Ravichandran Ashwin exposed India batters' lack of quality to battle ball tweakers by claiming that if legendary batter Sachin Tendulkar or past domestic heroes Amol Muzumdar, the India women's team head coach and Mithun Manhas had played against spinners on such a track, the Test would have gone to four days, unlike India's harrowing 30-run defeat against South Africa at Eden Gardens.
'We knew it won't be easy to hit how much you may connect. Plan was to bowl smartly and when a batter is set, force him to hit on the bigger sides than small sides.'
Although fielding coach T Dilip said Patel looked "fine" after the match, the short turnaround between games poses a challenge for the all-rounder's recovery.
Responding to India's squad selection for the home series against West Indies, former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan opined that pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah could have been rested for the series in order to groom a young fast bowler.
The 26 year old rued the dropped catches, which ultimately cost India the match and the series.
With Bumrah leading the charge, India prised out five wickets in the second session to snuff out South Africa's hopes of reaching the 200 mark.
Rohit Sharma followed up his knock of 73 in the second ODI in Adelaide with a match-winning unbeaten 121 in Sydney to be named the Player of the Series.
Abhishek Sharma waged a lone battle with an entertaining 68 from 37 balls in the second T20I against Australia at MCG on Friday.
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.
Expect some fireworks for the highly-versatile Cameron Green along with Quinton de Kock, Matheesha Pathirana, Venkatesh Iyer and Ravi Bishnoi.
Shubman Gill was rewarded with the captaincy of the Indian ODI team for the upcoming tour of Australia, the BCCI announced on Saturday.
'Coaches, captains are constantly being asked a lot of questions. It almost, after a point, feels like you are being questioned as to "Why did you make this change? Why did he play in the XI? Why is it that the opposition got 200 and we couldn't even get 120? Why are their bowlers getting more spin?"' 'These are questions that we never get asked throughout the year, right? Because the coaches who are there know what's going on. You are only answerable to the coaches and the selectors, who have all played cricket and understand the nuances of the game.'
'He will be a vital cog in the wheel for the Asia Cup.'
South African captain Temba Bavuma on Sunday said his game is built around an unshakeable defence, which stood him in good stead on a disintegrating Eden Gardens track, where 38 wickets fell inside eight sessions.
Gautam Gambhir has made it clear that India's new T20 approach isn't just about fearless batting, it's about all-round aggression.
India captain Shubman Gill, head coach Gautam Gambhir along with Jasprit Bumrah, Washington Sundar and Axar Patel arrived in Kolkata late on Sunday ahead of the upcoming two-Test series against South Africa.
With no foreign tours for the next one year, Easwaran's Test debut looks unlikely with N Jagadeesan being looked at as a potential third opener.
The others to arrive after a delayed flight were K L Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana and Nitish Kumar Reddy along with some members of the support staff.
Head coach Gambhir, captain Gill, men's squad send best wishes to Harmanpreet-led side for Women's World Cup final
The grand comeback party of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma endured a quick 22-ball ending, and their lowkey outing reflected in India's seven-wicket defeat against Australia.
The Indian team's heavy reliance on all-rounders will be tested by a plucky Australia in the second ODI but the spotlight will continue to stay firmly on Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, both of whom would look to turn back the clock with series-saving knocks in Adelaide on Thursday.
For a bowler this effective to be sidelined repeatedly, there must be either a very specific tactical reason -- or something unspoken within the dressing room dynamics.
'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.'
Axar Patel's wife Meha Patel shared a heartwarming Instagram post featuring their newborn.
KKR, CSK to engage in bidding war in IPL mini-auction with big purse in hand
India bowling coach Morne Morkel admitted his side was "surprised" by how quickly the Eden Gardens surface "deteriorated" after a dramatic second day in which 15 wickets fell and the opening Test swung sharply in India's favour.
Kaif also questioned Gill's tactical choices on debut, especially the call to leave out Kuldeep -- a bowler capable of turning games in Australia's own backyard.
Mohammed Shami was once ignored for the upcoming two-Test series against South Africa, despite having proved his fitness in the ongoing Ranji Trophy.
Ahead of the mini-auction, scheduled to be held in Doha on December 26, the 10 franchises have released their list of retained and released players.
The cricketing ecosystem has learned to survive the prolonged absence of Kohli and Rohit -- at least in two formats -- in this interim period.
Armed with a potent spin attack, taking on South Africa seems like competing against a "subcontinent team", Ten Doeschate said, admitting that they need to get better at negotiating the challenge posed by tweakers.
Rohit Sharma hit an unbeaten century, while Virat Kohli returned to form with a fluent fifty as India cruised to an emphatic nine-wicket victory in the inconsequential third and final ODI against Australia.
India's awe-inspiring batting depth will face a stern test against South Africa's quality spin attack in the first Test, starting in Kolkata on Friday.
Kuldeep was instrumental to India's success at the Asia Cup, topping the wicket-taking chart with 17 wickets. Chopra explained the rationale behind dropping the left-arm wrist spinner, attributing it to batting depth.
Gill's struggle against spin has been glaring and former India cricketer-turned commentator Akash Chopra has suggested a bold change to overcome his recent slump: bat deep and not be overly aggressive with his approach.
Skipper Shubman Gill acknowledged that the choice between a spinner and an extra seamer for the first Test against South Africa is nothing short of a "conflict".
Indian Test skipper Shubman Gill spoke on the team dinner hosted by head coach Gautam Gambhir on Thursday
Shubman Gill's form in the series is a concern for India as he has now gone six games without a half-century.
'I definitely believe the kind of form he is in, the way he is batting, it will strengthen the Indian batting line-up.'
'Rishabh Pant is not fit for West Indies series, hopefully he will be available for home Tests against South Africa.'
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