New Zealand and South Africa, both laden with world-class talent but often falling short in ICC tournaments, will face off in a tightly contested Champions Trophy semifinal.
India would like to continue their flawless campaign when they take on England in the semifinal
Posing a series of questions to the prime minister, Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh also asked if Modi would convey to the US president that India would send its own aircraft -- like Venezuela and Colombia did -- to bring back Indian deportees in the future.
Both teams have struggled in the ODI format recently. World champions Australia lost to Sri Lanka (0-2) and Pakistan (1-2) in their last two series, while England, now coached by Brendon McCullum in all formats, haven't won an ODI series since their disastrous 2023 World Cup campaign.
Former winners Vidarbha will rely on their red-hot form to stake claim for a title they last won over five years ago, while first-time finalists Kerala will be driven by grit when the two contrasting teams clash in the summit showdown for the 90th Ranji Trophy, starting in Nagpur on Wednesday.
Debutants Afghanistan will aim to continue their impressive rise in white-ball cricket, while South Africa will once again attempt to shed the 'chokers' tag when the two sides kick-off their Champions Trophy campaign in Karachi on Friday.
The Gujarat Giants will be hoping to improve their bowling and fielding after a disappointing defeat in their Women's Premier League season opener. They will face the UP Warriorz, led by Deepti Sharma, who will be looking to capitalize on their strong spin bowling attack. The match will be a crucial one for both teams as they seek to make their mark in the tournament.
Their pre-tournament decision to fill the squad with five spinners drew a lot of flak from all corners, but it is now proving to be a masterstroke on the slow pitches in Dubai.
A seemingly invincible India will be eager to sharpen their game against spin and give a run to second-line players ahead of the semi-final when they take on New Zealand in their last group match of the Champions Trophy in Dubai on Sunday.
The 18th edition of the prestigious tournament will commence on March 22, 2025 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata and the Final will be played on May 25, 2025 at the same iconic venue.
Services achieved the second highest successful run-chase in Ranji Trophy history as they overhauled a 376-run target against Odisha.
The inaugural edition's winner Mumbai Indians will bank on their core group of players while two-time finalists Delhi Capitals will expect fireworks from Shafali Verma when they face-off in the second game of the Women's Premier League here on Saturday. The finalists of the first WPL in 2023, both Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals made it to the knockouts in the second edition last year but lost to the eventual champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the eliminator and the final respectively. Those defeats were certainly not reflective of how well MI and DC had fared until the knockouts stage, with Harmanpreet Kaur's side finishing second in the points table with five wins in eight matches and Meg Lanning's team topping it with six wins in as many outings. The winners of WPL 2023, Mumbai Indians tend to lean on their core group of players both overseas and Indian and a similar approach can be expected this year, with only a few changes taking place in terms of squad composition. India pacer Pooja Vastrakar, who was grappling with an unspecified injury, was ruled out of the competition and has been replaced by slow left-arm orthodox bowler Parunika Sisodia, who was one of the main performers in India's title-winning campaign in the U-19 Women's T20 World Cup recently. Mumbai Indians have let go of England's Issy Wong, who took the first-ever WPL hat-trick in 2023, after the player lost form and the franchise found the leader of their attack in South Africa's Shabnim Ismail. Among domestic talents, another member of the U-19 T20 World Cup winning squad G Kamalini would be one to watch out for, having finished as the third highest scorer in the competition with 143 runs in seven matches. Apart from a strong leader in Harmanpreet, MI have strong figures from other international sides such as Nat Sciver-Brunt (England), Hayley Matthews (West Indies), Amelia Kerr (New Zealand), as well as South Africans Nadine de Klerk, Shabnim Ismail and Chloe Tryon. While Yastika Bhatia is MI's No 1 wicketkeeper-batter, other Indian players in Saika Ishaque, Sajana Sajeevan, uncapped Akshita Maheshwari and Amanjot Kaur will be expected to play their roles to perfection. On their part, Delhi Capitals will be keen to do one better after finishing as runner-up for two times in a row ever since the competition began. One of the most consistent teams in the competition, the Lanning-led Delhi have strong talent base across departments but the key will be to deliver in crucial matches. All eyes will be on the explosive Indian batter Shafali who has responded to her exclusion from the Indian side with runs in domestic cricket. She forms a lethal opening pair with Lanning at the top, while the likes of Australia's Annabel Sutherland, England's Alice Capsey and India's Jemimah Rodrigues form the core of their middle order. All-rounder Sutherland will hope to draw inspiration from her recent success of having struck 163 in the only Test of the women's Ashes followed by winning the highest individual honour in Australian cricket. While Delhi boasts of three wicketkeeper-batters in India's Taniyaa Bhatia, Nandini Kashyap and Scotland's Sarah Bryce, their bowling looks settled with Marizanne Kapp as the leader of the attack, backed by Australia's Jess Jonassen, India's Radha Yadav and Shikha Pandey as well as Titas Sadhu.
While India are on a high after a measured six-wicket win over a sprightly Bangladesh, Pakistan are evidently tense after the 60-run loss in the tournament-opener to New Zealand.
India Women succumbed to their sixth consecutive defeat and eighth in a row at home
Prem Panicker returns to his home ground -- Rediff.com -- for the Border Gavaskar Trophy series.
Although India are playing a strong brand of 50-overs' cricket of late, they have some selection riddles to solve before they face Bangladesh in their opening match of the Champions Trophy.
Everything you need to know about Coldplay's concert at Navi Mumbai's DY Patil Stadium on January 18, 19 and 21.
Captain Harmanpreet Kaur and pacer Renuka Singh Thakur have been rested for India women's three-match home ODI series against Ireland.
A look at India's schedule at the Paris Olympics on Saturday, July 27, 2024:
The airport had temporarily suspended operations on Saturday due to strong winds and heavy rainfall caused by cyclones.
The first day's play of the first Test between India and New Zealand has been called off without a ball being bowled because of rain.
The barren run of skipper Rohit Sharma and the selection conundrum that Virat Kohli's possible return poses are the towering obstacles in India's quest for a series win against England in the second ODI in Cuttack on Sunday.
India is facing form concerns and selection dilemmas as they enter the final phase of their Champions Trophy preparations.
The series already in their pocket, India will look to address their batting woes against an England team gunning for revenge after feeling hard-done by a debatable concussion substitute when the two teams clash in the fifth and final T20 International in Mumbai on Sunday.
Virat Kohli's form in focus as India eye ODI clean-sweep over England
The legendary Adam Gilchrist showered praise on Australia captain Pat Cummins for his outstanding performance in the Adelaide Test.
The start of India's two-day warm-up match against the Australian Prime Minister's XI on Saturday was delayed because of rain.
The ceremony, held at the famous St Peter's Basilica and attended by clergy and dignitaries from around the world, witnessed the induction of 21 new cardinals from various countries.
Since Suryakumar took over as captain last year, India have hardly put a wrong but his own form has dipped.
Sanju Samson's technical weaknesses against express pace along with Rinku Singh's dip in form and fitness issues will be a concern for India
England captain Jos Buttler is confident that the upcoming T20I series against India will not impact their preparation for the Champions Trophy.
At 6.23 am on 29.1.2025, the 50.9 metre tall and weighing 420.7 ton Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle-F15 (GSLV-F15) is slated to blast off from the second launch pad carrying the 2,250 kg NVS-02 navigation satellite.
India are placed with Australia, Afghanistan and Bangladesh in Group 1 of the Super 8.
The ruling Democratic Party and the opposition Republicans have deployed hundreds of attorneys and thousands of volunteers to be part of the vote-counting process and be prepared to challenge and start the legal battle if necessary.
Captain Rohit Sharma was among the first ones to check out the pitch after play was called off on Day 1.
The third T20I was scheduled to begin 10:30 AM local time (8 pm IST) but has now been pushed back by one-and-a-half hours to 12 pm local time (9:30 pm IST).
Following is India's schedule on Thursday, Day 1 of the Paris Paralympics: (All timings in IST):
Germany expects 2.7 million people to attend matches in stadiums across the country and some 12 million in its fan zones for outdoor viewing, including on a long stretch of turf laid out in front of Berlin's Brandenburg Gate.
Following is India's schedule on Friday, Day 2 of the Paris Paralympics: (All timings in IST):
Her acclaimed film All We Imagine As Light received two Golden Globe nominations in the Best Director (Motion Picture) and Best Motion Picture (Non English Language Film) categories. This marks the first time an Indian director has been nominated in the Director category.