A round-up of the Ranji Trophy matches played on Thursday.
Ajinkya Rahane will finally make his long awaited debut in Test cricket after being named in the Indian team for the fourth and final match against Australia, starting in Delhi on Friday.
IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Thursday named Rajat Patidar as its captain for the upcoming season starting March 21.
Ravindra Jadeja continued his renaissance as a batter, delivering his best-ever outing during the recent Test series in England and joining a list of legends
'There is no question of dropping Rahane. He has scored really well, he has been extremely successful over the last couple of years'
Former India cricketer Yuvraj Singh also made his anger known.
'The moment you are representing your country, you are supposed to do whatever you are assigned. When I was carrying drinks during the Champions Trophy, I had no ego issues. That's how I am as a person' 'The biggest lesson of life for me is to keep things simple'
While the others seemed relaxed, Pujara stood at attention.
While it is generally his captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni who has made this habit of hitting the winning runs - in some style too, Ajinkya Rahane had that honour in Rising Pune Supergiants' match against the Delhi Daredevils.
Images from Day 1 of the first Test between Sri Lanka and India in Colombo, on Thursday.
Mumbai Ranji Trophy captain Ajinkya Rahane has praised the BCCI 'for giving importance to domestic cricket.'
Former Australian captain Steve Waugh has said that Ajinkya Rahane reminded him a bit of Sachin Tendulkar and his "compact technique" would fetch him a lot of runs for India.
Ajinkya Rahane has been a conspicuous absentee from the ongoing Indian runfest against Sri Lanka but the middle order batsman appears to have the backing of the team management ahead of the tour of South Africa later this month.
In Agartala, the Group A match between Mumbai and Tripura ended in a draw with the reigning champions earning three points by virtue of the first-innings lead.
Ajinkya Rahane carved out his seventh Test century and was unbeaten on 108 runs as India extended their lead over West Indies by a mammoth 304 runs to take firm control of the second Test in Kingston. The final session on Day Three of the second Test was washed off due to rain.
While Ajinkya Rahane has been named vice-captain, pacer Navdeep Saini was recalled into the Test squad.
Ajinkya Rahane scored an unbeaten hundred but skipper Virat Kohli's poor form continued as the touring Indians put up 314 for six on the opening day of their only three-day tour game against Sri Lanka Board President's XI in Colombo, on Thursday.
Ajinkya Rahane and his Mumbai teammate Suryakumar Yadav went under the hammer for Rs 7 lakh each.
Rahane dropped anchor to score an unbeaten 144 off 156 balls while the young Ishan Kishan smashed his way to an 87-ball 114 during their opening stand of 210, which took the C team's score to 352 for seven in 50 overs.
Vidarbha took a commanding lead in the Ranji Trophy semifinal against Mumbai, reducing the defending champions to 83/3 in their second innings.
Controversial keeper-batter Wriddhiman Saha, who has been dropped from the Test team, will still earn Rs 1 crore in annual income after being demoted from group B to C.
Ajinkya Rahane rated his knock of 132 against Sri Lanka as one his best on spin-friendly tracks as he predicted tough times for batsmen in the remainder of the second Test.
He has been trying to establish himself at the international level, but Ajinkya Rahane is not really losing his sleep over selection in the Indian cricket team and is happy focusing on his game only.
A few bruised egos will eye redemption when India square off against Australia in the second Test in Melbourne from Saturday, ready to bounce back in skipper Ajinkya Rahane's hour of reckoning after their batting debacle in the series opener in Adelaide.
He might have been the star of Rajasthan Royals' win over Pune Warriors in a high-scoring IPL thriller but Ajinkya Rahane was modest about his role, opting to praise his team's bowlers for keeping it tight in the death overs.
He might not be scoring big runs in the ongoing 10th edition of the Indian Premier League, but Rising Pune Supergiant opener Ajinkya Rahane is a contented man as long as his contributions are bringing out positive results for his side.
He has been a calming influence for India in the opening slot, the proof of which was visible during his half-century knock in the fourth ODI against West Indies here, but consistency is something Ajinkya Rahane is striving for to cement his place in the national team.
Wankhede Stadium witnessed a gathering of cricketing royalty in the past two days
Captain Virat Kohli played a pivotal role with a workmanlike 82, lifting India from a double blow at the beginning of innings to 172 for three in the second Test against Australia in Perth on Saturday.
Mitesh Patel and Atit Sheth staged a spirited recovery for Baroda, taking them to 241 for six against defending champions Mumbai on day one of their Ranji Trophy opener in Vadodara on Friday.
A day after India announced their squad for the all-important tour of South Africa, former spinner Harbhajan Singh on Friday questioned Yuzvendra Chahal's selection for the tour, and said that they gave him a "lollypop to suck on."
There remains a big question mark over who will be India's No.4 in the World Cup.
Former captain Rahul Dravid threw his weight behind India discard and Rajasthan Royals team-mate Ajinkya Rahane saying the youngster deserves a longer run in international cricket.
The talent is in plenty in this squad and if this machine runs smoothly, a sixth IPL trophy will be at touching distance for Thala and Co.
Lucknow Super Giants spin bowling all-rounder Shahbaz Ahmed has expressed confidence in captain Rishabh Pant despite his poor form in IPL 2025, saying the "chilled and relaxed" skipper will come good in crunch moments.
'I am happy people are talking about me -- I always believe people talk about important people. I am not too concerned about that. It is all about contribution for the team.'
Royal Challengers Bengaluru all-rounder Krunal Pandya revealed his mindset behind bowling a bouncer out of the blue to Kolkata Knight Riders record-signing Venkatesh Iyer during the opening match of Indian Premier League 2025, at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, on Saturday.
Two more failures in two home games could effectively mean end of the road for Ajinkya Rahane, who is leading India in the first Test in Kanpur, starting on Thursday.
Defending champions Chennai Super Kings will look to set their house in order and get back to winning ways when they face an upbeat yet unpredictable Punjab Kings for the second time in a row in the IPL match in Dharamsala on Sunday.
Prithvi should bat just like he does for Mumbai in Ranji Trophy, said Rahane
