The return of all-rounder Ben Stokes will be a welcome boost to the England squad as he provides much-needed balance and lifts morale, team mate Moeen Ali said ahead of the two-match test series in New Zealand.
Contrasting centuries by a relentless Alastair Cook and an inspired Ben Stokes lifted England to 429 for six at the close of a compelling fourth day of the first Test against New Zealand on Sunday.
Alastair Cook and Ian Bell survived a torrid final hour to guide England to 74 for two at the close on the third day of the first Test against New Zealand on Saturday.
New Zealand entered their maiden ICC World Cup final, beating South Africa by five wickets in a thrilling rain-reduced World Cup semi-final at Eden spoPark in Auckland on Tuesday. Set 298 to win from 43 overs, the Kiwis, led by fine knocks from captain Brendon McCullum (59 off 26 balls) and Grant Elliott (84 off 73) got across the finish line with one ball to spare. Elliott hit the winning run with a six over long-on off the bowling of Dale Steyn.
'376 was always tough (to chase) but the bowlers fought throughout and that's something we can take to Indore. Hopefully, we can play some fear-free cricket to put India under pressure'
Martin Guptill stroked a fluent century to help New Zealand edge past Bangladesh by three wickets with seven deliveries to spare, in the ICC World Cup Pool A match in Hamilton, on Friday.
Cricket's global showpiece has confirmed the Scots are a way from being able to compete with the top Test playing nations.
Photos of the World Cup Pool A game between Afghanistan and New Zealand being played in Napier
Faf du Plessis seems to be a master of fourth innings chases. On his Test debut he batted for seven hours 46 minutes against Australia at Adelaide in 2012-13, saving South Africa from certain defeat.
Kane Williamson coolly struck a straight six to give New Zealand a one wicket victory over Australia in a dramatic battle between the World Cup hosts at Eden Park on Saturday.
Seamer Trent Boult delivered career-best figures of 10-80 as New Zealand thrashed West Indies by an innings and 73 runs inside three days to complete their first Test victory in more than a year on Friday.
India's premier fast bowler Zaheer Khan feels that Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma's form will be key to India' title defence as they get ready to face arch-rivals Pakistan in the ICC Cricket World Cup in less than a week's time.
Kane Williamson is the second New Zealand batsman after Glenn Turner to top the ICC Player Rankings for Test batsmen following a man of the match performance in the Hamilton Test against Sri Lanka, which helped the home side win by five wickets and take the series 2-0.
Paceman Dushmantha Chameera took career-best figures with aggressive short-pitched bowling to give Sri Lanka a slight advantage at the close of play on the second day of the second Test against New Zealand at Seddon Park in Hamilton on Saturday.
Mominul Haque struck an unbeaten century as Bangladesh battled back bravely against New Zealand to leave the second Test and series up for grabs after an entertaining fourth day in Mirpur on Thursday.
Corey Anderson smashed his first Test century as New Zealand reached 419 for eight against Bangladesh to take a first innings lead of 137 on the third day of the second and final Test in Dhaka on Wednesday.
The New Zealand captain belted 18 fours and 11 sixes in his innings as he became the first New Zealand batsman to surpass 1000 Test runs in a calendar year and broke his own New Zealand record for the fastest century, which came off 74 balls.
The second Test between Australia and New Zealand fizzled out in a draw on Tuesday but not before Mitchell Johnson gave one last reminder of his bowling prowess on the day he announced his retirement from international cricket.
Boult took 6-33 as Australia, who only needed to square the series to retain the trophy, were dismissed for 257 on the final ball of the 47th over as they chased New Zealand's 281 for nine.
Two Indian batsmen are now in the top five of the ICC ODI rankings, with Virat Kohli remaining at number three and opener Shikhar Dhawan climbing up the ladder to fifth after earning four places in the latest list issued on Wednesday.
Following his return to form in the abruptly-ended West Indies series, Indian batsman Virat Kohli claimed the number two slot in the ICC rankings while swing bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar broke into the top-10 for the first time in his career.
The Indian opener tops the Champions Trophy MVP table. But Hasan Ali, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma aren't too far behind, note Srinivas Bhogle and Purnendu Maji.
Chasing a revised target of 235 from 33 overs following two rain interruptions, Australia were struggling at 53 for three in nine overs when the heavens opened up for the third time in the day, forcing the onfield umpires to abandon the game as both the sides split points.
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.
Statistical highlights of the first ODI match between India and New Zealand, in Dharamsala, on Sunday.
New Zealand's finest batsman was defined by one innings, one tournament and one seriously damaged knee.
Exploiting a turning track, left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja scalped three batsmen in one over to finish with a five-wicket haul while Ravichandran Ashwin grabbed four wickets as India bundled out New Zealand for 262 on day three to take control of the first Test in Kanpur.
Rajneesh Gupta presents all the fascinating career numbers of players in the World Cup.
Martin Guptill became the highest run scorer in One-Day International cricket this year as he guided New Zealand to a comprehensive seven-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in the first game of their five match series in Christchurch, on Saturday.
As Ashish Nehra gets set to quit international cricket after the first T20I game against New Zealand in New Delhi this evening, Rajneesh Gupta presents the mighty fast bowler's top five performances.
Jesse Ryder and Doug Bracewell have been dropped from the New Zealand squad for the second Test against India starting on Friday as punishment for going on a late-night drinking session on the eve of the first Test in Auckland.
Srinivas Bhogle and Purnendu Maji list the 50 Most Valuable Players in the 2017 Champions Trophy.
Virat Kohli and Bhuvneshwar Kumar are India's highest-ranked batsman and bowler in third and 13th positions respectively.
Adam Voges and Shaun Marsh drove Australia to within 74 runs of a series-winning victory at the dinner-break in the third and final Test in Adelaide on Sunday after New Zealand's pacemen captured three early wickets.
New Zealand beat the West Indies by four wickets in the second Twenty20 international at Wellington on Wednesday to win the series 2-0 and add to their 2-0 success in the Tests.
India registered just three victories in 11 Tests, worse than even Zimbabwe and the West Indies...
Captain Kane Williamson led from the front with a superb century before his bowlers held their nerves in a close finish to help New Zealand edge past India by six runs in the second One-Day International in New Delhi, on Thursday.
Having reclaimed the World No 1 spot in the International Cricket Council's Test rankings, a beaming Indian captain Virat Kohli on Monday said the team has a good chance of holding on to the No. 1 position given the long home season.
Pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar's devastating five-wicket haul after a late batting blitzkrieg put India firmly in command as they reduced a hapless New Zealand to 128 for 7 on the rain-hit second day of the second cricket Test, in Kolkata, on Saturday.
The superb build-up run has made India the clear favourites for an unprecedented second World Twenty20 title but the in-form hosts will have to guard against complacency when they take on a spirited New Zealand in their campaign-opener in Nagpur on Tuesday.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances