Rishabh Pant back in full flow as India step up nets ahead of SA opening Test
Virat Kohli has two hundreds and a fifty in his last three innings, while Rohit Sharma has a hundred and two fifties in his last four outings.
John Campbell, who registered his maiden Test century, had mixed emotions after the end of day four in the second Test against India, in Delhi, on Monday.
The track is historically a high-scoring one and the outfield is quick. But on a red soil surface, the ball grips and can surprise the batters.
Yashasvi Jaiswal smashed his maiden ODI hundred to power India to a 2-1 series win after they thrashed against South Africa by nine wickets in the third and final ODI.
'You saw Yashasvi Jaiswal start in the second innings, did you see the first three balls, the kind of shots that he attempted?'
Daryl Mitchell becomes only the second player from New Zealand to hold the top the ICC ranking for ODI batters.
A record-extending 52nd ODI century by Virat Kohli and a rapid 57 from Rohit Sharma paved the way for India's victory in the series-opener in Ranchi.
Images from Day 1 of the second Test between India and South Africa, in Guwahati, on Saturday.
The second and final Test starts in Guwahati from Saturday with India trailing 0-1 after the defeat on a challenging Eden Gardens pitch in Kolkata.
Saurashtra registered their narrowest T20 victory in terms of runs, edging Karnataka by one run in the Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025 Elite Group D match.
Grind pays off for Ruturaj Gaikwad, now upto him and luck to prove his 50-over mettle.
Skipper Shubman Gill acknowledged that the choice between a spinner and an extra seamer for the first Test against South Africa is nothing short of a "conflict".
Saurashtra all but ensured Delhi's exit from Ranji Trophy with a 10-wicket victory inside two days in Group D, in Rajkot, on Friday.
This is the fourth such death reported in the state since the exercise began on November 4, sparking a political blame game.
'It will not happen that Dhoni is off the field and leaves someone like Sanju Samson to keep wickets.'
India pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar feels the debate over preparing a spin-friendly track at the Eden Gardens for the opening Test against South Africa is pointless as the country has been laying out such wickets for ages.
Ravindra Jadeja will play in Saurashtra's Ranji Trophy match against Delhi, from January 23. The India all-rounder, who last played for Saurashtra in January 2023, turned up for the team's practice session in Rajkot on Sunday.
Kuldeep Yadav compared the 22-yard strip at the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati to a "road" due to the benign nature of the pitch.
India will look to address several lingering selection puzzles when they take on South Africa in Ranchi on Sunday in the first ODI of the three-match series, where Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli return to the set-up for a short audition that could well shape their 2027 World Cup fate.
India's strategy of playing two fast bowlers, one pace bowling all-rounder, and three spinners could possibly come in handy on this surface.
This was India's fourth defeat in the last six Tests at home and in all four Tests -- including three against New Zealand -- their batters have flopped against spin.
Marco Jansen demolished the Indian batting line-up with a six-wicket haul before South Africa extended their lead on Day 3 of the second and final Test.
Captain Rishabh Pant conceded that India needed to get better as a Test team.
Not handing the ball to lead pacer Jasprit Bumrah to start the third day's play on a challenging Eden Gardens surface was "questionable", said the legendary Anil Kumble.
While many captains have buckled under the pressure, the responsibility to lead a team followed by a billion-plus fans appears to have brought the best out of Gill.
K L Rahul on Saturday conceded that Indian batters' repeated struggles against spin, especially on home tracks, remain a concern.
India and South Africa will lock horns in a two-match Test series from November 14, with Kolkata and Guwahati playing hosts.
Ravindra Jadeja starred with a 12-wicket haul for Saurashtra, but India's top stars, including Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant, failed to impress in the Ranji Trophy.
Jadeja's assessment of the track was also an indicator that possibly Ravichandran Ashwin has lost a bit of pace in his deliveries.
Ravichandran Ashwin exposed India batters' lack of quality to battle ball tweakers by claiming that if legendary batter Sachin Tendulkar or past domestic heroes Amol Muzumdar, the India women's team head coach and Mithun Manhas had played against spinners on such a track, the Test would have gone to four days, unlike India's harrowing 30-run defeat against South Africa at Eden Gardens.
Nayar believes that the whole team has bought into Rohit and Gambhir's philosophy, including the two spin greats.
Star all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja has called for an improved performance from India's batting unit in the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne, saying the lack of runs from the top-order builds pressure on the lower-order.
Responding to India's squad selection for the home series against West Indies, former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan opined that pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah could have been rested for the series in order to groom a young fast bowler.
Sai Sudharsan and Dhruv Jurel faced spinners while wearing only one pad to counter the turning deliveries, a method that comes with an element of risk, in Kolkata on Monday.
With the pitch here not assisting the spinners so far a great deal, Rampaul expressed his surprise.
Chasing 121 for victory, India were 63/1 at stumps and West Indies will draw solace from being able to force a final-day finish after being made to follow on.
India are 1-0 up in the two-match series, having beaten WI by an innings and 140 runs in the first Test at Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium.
The aura of home advantage -- long regarded as a hallmark of India's Test side -- seemed secure. But in barely over a year, that fortress has not just cracked, it has collapsed, raising uncomfortable questions about strategy, selection, and temperament.
It is believed that captain Sanju Samson has asked Rajasthan Royals to trade him or release him into the auction, signalling an end to his long association with the franchise.
