In India's 100th T20I at home, Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan struck explosive fifties as India chased down 209 with ease to beat New Zealand in Raipur, taking a 2-0 lead in the T20I series ahead of the World Cup.
Defending champions India look to do something they have never done in World Cups and retain the trophy.
India put on a commanding performance to beat South Africa by 30 runs in their T20 World Cup warm-up clash at DY Patil Stadium, Navi Mumbai, on Wednesday.
Mitchell Santner explains his defensive T20I blueprint after a match-winning 3/26 against India in Visakhapatnam, detailing how pressure, match-ups and key wickets powered New Zealand's 50-run win.
Jitesh Sharma, who has emerged as India's preferred wicketkeeper-batter in T20 format with less than two months left for the World Cup, has played down his 'competition' with Sanju Samson in the squad, saying it only brings out his "A-game" to the fore, strengthening the side.
Padikkal's fourth VHT ton this season powers Karnataka to big win vs Tripura
Opener Abhishek Sharma's explosive unbeaten 68 off 20 balls set up a comprehensive eight-wicket victory against New Zealand.in the third match in Guwahati
As India start their T20 World Cup title defence in less than 72 hours, one is tempted to look at Suryakumar Yadav and Gautam Gambhir's working relationship which has been fantastic, at least so going by the results -- a whopping 31 wins in 39 games with a winning percentage of 79.48.
Tournament co-hosts India will be out to defend their Twenty20 World Cup title. The 10th edition of the 20-overs global showpiece event will run from February 7 to March 8.
A mouth-watering India-South Africa warm-up at the D Y Patil stadium did exactly that, igniting anticipation and hopes among fans.
When I was out, asked myself one question, 'Can I do it or not?', says Kishan
'It is a passing phase'. 'He will bounce back'. 'He is a run machine; poor form is just temporary'. The vote of confidence in Gill was inspiring and reassuring, notes Sandeep Goyal.
Gill, who was vice-captain of the T20I side, was the most high-profile absentee when the national selectors named a 15-member squad for the global showpiece in India and Sri Lanka starting February 7.
If starting with Jitesh Sharma in the last three T20s in Australia felt like an experiment, his selection over fellow wicket-keeper batter Sanju Samson in the series opener against South Africa provided ample clarity over team management's thought process going in to the World Cup at home.
Sanju Samson's T20I future took another hit on Tuesday as India benched him yet again, favouring the finishing skills of Jitesh Sharma in a team that now appears fully committed to its Shubman Gill-led blueprint.
All-rounder Axar Patel was named vice-captain of the squad, which also saw the return of in-form Ishan Kishan, who pipped Jitesh Sharma as the second wicketkeeper behind Sanju Samson.
When players select themselves, the selectors' job becomes delightfully simple. But did the Indian selectors have that luxury while picking the T20 World Cup squad for the 2026 T20 World Cup? asks K R Nayar.
Rohit Sharma offered a hilarious piece of advice to spinner Kuldeep Yadav ahead of the T20 World Cup this year from February 7.
Sanju and Anshul Gill registered convincing wins to move into the semi-finals as India's boxers continued their solid run at the fourth Thailand Open International Boxing Tournament.
Samson tried to whip Donovan Ferreira down the ground but the ball hit umpire Rohan Pandit on the shin and he required medical assistance before he was able to continue.
Suryakumar Yadav, who returned to form with a blazing 82* against New Zealand at Raipur, spoke on how he dealt with his lean patch
Shivam Dube flickered brightly with a fifty of exceptional quality but it was insufficient to prevent India's 50-run defeat against New Zealand in the fourth T20 International.
Ishan Kishan will play ahead of Shreyas Iyer in the series against New Zealand as he is a part of India's T20 World Cup squad and a like-for-like replacement for an injured Tilak Varma being a left-hander, skipper Suryakumar Yadav said on Tuesday.
Tournament co-hosts India will be out to defend their Twenty20 World Cup title in familiar home conditions next month.
Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru captain Anil Kumble believes fans may have already seen the last of M S Dhoni behind the stumps, hinting that the Chennai Super Kings icon may not don the gloves in IPL 2026.
'Jitesh Sharma has shown he is quite a capable player. He can bat lower down the order and look to hit the big shots even with a slightly older ball.'
Ashwin highlighted the sheer volume and impact of Sooryavanshi's recent performances in a social media post, underlining just how extraordinary the youngster's run has been.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) vice-president Rajeev Shukla said that head coach Gautam Gambhir has a firm grip on the team and is popular among the players.
Former Chennai Super Kings batter Suresh Raina believes the five-time IPL champions should look at buying the in-form Sarfaraz Khan at the auction on Tuesday.
Shubman Gill will return 'better, stronger' after T20 World Cup snub: Gujarat Titans COO
Sanju Samson boasts of a superb record in T20 Internationals, with 995 runs in 51 matches at a strike rate of 147.40, including three centuries and as many fifties.
Skipper Suryakumar Yadav would want the attacking batter in him to front up and bolster his leadership against New Zealand when the five-match T20I series gets underway in Nagpur on Wednesday, serving as a final dress rehearsal for India's World Cup title defence in less than three weeks' time.
A toe injury suffered before the fourth T20I is set to keep Gill out of the final T20I here as India would want to take a cautious route, more so when there is a ready replacement for the top order slot in Sanju Samson.
Shubman Gill is set to make a comeback during the upcoming five-match T20I series against South Africa, starting in Cuttack, on December 9.
India lead the five-match series 2-1 and the contest in Ahmedabad on Friday will be their last assignment for the calendar year.
'He just has to do what he does best -- which is to destroy opposition bowling.'
These comments come after India recently announced their squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2026. Suryakumar Yadav is set to lead India in his first-ever ICC tournament as captain, with Axar Patel named as his deputy.
Rajasthan Royals likely to trade Sanju Samson for CSK all-rounders Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran
The former South African batter pointed out that Rana does not have a lot of international experience with the new ball, but is well supported in the pace department.
Following his SMAT heroics, Kishan has also returned to the Indian team for the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026.
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