Trent Boult and Neil Wagner quickly wrapped up Sri Lanka's second innings on Sunday as New Zealand clinched the series 1-0 with a dominant 423-run victory in the second Test.
With Rahul likely to bat at No 4, asks Harish Kotian, will Ajinkya Rahane get a look in?
At times, Rishabh Pant has confounded the Indian team with his brazen batting style but skipper Rohit Sharma on Monday said they are willing to accept the way he bats for his sheer ability to be a game-changer in matter of minutes.
Images from Day 1 of the first Test between Sri Lanka and Australia, at Pallekele, on Tuesday.
England moved towards victory in the second Test against Sri Lanka whose batsmen showed sufficient resolve on Sunday to push the game into a fourth day if not affect a result that still seems inevitable.
Mushfiqur Rahim's superb hundred complemented by a collective effort from the bowlers saw Bangladesh thrash Sri Lanka by 137 runs despite Lasith Malinga's brilliant international comeback in the Asia Cup opener, in Dubai, on Saturday.
Malinga brought his tally to 99 wickets, surpassing Afridi's total haul of 98 wickets.
The hosts, who put up their best batting show in the series so far were all-out for 386 in the second innings despite twin centuries from opener Dimuth Karunaratne (141) and No 3 Kusal Mendis (110).
Among others, Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan has moved up to take top position among bowlers with some fine performances in a 2-0 series win over Zimbabwe.
Rohit Sharma-led India's main aim would be to settle their middle-order combination and also find a perfect batting position for Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
Dinesh Chandimal and Dimuth Karunaratne obstinately defied New Zealand's bowlers for much of the second day of the first Test at University Oval in Dunedin on Friday though the hosts still have the upper hand.
Images from Day 2 of the third and final Test between Sri Lanka and India in Colombo on Sunday.
Opener Kusal Perera hit an explosive maiden half-century off 44 balls to steer Sri Lanka to a 17-run win over Bangladesh in a one-off Twenty20 international in Pallekele on Sunday.
Kohli promoting Pandya ahead of Dhoni is an indication that the skipper is looking to use his former captain more as an accumulator -- in Javed Miandad mould who would rotate strike, frustrate bowlers and launch a furious counter-attack after getting his eye in.
England took charge of the first Test after James Anderson and Stuart Broad took nine wickets between them in favourable conditions for seam bowling to shoot out Sri Lanka for 91 after Jonny Bairstow's excellent knock at Headingley on Friday.
Batsmen Mahela Jayawardene and Lahiru Thirimanne were named in Sri Lanka's 15-member squads for the Asia Cup and WorldT20 in Bangladesh next month following injury lay-offs, while strike spin bowler Rangana Herath was included subject to him proving his fitness.
It remains to be seen if reserve opener Ajinkya Rahane, the only player not to get a game in this series, would be included in place of Rohit Sharma or Shikhar Dhawan.
India completed a 3-0 clean sweep of Sri Lanka with an innings and 171-run annihilation in the third and final Test, bringing to an early end to one of the most lopsided series in recent years.
The 35-year-old has been bamboozling batsmen for 15 years now on the international scene and yet still somehow retains the element of surprise.
The India captain dropped three points despite a first innings score of 82 in the third Test in Melbourne, but still enjoys a 34-point lead over Kane Williamson.
Rajneesh Gupta profiles the cricketers playing the World Cup 2019.
England pacer James Anderson reclaimed the number-one ranking from India's Ravichandran Ashwin in the ICC Player Rankings for Test Bowlers released on Monday after the end of the Edgbaston Test.
India have won the first two Tests by comprehensive margins -- by 304 runs in Galle and an innings and 53 runs in Colombo.
Bangladesh edged past Sri Lanka by two wickets in a thrilling finish to set up a summit clash against India in T20 tri-series in Colombo, on Friday.
Sri Lanka batsman Dinesh Chandimal has been ruled out of the rest of the World Cup due to a hamstring injury and replaced in the squad by Kusal Perera.
Sri Lanka captain Upul Tharanga on Wednesday asked his top order batsmen to fire against a dominant India, urging them not to throw their wickets in the second One-Day International, in Pallekele, on Thursday.
Sri Lanka bowlers Rangana Herath and Shaminda Eranga will miss the rest of the Bangladesh tour through injury, the cricket board said on its website (www.srilankacricket.lk) on Monday.
Rohit Sharma once again showed his class in the limited overs format with a stylish unbeaten 124 as India took an unassailable 3-0 lead with a six-wicket victory in the third ODI, which was marred by unruly crowd behaviour, in Pallekele, on Sunday.
The visitors have a 2-0 lead in the series and can wrap up the contest with another win here before leaving for the last leg of the tour in Colombo.
India, resuming the day at 344 for three, went on to declare at 622 for nine post tea, thanks to half centuries from Ravichandran Ashwin (54 off 92), Wriddhiman Saha (67 off 134) and Ravindra Jadeja (70 not out off 85).
The Indian opener tops the Champions Trophy MVP table. But Hasan Ali, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma aren't too far behind, note Srinivas Bhogle and Purnendu Maji.
Any other result than India's resounding win looks highly unlikely, consdering the visitors' rampaging run in the preceding Test and ODI series, where they whitewashed the hosts 3-0 and 5-0 respectively.
Considered one of the greatest finishers in 50-overs cricket, Dhoni will join India's elite 'Club 300', which has Sachin Tendulkar (463), Rahul Dravid (344), Mohammed Azharuddin (334), Sourav Ganguly (311) and Yuvraj Singh (304).
India lose 7 wickets for 22 runs. Defeat seems certain. Then the Master and an unlikely disciple take charge.
Pandya's aggressive batting powered India to 487 all out after starting the day at 329 for six. The memorable knock was also Pandya's first ever hundred in first class cricket.
Srinivas Bhogle and Purnendu Maji list the 50 Most Valuable Players in the 2017 Champions Trophy.
A superb all-round show by J P Duminy earned South Africa a 12-run victory over Sri Lanka in the first Twenty20 international in Colombo on Friday. The tourists, after putting up a modest 115-6 after electing to bat, restricted Sri Lanka at 103-9 at the Premadasa stadium.
India carried its domination from the Test series into the One-day format and achieved its biggest ever win in terms of overs left while chasing a 200-plus total.
Kusal Perera blasted an entertaining 66 from 37 balls to help Sri Lanka outclass India by five wickets in the first match of the T20 tri-series in Colombo.
Marlon Samuels' unbeaten century proved in vain as Sri Lanka beat West Indies by 19 runs under the Duckworth-Lewis method to complete a 3-0 one-day series whitewash on Saturday.
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