NEW DELHI: Virat Kohli’s India have Sri Lanka in the firing line again as they seek a record equaling ninth straight series win when the third Test starts Saturday.
Already leading 1-0 in the three-match challenge, victory in the New Delhi Test would cap a dominant year and equal Australia’s record of nine successive series victories from 2005 to 2008.
As they build up the strength of their pace attack, India could break the record in South Africa where they arrive in January.
It was a 2015 tour of Sri Lanka that started India’s victory march that moved to eight series when they whitewashed the Sri Lankans on home territory in August.
India crushed Sri Lanka by an innings and 239 runs in the second Test in Nagpur on Monday.
They have laid out fast-paced pitches to prepare for their next tour.
Kohli said his team needs to be ready for a tougher challenge in South Africa. “That’s why we asked for pitches with help for the fast bowlers.
“There’s not enough time in between to prepare so we have to use the time we have now for a big tour coming up.”
India’s pace power has grown with the successful return of Ishant Sharma, who took five wickets in the second Test that was otherwise dominated by India’s spinners.
The 1.95-meter Sharma replaced Bhuvneshwar Kumar who in turn destroyed the Sri Lankan batting in the opening Test on a green Eden Gardens pitch in Kolkata.
Umesh Sharma seems the only weak link in the pace attack and Mohammed Shami, who sat out the second Test match, is expected to make his way back into the team.
“I think they (fast bowlers) have evolved immensely,” said Rohit Sharma, who will lead India in the three one-day matches against Sri Lanka when Kohli is rested.
“They have come of age,” added the senior batsman.
Sri Lanka came to India dreaming of a first ever Test win on Indian territory. Instead the tour has turned into a major reality check — Nagpur was Sri Lanka’s biggest Test defeat.
Their batting has floundered against the Indian spinners led by Ravichandran Ashwin who bagged eight wickets in the last Test.
On what should have been a good wicket for runs, senior batsman Angelo Mathews fell to the guile of left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja in each innings.
Coach Nic Pothas has warned that the bad results will lead to “repercussions” for the team, and the visitors are struggling to keep up their spirits.
“We need to score more runs in the first innings and that’s what we need to do in Delhi,” skipper Dinesh Chandimal said.
“Angelo is the one who is the most senior guys in the line-up. And if he is not scoring, our team goes down.
“As senior players you need to stand up and perform so the youngsters can follow. I’m sure he will stand up and make it count again,” he said.
Changes are expected for the Delhi Test, especially after veteran spinner Rangana Herath was ruled out with a back injury. Leg-spinner Jeffrey Vandersay or left-arm wrist spinner Lakshan Sandakan will take Herath’s place.
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Kohli’s India look to cricket record books in Sri Lanka Test
Kohli’s India look to cricket record books in Sri Lanka Test
Iran launches missiles at Israel as attacks in Middle East commence for a sixth day
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates: Iran launched missiles at Israel early Thursday as aerial attacks in the Middle East commenced for a sixth day after an American submarine sank an Iranian warship and Iran threatened the destruction of military and economic infrastructure across the region.
Israel announced the incoming attack shortly after its military said it had begun new strikes in Lebanon targeting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
The fighting continued after the US and Israel intensified their bombardment Wednesday of Iran’s security forces and other symbols of power.
The tempo of the strikes on Iran was so intense that state television announced the mourning ceremony for Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed at the start of the conflict, would be postponed. Millions attended the funeral of his predecessor, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, in 1989.
The US and Israel launched the war Saturday, targeting Iran’s leadership, missile arsenal and nuclear program while suggesting that toppling the government is a goal. But the exact aims and timelines have repeatedly shifted, signaling an open-ended conflict.
President Donald Trump praised the US military Wednesday for “doing very well on the war front, to put it mildly.” Fellow Republicans in the US Senate stood with Trump on Iran as they voted down a resolution seeking to halt the war.
Iran fired on Bahrain, Kuwait and Israel as the conflict spiraled. Turkiye said NATO defenses intercepted a ballistic missile launched from Iran before it entered Turkiye’s airspace.
The war has killed more than 1,000 people in Iran, more than 70 in Lebanon and around a dozen in Israel, according to officials in those countries. It has disrupted the supply of the world’s oil and gas, snarled international shipping and stranded hundreds of thousands of travelers in the Middle East.
Buildings of Iranian military and security forces targeted
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said a torpedo from an American submarine sank an Iranian warship Tuesday night in the Indian Ocean.
Sri Lankan authorities said 32 people were rescued from the ship, while the country’s navy said it recovered 87 bodies.
Israel said it hit buildings associated with Iran’s Basij, the all-volunteer force of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard whose bloody crackdown on protesters in January left thousands dead.
The Israeli military hit buildings associated with Iran’s internal security command. Israel and the US have said they want to see Iranians overthrow the country’s theocracy, and strikes against Iran’s internal security forces may be aimed at hastening that.
However, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said his country’s forces have decentralized leadership, with units acting largely on their own, which could blunt the effect of attacks on top command and control hubs.
Iranian state television showed the ruins of buildings in Tehran and interviews with people saying the attacks damaged their homes. Strikes were also reported in the city of Qom targeting a building associated with a clerical panel set to pick Iran’s next supreme leader. Iranian media said it was empty at the time.
Shifting timelines for US operations
During his Pentagon briefing, Hegseth did not give a definitive timeline for US operations.
“You can say four weeks, but it could be six. It could be eight. It could be three,” he said. “Ultimately, we set the pace and the tempo. The enemy is off balance, and we’re going to keep them off balance.”
Adm. Brad Cooper, the top US military commander in the Middle East, said American forces have damaged Iran’s air defenses and taken out ballistic missiles, launchers and drones.
US and Israeli military officials say launches from Iran have declined as the war has progressed. Israel’s Homefront Command announced it was easing restrictions that closed workplaces nationwide. It said workplaces could reopen Thursday if there’s a shelter nearby. Schools would remain closed.
Still, explosions sounded early Thursday in Israel, which said its defensive systems were moving to intercept Iranian missiles.
At least 1,045 people have been killed in Iran, the country’s Foundation of Martyrs and Veterans Affairs said Wednesday. Eleven people have died in Israel. Six US troops have been killed.
The death toll has exceeded 70 in Lebanon, where the health ministry said Wednesday that three people died when drone strikes hit two vehicles on a Beirut highway. The Israeli military said it was targeting a Hezbollah member.
Israel says its offensive had been planned for midyear
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said the offensive against Iran was originally planned for mid-2026, but “the need arose to bring everything forward to February.”
He listed events inside Iran, Trump’s positions and the possibility of “creating a combined operation” as reasons.
The protests in Iran put unprecedented pressure on its leadership. Trump threatened military action in response to the crackdown before shifting his attention to Iran’s disputed nuclear program.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Wednesday that the US launched its operation partly out of concern Iran might strike American personnel and assets in the region first. A phone call between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before the airstrikes began was also “important with respect to the timeline,” she said.
Energy supplies in the crosshairs
Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard issued its most-intense threat yet, saying the strikes against it would result in “the complete destruction of the region’s military and economic infrastructure.”
A Maltese-flagged container ship was attacked Wednesday while passing through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Arabian Gulf through which about a fifth of the world’s oil is shipped. The ship was hit by two missiles, sparking a fire, according to Malta’s transport minister, Chris Bonett. Its 24 crew members were rescued.
Tanker traffic through the strait has fallen by around 90 percent compared to prewar levels, shipping tracker MarineTraffic.com said Wednesday.
Oil prices have soared as Iranian attacks have disrupted traffic through the strait, and global stock markets have been hammered over worries that the spike in oil prices may grind down the world economy.
Iran’s clerics are choosing a new supreme leader
Iran’s leaders are scrambling to replace Khamenei, who ruled the country for 37 years. It’s only the second time since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that a new supreme leader is being chosen.
Potential candidates range from hard-liners committed to confrontation with the West to reformists who seek diplomatic engagement. Mojtaba Khamenei, Khamenei’s son, has long been considered among them — though he has never been elected or appointed to a government position.
In a sign that Iran’s leadership will only seek to consolidate its power as it faces its biggest crisis in decades, the head of the judiciary warned that “those who cooperate with the enemy in any way will be considered an enemy.”
Israel’s defense minister, Katz, said on X that Iran’s next supreme leader — if he continues to threaten Israel, the US and others — “will be a target for elimination.”
Israel announced the incoming attack shortly after its military said it had begun new strikes in Lebanon targeting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
The fighting continued after the US and Israel intensified their bombardment Wednesday of Iran’s security forces and other symbols of power.
The tempo of the strikes on Iran was so intense that state television announced the mourning ceremony for Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed at the start of the conflict, would be postponed. Millions attended the funeral of his predecessor, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, in 1989.
The US and Israel launched the war Saturday, targeting Iran’s leadership, missile arsenal and nuclear program while suggesting that toppling the government is a goal. But the exact aims and timelines have repeatedly shifted, signaling an open-ended conflict.
President Donald Trump praised the US military Wednesday for “doing very well on the war front, to put it mildly.” Fellow Republicans in the US Senate stood with Trump on Iran as they voted down a resolution seeking to halt the war.
Iran fired on Bahrain, Kuwait and Israel as the conflict spiraled. Turkiye said NATO defenses intercepted a ballistic missile launched from Iran before it entered Turkiye’s airspace.
The war has killed more than 1,000 people in Iran, more than 70 in Lebanon and around a dozen in Israel, according to officials in those countries. It has disrupted the supply of the world’s oil and gas, snarled international shipping and stranded hundreds of thousands of travelers in the Middle East.
Buildings of Iranian military and security forces targeted
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said a torpedo from an American submarine sank an Iranian warship Tuesday night in the Indian Ocean.
Sri Lankan authorities said 32 people were rescued from the ship, while the country’s navy said it recovered 87 bodies.
Israel said it hit buildings associated with Iran’s Basij, the all-volunteer force of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard whose bloody crackdown on protesters in January left thousands dead.
The Israeli military hit buildings associated with Iran’s internal security command. Israel and the US have said they want to see Iranians overthrow the country’s theocracy, and strikes against Iran’s internal security forces may be aimed at hastening that.
However, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said his country’s forces have decentralized leadership, with units acting largely on their own, which could blunt the effect of attacks on top command and control hubs.
Iranian state television showed the ruins of buildings in Tehran and interviews with people saying the attacks damaged their homes. Strikes were also reported in the city of Qom targeting a building associated with a clerical panel set to pick Iran’s next supreme leader. Iranian media said it was empty at the time.
Shifting timelines for US operations
During his Pentagon briefing, Hegseth did not give a definitive timeline for US operations.
“You can say four weeks, but it could be six. It could be eight. It could be three,” he said. “Ultimately, we set the pace and the tempo. The enemy is off balance, and we’re going to keep them off balance.”
Adm. Brad Cooper, the top US military commander in the Middle East, said American forces have damaged Iran’s air defenses and taken out ballistic missiles, launchers and drones.
US and Israeli military officials say launches from Iran have declined as the war has progressed. Israel’s Homefront Command announced it was easing restrictions that closed workplaces nationwide. It said workplaces could reopen Thursday if there’s a shelter nearby. Schools would remain closed.
Still, explosions sounded early Thursday in Israel, which said its defensive systems were moving to intercept Iranian missiles.
At least 1,045 people have been killed in Iran, the country’s Foundation of Martyrs and Veterans Affairs said Wednesday. Eleven people have died in Israel. Six US troops have been killed.
The death toll has exceeded 70 in Lebanon, where the health ministry said Wednesday that three people died when drone strikes hit two vehicles on a Beirut highway. The Israeli military said it was targeting a Hezbollah member.
Israel says its offensive had been planned for midyear
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said the offensive against Iran was originally planned for mid-2026, but “the need arose to bring everything forward to February.”
He listed events inside Iran, Trump’s positions and the possibility of “creating a combined operation” as reasons.
The protests in Iran put unprecedented pressure on its leadership. Trump threatened military action in response to the crackdown before shifting his attention to Iran’s disputed nuclear program.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Wednesday that the US launched its operation partly out of concern Iran might strike American personnel and assets in the region first. A phone call between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before the airstrikes began was also “important with respect to the timeline,” she said.
Energy supplies in the crosshairs
Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard issued its most-intense threat yet, saying the strikes against it would result in “the complete destruction of the region’s military and economic infrastructure.”
A Maltese-flagged container ship was attacked Wednesday while passing through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Arabian Gulf through which about a fifth of the world’s oil is shipped. The ship was hit by two missiles, sparking a fire, according to Malta’s transport minister, Chris Bonett. Its 24 crew members were rescued.
Tanker traffic through the strait has fallen by around 90 percent compared to prewar levels, shipping tracker MarineTraffic.com said Wednesday.
Oil prices have soared as Iranian attacks have disrupted traffic through the strait, and global stock markets have been hammered over worries that the spike in oil prices may grind down the world economy.
Iran’s clerics are choosing a new supreme leader
Iran’s leaders are scrambling to replace Khamenei, who ruled the country for 37 years. It’s only the second time since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that a new supreme leader is being chosen.
Potential candidates range from hard-liners committed to confrontation with the West to reformists who seek diplomatic engagement. Mojtaba Khamenei, Khamenei’s son, has long been considered among them — though he has never been elected or appointed to a government position.
In a sign that Iran’s leadership will only seek to consolidate its power as it faces its biggest crisis in decades, the head of the judiciary warned that “those who cooperate with the enemy in any way will be considered an enemy.”
Israel’s defense minister, Katz, said on X that Iran’s next supreme leader — if he continues to threaten Israel, the US and others — “will be a target for elimination.”
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