Bumrah, whose 9-wicket match haul forced adjudicators to give him the Man-of-the-Match award ahead of double-centurion Yashasvi Jaiswal two days ago, thus became the first Indian pacer to be ranked No. 1.

He moved up from fourth to the top in the latest rankings list, replacing teammate and off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.

Bumrah’s previous best ranking was No. 3.

At the peak of his powers, Bumrah’s last four Test matches have fetched him 27 wickets – 15 in the opening two matches of the ongoing home series against England and 12 in two preceding Tests in South Africa.

Bumrah will feel especially proud as he has gone one better than the legendary Kapil Dev.

India’s first World Cup-winning captain was No. 2, on the retrospective Test bowlers’ table, from December 1979 to February 1980.

Like Bumrah’s previous best, left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan had once occupied the No. 3 spot (October-November 2010).

Bumrah became the fastest India pacer to capture 150 Test wickets during his sensational spell of 6/45 in the first innings of the Vizag Test, which India won convincingly to level the series.

Gill’s place in the Indian team had come under threat, owing to a string of poor performances. However, the youngster performed at the right moment to reach the triple-digit score. He survived two close DRS calls in successive overs soon after his arrival into the middle to post his first fifty-plus score in 13 innings.

As per reports in some section of media, after Shubman Gill’s two-ball duck in the second innings of the Hyderabad Test, the team management had given him an ultimatum that Visakhapatnam would be his last chance to retain the No.3 spot in India’s Test team.

The report further stated that there was a conversation around Gill that he could have been sent to domestic cricket to work on his flaws with a week’s gap between the second and Third Test tin Rajkot.

Had Gill not fought his critics back with a valuable hundred in the second innings in Visakhapatnam, he could have flown to Mohali. Punjab are hosting Gujarat in the Ranji Trophy in Mohali starting from February 9.

Gill had amassed only 153 runs in his last nine innings with the highest score of 36 and his place was under immense scrutiny. His vulnerability against both spin and seam movement was fully exposed. However, the century will give him the world of confidence and time to correct those technical frailties.

Rahul’s efforts haven’t gone unnoticed. The quality of the knock, as he hit his 8th test century, was outstanding.

After scoring the century, he achieved a rare feat which many Indian batsmen haven’t’ got. He became the only visiting batsman to score multiple centuries in Centurion.

Lets look at his best innings in oversee conditions:

123 Vs South Africa (Centurion) In 2021:

The Indian opener scored his first hundred in South Africa in Centurion (Boxing Day). His heroic efforts in testing conditions helped India win the match.

84 Vs England (Trent Bridge, Nottingham) 2021

In the first match of the series, the dashing opener rose to the occasion by scoring a composed 84 against the likes of Anderson and Broad on tough wicket in Nottingham. One note worthy thing during that knock was how he left the deliveries.

129 In Lords Vs England

Considered as one of the top knocks by India in English conditions, K L Rahul achieved this milestone by scoring a glorious knock of 129 in 2021. His technique and defence was praised by experts as his century helped India register an historic win against the English side during the 5 test match series.

Recently, the ‘GOAT’ of cricket made a young fan’s day by giving an autograph. Virat, who is currently in South Africa for the ongoing Test series, happily obliged to the autograph and signed a Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) jersey of the young fan.

The sweet gesture by the Indian batting superstar unfolded before the first session of Day 2 of the First Test between India and South Africa in Centurion. After signing the jersey, the dashing cricketer went one step ahead and accepted the little boy’s request for a picture.

With one hand on the boy’s shoulders, Kohli smiled happily as he posed for the camera, leaving his little fan with the memories of a lifetime. Earlier, a video of Virat Kohli posing for a camera with an elderly person and a disabled wheelchair-bound boy had gone viral.

Now, Virat Kohli’s this kind gesture has been going viral on social media with fans hailing him as the real king.

“No Virat Kohli fan can pass without liking this post,” a fan commented. Another fan wrote, “This is the reason, he is the King of cricket.”

Talking about the game, Virat Kohli scored 38 in the first Test before being dismissed by Rabada at Centurion, South Africa. India are hoping to end their wait for a first-ever Test series win on South African soil.

That the 50-overs-a-side match lasted just 44.1 overs tells the story of India’s total dominance.

India, fielding a second-string side, found four heroes. Fast bowlers Arshdeep Singh (5/37) and Avesh Khan (4/27) first scythed through the South African batting line-up, before debutant opener Sai Sudharshan (55 not out) and Shreyas Iyer (52) easily chased down the 117-run target.

Opting to bat first, South Africa ran into a red-hot Arshdeep. The left-arm seamer, who hadn’t taken a single wicket in three previous ODIs, grabbed two in his very first over on Sunday. He castled Reeza Hendricks and had Rassie van der Dussen leg-before wicket for ducks.

A partnership looked to be developing, before Arshdeep sent back Tony de Zorzi and Heinrich Klaasen.

There was no respite for the Proteas as Avesh then came into the picture and bagged four victims to register his best figures as well.

India lost Ruturaj Gaikwad in the fifth over, but Sudharshan and Iyer hit classy half-centuries to coast to victory with more than 33 overs to spare.

Brief scores: South Africa 116 all out in 27.3 overs (Andile Phehlukwayo 33; Arshdeep Singh 5/37, Avesh Khan 4/27). India 117/2 in 16.4 overs (Sai Sudharshan 55 not out, Shreyas Iyer 52).

Result: India won by 8 wickets.

Man of the Match: Arshdeep Singh

Next game: 2nd ODI at Gqeberha on Dec 19.

Despite being out of on-field action, Pandya made headlines for his off-the-field move. He left Gujarat Titans to rejoin his former team Mumbai Indians ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 auction.

Now, the star all-rounder has signaled his return after one week of the important announcement. Hardik has shared a video clip of his training sessions with the caption, ‘WIP’ (work in progress) on his Instagram account.

The video has reportedly gone viral within no time. It has so far garnered around 4 lakh likes.

Several fans have flooded the comment box with good wishes and amazing comments.

“I look forward to seeing you back in the field,” wrote a fan.

“Comeback MI PALTUN,” wrote another fan.

In response to Pandya’s post, a third user commented, “Waiting for your another comeback captain hardik pandiya.”

The emphatic win would not have been possible without the special effort of skipper Rohit (87 off 101 balls), whose sublime knock stood out as most Indian batters fell by the wayside on a two-paced pitch.

Suryakumar Yadav (49) got the much needed runs in the death overs to push India to 229 for nine.

Shami (4/22) and Bumrah (3/32) stole the show with the ball for the unstoppable hosts as England batters once against cut a sorry figure as they slumped to 129 all out in 34.5 overs for their fifth loss in six games.

England are virtually out of semifinal contention while India, the only unbeaten side in the tournament, are almost there.

Having put up a below par total, India needed early wickets to put pressure on a struggling England batting unit. Bumrah and Shami hunted in tandem to deal a decisive blow, leaving England at 39 for four in the 10th over.

Play and miss was a regular feature of the powerplay as both Bumrah and Shami troubled the batters with a Test match length.

Bumrah got rid of Dawid Malan (16) and Joe Root (0) off successive balls to be on a hat-trick while Shami also did the same by castling Jonny Bairstow (14) and Ben Stokes (0), who had a moment of brain fade after being beaten multiples time.

Stokes wanted to make room to smash Shami out of the park but got himself in a nothing position to see his stumps rattled. Bumrah and Shami’s first spell figures read an envious 5-1-17-2 and 4-0-5-2 respectively.

Kuldeep Yadav made it 52 for five by dismissing skipper Jos Buttler (10) with a stunning ball that pitched way outside the off stump and turned back sharply to crash the stumps.

Shami came back into the attack and had Moeen Ali (15) caught behind for his third wicket. At 81 for six, there was no coming back for a clueless England.

There was plenty of dew on the park in the evening but it wasn’t an issue for the India bowlers.

Earlier, India got to bat first for the first time in the tournament. It was, however, only Rohit and Suryakumar who found a way to bat on a tricky pitch that had a two-paced wicket while the others perished trying to force the pace.

The 91-run partnership between Rohit and K L Rahul (39 off 58) stabilised the innings after India found themselves at 40 for three in the 12th over.

Rohit also added 33 valuable runs with Suryakumar but the skipper’s fall led to a clutch of wickets.

England were finally able to put together an effort worthy of defending champions, excelling both with the ball and in the field.

Chris Woakes (2/33) impressed in his seven-over spell with the new ball while leggie Adil Rashid (2/35) continued to collect wickets in the middle overs. David Willey (3/45) too was effective.

Application was going to be the key on the relaid red soil pitch here and Rohit put up a masterclass.

After consuming six dot balls in the first over of the game bowled by Willey, the India skipper released the pressure by smashing the left-arm pacer for a couple of sixes and a four in his following over.

Rohit used the feet both against the pacers and spinners to manufacture the boundaries but the likes of Virat Kohli (0 off 9 balls) and Shreyas Iyer (4 off 16) departed while searching for that pressure release shot.

It was a rare duck for Kohli, who tried to step out like Rohit only to mistime his shot to Stokes at mid-off.

Shreyas was sent back by Woakes off a perfectly placed short of length ball that got big on the India number four. Clearly, Shreyas needs to fight the demon in his head to improve his short ball play.

Woakes had struggled for accuracy thus far in World Cup but delivered on Sunday.

With three batters dismissed for 40, the onus was on Rohit to take the innings forward and he did with a lot of class.

After stepping out the fast bowlers, Rohit displayed his artistry against the spin trio of Rashid, Liam Livingstone and Moeen Ali.

He swept Rashid, reverse-swept Livingstone and came down the track to loft Moeen over mid-off for three of the 10 fours he struck. His pick-up shot off Mark Wood that went all the way was also sublime.

In Hardik Pandya’s absence, India fielded five bowlers again but R Ashwin remained out of the playing eleven.

A strong 46000 crowd was in attendance to support the home team.

Set an improbable 389 to win, New Zealand were inspired by Rachin Ravindra’s outstanding century to set up a nail-biting finish in the highest-scoring match in the history of ODIs.

Jimmy Neesham’s extraordinary 58 from 39 balls took them to the cusp of an extraordinary comeback victory, only for a brilliant run out to remove Neesham off the penultimate ball of the innings.

With six required off the last ball, And Mitchell Starc held his nerve to deny No.11 Lockie Ferguson as the Black Caps ended on 383/9 and Australia won a nailbiter by just five runs.

Runs flowed like water in a river during the monsoon, Australia rode on a brilliant opening partnership in an unusual first innings as they posted 388 at the picturesque ground in the foothills of the Himalayas.

A remarkable opening partnership between David Warner (81 off 65) and the returning Travis Head (109 from 67) got Pat Cummins’ side off to a blistering start.

Head’s first appearance of the tournament was a memorable one, as he slammed 17 boundaries, including seven maximums, in his brilliant century.

Though the opening pair put on 175 in just 19 overs, Australia struggled to build on the platform through the middle overs.

Mitchell Marsh (36 from 51 and Marnus Labuschagne (18 from 26) got particularly bogged down, with Glenn Phillips bowling superbly for 3-37 off ten overs, stepping up at just the right time for his team when Lockie Ferguson was forced off with an injury early in his spell.

Glenn Maxwell (41 off 24), Josh Inglis (38 from 28) and Pat Cummins (37 off 14) exploded through the death overs to boost Australia’s score, but their 388 could have been even higher, with New Zealand taking four wickets for just 1 run in the last two overs to bowl their neighbours out for 388.

But that 388 proved just enough on the night, as Dharamsala was treated to an all-time epic.

Devon Conway and Will Young provided the perfect start to the Black Caps in a steep chase, hitting a flurry of boundaries to help New Zealand reach 50 in merely 31 balls.

However, Australia soon had their first breakthrough, when Conway took on a short delivery from Josh Hazlewood and tried to angle it behind him, with Mitchell Starc taking a stunning grab towards his right and sending the batter back.

The Hazlewood-Starc combination struck once more in the first Powerplay. This time, it was Conway’s partner, Young who had to depart to another sharp Starc catch.

Rachin Ravindra and Daryl Mitchell then took control of the Kiwis and kept the chase on track. Mitchell, in particular, was quite aggressive and helped himself to yet another good score in Dharamsala. His 54 included six fours and a six, and his brisk knock came to an end when he holed an Adam Zampa delivery to long-on, where Starc took his third catch of the innings.

Ravindra continued from the other end, picking up pace and hitting some big shots after the mid-innings mark.

Even though New Zealand lost skipper Tom Latham for merely 21, Ravindra’s attacking strokeplay kept the scoring rate up.

And the youngster’s stunning tournament continued apace as he brought up another century – a knock that was cheered to the rafters by a packed crowd in Dharamsala.

The removal of the dangerous Glenn Phillips was followed by an end to Ravindra’s stunning 89-ball 116, with captain Cummins getting the key wicket to put his team on top.

But Neesham very nearly pulled off a miracle for New Zealand, with Australia’s nerves shredded in a nail-biting finish.

Earlier, Head scored 109 from just 67 deliveries at the top of the order, in what was his first match of the tournament, as Australia put their trans-Tasman rivals to the sword by posting 388 in good batting conditions.

Australia were also helped by contributions at the death from Glenn Maxwell, Josh Inglis, and Pat Cummins, whose quickfire knocks helped the side rack up 96 runs in the final powerplay.

Several missed chances punctuated the New Zealand fielding effort, although Trent Boult did them something to cheer about late in the innings, with a three-wicket penultimate over.

Returning to the Australia side after recovering from a fractured hand, Head combined with fellow opener David Warner (81 from 65 balls) as Australia put on 175 for the opening wicket on their way to the massive total.

Head and Warner punished anything loose from the usually reliable Kiwi bowlers and smashed 10 sixes within the first Powerplay alone as they amassed 118 without loss to take control of the contest.

It took some clever bowling from Trent Boult (3/77) and the outstanding Glenn Phillips (3/37) to ensure Australia did not post an even bigger total, with the Kiwis also hurt by the absence of tearaway quick Lockie Ferguson.

Ferguson conceded 38 overs through three expensive overs but was taken from the field after his spell after he experienced pain in his right Achilles.

It meant the likes of Rachin Ravindra (0/56) and Jimmy Neesham (1/32) had to fill the void with the ball, and the likes of Maxwell (41), Inglis (38) and Cummins (37) took advantage by landing some lofty late blows to help Australia get close to 400.

But Boult’s three-wicket over helped wrap the innings up, with those runs proving quite significant in a nervy finish to the game a few hours later.

The 771 runs the two teams produced in this match is the highest match aggregate in ODIs, improving on the 696 runs they scored when these two teams met at Hamilton in 2007. On that occasion, Australia scored 346/5 and in response, New Zealand reached 350/9 in 49.3 overs.

Brief scores:

Australia 388 all out in 49.2 overs (David Warner 81, Travis Head 109, Glenn Maxwell 41, Josh Inglis 38, Pat Cummins 37; Glenn Phillips 3-37, Trent Boult 3-77, Mitchell Santner 2-80) beat New Zealand 383/9 in 50 overs (Rachin Ravindra 116, Daryl Mitchell 54, James Neesham 58; Adam Zampa 3-74, Pat Cummins 2-66, Josh Hazlewood 2-70) by five runs.

Asked to bat first, Odisha lost the wicket of Swastik Samal in the first over itself.

The experienced Subhranshu joined Sandeep to not only repair the early damage but guide Odisha to a huge total of 226/2 in 20 overs.

Subhranshu smashed an unbeaten 119 off a mere 54 balls, striking 10 fours and 8 sixes, while Sandeep helped himself to 87 off 57 deliveries (8×4, 3×6). The two shared a 199-run partnership for the second wicket.

Assam lost two early wickets but stayed in the hunt through handy contributions from skipper Riyan Parag (45 off 19), Sumit Ghadigaonkar (44 off 23) and Akash Sengupta (40 off 18). Odisha bowlers and fielders, however, stuck to their task and ensured victory.

Brief scores: Odisha 226/2 in 20 overs (Subhranshu Senapati 119*, Sandeep Pattanaik 87; Mukhtar Hussain 2/30). Assam 215/9 in 20 overs (Riyan Parag 45, Sumit Ghadigaonkar 44, Akash Sengupta 40; Sunil Roul 3/34, Debabrata Pradhan 2/36).

Chamika Karunaratne will replace Shanaka in the Sri Lankan squad. The Event Technical Committee of the tournament has given the green light for Karunaratne.

Shanaka was ruled out due to a right thigh muscle injury he sustained during Sri Lanka’s match against Pakistan on October 10. He will require at least three weeks to recover fully.

Karunaratne was initially listed as the traveling reserve for Sri Lanka. Kusal Mendis serves as the designated vice-captain in the original squad. Sri Lanka are missing one of their star players Wanindu Hasaranga before the start of the tournament.

Notably, Sri Lanka have faced defeats in both of their matches so far in the tournament. They have lost against South Africa and Pakistan in two high-scoring contests. They will meet Australia in Lucknow on Monday. The injury-ravaged Sri Lankan team has a major challenge now to keep themselves in contention for a spot in the semifinal.