Chennai Super Kings will lean on their formidable spin strength under favourable conditions at the Chepauk as well as recent record against Mumbai Indians sans Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya, when the two sides face each other in their Indian Premier League campaign opener in Chennai on Sunday.
Dasun Shanaka produced a solid all-round performance, which included bowling figures of 4 for 23, as former champions Sri Lanka overcame some jittery moments to down Ireland by 41 runs in their T20 World Cup warm-up game in Lauderhill (USA) on Friday.
At the mega auction, Mumbai Indians made some strategic buys, in a bid to build a strong team around their solid Indian core consisting of Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Jaspreet Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, and Tilak Varma.
Expect some fireworks for the highly-versatile Cameron Green along with Quinton de Kock, Matheesha Pathirana, Venkatesh Iyer and Ravi Bishnoi.
Afghanistan unlikely to give NOCs for Mujeeb, Naveen and Farooqi, putting IPL participation in doubt
Mumbai Indians head coach Mahela Jayawardene on Friday said star pacer Jasprit Bumrah was still recuperating from a back injury and that the team was waiting for him to be cleared by the National Cricket Academy (NCA).
Ahead of the mini-auction, scheduled to be held in Doha on December 26, the 10 franchises have released their list of retained and released players.
Paarl Royals' spinners continued to dominate at their Boland Park fortress as the hosts outclassed Joburg Super Kings by six wickets.
Premier leg-spinner Rashid Khan was on Saturday picked in a 19-member Afghanistan squad, to be led by young Ibrahim Zadran, for the three T20 Internationals against India starting on January 11 in Mohali.
'If you look at their squad, with Cameron Green coming in, they have their biggest headache sorted. The middle muddle is sorted. They will have to sort out their bowling.'
Middle-order batter Hashmatullah Shahidi will lead the side.
Rajasthan Royals will face Mumbai Indians in a crucial Indian Premier League match on Thursday, looking to halt the five-time champions' surging momentum.
Teenage Afghanistan off-spinner AM Ghazanfar has been ruled out of both the ICC Champions Trophy and the IPL due to a lower back fracture.
Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna's excellent spell with the ball and Sai Sudharsan's fluent fifty inspired Gujarat Titans to a convincing 36-run victory against Mumbai Indians.
With 20 points in their kitty, the Royals are within touching distance of becoming the first team to qualify for the play-offs.
Afghanistan coach Trott fumes over poor outfield at HPCA stadium.
Prasidh recently underwent a surgery on his left proximal quadriceps tendon and is currently recovering.
A rampant Mumbai Indians will present a stern test of character for the rattled Punjab Kings in a virtual semi-final when the two teams face-off in Qualifier 2 of the Indian Premier League in Ahmedabad on Sunday.
But in their pursuit of glory, both leaders must find a way to address the issues at hand.
While MI's win will assure them of a place in the play-offs, Delhi Capitals need to win both their remaining games to advance.
'We always say that India is our second home. We love the crowd and they give a lot of love to us.'
Shivam Dube proved his utility in India's crowded batting line-up with a belligerent half-century to secure their six-wicket victory against Afghanistan in the opening T20 International in Mohali on Thursday.
The team has won 10 out of their 24 matches while losing 14.
Mumbai Indians have the upper hand given their current form despite having lost to CSK in their IPL season-opener in Chepauk.
An in-form Mumbai Indians will be out for revenge having lost to Gujarat Titans earlier in the season.
The first Super 4 game in the Asia Cup will be played between Sri Lanka and Afghanistan at the Sharjah cricket stadium starting 1930 IST.
Struggling Mumbai Indians will be hoping their batters get their act together and shoulder responsibility when they take on an inspired Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Indian Premier League match in Mumbai on Monday.
Mumbai Indians and Lucknow Super Giants, both struggling in the Indian Premier League, will be looking to turn their fortunes around when they face each other on Friday.
The GT batters did well at the start and lost their way in the middle before settling for 196 in their 20 overs.
As captain, Gautam Gambhir won KKR its two titles. Now, as team mentor, can he inspire KKR to achieve glory?
A rampaging Mumbai Indians will look to maintain their winning run in a vital mid-table battle against a dangerous Lucknow Super Giants in an Indian Premier League clash here on Sunday.
Having got off to a start so typical of themselves in the Indian Premier League, Mumbai Indians will hope for a quick turnaround when they take on defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders in Mumbai on Monday.
MI will hope Jasprit Bumrah returns to his menacing best, which is essential for them to stop an explosive Sunrisers Hyderabad batting unit in its tracks.
Pandya's inclusion obviously adds firepower to batting and he can also open the bowling if necessary.
More than the numbers, it was the swagger. The intent. The ease with which he handled the pressure. Vaibhav didn't look like a passenger in the IPL -- he looked like he belonged.
Sri Lanka knocked out Afghanistan with a six-wicket victory at the Gabba.
Captain Rohit Sharma was seething in anger following his run out in the first T20 International against Afghanistan.
India's chase got off to a rocky start with captain Rohit Sharma being bowled out by Fazalhaq Farooqi (1-28) for a golden duck. But the 22-year-old Jaiswal built a 57-run partnership with Virat Kohli (29) that put India in the driving seat.
Durban's Super Giants pip Pretoria Capitals
Three days after stunning defending champions England in New Zealand, the plucky Afghans briefly kindled hopes of another upset when New Zealand's top order suffered a mini-collapse.
