'We want pace on the ball, we want the ball to bounce and we want the ball to carry through so that when we're batting, we can be aggressive, we can attack, and we can put pressure back on the bowlers.'
The Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals will hope their struggling bowling units can find their form on an Ahmedabad pitch that has produced high scores in the last four matches.
Here's a quick look back to the day when India erased a good chunk of the stigma of being poor travellers.
Yashasvi Jaiswal and Jos Buttler smashed half-centuries to steer Rajasthan Royals to an easy 57-run victory while consigning Delhi Capitals to their third straight loss.
'So make sure first you pick the right characters and then if you see that, try and give them a longer run so that they themselves should be content and happy that they've got a longer run rather than just chopping and changing as well.'
'It's about taking the right options in the given situation.'
Such has been the problem of plenty for selectors in the T20 format that they are finding it difficult to even accommodate Yashasvi Jaiswal -- a proven performer in T20 cricket.
'I'm trying to do what I am doing well. Some days it comes good and some days it doesn't, (but) I'm not thinking much.'
'With the slope here, you always feel there is something to work with. We have to be creative and smart, and understand sometimes you do not need to exaggerate things.'
The controversial decision to select Shubman Gill in place of a well-settled Sanju Samson as the opener has backfired for the Indian team so far.
KL Rahul, in a heartwarming gesture, folded his hands and bowed towards Pant in admiration, a clip that has since gone viral on social media.
The skipper, however, lamented that his team often stood at the receiving end of such decisions.
Yashasvi Jaiswal has no qualms in admitting that the South Africa series was a challenging one and said it was India skipper Rohit Sharma, who helped him maintain a positive mindset.
Skipper Shubman Gill had a long batting stint while the troika of Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel returned to action for India's final training session here on Wednesday before the first Test against the West Indies.
We wanted India to grovel: SA coach Shukri Conrad creates a stir
The Royals batting looks decent but there is the issue of consistency and lack of depth that could be telling as the tournament wears on.
While Rahul, who can bat practically anywhere in the line-up, is likely to succeed Rohit as Jaiswal's opening partner, either Gill or Karun Nair is likely to fill the void of Kohli at number four.
With Bumrah leading the charge, India prised out five wickets in the second session to snuff out South Africa's hopes of reaching the 200 mark.
Indian cricketers, including Test skipper Shubman Gill and ODI captain Rohit Sharma, have cleared the pre-season fitness test which was conducted at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru on Sunday.
Siraj has attained a career-best 15th position in the latest ICC Test rankings
Harshit Rana has been included in the India Test squad as a cover and travelled with the rest of the team via train to reach Leeds
'He should be blooded into the senior team immediately, like Sachin was all those years ago.'
Virat Kohli walked around the ground in a black jacket with a hoodie before heading into the indoor facility at the National Cricket Academy.
Shivam Dube, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Varma and Prabhsimran Singh are the others who have been picked at the back of a stellar IPL.
The 29 year old dedicated the award to his wife Molly Sandhu, the couple tied the knot on March 14, just ahead of IPL 2025.
With the twin home Test series against West Indies and then against South Africa, Gaikwad's resurgence comes just at the right time, giving selectors another reminder of his ability after a difficult few months.
Jwala Singh, the formative coach of Indian opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, believes the upcoming IPL season will be crucial for his ward's bid to reclaim a spot in the Indian T20 World Cup squad next year. Singh emphasized the IPL's role as a platform for players to make a mark, stating that "IPL performances are taken into account, and you get noticed." He is confident Jaiswal will end the IPL season as the highest run-scorer, urging him to "take to the field with the mindset of being the best."
Scoring at a rate of 173.33, Jaiswal's unbeaten 104 off 60 was peppered with nine boundaries and seven sixes.
Chasing 121 for victory, India were 63/1 at stumps and West Indies will draw solace from being able to force a final-day finish after being made to follow on.
With just two wins from seven games, the Royals, languishing at eighth on the table, come into the contest on the back of a gut-wrenching Super Over defeat to Delhi Capitals.
Rishabh Pant's place in the playing eleven is far from guaranteed, while Washington Sundar and Nitish Kumar Reddy are locked in a tight contest for the additional all-rounder's slot as India confront several selection dilemmas ahead of the first ODI against South Africa in Ranchi.
Kuldeep picked the wickets of Ben Stokes at Ranchi and Zak Crawley in Dharamsala as his favourite dismissals from the series.
Nitish Kumar Reddy has been ruled out of the remainder of the series against England due to a knee injury.
Ravindra Jadeja said the looming series defeat to South Africa will have no bearing on India's next Test assignment in Sri Lanka in August next year.
In a series finale defined by pressure and fine margins, the Indian dressing room found its anchor in an unexpected source - the Shri Shiva Rudrashtakam.
Ishant Sharma highlighted the opportunity for young debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal to aim for a century.
Mystery spinner Varun Charkravarthy on Wednesday rose to the top spot in ICC's T20 International Bowlers' Rankings for the first time
But they seemed to learn nothing from their past mistakes.
The players from both teams waited for nearly two hours at the ground before the steady drizzle forced them to return to their team hotel.
Nehal Wadhera and Shashank Singh struck half-centuries, while left-arm spinner Harpreet Brar took three wickets as Punjab Kings outclassed Rajasthan Royals by 10 runs.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances