Ricky Ponting's woes continued as Australia were dismissed for just 214 on the opening day of the first Test against New Zealand at the Gabba (Brisbane), on Thursday.
Australian power-hitter Glenn Maxwell reflected on the 'homeworkgate' saga during Australia's 2013 series of India. Maxwell endured an unpleasant introduction to Test cricket, when four Aussie players were suspended for failing to submit a written feedback to then coach Mickey Arthur and later suffered a 0-4 whitewash in India. "Other than making my debut and taking my first wicket, I try to forget most of the other things about that tour," Maxwell said. "It was a bit of a disaster. "It felt like everyone was sort of walking on eggshells. It wasn't enjoyable," he said. The all-rounder, who is considered as 'subcontinent specialist' is likely to picked during Australia's next Test tour of India in 2017 and the 27-year old feels the side will be better equipped next time under captain Steven Smith.
Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and star batsman Virat Kohli were nominated for the International Cricket Council's People's Choice Award, the winner of which will be declared on December 13 during the governing body's 10th annual awards.
Meanwhile, Australia skipper Michael Clarke, who was entangled in a war of words with Cricket Australia over his availability, is still a doubtful starter for the first Test following question marks over his fitness.
Legendary leg-spinner Shane Warne has slammed Cricket Australia (CA) for hiring 'muppets' from other sports such as high-performance chief Pat Howard instead of people with cricketing backgrounds to help captain Michael Clarke.
Australia's David Warner's batting exploits in the third and final Test against South Africa earned him a career-best fifth in the latest ICC Rankings for Test batsmen, even as India's Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli dropped to No 8 and 10 respectively.
Phil Hughes made a solid 86 on his return to Test cricket before Michael Clarke and Mike Hussey took up the running and steered Australia to 299 for four at close of play on the first day of the first Test against Sri Lanka on Friday.
The West Indies all-rounder was fined after he exchanged words with Australian Michael Clarke during their match on Wednesday.
A controversial incident involving England's Stuart Broad was played down by players from both sides after a gripping third day of the first Ashes Test at Trent Bridge on Friday.
Clarke said that he feels there is no way bowlers would not have known about it.
'As we've seen the last 12 or 18 months, we still do that, we still stick up for each other, we still fight as hard as any Australian team, but we've probably just had to move with the times and I've been really proud of the way we've played out cricket'.
More than the players, it was the wives and girlfriends who stole the limelight as Australia honoured its cricketers at Monday night's annual awards, held for the first time in Sydney.
Australia will have to win both Tests in Dubai and Abu Dhabi to go one point clear of South Africa, who displaced them at the top in July, but there is still little clarity about the side who would walk out for the first match at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
England skipper Alastair Cook is running out of time, excuses and places to hide after Mahendra Singh Dhoni's India became the latest side to expose his weaknesses with a thumping victory at Lord's to open a 1-0 lead in their five-match series.
All-rounder Shane Watson has credited coach Darren Lehmann for bringing the fun factor back to the Australian dressing room and allowing the team to enjoy playing cricket once more in the 5-0 Ashes series thrashing of England.
Michael Clarke has said Australia, after securing a 5-0 Ashes whitewash over England, will take the greatest bowling attack in world cricket to South Africa next month in a bid to challenge the number one Test side.
Australia captain Michael Clarke paid fulsome tribute to Mitchell Johnson for his part in the 5-0 Ashes sweep on Sunday, saying nobody could ever again doubt the paceman's character.
Left-arm pacer Mitchell Johnson will replace rookie Ryan Harris in the 13-man Australian squad for the remaining three one-day international cricket matches against South Africa.
A look the squads of the eight participating teams in the ICC Champions Trophy.
The Australian team is looking to add the Twenty-20 World Cup to their bulging trophy cabinet.
Australia are aiming for a whitewash but that is easier said than done as skipper Michael Clarke on Monday conceded the conditions at Adelaide Oval are more of India's liking even though he expects reverse swing to play a crucial role during the fourth and final Test starting on Tuesday.
Factbox on the third Test match between Australia and India, which starts on Friday.
Pakistan are missing some key players in the ongoing Twenty20 World Cup but Australian captain Michael Clarke on Saturday said it would not make his team's job any easier when they take on the defending champions in a Group A match in St Lucia on Sunday.
Resurgent Australia had enigmatic paceman Mitchell Johnson to thank for their crushing win over England in Brisbane and will put their hopes on another unknown quantity when the coin is tossed for the second Ashes Test in Adelaide.
Australia coach Darren Lehmann added fuel to the fiery Ashes series by urging Australia fans to keep the heat on England and said he wants his own team to continue playing "aggressive, in-your-face" cricket.
Australia recalled all-rounder Mitchell Marsh to the squad for their Champions Trophy defence and named George Bailey as vice-captain on Wednesday.
Australian middle-order batsman, Usman Khawaja received an Ashes berth, and, opener Phillip Hughes was also lucky to retain his spot in the squad, after a poor performance in India.
Michael Clarke is giving nothing away on the eve of the Ashes. Not his starting XI, not comparisons between this and the previous series, not praise nor predictions, not even observations on England.
Injured fast bowler James Pattinson has returned to the Australia set-up when he was named on Tuesday for the One-day series against England in January.
Dinesh Chandimal, Sri Lanka's T20 international skipper and has rejected offers to play in the sixth edition of the IPL, cricket board sources claimed.
A livid Australian media labeled their side as "worst" in 34 years and ridiculed the shot selection of their top order batsmen to "insanity" after India inflicted a humiliating 4-0 whitewash on the visitors.
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Former Australia captain Michael Clarke feels that fast bowler Mitchell Starc's absence due to injury will have a huge bearing on the final outcome of the four-Test series against India.
"Our poor first innings scores have let us down," Michael Clarke said after the Hyderabad defeat. Bikash Mohapatra feels the Aussie batsmen need to set the agenda, the way Alistair Cook and his team did against the Indians last winter.
Former India skipper Rahul Dravid has termed Australia's decision to drop Nathan Lyon from the ongoing second Test as a "tactical blunder" and said the visting captain Michael Clarke must take some responsibility for the off-spinner's axing.
The Australians struggled in the first Test in all departments, with only captain Michael Clarke, debutant Moises Henriques and pacer James Pattinson putting up a semblance of a fight. Now, with the Hyderabad pitch, once again, likely to favour spinners, the Aussies will have to dig deep if they have to square the series.
Australia all-rounder Shane Watson had the unique honour of using the players' locker formerly meant for Phil Hughes.
Sure, Australia were outplayed in the Chennai Test, but not all was lost for the visitors, says Bikash Mohapatra.
Michael Clarke's rather straightforward admission shortly after Australia had been thoroughly outplayed in the opening Test at the MA Chidambaram stadium on Tuesday.
Australia beat New Zealand by two wickets for their fourth straight victory in the tri-series.
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