India's limited overs captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who remains a sought after personality in the endorsement world despite his retirement from Tests, has been duped by one of the many brands he endorses -- Spartan Sports -- of over Rs 20 crore. It has been reliably learnt that a three-year bat and sponsorship deal worth Rs 13 crore has gone sour with Australia-based Spartan Sports, a sporting gear and equipment company, regularly defaulting on payments. With the royalty clause on Dhoni's bat deal included, the owed amount goes well over Rs 20 crore.
Australia's cricketers returned to their aggressive brand of cricket in the aftermath of Phillip Hughes's death as they held their first training session in Adelaide since the tragedy.
South Africa batsman AB de Villiers became the first player in the history of Test cricket to score a half-century in 12 consecutive Tests after he crossed 50 in the first innings on the opening day of the second Test against Australia, at St George's Park, on Thursday.
Shaun Marsh's sensational strokeplay helped Kings XI Punjab edge past Rajasthan Royals via the Super Over after the match had finished in a tie in the Indian Premier League, in Ahmedabad, on Tuesday.
The emphatic win gave Australia a 2-0 lead in the five-Test series, a stunning turnaround from the northern Ashes series that England won 3-0 earlier this year.
Indian pacer Ishant Sharma, English batting star Kevin Pietersen and South African speedster Dale Steyn were among the biggest names to be released by their respective franchises ahead of the Indian Premier League's 10th edition next year. As many as 140 cricketers, including 44 overseas players, have been retained, while 63 were let go by the eight franchises for season 10.
The in-form Rajasthan Royals will be confident of a third consecutive victory when they take on Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League, in Jaipur, on Wednesday.
Australian captain George Bailey is not surprised that India did not qualify for the tri-series final and said that concentrating on Test cricket before heading into the ODI event might have been the reason for their below-par showing.
The Barmy Army, also paid homage to the late left-hander by chanting "There's only one Phillip Hughes" to the tune of 'Winter Wonderland' during the opening session of the fifth day of the match.
Following is a factbox on the first Test match between Australia and England, which starts on Thursday:
England skittled out shell-shocked Australia for 60 and piled up 274 for four in reply to take control of the fourth Ashes Test on a dramatic first day at Trent Bridge on Thursday.
Australian fast bowler Clint McKay has announced retirement from international and domestic cricket. McKay, who will continue to ply his trade with Leicestershire in England's County Championship, played a single Test for Australia against the West Indies in 2009, as well as six T20 Internationals, but the fast bowler excelled in the 50-over format, finishing with an outstanding bowling record in 59 ODIs. He became a key fixture in Australia's one-day side from 2009 - where he picked up the wickets of Sachin Tendulkar and Mahendra Singh Dhoni on international debut in Hyderabad - to his last match for Australia in early 2014, taking 97 wickets at 24.37, including a hat-trick against England. Over that period, only Mitchell Johnson took more ODI wickets for Australia than McKay, who was named Australia's ODI Cricketer of the Year at the Allan Border Medal awards in 2013. The 33-year-old was disappointed he wasn't selected to play more international cricket, though optimistic about Australia's bowling stocks looking forward. "Yeah it was difficult to take," McKay told cricket.com.au about losing his spot in Australia's ODI team. "But that's sometimes how things pan out.
Australia coach Darren Lehmann on Wednesday said the home side is liking the charged up atmosphere created by the newly-appointed Indian captain.
'If I was disappointed with anything it was the over-reaction' 'It's a Test match. It's tough cricket out there, you want people getting on with it'
Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting feels the team's pacers should not shy away from using the bouncer in the Test series against India starting on Tuesday.
Perennial under-achievers Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab will look to recover from opening losses and put their campaign back on track.
They have not lost to the West Indies in 14 Tests dating back to 2003.
Adam Voges became the oldest player to score a century on debut as Australia seized control of the first Test against the West Indies on the second day in Dominica on Thursday.
Australia bowled out the West Indies for 148 on the opening day of the first Test in Dominica on Wednesday, but the home team struck back by taking three wickets in the final session.
A selection of musings from around the cricket World Cup
Opener Chris Gayle bludgeoned his way to an astonishing 57-ball 117 as Royal Challengers Bangalore hammered Kings XI Punjab by 138 runs in the Indian Premier League match in Bangalore, on Wednesday.
Iconic batsman Sachin Tendulkar, on Sunday, joined a host of former players in slamming average rating given to the Perth stadium pitch, saying only such tracks can revive Test cricket.
Pat Cummins has been ruled out of Wednesday's World Cup match against Afghanistan, captain Michael Clarke confirmed.
Rajneesh Gupta presents some interesting numbers from Day 2:
Dale Steyn, Ishant Sharma, Joe Root, Hashim Amla and Lasith Malinga were among the big names who went unsold at the IPL auction.
Former Australia fast bowler Mitchell Johnson feels that Indian team will be 'nervous' considering the pacer-friendly conditions of Dharamsala where Steve Smith and his boys should feel more confident.
Rajasthan Royals would be keen to adapt quickly to their new 'home ground' when they lock horns with last season's runner-up Kings XI Punjab in their campaign opener in the Indian Premier League in Pune.
No sooner had the match ended, social media was abuzz with congratulatory messages for the team.
After playing a crucial role in Australia's World Cup triumph, Mitchell Johnson now has his sights trained on the challenge of bowling to the fearsome AB de Villiers when Kings XI Punjab take on Royal Challengers Bangalore in the eighth edition of the Indian Premier League.
Australia's world champion one-day team could face a major overhaul after they slumped to a 10th loss in 11 games, according to chairman of selectors Trevor Hohns.
Australia's bowling coach Craig McDermott says in-form pacer Mitchell Starc must be consistent throughout the 44-day long Cricket World Cup to give co-hosts the best chance of winning the coveted title.
England all-rounder Ben Stokes was the costliest buy after the first round of Indian Premier League players' auction, going to Rising Pune Supergiants for a whopping Rs 14.50 crore.
Left-arm spinner Ashton Agar will join Australia's squad for the fourth and final Test against India in Sydney, captain Steven Smith said on Tuesday.
Virat Kohli became only the second Indian batsman after Sunil Gavaskar to score three Test hundreds in a series against Australia.
English skipper Eoin Morgan expressed disappointment in the manner his side surrendered in the tri-series final to Australia by 112 runs but said that they will come back stronger in the World Cup beginning on February 14.
Australia fast bowler Pat Cummins has been called into the squad for the remainder of the One-day series against South Africa to give Mitchell Johnson time to rest up before next month's Test series against India.
Joe Root and Ian Bell are the two candidates to replace Jonathan Trott at No 3 in the England batting order for this week's second Ashes Test in Adelaide, batting coach Graham Gooch said on Monday.
Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane struck fluent centuries as India fought back bravely before a flurry of late wickets allowed a sloppy Australia to take a slight edge on stumps on Day 3 of the third Test, in Melbourne
More than his hundred on debut as captain Steven Smith was happy that Australia putting up 500 runs on the board on Day 3 of the second Test against India.
Former Indian cricketer Madan Lal on Thursday congratulated Ravichandran Ashwin for being named as ICC Cricketer of the Year, saying the ace off-spinner truly deserves the award. "I think he truly deserves this award. From two-three years, he has been performing brilliantly, especially while bowling. This year especially, his performance has been phenomenal and he has won many matches for India," Lal told ANI. "There was never any doubt that he is a world class spinner.At present, I think he is the best spinner in the world," he added.
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