Dean Elgar made the most of being dropped early in his innings to score his seventh Test century and anchor South Africa's 229 for four at the close of play on the opening day of the first Test against New Zealand in Dunedin on Wednesday.
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We've tried Dinesh Karthik, we've tried Jadeja, we've tried Vijay Shankar, three guys have been tried and they've not proved useful so maybe we can find a good youngster for No 5, says former India batsman Krishnamachari Srikkanth.
A stunning spell of a fast bowling from Matt Henry ripped through the Indian top order and set New Zealand on their way to a second successive ICC World Cup final with an 18-run victory over India.
A formidable Indian cricket team is likely to revel in home conditions, as they prepare to host and dominate New Zealand in the first Test in Kanpur, from Thursday, heralding the beginning of a long 13-match home season.
Trent Boult took two wickets in one over and broke a partnership that had threatened to take the game out of New Zealand's reach as Sri Lanka reached 264 for seven by the end of a rain-shortened first day of the second Test on Friday.
Rajneesh Gupta presents the numbers on the India and New Zealand teams and players.
India pulled off a brilliant all-round performance to trounce New Zealand by 178 runs in the second Test and clinch the series with an unassailable 2-0 lead, a win that propelled the team to the top of the ICC rankings, dethroning arch-rivals Pakistan.
Virtually out of the play-off race, bottom-placed Sunrisers Hyderabad will hope to keep their new-found momentum intact when they face table toppers Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, in Sharjah, on Thursday.
On a roll post the IPL's resumption, Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders will look to continue their winning streak when they meet in a high-octane Indian Premier League encounter, in Abu Dhabi, on Sunday.
After eight defeats in 11 outings, Chennai Super Kings will look to give their forgettable campaign a semblance of respectability when they take on in-form Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League in Dubai on Sunday.
Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings head into the match after identical seven-wicket wins over Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad respectively.
Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals have failed to live up to expectations in the IPL so far and are placed sixth and seventh respectively on the points table in the eight-team competition.
Three-time champion Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals would look to build on their first wins and gain momentum when they clash in the Indian Premier League in Mumbai on Monday.
Paceman Dushmantha Chameera took career-best figures with aggressive short-pitched bowling to give Sri Lanka a slight advantage at the close of play on the second day of the second Test against New Zealand at Seddon Park in Hamilton on Saturday.
CSK have better resources but they must utilise them to the hilt. Teams:
Time is fast running out for the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings, a team which desperately needs its batting to click when it takes on SunRisers Hyderabad in Dubai on Tuesday in a battle to keep its IPL hopes alive.
IMAGES from Day 2 of the Boxing Day Test played between Australia and New Zealand at the MCG on Friday.
Tom Latham and Jeet Raval weathered an intense examination for over 25 overs to guide New Zealand to 67 without loss at the close of the rain-affected second day of the third Test against South Africa at Seddon Park in Hamilton on Sunday.
While multiple-time world champions and Champions Trophy winners Australia are always a tough nut to crack, New Zealand will enter the game at Edgbaston with renewed confidence after their six-wicket warm-up win over Sri Lanka at the same venue.
While both Taylor and Latham were unable to see their side through to victory, Mitchell Santner, who scored just two from his first nine deliveries then scored another 43 from the next 18, won the game with his fourth six and finished on 45 not out.
South Africa were 224 for six at the close of play in a chilly Dunedin with a lead of 191 runs entering the final day on a pitch that is turning but offering little assistance for the pace bowlers and is proving difficult to score from.
The West Indies are currently lying seventh in the 10-team standings with just three points in their kitty and they can't afford any further loss to stay in the mix for a semifinal spot.
Harbhajan Singh has already the CSK management about his decision of opting out of the T20 league, starting on September 19.
Images from the T20 World Cup match between Afghanistan and New Zealand, in Abu Dhabi, on Sunday.
New Zealand held their nerve under the floodlights to beat Bangladesh by two wickets in a dramatic low-scoring Cricket World Cup match at The Oval on Wednesday.
The Kiwis will have greater concern over their lack of finishing after squandering two last over winning positions in two consecutive games, and the series along with.
Batsmen from Papua New Guinea, Oman and UAE leap to find place in top-50
Kane Williamson's gamble to compromise on speed and pick three specialist spinners paid off as New Zealand humbled hosts India by 47 runs in a spin-dominated Super 10 contest of the World Twenty20 in Nagpur, on Tuesday.
A batsman of Russell's calibre may just prove to be the difference between the two sides.
It will interesting to see how the pitch behaves on Sunday.
Jayawardene credited MI and New Zealand's bowling coach Shane Bond for perfectly planning and executing India's downfall in the last match.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who will be leading the defending champions for the 10th year, would be used as a floater if required
The ball was old, the stage set and expectations high but India's Rohit Sharma again spurned the opportunity to assert his long-form credentials in the first test against New Zealand on Thursday. Often hailed as the next big thing to come out of Mumbai since Sachin Tendulkar, the 29-year-old is an automatic choice in the limited-overs side and the only batsman to score two one-day international double centuries.
Colin Munro blasted a quickfire half-century as New Zealand pipped India by four runs in a high-scoring thriller to win the three-match T20 International 2-1, in Hamilton, on Sunday.
Wicket-keeper batsman Wriddhiman Saha's battling half-century helped India reach 316 before the hosts were dismissed in their first innings against New Zealand on the second morning of the second test at Eden Gardens on Saturday.
New Zealand's pacemen struck back with two late wickets under the floodlights at Adelaide Oval but Australia's bowlers basked in the sun as the inaugural day-night Test opened on Friday.
Virat Kohli will be facing the most defining test of his captaincy career as he expects his men to be the proverbial 'phoenix rising from the ashes' when India take on a street-smart New Zealand in a do-or-die T20 World Cup Super 12 match in Dubai on Sunday.
Bangladesh put in a disciplined performance in the field to restrict New Zealand to 145-8 in a World Twenty20 Super 10 stage match at the Eden Gardens on Saturday.
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.
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