Will Ravi Shastri be retained or will the BCCI opt for a new face?
Stung by a batting debacle, Royal Challengers Bangalore have the onerous task of picking up pieces when they face defending champion Sunrisers Hyderabad on Tuesday, with a singular aim of keeping their hopes alive in the Indian Premier League.
Sitting atop the points table, Kolkata Knight Riders would look to consolidate their position when they clash with an equally confident Delhi Daredevils in what promises to be a thrilling IPL encounter, in New Delhi, on Monday.
However, Hyderabad had clearly done their homework as Rashid grabbed the top wicket-taker's 'purple cap' on Sunday after his 3-19 set up a comprehensive win over Gujarat Lions.
Australia's Steve Smith, on Friday, felt Ajinkya Rahane will do a good job as skipper in the probable absence of Virat Kohli.
Kings XI Punjab captain David Miller was full of praise for young opener Manan Vohra, whom he feels has started to focus on building his innings.
It is a treat to watch them bowl in tandem. Ironically, they also share the same last name. Rising Pune Supergiants spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Murugan Ashwin. While off-spinner R Ashwin has emerged to be India's lead spinner in the last couple of years, his partner M Ashwin is the talk of season 9 of Indian Premier League with the amount of turn he generates with his leg-spinners as well as googly. Catch the Chennai-based spinners in conversation with IPLT20.com
Two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders on Wednesday defeated title holders Sunrisers Hyderabad by seven wickets via Duckworth-Lewis method in a rain-truncated Indian Premier League Eliminator to set up a meeting against Mumbai Indians in Friday's Qualifier 2.
A play-offs spot having sealed after a resounding victory in their previous match, Kolkata Knight Riders would aim for a top-two finish with a win when they take on an inconsistent Kings XI Punjab in an IPL match, in Mohali, on Tuesday.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni roared back to form with a smashing half-century to power RIsing Pune Supergiant to a six-wicket victory against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Pune, on Saturday.
He was one of Mahendra Singh Dhoni's trusted lieutenants during the best days of Chennai Super Kings and not only does Suresh Raina 'miss' his captain but also feels disappointed in the manner he was removed from Rising Pune Supergiant's captaincy.
Their winning momentum punctured after a loss to Rising Pune Supergiants, Sunrisers Hyderabad would look to get back to their winning ways when they take on a struggling Royal Challengers Bangalore in an Indian Premier League Twenty20 match, in Hyderabad, on Saturday.
'It's great to have Rohit at the other end. He's a very calm character.'
Although handicapped by the absence of their pace injured spearhead Lasith Malinga, who may miss the entire Indian Premier League season 9 commencing, in Mumbai, on Saturday, title holders Mumbai Indians are quite confident that there are others capable of stepping into the Sri Lankan's shoes.
Rajneesh Gupta presents statistical summary of Mumbai Indians and much more.
Rajneesh Gupta presents statistical summary of Kolkata Knight Riders and much more.
He was on the Marquee List. His base price was a meagre Rs 50,000. Yet batting sensation Martin Guptill failed to find a buyer at the IPL auction.
"(The loss) Just shows we can make mistakes as well. We lost two games in a row. If we pick up momentum and win the next three, then you will be asking how is the championship feeling," he retorted when asked how back-to-back losses could affect the team going into the play-offs.
Chasing a modest 161, KKR were nine for one in the second over, but Uthappa (59 from 33 balls) and Gambhir put together a 108-run partnership off just 66 balls to lay the foundation for the win at the Eden Gardens.
Chasing 135 to win, Gujarat lost both openers - Ishan Kishan (16) and Brendon McCullum (3) -- to be reduced to 23-2 but Finch blasted 5 fours and 6 sixes in his scintillating 34-ball 72-run innings as the visitors romped home with 6.1 overs to spare.
Rohit Sharma's quickfire half-century went in vain as Rising Pune Supergiant shocked table-toppers Mumbai Indians by three runs, in the Indian Premier League, in Mumbai on Monday.
'He believes in his destiny and says "naseeb accha hai, chalne do".'
Sunrisers Hyderabad produced a solid batting performance to beat Kings XI Punjab by seven wickets and virtually secure their place in the play-offs of the ongoing Indian Premier League.
Kolkata Knight Riders spinners dominated to reduce Rising Pune Supergiants to 103/6 in 17.4 overs before rain stopped play in the Indian Premier League game at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Saturday. Both teams had to share a point each and as result of which KKR rises to third spot in the points table. Piyush Chawla claimed 2/21 and bowled 13 dot balls while Sunil Narine, who returned after two matches, gave away a miserly 10 runs from 3.4 overs as Pune Supergiants struggled to break free. Skipper MS Dhoni was in the midst of Pune's terrible struggle as he crawled to eight runs from 22 balls. Pune were however looking good at 70/3 and when Dhoni walked in they were 74/4 in 10.3 overs but by the time the rain interrupted the proceedings their run-rate had slipped to less than six.
Four defeats in six games notwithstanding, Royals Challengers Bangalore batsman KL Rahul expressed confidence of his team bouncing back in the ongoing Indian Premier League, saying that it just needed to sort out a few grey areas in its bowling attack.
Unbeaten in all the three games they have played so far in the tournament, Gujarat Lions would look to continue with their impressive winning run when they take on Sunrisers Hyderabad in an IPL match in Rajkot on Thursday. The Lions have been in red-hot form in their debut season with convincing wins in all the three games and they would seek to maintain a clean slate tomorrow at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium. The home side will also be bolstered by the return of all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja who did not play in the Lion's seven-wicket thrashing of defending champions Mumbai Indians in Mumbai due to his wedding.
Following the Bombay High Court's verdict to move the Indian Premier League games after April 30 out of drought-hit Maharashtra, the Indian Premier League, on Friday, picked Bengaluru as the venue for its season 9 finale, and offered four alternate home options to the state's affected franchises.
Thampi, Rana, Tripathi are big gains from IPL-10.
Smashing Warner. Amazing Stokes. Super Smith. Pure Amla...
Rajneesh Gupta takes a look at each team's chances of making it to last four.
Karun Nair kept Delhi Daredevils' slender hopes of qualifying for the play-offs alive with a 59-ball unbeaten 83 that guided them to a six-wicket victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad in Friday's Indian Premier League match, at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh stadium in Raipur, that went down to the wire.
The shortest format may have resulted in change of batting philosophy for many but India's star batsman Ajinkya Rahane says that he will never trade his "copybook style" for fancy shots.
Royal Challengers Bangalore will be looking to take the confidence from their Monday night's nerve-wracking one-run victory when they clash with Mumbai Indians.
Seeking to bury any perceived differences with his spin spearhead Ravichandran Ashwin, India's limited over skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni hailed the off-spinner stating that he has "bailed" the team out on numerous occasions. "As I have said, Ashwin has bailed me out in a lot of situations - whether bowling in first six or in the slog phase. He is a bowler who can come in and do well at any time," Dhoni said, trying to clear the air about under-bowling the Tamil Nadu bowler, right from the start of the World T20. He was answering a question in reference to the premier offie was brought on as late as the 16th over to bowl for the first time and then taken off in the IPL's season-opening game between his new team - Rising Pune Supergiants - and defending champions Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday.
Warner, Parthiv, Amla, Bhuvi, Jasprit... Rediff.com's Harish Kotian picks his Dream Team after IPL 10.
The astronomical fee paid for Ben Stokes at the IPL auction is a confirmation of his status as the modern game's finest all-rounder.
Captain Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers smashed brisk half centuries to guide Royal Challengers Bangalore to a well-deserved 13-run victory over Rising Pune Supergiants in the Indian Premier League match, in Pune, on Friday.
Mumbai Indians need to rethink their strategy; Narine boost for Kolkata Knight Riders.
'You should do a detailed study on what exactly you want for the team looking at the season ahead.' 'If you are not clear with your plans, you will get carried away at the auction table,' says Pravin Amre, former talent scout chief at the Delhi Capitals.
Australia warmed up for the limited-overs series against India in style by crushing Board President's (BP) XI by 103 runs in the lone practice match, in Chennai, on Tuesday.