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Richa Ghosh can’t wait to emulate MS Dhoni-like heroics for India against Australia

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India wicketkeeper-batter Richa Ghosh, one of the stars in the thrilling second T20I victory decided via Super Oval at the D.Y. Patil Stadium here, is itching to emulate MS Dhoni-like heroics as a crucial third T20I comes up against Australia at Brabourne Stadium on Wednesday evening.

While revealing in the pre-match presser that she idolized Dhoni in her growing-up years and saw him script great finishes for India, Richa also expressed her desire to meet him in the future.

“Since childhood, I’ve followed Dhoni and how he used to finish the game. I haven’t had the opportunity to meet him yet. There have been times when he would leave just before we were in for a camp or a match at a venue. Hopefully, I’ll meet him someday.”

Richa also credited her father for teaching her cricket and backing her dream of playing for India. “The rest I have learned from my dad. My family and father helped me a lot and he would always accompany me to my games. He could not play for long, so he backed me to chase my dreams.”

Richa produced some superb late hitting in her 26 not out off 13 balls, including three huge sixes, and even hit a six on the first ball of the Super Over against Heather Graham to set the base for India clinching a thrilling victory over the Alyssa Healy-led Australia in front of 45,238 fans in the stadium to leave the five-match series 1-1.

Richa called her performance in the second T20I her best knock. “Smriti didi (Mandhana) had told me ‘Khatam karke aana’ (get us over the line), so I just did that. We were just following our plan and I was trying to get as many runs in the middle (overs) so that helped us to achieve the target in the end.”

“Whenever I bat, I always think about how to help my team win a game. I have always focused on power-hitting. I worked hard on it and also focused on my mental toughness. It all went according to our plan.”

Both Richa and opening batter Shafali Verma will join up with India’s Under-19 squad later this month ahead of the inaugural U-19 Women’s T20 World Cup that will happen in South Africa from January 14-29. It means that the duo could miss the final T20I against Australia, but Richa insisted her focus is on the ongoing series against Australia.

“We are only thinking about this series for now. Once we join the Under 19 camp, we will focus on those things. It won’t be a problem to get used to that setup because both Shafali and I have known them for a while.”

Alyssa had a front-row seat to Richa’s magnificent display of power hitting in the second T20I and issued a warning to other teams ahead of the Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup.

While Ghosh struggled to make much of an impact during the 2021/22 WBBL in Australia, scoring only 162 runs in 14 innings at an average of 12.46, Alyssa believes the sky is the limit for the 19-year-old.

“She came over to the WBBL and probably did not have quite the impact as she is having in this series. It’s an interesting one for us, but the confidence that she is coming out and batting with is probably a little terrifying for a lot of Under 19 World Cup sides out there.”

National

Market volatility over Greenland issue to continue due to ‘few sticking points’: Report

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New Delhi, Jan 24 : Investors are likely to remain on edge over the proposed US framework on Greenland, and near-term volatility related to this issue can continue, a report has said.

The report from Bank of Baroda said that market participants are awaiting more details that could determine whether negotiations succeed or unravel.

“Going ahead, investors are likely to await more details of the deal, as there are a few sticking points which can derail the negotiations. Hence, some volatility can be expected,” the report said.

Several analysts expect the arrangement to resemble an update of the existing security agreement between the US and Denmark, which was signed in 1951, the report noted.

Further negotiations will follow in due course which will cover areas such as US military presence in Greenland, as well as use of its mineral resources and sovereignty, said Aditi Gupta, Economist, Bank of Baroda.

US President Donald Trump has framed Washington’s interest in Greenland as driven by national security concerns, but the island’s largely unexplored mineral wealth including oil, gas and rare earth elements is of interest to US, the report said.

“The announcement of a framework deal between the US and NATO has helped to soothe investors’ nerves, however the details of the deal are still fuzzy,” it added.

Geo-political tensions escalated and markets went into turmoil after the US President intensified rhetoric to annex Greenland and threatened economic measures against European countries that oppose US plans. In response, several European nations, including France, Germany, Sweden amongst others increased military deployment in Greenland, further escalating tensions.

Trump had announced a 10 per cent additional tariff on goods from the UK, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, Netherlands and Finland from February 1, 2026. The rate was expected to increase to 25 per cent by June 1, 2026.

Later, he backed off from his threat of imposing tariffs on European countries along the sidelines of the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos.

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Crime

Two Held With ₹68 Lakh Cash Near India-Myanmar Border In Mizoram; Heroin Worth ₹78 Lakh Seized

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Aizawl: Two persons were arrested with Rs 68 lakh in cash near the India-Myanmar border in east Mizoram’s Champhai district, officials said on Thursday.

Acting on a tip-off, the Assam Rifles intercepted a vehicle at Zote village on August 11, they said.

Upon thorough checking, Rs 60 lakh in cash was recovered from two persons in the vehicle.

The duo, identified as Joseph Lalthansanga and Vanlalruati, could not state any proper reason why they were carrying such a huge amount of cash. They were subsequently handed over to the police for legal action, officials said.

In another operation, the Assam Rifles recovered 94.6 gram of heroin, worth Rs 78 lakh, from the village on Wednesday.

The drugs were handed over to the Excise and Narcotics Department, officials said.

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National

India’s AI Tech Spending Projected To Reach Rs. 92 Thousand Crore By 2028: Report

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India’s AI technology spending is projected to grow at an annualised rate of 38 per cent from 2023 to reach $10.4 billion (approximately Rs. 92 thousand crore) in 2028, a report said on Thursday.

Around 40 per cent of organisations in India have already implemented agentic AI, and close to 50 per cent are planning to use the technology within the next 12 months, IDC InfoBrief and UiPath said in a joint report.

In 2025, AI investments are focused on building the foundational infrastructure required to power transformative, high-value use cases.

According to the report, the adoption is surging, fueled by a tech-savvy workforce, expanding digital infrastructure, and government-backed initiatives.

Organisations’ spending on enterprise automation, multilingual AI models, and agentic deployments is driving this momentum further.

The benefits are already visible, as 80 per cent of Indian companies say agentic AI boosts productivity, while 73 per cent say it improves decision-making, the report said.

According to the report, agentic AI is gaining strong traction across the manufacturing, retail and wholesale, healthcare, and life sciences industries, which heavily rely on data and repetitive decision-making cycles.

“Agentic automation is rapidly redefining business operations across India. While enterprises in this region are embracing the full potential of AI agents to streamline workflows and autonomously execute complex business processes, trust and security remain barriers to widespread implementation,” said DebDeep Sengupta, Area Vice President, South Asia, UiPath.

Our agentic automation platform directly addresses these challenges, breaking down barriers to enterprise AI adoption by enhancing security and compliance, improving accuracy and reliability for agentic outcomes, Sengupta added.

About 69 per cent of Indian organisations are using agentic AI to enhance productivity, 59 per cent to drive personalised customer engagement, while 57 per cent apply it to risk and fraud detection, highlighting how agentic AI is being applied across front and back-office functions, the report highlighted.

“Becoming an AI-fueled business is no longer an option in today’s unpredictable climate. For many organisations, it’s fast becoming a strategic necessity,” said Deepika Giri, Associate Vice President, IDC Asia/Pacific.

Across the region, organisations are embracing agentic AI and agentic automation at scale, Giri added.

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