South Africa are the World Test champions and skipper Temba Bavuma wants them to play like it and prove their credentials in the two-Test series against India beginning on Friday.
Shami, 35, was left out of India's 15-member squad for the two home Tests against South Africa, scheduled to commence on Friday at the famed Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Before his most recent snub, Shami had openly expressed his disappointment about being sidelined from India's recent Test fixtures.
Shubman Gill celebrated his maiden Test series win as India completed a 2-0 sweep over West Indies at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.
The Bellerive Oval is one ground where the side boundaries are smaller in size, hence hitting the right lengths would be paramount considering anything short would be flying over cover, point, square leg or mid-wicket on either side of the fence.
Shubman Gill's century during India's second One Day International against Australia at the Holkar Stadium in Indore on Sunday, September 24, 2023, gave the young man admission into an elite club with Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli among others as its 7 members.
Jasprit Bumrah vented his frustration at cricket's tech limits after John Campbell survived a lifeline just shy of his maiden Test hundred on Monday.
Skipper Shubman Gill had a long batting stint while the troika of Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel returned to action for India's final training session here on Wednesday before the first Test against the West Indies.
The series promises a fascinating duel between the two modern-day pace greats.
'The No. 3 spot can't become a game of musical chairs.'
Not handing the ball to lead pacer Jasprit Bumrah to start the third day's play on a challenging Eden Gardens surface was "questionable", said the legendary Anil Kumble.
Gill stated that the decision on Bumrah's involvement will depend on the number of overs he bowls in each Test match and how his body feels after the match.
Karun Nair's struggles at the crucial No. 3 position is a big headache for Team India.
Matthew Hayden predicts Shubman Gill's 15-year reign in international cricket
Shubman Gill believes that revisiting all the technical work that he did before the five-Test series against England earlier this year helped him find his bearings during an impressive knock of 90 on a rank turner that has put India in an advantageous position against New Zealand in the third and final Test in Mumbai on Saturday.
The two four-day games will be held at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru from October 30 to November 9.
South Africa will aim for their first Test victory in India in more than 15 years.
In a rain-marred contest at Canberra, India skipper Suryakumar Yadav lit up the night with a couple of towering sixes - enough to take him into an elite club of T20I power-hitters, becoming only the second Indian after Rohit Sharma to reach 150 sixes in the format.
It's a bit of a shock to see Rohit not going to Australia as captain: Harbhajan
Shubman Gill said the masterly innings of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli helped him register his maiden win as India's ODI skipper.
Abhishek Sharma's rise in Indian cricket owes much to Yuvraj Singh, whose words of belief and trust helped him navigate tough times.
The landmark innings also placed Campbell in a rare club of openers who took the longest route to their maiden Test century.
Mumbai cricketer Angkrish Raghuvanshi and a few other local players were present at the training when Rohit had two batting nets session at the All Heart Cricket Academy.
'Though I would like to see him in the playing XI, Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma will open the batting for the team.'
India will look to address several lingering selection puzzles when they take on South Africa in Ranchi on Sunday in the first ODI of the three-match series, where Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli return to the set-up for a short audition that could well shape their 2027 World Cup fate.
'Am I the reason team will lose? Kuldeep might think, I am bowling so well, even after that I am not playing, then am I the problem in this team?'
Will Shubman Gill force either Sanju Samson or Tilak Varma out of the playing XI for the Asia Cup opening match against the UAE?
Ravichandran Ashwin exposed India batters' lack of quality to battle ball tweakers by claiming that if legendary batter Sachin Tendulkar or past domestic heroes Amol Muzumdar, the India women's team head coach and Mithun Manhas had played against spinners on such a track, the Test would have gone to four days, unlike India's harrowing 30-run defeat against South Africa at Eden Gardens.
Shubman Gill's usual consistency has been missing in IPL 2024.
India's batting coach Sitanshu Kotak is livid with the criticism that has been directed towards head coach Gautam Gambhir after India's defeat to South Africa in the opening Test.
Pat Cummins captured the sentiment perfectly, calling this potentially the 'last chance' for fans Down Under to witness these legends in action. With both stalwarts set to be 39 and 40 respectively by the 2027 World Cup, every appearance carries added significance. Ro-Ko have been the heartbeat of Indian cricket for over 15 years. Their return brings an emotional lift to the team and raises expectations for the series against the world champions.
Domestic veterans Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rajat Patidar and Rinku Singh could keep the team management interested going forward in Test cricket.
Rohit Sharma followed up his knock of 73 in the second ODI in Adelaide with a match-winning unbeaten 121 in Sydney to be named the Player of the Series.
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 auction saw some foreign names earning big bucks, headlined by Aussie all-rounder Cameron Green
Shubman Gill struck his 10th Test century, while Ravindra Jadeja picked up three wickets as India dominated Day 2 of the second Test against West Indies, in Delhi, on Saturday.
'Don't bring up this whole age issue that he is touching 40.' 'He's fit, batting well and catching brilliantly at slips.' 'What else do you need?'
Sai Sudharsan and Dhruv Jurel faced spinners while wearing only one pad to counter the turning deliveries, a method that comes with an element of risk, in Kolkata on Monday.
With Bumrah leading the charge, India prised out five wickets in the second session to snuff out South Africa's hopes of reaching the 200 mark.
Earlier this week, the duo arrived in Perth with the first batch of the team and practised relentlessly in the nets.
With no ODI series in Australia in the next two years, it is impossible to think that the legendary duo will again be seen Down Under in India blues.
As he made that slow walk back, Kohli turned once more to the Adelaide crowd, this time perhaps for the last time. The fans rose to their feet, acknowledging a man who has given them some of modern cricket's greatest memories.
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