Rishabh Pant was ruled out for nearly three months after he fractured his foot during the fourth Test against England in Manchester in July.
Devdutt Padikkal hit a stroke-filled 92 not out after right-arm pacer Akash Deep shone bright with the ball with a four-wicket haul as India A took control of the four-day second unofficial Test against England Lions on the opening day in Ahmedabad on Wednesday.
There is a school of thought that having done the hard yards in the England series, Karun Nair deserves an opportunity against a weaker opposition where a century could boost his career.
Rishabh Pant's 'chaotic' leadership style and batting might be the wildcard India need to level the Test series against South Africa, former cricketer Jonty Rhodes said on Friday.
N Jagadeesan hit an unbeaten half-century to lead India A' confident reply in Australia A's huge first innings total on Day 2 of the first unofficial Test.
Azharuddeen was the vice-captain of the side, and now that role has been handed to Tamil Nadu's N Jagadeesan.
Royal Challengers Bangalore's young batsman Devdutt Padikkal is quarantining at his home in Bangalore since returning positive for COVID-19 during a test conducted on March 22, his IPL franchise said on Sunday.
India A captain Shreyas Iyer has pulled out of the second unofficial Test against Australia A starting in Lucknow on Tuesday because of personal reasons.
Captain Shreyas Iyer and Devdutt Padikkal struck half-centuries to help India D stretch their lead against India C on the second day of their Duleep Trophy match.
Saurashtra will be bolstered by the presence of India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja against a strong Madhya Pradesh i the second round of Ranji Trophy.
'Sometimes it might look wrong in the fans' eyes, but please don't twist things or create narratives that aren't even close to the truth.'
Pant's gritty fifty keeps India A together in chase of 275
The short turnaround time from the high of winning a controversy-marred Asia Cup notwithstanding, Shubman Gill's India will be outright favourites against a struggling and under-strength West Indies when the teams face-off on a green-top in the first Test in Ahmedabad on Thursday.
Shreyas Iyer's 604 runs across 17 matches for Punjab Kings at a strike-rate in excess of 175 did not resonate with the selectors during the Asia Cup selection.
Shubman Gill might just want to be fit enough to bat, as even a half-fit skipper is seen as more effective than Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran or Sarfaraz Khan.
'So make sure first you pick the right characters and then if you see that, try and give them a longer run so that they themselves should be content and happy that they've got a longer run rather than just chopping and changing as well.'
Skipper Shubman Gill had a long batting stint while the troika of Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel returned to action for India's final training session here on Wednesday before the first Test against the West Indies.
Senior pros Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli made a grand comeback to the Vijay Hazare Trophy, smashing centuries on the opening day of the one-day tournament on Wednesday.
Here's a roundup of all Ranji Trophy matches played on Day 1 on Wednesday.
Abhimanyu Easwaran made the future path all the more tough with his second duck of the match, while Sai Sudharsan concluded his lukewarm preparation for the South Africa Test series with an underwhelming 23 off 38 balls.
It was also his third hundred in the last seven innings after going past three digits against Australia A at Lucknow and the West Indies at Ahmedabad.
India's Test stars flopped with the bat as the hosts folded for a lowly 194 in 52.5 overs in their first innings, on Day 2 of the unofficial second Test against Australia A.
The 20-year-old Padikkal was one of the finds of the last IPL, scoring 474 runs with five half-centuries and contributing handsomely to RCB's campaign.
Pacers Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal and Sumit Mohanta shared seven wickets to power Bengal to an innings and 13-run win over Punjab in their Elite Group C match of the Ranji Trophy.
RCB batter Devdutt Padikkal's absence at No. 3 will also be partially filled by Patidar's availability. Padikkal has been sidelined for the remainder of the IPL due to a hamstring injury, and Mayank Agarwal, who is primarily an opener, has been brought in by the franchise to take his place.
Opener Sam Konstas smashed a century to lead Australia's superb showing with the bat on the rain-hit Day 1 of the first unofficial Test match against India A.
India A skipper Rishabh Pant will look to build on the gains from the first match, while the likes of Mohammed Siraj and Kuldeep Yadav will aim for crucial red-ball game time in the second four-day match against a Temba Bavuma-led South Africa A in Bengaluru from Thursday.
In a video posted by RCB's X handle, Krunal Pandya spoke in the dressing room about two people and crucial moments that turned the tide in their favour.
The final Test begins on Friday in New Delhi, and the Shubman Gill-led side is expected to maintain their winning combination as they look to wrap up the home series.
David Warner was among the high-profile players who went unsold on Day 1 of the Indian Premier League 2025 mega auction in Jeddah on Sunday.
After the first phase, which saw CSK openers dominating the proceedings, it's their bowlers who are coming to their own in the second phase.
Saurashtra registered their narrowest T20 victory in terms of runs, edging Karnataka by one run in the Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025 Elite Group D match.
For the first time in many years, India are going into a home Test match as underdogs and not favourites. Ask any player worth his salt and he would tell that it is not a happy place to be.
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) have signed Mayank Agarwal as a replacement for the injured Devdutt Padikkal, while Delhi Capitals (DC) have signed Afghan batter Sediqullah Atal in place of Harry Brook.
Karnataka ended the Ranji Trophy season with a draw against Haryana in their Elite Group C match in Bengaluru on Sunday.
After bowling out SA A for 309, overnight 299/9, in the first session, India succumbed to their own waywardness, and the relentlessness of off-spinner Prenelan Subrayen (5/61), to concede an innings lead of 75.
Bihar's teen sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi, aged just 14, blasted an 84-ball 190 to become the youngest List-A centurion ever. His captain Sakibul Gani, then upstaged him with a 40-ball 128 not out -- the fastest List-A century by an Indian.
India's awe-inspiring batting depth will face a stern test against South Africa's quality spin attack in the first Test, starting in Kolkata on Friday.
'Most of the batters performed. I would say that is a very good sign going forward. Apart from this you have got three quality batters who are not even part of the squad -- Shreyas (Iyer), Sarfaraz (Khan) and (Devdutt) Padikkal.'
Devdutt Padikkal stroked a sparkling 63 from 45 balls, inclusive of a six and six fours, to propel RCB to a comprehensive eight-wicket victory against Rajasthan Royals.
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