Ravichandran Ashwin took a dig at former Australia batsman and Gujarat Lions coach Brad Hodge, who was forced to apologise to Virat Kohli for his allegation that the India captain opted out of Dharamsala Test match to keep himself fit for the upcoming Indian Premier League.
India captain Virat Kohli, on Thursday, claimed his comment on friendship with the Australian team was 'blown out of proportion'.
Injured opening batsman Murali Vijay has kept his place in India's squad for the final two Tests against Australia, while all-rounder Hardik Pandya dropped out with a shoulder problem.
Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon said he made use of his biggest weapon -- bounce -- as he took four final-session wickets to halt India's progress in the fourth and final Test on Sunday.
Skipper Virat Kohli, on Thursday, skipped batting at India's net session ahead of the fourth cricket Test against Australia.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India's Tours and Fixtures Committee shortlisted Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad for India's three-Test series against the West Indies during October and November this year.
India retained the ICC Test Championship mace and also won a cash award of US$ one million for holding on to the top position in the Test Team rankings on the annual April 1 cut-off date.
Following the T20I series, the teams will play two Tests, which form a part of the 2021-23 ICC World Test Championship cycle. Mohali will host the first Test from March 4 to 8, while the second Test will be played in Bengaluru from March 12 to 16.
Virat Kohli's participation in the fourth and deciding Test match against Australia, in Dharamsala, hangs in balance even as young Mumbai batsman Shreyas Iyer has been included in the team.
The Captain of the Year award was given to England's World Cup-winning, Heather Knight, the first for a women skipper
That Rohit will make a comeback was indicated by skipper Kohli in England and that was precisely the reason why he was rested for the limited overs series against West Indies.
The BCCI's Tours and Fixtures Committee named Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Nagpur as the four Test match venues for the series against South Africa scheduled to be played through October and November.
Australia captain Steve Smith, on Thursday, said he was not sure if he was one of the 'couple of individuals' from the Australian team who Virat Kohli did not want to be friends with, his expression belying the unease in the aftermath of an acrimonious Test series.
Factbox on the four-Test series between India and Australia, which starts at Pune on Thursday:
The legend picked Pujara, Umesh for their feats.
Cricket Australia on Tuesday confirmed former India One-Day International player Sriram Sridharan will join the coaching staff for the forthcoming Test tour of India as a spin consultant.
He has made rapid strides in limited overs cricket over the past couple of months but for Kuldeep Yadav, the ultimate challenge is to bowl long spells consistently in the Test format.
Legendary Sunil Gavaskar feels India missed a fifth bowler in the third Test against Australia which ended in a tame draw, in Ranchi on Monday.
India play five Tests that are part of the inaugural World Test Championship
"As much as he (Pujara) would love to play ODIs, it is hard to see him break into the team, given how strong it is currently."
Thanks to the depth in their squad, India joined Afghanistan and Romania as the countries to have won a record 12 consecutive Twenty20 Internationals.
After having agreed to play a five-match One-Day International series in India on a short notice following the West Indies pull-out, the Sri Lankan board is looking for a return in favour from the Board of Control for Cricket in India in August next year by playing three Test matches in the island nation.
Tit-for-tat accusations of cheating and foul play only for it to rise magnificently in the wake of some quality cricket by the bitterest of antagonists.
India will surely fancy their chances of an encore, at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
No symptoms in those not tested
Uncapped leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson , 23, joins lead spinner Nathan Lyon and left-arm orthodox Ashton Agar and Steve O'Keefe.
Virat Kohli was effusive in his praise for Cheteshwar Pujara and Wriddhiman Saha's record 199-run stand.
Images from the third Twenty20 International between India and Sri Lanka, in Dharamsala, on Sunday.
Indian bowlers were thwarted by Australia's perseverance as Steve Smith's men survived a battle of nerves on Monday to force a draw in the third cricket Test in Ranchi and keep the series alive.
India skipper Rohit Sharma explained why all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja was sent up the order in the first Twenty20 International against Sri Lanka, in Lucknow, on Thursday, saying the team "wants more from him".
Rahane also played a good hand of 27 not out in the second innings as he along with debutant Shubman Gill (35 not out) steered India to an easy victory on the fourth day of the Boxing Day Test.
Jadeja, who grabbed nine wickets (five for 124 and four for 52) in the Ranchi Test gained seven points after starting joint-first with Ashwin at 892 points.
Pujara, I would give him more credit because he only plays one format for India.
Interestingly, the two players were named in the 15-member squad in place of Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah, with the Board of Control for Cricket in India not specifying any reason for leaving out the two players.
The iconic Eden Gardens emerged as the frontrunner to host the first ever Day-Night Test match in India against the visiting New Zealand side even as Cricket Association of Bengal president Sourav Ganguly said it will depend on their upcoming 'pink ball experiment' from June 18.
Cheteshwar Pujara, a vital cog in India's batting wheel, on Tuesday, stressed on the importance of leaving the ball on the bouncy pitches of South Africa during the three-Test series beginning, in Cape Town, on Friday.
Indian team's chief coach Anil Kumble on Tuesday said the riveting series win over Australia has proved that the current side is good enough to extend its home dominance to foreign shores as well.
Former South Africa captain Graeme Smith said he is "nervous" about the Proteas' upcoming tour of India, starting with the first Test in Mohali on November 5.
South Africa will head to India armed with three frontline slow bowlers in their Test squad after recalling leg-spinner Imran Tahir and off-break bowler Dane Piedt for the four-match series starting in November.
Former Australia batsman Michael Hussey said it would be difficult to play T20 World Cup in India this year because of the rampaging second wave of COVID-19 which forced the postponement of the Indian Premier League earlier this month.
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