Underdogs to winners: Australia finally break T20 World Cup duck

News Network
November 15, 2021

 

It took Australia seven attempts but under Aaron Finch they finally laid their hands on a maiden Twenty20 World Cup title on Sunday with an eight-wicket triumph over New Zealand.

The 20-overs trophy drought for one-day cricket's most successful team was an aberration for Finch, who had oozed confidence that Australia would be "rectifying" the wrong.

Mitchell Marsh and David Warner combined for a 92-run stand to trump New Zealand captain Kane Williamson's side after his masterly knock had taken them to a competitive total.

Williamson capitalised on an early reprieve to fire his team to 172-4 which they failed to defend in the end.

It was a stunning turnaround for an Australia team which had lost five T20 series on the trot heading into the World Cup.

They came into their own only in the semi-finals when they stunned former champions Pakistan, the tournament's only unbeaten team until then.

Awaiting them in the final were reigning test champions New Zealand, easily the game's best cross-format side, who have made a habit of reaching the finals of global events.

Six years after beating New Zealand to win a fifth ODI World Cup, Australia lifted their first men's 20-overs world title.

Fireworks lit up the sky to celebrate the success of a team which had been written off after their wretched build-up.

Before that, Warner and Marsh had treated the crowd at the Dubai International Stadium with their batting pyrotechnics.

Warner's best

Warner's own performance reflected his team's extraordinary journey in the tournament.

His place in the side was debated after his Indian Premier League franchise dropped the left-hander from their squad.

Warner struggled in the warm-up matches but regained his mojo and strung together scores of 89 not out, 49 and 53 in their last three matches.

He walked away with the man-of-the-tournament and Finch was not surprised.

"You didn't expect that? I certainly did," the Australia captain told reporters.

"He's someone who when his back is against the wall, that's when you get the very, very best of David Warner."

Marsh was adjudged man-of-the match for his unbeaten 77 not out off 50 balls, which trumped Williamson's 85 off 48 balls.

Thirty four years after his father Geoff helped Australia win their maiden ODI World Cup, Marsh played a key role in helping his country win their first 20-overs world crown.

For New Zealand, who finished runners-up to England in the 2019 ODI World Cup, it was yet another white-ball heartbreak.

Graceful as ever, the 31-year-old Williamson was fulsome in his praise for Australia while proud of his team's display.

"If you look at the campaign as a whole, and the type of cricket that we have been able to play, I can say that we are very proud of our efforts throughout this period of time.

"You get to a final and anything can happen," he added. 

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News Network
November 15,2024

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Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has killed or captured 69 terrorists linked to the Israeli spy agency Mossad during a major counterterrorism drill in the country's southeast, its spokesman says.  

General Ahmad Shafaei, the spokesman for the “Martyrs of Security” drill, said Friday that a total of 23 terrorists have been killed and another 46 arrested in various clean-up operations ever since the IRGC Ground Force launched it in the Sistan and Baluchestan province on November 1.

Seven terrorists have also turned themselves in during the period.

“The undeniable fact about terrorists is that they rely on arrogant powers, particularly the intelligence service of the wicked and vicious Zionist regime," Shafaei said.

“Unfortunately, weapons and munitions at terrorists’ disposal are among the most sophisticated ones in the world. This accounts for their heavy dependence.” 

The official stated that several members of the disbanded terror teams were non-Iranian nationals, who had been hired by foreign intelligence agencies to carry out acts of sabotage and terror inside Iran.

In a most recent operation, six terrorists were arrested and four others were eliminated, three of whom were non-Iranians, he added. 

On October 26, ten members of Iran's law enforcement forces were killed in a terrorist attack in the Gohar Kuh district of Taftan in the Sistan and Baluchestan province.

The so-called Jaish al-Adl terrorist group claimed responsibility for the assault, which was one of the deadliest in the province in recent months.

The group has carried out numerous terrorist attacks in Iran, primarily in Sistan and Baluchestan.

Its tactics include the abduction of border guards as well as targeting civilians and police stations within the province to incite chaos and disorder.

In January, Iran launched a military operation during which the headquarters of the Pakistan-based terrorist group was targeted in missile strikes, destroying its infrastructure.

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News Network
November 10,2024

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Mangaluru: A tragic accident took place on Saturday at Chembugudde near Thokkottu, claiming the life of a 47-year-old woman after a tanker lorry ran over her. The victim, identified as Rahmat H Rashid, was riding pillion with her husband, Abdul Rashid G, on their scooter. 

The couple was traveling from Yenepoya Hospital to Bajpe when the scooter skidded on the poorly maintained road. Rahmat fell onto the road and was fatally struck by a tanker lorry that was coming from behind. Despite being rushed to the hospital, doctors declared her dead upon arrival.

The incident prompted a swift response from the DYFI Ullal Taluk Committee, which staged a protest on Saturday night, condemning the unsafe condition of the road. Nithin Kuthar, president of the committee, criticized MLA and Legislative Assembly Speaker UT Khader for failing to ensure safe infrastructure, despite touting the road as toll-free. 

Kuthar demanded immediate repairs, warning that the committee would march to the MLA’s office with black flags if the road is not fixed within a week.

Former DYFI State President Sunil Kumar Bajal also voiced frustration over the deteriorating condition of Thokkottu market, highlighting the struggles people face while crossing roads riddled with dangerous potholes. In response to public outcry, temporary repairs were made to the road at Chembugudde on Sunday, though locals remain wary and demand a more permanent solution. 

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News Network
November 12,2024

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The Palestinian Hamas resistance movement says its fighters have killed at least 20 Israeli soldiers in northern parts of the besieged Gaza Strip in just two days, in retaliation for the occupying regime’s genocidal war on the Palestinian territory.

In a statement on Monday evening, Hamas said that fighters of its military wing, al-Qassam Brigades, “killed at least five occupation soldiers” in northern parts of the coastal territory earlier in the day.

It added that Hamas fighters also killed 15 Israeli soldiers in the war-ravaged region on Sunday.

The resistance movement’s “qualitative operation … confirms once again the failure of the criminal Zionist entity to suppress and eradicate the Palestinian resistance, which continues to direct qualitative strikes against its terrorist soldiers,” Hamas further said on its Telegram channel.

Palestinians have increased their resistance operations in the face of intensified Israeli aggression in northern Gaza that has claimed the lives of more than 1,000 over the past weeks.

“Our valiant resistance is waging a war of attrition with the criminal enemy, inflicting daily losses on its soldiers and vehicles, and all of [Israeli prime minister Benjamin] Netanyahu’s bets and dreams of achieving any of his goals are failing,” the Gaza-based resistance movement added.

Hamas also vowed that Israel’s ongoing crimes and aggression against Gaza would be met with increased resistance and painful strikes, which will continue until the aggression against Palestinians ends and the regime fully withdraws from the blockaded territory.

As the war in Gaza enters its 14th month, the Health Ministry reports that Israeli attacks have killed at least 43,603 Palestinians and wounded 102,929 others.

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