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IPL 2022: In the coming time, I hope he plays for India, performs well, says Umran Malik’s father

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In the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), young Sunrisers Hyderabad pacer Umran Malik has been one of the standout stars, bowling the fastest deliveries with his raw pace and earning praise from all quarters, with some experts calling for him to be fast-tracked into the India men’s side.

In his second season of featuring in the IPL after making heads turn in the second half of the 2021 edition, Malik has taken 15 wickets in his first eight matches, including an enthralling 5/25 against Gujarat Titans. But in his last three matches, the 22-year-old has gone wicketless.

His father, Abdul Rashid Malik, believes that IPL 2022 is a part of a learning curve for Umran to be a better player, with a hope to turn out for the national side in future.

“Our kid is getting to learn a lot. We want him to work harder in future, learn many more things to play very well. In the coming time, we hope he plays for India and performs well,” said Rashid in a chat with IANS.

Though Hyderabad lost that match to Gujarat, Malik made the world sit up and take notice of his bowling yet again by ratting the stumps of Wriddhiman Saha, Shubman Gill, David Miller and Abhinav Manohar apart from dismissing Hardik Pandya with a short ball.

Watching Umran bowl a searing spell in Jammu, Rashid recalled that the environment around their home looked as if Eid had arrived early.

“Our Eid was celebrated that day. Isse zyada khushi ki baat aur kya ho sakti hai (Couldn’t have been a happier moment for us). Everyone in our neighbourhood was happy, whole of India was rejoicing that our child was doing great. We just hope that he plays for the country in future and makes the nation proud.”

Rashid attributes his son’s pace and stamina to inclination towards the game from childhood, including bowling for long hours in the searing heat of Jammu. “The (sandy) soil here (near his house) has made him reach where he is today. Playing on this soil has made him the bowler he is currently. From childhood, he had interest in playing cricket and bowling fast. He had a lot of stamina. From starting only, he used to say that I will play cricket.

“In Jammu, he used to go to play tournaments from morning till evening. We used to tell him not to play much under the sun, ‘you will fall ill and your face will turn black’. He used to say, ‘Papa, I have to see my life, not my face. I play cricket only, don’t do any other work.’ I thought, let’s support him and people would say that your child plays very well, he delivers balls so well.”

Rashid revealed that he and Umran’s mother have chats with their son whenever he has free time and feels blessed over experienced Indian cricketers as well as Hyderabad’s pace bowling coach Dale Steyn having chats and sharing cricketing knowledge with his son during IPL 2022.

“Our duaa (prayer) right now is that he does well and takes a lot of lessons in IPL alongside big cricketers. Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni have praised him a lot and he is getting to learn a lot from them. Dhoni and (Jasprit) Bumrah make him understand a lot of things. He is getting a lot of support from all the big players for India.

“He is getting to learn a lot from one of the proven pacers in the world (Steyn, the former South Africa pacer). If he soaks in all the lessons, he will put in even more hard work and will go far. We just say that he should work harder because one reaches great heights with hard work.”

At his fruit and vegetable stall, Rashid gets noticed by a lot of people sending him congratulatory messages, including young children. “There are little boys who pass along and say ‘Look, that is Umran’s papa.’ For us, it is the proudest moment. People here are so happy and stop their cars to give their congratulatory messages.”

health

Tobacco is not just addiction but poison: Delhi Speaker Vijender Gupta leads walkathon on World No-Tobacco Day in Rohini

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New Delhi, May 31: On the occasion of World No-Tobacco Day, Delhi’s Rohini area witnessed a strong show of public awareness and health advocacy through a walkathon organised to spread the message against tobacco consumption.

The event, themed ‘Walk for Life’, brought together medical professionals, civic leaders, and local residents in a collective stand against the harmful effects of tobacco.

Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta, who flagged off the walkathon, delivered a powerful message on the dangers of tobacco. “Tobacco is not just an addiction; it’s a poison,” he said, addressing the gathering. “It is a dangerous habit that ruins lives, and the only effective way to combat it is through sustained awareness and education,” he added.

Organised by the Indian Medical Association in collaboration with the Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute and Research Centre, the event saw enthusiastic participation from doctors, healthcare workers, and members of the public.

The walkathon aimed to raise awareness, especially among the youth, about the health risks associated with tobacco, including its direct link to life-threatening diseases like cancer.

“The younger generation often views smoking and tobacco use as fashionable, but we must help them understand the long-term consequences,” Gupta added, urging collective efforts to curb the rising trend of tobacco use among the youth.

Speaking at the event, Dr. Sudhir Rawal, Medical Director at the Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute, emphasised the medical impact: “Tobacco is one of the main avoidable causes of cancer. If you don’t use tobacco, you significantly reduce your risk of developing cancer, especially lung and mouth cancer.”

The event also featured health-themed activities, including group exercises and educational talks, to create a more engaging and impactful experience for participants.

As part of a broader initiative across the country, the Rohini walkathon served as a crucial reminder of the importance of quitting tobacco and promoting healthier, smoke-free lives.

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Sports

IPL 2025: This will be the year for RCB, AB de Villiers backs his former franchise to end title drought

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Mumbai, May 31: Former South Africa batter AB de Villiers backed his former IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to lift their maiden title this year after securing their berth for the summit clash with a commanding win over Punjab Kings in Qualifier 1 on Thursday.

This year, RCB have been in stellar form and have not lost a single away game so far in the season. They finished the league stage with 19 points to seal the second spot in the points table.

Virat Kohli and Phil Salt have been leading the run-scoring for the franchise with 614 and 387 runs respectively. The duo has been supported by middle-order batters including captain Rajat Patidar, Jitesh Sharma and Krunal Pandya.

On the bowling front, Josh Hazlewood is the leading wicket-taker for the side with 21 scalps in 11 games while Krunal Pandya (15 wickets), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (15 wickets) and Yash Dayal (12 wickets) are also contributing in tandem to make them a balanced unit.

“I’m very happy that RCB is in the final. We saw MI winning last night, so it’ll be a very good qualifier too, knockout match between Punjab and MI. Looking forward to that one, and whoever deserves it will play RCB in the final, so I’m very much looking forward to the final and hopefully, this will be the year for RCB,” De Villiers told Media in Mumbai.

The legendary batter backed Punjab Kings to play the final against RCB but remains sceptical after watching Mumbai Indians’ dominance against Gujarat Titans to knock them out of the tournament on Friday.

“I said quite a while ago, about a month ago, that Punjab and RCB will be in the final. MI looked very strong right now, so it looks like the odds are against my call, but it is still cricket. You never know. It is a knockout match. It takes one or two great performances to turn the pressure onto your opposition. So I think it’s still going to be Punjab, but I’ve got a little bit of doubt now in my mind after watching last night’s game,” he said.

Punjab Kings will now take on Mumbai Indians in Qualifier 2 at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday to seal a place for the IPL 2025 final against RCB on June 3 at the same venue.

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National

SpaceX’s Starship fails 3rd time, Musk blames fuel leak as megarocket explodes

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New Delhi, May 28: Even as SpaceX’s Starship flight exploded during splashdown on its ninth test on Wednesday, the company’s founder Elon Musk blamed it on fuel leaks.

This is the third time in a row that Starship flight has faced issues during the test flight. The company’s last two test flights — the seventh (January) and eighth (March) test flight — also ended prematurely with the destruction of the aircraft.

The ninth test flight of Starship — which blasted off at about 7:36 p.m. EDT (5:06 am IST) from the company’s Starbase launch site in Texas — successfully reached orbit, flying farther than on its two previous attempts.

However, the spacecraft’s payload bay door failed to open, preventing the planned release of simulated Starlink satellites. Around 30 minutes into the mission, SpaceX confirmed a fuel tank leak aboard the vehicle.

The first-stage Super Heavy booster exploded shortly before its expected splashdown, and live video showed the upper-stage vehicle spinning uncontrollably before its planned re-entry through Earth’s atmosphere, due to fuel leaks.

“Leaks caused loss of main tank pressure during the coast and re-entry phase,” Musk shared in a post on his social media platform X.

“Contact with the booster was lost shortly after the start of the landing burn when it experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly approximately 6 minutes after launch, bringing an end to the first reflight of a Super Heavy booster,” SpaceX said in a statement.

However, Musk called the flight an achievement and noted that there had been no loss to the heat shield tiles.

“Starship made it to the scheduled ship engine cutoff, so big improvement over the last flight! Also, no significant loss of heat shield tiles during ascent. Lot of good data to review,” Musk said.

SpaceX noted that the company “will continue to review data and work toward our next flight test”.

Standing 403 feet (123 meters) tall, Starship and heavy booster — the world’s biggest and most powerful rocket system. It will launch the moon lander for NASA’s Artemis 3 mission that aims to land astronauts on the Moon by 2026.

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