India head coach Gautam Gambhir visited the Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain on Sunday before the third T20I against West Indies at Indore's Holkar Stadium. He told ANI he sought blessings for the team and the nation after a six-wicket defeat in Ranchi, where Shai Hope's 102 and Sherfane Rutherford's 84 helped West Indies chase 250.

India posted 249 for five with half-centuries from Sanju Samson and Tilak Varma, yet West Indies completed their biggest T20I chase in 18.3 overs. Gambhir said the visit renewed his gratitude and reinforced his focus on team preparation.

India and West Indies are level at 1-1 with two matches remaining. The fourth and fifth T20Is will be played at Guwahati and Mumbai.

Arunachal Pradesh forfeited their Ranji Trophy Plate group opener against Nagaland on Sunday due to an ongoing administrative crisis within the state cricket association. The forfeiture stems from a dispute between two factions and a case pending before the Itanagar Bench of the Gauhati High Court.

The association held elections last month in which Nabam Vivek was elected president. Multiple district associations approached the High Court alleging irregularities in the electoral process. The court issued a stay order, preventing the BCCI from forming an independent selection panel as it did in Bihar's case.

Arunachal Pradesh are scheduled to play Sikkim in their second match starting October 18 at the Gokulbhai Somabhai Patel Stadium in Nadiad. Under tournament rules, the state team could face suspension for the remainder of the season for forfeiting the match.

Aaron Hardie stayed unbeaten on 80 while Fanning, the opener who had retired hurt with a hamstring injury, came back to score the last 14 runs. Together they found the winning runs when the target still looked distant and the lower order had been exposed.

Fanning returned at a moment when the innings was wobbling. Hardie had been building steadily, then stepped up as the asking rate rose, finishing with the match-winning knock that keeps Western Australia near the top of the Sheffield Shield table.

Gautam Gambhir tore into flat pitches after West Indies chased 250 in Ranchi, saying Indian bowlers were being asked to bowl on surfaces that offered them nothing. He argued they deserved a contest, not a slog.

The comments came after the second T20I, where West Indies hit 20 sixes in their chase. Gambhir had already flagged the same issue after the 800-run ODI in Guwahati, calling that game batting, not cricket.

He wants the BCCI to set clear guidelines so domestic pitches give young bowlers something to work with before they step up to the international level.

Former India pacer Varun Aaron said Abhishek Sharma could improve his batting against spin by using the depth of the crease ahead of the third T20I against West Indies in Indore on Sunday. Aaron noted that the left-hander plants his front foot and scores from there but rarely goes back or steps out to create additional scoring options.

Abhishek has scored 41 runs in two innings without converting his starts and was dismissed by Roston Chase in both matches. Aaron said deliveries attacking the top of the stumps remain a problem area for any batter, especially Abhishek, and urged him to move back and across to gain more time against spin.

The series is level at 1-1 after West Indies chased 250 to win the second T20I in Ranchi. Abhishek needs 33 more runs to become the sixth Indian batter to reach 2,000 T20I runs across 64 matches at an average of 32.24 and a strike rate of 194.94.

Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh gave India A an excellent start in the third unofficial ODI against Australia A in Puducherry on Sunday. Australia A won the toss and elected to bowl, but the opening pair raced to 64 for no loss in eight overs.

Ruturaj Gaikwad's side is seeking a consolation win after losing the first two matches of the series. Australia A, led by Todd Murphy, is aiming for a series whitewash. Priyansh hammered Will Sutherland for a six over extra cover, while Prabhsimran struck boundaries against Todd Murphy and Mahli Beardman.

The India A XI included Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar, Nishant Sindhu, Suryansh Shedge, Vipraj Nigam, Anukul Roy, Yash Thakur and Gurjapneet Singh. Australia A fielded Mitchell Owen, Liam Scott, Josh Philippe, Lachlan Shaw, Nathan McSweeney, Nikhil Chaudhary, Will Sutherland, Ben Dwarshuis, Tanveer Sangha and Mahli Beardman.

New Zealand head coach Rob Walter said the team is considering a new role for explosive batter Finn Allen in the upcoming ODI series against India. Allen could be used to attack spinners and part-time bowlers during the middle overs.

Walter said the team wants a batter who can change the pace of the game between overs 25 and 40, particularly when batting conditions are favourable. Allen has not played an ODI in more than three years.

New Zealand will play five T20Is and five ODIs against India, followed by a two-match Test series. The matches will help the team test different combinations and prepare for future international assignments.

India could include Lucknow Super Giants pacer Prince Yadav in the playing XI for the third T20I against West Indies at Holkar Stadium in Indore on Sunday. The series is locked at 1-1 after West Indies chased down 249 in Ranchi, their highest successful T20I run-chase. Prince impressed with his bowling in the middle and death overs for LSG in IPL 2026.

He is expected to replace all-rounder Shivam Dube, who scored 7 off 10 balls and conceded 30 runs in two overs in the second T20I. India need a proper fifth bowling option to contain Shai Hope, Sherfane Rutherford and Romario Shepherd.

India's likely playing XI features Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, Tilak Varma, Naman Dhir, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav and Mayank Yadav. Holkar Stadium has produced an average first-innings score of just under 201 in four previous T20Is.

Mohammed Shami took four wickets but Sarfaraz Khan, KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal all failed with the bat on the opening day of the Ranji Trophy 2026-27 season. Shami's 4 for 30 helped Bengal bowl Delhi out for 240 in Kalyani.

Jaiswal was dismissed for a duck off 13 balls for Mumbai against Chandigarh at the Wankhede Stadium. Rahul made four for Karnataka against Andhra while Sarfaraz Khan also returned to the pavilion cheaply for his state side.

The early exits come as India prepare for upcoming series against New Zealand and Australia. Domestic performances will be closely monitored as selectors assess options for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Anrich Nortje took two wickets on his Test return as Australia finished day one of the first Test against South Africa on 187 for 6 at Kingsmead in Durban on Friday. The right-arm fast bowler claimed Alex Carey and Beau Webster to leave the visitors at 124 for 6 after they had recovered from an early collapse.

Matt Renshaw remained unbeaten on 46 while Pat Cummins was not out on 33 in an unbroken seventh-wicket stand of 63. Marco Jansen and Wiaan Mulder each took two wickets as South Africa's seam attack shared the damage equally.

Nortje had not played a Test since March 2023 and replaced the injured Kagiso Rabada in the side. Australia captain Pat Cummins won the toss and elected to bat first.

Xavier Bartlett and Jhye Richardson each took five wickets in Western Australia's Sheffield Shield match against Queensland at the WACA Ground. Bartlett finished with six in the first innings and added Cameron Bancroft's wicket in the second.

Richardson claimed five on the third day as Queensland collapsed to 68. It was his first five-wicket haul in first-class cricket since an Ashes Test in December 2021.

Queensland need five more wickets to win, while Western Australia require 67 more runs with a day left.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar has taken 90 wickets at an average of 23.10 and an economy rate of 6.96 in 87 T20Is. Arshdeep Singh has 131 wickets at 19.58 and an economy rate of 8.51 after the same number of matches.

Bhuvneshwar has two five-fers and three four-fers, with best figures of 5 for 4 against Afghanistan in the 2022 Asia Cup. Arshdeep has one five-fer and two four-fers, best of 5 for 51 against New Zealand.

India have brought Bhuvneshwar back for the five-match T20I series in New Zealand that starts October 22.

Virender Sehwag said 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's approach of attacking from the first ball mirrors his own batting philosophy. Sehwag spoke at the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry's annual session in New Delhi on Saturday. He argued that age does not matter once a player reaches IPL or international level, citing Virat Kohli at 38 and Sooryavanshi at 15.

Sooryavanshi has scored 246 runs in eight T20Is at a strike rate of 186 but has yet to play in the ongoing series against West Indies. India have preferred Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson as openers. Sehwag said performance matters more than age category once players reach senior cricket.

Former players have cautioned against burdening Sooryavanshi with comparisons to Sachin Tendulkar and recommended careful mentoring in red-ball cricket.