Hailing the Indian Premier League as a top-class tournament, hard-hitting West Indian batsman Chris Gayle credited the cash-rich Twenty20 annual event for Indian cricket's rise in different formats of the game.
Russell hopes he can continue his form into the May 30-July 14 World Cup
Hard-hitting left-hander Chris Gayle will return to the West Indies squad for their tour of South Africa after recovering from a back injury.
Chris Gayle started with flair while Darren Sammy finished with a flourish as West Indies got the better of Australia by six wickets in an exciting Group 2 League encounter of the ICC World T20 in Mirpur.
Australia opener David Warner became the fifth batsman at the World Cup to get an unexpected reprieve after he dragged a ball on to his stump but the impact failed to dislodge the zing bails in Sunday's match against India.
Pushed to the bottom of the heap after three successive losses, it will take an extraordinary effort from Royal Challengers Bangalore to overpower table-toppers Rajasthan Royals when the two sides clash in an Indian Premier League match in Ahmedabad on Friday.
Lewis had recently declined a central contract offered by the Cricket West Indies, potentially making him more available for leagues around the world, following in the footsteps of Chris Gayle and other stars from the region.
England all-rounder Ben Stokes will be sidelined for about three months after fracturing his finger while playing for Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League, the England and Wales Cricket Board said on Friday.
Mumbai Indians enter the match high on confidence following successive victories over holders Chennai Super Kings and last edition's finalists Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Their sagging morale lifted after a thumping win over Pakistan, Indian spinners will now have to brace up for the ever-dangerous Chris Gayle when the team squares off against defending champion West Indies in its second match of the ICC World Twenty20 Championships in Mirpur on Sunday.
Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore have won only three games out of 10 in IPL-12 so far.
Virat Kohli produced yet another masterclass as he smashed an unbeaten 47-ball 89 to guide India to a challenging 192 for two. against West Indies in the second semifinal of the ICC World Twenty20 in Mumbai on Thursday.
Australian all-rounder Shane Watson is looking forward to playing alongside Indian swashbuckler Virat Kohli in the Indian Premier League and said he would be comfortable batting at any position for Royal Challengers Bangalore. Watson, who has recently retired from international cricket, said it is a "huge buzz" for him to play with Kohli, against whom he had a few battles on the field. "It is exciting to be playing leagues like Big Bash, Pakistan Super League, the IPL. I get the privilege to play with a number of players against whom I played international cricket. For example, I will get to play with Virat and that's a huge buzz for me. I have had had a few battles with him on the field and always had the utmost respect for him," he said. Watson said that he and Chris Gayle had few run-ins in the past, but have buried their differences for the sake of playing for RCB.
KXIP got its campaign back on track with three consecutive wins -- over mighty Delhi Capitals, Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore and the KL Rahul-led side would be hoping to carry the winning momentum forward to break into top four.
West Indies captain Darren Sammy laughed off Indian batsman Suresh Raina's claim that the big-hitting Caribbean cricketers cannot rotate the strike and dared the Indians to stop his batsmen from hitting sixes in Sunday's World Twenty20 match.
The song has a primarily Caribbean beat with an Indian touch. The Indian flavour to the single is lent by Trinidadian singer/songwriter Nisha B. The female vocalist sings for Carib band 'Karma'.
Images from the IPL match between Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals, in Ahmedabad, on Sunday.
Afghanistan batsman Hazratullah Zazai achieved one of the rare feats in the game of cricket when he smashed six sixes in an over during an Afghanistan Premier League (APL) T20 match in Sharjah on Sunday.
Images from Thursday's IPL match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kings XI Punjab, in Sharjah.
Adam Zampa surpassed pacer Mitchell Starc to become the country's leading wicket-taker in ICC T20 World Cup history.
Rajneesh Gupta is amazed at Evin Lewis' whirlwind knock.
Suresh Raina became the first Indian batsman to crack a Twenty20 international century, helping his team register a 14-run victory over South Africa and progress to the Super Eights at the ICC World Twenty20.
A charged up Sunrisers Hyderabad will have revenge on their minds when they face an in-form Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League, in Hyderabad, on Thursday.
Liam Livingstone and Evin Lewis's explosive batting will meet its match in Chris Gayle's power and KL Rahul's finesse when Rajasthan Royals lock horns with Punjab Kings to improve upon their mid-table position in the Indian Premier League in Dubai on Tuesday.
West Indies are two-time World T20 champions but the flamboyant Chris Gayle feels "it will be difficult" for the Caribbean islands to regain their glory days in Test cricket in the near future. One of the most dashing batsmen of his time, Gayle has two triple hundreds in the longest format with 7214 runs in 103 games. His RCB jersey no, 333, is his highest Test score. West Indies have lost their last two Test series against India (at home) and Pakistan (away).
Kieron Pollard and Sunil Narine failed to make the cut as West Indies announced their 15-man squad
Virat Kohli's hundred in the first Test against England provides just the kind of inspiration that a struggling Indian batting line-up needed, feels Chris Gayle.
A sold-out crowd descended on Eisenhower Park on Sunday for a clash of cricketing arch-rivals India and Pakistan.
RR will have to get their combination right as only four foreigners can make the playing XI.
Royal Challengers Bangalore learnt it the hard way that star power does not always guarantee success after succumbing to the lowest ever score in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in Sunday's match against Kolkata Knight Riders.
The match, at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, will also be a face-off between skippers KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer, both seen as future India captaincy material.
Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi hailed New Zealand batsman Corey Anderson, who broke his long-standing record for the fastest one-day century - but admitted he had never heard of him before
Royal Challengers Bengaluru all-rounder Will Jacks opened up on filling the shoes of legendary South African batter AB de Villiers as franchise's premier overseas batter, saying that the task is "daunting".
"This will probably be the biggest World Cup, so there will be great expectations and I know we will do very well for the people of the West Indies," he added.
The simmering rift between the West Indies cricketers and their board further widened after they boycotted the launch of the 2010 Twenty20 World Cup, which was held at the Beausejour Stadium, St Lucia.
A formidable lead in hand, an inspired Team India will be aiming to seal the series when they take on a depleted and low-on-confidence West Indies in the third cricket ODI of the five-match series, in Antigua on Saturday.
It will not be an easy task for a struggling Punjab side to stand up to the challenge thrown by a RCB team
Images from Friday's IPL match between Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals, in Abu Dhabi.
Kings XI retains Chris Gayle. Steve Smith returns to the IPL. Delhi Daredevils sacks 10 players!
