Ajinkya Rahane and Shreyas Iyer might have failed to snap their lean runs with the bat in the first innings of the Ranji Trophy final for Mumbai, but Shardul Thakur has placed his trust in them to return to form. Rahane and Iyer scored 7 apiece as Mumbai scored 224 at Wankhede Stadium, with Thakur

The 4-1 series win also helped India overtake Australia at the top of the ICC’s Test rankings and they will remain No. 1 even if Australia beat New Zealand in Christchurch. India are also the top-ranked ODI and T20I side at present. India had slipped to fifth place in the WTC points table after losing

Big picture – Vidarbha vs Mumbai is domestic workhorses vs domestic superstars Is the Ranji Trophy really the finishing school for those aspiring to wear the India cap? This question has been raised several times recently, at least in the aftermath of most big selection meetings for the Test team. Then again, look at those

India, led by five-wicket hauls from Kuldeep Yadav and R Ashwin in the two innings, and an all-star batting display led by centuries from Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill, crushed England by an innings and 64 runs to win the series 4-1 in Dharamsala. Here is what Ashwin, who was playing his 100th Test, and

Rahul Dravid is hoping for an “all-round review involving coaches and players” to address key issues relating to the Ranji Trophy specifically and domestic cricket in general. Dravid was responding to a query on what the board can do to address concerns, like the one raised by Shardul Thakur about just three-day gaps between Ranji

Play domestic cricket, score runs and force the selectors to pick you again. This is India head coach Rahul Dravid‘s simple message to Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan, on whom there has been much spotlight over the past two months for their decision to skip domestic cricket. Both Kishan and Iyer were not considered for

The BCCI has announced a “Test Cricket Incentive Scheme” that will increase a player’s match fee by 300% if he features in more than 75% of the Tests played during a season. “This scheme is not only designed to encourage players to engage in the purest format of the sport but also addresses the evolving

India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik is set to play his final IPL season this year when he appears for Royal Challengers Bangalore over the next two months. ESPNcricinfo has learned that Karthik, who turns 39 in June, will also make a final decision soon on his international future. Karthik, who started his IPL career at Delhi

India have picked two seamers in each Test of this series against England so far. In the first two Tests in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam, they picked two seamers even though England picked just one. It’s possible that India could play the extra fast bowler compared to England in the fifth Test in Dharamsala too. While

He’s taken 35 five-wicket hauls, more than anyone in Test history apart from Muthiah Muralidaran, Shane Warne and Richard Hadlee. Two more, and only Muralidaran will remain ahead of him. Despite having all those big wicket hauls to choose from, R Ashwin has picked three non-five-fors as his most memorable performances in Test cricket. Two

“I’m proud. You know what I’m like, an emotional guy, so yeah – get the tissues ready.” “It’s absolutely stunning here,” Bairstow said of the setting, where he also reached 100 ODI caps during last year’s World Cup. “I don’t think there’s a more picturesque ground in the world. Cape Town is one of my

Former New Zealand allrounder James Franklin will replace Dale Steyn as the bowling coach of Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2024. ESPNcricinfo has learned that Steyn, who was appointed in the role by Sunrisers in 2022, has pulled out for personal reasons. For Franklin, who played for Mumbai Indians in 2011 and 2012, this will be

Red-ball cricket for women will make a return to India’s domestic calendar after six years when the BCCI conducts its Senior Women’s Inter-Zonal Multi-Day Trophy in Pune from March 28. It was in 2018 that a domestic red-ball tournament – of two-day matches – was last held in India for women. This comes not long

Iyer, who was one of the key performers in India’s run to the World Cup final last November, lost his Grade B contract despite fulfilling the minimum criteria set by the board in terms of matches played. Since last October, when the latest contract period started (it runs from October 1, 2023, to September 30,

Jasprit Bumrah will return for the Dharamsala Test as India’s designated vice-captain. The BCCI confirmed as much on Thursday, naming a 16-player squad for the final Test of the England series, which starts on March 7. While KL Rahul was ruled out, allrounder Washington Sundar was not part of the 16, released from the squad

KL Rahul is set to miss the final Test of the England series which starts in Dharamsala from March 7. ESPNcricinfo has learned Rahul is currently in London to consult a specialist for the quadricep tendon injury that ruled him out from second, third and fourth Tests against England after he played the series opener

Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan have not been considered for BCCI’s annual retainers because they practically made themselves unavailable to play for India. Kishan took a break from cricket for personal reasons during the South Africa tour, and returned to action only earlier this week in the DY Patil T20 tournament. Iyer was cleared fit

India Women head coach Amol Muzumdar sees the ongoing WPL 2024 as an opportunity to expand the team’s resources. “I would want another pool of 20-25 players to create a bench strength for the Indian team,” he said while commentating on the game between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Gujarat Giants on Tuesday evening. “Four fast

Shreyas Iyer will feature in the Ranji Trophy semi-final for Mumbai after recovering from back spasms that had ruled him out of the quarter-final at home against Baroda. Meanwhile, Ishan Kishan also returned to competitive cricket on Tuesday, turning up for the Reserve Bank of India in the DY Patil T20 tournament – a popular

The injury will come as a massive blow for the Shubman Gill-led Gujarat Titans, who also traded Hardik Pandya to Mumbai Indians in an all-cash deal – Shami was the side’s highest wicket-taker during their second-place finish in IPL 2023. In January, Shami had revealed he was experience “some stiffness” in his ankle but was

Hanuma Vihari has decided to “never play for Andhra” again, saying the treatment he received at the hands of the Andhra Cricket Association (ACA) during the 2023-24 Ranji Trophy has left him “humiliated”. He made his revelation not long after Andhra’s dreams of progressing to the Ranji Trophy semi-final for the first time came to

Players who show hunger for Test cricket will be prioritised when it comes to selection, India captain Rohit Sharma has said, intensifying the spotlight on Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan, who have been part of recent India Test squads but have skipped Ranji Trophy matches since being left out. Rohit’s comments come in the wake

After returning just one wicket in the first innings, R Ashwin came roaring back in England’s second dig in Ranchi, with a five-wicket haul that saw the visitors bowled out for 145. Opening the bowling for just the second time this series, Ashwin dented England’s top order with the wickets of Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope

Joe Root is confident that England have taken a firm hold of the fourth Test against India, after a dominant second day in Ranchi in which the final stages of his 31st Test century gave way to a determined bowling display led by the 19-year-old offspinner Shoaib Bashir. By the close, India had reached 219

Mumbai Indians 173 for 6 (Bhatia 57, Harmanpreet 55, Capsey 2-23, Reddy 2-27) beat Delhi Capitals 171 for 5 (Capsey 75, Rodrigues 42, Sciver-Brunt 2-33) by four wickets The opening evening of the second season of the Women’s Premier League ended like it started – in a blockbuster fashion. Defending champions Mumbai Indians romped home

India’s debutant fast bowler Akash Deep had his hand on his head when the no-ball siren went off during the fourth over of the day in Ranchi. He had just sent Zak Crawley’s off stump cartwheeling with a nip-backer for what would have been his first Test wicket, but the replay showed he had overstepped.

India fast bowler Mohammed Shami is a doubtful starter for Gujarat Titans in IPL 2024. ESPNcricinfo has learnt that Shami is likely to undergo ankle surgery, potentially just before the tournament, which would rule him out of most if not all of it. The IPL will be played between March 22 and May 26 this

Joe Root’s return to form was “even more due than before” after a run of low scores, according to his team-mate Zak Crawley, as his brilliant rearguard century on the opening day in Ranchi helped to rescue England from a sticky lunchtime scoreline and put them “ahead of the game” in Crawley’s estimation, at 302

Defending champions Chennai Super Kings will host Royal Challengers Bangalore at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in the opening match of IPL 2024 on March 22. On Thursday, the IPL released a partial schedule comprising an initial set of 21 matches between March 22 and April 7. The IPL final is expected to be played on

Rishabh Pant has begun going through a series of match-simulation exercises as he continues his recovery from a life-threatening car accident in December 2022 and targets a return to competitive cricket during IPL 2024. On Tuesday, Pant and Hardik Pandya, who is recovering from an ankle injury, played a 20-over practice game at the KSCA