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.
The 92nd Annual Academy Awards hardly had any surprises up its sleeves. Here's a quick look at the winners.
Premier off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin will be in focus alongside speedster Mohammed Shami when defending champions India take on New Zealand on Sunday in their opening warm-up game ahead of the Champions Trophy in London.
Pace bowler Jackson Bird has been recalled by Australia for the first Test against New Zealand after James Pattinson was deemed not quite ready to stand up to the rigours of a full workload, captain Steve Smith said on Thursday.
Rookie all-rounder Mitchell Santner and veteran Grant Elliott have been rewarded for their recent strong performances by being included in New Zealand's list of centrally contracted players on Wednesday.
Ashish Nehra running into bowl one last time at a place where it all began will form the sub plot as India aim to better their abysmal T20 record against New Zealand in the three-match series starting in New Delhi, on Wednesday.
The tri-series in Australia, India's final ODI engagement before the World Cup, gets underway on January 16, says Chandresh Narayanan, casting a fascinating look at the survivors from earlier World Cups.
Having recovered from a hamstring strain, Usman Khawaja celebrated his recall with a glittering 144, with Queensland team mate Joe Burns making 128 in front of a festive Melbourne Cricket Ground crowd to drive Australia to 345-3 at stumps.
Aggressive batsman Jesse Ryder has returned to the New Zealand side after a doping suspension and an absence of nearly two years when he was included on Thursday in the limited overs squad for matches against West Indies later this month.
The International Cricket Council released the provisional squads of the 12 teams for next year's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand on Friday. However, co-hosts Australia and minnows Ireland decided against releasing the provisional list although they submitted 30 names to the parent body within the stipulated deadline.
Team India has two members - MS Dhoni and Ishant Sharma - of that victorious 2009 side returning to New Zealand for the One-Day International series, which commences on Sunday. The hosts, however, are almost a completely overhauled unit. The teams may not appear equal on paper but the home advantage is something than should benefit New Zealand. Rajneesh Gupta presents a statistical lowdown of the teams ahead of tour opener in Napier.
India qualified automatically for the event as hosts. They have prepared well with the All India Football Federation (AIFF) sending the players for training tours in Europe and a tournament in Mexico but the home side are the clear underdogs.
Kumar Sangakkara scored an unbeaten 113 and then returned to break the world record for the most dismissals by a wicketkeeper in One-day internationals as Sri Lanka beat New Zealand by 34 runs in the seventh and final match in Wellington on Thursday.
New Zealand had produced 'almost the perfect performance' to destroy England in a World Cup match that lasted less than 50 overs on Friday.
New Zealand will face England with an unchanged side in their second World Cup match.
Brendon McCullum - playing his last Test match- produced a sensational display of stroke-play, blasting to the fastest hundred in Test cricket history. McCullum took 54 balls to reach the three-figure mark, two less than the previous record. Viv Richards and Misbah-ul-Haq held the previous record with 56-ball hundreds. In terms of time taken, McCullum's hundred in 78 minutes is the joint fourth fastest in Test cricket. Statistician Rajneesh Gupta glances at the records of the fastest hundreds in Test cricket:
His records are a true measure of the skill and brilliance he brought to the crease, says Rajneesh Gupta.
Arsenal delivered a brutal lesson in fast-paced Premier League football to beat Liverpool 4-1 on Saturday, maintaining their faint title aspirations and almost certainly dashing their opponents' hopes of a top-four finish.
India are poised for their third T20 International series triumph in five years but would be wary of a strong fightback from the usually plucky New Zealand when the two sides clash in the second game of the three-match series in Rajkot.
The 87th Annual Academy Awards have been announced. Here's a quick glance at the winners.
Head-to-head rivalries featuring the world's leading athletes are the best way forward for the beleaguered sport of track and field.
A look at the hopefuls this year!
Pakistan will be desperately looking to ensure the painful defeat to India becomes a distant past when they run into an in-form New Zealand in Mohali on Tuesday with an aim to bounce back into the World Twenty20 and pacify their bitter fans back home. Pakistan are coming into the Group 2 Super 10 game having suffered their 11th defeat to the arch-rivals in ICC's world events. The 2009 champions entered the tournament after an early elimination in the Asia Cup. On the other hand, the New Zealanders are on a roll with two massive wins over hosts India and Australia, making them one of the strong contenders to lift the coveted trophy on April 3. Another win and they will be in the knockout stages of the mega-event. New Zealand have emerged as the team to beat after the stunned tournament favourites India first up, before getting the better of traditional rivals Australia in a trans-Tasman battle.
West Indies displayed all the familiar faults which have plagued them during the cricket World Cup in a quarter-final capitulation to New Zealand at the Wellington Regional Stadium.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni's batting position will be under spotlight as India aim to go for the kill against a gutsy New Zealand in the third T20 International despite weather threatening to play spoilsport.
'Bowl the ball reasonably quick on the surface and make the batsmen commit a mistake' 'It always tends to spin here more, which is a good thing for me as a spinner. But yeah the Indians are very good players of spin, and we have to work really hard'
New Zealand are looming as the popular dark horses for the cricket World Cup.
Martin Guptill flirted with a world record then had to settle for a New Zealand one as he demolished Sri Lanka's bowling to guide his side to a comprehensive 10-wicket victory in the second One-Day International in Christchurch on Monday.
The trophy for their two Twenty20 matches in the Dubai, starting Thursday, is being dedicated in memory of Australian batsman Phillip Hughes, who died last week after being hit on the head by a bouncer during a domestic match.
The smash-hit musical -- led by Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling -- picked up the most nods on Tuesday, and tied the record set by Titanic and All About Eve.
Australia's Steven Smith has become the second youngest batsman after India's Sachin Tendulkar to achieve the number-one ranking in the Reliance ICC Player Rankings for Test Batsmen following stellar batting in the Kingston Test, which Australia won by 277 runs to win the series 2-0.
The 86th Annual Academy Awards have been announced. Here's a quick glance at the winners.
Photos of the World Cup Pool A game between Afghanistan and New Zealand being played in Napier
This and more in our weekly round-up of news from the world of glamour and fashion!
Paceman James Pattinson took five for 27 to fire Australia to a thumping innings and 121-run victory with more than two days to spare in the first Test against West Indies in Hobart on Saturday.
Josh Hazlewood and Brad Haddin set new milestones as Australia, replying to India's first innings score of 408, ended Day 2 in the second Test at the Gabba on 221 for four. Check out the day's days statistical highlights.
The Indian opener tops the Champions Trophy MVP table. But Hasan Ali, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma aren't too far behind, note Srinivas Bhogle and Purnendu Maji.
They gave voices to sexual assault & harassment survivors across the world.
The 8th Champions Trophy begins in England this week. Rajneesh Gupta captures the tournament in all its statistical glory like only he can.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances