The grand comeback party of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma endured a quick 22-ball ending, and their lowkey outing reflected in India's seven-wicket defeat against Australia.
ri Lanka opener Pathum Nissanka smashed a belligerent century as Indian bowlers endured their worst day in the Asia Cup before Arshdeep Singh produced a brilliant 'Super Over' to win the game for his side in Dubai on Friday.
Rishabh Pant's place in the playing eleven is far from guaranteed, while Washington Sundar and Nitish Kumar Reddy are locked in a tight contest for the additional all-rounder's slot as India confront several selection dilemmas ahead of the first ODI against South Africa in Ranchi.
The focus is to bring momentum back into the Indian dressing room: Morne Morkel
The Indian team's heavy reliance on all-rounders will be tested by a plucky Australia in the second ODI but the spotlight will continue to stay firmly on Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, both of whom would look to turn back the clock with series-saving knocks in Adelaide on Thursday.
When players select themselves, the selectors' job becomes delightfully simple. But did the Indian selectors have that luxury while picking the T20 World Cup squad for the 2026 T20 World Cup? asks K R Nayar.
Shreyas Iyer sustained a lower left rib cage injury while attempting a difficult running catch during the third ODI against Australia in Sydney.
Pace spearhead Harshit Rana received a well-deserved maiden call-up, following his impressive performances.
Kaif also questioned Gill's tactical choices on debut, especially the call to leave out Kuldeep -- a bowler capable of turning games in Australia's own backyard.
'So he's available for the bigger match, which is against Sri Lanka.'
The JioStar expert also analysed KKR's buys at the auction, saying that getting NZ all-rounder Rachin Ravindra at base price was smart and there is "serious batting power" in the squad.
India's new ODI vice-captain Shreyas Iyer might be forced to remain out of action for minimum three weeks
The cricketing ecosystem has learned to survive the prolonged absence of Kohli and Rohit -- at least in two formats -- in this interim period.
Kuldeep was instrumental to India's success at the Asia Cup, topping the wicket-taking chart with 17 wickets. Chopra explained the rationale behind dropping the left-arm wrist spinner, attributing it to batting depth.
The eight players who featured in India's World Cup triumph in 2024 will aim to repeat their magic from two years ago.
With the much-anticipated Group A clash against arch-rivals Pakistan looming, India is sparing no effort in their training sessions, honing skills and strategising tactics.
Grind pays off for Ruturaj Gaikwad, now upto him and luck to prove his 50-over mettle.
Rohit Sharma, head coach Gautam Gambhir, Hardik Pandya, Shreyas Iyer, Varun Chakravarthy and Ravindra Jadeja were among the first ones to reach India.
As India gear up for the T20 World Cup at home, the selectors have backed a squad built on impact, and versatility.
The controversial decision to select Shubman Gill in place of a well-settled Sanju Samson as the opener has backfired for the Indian team so far.
Earlier, warm-up routines had players darting through shuttle runs and high knees before bats were unsheathed.
"He needs to rotate strike, keep the scoreboard moving": Pathan on Virat ahead of 3rd Sydney ODI
The likes of Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube and Axar Patel would all like to get some decent hit out there in the middle ahead of Sunday's clash against Pakistan.
Australia held their nerve in a tense chase, edging past India by two wickets to seal the series 2-0 despite a late fightback from the visitors on Thursday in Adelaide.
The lack of runs from captain Suryakumar Yadav and his deputy Shubman Gill remains a talking point.
Head coach Gambhir, captain Gill, men's squad send best wishes to Harmanpreet-led side for Women's World Cup final
KKR, CSK to engage in bidding war in IPL mini-auction with big purse in hand
Shubman Gill enjoyed a phenomenal run with the bat in England, piling up 754 runs at an average of 75.40 with four centuries.
India will take on the UAE in their tournament-opener on September 10 before facing arch rivals Pakistan at Dubai on September 14. Their third group match will be against Oman on September 19 before the Super Four stage.
Harshit Rana returned to take 3 big wickets and become the first Indian bowler to take 3 wickets on debut across 3 formats.
Ponting added that the likes of Rohit and Virat Kohli getting back amongst in the preceding ODI series against England augurs well for India.
Pat Cummins captured the sentiment perfectly, calling this potentially the 'last chance' for fans Down Under to witness these legends in action. With both stalwarts set to be 39 and 40 respectively by the 2027 World Cup, every appearance carries added significance. Ro-Ko have been the heartbeat of Indian cricket for over 15 years. Their return brings an emotional lift to the team and raises expectations for the series against the world champions.
Skipper Suryakumar Yadav will depend heavily on his spin troika as India gear up for yet another demolition act of Pakistan in what promises to be an intense and tense Super 4 face-off of the Asia Cup in Dubai on Sunday.
After a much-needed two-day respite, Team India returned to the training grounds with renewed vigour, setting their sights on a pivotal showdown against New Zealand on Sunday.
Harshit Rana celebrated with his father Pradeep after earning a maiden call-up to the Indian ODI team.
In KKR's IPL opener against SRH on March 23, Rana committed two Level 1 offences under Article 2.5 of the IPL's Code of Conduct. He was fined 10 per cent and 50 per cent of his match fees for the two respective offences.
Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Akash Deep and Sarfaraz Khan along with Assistant Coach Abhishek Nayar reached Perth on Monday.
Left-arm seamer Arshdeep Singh on Friday etched his name into the record books by becoming the first Indian bowler to claim 100 wickets in T20 internationals.
Arshdeep Singh has enough experience to understand that the Indian team management is trying different combinations looking at the bigger picture, bowling coach Morne Morkel said.
Gambhir has backed young pacers Harshit Rana and Arshdeep Singh, along with the experienced Mohammed Shami, to step up in Bumrah's absence.
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