A selection of musings from around the cricket World Cup.
A round-up of Saturday's action in the Premier League.
Injured fast bowler James Pattinson has returned to the Australia set-up when he was named on Tuesday for the One-day series against England in January.
Backing Shaun Tait's surprise return to the Australian T20 squad for the three-match series against India, former pacer Jason Gillespie said the tearaway speedster will cause a lot of damage on Indian tracks if he makes the squad for the World T20 starting March 8.
Real Madrid got their Champions League title defence off to a strong start on Wednesday by convincingly beating AS Roma 3-0 at home with goals from Isco, Gareth Bale and a stoppage-time strike from returning striker Mariano Diaz.
India turned in a fine all-round show to beat Australia by 27 runs in the second Twenty20 International and take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, on Friday.
Imperious Liverpool extended their Premier League home winning streak against Arsenal to six on Saturday with an easy 4-0 victory that lifted them to second in the table.
Alex Carey has yet to play a Test match. Indeed, he has played many fewer matches with a red ball than he has with white and made his name in the T20 Big Bash League. But the 27-year-old left-hander is proving to be mature, adaptable and dependable for side.
Battered and bruised after four successive defeats, India will make a last-gasp effort to avoid the embarrassment of being whitewashed by an unrelenting Australia when the two sides clash in the fifth and final One-Day International in Sydney, on Saturday.
Pakistan skipper Misbah-ul-Haq equalled Viv Richards's record for the fasTest Test century while his team stood six wickets away from a memorable 2-0 series win against Australia on Sunday.
In a three part series, Rajneesh Gupta highlights all the important numbers from cricket World Cups held between 1975 to 2015.
590 cricketers -- including 370 Indian players and 220 overseas players -- will go under the hammer during the two-day mega auction in Bengaluru on February 12 and 13.
Chasing a revised target of 235 from 33 overs following two rain interruptions, Australia were struggling at 53 for three in nine overs when the heavens opened up for the third time in the day, forcing the onfield umpires to abandon the game as both the sides split points.
Left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Starc will return from a broken foot during Australia's limited-overs triangular series in the West Indies in June.
Australia will be desperately hoping to play a full game under clear skies when they face arch-rivals England in their must-win Champions Trophy clash in Birmingham on Saturday.
As the countdown to 2018 starts, it's time to rewind those moments in sport that stood out this year.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni knows the introduction of broadcast technology has enhanced the viewing experience for fans but the Indian skipper has called for restraint after the overhead 'Spidercam' interfered with play in Saturday's one-dayer against Australia.
India's batsmen have gone about their job efficiently, posting big totals on the board but the bowlers have been ordinary at best, allowing the hosts to chase down those tall scores in each of the first three ODIs of the five-match series.
Australia have opted for experience over youth in an attempt to win a maiden World Twenty20 title by selecting veterans Brad Hogg, Brad Hodge and Brad Haddin in their 15-man squad for the tournament in Bangladesh next month.
Australia survived a middle-order meltdown to beat Bangladesh by three wickets in a World Twenty20 Super 10 match on Monday to get their campaign up and running.
Pakistan-born Fawad Ahmed is likely to make his full Australia debut over the next month after being named as the specialist spinner in the squad for six one-day and two Twenty20 internationals against England on Thursday.
Manchester City progressed to the knockout stages of the Champions League from Group F on Tuesday after twice coming from behind to draw 2-2 with Olympique Lyonnais, a team Pep Guardiola hailed as one of the toughest he has ever faced.
Rohit Sharma's second successive century was once again overshadowed by Australia's collective batting might as the hosts continued their dominance over Indian bowlers to notch up a seven-wicket victory in the second One-Day International in Brisbane.
Their path to the semi-finals looking relatively easier in comparison, Australia will fancy their chances when they lock horns with a struggling Pakistan side whose hopes hangs by a thread in the ICC World Twenty20, in Mohali, on Friday.
Australia have cut opening batsman Ed Cowan and wicketkeeper Matthew Wade from their list of 18 centrally-contracted players, but handed opener Phillip Hughes another chance to establish himself in the national set-up.
A scrappy India will have to lift their game by several notches against an improving Australia when the two fierce rivals clash in a virtual quarter-final cricket match of the ICC World Twenty20, in Mohali, on Sunday.
tung by the defeat in the series opener despite putting up a big score, India will have to plug their bowling loopholes when they take on Australia in the second One-Day International on Friday, fully aware that any slip-up will make their task of bouncing back difficult.
Rohit Sharma's sizzling century went in vain as Australia survived a few anxious moments before pulling off a tense four-wicket win over India in a cricket tri-series ODI match in Melbourne.
Ajax to face United in final despite defeat at Lyon
There's been no place like home for Australia and New Zealand on their respective paths to the World Cup final but just one of the co-hosts will enjoy that particular advantage when they meet in Sunday's title decider.
'India's military posture has become significantly stronger than China's on the 3,500-kilometre Line of Actual Control.' 'This is enhancing confrontation between the two sides,' points out Ajai Shukla.
Amazing photography can leave you speechless. We were left without any words when we came across the finalists of the 14th annual Smithsonian Magazine 2016 Photo Contest. Out of 48,000 submissions from photographers in 146 countries, Smithsonian Magazine chose 70 striking finalists in their 14th Annual Photo Contest. Now, it's up to the public to pick a winner.
The 67th annual Primetime Emmy Awards took place at the Microsoft Theater in Downtown Los Angeles, California, on September 20.
The series already in their pocket, India would aim for a clean sweep against the hosts and end the tour of Australia on a high when the two teams clash in the third and final Twenty20.
Prem Panicker, a keen follower of the game and one of cricket's finest writers, analysed, debated and dissected the four semi-finalists on the Rediff World Cup Chat on Monday.
With a MVPI of 1128 the Royal Challengers Bangalore captain has set records that even he might find hard to surpass.
Jose Mourinho's Chelsea turned from domestic whipping boys back to European stalwarts on Wednesday, beating his former club Porto 2-0 to top Champions League Group G.
Srinivas Bhogle and Purnendu Maji analyse IPL performances in Rediff.com's Most Valuable Players ratings.
As the top 10 teams prepare to battle for the World T20 crown, Rajneesh Gupta breaks down each squad's T20 performance and their showing in previous editions of the event.
A look at the squads for the seventh season of the Indian Premier League at the conclusion of the two-day auction in Bangalore.