Dominating Chennai sail into Champions League semifinals

September 29, 2013

Champions_LeagueRanchi, Sep 29: Chennai Super Kings became the first team to qualify for the semifinals of the Champions League Twenty20 after scoring a comprehensive eight-wicket victory over Brisbane Heat in a Group B match, here today.

The 2013 IPL finalists were in complete control of the match but for last three overs of the Heat innings and that prevented the match from becoming a lop-sided affair.

Chasing a modest 138 to win, Chennai sauntered to finish line with 25 balls to spare as they scored their third successive win to consolidate their top position in Group B.

Opener Michael Hussey top scored for them with an unbeaten 55-run knock and shared a solid 75-run stand for the opening wicket with Murali Vijay (42).

Vijay, who played more aggressively in the opening stand, faced 27 balls and hit five fours and two sixes while Hussey took 48-balls for his measured innings which had seven boundaries.

Suresh Raina came up with a 23-run cameo before being trapped by Daniel Christian while skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (13) finished the match in style with a six off Ben Cutting.

After electing to bowl, Chennai had the Australian team on the mat as they had reduced Heat to 66 for six but some scintillating batting by Ben Cutting made it a contest as he led the side to respectable 137 for seven.

Cutting hit five sixes in his blistering 25-ball 42-run knock and added 71 runs with Chris Hartley (31) for the seventh wicket.

The spin trio of R Ashwin (1/10), Ravindra Jadeja (2/18) and Suresh Raina (19) did a brilliant job for CSK as they gave away just 37 runs in their combined 11 overs and shared four wickets among them.

Cutting and Hartley's batting overshadowed the splendid work done by CSK spinners as they snatched the momentum from CSK after being reduced to 87 for six in 17 overs.

It all started in the Dwayne Bravo when Cutting smashed him for two sixes to bring up the hundred. A similar treatment was meted out to paceman Mohit Sharma in the last over.

Hartley also played his part as he hit consecutive fours off Sharma before holing it out in the last ball.

Brisbane Heat have suffered their third defeat in a row and are languishing at the bottom of the table. CSK were in complete control of the match as paceman Sharma drew the first blood in the fifth ball of the match by having Dom Michael caught by S Badrinath in the cover region.

Albie Morkel dealt the Australians second blow by sending back skipper James Hopes (20).

Dhoni introduced Jadeja immediately after the power-play overs and the left-arm spinner responded with two wickets. In the first ball he removed key batsman Daniel Christian, who lofted the ball straight into the hands of long on Hussey, and in the fifth he had Joe Burns caught by Raina in slips.

Heats slumped to 55 for four and that could have been worse had Dhoni not dropped Chris Lynn off Ashwin in the next over. Lynn swung hard and top edged but Dhoni could not get his hands on to that as Suresh Raina watched.

However, Ashwin scalped him in his next over, again foxing him with his carrom ball as the edge flew to Jadeja. Raina came to the party by bowling out Chris Sabburg (2).

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News Network
March 19,2020

Geneva, Mar 19: Regional Olympic officials are rallying around the IOC and have backed its stance on opening the Tokyo Games as scheduled, as direct criticism from gold medalist athletes built amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Leaders of continental Olympic groups praised the IOC after a conference call Wednesday to update them on coronavirus issues four months before the opening ceremony in Tokyo on July 24.

"We are living through an unpredictable crisis and as such, it is important that we have one policy, expressed by the IOC, and we follow that policy in unison," the Italy-based European Olympic Committees said.

However, when the International Olympic Committee published an interview with its president, Thomas Bach, after a separate call with athlete representatives, it prompted a four-time Olympic champion to urge postponing the games.

Bach acknowledged that many athletes were concerned about qualifying events being canceled, but noted that there were still four months to go until the games are set to be opened.

"We will keep acting in a responsible way in the interests of the athletes," Bach said.

British rowing great Matthew Pinsent wrote on Twitter that the comments from Bach, his former IOC colleague, were "tone deaf."

"The instinct to keep safe (not to mention obey govt instructions to lock down) is not compatible with athlete training, travel and focus that a looming Olympics demands of athletes, spectators organisers," Pinsent wrote.

Responding to the criticism from Hayley Wickenheiser, a four-time Olympic hockey gold medalist, the IOC said it was "counting on the responsibility and solidarity of the athletes."

Members reinforce faith in IOC

The IOC repeated its steadfast stance after a conference call with sports governing bodies, many of which have not completed qualification events for Tokyo.

"There is no need for any drastic decisions at this stage; and any speculation at this moment would be counter-productive," the IOC said.

That message was repeated after Wednesday's conference call by IOC executive board member Robin Mitchell, the interim leader of the group of national Olympic bodies known as ANOC.

"We share the view that we must be realistic, but not panic," Mitchell said in a statement released by the IOC on behalf of the Oceania Olympic group.

Offering unanimous support for the IOC's efforts to resolve qualification issues, the 41-nation Pan-American group noted challenges facing potential Olympians.

Australian Olympic Committee chief executive Matt Carroll said his organized recognized there was a global health crisis, but equally was assured by the IOC that the games would go ahead.

"We recognize people are suffering -- people are sick, people are losing jobs, businesses are struggling amid enormous community uncertainty. Things are changing everyday and we all must adapt," Carroll said.

"We owe it to our Australian athletes to do everything we can to ensure they will participate with the best opportunity in those Games."

Australia's team delegation leader said the focus now was "moving to the planning of our pre-Games preparation to ensure we get our athletes to the Games healthy, prepared and virus free."

"Clearly that is a major challenge for all National Olympic Committees," he said.

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Agencies
June 7,2020

Mumbai, Jun 7: The Mumbai airport became home for a 23-year-old Ghanaian footballer for 74 days after he got stranded there due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown that led to cancellation of flights.

The ordeal of Randy Juan Muller reminded people of Tom Hank's character in the Hollywood film "The Terminal", and it ended after Yuva Sena, the youth wing of the Shiv Sena, reached out to help him.

Muller has now shifted to a local hotel and is waiting for airlines to resume operations so that he can fly home.

The Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) also provided him all help, including food, and allowed him to use the airport WiFi network to make calls, an official said.

Muller, a Ghana national who used to play for a club in Kerala, was scheduled to fly home by Kenya Airways flight when the lockdown was announced and he found himself stranded at the Mumbai airport.

"He would spend his time at the airport's fancy artificial gardens and somehow buy food from stalls and pass his time with the airport staff. Muller told me the airport staff was very helpful," Yuva Sena office-bearer Rahul Kanal said.

A security officer at the airport gave him mobile phone to call his family back home.

A Twitter user brought Muller's plight to the notice of Maharashtra Tourism Minister Aaditya Thackeray following which Kanal reached out to the footballer and helped him move into a hotel.

On Saturday, Muller thanked Thackeray and Kanal for their help.

"Thank you Aaditya Thackeray, Rahul Kanal. Thank you very very so much. I appreciate what you have done. Salute," he said.

Kanal in a tweet said when he met Muller at the airport, the latter cried with happiness.

"Have no words to salute his willpower and fight for survival in such circumstances at this age," Kanal said.

An official at the Mumbai International Airport Ltd said the footballer was provided all help.

"All personnel at the airport, including from MIAL and CISF, gave him every possible help during his stay at the airport. Besides food, he was also allowed to use the airport WiFi network to make calls. Airport staff would recharge his phone at their own expense," the official said.

The 2004 film "Terminal" of Steven Spielberg was about a man stranded at a US airport after being denied entry into the country and a military coup back home.

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Agencies
March 14,2020

Sydney, Mar 14: New Zealand pacer Lockie Ferguson has been placed under 24-hour isolation amid the fears of coronavirus after he reported a sore throat following the first ODI of the ongoing three-match series against Australia in Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) which the hosts won by 71 runs.

"In accordance with recommended health protocols, Lockie Ferguson has been placed in isolation at the team hotel for the next 24 hours after reporting a sore throat at the end of the first ODI," said New Zealand Cricket in a statement.

"Once the test results are received and diagnosed, his return to the team can be determined," it added.

The first ODI of the Chappell-Hadlee series was played in front of empty stands as the spectators were not allowed to be at SCG as a precautionary measure to contain the spread of coronavirus pandemic.

Earlier, Australian fast bowler, Kane Richardson was also tested for the coronavirus, after suffering from a sore throat on Thursday. That saw him left out of the squad for Friday's game but the test was negative.

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