World champions India suffered a humiliating nine-wicket defeat against England after a flop show by their batsmen in the third One-Day International of the Carlton Mid Tri-Series, in Brisbane.
Taking note of the fatigue factor, India are likely field a second string team for the forthcoming limited overs tour of Zimbabwe next month.
Under fire, Dhoni's men will look to plug all loopholes as the in-form Bangla tigers aim for a clean sweep
Ahead of the upcoming Test and ODI series against Bangladesh Rajneesh Gupta presents a statistical outlook on India's players selected for the two squads.
Insisting that India are currently playing the "best cricket of the World Cup", West Indies batting legend Brian Lara feels that the defending champions must test their bench strength against minnows UAE in a Pool B match in Perth.
RCB began their campaign without skipper and star batsman Virat Kohli as well as another key player A B de Villiers due to injuries and lost their opening match against defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Having tried quite a few permutations and combinations in the two losses so far, the Indian think-tank seems to have settled for Virat Kohli at the No.4 position to hit the right balance and stay alive in the ongoing tri-series.
India's selectors went on expected lines, leaving out former champions while giving the nod to top performers in domestic circuit in the 30-man probables' list for the 2015 World Cup.
Rediff.com rates the Indian players' performances in the ODI series.
Up-and-coming Karnataka batsman Lokesh Rahul and Uttar Pradesh leg-spinner Karn Sharma were named in India's 19-man Test squad for the tour of Australia, which was announced after the selection committee of the Board for Control of Cricket in India met in Mumbai on Monday morning. Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni will miss the opening Test, from December 4, at the Gabba in Brisbane, because of an injury and Virat Kohli will stand in for him.
Jadeja, Shami also return for limited overs series starting Jan 12
Their fate hanging in balance, a loss in the penultimate league round match may virtually sound the death knell for one of the two teams.
38-year-old Brad Hodge and 41-year-old Pravin Tambe engineered a comfortable 30-run victory for Rajasthan Royals against Highveld Lions of South Africa in the Champions League T20, on Wednesday.
Steve Smith celebrated his return at the helm with a captain's innings that powered Rajasthan Royals to a five-wicket victory over a formidable Mumbai Indians.
AB de Villiers' masterly 85 in his 100th test could not gloss over South Africa's spin frailty as India took charge of the second Test after dominating the opening day at Bengaluru's M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday.
Mumbai Indians lock horns with an out-of-sorts Rajasthan Royals in an IPL match in which home skipper Rohit Sharma's return from injury will also be awaited, in Mumbai, on Saturday.
IMAGES from the Indian Premier League match played between CSK and Rajasthan Royals in Pune on Friday.
Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings, the two franchises that returned to the IPL after serving bans in the aftermath of the 2013 spot-fixing scandal, will come face to face for the first time in the ongoing edition, keen to regain lost momentum in Pune, on Friday.
Help coach Anil Kumble and captain Virat Kohli in selecting India's best 11 for the first Test against the West Indies.
A keen contest is on the cards as Royal Challengers Bangalore and Rajasthan Royals cross swords in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in Bengaluru, on Sunday.
Rajasthan Royals will need to regroup quickly after a heavy loss when they face Delhi Daredevils in what will be their first IPL home game in five years at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, in Jaipur, on Wednesday.
Under-fire batsman Virat Kohli finally came good and the bowlers delivered to help India beat Middlesex by 95 runs in the the 50-over practice game at Lord's.
Indian batsmen and bowlers warmed up with a morale-boosting five-wicket win against Derbyshire in their second three-day tour game on Thursday, ahead of the first Test against England in Nottingham starting July 9.
Leaving behind the bashing they suffered in the opening match, Indian bowlers bowled with supreme control to bundle out West Indies for 143 in the second and final Twenty20 international in Florida on Sunday. Leg spinner Amit Mishra (3/24) provided the opening breakthrough by dismissing Johnson Charles (43) and R Ashwin then combined with paceman Jasprit Bumrah to tighten the noose around the West Indies with regular strikes.
Karnataka inched closer to winning the Irani Trophy crown after Chidambaram Gautam's brilliant 122-run knock guided them to a mammoth 606 in their first innings against Rest of India on the third day in Bangalore.
Manish Pandey says his maiden ODI call-up was long overdue and he now hopes to make his much awaited India debut during the short tour of Zimbabwe next month.
India will look to plug the chinks in its armoury and provide finishing touches to its preparation for the four-Test series when it takes on the West Indies Cricket Board Presidents' XI in the final warm-up match, starting in Basseterre, St Kitts, on Thursday.
Left sleepless the last time he played a bad shot against Mumbai Indians, in-form Rajasthan Royals batsman Ajinkya Rahane said he was desperate to set the record straight and that inspired him to strike a sublime match-winning knock of 91 in an Indian Premier League match against the Delhi Daredevils on Sunday.
Impressed with Kuldeep Yadav's performance in the ongoing Indian Premier League, batting legend Sunil Gavaskar offered "honest advice" to India's selectors to keep an eye on the young left-arm spinner.
Bangalore have been on a roll with skipper Virat Kohli enjoying one of the best phases of his career as he has four centuries under his belt.
Kolkata Knight Riders will be looking to earn two valuable points and move up to second spot in the points-table when they take on struggling Royal Challengers Bangalore.
With India being outplayed in the Twenty20s, captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni will face added pressure to perform and lead India from the front against a formidable South African unit in the five-match ODI cricket series starting in Kanpur on Sunday.
Gurkeerat Singh Mann was a surprise addition to the Indian squad for the second Test against South Africa in Bangalore, however, India captain Virat Kohli says the Punjab all-rounder could be in the reckoning for an unlikely Test debut.
Manu Shankar/Rediff.com reports on Monday's selection committee meeting in Delhi.
Rohit Sharma's rollicking 150-run knock went in vain as South Africa pulled off a thrilling five-run victory in the first one-dayer against India in Kanpur to continue their winning run.
Skipper Virat Kohli blasted his second successive fifty and pacer Mitchell Starc picked up three wickets as Royal Challengers Bangalore notched up a comprehensive nine-wicket win over Rajasthan Royals in their IPL encounter in Ahmedabad.
Images of the third Test between India and Sri Lanka being played in Colombo
Images from the opening day of the first Test between Sri Lanka and India in Colombo, on Thursday.
Jacques Kallis feels that conditions in the sub-continent is "not conducive" for producing seam bowling all-rounders, something that the Indian cricket team has lacked for some years now.
Rajneesh Gupta presents statistical summary of Rajasthan Royals and much more.