Afghanistan will remain a frontline state for Washington for a foreseeable future in terms of the potential threats to US national security from terrorist groups, asserts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar, who played a stellar role in beginning India's dealings in Afghanistan in 1994.
Images from Day 1 of the third Test between England and India, at Leeds, on Wednesday.
Wood's injury has created an opening for Saqib Mahmood's Test debut and Root did not rule that out.
Steve Smith led the way with another good knock as Australia raced to 251 for 6 and a lead of 348 over India before rain stopped play at the end of the fourth day in the fourth Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Friday. Statistical highlights from the day's play.
Travis Head smashed a T20-style century to put Australia firmly in control of the first Ashes Test on Thursday as England were hit by an injury crisis during a miserable day two in the field at the Gabba.
The Gunners' only league defeat of the campaign was in September away to one of England's traditional top-six clubs, Manchester United, drawing criticism that their strong start to the season was based on wins against lesser opposition.
Kagiso Rabada proved the destroyer-in-chief with 4-103, assisted by Anrich Nortje who took three wickets for 56 runs as England fell short by 107 runs.
England's Jack Leach fell eight runs short of a maiden Test century as Ireland kept alive their victory hopes on the second day of their historic four-day Test, at Lord's.
England's selectors are acutely aware of the impact on players of bio-secure bubbles and with a demanding year ahead, are making sure they protect their key performers.
Hours after the Joe Biden Administration reacted to the farmer protests, India on Thursday said the comments must be seen in their entirety and compared reactions to the violence at the Red Fort with those seen after storming of the United States Capitol.
Images from Day 3 of the second Test between India and England, at the M A Chidambaram stadium, in Chennai.
New Zealand head into the final day still facing a five-run deficit after England were dismissed in their first innings for 476
The success against India this summer has been outstanding from a team and individual point of view, said Australian skipper Steve Smith, who became only the second batsman to score four successive hundreds in a four-Test series.
- 'I still think that he had 2 or 3 more years of cricket left in him' - 'India is going to miss Dhoni the player big time'
Captain Steven Smith was well-entrenched for his third century in successive Tests even though India restricted Australia to 259 for five on the opening day of the third Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday. Electing to bat, he again was the visitors' main tormentor, anchoring the innings with an undefeated 72 at stumps. Check out some photos from the day's play.
England faced a double injury blow ahead of the second Test against South Africa as Rory Burns and Jofra Archer were declared doubtful for Friday's start at Newlands. South Africa captain Faf du Plessis has warned his team against complacency as they take a 1-0 series lead into the second Test against England, from whom he expects a backlash at Newlands.
Ollie Pope scored an unbeaten 91 and Jos Buttler contributed a half century as England took advantage of a tired West Indies attack to move to 258 for four on Friday when bad light brought play to a premature end on the opening day of the final Test in Manchester.
'England do not make enough runs when it is flat and played poor strokes through lapses in concentration.'
Even as both India and the world struggle to re-build after COVID-19, they face slow-burn problems that could develop into full-blown crises, observes T N Ninan.
Images from Day 2 of the second Test between India and England, at the M A Chidambaram stadium, in Chennai.
Young England batsman Zak Crawley believes Ben Stokes will have no trouble filling the captain's shoe in the absence if Joe Root as the all-rounder is already a "big leader" of the team. Root will miss the Test series opener against West Indies, which starts on Wednesday at the Ageas Bowl to attend the birth of his second child, handing over the captaincy duties to England's World Cup hero Stokes.
While the US omitted China and Russia from the list of invitees, Beijing was furious over the invitation to the self-governing island Taiwan, which China said is a blatant violation of the 'One China' policy that considers Taipei as the integral part of the Chinese mainland.
'James Anderson was unavailable for selection in the Test squad as he continues his rehabilitation from a calf injury,' the ECB said in a statement.
India finished the penultimate day on 39-1, still 381 behind the target
In the bowling department, pacer Mohammad Abbas (13th) and experienced leg-spinner Yasir Shah (24th), who have in the past, been ranked third and first, respectively, and left-arm fast bowler Shaheen Afridi (32nd) are other Pakistan players to watch.
England finished day two on 111-2 and trail New Zealand by 267 runs in the first innings of the first Test after Devon Conway's double ton took the game away from the home side on Thursday.
West Indies have lost their last four Tests, two to Australia and two to Sri Lanka, and have not enjoyed a single win in Australia since the 1996-97 tour.
The second Test between Australia and New Zealand fizzled out in a draw on Tuesday but not before Mitchell Johnson gave one last reminder of his bowling prowess on the day he announced his retirement from international cricket.
However, with six back-to-back Tests against the Windies and Pakistan, the rotation policy could be used to keep the paces fresh.
Images from Day 3 of the first Test between India and England, at the M A Chidambaram stadium, in Chennai.
Americans will give their final verdict, either giving incumbent Donald Trump another four years or bestowing reins to Democratic former Vice President Joe Biden.
Pujara believes that a talent like Pant will learn from his mistakes as he has the ability to rectify and play for the team's cause.
With their backs to the wall after conceding a big first innings lead, the top-order faltered again as India 'A' scored 265 for 6 against Australia 'A' by the end of third day's play in the second unofficial 'Test', in Chennai, on Friday.
Joe Root's England will have to step up their game against the turning ball to escape that fate in the test series beginning at Galle on Tuesday.
The competition at the top promises to gain momentum as World No 2 Ben Stokes has also made huge gains to attain a career-best tally of 431 points, narrowing the lead from 66 to 54 points.
Guptill will undergo a fitness Test on Sunday after which a final decision will be taken on whether he can partner Henry Nicholls at the top of New Zealand's order.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying, known for fiery retorts against the US, welcomed Biden's first moves to join the Paris Climate Accord and the World Health Organisation (WHO) which was trashed by Trump as a puppet of China over its conduct to deal with the COVID-19.
A former top American diplomat, considered to be the architect of the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal, on Friday urged US President Barack Obama to reach out to India's prime minister-designate Narendra Modi for an early meeting.
A confrontation with the Taliban in Kabul in this fading light of a twilight zone would have been sheer madness, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
A proud Virat Kohli rated his team's bowling performance in the fourth Test among the top-three during his captaincy stint, extolling his players' strong character as India scored a superb 157-run victory over England after conceding a huge 99-run lead.
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