India beat New Zealand by 35 runs, win series 4-1

Agencies
February 3, 2019

Wellington, Feb 3: India overcame a disastrous start to earn a hard fought 35-run win over New Zealand in the fifth ODI on Sunday to finish the series with a 4-1 scoreline in their favour, proving the heavy loss at Hamilton was an aberration.

At 18 for four, India were heading towards another sub-100 total before Ambati Rayudu (90 off 113) and Vijay Shankar (45 off 64) forged a 98-run stand to ensure India ended with a fighting 252.

Hardik Pandya's 45 off 22 balls also went a long way in India posting a challenging target and his two wickets later on showed why he is such an important member of the team.

New Zealand batsmen, including skipper Kane Williamson (39), squandered their starts in the chase but the home team remained in the contest until Jimmy Neesham (44 off 32) was dismissed in the 37th over.

His freak run out, which was affected by the ever so sharp Mahendra Singh Dhonifrom behind the stumps, came after lbw appeal was turned down. New Zealand eventually ended with 217 in 44.1 overs despite Matt Henry's unbeaten 17 off 9 in the final overs.

Leggie Yuzvendra Chahal took three timely wickets for India, conceding just 41 runs in 10 overs.

Irrespective of the game's outcome, Rayudu played one of the most significant knocks of his career and made a compelling claim for a World Cup spot.

At the toss, skipper Rohit Sharma called the eight wicket loss in the previous game 'humiliating' and embraced the challenge of batting on a testing surface by opting to bat.

With top-four falling cheaply, it looked Rohit's brave call backfired but Rayudu and Shankar produced an innings-reviving stand under immense pressure.

Pacer Henry was the standout bowler for the hosts, taking four wickets for 35 runs while Trent Boult picked up three for 39.

After being bowled out for a paltry 92 in the fourth ODI, India had a point to prove.

The visiting team made three changes in the playing eleven. A fit again Dhoni was back in the team in place of Dinesh Karthik while Mohammad Shami and Shankar replaced Khaleel Ahmed and Kuldeep Yadav. The chinaman bowler was rested from the game.

The ball swung at the Westpac Stadium, like it did at Hamilton, and troubled the Indian batsmen, including the experienced opening pair of Rohit and Shikhar Dhawan.

Boult, who took five wickets on Thursday, and Henry swung the ball at express pace and shared two wickets each to leave India reeling at 18 for four in seven overs.

It was a combination of top-class fast bowling and questionable shot selection that led to the top-order failure. Rohit (2) was outdone by a beauty from Henry, the one that moved away from the middle stump line to dislodge the off-stump.

Dhoni (1), playing Sunday's match after the missing the last two games due to injury, was bowled by Boult, off a peach of a delivery that swung back sharp and late to take the Indian wicketkeeper's off-stump.

On the other hand, Dhawan (6) slashed one hard to be caught at third man while the young Shubman Gill (7), getting his second game of the series, scooped a simple catch to the cover fielder.

Just when India looked down in the dumps, Rayudu and and Shankar showed admirable fight to weather the storm and lead India's recovery. Initially in the partnership, Shankar looked more comfortable while Rayudu focused on blocking.

The Tamil Nadu all-rounder was sent ahead of Kedar Jadhav at number six, indicating the team management's faith in his abilities. It was unfortunate for Shankar to miss out on a well-deserved fifty as he got run out after a mix-up with Rayudu.

Rayudu at the other end began to play his strokes and hammered Colin de Grandhomme for two consecutive boundaries to bring up his 10th ODI fifty. A little later, he smashed Colin Munro for successive sixes before he perished while trying to hit another one out of the park. Rayudu's crucial knock comprised eight fours and four sixes.

Pandya then took the centrestage after Rayudu's fall and once again showed what he brings to the table late the innings.

Pandya's brute power was on full display when he whacked leggie Todd Astle for three sixes in as many balls. The all-rounder did not even spare the in-form Boult, pulling him over mid-wicket for another maximum. His cameo included two fours and five sixes.

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Bloomberg
July 27,2020

New Delhi, Jul 27: India’s coronavirus epidemic is now growing at the fastest in the world, increasing 20% over the last week to more than 14 lakh confirmed cases, according to Bloomberg’s Coronavirus Tracker.

Infections in the South Asian nation of 130 crore people have reached 14.3 lakh, including 32,771 deaths, India’s health ministry said, with daily cases close to a record 50,000 on Monday. India is only trailing the US and Brazil now in the number of confirmed infections, but its growth in new cases is the fastest.

Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka are among the states where the maximum number of daily cares are being reported. The world’s second-most populous country has been ramping up testing, with 515,472 samples taken on Sunday, according to the Indian Council of Medical Research.

Still, India and Brazil have some of the world’s lowest testing rates, with 11.8 tests and 11.93 tests per 1,000 people respectively, compared to the US with 152.98 tests per 1,000 and Russia with 184.34, according to Our World in Data, a project based at the University of Oxford in the UK.

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News Network
June 9,2020

Washington, Jun 9: The defacement of Mahatma Gandhi's statue by unknown miscreants was a "disgrace", US President Donald Trump has said, days after it was vandalised with graffiti and spray painting during the nationwide protests against the custodial killing of African-American George Floyd.

The statue, which is across the road from the Indian Embassy, was vandalised on the intervening night of June 2 and 3, prompting the Indian embassy to register a complaint with the local law enforcement agencies.

The incident happened during the week of nationwide protests against the custodial killing of Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25.

"It was a disgrace," Trump made the brief comment at the White House on Monday when asked about the incident.

The Indian Embassy here has taken up the matter with the US Department of State for early investigation into the matter, as also with the Metropolitan Police and National Park Service.

It is working with the US Department of State, Metropolitan Police and National Park Service for expeditious restoration of the statue at the park.

The US president and First Lady Melania Trump, during their visit to India in February, had spent considerable time at the Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had personally given them a tour of the historic place.

"The First Lady and I have just had a pleasure of visiting Mahatma Gandhi's Ashram, a few miles from here, where he launched the famous Salt March," Trump had said during his address at the Namaste Trump rally at the Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad on February 24. A day later, Trump and the first lady also laid a wreath at Raj Ghat in New Delhi.

Pictures of Trump and the first lady with Gandhi's spinning wheel during their visit to the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad are seen hanging on the walls of the White House.

Last week, top US lawmakers and the Trump Campaign condemned the vandalisation of the statue.

"Very disappointing," tweeted Kimberly Guilfoyle, advisor to Donald J Trump for President Inc. and National Chair of the Trump Victory Finance Committees.

North Carolina Senator Tom Tillis said, "It's disgraceful to see the defacing of the Gandhi statue" in Washington DC.

"Gandhi was a pioneer of peaceful protesting, demonstrating the great change it can bring. Rioting, looting and vandalising do not bring us together, he said.

Senator Marco Rubio said, "more evidence that violent radicals and run of the mill crazies have hijacked legitimate protests to create anarchy or for their own purposes."

Protests against the custodial killing of Floyd turned violent in the US and prestigious monuments were damaged. In Washington DC, protestors burnt a historic church and damaged monuments like the Lincoln Memorial.

US Ambassador to India Ken Juster apologised for the incident.

"So sorry to see the desecration of the Gandhi statue in Wash, DC. Please accept our sincere apologies," he said.

"Appalled as well by the horrific death of George Floyd and the awful violence and vandalism. We stand against prejudice & discrimination of any type. We will recover and be better," he said in a tweet last week.

One of the few statues of a foreign leader on a federal land in Washington DC, the statue of Gandhi was dedicated by former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in the presence of the then US president Bill Clinton on September 16, 2000, during his state visit to the US.

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News Network
August 7,2020

Kozhikode: An Air India Express flight from Dubai with 190 people on board overshot the Kozhikode tabletop runway on landing there today. The Boeing 737 “fell off” the runway into the valley, broke into two causing death and devastation. 

According to reports, around 20 people were dead including two pilots.

An Air India spokesperson said: “Air India Express flight IX 1344 operated by Boeing 737 aircraft from Dubai to Calicut overshot the runway at Kozhikode at 7.41 pm Friday. No fire reported at the time of landing. There are 174 passengers, 10 infants, two pilots and five cabin crew on board. Rescue operations are on and passengers are being taken to hospital for medical care. We will soon share the update in this regard.”

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is probing this accident. “Prima facie, the aircraft landed beyond the touchdown point and fell into a valley. It has broken into two. We suspect some casualties. More information is awaited,” said a senior DGCA official.

Taking to twitter, defence minister Rajnath Singh wrote: “Devastating news from Kozhikode, Kerala. I am deeply anguished by the loss of lives due to an accident carrying several passengers on Air India flight. In this hour of grief, my thoughts are with the bereaved families. I pray for the speedy recovery of the injured.”

Foreign minister S Jaishankar tweeted: “Deeply distressed to hear about the Air India Express tragedy at Kozhikode. Prayers are with the bereaved families and those injured. We are ascertaining further details.”

While, senior BJP leader from Kerala K J Alphons tweeted: “Second tragedy of the day in Kerala: Air India Express skids off the run way at Kozhikode, front portion splits , pilot dies and lots of passengers injured . All passengers evacuated. Very lucky the aircraft didn’t catch fire.”

More details are awaited.

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