In Case You Missed It: Sharma and Kohli's dominance, and the Dhoni saga

ODIs in India, Tests and a World Cup in southern Africa, the BBL in Australia - if that didn't keep you cricket-busy last week then perhaps the contracts drama (not) featuring MS Dhoni did. Here's a catch-up for whatever you missed.

Rohit Sharma's century trumps Steven Smith's as India take series
India beat Australia 2-1 in an ODI series that saw plenty of records. In the first game, in Mumbai, David Warner and Aaron Finch put on the highest partnership for any wicket against India. Abandoning the experiment of pushing himself down a position, Virat Kohli returned to bat at No. 3 in Rajkot and scored 78, to go with Shikhar Dhawan's 96 and KL Rahul's 80 in a 36-run win. In Bengaluru, India's bowlers managed to keep Australia to 286 despite Smith's hundred and India won by seven wickets. Sharma and Kohli notched up their 11th century partnership in chases - the second-highest by any pair in the format. According to Ian Chappell, Kohli at No. 3 and KL Rahul at No. 4 is the way for India to go.

BCCI drops MS Dhoni from central contracts list
Others to lose contracts were Ambati Rayudu, Dinesh Karthik and Khaleel Ahmed. Test opener Mayank Agarwal entered the list at Grade B, which comes with a retainer of INR 3 crore (USD 420,000 approx), and limited-overs specialists Navdeep Saini, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Shreyas Iyer and Washington Sundar got Grade C contracts, with a retainer of INR 1 crore (USD 140,000 approx). Test wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha, who had dropped to Grade C, thanks to injuries, came back to join Agarwal in Grade B. What does Dhoni's exclusion mean, if anything at all? Sidharth Monga says it would have been controversial if the BCCI had handed him a contract, since he hasn't played at all in this period, but that doesn't mean he couldn't still make the T20 World Cup squad.

'If you're predictable, that's when they take you down' - Adam Zampa
The Australian legspinner dismissed Kohli and Sharma twice each in the ODI series. In this interview, he talks about how he prepares to bowl in India, and the tips he has picked up from watching Rashid Khan bowl.

Cricket is a finite game and Faf du Plessis' finish is in sight
South Africa are four wickets from conceding a series lead to England in Port Elizabeth. Firdose Moonda writes that unless South African captain has the home summer of 2020-21 in mind, it's not unreasonable to conclude that the Wanderers Test could be his last - at least at home.

'I've figured out that I can score runs even if I bat normally' - Liton Das
The Bangladesh keeper-batsman talks to Mohammad Isam about how he has come to understand his batting better over the last year.

The Under-19 World Cup kicked off in South Africa on Friday and we have plenty of content on it. First up, look at all the future stars this junior tournament has thrown up. Read the story of the story of India U-19 Atharva Ankolekar, whose journey to the side has been full of hardship and sacrifice. Meet Australian captain Mackenzie Harvey, who talks about how his uncle Ian's career inspired him to take up the game.

The great collapse: how the Brisbane Heat lost 7 for 7 in 16 balls
Or, the worst ten-wicket collapse in BBL history.

Women's T20 World Cup news
Dane van Niekerk returned to lead a South Africa squad that had 11 players participating in the last tournament, and Sophie Devine replaced Amy Satterthwaite, who recently had a baby, as New Zealand captain for the tournament. Since January 2018, Australia's T20 record has been formidable: 26 matches, 23 wins, three defeats. Their coach, Matthew Mott, says that being knocked out of the 2017 50-over World Cup was an eye-opener for the side.

AB de Villiers would 'love to' make T20 World Cup comeback
If that happens, will it help South Africa finally win some World Cup silverware?

Don't dismiss the idea of four-day Test cricket
Many players and fans have spoken out against the ICC's plan to make four-day Tests mandatory, but Sidharth Monga writes that it's an idea worth considering as long as the essentials of the contest are preserved.

Bangladesh to play two Tests, one ODI and three T20Is in Pakistan
The tour will be split across three legs: three T20Is from January 24 to 27 in Lahore; the first Test in Rawalpindi from February 7 to 11; and after the Pakistan Super League is held, Bangladesh will return in April to play one ODI and the second Test, both in Karachi. Mushfiqur Rahim opted out of the tour over security concerns but Tamim Iqbal returned to the T20I squad for the tour.

Former India allrounder Bapu Nadkarni dies aged 86
Nadkarni, who made his India debut in December 1955, played 41 Test matches, scoring 1414 runs at an average of 25.70 and taking 88 wickets at 29.07. The statistic that defined him, though, was his economy rate of 1.67, the second best in history among all bowlers with 50 or more Test wickets.

'If you go for 12 off three balls, don't let the over cost 20'
Kane Richardson looks back at his stop-start international career and talks about bringing T20 skills and strategy to ODIs.

ICC awards: Ben Stokes named player of the year
The England has won the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for the ICC player of the year after starring in the side's maiden 50-over World Cup triumph and in their one-wicket win in the Leeds Ashes Test last year. Australia fast bowler Pat Cummins and India's white-ball vice-captain Rohit Sharma scooped up the other top honours, winning the Test player of the year and ODI player of the year awards respectively. Cummins' Australia team-mate Marnus Labuschagne, who was the leading run-getter in Test cricket in 2019, was named Emerging player of the year, while Scotland's Kyle Coetzer was recognised as the Associate player of the year.

Ireland clinch thriller, thanks to Paul Stirling's 47-ball 95
Ireland beat West Indies in a seesawing T20I in which they scored a record 93 for no loss in the Powerplay. Although West Indies eventually restricted them to 208 (when they looked set for about 250) and started the chase powerfully themselves, 20-year-old fast bowler Josh Little tied them up towards the end to win the game for Ireland by four runs. Rain forced the second game to be abandoned, but not before Kieron Pollard took a career-best 4 for 25.

ESPNcricinfo Awards 2019
This week we rolled out our annual nominees lists for performances in Tests, ODIs, T20Is, women's cricket, Associate cricket and shortlisted debutants and captains of the year. Two of the best Test innings of all time came last year. Which was better - Kusal Perera's 153 not out in Durban or Ben Stokes' 135 not out at Headingley? Andrew Fidel Fernando compares them on numbers.

Botham, Flintoff, Stokes - who is England's greatest allrounder?
Stokes appears to be reaching his golden age, but how does he stack up against his celebrated predecessors, asks Andrew Miller.