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IPL 2021: Jaiswal, Dube fifties overshadow Gaikwad ton as Rajasthan win

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Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shivam Dube hit blazing half-centuries to lead Rajasthan Royals to a splendid seven-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings in match 47 of IPL 2021 at Sheikh Zayed Stadium here on Saturday. Rajasthan made an imposing chase of 190 look easy by hunting down the target with 15 balls to spare. The win means that Rajasthan now have ten points from 12 matches and leapfrog Mumbai Indians to be at sixth place in the points table which has four teams at ten points.

Rajasthan got off to a flying start, making 81 runs in the power-play against a Chennai bowling attack missing Deepak Chahar and Dwayne Bravo. Yashasvi Jaiswal came out all guns blazing, smashing boundaries against every bowler. Josh Hazlewood came under severe thrashing from the youngster, taken for seven boundaries, including the last one, a flat-six over long-off, taking him to a whirlwind half-century in just 19 balls.

Evin Lewis supported Jaiswal well before pulling to fine leg off Thakur. Jaiswal fell on the first ball after power-play to a short ball from KM Asif. Despite losing both openers in quick succession, Rajasthan didn’t lose the run-making assault.

Shivam Dube and Sanju Samson put up a match-defining partnership of 89 runs in 58 balls. Dube, promoted to number four, was more aggressive of the duo, welcoming Ravindra Jadeja with a six over long-on in the ninth over. He extended the thrashing by hitting Moeen Ali for back-to-back sixes in the next over.

Dube brought the half-century of the partnership with a four clubbed over mid-wicket off Sam Curran followed by a six over the same region in the 12th over. The all-rounder then reached his half-century in 31 balls with a single off Thakur.

Though Samson fell while pulling off Thakur in the 16th over, Rajasthan were well on course to chase the target. Debutant Glenn Phillips walloped Curran for a four and six, before finishing off the chase with a single off Moeen Ali.

Earlier, Gaikwad displayed an exhibition of timing and classical hitting to reach his first century in the IPL. It was a fine batting effort by the youngster, whose first 50 runs came in 43 balls while the next 51 runs came in a jaw-dropping 17 balls and feasted ‘n Rajasthan’s listless bowling. Gaikwad was well-supported by Ravindra Jadeja’s blitzkrieg in the end apart from useful contributions by Faf du Plessis and Moeen Ali.

Gaikwad and Faf du Plessis added 44/0 in power-play. While Gaikwad creamed debutant Akash Singh for two fours in the opening over, du Plessis took back-to-back boundaries against Chetan Sakariya in the fifth over. Tewatia broke the partnership in the seventh over, getting du Plessis easily stumped by Samson. Tewatia had his second wicket of the match as Suresh Raina’s promotion to three in his 200th match for Chennai ended with a slog-sweep to deep mid-wicket.

Despite the two quick dismissals, Gaikwad and Ali struck boundaries and rotated the strike to keep the scoreboard ticking. Gaikwad brought up his half-century in 43 balls, his second of the UAE leg of the tournament. From there, Gaikwad accelerated, hitting Tewatia for two sixes on the trot in the 15th over.

Though Tewatia had Ali stumped, it didn’t make Gaikwad slow down. In the next over, he took two fours and a six off Akash Singh to enter into the 80s. Though Ambati Rayudu fell cheaply, Gaikwad continued to collect boundaries with pristine timing.

Jadeja took two fours and a six on the first three balls of the final off Rahman. Gaikwad finished off the innings by smacking a six over deep mid-wicket, which took him to his first IPL hundred. But it wasn’t enough to prevent Chennai’s first loss in the UAE leg of the tournament.

Brief scores: Chennai Super Kings 189/4 in 20 overs (Ruturaj Gaikwad 101 not out, Ravindra Jadeja 32 not out, Rahul Tewatia 3/39, Chetan Sakariya 1/31) lost to Rajasthan Royals 190/3 in 17.3 overs (Shivam Dube 64 not out, Yashasvi Jaiswal 50, Shardul Thakur 2/30, KM Asif 1/18) by seven wickets.

National

Kill terrorists and show us their bodies, say families of Pahalgam attack victims

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Mumbai, April 24: The mortal remains of Santosh Jagdale and Kaustubh Ganbote, who were killed by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, were brought to Pune early Thursday morning.

Chants of ‘Pakistan jala do (burn down Pakistan)’ were raised during Jagdale’s funeral procession. NCP(SP) president Sharad Pawar met the families of Santosh Jagdale and Kaustubh Ganbote and expressed grief.

The Jagdale family, shattered by the brutal killing of Santosh Jagdale, burst into tears. “Today my life has been completely ruined, I cannot see my husband anymore,” said Jagdale’s wife, Pragati Jagdale, while venting out her emotions. She also demanded in front of Sharad Pawar that those terrorists should be shot the same way they killed her husband and others.

Pragati Jagdale further narrated the entire incident. “They (terrorists) had come wearing masks. There was no one there, there should have been an officer or security guard. Further, there was a delay in treatment. They didn’t tell us anything,” she said.

She added that the terrorists did not even spare the horse puller as he resisted and told them that they should not shower bullets on the tourists. “Don’t put people’s lives in danger, people’s lives are being ruined, tell me where I am going to look. My husband is not with me, what should these children do?” she asked in despair.

“I have not been able to see my husband’s face since yesterday. While in Kashmir, we could not see his face; here, too, his face is not being revealed. Terrorists shot my husband in the head. Do something for us. Find and kill those terrorists. Terrorists shot our people in the head and took out the flesh, took out the blood, do the same with them and show us the bodies of the terrorists. Terrorists shot their father in front of the children. The children were crying then. While coming down from there, we fell into the mud. Because of this, I cannot even stand on my feet,” said Pragati Jagdale.

“The local people there also cried for us, they felt bad because everything the terrorists did was against tourists, and they attacked tourists. The officers there also cried for us, they felt bad about what had happened. The lives of family members of 26 people killed in the terror attack have been completely destroyed,” she claimed.

Meanwhile, Kaustubh Lele, who lost his cousins Sanjay Lele, Hemant Joshi and Atul Mone from Dombivli in the deadly terror attack in Pahalgam on Tuesday, slammed the government, asking it to first ensure safety to its citizens instead of making tall claims about becoming a trillion-dollar economy.

“Focus on bringing ‘acche din’ of safety and security in the lives of Indian citizens, then show them the dream of becoming a dollar economy. Stop show-offs, branding and making loud claims. Take adequate steps for the safety of the people,” he said, expressing his anguish. “It is a big loss for three families as they have lost the head of the families. It has created a big vacuum which cannot be filled. Terror attacks are taking place unabated. Now take some concrete and firm steps against terrorism,” he said.

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International

Murder of Hindu leader: India slams Bangladesh, says killing follows pattern of systematic persecution of Hindu minorities

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New Delhi, April 19: India on Saturday issued a sharp condemnation of the abduction and brutal killing of Bhabesh Chandra Roy, a prominent Hindu community leader in northern Bangladesh, calling it part of a “pattern of systematic persecution” of minorities under the country’s interim government.

Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal voiced India’s grave concern, stating that the incident reflects an alarming trend of targetted violence against Hindus and other minority groups in Bangladesh.

“We have noted with distress the abduction and brutal killing of Shri Bhabesh Chandra Roy, a Hindu minority leader in Bangladesh. This killing follows a pattern of systematic persecution of Hindu minorities under the interim government, even as the perpetrators of previous such events roam with impunity,” Jaiswal said in a post on social media platform X.

He added, “We condemn this incident and once again remind the interim government to live up to its responsibility of protecting all minorities, including Hindus, without inventing excuses or making distinctions.”

India has previously expressed similar concerns over rising attacks on minorities in Bangladesh, but this latest incident has drawn particular attention due to Roy’s prominence in the Hindu community.

Roy, who served as the Vice-President of the Biral unit of the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad, was abducted from his residence in Dinajpur district on Thursday evening. According to police and family accounts, he received a phone call around 4:30 p.m., after which four unidentified men arrived on motorcycles and forcibly took him to Narabari village. He was reportedly assaulted and later found unconscious. He was rushed to a hospital in Dinajpur, where he was declared dead on arrival. His wife, Shantana Roy believes the attackers used the call to confirm his location before carrying out the abduction.

Opposition leaders in India also slammed the shocking incident in the neighbouring country.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge highlighted that religious minorities, especially Hindus, are being persecuted in Bangladesh.

“Attacks on other religious minorities are also continuing. Recently, the Chief Advisor of Bangladesh made a very condemnable and disappointing comment about the northeastern states of India. The persecution of religious minorities in Bangladesh, human rights violations, and the attempt to erase the memories of the 1971 Liberation War are efforts to weaken the relationship between India and Bangladesh. From 1971 till today, India has always wished for peace and prosperity for all the people of Bangladesh. This is in the best interest of the subcontinent,” he said.

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Maharashtra

ICC, BCCI, ECB and CA to bankroll plan to support Afghan women cricketers: Report

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Mumbai, April 16: The International Cricket Council’s (ICC) plans to support the exiled female cricketers from Afghanistan will be bankrolled via contributions by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the Cricket Australia (CA), a report claimed on Wednesday.

The initiative to assist Afghanistan’s displaced women cricketers, which will include coaching and mentorship, “will be constituted through a dedicated fund,” and it will be fully funded by the ICC and the three boards.

An ICC spokesperson confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that the fund will not include any contribution from the Afghanistan Cricket Board. The ACB will continue to receive its full amount from the ICC.

The ICC has recently announced that it will put in place a plan to support women cricketers exiled from Afghanistan after the Taliban took control of the country and banned the participation of females in sports and disbanded the teams.

“Last year, the prospect of ring-fencing an amount for women’s cricket from the ACB’s portion of the ICC’s revenue distributions was discussed but that plan did not come to fruition. The ACB is the only Full Member board that does not field a women’s team, and is not able to because of the severe restrictions on women’s rights after the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan in 2021,” the report claimed.

The report also said, the ICC’s latest plan to engage with Afghanistan’s female cricketers neither amounts to official recognition nor does it clear the path for Afghanistan to field a women’s team, as such a team can only be ratified by the ACB. Instead, the ICC hopes to work with Afghanistan’s female cricketers to provide them with both access to the game and funding for further education.

“The ICC does not select a team for Afghanistan. Rather, we are committed to addressing the complexities of the issue and finding a solution that fits within the ICC’s legal and constitutional framework,” the spokesperson was quoted as saying in the report.

The report also confirmed that the ICC’s initiative will not be limited to the 19 Afghan cricketers resident in Australia but, “the plan is to include all displaced Afghan women cricketers regardless of their location.”

The ICC has so far not clarified on what will the Afghanistan women cricketers in exile do after getting coaching and mentorship from this fund.

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