With the passing of the baton from coach Anil Kumble to Ravi Shastri and captain MS Dhoni to Virat Kohli, the Indian cricket witnessed an array of transformations in 2017.
Although India concluded the year on the pinnacle of ICC Test rankings and many players including skipper Kohli broke numerous records, the unbeaten streak of emphatic victories made it a long-time affair to cherish.
In their journey to the top, India wrecked havoc on world's prominent teams such as West Indies, Sri Lanka, Australia and New Zealand. Incidentally, Sri Lanka got a taste of defeat twice in the concluding year.
The men-in-blue will enter the new year with an eye on the No.1 spot in the ICC ODI rankings as well, when they take on leaders South Africa in a lengthy series starting January 13. As India embark on a new journey, we present you highlights of Indian cricket in 2017.
An English routing for starter
After claiming the five-Test series by 4-0 against England in December last year, India pushed the victory juggernaut forward and crushed the English side in ODIs (2-1), and T20Is (2-1) as well.
With this series, Kohli took the reigns of the Indian national side across all formats and never looked back. Kedar Jadhav was the find of the England series as he was given the Man of The Series in ODIs for his impressive all-round abilities. In T20Is, the ‘player of the series' Yuzvendra Chahal made a strong impression and became an inevitable force of the Indian cricket team by the end of 2017.
Australia, New Zealand in the main course
Following a favourable start, India continued their dominance and defeated underdogs Bangladesh and West Indies after finishing as runners-up in the Champions Trophy.
However, defeating strong contenders like Australia and New Zealand was a sheer delight to watch for Indian fans.
Firstly, Steve Smith-led Australia lost to India 2-1 and 4-1 in Tests and ODIs respectively. The three-match T20I series, however, ended in a draw 1-1 after the series-decider washed away in Hyderabad.
Australia's trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand were the next in the queue. Under the captaincy of Kane Williamson, the Blackcaps lost the ODI and T20I series to India by an identical margin of 2-1.
A perfect desert
Among all opponents, facing Sri Lanka remained a cakewalk for India's limited-over side, which proved its mettle twice in an year.
In July-September, India toured Sri Lanka for a lengthy series comprising three Tests, five ODIs and one-off T20I. The Virat Kohli-led Indians sealed the respective series by 3-0, 5-0 and 1-0.
India's emphatic win over the Asian neighbours doubled when they toured India back in November-December. The No.1 Test side clinched the three-match Test series by 1-0, following a 2-1 series win in ODI and a 3-0 whitewash in T20Is.
This time Rohit Sharma led the men-in-blue in absence of Virat Kohli, who tied the knot with Bollywood actress Anushka on December 11. Leading by example, Rohit slammed his third double century in ODIs and joint-fastest T20I hundred off 35 balls to end the year on a high.
