West Indies won the toss again and inserted India in a must-win contest for the hosts in the three-ODI series. It was a big advantage for the visitors as pitches tend to quicken up in the night and dew becomes a factor too.

West Indies made two changes to their winning combination. The return of Evin Lewis strengthened their batting further, and legpsinner Hayden Walsh made way for debutant left-arm spinner Khary Pierre.

India resisted the temptation of playing both the wristspinners together. They have been reluctant to play them both in the absence of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who can bat at No. 8. In this case, though, it is possible they didn't want to end up with two wristspinners should they lose the toss and have to bowl in wet conditions. However, they did strengthen their bowling, leaving out allrounder Shivam Dube for Shardul Thakur.

India 1 Rohit Sharma, 2 KL Rahul, 3 Virat Kohli (capt.), 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 Rishabh Pant (wk), 6 Kedar Jadhav, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Deepak Chahar, 9 Shardul Thakur, 10 Mohammed Shami, 11 Kuldeep Yadav

West Indies 1 Evin Lewis, 2 Shai Hope (wk), 3 Shimron Hetmyer, 4 Nicholas Pooran, 5 Roston Chase, 6 Kieron Pollard (capt.), 7 Jason Holder, 8 Keemo Paul, 9 Khary Pierre, 10 Alzarri Joseph, 11 Sheldon Cottrell

Jacques Kallis will join South Africa's backroom staff as a batting consultant for the summer, completing the support staff of the new regime. Kallis and Charl Langeveldt, who opted out of a two-year-deal with Bangladesh after just five months to take on the role of bowling coach, have been confirmed as being part of Mark Boucher's staff.

That brings the total number of former internationals involved to five with Graeme Smith in the role of director of cricket for the next three months, Boucher as head coach until 2023, Kallis and Langeveldt as batting and bowling consultants respectively, and Ashwell Prince in charge of the South African A side.

South Africa's men's team are currently at a training camp in Pretoria, preparing for a four-Test series against England which starts on Boxing Day. The squad for the first two Tests was named on Monday and includes six uncapped players.

The new season of the BBL is underway. This page will keep you updated with all the snippets of news from the tournament

December 18

Finch calls for BBL DRS

Cricket Australia chief executive Kevin Roberts said that he had taken heed of calls by Australia's T20 captain Aaron Finch for the use of DRS in future editions of the BBL, but ruled out its inclusion this season.

In the opening over of the season, Usman Khawaja survived an lbw appeal against Josh Lalor which replays showed should have been given out.

Finch believes DRS should be available as it now is in T20Is, the IPL and the finals of this year's CPL. "I think we should have one review, similar to internationals and ODI cricket," he said. "There's so much riding on games and you know how much of an impact one ball can have or one decision can have.

"Sometimes you're on the right side, sometimes you're not, but I think we've come far enough and there's enough time in the game to have a 90-second strategy break, so to me it would make sense."

Roberts said: "We'll review the BBL in the ordinary course at the end of the season. I was really happy to see the opening match last night and to watch that from home, the first tactical timeout as well. I think Aaron makes a really good point, and also a really good question about DRS. We're not going to be looking at that right now but like all things cricket, as each season passes we review and we consider how we can improve and I think Aaron makes a fair point and one that we would consider going forward."

Renegades draft in Doolan; Christian ready for spin

Alex Doolan has returned to the Melbourne Renegades having been drafted in as a local replacement player ahead of the opening match of the tournament for the defending champions.

He comes into the squad for 19-year-old pace bowler Zak Evans who is recovering from a back injury. However, there is no place for recent Test opener Marcus Harris. The Renegades begin their title defence against the Sydney Thunder in Geelong.

Meanwhile, Dan Christian was watching the Thunder's opening match closely and was preparing himself to face plenty of spin after seeing the impact of Jono Cook, Chris Green and Arjun Nair against the Brisbane Heat. The trio took 6 for 70 from 12 overs to derail the Heat at the Gabba.

Thunder have been good tonight!! Will make sure I get thrown some off spinners before Thursday night's game

— Dan Christian (@danchristian54) December 17, 2019

Kevin Roberts, the Cricket Australia chief executive, is counselling the MCC (Melbourne Cricket Club) against overreacting to the abandonment of the recent Sheffield Shield game between Victoria and Western Australia by preparing a safe, flat surface for the Boxing Day Test match next week.

Under pressure from both CA and the MCC to produce a more equitable surface from the same ageing pitches in concrete trays that have helped cause the MCG to be regarded as the most moribund surface in the country, the ground's curator Matt Page prepared a Shield pitch that retained too much moisture, allowing divots to be created by the ball on day one that made the pitch increasingly erratic as it dried.

While the abandonment of the match was a source of considerable embarrassment to the MCC, Roberts said he was eager to ensure that the pitch for the Test match between Australia and New Zealand on December 26 - New Zealand's first in Melbourne since 1987 - would have plenty of live grass on top to allow the bowlers to gain movement and pace off the surface.

"We're really keen to ensure that the MCC doesn't overreact to the situation in the last Shield game. The great news was that no players were injured in that situation. We learned a lot from it. And they're not overreacting," Roberts said in Melbourne. "And, Matt Page is a master of his craft and we're really looking forward to him expressing that with his team... So we're confident that there won't be an overreaction, and that will see a better balance between bat and ball at the MCG."

"The preparation of that specific pitch started around last weekend, and we can expect more grass on that wicket than we've seen over the last couple of Boxing Day Tests, and we're really appreciative of the work that Matt Page the head curator is doing. Also the calmness of Stuart Fox, the CEO of the MCC in this situation, no one's overreacting to the unfortunate situation a week or two ago."

ALSO READ: Timeline of a troubled MCG pitch

Page is working with a square that has been somewhat renovated from the 2017 surface on which Alastair Cook laboured to 244 during the previous Ashes series on Australian soil, after the removal of the concrete slab under the wickets. However, they remain old pitches laid in enclosed concrete trays, distinct from the porous steel tray on pillars used at Adelaide Oval and Perth Stadium, both of which are now considered leading surfaces among Australian grounds.

Roberts, speaking at a launch for a scheme under which the car manufacturer Toyota will provide funding for the provision of extra equipment for grass roots women's competition, said the broader trend for the season had been a positive one, before the pudding was slightly over-egged for the final Shield round before the start of the Big Bash League. "Other than that, the last Shield game, the condition of pitches at the MCG has been on a significant increase over the last period of time since Matt and the team took the concrete base out from under the pitches and replaced it with sand."

"The feedback from the curators is that it feels different to roll, the feedback from players is that it feels different and even sounds different to play on. It sounds like proper turf wicket now rather than something that's more like a concrete deck, so we're really optimistic about Boxing Day."

NEW ORLEANS -- The New Orleans Pelicans' franchise-worst 13th consecutive loss came with very unlucky circumstances late in regulation.

With the score tied at 93, Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie stepped back and fired a 30-foot 3-pointer as the shot clock ticked down. Just as the shot hit the backboard, the horn sounded for a violation.

No call was made despite the ball hitting the backboard to the right of the square without touching the rim, and Pelicans guard Lonzo Ball attempted to corral the rebound and get it up to Josh Hart, but time expired.

The officiating crew ruled the ball hit the rim, and thus no call was made on the floor. In overtime, the Nets beat the Pelicans 108-101.

Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said it was "the wrong call."

"The ball clearly did not hit the rim, and all they had to do was go over and review it to see that it didn't hit the rim," Gentry said. "There was at least 2.7 seconds left to go in the game after it didn't hit the rim, and that was a shot clock violation. I asked them to review it three times. They said it clearly hit the rim.

"It would have taken five seconds to see that it didn't. I mean, that's all that needs to be said about it. It was clearly a ball that did not hit the rim. You guys saw it. Everybody saw it. I have no idea why they didn't go over and review it. I don't know if this is the correct thing or not, but I thought that at the end of the game, or in situations like that, there would always be a review."

In the pool report following the game, crew chief Kevin Scott said, "At the time, the crew was reasonably certain the ball made contact with the rim."

When asked why that play was not reviewable, Scott said, "It was not reviewable because the play was not immediately blown dead after the change of possession, therefore the window to review expired."

Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday said he wasn't given an explanation on the court of what happened. Forward Brandon Ingram said he didn't get a full one either.

"I don't know what happened," Ingram said. "Some people said it hit the rim, and some people said it didn't hit the rim. I'm not sure. I didn't get an explanation."

The loss extended New Orleans' franchise-worst losing streak, which the team set in a loss to Orlando on Sunday. Despite the loss, Gentry tried to look at some positives for his 6-22 club heading into a four-game road trip that starts Wednesday in Minnesota and ends on Christmas Day in Denver.

"We just have to find something tangible, and I know I keep saying that," Gentry said. "The guys were competing and playing hard. This was probably our best defensive game against a really good offensive team who shoots the ball well. I thought we were into the ball. I thought we did a good job in our rotations. They made some tough shots in overtime and down the stretch, but I don't think we got discouraged. I thought we still played well and battled and just came up short."

Brooklyn quickly jumped out to a four-point lead in the overtime period and never trailed. Nets forward Joe Harris helped to put the game away with a 3-pointer in the corner to put Brooklyn up six with 1:28 to play.

Gentry said he didn't think the lack of review deflated his club at the end, but instead he gave credit to Brooklyn for making plays.

"We played hard as heck," Gentry said. "Joe Harris made a couple of really tough shots with guys in his face. We had one breakdown on an out-of-bounds underneath play with Jarrett Allen. But once again, you're talking about a young player [Jaxson Hayes] who will learn. Every day for Jaxson is a learning experience for something he'll get better at."

As he finished talking about Hayes' performance, Gentry finished his news conference wondering about the call that wasn't.

"I don't know why it wasn't reviewed," Gentry said. "I don't why you couldn't walk over to the table and take five seconds to review it and go, 'No, it didn't hit the rim.' That's all I'm saying."

INDIANAPOLIS -- Asked to look back at the Los Angeles Lakers team that arrived at Bankers Life Fieldhouse last February and imploded with a 42-point loss, Indiana Pacers coach Nate McMillan was diplomatic.

"LeBron [James] had some injuries and a lot was going on with the Lakers last year," McMillan said before the L.A. played Indiana on Tuesday.

Last season's punishing from the Pacers, which came just days before the trade deadline, was the worst loss of James' career in terms of final margin. The cutting, "LeBron's gonna trade you!" chants directed at L.A.'s young core marked a low point in the Lakers' season. The indelible image from the night was James sitting on the end of the bench late in the game with three empty seats between him and the next closest teammate.

The defeat dropped L.A. to 27-27 at the time. The Lakers would close out the season from there going 10-18.

On paper, the Lakers' lineup in Tuesday's 105-102 loss looked less talented than the group that preceded them last season. Moreover, Anthony Davis rested a mild right ankle sprain and Kyle Kuzma remained on the sidelines as he recovers from an ankle injury of his own. Add up those variables and a lopsided loss to a Pacers team boasting an 11-3 home record certainly could have been in the cards.

With a chance for the Lakers to tie the score on their final offensive possession coming out of a timeout, the play broke down to find James coming off a pindown screen from Dwight Howard, leaving Rajon Rondo to launch a 3-pointer that rimmed out.

"We just didn't execute it," James said of the play. "We didn't execute the play to a T."

Tuesday's loss snapped a 14-game road winning streak for L.A., the third longest in NBA history. Though the result was one they're unaccustomed to, they maintained consistency despite being undermanned.

"Throughout the winning streak we was able to keep our composure throughout adversity," James said. "Up or down, still being able to make a game out of it."

That, of course, wasn't the case last season. The team was full of pieces on different timelines with little shared vision, and it became increasingly clear the franchise intended to upgrade its roster by using its prospects as trade chips.

But these Lakers have already proven the past to be moot this season. Davis returned to New Orleans to post the most points ever for a player in his return game. Howard and coach Frank Vogel went back to Orlando -- a place they both experienced unceremonious exits -- and got a win.

McMillan noted that James and Vogel, once rivals in the Eastern Conference finals, are now working together, striving for new success.

"Here they are working together, trying to win a championship," McMillan said. "So when you get a situation like that, you can forget about the past and enjoy the present."

The Lakers will look to avoid back-to-back losses for the first time this season when they play Milwaukee on Thursday, facing a Bucks team that ties L.A.'s league-best record at 24-4.

"We're going to go out there and play hard and try to not do what we say we're not trying to do this year," Rondo said.

Despite a goal to open the scoring, Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov, the defending league MVP, spent most of the third period and then overtime on the bench of the Lightning's 4-3 win over the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday.

Kucherov, in the lineup after leaving Saturday's 5-2 loss to the Washington Capitals midway through the second after taking a shot off his right foot, took the bench in the third after a costly turnover.

Lightning coach Jon Cooper was pressed about the decision in his postgame news conference. He chose not to address Kucherov by name, but he did comment on the strategy.

"We did what was best for us to win tonight," he said.

Asked if the decision was based solely on the turnover, Cooper said: "It was just our decision. It could have been anybody. As a group, we put ourselves in a position that we wanted to win this game, and this is what we were going with tonight."

Kucherov scored 7 minutes, 27 seconds into the game from the high slot. Ottawa goaltender Marcus Hogberg lost his stick while moving to his right to try to stop Tampa Bay defenseman Victor Hedman's in-close shot and was scrambling to get back in position as Kucherov netted his 199th career goal.

Kucherov has 11 goals this season but is far off his pace from last year, when he won the Hart Trophy. En route to helping Tampa Bay to the Presidents' Trophy last season, Kucherov had 128 points, the highest total in the NHL since the 1995-96 season.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Brazilian champions Flamengo came from behind to beat Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal 3-1 on Tuesday and book their place in the final of the Club World Cup.

The Copa Libertadores winners will face either European champions Liverpool or Mexico's Monterrey in Saturday's final.

Al Hilal, the Asian Champions League winners, took a deserved lead in the 18th minute at the Khalifa International stadium when a low shot from Salem Al Dawsari took a deflection off Flamengo defender Pablo Mari and flew into the roof of the net.

Flamengo got back on level terms four minutes after the interval when Uruguayan Giorgian De Arrascaeta tapped in after a clever cut back from the impressive Bruno Henrique.

Bruno Henrique then put the Brazilians ahead, meeting a fine Rafinha cross with a thundering header at the near post.

And it was Bruno Henrique who created the third goal, putting the outcome beyond doubt, as his low cross was turned into the wrong net by Ali Albulayhi.

Al Hilal's Peruvian midfielder Andre Carrillo was sent off in the 84th minute after an awful, over the top, challenge on De Arrascaeta.

Liverpool and Monterrey face each other at the same venue on Wednesday in the other semifinal.

Earlier, Tunisia's Esperance beat Qatari side Al Sadd 6-2 to claim fifth place with Libyan forward Hamdou Elhounis grabbing a hat trick.

Liverpool midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum has been ruled out of Wednesday's FIFA Club World Cup semifinal against Mexican side Monterrey due to a muscle injury, manager Jurgen Klopp said.

Wijnaldum was injured in Liverpool's 2-0 Premier League win over Watford on Saturday but travelled with the squad to Qatar.

Klopp said that the 29-year-old's problem was not as serious as initially feared but that they would monitor how it responded to treatment over the coming days.

"Gini was not as serious as we thought in the first moment, so he's here doing the first recovery and then we have stuff what is necessary," Klopp told reporters on Tuesday.

"We'll see day by day, but for tomorrow night [Wednesday] he's not involved."

Wijnaldum's fellow Dutch international Virgil van Dijk also missed training in Doha on Monday but Klopp said the defender was not carrying any injury.

"Virgil is fine. We had to do different stuff for recovery for different people, that was the reason why he wasn't involved yesterday in the session," Klopp added.

"All the rest of the squad is fine."

European champions Liverpool are looking to capture their maiden Club World Cup trophy.

The winner of Wednesday's clash at the Khalifa International Stadium will take on Copa Libertadores champions Flamengo in Saturday's final.

With Premier League leaders Liverpool playing in Doha this week, they fielded a starting lineup consisting mainly of reserves and youth team players for Tuesday's 5-0 League Cup semifinal loss to Aston Villa.

Trent Boult is confident he will be able to take his place in the Boxing Day Test and the dream not afford to New Zealand for more than 30 years.

Boult missed the opening Test in Perth having not recovered sufficiently from the side strain he picked up against England - a call he made himself to admit he wasn't ready - but is increasing his workload as the squad prepares in Melbourne.

They have a two-day game against a Victoria XI later this week where Boult hopes to get three or four spells under his belt with the slightly longer break between the first two Tests working in his favour.

"It's about being confident with the overs under my belt and having enough behind me," he said. "Feel like I'm in that place and ticking the right boxes. It's a day-by-day thing, it's about getting through each session. As I'm tracking right now, touch wood it keeps going that way. I'm very eager to get out there.

"It's nice to have seven or eight days. I'll be using it the best I can. It will be nice to get some cricket but guess they'll make a call as late as they can."

New Zealand have not played a Boxing Day Test since the 1987-88 tour when they came within one wicket of levelling the series only to be denied by a dodgy umpiring decision and Mike Whitney. Boult has only played twice at the MCG, once in the 2015 World Cup final and another ODI in 2016, but wants to use the significance of the occasion, which is expected to see an influx of New Zealand support, as motivation.

"I don't really want to ignore it, I want to embrace it, appreciate that stage for what it is," he said. "Test cricket is my favourite format and this is a stage a lot of people dream of being on so to get this opportunity in my career is definitely something I'm looking forward to. If I can tick all the right boxes with my body, I can't wait."

Boult is likely to be a straight swap in the XI for the injured Lockie Ferguson whose tour was ended by the calf strain he picked up on the opening day in Perth. The uncapped Kyle Jamieson has been called up and joins Matt Henry as the reserve pacemen.

Neil Wagner and Tim Southee put in a huge shift during the opening Test after Ferguson's injury, bowling 60 and 51.3 overs respectively, taking 16 of the 19 Australia wicket to fall.

Jeet Raval is facing the axe after two failures in Perth to continue his poor run of form which would mean a recall for Tom Blundell and a potential reshuffle of the batting. Mitchell Santner's position may also come under scrutiny after he went wicketless through 41 overs and struggled to tie down Australia's batsmen.