Kohli will be one of India’s best skippers

Former Indian captain Kris Srikkanth feels India’sTest skipper Virat Kohli will turn out to be one of the best leaders ever for the cricket team, given his “adaptability skills“. “Adaptability skills which Virat has are fantastic. You see Virat Kohli’s game approach, he adapts beautifully in all the three formats. If you want to be a complete cricketer, you need adaptability skills and that is what cricket teaches you,“ Srikkanth said at an event.

India finish second in Test Ch’ship

India have finished second in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Test Championship, while Australia took the top spot after winning the Christchurch Test by seven wickets, which gave them a 2-0 series win against New Zealand. Australia won a cash award of $1 million while India will collect $500,000. South Africa will pocket $200,000 and Pakistan $100,000 after claiming the third and fourth positions, respectively. According to an ICC statement the win against New Zealand in the last Test helped Australia finish two points ahead of India on 112 points in the final series before the April 1 cut-off date.

Afridi rethinking retirement plans

Pakistan’s flamboyant all-rounder Shahid Afridi is reconsidering his decision to retire from international cricket at the end of ICC World T20 as he is facing “huge pressure” from family members and friends. On the threshold of his 36th birthday, Afridi is leading Pakistan in the five-nation Asia Cup T20 in Bangladesh and had announced earlier that he would retire from the shortest format at the end the World T20 in India. “For a while now there is a lot of pressure from my family, a lot of pressure from my friends, including my elders, who say there is no need for me to retire from Twenty20. That is a huge pressure,” Afridi was quoted as saying by a cricket website.

Hilfenhaus quits first class cricket

Former Australia Test bowler Ben Hilfenhaus has announced his retirement from first-class cricket but plans to continue playing with Melbourne Renegades in the domestic Twenty20 competition. The 32-year-old paceman, who played 27 tests for Australia, the last in 2012, took 99 wickets. He has played only one Sheffield Shield first-class match for Tasmania this season as he struggled to find form after returning early from England’s county season, where he played for Lancashire, with a hip injury.

Van der Merwe dons Dutch avatar

Five years after his South African stint, comprising 13 ODIs and as many T20Is, Roelof van der Merwe attempted to resurrect his career by seeking Dutch citizenship in July 2015. The all-rounder’s move has paid off as he is now a key player in the side.Since his switch, Van der Merwe has scored 65 runs from three T20I innings but has been more effective with the ball taking nine wickets from the five matches, reports Sunil Subbaiah. The Johannesburg-born professional, who was at the Alur grounds in Bengaluru on Wednesday at the Dutch cricket team’s conditioning camp for the World T20 qualifiers, said his stints with South Africa and Indian Premier League teams have helped him improve his game. “To be able to take the experience to the Dutch side is helping the team as well,” said 31-yearold, who previously represented IPL teams Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Daredevils. The Dutch team, coached by Anton Roux, is on a high having had a successful tour of UAE last month where it won its Intercontinental Cup and World Cricket League Championship matches against the hosts.They are in the city on a 10-day training stint ahead of the World T20 qualifiers.