Dhoni arranges final ticket for Pakistani fan

April 6, 2014

Dhoni_ticket Mirpur Apr 6: There is one thing about Mahendra Singh Dhoni that even his staunch critics will applaud.

Whether he is on or off the field, he loves to walk the talk. So, when he declared that the hostility associated with an India-Pakistan encounter is long over, Dhoni meant it and his latest act has proved it.

The Indian captain on Saturday arranged a complimentary pass for a die-hard Pakistani cricket fan Mohammed Bashir, who came all the way from Chicago to support his team.

Although Pakistan were knocked out in the group stage, Bashir has stayed back to watch India play the finals and now has become a “die-hard Dhoni fan” having interacted with the Indian captain.

“I was watching India’s training session yesterday but I didn’t have any tickets. Dhoni is familiar with my face as he has seen me before the Champions Trophy’s Indo-Pak game in Birmingham. I told him that I don’t have a ticket to watch the finals.

“Dhoni then called some “Kaka” (trainer Ramesh Mane or ‘Mane Kaka’) and told him to arrange for my ticket. Kaka promptly gave me a complimentary pass. I am completely moved by his gesture,” the new “Chacha Pakistani said on Sunday.

He was over the moon after Dhoni also briefly interacted with him.

“He (Dhoni) asked about me and I told him that I am settled in Chicago. Since I was standing there for a long time, he told someone to give me fruits. I am a Pakistan fan but for Sunday, I am a Dhoni fan. Also I have another India connection. I am Hyderabad’s son-in-law as my wife hails from the region,” a proud Bashir said flaunting his final match pass.

During Pakistan’s matches, Bashir, who would be in his early 50’s, could be seen wearing a giant sized kurta in the design of his national flag. He has also been a big hit among the local fans after supporting Bangladesh during one of their matches.

Bashir runs a Mughlai restaurant in Chicago named “Ghareeb Nawaz” which specialises in biryani.

He is mad about cricket and will also be travelling to Australia and New Zealand next year for the 50-over World Cup.

“I have booked tickets for all the Pakistan matches. Those cost around 20 dollars save the Indo-Pak match ticket. It cost me around 80 dollars but never mind, it’s an India-Pakistan match, I would have bought it had it cost even more,” Bashir said.

Asked if he won’t invite Dhoni to taste his restaurant’s biryani, the talkative fan gets a trifle embarrassed. But Dhoni won’t mind if Bashir can raise the ‘pitch’ as Team India fights it out on a different pitch.

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Coronavirus outbreak: Sports without fans in stadium possible but magic will be missing, says Virat Kohli

News Network

May 8,2020

New Delhi, May 8: India skipper Virat Kohli believes cricket in empty stadiums is a real possibility in post COVID-19 world and though it is unlikely to have a bearing on the intensity of players, he feels the magic would certainly go missing.

Cricket Boards across the globe are exploring the option of resuming the sport in empty stadiums. There is speculation that fans could be kept away from stadiums in a bid to salvage the T20 World Cup in Australia, which is currently under threat due to the global health crisis.

"It's quite a possible situation, it might happen, I honestly don't know how everyone is going to take that because we all are used to playing in front of so many passionate fans," Kohli said in Star Sports' show 'Cricket Connected'.

"I know it will be played at a very good intensity but that feeling of the crowd connecting with the players and the tension of the game where everyone goes through it in the stadium, those emotions are very difficult to recreate," he added.

Kohli said the many moments which are created because of the passion brought in by fans, would be missing.

"Things will still go on, but I doubt that one will feel that magic happening inside because of the atmosphere that was created.

"We will play sports how it is supposed to be played, but those magical moments will be difficult to come by," he said.

Cricketers such as Ben Stokes, Jason Roy, Jos Buttler and Pat Cummins have backed the idea of playing behind closed doors.

However, legendary Australian Allan Border has said it would defy belief to host a World Cup without spectators.

Another Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell and some other cricketers have also expressed similar sentiments.

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Racism has to stop: Paul Pogba pays tribute to George Floyd

News Network

June 2,2020

New Delhi, Jun 2: Manchester United's Paul Pogba on Monday paid tribute to George Floyd, stressing that violent acts of racism can no longer be tolerated and they have to stop.

Pogba took to Instagram to write: "During the past few days I have thought a lot about how to express my feelings about what happened in Minneapolis. I felt anger, pity, hatred, indignation, pain, sadness."

"Sadness for George and for all black people who suffer from racism Every day! Whether in football, at work, at school, Anywhere! This has to stop, once and for all! Not tomorrow or the next day, it has to end today! Violent acts of racism can no longer be tolerated," he added.

Protests erupted in Minneapolis and other US cities on Tuesday after Floyd, an African-American man, died following his arrest by the four officers.

A viral video showed a police officer, Derek Chauvin, pinning 46-year-old Floyd to the ground with his knee on his neck for nearly eight minutes. Floyd died at a local hospital shortly thereafter.

The four police officers were fired. Chauvin was also charged with murder and manslaughter, according to Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman.

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Thank you for correcting us. Grateful.

This photograph in the above mentioned article is of Floyd Mayweather Jr , the world welterweight & super heavy weight champion & wrongly menitoned as Pogba .

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'Your character stood out for me': Kohli to Mayank Agarwal

Agencies

July 28,2020

New Delhi, Jul 28: 'Your character stood out for me than the number of runs you scored," said India skipper Virat Kohli while explaining his decision to give opening Mayank Agarwal a Test debut in the 2018-19 Australia series.

Mayank Agarwal had made his Test debut against Australia in the third Test of the four-match series.

Playing the third Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Agarwal managed to register a half-century in his very first innings in the longest format.

"I had seen you play for RCB, even then you played international bowlers with conviction and you would take them on. You were performing in first-class matches in a dominating way. That is something always stood out with you, I would say your character stood out for me than the number of runs. I knew you would be fearless without having any baggage," Kohli told Mayank Agarwal in a video posted on the official website of BCCI.

In the longest format of the game, Agarwal has managed to score 974 runs from 11 matches at an average of 57.29 with three centuries as an opening batsman.

The Indian skipper also explained as to what makes him notice in a player and added that it is important that guys in the team look to face new challenges and emerge triumphantly.

"For me, the biggest marker is how a person approaches the game, so for example when you opened and we made Vihari open with you. The first opportunity we presented Vihari to open the batting, he said yes to it and that matters me to the most," Kohli said.

"I opened in my first series for India, I said yes to this opportunity and things worked out fine for me. So, a guy who wants to get into tough situations will come out either holding his head high or learning from his mistakes," he added.

Kohli and Mayank would soon be seen in action for Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kings XI Punjab respectively in the Indian Premier League (IPL) starting from September 19 in the UAE.

The comparisons between Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar keep on growing and many have picked the current Indian skipper to break the records set by Tendulkar.

Tendulkar called time on his career after registering 100 international centuries, while Kohli currently has 70 centuries across all formats.

At present, Kohli is ranked at the top spot in the ICC ODI rankings while he is in the second place in Tests rankings. Kohli has so far played 86 Tests, scoring 7,240 runs with 27 centuries at an average of 53.62.

His knock of 254 against South Africa at Pune in 2019 remains his highest Test score to date. When it comes to ODIs, the current Indian skipper has played 248 matches and has 43 centuries.

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