ICC Test Rankings: Kane Williamson surpass Kohli, Smith to No.1 rank

Siraj strikes while the iron is hot

India's latest pace sensation took the cricketing world by storm with passion and perseverance worth a five-wicket tally in the Boxing Day bout.

Australia may have lost at MCG, but they discovered keys to success in the match also

The second Test between India and Australia ended in a very well-deserved win for the tourists. What is even more worrying for the hosts is the fact that even in the first Test, India dominated the proceedings until the Aussie bowlers created mayhem on the third morning. However, amidst all the disappointment and dejection, there may be something very positive for Australians to look at from their defeat to India. But to understand what that positive is, we must first diagnose the flaws that led to Australia's downfall. Now, when one looks at the first two matches closely, what is clear is that the supremacy of India was down to just two passages of play, one in each match. In the first game, it was that period of play where Australia lost three wickets in quick succession to Ravichandran Ashwin. In the second match, it was that passage where the same bowler got Matthew Wade and Smith out in the same spell. In other words, it was one spell of Ashwin that derailed Australia in both matches. So, what did Ashwin do to make such an impact? Was it his brilliance or the ineptitude of Aussie batsmen that gave him great results? When one looks at the dismissals, it is clearly a combination of both those factors. Smith's dismissal in Adelaide was thanks to a very good delivery that went on with the arm while the wickets of Head and Green could be ascribed to poor batting. The way Wade got out in the second game was entirely due to an unpardonable display of impetuousity and lack of patience. Wade was well set and had hit a sweep shot for four earlier in that over. Still, he charged down the wicket without a care in the world and swung the bat recklessly, getting a top edge that was taken easily. Smith's second dismissal against Ashwin was due to the batsman not being settled and playing the ball a little carelessly. After having been singed by Ashwin in the first innings, it was very interesting to see how Australia approached batting against him in the second innings of the Melbourne Test. That's where the silver lining for the hosts comes in. In the second innings, Australia's approach to Ashwin's bowling was much better. The most impressive display came from Marnus Labuschagne. His footwork against the Indian offie was brilliant. Whenever Ashwin pitched the ball even a little short, Labuschagne went right back into the crease to open up the off side and drive the ball thither. This produced great results as, unlike the first innings, the Aussies kept scoring runs against the spinner, not allowing him to build up pressure. Wade, possibly realising the huge mistake he made in the first innings, batted with extra caution. He didn't play a single drive against the off-spinner, even when the ball was tossed up invitingly. His front foot defence was also solid. Other batsmen also realised that Ashwin isn't bowling on an Indian dustbowl, so they can trust their defence and keep his good deliveries at bay with the basic defensive method. Indeed, trusting your defence is a basic necessity for succceeding against spin. When Kevin Pietersen played an epic knock at Mumbai in 2012 against India, on a square-turning wicket, against a three-pronged Indian spin attack, he credited his faith in his defence for bringing about that success. Even Pat Cummins and Cameron Green looked safe against the off-spinner during their long stay at the wicket. Deliberately or not, they have sent a signal to the top order - if we can survive against him, why do you guys look so vulnerable when playing the offie? Smith, who has come out to publicaly accept that he has been ultra-defensive against Ashwin, batted more efficientliy against his arch-nemesis. Yes, there was a close call when a delivery hit the glove and fell just short of leg-slip. But otherwise, he was more solid in his defence and was willing to be more proactive in his footwork. In the end, the bowler from Chennai conceded over 70 runs and managed to get just two wickets in the innings, out of which one was of the no. 11 batsman Josh Hazlewood. This batting display contains the seeds of Australia's success in the next two matches. The keys to batting against Ashwin for Australia in this series are - trust your defence, use quick footwork, and avoid rash shots. Australia used all these tricks in their second innings, thereby neautralising Ashwin's threat to a large extent. It was actually Jadeja's two quick wickets that ended any chances of Australia's revival. If Australia employ these tactics in the next two matches, the entire load of getting wickets would fall upon the pacers. With Umesh Yadav and Mohammad Shami out of the team, this load might be too much to handle for the Indians. As it is, from the ashes of their decimation at MCG, Australia could find the road to success in the next two games.

Daily Round-up | 30 Dec: David Warner returns

New Zealand created history as they grabbed the top spot in Tests after defeating Pakistan by 101 runs at the Bay Oval. On the other side, David Warner has returned to the side against India. Here’s a look at the major developments in the cricketing world. New Zealand attains top spot New Zealand have taken the position as the number one Test team after beating Pakistan by 101 runs at Bay Oval. Chasing 373, Pakistan were bundled out for 271. The visitors were left struggling at 75/4 when Fawad Alam steadied the ship with Mohammad Rizwan to put a stand of 165 runs for the fifth wicket. But their efforts went in vain after Jamieson sent Rizwan back in the hut for 60. Alam though went on to score a ton but his knock wasn’t enough to see Pakistan over the line. Alam was eventually dismissed by Wagner for 102. One of the highlights of the innings was Neil Wagner’s bowling. The left-arm quick bowler continued to bowl despite suffering a fracture. He was struck on the right foot by a Yorker from Shaheen Afridi earlier in the match. David Warner returns Australia opener David Warner has returned to the Australian squad for the remainder of the Test series against Australia. Joe Burns has been dropped. The left-arm batsman was ruled out of the first two Tests due to injury. There have been few more changes in the Australian line up. Will Pucovski and Sean Abbott have also been included in the squad. The four-match series between the two sides is levelled at 1-1 for now. Ajinkya Rahane's name gets onto the Melbourne Cricket Board honours board India’s stand-in skipper Ajinkya Rahane has been engraved on the MCG honour’s board. Rahane played a crucial knock of 112 runs in the first innings of the second Test against Australia in Melbourne. India eventually went on to win the Test by 8 wickets and level the series. This is the second time when Rahane’s name has been engraved on the MCG honours board. The first instance came in 2014 when he struck 147 against Australia. T.Natarajan likely to replace Umesh Yadav India fast bowler Umesh Yadav has been ruled out of the third Test against Australia after sustaining a calf injury during the second match. The pacer limped off the field after getting injured. According to some reports, left-arm pacer T.Natarajan who made his India debut in the limited-overs format earlier on the Australian tour might get the Test cap too in the third match in Sydney. Hobart Hurricanes etch win in nail-bitter Hobart Hurricanes etched a win in a nail-bitter against Brisbane Heat after beating them by just 1 run. Chasing 151, Brisbane were restricted to 149/8 in 20 overs. James Bazley remained unbeaten at 49 but failed to take his team home. Earlier, spinner Mujeeb was in a brilliant form with the ball for the Brisbane Heat against Hobart Hurricanes as he scalped a fifer in four overs after giving away just 15 runs. Hurricanes were bundled out for 150. Dawid Malan top-scored with 39 off 32 including a six and 4 fours while Tim David chipped in with a 17-ball 36.

BBL10 | Hurricanes vs Heat: Mujeeb's 5-wicket haul goes in vain as HH register 1-run victory

Hobart Hurricanes held their nerves and snatched victory by a solitary run in the 20th match of BBL against the Brisbane Heat. Fortunes fluctuated from one side to the other but in the end, it was a tiniest of margins which helped Hurricanes register their 4th win of the tournament. With the bat in hand, it was Tim David and Dawid Malan who ensured the Hurricanes reached a respectable total of 150. In the bowling department, it was the raw pace of Riley Meredith who accounted for 3 crucial wickets and was instrumental in wiping out their top order. Despite a valiant effort from James Bazley, the Brisbane Heat’s eventually fell short by just one run. Earlier in the day, it was Brisbane Heat skipper Jimmy Pierson who won the toss and put the Hobart Hurricanes in. They started off in a disastrous note as they lost the wicket of D’Arcy Short in the 2nd delivery of the match and Xavier Bartlett made good use of the new ball. In came David Malan who joined Ben McDermott in the middle and started taking on the bowlers with his sensational strokeplay. He timed everything to perfection and it was a sight to behold to watch him in full flow. He shared a stand of 27 runs with McDermott before the latter’s dismissal. In came skipper Peter Handsomb and along with Malan he tried to resurrect the innings and played some delightful shots in the process. He started off with a couple of good shots but was unable to carry and was dismissed on 18. Colin Ingram joined Malan in the middle and looked to keep the scoring rate up. However, it was Mujeeb ur Rahman who spun a web around the Hobart Hurricanes batsmen and pushed them on the mat. After dismissing McDermott, Mujeeb castled Malan with an unplayable delivery which turned just enough to miss his bat and disturbed the timbers. From there on, Mujeeb was all over the Hurricanes as he kept chipping away with some crucial wickets to never really allowed the Hurricanes to press on the accelerator. Wickets kept tumbling but Tim David provided the much-needed momentum for the Hurricanes with a breezy knock of 36 of a mere 17 deliveries. He looked in ominous touch and was in a murderous mood during his brief stay in the crease. His knock was laced with 2 fours and 3 sixes and was ably supported by Colin Ingram. The last few wickets fell very cheaply for the Hurricanes as Mujeeb was simply unplayable and finished with a five-wicket haul ensuring that the Hobart Hurricanes were skittled out for 150 before the end of their allotted 20 overs. Barring Mujeeb, Xavier Bartlett also chipped in with a couple of wickets. The target of 151 was not a big one and the Brisbane Heat would have backed themselves to chase the target. However, what followed next was just what the doctor ordered for the Hurricanes. Within the 3rd over, Brisbane Heat was reduced to 8/3 and it looked like a mountain too steep to climb for them. Riley Meredith was quite exceptional in his opening spell as he bagged the wicket of Sam Heazlett and it was the pressure which he created which helped Keemo Paul and Scott Boland to chi in with some crucial wickets. The pressure kept mounting for the Heat’s but the pair of Lewis Gregory and Max Bryant had other ideas They steadied the ship with a 52 runs stand and it regenerated the hopes for the Brisbane based franchise. Both Bryant and Gregory fell in quick succession which again tilted the scales in favour of the Hurricanes However it was the partnership between James Bazley and Jimmy Pierson who turned the game on its head. Bazley, in particular, played a sensational knock and started attacking the Hurricanes. He applied the pressure well and the Hurricanes found it difficult to get his wicket. Bazley smacked 49 of 31 deliveries and shared a good stand with Pierson. When Pierson’s wicket fell, the Heat’s was still well and truly in the game. They were actually a bit ahead in the 9 ball game but a cluster of wickets towards the end meant that they fell short of the target by a whisker. With 2 required of the final delivery, Mark Steketee was run out by the barest of margins which ensured a 1 run victory for the Hobart Hurricanes.