India head coach Rahul Dravid hailed Virat Kohli as an inspiration for many cricketers due to his enormous achievements and work ethic, reflecting on the legacy of the superstar batter who is set for his landmark 500th international match here. Kohli will join Sachin Tendulkar, Dravid himself and MS Dhoni as the fourth Indian to play 500 international matches in the second and final Test against the West Indies, beginning at the Queen's Park Oval here on Thursday. "His (Kohli's) numbers and his stats speak for themselves, it's all there in the books. He is a real inspiration to so many players within this team without a doubt and to so many people, boys and girls back home in India," Dravid said on the eve of the Test. "It's a nice to see Virat's journey. When I first played, he was a youngster coming through. I was not really involved in the team as such. I watched him from the outside with a lot of admiration for what he has done and what he continues to achieve." Dravid said ...
West Indies could hand in Test debut to Kirk Mckenzie after Raymond Refier was ruled out of the 2nd Test
Ajinkya Rahane will be aiming to pile on the runs to extend his international career and lead India to a series sweep against a feeble West Indies when the second and final Test begins here on Thursday. The game will mark the 100th Test between the two teams and though India skipper Rohit Sharma said it will be a big occasion, his team will be expected to dominate the West Indies like it did in the series opener in Dominica. After the game at the Queen's Park Oval, India play their next Test only on the tour of South Africa in December-January, leaving the likes of Rahane one more opportunity to make it extremely hard for selectors to overlook him for the away series against the Proteas. In his first Test in 18 months, which happened to be the World Test Championships final last month, Rahane was the stand out India batter but he would be ruing the missed opportunity on a slow and turning pitch in Dominica where the visitors needed to bat only once. There is a strong chance that .
India skipper Rohit Sharma has high expectations from young wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan and indicated the 25-year-old limited-overs specialist will get more opportunities in Tests to harness his potential. Ishan made his Test debut against the West Indies in the first Test at Roseau, which India won by an innings and 141 runs, and Rohit said he was clearly impressed with Ishan's keeping for the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja when the ball was turning copiously and bouncing as well. India play their second Test against the Caribbean side from Thursday and will hope to make a clean-sweep in the two-match series. Ishan making a good first impression in Tests, that too in an overseas Test, bodes well for the young player, especially when Rishabh Pant is out of the India side due to a horrific car accident suffered late last year. On how he sees Ishan's first Test, especially when Rishabh is not a part of the India squad, Rohit said, "Ishan is a very talented guy.
Jaiswal's impressive knock of 171 laid the foundation for the victory against West Indies in the two-match Test series at Windsor Park.
The stalwart batter Virat Kohli looked at his best in the first Test of India's tour of the West Indies. He contributed 76 runs with his bat on a surface that was best suited for the spinners
Shubman Gill has requisite attributes to bat at the crucial number three slot in Indian Test line-up as he can shift gears as per requirement and shouldn't be judged on the basis of one failure, batting coach Vikram Rathour said on Sunday. India won the first Test against the West Indies by an innings and 141 runs but Gill's first game as No. 3, replacing the dogged Cheteshwar Pujara, didn't start well. He was out for only 6 in India's only innings as skipper Rohit Sharma and debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal struck hundreds and Virat Kohli contributed 76. "Three openers were supposed to play, so one had to go at No. 3 and the proposal came from Shubman's end as his rationale was that he had played all his cricket for Punjab and India A at either No. 3 or 4 and that's his real slot in longer format is that," Rathour said during a press conference. "We can't judge him on basis of one innings. He has a lot of time. He has the technique and temperament to play time if required and can also pla
Ricky Ponting feels that Yashasvi Jaiswal is a great talent and he has shown that on his Test debut. The Aussie also felt sorry for Sarfaraz Khan for not getting a chance in the Indian Test side
West Indies batters tried to show some grit and determination in the second innings, but they were no match to the class of R Ashwin on a deteriorating pitch.
India declared their first innings at 421 for five against the West Indies on the third day of the opening Test here on Friday. The Indians have an overall lead of 271 runs. India resumed the day at 312 for two with overnight centurion Yashasvi Jaiswal and Virat Kohli in the middle. Debutant Jaiswal finally got out for 171 off 387 balls, while Kohli was dismissed for 76 runs. Ravindra Jadeja was looking solid on 37 off 82 balls when the declaration came. Brief scores: West Indies 1st Innings: 150 all out in 64.3 overs (Alick Athanaze 47; Ravichandran Ashwin 5/60, Ravindra Jadeja 3/26) India 1st Innings: 421/5 declared in 152.2 overs (Yashasvi Jaiswal 171, Rohit Sharma 103, Virat Kohli 76).
Yashasvi Jaiswal, a young man from Bhadohi who toughened up on ruthless Mumbai Maidans, enjoyed his finest day on a cricket pitch with an unconquered debut hundred as India seized complete control on the second day of the opening Test against the West Indies here. Skipper Rohit Sharma (103 off 221 balls), also eschewed his natural flair en route his 10th Test hundred and a record 229-run opening stand with Jaiswal (143 batting, 350 balls) as India batted cautiously but still did well enough to slowly bat West Indies out of the game, finishing the second day on 312 for two. In the whole day, India managed only 232 runs in 90 overs. Jaiswal, who batted the entire second day, has the seasoned Virat Kohli (36 batting, 96 balls) for company as the duo added 72 runs for the third wicket. India now have a lead of 162 runs and are expected to bat better part of the third day before Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja is once again unleashed on an opposition that doesn't have enough ...
India is in the driving seat after Day 1 of 1st test against West Indies restricting the hosts at 150. Rohit-Jaiswal stood firmly as team India scored 80 runs without losing any wickets
The constant search for excellence has pushed R Ashwin to new heights but by his own admission, it has also been "incredibly draining". Ashwin, the world's number one Test bowler, put the disappointment of being dropped from the World Test Championship final with a 33rd five-wicket haul in the first Test against the West Indies here on Wednesday. The 36-year-old also became the third Indian to reach the 700-wicket milestone in international cricket and is only behind Harbhajan Singh (707 wickets) and Anil Kumble (953) in the all-time list. After the close of play on day one, the wily off-spinner, who also thinks deeply about the game, was asked about his long journey in international cricket and the ups and downs along the way, including the recent exclusion from the WTC final against Australia. "There is no cricketer or human being in this world that has gone through the highs without the lows. When you have the lows, it gives you two choices, either you sulk or talk about it and
Ashwin broke Anil Kumble's record of most bowled dismissals in red-ball cricket by an Indian. Ashwin has now 95 bowled dismissals to his name against Kumble's 94
Nursing a bruised ego after WTC final snub last month, Ravichandran Ashwin made the best possible comeback as his 33rd five-wicket haul put India in the driver's seat against a below-par West Indies on the first day of the opening Test, here on Wednesday. Ashwin justified his top billing in ICC Test bowlers' ranking with figures of 5 for 60 in 24.3 overs to decimate West Indies for a lowly 150 in 64.3 overs with Ravindra Jadeja (3/26 in 14 overs) beautifully complementing him to make life miserable for the home team batters. With more than an hour available for batting skipper Rohit Sharma (30 batting, 65 balls) and debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal (40 batting, 73 balls) added 80 runs for the opening stand to bring down first innings deficit to 70 going into second day. The new pair looked comfortable as there is not much help for the bowlers with Indian skipper hitting his customary 'Nataraja' pull-shot and soothing straight drive. Jaiswal also hardly showed any signs of nerves as he play
India vs West Indies: In the process of catching the ball, Mohammed Siraj even hurt his elbow, but courtesy of the catch, India got the fourth West Indian batter out before Lunch
India batter Shubman Gill doesn't see the role of a number three much different to of an opener after deciding to bat lower down the order. Gill would fill the big shoes of Cheteshwar Pujara at number three, starting with the two Test series against the West Indies. Debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal has been tasked to open alongside Rohit Sharma in the series opener. "They (Team management) asked me where I wanted to bat, and I said I wanted No. 3. It is a position where I want to consolidate," Gill told host broadcasters ahead of the opening Test here. Gill said the experience of opening for India would come handy at number three. "It is always good to play with the new ball. I have the experience with the new ball, and when you're batting at No. 3, it is not very different although it is a little bit of a difference," he added. Asked if he already started feeling like a senior player, he said: "Not really. Roles are different. Definitely not feeling that way." Coming off a rare month-
India vs West Indies 1st Test: Yashsavi Jaiswal and Ishan Kishan have been handed their maiden Test caps
Many records may get broken and created in the first Test between India and West Indies at Windsor Park in Roseau, Dominica. Here's a look at few of them
Yashasvi Jaiswal will make his India debut when the Rohit-Sharma-led team takes on West Indies at Windsor Park in Roseau, Dominica