DUBAI: The mood around the Dubai International Cricket Stadium here on Thursday did not give the sense that it is going to play host to 25,000 fans who will brave the sun and heat to cheer either India or Bangladesh in a big Asia Cup final on Friday. The tournament has been sort of an anti-climax. The day the fixtures were drawn, it seemed the market forces and the caretakers of cricket had designed it to make up for the lack of India-Pakistan bilateral...

DUBAI: India opener Shikhar Dhawan on Thursday said there was "no shame" in his disastrous run of form in the Tests against England as his plans did not work out despite giving his all. ALSO READ: Asia Cup Final, IND v BAN - Top players to watch Dhawan, whose place in the Test team is under threat for the home series against the West Indies, seemed unfazed about a possible axe. The batsman, who has made a Test comeback in the past on the basis...

DUBAI: The Indian cricket team will hope that its untested middle-order gets some game time ahead of the grand finale when it takes on an ever-improving Afghanistan in the final 'Super Four' encounter of the Asia Cup on Tuesday. India have been on a roll after an unimpressive start against Hong Kong, with couple of one-sided victories over arch-rivals Pakistan and an equally facile one against Bangladesh. With a spot in Friday's final sealed, skipper...

DUBAI: Seldom does the crowd here in Dubai hang back for the entire length of a one-sided match. At least, that has been the trend in the ongoing Asia Cup. But a free-flowing Rohit Sharma and a hard-hitting Shikhar Dhawan can compel even the most disinterested person to drool over their batting. Scorecard | BLOG: India vs Pakistan Sunday was one such evening, there was a show on. The crowd had expected a sterner fight from Pakistan in Round Two...

Scorecrad | Live Blog: India vs Pakistan Overs 4: Cautious start from Pakistan -- 12/0 Overs 2: Jasprit Bumrah bowls a maiden over to keep Pakistan 7/0. Over 1: Pakistan collect seven runs from the first over with the help of four leg byes. Zaman survives a direct hit by Chahal on the first delivery. Fakhar Zaman and Imam-ul-Haq are out in the middle to open Pakistan batting. Bhuvneshwar Kumar will open the proceedings for India. TOSS:...

DUBAI: Favourites India have no grounds for complacency as they wait to see 'which' Pakistan turns up in the Asia Cup here on Sunday, well aware of the unpredictable arch-rivals' penchant for surprising not just opponents but themselves, too. India are eyeing a place in the final after three wins in as many matches, while Pakistan will look to step up their game in the Super Four match, after a scare against Afghanistan. READ ALSO: Hope to repeat...

DUBAI: Hailing his team's "clinical performance" against Bangladesh, India skipper Rohit Sharma says they would look to replicate the show in Sunday's Super Four Asia Cup match against arch-rivals Pakistan. READ ALSO: Rohit, Jadeja fashion India's seven-wicket win over Bangladesh Rohit played another classy knock after comeback man Ravindra Jadeja picked up a four-wicket haul to set up a seven-wicket win in their opening Super Four match on Friday....

Scorecard | Live Blog: India vs Bangladesh Over 32: 13 runs from the over as India 159/2 inching closer towards victory OVER 31.2: MS Dhoni hits a four to bring up 150 for India in chase of 174 Over 30: Rohit is in real hurry to finish off the chase as he hits a boundary off Rubel. India 142/2 Over 29: Team India is on the course of victory. Mustafizur gives away five runs. India 135/2 Over 28: Dhoni slashes one hard to get the...

NEW DELHI: Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli obtained 'zero' points while reigning world champion weightlifter Saikhom Mirabai Chanu earned 44 points on way to being named for this year's Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna by the 11-member selection panel. READ ALSO: Virat Kohli, Mirabai Chanu to receive Khel Ratna While Kohli's performance sheet had no points because no criteria has been set for cricket, according to documents with TOI, there were at...

DUBAI: India all-rounder Hardik Pandya has been ruled out of the ongoing Asia Cup with an acute back injury and Deepak Chahar will be his replacement. READ ALSO: Hardik Pandya, third Indian breakdown in three months Chahar will be landing in Dubai on Thursday, a BCCI source said. Left-arm spinner Axar Patel injured his left index finger while fielding in the game against Pakistan. He was sent for scans and the results showed that he had...

DUBAI: India ticked all boxes as they clinically decimated Pakistan by eight wickets in a lopsided Asia Cup group league encounter on Wednesday. Scorecard | As it happened It was a superlative effort from the bowling unit that saw them shoot out Pakistan for a paltry 162 in 43.1 overs before Rohit Sharma (52 off 39 balls) and Shikhar Dhawan (46 off 54 balls) added 86 for the opening wicket to ensure a smooth chase for the 'Men In Blue' in only...

DUBAI: It's ironical that at a time when India and Pakistan are looking for ways to bring about a thaw in their diplomatic relations, their cricket teams will lock horns in the sweltering heat of the UAE in a fixture that has grabbed the attention of the cricketing world. READ ALSO: Six moments when the rivalry boiled over This country has tossed up some of the most memorable clashes between the two teams in Sharjah, and Dubai is not a bad...

HONG KONG INNINGS (259/8) End of Over 50: India (285/7) beat Hong Kong (259/8) by 26 runs in Group A match at Dubai. (Nizakat Khan 92, Anshuman Rath 73; Kuldeep Chahal 3/46, Khaleel Ahmed 3/48) 49.1 overs: Slower one from Khaleel and chipped straight up by Ehsan Khan (22). Easy return catch for the youngster, who now has three wickets. End of Over 48: The writing is on the wall! HKG 249/7, requiring 37 off 12 balls now. 46.3 overs: Stumped!...

DUBAI: KL Rahul walked into the nets for the second time moments after Team India bowling coach Bharat Arun yelled out to his bowlers, "Take rest and then come back." Rahul paused, looked around and took fresh guard. READ ALSO: Searing heat, slow pitches will test India The noon heat wave here has compelled the Indian players to conserve energy. Yet, Rahul, back from a tiring tour of England, was pushing himself. It's not even a week since...

KOLKATA: Former skipper Sourav Ganguly said India are a better team and absence of regular skipper Virat Kohli won't be a factor when the defending champions take on arch-rivals Pakistan in a high-voltage Asia Cup clash on Wednesday. The two bitter foes will reignite their rivalry in the Asia Cup on Wednesday with India having a 6-5 win-loss record from 12 encounters in the continental event. "It will be a 50-50 contest in Dubai," Ganguly said...

DUBAI: Former champions Pakistan thrashed an inexperienced Hong Kong by eight wickets in a one-sided match to open their Asia Cup campaign in style on Sunday. ALSO READ: Pakistan vs Hong Kong - as it happened Pakistan's bowling attack was too hot to handle for Hong Kong in Dubai as Usman Shinwari finished with 3/19 and Hasan Ali took 2/19, while leg-spinner Shadab Khan managed 2/31 to bowl Hong Kong out for 116 in 37.1 overs. Pakistan then...

A 1-4 thrashing at the hands of England has left the world's No.1 Test team licking its wounds. Barring skipper Virat Kohli, the rest of the Indian batting line-up was found wanting. In a chat with TOI, chief selector MSK Prasad discusses the way forward... Your view of the series defeat in England... It was so close, yet so far. The results don't reveal how intensely this series was fought but we all know the same results could have been in our...