Defending champions Hyderabad Hunters start with win as PBL kicks off

Agencies
December 23, 2018

Mumbai, Dec 23: Hyderabad Hunters proved that they are primed to defend the title they won last year when they took an unassailable lead of 3-0 lead over newcomers Pune 7 Aces in the Premier Badminton League that started here Saturday. They took the lead even before PV Sindhu and Carolina Marin took the court for the marque encounter of the fourth season, scoring 4-(-1) points. The Pune team sprung a surprise by fielding junior world championship bronze medallist Lakshya Sen for the opening men's singles tie and the 18-year-old almost pulled off an upset against world number 35 Mark Caljouw.

The youngster was solid in defence and showcased some of his trick shots but it was Caljouw who had the last laugh as he bagged the first point for Hunters 10-15, 15-12, 15-14 on the decider point. Sen kicked off the proceedings of the fourth season with a mixture of sliced drops and down the line smashes and followed them up with quick tap on the net to win points in the opening game.

The Asian junior champion went into the mid game interval of the first game leading 8-6 and though Caljouw tried to fight back with an aggressive game plan, the Indian was always in control and wrapped up the game 15-10. In the second game, Sen opened up a 4-0 lead before Caljouw fought back with four straight points and then started to test the Indian's patience by playing longer rallies.

The ploy worked as he managed to win four of the next six points to open up an 8-6 lead at the midgame interval and it looked like the Dutchman would runaway with the second game when he opened up a 13-9 lead. Lakshya, however, managed to close the gap to just one point before a slip between the rally cost him the point and Caljouw wrapped up the game on the first opportunity.

But the late fightback seemed to have rejuvenated Sen who raced to a 5-0 lead in the decider and changed ends with a five-point advantage at 8-3. However, it was the experience of world number 35 Caljouw that mattered the most in the final analysis as he forced the youngster out of his comfort zone and pulled the match off on the decider point by suddenly changing the speed of the rally.

Pune 7 Aces then suffered a major reversal when they lost their trump match. Team skipper Mathais Boe and Chirag Shetty won the opening game but could not maintain the momentum and lost 13-15, 15-10, 15-10 against Kim Sa Rang and Bodin Isara. Boe and Shetty played well in patches but Kim came up with some exceptional shots under pressure to turn the tables to reduce the Pune 7 Aces to -1 on the points table.

The experienced Lee Hyun Il wrapped up the tie for the Hunters when he defeated Brice Leverdez 15-14, 15-12 in a rather one-sided encounter.

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News Network
June 17,2020

New Delhi, Jun 17: Indian skipper Virat Kohli on Wednesday paid tributes to Indian Army soldiers, who were killed during the face-off with the Chinese troops in Ladakh's Galwan Valley.

Extending condolences to the kin of bravehearts, Kohli said, "No one is more selfless and brave than a soldier."

"Salute and deepest respect to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives to protect our country in the Galwan Valley. NO one is more selfless and brave than a soldier. Sincere condolences to the families. I hope they find peace through our prayers at this difficult time," he tweeted.

The violent face-off happened on late evening and night of June 15 in Ladakh's Galwan Valley as a result of an attempt by the Chinese troops to "unilaterally change" the status quo during de-escalation in Eastern Ladakh and the situation could have been avoided if the agreement at the higher level been scrupulously followed by the Chinese side, India said on Tuesday.

The Army confirmed that 20 soldiers were killed in the face-off, including 17 who were critically injured at the stand-off location and exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain.

Indian and Chinese troops have disengaged at the Galwan area in Ladakh where they had earlier clashed on the night of June 15 and 16, Indian Army said.

Former cricketer Irfan Pathan tweeted, "We will always be indebted to our jawans of #IndianArmy who lost their lives in #GalwanValley #JaiHind."

Expressing similar sentiments, Indian batsman Shikhar Dhawan wrote, "A sacrifice that will never be forgotten by the nation. Heartfelt condolences to the family and loved ones of the Indian Army officer and the two soldiers. Saluting your bravery, Jai Hind! #GalwanValley."

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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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Agencies
February 7,2020

New Delhi, Feb 7: It was on February 7, 1999, that Anil Kumble became just the second bowler in the history of cricket to take all ten wickets in an innings of a Test match.

He achieved the feat against Pakistan at Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium, now known as Arun Jaitley cricket stadium in Delhi during the second Test of the two-match series.

India had set Pakistan a target of 420 runs in the match and the visitors got off to a steady start as openers Shahid Afridi and Saeed Anwar put on 101 runs for the first wicket.

It was then Kumble who came into the attack and wreaked havoc on the Pakistani batting line-up.

The spinner, also known as 'Jumbo' first dismissed Afridi (41) in the 25th over. After the right-handed batter's dismissal, India kept on taking wickets through Kumble and Pakistan was reduced to 128/6 in no time.

Kumble then kept on taking wickets at regular intervals and he got his tenth scalp in the 61st over after dismissing Wasim Akram.

This effort enabled India to register a win by 212 runs, and Kumble became the second bowler after England's Jim Laker to take all ten wickets in a single Test inning.

Kumble finished with the bowling figures of 10-74 from 26.3 overs.

Kumble announced his retirement from international cricket in 2008 and finished with 619 wickets in the longest format of the game.

He has the third-highest number of wickets in Tests, only behind Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan (800) and Australia's Shane Warne (708).

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