Bowling 33 overs without success in England's second Test defeat by Australia at Lord's knocked the confidence of paceman James Anderson who returned to form with a bang on Wednesday.
As the curtains fall on another year, Rediff.com brings you all the action from the sports field that defined 2019.
History is going to be made on Sunday, regardless of the result in the ICC Men's Cricket Word Cup final at Lord's. Neither England nor New Zealand have ever tasted victory on the big stage before so there will be a new name on the trophy tonight.
Ricky Ponting feels Ajinkya Rahane has done a great job for India 'to pick up the pieces' from the Adelaide debacle
England captain Eoin Morgan has played down injury concerns for all-rounder Ben Stokes, who left field with a sore knee during Wednesday's comprehensive victory over South Africa.
Following the batting unit's poor show, England came under sharp criticism, with former captain Geoffrey Boycott slamming the batsmen for showing lack of patience and technique.
South Africa fast bowler Kagiso Rabada has been suspended from next week's second Test against England at Trent Bridge for using "inappropriate language" towards batsman Ben Stokes.
It will be more than a week since Harmanpreet Kaur's side last took to the field when they stride onto the MCG turf in front of a huge crowd, taking on Australia in search of a maiden T20 World Cup title. And the skipper admitted India have struggled to replicate conditions in the middle and used their time off for rest.
New Zealand have already booked their spot for the inaugural WTC final, leaving India, England and Australia vying for the other.
Rajneesh Gupta presents the story of Zaheer's injury woes, since 2007.
Former Pakistan spinner Danish Kaneria on Saturday accused Shahid Afridi of treating him unfairly all through his career and blamed him for a rather short limited overs career. Kaneria, only the second Hindu to play for Pakistan after his maternal uncle Anil Dalpat, took 261 wickets in 61 Tests at an average of 34.79. However, he only played 18 ODIs between 2000 and 2010.
Two of the awardees -- Billy Nair from South Africa and Sibabrata Roy from Germany -- were unable to make it for the presentation.
A ruling party lawmaker on Wednesday criticised Pakistan cricketers for promoting a negative image of the country by celebrating with push-ups on the field after winning a match, prompting the Pakistan Cricket Board to discontinue the practice.
The US spent $1.5 million a day since 2001 fighting the opium war in Afghanistan. After hundreds of airstrikes failed to curtail the Taliban's $200-million-a-year opium trade, the US military quietly ended the campaign when the Trump administration officials engaged in direct peace talks with the Taliban, notes Atanu Biswas.
Naravane is scheduled to meet Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli on Friday.
Smith's condition worsened and Cricket Australia (CA) confirmed he is not fit to play in the third Test, which starts on Thursday.
'Although Hong Kong weathered many a storm and displayed a remarkable resilience to bounce back, the developments in the territory have raised question marks with regard to its future stability and prosperity.' A revealing excerpt from Rup Narayan Das's Hong Kong Conundrum: Pangs of Transition.
India's young, rising stars Ruturaj Gaikwad, Venkatesh Iyer, Harshal Patel and Avesh Khan come up with world-class performances.
Warner struck a tournament-high 166 to set up Australia's 48-run victory over Bangladesh on Thursday and now leads the runs list with 447.
The Telegraph's Chief Cricket Writer Scyld Berry has picked Rishabh Pant alongside greats like Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin Tendukar, Gundappa Vishwanath and Rahul Dravid.
A look at the high points of his career during which he also put up a triumphant battle with cancer.
The restricted version of DRS to be used in Ranji Trophy knockout matches will not be comprising of Hawk-Eye and UltraEdge.
Saqib Majeed, a photojournalist of eight years, came across the scene on a visit to Nishat Bagh -- one of the most famous Mughal gardens.
Two days ahead of their practice game versus Middlesex at Lord's, Team India regrouped with a net-session here with under-fire coach Duncan Fletcher and bowling coach Joe Dawes overseeing proceedings ahead of the five-match ODI series starting August 25.
New Zealand captain Kane Williamson revealed he still finds it "difficult to make sense" of the heartbreaking World Cup final loss to England last year and hasn't yet figured if the epic match should count among the highs or lows of his career. New Zealand got a raw deal in last year's World Cup final when England were adjudged the winners on the basis of their superior boundary count after the epic game and the ensuing Super Over also ended in a tie.
'They have a belief that they can go and win anywhere.'
Smith, however, had developed symptoms overnight and after further testing on Sunday, which is part of the process, Saw ruled him out of the fifth day.
Australia will not stay silent during their one-day series in England, the first tour since the ball-tampering scandal that rocked world cricket, captain Tim Paine said.
Australia remain 'hopeful' that opening batsman Chris Rogers will feature in next week's third Test at Edgbaston despite requiring further specialist treatment.
Light rain and overcast conditions have delayed the start of the first Test between India and England at Lord's. A slight drizzle a couple of hours before the scheduled start of play on Thursday, followed by dark sky caused the delay.
Defending champions Australia crushed India by 85 runs in the final to win their record fifth ICC Women's T20 World Cup title, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, on Sunday. Opting to bat, Australia rode on blistering half-centuries by openers Alyssa Healy (75) and Beth Mooney (78 not out) to post a huge 184 for four before their bowlers, led by Megan Schutt (4/18) and Jess Jonassen (3/20) sent India crashing for a lowly 99 in 19.1 overs.
Images from Friday's World Cup match between Pakistan and Bangladesh, at Lord's.
The Marylebone Cricket Club vs Rest of the World will see cricketing legends - former and present - take the field at Lord's cricket ground on Saturday. And a selfie -- featuring players from both teams -- went viral on Twitter on Friday.
Holding their last practice session before being forced to go on a break by the BCCI, India's bowling coach Joe Dawes and fielding consultant Trevor Penney made the players 'sweat'.
The selectors have much to ponder after England slumped to a crushing 405-run defeat by Australia in the second Ashes Test at Lord's with calls for change in the top order coming a week after the team were lauded for their first-test victory.
Embattled India captain Virat Kohli called on the fans to back his team following consecutive losses to England in the ongoing Test series, hoping that they 'never give up' on the side.
The International Cricket Council came out in defence of umpire Kumar Dharmasena for his controversial decision to award six overthrow runs, instead of five, to England during the World Cup final against New Zealand.
The win was England's first against South Africa at Lord's since 1960.
Former England spinner Monty Panesar dismissed Sachin Tendulkar four times in 11 Tests but says the Indian legend was the best batsman he played against alongside Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene. Virender Sehwag was the "most destructive" of that era, Rahul Dravid was "The Wall", but the ability to change gears made Tendulkar the best.
A win over Australia would see the Black Caps through and represent a strong recovery from their six wicket loss to Pakistan at Edgbaston on Wednesday.
