Hardik Pandya has come back 'wiser' into the Indian team after being dropped and says his recent performance has given him a sense of belonging at the highest level.
A summary of the matches in the Vijay Hazare One-day championship.
For India, who are considered as title contenders, a good showing in the Asia Cup will give them the much-needed boost going into the World T20.
Boosted by their 3-0 clean sweep of Australia Down Under, a confident India would seek to continue their winning momentum when they take on a depleted and new-look Sri Lanka in the first of three T20 Internationals, in Pune, on Tuesday.
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.
Chennai Super Kings head coach Stephen Fleming said that captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni would play a 'more prominent' role as a batsman in the upcoming Indian Premier League by batting 'relatively high' in the order.
Andre Russell smashed a breathtaking half-century while Ryan ten Doeschate struck a fine unbeaten 51 to guide Indian Premier League champions Kolkata Knight Riders to a stunning seven-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings.
Rajasthan Royals will look to extend their four-match winning streak.
Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Virat Kohli is expecting an intensely-fought IPL final against Sunrisers Hyderabad since he and rival skipper David Warner are fierce competitors on the field.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni has said they will have to dish out a "big performance" against Bangladesh in the summit clash of the Asia Cup Twenty20 tournament if they desire to lift the trophy on Sunday.
Former India skipper Sunil Gavaskar feels Indian batting is equipped to handle Pakistan pacers, who will have to deal with the dashing opening duo of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan when the arch-rivals clash in Asia Cup in Mirpur, on Saturday.
Uncertain for Wednesday's Asia Cup opener against Bangladesh, captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni skipped the entire training session of the Indian cricket team in Fatullah on Tuesday even though he accompanied the team to the ground.
India have a chance to hold the Proteas by the scruff of their neck with the latter seemingly at their weakest following back-to-back defeats,
Defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad will start favourites when they take on the struggling-for-survival Kings XI Punjab in an Indian Premier League match, in Mohali, on Thursday.
A clinical Chennai Super Kings defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore by three wickets in a nail-biting second qualifier to sail into the final of the Indian Premier League cricket tournament in Ranchi, making it a record sixth appearance in eight editions of the event.
Pacer Mohammed Siraj attributes his success to his good showing on the domestic circuit, the IPL and India 'A' team.
The national selection committee, under Sandeep Patil, is likely to leave it to limited-overs' captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni to decide on his availability for the short tour of Zimbabwe, from June 11-20.
Delhi Daredevils, looking to get back to winning ways after two straight defeats, face a stern test against formidable Sunrisers Hyderabad in Thursday's IPL match, in Hyderabad.
Cameron Bancroft hiding a yellow strip of sandpaper in his pants easily fits into one of the many bizarre ball-tampering tactics
India's premier off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin said that "under favourable conditions", the hosts will be a "hard side to beat" in the ongoing World T20. India lost to New Zealand on a turner in the opening game but beat Pakistan easily in their next game on a similar surface. "I think, we are a very good team. On our day and unde conditions favourable for us, we are going to be a pretty hard side to beat," Ashwin told bcci.tv after the team's six wicket win over Pakistan. But as exception proves the rule, it can happen with 'Men In Blue' too. "There will be exceptions. We lost a recent game in Pune against Sri Lanka and another one in Nagpur against New Zealand. On both occasions, the opposition read the game better than us," said Ashwin. Ashwin, who is known to to be a thinking cricketer, said that even though there was much turn on offer at the Eden Gardens, it wasn't as easy as it seemed.
Images from the 2nd T20 played between India and England in Nagpur on Sunday
The all-round ability of the current Indian cricket team excites former captain Rahul Dravid, who feels Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men are a certainty for at least the semifinals of the World Twenty20 Championships. Dravid, who was here for the Laureus Sport for Good programme 'Magic Bus' in his capacity as a member of its World Sports Academy, said India looks to be the most "formidable" team of the tournament, the main draw of which gets underway from March 15. "I think India would make the top four, but after that, it's just a question of who has a better day in the semifinal and final... There's a good crop of players coming through. I think it's going to be an exciting 24 months for the Indian team. "I think the good thing about this Indian team and this T20 World Cup is they have good depth, they have good all-round depth at the moment," Dravid said. "Players like Hardik Pandya and Pawan Negi, it just shows that they have got sort of batting right down to No. 8, 9. They have got six or seven bowlers to call upon in Indian conditions that they can use.
Rajneesh Gupta highlights important numbers featuring the India team from the World Cups.
Rajneesh Gupta presents a complete statistical IPL dossier.
Images from the ICC World T20 match between India and New Zealand in Nagpur.
The Asia Cup to be played in Bangladesh from February 24, will be played in the T20 format for the first time in the tournament's history. The tournament which precedes the vital World T20 to be held in in India in March, has a rich history with India and Sri Lanka winning it five times each. Pakistan have been victorious on two occasions while Bangladesh's best finish has been their runner-up performance in the 2012 edition. Team India will be led by MS Dhoni and the tournament will also see Virat Kohli returning after taking a break from the recently concluded three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka. Dhoni will be chasing history to become the most successful skipper in the tournament history. The Indian skipper and former Lankan captain Arjuna Ranatunga have both recorded same number of nine victories and four defeats in the Asia Cup All the matches will be played at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Mirpur. The qualifying rounds involving Afghanistan, United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong and Oman has begun from Friday.
'On paper he's not the captain. On the ground he's the captain for Virat I think'
'In Australia, you will get extra bounce but there will only be lateral movement till the kookaburra seam doesn't flatten. It won't be like England where the ball swings all day. Once you get adjusted to the bounce, batsmen can hit you all day'
The clean sweep in the T20 series against Australia has lessened their dilemmas but selectors will debate.
Board of Control for Cricket in India secretary Sanjay Patel defended the omission of five senior players who were part of the victorious 2011 squad from the 30-man World Cup probables, saying their performance in domestic was taken into account.
India's selectors went on expected lines, leaving out former champions while giving the nod to top performers in domestic circuit in the 30-man probables' list for the 2015 World Cup.
Virat Kohli's elegant unbeaten 90 and some crafty bowling by their spinners secured India's comprehensive 37-run victory over Australia in the first Twenty20 International at the Adelaide Oval on Tuesday.
Sachin Tendulkar's autobiography Playing It My Way saw its launch in the national capital today as the event celebrated the book's crossing a record 200,000 copies.
Rayudu's consistency at No. 4 slot will solve our middle-order conundrum, says Kohli
Chennai Super Kings coach Stephen Fleming has pointed out that six final appearances from the eight seasons speak of his side's consistency, and their loss to Mumbai Indians in the final of the Indian Premier League is not down to the mind.
With the series already in their pocket, India will look to give some of the bench players a chance but there will be no let-up in the intensity as they eye a complete whitewash against Sri Lanka in the third and final T20I in Mumbai on Sunday.
Stung by a batting debacle, Royal Challengers Bangalore have the onerous task of picking up pieces when they face defending champion Sunrisers Hyderabad on Tuesday, with a singular aim of keeping their hopes alive in the Indian Premier League.
It will be a battle of youngsters with the likes of Nitish Rana, Hardik Pandya on one side and the new star in the horizon Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan with his variations on the other side.
Young Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan's fairytale run continued as his three-wicket burst helped Sunrisers Hyderabad restrict Gujarat Lions to a paltry 135 for seven.
Gujarat Lions will have to fight off the fiery pacers of the Sunrisers Hyderabad when the two teams clash in the Indian Premier League Qualifier 2, in New Delhi, on Friday.
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