Time to remove Virat Kohli from RCB captaincy, feels Gautam Gambhir

Agencies
November 7, 2020

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New Delhi, Nov 7: Former India opener and two-time IPL champion skipper Gautam Gambhir feels Virat Kohli's non-performance as Royal Challengers Bangalore captain should lead to his removal from the hot seat as it is now a question of accountability.

Known for his straight-talking, the hero of India's two World title triumphs made it clear that Kohli's name as a leader shouldn't be taken alongside the likes of Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Rohit Sharma, who are IPL's most successful captains.

Asked if Kohli should be removed from RCB's captaincy, Gambhir told 'ESPNCricinfo', "100 per cent, because the problem is about accountability. Eight years into the tournament (without a trophy), eight years is a long time.

"Tell me any other captain…forget about captain, tell me any other player who would have got eight years and wouldn't have won the title and would have still continued with it.

"So it has to be accountability," Gambhir, who led KKR to two IPL titles in 2012 and 2014, said on the show 'Time Out'.

Gambhir has been a staunch critic of Kohli's IPL leadership over the years but he insisted that there is nothing personal.

"...but somewhere down the line, he needs to put his hand up and say, 'yes, I am responsible. I am accountable'."

Gambhir then cited the example of Kings XI Punjab, who didn't show patience with Ravichandran Ashwin after the veteran off-spinner failed to deliver as captain for just two seasons.

"Eight years is a long, long time. Look at what happened to R Ashwin. Two years of captaincy (for the Kings XI Punjab), he couldn't deliver and he was removed."

For someone like Rohit, who is on the cusp of his fifth title, a long stint as Mumbai Indians captain has been only possible because he has delivered, said Gambhir.

"We talk about MS Dhoni, we talk about Rohit Sharma, we talk about Virat Kohli...not at all. Dhoni has won three (IPL) titles, Rohit Sharma has won four titles, and that's the reason they've captained for such a long time because they've delivered.

"I'm sure if Rohit Sharma wouldn't have delivered for eight years, he would have been removed as well. There should not be different yardsticks for different people."

Gambhir said it irksome to see Kohli's reluctance to accept that the buck stops at him.

"You're the leader, you're the captain. When you get the credit, you should take the criticism as well."

He even went to the extent of saying that RCB did not deserve to qualify for the play-offs after four successive losses.

"You can keep saying 'we qualified for the playoffs and we deserved to qualify for the playoffs', absolutely not. RCB actually never deserved to qualify for the playoffs."

Gambhir said RCB has increasingly become a side about only two people -- Kohli and AB de Villiers.

"And then they should have had a squad, probably if Virat wanted to open, they should have picked a middle-order batter in the auction. But again it was all about Virat and AB (de Villiers)."

It was only de Villiers who came up some match-winning performances to prevent RCB's season from becoming a total disaster.

"Imagine if AB would have had a bad season, tell me what would have happened to RCB," Gambhir said.

"He was the one who actually won them two or three games out of seven. I don't think as a unit they've done anything different from what they did last year. It's exactly the same this year as well.

"Only because you've qualified for the playoffs, just because of one individual's absolute brilliance, it doesn't make you a strong contender to win the IPL."

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News Network
November 11,2024

Udupi, Nov 11: A traveller reportedly lost ₹4.1 lakh after attempting to book a cab online in Udupi. 

At around 1:30 PM on November 7, the man from West Bengal searched for car rentals on Google and selected a website named "Shakti Car Rentals." Shortly after, he was contacted by someone claiming to be "Rohit Sharma," who directed him to pay a registration fee of ₹150 on the site.

After unsuccessful payment attempts via both his Canara Bank debit card and SBI credit card (without receiving an OTP), "Rohit Sharma" instructed him to pay the driver directly. But at 1:47 PM, he received messages showing deductions of ₹3.3 lakh from his SBI credit card and ₹80,056 from his Canara Bank debit card, totaling ₹4.1 lakh.

The complainant alleges fraud through a deceptive link disguised as a booking token fee. A case has been registered at Udupi Town Police Station.

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News Network
November 11,2024

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Udupi, Nov 11: The Karkala town police in Udupi have arrested Krishna Naik, the sculptor responsible for installing a 33-foot Parashurama statue at Umikkal Hill in Bailur, Karkala taluk. 

Naik, the owner of Krish Art World and a resident of Bengaluru's Visvesvaraya Layout, was apprehended in Mahe, part of the Union Territory of Puducherry, for allegedly substituting a look-alike statue in place of a genuine bronze figure at the Parashurama Theme Park in Karkala.

Udupi Superintendent of Police Dr. Arun K confirmed the arrest, stating that Naik faces charges under Sections 420 (cheating) and 409 (criminal breach of trust) of the Indian Penal Code. 

This legal action followed a complaint lodged in June by Krishna Shetty, a resident of Nallur village, Karkala. Shetty claimed that Naik had received a payment of ₹1,25,50,000 from Udupi Nirmithi Kendra for the installation of a bronze Parashurama statue. However, Naik allegedly deceived the government by installing a replica instead.

The statue was unveiled on January 27, 2023, by then Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai. Current Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has since ordered a CID investigation to probe deeper into the alleged fraud surrounding the statue's installation at the theme park.

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coastaldigest.com news network
November 5,2024

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Several videos have been circulating across social media platforms, claiming that football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is shown reading the Quran in a mosque. Several posts have gone further to claim that Ronaldo and his wife have converted to Islam. The videos have attracted millions of views and sparked widespread speculation. 

Is Ronaldo Reciting the Quran?

One such video shows a man reading from the Quran, with captions like "Cristiano Ronaldo Reciting Quran." Several posts, especially on TikTok and Facebook, claim that Ronaldo has not only read the Quran but has also embraced Islam along with his wife, Georgina Rodríguez. One of these TikTok posts amassed 1.7 million likes and over 58,000 shares, adding to the viral momentum of this claim.

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Ronaldo Lookalike from Iraq

Contrary to these claims, the man in the video is not Cristiano Ronaldo. The individual is Bewar Abdullah, a well-known Ronaldo lookalike originally from Iraq, who now resides in Birmingham, U.K. Abdullah has gained fame for his striking resemblance to Ronaldo and regularly posts content online imitating the footballer.

The Reality

The viral video was initially posted by Bewar Abdullah on his TikTok account (@bewarabdullah) on July 20, 2021, with the caption "Eat Mubarek🕌 (sic)." Abdullah has a large following of 1.7 million people.

Abdullah is frequently mistaken for Ronaldo due to his resemblance, and his name appears at the end of the viral video, confirming his identity.

Abdullah’s online popularity stems from his likeness to Ronaldo, and he regularly receives invitations to events and appearances due to this.

Apart from the video, there are also widespread claims that Ronaldo and his wife have converted to Islam. However, there is no credible evidence to support this. These rumors appear to have emerged from the same viral content surrounding Ronaldo’s lookalike, without any basis in fact.

Why the Confusion?

The confusion arises from Abdullah’s close resemblance to Ronaldo and the viral nature of social media posts that often mislead viewers. The presence of Ronaldo-related hashtags and captions like "#Ronaldo #CristianoRonaldo #CR7 #SaudiArabia" further fueled the speculation, making it seem more believable to the football star's global fanbase.

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