The short turnaround time from the high of winning a controversy-marred Asia Cup notwithstanding, Shubman Gill's India will be outright favourites against a struggling and under-strength West Indies when the teams face-off on a green-top in the first Test in Ahmedabad on Thursday.
He contrasts that with Pakistan's past batting line-ups.
Simon Harmer picked up four wickets as South Africa staged an incredible fightback to shock India by 30 runs in a low-scoring first Test match.
Ever since he saw him bat for the first time, as a tiny 11-year-old at his academy, Mangalore-based Karnataka State Cricket Association coach Samuel Jayaraj knew KL Rahul was destined for bigger things.
With the pitch here not assisting the spinners so far a great deal, Rampaul expressed his surprise.
Images from Day 1 of the first Test between India and South Africa, in Kolkata, on Friday.
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Abhimanyu Easwaran made the future path all the more tough with his second duck of the match, while Sai Sudharsan concluded his lukewarm preparation for the South Africa Test series with an underwhelming 23 off 38 balls.
Ben Stokes, the man who had earlier lit up the field with a sensational century, didn't bowl a single over.
The Proteas arrive high on confidence, having fought out a hard-earned 1-1 draw in Pakistan last month under challenging conditions.
Athiya Shetty celebrated her 32nd birthday on Tuesday. On her special day, K L Rahul took to social media to wish his actor-wife.
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Yashaswi Jaiswal advance two slots to fifth after notching 175 in the first innings of the New Delhi game while KL Rahul's knocks of 38 and 58 not out lifted him two places to 33rd.
England lead 2-1 in the series and victory at Old Trafford would seal it.
'If you stay humble, put your heart in the right place, train hard, and let your bat talk, God finds ways to bless you.'
Australia's stand-in captain Mitchell Marsh continued his fine run of form on Sunday, scoring 46 not out and leading his side to a seven-wicket triumph over India in the weather-affected first one-day international at Perth Stadium.
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The big question is of bench strength and chances for the likes of KL Rahul, Dinesh Karthik and Umesh Yadav.
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'To have that drive to make a comeback to the Indian team despite all the hardships is commendable.'
For the first time in many years, India are going into a home Test match as underdogs and not favourites. Ask any player worth his salt and he would tell that it is not a happy place to be.
Senior batter Virat Kohli's awesome genius in 50-over format was on full view during his 52nd hundred that guided India to a strong 349 for eight against South Africa in the first ODI of the three-match series in Ranchi on Sunday.
The grand comeback party of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma endured a quick 22-ball ending, and their lowkey outing reflected in India's seven-wicket defeat against Australia.
Indian cricket's latest batting sensation KL Rahul feels that the younger crop of cricketers are lucky that they don't have to look too far for inspiration with Test captain Virat Kohli being there. "He (Kohli) is such an inspiration. We feel lucky that we don't have to look too far. The guy who inspires you is sitting right next to you in the dressing room.
'You have to move ahead with whatever (players) you have and ensure they perform.'
IMAGES from Day 4 of the 2nd Test between India and West Indies in New Delhi on Monday.
The collapse, India's lowest failed chase at home, has left behind deeper fault lines than a dry Eden Gardens wicket can conceal.
Looking forward to the challenge of facing Dale Steyn in the upcoming four-match Test series against South Africa, Indian opener Lokesh Rahul has said playing the speedster in the longer format is a "different ballgame" as one has to counter the late movement he gets.
Skipper Shubman Gill had a long batting stint while the troika of Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel returned to action for India's final training session here on Wednesday before the first Test against the West Indies.
The couple shared the joyous news on their Instagram accounts on Friday, accompanied by a heartwarming message and a picture of little feet.
'We would like to believe and back ourselves to know these conditions or adapt to these conditions a lot faster even if we find them slightly different, as compared to, say, somebody who is brought up in Johannesburg and has played all his cricket at the Wanderers ground.'
Kohli is struggling for big runs of late and his last Test century was against the West Indies at Port of Spain in July 2023.
Earlier, after being 0-2 early in their second innings, India continued to battle on to frustrate England on day five, the tourists doing everything possible to keep the series alive on 322-4 at tea.
India's awe-inspiring batting depth will face a stern test against South Africa's quality spin attack in the first Test, starting in Kolkata on Friday.
India opener Lokesh Rahul is determined to make amends in the second innings after failing to convert a fifty into a century for the fifth time in the ongoing series against Australia.
Kohli walked up to Rahul and cheekily recreated Rahul's famous celebration - pointing to the ground and thumping his chest.
ndia will be very happy after a technical masterpiece from Rahul and the flamboyance and exuberance that you can imagine from Pant
India captain Rohit Sharma has climbed to second place in the ICC men's ODI batting rankings, closing in on top-ranked Shubman Gill.
Four defeats in six games notwithstanding, Royals Challengers Bangalore batsman KL Rahul expressed confidence of his team bouncing back in the ongoing Indian Premier League, saying that it just needed to sort out a few grey areas in its bowling attack.
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