MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli of India (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

Former India batter Mohammad Kaif has shed light on why MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli were so successful as Test captains on home soil. His remarks came in the aftermath of India’s 0-2 defeat to South Africa, marking the team’s second consecutive home whitewash under head coach Gautam Gambhir. India had previously suffered a 0-3 rout against New Zealand last year. Speaking in a video posted on his X account, Kaif lauded Dhoni’s leadership style, saying the former skipper built an atmosphere where players felt secure and trusted. He highlighted Dhoni’s sharp reading of the game and ability to build a team around that understanding.

“Do you know why Dhoni and Virat Kohli became such great captains? Dhoni first backed the players, created an environment where the players felt comfortable, and then backed them. He had such deep knowledge of reading the game that he built his team accordingly. He used Ashwin, Jadeja, and even Pragyan, and all of them took wickets. When Dhoni captained the Indian team, there was a presence which gave a big advantage,” Kaif explained. Dhoni led India in 30 home Tests, winning 21, making him the second-most successful home Test captain for the country. Kaif also spoke about Kohli’s leadership, noting that the former captain operated with a different kind of intensity and demanded the highest standards from his bowling unit. “Virat Kohli went one step ahead of Dhoni. His aggression comes out when the team is in trouble or stuck. Kohli told his bowlers, If you want to play, then you have to take 20 wickets; else, don’t come to the ground. You know, Kohli has lost two Test matches at home. He captained in 31 Test matches. Kohli believed in keeping the core intact,” Kaif said. He added that South Africa had toured India earlier when Kohli was captain and were thoroughly outplayed. According to Kaif, Kohli’s strength was his ability to utilise both fast bowlers and spinners smartly after analysing the opposition. This, he said, was a key reason behind Dhoni and Kohli’s success as leaders. Kohli remains India’s most successful Test captain at home, with 24 victories in 31 matches — the best record by an Indian skipper in home conditions.

Ranchi: India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir during a training session on the eve of the first ODI cricket match of a series between India and South Africa, in Ranchi, Jharkhand. (PTI Photo/Kamal Kishore) (PTI11_29_2025_000171A)

NEW DELHI: After dominating at home for 12 straight years without dropping a single Test series, India have now lost two of their last three — a 3-0 defeat to New Zealand last year and a 2-0 loss to South Africa this season. Both setbacks have come under the tenure of head coach Gautam Gambhir, who took over in July 2024. The 408-run defeat in Guwahati was India’s heaviest loss by runs in Test cricket.Instead of owning his mistakes as coach after another debacle at home, Gambhir highlighted his successes, including a 2-2 Test series draw in England, where India should have won 3-1, and where his obsession for extra batting cushion forced a bowler of Kuldeep Yadav’s ability to warm the bench entire summer.

He even pointed out his victories in the Champions Trophy and Asia Cup this year. India were the best team in the Champions Trophy — skill-wise they were a superior side — but we can’t forget that India were stationed at the same hotel in Dubai’s downtown area and played all their games at the same venue while the other teams were travelling back and forth from Pakistan, including the hosts. It wasn’t something which the Men in Blue asked for but the circumstances did give them a slight edge over their opponents.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!In September, under coach Gambhir, India lifted the Asia Cup – second white-ball title – after beating arch-rivals Pakistan in the final. India were the favourites again and, despite experimenting with the middle order throughout the tournament, they went on to win the Cup.These two tournament wins have beefed up the trophy cabinet but it’s strange that the southpaw who played a pivotal role in India’s wins in the 2007 T20 World Cup and the 2011 ODI World Cup finals, is glorifying the Asia Cup win — something that just doesn’t sit well with the cricketer India has known.“I’m the same guy who got results in England as well, with a young team. And I’m sure you guys will forget very soon because a lot of people keep talking about New Zealand. And I’m the same guy under whom we won the Champions Trophy and Asia Cup as well,” he told reporters in Guwahati.

Head Coach Gautam Gambhir

These comments do not reflect the feistiness and heart-on-his-sleeve attitude Gambhir is known for. They sound like coming from someone who is all at sea with his thoughts, rattled by the recent results and clearly struggling to find the right template in Tests.There were mentions of transition and exit of the stalwarts and the inexperience in the change room too.“I don’t think ever in Indian cricket something like this has happened, where the transition is happening in the spin-bowling department and in the batting department as well,” he mentioned.Cheteshwar Pujara, however, didn’t agree with the head coach’s reasoning and termed it as an excuse.“I don’t buy this that India are losing at home because of transition. I can’t digest that,” Pujara told broadcasters after India lost by 30 runs in Kolkata.“If you lose in England or Australia because of transition, it could be acceptable. But this team has the talent and potential. You look at the first-class record of all the players — Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill… Washy (Washington Sundar) batted at No. 3 in this game — all their records are so good. Still, if you lose at home, that means something is wrong.”

That 3-0 loss last year against New Zealand had cost India a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final, and this defeat to South Africa has seen them slip to fifth position on the current WTC table, behind Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.India’s Test future is slipping into the doldrums, and Gambhir’s legacy is now in danger of being defined as the coach under whom India’s iron grip at home finally cracked.

India’s exports to the United States saw a sharp 28.5% fall between May and October 2025 as aggressive tariff hikes by Washington hit key sectors. According to the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), shipments dropped from $8.83 billion to $6.31 billion during the period, coinciding with US duties rising from 10% in April to 25% in early August and then to 50% by late August.GTRI said the sudden escalation made Indian goods among the most heavily taxed in the US market. By comparison, China faced tariffs of about 30%, while Japan’s stood near 15%. The think tank categorised exports into three segments. Tariff-exempt goods such as smartphones, pharmaceuticals and petroleum products accounted for 40.3% of October exports but still slipped 25.8%, falling from $3.42 billion in May to $2.54 billion.Uniform global tariff items — mainly iron, steel, aluminium, copper and auto parts — formed 7.6% of shipments and fell 23.8%, dropping from $629 million to $480 million. The steepest damage came in labour-intensive sectors such as gems and jewellery, solar panels, textiles, garments, chemicals and seafood, which alone faced the 50% rate. Exports in this group sank 31.2%, erasing nearly $1.5 billion.GTRI noted that even tariff-free categories could not escape the impact. Smartphone exports, India’s biggest product line to the US, plunged 36% from $2.29 billion in May to $1.50 billion in October. Monthly shipments tumbled sharply over the five months before showing a mild rebound in October. Pharmaceutical exports dipped 1.6%, while petroleum products fell 15.5%.The think tank said the fall in metals and auto parts was linked more to weak US industrial demand since tariff treatment was uniform for all suppliers. Against this backdrop, it urged the government to operationalise the Export Promotion Mission and push the US to remove an additional 25% Russia-related duty on Indian products.GTRI said the Mission — announced in March and approved on November 12 — “still exists only on paper,” arguing that delays in schemes and disbursals could undermine its goals. ‘Nearly eight months into the fiscal year, no schemes are operational, while long-running programs such as the Market Access Initiative and the Interest Equalisation Scheme have made no payments this year,” GTRI noted.The initiative has an outlay of Rs 25,060 crore for 2025–26 to 2030–31 and aims to support MSMEs, first-time exporters and labour-intensive sectors. The think tank said removing the extra tariff would halve the effective US burden to 25%, giving critical relief to Indian exporters.

NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has set up a national coordination team to monitor the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and flag any “discrepancies,” along with issues faced by Booth Level Officers (BLOs) across the country.The seven-member committee will be headed by BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh. Its other members include Dr K Laxman, K Annamalai, Om Prakash Dhankhar, Alka Gurjar, Dr Anirban Ganguly and Jamyang Tsering Namgyal.The panel has already begun field visits. On Saturday, Ganguly visited Nadia district in his home state, West Bengal, to review the revision exercise. West Bengal, which heads to polls next year as the BJP attempts to challenge 3-term chief minister Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress, will be covered by the committee until December 1. The review in the Union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands has already been completed.The Election Commission recently announced “phase 2” of the SIR across nine states and three Union Territories. The exercise has seen reports of BLO deaths and resignations, attributed in some cases to work pressure. Phase 2 — the first was in Bihar ahead of the state’s recently-conducted assembly polls — began on November 4 and will culminate with the final voter list publication on February 7, 2026.According to the Election Commission, 99.43 per cent of enumeration forms had been distributed by November 28, covering more than 50 crore electors. A total of 5,32,828 BLOs are handling the on-ground distribution and collection of these forms across the 12 states and UTs, supported by 11,40,598 BLAs. Uttar Pradesh has seen the highest volume of distribution, with 15,39,93,688 forms handed out.So far, 74.1 per cent of forms have been digitised. Lakshadweep has completed digitisation of all its 57,813 forms, while Uttar Pradesh currently trails with 54.97 per cent digitised — 8,48,82,670 forms.(With ANI inputs)

KALYAN: The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) Chief Raj Thackeray has suffered a major blow ahead of Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation election in twin Kalyan- Dombivli city after two-time former corporator and MNS’s Kalyan Rural District President, Prakash Bhoir and his wife Sarita, who is also Ex-corporator has resigned from the party. Both possible entry into the BJP is now a major talking point in local political circles.The couple holds considerable influence in their Devichapada and Ganvdevi mandir area in Dombivli, and their exit is being viewed as a setback for the MNS.Prakash Bhoir has previously held several key posts in KDMC, including the important position of Leader of the Opposition, making his departure even more impactful.After the formation of the MNS, the party achieved remarkable success in its very first KDMC election in 2010, winning 27 corporator seats—the highest number of MNS corporators in any municipal corporation in MMR region. However, by 2015, the number of elected MNS corporators had declined sharply by winning 9 seats. Over the years, many former MNS corporators have shifted to the Shiv Sena and during last assembly election party’ s only MLA Pramod (Raju) Patil also lost election,weakening the party’s base in the region.Sensing the growing buzz about Bhoir’s and some other MNS’s former corporators switch to the BJP, Raj Thackeray had recently called Bhoir and others for a meeting, indicating the MNS leader’s importance within the party and an attempt to prevent his exit. Recently, when Maharashtra BJP President Ravindra Chavan inaugurated several development works in Bhoir’s ward, he openly hinted at Bhoir’s possible induction into the BJP. The event set off intense political speculation.However, despite Raj Thackeray’s efforts, Bhoir has now resigned.As KDMC elections draw closer, the political dynamics in Dombivli appear to be changing rapidly, with Bhoir’s next move likely to further alter the electoral landscape.

Pakistan face Sri Lanka in the final of the Pakistan T20I Tri-Series 2025 at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on November 29. Both teams advanced after topping the points table, with Pakistan securing 6 points from 3 wins in 4 matches (NRR +1.440) and Sri Lanka earning 4 points from 2 wins (NRR -0.901).​

Pakistan showed consistency, beating Zimbabwe twice and Sri Lanka once earlier in the series by 7 wickets while chasing 131. Sri Lanka stumbled initially with losses but peaked with a thrilling 6-run win over Pakistan in the 6th match, where Kamil Mishara scored 76 and Dushmantha Chameera took 4-20. Key performers for Pakistan include Sahibzada Farhan (leading run-scorer with 168 runs at 155.56 SR in the series) and Abrar Ahmed (10 wickets at Rawalpindi).

PAK vs SL, T20I Tri-series 2025 Final: Match Details

• Date and Time: November 29; 6:30 pm IST / 01:00 pm GMT / 6:00 pm Local
• Venue: Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi

Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium Pitch Report

Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium’s pitch for the Pakistan T20I Tri-Series 2025 final offers a batting-friendly surface with true pace, bounce, and a quick outfield, ideal for high scores around 170-180. Recent tri-series matches saw first innings averages near 194, favoring aggressive strokeplay early on, though pacers like Shaheen Afridi and Chameera can extract seam movement and swing with the new ball. Spinners such as Wanindu Hasaranga and Abrar may find grip on rough patches later, especially under lights, while dew could ease chasing in the second innings—teams bowling first have won most recent T20s here.​

Squads

Pakistan: Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Nawaz, Salman Agha (c), Fakhar Zaman, Usman Khan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jr, Naseem Shah, Usman Tariq, Shaheen Afridi, Salman Mirza, Abrar Ahmed, Abdul Samad

Sri Lanka: Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Kusal Mendis (wk), Kusal Perera, Janith Liyanage, Dasun Shanaka (c), Pavan Rathnayake, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dushmantha Chameera, Maheesh Theekshana, Eshan Malinga, Kamindu Mendis, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Nuwan Thushara, Dushan Hemantha

Also READ: Dushmantha Chameera’s fiery spell takes Sri Lanka into the Pakistan T20I Tri-Series final

PAK vs SL, T20I Tri-series 2025: Today’s Match Prediction

Case 1:

• Pakistan wins the toss and bowls first
• Sri Lanka powerplay score: 55-60
• Sri Lanka total score: 175-185

Case 2:

• Sri Lanka wins the toss and bowls first
• Pakistan powerplay score: 50-55
• Pakistan total score: 165-175

Match result: Pakistan to win the contest.

Also WATCH: Usman Tariq’s hat-trick powers Pakistan to dominant win over Zimbabwe in T20I tri-series 2025

Representative image (Photo credit: AP)

Nasa has, for the first time, found signs of ‘mini-lightning’ on Mars after its rover accidentally recorded tiny “zaps” during the planet’s frequent dust storms. Scientists have argued for years about whether electrical sparks could happen in Mars’ dusty atmosphere, but they never had solid proof.Now, a study titled “Detection of triboelectric discharges during dust events on Mars” published in Nature reports that NASA’s Perseverance rover, on Mars since 2021, recorded these sounds inadvertently while conducting other experiments.“ Its microphone picked up faint crackles of what appear to be dust-driven electrical discharges, offering the clearest evidence yet of electrical activity on the red planet.” These are unlike the dramatic bolts seen on Earth, are faint, centimetre-scale zaps generated by the planet’s constant dust storms.Researchers from the Institute for Research in Astrophysics and Planetology in France analysed 28 hours of microphone data captured by Perseverance’s SuperCam instrument over two Martian years (1,374 Earth days). According to Reuters, the team found that the electrical discharges were typically associated with dust devils and dust-storm fronts, caused by fast-moving grains of dust and sand rubbing together and generating charge.The Times reported that the breakthrough was made not through a camera but through a microphone. Perseverance’s microphone picked up 55 unusual events: each began with a sharp electronic disturbance detected by the microphone’s circuitry, followed milliseconds later by a faint acoustic pulse. In several cases, researchers could estimate the spark’s distance by measuring the delay between the electromagnetic and acoustic signatures. One strong event was recorded when an intense dust devil passed directly over the rover, possibly causing the rover itself to build up static and then discharge it into the ground.According to The New York Times, the phenomenon resembles the tiny static shock you might feel after walking across a carpet, rather than Earth-style lightning. Kenneth Chang wrote that lead researcher Dr Baptiste Chide described the centimetre-scale sparks as “mini-lightning”, noting that one event occurred roughly six feet from the rover, while other smaller discharges happened within inches of the microphone. It further quoted Dr Chide saying, “What we are seeing are tiny sparks — but on Mars, even tiny sparks can tell us a lot about the atmosphere.”However, the Nature commentary noted some scientific caution. Particle physicist Dr Daniel Pritchard wrote that while the recordings “provide persuasive evidence of dust-induced discharges”, the fact that they were heard but not yet seen means “some doubt will inevitably remain as to whether this really was Martian lightning”.While the tiny shocks would not endanger astronauts, they could disrupt or damage electronic equipment or spacesuits over time. Reuters added that the researchers hope future Mars missions will carry more sensitive cameras and dedicated instruments to confirm and further study these discharges.

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