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Shreyas Iyer, who is currently in England, is likely to replace injured <keyword id="17805" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Shikhar-Dhawan">Shikhar Dhawan</keyword> in ICC Cricket World Cup 2019. According to the media reports, BCCI is considering Shreyas Iyer and <keyword id="3142448" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rishabh-Pant">Rishabh Pant</keyword> to replace Shikhar Dhawan who fractured his thumb. It is yet not clear whether Shikhar Dhawan will stay in England after his scan reports come out. Team India suffered a huge jolt on Tuesday as opener Shikhar Dhawan was ruled out of the 2019 World Cup for three weeks with a fractured thumb. Dhawan was hit by a ball from Nathan Coulter-Nile during his brilliant century against Australia at The Oval on Sunday. He was in pain but continued to bat with a tapped thumb. During the Australia innings, it was Ravindra Jadeja who took the field for Dhawan. (With IANS)

ICC World Cup 2019: Shreyash Iyer might replace Shikhar Dhawan as India’s opening batsman

Pune, <keyword id="17805" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Shikhar-Dhawan">Shikhar Dhawan</keyword>, who was dropped from the playing eleven after the first T20I, will open the batting with <keyword id="13937" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rohit-Sharma">Rohit Sharma</keyword> in the first <keyword id="40478" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="ODI">ODI</keyword> against England at the <keyword id="1629557" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Maharashtra-Cricket-Association-Stadium">Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium</keyword>, India skipper <keyword id="6354486" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="virat-kohli">Virat Kohli</keyword> said on Monday. India has featured four opening combinations in the recent five-match T20 International series against England with Kohli and Sharma opening in the final match. "As far as the opening partnership is concerned, Shikhar and <keyword id="714" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rohit">Rohit</keyword> will definitely start. When it comes to ODI cricket, I don't think there is any issue or doubt over Rohit or Shikhar opening together. They have been amazing for us in the past few years," said Kohli while speaking to the media in the pre-match media interaction. Dhawan's ODIs performance has been good although he has only played nine ODIs since June 2019, after sustaining thumb injury during a World Cup match against Australia and also because of the Covid-19 pandemic. In two of those he did not bat, including once due to another injury. He has got scores of 2, 36, 74, 96, 74, 30 and 16 in the seven times he has batted, averaging 46.85. The ongoing ODI series is being played in a year where the focus is more on the T20 Internationals, due to the T20 World Cup that will be played in India in October-November as well as the World Test Championship final in London in June where India play New Zealand. Kohli said since scheduling is not in players' hands they will have to take into regard the workload and manage it properly. "Scheduling is something that is not in our control. For us, it is an international game. Every international game is important and has value. It is an opportunity to represent your team and for us that remains the sole focus. Yes, as I have said many times in the past that scheduling and workload is something that everyone has to be aware of and keep an eye out for. Especially in today's day and age where you just don't know when the restrictions might come in and you may even have to play in bubbles in the future," added Kohli. "I think it is very important to consider how much cricket you are playing - not just the physical side of things but also the mental side of things. The players need to be spoken to and consulted with. Otherwise it is going to be a case with whoever can last through difficult times, players who don't last move away and someone else replaces that player. I don't think that is healthy for the cricket system and cricket culture moving forward. We definitely want to make it (system and culture) stronger and stronger going forward in the future."

Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan to open innings in first ODI: Kohli

India's 1983 World Cup-winning hero <keyword id="204836" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="roger-binny" source="Orion">Roger Binny</keyword> is likely to replace Sourav <keyword id="6505" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="ganguly" source="Orion">Ganguly</keyword> as the <keyword id="6354756" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="bcci" source="Orion">BCCI</keyword> President when the Board will hold its AGM on October 18, sources in the cricket body said on Tuesday. After hectic parleys and back-channel discussions in the past one week, it was decided that the 67-year-old from Bengaluru would be the 36th Board president, one of the sources familiar with the development, said. Jay <keyword id="1858" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="shah" source="Orion">Shah</keyword>, son of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, will continue as BCCI Secretary for his second consecutive term. Shah is also expected to replace Ganguly as India's representative at the all-powerful ICC Board. "Jay has been at the forefront of dealing with ICC matters on behalf of BCCI and with the 2023 World Cup around the corner in just one year's time, it is important that India has robust leadership at the Board of Directors meeting in the coming days," a BCCI source said. Binny will officially take charge of BCCI on October 18 at the AGM in Mumbai. There won't be any election to any post as all candidates will be chosen unopposed. All the people in the fray, including Shah and Shukla, filed their nomination papers on Tuesday. Binny, though, is a surprise choice to head the BCCI. However, hints were dropped that his name will crop up for some position when Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) named him as its representative at the BCCI AGM instead of secretary Santosh Menon. "Roger is one of the finest human beings and a thorough gentleman, who has graced the field for India. Plus he is also a World Cup hero and has a squeaky-clean image. He had resigned from the selection committee as his son Stuart back then was in contention to be in the Indian team," said another BCCI source. "He is the right choice for the job," the source added. The only Congressman in the BCCI cabinet is <keyword id="13855" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="rajeev-shukla" source="Orion">Rajeev Shukla</keyword>, who will continue as vice president. Sports minister Anurag Thakur's younger brother Arun Singh Dhumal, who is currently the treasurer, will now become IPL chairman. He will replace Brijesh Patel. Influential Maharashtra BJP leader Ashish Shelar will be the new treasurer which means that he won't become Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) president. He was supposed to take up the role with support from the Sharad Pawar faction. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's close aide Devajit Saikia will replace Jayesh George as the new joint secretary. Whether BCCI will contest for the ICC chairmanship hasn't been decided as yet. The medium pacer was one of the architects of India's historic World Cup triumph in 1983. In eight games, he took 18 wickets, the highest in that edition of the prestigious tournament. Ganguly, who reached Mumbai on Monday evening, had a lot of meetings with the stakeholders in New Delhi, last week. The former India captain was keen to continue as BCCI President but he was told that there is no precedence of giving a second term to the Board president. "Sourav was offered IPL chairmanship but he politely declined the offer. His logic was that he cannot accept becoming head of a sub-committee in BCCI after heading the same institution. He had expressed interest in continuing in the position," the BCCI source said. In the case of Dhumal, the decision makers waited for Ganguly to take a call on IPL chairmanship and once he refused, they promoted the Himachal man, who, along with secretary Shah, is known to be one of the most efficient men in the last BCCI cabinet. With Ganguly moving out of the picture, the East representation was always going to be Assam CM Biswa Sarma's call as he played a key role even last time. The names of members in the BCCI Apex Council and IPL Governing Council will be known when the final list will be published in a few days. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/cji-lalit-recommends-justice-chandrachuds-name-as-his-successor/articleshow/94784360.cms">CJI Lalit recommends Justice Chandrachud's name as his successor</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/entertainment/news/opening-new-innings-shikhar-dhawan-will-be-seen-in-double-xl/articleshow/94781583.cms">Opening new innings: Shikhar Dhawan will be seen in 'Double XL'</a>

Roger Binny likely to replace Ganguly as BCCI president, Shah to remain secretary

In cricketing parlance it's often said that teams should not change winning combinations because more often than not it breaks the momentum. Come to think of it, India's travails began in England only when they made changes to the winning eleven of the second game at Lord's. 
 
After the high of the Lord's win, their first at the hallowed ground in 28 years, <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ms-dhoni/4001/4057">MS Dhoni</a> and the team management left out <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/stuart-binny/4001/31034">Stuart Binny</a>, whose 78 in the second innings of the first Test at Trent Bridge blew away the clouds of defeat hovering over the team. <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ishant-sharma/4001/4094">Ishant Sharma</a>, the hero at Lord's for his career-best 7 for 74 in the second innings, also had to miss out the Southampton Test on account of an ankle injury. While leaving Binny out was the team's decision, Ishant's unavailability couldn't be helped. 
 
In hindsight, those two changes changed India's series. The men who replaced Binny and Ishant were batsman <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/rohit-sharma/4001/4095">Rohit Sharma</a> and medium pacer <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/pankaj-singh/4001/4100">Pankaj Singh</a> and both had an outing to forget. Rohit made 28 and 6, while Pankaj returned 0 for 146 and 0 for 33 as India lost the match by 266 runs. 
 At Old Trafford, India this time made three changes, bringing in <keyword id="13839" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gautam-Gambhir">Gautam Gambhir</keyword>, R Ashwin and <keyword id="6370607" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Varun-Aaron">Varun Aaron</keyword> in places of <keyword id="17805" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Shikhar-Dhawan">Shikhar Dhawan</keyword>, Rohit and Mohammed Shami. Things went from bad to worse and they were thumped by an innings and 54 runs inside three days. Clearly, those five changes didn't prove to be propitious for <keyword id="6397" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dhoni">Dhoni</keyword>. 
 
Having that in mind, now the question arises whether India should make changes once again for the fifth and final encounter at The Oval starting Friday. Gambhir had a horrible outing at Old Trafford; offspinner Ashwin, even though he did well with the bat, failed to take any wicket. However, Aaron impressed a lot, showing plenty of pace and his wicket of Moeen Ali with a vicious inswinger will stay as one of the moments of the series. 
 
The suspects this time are Gambhir, Ashwin and Pankaj, who despite breaking his wickets drought at Old Tafford, failed to inspire any confidence. Medium-pacer Ishwar Pandey and wicketkeeper-batsman Naman Ojha, who piled on the runs for India A against Australia A recently with scores of 219, 101 and 110 in two matches and was drafted into the squad as a replacement for the injured Wriddhiman Saha, are the only players in the squad not to have got a game yet. Should India hand them Test debuts at The Oval or, having learnt from their experiences in the series, they stick to the team that played at Old Trafford are questions that must be bothering Dhoni a great deal. 
 
By the look of things at present, sadly, India aren't likely to be going into the match unchanged. The cases of Pankaj and Gambhir need to be looked at with a magnifying glass. They looked very poor in the Old Trafford defeat. But then some would argue what's the guarantee that their replacements would revive the team. That the damage has already been done with the tourists trailing 2-1 in the series and bringing back Dhawan, Rohit, Shami or Binny is unlikely to do any good to the team. 
 
But in view of the proverbial fact that losing squads are kept getting tinkered with, a couple of changes look to be on the cards. There is no update on Ishant's fitness but he gets fit in time, Pankaj will have to go. Even if Ishant is not fit, Pandey should be considered on the basis of his accuracy and better swinging skills. Dhawan should be brought back in place of Gambhir for one simple reason that Gambhir looks to be way past his prime, and if the team management has to pick between two uncertainties, it should go for the younger and futuristic option that is Dhawan, who not long ago looked in good touch in New Zealand. The third suspect, Ashwin, should be retained considering he can contribute with the bat and looking at the team's current batting crisis playing him won't be a bad idea. 
 
The Oval Test seems to Dhoni's last chance at redemption and he can't afford to fail this time. Another loss or probably even a draw will certainly be the end of his captaincy. The selectors can't keep turning a blind eye to the fact that he has lost 12 Tests against one win outside the subcontinent in the last three years. Hopefully, Dhoni manages to assemble an eleven that brings an end to India's predicament.

To Change Or Not To Change, That's The Question For Dhoni

Following an embarrassing 3-1 defeat to England, Gocricket.com has the Indian players' report cards ready here. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/shikhar-dhawan/4001/28004">Shikhar Dhawan</a>: 5/10 
 Dhawan was India's highest run-scorer in the two-Test series against New Zealand with 215 from four innings. However, the Delhi batsman couldn't create the same impact against England: he managed 122 runs at an average of 20 with a highest of 37. His technical flaws were widely exposed by <keyword id="80896" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="James-Anderson">James Anderson</keyword>, who gave Dhawan a tough time outside the offstump. While he looked good in patches during his innings of 29 at Trent Bridge, 31 at Lord's and 37 at The Ageas Bowl, he couldn't convert them into anything productive. Most of his dismissals came in the initial part of the innings which dented India's hopes of getting off to a decent start. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/murali-vijay/4001/4102">Murali Vijay</a>: 7/10 
 
Dhawan's opening partner got off to a start few imagined him to. His 146 at Trent Bridge was his fourth century in Tests and first in England. He followed it up with consecutive half-centuries - 52 in the second innings and 95 at Lord's - but lost his bearings thereafter. In the next seven innings, Vijay made just 109 runs and his average - which at one point in the series touched 80 - dropped to 40.20. He wasn't troubled much at Trent Bridge and Lord's but in Southampton, Vijay was unlucky to play on and get run out. It was at Old Trafford and The Oval that he looked out of sorts, throwing his bat at away-going deliveries and flummoxed by those that darted in. A decent series all in all, but it could have been better. Considering the way his team-mates performed, Vijay was one of the few positives for India. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/stuart-binny/4001/31034">Gautam Gambhir</a>: 0/10 
 
Returning after an 18-month absence, Gambhir showed so signs of improvement. He was the most unconvincing among the Indian batsmen. His replacing Dhawan for the last two Tests raised many eyebrows. He remained persistent with his tendency to poke at balls outside offstump and looked like a sitting duck in each innings. An edge to gully, a run-out and a caught behind while trying to leave the ball, such dismissals indicate that Gambhir may have played his last Test for India. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/cheteshwar-pujara/4001/4106">Cheteshwar Pujara</a>: 4/10 
 
Pujara has endured one of the toughest series of his young career. He started off well with scores of 38, 55, 28 and 43 but Southampton, much like it did for India, led to his downward spiral. He had problems with the incoming delivery and even his rock-solid forward defence couldn't come to his rescue. Pujara was out caught behind on six occasions and fell prey to Moeen Ali's offspin twice. With a total of just 222 runs in 10 innings, India's No 3 looked very shaky. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/virat-kohli/4001/25007">Virat Kohli</a>: 2/10 
 
The first real forgettable tour for India's most prolific batsman of the current era. The fact that Kohli couldn't score even a single half-century in 10 innings speaks volumes about his failure. With 134 runs at an average of 13.40, statistically he is India's worst batsman on tour. James Anderson had his number throughout the series, dismissing him four times. Kohli was twice out without troubling the scorers and the cobwebs in his head were clearly visible. Twice he was dismissed offering no shot - bowled by Liam Plunkett at Lord's and out lbw to Chris Jordan at The Oval. 
 
Apart from his batting, his goof-ups in the slip cordon added to Kohli's woes. A gloomy series like this can be excused, especially after the string of success he has experienced, but Kohli must realise that a major chunk of India's batting revolves around him. His getting back among the runs is crucial if India are to have any chances in Australia later this year. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ajinkya-rahane/4001/32045">Ajinkya Rahane</a>: 7/10 
 
Another example of a batsman who squandered away a decent beginning. Rahane, in only his second Test in England, registered his name on the Lord's Honours Board, courtesy a match-winning century on day one to revive India splendidly. Two fifties followed in Southampton but the promising run was brought to a halt in the last two Tests with Rahane managing 21, 4, 0 and 1. He showed a lot of promise with 299 runs at 33.22 and but the team needs more from him. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/stuart-binny/4001/31034">Stuart Binny</a>: 2/10 
 
Much was said about Binny after his selection in the 18-member squad, and as it would turn out, he was another hyped-up player. His only substantial knock came at Trent Bridge - a match-saving 78 in the second innings. He played a horrible shot in the first innings at Lord's and his credentials of an allrounder also took a big blow as he struggled with the ball and went wicketless in all three Tests he got. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ms-dhoni/4001/4057">MS Dhoni</a>: Batting 7.5/10, Captaincy 5/10 
 While <keyword id="6397" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dhoni">Dhoni</keyword> the batsman raised his game in England, Dhoni the captain was another major setback in away matches. With four half-centuries in five matches, the India skipper had one of his best overseas series. His 82 at Trent Bridge was followed by 50 in Southampton where his biggest slip was falling early on day four when India needed him to stay in the middle. At Old Trafford and The Oval, his innings of 71 and 82 were one of only three Indian scores in double digits as the rest of the batsmen crumbled around him. 
 Dhoni's captaincy though looked lifeless yet again. His five-bowler strategy never really came to India's aid, and the decision to ignore Ishwar Pandey raised questions. After leading India to their fifth consecutive overseas series loss, this might mark the end of the road for Dhoni the <keyword id="195040" type="POSITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Test-captain">Test captain</keyword>. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ravindra-jadeja/4001/32004">Ravindra Jadeja</a>: 5/10 
 
Despite the fact that he and Anderson kept on getting each other out, Jadeja's only meaningful contribution came in the second Test at Lord's, where his counter-attacking fifty set the game up in favour of India. With the ball, he was inconsistent. His wickets either were down to poor shots or the need for quick runs. Ian Bell and Jos Buttler took him apart in Southampton, where he was either too short or generous down the legside. Jadeja remains a strong contender at home but a doubtful starter for away matches. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/rohit-sharma/4001/4095">Rohit Sharma</a>: 1/10 
 
Our very own flat-track bully was drafted into the team at The Ageas Bowl in place of Binny and what did he do? Played a silly shot to Ali in the first innings and fell early on day five to Anderson in the second. Might be a cinch to play on Indian wickets, but his modes of dismissal are only worsening his case of playing abroad. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ravichandran-ashwin/4001/26007">Ravichandran Ashwin</a>: 6/10 
 
Ashwin managed to surprise in a role-reversal of sorts. While at Old Trafford he impressed one and all with his batting, The Oval saw Ashwin get back among the wickets. He forged a 66-run partnership with Dhoni for the seventh wicket in the fourth Test and played textbooks shots. Ashwin played second fiddle to Dhoni, who at the other end took calculated risks. Ashwin scored 46 in the second innings as India went down by an innings and 54 runs. At The Oval, Ashwin finally took his first wicket since 2012 and his 3/72 kept things tight. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/bhuvneshwar-kumar/4001/25023">Bhuvneshwar Kumar</a>: 8/10 
 
The conditions in England were supposed to ideal for Bhuvneshwar's style of bowling and he proved the theory right with figures of 5/82 and 6/82 in the first two Tests. But as soon as the English batsmen came into their own, the Uttar Pradesh bowler was a tired figure out in the middle. Once the batsmen negotiated with his early movement, scoring became easy. And even though in the third and fourth Test he took 3/101 and 3/75, Bhuvneshwar lacked support at the other end. 
 
To see him bat nicely in the series was a pleasant surprise. Scores of 63, 58 and 52 in the first three innings of the series were an added bonus for the team. With 19 wickets at 26.63 and 247 runs at 27.44, Bhuvneshwar had a series to remember. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ishant-sharma/4001/4094">Ishant Sharma</a>: 7/10 
 
Ishant was supposed to spearhead the Indian attack in England and many believed that the win at Lord's - where he took a career best 7/74 - had finally established Ishant as India's premier fast bowler. But an unlikely injury after the historic triumph was a case of bad luck for India. And when Ishant came back, it was fairly evident that he wasn't the same bowler who etched his name of on the Lord's Honours Board. At The Oval, he was predictably short and Stuart Broad took the attack to him despite batting with a broken nose. Ishant looked a bit ragged in his 4/96. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/varun-aaron/4001/30019">Varun Aaron: 5/10</a> 
 
The Jharkhand fast bowler made a return to Tests after December 2011 with plenty of calls for his inclusion for the fourth Test, in Ishant's absence. And even though he dismissed Ali with a peach of a delivery and broke Broad's nose, Aaron was mostly erratic, wasting energy on bowling far too many short balls. He bagged five wickets at an average of 50 - which included him conceding runs at over five an over at The Oval. But there is no doubt that he caught a few eyes with his pace. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/pankaj-singh/4001/4100">Pankaj Singh</a>: 4/10 
 Known as a workhorse in domestic circuit, Pankaj bowled with a lot of heart in Southampton after getting a debut in place of an injured Ishant. He was unlucky twice after Jadeja put down <keyword id="9234" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Alastair-Cook">Alastair Cook</keyword> in the first session followed by an umpiring error that reprieved Bell. Pankaj finally tasted success after toiling for 47 overs in Southampton and almost 23 overs in Manchester, where he bowled bad balls too frequently and went over four an over. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/mohammed-shami/4001/30030">Mohammed Shami</a>: 2/10 
 
Shami bowled with good pace in three Tests but was overall ordinary. His five wickets in the series came every 115 deliveries and at the cost of 73.20 runs. But with the next series taking place against the West Indies, he might return on the basis of what he did against them last year.

Indian Players' Report Cards After England Debacle

It's just getting worse and worse for India. After the ignominy of Southampton, they have yet again succumbed to a crushing defeat against England at Manchester. They now trail England 1-2 in the five-match series. Gocricket.com takes a look at how each member of the Indian team fared at Old Trafford. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/murali-vijay/4001/4102">Murali Vijay </a> It seems ages ago when <keyword id="57265" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Murali-Vijay">Murali Vijay</keyword> impressed everyone with his defiant knocks in the first two Tests at Trent Bridge and Lord's. At Manchester he scored a total of 18 runs including a duck in the first innings. He was at the receiving end of a peach of a delivery from James Anderson in the first innings and in the second, fell to Chris Woakes. His slump has come at a wrong time. Among all the specialist Indian batsmen on the tour, he has been one of the two brightest spots. With the other openers failing, he needs to get his touch back if India hope to do well in the fourth Test. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/gautam-gambhir/4001/4043">Gautam Gambhir </a> Questions were raised when Gambhir was selected for the England tour as a reserve opener. Those questions were put to rest when the first choice opener in <keyword id="17805" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Shikhar-Dhawan">Shikhar Dhawan</keyword> failed. The reasons, for which he lost his place in the national side, seem to be valid even today. A batsman of his repute, on his return to international cricket after almost two years, should perform but he could muster only 22 runs in two innings. Both the times he fell to short deliveries. In the first innings, his dismissal brought back memories of the 2011 tour of England when he repeatedly was caught in the slip cordon and his second dismissal left everyone frustrated as he needlessly gloved one from Anderson to be caught by the wicketkeeper. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/cheteshwar-pujara/4001/4106">Cheteshwar Pujara</a> He was the second Indian batsmen to be out for a duck in the first dig after <keyword id="52757" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Stuart-Broad">Stuart Broad</keyword> lured him to edge one to Chris Jordan in the slips. In the second innings, he was a bit unlucky to be given out lbw as replays showed the ball from Moeen Ali was missing the leg stump. He managed 17. His technique on seaming, pacy tracks is under intense scrutiny after yet another failure. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/virat-kohli/4001/25007">Virat Kohli</a> 
Seems Kohli is not willing to learn and improve. People have lost count of the number of times his weakness against outside off deliveries has been exploited England bowlers. He is the designated superstar of a star-studded Indian line-up. But where is that performance? In both the innings, Anderson got the better of him. He scored a duck in the first and managed seven in the second before pushing at a delivery that went safely into the hands of Ian Bell at second slip. Someone needs to tell him that he need not go after every delivery, especially those outside off. Let better sense prevail. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ajinkya-rahane/4001/32045">Ajinkya Rahane </a> 
Smile is infectious. Replace 'smile' with 'failure' for Rahane. When everyone around him seems to be hell bent on playing loose, rash strokes, could he have avoided playing one of his own? Yes. But he couldn't. In the first innings with his team in dire straits, he gifted Chris Jordan his wicket after scoring 24 in a partnership with captain Dhoni that gave a flickering hope of a recovery. In the second, another loose shot put him on the way back to the dressing room after he had managed a single. All we can hope is that his failure at Manchester is just a one-off incident. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ms-dhoni/4001/4057">MS Dhoni</a> 
Dhoni's knock of 71 runs in the first innings will be counted among his best in Tests. When everything around him crumbled, he was the lone warrior before he pulled one that ended his fight. In the second, he again saved India from the ignominy of being bowled out for double figures. However, his wicketkeeping and captaincy was questionable. Not utilising bowlers effectively apart from his performance behind the stumps is not helping the team. After the low of Southampton, it was expected that he would rejig things. But, under his watch, India slipped further into the abyss. Lord's is a distant memory now for him and the Indian fans. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ravindra-jadeja/4001/32004">Ravindra Jadeja</a> 
Anderson has gained much out of his spat with India allrounder Jadeja. The Englishman has flourished. On the other hand, Jadeja's only significant contribution was trapping Anderson after being meted out a similar treatment by the pacer in India's first innings. He took one wicket in the entire match and scored four runs including a 14-ball duck in the first innings. His pairing with R Ashwin on Indian tracks is deadly. In England where Moeen Ali has trapped India in a web of spin, he has been nothing short of ordinary. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/bhuvneshwar-kumar/4001/25023">Bhuvneshwar Kumar</a> 
Bhuvneshwar continues to toil hard and he is reaping rewards for his efforts. He seems to be the only member of the Indian team who is aware of his limitations and is taking the most out of his abilities. He took three wickets at Manchester where England batted once. Two of those (Sam Robson and Bell) were a result of some wonderful bowling. He has lost his 'midas touch' with the bat as scores of 0 and 10 would suggest. But he cannot be expected to hide the failures of the batsmen every single time. His job is to bowl, not score runs. Unfortunately he has been forced to do the additional job as well and the effect is the dip in his intensity. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/varun-aaron/4001/30019">Varun Aaron</a> 
Back in the team after a gap of almost three years, Aaron impressed with his lively pace. He bowled consistently above 140 km/hr and occasionally troubled the batsmen with his bounce. The delivery with which he cleaned up Moeen Ali was one of the few moments to cherish for India from the Test. He picked 3/97 in 26 overs and made an impressive return, although straying away on occasions. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ravichandran-ashwin/4001/26007">R Ashwin</a> 
Include Ashwin and things will get better was the mantra after the loss at Southampton for India. He was selected and bowled well but went wicketless even as his counterpart (Moeen) ended with four scalps. However, it was his batting that was much talked about. He put to shame the Indian top order in both the innings. In the first his 40 runs took the team past 150 runs and he followed it with an unbeaten 46 which was the highest score by any Indian batsman in the second dig. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/pankaj-singh/4001/4100">Pankaj Singh</a> 
His painful wait for a wicket finally ended on the third day when he removed Joe Root for 77. He, again, started well but his workhorse attitude didn't translate into anything significant. On a pitch where England bowlers murdered Indian batting, his efforts at best can be summed up as below par. He bowls well but not good enough that will force the selectors to give him an extended run. Mind you – he is bowling in helpful conditions and not on lifeless subcontinent tracks. If <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ishant-sharma/4001/4094">Ishant Sharma</a> gets fit, Pankaj, who took two wickets in the Test, will surely sit out at The Oval.

A Report Card Of India's Defeat At Manchester

India’s pathetic, slipshod batting, filled with childish mistakes, virtually handed the third Test to England on a platter at Southampton. Add to that largely ineffective bowling — especially from the exceptionally unfortunate <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/pankaj-singh/4001/4100">Pankaj Singh</a> — and shoddy fielding, and you have a recipe for disaster. Like it or not, England have their tail up now, and from being a series that India looked certain to win, this has become a very, very tough challenge for them indeed. 
 
The change needs to come from the top. I have never been more let down by <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ms-dhoni/4001/4057">MS </a><a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ms-dhoni/4001/4057">Dhoni</a>’s captaincy than I was during the second innings at Southampton. As many of you probably know, I am a huge Dhoni fan, and I was truly disappointed at the way he persisted with three slips, even as England were snatching runs from all corners of the ground. It was as though he had just given up and wanted to go home. 
 
At the other end of the spectrum, his opposite number, <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/alastair-cook/3001/3056">Alastair Cook</a>, was regaining confidence both as batsman and as leader with every ball, every minute. I doubt whether <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ravindra-jadeja/4001/32004">Ravindra Jadeja</a> will ever live down the dropped catch off Cook when the <keyword id="1411" type="POSITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="captain">captain</keyword> was on 15. 
 
Speaking of Jadeja, no matter what anyone says, he is not a wicket-taking bowler, but a defensive one. He may have landed a few victims in the IPL, but that’s more because batsmen got themselves out trying to slog him out of the park. That’s a different story from Test cricket, where his limitations are many, and severe. 
 
Thankfully, though, the mysterious affair of the omission of <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ravichandran-ashwin/4001/26007">Ravichandran Ashwin</a> is about to be addressed. Why an off-break bowler has sat out three games against a team that has not one, not two, but five left-handed batsmen, I will never know. Get him out on the pitch and let him bowl into the bowlers’ footholds! 
 
So assuming Ashwin comes in, who does he replace? India certainly need a fifth bowler, particularly now that <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ishant-sharma/4001/4094">Ishant Sharma</a> is out of the picture, because they seem to have mistakenly supposed that the four-bowler strategy that worked on the Lord’s green top will work everywhere else. Therefore, a regular batsman needs to go, and there are at least four options. The prime candidate for me would be <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/shikhar-dhawan/4001/28004">Shikhar Dhawan</a>, who has shown himself to be sadly lacking in both footwork and technique. 
 
The other letdowns, of course, are <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/rohit-sharma/4001/4095">Rohit Sharma</a>, <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/cheteshwar-pujara/4001/4106">Cheteswar Pujara</a>, and <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/virat-kohli/4001/25007">Virat Kohli</a>. Sharma in particular was a waste of time at Southampton, getting out to an ugly shot against the spinner, trying to hit over the top. We know how good India’s young batsmen can be, but, as has happened many times in the past, their fame seems to exceed their performance. 
 
One more area of concern for India is the entire Anderson affair. So intent were the Indians on stopping <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/james-anderson/3001/3040">James Anderson</a> from playing that their focus seems to have shifted from beating England, and all that they succeeded in doing was to prove how desperately they wanted him out of the way. Now that he has got away scot free, they need to contend with him all over again at Old Trafford. My advice to them would be to avoid trying to score against him, and simply see him off. 
 
England are unlikely to tamper with a winning team, unless <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/steven-finn/3001/3080">Steven Finn</a> comes in, and he’s a fine young bowler. They got lucky with quite a few umpiring decisions at Southampton, but a win is a win, and like it or not, as I said, England have turned a corner and look a different team now.

Boycott Exclusive: India Need To play Five Bowlers

Sydney, <keyword id="6355478" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="australia">Australia</keyword> captain Aaron Finch on Friday won the toss and elected to bat against India in the first <keyword id="40478" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="ODI">ODI</keyword> of the three-match series at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG). "We will bat first. It's great to have cricket back in Australia and to play in front of crowds will be nice," said Finch. "The wicket looks good. Hopefully, we can put runs on the board and defend. Steve Smith is back and he replaces Mitchell Marsh," he added. For India, Mayank Agarwal will open the innings alongside Shikhar Dhawan, informed India skipper <keyword id="6354486" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="virat-kohli">Virat Kohli</keyword>. "It's important to start well as a team, we need to start strongly and set the momentum for the matches ahead. The preparations have been nice, we got some valuable time (on account of the quarantine)," Kohli said. Manish Pandey, Shubman Gill, Shardul Thakur, T Natarajan, Sanju Samson and Kuldeep Yadav are the players who missed out on being part of the Indian XI. Playing XIs Australia: Aaron Finch(c), David Warner, Steven Smith, Marcus Stoinis, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Alex Carey(w), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood India: Shikhar Dhawan, Mayank Agarwal, Virat Kohli(c), Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul(w), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Navdeep Saini

India vs Australia 1st ODI: Australia wins the toss, opts to bat against India at Sydney Cricket Ground

Saturday night will see a clash between the master and the apprentice. MS Dhoni, who is on the last bend of his career and has been turning up only for <keyword id="13886" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Chennai-Super-Kings">Chennai Super Kings</keyword> (CSK) since his retirement from international cricket last year, will lead the three-time champions against Delhi Capitals (DC), who will be captained by Rishabh Pant, his long-term successor as India's first choice wicketkeeper. Pant has said in the past that he wants to emulate Dhoni but seems to be carving his own niche. While his power-hitting has already been well-known, his batting went a notch higher since the last Indian Premier League (IPL) as he helped India win the Test series in Australia and against England at home. His wicketkeeping skills came as a pleasant surprise during both series and now it will be his captaincy skills that will be put to test. Pant replaced the injured Shreyas Iyer, who is nursing a shoulder injury. The last year's runners-up have also added Steve Smith to their squad. Their pace bowling attack, comprising Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, <keyword id="149050" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Umesh-Yadav">Umesh Yadav</keyword> and Ishant Sharma along with all-rounders Chris Woakes, Tom Curran and Marcus Stoinis, is among the best in the league. Experienced and acclaimed spinners like off-spinner R Ashwin and leg-spinner Amit Mishra make up a very strong bowling line-up that will test the CSK batting line-up that performed very poorly in the last edition. The CSK batting will rely a lot on Faf du Plessis but the return of Suresh Raina, who missed the last season, will be a boost for the three-time champions as they look to do better this time than the seventh place finish they got last season. India's Test batting stalwart Cheteshwar Pujara too has been included in the CSK line-up for his first IPL in seven years. The India No. 3 batsman was seen using a higher back-lift and hitting sixes in one of the net sessions. CSK blundered last year by not reading the pitches well and not playing their spinners early enough. They realised their mistake and started to give Mitchell Santner and Imran Tahir matches. But it was too late by then. One man who could make a difference is Shardul Thakur, who has done exceedingly well for India since the last IPL. He would be leading their pace bowling along with Deepak Chahar or Aussie Jason Behrendorff, who has come in for Josh Hazlewood. But essentially, CSK's fate on Saturday will depend on how their batting stands up to DC's bowling. DC squad: Rishabh Pant (captain/wicketkeeper), Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, Ajinkya Rahane, Steve Smith, Sam Billings, Shimron Hetmyer, Ishant Sharma, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Umesh Yadav, Tom Curran, Avesh Khan, Lalit Yadav, Pravin Dubey, Ripal Patel, Lukman Hussain Meriwala, M Siddharth, Marcus Stoinis, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Chris Woakes, <keyword id="3788898" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Vishnu-Vinod">Vishnu Vinod</keyword> (wicketkeeper), <keyword id="128070" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Aditya-Tare">Aditya Tare</keyword> (wicketkeeper) CSK squad: MS Dhoni (captain/wicketkeeper), Suresh Raina, Narayan Jagadeesan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, KM Asif, Karn Sharma, Ambati Rayudu, Deepak Chahar, Faf du Plessis, Shardul Thakur, Mitchell Santner, Dwayne Bravo, Lungi Ngidi, Sam Curran, Ravindra Jadeja, Imran Tahir, Robin Uthappa, Moeen Ali, <keyword id="2102949" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="K-Gowtham">K Gowtham</keyword>, Cheteshwar Pujara, M.Harisankar Reddy, K.Bhagath Varma, C Hari Nishaanth, R Sai Kishore <h4 style="color: rgb(44, 44, 45);">SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/nokia-x20-specifications-nokia-new-phones-price-in-india/articleshow/81981039.cms">Six new Nokia smartphones announced – price, specifications and availability details you should know</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/founders-take-note-heres-why-most-startups-fail/articleshow/81981138.cms">Founders, take note: here’s why most startups fail</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/google-phone-app-now-lets-you-record-calls-automatically-from-unknown-numbers/articleshow/81982791.cms">Google Phone app now lets you record calls automatically from unknown numbers</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/adar-poonawalla-serum-institute-of-india-has-bought-stake-policybazaar/articleshow/81985425.cms">Serum Institute of India buys into IPO-bound insurance unicorn PolicyBazaar, as True North sells part stake in secondary sale</a> </h4><h4 style="color: rgb(44, 44, 45);"></h4>

It's master vs disciple: Dhoni takes on Pant in today's second IPL match as CSK clashes with DC

The race to the <keyword id="6354312" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="IPL">IPL</keyword> 7 play-offs has become tense. One more week to go and two teams - <keyword id="13883" type="COMPANY" weightage="40" keywordseo="Kings-XI-Punjab">Kings XI Punjab</keyword> and <keyword id="13886" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="40" keywordseo="Chennai-Super-Kings">Chennai Super Kings</keyword> have confirmed their places in the top-four. Only Delhi Daredevils are out of contention with as many as five teams fighting it out for the remaining two spots. Here, gocricket.com takes a look at the top moments from week five. 

	Simmons leads MI recovery <keyword id="13880" type="COMPANY" weightage="40" keywordseo="Mumbai-Indians">Mumbai Indians</keyword> have managed to keep their slim hopes of a play-off spot alive with vital wins against two of the top three teams of this season, with Lendl Simmons playing a leading role both times. First they outsmarted <keyword id="13802" type="CITY" weightage="40" keywordseo="Rajasthan-Royals">Rajasthan Royals</keyword> at their second home in Motera after reading the surface correctly and including an extra spinner, that eventually made the difference. MI used three spinners compared to RR's lone spinner and won the game by 25 runs to stay in the fray. Simmons scored a brisk 62 in an opening stand of 121, which was Mumbai's best start in 40 matches. 
	 

	Against Kings XI Punjab on Wednesday, Simmons hit the first century of the season with an unbeaten 100 off 61 balls to lead their chase of 157. If they win their remaining two games and a few other results go their way, MI could qualify for the play-offs of a tournament at the beginning of which they lost five consecutive games. 
	 

	Seven in a row for DD
 

	At the other end of the spectrum are the Daredevils, who in the past seven days continued their miserable run with two more defeats which extended their losing run to seven in a row. This season they have won only two games - both during the UAE leg of the tournament - meaning they are the only team yet to taste victory in India. The Delhi-based franchise continues to languish at the bottom of the points table and with just two games remaining, have nothing but pride to play for. The closest they came to a win was against KXIP at the Feroz Shah Kotla where the match went into the final over. However, as their legspinner Imran Tahir observed, luck has deserted the team.
 

	Pollard leaves Motera stunned
 

	Against RR at the Sardar Patel Stadium, Kieron Pollard took what could be the catch of the season to dismiss Kevon Cooper. Cooper's back-foot swap appeared set to end up behind the long-on boundary, but suddenly encountered Pollard on its way as the West Indian leapt, caught the ball one-handed, found himself pushed over the ropes due to momentum but somehow kept his balance to throw the ball back in play. Pollard recovered in a flash, then ran in, dived forward and caught the ball - all within a few seconds. It was seriously exhilarating viewing.
 

	Watto gets it wrong
 

	Call it complacency or plain misjudgement on the part of Royals, who made four changes to their line-up against MI in the same match - resting the formidable trio of Pravin Tambe, Ajinkya Rahane and Steven Smith. On a pitch assisting spinners, Mumbai replaced one of their batsmen with an extra spinner in Shreyas Gopal and the unheralded legspinnner, in his first T20 match ever, picked two wickets. Royals had just one specialist spinner in Ankit Sharma whereas MI had three - each of them picking two wickets.
 

	Shining knight
 Robin Uthappa has climbed the batting charts to be now placed at No. 2 in the top run-getters list of IPL 7 and his consistency has helped <keyword id="6354925" type="COMPANY" weightage="40" keywordseo="Kolkata">Kolkata</keyword> Knight Riders to five successive wins. Twice in the past week, against <keyword id="1494441" type="PERSON" weightage="40" keywordseo="Sunrisers-Hyderabad">Sunrisers Hyderabad</keyword> and Chennai Super Kings, they emerged winners thanks largely to Uthappa's solid presence at the top. He scored 40 against SRH and then at Eden Gardens, clobbered 10 boundaries in his 67 to lead another successful chase. Uthappa's 489 runs have been scored at an average 40.75 and a strike rate that touches 134. His consistency has led many to suggest that a return to the national side is imminent. 

	Burden off Dhawan's shoulders 
 

	Just about half an hour before their 11th game of the season, SRH surprised everyone with the appointment of a new captain in Darren Sammy. A poor show with the bat worked against Shikhar Dhawan as the SRH top brass took the 'extra burden' off his shoulders so as to help him focus on his batting. It seems to have worked as Dhawan scored his first fifty of the season against Royal Challengers Bangalore, giving SRH a new lease of life for a final four finish.

Weekly Review: Race For The Play-Offs Heats Up

Former India batsman <keyword id="6363956" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="VVS-Laxman">VVS laxman</keyword> has backed India's present coaching staff to remain in charge until next the 2015 World Cup. The 39-year-old said undergoing wholesale changes just six months prior to the World Cup is not a good move. 
 "I am hoping the <keyword id="6354756" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="BCCI">BCCI</keyword> will stick to the support staff we had for the one-dayers till the World Cup. The tournament is only six months away so there isn't enough time to chop and change," Laxman said in an interview with ESPNcricinfo. 
 "I have worked with <keyword id="19692" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Ravi-Shastri">Ravi Shastri</keyword> in 2007 when we toured Bangladesh and he is a very positive person, immense knowledge of the game, he was himself a great leader for Mumbai and he captained India in one Test that India won convincingly. I am glad Bharat Arun and R Sridhar got their opportunity to coach at the highest level because they have a good track record at the India A and Under-19 level, and Sanjay Bangar because of his recent success with Kings XI Punjab." 
 
Laxman also gave his insights about India's mixed tour of England and said that important tours such as this will hold the players in good stead for the future. "I have always regarded tours of South Africa, Australia and England as important for a team to become better," he said. "I am sure the Indian players have learned, the way they bounced back showed a lot of character and definitely they will turn into much better players." 
 
Speaking about the current generation of Indian cricketers, Laxman said the players are keen to learn and this was visible during the England tour. 
 
"I know for a fact that players like [Virat] <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/virat-kohli/4001/25007">Kohli</a>, [Ajinkya] <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ajinkya-rahane/4001/32045">Rahane</a>, [​Cheteshwar] <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/cheteshwar-pujara/4001/4106">Pujara</a>, [Shikhar] <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/shikhar-dhawan/4001/28004">Dhawan</a> take a lot of pride in what they do in Tests and more so in overseas conditions. You've seen the way <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/murali-vijay/4001/4102">M Vijay</a> adapted to the Test series, he didn't play his natural game, played with a lot of controlled aggression. So they focus on Tests and I don't agree that they don't give enough emphasis to Tests." 
 
Laxman also opined that even though the ODI series win against England was a comprehensive one, India still needed to focus on their death bowling and the opening combination to become a force to reckon with. 
 
"In the T20 they gave away 50 runs in the last three overs, which is a lot, so I think these two issues are a problem. Also the way India start with their batting will be important because of two new balls and conditions suiting the fast bowlers," he said. "Luckily for India they are playing a tri-series before the World Cup and that too against the Australians in their own backyard. It will be a good experience for the players to get used to the conditions." 
 
Rahane, who replaced the injured <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/rohit-sharma/4001/4095">Rohit Sharma</a> in the ODIs had a good outing with 192 runs in four matches and many believe he can be a good bet to open the innings. Laxman, however, said the conditions in Australia are better suited to Rohit. "The wickets in Australia will suit him [Rohit]. He had a successful ODI series in 2007 when he was young and inexperienced. His style of batting will suit Australian conditions, so I will definitely go back to Rohit and have Rahane as a back-up but play him in the middle order."

Laxman Backs Coaching Saff, Wants Rohit To Open In World Cup

England asserted their supremacy on the opening day of the fourth Test at Old Trafford as they closed on 113/3 after <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/stuart-broad/3001/3067">Stuart Broad</a>'s 6 for 25 bundled India out for 152. India equalled the record of six ducks in a Test innings and despite a gritty half-century from <keyword id="16561" type="POSITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="skipper">skipper</keyword> <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ms-dhoni/4001/4057">MS Dhoni</a>, the Indian batting surrendered to some quality seam bowling from the Englishmen. 
 
England skipper <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/alastair-cook/3001/3056">Alastair Cook</a> could not have chosen a better toss to lose after his Indian counterpart Dhoni opted to bat on a lively Old Trafford pitch, which as it would turn out, have more than just a handful for the medium-pacers. Amid all the speculation surrounding the Playing XI heading into Manchester, India rang in three changes. <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/gautam-gambhir/4001/4043">Gautam Gambhir</a> replaced the out-of-form <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/shikhar-dhawan/4001/28004">Shikhar Dhawan</a>; <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ravichandran-ashwin/4001/26007">Ravichandran Ashwin</a> was selected in place of <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/rohit-sharma/4001/4095">Rohit Sharma</a> and the much-talked about <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/varun-aaron/4001/30019">Varun Aaron</a> was picked ahead of <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/mohammed-shami/4001/30030">Mohammed Shami</a>. 
 
Dhoni's decision backfired as Broad and <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/james-anderson/3001/3040">James Anderson</a> (3 for 46) shredded India to 8 for 4 inside the first six overs giving England their best start of the series. Comeback man Gambhir's (4) stay at the middle was short-lived after he fended at a length ball to <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/joe-root/3001/73004">Joe Root</a> at gully from Broad. <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/murali-vijay/4001/4102">Murali Vijay</a> was the next to go for a duck, seven balls later to Anderson. Vijay, who has been good at leaving balls outside his off-stump in this series, played and nicked to skipper Cook at first slip. 
 
<a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/virat-kohli/4001/25007">Virat Kohli</a> and <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/cheteshwar-pujara/4001/4106">Cheteshwar Pujara</a> failed to impress yet again and went without troubling the scorers. While Kohli tickled an exceptional outswinger from Anderson, Pujara edged a full-length delivery from Broad to a diving Chris Jordan at third slip leaving India reeling at 8 for 4. <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ajinkya-rahane/4001/32045">Ajinkya Rahane</a> - who has by far looked India's best batsman on the tour - and Dhoni weathered the storm and decided to leave more balls. Both gutted it out and strung together an dogged 50-run stand. Once Anderson and Broad were taken out of the attack, run-scoring became comparatively fluent and easier. Jordan, however, ended the promising stand with the wicket of Rahane for 24 in the penultimate over of the session. 
 
India started the second session losing the wicket of <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ravindra-jadeja/4001/32004">Ravindra Jadeja</a> (0) to his 'friend' Anderson in the second over after the lunch interval. Anderson set the trap nicely following back-to-back away going deliveries with an inswinger that jagged back in and caught the Indian allrounder stone dead in front of the stumps. At 63 for 5, Ashwin joined his skipper in the middle and the pair batted with precaution to slowly take India forward. Ashwin's near-clean batting technique played a perfect second-fiddle to Dhoni, who at the other end, took calculated risks and kept the scoreboard ticking. 
 
Ashwin had a slice of luck on 25, when he was dropped by wicketkeeper <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/jos-buttler/3001/3111">Jos Buttler</a> off Anderson in the 35th over. He and Dhoni put together 66 runs for the seventh wicket before the offspinner mistimed a pull off Broad to <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/sam-robson/3001/84620">Sam Robson</a> at deep-square leg. Ashwin's flamboyant 42-ball 40 was and laced with three fours and a six over deep fine leg which launched a counter-attack on England. Broad then cleaned up <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/bhuvneshwar-kumar/4001/25023">Bhuvneshwar Kumar</a> two overs later for his 12th five-wicket haul in Tests. His dismissal exposed the Indian tail which managed to survive just seven more overs. Dhoni played a few unorthodox shots and reached his 32nd half-century with a four and casually edged and pulled his way to 71 before eventually finding the fielder at deep-square leg. 
 
England's hopes of a good beginning was tarnished by Robson - who battled for 24 balls and scored six runs. Bhuvneshwar once again removed him - third time in the series, castling his off stump with an inswinger. Cook's twin fifties at Southampton seemed to have done him a world of good - he cracked two fours off Pankaj - but against the run of play he fell to his favourite shot, a pull off Aaron for 17. Southampton centurions <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/ian-bell/3001/3048">Ian Bell</a> and <a href="http://www.gocricket.com/player/gary-ballance/3001/73003">Gary Ballance</a> took over and played with authority. Both took a specific liking towards Pankaj, who conceded 50 runs off his 11 overs. 
 
With run-scoring becoming easy with every over bowled, Dhoni introduced Ashwin in the 21st over. Bell welcomed him by dancing down the wicket and hitting him over his head for the first six of the English innings. Bell pounced on anything slightly short and made most of anything offered on his pads. Ballance and Bell added 77 runs before Aaron would strike again, this time trapping the dangerous Ballance (87 balls, 4x6) leg before for 37 in the final over of the day. Nightwatchman Jordan (0) and Bell (45) were at the crease when stumps were drawn.

You Searched For "Shikhar Dhawan Replacement" and got 12 results

ICC World Cup 2019: Shreyash Iyer might replace Shikhar Dhawan as India’s opening batsman

BI India Bureau

Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan to open innings in first ODI: Kohli

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