Sports

Hitman for a reason: Rohit Sharma first player to hit 200 sixes in T20I

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Overall, Rohit has 203 sixes under his belt. His closest competitor is former New Zealand opener Martin Guptil with 173 sixes to his name

Published Date – 25 June 2024, 08:27 AM


Hitman for a reason: Rohit Sharma first player to hit 200 sixes in T20I

India’s captain Rohit Sharma plays a shot during the Super 8 Group 1 match against Australia in the ICC Mens T20 World Cup 2024, at Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, Gros Islet, in St Lucia. — Photo:ANI

Gros Islet: India skipper Rohit Sharma hammered the star-studded Australian bowling line-up and became the first player to hit 200 sixes in the T20I format.

After suffering a heartbreak in the ODI World Cup final at the hands of Australia last year, Rohit took revenge by taking the mantle of single-handedly driving India’s scoreboard.

A knock soothing to the eyes, Rohit struck eight towering maximums and became the first player to hit 200 maximums in the shortest format of cricket. Overall, Rohit has 203 sixes under his belt. His closest competitor is former New Zealand opener Martin Guptil with 173 sixes to his name.

After Kohli went back for a five-ball duck, Rohit went berserk in the third over and took on Australia’s ace, Mitchell Starc. On the first delivery, he launched the ball over the covers to set the tone. He effortlessly cleared the boundary on the second ball, leaving Starc clueless in the process.

On the third ball, he slammed the ball down the ground to pick up a four. He tonked the third six into the crowd over deep midwicket on a delivery that clocked 144kph.

Starc found a moment of reprieve after pulling off a dot ball on the fifth delivery. Starc and Australia’s woes increased after he bowled a wide on the final delivery. The left-arm pacer went for a yorker to finish off the over, but he couldn’t nail it and bowled a full toss. Rohit had a full swing at it and the ball sailed over third man for another six.

Starc eventually got his revenge by bowling a scorching yorker to dislodge the bails off the stumps. Rohit walked back with a score of 92 off a mere 41 deliveries. This is the highest score for Rohit in the history of the competition and the highest individual knock in the ongoing edition.

This was the second-highest individual score for India in the history of the T20 World Cup. 14 years ago on the same ground, Suresh Raina scored 101 against South Africa and still holds the record for the highest individual scores for India in the marquee event.

Overall as a captain, this was the second-highest individual score in the T20 World Cup. Former West Indies captain Chris Gayle holds the record with a knock of 98 that he notably pulled off against India in 2019 in Bridgetown.

Business

Demands for banning exit polls childish, says Axis My India chief-Telangana Today

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Pradeep Gupta open to probe on alleged stock market manipulation post 2024 Lok Sabha exit elections, says regulations for pollsters will help them do business in much better way

Updated On – 22 June 2024, 01:40 PM


Demands for banning exit polls childish, says Axis My India chief

Axis My India CMD Pradeep Gupta. Photo: PTI

New Delhi: Facing opposition fire for exit polls allegedly being used for stock market manipulation, Axis My India’s chief Pradeep Gupta has said he is open to facing all kinds of investigations and it would help do business in a much better way if the government frames specific regulations for pollsters.

Opposition parties and several civil society groups have been asking for thorough investigations, including by capital markets regulator SEBI and a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), after the stock markets witnessed a massive rally when exit polls gave a huge majority to the BJP but fell sharply after the actual results showed the ruling party falling short of a clear majority on its own.

In an interaction with PTI, Gupta said he has been demanding formulation of norms and regulations for pollsters since five years.

Gupta, the chairman and managing director of Axis My India that had predicted 361-401 seats for the BJP-led alliance as against the actual tally of 240 seats, also termed as “childish” the demands for banning exit polls, saying every single citizen and organisation wants to know the election results and banning exit polls would serve no purpose.

“We have no connection with stock market whatsoever but I am happy to know these allegations because our data and system is so foolproof that any probe will give me an opportunity to showcase all of that is used to predict exit polls to the world. In a way it is an opportunity for us, I support the demand as it will give us a chance to show our credentials,” he said.

Asked about whether he is open to a probe by a JPC or SEBI, the pollster said, “I am open to facing all kind of investigations.”

“As far as me deriving any benefit from stock market jump is concerned… Axis My India has no demat account. It is a limited company, not listed and till today not a single external investment is there in the company. There is no investment by promoters. My personal investment in stocks since April has been merely Rs 35,000. Where have I benefited?” he asserted.

The pollster also responded to allegations of Axis My India also conducting exit polls for foreign investors and sharing different results with them.

“We have never been approached by any FII, neither we have worked for any foreign investors, we have not conducted any exit poll survey for them ever,” Gupta, 55, said.

Terming the demands for banning exit polls as “childish”, Gupta said specific regulations for pollsters will not only help us do business better but also add more credibility to the exit polls.

He also said Axis My India’s 70 per cent clients are corporate clients including bigwigs like Bill Melinda Gates Foundation and denied any conflict of interest with exit polls.

“First they used to call exit polls unscientific, now they want exit polls to be banned. These are childish talks. Every single citizen and organisation wants to know the election results and banning exit polls would serve no purpose. Exit polls are not just to tell who is winning and losing, it also helps political parties analyse the result,” he said.

“As far as we are concerned, I mentioned 70 per cent of my clients are corporate clients. Even if they are banned, it won’t impact our business. I am with the law whatever is decided,” he added.

Questioned about whether the dent in image caused by 2024 poll results has also impacted his corporate clients, Gupta said, “They give us business for the work we do for them and not on basis of how rightly we predict election results”.

“Since the last five years, I am running from pillar to post seeking some regulations. When our people go on ground, they are seen with a suspicious mindset. We have to convince that we are not salespersons, we aren’t frauds and we are not sent by a political party. We are often asked who gave you permission? And we ask please tell where we need to take permission?”

“We wrote to the home ministry, we were guided to the law ministry that there is no law so first we need a law. From there we were referred to the information and broadcasting ministry that you get yourself registered there and set up a cell. We were told that you will publish a survey but who will monitor who is right and wrong … nothing has moved but I strongly believe that we need regulations,” he said.

Axis My India has been conducting exit polls since 2013 after Gupta returned from the Harvard Business School and claims a track record of predicting 61 out of 65 elections correctly.

Asked about why does Axis My India does not make a disclosure that some political parties are also its clients, Gupta said, “In the 2019 Haryana Assembly elections, BJP was one of our clients and in exit polls we predicted a hung assembly, which was bang on”.

“The prediction is even part of a Harvard Business School case study and includes a disclosure. Wherever, the client agrees we make a disclosure, there is nothing to hide,” Gupta added.

Hyderabad

Downpour lashes erstwhile Karimnagar, several low-lying areas inundated 

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Highest rainfall of 106.5 mm recorded in Metpalli of Jagtial district followed by Mallial with 105 mm

Updated On – 27 June 2024, 09:47 AM


Downpour lashes erstwhile Karimnagar, several low-lying areas inundated 

Representational photo

Karimnagar: Heavy rainfall was recorded in different parts of erstwhile Karimnagar district on Wednesday night.

The highest rainfall of 106.5 mm was recorded in Metpalli of Jagtial district followed by Mallial with 105 mm, Kandikatkur (Rajanna-Sircilla) at 99.8 mm, Karimnagar at 96.5 mm, Nustulapur at 90.5 mm and Edullagattepalli at 90.5 mm.

Almost all mandals in Karimnagar, Jagtial, Peddapalli and Rajanna-Sircilla districts received rainfall. Several low-lying areas were also inundated.

People faced difficulties as drainage water entered houses in a few areas in Karimnagar town.

World

Iran condemns coup attempt in Bolivia

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Nasser Kan’ani said the Islamic Republic of Iran denounces the coup against the bases of democracy Thursday.

Iran also censures aggression against the democratic bodies in Bolivia and the legitimate government of that country, Kanaani noted.

He went on to say that the Islamic Republic of Iran reiterates the restoration of order and law in Bolivia and the return of power to the Bolivian legitimate government.

Bolivian President Luis Arce stared down a short-lived attempted coup on Wednesday, after calling on the public to “organize and mobilize” in defense of democracy as soldiers and armored military vehicles withdrew from surrounding government buildings in La Paz.

Bolivian police have arrested the leader of an attempted coup.

MNA

Middle East

Haifa comes under fresh joint attack by Yemeni forces, Iraqi fighters

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Yemen’s Armed Forces and Iraq’s anti-terror fighters have carried out a fresh joint anti-Israeli operation, targeting the port of Haifa in the northern part of the occupied Palestinian territories.

The forces and Iraq’s Islamic Resistance, which is an umbrella group of anti-terror fighters, announced the operation in separate statements on Thursday.

The statement by forces said the attack had been carried out using “several cruise missiles.”

It identified the target in question as a “vital” spot at the port, and hailed that “the operation achieved its goal successfully.”

This is not the first time, when the port comes under such a joint operation.

The Armed Forces and the Iraqi fighters have been staging numerous anti-Israeli strikes, either separately or in cooperation with one another, since last October, when the Israeli regime began a genocidal war against the Gaza Strip.

At least 37,765 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have died as a result of the war that began following a retaliatory operation carried out by Gaza’s resistance groups.

The Iraqi Resistance’s anti-Israeli attacks have been mainly aimed at targets lying across the occupied territories.

The Yemeni forces have, however, expanded their strikes to include Israeli vessels and the vessels that head towards the ports of those territories.

Completing their statement, the Yemeni forces also said they had conducted another operation, targeting a ship, identified as “SEAJOY,” for sailing towards the occupied territories.

“The operation was carried out jointly by the drone air force, the missile force, and the naval forces, with a drone boat and several missiles and drones. The operation resulted in a direct and precise hit on the ship,” the statement noted.

It vowed that the forces would continue their operations in the Red and Arabian Seas as well as the Indian Ocean as long as the Israeli regime kept up the brutal military onslaught and a simultaneous siege that it has been enforcing against Gaza.

Sports

T20 WC: Afghanistan knock Australia out of tournament, enter historic semis

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Rashid Khan and Naveen-ul-Haq led the Afghan bowling attack and helped their side defend the given target of 115

Published Date – 25 June 2024, 11:26 AM


T20 WC: Afghanistan knock Australia out of tournament, enter historic semis

Afghanistan’s captain Rashid Khan, left, and teammate Gulbadin Naib celebrate after defeating Bangladesh by eight runs in their mens T20 World Cup cricket match at Arnos Vale Ground, Kingstown, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Monday. — AP

Kingstown: Afghanistan qualified for the semi-final of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024 after beating Bangladesh by eight runs in the Super Eights match at the Arnos Vale Ground on Tuesday.

Rashid Khan and Naveen-ul-Haq led the Afghan bowling attack and helped their side defend the given target of 115. The second inning of the match was reduced to 19 overs, and the target was 114 runs after Rain played a spoilsport in the second inning.

After the defeat, Mitchell Marsh-led Australia are also out of the tournament. The Aussies ended up in third place in the Group 1 table of the Super Eights with just two points. Litton Das (54* runs from 49 balls, 5 fours, and 1 six) was the only standout batter for the Tigers after his unbeaten knock.

Soumya Sarkar (10 runs from 10 balls, 1 four) and Towhid Hridoy (14 runs from 9 balls, 2 fours) tried their best to form a partnership with Litton, but they struggled to face the Afghan bowlers, who were ferocious while defending the target.

Naveen-ul-Haq and Rashid Khan picked up four wickets each in their respective spells. Fazalhaq Farooqi and Gulbadin Naib also bagged one wicket each in their respective spells and helped the Afghan side win the match by eight runs. Naveen removed Mustafizur Rahman from the crease in the fifth ball of the 18th over to end the match early.

Naveen-ul-Haq was named the ‘Player of the Match’ after he displayed a stupendous performance while defending the target given by Afghanistan. Recapping the first inning of the match, after winning the toss, Rashid Khan-led Afghanistan decided to bat first. However, their decision did not go in their favour as they struggled to add runs to the scoreboard.

Afghanistan had a great start to the match after openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz (43 runs from 55 balls, 3 fours and 1 six) and Ibrahim Zadran (18 runs from 29 balls, 1 four) played a 59-run partnership.

Rishad Hossain made the first breakthrough of the game after he removed Zadran in the 11th over. Azmatullah Omarzai (10 runs from 12 balls) tried his best to contribute to the game but failed to make a mark after Mustafizur Rahman dismissed him in the 16th over.

Even though Bangladesh failed to take quick wickets, they were successful in keeping a check on Afghanistan’s run rate in the first inning. Gurbaz’s knock came to an end in the first ball of the 17th over after Rishad Hossain bagged his wicket. The Afghan opener missed his half-century for just seven runs.

Gulbadin Naib (4 runs from 3 balls, 1 four) and Mohammad Nabi (1 run from 5 balls) did not contribute in the first inning for Afghanistan. In the end, skipper Rashid Khan (19* runs from 10 balls, 3 sixes) and Karim Janat (7 runs from 6 balls, 1 four) stayed on the crease and powered Afghanistan to 115/5 after the end of the 20 overs.

Rishad Hossain led the Bangladesh bowling attack after he picked up three wickets and gave 26 runs in his four-over spell. Mustafizur Rahman and Taskin Ahmed also bagged one wicket each in their respective spells.

Brief score: Afghanistan 115/5 (Rahmanullah Gurbaz 43, Rashid Khan 19*, Ibrahim Zadran 18; Rishad Hossain 3/26) beat Bangladesh 105 (Litton Das 54*, Towhid Hridoy 14, Soumya Sarkar 10; Rashid Khan 4/23).

Business

28 Indian startups raised over $800 million this week-Telangana Today

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Zepto raises $665 million at $3.6-billion valuation — one of the largest funding bagged by a company in recent times

Updated On – 22 June 2024, 02:26 PM


28 Indian startups raised over $800 million this week

Representational photo

New Delhi: About 28 Indian startups have raised $800.5 million in funding across 29 deals this week.

This represents an increase of 296 per cent from the $201.8 million secured by the startups last week across 21 deals, reports Inc42.

Quick commerce unicorn Zepto announced the close of its mega funding round this week. It raised $665 million at a valuation of $3.6 billion, making it one of the largest funding bagged by a company in recent times.

Among the top sectors, consumer services alone raised $665 million, fintech raised $50.3 million, alcoholic beverages raised $25 million, cleantech raised $23.9 million and enterprisetech raised $16.7 million.

Microlending platform Aye Finance raised Rs 250 crore ($30 million) this week in debt funding in a round led by FMO, the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank.

Craft beer maker Bira 91 has secured $25 million through ECB (External Commercial Borrowing) from its existing investor Kirin Holdings. Over the last three months, the firm has received $50 million in funding. In March, it raised $25 million from Tiger Pacific Capital.

Meanwhile, a new report by leading market intelligence platform Tracxn showed that Indian tech startups raised $4.1 billion in the first half this year (January to June), a 4 per cent increase from $3.96 billion in the second half of 2023.

Top News

Dominant India Storm Into T20 WC Final With 68-Run Drubbing Of England

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India flaunted their superabundance of talent in a display of absolute dominance to storm into the final of the T20 World Cup with a 68-run shellacking of England in their semi-final in Guyana on Thursday. Leading the charge once again was their inspirational skipper Rohit Sharma, who laid the foundation with an aggressive 57 off 39 balls, and the captain was well-supported by Suryakumar Yadav (47 off 36), as India posted 171 for seven after being asked to bat first in the rain-hit match.

In reply, England were bowled out for 103 in 16.4 overs as India set up a title clash with first-timers South Africa in Barbados on Saturday. This is India’s third entry into the final of the tournament.

Hardik Pandya chipped in with a 13-ball 23, striking two sixes at a crucial juncture to prop up India.

On a slow, holding pitch with low bounce, left-arm Axar Patel (3/23) helped India tightened their grip on the match with his brilliant bowling, while his slow-bowling colleague Kuldeep Yadav (3/19) caused the damage in the middle overs.

The Indian team thus exacted revenge for the crushing 10-wicket loss it endured against the defending champions in the 2022 semifinal of the mega-event at the Adelaide Oval.

In the process, Rohit became the first Indian captain to lead the country in three ICC global finals in a space of 12 months — 2023 World Test Championship, 2023 ODI World Cup and now the T20 World Cup.

Considering India’s all-round bowling attack and nature of the surface, Rohit’s men were expected to defend the total and they did that rather comfortably.

His decision to use Axar in the powerplay proved to be a masterstroke as the left-arm spinner struck twice in quick succession, from which England could not recover.

Wrist spinner Kuldeep also played his part to perfection on a pitch that suited the spinners all through the competition.

Jos Buttler (23 off 15), Harry Brook (25 off 19) and Jofra Archer (21 off 15) were the only England batters to reach double figures, summing up India’s dominance in the game. Both Buttler and Brook fell while attempting the reverse sweep against Axar and Kuldeep respectively.

“We adapted to the conditions really well. It was a challenge and we adapted. We played the conditions really well,” Rohit said after the match.

India, who are yet to lose a game in the tournament, will be hoping that their star batter Virat Kohli finds run in the all-important title clash. Kohli (9 off 9) perished early once again on Thursday, trying to force the pace.

The keenly awaited fixture was impacted by intermittent rain with the start of play being delayed by one hour and 15 minutes. Another long halt came when India were 65 for two in eight overs.

As many as 250 additional minutes were allotted to the game but there was no reserve day.

Soon after Kohli and Rohit came out to bat after England put the opposition in, it became clear the surface was on the slower side and low bounce made the task trickier for the batters.

While Kohli fell early, Rohit adapted to the conditions much better and decided to play the ball late and behind the stumps. One example of that was the guide over backward point off Archer in the second over when the ball went through Phil Salt’s hands to reach the boundary. Setting the benchmark for other batters, Rohit then collected back-to-back fours in Topley’s third over before applying pressure on England’s premier spinner Adil Rashid after India reached 46 for two in the powerplay.

Rishabh Pant (4) was the second batter to be dismissed as he mistimed a flick to be caught at midwicket off Sam Curran.

Then came the engrossing match-up between Rohit and Rashid where the Indian captain employed the reverse and conventional sweep to collect two fours from the leg-spinner’s opening over.

Suryakumar was batting on 13 alongside Rohit when rain returned at the Providence Stadium, forcing the game to be paused for more than an hour.

The weather played spoilsport two balls after Suryakumar got inside the line to pick Jordan over fine leg for a maximum.

England used the leg-spin of Rashid and Liam Livingstone from both ends after the forced break but they could not stifle Rohit and Suryakumar.

A full toss from Rashid was duly dispatched over short fine leg for four, the first of many boundaries that India accumulated in the middle overs.

The 13th over from Curran yielded 19 runs for India with Suryakumar smashing a couple of sixes and Rohit played a pick-up shot for a maximum that also brought up his second successive fifty.

The entertaining 73-run ended when Rohit was beaten by a googly from Rashid while attempting a slog.

Following Curran’s bumper 13th over, the next fours were quiet for India before Hardik Pandya (23 off 13) hit two flat sixes on either side of the pitch to push the innings forward.

Ravindra Jadeja (17 not out off 9), sent ahead of Shivam Dube, got two crucial fours off Archer in the penultimate over while the latter’s stay lasted only one ball.

Axar’s six off Jordan in the final over took India past 170. The team scored 53 runs in the last five overs. 

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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India

15 police officers and many civilians killed in Russia’s southern Dagestan region

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Gunmen opened fire on two Orthodox churches, a synagogue and a police post in two cities in Southern Russia

Published Date – 24 June 2024, 08:55 AM


15 police officers and many civilians killed in Russia’s southern Dagestan region

Russia Dagestan Attacks

 Moscow: More than 15 police officers and several civilians, including an Orthodox priest, were killed by armed militants in Russia’s southern republic of Dagestan on Sunday, its governor Sergei Melikov said in a video statement early Monday.

The gunmen opened fire on two Orthodox churches, a synagogue and a police post in two cities, according to the authorities.

Russia’s National Anti-Terrorist Committee described the attacks in the predominantly Muslim region with a history of armed insurgency as terrorist acts.Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday were declared days of mourning in the region.Dagestan’s Interior Ministry said a group of armed men shot at a synagogue and a church in the city of Derbent, located on the Caspian Sea.

Both the church and the synagogue caught fire, according to state media. Almost simultaneously, reports appeared about an attack on a church and a traffic police post in the Dagestan capital, Makhachkala. Authorities announced a counter-terrorist operation in the region.

The Anti-Terrorist Committee said five gunmen were “eliminated.” The governor said six “bandits” had been “liquidated.” The conflicting numbers couldn’t be immediately reconciled and it wasn’t clear how many militants were involved in the attacks. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks. The authorities launched a criminal investigation on the charge of a terrorist act. Russian state news agency Tass cited law enforcement sources as saying that a Dagestani official was detained over his sons’ involvement in the attacks.

Melikov said in the video statement that the situation in the region was under control of the law enforcement and local authorities, and vowed that the investigation of the attacks will continue until “all the sleeping cells” of the militants are uncovered. He claimed, without providing evidence, that the attacks might have been prepared from abroad, and referenced what the Kremlin calls “the special military operation” in Ukraine in an apparent attempt to link the attacks to it.

In March, gunmen opened fire on a crowd at a concert hall in suburban Moscow, killing 145 people. An affiliate of the Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack, but Russian officials also sought to link Ukraine to the attack without providing any evidence. Kyiv has vehemently denied any involvement.