Australia left-arm spinner Ashton Agar took a career-best 5-24, including a hat-trick, as they thrashed hosts South Africa by a massive 107 runs in the first Twenty20 International at The Wanderers in Johannesburg on Friday. After being sent in to bat, Australia amassed 196 for six in their 20 overs as South Africa struggled with their line and length and missed a number of catches in the field in what was a sloppy display. The home side were in early trouble in their reply when they lost mainstay Quinton de Kock in the first over and it became a precession after that as Agar helped bowl the hosts out for 89, a record low for South Africa.
India are fretting over the fitness of their skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (shoulder) and Smriti Mandhana (finger) ahead of the opening game.
Former Australia captain Mark Taylor resigned from Cricket Australia's (CA) board of directors on Monday, as the fallout from a scathing review into the governing body's culture claimed another victim.
'We wanted one big partnership to get the job done, which we failed to do'
The top posts on social media from your favourite Bollywood celebrities.
'It doesn't get any easier though against India but it's their first game and our third, so maybe that could give us the edge we need'
Captain Quinton de Kock smashed a sparkling century as South Africa eased to a seven-wicket victory over World champions England in the opening One-Day International, at Newlands, on Tuesday.
Temba Bavuma hopes his eye-catching innings in South Africa's seven-wicket victory over England in the first One-day international at Newlands on Tuesday will end the debate over whether he deserves his place in the side.
Seamer Vernon Philander took career-best figures as rampant South Africa claimed a 72-run victory over India in a gripping first Test at Newlands on Monday.
Both Smith and Warner were also banned from playing the Indian Premier League this year.
While South Africa grabbed a 1-0 lead in the three-match series, the visitors squandered a golden opportunity to script a memorable win outside the sub-continent.
Having suffered a minor setback in the previous game, India will look to recover and close out this eight-week long tour with a series win.
Should Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan be dropped?
Only two Indians have scored a 50 in the first innings of a debut Test outside India: Sunil Gavaskar in 1971 and Mayank Agrawal in 2018.
The 21-year-old left-hander has gained 21 slots and reached 17th place, the joint-highest by a specialist India wicketkeeper along with Farokh Engineer, who did so in January 1973.
Captain Virat Kohli on Wednesday slammed the Indian batsmen, saying that they were responsible for India's crushing loss in the second Test against South Africa in Pretoria.
A century from stand-in skipper Faf du Plessis lifted South Africa to a huge 142-run win over Australia and a 2-0 lead in the five-match One-day International series at The Wanderers on Sunday.
'They need to be pro-active and take the pacers' challenge head on'
Rajneesh Gupta highlights important numbers featuring the West Indies team from the World Cups.
Kohli holds the record for most Test appearances as India Test captain (68) and he also holds the record for most Test wins by an Indian captain (40). Only Graeme Smith, Ricky Ponting, and Steve Waugh have won more matches than Kohli as captain in Test cricket.
India's head coach Ravi Shastri says his side will take no prisoners in their upcoming Test series against Australia, who are still formidable opponents despite results going against them in the wake of the ball-tampering scandal.
South Africa's Anrich Nortje took the vital wickets of captain Joe Root and talisman Ben Stokes as England struggled to 262 for nine at stumps on the first day of the second Test on Friday. Pace bowler Nortje, playing his fourth Test, finished with 2-54 off 17 overs as the home side restricted the tourists on a Newlands wicket that was expected to be full of runs. Images from the opening day of the second Test at Newlands on Friday.
Australia wicketkeeper-batter Alyssa Healy wasn't sympathetic towards Harmanpreet Kaur following her bizarre run out in the ICC Women's T20 World Cup in Cape Town.
India captain Virat Kohli has been fined 25 per cent of his match fee and received one demerit point for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct during the third day's play in the second Test against South Africa at Centurion on Monday.
Cricket Australia has come under pressure from the Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) to end the bans following the release of the Longstaff review.
'When you have a win ratio of 65 per cent over the last five years, what is there to worry about?' 'How can the standard go down suddenly? For five years, you have been number one side in the world.'
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.
How does Yuzvendra Chahal's 6/25 stand up against other fine T20I performances? Fascinating figures from Rajneesh Gupta.
England faced a double injury blow ahead of the second Test against South Africa as Rory Burns and Jofra Archer were declared doubtful for Friday's start at Newlands. South Africa captain Faf du Plessis has warned his team against complacency as they take a 1-0 series lead into the second Test against England, from whom he expects a backlash at Newlands.
Siddle said he was keen to see his friends back on the field but that by serving their bans in full they would be helping clean up the game.
South Africa's success in Australia is often put down to their comfort on the hard local tracks, which can be similar to those at home, but they could face some unfamiliar conditions this year.
Ajinkya Rahane has been named as the new skipper of the IPL team.
With Virat Kohli stepping down as India's Test captain, the reign of the country's "most successful captain" in the longest format came to an end.
'When I crossed that point where I had the accident, I felt light and that was a very physical experience. I felt something leave me.' Shyam G Menon chronicles the voyages of that incredible Indian sailor, Abhilash Tomy.
Perhaps for the first time, India's pace strength is not centred on any one individual, or set of individuals.
'Losing wickets in bunches is something have to plug'
'They are formidable but not unbeatable. It was just one phase with the bat where we let ourselves down and a quality side like India made us pay'.
South Africa's hopes of victory on day five of the second Test against West Indies were thwarted in Port Elizabeth on Tuesday by heavy overnight rain and a wet outfield which prevented any play.
Tim Paine laments Australian capitulation in third Test amid ball-tampering scandal
'I don't think Shami had any doubts that Ravi would stick by his word, but to see the head coach move heaven and earth to ensure his best interests were taken care of at a difficult time must have made a massive impact on him.' A fascinating excerpt from R Sridhar's must-read book Coaching Beyond: My Days with the Indian Cricket Team.
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