England captain Eoin Morgan's century led his team to an impressive series opening 72-run victory against top-ranked South Africa in their opening One-Day International at Headingley.
Summing up South Africa's dismal show at the World T20 Championships, captain Faf du Plessis said small mistakes like conceding loads of extras in the games against England and the West Indies made a big impact and led to his team's early exit from the mega-event.
Former South Africa coach Ray Jennings feels that India captain Virat Kohli can be 'intimidating in the dressing room.'
Sachin Tendulkar survived an injury scare on Tuesday when X-rays revealed just a bruise on his right thumb.
Morkel removed Zimbabwe's most experienced batsman Hamilton Masakadza with the first ball of their innings and Chamu Chibhabha and Brendan Taylor were also dismissed as the visitors made a tentative start under lights.
Kohli's decision didn't work as the spin duo failed to contain Proteas
South African cricketer Faf du Plessis has now reportedly turned the tables on the visitors by claiming that something was amiss about the ball reversing so early on the third day of the decisive third Test at Newlands.
De Villiers was set to lead the side in Kohli's absence but the South African was ruled out of the team's opening game of the season on Wednesday.
Dale Steyn will join a select group of bowlers to claim 400 wickets with the South African paceman requiring four scalps in the two-Test series against Bangladesh to reach the milestone.
Captain Graeme Smith hit an unbeaten double century as South Africa went on a merciless scoring spree to establish a 361-run lead over Pakistan on the second day of the second Test in Dubai on Thursday. Smith was 227 not out and a cramping AB de Villiers scored an unbeaten 157 as the pair set a new South African fifth-wicket partnership record of 326 to put the top-ranked team firmly in command.
A hapless Indian bowling attack was smashed all over the park by South African batsmen in the fifth and final ODI, which the home side lost by 214 runs, but captain MS Dhoni defended them, saying that the Wankhede wicket was "too true" to offer any assistance to them.
Faf du Plessis will take the baton from RCB's longest standing captain, Virat Kohli who took charge ahead of IPL 2013.
The 34-year-old Steyn, currently on a short-term contract with Hampshire having been plagued by injury over the last two-and-a-half years, is three wickets short of a milestone that has frustratingly eluded him in recent times.
A superb spell of reverse-swing bowling from Dale Steyn and another fluent innings from Faf du Plessis helped South Africa cruise to a six-wicket victory over Australia in the final of the triangular series at the Harare Sports Club on Saturday.
Root relies on trademark style to rescue England
Australia captain Steven Smith has no qualms about playing another day-night Test at Adelaide Oval but is wary of how the pink ball will perform in the humid conditions expected at Brisbane later this year.
Neither team has managed to top 200 in the Test yet, but Amla believes his side could chase down more than that in the fourth innings.
A century from stand-in skipper Faf du Plessis lifted South Africa to a huge 142-run win over Australia and a 2-0 lead in the five-match One-day International series at The Wanderers on Sunday.
Khurram Manzoor was unbeaten on 131 and Pakistan ended on 263 for three, a lead of 14 runs over South Africa who were bowled out for 249 early in the morning session.
Marlon Samuels was out for 94 as West Indies finished on 281-4 against South Africa in the first Test.
'On Sunday against South Africa, Shikhar Dhawan took the spotlight and eventually, the Man of the Match award, with a century, but it was Ajinkya Rahane's innings that held the key to India topping the 300 mark.' Prem Panicker's match report card, for Rediff.com.
It has been raining runs for Rohit Sharma and he had little hesitation in calling 2017 the 'best year' of his decade-old international career.
'To a person, full member countries and their CEOs stated their absolute support of Test cricket being played under lights'
Kumar Sangakkara blasted a career-best 169 to help Sri Lanka crush South Africa by a huge margin of 180 runs in the first One-Day International, in Colombo, on Saturday.
Praising his players for the emphatic win over South Africa in the World Cup, team director Ravi Shastri said the management's decision to stick with Shikhar Dhawan, despite his poor form in the run-up to the showpiece event, proved right.
'In what could be a watershed series, they have also caused a change in the way Australia will play their cricket in the future following the ball-tampering furore for which this series will long be remembered.'
Litmus test awaits India and MS Dhoni in second ODI against South Africa.
Cheteshwar Pujara was the highest-ranked Indian batsman despite dropping a rung to eighth while R Ashwin held on to his eighth position in the bowlers' chart of the ICC Test rankings.
Rajneesh Gupta presents some interesting numbers to take note of at the end of the first day's play in the fourth Test between India and South Africa.
Big-hitting West Indies opener Chris Gayle says India spinner Yuzvendra Chahal is "very annoying" on social media and he is going to block him. Chahal is one of the most busiest India cricketers on social media and with the coronavirus-forced lockdown in place, he is spending more time than ever on various platforms.
On the ICC ODI Team Rankings, No.1 ranked Australia has moved up from 118 points to 120 points, while New Zealand has dropped behind India in fourth position. New Zealand had started the series on 112 points, but the 3-0 defeat has meant it has dropped to 109 points.
While South Africa grabbed a 1-0 lead in the three-match series, the visitors squandered a golden opportunity to script a memorable win outside the sub-continent.
A hapless Indian bowling attack was smashed all over the park by South African batsmen in the fifth and final ODI, which the home side lost by 214 runs, but captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni defended them, saying that the Wankhede wicket was 'too true' to offer any assistance to them.
IMAGES from Day 3 of the 3rd Test played between South Africa and India at the Wanderers stadium in Johannesburg on Friday
Fast bowler Kagiso Rabada and wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock have achieved career-high positions in the latest ICC Test Player Rankings after firing South Africa to an emphatic 177-run victory over Australia in the opening Test of the three-match series in Perth on Monday.
South Africa's success in Australia is often put down to their comfort on the hard local tracks, which can be similar to those at home, but they could face some unfamiliar conditions this year.
Seamer Morne Morkel claimed his 300th career wicket as South Africa edged ahead in the third Test on Friday when they reduced Australia to 245 for nine at the close on the second day, still 66 runs behind their hosts' first innings score at Newlands.
There was no shortage of quotable quotes. Here's some of the more memorable ones.
All-rounders Ryan McLaren and Wayne Parnell were named in South Africa's 15-man squad on Wednesday for the three-match Test series against Australia starting on February 12.
SA's youngsters took time to adapt to situations
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