Eng vs Afg: England humble Afghanistan by 116 runs

September 22, 2012
England116run_win

Defending champions England started their campaign in style as they thrashed Afghanistan by 116 runs in a group league match of the ICC World Twenty20, on Friday.

Riding on Luke Wright's superb unbeaten 99, England set a daunting target of 197 for the Afghans who could only manage 80 in 17.2 overs after being precariously placed at 26 for eight at one stage, and in serious danger of recording the lowest total in a T20 international.

Gulbodin Naib who made 44 was the only Afghan batsman to reach double figures and his innings helped them cross the 'magic figure' of 67 that was scored by Kenya against Ireland.

The England bowlers had the cushion of defending a big total and their pace trio of Steven Finn, skipper Stuart Broad and Jade Dernbach made life difficult for the inexperienced Afghan batsmen and by the end of first Powerplay, half of the them were back in the dug-out. Unlike their match against India, this one turned out to be a lopsided contest.

Earlier, Wright smashed the Afghan bowlers all around the park during his unbeaten knock of 55-ball-99 that contained eight fours and half a dozen of sixes.

In the process, Wright became England's highest individual scorer in World T20, surpassing Kevin Pietersen's 79.

He also got good support from the likes of Alex Hales and Eoin Morgan who chipped in with useful scores of 31 and 27 respectively.

Jos Butler (15) and Jonathan Bairstow (12) hit a few lusty blows to keep the momentum going for the defending champions.

Wright was unlucky to miss out on a three-figure mark as he got only two off the last ball of the innings. Earlier, he quickly reached 94 from 76 with three big hits off Izatullah Dawlatzai.

Dawlatzai, who gave away 56 runs in his three overs was hit for 32 in the penultimate over.

Having opted to field, Afghanistan seamer Shapoor Zadran provided a dream start to his team as he forced English opener Craig Kieswetter to chop one onto his stumps in what turned out to be a wicket maiden over.

Till the end of the fourth over, the unheralded Afghan bowlers did a decent job with England at 15 for one.

However, Afghanistan captain Nawroz Mangal's decision to give Shapoor an extra over opened the floodgates.

The nippy left-armer couldn't hold onto his nerve as he gave away 23 runs in the fifth over of the innings, which included three boundaries and a huge six from Wright.

Wright lifted Shapoor over long on boundary and prior to that hit a four. Hales also got a couple of boundaries in that over. In the very next over, England again scored 15 runs from seamer Dawlatzai's over.

With 38 runs from two overs, England were off the blocks. Hales and Wright added 69 runs for the second wicket.

Hales was unfortunately run-out having backed too far with Wright's firm push as the ball deflected off bowler Karim Sadiq's hands to hit the stumps. The opener made 31 off 27 balls with help of five fours.

There was no stopping Wright though as he went from strength to strength. He lifted leggie Samiullah Shenwari over deep mid-wicket for a big six to reach 49 and then completed his half century with a single. His 50 came off 34 balls.

Left-hander Eoin Morgan also joined the party as they completed their half-century partnership off 38 balls.

The 16th over bowled by off-spinner Mohammed Nabi saw England plunder 22 runs with both Morgan and Wright hitting a six and a boundary each. By then England had set itself for a big total.



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News Network
June 3,2020

Colorado, Jun 3: Formula One boss Chase Carey has said that races will go ahead even if a driver tests positive for coronavirus.

His remarks come as organisers revealed a revised 2020 calendar and the schedule for the first eight races was put in the public domain.

"An individual having been found with a positive infection will not lead to a cancellation of a race. We encourage teams to have procedures in place so if an individual has to be put in quarantine, we have the ability to quarantine them at a hotel and to replace that individual," the official website of Formula One quoted Carey as saying.

"Some things we'd have to talk through and work through. The array of 'what ifs' are too wide to play out every one of them, but a team not being able to race would not cancel the race. I do not think I could sit here and lay out the consequences," he said.

Carey added the organisers will be having the necessary procedures in place so that the race does not get cancelled if a driver ends up testing positive for coronavirus.

"But we will have a procedure in place that finding infection will not lead to a cancellation. If a driver has an infection, teams have reserve drivers available," Carey said.

"We would not be going forward if we were not highly confident we have necessary procedures and expertise and capabilities to provide a safe environment and manage whatever issues arrive," he added.

The Formula One 2020 season will be beginning with the Austrian Grand Prix in July.

F1 currently expects the opening races to be closed events but hopes that fans will be able to attend again when it is safe to do so.

The season will kick off with the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring on July 5, followed a week later by a second race on the same track.

The Hungarian Grand Prix will follow a week after that, before a break. There will be then two back to back races at Silverstone, followed by the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona.

The Belgian Grand Prix will follow that, with the Italian Grand Prix at Monza a week later on September 6.

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Agencies
June 14,2020

New Delhi, Jun 14: From being a 20-year-old mischievous talented striker to 35-year-old, India captain Sunil Chhetri has seen Indian Football through thick and thin. Coaches, who have nourished the striker with utmost care to yield the best for the team have seen numerous changes from close quarters but one aspect has remained absolutely perpetual, resolute - Chhetri's never-say-die attitude and 'dedication.'

Igor Stimac, current head coach of the Blue Tigers recalled seeing Chhetri during the preparatory camp ahead of the King's Cup 2019 - his maiden assignment with the Blue Tigers.

The Croatian pointed out that despite being the senior-most member of the troop, "Chhetri craved to push maximum to achieve the result after the heartbreak in AFC Asian Cup."

"Dedicated, workaholic and team man -- those are some of the attributes which define Sunil Chhetri. When I first saw him last year, they were back to the National Team camp after a long gap following the AFC Asian Cup. A few boys were new but the fire under his belly probably was more than anyone else. That's the secret of his long career. Congratulations!" All India Football Federation (AIFF) quoted Stimac as saying.

Sukhwinder Singh, while reminiscing the India-Pakistan bilateral series in 2005, revealed that he wasn't sure about the youngster's credibility at all.

"I needed someone who had the trickery, didn't have the fear and had to be quick. Honestly, Sunil wasn't in my mind at all. He wasn't my first option. I had my doubts," Sukhwinder, coach during Chhetri's first national team endeavour, recalled.

He had seen the youngster from close quarters while coaching in JCT FC where Chhetri started blossoming and hogging the limelight. Chhetri, who scored more than 20 goals during his 3-season-long stay in JCT, had already shown signs of performing in the bigger stages which convinced Sukhwinder Singh picking him up for the high-octane bilateral series in Pakistan.

"I haven't seen anyone as dedicated as Sunil. I saw him maturing in JCT and there were flashes of what he could do in the future. I still remember his hunger. In 19 years of my coaching career, I haven't seen anyone as dedicated as Sunil. He remained undaunted and was never willing to shy away from working hard. Shouldering the responsibility for 15 years demands discipline and he keeps it above everything else," Sukhwinder maintained.

According to Stimac, Chhetri is someone who always runs the extra yard, breaks some more sweat during the training session which, in the process encourages the youngsters to emulate him. The entire process aids the cumulative progress of the team and raises the bar.

"I see him as someone who always pushes the bar in the training and never compromises with the regime. He drives the team and he is the character who defines the team. Numerous characters have glorified the Indian Football history and he's definitely one of them who have made his country proud," Stimac said.

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News Network
January 28,2020

Gibraltar, Jan 28: Young Indian Grand Master R Praggnanandhaa pulled off a huge upset, beating former world champion Veselin Topalov in the sixth round of the 18th Gibraltar chess festival to record his fifth straight win here.

The 14-year-old Chennai lad needed just 33 moves to put it across the Bulgarian. He had started with a loss against compatriot P V Nandhidhaa but since then he has been on a winning spree.

Praggnanandhaa, who recently won the world under-18 title, said: "It was very tough to prepare against him."

He is in second spot on five points with six other players and will take on Chinese GM Wang Hao in the seventh round.

Seventeen-year-old Russian GM Andrey Esipenko jumped to sole lead with 5.5 points with a win over Georgia's Ivan Cheparinov

The Russian player would be unpaired in the seventh round as he decided to take a bye.

A bunch of players including Indians — B Adhiban, K Sasikiran, Shardul Gagare, Karthikeyan Murali, SL Narayanan — are in joint third place with 4.5 points.

Adhiban beat Gabriel Flom, while D Gukesh, the world's second youngest Grand Master ever, defeated Martin Percivaldi to move to four points.

Also winning were Karthikeyan Murali against Qi B Chen and Gagare over France's Maxime Lagarde.

Top-seed Shakhriyar Mamedyarov's moderate run continued as he was held to a draw by GM Aryan Chopra.

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