South Africa were dealt a major blow before the first ball was even bowled, with pace ace Kagiso Rabada ruled out of the opening Test against India due to a rib injury.
'We all know he has a big heart when he goes out there to bat but also he has a big heart in terms of leadership as well. All the credits to him and (it was) amazing of him.'
David Miller smashed a brilliant half-century while Marco Jansen picked up four wickets as South Africa thrashed India by 76 runs in the ICC T20 World Cup Super 8s match.
Former England captain Nasser Hussain termed Ben Stokes' decision to bring Harry Brook into the attack after India declined his offer to end the fourth Test early as "silly".
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.
Pathan also lauded young Harshit Rana's all-round contribution, insisting the pacer is earning his place purely on merit.
India will look to overcome batting inconsistencies and finish the tour of Australia with authority when the two sides clash in the fifth and final T20 International in Brisbane on Saturday.
Simon Harmer picked up four wickets as South Africa staged an incredible fightback to shock India by 30 runs in a low-scoring first Test match.
Gill said a victory in Colombo will instill in the team a winning habit, and fill them with confidence.
A record-extending 52nd ODI century by Virat Kohli and a rapid 57 from Rohit Sharma paved the way for India's victory in the series-opener in Ranchi.
All eyes were on pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who participated in the training session, though his availability for the match is a big doubt.
'It feels good to have all those 4 AMs and four sessions a day practising alone when nobody is watching, all those things paying off.'
As fans who captured the whole drama were heard giggling and telling the cops, 'Arre coach hai yeh, bus se utara abhi,' Raghu looked amused before identifying himself to the cops, who then let him through.
Team India on Friday went through an optional net session in Visakhapatnam on Friday with Yashasvi Jaiswal, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar and Tilak Varma sweating it out under lights ahead of the ODI series decider against South Africa.
India has a strong spin attack, my favourite team in T20 WC: Ganguly
Shubman Gill was rewarded with the captaincy of the Indian ODI team for the upcoming tour of Australia, the BCCI announced on Saturday.
'Am I the reason team will lose? Kuldeep might think, I am bowling so well, even after that I am not playing, then am I the problem in this team?'
'It was good fun. I was obviously really nervous. Super stoked for the boys to get the win.'
The Proteas arrive high on confidence, having fought out a hard-earned 1-1 draw in Pakistan last month under challenging conditions.
The trio looked relaxed as they had coffee at the Peter Rabbit Cafe in Adelaide.
KL Rahul opened up about his on-field role in mentoring Harshit Rana during the tense chase against New Zealand in the first ODI in Vadodara, describing the experience as enjoyable.
India begin their Super 8 journey against South Africa at the Narendra Modi stadium in a thrilling clash where a single mistake could change the course of the semifinals.
India all-rounder Washington Sundar shone on his English County debut for Lancashire with impressive figures of 4/69 against Northamptonshire, in Northampton, on Tuesday.
Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Akash Deep and Sarfaraz Khan along with Assistant Coach Abhishek Nayar reached Perth on Monday.
While the first India vs New Zealand ODI will be played at Vadodara, the second match will get underway at Rajkot. The teams will face off for the final ODI of the series at Indore.
Openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and K L Rahul perished early as India fumbled in the chase of a mammoth 549-run target on Day 4 of the second Test.
Former India batter Yuvraj Singh feels Shubman Gill's performance on the recent England tour was nothing short of unbelievable.
Yashasvi Jaiswal enhanced his reputation as an all-conditions opener with a gutsy hundred on a tough pitch before Washington Sundar's whirlwind fifty allowed India to set a record 374-run target for England on an absorbing Day 3 of the final Test at The Oval on Saturday.
'Jassi bhai just told me that the wicket-taking option was if you bowl at the stumps...'
The 26-year-old Chahar scalped 8-51 in 24 overs to become the first bowler to pick eight wickets in an innings on debut for Surrey. The previous best was 7-61 by William Mudie vs the North at the Oval in 1859.
Virat Kohli has two hundreds and a fifty in his last three innings, while Rohit Sharma has a hundred and two fifties in his last four outings.
India pacer Harshit Rana has revealed that the Indian management is aiming to groom him as an all-rounder.
Marco Jansen smashed the records held by legends Matthew Hayden and Vivian Richards for the most sixes hit by an overseas batter in a Test innings in India.
Rohit Sharma offered a hilarious piece of advice to spinner Kuldeep Yadav ahead of the T20 World Cup this year from February 7.
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.
Ahead of the India's opener against Australia, Washington Sundar and Tilak Varma visited the Simhachalam Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple in Vishakhapatnam.
'We would like to believe and back ourselves to know these conditions or adapt to these conditions a lot faster even if we find them slightly different, as compared to, say, somebody who is brought up in Johannesburg and has played all his cricket at the Wanderers ground.'
Spin great Anil Kumble heaped praise on Ravindra Jadeja for his consistency and growing maturity with the bat.
India faces Zimbabwe in a crucial T20 World Cup Super 8 match, needing a big win to improve their net run rate after a heavy loss to South Africa. The team needs to address issues in the top order and consider strategic changes to the batting lineup.
The former India wicketkeeper believes the game still had some cricket left in it and that India had earned the right to continue batting.
