It's time for congratulations and all that. Announcing the winners of the Bangladesh vs New Zealand 2008 fantasy series. The top 3 teams on the series leaderboard, please take a bow. Thank you for playing. And do keep coming back for more.

Now that the Australians have flown in Shaun Marsh in for Phil Jaques, whom do they drop to accommodate him? Jaques was anyway not in the playing XI. Do you drop Hayden? Unthinkable. Ponting? Maybe, if he wasn't Captain of the side. (Something Kumble will perhaps identify with.) Hussey? He's Australia's top scorer in the series. Watson? Over his dead body. Michael Clarke? He's just run into some good form. Katich? He's scored more than Hayden in the last two Tests. A lot more. So then Australia won't play Shaun Marsh. Which, in my opinion, would be a defensive move. Something Australia can ill-afford after the hiding they suffered in empty Mohali. They need to come out firing at the Kotla. And for that, they'll need some good form and confidence right at the top of the order. Both of which Shaun Marsh has in abundance. So then Australia will play him. For, who else, Simon Katich. (That's ok, he's used to it.)

All this to say, start thinking about your Transfers. I've got 8 ... no, 7. (How many do you have?) I used one up the day I heard Shaun Marsh was being flown in. As far as I'm concerned, the choice to pick him or not is a no-brainer. So what if he made all those runs in 'only' the IPL. He looked a class apart. And utterly invulnerable. Not once in any of his visits to the crease was he in any sort of trouble. You can't argue with that kind of confidence. Especially not on tour. A difficult tour like this one.

Accumulators like Katich stand a lesser chance of succeeding on what promises to be a Kotla wicket literally tailormade for Kumble's 'shooters'. On that kind of surface and under the circumstances Australia find themselves in, they need in their ranks a player with sure footwork, positive attitude and a fresh approach. Put simply, pick Shaun Marsh. Just don't ask me whom to drop.

It's a time for congratulations and all that. Announcing the second set of the many prizes to be won during the course of the India v Australia Test and ODI series 2008. The top 3 teams on the India v Australia leader board at the end of the second Test win:

1st Team - Sachin Tendulkar Framed Signed Mini Bat with 3 Photographs
This signed and framed mini bat with 3 photos is a marvellous piece of cricket memorabilia. It features a miniature cricket bat which has illustrations of Tendulkar, a profile photograph, a One-Day action photo and a Test action photo. The bat has even been signed by Tendulkar himself, all of which has been encased in a classic glass framed box.

2nd Team - Indian Summer The Story of the 1983 World Cup DVD
The programme captures the places and personalities of the tournament. It incorporates unforgettable archival footage from BBC and ITN and blends these with exclusive, synchronised reminiscences from stars connected with the tournament. They comprise of Kapil Dev, Mohinder Amarnath, Roger Binny,Krishnamachari Srikkanth, Madan Lal and Balwinder Sandhu from the winning side, Sir Vivian Richards and Michael Holding from among the runners-up, DavidGower of England and Dave Houghton of Zimbabwe.

3rd Team - Wisden Cricketer 2009 Calendar
This A4 sized colour calendar features some of the most beautiful grounds in the UK. Each ground has been photographed by one of TWC's regular photographers, it shows a different ground for each month and folds out to A3 so has plenty of space for notes.

Note: All prizes will be given at the end of the Test and ODI series.

What were the odds that Amit Mishra would make his debut in Mohali? Even, if you ask me. Next question: Who expected him to take a five-for in his first Test at a venue not known to aid spinners? Honestly, comments down all of you who have Mishra down as their Trump Player.

It's a time for congratulations and all that. Announcing the first set of the many prizes to be won during the course of the India v Australia Test and ODI series 2008. The top 3 teams on the India v Australia leaderboard at the end of the first Test win:

1st Team - Sachin Tendulkar Framed Signed Mini Bat with 3 Photographs
This signed and framed mini bat with 3 photos is a marvellous piece of cricket memorabilia. It features a miniature cricket bat which has illustrations of Tendulkar, a profile photograph, a One-Day action photo and a Test action photo. The bat has even been signed by Tendulkar himself, all of which has been encased in a classic glass framed box.

2nd Team - Indian Summer The Story of the 1983 World Cup DVD
The programme captures the places and personalities of the tournament. It incorporates unforgettable archival footage from BBC and ITN and blends these with exclusive, synchronised reminiscences from stars connected with the tournament. They comprise of Kapil Dev, Mohinder Amarnath, Roger Binny,Krishnamachari Srikkanth, Madan Lal and Balwinder Sandhu from the winning side, Sir Vivian Richards and Michael Holding from among the runners-up, DavidGower of England and Dave Houghton of Zimbabwe.

3rd Team - Wisden Cricketer 2009 Calendar
This A4 sized colour calendar features some of the most beautiful grounds in the UK. Each ground has been photographed by one of TWC's regular photographers, it shows a different ground for each month and folds out to A3 so has plenty of space for notes.

Note: All prizes will be given at the end of the Test and ODI series.

It's time to take stock of who in your team was worth their fantasy monies. Note: Sometimes it makes sense to stick with your existing team and give the members another chance to find their feet. Other times, you may have spotted a trend or a player who isn't in the best of form or someone who is definitely going to be dropped and feel confident enough to do something about it.

That's why we've given you 8 transfers to play around with for the whole duration of the Test series. Now's the time when you should consider using them. Click here for all the help you need to make up your minds.

1 day to go for Mohali: I'm sticking with the team I had for the first Test. Of the players in my side, Dhoni, Michael Clarke and Brett Lee were the only ones who underperformed. The rest looked in decent nick, so it's only fair that I keep the faith in them.

Going back to the under-performers, I think they're all too good to not come good sooner rather than later. In fact, my gut feeling is they'll all make a big impact in the Mohali Test. (But not big enough to make me change my choice of Trump Player, the intensely focussed and very hungry Michael 'Mr. Cricket' Hussey.)

And all this to say you have till 9 AM tomorrow to ring in the changes, if any, and finalise your teams for the second Test at Mohali that starts tomorrow. Good luck.

If you've been following our advise and watching this and this space, you'll know the ins and outs of the squad compositions for the two series being currently played in the Aisan subcontinent. Which is why now might be a good time to have second thoughts about your original team. Or if you still haven't picked one, pick one. Or two.

I have very little idea who, that's who? Bangladesh cricket is in a state of flux. Players are coming and going like passing fancies. New Zealand is also losing players to the ICL. The two countries in which cricket needs all the support it can get are hardest hit by the most petty and public fight in world cricket. Not that any of that should concern us.

In the world of fantasy, everything is hunky dory. In order to ensure that you continue to get you daily fix, we've put together a little helper called the 'Random Team Generator'. You'll find it just above the panel containing the players available for your fantasy team. Use it. Just in case you have no idea who should and shouldn't be in your team for this particular fantasy series.

Link love: How other teams picked up the pieces. A poignant piece well worth a read considering the events that preceded this series.

I didn't pick Rahul Dravid. I didn't pick Sourav Ganguly. I didn't pick Anil Kumble. In fact, the only player I picked from the 'Fab 5' (four plus Kumble, not Sehwag) was Laxman. Maybe I should pick Sehwag. I'll be back. What's the hurry? I've got unlimited transfers till October 9. But I still won't pick Sachin. And you?

My team: 'The Community Managers'
MEK Hussey (Trump Player)
VVS Laxman
G Gambhir
MJ Clarke
SC Ganguly
SR Watson
MS Dhoni
Harbhajan Singh
B Lee
MG Johnson
I Sharma