or every elite athlete at the business end of their careers, a situation comes where they have to take a hard call, believes former India captain Sourav Ganguly.
Former captain Sunil Gavaskar feels including injury-prone pacer Mohammed Shami in India's Tewnty20 World Cup squad is a bit of a risk but the team announced by the Board's selection committee, on Friday, has "terrific balance".
Kohli made 160 not out from 159 balls as India, who had been put into bat, posted 303 for six in their 50 overs, before restricting their hosts to 179 all out to take a 3-0 lead in the series.
India captain Virat Kohli said the team had the "belief" to win the match and level the series even after posting a modest score on the board and termed the bowling efforts of veteran Ashish Nehra and Jasprit Bumrah as "outstanding".
India captain Rohit Sharma says he was determined not to throw his wicket away, a day after an end-stage manic acceleration saw him smash a record third double century in One-day Internationals.
"He (Kohli) is a fantastic captain. I don't know what he does inside dressing room or what he does tactically, as I'm too far away (from the team). I don't know what he speaks in team meetings but the way he looks after his players is remarkable," Ganguly said during a book launch in Kolkata.
Australia vice-captain Alex Carey said the ODI series win against a top team like India 'will mean a lot' considering the hosts' struggles over the last 12 months.
India mantained its number three position in the recently released MRF Tyres ICC ODI Team Rankings which is being headed by world champions Australia. With 110 rating points in its kitty, India are place below Australia (123) and second-placed New Zealand (113).
Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com, looking at the lighter side of things, believes Thursday's semi-final against Australia will not be a walk in the park for the defending champions.
"He's so inventive ... he can play a touch game or a power game. Then, he can also keep wickets. I think he's the most valuable cricketer around," reckons former Australian great Adam Gilchrist.
Delhi Daredevils beat Chennai Super Kings by six wickets in their Indian Premier League match at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium in Raipur on Tuesday.
England all-rounder Ben Stokes, who became the highest paid overseas player in the Indian Premier League auction, is excited about sharing the dressing room with Steven Smith and Mahendra Singh Dhoni in his maiden stint at the cash-rich T20 tournament.
Not in a mood to blame the surface for his spinners inability to make a mark in the ongoing Indian Premier League, Kolkata Knight Riders captain Gautam Gambhir has said a quality tweaker doesn't need any assistance to perform.
With seven wins in a row, Team India has had it relatively easy when it comes to making to the last four. The defending champions are up against hosts Australia next. Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com, looking at the lighter side of things, believes it is Shikhar Dhawan who holds the key.
BCCI has reacted sharply to the Committee of Administrators red-flagging a proposed Day/Night Test match against the West Indies in October despite positive feedback from national chief coach Ravi Shastri.
Since the tour of Sri Lanka in July-August 2017, India have tried as many as six different batsmen -- KL Rahul, Kedar Jadhav, Manish Pandya, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik and Ajinkya Rahane -- at number four.
Australian scribe Samuel Ferris, who was at the receiving end of Mahendra Singh Dhoni's sarcasm-laden jibe for asking about his future plans in international cricket, shared his experience of being invited on the dais by the India skipper.
The best teams, the best batsmen and the best bowlers coming into the cricket World Cup
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and industrialist Mukesh Ambani feature amongst the most searched personalities online this year, according to search engine Yahoo.
Sukanya Verma presents an appreciation post for the cast of this must-watch movie.
Rajneesh Gupta presents statistical summary of Chennai Super Kings and much more.
The Indian cricket team flew to Sydney and preferred to spent the day indoors even as there was intense speculation over Mahendra Singh Dhoni's decision to quit the Test format with immediate effect, which surprised the cricket fraternity.
Ashwin said after consistently playing the Test series against many teams, adjusting to the short format is a bit of a challenge.
India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni revealed on Saturday that Virat Kohli's agreement to drop down the order paid the team rich dividends and the strategy would be followed in the remainder of the One-Day series.
Australia great Adam Gilchrist is not only a fan of Virat Kohli's batting but also his captaincy and he sees the star player taking the Indian team forward in all three formats for a long time. Gilchrist feels Kohli has added spice to the long-standing India-Australia rivalry, both with the willow as well as his leadership in Tests. "Virat is so impressive. He has learnt leadership in front of our eyes. When he is in charge (in Tests), he is very keen to fight fire with fire. I feel he is inspiring a nation and the team to go forward," Gilchrist, who is now Australia's Education Ambassador to India, told PTI. Though he lavished praise on Kohli and backed him to lead India in all three formats at some point, Gilchrist said one should never forget the contribution of Mahendra Singh Dhoni to Indian cricket.
Pandya's absence means that India will have to rejig their bowling attack. Jasprit Bumrah has already been rested for this series, as well as the tour of New Zealand, and this allows the think-tank to conduct one final experimentation with their bowling attack.
England and New Zealand have both had to ride out the storm to make this year's ICC Men's Cricket World Cup final. It has been far from smooth sailing for either side, but in the end it is Kane Williamson and Eoin Morgan's side who have emerged on top, and deservedly so.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni has grown a reputation as a notorious hoarder of souvenir stumps and considering India's imperious form going into the World Twenty20, few would be surprised if he adds one more to his formidable collection on April 3.
Thrust back into the India captaincy after Mahendra Singh Dhoni's shock decision to retire from Tests last week, Virat Kohli hopes to put right some of the mistakes he made in his first match in charge against Australia.
Even as speculation about Mahendra Singh Dhoni's sudden retirement from Test cricket persists, India's Team Director Ravi Shastri today described it as a "well thought-out" move and lashed out at critics who had accused the wicket-keeper-batsman of abandoning a sinking ship.
Steve Smith, on Thursday, said there is no bad blood between him and Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who was replaced by the Australian as skipper of the Pune Supergiant for the 10th edition of the Indian Premier League.
Chennai Super Kings coach Stephen Fleming has pointed out that six final appearances from the eight seasons speak of his side's consistency, and their loss to Mumbai Indians in the final of the Indian Premier League is not down to the mind.
Lauding Chennai Super Kings' team effort in their victory against Royal Challengers Bangalore, top-order batsman Suresh Raina on Monday credited skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's leadership qualities for the side's excellent showing in the ongoing Indian Premier League.
Sunil Gavaskar is glad that M S Dhoni has only quit limited overs captaincy and not retired as he feels the poster boy of Jharkhand still has a lot to offer to the Indian team. "If he had quit as a player, then I would have the been the first one outside his house, having a dharna asking him to make a comeback. As a player, he is still a destroyer. He can change fortunes of the game in a single over. India needs him as a player very very badly. I am happy that he has decided to stay on as a player," Gavaskar told NDTV.
In awe of Virat Kohli's batting genius in the World Twenty20 win over arch-rivals Pakistan, Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has said the elegant right-hander's willingness to take challenges head on sets him apart from others.
Australia captain Steve Smith admitted that his side did not execute their plans properly during the first ODI against India in Chennai and vowed to come back stronger in the remaining matches of the series.
Whacking the ball hard and far is his natural style but fast-rising Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya insists he is a proper batsman and not merely a pinch-hitter.
'I never thought in my dreams that I would score fifty in One-dayers'
Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com salutes the new ICC World Cup champions.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances