Top Naxalite commander Madvi Hidma, who had masterminded several attacks over the last two decades, was killed in an encounter in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday, a breakthrough Chhattisgarh Police described as the 'last nail in the coffin' of the insurgency.
The 34-year-old briefly captained Sri Lanka's Test side in 2018 in the absence of Dinesh Chandimal due to a ball-tampering ban, winning his first match as skipper against West Indies at the Kensington Oval.
India Masters defeated Sri Lanka Masters by four runs in a thrilling finish to the first match of the International Masters League.
Cricket legends Sachin Tendulkar and Kumar Sangakkara will captain India and Sri Lanka, respectively, in the inaugural International Masters League.
Sri Lanka fast bowler Suranga Lakmal was fined for firing two successive beamers at England's Jos Buttler, an action for which he showed "no remorse", the International Cricket Council said.
Sangakkara, who got to his hundred off a single, hit the winning runs with a six over long-on.
Cornwall and Da Silva turned the tide of the Test again as the former took the attack to the bowlers and the latter proved the perfect foil in tiring the visitors' seamers
Fast bowler Suranga Lakmal took four for 27 to set up Sri Lanka's 10-wicket victory over Zimbabwe in the first Test in Harare on Thursday.
JP Duminy and Stephen Cook scored half centuries but four wickets for Suranga Lakmal and two for Rangana Herath restricted South Africa to 267 for six on the opening day of the first Test against Sri Lanka on Monday. Duminy made 63 and Cook 59 as South Africa threatened to dominate on a dry track at St George's Park but wickets at key moments kept Sri Lanka firmly in the game.
The susceptible technique of Indian batsmen in seamer-friendly conditions was thoroughly exposed as Sri Lanka comfortably beat India by seven wickets in the first ODI of the three-match series.
Sri Lanka paceman Suranga Lakmal has been fined half of his match fee for throwing the ball dangerously at Zimbabwe opener Chamu Chibhabha during their abandoned one-day international in Bulawayo on Monday.
An untidy shot prevented captain Alastair Cook from grabbing a place in cricketing history on Friday when he was caught at slip for 15 as England reached 83-2 at lunch on the first day of the second Test against Sri Lanka.
Lakmal's sensational spell, in which he struck thrice without conceding a run in six overs, saw him remove opener Lokesh Rahul on the first ball of the match after play began three and a half hours late due to wet conditions.
India's second innings was into its sixth over when Lakmal was seen bending over and throwing up. The Sri Lankan physio rushed in and eventually walked off with the player.
Left-arm spinner Rangana Herath has been dropped from Sri Lanka's 14-member squad for the Asia Cup, to be held in Dhaka from March 11 to 22.
Sri Lanka opening bowler Suranga Lakmal made early inroads, taking the wickets of John Campbell (5) and Nkrumah Bonner (0) in the morning session and piling on the pressure with six successive maidens.
The 18-member Sri Lanka Test squad, led by star batter Dimuth Karunaratne and featuring veterans such as Angelo Mathews, Lahiru Thirimanne and Dinesh Chandimal, checked in Dharamsala on Friday.
Tim Southee rescued New Zealand with the bat then dragged his side back into the match
There is clearly no more destructive batter currently in world cricket and while he can drive us crazy by the erratic nature of his batting at times, throwing his wicket away (like he did in Bengaluru on Sunday), there is no better sight in the game these days when he is taking a bowling attack apart.
Images from Day 1 of the first Test between India and Sri Lanka in Kolkata on Thursday.
'Playing in our home conditions will be a lot better for us. We can do it in Sri Lanka.'
New Zealand were bowled out for 249 in the first session but Sri Lanka struggled to get going during Patel's spells and finished on 227-7, trailing by 22 runs.
India's captain Virat Kohli staved off the threat of defeat before their fast bowlers ensured the hosts finished on a high in the drawn opening Test against Sri Lanka in an enthralling final day at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Monday.
Images from Day 2 of the second Test between India and Sri Lanka, in Bengaluru, on Sunday.
Virat Kohli would hope for a turnaround when India take on an under-prepared Sri Lanka in the second Test in Bengaluru
Images from Day 2 in the first Test between India and Sri Lanka, in Mohali, on Saturday.
Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne missed individual centuries but forged Australia's highest partnership of the summer to earn the hosts a handy first innings lead against Sri Lanka on day two of the series opening day-night Test on Friday.
Bowlers dominated the day with 16 wickets falling in the entire day.
Images from Day 3 in the first Test between India and Sri Lanka, in Mohali, on Sunday.
This is his 'Test' and for Kohli, a century to mark a 'century' is something he would be craving
Suranga Lakmal bowled a tight final over to help Sri Lanka win the rain-hit fourth one-dayer against South Africa by three runs under the Duckworth-Lewis method on Wednesday and snap their losing streak.
But Pant took the game away from the Lankans by going after the bowling as soon as he walked to the crease, bringing up his fifty with seven fours and two sixes.
After the stumps on Day 2, Sri Lanka's score read 108/4 as they are trailing India by 466 runs.
Test cricket is set to Pakistan after a long wait of 10 years with Sri Lanka picking a full-strength squad for the two-match series next month.
Pant bludgeoned four sixes and nine fours in his innings of 96 in 97 deliveries as India reached 357 for six
India captain Rohit Sharma was all praise for Shreyas Iyer, saying the promising batter had big shoes to fill following the axing of Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane and grabbed the opportunity with both hands in the just-concluded Test series against Sri Lanka.
India extended their winning streak at home to 15 Test series as they beat Sri Lanka by 238 runs in the second Test to claim the two-match series 2-0 in Bengaluru on Monday.
Sri Lanka's seamers shared eight wickets to vindicate captain Angelo Mathews's decision to bowl after winning the toss as Bangladesh were shot out for 232 on the opening day of the first Test in Dhaka on Monday. In reply, the tourists were 60 for no loss when stumps were drawn, with Dimuth Karunaratne unbeaten on 28 and Kaushal Silva on 30.
The first Test, played at the same venue, had also petered out into a predictable draw late on the final day.
England's Ben Foakes made a memorable debut to help the tourists recover from a terrible start and reach 321 for eight wickets on the opening day of the first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle on Tuesday.
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