India's formidably consistent match-winners have a date with history in the New Year when they take on an out-of-sorts South Africa in the second Test in Johannesburg from Monday in pursuit of a coveted first-ever series win in the Rainbow Nation.
"He could have avoided any contact but to me he is just as guilty. Trying some football skills to get a penalty??? Pity he didn't dive to top it off."
Five-time champions Mumbai Indians' class and pedigree will once again be tested when they take on an unpredictable Punjab Kings.
The visitors reached 49 for 1 at stumps after Bumrah's 5/54 that helped them bowl out South Africa for 194 in their first innings.
Hardik Pandya stood tall amid ruins with his all-round prowess but hosts South Africa were still very much in command with a current lead of 142 runs against India after an enthralling second day in the first Test in Cape Town
The tournament-proper of the World T20 gets underway on Tuesday, March 15, with hosts India taking on New Zealand in Nagpur. Ahead of the tournament, here are five players who may not be counted among the big names just yet, but could prove match-winners on their day.
Ishant and Mishra took three wickets each to decimate the Royals.
Delhi Capitals have gone from strength to strength in the last few years -- finishing third in 2019 before finishing runners up last year to Mumbai Indians.
Iyer's teammate pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar jumped three spots to 17th on the bowler rankings, while former captain Virat Kohli, who was rested for the Sri Lanka T20Is, fell out of the top 10 - he dropped five places to 15th.
India face a South Africa in their final World Twenty20 warm-up game in Mumbai, on Saturday.
On paper, though, PBKS looks a tad more stronger than KKR.
With both batsmen going hammer and tongs it was guaranteed that Rajasthan would breach the 200 run mark.
Pakistan had been reduced to 76 for five in their second innings as South Africa's spinners made inroads through the top order having been bowled out for 201 in another shambolic display with the bat.
Shreyas Iyer, who led KKR to the IPL 2024 title, could be headed for the players' auction after failing to make a breakthrough in negotiations, while K L Rahul is also unlikely to be retained by LSG.
Bruised and battered by Chris Gayle's mauling on Wednesday, England are faced with a must-win situation as they look for ways to contain South Africa in their ICC World Twenty20 match in Mumbai on Friday.
Steyn has confidence in his team of match-winners
Shaw kept taking on the bowlers and ensured boundaries came in every over as he got into the 90s.
Maharaj feels some adjustment and a change in mindset could help them combat the swing.
It was CSK who denied Delhi a top-two spot in the league standings with a crushing 80-run win at Chepauk and the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led side stands in their way again, only the stakes are much higher.
From CSK: Jadeja, Gaikwad, Mitchell shone. From PBKS: Prabhsimran and Shashank.
After electing to bat, Sri Lanka were bowled out for 225, three balls short of their 50 overs, for another below-par score in a series where they have found no answer to South Africa's rampant pace and spin attack.
Opener Hashim Amla fell two runs shy of a half-century as South Africa cruised to a six-wicket victory over New Zealand in the first Twenty20 at Kingsmead on Friday.
Smarting from back-to-back defeats, Sunrisers Hyderabad will have a lot to ponder, especially addressing their batting frailties, when they take on high-flying Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League in Hyderabad on Sunday.
The celebrated duo of head coach Ricky Ponting and mentor Sourav Ganguly has managed to instill belief in the team members and that is visible on the field. The team now seems to believe that it can win the title after a long spell as the perennial underachiever of the competition.
Ashish Nehra rates India's bowling attack as one of the best and said the ongoing first Test against Sri Lanka on a "green" Eden wicket is an ideal preparation for the hosts ahead of their gruelling tour of South Africa.
Rajneesh Gupta lists the South African players's T20 Internationals records updated after the game against Bangladesh.
Prithvi Shaw, Mayank Agarwal. Deepak Hooda, Dinesh Karthik, Umesh Yadav and Umran Malik. Sam Curran, Harry Brook, Jofra Archer and Kagiso Rabada.
Mayank Agarwal hammered a 49-ball 87 as India 'A' beat the touring South Africans in their opening warm-up T20 game by eight wickets, with two balls to spare, at the Air Force ground, in Palam, Delhi, on Tuesday.
The unmatched legacy and hegemony created by the galacticos of Mumbai Indians will be thoroughly challenged by a young Mumbaikar Shreyas Iyer, who will lead a passionate-but-unpredictable Delhi Capitals in a cracker of an Indian Premier League final, in Dubai, on Tuesday.
Indian team and its skipper Virat Kohli consolidate their respective pole positions in the latest ICC Test rankings.
Ben Stokes survived several scares but featured in a 76-run late afternoon partnership with Ollie Pope as England reached 224 for four wickets at close on the opening day of the third Test against South Africa on Thursday.
Kings XI Punjab captain KL Rahul believes that the 'short run' that played a part in their opening IPL loss to Delhi Capitals massively affected their play-off chances despite a remarkable comeback in the second leg of the tournament.
Bolstered by Shreyas Iyer's return, Delhi Capitals will look to maintain the form they showed in the first half of the season as they resume their IPL campaign against a struggling Sunrisers Hyderabad on Wednesday.
The Men in Blue are on a 12-match winning streak and come Thursday, they can create an all-time record of winning 13 T20I games in a row.
India will be desperately hoping that Rohit replicates his limited overs success in the traditional format
Australian fast bowler Pat Cummins, on Tuesday, was added to the growing list of injured players in the Indian Premier League
South Africa need six more wickets with two days still to play to win the second Test against Sri Lanka, who closed the third day at Newlands on Wednesday on 130 for four, still 377 runs behind the mammoth target set them. Vernon Philander and Kagiso Rabada both took two wickets in the Sri Lankan second innings as the home team closed in on victory and an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series. South Africa have ample time to whittle away the rest of the Sri Lankan batting while the visitors, set 507 runs to win, must survive six more sessions if they are to force a most improbable outcome.
Delhi Capitals have made the perfect start to IPL, with two morale-boosting victories, while SunRisers Hyderabad are the only side yet to register a win in the tournament, having lost both their games.
South African pacer Anrich Nortje says Sunday's T20 World Cup clash against India will be a battle between the Men in Blue's top order and "one of the best pace attacks" in the world.
Punjab Kings would be keen to put brakes on Lucknow Super Giants skipper KL Rahul's rollicking batting form during their IPL 2022 match on Friday.
