India justified their top ranking with their breakthrough overseas win in Australia on Monday and captain Virat Kohli has reasons to be optimistic about leading a team which can dominate Test cricket for years to come.
India will aim to soar higher with the return of Virat Kohli against Joe Root's England
Statistical highlights of the fourth day's play of the third cricket Test between India and Sri Lanka in New Delhi on Tuesday
'We understand that we do have a bowling attack that can bowl the opposition out as much as they're convinced about their attack.'
The success of fringe players has left Kohli's India in a good space as they head to South Africa in a week's time for a three-Test series.
If divine intervention in 1992 was the heavens opening up against England in their do-or-die game, even the best bookies couldn't have predicted that the Netherlands would beat South Africa in 2022. A handful of them must have made a killing.
'I think, it is very important to be aware of what you think about yourself. At the end of the day, if you have more responsibility, you know you can have a different vision so you need to stay true to yourself. If I know my game is not where it should be, then I do not need someone to push me, I am myself aware of it.'
Wins in Adelaide and Melbourne had given Virat Kohli's side a 2-1 lead going into the final Test and a draw was enough to secure a breakthrough that had eluded all previous Indian touring parties for 71 years.
Virat Kohli was the only centurion in the tournament.
England and India have been deducted two points each in the ICC World Test Championship 2021-23 standings for maintaining a slow over rate during the first Test match at Nottingham.
Gambhir feels the split between Kohli and the BCCI should have been handled in a better way.
'He is 33 years of age now and he will want to continue playing for a few more years I am sure and have a crack at breaking some records that he is not far off breaking. Maybe if he does that as a batter and without the extra responsibility of captaincy, it might make it a bit easier for him'
India's Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav were named in the Most Valuable Team of ICC T20 World Cup 2022.
BCCI president Sourav Ganguly lauded Virat Kohli for taking the team forward in all forms of cricket during his stint as India skipper, but said his decision to quit Test captaincy was a personal one.
Board of Control for Cricket in India secretary Jay Shah paid tribute to Virat Kohli on his 'tremendous tenure' after he stepped down as India's Test captain on Saturday.
India skipper Virat Kohli operates at 200 per cent and has the unbelievable ability to inspire his teammates to do the same, reckons stylish batsman KL Rahul.
Virat Kohli's record in T20 Internationals as captain is one of the best in the world, but he finished without a ICC trophy.
India's newly appointed Test captain Rohit Sharma said he has no issues with managing his workload ahead of India's three-match Twenty20 International series and two-Test series against Sri Lanka at home.
The Indian team is fully focussed on winning the ongoing Test series in England but both skipper Virat Kohli and the BCCI mandarins are also discussing the roadmap for the upcoming T20 World Cup, which will be an acid test for the captain himself.
As New Zealand celebrated wildly upon beating England in the T20 World Cup semi-final on Wednesday, all-rounder James Neesham gave a quiet reminder of the side's determination to erase past heartbreaks by winning the decider.
Having taken up Test captaincy from M S Dhoni in the middle of a series in Australia back in 2014, Virat Kohi changed the way India played the five-day game.
Virat Kohli's India will take on Joe Root's England in a four Test series, starting February 5, to be played inside a bio-bubble in Chennai and Ahmedabad.
The spotlight will, however, continue to be on the 33-year-old Kohli in Mohali with the contest against Sri Lanka being his 100th Test match for the country.
How did India and Virat Kohli fare in T20Is? Rajneesh Gupta presents all the numbers.
David Warner wants to see 'at least 25 per cent crowds' inside the stadiums when Australia host Virat Kohli's India later this year.
'To answer your first question, for me personally, it (winning in England) means nothing more than winning a Test match or a Test series anywhere else in the world.'
Most of the Test squad and staff had been transferred to hotel quarantine where they will warm up for the two-Test series against England
Rohit refrained from entertaining any questions on his likely elevation as Test captain
'...That's why he puts so much importance on this format and at a time when Test cricket needs all the love it can get'
BCCI president Sourav Ganguly on Thursday tried to steer clear of the controversy surrounding the national selectors' decision to not send a replacement for injured opener Shubman Gill in England, saying it is a matter for the selection committee to consider.
Former India cricketer Yuvraj Singh also made his anger known.
'We know what we need to focus on and we take a collective decision as a group. Everyone is happy with the win. It gives us more motivation to win the next Test. We have the belief, we are just looking forward to the opportunities. The fans have been amazing as well'
New Zealand have never won a major global title, losing the last two 50-over World Cup finals and never reaching the World Twenty20 final.
India goes into the third and final Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo on Friday hoping to register their first series victory in the island nation in 22 years.
Spin legend Shane Warne has thanked star batter Virat Kohli for "passionately supporting" Test cricket, a day after he stepped down as skipper of the Indian Test team.
Rishabh Pant scored a spectacular 101 as India ended Day 2 in the fourth Test against England on 294-7.
Playing against India behind closed doors in the much-anticipated Test series at the end of the year might end up being an advantage for the home side, according to Australia batsman Usman Khawaja. Cricket Australia are desperate for the tour, scheduled for December and January, to go ahead as the lucrative Indian TV rights for the series would go a long way to easing a financial crisis triggered by the coronavirus pandemic.
A fresh coronavirus outbreak in Adelaide forced Australian players, including captain Tim Paine, into self-isolation but the country's cricket board asserted that the first Test against India here from December 17 will go ahead as scheduled.
Rajneesh Gupta presents the interesting numbers from Day 5 of the India-England Test at Lord's.
The final of the World Test Championship between India and New Zealand in June will be staged in a bio-secure bubble at the Hampshire Bowl in Southampton, the International Cricket Council said said on Wednesday.
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