IMAGES from Day 1 of the 2nd Test between India and West Indies in New Delhi on Friday.
'Coaches, captains are constantly being asked a lot of questions. It almost, after a point, feels like you are being questioned as to "Why did you make this change? Why did he play in the XI? Why is it that the opposition got 200 and we couldn't even get 120? Why are their bowlers getting more spin?"' 'These are questions that we never get asked throughout the year, right? Because the coaches who are there know what's going on. You are only answerable to the coaches and the selectors, who have all played cricket and understand the nuances of the game.'
This happened following India's practice session that saw both India's senior batters hit the nets at the Optus Stadium.
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.
KL Rahul has opened up about the impact that the Koffee with Karan controversy had on him
'Of course, when you face a quality bowling attack, they can more often than not get the ball in the danger area and it does too much for you. And unfortunately, that's been the case today.'
The Proteas arrive high on confidence, having fought out a hard-earned 1-1 draw in Pakistan last month under challenging conditions.
'What do you want us to do?': KL's heated exchange with umpire Dharamsena during Oval Test
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.
India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate said on Tuesday that middle-order batters KL Rahul and Sarfaraz Khan are locked in a selection battle for the second Test against New Zealand here even though head coach Gautam Gambhir is keen to give the former, a long rope.
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.
Images from Day 2 of the 1st Test between India and West Indies in Ahmedabad
Kaif also questioned Gill's tactical choices on debut, especially the call to leave out Kuldeep -- a bowler capable of turning games in Australia's own backyard.
Assessing Sai Sudharsan's temperament and Nitish Kumar Reddy's utility in home conditions would be topmost on India's checklist when the high-on-confidence hosts take on a floundering West Indies
It was also his third hundred in the last seven innings after going past three digits against Australia A at Lucknow and the West Indies at Ahmedabad.
'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.'
KKR, CSK to engage in bidding war in IPL mini-auction with big purse in hand
K L Rahul has become the co-owner of the Goa Guardians franchise ahead of the fourth season of the Prime Volleyball League.
The collapse, India's lowest failed chase at home, has left behind deeper fault lines than a dry Eden Gardens wicket can conceal.
'...When you come back home, when there's three spinners playing and the field's spread out, you really need to get your runs with singles. The boundaries don't come that easily.'
Jaiswal and Rahul ended the day unbeaten on 90 and 62, as the hosts failed to take a wicket in two sessions, a dizzying change of pace from day one when 17 wickets tumbled.
Dhruv Jurel made a strong case for his continued presence in the senior Test eleven with his second hundred in as many innings against South Africa A while fortifying India A's position on the third day of the four-day match in Bengaluru on Saturday.
The cricketing ecosystem has learned to survive the prolonged absence of Kohli and Rohit -- at least in two formats -- in this interim period.
'KL was excellent in nullifying that early threat and played very straight.'
Nitish flaunted his six-hitting muscle in the first innings and showed signs of living up to the belief that the former Indian skipper has exuded in him. After being put to bat by Australia, rain interrupted the play on four instances, and the Indian team toiled for rhythm as well as runs.
Athiya Shetty and KL Rahul's grih pravesh puja was all about love, tradition, and togetherness
Kuldeep was instrumental to India's success at the Asia Cup, topping the wicket-taking chart with 17 wickets. Chopra explained the rationale behind dropping the left-arm wrist spinner, attributing it to batting depth.
Images from Day 1 of the first Test between India and South Africa, in Kolkata, on Friday.
Sai Sudharsan pulled off a jaw-dropping catch on Day 2.
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.
Rahul failed to convert his resilient start into a three-digit score across both innings but was pivotal in India's fight to draw the Test and keep India alive in the series.
Former England cricketer Nasser Hussain also praised Rahul's methodical approach to batting.
LSG skipper KL Rahul, whose team also finished out of play-off zone was disappointed.
One of the most stylish batters, Rahul admitted that in his younger days he often tried to be something he was not.
Indian Test skipper Shubman Gill spoke on the team dinner hosted by head coach Gautam Gambhir on Thursday
Karnataka on Tuesday named internationals K L Rahul, Prasidh Krishna, and Karun Nair in the probables list for the upcoming Ranji Trophy season.
K L Rahul made a solid 74 before retiring hurt as India remained on course to chase a formidable 412-run target set by Australia A on day three of the second unofficial Test in Lucknow on Thursday.
LSG has been one of the hottest topics of the rumour mill after reports started to surface about the franchise deciding not to retain its captain for the past two seasons, KL Rahul.
Arshdeep feels that being a master of 50-over cricket, Kohli will score runs in the remaining two games of this series.
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.
