Australia regained the prestigious ICC Test mace and also won a cash award of $1million after beating New Zealand in the Christchurch Test by seven wickets and winning the series 2-0 on Wednesday. Australia finished two points ahead of India with 112 points in the final series before the April 1 cut-off date.
India have retained their second position in the ICC Test team rankings following a draw in the second and final Test today against New Zealand, which won the series 1-0.
India captain and batting mainstay Virat Kohli was named skipper of the International Cricket Council's Test and ODI teams of the year, following a remarkable run in 2018.
Ashwin gained two places after taking six wickets in India's emphatic victory over Australia in the second Test in New Delhi.
Rajeev Shukla hailed the star batter for his contribution in the longest format.
Fast bowler Khurram Shahzad and Mohammad Abbas have been named in Pakistan's team for the first Test starting on Thursday in Centurion - the first red-ball assignment for newly-appointed interim coach Aqib Javed.
It is now-or-never for the now senior-most superstar batter to produce an all-timer series that justifies his talent.
The 28-year-old cricketer's ODI runs came at an average of 57.86 and an impressive strike rate of 95.15.
Shah, the son of India's Home Minister Amit Shah, will have his task cut out as the ICC looks to find an acceptable solution to implement the 'Hybrid Model' for the Champions Trophy originally scheduled in Pakistan.
Jofra Archer took inspiration from Sourav Ganguly's famous shirt swinging show at the 2002 Natwest Trophy final
'I don't know what the maths looks like but we're playing good cricket and we want it to continue.'
The relations between India and Pakistan could be a potential spoiler if both the teams enter the final, but that is a situation which will be dealt with at that point of time.
Australia has made a couple of changes to its squad, addressing Hazlewood's absence and the top-order issues. Sam Konstas replaces Nathan McSweeney in the squad for the fourth Test.
'The sun is on us,' declared SA skipper Temba Bavuma following the World Test Championship triumph.
The two players also received one demerit point each on their disciplinary records, marking their first offence within the last 24 months.
'Some of these guys come up, grow up through IPL cricket and there's no fear or there's the expectation to be very good from the get-go and they're quality players from the time they get into international cricket no matter what their age is.'
Dilip Doshi had great success on Indian tracks but it was the tour of Australia in 1980-81 where he picked up 11 wickets (6 in Adelaide and 5 in Melbourne) in more than 150-plus overs on non-responsive pitches.
'Only he knows whether he has the hunger to go on.'
Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara has reclaimed the number-one batting spot from West Indies' Shivnarine Chanderpaul in the ICC Player Rankings for Test batsmen after another big century against Pakistan in the second Test that ended in a draw in Colombo.
Konstas heads home but not out of Test team's plans
The Indian team ramped up preparations for the Boxing Day Test by practicing on a fresh wicket on Tuesday at the MCG.
Overall, in 25 matches Maharaj has picked up 59 wickets, averaging 17.76 with a bowling strike rate of 35.5.
India captain Virat Kohli fell out of the top-10 while Ashwin climbed up the bowlers and well as the all-rounders' chart
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma's grade A+ contract will continue despite their retirement: BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia
Sri Lanka were dismissed for their lowest test total of 42 after South Africa's Marco Jansen produced bowling heroics to help the hosts take a firm grip on the first Test.
Australia's batting maestro Steve Smith provided an update on the injury he sustained on his finger during their World Test Championship final defeat against South Africa at Lord's.
Victory for South Africa followed Test success over West Indies in Guyana in August and Bangladesh in a two-Test series in October.
Sykes, who has been contributing to cricket operations as a volunteer at Edgbaston for more than a decade, narrated his Dhoni moment to PTI.
Kohli had achieved his highest rating after the Southampton Test against England earlier this year.
Dinesh Karthik didn't hold back in his admiration, calling Bumrah 'as valuable as the Kohinoor diamond' and underlining his dominance across all formats.
"Shreyas Iyer is now absolute certainty in white-ball format": Ravi Shastri hails Indian cricketer's batting technique
Cheteshwar Pujara was the highest-ranked Indian batsman despite dropping a rung to eighth while R Ashwin held on to his eighth position in the bowlers' chart of the ICC Test rankings.
England seamer Gus Atkinson has been named the ICC Men's Player of the Month for July 2024 after his heroics in the Test series against West Indies.
Australia's series-levelling triumph over South Africa in Johannesburg has helped India rise a rung to the second spot in ICC's latest Test rankings.
Anirudha Srikkanth heaped praise on talisman batter Virat Kohli's captaincy and said that he was the reason why India could win Tests outside home soil.
In the previous update, India had more points in their kitty despite being tied with Australia at 118 rating points each.
Gambhir is reportedly inclined toward appointing a young captain who can serve as a close ally in shaping the team's future, with Gill fitting that profile.
There was plenty of action over the last 12 months that kept the loyal Indian fan interested.
For the world, it is another victory of a cricket team, but for all those Black South Africans, who suffered during apartheid, it come as a sweet redemption.
Pakistan have dropped plans to conduct "major surgery" on the national team as it included senior players Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Shah Afridi in the Test squad for the two-match series against Bangladesh.
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