Their play-off chances hanging by a thread, Kolkata Knight Riders will take on Mumbai Indians with a prayer on their lips in a must-win Indian Premier League game for them on Sunday.
With several political stalwarts of Uttar Pradesh no longer on the scene, it will be keenly watched how their children lead at the hustings this time without their formidable presence.
India's spinners were thwarted by a splendid display of ultra-defensive batting by England before the hosts took control dismissing rival skipper Alastair Cook on an engrossing fourth day of the second Test in Visakhapatnam.
However, Mumbai will take heart from the fact that they defeated defending champions Chennai Super Kings, their first loss in four games, in the last match.
Suresh Raina has been named captain of the India Blue team for the Duleep Trophy, which will be held in Kanpur and Lucknow from September 7 to 29, providing him a platform to make a return to the Indian team.
With Jasprit Bumrah "ready and roaring" after an injury scare, Mumbai Indians will fancy their chances against an erratic Royal Challengers Bangalore when the two star-studded teams square off in the IPL, in Bengaluru, on Thursday. The big sub-plot of the contest will be the world's best ODI batsman -- Virat Kohli -- taking guard against the world's best ODI bowler -- Bumrah -- in a format notorious for its unpredictability.
The likes of Robin UthaManoj Tiwaryppa, Manoj Tiwary and Kedar Jadhav will get another chance to impress the selectors and push their case for a comeback to international cricket when Ranji Trophy champions Karnataka clash against Rest of India lock in a five-day Irani Trophy match, in Bangalore, starting on Tuesday.
Top leaders of 26 opposition parties were arriving in Bengaluru on Monday for a two-day brainstorming session with a call for unity and are expected to chalk out their joint programme aimed at defeating the Bharatiya Janata Party in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
New Zealand spinner Ajaz Patel claimed the rare honour of bagging all 10 wickets in an innings before India demonstrated their own bowling might to take control on Day 2 of the second and final Test at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday.
A basic outline and roadmap for Opposition unity are likely to be deliberated upon with the contentious issue of seat sharing and leadership questions to be avoided for now.
'They are trying to stoke emotions to build fear.' 'They have done nothing and that is why they are trying to divert attention.'
613 candidates are in the fray on 54 seats, including those falling in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's parliamentary segment Varanasi.
The INDIA bloc is also likely to announce a secretariat for smooth coordination between the constituents and it is likely to be set up in the national capital. Besides, the members will also discuss the issue of having a coordinator or a chairperson to head the alliance.
Handed a rude shock in the opening game, the Indian youngsters will have to raise their game in the second Twenty20 International to stay afloat in the three-match series against minnows Zimbabwe, in Harare on Monday.
Should left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav make his Test debut? Or must India retain the winning Bengaluru side?
'I think they're feeling the pressure a little bit to be honest'
India bowled with a lot of perseverance to restrict England to 268 for 8 despite a defiant 89 from Jonny Bairstow on Day 1 of the third cricket Test in Mohali on Saturday.
Mumbai Indians enter the match high on confidence following successive victories over holders Chennai Super Kings and last edition's finalists Sunrisers Hyderabad.
All-rounder Krunal Pandya and medium pacer Deepak Chahar earned their maiden call up in the Indian squad to replace the injured Washington Sundar and Jasprit Bumrah for the three-match Twenty20 International series against England, starting in Manchester on Tuesday.
The unmatched legacy and hegemony created by the galacticos of Mumbai Indians will be thoroughly challenged by a young Mumbaikar Shreyas Iyer, who will lead a passionate-but-unpredictable Delhi Capitals in a cracker of an Indian Premier League final, in Dubai, on Tuesday.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India's Committee of Administrators (COA) on Tuesday doubled the annual retainership amount to Rs 2 crore for seven Grade A cricketers, including captain Virat Kohli and former skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
In the final, Krrish and Ravi will take on Tajikistan's Anushervon Fazylov and Ilkhomjon Ergashev of Uzbekistan respectively.
This is his 'Test' and for Kohli, a century to mark a 'century' is something he would be craving
India have a real shot at winning their first ever away series against South Africa,
Images from the Indian Premier League match between Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians, in Sharjah, on Tuesday.
Rajasthan Royals may need to rejig their Indian line-up slightly when they try to pull their IPL campaign out of the current rot against a supremely confident Mumbai Indians,
Virat Kohli's talismanic presence will be the shot in the arm that India would need in their bid to win the historic first-ever away Test series against South Africa.
A summary of all the action from Day 2 of the Ranji Trophy matches played on Wednesday.
Keaton Jennings impressed on his debut for England with a century but off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin brought India back with a late three-wicket burst on the opening day of the fourth cricket Test in Mumbai on Thursday. - Scorecard England were going strong by taking tea at 196 for two but India reduced the visitors to 288 for five at stumps as Ashwin removed Moeen Ali (50) and Jennings (112) in space of three balls and later got rid of Jonny Bairstow (14). Ben Stokes (25) and Jos Buttler (18) were the unbeaten batsmen at close after an unfinished stand of 39 on a track that would be difficult to negotiate with passage of time.
By picking all 10 wickets, Ajaz Patel joined Jim Laker and Anil Kumble.
The 34-year-old was India's number one Test wicket-keeper until a career-threatening shoulder injury ruled him out of action for almost a year.
A round-up of the Ranji Trophy matches played on Friday.
Left-arm spinner Axar Patel scalped five wickets as India 'A' spinners shot out South Africa 'A' for 260 on Day 1 of the second and final unofficial 'Test' in Wayanad, Kerala, on Tuesday.
Voting for the seventh and final phase of the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections covering 54 seats, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi's parliamentary constituency Varanasi, will be held on Monday to decide the phase of 613 candidates.
Sunrisers Hyderabad face a formidable task without batting mainstay David Warner when they square off against Mumbai Indians in a crucial IPL match in Mumbai, on Thursday.
A rampaging Kolkata Knight Riders stand in the way of Delhi Daredevils' revival plan as the two teams, with contrasting runs so far, gear up to clash in an Indian Premier League (IPL) fixture in Kolkata on Friday.
Royal Challengers Bangalore will have rise to the occasion when they take on the already-eliminated Delhi Daredevil
Spoilt for choice with a pool of top quality performers in their ranks, formidable India are overwhelming favourites against minnows Bangladesh in a proverbial 'David vs Goliath' one-off cricket Test that starts in Hyderabad on Thursday.
While the Samajwadi Party largely banks on its Muslim-Yadav support base, the Bharatiya Janata Party is trying to counter it with the Modi-Yogi combo in the state assembly polls.
Leading India leg-spinner Amit Mishra feels a tweaker needs to have 'quality' to be successful in Twenty20 cricket, a format which predominantly weighs in favour of a batsman.
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