Lost in transition, defending champions Sri Lanka will look to come out of the rut and start well against a spirited Afghanistan in their World Twenty20 Super 10 opener at Eden Gardens on Thursday. The defending champions, who were also runners-up in 2009 and 2012, have managed to win only four of their 14 matches since they beat India to win the 2014 edition in Mirpur. They are in the middle of a transition phase after Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene's exit. The build-up to the tournament was also forgettable with series defeats in New Zealand and India followed by an early ouster in Asia Cup. To add to the misery, their 2014 WT20 winning skipper Lasith Malinga has stepped down as leader of the team, following concern over his slow recovery from a knee injury. Now Test and ODI skipper Angelo Mathews' task is cutout. Having joined the squad on Tuesday, Malinga is a doubtful starter for the match. His presence in the team would impact the team a lot.
The Asia Cup to be played in Bangladesh from February 24, will be played in the T20 format for the first time in the tournament's history. The tournament which precedes the vital World T20 to be held in in India in March, has a rich history with India and Sri Lanka winning it five times each. Pakistan have been victorious on two occasions while Bangladesh's best finish has been their runner-up performance in the 2012 edition. Team India will be led by MS Dhoni and the tournament will also see Virat Kohli returning after taking a break from the recently concluded three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka. Dhoni will be chasing history to become the most successful skipper in the tournament history. The Indian skipper and former Lankan captain Arjuna Ranatunga have both recorded same number of nine victories and four defeats in the Asia Cup All the matches will be played at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Mirpur. The qualifying rounds involving Afghanistan, United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong and Oman has begun from Friday.
Colin Munro and Corey Anderson blasted quickfire half-centuries to power New Zealand to a convincing victory against Sri Lanka in the warm-up match of the ICC World Twenty20, at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai, on Thursday.
India are most likely to field only one spinner in the Test matches in South Africa but left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja is not worried about fighting for that lone spot with team-mate Ravichandran Ashwin.
Mushfiqur Rahim's superb hundred complemented by a collective effort from the bowlers saw Bangladesh thrash Sri Lanka by 137 runs despite Lasith Malinga's brilliant international comeback in the Asia Cup opener, in Dubai, on Saturday.
With Shikhar Dhawan back in form in the shortest format, the Indian team management and captain Virat Kohli will have the headache of picking from three in-form openers
It all starts in Guwahati on Sunday as the biggest city in Assam is slowly getting back to normalcy after protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
Images from the T20 World Cup Super 12s match between England and Sri Lanka, in Sharjah, on Monday.
It was far from dominating batting show after the inspiring show by their young bowlers but India managed to outclass Sri Lanka by five wickets and complete a 3-0 series whitewash, in the third T20 International in Mumbai on Sunday.
'It's rare that in a twenty over game all wickets fall. I don't think it's a bad idea to test everyone. Because it will give us an idea about how deep is our batting'
South Africa have slipped to number six in the world, behind fifth-placed Sri Lanka, and have a host of questions to answer, not least around a brittle top six and the balance of the side.
Images from the T20 World Cup match between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, in Sharjah, on Sunday.
Chasing an elusive dream of winning their first cricket Test in India, Sri Lanka will begin their gruelling tour with a two-day tour fixture against a depleted Board President's XI, in Kolkata, on Saturday.
The convincing win gave India an unassailable 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
Images from the third One-Day International between India and Sri Lanka, in Colombo, on Friday.
Pujara and Vijay added 209 runs for the second wicket to set a platform from where India would look to bat the Islanders out of the contest.
Images from the first One-Day International between India and Sri Lanka, in Colombo, on Sunday.
Skipper Rohit Sharma will be desperate to get back to form as a resurgent India look to set their record straight against hosts Sri Lanka in the third match of the Nidahas Tri-Series, in Colombo, on Monday.
Kusal Perera blasted an entertaining 66 from 37 balls to help Sri Lanka outclass India by five wickets in the first match of the T20 tri-series in Colombo.
Openers KL Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan slammed quickfire half-centuries as India outclassed Sri Lanka by 78 runs in the third and final T20 International to win the three-match series 2-0, in Pune, on Friday. Images from the third T20 International between India and Sri Lanka, at Pune, on Friday.
With the series already in their pocket, India will look to give some of the bench players a chance but there will be no let-up in the intensity as they eye a complete whitewash against Sri Lanka in the third and final T20I in Mumbai on Sunday.
India would look to continue their ruthless streak
As India take on Sri Lanka in a three Test series, Rajneesh Gupta presents all the numbers.
Root said that spinning tracks will throw challenges to the visiting team but they are adapting to the conditions quickly.
Bangladesh edged past Sri Lanka by two wickets in a thrilling finish to set up a summit clash against India in T20 tri-series in Colombo, on Friday.
Saurashtra left-arm pacer Jaydev Unadkat has been recalled, while India also have three first-timers in Washington Sundar, Basil Thampi and Deepak Hooda for the three-match T20 series against Sri Lanka.
England will be determined to get their act together against defending champions Sri Lanka.
A clinical India defeated Sri Lanka comprehensively by six wickets to continue their their winning run in the Nidahas Twenty20 Tri-Series, in Colombo, on Monday.
Featuring Gayle, Kohli, Root, Dilshan and Butler.
Rediff.com's Harish Kotian tells us who triumphed, who disappointed in the India-Sri Lanka series.
590 cricketers -- including 370 Indian players and 220 overseas players -- will go under the hammer during the two-day mega auction in Bengaluru on February 12 and 13.
India Test regulars like Cheteswar Pujara and Ishant Sharma have also thrown their hat into the ring with base prices of Rs 50 and Rs 75 lakh respectively.
As the top 10 teams prepare to battle for the World T20 crown, Rajneesh Gupta breaks down each squad's T20 performance and their showing in previous editions of the event.
