Australia have included uncapped George Bailey in their 12-man squad for the first Ashes encounter against England next week in a gamble the 31-year-old can replicate his "extraordinary" limited overs form in the Test arena.
Defending champions Mumbai Indians stand at the threshold of an early exit from the ongoing IPL, but their bowling coach Shane Bond is optimistic. He feels the team has enough arsenal at its disposal to turn things turnaround in its must-win remaining six games. With just two wins from eight matches, Mumbai Indians currently languish at the second last position in the eight-team league.
Guptill will undergo a fitness Test on Sunday after which a final decision will be taken on whether he can partner Henry Nicholls at the top of New Zealand's order.
Rajasthan Royals opener Jos Buttler said Chennai Super Kings' skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni was 'probably not right' in stepping on to the field to argue with the umpires during their IPL match in Jaipur on Thursday.
Australia captain Steve Smith was delighted with the way his side rebounded from a series defeat to South Africa to sweep Pakistan 3-0 on Saturday but warned their next Test campaign in India would present a challenge on a whole different level.
Sean Williams scored a maiden Test century in vain as New Zealand clinched a comprehensive innings and 117-run victory over hosts Zimbabwe on day four of the first Test in Bulawayo, on Sunday.
Gujarat Lions opener Aaron Finch was all praise for his 'Champion' West Indies team-mate Dwayne Bravo, who he feels 'keeps getting better and better with age'.
Former Australian coach John Buchanan has backed Michael Clarke's side to beat India.
Left-arm spinner Steve O'Keefe took 12 wickets in the match to help Australia beat India by 333 runs in Pune on Saturday as the tourists took a 1-0 lead in the four-Test series between the world's top-ranked sides.
Mitchell Johnson will be rested for the opening One-Day International against England to freshen up for the rest of the series, Australia coach Darren Lehmann said on Thursday.
'I thought it was probably one of the worst bowling displays that we've put on for a very long time'
Australia have drawn inspiration from former World Cup-winning captain Steve Waugh in how to handle big-match pressure ahead of Friday's quarter-final against Pakistan.
We saw how the pitch is playing and told ourselves we are going to dig deep, but unfortunately, myself, Travis and Shaun couldn't bat long as long as we should have'
Royal Challengers Bangalore leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal says he feels more responsible after his 'life-changing' six-wicket haul against England in a T20 International earlier this year.
'India have a good bunch of fast bowlers.' 'Umesh is doing really well and so are Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ishant.'
Getting his team composition right will be Mahendra Singh Dhoni's primary aim as Rising Pune Supergiants meet an out-of-sorts Kings XI Punjab in an Indian Premier League cricket tournament encounter, in Mohali on Sunday.
Replacement paceman Kyle Abbott took 6-77 as South Africa completed an innings and 80-run humiliation of Australia the second Test in Hobart on Tuesday to seal the three-match series with a game to spare.
Former England team mate Graeme Swann began the backlash against Kevin Pietersen's new book on Monday by labelling it "the biggest work of fiction since Jules Verne".
England's Jos Buttler struck a belligerent unbeaten 100 to set up a 16-run win over Australia in the third one-day international on Sunday, as the touring side took an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series.
Virat Kohli and Steve Smith are on even keel as far as leadership qualities are concerned, feels former Australia skipper Michael Clarke even though he rates the Indian captain as a slightly better ODI batsman.
Ishant needs to figure out his role in the team, says McGrath
Teams play safe, retain star players, total purse at Rs 148 crore versus Rs 198 crore last year
Pacer Vernon Philander claimed six for 21 as South Africa thrashed Australia by a huge margin of 492 runs to claim the four-match series 3-1, in Johannesburg, on Tuesday.
Australia vice-captain Alex Carey said the ODI series win against a top team like India 'will mean a lot' considering the hosts' struggles over the last 12 months.
'Over the last 12 months Virat's averaged 133, Shikhar 75, and Rohit 50; so there's a lot of runs and balls faced from their top three. It's important to get them as early as you can because once they get in, they score fast and they don't seem to get out too easily'
New Zealand will bank heavily on reverse swing to emerge from the trial by spin that awaits them in the test series in India, coach Mike Hesson said on Tuesday. Last time they hosted a team, India rolled out turning tracks and flexed their spin muscles to crush South Africa 3-0 in the four-test series last year. Kane Williamson and his men can look forward to a similar treatment in the three-test series beginning in Kanpur on Sept. 22 but Hesson sounded upbeat.
'I cannot believe that D'Arcy Short has been left out of the side. I don't know what he's done wrong. He can bowl and his batting at the top is dynamic. He's in terrific form, and he and Finch make an awesome partnership at the top'
New Zealand named a virtually unchanged squad for the upcoming ODI series against India, with the selectors keeping faith in players who drew the recent five-match home assignment against the West Indies.
India coach Ravi Shastri is happy that his team responded magnificently after he sought accountability post back-to-back defeat in the first two Tests.
Ishant Sharma is another pacer that ranks high in the South Africa fast bowler's praise list.
Summary of World Cup qualifiers played across the world on Thursday
Consigned to their fourth straight defeat, a dejected Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma said he has tried everything to get the right combination this IPL season but hasn't succeeded.
'It's Test cricket and (Shannon) is an emotional guy trying to do everything he can to win a Test match. Sometimes people say things on the field that they might regret'
Australian batsman George Bailey has claimed that his side's World Cup squad has played consistently since the past 12 or 18 months, despite injuries, inexperience and the pressure of a home tournament bearing down on them.
James Taylor's patient century laid the platform for England to beat Australia by 93 runs in the third One-Day International at Old Trafford in Manchester, on Tuesday, leaving the touring side 2-1 up in the series.
'It's great to have Rohit at the other end. He's a very calm character.'
Australia coach Justin Langer wants off-spinner Nathan Lyon, who has dismissed Virat Kohli seven times in Tests, to continue his good record against the India captain.
An injury-ravaged Michael Clarke may have raised doubts about his future by stating that he may never play again, but Australian cricket coach Darren Lehmann is confident that the inspirational skipper will be back sooner or later.
Sweden's Sarah Sjostrom set a world record for the women's 100 metres butterfly at the world swimming championships on Monday.
If MI have their problems to sort out, having lost at the death in all three games so far, RCB too have their own shortcomings to address with only one win in three games under their belt.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances