New Zealand wicketkeeper-batsman Luke Ronchi has no qualms in saying that Mumbai, in the warm-up match, showed the visitors how to play in Indian conditions and they will have to play better to beat the hosts in the upcoming Test series. Ronchi felt there were more positives than negatives to take out of the only warm-up match of the team's India tour. "I think getting used to the wicket which was changing over three days (was one takeaway). It was deteriorating a bit with guys facing more spin towards the end and ball doing a few different things. Mumbai bowled and batted really well.
Despite all the hype, however, the match will do well to live up to some of the Manchester derby tussles down the years. Here are five of the most memorable:
A scarcity of gold medals in the first few days of the Olympics is leading China to reflect on its past obsession with finishing first, amid agreement that being champion is no longer everything.
Monaco owe most of their recent success to their young guns, but when they face Manchester City looking to overturn a two-goal deficit in their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday, they will turn to a more experienced player in Radamel Falcao.
Liverpool put their recent troubles behind them, showing touches of their best early-season vibrancy to overcame Arsenal 3-1 at a jubilant Anfield and leapfrog the Gunners into third place in the Premier League on Saturday.
England's comprehensive Ashes victory over Australia was built on a purposeful and well-drilled team that combined the perfect blend of youth and experience.
Bigger than ever, the European Championship kicks off in Paris next month with a four-week feast of football that promises to elevate the game above the corruption scandals and security fears that have overshadowed its build-up.
News of all that transpired on and off the field.
Brief reports of English Premier League matches on Saturday:
Check out the top footballers of the weekend...
Manchester United won 2-1 at Crystal Palace to consolidate fourth spot.
Leicester City continued to do their best Houdini impression on Saturday as they escaped the Premier League drop zone for the first time since November while Manchester City went up to second spot with a thrilling win.
Manchester United teenager Marcus Rashford wrote another chapter in his fairytale introduction to top-flight football, scoring a brilliant goal to secure a 1-0 win in his first derby match against Manchester City on Sunday.
Key moments in Chelsea's Premier League title-winning season.
Arsenal ended Leicester City's brief stay at the top of the Premier League on Sunday despite being held to a 0-0 draw at Stoke City after Manchester United's Wayne Rooney struck late for a 1-0 win at Liverpool.
Photos from the English Premier League matches played on Saturday
Less than a week after FIFA set up a task force to look into when the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar can be held, English FA chairman Greg Dyke said it will never take place in the searing heat of the Middle East summer.
Images from Tuesday night's UEFA Champions League group stage matches.
After seven consecutive league defeats, and one point from the last 30 on offer, had plunged Villa into crisis and cost Tim Sherwood his job, the former European champions produced a gritty display to frustrate City.
Ian Bell and Stuart Broad shared an unbroken century partnership to lift England to 326 for six on a compelling third day of the first Ashes Test against Australia on Friday.
Arsenal will have to produce the biggest second leg comeback in a Champions League knockout tie to avoid a seventh successive exit at the last 16 stage when they host Bayern Munich on Tuesday.
England's unlikely bowling hero in the Tests, all-rounder Moeen Ali also made an impact with the bat at Edgbaston while playing his first ODI of the series and has admitted that he learnt a lot by watching Indian batsmen from the sidelines.
Bigger than ever, the European Championship kicks off in Paris on Friday with a four-week feast of football that promises to elevate the game above the corruption scandals and security fears that have overshadowed its build-up. All eyes will be on hosts France when they get the ball rolling against Romania in the Stade de France -- 210 days after suicide bombers at the same venue triggered a night of horror across the capital which killed 130 people.
BCCI's Cricket Advisory Committee member Sourav Ganguly explains why they decided to defer the naming of India's new coach. Harish Kotian/Rediff.com listens in.
The last 10 Slams have all been won by Djokovic, Federer or Nadal. Will this Wimbledon be different, asks Dhruv Munjal.
Photos and summary of the English Premier League matches played on Tuesday, including the story of Chelsea's resurgent win
Photos from the Premier League matches played on Sunday
Arsenal's victory was scrappy and nervy but Laurent Koscielny's 72nd-minute winner was enough to move them two points clear at the summit after LeicesterCity's surprise push faltered with a goalless draw at home to 10-man Bournemouth.
Liverpool made it three wins out of three as Mohamed Salah scored twice in a convincing 3-1 victory over Arsenal on Saturday to take control at the top of the Premier League.
Everton and Tottenham Hotspur both missed the chance to move up to second place in the Premier League after they shared a battling 0-0 draw at Goodison Park on Sunday. The day's other game ended in a 1-0 win for Cardiff City over arch-rivals Swansea City in the first ever Welsh derby played in the English top flight.
The 2014 World Cup was a captivating carnival of football with high drama and Germany displayed their credentials as worthy champions.
International Test debuts can be intimidating and Sachin Tendulkar could not have imagined a tougher one when he padded up against pace legends Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis in 1989 -- the experience leaving him so scarred that he doubted his ability to continue at the highest level.
James Milner, set to win his 50th England cap against San Marino on Thursday, believes his international captain Wayne Rooney has a good chance of reaching another significant landmark in the coming days.
Arsene Wenger is confident Arsenal can rekindle the art of winning after a series of frustrating Premier League draws but their quest may be hindered by a "worrying" injury crisis.
As Manchester United prepare to embark on a new era following Louis van Gaal;s departure, Bikash Mohapatra/Rediff.com offers a diagnosis of what went wrong with the most successful Premier League club after Sir Alex Ferguson called it a day.
As Leicester City celebrates its unexpected title triumph, Bikash Mohapatra/Rediff.com lists similar success stories across Europe's top leagues.
The statistics of a stunning campaign tell an astonishing tale of how Leicester have turned the clock back by shunning possession and glorying in the long ball to a pacey striker, while spurning rotation in favour of a settled, almost self-selecting side
Former batsman V V S Laxman believes tinkering with Team India's support staff is not a viable option and newly-appointed team director Ravi Shastri and coach Duncan Fletcher should stay till the 2015 World Cup.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Friday.
Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic returned to Manchester United on a year-year contract "to finish what I started," the 35-year-old announced in a club statement on Thursday.
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