Wrecked by Pakistani seamers in their opening ODI match, India's under-fire cricketers will have to pull themselves up against the arch rivals when they clash in a must-win second cricket One-dayer, in Kolkata, on Wednesday with the form of their top-order batsmen a concern.
South Africa secured a fourth successive One-day International victory over Australia as captain Faf du Plessis top scored with 69 runs in a six-wicket win on Sunday.
The Australians are struggling against India's new spin duo of Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal and the hosts would like to ensure that it doesn't get any easy as the series progresses.
A ruthless India completed a nine-wicket demolition of the West Indies in the fifth and final ODI in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday for their sixth successive series win at home.
A desperate Pakistan will be wary of a competent group of Afghanistan spinners' ability to strike hard on an often-gripping Chepauk pitch when the teams meet in the World Cup match in Chennai on Monday
Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara might not have got a fairytale ending in their final ODI match of their glorious careers but the veterans smiled through the disappointment as they fondly recounted their respective journeys.
India stand-in-captain Rohit Sharma admitted that accommodating Ajinkya Rahane is tough as he is considered a specialist opening batsman in the 50-over format by the team management.
Reeza Hendricks' sizzling century in his debut match helped set up South Africa's series-clinching 78-run victory against Sri Lanka in the third one day international on Sunday.
The collective brilliance of the Indian XI in the 2023 World Cup makes a compelling case for each player to be considered for inclusion in every World XI.
Shubman Gill hailed India's spin duo of Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja for doing an 'exceptional' job on pitches that have not favoured them in the World Cup.
Shubman Gill said the intent within the Indian team, in the build-up to the World Cup, was to improve their chasing record.
Images from the first One-Day International between India and Sri Lanka, in Colombo, on Sunday.
His decision to bat first backfired as India were dismissed for a paltry 153 against England and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni put the blame on his batsmen for their nine-wicket loss in their second ODI of the tri-series in Brisbane.
Australia all-rounder James Faulkner says his team is not worried about the slow nature of the pitches and the Indians using it to their advantage as he feels the hosts are in equally good form.
Following India's T20I series loss to West Indies, former Indian pacer expressed disappointment with the team's performances, calling it a "very ordinary limited overs side"
India look to snap five-year trophy-less streak against Theekshana-less Lanka
What differentiates Kane Wiliamson from a lot of batsmen in this day and age is his sole focus is winning the game and he tailors his batting towards that, writes former New Zealand captain in his column.
"Chris Gayle has always done well over the years. It is great to have him in the squad. He always brings a lot to the team. His presence is always felt when he steps in any cricket field. We are happy to have him in the dressing room," Holder said in a pre-match conference.
Holding the team's batting failure responsible for the 37-run defeat to India in the first Twenty20 International, Australian batsman David Warner on Wednesday said the hosts need to bat smartly against the Indian spinners and take full advantage of the big stadiums Down Under.
The pitch was slow and shot-making difficult but India batting coach Sanjay Bangar said these factors cannot cover up for the fact that batsmen 'let the team down' in the lost fourth One-Day International against West Indies, on Sunday.
West Indies captain Jason Holder demanded discipline from his bowlers in the remaining four ODIs of the five-match series against India, saying picking up wickets upfront would be crucial.
In the battle for bragging rights as the best ODI side currently, England have come out on top and are now ranked favourites for the 2019 World Cup
India have accumulated 122 points on the back of series wins over Australia and New Zealand and are placed behind England.
Smith has managed just 10 runs in the first two matches, while Labuschagne could not capitalise on the starts
Pakistan does not have any injury concerns but they are one of the most undercooked ODI sides at the moment. Since the 2019 World Cup, the 'Green Brigade' has played just 29 ODIs, whereas India have played 57 matches in the same period. - Asia Cup 2023
India's R Ashwin back in top-10 in ICC's ODI bowling rankings
.jpg)
Ravichandran Ashwin's showing in the shorter versions of cricket have been comparatively better than that in Tests. The Tamil Nadu spinner attributes it to the time spent in the nets with his personal coach.
Ahead of their five-match one-day series against the visiting Indian team, New Zealand bowling coach Shane Bond has asked his boys to rise up to the challenge of facing the world's number one ODI team and put them under pressure by winning the first game on Sunday.
After a 3-0 ODI whitewash and a win in the first T20 International, India would be looking to continue their dominance and complete the clean sweep when they take on a hapless Zimbabwe in the second and final T20 International in Harare.
The Wankhede Stadium track being prepared for the ICC World T20 semi final clash between India and the West Indies is unlikely to favour the batsmen to the same extent as it did in the earlier matches here, it has been learnt. "There's an even coating of grass to bind the wicket, but the track would be slower than in earlier games. But it will still be a good T20 wicket," informed sources said on Tuesday ahead of the March 31 clash which is to be witnessed by a packed capacity crowd of 33,000 spectators. The heat in Mumbai has been on the higher side over the last few days with mercury touching the mid-30s, and this factor too is expected to affect the way the track will behave, the sources pointed out. In the last international game played at this venue featuring India, South Africa whipped the hosts by a whopping margin of 214 runs to clinch the ODI series 3-2 on October 25, 2015.
The ICC cricket committee has recommended three changes to the ODI fielding restrictions: the requirement to have two compulsory catchers in the first 10 overs be removed, the batting powerplay be removed and that five fieldsmen be allowed outside the circle from overs 41-50 instead of four.
Rohit Sharma said his batters will have to rely on their rich experience to counter Pakistan's potent pace trio
Ravindra Jadeja continues to jointly head the bowlers' list, while Virat Kohli is the highest-ranked Indian batsman at fourth in the latest ICC ODI rankings.
An unbeaten century from opener Martin Guptill eased New Zealand to an emphatic eight-wicket victory over South Africa in the second One-Day International at Senwes Park on Sunday.
India's batting line-up poses a 'big threat' and Australia need to score huge runs to counter the hosts during the five-match ODI series beginning on September 17, all-rounder Marcus Stoinis said on Tuesday.
Leg-spinner Amit Mishra picked up his second five-wicket haul in one-day internationals as India skittled New Zealand for 79 to win the final match by 190 runs in Visakhapatnam on Saturday for a 3-2 series victory.
India will need to win at least a game in the upcoming one-dayer series against Australia to retain their current second position in the ICC ODI Team Championships, even as second-placed Virat Kohli looks to close in on AB de Villiers in the batting chart. World champions Australia go head to head with former winner India in a five-match series in Perth on Tuesday. Australia (127) lead second-ranked India (114) by 13 points and even if they lose all the five matches of the series, they will drop points but still finish a point ahead of India.
The Indian Playing XI will also have Bhuvneshwar Kumar on Sunday as he replaces Mohammed Shami, who was hit on the leg in his follow through during the third match.
Shikhar Dhawan struck a sublime hundred in the nick of time as India delivered yet again in a series decider to beat Sri Lanka by eight wickets in the third ODI and record their eighth successive win in a bilateral contest.
Virat Kohli says he doesn't want any tags attached to his name and performances. We'll respect his request -- we'll only attach numbers!
