Veteran Indian pacer Irfan Pathan says the country's rise as a fast-bowling powerhouse is, for him, the highlight of the year while former batsman V V S Laxman picked the away Test triumph over Australia as his "favourite moment" of 2019. The trio of Umesh Yadav (23), Ishant Sharma (25) and Mohammed Shami (33) picked 81 wickets in Tests this year, averaging less than 20.
Despite sleeping barely four hours in the past two days speedster Ishant Sharma kept India in the fight with three New Zealand wickets in the first Test even as he struggled hard to deal with "jet-lag".
'The good thing was I had overs behind me. I played four matches for Sussex, and a few One-Day matches too, but I bowled nearly 250 overs in that'
'Ishant was good early on in his career, but his graph went down... He picks six wickets in one innings, but can't pick even one in the next.' Former India players assess the beleagured Indian pacer in conversation with Bikash Mohapatra.
Former India fast bowler Ashish Nehra has called Ishant Sharma the "least talented" among the current crop of pacers in the country, adding that the lanky bowler managed to play 60 plus Tests by virtue of his dedication and hard work.
Cheteshwar Pujara will be playing for Derbyshire this season while Varun Aaron is also keen on plying his trade in the county circuit but Ishant Sharma, the seniormost bowler of the Indian Test team is not at all keen on playing in England.
The Indian team has decided to take the positives from India's 0-2 ODI series defeat against South Africa.
Images from the Day 3 of the first Test between India and Sri Lanka in Galle.
India captain Virat Kohli does not mind if anger or aggression is channelised in the right direction which is what happened with a fiery Ishant Sharma after his altercation with Dhammika Prasad.
Ishant last played in an ODI in 2016 and a T20 International match in 2013.
A look at Team India's nets session in Kanpur on Tuesday.
Having engineered an England collapse in the first cricket Test with one of his best spells in recent times, lanky Indian speedster Ishant Sharma feels his bowling rhythm has returned.
Smriti Mandhana, on Tuesday received the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
The Indian team management quelled concerns over Ishant Sharma's fitness after the pacer walked off bowling just 5.3 overs on the opening day of their first practice match against Cricket Australia Chairman's XI in Canberra on Thursday. Team officials insisted that Sharma left the field to remove some strapping from his ankle that had loosened and was uncomfortable with it.
If Ishant Sharma crossed the line in the just-concluded Test series against Sri Lanka it was mainly because of captain Virat Kohli's "aggressiveness", says the lanky pacer's childhood coach, Shravan Kumar.
Former Pakistan skipper Wasim Akram has raised concerns over Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma's fitness, insisting the two Indian pacers have not bowled enough in the run-up to the Test series against Australia, starting on December 26.
'The Sussex players were really impressed with Ishant's work ethic. They loved his personality. He fitted in really well in the dressing room. His work ethic in the nets, or on the track was phenomenal. It was really good for our young seam bowlers at Sussex to see, that this is what it takes for a Test bowler'
Pant had to sit out the must-win clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Sunday
Temperamental speedster S Sreesanth, who missed the ODI series against Sri Lanka because of swine flu, and Bengal pacer Ashok Dinda were included in the ODI squad for the Tri-series announced by the BCCI Secretary N Srinivasan after a selection committee meeting in New Delhi.
He was included as a replacement for Murali Vijay, who was ruled out of the tournament with injury.
Ishant Sharma is yet to realise his true potential, feels former pacer Venkatesh Prasad, who wants the lanky speedster to lead the Indian attack in next month's tough tour of South Africa.
Cricket's shorter versions may be zooming up the popularity charts but Team India pacer Ishant Sharma says, for a player nothing can beat the thrill of competing in Tests.
Ishant Sharma has been rendered a doubtful starter for the opening Test against England as the lanky India pacer skipped the practice sessions on Tuesday.
Karnataka pacer Ranganath Vinay Kumar was on Friday rewarded for a consistent domestic performance with a place in India's 15-member squad for Twenty20 World Cup, in the West Indies, next month.
India's seniormost pacer Ishant Sharma is extremely happy with the performance of the bowling unit and hopes that the team will display "positive and ruthless" intent in the next three Test matches against the West Indies.
Pace bowler Prasidh Krishna has been added to India's squad for the fourth Test against England at The Oval, starting on Thursday.
Back in form with an impressive performance against South Africa in the recently-concluded Test series, Ravindra Jadeja is likely to make a comeback when the national selectors meet in New Delhi on Saturday.
Indian paceman Ishant Sharma may be dropped for the Adelaide Test as the side may opt for two spinners, Ravichandran Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha and two seamers.
While Nortje missed DC's IPL opener as he was yet to recover fully from a back injury, Ishant just bowled two overs before limping off the field with a twisted ankle.
The Indian team's net session in Ahmedabad on Tuesday saw all its leading players, except captain Anil Kumble, missing. Many of those who played in the drawn first Test against South Africa in Chennai did not arrive in the city and were thus unable to make it for the optional practice session that lasted nearly two hours.
India bolstered their bowling attack for the third Test against South Africa by including Ishant Sharma and Munaf Patel.
Sarfaraz Khan missed training session at the Eden Gardens and is set to miss the upcoming Irani Cup after sustaining an injury at the Delhi Capitals camp.
Faced with a players' revolt, the Delhi Ranji team started its preparatory camp for the upcoming domestic season without seven players though officials insisted that unrest against the DDCA was not the reason for their absence. After Virender Sehwag's outburst against "nepotism and corruption" in the Delhi District and Cricket Association (DDCA), seven players, including pacer Ishant Sharma and opener Gautam Gambhir, skipped the opening day of the camp.
Off-spinner Parveez Rasool picked up his 9th five-wicket haul in first-class cricket as India Green dismissed the Blue team for a paltry 177 before finishing the day at 100 for 3 in the final round robin league encounter of the Duleep Trophy.
A green pitch welcomed the Indians at the Basin Reserve in Wellington after Mahendra Singh Dhoni won the toss and elected to field in the second Test against New Zealand, on Friday.
Team India manager Arshad Ayub, speaking exclusively to Rediff.com's Manu Shankar, says he won't be surprised if India does well on the upcoming tour of Australia.
Shaken by the abrupt suspension of their previous match due to the India-Pakistan conflict, a struggling Delhi Capitals will look to regroup and address bowling concerns when they face table-toppers Gujarat Titans in a reverse-leg IPL clash in Delhi on Sunday to keep their play-off hopes alive.
Former Skipper Sourav Ganguly revealed that Bengal pacer Ashok Dinda will fly to Australia as cover for injured fast bowler Ishant Sharma, who has been ruled out of a three-day practice match starting in Canberra on Monday.
He was off-colour during the IPL and Twenty20 World Cup, but Ishant Sharma looked impressive in his short spell today and India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni feels a disciplined approach coupled with little assistance from the pitch did the trick for the pacer.
Images from Day 1 of the third Test between India and England, in Kolkata, on Wednesday.
