The return of old guards Rohit, Kohli and KL Rahul and also Shreyas Iyer will give India a huge boost as they eye the ODI series after clinching the T20Is against Sri Lanka.
Gill will not like to repeat the mistakes of his predecessors while aiming to cement his place in the T20I side after making a reputation for himself in the longer versions.
Hardik Pandya will be expected to begin his full-time T20 captaincy tenure on a bold note as the Indian team prepares to start its life beyond Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul.
Azharuddin, whose nomination was rejected two years ago, submitted his papers to former Chief Election Commissioner VS Sampath on Wednesday.
England edged past Sri Lanka by 10 runs to reach the semi-finals of the World Twenty20 at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium in New Delhi, on Saturday.
With just one win, Sri Lanka are currently at the sixth spot with four points and will have to win rest of their four matches to stay in contention for the semi-final.
Sri Lanka have not played a match at the World Cup since June 4, forced to split points with Bangladesh and Pakistan following two washed out games.
Coming off a socio-economic crisis and the worst turmoil in its country's history, the Sri Lankan cricket team would like to provide the island nation with an emotional catharsis by beating fancied Pakistan in the Asia Cup final in Dubai on Sunday.
India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Bangladesh can beat each other on their day
Sri Lanka captain Dinesh Chandimal, on Thursday, came to under-fire Angelo Mathews' defence, making it clear that not only him but all other top order batsmen also need to perform.
Images from the first Twenty20 International between India and Sri Lanka, in Lucknow, on Thursday.
A reinvigorated India will look to pocket their second series win in as many weeks and build on the gains made from a drastic change in their batting approach in the second T20 International against Sri Lanka in Dharamsala on Saturday.
The absence of the team's established players, such as Virat Kohli and Rishbah Pant as well as KL Rahul, in the upcoming three T20 Internationals will definitely translate into more opportunities for the likes of Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Sanju Samson.
Sri Lanka need to win their final two games, and hope for favourable outcomes in England and Pakistan's next fixtures.
Boosted by their 3-0 clean sweep of Australia Down Under, a confident India would seek to continue their winning momentum when they take on a depleted and new-look Sri Lanka in the first of three T20 Internationals, in Pune, on Tuesday.
England will be determined to get their act together against defending champions Sri Lanka.
Lost in transition, defending champions Sri Lanka will look to come out of the rut and start well against a spirited Afghanistan in their World Twenty20 Super 10 opener at Eden Gardens on Thursday. The defending champions, who were also runners-up in 2009 and 2012, have managed to win only four of their 14 matches since they beat India to win the 2014 edition in Mirpur. They are in the middle of a transition phase after Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene's exit. The build-up to the tournament was also forgettable with series defeats in New Zealand and India followed by an early ouster in Asia Cup. To add to the misery, their 2014 WT20 winning skipper Lasith Malinga has stepped down as leader of the team, following concern over his slow recovery from a knee injury. Now Test and ODI skipper Angelo Mathews' task is cutout. Having joined the squad on Tuesday, Malinga is a doubtful starter for the match. His presence in the team would impact the team a lot.
The Asia Cup to be played in Bangladesh from February 24, will be played in the T20 format for the first time in the tournament's history. The tournament which precedes the vital World T20 to be held in in India in March, has a rich history with India and Sri Lanka winning it five times each. Pakistan have been victorious on two occasions while Bangladesh's best finish has been their runner-up performance in the 2012 edition. Team India will be led by MS Dhoni and the tournament will also see Virat Kohli returning after taking a break from the recently concluded three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka. Dhoni will be chasing history to become the most successful skipper in the tournament history. The Indian skipper and former Lankan captain Arjuna Ranatunga have both recorded same number of nine victories and four defeats in the Asia Cup All the matches will be played at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Mirpur. The qualifying rounds involving Afghanistan, United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong and Oman has begun from Friday.
Virat Kohli would hope for a turnaround when India take on an under-prepared Sri Lanka in the second Test in Bengaluru
This is his 'Test' and for Kohli, a century to mark a 'century' is something he would be craving
Shocked by an inexperienced Sri Lankan side on a green wicket in the first Twenty20 match, India would aim to regain its winning touch and keep the series alive.
Netherlands' Kingma gets four-match suspension for ball-tampering.
India would be desperate for the likes of Mahendra Singh Dhoni to find some form ahead of the semi-final when they take on Sri Lanka in their last preliminary World Cup clash, in Leeds, on Saturday.
Buoyed by an overwhelming victory in the previous game, a resilient India would look to continue the momentum and seal off their second successive T20 series win when they take on Sri Lanka in the third and final Twenty20 International, in Visakhapatnam on Sunday. India shrugged off their embarrassing defeat in opening T20 match in Pune with a commanding show in Ranchi, where they outclassed the island nation by 69 runs to level the series. The Indian batsmen had struggled to cope with the 'green' track in Pune but adjusted well on a slow strip at Ranchi, where they did not put a foot wrong. The bowlers, too, were in complete control, never letting the Sri Lankan batsmen dominate. Moreover, skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's captaincy was impressive and all his experiments, be it reshuffling of the batting order or bowling tactics, paid off. India not only mastered the conditions but also executed their plans to perfection.
India pacer Ishant Sharma wrecked havoc with the ball as he claimed a five-wicket haul to leave the Sri Lanka Board President's XI in tatters on Day 2 of the three-day tour match, in Colombo, on Friday.
Kusal Mendis led a strong Sri Lankan second innings effort but the West Indies still held the advantage at stumps on day four of the first Test at the Queen's Park Oval in Trinidad on Saturday. Set a daunting target of 453 when the hosts declared their second innings at 223 for seven just after lunch, the visitors reached 176 for three by the close with Mendis unbeaten on 94.
Even as Sri Lanka sweats over pacer Lasith Malinga's injury, skipper Angelo Mathews hopes to inspire his young team to defend its WT20 title.
Injuries to key players such as skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Rohit Sharma is giving them the jitters but India would still be firm favourites when they take on a depleted and struggling Sri Lanka in their penultimate league encounter of the Asia Cup Twenty20 cricket tournament, in Mirpur, on Tuesday.
Mithali Raj will come out with her autobiography next year which will provide a candid and revealing look into her personal and sporting life.
The 2016 World T20 was the most exciting ever, what with that dramatic last over finish on Sunday night.
As we write this we still await the crucial India-Australia knock-out in Mohali. But India's individual performances in the T20 World Cup so far haven't been truly impressive. A look at the most valuable player index (MVPI) table reveals that there's no Indian player in the top 20. MVPI merges a player's batting + bowling + fielding performance into a single 'run equivalent'. The formula to compute the MVP is devised to reward batsmen who score runs at a high strike rate, bowlers who take wickets at low economy rate and fielders who field the best (take a lot of catches and participate in run-outs). Since this is a relatively low scoring tournament we have assumed a team's par score to be 150, and each wicket to be worth 15 'runs'. It isn't a surprise that players from New Zealand dominate the rankings so far, although Joe Root tops the table after his 83 in 44 balls against South Africa.
Rajneesh Gupta profiles the cricketers playing the World Cup 2019.
India's T20 World Cup challenge has ended. But it is likely that Virat Kohli (MVPI of 338) will go on to become the tournament's most valuable player because he enjoys a lead of 109 runs over second-placed Joe Root (229).
India's batting sensation Virat Kohli, named player of the tournament, is also the most valuable player of World T20 2016. With a fifty and two wickets, England's Joe Root is just behind him.
Rajneesh Gupta presents all the fascinating career numbers of players in the World Cup.
