Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer combined in a rollicking 159-run partnership to help India wrest back control of the second Test against Bangladesh.
The Indian team on Sunday began training for the decisive third and final Test against South Africa here, hoping to recover from the defeat in Johannesburg and claim its maiden series win in the Rainbow Nation.
The astonishing, inspiring and quick success of youngsters like Yashaswi Jaiswal and Sarfaraz Khan at the highest level is a good advertisement for the country's robust domestic circuit which has made them "cricket smart" who can handle Test match pressure, reckons India's batting coach Vikram Rathour.
'The game needs to look after the likes of Virat Kohli as well.'
Despite the challenging build-up, Gambhir said he is "extremely confident" of retaining the Border Gavaskar Trophy. The players will hope to be as confident as they prepare for the fight to keep their World Test Final chances alive.
India opener KL Rahul made a leap of 18 slots, after his Player-of-the-Match effort that helped India defeat South Africa by 113 runs in the first Test, to reach No. 31 among batters in the latest ICC Test rankings.
'KL Rahul in his last 5 Test series - v SA - Avg 7.1, - v Eng - Avg 29, - v WI at home - Avg 18, - v Aus - Avg 10.7, - v WI - Avg 25.4.'
Pace spearhead Harshit Rana received a well-deserved maiden call-up, following his impressive performances.
Australian batters lacked intent and failed to play an aggressive brand of cricket against India's world class spinners, said former skipper Aaron Finch, adding they will need to bring a change in their mindset to be at the forefront.
Jasprit Bumrah was declared fit and was available for selection, but the selectors don't want to rush him back.
RCB and LSG will be looking horns in a high-octane clash in Bengaluru on Tuesday.
K L Rahul introduced us to the 'back benchers' of the Indian team posting a picture of Hardik Pandya, Mayank and him occupying the rear seats of the team bus.
India's chief coach Anil Kumble has made it amply clear that opener KL Rahul would be making a comeback into the playing XI against England in the second Test starting on Thursday.
Mehidy Hasan Miraz conjured an unbeaten 38 in a low-scoring thriller as Bangladesh stunned India by one wicket
The match against New Zealand will be a repeat of their 2019 semi-final in Manchester which the Kiwis won by 18 runs.
The young Tilak Varma was included in the Indian team for the Asia Cup as the sixth specialist batter.
Travis Head smashed a brilliant 137 as Australia cruised to their sixth World title after outclassing India by six wickets in the final on Sunday.
India will secure a series victory with a win against England in the third Test beginning in Ranchi on Friday but they must do so without their pace spearhead against a touring side looking to uphold their aggressive style of play.
Rohit Sharma's Candid Admission: India not good enough in World Cup final
'He has had a little break and he is working on his game'
Varying the speed of his deliveries and working on the angles have been key components of Kuldeep Yadav's success since his return to the ODI set-up.
Mayank Yadav has now emerged as cricket's latest pace sensation and is being touted as a potential wildcard for India's test tour of Australia.
'In the opening combination, we have selected only two openers, so the idea is to give them four innings, just let them go out there and express themselves. Mayank has done really well. KL (Rahul) has performed well in the past, he is looking forward to making things count in Test cricket again'
Rahul's ascendancy to captaincy was expected after Ravichandran Ashwin was traded to Delhi Capitals last month.
After Sarfaraz Khan received his maiden Test call-up in the India squad, former off-spinner Harbhajan Singh heaped praise on the 26-year-old and said that he has worked very hard to be in this place.
Indian pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah disclosed that he experimented with an assortment of deliveries until he found the one that yielded result on the second day of the first Test against Bangladesh, as the lack of grip on the wicket rendered his stock balls ineffective.
The Group A match won't be more than a glorified net session for Rohit Sharma's men against a team, mostly comprising Pakistani and Indian expats.
Rishabh Pant's fifty, Sarfaraz Khan's aggression give India B control on Day 3 of the Duleep Trophy in Bengaluru on Saturday
While the Indian squad looks ravishing, with talent aplenty, here are five Indian players to watch out for in the series.
The three ODIs in Zimbabwe will be played in Harare on August 18, 20 and 22.
IMAGES from the first Test, Day 1 between India and Bangladesh played at the Chepauk in Chennai on Thursday
Former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar has defended Rohit Sharma from speculation about his retirement, saying it is "unwarranted."
The legendary Sunil Gavaskar warned the Indian team not to forget the defeat against Australia, with the IPL set to get underway.
India's solitary ODI series win in the Rainbow nation occurred in 2018, emphasising the need for a strong beginning from Ruturaj Gaikwad and B Sai Sudharsan.
Indian cricket team will not just be looking to win a third ODI global title but also look at saving the '50-over format' which has been battling identity crisis for at least five years now.
Both skipper Rohit and main batter Kohli will play in the upcoming series so that Gambhir can tactically think about the combinations.
IPL franchise Punjab Kings is unhappy about KL Rahul leaving the team despite getting 'all the freedom' as the captain over the past two seasons and says it would be unethical if he has already been approached by a new franchise.
Half-centuries from Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul helped India take a sizeable first-innings lead of 95 runs before rain brought an early end to play on Day 3 of the first Test against England, in Nottingham, on Friday.
Rahul and Pant, both match-winners in their own rights even with the bat, will like to seize the initiative in these early rounds.
'Prayed for KL to smash it to all corners, have a great World Cup and silence his critics like me.'
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