Kohli comeback, Sri Lanka surprise…: 5 talking points from 6-nation Asia Cup

News Network
September 12, 2022

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Dasun Shanaka's Sri Lanka beat Pakistan by 23 runs in Dubai on Sunday to clinch their sixth Asia Cup. Here we look at five things learned from the six-nation tournament, which was a precursor for next month's T20 World Cup in Australia.

Pundits gave Sri Lanka little chance of making the Super Four after an embarrassingly one-sided opening defeat against Afghanistan, but five successive wins took them to Asia Cup glory.

Sri Lanka beat favourites India in the Super Four and then got past Pakistan twice to give the young team confidence going into the T20 World Cup in Australia, where they will have to progress through a qualifying round.

But Bhanuka Rajapaksa, who hit an unbeaten 71 in the final, said he believed a rejuvenated Sri Lanka could ride the momentum of their Asia Cup triumph and go all the way in the T20 showpiece.

Pakistan's bowling attack was without the injured pace spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi but another Shah, teenager Naseem, rose to the occasion.

The 19-year-old's express pace saw him take seven wickets in five matches and he was also a match-winner with the bat -- his two last-over sixes in the thrilling win over Afghanistan took his team into the final.

Shah signed off the Asia Cup in typical fashion by taking a wicket in the first over in Sunday's final, spectacularly uprooting Kusal Mendis's off stump after Pakistan captain Babar Azam had won the toss and opted to bowl.

Virat Kohli was dropped on nought by Pakistan's Fakhar Zaman from the second ball he faced in the Asia Cup and the former India captain took full advantage of the reprieve.

Kohli went on to score 276 tournament runs at an average of 92, with his 122 not out against Afghanistan becoming his first century for India in any format since November 2019. It was also his first three-figure score in a Twenty20 international.

Kohli's extended batting slump had become a major talking point, but after taking a month's break from cricket before the Asia Cup he returned refreshed to silence the chatter.

Kohil struck two fifties as well in his five tournament innings and his Asia Cup total was only surpassed by Pakistan's Mohammad Rizwan, whose 55 in the final nudged him in front with 281 runs from six matches.

Mohammad Nabi's team showed their white-ball credentials by bundling out eventual champions Sri Lanka for 105 in the opening match, which Afghanistan won by eight wickets with nearly 10 overs to spare.

Afghanistan then hammered Bangladesh and in the Super Four gave Pakistan a mighty scare before going down by one wicket in the final over of an ill-tempered clash.

Most of the team learnt their cricket in refugee camps in Pakistan and they have made giant strides since getting Test status in 2017.

Nabi predicted they will "come back stronger" for the T20 World Cup where Afghanistan will be looking to upset the established cricket powers.

All-rounder Shakib Al Hasan returned as captain after he bowed to a Bangladesh Cricket Board ultimatum to scrap a deal with a betting site.

But his presence made little difference to Bangladesh's woeful T20 record as they failed to make it to the Super Four after losing group matches to Afghanistan and Sri Lanka.

Shakib returned figures of 1-13 with his left-arm spin against Afghanistan and then made 24 in the Sri Lanka defeat, Bangladesh's 15th T20 loss in their last matches, but insisted his team had a "plan in place" to improve. 
 

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News Network
November 12,2024

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The UN humanitarian coordinator for Lebanon has warned that the “picture of life in Lebanon remains grim,” highlighting an "alarming" level of human suffering and significant humanitarian consequences due to the ongoing Israeli carnage.

Imran Riza, the UN Deputy Special Coordinator and Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon (UNSCOL), provided a stark overview of the Arab country's dire circumstances in a statement released on Monday.

“The current picture of life in Lebanon remains grim. Yesterday, airstrikes reportedly killed 23 people, including seven children, in the village of Aalmat in Mount Lebanon,” Riza said on X.

An airstrike in the city of Tyre on the same day resulted in the tragic deaths of five siblings from a single family, all of whom had special needs, according to his statement.

He added that in the last week, Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 241 individuals and left 642 others injured in Lebanon, as reported by the Ministry of Health.

“In the past month, more than 185,000 people have fled their homes in their search for safety within the country, bringing the total to over 870,000 people internally displaced,” Riza said

The UN official highlighted that numerous individuals, including the elderly and those with health issues, are staying behind while witnessing the ruins of their ancestral homes.

He urged for the swift safeguarding of civilian people and infrastructure, emphasizing the necessity to uphold international humanitarian law and end the ongoing violence.

Lebanon’s National News Agency reported that Israeli forces bombed a house in the town of Maydoun in Bekaa on Monday night, killing three people and destroying the house.

Earlier, Israel bombed the northern town of Ain Yaaqoub, killing at least 14 people.

The killings came as Israeli military continued to pound Lebanon, bombing shops selling electrical appliances in the southern city of Tyre and carrying out air raids on the towns of Shamshtar in eastern Baalbek and Roumine in southern Nabatieh.

Lebanon’s Ministry of Health said Israeli attacks killed at least 54 people across the country on Monday.

Israel’s merciless attacks continue despite calls from the UN Security Council for an immediate ceasefire and directives from the International Court of Justice urging measures to prevent genocide and alleviate the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza and Lebanon.

In Lebanon, at least 3,243 people have been killed and 14,134 others wounded in Israeli attacks since the war on Gaza began on October 7, 2023.

The Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah opened a support front for Palestinians in Gaza only a day after the Israeli regime unleashed its genocidal war on the besieged territory.

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News Network
November 21,2024

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Hamas says the Israeli regime’s sole objective lies in “erasing” the entirety of the Palestinian population from across the Palestinian territories.

Khalil al-Hayya, a ranking official with the Gaza Strip-based Palestinian resistance movement, made the remarks to the Palestinian al-Aqsa TV on Wednesday.

“The occupation targets everyone—it strikes hospitals, civil defense, women, children, and the elderly,” he said, adding that the regime sought to “empty Gaza of its residents, and displace the Palestinian people to fulfill its dreams of building a Zionist Jewish state across all of Palestine.”

The remarks came amid the regime’s October 2023-present war of genocide on the coastal sliver that has so far claimed the lives of nearly 44,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

“This unprecedented aggression in modern times evokes scenes from the dark ages of human history, having crossed all red lines and exceeded every expectation of brutality in the modern era,” the Palestinian official lamented.

He also regretted that the regime had added “systematic and dangerous starvation to its aggression, falsely claiming before the world that it allows 250 [aid] trucks into Gaza daily. In reality, the number of trucks is far fewer.”

Hayya, meanwhile, regretted that “scenes of children torn apart, women screaming over their children, and heart-wrenching destruction have failed to stir enough humanity to stop these crimes.”

He decried the United States for vetoing the United Nations Security Council’s resolutions that are aimed at bringing about a potential ceasefire in the war, saying this indicated Washington’s “partnership in the aggression” and a simultaneous siege that the Israeli regime has been enforcing on Gaza.

Addressing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the official asserted that, despite what the Israeli official is after, Hamas would not hand over the regime’s captives “without [the regime’s] stopping the war.”

He called Netanyahu “the main obstacle” in the way of cessation of the aggression, saying the Israeli premier “blocks any progress for political reasons,” and citing his preventing conclusion of a ceasefire agreement in July.

Hayya also warned that the regime sought to expand the war beyond Gaza, but asserted that its goals are “impossible and will never happen.”

“Today, the enemy exposes its true intentions of extermination and displacement, but it will fail,” he stressed.

“The Palestinian people are resilient and will not surrender, as they believe in their humanitarian and political cause. The enemy and its allies will not succeed in achieving their goals. This steadfast people will endure, and the occupation will not prevail against them.”

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News Network
November 18,2024

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Mangaluru: The Ullal police have arrested Manohar, the owner of Vazco Beach Resort, and its manager Bharath in connection with the drowning of three college girls from Mysuru at the resort’s swimming pool on November 17.

City Commissioner of Police Anupam Agrawal confirmed the arrests, stating that a case has been registered under Section 106 of BNS. The bodies of the victims, all in their twenties, have been handed over to their parents. The women had arrived at the resort for a weekend getaway on November 16.

Following the tragic incident, the resort was sealed by officials led by Mangaluru Assistant Commissioner Harshavardhan. The trade license of the resort, issued on June 13, 2024, has been suspended, and the tourism department has temporarily revoked the resort's registration. These actions prohibit the resort from engaging in any tourism-related activities until further notice.

Someshwara TMC Chief Officer stated that the suspension was due to the resort's failure to implement adequate safety measures, which resulted in the loss of three lives. Further investigations are underway.

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