Nice to bowl with the red ball again: Mitchell Marsh

As Australia gear up for their first warm-up fixture against Sri Lanka Cricket Board XI, starting on Monday (July 18), all-rounder Mitchell Marsh expressed his delight at getting back to red-ball cricket, and his anticipation of playing Tests in the sub-continent after a long while.

Kumble will keep India on top: Courtney Walsh

Courtney Walsh, the former West Indies fast bowler, has hailed Anil Kumble's appointment as India's head coach ahead of the leg spinner's first assignment in West Indies. Walsh is currently a national selector and was present in St Kitts to watch the West Indies Cricket Board President XI take on India in the practice game.

Yasir, Rahat put Pakistan in control

Yasir Shah's twin strikes helped Pakistan reduce England to 155 for 6 and strengthen their grip on the first Test match at Lord's on Sunday (July 17). James Vince (42) and Gary Ballance (43) missed out on half-centuries but kept England afloat with useful partnerships before Yasir struck twice in the post-lunch session to give the visitors an edge.

Siriwardana to captain Sri Lankan XI in practice game

Milinda Siriwardana, the left-handed all-rounder, will captain the Sri Lankan XI team that will take on Australia in a three-day practice match in Colombo from Monday (July 18), Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) announced. Dasun Shanaka, the right-arm pacer who made his Test debut against England in May 2016, is also part of the team that has Dilhara Fernando, Shehan Jayasuriya and Chaturanga de Silva, among others.
The 30-year-old Siriwardana, who made his Test debut against West Indies in October 2015, has played five Test matches so far. Siriwardana featured in only one game during the three-Test series against England and will be eager to come up with a solid performance against the touring Australians to make a case for his selection for the Test series.

We expect slow wickets during the Test series: Shardul Thakur

Shardul Thakur is on his first Test tour and bowled only a handful of overs in India's second practice game against West Indies' Board President's XI but the Indian pacer reckons that the wickets in the forthcoming four-match series will be similar to what the team encountered during the two practice games at Warner Park, Basseterre in St. Kitts.

Bracewell fine-tunes batting skills to earn New Zealand call-up

heving been pushed down the pecking order, New Zealand's bowling allrounder, Doug Bracewell, has said that he's working on his batting to offer an attractive package ahead of future selections. Unlike many of his colleagues who spent the off-season featuring in various overseas leagues, Bracewell took the opportunity to go back to the nets at Central Districts and worked extensively on his batting.

Overseas IPL hits roadblock

For the first time in a long time, the all-powerful Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) saw itself sidelined by other member boards of the International Cricket Council (ICC) at the recent annual conference of the game's governing body in Edinburgh early this month.