New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum sounded upbeat about an unchanged team - from the side that beat the West Indies recently - for the first Test of the two-match series against India starting in Auckland on Thursday.
New Zealand's Daryl Mitchell has likened the England series to a heavyweight boxing bout and thinks the Black Caps are still very much in the fight in the third Test after a topsy-turvy day two at Headingley.
Nottinghamshire seam bowler Broad was not considered for selection, with his partner expecting their first child towards the end of November.
His two-year contract will expire at the end of ODI World Cup but head coach Rahul Dravid's future will be followed keenly in case the Indian team lifts the coveted trophy.
Abhishek Nayar has seen both Shubman Gill and Rinku Singh from close quarters as the assistant coach at the Kolkata Knight Riders, and has little doubt that the duo will be at the forefront of the team's journey through the transition.
Alongside old war horses James Anderson and Stuart Broad, Jofra Archer, Matthew Potts, Saqib Mahmood, Ollie Robinson, Sam Curran and Olly Stone are also likely to fight for a place in the team for the Ashes, which will begin with the first Test at Edgbaston on June 16.
Statistical highlights from Day 1 of the opening Test between India and New Zealand in Auckland on Thursday.
Former captain and coach Anil Kumble believes having totally different squads in limited overs and Test format is the way forward for India in international cricket.
Former wicketkeeper Ian Healy predicted a 2-1 win for India in the four-Test series against Australia, starting in Nagpur on February 9, provided the hosts don't prepare "unreasonable wickets".
Several countries, including Australia have imposed travel restrictions, and McCullum feels adding a team from New Zealand in the tournament could pique the interest of the audience in the league, which has suffered a dip in crowd and TV numbers in the past two years.
Having registered just two wins from seven matches so far, KKR's Jason Roy said the Knights, who next face RCB, just need to keep pushing hard.
Former skipper Root and Jonny Bairstow smashed unbeaten centuries against India to chase down 378 and win the tie.
Bairstow's unbeaten 114 was his second hundred of the match as England triumphed with two sessions to spare.
England coach Brendon McCullum said his side's aggressive performances in their 3-0 series win over New Zealand set the alarm bells ringing around world cricket and that there would be no change of approach against India in their rearranged Test.
Vaughan has backed Jos Buttler to become the team's white-ball skipper
Venkatesh Iyer has smashed his way to the top of the IPL 2023 run scoring charts with 234 runs from five matches, at a strike rate of 170.
The head of International Cricket Council's Anti-Corruption Unit has categorically rejected suggestions it struck a deal to protect New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum from punishment for not reporting an alleged match-fixing approach in 2008.
England all-rounder Sam Curran but said being in the same 'bracket' as someone like Ben Stokes and a few others like Cameron Green might affect his chances.
England were 7-1 at stumps with Ben Duckett (4) and Ollie Pope (3) batting together
The great Sachin Tendulkar took to Twitter to hail the KKR wicket-keeper, saying that piece of work reminded him of Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
Swing and seam friendly conditions, a lack of truly scary Australian bowlers and New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum's retirement are all themes that will resonate when the first Test gets underway in Wellington on Friday.
Williamson and Co earn high praise from former captain Brendon McCullum.
Former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum is returning to Kolkata Knight Riders but this time in a coaching role after being signed by the IPL side as the assistant coach.
His retirement will leave a hole at the top of New Zealand's batting order in limited-overs matches, while it could also change the way they approach games in future.
In 2008, Brendon McCullum got the inaugural IPL off to a scintillating start for Kolkata Knight Riders against Royal Challengers Bangalore. McCullum's sizzling 73-ball 158 set the ball rolling for IPL in its very first game.
England have been in sensational form under new red-ball coach Brendon McCullum. The Ben Stokes-led side are coming off a 3-0 Test series win over New Zealand.
The KKR attack prowled together and ensured that Rajasthan could barely set a par total.
A testimony to KKR's problems has been the fact that 20 players have played in 12 games. There has not been a single game, where the playing XI has been retained, making the outfit look completely unsettled.
Former West Indies great Brian Lara has named Brendon McCullum as skipper of his Dream World Cup XI, which has three Indians in it.
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri believes captaincy comes naturally to Shreyas Iyer, who has impressed in his first season as Kolkata Knight Riders captain.
Former Australia captain Ian Chappell has slammed Shaun Marsh's topsy-turvy batting statistic in Test format by comparing it with former fast bowler Glenn McGrath's poor batting records.
With the Ashes set to get underway, Australian players reflected on the prestigious series and their aim for the upcoming tournament.
Coming to the match, Trent Boult started the carnage, eventually finishing with figures of three for 20, and as Indian batters picked out the fielders on the boundary with regularity, they were only able to make 110 for seven.
England Test skipper Ben Stokes was bought by Chennai Super Kings for Rs 16.25 crore.
Bharat Arun was the bowling coach of the Indian team under Ravi Shastri.
With regular skipper Shreyas Iyer ruled out, the Kolkata Knight Riders will heavily bank on new coach Chandrakant Pandit as they set their eyes on a third IPL title.
Brendon McCullum's dogged century could only delay the inevitable as Australia cruised to a convincing 10-wicket win in the first Test against New Zealand in Wellington on Tuesday.
New Zealand's Twenty20 champions Otago Volts enter the tournament as a strong contender for the title. Brendon McCullum is a proven match-winner, while all-rounder Dmitri Mascarenhas is capable of making a difference with both bat and ball.
James Anderson hailed England's all-round improvement and called inspirational captain Ben Stokes a "freak" as they thumped South Africa by an innings and 85 runs in the second Test at Old Trafford on Saturday, setting up a series decider at The Oval.
Batsman Harry Brook and seamer Matthew Potts received maiden call-ups as part of the 13-man squad announced on Wednesday.
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