The ground brought sanity to the wild, soaring numbers for the batters in the series. The wicket had grass, and it made the batters struggle.
India captain Shubman Gill threw his weight behind Gautam Gambhir following the latter's fiery exchange with The Oval's chief curator Lee Fortis, firmly asserting that the India coach was well within his rights to inspect the square.
India all-rounder Shardul Thakur urged Abhimanyu Easwaran and Kuldeep Yadav to show patience and wait for their chances, after they were benched for the entire five-Test series in England.
Gill's struggle against spin has been glaring and former India cricketer-turned commentator Akash Chopra has suggested a bold change to overcome his recent slump: bat deep and not be overly aggressive with his approach.
Sai Sudharsan made his Test debut in the series opener against England, where he played at No. 3 while skipper Shubman Gill batted at No. 4.
Most pitch curators are possessive about the main square on a cricket field but Lee Fortis, the chief curator at The Oval, takes that obsession to a sacrosanct level.
Sourav Ganguly, who previously served as BCCI president from 2019 to 2022, replaced his elder brother Snehasish Ganguly.
'He was always a people's person. Don't forget he had been a Delhi captain in a team that had a lot of big stars, India players. They played under him and he managed them fairly well.'
Ravichandran Ashwin continued his absolute dominance over batters during the first Test against Bangladesh, returning with a six-wicket haul, and the star off-spinner said he enjoyed every moment of bowling on the red-soil pitch, which is often perceived as pacer-friendly, because of the steep bounce it offers.
Shubman Gill's toss woes continued as England opted to bowl in the fifth and final Test at The Oval on Thursday.
According to India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak the tiff took place after Fortis asked the Indian coaching staff to stay 2.5 metres away from the main square, despite them not wearing spikes, prompting frustration from the visiting camp.
How India's players enjoyed their time in Wednesday's training session.
Rohit Sharma's career has been a mix of brilliant moments and inconsistencies. While his Test record may not be impressive, his white-ball dominance and leadership qualities make him a legend.
India may have made tactical errors, but former cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar believes the bigger culprit was the weather.
'We obviously want to wheel him in, but we also want to respect where his body's at, and on the basis of that, we just felt that it wasn't worth including him in the squad.'
All-rounder Cameron Green may opt for a block of red-ball cricket for Western Australia to ramp up his bowling before the Ashes.
Here's a roundup of all Ranji Trophy matches played on Day 1 on Wednesday.
The cricketing fraternity on Monday paid glowing tributes to India's batting talisman Virat Kohli on his retirement from the longest format after an illustrious 14-year-career.
Sunil Gavaskar slams England's 'fake bravado' after Manchester draw
In the era of uber-stylish batters, Pujara was that glue that held the Indian batting together for a decade between 2013-14 till 2023 over a period of 100 plus Test matches.
While Ricky Ponting has declared England "red-hot favourites," he's not writing off India just yet-especially given their familiarity with worn-out, turning tracks.
Since he took over, head coach Gautam Gambhir has stressed on multi-skilled players across formats, especially those who can add batting depth.
Stead, who guided New Zealand to the WTC title, T20 World Cup final in 2021, 2019 ODI World Cup final and 2025 Champions Trophy title clash, is now entrusted with the task of giving a fillip to Andhra cricket.
To defend their Asia Cup title, India must improve catching and find a steady middle order. Friday's dead rubber is a good chance to try these out.
How the Indian players fared in the five-Test series in England.
'If I am asked to do a certain thing, but I get criticised from outside for it, it is okay.'
Mohammed Siraj's ferocious 143kph yorker that sent Gus Atkinson's stumps flying, securing India's narrowest ever Test win by runs.
Shaheen Shah Afridi's Test future is under scrutiny after he was sidelined for the two-Test series against the West Indies at home.
Hailed as one of Indian cricket's brightest young talents, Yashasvi Jaiswal has made a dazzling start to his Test career.
The cricket fraternity lavished praise on Yashasvi Jaiswal after the young opener produced a masterful century on Day 3 of the fifth and final Test against England at the Oval on Saturday.
Shubman Gill's coin toss woes continued on Wednesday as the India skipper lost his fourth straight toss in the ongoing Test series against England -- extending India's incredible run of 14 consecutive toss defeats across formats in international cricket.
Star Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan on Thursday admitted that travelling to India is the toughest Test assignment and pitches don't make much difference due to the sheer quality of the hosts.
Bangladesh middle-order batter Towhid Hridoy is expecting the pitch to play slow in the T20 series opener against India as both teams enter unknown territory with the Shrimant Madhavrao Stadium hosting its first international match on Sunday.
The Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy saw a staggering run aggregate of 7187 runs -- the second-highest in a series in Test history.
From smashing sixes to spinning pizza dough, Rishabh Pant is serving up a whole new kind of heat during his injury break.
Firing the first salvo ahead of high profile Asia Cup clash against arch-rivals India, Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson on Thursday termed left-arm spinner Mohammed Nawaz as the "best spinner in world cricket".
Sweden's hopes of qualifying for next year's World Cup are hanging by a thread after Switzerland captain Granit Xhaka scored from the spot to help the visitors win 2-0 in their qualifying Group B clash on Friday.
Even as the conditions changed, bright sunshine alternating with gloom, the Indian batters gritted their teeth and fought it out.
'It felt like you had to force the ball through, which in England were are not used to -- you usually get rewards for your cuts and clips.'
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