India hammer England by 35 runs in Women's World Cup open

Agencies
June 25, 2017

Derby, Jun 25: India women's cricket team launched their campaign at the ICC Women's World Cup with a comfortable 35-run win over England, riding on superb batting display by the top-order, here today.

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Put into bat, Smriti Mandhana struck a sizzling 90 off 72 balls in a dominating batting display as India posted an imposing 281 for three after being asked to bat.

Mandhana forged a 144-run opening wicket stand with Poonam Raut (86 off 134) before skipper Mithali Raj (71 not out) completed an unprecedented seventh consecutive half century in ODIs.

India then returned to dismiss England for 246 with 15 balls to spare to make a resounding start to their World Cup campaign at the County Ground here.

It is India's first win over England in five years as they had all lost all six previous matches to the hosts.

Chasing 282 to win, England failed to build partnership with middle-order batswoman Fran Wilson (81 off 102) emerging as the highest scorer. Her run out proved turning point of the game since England looked crusing when she was at the crease.

Off-spinner Deepti Sharma took three wickets for 47 runs.

Tammy Beaumont (14) and Sarah Taylor (22) gave England a decent start adding 33 in 8 overs but Shikha Pandey removed the openers and Deepti Sharma dismissed Natalie Sciver (18) as England slipped to 67 for 3 in the 18th over.

Heather Knight (46) and Wilson took the team across the 100-mark. But Knight was back into the hut in the 32nd over after being run out by Harmanpreet Kaur.

Three overs later, Danielle Wyatt was caught and bowled by Sharma as England lost half their side.

Wilson then in company of Katherine Brunt (24) tried to keep them in the hunt as the duo added 62 runs but both of them were run outs to dash England's hopes.

Earlier, Indian openers Mandhana and Raut batted for 26.5 overs. While Raut was solid at the other end, Mandhana was out to attack from the word go.

The southpaw's onslaught began when she smashed Katherine Brunt for four consecutive boundaries in the fourth over.

Mandhana was a last-minute inclusion to the squad after she recovered from an Anterior Crucial Ligament (ACL) injury she suffered during the Women's Big Bash in January.

The 20-year-old during her whirlwind effort showed what she was worth the selection.

She can hit not only the fours at will but also the big hits. Mandhana mostly stayed on the back foot in her free flowing knock. Her first six came as she sat back on backfoot to hammer it over wide long-on.

She was majorly responsible for giving India a flying start as the team reached 59 in 10 overs.

However, things slowed down in the next 10 overs with India reaching 97 for no loss in 20 overs. If it was not for that period, India could have easily crossed the 300-run mark.

Mandhana was dismissed in the 27th over, missing out on a well deserved century. Her innings comprised 11 fours and two sixes.

Captain Raj then joined Raut in the middle and carried on

With her rich vein of form to take India to a competitive total.

Raj smashed eight fours in her 73-ball knock before getting out off the last ball of the innings.

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News Network
July 5,2020

Colombo, Jul 5: Sri Lanka batsman Kusal Mendis was on Sunday arrested for knocking down a pedestrian while driving, police said.

Mendis hit a 74-year-old man, killing him in the wee hours, in the Colombo suburb of Panadura.

He is to be produced before a magistrate later today, police said.

The 25-year-old wicket-keeper batsman has represented Sri Lanka in 44 Tests and 76 ODIs. Mendis was part of the national squad which had resumed training after the Covid-19 lockdown.

Sri Lanka's international assignments, including a tour by India, have been cancelled due to the pandemic.

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News Network
June 20,2020

Dhaka, Jun 20: Former Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Mortaza on Saturday tested positive for coronavirus.

The skipper had gone for a coronavirus Test last week, and now his reports have come back as positive, ESPNCricinfo reported.

As per a report in ESPNCricinfo, it is not known how Mortaza contracted the virus.

Mashrafe, also a member of the parliament from Narail 2 constituency, had stepped down as the ODI captain of the country in March this year.

Covid-19 cases have crossed 1,00,000 mark in Bangladesh and the government is now planning area-wise lockdown.

Bangladesh was slated to face Sri Lanka in July in a three-Test series and the side would have later hosted New Zealand in August, but both series look unlikely now.

The Asia Cup, scheduled for September, is also uncertain due to the coronavirus.

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News Network
June 10,2020

Kingston, Jun 10: "Enough is enough", said West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo as he opened up on the raging issue of racism and called for "respect and equality" for black people, who have faced discrimination for years.

Bravo joined the likes of his former captain Darren Sammy and Chris Gayle in denouncing racism in the wake of African-American George Floyd's killing at the hands of a white police officer in the USA.

"It's sad to see what's going on around the world. As a black man, we know the history of what black people have been through. We never ask for revenge, we ask for equality and respect. That's it," Bravo told former Zimbabwe cricketer Pommie Mbangwa in an Instagram live chat on Tuesday.

"We give respect to others. Why is it that we are facing this over and over? Now enough is enough. We just want equality. We don't want revenge, war.

"We just want respect. We share love and appreciate people for who they are. That's what is most important."

The 36-year-old, who has played 40 Tests, 164 ODIs and 71 T20Is for West Indies, said he wants the world to know that they are powerful and beautiful people and gave the example of greats such as Nelson Mandela, Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan.

"I just want our brothers and sisters to know that we are powerful and beautiful. And at the end of the day, you look at some of the greats of the world, whether it is Nelson Mandela, Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan we have had leaders who paved the way for us," he said.

Two-time T20 World Cup-winning captain Sammy had earlier alleged that a racist nickname was used to address him during his IPL stint with Sunrisers Hyderabad and demanded an apology.

Sammy said he was called 'Kalu' while he was in India. 'Kalu' is a derogatory word to describe black people.

Gayle, who too plays in the IPL, took to Twitter to back Sammy, saying that racism does exist in cricket.

"It's never too late to fight for the right cause or what you've experienced over the years! So much more to your story, @darensammy88. Like I said, it's in the game!!," Gayle tweeted.

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