Cheteshwar Pujara scored a sparkling unbeaten 135 as India took a stranglehold over South Africa in the first Test in Johannesburg on Friday. The top-order displayed remarkable application on Day 3, as the tourists, after dismissing the hosts for 244 in the first innings, swelled their overall lead to 320.
Former pacer Ashish Nehra feels the Indian team management can think of handing Jasprit Bumrah his Test debut in the opening game against South Africa as his awkward action and yorkers might prove lethal on the Cape Town track.
The Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) has already informed its members that no tickets would be put on sale for the first two Tests between India and England at the MA Chidambaram Stadium as both the games will be played behind closed doors.
Cheteshwar Pujara marked his comeback with a gritty unbeaten century as India recovered from an early slump to reach a decent 292-8 in their first innings of the third and final Test against Sri Lanka on Saturday.
Yuvraj Singh made it back to the Indian team for the limited overs series against Australia but seniors Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir were again ignored.
New Zealand pace spearheads exploited a tricky Basin Reserve wicket to bowl India out for under 200 twice with Jamieson's height and delivery angle providing plenty of problems.
Veteran India speedster Mohammed Shami has recovered from his niggles and is fit to play the final Test against England in Manchester, starting September 10.
India batting coach Vikram Rathour said that pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah is working closely with the medical team and the decision on his inclusion will be taken ahead of the start of the match on Friday.
'Unlike in the sporting arena, where sports federations moved from partisan to impartial referees, in Indian democracy's biggest festival, it appears we are moving backward from unbiased and objective to one-sided and partisan,' observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
Shami said the success of the current group boils down to the joy they share in each other's success.
India's new chief coach Anil Kumble will be keeping a keen eye on speedster Mohammed Shami's fitness along with the form of opener Shikhar Dhawan when the team begin its tour of West Indies.
Answering media queries online ahead of the ODI series against Australia starting on Friday, Kohli said Rohit was said to be unavailable before the selection committee meeting earlier this month.
Former India Test cricketer Chetan Chauhan feels Virat Kohli has the ability to break batting legend Sachin Tendulkar's record in both Tests and ODIs.
Factbox on the four-Test series between India and Australia, which starts at Pune on Thursday:
Fit again Ravindra Jadeja and Hanuma Vihari made their way back into the Indian Test squad, while all-rounder Hardik Pandya was left out for next month's IIC World Test Championship final against New Zealand and the five-match series against England.
India's limited overs captain Mahendra Sigh Dhoni has said that inconsistent performances will be scrutinized thoroughly in the future.
A dominant India bulldozed Bangladesh by an innings and 46 runs in their first ever day-night Test with the pink ball to record their 12th home series win in a row.
'... But India lacks solid backup to Bumrah, Shami, and Yadav. Bumrah is a fine paceman. He has very good durability. I think India needs to use him in such a way that he is as fresh as possible for each Test match.'
Do you feel Dhoni should bring in all-rounder Dhawan for Jadeja, or strengthen the pace attack by playing Ishant? Select your Indian team for the second match against Australia, in Brisbane, on Friday, January 15.
Which Indian batsman has the highest run tally against Sri Lanka (Clue: He has an aggregate of 1,995 runs)? Which Sri Lankan skipper led the islanders against India in 13 Tests and did not win a single one? As the Test series gets underway, Rajneesh Gupta surveys India-Sri Lanka Tests played over the years.
England's lower-order gave India a taste of their own medicine on a benign Chepauk track racking up a commendable 477 in their first innings on the second day of the fifth and final cricket Test in Chennai.
Shaun Marsh and Matt Renshaw struck contrasting half-centuries on an engrossing day of cricket to help Australia take a first-innings lead of 48 against India in the second Test at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Sunday.
India's growing strength in depth in the pace department has given captain Virat Kohli the right kind of headache ahead of the tour of Australia.
Fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah on Saturday became only the third Indian to claim a Test hat-trick as he tore through the West Indies batting order, on Day 2 of the second Test, in Jamaica.
Rajneesh Gupta presents all the interesting numbers from Day 4 of the India-England Test at Trent Bridge.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni will lead a full strength India squad for the two-match Twenty20 series against the West Indies in the United States on August 27 and 28.
Help captain Virat Kohli and coach Ravi Shastri pick India's playing XI for the Jamaica Test.
South Africa captain Faf du Plessis walked for the toss along with Temba Bavuma as the proxy captain, who was given the responsibility of calling the toss.
Will triple centurion Karun Nair be picked to counter the Afghan spinners?
A confident India, with a new coach at the helm, will seek to record a third consecutive Test series triumph on the Caribbean soil when the Virat Kohli-led side clashes with an inexperienced West Indies in the first cricket match, in Antigua, on Thursday.
The turning point of the match has Kumar Sangakkara's wicket.
Pick your Playing XI for the second Test against New Zealand.
Virat Kohli coasted to his fifth double century as India's frontline batsmen crushed Sri Lanka's toothless attack to stay on course for an innings victory in the second Test in Nagpur on Sunday.
Former pace great Waqar Younis said it doesn't make sense that the ICC World Test Championship don't feature any match between arch-rivals India and Pakistan. The ICC World Test Championship features nine top-ranked Test teams, who will play six bilateral Test series against mutually chosen opponents with the top two nations with most points at the end of the league clashing in the final in England in June 2021.
Ashwin spoke about how WTC has provided a context to Test cricket and would love to see more traditional format games in neutral venues.
A ruthless India equalled their biggest victory margin, decimating a lacklustre Sri Lanka by an innings and 239 runs in the second Test to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
India's captain asserted that there was nothing wrong with India's choice of bowlers as they needed to score more runs in order to let their spinners call the shots.
What went wrong for India in the World Test Championship Final against New Zealand?
Faced with the prospect of a humiliating 0-3 series whitewash, a desperate India would be aiming to bounce back to winning ways against an unrelenting South Africa in the third and final Test, starting in Johannesburg, on Wednesday.
