Test Cricket

Can India solve their spin problem before Sri Lanka Test challenge?

India have lost five of their last nine Tests on spin-friendly tracks and now face a Sri Lankan side whose home success still rests heavily on slow bowling

IND vs AFG Test: Manav Suthar joins elite list with fifer on Test debut

Manav is now the tenth Indian bowler to take a five-wicket haul on Test debut

IND vs AFG Test, Day 2: Manav's dream debut leaves Afghanistan reeling

After declaring their first innings at a commanding 564/8, India struck regularly with the ball, with Suthar claiming three wickets and Prasidh Krishna adding two

IND vs AFG Test Day 2: Sundar slams unbeaten 52 as India declare on 564/8

Rishabh Pant missed out on his hundred while Washington Sundar hit an unbeaten 52 as India declared their first innings at a formidable 564 for eight against Afghanistan on the second day of the one-off Test here Sunday. KL Rahul had struck a patient 100 off 165 balls while Sai Sudharsan contributed 81 on the opening day. Skipper Shubhman Gill led from the front with a commanding 126 before getting out in the morning session on Sunday. Pant added an entertaining 81 as India's top and middle order batters dominated the Afghanistan attack after resuming at overnight 368 for three. Lower down the order, Sundar remained unbeaten on 52, while Manav Suthar made 28 and Mohammed Siraj chipped in with a quickfire 22 as India accelerated before captain Gill called his batters back after 127 overs. For Afghanistan, pacer Mohammad Saleem was the standout performer with figures of 6/140 from 27 overs. Ziaur Rahman and Hashmatullah Shahidi claimed a wicket each, but the visitors struggled to ..

Who is Saleem Safi? First Afghan pacer to take a fifer vs India in Tests

Saleem, who went wicketless in his Test debut against Sri Lanka, performed with brilliant consistency and added big names like Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan to his wicket column in Mullanpur

IND vs AFG Test, Day 1: Centuries from Gill and Rahul propel India to 368/3

Sai Sudharsan and Rishabh Pant also dominated the Afghanistan bowling attack with brilliant half-centuries

IND vs AFG Test: Manav Suthar becomes 319th player to debut for India

Manav is the first specialist spinner to make his India debut in red-ball cricket since Axar Patel in 2021

India vs Afghanistan one-off Test playing 11, live match time, streaming

The last time the two sides played a Test match against each other was back in 2018, when India secured a mammoth innings-and-262-run win over Afghanistan

WTC-bound India search for missing pieces against resilient Afghanistan

Battling demons of a horrendous home Test run in the not so distant past but nevertheless a formidable unit, India are pitted against a plucky Afghanistan in a one-off Test here that might help the hosts figure out a balanced combination, starting Saturday. In 2018, Afghanistan lost 10 wickets in a session between lunch and tea on the second day of the Test against India. The next 10 fell by the wayside between tea and end of day's play which also was end of the game. In 2026, Hashmatullah Shahidi would want his team to at least stretch the home side which is going through a tough transition phase and will be in experimental mode during this game trying different combinations. However, the Indians would not have forgotten the 0-2 drubbing handed by a meticulously prepared South Africa last year and would do well to not take the opposition lightly despite the gulf in experience. Sai or Dev? That's the question ==================== A stable No.3 and Ravindra Jadeja's potential succ

India should stick with someone at no. 3: Assistant coach Ten Doeschate

India's assistant coach Ryan Ten Doeschate conceded that too many players have batted at number three in Test matches after Cheteshwar Pujara's retirement and it was time that either Sai Sudharsan or Devdutt Padikkal is given a long rope at the key batting position. Pujara announced his retirement in 2025 but last played in white flannels for India in the WTC final in 2023. Since then Shubman Gill, Padikkal, Sudharsan, Karun Nair and Washington Sundar have all been tried in that position. Sudharsan has played six Tests and has managed a not-so-impressive average of 27 plus. "There's been a lot of changes in that spot and and that's not ideal, you know. You need to look at the incumbents for that role and and maybe stick with someone," Ten Doeschate said at a press conference on Thursday. While both Sudharsan and Padikkal have been getting long rope at nets, Ten Doeschate didnt want to spill the beans about the one who would make it. On the day, during slip formation, Padikkal was

Rishabh doesn't need a formal title to lead: Assistant coach Ten Doeschate

The lofted strokes still carry the same thrill, but two days before his landmark 50th Test appearance, Rishabh Pant was seen embracing a different approach. During India's training session ahead of the one-off Test against Afghanistan, the dynamic wicketkeeper-batter appeared more measured, both in body language and intent, seemingly heeding the advice of head coach Gautam Gambhir. It is no secret within Indian cricket circles that Gambhir was deeply frustrated by Pant's reckless shot selection during India's previous red-ball outing against South Africa in Guwahati. Pant's dismissal in both innings became a major talking point, drawing criticism at a time when the team expected greater responsibility from one of its senior players. And when Pant was seen negotiating spinners during the nets, the intent was on rock solid defence with Gambhir's hawk-eye prying on him from behind the nets. The head down copybook front-foot defence and backfoot defence were on display time and again.

Switching formats not easy; devoted time at nets for AFG Test: Kuldeep

Switching formats in a short span of time is never easy, concedes Kuldeep Yadav and the senior India spinner hopes that players coming off a gruelling IPL season have prepared well for this week's one-off Test against Afghanistan just as he did with extended red-ball practice. Kuldeep's franchise Delhi Capitals failed to make the IPL play-offs and he himself had an underwhelming season with only 10 wickets from 12 games. In an interview to PTI ahead of the Test beginning on Saturday, Kuldeep talked about how he had been personally doing net sessions for the past two weeks to get into the red-ball groove. "It is tough when you switch from IPL cricket to red-ball cricket. Preparation becomes very necessary. Luckily, I got time. I practised for at least 10 to 15 days and got the feel of the red ball," Kuldeep said in the exclusive interaction facilitated by series broadcasters 'JioHotstar'. "In T20, you are always attacking. You always think about going after the batter. You stay in th

Why IND vs AFG Test will not be counted in World Test Championship cycle

The current WTC regulations do not allow one-off Test matches to be part of the WTC. Every WTC contest must be played as a series of at least two Tests

ICC approves use of pink ball in Tests during bad light on a trial basis

ICC also granted match officials access to Hawk-Eye data for monitoring suspect bowling actions and made the leg-side wides trial a permanent feature

Red-to-pink ball switch in Tests on ICC agenda for May 30 board meeting

If approved by the board on May 30, the new playing conditions are expected to come into force from October 1

Sri Lanka vs India Test series to take place between August 15-27: Report

The Tests are expected to take place after the conclusion of the Lanka Premier League, which ends on August 9

Test Cricket: Tim Wigmore's masterly history of the game and empire

A sweeping review of Tim Wigmore's Test Cricket: A History, exploring how empire, race, class and politics shaped the game's longest format

India vs Australia Tests: Why is BCCI facing flak over BGT 2027 venues?

India will host Australia for a five-Test series from January 21 to March 3, 2027, with matches scheduled in Nagpur, Chennai, Guwahati, Ranchi and Ahmedabad.

Here's how West Asia conflict can disrupt Dukes cricket ball supply

The Dukes ball's multi-country production model has exposed it to global logistical shocks at a crucial time in England's cricket calendar

The more Tests we play, the better it will be for us players: Pratika Rawal

India's top-order batter Pratika Rawal, who scored a fighting half-century on her Test debut in Australia earlier this month, has advocated for more women's Tests, saying the traditional format remains the "most beautiful" and the ultimate test of a cricketer's character. Pratika played a crucial role in helping India avoid an innings defeat in the one-off day-night Test on the Australia tour earlier this month, scoring a 137-ball 63 runs in the second innings. Speaking on the sidelines of the Sports Journalists Federation of India conference hosted by the Delhi Sports Journalists Association here on Monday, the 25-year-old said Test cricket holds a special place for her. "Test cricket is the most beautiful format. Since childhood my father and coach have told me that performing well in this format is very important. When you are groomed in that manner, it naturally becomes your favourite format," she told PTI. Pratika added that she prepared herself for the format by watching vide