The speculation around the mood inside India's dressing room became a subject of ridicule for Australian skipper Steve Smith, who said the home team does not need to sedge the tourists as they are busy "whingeing among themselves".
Lokesh Rahul hit his maiden century, Virat Kohli his fourth of the series but Australia's Shane Watson hit back with two wickets in as many balls to leave India on 342 for five after the third day of the fourth Test on Thursday.
Rajasthan and Bangalore are locked 7-7 on the head-to-head count, but Wednesday's IPL Eliminator in Pune battle carries the weight of a title dream for both sides.
CSK's Harbhajan Singh and Mumbai Indians' Lasith Malinga were among the other big names to be released by their respective sides ahead of next month's auction.
Mumbai Indians humbled Chennai Super Kings by 37 runs in the Indian Premier League, in Mumbai, on Wednesday.
David Warner failed to take field against India in the ongoing Boxing Day cricket Test after the Australian opener suffered a nasty blow on his right forearm at the MCG nets.
Five players to watch at the Masters, which starts on Thursday at Augusta National.
Kings XI Punjab face the uphill task of not only pulling the rug from under the feet of formidable Chennai Super Kings but also boosting their net run-rate in the last IPL round-robin match to salvage hopes of sneaking into the play-offs.
Virat Kohli slammed an unbeaten 90 before a collective effort by the Indian bowlers gave the visitors a resounding start in the Twenty20 series against Australia with a 37-run victory in the first match in Adelaide, on Tuesday.
Tom Watson defied his 59 years to tie the lead in the British Open on Friday while world number one Tiger Woods missed the second-round cut. Veteran Watson regained the putting touch that won eight majors in his prime and danced a jig of delight after rolling in a 50-foot birdie putt for a level-par 70 to join fellow American Steve Marino (68) on 135, five under par.
Chennai Super Kings take on table toppers Sunrisers Hyderabad in an Indian Premier League match, in Pune, on Sunday.
Batting great Sunil Gavaskar flayed the one-Test ban on Gautam Gambhir, for elbowing Shane Watson, saying he should have been fined 100 per cent of his match fee instead.
Rajasthan Royals would be keen to adapt quickly to their new 'home ground' when they lock horns with last season's runner-up Kings XI Punjab in their campaign opener in the Indian Premier League in Pune.
Afridi reckoned a good start could take the 1992 champions all the way to the July 14 final at the Lord's.
Pat Cummins has been ruled out of Wednesday's World Cup match against Afghanistan, captain Michael Clarke confirmed.
Emma Watson, who plays Harry Potter's geeky-turned-beautiful inseparable friend Hermione Granger in the movies based on the super-selling books by British author J K Rowling, said recently that she was open to going nude for a good director, because 'it is part of my job' as an actress.
Delhi Daredevils will play table-toppers Chennai Super Kings in a crucial Indian Premier League match, in Pune, on Monday.
Foreign pension funds are making a beeline for India despite the turmoil in global markets.
It will be an uphill task for the defending champs given their opponents' form and formidable line-up.
Royal Challengers Bangalore and Chennai Super Kings will renew their intense rivalry after two years when they face-off in the Indian Premier League, in Bengaluru, on Wednesday.
Forty-two per cent employees could potentially leave their job in 2 years.
Australian all-rounder Shane Watson powered Rajasthan Royals to a commanding seven-wicket victory over Bangalore Royal Challengers.
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.
Rahul Chahar's brilliant spell of 2/14 helped Mumbai Indians crush Chennai Super Kings by 6 wickets to enter the IPL final.
Here's what your favourite stars have been up to.
Mumbai Indians have won three out of the four IPL finals they have been part of, including the two against CSK in 2013 and 2015.
Shane Watson says his Australia teammate will be wasting his talent if he quits international cricket for the Indian Premier League.
Workforce participation rates are twice as high for Chinese women as they are for Indian women.
Agnieszka Radwanska and Andy Murray picked up morale-boosting victories in the Hopman Cup on Wednesday to keep their Australian Open preparations on track.
Only pride will be at stake when Delhi Daredevils host embattled Royal Challengers Bangalore in an inconsequential IPL game in New Delhi, on Sunday, with both teams seeking an end to their misfiring campaign on a positive note.
Dhoni wants his top-order to be more discreet with shot selection.
'Very few are lionised like Dhoni anywhere in the world, perhaps not even Messi,' says Dhruv Munjal.
Up against an outfit that is struggling to stay afloat, fancied Rajasthan Royals will look to consolidate their position in the pecking order when they lock horns with Sunrisers Hyderabad in the ongoing seventh Indian Premier League in Ahmedabad on Thursday.
Images from Friday's IPL match between Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians, in Chennai.
American teenager Amanda Anisimova, fresh off an impressive run at Indian Wells, beat China's Wang Qiang 6-3, 1-6, 6-2 at the Miami Open on Tuesday to set up a second round clash with Spanish third seed Garbine Muguruza.
Australian opener David Warner on Tuesday said that a good pitch coupled with India's poor bowling and fielding helped Australia.
The 70-year-old former French and US Open champion, who earned a reputation for controversial behaviour during his playing days, was excluded from the tie on Saturday for unsportsmanlike conduct.
He led the Kolkata Knight Riders' successful chase with his batting heroics but Yusuf Pathan refused to agree with Sunil Gavaskar's assessment of Royal Challengers Bangalore's bowling, which he had termed as 'popatwadi attack'.
Australia were dealt a blow as their all-rounder Mitchell Marsh will not bowl again in the remainder of the second cricket Test against India due to a hamstring injury on the first day at the Gabba.
A depleted Rajasthan Royals will have an onerous task of stopping the mighty CSK
