Regular captain Pat Cummins, fellow quick Josh Hazlewood and all-rounder Mitch Marsh have been ruled out with injuries, while Marcus Stoinis withdrew himself after his shock decision to quit ODIs on Thursday.
South Africa's run to the WTC final has been driven by their dominant performances, especially at home. In those matches, their potent pace attack, featuring Kagiso Rabada (37 wickets in 8 matches at an average of 19.8) and Marco Jansen (29 wickets in 7 matches), has proved to be a game changer.
Virat Kohli was not extended any special treatment, asserted India great Sunil Gavaskar, but some former Australia players felt the batting superstar got away lightly for his physical altercation with debutant Sam Konstas in the ongoing Boxing Day Test in Melbourne.
'Nick Kyrgios without his serve is probably not -- I'm not a threat to many players.'
Djokovic backs schedule change at expanded Australian Open
The performance marked a significant milestone for Zampa, as he became the first Australian bowler to reach the coveted 100-wicket mark in T20 Internationals
Aryna Sabalenka will battle American 19th seed Madison Keys in the final on Saturday looking to become the first woman since Martina Hingis from 1997-99 to win the Australian Open title three times in a row.
Alcaraz has not gone beyond the quarter-finals in his three previous visits to Melbourne, but that has not stopped the world number three from dreaming of glory in the Jan. 12-26 event.
A ruthless Iga Swiatek slammed the door shut on German lucky loser Eva Lys with a 6-0 6-1 win on Monday to breeze into the quarter-finals of the year's opening Grand Slam for the second time.
The ideal candidate should be deaf to avoid being shocked by the so-called 'shocking revelations' from the dressing room, asserts K R Nayar.
Beth Mooney smashed an unbeaten 96 as a dominant Gujarat Giants thrashed UP Warriorz by 81 runs in a one-sided WPL 2025 match in Lucknow on Monday.https://www.rediff.com/cricket/special/can-india-win-the-champions-trophy/20250303.htm
An out of sorts Rohit Sharma will strive to keep himself relevant going forward in the Indian Premier League when he is challenged by Delhi Capitals' effective troika of spinners in Mumbai Indians' next match in Delhi on Sunday.
No separate vehicle for anyone, all players to travel by team bus, BCCI tells state units
Flattens Faria in 2nd round to advance in Melbourne
Sumit Nagal on Monday dropped out of the much-desired bracket following a string of poor show
The upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) match between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Delhi Capitals (DC) in Chennai promises a captivating battle between wrist spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Noor Ahmad. Both bowlers are known for their artistry and ability to control the middle overs.
Pakistan's ODI series victory in Australia showcased the raw pace and skill of their fast bowling attack, spearheaded by Haris Rauf.
'Great to catch up with a champion tennis player.'
Aryna Sabalenka is the red-hot favourite at Melbourne Park, where another victory would give her a fourth major title and widen the gap in the rankings to Poland's Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff of the United States.
'Pakistan can beat any team on any given day'
Australian cricketers, including big buys Glenn Maxwell and Jhye Richardson, are going to be part of the action.
Australia, who have already secured their place in the final of the World Test Championship against South Africa, won the opening Test, also in Galle, by an innings and 242 runs.
Bopanna, Zhang advance into mixed doubles round two of Australian Open
The inaugural edition's winner Mumbai Indians will bank on their core group of players while two-time finalists Delhi Capitals will expect fireworks from Shafali Verma when they face-off in the second game of the Women's Premier League here on Saturday. The finalists of the first WPL in 2023, both Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals made it to the knockouts in the second edition last year but lost to the eventual champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the eliminator and the final respectively. Those defeats were certainly not reflective of how well MI and DC had fared until the knockouts stage, with Harmanpreet Kaur's side finishing second in the points table with five wins in eight matches and Meg Lanning's team topping it with six wins in as many outings. The winners of WPL 2023, Mumbai Indians tend to lean on their core group of players both overseas and Indian and a similar approach can be expected this year, with only a few changes taking place in terms of squad composition. India pacer Pooja Vastrakar, who was grappling with an unspecified injury, was ruled out of the competition and has been replaced by slow left-arm orthodox bowler Parunika Sisodia, who was one of the main performers in India's title-winning campaign in the U-19 Women's T20 World Cup recently. Mumbai Indians have let go of England's Issy Wong, who took the first-ever WPL hat-trick in 2023, after the player lost form and the franchise found the leader of their attack in South Africa's Shabnim Ismail. Among domestic talents, another member of the U-19 T20 World Cup winning squad G Kamalini would be one to watch out for, having finished as the third highest scorer in the competition with 143 runs in seven matches. Apart from a strong leader in Harmanpreet, MI have strong figures from other international sides such as Nat Sciver-Brunt (England), Hayley Matthews (West Indies), Amelia Kerr (New Zealand), as well as South Africans Nadine de Klerk, Shabnim Ismail and Chloe Tryon. While Yastika Bhatia is MI's No 1 wicketkeeper-batter, other Indian players in Saika Ishaque, Sajana Sajeevan, uncapped Akshita Maheshwari and Amanjot Kaur will be expected to play their roles to perfection. On their part, Delhi Capitals will be keen to do one better after finishing as runner-up for two times in a row ever since the competition began. One of the most consistent teams in the competition, the Lanning-led Delhi have strong talent base across departments but the key will be to deliver in crucial matches. All eyes will be on the explosive Indian batter Shafali who has responded to her exclusion from the Indian side with runs in domestic cricket. She forms a lethal opening pair with Lanning at the top, while the likes of Australia's Annabel Sutherland, England's Alice Capsey and India's Jemimah Rodrigues form the core of their middle order. All-rounder Sutherland will hope to draw inspiration from her recent success of having struck 163 in the only Test of the women's Ashes followed by winning the highest individual honour in Australian cricket. While Delhi boasts of three wicketkeeper-batters in India's Taniyaa Bhatia, Nandini Kashyap and Scotland's Sarah Bryce, their bowling looks settled with Marizanne Kapp as the leader of the attack, backed by Australia's Jess Jonassen, India's Radha Yadav and Shikha Pandey as well as Titas Sadhu.
Tim Watts had his fan boy moment on Friday when he caught up with Virat Kohli during the Indian team's visit to Parliament house in Canberra.
India suffered a 1-3 defeat in the five-match series in Australia, bringing to an end their decade-long dominance in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Defending champion Iga Swiatek crushed Dayana Yastremska 6-0, 6-2 and 2023 champion Elena Rybakina powered past Britain's Katie Boulter 6-0, 7-5 to reach the fourth round of Indian Wells on Sunday in displays of dominance.
Smarting from their dramatic Super Over loss in the Women's Premier League, Royal Challengers Bengaluru will aim to get back on track when they take on bottom-placed Gujarat Giants in Bengaluru on Thursday.
Alex Michelsen hung on to defeat Tung-Lin Wu and help the United States take a 2-0 lead against Taiwan in the Davis Cup qualifier in Taipei City on Friday.
Aryna Sabalenka will bid for a third Australian Open title in succession as if she was going for her first
Before the situation could escalate, a vigilant security official intervened, calming the cricket legend and escorting him towards the dressing room.
Australian batsman Steve Smith narrowly missed reaching the 10,000-run milestone in Test cricket during the final match against India in Sydney. He acknowledges the significance of the milestone, describing it as "a different beast." Smith's pursuit of the landmark weighed heavily on his mind during the match, and he even joked about associating the number 38 (the runs he needed) with teammate Josh Hazlewood, whose jersey number is 38. Despite falling short, Smith remains hopeful of achieving the milestone on the first day of the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanka.
Australia legend Ricky Ponting believes Rohit Sharma's decision to continue playing and leading India in the 50-over format until the 2027 ODI World Cup stems from a sense of unfinished business.
Australian chair of selectors George Bailey said Fraser-McGurk and Short made "compelling cases" for selection, and provide better than adequate cover should squad members go down during the tournament.
Team India's assistant coach Abhishek Nayar provided insights into the team's preparations for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.
Don Bradman wore the "baggy green" cap during India's first tour of Australia as an independent country in 1947-48, scoring 715 runs in six innings at an average of 178.75.
Jannik Sinner swats aside Giron to reach Australian Open fourth round
A trio of tennis moms-Naomi Osaka, Angelique Kerber and Caroline Wozniacki-are poised for comebacks at the Australian Open.
Five singles matches were cancelled as persistent rain washed out a large chunk of play on the opening day of the Australian Open on Sunday, disappointing the large crowds that flocked to Melbourne Park.
Former Australia opener David Warner on Tuesday said he is willing to come out of retirement and play against India in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy, if the home team needs him in the opening slot.
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