As India gears up to face Oman on Friday, September 19, at the Dubai international stadium, the focus returns to cricket.
Put into bat, Abhishek's onslaught propelled India to their highest powerplay score of 95 studded with 16 boundaries.
Ahead of the mini-auction, scheduled to be held in Doha on December 26, the 10 franchises have released their list of retained and released players.
'It feels great when you contribute as an all-rounder, which I have been doing for a long time.'
A look at the best catches of the match.
For the home side, it has been a season of mixed returns so far. After early defeats to Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Mumbai Indians, KKR roared back to form in their last outing -- a commanding win over Sunrisers Hyderabad.
India will look to extend lead against England
Yuzvendra Chahal led a stunning comeback for Punjab Kings with 4/28 as they defeated Kolkata Knight Riders by 16 runs in their low-scoring Indian Premier League thriller on Tuesday.
Although India are playing a strong brand of 50-overs' cricket of late, they have some selection riddles to solve before they face Bangladesh in their opening match of the Champions Trophy.
Their pre-tournament decision to fill the squad with five spinners drew a lot of flak from all corners, but it is now proving to be a masterstroke on the slow pitches in Dubai.
A seemingly invincible India will be eager to sharpen their game against spin and give a run to second-line players ahead of the semi-final when they take on New Zealand in their last group match of the Champions Trophy in Dubai on Sunday.
IMAGES from the 1st T20I between India and Bangladesh played in Gwalior on Sunday
Successful in keeping opponents and vitriol at bay so far, India will have to rise above traditional bugbear New Zealand and a rigmarole of emotions surrounding stalwarts Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to reclaim the Champions Trophy after 12 years in Dubai on Sunday.
Since Suryakumar took over as captain last year, India have hardly put a wrong but his own form has dipped.
IMAGES from the 3rd T20I between India and England in Rajkot on Tuesday.
India is facing form concerns and selection dilemmas as they enter the final phase of their Champions Trophy preparations.
IMAGES from the 1st T20I played between India and England at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Wednesday.
After KKR wickets tumbled in an ugly mess, the team dugout must have thought that they had grabbed defeat from certain victory, but Rahul Tripathi ensured that outcome would not come to pass.
Captaon Suryakumar Yadav, all-rounders Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel, the only member from the Test side, will be hoping for a strong outing so that India can apply some balm over the wounds from their recent home series defeat against New Zealand.
Magnificent fifties by openers Virat Kohli and Phil Salt guided RCB to a comfortable seven-wicket win over defending champions KKR.
The tournament was decorated with several impactful players and 12 of them have made it to the ICC Champions Trophy Team of the Tournament.
KKR's IPL Triumph: A Season of Nostalgia, Domination, and Records
Markram said it was a hard pill for them to swallow.
Riding high on their new-found confidence, defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders will be hoping to finally get it right at home and keep their play-off hopes alive when they take on a struggling Rajasthan Royals in their IPL match in Kolkata on Sunday.
IMAGES from the IPL match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday
Virat Kohli's form in focus as India eye ODI clean-sweep over England
Tilak Varma smashed an unbeaten half-century to steer India to a thrilling two-wicket victory against England in Chennai on Saturday.
The barren run of skipper Rohit Sharma and the selection conundrum that Virat Kohli's possible return poses are the towering obstacles in India's quest for a series win against England in the second ODI in Cuttack on Sunday.
Playing as the opener, Sanju Samson has made just 39 runs in the first two T20 Internationals against Bangladesh.
IMAGES from the Champions Trophy final played between India and New Zealand in Dubai on Sunday.
Mayank Agarawal's unbeaten 139 took Karnataka over the line against Punjab by one wicket,
Suryakumar Yadav lavished praise on spinner Varun Chakravarthy for his magical figures of 5 for 17 during their three-wicket loss to South Africa in the second T20I in Gqeberha
England captain Jos Buttler is confident that the upcoming T20I series against India will not impact their preparation for the Champions Trophy.
IMAGES from the IPL 2023 match between SunRisers Hyderabad and Kolkata Knight Riders played in Hyderabad on Thursday
Chakravarthy heaped praise on fellow leg-spinner Suyash Sharma, who had figures of 2/30 on Wednesday, and said that he could play for the national side.
Guilty of making too many changes at the top, Kolkata Knight Riders will be looking to find a winning combination against Rajasthan Royals and snap their five-match losing streak in the IPL, at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, on Monday.
India have used 12 out of their 15 players in the first three games and it would be interesting to see if one among the two uncapped pacers Yash Dayal or Vysakh Vijaykumar gets a debut cap in case the pitch warrants an extra specialist speedster.
Was Avesh Khan's catch the best of the night?
Their confidence severely dented after two comprehensive defeats, last edition's runners-up side Kolkata Knight Riders will be looking to get their inconsistent campaign back on track when they face Rajasthan Royals in the IPL match in Mumbai on Monday.
Former Australia seamer Brett Lee and Sri Lanka opener Tilakratne Dilshan have backed the Shreyas Iyer-led Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to clinch the IPL 2024 title.
