Madhya Pradesh wicketkeeper-batsman Naman ojha is "not surprised" by his inclusion in India's 19-member Test squad for the tour of Australia. After all, he's been in his stupendous form with the bat in the past 12 months.
Chahal, who has been an automatic choice in the limited overs format has not played any first-class cricket since December 2016 (against Haryana in Ranji Trophy), but the Indian team management and especially skipper Virat Kohli has indicated that he wants the wiry leg-spinner for five-day matches also.
India and Gujarat left-arm spinner Axar Patel acknowledged RP Singh that veteran pacer Singh's presence in the Gujarat dressing room for the past two years played a big role in the team's development.
Lesser known cricketers who could make waves at the IPL auction.
Shardul Thakur's much-awaited Test debut turned into a nightmare as the India speedster was forced to leave the field due to a groin strain after bowling only 10 deliveries on the first day of the second Test against West Indies in Hyderabad on Friday.
'Rahulbhai told me to manage my mental energy better.' 'He said I was thinking about the game too much, hence I am not able to manage my mental energy and it is resulting in mental fatigue.' 'I am putting too much pressure on myself. He believed that was harmful to me.'
Playing for Mumbai in the Vijay Hazare competition in October, 17-year-old Yashasvi Jaiswal scored 203 off 154 balls, which included 12 sixes and 17 fours against a Jharkhand attack that included out-of-favour India pacer Varun Aaron and Shahbaz Nadeem.
Malik had recently played for the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 and he also ended up recording the fastest delivery of the season.
Karnataka cricketers, who have been picked in India and India 'A' squads, want to make the most of the opportunity.
Kings XI Punjab spinner Axar Patel knows he can be predictable after a couple of seasons at the highest level and that is why he will be seen tossing up the odd ball during the upcoming IPL and not rely only on flatter deliveries. "You expect top batsmen to read you well after two three seasons at this level and that is why I felt the need to add more variety to my bowling. I am tossing up the odd ball in training but it doesn't mean I will only do that. I will continue bowling the flatters ones and try to mix it with the odd flighted ball," Patel told PTI from Mohali where he is training alongside his Kings XI Punjab teammates. The season starting on April 9 is crucial for Patel, who has been sidelined from the Indian team after the return of senior pro Ravindra Jadeja and another left-arm spinner Pawan Negi getting the selectors' nod over him for the recently concluded World T20. Though the 22-year-old was part of India's 50-over squad in Australia, he did not get a game and last played for the country in October. But the spinner, who is often criticised for not turning the ball enough, is not perturbed by the selectors' snub.
Suyash battles through Delhi cricket politics to shine in IPL
Delhi's strong batting line up of Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, Ajinkya Rahane, Steven Smith and Pant himself will look to fire on all cylinders right from the opening game.
Former India captain Kapil Dev on Wednesday lauded Yuvraj Singh's inclusion in the Indian T20 team terming him as a 'crowdpuller like John McEnroe'.
'We are working on having the IPL in India and we are hopeful that we would be able to organise it'
A red-hot Bengal will have a chance to win their first Ranji Trophy title in 33 years when they face Saurashtra, bolstered by the return of pacer and domestic game heavyweight Jaydev Unadkat, in the summit clash in Kolkata from Thursday.
The inclusion of all North Eastern states has forced the Board of Control for Cricket in India to schedule an unprecedented 2017 domestic matches, which many fear would lead to logistical nightmare.
Ishan Porel is fully aware that there is no shortcut to success and says he will have to perform in domestic cricket to make the boys-to-men transition.
'It helps me get into a mindset that I have nothing to lose and play accordingly.'
From TC to Cricket Legend, what an incredible journey Mahi has had!
During the ICC Cricket World Cup that was played Down Under, last year, Mohammed Shami was the pick of the Indian bowlers.
Swapnil Gugale and Ankit Bawane, the Maharashtra batting duo, who stitched together a record partnership of 594 runs in the Ranji Trophy match against Delhi, on Friday, regretted when informed that they were 30 runs short of breaking the world record 624-run partnership held by Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene.
16-year-old Nagaland leg-spinner Khrievitso Kense says he became a cricketer all by himself and honed his skills by watching Warne on TV.
Skipper Manoj Tiwary continued his blazing form in domestic competitions with a magnificent 151 that powered East Zone to a comfortable 52-run win over North in the Deodhar Trophy semi-final in Mumbai.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Sunday
Pacer Jasprit Bumrah produced his career-best spell in first-class cricket as Gujarat staged a sensational comeback to beat Jharkhand by 123 runs and reach their second ever final of the Ranji Trophy cricket Tournament. Bumrah finished with figures of six for 29 and alongside veteran pacer R P Singh plotted the downfall of Jharkhand, who were skittled out for 111 in their second innings after being set a target of 235 runs on day four of the semifinal.
BCCI president Sourav Ganguly has indicated that this year's Indian Premier League could be conducted in empty stadiums, insisting that all possible options are being explored to ensure that the suspended event does take place despite the COVID-19 pandemic. In a letter to all the affiliated units sent late on Wednesday after the ICC Board meeting, Ganguly seemed confident of an IPL this year despite its current status of being indefinitely suspended because of the raging pandemic, which has claimed more than 8,000 lives in India.
Thrust into the leadership role, a completely transformed Rishabh Pant carries a lot of hope and responsibility on his shoulders as Delhi Capitals aim to build on the success of the last edition in the UAE, where they finished runners-up to Mumbai Indians.
'At the end of the day, we also had to look at players who will figure in the playing XI.'
Rishabh Pant, on Thursday, earned a maiden call-up to the Indian ODI team, replacing Dinesh Karthik for the first two games against the West Indies.
Back in the Indian team after a four-year gap, Sanju Samson is at peace with his flaws and doesn't try to be the "perfect batsman" that he wanted to be for the longest time.
'I don't have to prove anything to anyone. What my ability is, I need to sharpen it. I don't have to show anyone what I can do. I need to challenge myself'
The 1999 World Cup player of the tournament said Pandya has a fine support system to hone him.
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.
'We decided this is the best time to give him the opportunity to lead the team.'
Just like it happens with most of the seasoned domestic warhorses, 30-year-old Faiz Fazal had also stopped expecting to break through into the national squad but now that he has earned his maiden India call-up, "the world seemed like a much beautiful place" for the Vidarbha left-hander.
A summary of the day's play in the Vijay Hazare One-day tournament.
Dasun Shanaka is their 10th captain in nearly five years, and barring a classy batsman like Dhananjaya de Silva and a steady pacer in Dishmantha Chameera, this team lacks quality to challenge the might of the Indian team led by Shikhar Dhawan.
Ashish Nehra has been the proverbial Phoenix rising from the ashes every time the Doubting Thomases write his cricketing epitaph.
The India Test spinner had one wicket to show in 21 overs during Day 1 of the Ranji Trophy Group B match against Madhya Pradesh.
They endured a disastrous run the last time around to finish at the bottom of the heap and Kings XI Punjab would be aiming to make amends this season when they begin their campaign against newbies Gujarat Lions in their IPL opener in Mohali on Monday. Kings XI Punjab did not make any big buys this year and have a new captain in South African David Miller in place of Australian George Bailey who was released after leading the side to the last place in the previous season. Virender Sehwag has also retired and he will serve as team mentor this season. The Preity Zinta-owned side continues to lack the team balance as it has not added any significant player, only snapping the likes of all-rounders Farhaan Behardien and Marcus Stoinis, seamer Mohit Sharma and left-arm spinner Swapnil Singh. Last season, their batsmen lacked consistency and whenever they did well, the bowlers let the side down. On the other hand, debutants Gujarat Lions have a balanced side with top-class performers in both batting and bowling. They have explosive batsmen in Brendon McCullum, captain Suresh Raina, Aaron Finch and a plenty of top-notch all-rounders in Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja and James Faulkner.