Captain Virat Kohli endured a rare failure but Rohit Sharma more than compensated with a blistering 162 to help India steamroll West Indies by 224 runs in the fourth ODI.
Young Rishabh Pant's competition for the second wicketkeeper's slot with veteran Dinesh Karthik will be the highlight of the discussion.
Spinners Axar Patel and Ravichandran Ashwin's tight spells with the ball were instrumental in Delhi Capitals scoring a narrow three-wicket victory over Chennai Super Kings.
Eyeing a top-two finish, Chennai Super Kings will start as the firm favourites when they take on Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League, in Dubai, on Thursday.
Dhoni's men will have to adapt to the conditions quickly to avoid any such hiccup in the play-offs.
Anointed as India's No. 4 in the batting line-up in ODIs with the World Cup in mind, Ambati Rayudu said the responsibility does not 'pressurise' him at all.
The CSK skipper further added that Ambati Rayudu will be available for the next clash.
With eight points from 11 games, RR are placed second from bottom in the eight-team table and a loss on Saturday will end their slim chances of qualifying for the knockout stage.
Images from the Indian Premier League match between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Chennai Super Kings, in Sharjah, on Thursday.
Sunil Narine produced an all-round performance to guide Kolkata Knight Riders to a comfortable six-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings, in Kolkata, on Thursday.
A dejected Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma rued his side's top-order woes in IPL 2022 but could only admire veteran Mahendra Singh Dhoni for his match-winning knock on Thursday.
Dhoni has said his team's tremendous 'experience' proved to be a crucial factor in its five-wicket victory
As the 16th edition of the glitzy Indian Premier League is set to unfold, let's take a look at the driving force of the T20 league and what's in store in this edition.
Operating like a well-oiled unit, Chennai Super Kings will start as overwhelming favourites when they clash with struggling Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL match in New Delhi on Wednesday.
Chennai will be playing four of the next five games in Dubai and Fleming said it would be helpful to settle in and try and read conditions at one ground.
Chennai Super Kings will be determined to erase their IPL 2020 nightmare when they failed to make it to the IPL play-offs for the first time.
Rajneesh Gupta previews Game 9 in IPL 12: Kings XI Punjab vs Mumbai Indians.
Suresh Raina unexpectedly pulled out of the tournament after travelling to Dubai with the CSK contingent. The former India cricketer, who announced his international retirement alongside Mahendra Singh Dhoni on August 15, later revealed he pulled out to be with his family.
IPL can be truly said to have come of age. It is now more Indian than ever before. Teams often fielded fewer than the four allowed foreign players. Indian batters and bowlers were simply better in performance, consistency and reliability, points out Shreekant Sambrani.
Virtually out of the play-off race, bottom-placed Sunrisers Hyderabad will hope to keep their new-found momentum intact when they face table toppers Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, in Sharjah, on Thursday.
Fresh from his exploits in Mumbai's maiden Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 triumph, Kotian got down to business after his pace colleagues Tushar Desphande (2/23) and Mohit Avasthi (1/29) handed Bengal early blows.
Ambati Rayudu's 53-ball 82-run innings set things up for Chennai Super Kings
The Indian Playing XI will also have Bhuvneshwar Kumar on Sunday as he replaces Mohammed Shami, who was hit on the leg in his follow through during the third match.
Rayudu's consistency at No. 4 slot will solve our middle-order conundrum, says Kohli
Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Shreyas Iyer was all praise for his team's "outstanding mindset" during its 54-run win over Sunrisers Hyderabad, in the IPL match in Mumbai on Saturday, saying his players had nothing to lose at this stage of the tournament.
Vijay Shankar could well be the 'joker in the pack' if the Indian team management decides to try him
Dinesh Karthik's experience got him the nod, says Harish Kotian, but Ambati Rayudu's exclusion is puzzling.
Parthiv Patel shone with a breezy 58-ball 81 and powered Mumbai Indians to a 25-run win over Kings XI Punjab whose campaign turned from bad to worse in the Indian Premier League.
The two sides experienced contrasting fortunes in their respective tournament opener.
Yuvraj Singh slammed the Indian team management and selectors for the country's World Cup ouster in the semi-finals earlier this year, saying its planning for the 50-over tournament was "completely wrong".
The under-pressure Chennai Super Kings is set to miss Moeen Ali for a few more games due to an ankle injury but head coach Stephen Fleming is hopeful the England all-rounder can make a quick recovery in a week's time.
Virat Kohli called his bowlers' profligacy 'criminal' after Chennai Super Kings chased down a steep target of 206
Agarwal in a tweet shared a picture from India's practice session. He can be seen batting in the nets. "Doing what I love. Loving what I do," Agarwal tweeted.
IPL one of greatest physiotherapists, gets everyone fit before auction, said the former India Head Coach on Monday.
'In auction economics, it is very difficult to retain everybody. We were aware of it...we will lose somebody. We will also get somebody in their place. Now, we have to get the best out of what we have.'
Images from the Indian Premier League final between Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders, in Dubai, on Friday.
Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma on Saturday blamed his batsmen for the five-wicket loss to Chennai Super Kings in the IPL opener, saying they wasted a good start by throwing their wickets away.
Images from Sunday's Indian Premier League between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Chennai Super Kings, in Dubai.
Ambati Rayudu conceded that his side will have to play each game as a must-win.
Former selector Raja Venkat, who was part of the committee which picked the victorious Indian team for the 2011 World Cup, says the current selectors are not doing things the right way.
