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CSK Dominates with Jadeja’s Spell, Gaikwad’s Heroics

Chennai Super Kings registered their third home win of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 with a seven-wicket victory over Kolkata Knight Riders at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium…reports Asian Lite News

Ravindra Jadeja starred with a miserly spell of 3-18 to turn the game on its head, while captain Ruturaj Gaikwad made a welcome return to form through an unbeaten 67 off 58 balls as defending champions Chennai Super Kings registered their third home win of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 with a seven-wicket victory over Kolkata Knight Riders at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium.

Jadeja maintained a stump-to-stump line and made subtle changes in pace and trajectory to rattle KKR’s big hitters in his four overs of a match-defining spell. Fast-bowlers Tushar Deshpande and a retuning Mustafizur Rahman bowled exceptional spells of great lines and lengths coupled with impeccable slower deliveries in the fag end to pick 3-33 and 2-22 respectively.

The trio’s efforts meant KKR were restricted to a below-par 137/9 on a sluggish pitch offering turn. Later, Gaikwad dazzled in front of the faithful home crowd with a flurry of delightful nine boundaries to carry his bat and complete the modest chase with 14 balls to spare.

Coming into this game, Gaikwad had scored 88 runs in four matches with a highest score of 46. But when it mattered, along with dew coming in, he stood up tall and relied on timing plus piercing the gaps to get a comfortable win for CSK. He was also supported by nice 20s from Daryl Mitchell and impact player Shivam Dube in snapping KKR’s unbeaten streak.

Electing to bowl first, Deshpande got a length ball to shape away from Phil Salt, who couldn’t keep it down and slashed to backward point for a golden duck. He also made the dangerous Sunil Narine play and miss a lot in the opening over, by not giving any room and bowling majorly on his hips. But Narine got going against Deshpande in the third over, whipping, thumping and flicking to collect two fours and a six. He then brought out the straight drive against Shardul Thakur for four and dispatched Maheesh Theekshana over long-on for six to bring up KKR’s 50.

From the other end, young Angkrish Raghuvanshi played four authoritative boundaries, including launching a six over Theekshana’s head as KKR ended the power-play at 56/1. But then Jadeja arrived to bring CSK back into the match by taking three wickets in eight balls.

Chennai: Chennai Super King’s MS Dhoni greets Kolkata Knight Rider’s captain Shreyas Iyer after won the IPL match between Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders at MA Chidambaram Stadium, in Chennai, Monday, April 08, 2024.(IANS)

On his first ball, Jadeja trapped Raghuvanshi lbw, when the batter shaped up for a reverse sweep, and missed it to be out for 24. He had Narine miscuing to long-off and fall for 27, before returning to have Venkatesh Iyer pulling straight to mid-wicket. Ramandeep Singh was next to fall after being cast by a carrom ball from Theekshana.

With cutters ruling the roost, captain Shreyas Iyer struggled to get going despite collecting two boundaries. Rinku Singh looked scratchy and chopped onto his stumps off a wide, slower delivery from Deshpande. Andre Russell was kept quiet by wide slower balls, mainly from Mustafizur. After carving two fours in the off-side area, he holed out to long-on for run-a-ball 10 off a fuller slow delivery from Deshpande, despite being dropped by MS Dhoni.

Iyer’s struggle ended on 34 when he slogged to deep mid-wicket off a slower ball from Mustafizur, who also had Mitchell Starc pulling to deep square leg, as KKR made 38 runs in their last five overs, losing four wickets.

Chasing 138, Rachin Ravindra got moving with three fours coming via an on-drive, loft and heave off Starc in the third over. But in a bid to go over long-on, Ravindra miscued one to the fielder off Vaibhav Arora. From the other end, Gaikwad began by ramping Arora for four, followed by him taking three boundaries off left-arm spinner Anukul Roy, all of which had a silken touch. He backed away to create room for driving thrice in the packed off-side gap with exquisite timing and precision.

Gaikwad then smashed Arora for two back-to-back fours –- a punched drive was followed by a fierce cut, as CSK made 52/1 in power-play. Mitchell kickstarted his promotion to three, with Ajinkya Rahane nursing a calf strain, by dancing down the pitch to loft Narine for six, followed by reverse-sweeping him for four more.

With Narine and Varun Chakaravarthy bowling a few tidy overs, Gaikwad and Mitchell didn’t take undue risks to keep the scoreboard moving. Gaikwad got his first fifty of the season with a brace off Chakaravarthy, but Narine broke the second wicket stand of 70 off 55 balls by castling an advancing Mitchell with flight and turn through the gate.

With the finish line in sight, Gaikwad and Dube took a pulled four each off Starc, before the latter whacked Chakaravarthy for powerful sixes down the ground and over long-off. Dube powerfully dispatched Arora for another six over deep mid-wicket, before the pacer flattened his off stump. After Dhoni took a single, Gaikwad finished off the chase by slapping Roy through cover for four to ensure CSK got its eighth win over KKR at Chepauk.

Brief scores:

Kolkata Knight Riders 137/9 in 20 overs (Shreyas Iyer 34, Sunil Narine 27; Ravindra Jadeja 3-18, Tushar Deshpande 3-33) lost to Chennai Super Kings 141/3 in 17.4 overs (Ruturaj Gaikwad 67 not out, Shivam Dube 28; Vaibhav Arora 2-28, Sunil Narine 1-30) by seven wickets

ALSO READ: Lucknow Break Barrier

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Lucknow Break Barrier

This was his best IPL figure and also he became the first Indian to take five wickets for LSG. It was also the first win for Lucknow in five outings against Titans…reports Asian Lite News

Riding on Yash Thakur’s five for 30 and Krunal Pandya’s economical three wickets helped Lucknow Super Giants defeat Gujarat Titans, for the first time in the history of Indian Premier League (IPL), by 33 runs at Ekana Cricket Stadium, here on Sunday.

This was his best IPL figure and also he became the first Indian to take five wickets for LSG. It was also the first win for Lucknow in five outings against Titans

Chasing 164 to win, Lucknow had a steady start with Sai Sudarshan picking up a brace of boundaries in the second over off Naveen-ul-Haq. Mayank Yadav came to bowl the third over and left the field straightaway after completing his first over as he suffered a side strain.

Things aren’t going smoothly for LSG tonight and Sudarshan helps himself to two more fours – driven down the ground and whipped through midwicket – before Shubman Gill gets going with a ramp wide of deep third. Mayank’s pace barely got above 140kph in the first over as he left the field straight after completing his first over.

When it seemed like this chase would be simple, Yash Thakur fires one through Gill and into the timber. Full, straight, and cross-seam, it continued to skid as the captain of the Titans tried to flick across the line and got out at 19. Gill’s team was in a good position at 54 for 1 at the conclusion of the powerplay. M Siddharth struggled to bowl as he crossed the bowling line three times in his second and fifth over of the inning, but managed to give only 12 runs. Sudarshan appeared to be in excellent form as he scored 29 from 18 after the end of the seventh over.

LSG was still in the match, but Ravi Bishnoi had a great return catch to dismiss Titans’ impact sub, Kane Williamson, who chipped one back to the bowler and was out for one from four deliveries. Bishnoi leaped to his right and held out one arm, just hanging on as he banged into the turf. Williamson was undoubtedly the one targeted to lead a modest pursuit on a sticky surface, but he left on a cheap note.

This game took a radical turn as Sai Sudarshan and BS Sharath both holed out in Krunal Pandya’s opening over. Wicketkeeper Sharath, who came in place of Wriddhiman Saha top-edged a sweep to a deep backward square, Bishnoi took another catch, a much simpler catch was on the deep square boundary to remove Sudarshan. Sudarshan departed after scoring 31 off 23 deliveries and was the highest scorer of his side. Krunal ended with three for eleven.

With 72 needed in 36 balls, and with Yash Thakur’s golden arm, LSG were inching to close the match very quickly. After dismissing Gill early in the innings, he returned for his second over and had Rashid Khan (0) chip to cover a slower ball, and Vijay Shankar (17) was caught behind swiping at a short ball. Rahul Tewatia and Spencer Johnson added 24 runs in 17 deliveries for the ninth wicket but Thakur bowling his last over of the spell claimed a five-for giving away 30 runs in 3.5 overs dismissing Tewatia (30) and Noor Ahmad (0).

Earlier batting first on their home ground, Lucknow suffered an early setback as opener Quinton de Kock got out after opening his account with a six to Umesh Yadav. Not a start that Lucknow would have thought of as Umesh was all over the Lucknow batters in the powerplay.

Devdutt Padikkal, who came to bat at number three was the second wicket of Yadav. Umesh bowled a back of a length delivery in the channel, nipping away with the angle and Padikkal was enticed into wafting at it. Padikkal got a thick outside edge and Shankar snaffled it up at wide slip, low to his left. Padikkal got out after scoring 7 runs in 7 deliveries. LSG ended on 47 for 2 after the end of the powerplay as Stoinis and Rahul started building the innings.

Titans came with an attacking bowling plan on a damp pitch which saw an uneven bounce right from the start of the match. They bowled on the hard length and kept the ball away from both batters. Rahul, who loves to play cut and drive shots, suffered difficulties in scoring against Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad. Mohit Sharma on the other hand mixed his pace well without giving much room to score. It was a good display of bowling from the Titans’ bowlers as LSG after the end of ten overs scored 74 for two with Rahul and Stoinis finding difficulties in scoring boundaries.

From 18 for 2 in the third over, the third-wicket pairing of Rahul and Stoinis had bolted together a stocky partnership worth 73 from 62 balls – but LSG’s skipper departed trying to take on Darshan Nalkande, brought on at fourth change by Titans. Rahul was looking to hit down the ground but it didn’t come on to the bat and he was well held by Rahul Tewatia several yards in from the rope at long-on. A score of 33 off 31, with only three boundaries with a strike rate of 106.45.

Nalkande bowling his second over of the day was welcomed with a six and the fourth went the same way with another clean swing across the line by Stoinis who started changing his gear and scored his first IPL 2024 half-century in 40 deliveries. Nalkande stuck to his guns, however, and made his second breakthrough of the night as Stoinis top-edged a hoick straight up and departed scoring 58 off 43 deliveries. Titans successfully kept a lid on things. It was the second-slowest inning by Stoinis in all the IPL matches in which he has scored 50 or 50 plus.

Noor Ahmed conceded just one boundary from his four overs, which cost 22 runs – he should have had a wicket, too, with Stoinis dropped off a mishit on 43. At the end of 15 overs, LSG were 114 for four and with two new batters in the crease (Nicholas Pooran and Ayush Badoni) it was difficult to reach a good total for LSG. Mohit Sharma conceded 17 runs in his second last over of the spell courtesy of a six by Poorand and back-to-back boundaries by Badoni.

It was Rashid Khan’s first wicket of the evening as after hitting two fours from Mohit Sharma in the previous over, Ayush Badoni attempted a slog-sweep but was only able to pick out deep midwicket. However, as Krunal Pandya was off strike, Pooran was able to finally lay a hand on the champion leg-spinner for the Titans, delivering a huge blow over the leg side. If Sai Sudharsan hadn’t done a great job with the long-on rope, he could have also scored another boundary against Rashid. LSG raised their 150 with an over to go and reached 163 for 7 in 20 overs.

Brief Score: Lucknow Super Giants 163 for 5 in 20 overs (Marcus Stoinis 58, KL Rahul 33; Darshan Nalkande 2-21, Umesh Yadav 2-22) beat Gujarat Titans (Sai Sudarshan 31, Rahul Tewatia 30; Yash Thakur 5-30, Krunal Pandya 3-11) by 33 runs

ALSO READ: Buttler Shines in his 100th IPL Match as Royals Beat RCB

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Buttler Shines in his 100th IPL Match as Royals Beat RCB

Jaipur: Rajasthan Rajasthan Royals' Jos Buttler celebrates scoring a century and also the win over Royal Challengers Bangaluru during the IPL cricket match between Rajasthan Royals and Royal Challengers at Sawai Mansingh Stadium, in Jaipur, Saturday, April 6, 2024. (Photo: IANS/BCCI)

Through his brilliant knock, Buttler has also become only the second batter to score a 100 in his 100th IPL match…reports Asian Lite News

Opener Jos Buttler announced his return to form in his 100th IPL match with a magnificent 58-ball century as he outshined Virat Kohli’s ton to help Rajasthan Royals make it four wins from four matches at IPL 2024 after beating Royal Challengers Bengaluru by six wickets at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium.

After Kohli brought out his vintage self to slam his eighth IPL century and ninth overall in T20 cricket via 113 not out off 72 balls to lift RCB to a competitive 183/3, Buttler weathered the early storm and then brought out the attacking play to perfection to hit exactly 100 runs off 58 balls, laced with nine fours and four sixes, in what was his sixth IPL century.

Through his brilliant knock, Buttler has also become only the second batter to score a 100 in his 100th IPL match, after K.L. Rahul. On a pitch where stroke play got better as the game progressed, Buttler was also well-supported by captain Sanju Samson making 69 off 42 balls as RR completed the chase with five balls to spare and was now on top of the points table.

It was the same old story for RCB, who lacked penetration with the ball and barring Reece Topley, the rest failed to put up a performance of note for the visitors. RR didn’t have an ideal start to the chase of 184 as Yashasvi Jaiswal pulled a short ball from Reece Topley to mid-off, falling for a two-ball duck.

Samson got going with three boundaries, before Buttler scooped a four over Dinesh Karthik’s head, followed by surviving a tough chance and surviving a run-out attempt in the fourth over bowled by Mohammed Siraj.

Buttler followed it up by hitting two off-side boundaries off Yash Dayal and proceeded to smack left-arm spinner Mayank Dagar for three fours and a six in an 18-run over as RR made 54/1 in six overs at the end of power-play.

Samson pulled leg-spinner Himanshu Sharma twice for fours, one of which Kohli couldn’t catch at mid-wicket. Buttler drove one on the up off Cameron Green, before reaching his fifty in 30 balls. Samson wowed everyone with an upper cut six off Siraj, before hitting two fours and a maximum off Dagar to reach his second fifty of the season in 33 balls.

Whenever RCB’s spinners missed their lengths, along with dew coming into play, Buttler and Samson were quick to dispatch it for boundaries. Buttler was impeccable with his timing -– seen from him flat-batting a slower short ball from Dayal over leaping long-off and then using the width from Topley to steer using his wrists for piercing the gap between backward point and deep cover point.

The 148-run partnership fell when Samson couldn’t time the pull well off Siraj and was caught at deep backward square leg. Though Riyan Parag and Dhruv Jurel fell in quick succession, Buttler and Shimron Hetmyer knocked off the remaining runs, with the former swivelling a six to the left of deep square leg to get his century and give RR a thrilling win in front of its faithful home fans.

Earlier, Kohli was pristine in hitting 12 fours and four sixes in his unbeaten 113, which is also his third century in his last seven IPL innings to level his highest score in the competition. He went hard in scoring against pace, making 67 off 39 balls while accumulating 46 off 33 balls against spin.

Kohli hit almost 62% runs of RCB’s total, while the rest of the batters made 59 runs from 48 balls. Interestingly, Kohli’s 67-ball ton is the joint-slowest century in IPL, levelling with a hundred made by Manish Pandey in same number of balls against DC in 2009.

Pushed into batting first, Kohli and Faf du Plessis hit four boundaries to help RCB amass 29/0 in three overs. Kohli hit the first six of the game by handsomely pulling Nandre Burger before du Plessis thumped a four over his head. The duo brought up the fifty of the opening stand in the sixth over to finish the powerplay at 53/0.

After Kohli became the first batter to breach the 7,500-run mark in IPL’s history, du Plessis launched a brace of sixes on short balls from Trent Boult to take 16 runs off the ninth over. Kohli whipped a Yuzvendra Chahal delivery for a six in the tenth over, followed by reaching his fifty when he hammered Riyan Parag for a six down the ground.

The century stand between Kohli and du Plessis was achieved in 11.2 overs, before the former got a life at 67 when Burger dropped a chance at point off Chahal. A few balls later, Boult dropped a regulation catch of du Plessis at cover to give the batter a second life on 42 off Chahal.

But du Plessis couldn’t capitalise on the reprieve as he holed out to long-on for 44 off 33 balls off the leg-spinner, followed by Burger rattling Glenn Maxwell’s stumps and Chahal taking out debutant Saurabh Chauhan.

Kohli signalled taking an acceleration route by smacking Avesh for three fours, before slog sweeping Chahal for six. He reached his century in 67 balls with a single to long-on off a low full toss from Burger. Kohli took three fours off Avesh in the final over and walked off to a standing ovation from his RCB teammates, as the visitors made 54 runs off the last five overs.

Brief scores:

Royal Challengers Bengaluru 183/3 in 20 overs (Virat Kohli 113 not out, Faf du Plessis 44; Yuzvendra Chahal 2-34, Nandre Burger 1-33) lost to Rajasthan Royals 189/4 in 19.1 overs (Jos Buttler 100 not out, Sanju Samson 69; Reece Topley 2-27, Mohammed Siraj 1-35) by six wickets

ALSO READ: KKR Go Ruthless on DC

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Punjab Kings Clinch Thriller

The star performer for Punjab was the debutant Shashank Singh who continued scoring boundaries and kept the visitors in the game…reports Asian Lite News

Shashank Singh’s breathtaking unbeaten 61 and Ashutosh Sharma’s rapid-fire knock of 31 runs helped Punjab Kings (PBKS) beat host Gujarat Titans (GT) by three wickets with one ball to spare in the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Narendra Modi Stadium here on Thursday.

Chasing the daunting target of 200, the Punjab Kings opener started on an aggressive note collecting 13 runs in the very first over of Azmatullah Omarzai. Bairstow known for his batting prowess cut the first delivery to backward point and then slapped through the covers for the boundary.

The Ahmedabad crowd roared in joy as Umesh Yadav rattled the in-form Shikhar Dhawan’s wicket off an inside edge. Skipper Dhawan got out for just one run. Prabhsimran Singh came at No.4 and got off the mark with a single through cover. The very eventful second over of the inning ended with a four as Prabhsimran stamped his authority through to sweeper cover for a boundary of Yadav’s pace delivery.

Yadav bowling the fourth and his second over of the inning got hammered for 12 runs as Prabhsimran collected a boundary and a maximum in the over.

Rashid Khan, who usually bowls in the middle overs, was introduced in the fifth over of the inning and ended with nine runs including a boundary. Bairstow looked attacking against the Pacers, hence skipper Gill brought spinners from both ends.

Left-arm Chinaman Noor Ahmad bagged the big wicket as he knocked out Bairstow’s middle-leg stump for 22. The home crowd roared once again as Noor tossed the ball up and landed it on a length outside leg. Bairstow completely missed the line of the ball and left a gap between the bat and the pad, and the ball sneaked through it and deflected off the back pad to rattle the stumps. Bairstow blasted 22 off 13 deliveries.

Prabhsimran Singh joined Sam Curran in the middle and continued collecting boundaries off loose deliveries, hammering 35 off 24 deliveries. Noor made things difficult for Punjab Kings once again by claiming a wicket for GT in his very next over.

Prabhsimran, who was looking solid at the crease, fell to poor shot selection. Noor tossed up the googly landing it around the middle and off, Prabhsimran was early into his shot and made up his mind to go across the line. All he managed was a top edge and Mohit Sharma, fielding at short third, hardly had to move his feet to complete the catch.

With two new batters (Sikandar Raza and Curran) on the crease, it was never easy for Punjab. Noor with two wickets in two overs mounted the pressure on the visitors. The Required Run Rate (RRR) has already increased to 11 runs per over. The onus was now on Curran, who had played the match-winning inning of 63 runs against Delhi Capitals in Punjab Kings’ first match IPL 2024.

The RRR pressure brought the big wicket of Curran as Omarzai, bowling his second over, got rid of him. Curran wanted to swivel and pull to exploit the space between deep square leg and long-on, but failed to get the elevation and hit it straight to Kane Williamson, fielding at short midwicket, and was out for 5 runs.

At the end of 10 overs, Punjab were 83 for 4 with Shashank Singh batting on 7 off 4 deliveries and Raza on 7 off 4 deliveries. Shashank thumped Noor for a maximum after collecting a single of his first delivery of the tenth over. The game was still wide open for both the teams as Punjab required 117 of the last 10 overs and the host needed six wickets.

Umesh Yadav was brought back into the attack and was taken to task as Shashank hammered him for 17 runs in the over. After three singles of the first three balls, the next three delivery fetched the batter 4, 6, 4. The Struggling Raza got out to Mohit Sharma trying to chip the full-length delivery over covers but only managed to get the thin edge to the wicketkeeper, scoring 15 runs.

The star performer for Punjab was the debutant Shashank Singh who continued scoring boundaries and kept the visitors in the game. Jitesh Sharma came at number seven and got off the mark with a single. However, the turning point of the game came in the last over of Rashid’s spell when Jitesh smashed back-to-back sixes before getting out on the very next delivery, scoring 16 off 8 deliveries. But still, Punjab had the edge with Shashank Singh timing the ball very well.

Punjab introduced their Impact Player Ashutosh Sharma, a debutant, in place of Arshdeep Singh. With 41 required off 18 deliveries, Sharma struck back-to-back boundaries to Omarzai and then collected a boundary on the last delivery. It was a big over that fetched 18 runs for Punjab, leaving them needing 25 off the last 12 deliveries. Shashank Singh scored his maiden IPL half-century in just 25 deliveries, and it came when it mattered the most.

Mohit Sharma, bowling his last over of the spell, was smoked for a maximum on the second delivery by Sharma. A double off the bat and off a leg bye took Punjab very close to the target. Sharma scored a single and then Shashank hammered a maximum on the last delivery of Mohit’s spell — Punjab now needed 7 runs in six balls to win the match.

The drama continued as Darshan Nalkande, bowling his first over of the match, claimed the prized wicket of Ashutosh Sharma with the batter chipping it straight to long-off. However, Shaskank maintained his calm and after a wide and a single from Harpreet Brar, won the match for Punjab Kings with a boundary.

Brief score:

Gujarat Giants 199/4 in 20 overs (Shubman Gill 89 not out, Sai Sudarshan 33; Kagiso Rabada 2-44, Harpreet Brar 1-33) lose to Punjab Kings 200/7 in 19.5 overs (Shashank Singh 61 not out, Prabhsimran Singh 35; Noor Ahmad 2-32, Darshan Nalkande 1-6) by three wickets

ALSO READ-KKR Go Ruthless on DC

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KKR Go Ruthless on DC

It’s the first time that KKR have started an IPL season with three consecutive wins, setting themselves as potential title contenders…reports Asian Lite News

Last week, one didn’t think of Sunrisers Hyderabad’s record highest score of 277 being upstaged in IPL 2024. But Kolkata Knight Riders had other plans by unleashing a six-hitting carnage in Visakhapatnam, though they settled for 272, the second-highest score in the history of the competition.

Sunil Narine (85), Angkrish Raghuvanshi (54), Andre Russell (41) and Rinku Singh (26) produced blistering fireworks to set the base for KKR’s 106-run win over Delhi Capitals at Visakhapatnam on Wednesday evening. Captain Rishabh Pant and Tristan Stubbs scored entertaining fifties for DC in an but-obvious uphill chase of 273.

Pant continued to build up on his positive return to competitive cricket by hitting five sixes and four boundaries in a 25-ball 55, while Stubbs hit eight boundaries in his 32-ball 54 to help the hosts’ save some blushes, before being 166 all out in 17.2 overs.

Effective bowling from KKR, starting from Mitchell Starc and Vaibhav Arora in power-play to Andre Russell, Varun Chakaravarthy and Sunil Narine, ensured that the visitors’ are now at top place on the points table. It’s also the first time that KKR have started an IPL season with three consecutive wins, setting themselves as potential title contenders.

On a placid pitch, KKR produced two hours of sensational carnage by hitting 22 fours and 18 sixes, with DC bowlers minus Kuldeep Yadav and Mukesh Kumar bearing the brunt of ruthless big-hitting. Narine was quick in creating room and lofting with ease to collect runs for fun in what is now his highest T20 score ever coming off just 39 balls.

Young Raghuvanshi, a member of India’s 2022 U19 World Cup winning campaign, impressed with his wrist work and the ability take on DC’s bowlers by mixing innovation with copybook strokeplay to get his maiden IPL fifty. Russell and Rinku brought out their usual fireworks at the end to add more intensity to KKR’s stunning batting onslaught.

Electing to bat first, KKR got going with Phil Salt taking two fours off Ishant Sharma in the second over. Narine got into the act by slashing Khaleel Ahmed through the off-side for a boundary, before Salt joined in with two driven fours to take 15 runs off the third over.

Boundaries continued to flow for Narine as he smacked two sixes off Ishant – a length ball was lofted over mid-off and a short delivery pulled over deep square leg. He then guided the pacer through backward point for a boundary, carved drive over long-off for six and ended the over with a thick edge going for four to bring up KKR’s fifty at the end of fourth over.

Anrich Nortje made an immediate impact when Salt was caught at mid-off in the fifth over, but young Raghuvanshi pulled and punched off him to get two quick boundaries. Narine, who was lucky to survive on 24 when Rishabh Pant failed to take a review on a faint edge, hit Rasikh Salam for three fours and a six to complete a 21-ball fifty as KKR ended power-play at 88/1, going past 85/0 they made against RCB last week.

Post power-play, there was no respite for DC as Narine and Raghuvanshi continued to take runs aplenty against the bowlers. Narine nonchalantly hammered Axar Patel for two sixes, while Raghuvanshi was impressive in using wrists and fast bat-swing to smash boundaries, with a reverse-hit off Rasikh going over third man for six being the standout.

Narine moved to 80s with a flat-batted six over long-off against Nortje, also bringing up his 100-run stand with Raghuvanshi. But Mitchell Marsh took him out with a bouncer in the 13th over, which Narine looked to pull, but a faint nick went behind to Pant.

Raghuvanshi got his maiden IPL fifty off just 25 balls, but fell two balls later when he tried to ramp off Nortje and was caught at deep third man. Russell feasted on hit-me deliveries from Nortje and Salam to hit two fours and as many sixes before the second time-out.

Post interval, Russell smashed two sixes and a four, while captain Shreyas Iyer hammered two maximums, before getting a top-edge on a short ball from Khaleel to mid-on. Things went from bad to worse for DC as over-rate penalty was imposed for last two overs, allowing them to have only four fielders outside the 30-yard circle.

Rinku had some fun by using his strong bottom hand to smash Nortje for three sixes and a four, before toe-ending a slog to mid-on. Ishant produced a magical moment by having Russell floored with a menacing 144kmph inswinging yorker and had Ramandeep Singh caught at extra cover to keep KKR five short of breaking SRH’s record of 277.

The move of bringing Arora as an Impact Player paid off as he removed Prithvi Shaw, who was caught by mid-on taking an excellent low catch. Starc picked his first wicket of the season as Marsh nailed the square-drive, but hit straight to cover-point.

Arora was great in extracting movement off the pitch and was rewarded with his second wicket when Abishek Porel top-edged a pull to short fine leg. Starc also had his second scalp when David Warner chopped on to his stumps, leaving DC at 33/4.

Pant began to find his groove by flicking Starc for six, before bringing out a nice pick-up shot over deep square leg and pulling in the same region off Russell. Stubbs began with back-to-back fours off Arora and welcomed Chakaravarthy with a brace of sixes over mid-wicket and mid-on to bring up the fifty of the fifth-wicket stand with Pant.

Though spinners put brakes on DC’s scoring, Pant went berserk with his shot selection, power and usage of pace by taking 28 runs off part-timer Venkatesh Iyer. He brought out the trademark hook and pick-up shots for sixes, while flicking, slicing, whipping and slashing for four boundaries, including bringing up his fifty in 23 balls.

But Chakravarthy got the better of Pant when he mistimed his slog-sweep and gave a catch to cover, followed by the spinner taking out Axar Patel on the very next ball. Stubbs hit two sixes and a four to get his fifty, before being dismissed by Chakaravarthy. From there, Narine, Arora and Russell took the remaining three wickets each to seal a massive victory for KKR.

Brief Scores: Kolkata Knight Riders 272/7 in 20 overs (Sunil Narine 85, Angkrish Raghuvanshi 54; Anrich Nortje 3-59, Ishant Sharma 2-43) beat Delhi Capitals 166 in 17.2 overs (Rishabh Pant 55, Tristan Stubbs 54, Vaibhav Arora 3-27, Varun Chakaravarthy 3-33) by 106 runs

ALSO READ-Mayank Yadav’s 3-14 Dismantles RCB’s Hopes

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YSR family continues to dominate AP

If there is another leader after Telugu Desam Party (TDP) founder Nandamuri Tarakarama Rao who left a profound impact on Andhra Pradesh politics, it is Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, a report by Mohammed Shafeeq

The politics of Andhra Pradesh revolves around the families of two former chief ministers, who left behind strong political legacies.

If there is another leader after Telugu Desam Party (TDP) founder Nandamuri Tarakarama Rao who left a profound impact on Andhra Pradesh politics, it is Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy.

If legendary actor-turned-politician NTR altered the politics of combined Andhra Pradesh by floating TDP on the plank of Telugu self-respect in early 1980s, YSR emerged as one of the most popular leaders with his revolutionary welfare schemes for farmers and poor.

Such is the domination of these two families on the politics of residuary Andhra Pradesh that their members head four major parties, including the ruling and the main opposition.

While NTR’s family has been dominating Andhra politics for four decades, the family of YSR remains central to the state politics even 15 years after his death.

Yeduguri Sandinti Rajasekhara Reddy, popularly known as YSR, died in a helicopter crash on September 2, 2009, a few months after he led Congress party to power for a second consecutive term in combined Andhra Pradesh.

Popular for his pro-poor politics, YSR’s sudden death sent shock waves across. His son and Kadapa MP Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, who was keen to succeed his father as the chief minister, defied Congress leadership to undertake ‘Odarpu yatra’ to console families of those who died of shock following YSR’s death.

In November 2010, Jagan Mohan Reddy along with his mother Vijayamma quit Congress, resigned as MP and MLA respectively and floated a new party — Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP).

Jagan emerged as inheritor of YSR’s political legacy as he won Kadapa Lok Sabha seat in 2011 by-election with a majority of over 5.45 lakh votes. His mother too retained Pulivendula Assembly seat with a huge majority.

In May 2012, Jagan was arrested by the CBI in a disproportionate assets case and sent to jail a few weeks before by-elections.

Though Jagan was in jail, his mother and sister Y.S. Sharmila carried the party campaign and YSRCP emerged as a key force by capturing Nellore Lok Sabha seat and 15 out of 18 Assembly seats in the bypolls.

Bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014 and the public anger in the residuary state wiped out Congress, and YSRCP emerged as the alternative. Though the TDP-BJP alliance came to power in 2014, Jagan’s party became a formidable force and he sustained the party banking on his father’s rich political legacy.

The big moment arrived for Jagan in 2019 as YSRCP stormed to power with a landslide majority. However, cracks appeared in the family with Jagan sidelining his sister Sharmila, who had actively campaigned for the party in 2014 and 2019 polls.

In 2021, Sharmila embarked on a new political journey by floating YSR Telangana Party to cash in on YSR legacy in Telangana. Despite her statewide padyatra and best efforts, the party failed to establish itself. Though she was ready to merge her party with the Congress ahead of the 2023 Assembly polls, the Telangana Congress leadership was not keen and advised her to lead the party in Andhra Pradesh. Stating that defeating KCR is her priority, Sharmila decided to stay away from Telangana polls to avoid a split of anti-BRS votes.

After the Congress party’s victory, Sharmila had no option but to return to Andhra Pradesh politics by joining Congress. The Gandhi family, which cleared her misunderstanding and told her that they will continue to have huge respect for YSR, succeeded in convincing her to take up the responsibility of reviving Congress in Andhra Pradesh.

Sharmila is now claiming herself to be the real successor of YSR’s political legacy. “YSR has been with Congress for his entire life. His dream was to make Rahul Gandhi the Prime Minister. I will work to fulfil his dream,” she said while targeting her brother for mortgaging the state’s interests by becoming a tool in the hands of the BJP government at the Centre.

Sharmila is likely to enter the fray from the Kadapa Lok Sabha seat, where her cousin Y.S. Avinash Reddy is seeking re-election for a third consecutive term as the YSRCP candidate.

Kadapa Lok Sabha seat has been YSR family’s pocket borough for nearly four decades. YSR was elected from here in 1989, 1991, 1996 and 1998 and when he entered Assembly in 1999, YSR’s younger brother Y.S. Vivekananda Reddy was elected from Kadapa as a Congress candidate. In 2004, Vivekananda Reddy retained the seat.

After completing first term in power, YSR brought his young son into politics. The young businessman was elected to the Lok Sabha from Kadapa in 2009. However, within a few months the situation underwent a dramatic change with YSR’s tragic death.

Pulivendula, one of the Assembly segments under Kadapa Lok Sabha constituency, has been YSR family’s stronghold for 46 years.

YSR was first elected to the Assembly from here in 1978 and he won every election from here till he moved to the Lok Sabha in 1991. He returned to Pulivendula in 1999 to challenge the TDP government headed by Chandrababu Naidu. He finally succeeded in bringing Congress to power in 2004 after his famous ‘padayatra’ across the state.

YSR’s brothers Y.S. Purushotham Reddy and Vivekananda Reddy were elected from Pulivendula in 1991 and 1994 respectively.

YSR’s wife Vijayamma was elected unopposed in 2010 by-election following his death. She later won the seat in a by-election as YSRCP candidate.

Like his father, Jagan Mohan Reddy also became chief minister while representing Pulivendula.

It remains to be seen how the battle for YSR’s political legacy unfolds when Sharmila takes on Avinash Reddy in Kadapa.

As Avinash Reddy is named as an accused by the CBI in the murder of Vivekananda Reddy, Sharmila will also have the support of Vivekananda Reddy’s daughter Sunitha Reddy, who has been fighting for justice for five years and accusing Jagan of shielding the killers of her father.

Sharmila to take on cousin in Kadapa

Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee President Y. S. Sharmila Reddy will take on her cousin and sitting MP Y. S. Avinash Reddy in Kadapa constituency.

Sharmila, sister of Chief Minister and YSR Congress Party President Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, will make her electoral debut from Kadapa, which has been the stronghold of the YSR family for nearly four decades.

Sharmila’s name figures in the list of five Lok Sabha candidates announced by the Congress party on Tuesday for Andhra Pradesh.

The fight between cousins assumes significance in view of the allegations against Avinash Reddy in the murder of their uncle and former minister Y. S. Vivekananda Reddy.

Vivekananda Reddy’s daughter Sunitha Reddy, who has been fighting for justice for the last five years, has hailed Sharmila’s candidature. While thanking Sharmila for her support, Sunitha Reddy reiterated the allegation that Jagan Mohan Reddy knows who are the killers of her father but is still shielding them.

Sunitha Reddy said since it was her father’s wish that Sharmila contest the election from Kadapa, she welcomed her candidature. She has already appealed to people not to vote for killers and also for Jagan’s party which is protecting them.

Sunitha Reddy claimed on March 1 that the CBI investigations into her father’s murder has come to a standstill as there is pressure on the investigating agency.

Former minister and former MP, Vivekananda Reddy, younger brother of former Chief Minister late Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy (YSR), was murdered at his residence in Pulivendula town of Kadapa district on March 15, 2019, weeks before the elections. He was alone at his residence.

In April last year, the CBI arrested Vivekananda Reddy’s cousin Y. S. Bhaskar Reddy, father of YSRCP MP from Kadapa, Avinash Reddy.

The CBI claimed that both Avinash and Bhaskar Reddy conspired to eliminate Vivekananda Reddy because he was against fielding Avinash Reddy from Kadapa Lok Sabha seat and wanted Jagan Mohan Reddy to instead field his mother Vijayamma or sister Sharmila. However, the father-son duo denied the allegation.

Avinash Reddy was granted anticipatory bail by the Telangana High Court on May 31, 2023 but Sunitha has challenged the same in the Supreme Court.

Avinash Reddy was elected from Kadapa in 2014 and 2019 on YSRCP ticket and despite allegations against him, Jagan Mohan Reddy has again fielded him.

After joining Congress and taking over as the state party chief, Sharmila met Sunitha Reddy on January 29 and backed her fight.

Sharmila had last year said that Vivekananda Reddy was not murdered for his property as he had already written the entire property in the name of his daughter.

With Sunitha making serious allegations and Sharmila also backing her in her fight, Jagan Mohan Reddy while addressing an election rally in Kadapa district last week accused opposition parties of a role in the murder case and remarked that people should know who is behind the murder and shielding the culprits.

Jagan Mohan Reddy also stated that his sisters Sharmila and Sunitha are playing into the hands of his opponents.

YSR family has been representing Kadapa Lok Sabha since 1989 when YSR was first elected from here. He retained the seats in 1991, 1996 and 1998. When he moved to the Assembly in 1999, his brother Vivekananda Reddy was elected from Kadapa as the Congress candidate. Vivekananda Reddy retained the seat in 2004.

In 2009, YSR’s son Jagan Mohan Reddy made his electoral debut with a victory in the Kadapa Lok Sabha seat. After the death of his father and then Chief Minister YSR and subsequent developments in ruling Congress, he floated YSR Congress Party and retained the Kadapa seat with a record majority in 2011.

In 2014, Jagan started focusing on the Pulivendula Assembly seat, also a family stronghold and left the Kadapa Lok Sabha seat for cousin Avinash Reddy.

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Mayank Yadav’s 3-14 Dismantles RCB’s Hopes

Despite RCB’s Strong Batting Lineup, Mayank Yadav’s 3-14 Crushed Their Hopes…reports Asian Lite News

Young tearaway pacer Mayank Yadav (3-14) bowled a sensational spell that included the fastest delivery of this edition at 156.7kmph after opener Quinton de Kock (81) and Nicholas Pooran (40 not out) set the platform to help Lucknow Super Giants defeat Royal Challengers Bengaluru by 28 runs in Match 15 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) here on Tuesday.

Quinton de Kock had set the ball rolling for LSG after RCB skipper Faf du Plessis had asked them to bat first by hammering a 56-ball 81, raising two half-century partnerships with captain K.L Rahul (20) and Marcus Stoinis (24). However, RCB pulled things back a bit by applying brakes on LSG, who were looking good to cross 200. Nicholas Pooran blasted five sixes in the last two overs in scoring a 21-ball 40 as LSG posted 181/5 in 20 overs.

The target of 182 looked gettable considering RCB has batters like Virat Kohli, Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green besides one of the top finishers in Dinesh Karthik. However, Mayank Yadav had other ideas as he rattled RCB with sheer pace and destroyed their innings and confidence in a superb spell of three overs. He eventually finished with 3-14 to put LSG on course to victory.

The 21-year-old Yadav, who had taken 3-27 in his debut match against Punjab Kings on Saturday, had breached the 150kmph mark nine times at the BRSABV Ekana Cricket Stadium and bowled an absolute scorcher captured by the speed gun at 155.8 kph — the fastest delivery in the ongoing season.

On Tuesday, he was at it again as the right-handed pacer raised the bar once again. Yadav, a product of Sonnet Club of Delhi, touched 156.7 kmph against Cameron Green in Tuesday’s clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

He got the wickets of Glenn Maxwell (0), Cameron Green (9) and Rajat Patidar (29) and with Naveen-Ul-Haq claiming 2-25, Lucknow Super Giants bowled out RCB for 153 in 19.4 overs to win their second win in three matches and moved up to fourth in the standings with four points, the same as Kolkata Knight Riders, Chennai Super Kings, and Gujarat Titans. Rajasthan Royals lead the standings with six points from three matches. This was the 14th time in 16 matches that Lucknow have won the match after batting first in the IPL.

Yadav’s heroics came after opener Quinton de Kock had blasted a 59-ball 81 to lay the foundation while Nicholas Pooran hammered five sixes in the final two overs of the match in scoring a 21-ball 40 to propel LSG to 181/5 in 20 overs after RCB had applied the brakes in the middle overs.

RCB had got off a good start with Virat Kohli, who had struck back-to-back half-centuries in the tournament so far, striking two boundaries and a six in scoring a 16-ball 22. The former RCB and India captain fell to left-arm spinner Manimaran Siddharth in the fifth over as LSG skipper opened the bowling with left-arm spinners from both ends. Krunal Pandya conceded 10 runs in the only over he bowled but Siddharth finished with 1-21 in the three overs he bowled on Tuesday night.

LSG suffered another blow as skipper Faf du Plessis was run out to a superb piece of direct throw by Davdutt Padikkal for 19. Yadav then sent back Maxwell and Cameron Green in quick succession as RCB fell to 58/4 in the eighth over. Anuj Rawat (11) and Rajat Patidar (29, 21b, 2×4, 2×6) tried to revive the innings but both of them fell in quick succession and RCB were 103/6 and staring at defeat.

Mahipal Lomror raised their hopes with some lusty hitting, hammering three huge sixes and as many boundaries for a brilliant 13-ball 39 and towards the end of the innings Mohammed Siraj blasted back-to-back sixes off Ravi Bishnoi before he was caught sensationally by Nicholas Pooran off Naveen-Ul-Haq off the fourth ball of the final over as RCB ended on the losing note.

While Mayank Yadav hogged the limelight for his mesmerising pace bowling, LSG did well in the field too, catching and fielding superbly. Devdutt Padikkal took three catches and effected a run out while Nicholas Pooran also took three catches and got a run-out with a direct hit.

De Kock went berserk at the start of the innings, raising 53 runs for the opening wicket with skipper K.L Rahul (20) and 56 for the third wicket with Marcus Stoinis (24) after RCB skipper Faf du Plessis won the toss and opted to field first.

However, RCB pulled things back a bit, sending down some miserly overs towards the end of the innings before Nicholas Pooran hammered five sixes in the last two overs for 40 not out off 21 deliveries to help them to a defendable total. Glenn Maxwell was the best of the RCB bowlers with 2-23 off his four overs.

LSG were off to a good start, with Quinton de Kock and K.L Rahul raising 53 runs for the opening wicket partnership. De Kock started in whirlwind fashion hitting 32 runs in the fifty-run partnership. The South African wicketkeeper-batter hammered three boundaries off Reece Topley, who came in for fellow English pacer Alzarri Joseph, starting with a top-edge off the third delivery of the opening over and following that up with a loft over cover-point on a fullish delivery and a punch to deep backward point fence off the next delivery.

A drive to deep-point boundary off Yash Dayal in the second over by the left-handed opener was followed by back-to-back sixes off Mohammed Siraj — a superb pick-up off his pads into the first-tier followed by a blast over deep backward square leg on the next.

Quinton de Kock, who got a life when Maxwell put down a difficult chance while back-pedaling, found an able partner in Marcus Stoinis as they both raised 56 runs for the third-wicket partnership.

De Kock completed his half-century off 36 balls, hitting five boundaries and three maximums. LSG reached 100 off in the 12th over and they reached fifty off their partnership soon off 26 balls.

RCB applied the brakes with Yash Dayal bowling a two-run 15th over and Reece Topley and Mohd Siraj following that up with similar miserly overs, de Kock blasted Siraj for two boundaries in the 16th over to pull things back for LSG as they reached 141/3 in 16 overs.

With four overs to go and LSG looking to break free hoping to reach 200, Nicholas Pooran was dropped by keeper Anuj Rawat off Reece Topley but de Kock was not so lucky as he fell off the next ball, trying to hit a big one off a low and slow full-toss and Mayank Dagar pouched a well-judged catch at long-off to see the back of the South African for 81 off 56 balls, studded with eight boundaries and five maximums.

Pooran blasted a hat-trick of sixes off Topley — a flat six off a dipping full-toss, followed by a repeat of the shot over deep point and topped it by pulling a slow short one outside off and deposited into on the roof of the stadium for a 106m six. The over cost RCB 20 runs. Pooran hammered two back-to-back sixes off Siraj after the pacer had conceded only 1 run in three balls of the final over, as LSG crossed the 180-run mark.

LSG then defended the total easily with Mayank Yadav making all the difference for them.

Brief scores:

Lucknow Super Giants 181/5 in 20 overs (Quinton de Kock 81, Nicholas Pooran 40 not out; Glenn Maxwell 2-23) beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru 153 all out in 19.4 overs (Mahipal Lomror 33, Rajat Patidar 29; Mayank Yadav 3-14, Naveen-Ul-Haq 2-25) by 28 runs.

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RR Dominate MI with Parag’s Heroics

Parag struck five fours and three sixes and shared a 40-run partnership for the fourth wicket with Ravichandran Ashwin as Rajasthan Royals recovered from 48/3 to reach 127/4…reports Asian Lite News

Riyan Parag slammed back-to-back half-centuries as Rajasthan Royals hammered Mumbai Indians by six wickets with 27 balls to spare in Match 14 of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 at the Wankhede Stadium on Monday.

In a match dominated by the bowlers, Parag struck the lone fifty, his composed knock coming off 38 balls as he ended the match with a flurry of shots, two sixes and a four off Gerald Coetzee to seal the third victory for Rajasthan Royals, taking them to the top of the IPL table with six points.

Parag struck five fours and three sixes and shared a 40-run partnership for the fourth wicket with Ravichandran Ashwin as Rajasthan Royals recovered from 48/3 to reach 127/4. The victory was set up by their bowlers — Trent Boult (3-22) and Yuzvendra Chahal (3-11) as they helped them restrict Mumbai Indians to 125/9 in 20 overs. Nandre Burger claimed 2-32 to contribute to the RR cause after skipper Sanju Samson had won the toss and elected to field first on a pitch that provided seam movement initially but eased out in the second innings.

Yashasvi Jaiswal struck the 17-year-old South African pacer Kwena Maphaka to back-to-back boundaries off the fourth and fifth deliveries of the opening over, carving it squarely on the off over point from a full-length delivery and following it by clearing the infield on the leg-side when the pacer pitched it short.

But the young South African had his revenge on the next delivery, as a full-length delivery outside off shaped away and Jaiswal lobbed it straight to Tim David at cover. Maphaka claimed his first IPL wicket in his second match after going wicketless for 66 against SRH in Hyderabad. RR were 10/1.

Skipper Sanju Samson lashed a widish delivery from Maphaka through point for a boundary and then enjoyed the same result off the next delivery, as the bowler offered more width. But Samson was out soon, castled by Akash Madhwal as he chopped onto his stumps, attempting a cut without any foot movement.

And when Jos Buttler, who was troubled by Jasprit Bumrah despite being struck for a boundary, was out for 13, caught by Piyush Chawla as he pulled Akash Madhwal flat and straight to fine leg, Rajasthan Royals were in trouble at 48/3 in the 7th over.

However, a 40-run partnership off 35 balls for the fourth wicket between Riyan Parag and Ravichandran Ashwin propelled them ahead on course to victory. While Parag dropped anchor, Ashwin struck a run-a-ball 16, hitting a four as Rajasthan Royals remained on course. It was slow going as RR tried to consolidate their position. Madhwal got Ashwin for his third wicket, with a short one outside off and Ashwin attempted to turn it to leg and edged it to Tilak Varma.

Parag ramped Gerald Coetzee to the boundary and followed it up with another boundary off the next delivery. A boundary each off Coetzee and Bumrah helped him keep RR’s hopes alive. They reached 100/4 in the 14th over.

With 25 needed off 36 balls, Parag slogged Piyush Chawal over cow corner for his first six and in the next over carved Coetzee over cover for six and followed it up with a pull-over midwicket to complete his back-to-back fifties.

He sealed victory for Rajasthan Royals with a top-edge off a short one by Coetzee as the ball sailed over the keeper’s head to the boundary. Parag remained unbeaten on 54 as he helped Rajasthan Royals to their third victory in three matches. They also became the second team after KKR to win an away match in IPL 2024.

Brief scores:

Mumbai Indians 125/9 in 20 overs (Hardik Pandya 34, Tilak Varma 32; Yuzvendra Chahal 3-11, Trent Boult 3-22, Nandre Burger 2-32) lost to Rajasthan Royals 127/4 in 15.3 overs (Riyan Parag 54 not out; Akash Madhwal 3-20) by six wickets.

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Warner, Shaw Fireworks Propel Delhi Capitals to 191 against CSK

Shaw, who had started a bit slowly dealing in singles against Chahar and Tushar Deshpande…reports Asian Lite News

Veteran opener David Warner and skipper Rishabh Pant hammered quick-fire half-centuries and Prithvi Shaw blazed to a 27-ball 43 as Delhi Capitals managed to post 191/5 in 20 overs in Match 13 of the Indian Premier League at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium here on Sunday.

Warner raced to his half-century in 32 balls while Rishabh Pant did one better as he scored his first half-century of IPL 2024 in 31 balls as Delhi Capitals after a slow start, exploded into action. Prithvi Shaw slammed a hat-trick of boundaries off Mustafizur Rahman as he and Warner raised 93 runs for the opening wicket.

After they chose to bat first, Warner and Shaw scored 24 runs from the first four overs and then 51 from the next three as they gave DC their best start of the season. With Pant looking to capitalse on the foundation after both got out in quick succession, DC looked set to go past the 200-run mark.

However, Sri Lankan Matheesha Pathirana’s three-fer applied the brakes as the bowler with a Malinga-like slinging action yorked Mitchell Marsh and Tristian Stubbs in one superb over in which he touched 150.04 on the speed gun, hampered their progress.

Warner and Prithvi Shaw gave Delhi Capitals a brilliant start, their best of this IPL as they blazed to 62 runs in the Power-play they raised a 93-run partnership for the opening wicket on a pitch that looked good for batting.

Warner (52, 35bs, 5×4, 2×6) and Shaw (43, 27b, 4×4, 2×6) were opening for the first time this season with DC deciding to demote Mitchell Marsh from the opening slot and push him down into the middle-order. The move paid off as Warner and Shaw went after the bowling.

Warner ended the opening over by Deepak Chahar with a four, driving them through covers. An over later, he struck DC’s first six of the innings by planting into the stands a slightly slower delivery by Chahar. Warner went berserk in Chahar’s next over, hitting him for a six, flicked off the pads, and two boundaries to take 17 runs off the over.

Warner hammered Ravindra Jadeja for a four and six as he blazed to a half-century off 32 balls, hammering five boundaries and three sixes. The Aussie opener was dropped by Mustafizur Rahman off his own bowling as it fizzed past him but the Bangladesh pacer had the last laugh as he got the breakthrough for CSK. However, it was more of a Matheesha Pathirana wicket as he brilliantly caught a reverse scoop by Warner, jumping into air and pouching a one-handed catch.

Shaw, who had started a bit slowly dealing in singles against Chahar and Tushar Deshpande. He opened up in the fourth over, dispatching a fuller delivery outside off by his Mumbai teammate Tushar Deshpande past the vacant point region for a one-bounce four.

Shaw was at his best against Mustafizur Rahman in the sixth over, hitting the Bangladesh pacer for a hat-trick of boundaries, flicking one off his pads, using his wrists against a slower one, and then and a superb punch through covers for the third. He slog-swept Jadeja for a six and in the seventh over and then repeated the shot for a slightly more fuller delivery around off for his second six. But Jadeja had his revenge off the next delivery as he extracted an outside edge and Dhoni made no mistake.

Rishabh Pant and Mitchell Marsh took over the scoring but Sri Lankan pacer Matheesha Pathirana bowled a brilliant over to claim two wickets and applied the brakes on the DC scoring rate. He unleashed two superb yorkers, the second one touching 150kph on the speed gun as he uprooted the middle stump to account for Marsh (18) and Tristan Stubbs (0).

DC were left shell-shocked for a few overs before Pant went after Pathirana, hammering him for six and two boundaries. An attempted yorker from the Sri Lankan Malinga look-alike in action was launched over long-on. The next ball was sent to the long-on boundary and the next delivery sliced over the point region for a boundary as Pant completed his half-century in 31 balls.

He was out on the next ball, trying to hit a shot too many as Pant tried to hit Pathirana out of the ground but sliced and skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad caught a skier as DC eventually managed to reach 191/5.

Brief scores:

Delhi Capitals 191/5 in 20 overs (David Warner 52, Rishabh Pant 51, Prithvi Shaw 43; Matheesha Pathirana 3-31) against Chennai Super Kings.

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Ultimate Destination for Cricket Enthusiasts

Bhutan Cricket also collaborates with local tour operators to facilitate cricket matches in various picturesque locations across the Kingdom…reports Asian Lite News

Bhutan is now establishing itself as a premier destination for enthusiasts seeking a unique cricket experience. Bhutan provides a cricket experience like no other, with some of the world’s highest cricket grounds under their belt, and where the love for the sport intertwines with the tranquillity of its surroundings. The country’s cricket grounds boast stunning views that create an unforgettable atmosphere for both players and spectators.

Cricket is now considered one of the fastest-growing sports in Bhutan. Numerous efforts in terms of training, infrastructure & tournaments have spread throughout the country, penetrating even remote areas such as Merak and Sakteng in the far east of Bhutan. Now the Bhutan Cricket Association conducts many school tournaments and grassroots programmes for schools and coaching across the country. 

The emergence of cricket in Bhutan dates back to 1999 when televisions were first introduced in Bhutan, giving people the opportunity to watch the 1999 Cricket World Cup. Gradually, Bhutanese started to play in the stadiums and even played in various international tournaments. 

Bhutan Cricket has come a long way since its admission to the ICC in 2001. Today, there are seven active districts for cricket. The new Gelephu International Cricket Ground, which will soon be inaugurated, will become the first cricket ground in Bhutan that will meet international standards. So far, the Bhutan Cricket Association has trained 60,000 people in Bhutan from youth to senior age, across 18 dzongkhags (districts), including 1070 monks and 60 nuns.  

Bhutan Cricket also collaborates with local tour operators to facilitate cricket matches in various picturesque locations across the Kingdom. One of Bhutan’s primary venues, the Gelephu ground, situated in the southern part of Bhutan bordering India, offers a unique experience for clubs or teams from India seeking to play in Bhutan. Despite the hot weather, Gelephu ground provides a convenient and proper-sized playing field, making it an ideal choice. Additionally, cricket matches are offered in Thimphu and Punakha, each offering its charm and appeal. While the ground sizes may vary, the experience gained in these locations is bound to be mesmerizing. Particularly notable is the Punakha Ground, located near the majestic Dzong, enhancing its appeal and accessibility for cricket enthusiasts. Guests can have unforgettable cricket experiences amidst Bhutan’s breathtaking landscapes.

“On behalf of the Bhutan Cricket Family, I extend a warm invitation to all cricket enthusiasts worldwide to join us in experiencing the joy of cricket amidst the breathtaking backdrop of Bhutan’s natural beauty. Every stroke of the bat and every delivery you bowl will transform into a unique and unforgettable cricketing experience in the majestic Himalayan landscape. We wholeheartedly welcome you to be a part of the spirit of the game and immerse yourself in the serenity of Bhutan while relishing the thrill of cricket. Cricket-Happiness is a Game,” said Damber Gurung, the Chief Executive Officer of the Bhutan Cricket Council Board.

Gelephu International Cricket Ground is the first cricket ground in Bhutan that will meet international standards. Located at a comfortable five-minute drive away from the main town of Gelephu, the facility covers 6 acres of land and has two entrances. The playing field spanning 3.5 acres is equipped with 6 turf pitches for matches, net facilities (2 artificial pitches and 4 turf), washrooms (male/female) and natural seating for up to 2000 spectators. 

Jigmethang Cricket Ground in Thimphu is located in the north of Thimphu city. A leisurely walk of around five minutes, alongside the Raidak River will take you to this hidden gem. Sporting a synthetic wicket, the ground is 126.82 meters in length, 85.8 meters in breath and is any amateur cricketer’s paradise! Lush green pine trees, a breathtaking view of the mountains, the constant sound of flowing water, and the chirping birds will make for a unique setting for your cricketing experience. Furthermore, feel draped in Bhutan’s culture, sitting in a colourful Bhutanese tent as the pavilion! 

“Bhutan is not just a cricket destination; it’s an experience that combines the love for the game with the unmatched beauty of our country. We welcome cricket enthusiasts from around the world to enjoy the unique cricketing experience in Bhutan,” concluded Dorji Dhradhul, the Director General of the Department of Tourism.

To cater to the growing interest in cricket tourism, travel agencies in Bhutan are now offering specialized packages for cricket enthusiasts. These packages include the ground fee, match officials, equipment, lunch, refreshments, cricket opponent, first aid and even trophies.

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