ICC World Cup 2019: David Warner, Aaron Finch shine as Australia thrash Afghanistan by 7 wickets

Agencies
June 2, 2019

Jun 2: David Warner and Aaron Finch struck fifties to help Australia thrash Afghanistan by seven wickets at the Bristol County Ground on Saturday.

Chasing 208, Australia got off to a solid start as both Finch and Warner looked in good touch. The duo mixed caution with aggression and they helped the Aussies reach a score of 55 inside the first ten overs.

Finch looked in impeccable touch and he even took Rashid Khan took to the cleaners. On the other hand, Warner played second fiddle and just rotated the strike to allow the Aussies to gain an upper hand in the match.

Finch and Warner stitched a partnership of 96 runs which was finally broken by skipper Gulbadin Naib in the 17th over as he sent back Finch (66) to the pavilion. Warner took charge after Finch`s dismissal and along with Usman Khawaja stitched a partnership of 60 runs.

Khawaja (15) was dismissed by Rashid Khan in the 25th over with the team still requiring 52 runs for the win.

Steve Smith came out to bat at number four, and he along with Warner ensured that Australia did not suffer from any more hiccups.

The duo stitched a 49-run stand to take Australia near the finishing line. Smith (18) was dismissed with the team still needing 3 more runs for the win.

In the end, Glenn Maxwell and Warner took the team over the line with seven wickets and 91 balls to spare. Warner and Maxwell remained unbeaten on 89 and 4 respectively.

Earlier, Najibullah Zadran`s knock of 51 runs and a further cameo of 27 runs by Rashid Khan allowed Afghanistan to post a score of 207 after choosing to bat first.

Afghanistan got off to the worst start possible as they lost both their openers for a duck. The opening two wickets were scalped by Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins.

Rahmat Shah and Hashmatullah Shahidi put Afghanistan`s innings on track as they stitched together a stand of 51 runs. Their resistance was cut short by Adam Zampa as he dismissed Shahidi (18) in the 14th over.

Soon after Shah (43) was also sent back to the pavilion, reducing the team to 75 for four. Mohammad Nabi (7) also failed to leave a mark, but it was skipper Naib who allowed Afghanistan to put a fighting score on the board.

He played a knock of 51 runs, but his dismissal in the 34th over made it all the more tougher for Afghanistan. Rashid Khan (27) and Mujeeb Ur Rahman (13) played some big shots in the end and helped the team get past the 200-run mark.

However, after Rashid`s dismissal, Australia did not waste much time bowling out Afghanistan in the 39th over. Both Cummins and Zampa scalped three wickets each for Australia.

Afghanistan next face Sri Lanka in a World Cup match on June 4 whereas Australia will take on West Indies on June 6.

Brief Scores: Australia 209/3 (DA Warner 88*, AJ Finch 66, Gulbadin Naib 1-32) defeat Afghanistan 207 all out (Najibullah Zadran 51, Rahmat Shah 43, PJ Cummins 3-40) by seven wickets.

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News Network
March 31,2020

New Delhi, Mar 31: Australia batsman David Warner on Tuesday decided to shave off his head to show support towards all those people who are working relentlessly on the frontline in the battle against coronavirus.

After shaving off his head, Warner also challenged his Australian team-mate Steve Smith and India skipper Virat Kohli to do the same.

Warner, shared a time-lapse video on Instagram, of him shaving his head, and captioned the post as: "Been nominated to shave my head in support of those working on the frontline #Covid-19 here is a time-lapse. I think my debut was the last time I recall I've done this. Like it or not".

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Australia's death toll stands at 19, as per the Sydney Morning Herald.

As of 8 am today, 4460 people across Australia have tested positive for COVID-19.

The World Health Organisation had termed coronavirus as a 'pandemic' on March 11.

Earlier in the day, Australia Test skipper Tim Paine also confirmed that the side's tour of Bangladesh is unlikely due to the virus spread.
"You don't have to be Einstein to realise (the Bangladesh tour) is probably unlikely to go ahead, particularly in June. Whether it's cancelled or pushed back, we're not quite sure at the moment," cricket.com.au quoted Paine as saying.

Currently, Australia has 296 points in the WTC from 10 matches, while India has 360 points from nine matches.

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Agencies
January 9,2020

Kuala Lumpur, Jan 9: BWF World Championships defending champion PV Sindhu on Thursday cruised to the quarterfinals of the ongoing Malaysia Masters after winning a second-round match.

The 24-year-old had the upper hand in the clash and thrashed Japan's Aya Ohori in straight games 21-10, 21-15 that lasted for 34-minute. The world number six will now play in her quarterfinal match on January 10.

Earlier in the day, Saina Nehwal defeated South Korea's An Se Young 25-23, 21-12 in 38 minutes. The first game saw back and forth action between both shuttlers. In the end, Nehwal kept her cool to win the match.

On Wednesday, the 29-year-old had outclassed Belgium's Lianne Tan 21-15, 21-17 to progress to the pre-quarterfinals.

Shuttlers Parupalli Kashyap and Kidambi Srikanth crashed out of the tournament after losing their matches to Japan's Kento Momota and Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei respectively. 

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News Network
February 9,2020

New Delhi, Feb 9: The Indian Fed Cup team will travel to Dubai for this year's competition as the ITF has named the desert city as the new venue for the matches, to be held from March 3 to 7.

The ITF named the new venue after moving out the matches from then Chinese city of Dongguan due to Coronoavirus threat. The Asia/Oceania Group I matches were originally scheduled to be played from February 4-8.

"The event will be held in the week following the ATP Dubai tournament at the same venue, and will see six nations China P.R., Chinese Taipei, India, Indonesia, Korea Rep. and Uzbekistan - compete for a place in the Fed Cup Play-offs in April," an ITF release said.

The six teams will vie for two spots in Fed Cup Play-offs.

"Being in Dubai makes no difference. But the dates give enough time to Sania for her recovery. Doubles is an important point. Ankita is playing well. The other team members will also get some tournament to play under their belt," India's Fed Cup captain Vishal Uppal told news agency.

Sania's participation was under doubt due to a calf injury she aggravated during the Australian Open, where she pulled out of the mixed doubles before retiring mid-way into her women's doubles opening round match.

"I think we have a good chance but we will have to be at our best and fight hard for every point, every game, every set, every match," Uppal added.

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