Recalling his early days of struggle, the Roorkee-born Pant said he used to take a bus at 2 o'clock in the night to travel to Delhi for practice.
Skipper Aiden Markram and all-rounder Wiaan Mulder hit superb hundreds as South Africa 'A' fought their way to 400 all out against India 'A' on day three of the second unofficial Test, in Mysuru, on Thursday.
India will play their 250th Test at home when they face New Zealand in the second five-day game of the three-match series at the iconic Eden Gardens from September 30, and the Cricket Association of Bengal has lined up a host of events to make this a special occasion. To start with, a Lord's like bell will be rung to mark the beginning of the historic Test and the CAB also has plans to felicitate both the teams. "We just got a confirmation that this will be the 250th Test on Indian soil which makes it historic and special," CAB joint-secretary Avishek Dalmiya said.
How the IPL teams have shaped up after the auction.
Australia coach Darren Lehmann, on Sunday, said it would be a real challenge for his team comprising five left-handers to negotiate the left-arm spin of Ravindra Jadeja on the final day in Ranchi, on Monday.
Much was expected from a revamped Kolkata Knight Riders set-up but it seemed Dinesh Karthik did not learn from his past mistakes
The Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators announced a new category 'A+' with an annual retainership of Rs. 7 crore. The top category includes the likes of captain Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Naman Ojha has been named in the squad for India's Test tour of Australia for just one match. He will return after the opening game at Brisbane.
Syed Kirmani has lauded the manner in which the national cricket team has bounced back after losing the Test series in South Africa,
India aim to stay afloat against daunting South Africa in the second Test
Here is a complete list of players, who failed to attract any bid in the IPL 2022
India failed to make the best of first use of the wicket, their batsmen capitulating against both pace and spin as they were dismissed for 215 in the first innings in the third Test against South Africa at the Vidarbha Cricket Association stadium, in Nagpur, on Wednesday. However, the hosts hit back immediately, claiming two early scalps, leaving the Proteas reeling on 11 for 2 after nine overs at the end of Day 1.
Whether it is by choice or compulsion of injuries, Kohli's fetish for tinkering with playing XI is well documented -- something that wasn't questioned till the South African debacle happened.
Who do you think should be part of India's playing XI for the fourth Test?
All-rounder Ben Stokes lived a charmed life to register his fourth century as England punished a sloppy India to post a huge first innings total on the second day of the opening Test in Rajkot, on Thursday.
Vihari, clearly hampered having pulled up clutching his hamstring after running for a single before tea, scored at a rate that made Pujara look like a limited overs slogger.
'Time has come for Indian selectors to pick same players in all formats of the game for rhythm and confidence' Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly on Wednesday said he was surprised to not see Shubman Gill and Ajinkya Rahane in the ODI squad for the upcoming three-match ODI series against West Indies. In a tweet, Ganguly wrote, "There are many in the squad who can play all formats ..surprised not to see Shubman gill ..Rahane in the one-day squad". "Time has come for Indian selectors to pick same players in all formats of the game for rhythm and confidence.. too few are playing in all formats ..great teams had consistent players ..it's not about making all happy but picking the best for the country and be consistent..@bcci," Ganguly tweeted. On Sunday, India had announced the squads for the upcoming T20Is, ODIs and Test match series against West Indies. Many people expressed their displeasure over the omission of Gill from the squad as the player enjoyed good form in the recently-concluded five-match unofficial ODI series between India A and West Indies A. The player went on to amass 218 runs in the series against West Indies A. After India were knocked out of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup in the semi-finals, former BCCI Secretary, Sanjay Jagdale had backed Rahane to be the number four batsman in the ODI format. "In my opinion, the Indian team needs a batsman like Ajinkya Rahane at number four. We have tried many options at the batting position for the past three months. We tried those batsmen who did not have a good record overseas. Rahane has always scored good runs in England," Jagdale had told ANI. Team India chief selector MSK Prasad on Sunday had announced the squads at the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai for the upcoming series in Windies. Putting all speculations to rest about India captain Virat Kohli's participation in the limited-overs series, he was chosen to lead the team in all formats. Dhawan, who was ruled out of the World Cup after sustaining an injury to his left hand in the region between the index finger and thumb, returned for both ODIs and T20Is. Meanwhile, fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah was rested for three ODIs and as many T20Is. Veteran wicket-keeper batsman MS Dhoni was rested as well; Rishabh Pant will be keeping the wickets for the team. Pant has been named across all three formats and Wriddhiman Saha found a spot in the two Tests.
Rishabh Pant was hit on the left elbow while batting on Day 3 of the third Test against Australia at the SCG on Saturday and was taken for a scan.
Showering praise on Virat Kohli, former India team director Ravi Shastri has said that the star Indian batsman's sensational form can only be beneficial to Indian cricket. Kohli is in the form of his life with four centuries in the ongoing IPL -- most by a player in a single T20 tournament. "Virat has hit a purple patch. Terrific batting. If he goes on like this, it will only keep on serving Indian cricket and be beneficial to it. The kind of batting on offer from him, he will make you stand up and applaud."
The humiliation in Adelaide has opened up 'serious wounds' for India and Australia now have a good chance of inflicting on the visitors a whitewash in the four-Test series, reckons former captain Ricky Ponting.
Among those who impressed were Shubhman Gill, Hanuma Vihari and Rishabh Pant.
Table-toppers Sunrisers Hyderabad will look to quickly bounce back from the disappointing loss against Delhi Daredevils and seal their place in the play-off when they take on a resurgent Kings XI Punjab in an IPL clash in Mohali on Sunday. Knowing that there is scramble among top teams for the playoff berth and holding on to top position is not an easy task, SRH will have to put the loss against Delhi behind and look to put up an all-round performance on Sunday. What has made this game at the I S Bindra PCA stadium even more important for Hyderabad is the fact that Punjab, which has struggled through the tournament, has suddenly started turning over a leaf under their new captain Murali Vijay, whose appointment was made mid-way. The Punjab outfit, which is lying at the seventh place with four wins from 11 outings, pulled off a comprehensive seven-wicket victory against Mumbai Indians at Visakhapatnam on Friday night.
Apart from Virat Kohli and the pace battery of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, and Ishant Sharma, not many in the current Indian Test setup can say they are sure-shot starters.
India have posted 6 of the 7 600+ totals posted in Test cricket this year!
Robin Uthappa smashed his way to a quickfire half-century as Kolkata Knight Riders notched up a comfortable six-wicket victory over Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League in Mohali, on Tuesday.
Veteran wicketkeeper-batsman Parthiv Patel on Thursday advised young Rishabh Pant to ignore criticism and focus on his game, saying dealing with this constant pressure can help him emerge as a better batsman. Seen as heir apparent to Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the 22-year-old Pant has been receiving flak for his failure to perform consistently at the international level.
They might have been disappointing so far but Indian opener Murali Vijay is still hopeful that the Indian spinners will utilise the spin-friendly conditions on the final day. Scorecard: "It's a pretty good wicket, (though it has) gone slower. There's a lot of assistance to the spinners now. Hopefully we can put some pressure in the morning session get some wickets and you never know," said Vijay after the fourth day's play at the SCA Stadium in Rajkot. Vijay feels that India still have the edge.
Dhoni's men will be slight favourites as it will be Bairstow's last game
Sunrisers Hyderabad will take huge confidence from the fact that they managed to get the better of Delhi Capitals in both their league games, and boast of an impressive 11-6 overall head to head record against them.
Batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has criticised the performance of India's top-order batsmen save Murali Vijay terming their effort as "below-par" despite the pitch being a tricky one.
Punjab batsman Gurkeerat Singh Mann, a surprise inclusion as the 17th member of the squad for the Bangalore Test, retained his place for the next two matches as well.
The dawn of a new era had begun under Sourav Ganguly's aggressive leadership. With Ganguly and Coach John Wright at the helm India had transitioned into a force to be reckoned with.
Indian limited-overs captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was on Monday retained in Group A of the men's player contracts for 2015-16 by the BCCI.
Will triple centurion Karun Nair be picked to counter the Afghan spinners?
Equipment manufacturer Sanspareils Greenlands have assured their pink balls would not discolour easily but concerns linger in both camps.
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.
'It came off tonight and pretty chuffed with the innings. Getting in with the position at 16/3 gives me an opportunity to shine, doesn't happen too often, but when the ball was new it helps.'
Mayank Agarwal knows that he could be confined to the sidelines once K L Rahul and Rohit Sharma are back in the mix, but what has helped him stay focussed is words of wisdom from coach Rahul Dravid, who told him to control what's in his domain.
India's Test captain Virat Kohli has dropped out of ICC's top-10 list for batsmen in the five-day format.
Rajneesh Gupta presents interesting numbers from Day 2 of the second Test in Colombo, on Friday.
