IPL 2020 has been an exhibition of superb fielding and here are glimpses of some of those efforts...
England on Tuesday rested IPL stars including Jos Buttler and Jonny Bairstow for the upcoming two-Test series against New Zealand while Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes were not considered for selection due to injuries.
Adil Rashid was, on Tuesday, named as the sole specialist spinner in the England playing XI for the series opener against India, creating more pressure on the leg-spinner after his controversial recall to the Test side.
Delhi Capitals have gone from strength to strength in the last few years -- finishing third in 2019 before finishing runners up last year to Mumbai Indians.
England coach Chris Silverwood apologised on Wednesday for the confusion surrounding Moeen Ali's departure from the India tour midway through the Test series after skipper Joe Root said the spinner had "chosen to go home".
Delhi Capitals head coach Ricky Ponting was awestruck by Mahendra Singh Dhoni's cool demeanour under pressure, describing the legendary Chennai Super Kings skipper as one of the greatest finishers of the game.
'We want to give multi-format players some opportunity to rest and refresh, while still selecting strong squads for every series.'
England's cricket players on central contracts have agreed to take a 15% pay cut for 12 months due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on finances
Assured of a play-off berth, Royal Challengers Bangalore will look to quickly recover from their loss in the previous game and finish the league phase on a high when they take on table-toppers Delhi Capitals in their final IPL round-robin game in Dubai on Friday.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan predicted the hosts will sweep the three-Test series against Pakistan despite the absence of talismanic all-rounder Ben Stokes for the last two matches. Stokes was part of the England team which pulled off a thrilling three-wicket victory in the series opener at Old Trafford but is now missing for family reasons.
Silverwood also said that opener Haseeb Hameed is making a "very strong case" for a Test recall.
Suryakumar Kumar Yadav's maiden half-century helped India beat England by eight runs and level the series 2-2.
Images from Day 5 of the fifth and final Test between England and India at The Oval in London on Tuesday:
An in-form Delhi Capitals will fancy their chances of securing a play-off berth when they face Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League in Sharjah on Tuesday.
Rajasthan Royals will take a lot of confidence after snatching a two-run victory from the jaws of defeat against Punjab Kings.
Rahul Tewatia reveals that he always kept believing that he could hit sixes despite struggling initially in his innings.
Wagner took three wickets in 17 balls for just one run as England collapsed from 132-5 to 138-8 before tea, then broke a 59-run ninth-wicket partnership between Jofra Archer and Sam Curran after they had threatened to thwart the hosts.
'So the chances of me playing are probably slim, especially as I haven't played much cricket leading into this (series), which makes it an injury risk as well'.
IMAGES from Day 4 of the 2nd Test played between England and West Indies at Manchester on Sunday.
Both KXIP and the Royals would look to build a winning momentum after starting the tournament as underdogs.
Delhi Capitals rode on Prithvi Shaw's fluent fifty and a disciplined bowling effort to inflict a 44-run defeat on Chennai Super Kings, in the Indian Premier League, in Dubai, on Friday.
Jonny Bairstow's half century helped England beat West Indies by four wickets in St Lucia on Tuesday in the opening Twenty20 international of their three-match series.
On Friday, one thing was crystal clear -- Team India has plenty of choices but the 2 R's can co-exist in the playing XI without one being pitted against other.
Former India opener Gautam Gambhir on Monday said that in the absence of Suresh Raina, captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni should bat higher up the order for Chennai Super Kings in this year's Indian Premier League.
Images from Thursday's Indian Premier League match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings, in Dubai.
A belligerent 56 off 32 balls from debutant Ishan Kishan and an unbeaten 73 from captain Virat Kohli steered India to an easy seven-wicket victory over England in the second Twenty20 International, in Ahmedabad, on Sunday.
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.
Chennai Super Kings skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Monday said it is hard to 'keep up' with the younger players in the squad but claimed it will be a big positive for him if he manages to keep up with his fitness.
England wicketkeeper-batsman Sam Billings believes the upcoming Indian Premier League will be good preparation for the T20 World Cup later this year but conceded that he will get limited game time due to the 'phenomenal' competition in the Delhi Capitals' squad.
For a team that looked at ease all along, it was their first defeat in the UAE leg -- and three from 11 matches this season -- as Delhi struggled to get going against KKR bowlers who made full use of the slow surface after opting to bowl.
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.
Joe Root scored a breezy, unbeaten 67 and will resume on the third morning with Jonny Bairstow, who has 24.
Rajneesh Gupta gives us all the numbers from the first week of IPL 2020.
Images from Day 5 in the second Test between England and India, at Lord's, on Monday.
'England were 87-7 with Curran and Adil Rashid at the crease and for some reason Ravichandran Ashwin went out of the game for an hour. India lost control then -- he needs to look back on his captaincy and say 'when I've got a bloke who averages 19 against left-handers and a 20-year-old left-hander on strike, why did I take him off?,'
Kohli scores brilliant century to leave first Test finely poised
There was disaster for the visitors when captain Joe Root (1), who scored a superb 228 in the first innings, was run out by a direct his from wicketkeeper Niroshan Dickwella to leave England teetering at 14 for three.
Hyderabad had got off not the best of starts, losing Jonny Bairstow, Manish Pandey and David Warner inside 11 overs.
'More than anything, up from New Zealand (Lord's Test) I've changed a few things. I felt I got forward and back better'
England named an unchanged squad for first match of the three-Test series against Pakistan that begins on August 5 in Manchester, the country's cricket Board (ECB) said on Wednesday. England beat West Indies 2-1 in the first international Test series since the COVID-19 pandemic suspended the sport in March, winning the third match by 269 runs on Tuesday.
