Kiwis head home after 'fantastic game of cricket'

WATCH: Dream come true moment for Indian young guns

The Indian team is all set to travel to Sri Lanka for the limited-overs fixtures under the captaincy of Shikhar Dhawan. There are some new faces who have been called up in the side. The squad had a training session together and the video of which was posted by the BCCI on social media. K Gowtham and Devdutt Padikkal who have received their maiden India call-up talked about the session. “Training with him was fun but yeah he needs to pick some more weights,” said Gowtham about Padikkal. Spinner Varun Chakravarthy who had earlier tested positive for Covid-19 was also called-up for the tour. “It’s obviously good to be a part of the team and representing your country is always a pleasure,” Chakravarthy said. The squad will leave for Sri Lanka on June 28 while the series begins on July 13. India are slated to play three ODIs and as many T20Is during the course. All the matches would be played in Colombo. Former India captain Rahul Dravid will be travelling with the team as the coach. Dravid had been the coach of the U19 and India ‘A’ teams in the past and had produced some fruitful results in the past. In fact, the U19 team lifted the World Cup in 2018 and ended as runners-up in 2016. Apart from this, the contingent will also have two selectors, Abey Kuruwilla and Debasis Mohanty from the Chetan Sharma-headed selection committee travelling to the island country.

Selectors Abey Kuruvilla, Debasis Mohanty to accompany team to Sri Lanka

The Indian team led by Shikhar Dhawan will be touring Sri Lanka next month and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has asked two of the selectors Abey Kuruvilla and Debasis Mohanty to travel with the side according to a Cricbuzz report. "They are already in Mumbai and are quarantining with other members of the touring party," the office-bearer said. Former India captain Rahul Dravid is also slated to visit the island country along with the side as the head coach while former international panel umpire Sudhir Asnani will travel with the team as the manager. The squad is scheduled to leave for Sri Lanka on June 28 while the first game begins on July 13. India will play three ODIs and as many T20Is in Colombo. All the matches will be played at R.Premadasa Stadium. Support Staff: Rahul Dravid (head coach); Sudheer Asnani (Manager), Paras Mhambrey (Bowling coach), T Dilip (Fielding coach); Ashish Kaushik (Physio), Niranjan Pandit (Physio), Anand Date (trainer), AI Harsha (Trainer), Ashok Sadh (Training assistant - throwdown specialist), Sourav Ambadkar (Throwdown specialist), Nandan Majhi (Masseur), Mangesh Gaikwad (Masseur), L Varun (Analyst), Anand Subramaniam (media manager), Ameya Tilak (Content producer), Abhijit Salvi (Team doctor), Ravindra Dholpure (Anti-corruption and security officer) and Sumeet Mallapurkar (Logistics manager).

Ravindra Jadeja's selection backfired: Sanjay Manjrekar on India's WTC loss

Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has pointed out the reason for the team’s defeat in the final of the inaugural World Test Championship against New Zealand in Southampton. Manjrekar said that the decision of selecting Ravindra Jadeja for his batting ability has backfired for the side in the final. “If you have to look at how India went about before the game started, picking two spinners was always a debatable selection especially when the conditions were overcast and the toss was delayed by a day," Manjrekar said on ESPNcricinfo. “They picked one player for his batting, which was Jadeja, and his left-arm spin wasn’t the reason he was picked. He was picked for his batting and that is something that I am always against." This is not the first time that Manjrekar has commented upon Jadeja’s selection in the side. Manjrekar had called the left-arm all-rounder ‘bits and pieces’ player after which he faced a lot of backlash on social media. India suffered a defeat against the Kiwis in the WTC final after they chased down a target of 139 runs on the reserve day, courtesy a fine half-century from captain Kane Williamson and an unbeaten 47 from Ross Taylor. Jadeja only managed to pick up one wicket in two innings while scoring 15 runs in the first innings and 16 in the second. The Virat Kohli-led side will now play a five-match Test series against England in August.

1st T20I Preview: Move over Test cricket, the Calypso are back in the hunt against South Africa

In a latest video on Instagram posted by the hard-hitting all-rounder Andre Russell, the batsman is seen smashing some deliveries out of the park in the nets. Well, to forget the nightmare that the West Indies side suffered during the Test series against South Africa earlier, the team does need to turn their fortunes in a similar way in the shorter format of the game which has become their forte in the last few years. They are set to host South Africa in a five-match T20I series in Grenada beginning on Saturday (June 26, 2021). The T20I squad though won’t be the same as the Tests and has the likes Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, captain Kieron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo, Russell and Fidel Edwards. The Caribbean side is one of the lethal teams when it comes to T20I format. But on the other side, they are facing South Africa who are equally dangerous if not more. The Proteas do have some exciting batsmen in the ranks but it's their fast bowlers who are pretty dangerous on their day. The African team suffered a defeat in the last T20I series that they played against Pakistan and would be looking to change fortunes for themselves against West Indies. So, an exciting encounter can be expected when the West Indies batsmen face the South African pace attack. Match Details Match – West Indies vs South Africa – 1st match Venue – National Cricket Stadium, St George’s, Grenada Time – 11:30 PM IST, 06:00 PM GMT Where to watch live – Fancode Pitch Report The ground has hosted only one T20I so far and witnessed a high-scoring clash between West Indies and Ireland. There are chances of rain in the afternoon as well which might cause the delay. So going by the previous game at the venue and the chances of rain, the team that wins the toss should bat first and post some good amount of runs on the board. Team News West Indies: The home side is seeking to turn tables in the T20Is after they suffered a thumping defeat in the Tests. The side has the firepower in the batting department especially with Chris Gayle in the top-order and Russell, Pollard and Bravo in the middle. Apart from the batting, the conditions may help Pollard and Bravo with the ball as well. The two players have the ability to deceive the batsmen with their slower ones and instances of the same have been witnessed during the IPL. South Africa: South Africa suffered a blow ahead of the T20I series after all-rounder Dwaine Pretorius had tested positive for Covid-19. The cricketer didn’t travel with the squad to Grenada. Though, he was asymptomatic and is following the protocols. Meanwhile Wiaan Mulder has replaced Pretorius. Captain Temba Bavuma is also returning to the squad after he had missed the Test series first with a hip injury and then a dislocated finger. The South African team also has a strong batting line up but the eyes would be glued to the pacers in testing conditions and against a batting unit who is pretty dangerous. Probable XI West Indies: Chris Gayle, Evin Lewis, Lendl Simmons, Shimron Hetmyer, Nicholas Pooran (WK), Kieron Pollard (C), Andre Russell, Dwayne Bravo, Sheldon Cottrell, Hayden Walsh Jr, Oshane Thomas South Africa: Quinton de Kock (wk), Aiden Markram, Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), David Miller, George Linde, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Anrich Nortje Fantasy XI Quinton De Kock, Lendl Simmons, Chris Gayle (VC), David Miller, Aiden Markram, Rassie Van Der Dussen, Andre Russell (C), Kieron Pollard, Sheldon Cottrell, Dwayne Bravo, Kagiso Rabada