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IPL 2022: Cummins’ record fifty leads KKR to 5-wicket win over Mumbai Indians

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A scintillating joint fastest half-century by Pat Cummins along with a gutsy innings by Venkatesh Iyer led Kolkata Knight Riders to a convincing five-wicket win over Mumbai Indians in an IPL 2022 match at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, here on Wednesday.

It was KKR’s third victory in the four matches and they climbed to the top of the table with 6 points. On the other hand, Mumbai Indians’ horror run continued as they slumped to their third successive defeat in the ongoing season.

Earlier, a brilliant fifty from Suryakumar Yadav (52 off 36) helped Mumbai Indians post 161/4 in 20 overs. With 55 for 3 in 11 overs, Mumbai were in trouble but Suryakumar added 83 runs for the fourth wicket with Tilak Varma (38 off 27) to rescue his side. Apart from Suryakumar and Varma, Dewald Brevis (29 off 19) also played an entertaining knock on his IPL debut while Kieron Pollard (22 off 5) gave the late flourish to Mumbai’s innings.

Chasing a challenging total, KKR were off to a slow start and the pressure resulted in a wicket. Tymal Mills gave Mumbai their first breakthrough by dismissing Ajinkya Rahane (7) in the 5th over. Shreyas Iyer (10) who came to bat couldn’t last longer and got out to Daniel Sams, leaving KKR in trouble at 35-2 in 6 overs.

KKR’s attempt to stitch partnerships after the first six overs didn’t yield great results either as Sam Billings ( 17) and Nitish Rana (8) both made starts but fell in successive Murugan Ashwin overs.

Mills, who’d found great success with the short ball all evening struck gold when Russell (11) mistimed a short ball and Brevis took a catch to send him packing. Though KKR kept losing wickets at the regular intervals, Venkatesh Iyer (50 off 41) stayed till the end and kept them in the game but it was Pat Cummins with his attacking knock that turned the game on its head.

Cummins walked out to bat when KKR were on 101 for 5 in 13.1 overs, still needing 61 off 41 balls. He brought that down to 47 off 36 with a flick well over deep midwicket and cut placed between point and short third man. In the next over Cummins repeated the feat against Jasprit Bumrah, which dragged the match in their team’s favour. But, the Australian wasn’t even done with the wild willow-swinging when KKR needed just 35 off 30 balls.

Cummins needed just six more of the available deliveries to complete the chase – smashing them all in an erroneous Daniel Sams over which included four sixes – all big clean hits – and two fours. A ball before he completed the chase with a six, he reached a 14-ball half-century.

He equalled KL Rahul’s record for the fastest half century of all time in the IPL and ended the match unbeaten on 56 off 15 balls and powered KKR to win, with four overs to spare and five wickets in hand.

Earlier, invited to bat first, Mumbai Indians had a poor start as Umesh Yadav got rid of skipper Rohit Sharma to give KKK the first breakthrough in the 3rd over of the innings. Rohit tried to take on a short ball that was pounded into the deck quite hard but he could only eke out a top-edge with wicket-keeper Sam Billings running backwards and pouching it safely.

The wicket brought debutant Dewald Brevis at the crease and from the very beginning he looked in solid touch even against an aggressive Umesh. His stroke-play injected a bit of momentum into Mumbai’s innings and Ishan Kishan was also happy to play the second fiddle as they took their team to 35/1 after 6 overs.

KKR skipper Shreyas Iyer then introduced spin after the end of powerplay and both batters chose to not get too adventurous against Sunil Narine. But Brevis (29 off 19) smacked the first ball he faced from Varun Chakravarthy for a six. The shot was then followed by three dots. Brevis missed the 5th ball of the over and Billings was quick to whip off the bails.

Suryakumar, who was playing his first match of the season, then joined Kishan at the crease and tried to rebuild the innings for Mumbai. But the run-rate was dropping with every passing over and the pressure was building on Kishan, who wasn’t at his absolute best. The southpaw’s struggling innings finally came to an end after Cummins dismissed him on a short ball. It could have been worse for Mumbai but Billings and Rahane had miscommunication while trying to grab a catch and it was put down as Tilak Verma got a lifeline.

Taking full advantage of the dropped catch, Varma hit a few adventurous shots and gave some impetus to Mumbai’s innings while Suryakumar also complimented him well with few timely boundaries. Both Suryakumar and Varma kept the scoreboard ticking and helped MI cross the 100-run mark in the 17th over of the innings.

From there on, it was no looking back for Suryakumar and Varma, who went on rampage and scored 17 and 14 runs respectively in the 17th and 18th over respectively. After hitting a fine fifty Suryakumar got out in the first ball of the 20th over but Kieron Pollard provided the sparkling fireworks by smashing Cummins for three sixes.

Overall, Mumbai scored 76 runs in the last 5 overs and ended with 161-4 on the board. Kieron Pollard (22 not out off 5) and Tilak Varma (38 not out off 27) remained unbeaten at the crease. On the other hand, Pat Cummins (2/49) was the most successful bowler for KKR while Umesh Yadav (1/25) and Varun Chakaravarthy (1/32) also chipped in with one wicket each.

Brief scores:
Mumbai Indians: 161/4 in 20 overs (Suryakumar Yadav 52, Tilak Varma 38 not out; Pat Cummins 2/49) lost to Kolkata Knight Riders 162/5 in 16 overs (Pat Cummins 56 not out, Venkatesh Iyer 50 not out; Murugan Ashwin 2/25) by five wickets

International

Wagah-Attari border closure leaves several families in limbo

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Islamabad, April 25: Pakistan and India’s decision to shut down the Wagah-Attari border crossing after the deadly Pahalgam terror attack has forced several citizens from both countries to cut short their visit and rush back home.

On Thursday, after both countries announced closure of border crossing and gave a deadline for citizens to leave for their respective countries, at least 28 Pakistanis nationals returned from India while 105 Indian citizens in Pakistan crossed over into India.

A Hindu family from Balochistan’s Sibi was reportedly denied entry into India after the closure of border crossing.

“We were on our way to Indore in Madhya Pradesh to attend a wedding. Seven members of our family were excited to join our relatives in India and take part in the celebrations. But upon reaching Wagah, we learned that the border had been sealed. We will spend the night at Dera Sahib in Lahore and head back home tomorrow,” said Akshay Kumar.

Meanwhile, a Sikh family from India, in Pakistan to attend a wedding, decided to leave for India immediately.

“We had come to Pakistan for a wedding. While the ceremony took place, several important rituals remained. Once we heard the border was closed, we decided to return immediately,” said Raminder Singh, an Indian national.

A Hindu family from Ghotki in Pakistan’s Sindh province, now residing in New Delhi, was visiting Pakistan for the last two months to meet their relatives. However, they are now unsure about getting permission to return to India.

“There are five of us, including my young son and daughter, uncle and aunt. We all hold Pakistani passports and were granted No Obligation to Return to India (NORI) certificate by India. But uncertainty looms now, said a family member named Indira.

“Families with cross-border ties often bear the brunt of rising tensions between the two neighbours. With tensions between Pakistan and India once again on the rise, human connections across borders are becoming the first casualty,” said Asif Memood, a Lahore-based journalist.

“The closure of the Wagah-Attari border has left many families in limbo, uncertain when they will next reunite with their loved ones,” he added.

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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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Death toll from US airstrikes on Yemeni fuel port rises to 38: Houthis

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Sanaa, April 18: The death toll from US overnight airstrikes on the Yemeni fuel port of Ras Isa has increased to 38, with 102 others wounded, Houthi-run al-Masirah TV reported on Friday, citing Houthi-controlled local health authorities.

According to al-Masirah, the casualties include five paramedics who were killed upon arriving at the scene, when the US military launched another wave of airstrikes on the port just minutes after the first on Thursday night.

More than 14 airstrikes on the fuel port were reported during the two waves, igniting massive fires in tanks storing imported fuel. The fires were extinguished within hours, said the report.

The US Central Command said earlier in a statement that it struck and destroyed the Ras Isa port on Thursday to “eliminate this source of fuel for” and “degrade the economic source of power of” the Houthis, Xinhua news agency reported.

In mid-March, US President Donald Trump ordered “decisive and powerful military action” against the Houthis after the group announced plans to resume attacks on Israeli vessels in the Red Sea, citing Israel’s blockade of humanitarian aid to Gaza as the reason.

Earlier on April 17, Yemen’s Houthi leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi had said his group had launched 26 attacks against Israel and 33 strikes on the US aircraft carrier and warships in the Red Sea since March 15.

In a televised speech aired by the group’s al-Masirah TV on Thursday, the Houthi leader said the attacks on Israel were carried out using “30 ballistic missiles and drones,” while those targeting the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier and its escorts involved “122 ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as drones”.

However, the Israeli military has reportedly intercepted many of the Houthi projectiles before they reached targets, Xinhua news agency reported.

The US Central Command dismissed the Houthi claims of daily attacks on the US aircraft carrier as “outlandish” in a post on the social media platform X.

Meanwhile, the Houthi leader noted that the US military had conducted more than 900 airstrikes against his group’s positions across northern Yemen during the past 30 days.

Tensions between the Houthi group and the US military have escalated since Washington resumed airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen on March 15 to deter the group from attacking Israel and US warships in the Red Sea.

The Houthis, which control much of northern Yemen, said their attacks aim to press US-backed Israel to stop the offensive against the Gaza Strip and allow humanitarian aid into the Palestinian enclave.

Israel’s Channel 12 News reported last Saturday that a Yemeni drone was intercepted near the Dead Sea within the Jordanian airspace before it could reach Israel.

The Jordanian army confirmed later last week that an unidentified drone entered Jordanian airspace and crashed in the Ma’in area of Madaba governorate, near the Dead Sea, and no casualties were reported.

Even since Israel renewed its intensive strikes in March across the Gaza Strip, the Houthis have been launching frequent attacks against Israeli and US targets.

Earlier last week, the Houthi military spokesperson claimed fresh attacks against the US aircraft carrier, USS Harry S Truman, and other US warships in the northern Red Sea.

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