China has signalled that it will prevent India from assuming leadership of the Global South, observes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Australia will play their first Test series in Sri Lanka in more than five years, with a three-match series beginning on July 26 in Kandy. The Australians will embark on a two-month tour of the island nation from July 11, playing three Tests, five ODIs and two T20 Internationals. Steve Smith's side leapfrogged India in February to finish the latest 12-month period in first spot on the ICC Test Championship table, while Sri Lanka have dropped to seventh place after a disappointing year following the retirements of legendary batting duo Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardena. Only three members of the Australian side that beat the Black Caps in their most recent Test series - Nathan Lyon, Peter Siddle and Usman Khawaja - have experienced Test cricket in Sri Lanka.
England were all out for 391, taking a slender 27-run first innings lead, riding on captain Joe Root's majestic knock on an entertaining day of Test cricket at Lord's.
Images from Day 2 of the 2nd Ashes Test played at Lord's Cricket Ground, London, on Thursday.
A surprise attack by Hamas militants from Gaza at daybreak killed at least 200 Israelis on Saturday even as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared "war" and said his country would extract an "unprecedented price" from its enemy.
All-rounder Jadeja will miss the first two Tests after fracturing his thumb in Australia and left-arm wristspinner Kuldeep Yadav is not a certainty in India's slow bowling attack led by off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.
The 28-year-old is expected to open the batting with Surrey team mate Rory Burns for the one-off match against Ireland starting at Lord's next Wednesday.
Paine knows well that he isn't a powerhouse performer like his predecessor but believes that he has been playing his role to perfection in the current Australian set up.
Batsman Shaun Marsh struck a fighting half-century at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Monday to drive Australia to a commanding 326-run lead over India at the close of day four.
Steve Smith completed his fourth century in as many matches on Wednesday as Australia compiled a daunting first innings total in the final Test against India at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
Rajneesh Gupta presents all the interesting numbers from Day 2 of the India-England Test at Lord's.
Images from Day 2 of the third Test between England and India, at Headingley, Leeds, on Thursday.
Both Stokes and Archer were rested for the ongoing two-match Test series in Sri Lanka
Images from Day 5 of the fourth Test between England and India, at The Oval, on Sunday.
Australia will be forced to blood an entirely new opening partnership in Bangladesh next month after David Warner was ruled out of the two-Test series with a broken finger on Friday.
Jofra Archer was England's leading wicket taker in their victorious World Cup campaign with 20 wickets and he made his Test debut against Australia, picking up 22 wickets in four Ashes Tests.
England ended day four with a 170-run lead over West Indies as Zak Crawley and Dom Sibley notched up half-centuries in the second innings of the first Test at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton on Saturday. Images from Day 4 of the first Test between England and West Indies.
CIA Director William J. Burns held a secret meeting in Kabul on Monday with Baradar in the highest-level face-to-face encounter between the Taliban and the Biden administration since the militants seized the Afghan capital, the Washington Post reported, citing unnamed US officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity,
Gurkeerat Singh turned in a superb all-round showing as India 'A' beat fancied Australia 'A' by four wickets in the final of the 'A' teams triangular series in Chennai on Friday.
Kusal Mendis excelled under pressure again, hitting a sparkling 86 and featuring in two important partnerships to help Sri Lanka overcome a shaky start and post 281 all out on the opening day of the second Test against Australia on Thursday.
The G20 declaration, which hit snags on the language to describe the Ukraine war, amounted to a 'coup' for host Prime Minister Narendra Modi though the final compromise statement reflected a stand far softer than those the United States and its Western allies have adopted on Russia, the world media said on Sunday.
Garcetti, 50, who served as the co-chair of Biden's presidential campaign, was initially considered for the Cabinet.
A few bruised egos will eye redemption when India square off against Australia in the second Test in Melbourne from Saturday, ready to bounce back in skipper Ajinkya Rahane's hour of reckoning after their batting debacle in the series opener in Adelaide.
Pat Cummins took a five-wicket haul in a dream start to his Australia captaincy as England were skittled for 147 by tea at the Gabba before rain brought the opening day of the Ashes to an early close.
From the protests in Belarus, to people in Beirut picking up the pieces after the deadly blast, to the Democratic National Convention held in Delaware in the United States, here are the top images from the week gone by.
'He's (Bumrah) is a superb bowler and at times we need to be realistic and accept that he bowled really well, that was world-class bowling.'
England have already announced their 11-man team for the match against Ireland. Pacer James Anderson has been ruled out of the match as he was unable to recover from his calf injury.
There will certainly be some distinct home advantage for Australia along with the experience of playing more Day/Night Tests.
'They're a group of players that pride themselves on competing and they've just not managed to find any kind of consistency or skill'
Sunil Shetty makes his OTT debut. Chiranjeevi comes calling. Parvathy Thiruvothu, Nithya Menen and Amruta Subhash provide enchanting viewing. Santa Claus gets ready to retire.
Batting great and current Mumbai Indians head coach Ricky Ponting has expressed his desire to be involved with the Australian national cricket team in a coaching role and hinted that he could be ready for such a job after the 2019 World Cup. Ponting said the possibility of being involved with the Australian team down the track was certainly something that appealed to him. "I would love to be working with (David) Warner and (Steve) Smith along with some of the young guns like (Usman) Khawaja and (Joe) Burns -- that will be a lot of fun," the three-time World Cup winner, who retired in 2012, said.
Usman Khawaja found his scoring touch and fast bowler Mitchell Starc returned to his fiery best as Australia moved within sight of victory in the second Test against Sri Lanka at the Manuka Oval on Sunday.
Australia have left no stones unturned in their preparation as they chase their first Test series win in over a year, captain Tim Paine said.
Opener Matt Renshaw, Peter Handscomb and Nic Maddinson will all play their first Tests at Adelaide Oval after selectors wielded the axe following the Hobart humiliation, which gave South Africa an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series.
Images from Day 2 of the first Test match between England and Pakistan in Manchester, on Thursday.
Captain Joe Root's defiance gave England hope of saving the Ashes series as his unbeaten 75 helped the hosts to 156-3 in their second innings on day three of the third Test at Headingley.
Swing and seam friendly conditions, a lack of truly scary Australian bowlers and New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum's retirement are all themes that will resonate when the first Test gets underway in Wellington on Friday.
Images from Day 2 in the fifth Test between Australia and England, in Hobart, on Saturday.
Steve Smith and Adam Voges scored the fifth and sixth centuries of the second Test to give Australia a lead of 193 after Ross Taylor's epic 290 brought New Zealand back into the contest on day four on Monday.
England pace bowler Jofra Archer has been omitted from the side for the first Ashes Test against Australia starting at Edgbaston on Thursday
