Australia will be without their premier pacers but their envious pedigree in ICC tournaments make them favourites to progress to the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy from Group B.
Former India captain Sourav Ganguly believes K L Rahul's impressive ODI form has cemented his position as the team's first-choice wicketkeeper.
Selectors have recalled pace stalwart Hazlewood for the second ODI after he missed the MCG match to play Sheffield Shield cricket.
Several other pacers are unavailable due to injury including Spencer Johnson and Nathan Ellis.
Former skipper Ricky Ponting predicted that the Baggy Greens will dominate the Rohit Sharma-led side in the five-match series.
Opener David Warner and all-rounder Mitch Marsh will be rested for the five-match Twenty20 International series against Sri Lanka next month to prepare for the upcoming tour of Pakistan.
Uncapped McSweeney to open with Khawaja in India series
IMAGES from the Group B Champions Trophy match between Australia and England in Lahore on Saturday
Chennai Super Kings will commence their campaign with a match against Delhi Capitals at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday.
Pat Cummins defends team behaviour, terms Travis Head 'a big boy' who can speak for himself
Images from Day 1 of the first Test between Australia and India in Perth, on Friday.
Smith needs just 315 runs to become the fourth Australian batter after Ricky Ponting (13378), Allan Border (11174), and Steve Waugh (10927) to reach the landmark of 10,000 Test runs.
Spin great Ravichandran Ashwin says New Zealand, despite the absence of the long-serving pace duo of Trent Boult and Tim Southee, who have quit playing the 50-over format, will pose a challenge to India.
The ICC Champions Trophy is set to kick off in Pakistan, marking the country's first ICC event since the 1996 World Cup.
Bumrah leads a competitive field, including South African speedster Kagiso Rabada (856) and Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood (851).
Cricket Australia named Bumrah as the captain of its Test team of the year, which also features Yashasvi Jaiswal.
With 539 scalps in 134 matches at an average of 30.39 and best figures of 5/39, Lyon is the seventh-highest wicket-taker in Tests and has 24 five-wicket hauls and five ten-wicket hauls.
In his 13th pink ball Test since 2015, the 34-year-old Australian pacer has taken 72 wickets at an average of 17.
'That's one we need to tick off, definitely, in particular at home... we should pretty much win every series here at home.'
Sanjay Manjrekar believes the Aussies will likely target Kohli's off-stump, a tactic that has proven effective in recent times.
Jasprit Bumrah has reached an impressive milestone in the ICC Men's Test Bowling Rankings, sitting at 904 rating points
Back-to-back Test series wins over Australia are almost unheard of but India have won the last four they have played.
Nathan McSweeney, who opened in the first three Tests with little success, has been dropped.
Sunil Gavaskar has advised India's flamboyant wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant to "respect" the conditions before launching into his attacking strokes
Images from Day 3 of the fifth Test between Australia and India at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Sunday.
With the series locked at 1-1, Brisbane could well decide the course of the rubber and whether Rohit's men would continue to be the master of their fate in the ongoing World Test Championship.
With the wickets of Wriddhiman Saha and Ravichandran Ashwin again in a single over, Hazlewood became the 18th Australian bowler to reach 200 Test scalps.
Australia's capitulation in Perth triggered damning assessments of the team's performance in home media.
Teenager Konstas to make debut in fourth Test against India
Josh Hazlewood decided to pull out of this year's IPL citing bubble fatigue and he also said that he wants to spend more time with his family.
From a bowler's paradise on Day 1 to a batting haven on Day 2, the Perth pitch has defied expectations.
'You've got to love the banter, especially from someone so young.'
"To be honest, I was not serious when I was young," he said in a video released by the BCCI on Thursday.
Boland is ready to step in once again for Josh Hazlewood, continuing the role of the perfect first substitute that has defined his 11-Test career.
India managed to keep the five-Test series level at 1-1 heading into the Boxing day Test in Melbourne, the fragility of their top order remains a major concern for the tourists.
India will have to wait until day two to show their skills and may need early wickets to force a third consecutive result in the series.
With a heavy downpour preventing the resumption of play after the break, the match was abandoned and the series remains locked at 1-1.
Indian cricket has produced a generational superstar in Yashasvi Jaiswal and will remain in good health even when Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma decide to call time on their careers, said former Australia World Cup winner Darren Lehmann.
The IPL 2025 auction was a spectacle of astronomical bids and shattered records.
Josh Hazlewood decided to give this year's IPL a miss in order to spend some time with his family.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances