Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant and throwdown specialist Dayanand Garani tested positive for COVID-19, while two others were placed in precautionary isolation as the dreaded virus hit the Indian cricket team ahead of next month's Test series against England.
Chennai and Mumbai have to win eight of their remaining 10 games to entertain hopes of making the play-offs in IPL 2022.
Take a look at top picks of all 10 IPL teams
India's three-match ODI campaign against South Africa starting on Thursday where the hosts would be aiming to put the 'New Zealand Nightmare' behind them.
Will this (Rohit, KL Rahul and Kohli), be India's top three going into the T20 World Cup?
Inexperience cost England, feels Morgan
Indian football team has turned into a decent home side but it is in desperate need for away games, says inspirational skipper Sunil Chhetri, who feels the next target for the country should be a top-10 place in Asia so that the big guns invite them over.
Meanwhile, commentator Danny Morrison, who wore a red turban and a fake beard ahead of the match has come under a lot of flak for his act.
Guwahati and Thiruvananthapuram will host their first international matches -- T20 games - as the Board of Control for Cricket in India on Thursday announced the schedule of India's home series against Australia and New Zealand beginning later this month.
'He has gone through ups and downs, he knows how to handle himself and is somebody who can get the team together.'
New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum batted with freedom in the nets on Wednesday and should be fit to play Sunday's ICC World Cup clash against Afghanistan.
Kohli said despite defeat, they have got some positives too from the lost series and they can make changes to the playing XI for the third match.
Team India physio Patrick Farhart submitted Jadhav's fitness report, which cleared him. The fitness test was conducted on Thursday in Mumbai.
All-rounder Corey Anderson admitted that Mumbai Indians' bowling was below par in their opening IPL game against Kolkata Knight Riders, but said that his team is confident of working on the problem areas ahead of Sunday's game against Kings XI Punjab.
Rediff.com takes a look at how the owners fared this time.
Select games will also be streamed live on the MyCricket Facebook page to a global audience, including one of the semi-finals and the grand final on Monday, June 8.
Veteran wicketkeeper-batsman Wriddhiman Saha and young opener Prithvi Shaw are unlikely to be picked for the remaining Tests in Australia as India look to ring in wholesale changes after the batting debacle in Adelaide.
'Only when China treats India as an equal can we consider them real friends.'
New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson was on Thursday hit by a bug, compounding the visiting team's misery, but opener Tom Latham sounded optimistic about the batsman's availability in the second Test against India beginning in Kolkata on Friday.
Australia remain optimistic about their Twenty20 World Cup campaign despite being shown up in all facets by India in the opening two matches of their current series. With Steve Smith leading an advanced party to New Zealand for the forthcoming ODI series, the Australians have made more changes to their XI, with Shane Watson to lead the side after skipper Aaron Finch suffered a hamstring injury in Friday night's second T20 defeat. In-form top-order batsman Usman Khawaja comes into the squad as Finch's replacement, and will likely open the batting alongside Shaun Marsh. Finch is awaiting scan results and the Australia camp is bullish he will be able to return before the start of the World Cup in India on March 8.
IMAGES from the IPL match played between Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab on Tuesday
With the three-match T20I series ahead and also the World Cup round the corner, India will have to address this weakness to ensure that their much-vaunted batting doesn't crumble on an odd day when the condition aids swing bowling in England.
Sri Lanka wicketkeeper-batsman Kusal Perera has been sent home from their tour of New Zealand after failing a drugs Test, local media, citing a Sri Lanka Cricket statement, said on Tuesday.
A first T20 series victory in New Zealand will be the icing on the cake for the Men in Blue, who have far exceeded expectations during their three-month sojourn in this part of the world.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan was on Tuesday after being blocked by ex-Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar on Twitter following a verbal spat over the selection of Ravindra Jadeja.
After launching their campaign on a winning note, IPL finalists Kings XI Punjab will look to dish out another dominating performance when they face the formidable Barbados Tridents in a Group B match of the Oppo Champions League twenty20 in Mohali on Saturday.
Woakes will be joining his Delhi teammates in Mumbai on Sunday ahead of the IPL beginning on April 9 in Chennai. He hasn't been a part of England's T20 squad since 2015.
Rahane, who too has also endured rough end of the stick as far selection matters go, had a word of advice for Rishabh Pant.
India will welcome back regular skipper Virat Kohli, who missed the last three Tests in Australia to attend the birth of his daughter.
Former all-rounder Yuvraj Singh on Tuesday questioned India batting coach Vikram Rathour's ability to guide Indian cricketers in the T20 format. Yuvraj, who had retired from international cricket last year, also took a veiled dig at India chief coach Ravi Shastri.
Earlier, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had made it clear to their Bangladesh counterparts that it will not host them on a neutral venue during the upcoming home series in January-February.
India's soft power diplomacy came into play during this cataclysm affecting the world as the pandemic defies barriers and borders, notes Rup Narayan Das.
Unless they getting their batting and bowling woes sorted out soon, the 2023 World Cup looks another distant dream for the Men in Blue.
A fit-again pacer Jasprit Bumrah, who missed the last One-Dayer in Ranchi, bowled with vigour as eight Indian players turned up for the optional practice session on the eve of the series-deciding fifth and final game against New Zealand in Vishakapatnam on Saturday.
Suresh Raina is still not available for selection for India's third ODI against New Zealand as "he has not yet fully recovered from viral fever" but Rohit Sharma spent a considerable time at the nets.
Former India batsman Gundappa Viswanath revealed that he was "very, very hurt" after his distinguished career came to an abrupt end following a poor Test series against Pakistan in 1982-83. Along with Sunil Gavaskar, he was one of the minstays of the Indian battling line-up through the 1970s, playing some fine knocks against the best pace attacks of that era.
This is his 'Test' and for Kohli, a century to mark a 'century' is something he would be craving
Former Australian opener Justin Langer will lead the Prime Minister XI against New Zealand in a one-day cricket match at Manuka Oval in Canberra on January 29.
For Kohli, in probably his last three matches as T20 captain of India, one would expect some prudent team selections and it starts with the question of repeatedly ignoring a player of Ashwin's calibre.
Bhuvneshwar is again likely to be confined to the benches for his second successive marquee event, starting in England from May 30.
