England wicket-keeper Jos Buttler is being encouraged by coach Trevor Bayliss to play in this year's Indian Premier League to hone his limited overs skills.
In an effort to bring all Test nations on board, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has sought the services of a leading technology institute -- the MIT -- to 'achieve' a uniform Decision Review System (DRS), an innovation which India has been opposing for long.
It was not long ago that Australia wicketkeeper Tim Paine was considering giving up the game entirely. Now he is set to captain the team as they look to pick up the pieces following the ball-tampering scandal.
Sacked Australia captain Steve Smith and David Warner have both been banned for 12 months for their roles in the ball-tampering scandal in Cape Town.
The incident has been met with astonishment in Australia, with the protagonists -- Smith, his vice captain David Warner and opening batsman Cameron Bancroft -- lambasted in the media under headlines almost universally trumpeting the word "Shame".
Siddle broke the news to his team mates at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday after being released from the squad for the third and final Test against New Zealand in Sydney.
Intensity is the hallmark of his batting and India captain Virat Kohli says he has no idea what he would do if that was gone, the primary reason behind his obsessive focus of physical fitness.
The famed Indian batting line-up crashed for a lowly 135 to lose the first Test by 72 runs in Newlands on Monday.
Handicapped by the absence of key strike bowler Dale Steyn, South Africa will need to dig deep into their reserves if they are to beat England in the third Test and bring parity to the series.
Ben Stokes struck a sparkling unbeaten 74 to help England finish the opening day of the second Test against South Africa on a healthy 317 for five at Newlands on Saturday.
Former pacer Ashish Nehra feels the Indian team management can think of handing Jasprit Bumrah his Test debut in the opening game against South Africa as his awkward action and yorkers might prove lethal on the Cape Town track.
'There's so much in favour of batsmen these days. Fields are small, two new balls, powerplays, bats have got bigger than they used to be, the list can go on. You bowl a 'no ball' and it's a free hit. But I have never seen a rule change that favours the bowler.'
Australian opener David Warner and veteran fast bowler Ryan Harris have moved up to career-high positions in the ICC Test player rankings following their impressive contributions in Australia's series-winning third Test defeat of South Africa in Cape Town.
Reaction after Australia's Steve Smith, who has stepped down as captain, confessed on Saturday that the team's "leadership group" had hatched a plan to alter the condition of the ball during the third day of the third Test against South Africa.
The Indian pace attack has been talked up of late and to be fair, they have done a decent job in South Africa.
South African opener Aiden Markram is of the opinion that the pitch at Supersport Park, although aiding more pace and bounce, will also be good for batsmen.
India batsman Cheteshwar Pujara credited all-rounder Hardik Pandya for helping India stay afloat in the first Test against South Africa, in Cape Town, on Saturday.
With the year sprinting to a close, we bring you, in pictures, some of the best action from the sports world.
Australian fast bowler Ryan Harris, who bowled his country to a series victory in South Africa last week, is hoping knee surgery will prolong his Test career through the 2015 Ashes at least.
Ryan Harris claimed the last two wickets at the fag end of the match as South Africa were bowled out for 265 and lost the third and final Test by 245 runs at Newlands on Wednesday. Australia won the series 2-1.
'Duminy was the key factor to my whole innings. Second over or the first over I faced, he told me this over needs to go for 10. He told me to just play my normal game and take the bowlers on. Luckily today it worked out'
South Africa retained the iconic Reliance ICC Test Championship mace and with it won a cash award of $500,000 following its 2-0 series win over the West Indies in Cape Town on Tuesday.
South Africa removed the West Indian openers in Sunday's last session at Newlands to build on AB de Villiers' superb century and take the initiative in the final Test.
India couldn't have hoped for a worst start to a long South African sojourn but pacer Jasprit Bumrah on Thursday asserted that if one debacle dents the team's confidence then it 'does not deserve' to play Test cricket.
The maestro wants a repeat of the teamwork from the current pace battery.
Cheteshwar Pujara, a vital cog in India's batting wheel, on Tuesday, stressed on the importance of leaving the ball on the bouncy pitches of South Africa during the three-Test series beginning, in Cape Town, on Friday.
The intense interest in the incident around the world reflects not only surprise at Steve Smith blithely admitting the conspiracy to cheat but also a perception that the Australian team are serial offenders in bending and breaking the rules.
South Africa's Temba Bavuma struck his maiden Test century in quick time (102 off 148), and in so doing, became the first black South African to crack a Test ton.
The 63-run win at the Wanderers ensured that South Africa cannot move ahead of India in the ICC Test Team Rankings at the 3 April cut-off date, even if they go on to win all four Tests against Australia in March.
In the 35 Tests Kohli has led as captain, he has fielded 35 different playing 11s. Sure, the chopping and changing worked in the sub-continent because the home conditions masked the deficiencies in constantly chopping and changing the playing 11, says Chetan Narula.
Dale Steyn became South Africa's second highest wicket taker as West Indies reached 276 for six on the first day of the third Test on Friday.
India aim to stay afloat against daunting South Africa in the second Test
The plan was to keep Virat Kohli quiet and South Africa's wrecker-in-chief Vernon Philander said his team executed it to perfection during the 72-run win over India in the opening Test in Cape Town.
Former captain Graeme Smith feels South Africa's 'powerful' bowling attack will put the Indian batting line-up under serious pressure in the upcoming Test series, starting January 5 in Cape Town.
The return of all-rounder Ben Stokes will be a welcome boost to the England squad as he provides much-needed balance and lifts morale, team mate Moeen Ali said ahead of the two-match test series in New Zealand.
Railways leg-spinner Karn Sharma is ecstatic after his maiden call-up in the Indian Test team and is looking forward towards a chance to meet the legendary leg-spinner Shane Warne during the upcoming Test series against Australia Down Under.
A Test series against India, a World Cup on home soil and a much-anticipated Ashes campaign will put Australia's cricketers under heavy scrutiny over the next year, but the team need to make themselves oblivious to the hype, according to captain Michael Clarke.
Opener Shikhar Dhawan believes the Indian ODI team now has the right balance and x-factor to succeed anywhere, holding the number one side in good stead ahead of the 2019 World Cup in England.
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Kagiso Rabada said South Africa are gunning for a whitewash of India, having trampled the visitors in the first two matches.
