for the second wicket with the in-form Virat Kohli (45).
'Binny's slot could go to a spinning all-rounder in Nagpur. It could be either Rohit or Mann.'
Spinner Ravindra Jadeja reaped rich dividends for reading the pitch well and grabbed 5 for 95 as India Blue looked all set to win the first-ever day/night Duleep Trophy, having secured a huge 337-run first-innings lead.
Rival openers Evin Lewis of the West Indies and India's Lokesh Rahul have made huge gains in the latest ICC Players Rankings for T20I Batsmen after slamming fine centuries in the recent two-match series in Lauderhill, USA, played on 27 and 28 August. The first match, in which a T20I record aggregate of 489 runs were scored, saw Lewis slam a 49-ball 100 in the West Indies' total of 245 for six that has helped him move up 288 slots to reach 51st rank.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni will lead an 18-man squad for the Test series against England. Opener Gautam Gambhir, whose last Test was in 2012, makes a comeback while two uncapped medium pacers - Ishwar Pandey and Pankaj Singh - find a place in the team after Zaheer Khan, who had to set out of the India leg of the Indian Premier League following a back injury, was overlooked.
Veteran Yuvraj Singh made a comeback to the Indian team, while Virat Kohli took over the captaincy from Mahendra Singh Dhoni, for the forthcoming three-match ODI and T20I series against England, starting in Pune, on January 15.
India's Test specialist Cheteshwar Pujara started off the 13th edition of DY Patil T20 Cup with an uncharacteristic century to guide Indian Oil to an emphatic 10-wicket win over Air India. Pujara slammed an unbeaten 108 off 73 balls (14x4s, 2x6s) to register the commanding victory for his side. At the University Ground in neighbouring Navi Mumbai, Air India batted first to post 180 for four in their 20 overs.
Rewarding for his all-round show during the on-going India 'A' ODI series against Bangladesh, the Indian selectors have picked up youngster Gurkeerat Singh Mann for the three T20 Internationals and the first three ODIs for the upcoming home series against South Africa.
India relied on their bowlers to stage a remarkable recovery scripting a comfortable 48-run win in the second cricket One-day international against the West Indies to level the five-match series 1-1 in New Delhi.
Rediff.com rates the Indian players' performances in the ODI series.
The IPL, which this year runs from April 5 until May 21, has been a trailblazer of sorts, inspiring similar tournaments elsewhere and even other sports.
Ravichandran Ashwin produced a bowling masterclass to grab 7 for 83 as India recorded their biggest ever win outside the subcontinent by thumping the West Indies by an innings and 92 runs in the first Test at Antigua to take a morale-boosting 1-0 lead in the 4-match Test series on Sunday. It was Ashwin's first five-wicket haul outside the subcontinent.
Stung by a remarkable fightback from West Indies on the final day of the rain-hit second Test, India will have to look at their bowling combinations and get back to winning ways when the third cricket Test begins in St. Lucia, on Tuesday.
Chennai Super Kings will be aiming to tie up loose ends ahead of the play-offs when they take on a listless Delhi Daredevils
England openers Alastair Cook and Haseeb Hameed made India's bowlers toil without success for 50 overs on Sunday but their lack of intent to score runs made the team's survival even more difficult, the hosts' captain Virat Kohli said.
Chennai Super Kings overcame some anxious moments before huffing and puffing to a five-wicket win over a fighting Sunrisers Hyderabad in a thrilling Indian Premier League Twenty20 cricket match in Sharjah on Sunday.
A summary of the final day's play in the Ranji Trophy matches across the country.
Facing an early exit after their sixth loss in eight games, bottom-placed Delhi Daredevils, under new skipper Shreyas Iyer, will have to treat each upcoming IPL game as a virtual knock-out, starting with their clash against Rajasthan Royals, in Delhi, on Wednesday.
Hosts India would look to do an encore by putting England through another rigorous spin test when the two teams square off in the third Test starting in Mohali, on Saturday.
Former England batsman Kevin Pietersen feels that it's an unfair comparison between Joe Root and Virat Kohli since the statistically the Indian Test captain is way ahead of the Yorkshire lad. Going through a purple patch, Kohli has often being compared with England batsman Joe Root, which Pietersen feels isn't a fair comparison. "Kohli is as good as it gets. He is right up there. Root has good numbers, but it's unfair to even compare Joe with Virat because his numbers are just phenomenal," Pietersen was quoted as saying by 'The Cricketer' magazine.
Delhi Daredevils find themselves in an 'oh-so-familiar' situation as they seek home comfort against a Chris Gayle-inspired Kings XI Punjab
India skipper Virat Kohli said critics cannot now question his team's ability to force a draw from tough situations as he dug his heels and led the side to a draw in the series-opener, in Rajkot on Sunday.
The Indian spin troika's inability to get breakthroughs on a good batting track was exposed once again as the first cricket Test against England meandered towards a draw after a solid century stand by the visiting team's openers here on the penultimate day. - Scorecard: After India were all out for 488 in their first innings, thereby conceding a first innings lead of 49 runs, England openers Alastair Cook (46 batting) and teenager Haseeb Hameed (62 batting) added 114 runs in 37 overs to take the lead to 163 runs.
India captain Virat Kohli is the lone cricketer from the country to feature in the top 10 of the ICC Players Rankings for One-Day Internationals as he managed to hold on to his third spot in the batsman's chart.
Amit Mishra produced a magical spell to send New Zealand crashing for a lowly 79 as India won by a massive margin of 190 runs to clinch the five-match series 3-2, in the fifth and final One-Day International in Visakhapatnam, on Saturday.
Dejected at missing out on his maiden ODI ton, West Indies opener Dwayne Smith said the Indian bowlers came back brilliantly to halt the visitors, who were cruising along at one stage in the second ODI in New Delhi on Saturday.
Rediscovering himself in the twilight of his career, a rejuvenated Mahendra Singh Dhoni would look to continue his regained form and guide India to a series-clinching win when the hosts take on New Zealand in the fourth One-Day International, in Ranchi, on Wednesday.
Virat Kohli must be going through a gamut of emotions as he prepares to lead India against South Africa in the fourth and final Test of the series for the first time at the Feroz Shah Kotla.
Stung by an improved New Zealand the other night, a wary India would like to quickly get their house in order when they square off with Kane Williamson's boys in the third ODI in Mohali on Sunday. While the six-run defeat in Delhi has given India plenty to ponder about, it has also renewed interest in the contest which had been dominated by the home team prior to Thursday, stretching from the one-sided Test series to the first ODI in Dharamsala. From the New Zealand point of view, a victory was all that they needed after a string of deflating defeats. As a result of their first win on Indian soil in 13 years, one can expect a certain spring in the stride of the visitors when they take the field at the PCA Stadium in Mohali.
Parthiv Patel was unlucky to miss out despite a fine showing in the Test series against England as the selectors preferred to recall Wriddhiman Saha for the one-off Test against Bangladesh.
At the face of it, there is apparently no danger to Dhoni's captaincy since the team is still winning matches. But if one digs deeper, Kohli has slowly and surely been the man everyone is looking forward to as the leader, across all formats for India.
Ravichandran Ashwin displayed his magic yet again to record career-best figures of 7 for 66 as India took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the four-Test series against South Africa after an emphatic 124-run victory in the third match in Nagpur on Friday.
Rajneesh Gupta has some interesting numbers from the second day's play in the third Test between India and South Africa at Nagpur.
India and England will play three ODI games beginning Sunday. Rajneesh Gupta surveys the career figures of the players who will head to battle in Pune.
A stat pack of India and New Zealand's ODI careers...
India now are the only team to have chased 350-plus thrice and in each of them Kohli has been the backbone with centuries in each.
Mumbai Indians thump Delhi Daredevils by 146 runs in an IPL match in New Delhi on Saturday.
A re-energised Delhi Daredevils would look for their third win in a row when they face table leaders Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League in New Delhi, on Saturday.
Ajinkya Rahane and Prithvi Shaw faltered yet again as Karnataka pacers wreaked a havoc and bundled out Mumbai for a paltry 194 on the opening day of their Elite Ranji Trophy match in Mumbai. Services bowled out Maharashtra for 44 with medium pacer P S Poonia picking up 5/11 in their Ranji Trophy match in New Delhi
Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma on Monday managed to retain their places despite their below-par performances in the Test series in West Indies, which India won 2-0.