S L Narayanan, a regular visitor to Pune for the Maharashtra Chess League, has a reputation for shocking seeded players. On Thursday, in the fourth round of the LIC World Junior Chess championships, at the Hotel Hyatt, the teenager from Kerala played true to his reputation and stunned Polish Grandmaster Kamil Dragun.
Left-arm seamer Samad Fallah exposed the poor technique of Bengal's batsmen with some incisive swing bowling to put Maharashtra in the driver's seat on the first day of their Ranji Trophy semi-final in Indore on Saturday.
Bangladesh's Tamim Iqbal and Mahmudullah scored half-centuries to give their team hope of taking a first-innings lead over South Africa on the second day of their opening Test at Chittagong on Wednesday.
Tillakaratne Dilshan scored his third consecutive half-century as Sri Lanka beat New Zealand by 36 runs under Duckworth/Lewis in the third and final one-day international to clinch a 1-1 series draw on Saturday.
Opener Murali Vijay (53 off 113 balls) and Lokesh Rahul (58 off 92 balls) also scored a half century each after the visitors opted to bat after winning the toss.
Kane Williamson fought hard to establish his innings before cashing in during the final session to lead New Zealand to 177 for three at close of play on the second day of the first test against South Africa on Thursday.
Tillakaratne Dilshan hit an unbeaten 74 off 51 deliveries to take Sri Lanka to a six-wicket consolation win in the third and final Twenty20 match over South Africa which has secured the series 2-1.
Bangladesh 'A' need something special on the third and final day to save the unofficial Test against India 'A' at the M Chinnaswamy stadium in Bengaluru. At stumps on Monday, Day 2 of the match, the visitors were reeling at 36 for 2.
Zimbabwe are still in with a chance of an upset victory, but Pakistan appeared in control at close on the fourth day of the second Test in Harare on Friday. Pakistan, needing 264 for victory, finished on 158 for five.
India 'A' were set a stiff target of scoring 307 runs to win the second and final unofficial Test after South Africa 'A' declared their second innings at 166 for five on the third and penultimate day in Pretoria on Monday.
A century partnership between Darren Bravo and Jermaine Blackwood led West Indies to a five-wicket victory over England in the third Test on an awkward Barbados wicket as the series ended at 1-1 on Sunday.
Axar Patel showed his all-round prowess with an unbeaten 69 as India 'A' posted 417 for 8 against South Africa 'A' and swelled their lead to 157 runs on a rain-hit third day in the second and final unofficial 'Test' in Wayanad, Kerala, on Thursday.
Ajinkya Rahane scored an unbeaten hundred but skipper Virat Kohli's poor form continued as the touring Indians put up 314 for six on the opening day of their only three-day tour game against Sri Lanka Board President's XI in Colombo, on Thursday.
He joins an elite group of players who have made a century in their 100th Test -- the others being Colin Cowdrey, Javed Miandad, Gordon Greenidge, Alec Stewart, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Ricky Ponting (both innings) and Graeme Smith.
Experienced Pakistan batsmen Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq both scored centuries to put their team firmly in control of the opening Test against Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
Hosts Punjab frittered away the advantage of solid opening stand as they were all out for 270 as Karnataka captain R Vinay Kumar ran through the middle-order with a five-wicket haul in the Ranji Trophy semi-final in Mohali.
Jammu and Kashmir skipper Parveez Rasool continued his brilliant all-round performance with a five-wicket haul as their Ranji Trophy quarter-final match seemed headed for an exciting finish with Punjab leaving them with a target of 324 for a historic victory in Vadodara.
President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday approved a total of 112 gallantry awards for defence and paramilitary personnel for their sacrifices to the nation, the defence ministry said.
Younis Khan and Azhar Ali struck centuries to punish a sloppy Bangladesh and power Pakistan to a strong 323 for three wickets on the first day of the second and final Test on Wednesday.
Hamilton Masakadza defied Bangladesh's spinners with an unbeaten 154 to take Zimbabwe to a respectable position in the second Test in Kulna. The tourists had reached 331-5 in their first innings by stumps on the third day, trailing Bangladesh's total of 433 by 102.
Skipper Cheteshwar Pujara scored his third triple hundred in first-class cricket as India gained a stranglehold over the West Indies 'A' in the third unofficial 'Test' in Hubli n Friday. The Saurashtra batsman registered an unbeaten 306 as the home side declared their first innings at 564 for 9, just at the stroke of tea, in reply to the West Indies' 268, to take a 296-run lead.
Bangladesh thumped England in a bowler-dominated contest after home skipper Mashrafe Mortaza's all-round brilliance secured their series-levelling 34-run victory in the second One-day International on Sunday.
India's bowlers found the going tough after a good start as Jonathan Carter smashed his way to a remarkable century and took West Indies 'A' to 279 for 6, in the second unofficial one-dayer at the Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore on Tuesday. The 25-year-old Carter dominated the West Indies innings, smashing the Indian attack to all corners of the ground, in an impressive 133 off 132 balls.
Kane Williamson seized New Zealand's run chase by the scruff of the neck to lead his side to an improbable seven-wicket victory against Bangladesh on the final day of the first Test at the Basin Reserve on Monday.
New Zealand won the first Twenty20 international match against West Indies by 81 runs at EdenPark on Saturday to go 1-0 up in the two-match series.
Railways captain Murali Kartik took the attack back to the opposition camp with a timely half-century as the visitors need another 154 runs with seven wickets in hand as their Ranji Trophy quarter-final against hosts Bengal hangs in balance at the end of the fourth day.
Left-arm spinner Axar Patel scalped four wickets without conceding a single run as India 'A' clinched the unofficial Test series against South Africa 'A' 1-0 after an imposing innings and 81 runs victory in the second and final match in Wayanad, Kerala, on Friday.
Abhinav Mukund and skipper Ambati Rayudu struck half-centuries as India A gained a slight edge, reaching 342 for six against South Africa A, thereby taking a 82-run lead at stumps on the second day of the second and final unofficial 'Test'.
A hobbling Kane Williamson guided New Zealand to 142 for five at the close of play on the third day of the second Test against Sri Lanka in Hamilton, with the hosts needing another 47 runs to seal a 2-0 series sweep.
Left-arm spinner Axar Patel scalped five wickets as India 'A' spinners shot out South Africa 'A' for 260 on Day 1 of the second and final unofficial 'Test' in Wayanad, Kerala, on Tuesday.
Chasing a mammoth victory target of 444, the hosts battled to 309 for four before the umpires decided to call off the match after consulting the two captains, Ambati Rayudu and Dane Vilas.
Darren Bravo scored an enterprising century as West Indies rallied from a poor start to reach the final of the triangular one-day international series with a commanding 100-run victory over South Africa in Barbados on Friday.
Middle-order batsman Omphile Ramela struck an attractive century as South Africa 'A' posted a comfortable 293 for 4 on the opening day of the first unofficial 'Test' against India 'A', in Wayanad, Kerala, on Tuesday. Riding on the left-hander's 112 off 197 balls, the Proteas dictated terms after skipper Dane Vilas chose to bat.
Mominul Haque's fine knock of 181 took Bangladesh close to New Zealand's first-innings total of 469 on the third day of the first Test in Chittagong on Friday.
An incisive spell of seam bowling by Karnataka's Abhimanyu Mithun helped South Zone reduce Central Zone to 123 for five on a rain curtailed first day of the Duleep Trophy semi-final in Chennai.
India 'A' off-spinner Baba Aparajith struck late to claim five wickets, but it was opener Cameron Bancroft's strokeful 150 that powered Australia 'A' to a crucial first innings lead on Day 2 of the second four-day unofficial cricket 'Test' in Chennai on Thursday.
Steve Smith continued his sizzling form with an unbeaten century as Australia laid a strong foundation on the first day of the second Test .
Mayank Agarwal hammered a 49-ball 87 as India 'A' beat the touring South Africans in their opening warm-up T20 game by eight wickets, with two balls to spare, at the Air Force ground, in Palam, Delhi, on Tuesday.
Shikhar Dhawan hammered a record 248 to help India 'A' outclass South Africa 'A' by 39 runs and storm into the final of the 'A' teams' tri-series, in Pretoria, on Monday.
Dale Steyn became South Africa's second highest wicket taker as West Indies reached 276 for six on the first day of the third Test on Friday.
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