Raksha Bandhan & Friendship Day: This is how Indian cricketers celebrated

Indian cricketers, both men and women, are on a roll and these are certainly happy times for them to remember.

Indian women cricketers returned from World Cup having earned a lot of respect, fame and a plethora of new fans with their splendid performances in England. The team produced one of their best shows by storming into the final ahead of the likes of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

Smriti Mandhana was one of the revelations of the tournament. The left-hander sparkled with two big innings at the start of the Women’s Cricket World Cup and is one of the talents to watch out for in the time to come.

On Monday, Smriti posted a picture of her brother, calling him the ‘best brother in the world’ on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan.

Happy Rakshabandhan to best brother in the world. 😍😍 pic.twitter.com/9D7AcEF5Bh

— Smriti Mandhana (@mandhana_smriti) August 7, 2017

Recently, Smriti was praised by none other than Sri Lankan batting legend Kumar Sangakkara, who said he was ‘humbled’ to have been mentioned as the one that the Indian cricketer looks up to for improvement.

Smriti and Sangakkara have not met yet, but it’s the video footage of the latter that have served as rich tutorials to the young Indian.

“Whenever I feel that I am not batting the way I should, I watch videos of Kumar Sangakkara,” she said recently.

Former cricketer Mohammad Kaif also had a message to convey on Raksha Bandhan.

Treat every woman the way you would want your sister to be treated. #RakshaBandhan greetings to all.

— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) August 7, 2017

Love of a sister, support of a friend or partners in crime, you have always been there! Love you my sister ❤ #sisterlove #HappyRakshaBandhan pic.twitter.com/GEpINJ0eeD

— Suresh Raina🇮🇳 (@ImRaina) August 7, 2017

Meanwhile, the Indian men’s team has been on a rampage. After a dominant 2016-17 season at home wherein they won against New Zealand, England, Bangladesh and Australia, Virat Kohli’s team has embarked upon their next challenge: of winning away from home.

India completed a commanding win of an innings and 53 runs on Sunday when they defeated Sri Lanka, thus registering a series victory in the island nation.

After their win, the players had some time to cool off their heels, having made to work hard over the last four days in Colombo.

Shikhar Dhawan posted a video with Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara, who scored centuries both in Galle and Colombo, having fun after India’s win on Friendship Day.

Teda hai par mera hai.. Wish you all a very happy friendship day.. Have great fun and full masti😉😉😜😜 @imVkohli @cheteshwar1 pic.twitter.com/krqtM3E4t8

— Shikhar Dhawan (@SDhawan25) August 6, 2017

Kohli, on the other hand, caught up with World Wrestling Entertainment star The Great Khali. Later, Kohli also put up photographs of his family and how he is missing his sister on Raksha Bandhan.