It was the summer of 42 revisited all over again as Virat Kohli and the Indian team crashed to the lowest score in Test cricket in 65 years.
The prolific Virat Kohli, Joe Root, Steve Smith and Kane Williamson all enhanced their burgeoning reputations in 2016 but, aided by the screams of commentator Ian Bishop to "remember the name", the year will forever belong to Carlos Brathwaite.
Jhye Richardson scalped five wickets in the second innings as Australia defeated England by 275 runs in the second Ashes Test. With this win, Australia has gained a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.
Anderson's performance, his first five-wicket haul in Australia, turned out be in vain in the end, though, as the hosts steadily chipped away at England on the fourth day when they were chasing 354 for victory.
Australia cruised to a seven-wicket consolation victory in the day-night third Test on Sunday after dismissing South Africa for 250 and knocking off the 127 runs for victory for the loss of three wickets before dinner on day four. - Scorecard: There was a minor scare when, with 63 runs still required, Dave Warner was run-out for 47 and Usman Khawaja dismissed for a duck inside one over but there was never any real doubt that Australia would avoid a first ever 3-0 sweep on home soil.
Sachin Tendulkar feels the secret of India's No.1 batsman Virat Kohli's success is playing with a "straight bat" and "visualising all three formats without ever compromising on his technique".
The International Cricket Council on Wednesday withdrew its contentious proposal of having a two-tier system in Test cricket following vehement opposition from the all-powerful Board of Control for Cricket in India along with support from Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and Bangladesh.
'I find it hard to stop visualising the game or shadow batting'
IMAGES from Day 1 of the 1st Test between Australia and Sri Lanka on Thursday
England failed to make the inroads into the Australian batting order they needed after gambling on bowling first in the inaugural day-night Ashes Test on Saturday and the hosts reached the second break on 138 for two.
South Africa captain Faf du Plessis was cleared to play the third and final Test against Australia after a hearing by the International Cricket Council in Adelaide, on Tuesday.
Green was attended to by the medical team and was able to walk off the field.
Their frailties against quality spin attack badly exposed in Sri Lanka recently, pace bowling great Glenn McGrath said that the Australians will have to quickly sort out their issues against slow bowlers if they don't want a disaster in their tour of India to play four Tests in February-March next year. "Especially with the way things went in Sri Lanka on turning wickets, they have got a lot of work to do between now and then. The Aussies will find it tough in India unless they turn things around pretty quickly," McGrath told reporters during a promotional event.
The 28-year-old Kohli scored 62 and six not out to move to 833 points, within 14 points of England's Joe Root in a list led by Australia captain Steve Smith.
IMAGES from Day 1 of the 2nd Ashes Test played in Adelaide on Thursday.
Images from Day 3 of the first Test between India and Bangladesh, in Indore.
India need a draw in the final Test, also in Ahmedabad from March 4, to reach the WTC final against New Zealand.
England paceman James Anderson raised concerns about potentially 'dangerous' short-pitched bowling at the tourists' tail-enders during the first Ashes Test, but his captain Joe Root said the lower order would just need to learn to 'deal with it'.
CA said it had built quarantine periods for touring squads into the schedule but it is unlikely at this stage that England fans will be able to travel
Australia and India are currently gearing up for the four-match Test series. The first Test will get underway on Thursday at the Adelaide Oval and it will be a day-night contest.
Australia vice-captain David Warner found it "bizarre" that pundits and fans continue to criticise the team despite winning their last two Test matches after a run of five losses.
'I hope England at least get a decent score in the second innings because this pitch is really difficult to complain about'
Former captain Michael Vaughan questioned if England are giving priority to Test cricket.
Smriti Mandhana headlined a rain-hit opening day with a career-best 80 not out, which had elegance written all over it, as India finished on 132 for 1 in the one-off Day/Night women's Test against Australia, in Gold Coast, on Thursday.
'If you look at Australia's batting line-up, it is far better than last time.'
Steve Smith is not expected to return to training until at least Wednesday.
The rule of mandatory helmets for English cricketers comes in the wake of former Australian batsman Phillip Hughes' death, who was struck by a bouncer on the back of the neck during a domestic match in Sydney.
'He's a very talented batsman and able to bat long period of time.'
Virat Kohli and Indian cricket remained an enduring love story and Sourav Ganguly held out promise for a path-breaking reign off the field in a year during which the country finally embraced pink ball Tests. There were the heartbreaks, the biggest one being a World Cup semi-final exit, and not to forget the anxious wait on what Mahendra Singh Dhoni might do next after being on a sabbatical for half the year.
Axar Patel and senior off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin exploited the turning Motera pitch to bundle out England for 112 in their first innings
Virtually backing India's stance on producing spin-friendly tracks, former Australian captain Ian Chappell said he does not see anything wrong in the turning track in the Nagpur Test which saw India thrash South Africa inside three days, saying matches played elsewhere on seaming tracks have ended "in the blink of an eye".
"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.
James Pattinson will replace fellow-quick Mitchell Starc in the Australia team for this week's opening test against West Indies, captain Steve Smith said on Wednesday, reviving a promising career that had stalled because of injury.
Ahmedabad will also host the final Test, though with the traditional red ball, and the pitch is unlikely to be vastly different from the one that saw 30 wickets fall in five sessions in the shortest completed Test match since 1935.
India's limited overs vice-captain Rohit Sharma wants to play in both the T20 World Cup and the IPL this year as chances are that only one of the two tournaments could be salvaged due to the coronavirus pandemic. The ICC is yet to decide on the fate of the T20 World Cup, scheduled to be held in October-November in Australia, while the BCCI has postponed the popular and lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL) indefinitely due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Ashwin doesn't have the best record overseas -- in Australia alone he's got 27 wickets from 7 matches at an average of 48 and a best of 4 for 105.
India skipper Virat Kohli was effusive in praise of Ravchandran Ashwin after the off-spinner became only the fourth Indian, and sixth spinner in the world, to take 400 Test wickets.
While impressed by Kane Williamson's match-winning century, New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum praised his bowlers for their tenacity and ability to change plans to suit the conditions, which helped them seal a series win over Sri Lanka.
Playing only his second match at this year's IPL, Saha smashed 87 off 45 balls in Sunrisers Hyderabad's 88-run romp against Delhi Capitals.
Australia's bowling coach Craig McDermott has revealed Mitchell Starc's foot injury isn't as bad as first feared and hopes the left-arm pacer will play on Australia's tour of New Zealand.
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