Team India was oozing confidence on the eve of Sunday's key World Cup clash against England in Bangalore.
India won both its pre-World Cup warm-up games but the team's fast bowlers did not gain any confidence from that, says former batsman Sanjay Manjrekar who would not be surprised if 'one of the pacers break down in the middle of the tournament'.
A game-changer in his own right, mercurial off-spinner Harbhajain Singh says India is a team full of match-winners and even less-talked-about players such as Ashish Nehra would be seen turning around games in the upcoming World Cup in the sub-continent.
Desperate to break their title jinx, Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore will be hoping for a positive start to their campaign in the ninth edition of the Indian Premier League, when they take on Sunrisers Hyderabad, in Bengaluru, on Tuesday.
The second World Twenty20 semi-final is likely to hinge on who emerges on top in the battle between the big-hitting West Indian batsmen and India's wily spinners when the former champions clash at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday.
Indian limited overs captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has indicated that the team would look to give everyone a chance in the upcoming Asia Cup so as to get their balance right ahead of the World T20.
Check out the Chennai Super Kings squad for IPL 2014.
Senior players were rested as India on Sunday named a second-string squad with Suresh Raina as the captain and Virat Kohli his deputy for the low-profile Zimbabwe tour starting later this month.
India face a South Africa in their final World Twenty20 warm-up game in Mumbai, on Saturday.
Injury-hit Indian bowlers are in desperate need of timely breaks, said skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Sunday, insisting that the workload on them is "a bit too much" compared to the batsmen.
India suffered a jolt ahead of Tuesday's tri-series opener against New Zealand, as pacee Ishant Sharma was ruled out of the match due to an ankle injury. The lanky Delhi bowler was to do the duty with new ball along with state-mate Ashish Nehra.
Zaheer Khan is set to return to Test cricket, while Ashish Nehra will also fancy a comeback to the longer version after a five-year gap when the national selection panel meets in Mumbai on Tuesday to pick the Indian squad for the three-match home series against Sri Lanka.
Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni will tie the knot with childhood friend Sakshi Singh Rawat in a hush-hush ceremony at a farmhouse about 40km from Dehra Dun on Sunday night.
A vintage Yuvraj Singh blasted a quickfire half-century to help champions Sunrisers Hyderabad outclass Royal Challengers Bangalore by 35 in the opening match of the tenth edition of the Indian Premier League in Hyderabad, on Wednesday.
Vikas stepped into the house, dialled a number and handed his cell phone to Raj Kumar, Virat Kohli's childhood coach. "Happy Teachers' Day, Sir," said Virat, even as Vikas thrust something into Raj Kumar's palm -- a bunch of keys. A fascinating excerpt from Vijay Lokapally's must read biography of the cricket superstar.
Gautam Gambhir leads one of the star-studded line-ups in the Champions League Twenty20. The Delhi Daredevils' line-up boasts of the two most dangerous batsmen in world cricket -- Tillakaratne Dilshan and Virender Sehwag.
Images from the Group A match in the ICC Champions Trophy between India and Australia at Johannesburg on Monday
Led by aggressive Australian opener David Warner, Sunrisers would be relying mostly on foreigners to deliver the goods, given the scarcity of local stars in their ranks.
India will eye revenge for their defeat in one-day series as they meet fierce rivals Australia in three Twenty20 Internationals, starting on Tuesday, January 26 at Adelaide Oval. Games will also be played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (January 29) and Sydney Cricket Ground (January 31). The matches will see some of the world's explosive batsmen in action, while the series is also tipped as a much-needed preparatory ground ahead of the crucial World T20 scheduled to be held in March in India.
Cracking the whip on errant Indian cricketers, the BCCI on Monday decided to issue show cause notice to the players for their involvement in a pub bawl in St Lucia soon after the team's humiliating exit from the Twenty20 World Cup in the West Indies.
The Indian cricket team's trouble doesn't end with their ouster from Twenty20 World Cup with reports suggesting that some of the players were involved in a pub brawl here even though Yuvraj Singh dismissed the claim.
Images from the tri-series final between India and Sri Lanka in Dambulla on Saturday.
R Vinay Kumar and Murali Vijay are the new faces in India's 15-man squad for the Twenty20 World Cup, beginning in the West Indies, on Friday.
What was lacking in India's dismal showing against New Zealand? Why is the team not consistent? Can they come back stronger against the Lankans, who they take on Monday? What must Dhoni do to get it right? If you have the answers, tell us.
With both sides without a victory in their first three matches, it was the Royals who broke their duck with a seven-wicket win in Jaipur, spearheaded by Shreyas Gopal's 3-12 with his leg-spin and a 59 from Jos Buttler's bat.
The pacer was rewarded for his impressive return to international cricket with a berth in India's T20, and One-day squads for the series against Sri Lanka, beginning December 9.
'The situation is especially serious in major hotspot districts or emerging hotspots like Ahmedabad and Surat (Gujarat), Thane (Maharashtra), Hyderabad (Telangana), and Chennai (Tamil Nadu),' the MHA statement said.
Ex-Kiwi pacer Shane Bond may play for either the Delhi Daredevils or the Kolkata Knight Riders in the third edition of the Indian Premier League, the auction for which gets under way on Tuesday.
Sri Lanka outclassed by India six wickets in a thrilling finish to knock them out of the ICC World Twenty20 in St Lucia, on Tuesday. Chamara Kapugedera hit the final ball of the match, from Ashish Nehra, for a six to take Sri Lanka to 167 for five in their 20 overs in reply to India's 163 for five in the Super Eights match.
Images from the Indian Premier League match between Chennai Super Kings and Delhi Daredevils, on Thursday.
India thrashed New Zealand by 53 runs to give veteran fast bowler Ashish Nehra a winning farewell, in the first Twenty20 International in New Delhi on Wednesday.
A look at matches abandoned due to poor pitch conditions.
Stand-in Indian captain Virender Sehwag said he feared at one stage that Sri Lanka would score 350 in the third One-dayer and gave full credit to his bowlers for bringing the home team back into the game with a disciplined effort in Cuttack on Monday.
India opener Virender Sehwag on Tuesday described his blistering 102-ball 146 in the first match against Sri Lanka in Rajkot as his best knock in One-Day Internationals. He also felt that though the Indian fielders dropped a few catches initially, it was the fine fielding effort in the end that took them home.
On his injury, Zaheer Khan said he would return to South Africa soon for the second part of his rehabilitation and vowed to return to the field stronger and fitter.
After being comprehensively beaten by Sri Lanka in the first Twenty20 International in Nagpur on Wednesday, India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said his team gave away too many runs after starting well in the match.
Images from the first One-Day International between India and Australia at Vadodara on Sunday.
Mumbai Indians, led by Sachin Tendulkar, have swapped Karnataka Ranji Trophy captain Robin Uthappa for left-arm pace spearhead Zaheer Khan, who represented Bangalore's Royal Challengers in the inaugural edition of the Indian Premier League last year, at no cost to either franchise.
Rajneesh Gupta presents the Chennai Super Kings record in the IPL over the years.
Rising Pune Supergiants brought their stuttering IPL campaign back on track with a convincing 34-run win over hosts Sunrisers Hyderabad via Duckowrth Lewis method in a rain-affected match.
