Dhoni returns to action, KL Rahul added to 'A' squad and more - Cricket News Today, 30th January 2019

Welcome to Sportskeeda's Cricket News Today, a section that summarizes trending news topics of the day from the world of cricket.

Brief introduction over, let's venture into the sport. The Indian team is having a ball in New Zealand and are 3-0 up in the ODIs, with the T20I series still to go. Elsewhere, T20s are in full flow in Australia and Bangladesh. There seems to be no dearth of cricketing action across the globe.

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Here are some of the headlines from the world of cricket:

# Ahead of 4th ODI, MS Dhoni returns to nets

Wicketkeeper MS Dhoni, who missed the third ODI of the ongoing India-New Zealand series, made a return to the nets a day ahead of the fourth game in Hamilton. The 37-year-old, who suffered from a sore hamstring, returned to action during India's practice session.

After going through a scratchy 2018, where he could not make much impact with the bat in ODIs, Dhoni found form with three back-to-back 50s at the start of 2019 and looks set to be part of his fourth World Cup campaign starting May. For the 4th ODI, Dhoni was replaced by Dinesh Karthik behind the stumps.

It's still unclear whether he will be drafted into the playing XI directly, or if the management would want to ensure that he does not aggravate the niggle. With the World Cup just months away, and the series already in the bag, the side wouldn't want to risk stretching an injury.

The fourth game is set to be played in Hamilton on January 31st, with the final game scheduled for February 3.

# KL Rahul named in India A squad

KL Rahul

Batsman KL Rahul, who, along with Hardik Pandya, was briefly suspended after a talk-show controversy, is set to return to action after the lift on his ban by the CoA. Rahul has been named in the India A squad that will take on the England Lions in a four-day match at Wayanad.

The 26-year-old, who was sent back midway through the Australia series in January, has been listed in the 14-man squad.

The side, captained by Ankit Bawne, includes KS Bharat as the designated wicketkeeper. India pacer Varun Aaron, who last played for the national side in 2015, is also part of the squad.

The game is scheduled to start on February 7.

Squad: Ankit Bawne (captain), KL Rahul, AR Easwaran, Priyank Panchal, Ricky Bhui, Siddhesh Lad, K.S. Bharat (Wicketkeeper), Jalaj Saxena, S Nadeem, Mayank Markande, Navdeep Saini, Sharadul Thakur, Avesh Khan, Varun Aaron

#3 Supreme Court questions Sreesanth's conduct in spot-fixing saga

S Sreesanth in 2011

“Why didn’t you (Sreesanth) bring it immediately to the notice of the board (BCCI)?

The Supreme Court has questioned banned cricketer Sreesanth's conduct in the 2013 IPL spot-fixing scandal, stating that the pacer should have informed the BCCI if he was aware of corrupt practices.

Sreesanth has challenged the decision of the Kerala High Court to re-impose the ban that was lifted on him.

“All this indicates that conduct of S Sreesanth was not good. There is no doubt about this,” the bench told Salman Khurshid, the senior advocate who is appearing for Sreesanth.

“At the worst, it could be said that I (Sreesanth) had the knowledge that somebody was trying to do fixing and I should have brought it to the notice of the authorities. If that is the case, the total ban could be up to five years,” the bench added.

In 2013, Sreesanth, along with Rajasthan Royals teammates Ankit Chavan and Ajit Chandila, was arrested by the Delhi Police with charges of spot-fixing in the IPL.

#4 Rashid Khan admits playing Tests in Australia 'more than a dream'

Rashid Khan has already played the Big Bash in Australia

Afghanistan's star leg-spinner Rashid Khan has confessed that playing Test cricket in Australia 'is more than a dream' and is looking forward to his side's first game in whites Down Under, scheduled to be played next year.

The 20-year-old, widely regarded as one of the best T20 spinners of the current era, spoke to cricket.com.au about his excitement at the prospect of playing the longest format in Australia:

"Being a player, it means a lot. Against Australia, playing Test matches is a huge achievement and me and the players are really looking forward".

"From Afghanistan, playing Test cricket against Australia in Australia it’s more than a dream. Afghanistan got the full membership and last we played against India in India and now we’re playing against Ireland in India and then Australia here,”

"We played here (in T20 games) a lot but, Test cricket is very different. Pretty excited to face the quick bowlers here, big bouncy wickets”, he added.

After gaining Test status in 2017, Afghanistan played their first ever Test last year, against India in Bengaluru.