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IPL: Gayle dropped, RCB fans shocked

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chris_gayle

Bengaluru: Hundreds of die-hard fans of Chris Gayle, the dashing opener of host team Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), were shocked to learn that their hero would not play against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Wednesday night in the IPL-8 tie at the Chinnaswamy stadium here.

When the team for the game was announced after the toss and the names were displayed on the giant screen, omission of the West Indian southpaw was received with disbelief, as it meant fans would miss his mighty sixes and fours on the home turf.

“I can’t believe Gayle is not playing this time. It’s true he has not been in good form and didn’t score much in the last two games against Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad. But he was a match-winner in the first game this season against Kolkata Knight Riders on April 11 in Kolkata where he scored a scintillating 96 off 56 balls with seven sixes and seven fours,” M.N. Shastri, a government official, told IANS.

The Jamaican made 10 in 24 balls against Mumbai on April 19, without a six or a four, and 21 in 16 balls against Sunrisers on April 13 with three fours and one six.

Though the team also dropped bowlers Abu Nechim and Varun Aaron from the final 11, no explanation was given by the team management about dropping Gayle for the first time in a home game.

Interestingly, many fans have started rooting for AB de Villiers, who played a cameo innings against Mumbai, hitting 41 in just 11 balls with three sixes and five fours and led his South African team to semi-finals in the recent World Cup series in New Zealand.

Making three changes in the team, RCB brought in Sarfaraz Khan, Harshal Patel and Aussie speedster Mitchell Starc, who was Man of the Tournament in the World Cup for his record 22 wickets at an average of 10.18 runs.

(IANS)

Asked him to field carefully after Keshri incident: Injured cricketer Rahul Ghosh's mother

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Rahul Ghosh, 19, complained of nausea after being hit on the head by a ball while fielding for Kolkata Police against local side Vijay Sporting Club during a game in Salt Lake in Kolkata. (Photo via Facebook)

Rahul Ghosh, 19, complained of nausea after being hit on the head by a ball while fielding for Kolkata Police against local side Vijay Sporting Club during a game in Salt Lake in Kolkata. (Photo via Facebook)

Injured Bengal cricketer Rahul Ghosh’s mother said on Tuesday she had asked her son to “field carefully” while playing following the tragic death of former Bengal Under-19 captain Ankit Keshri on Monday.

Ghosh was hospitalised here with a head injury sustained while fielding during a local league game on Tuesday.

“I had asked him to field carefully”, an inconsolable Sharmila Ghosh said.

Rahul, nearing 20 years of age, picked up the injury a day after the death of Keshri due to a fielding collision.

The injured cricketer’s father, Amitava, said he was “conscious” post being admitted to a private hospital here and was undergoing a series of tests to ascertain the extent of his injury on the left side of the head.

The picture at the hospital entrance was gloomy as his tense parents and concerned family members waited agonisingly for more updates.

“I didn’t have a good feeling about his going out to play today. I called him up before the match and told him to field carefully. Why did he go to play today despite what happened to the other cricketer yesterday,” questioned Ghosh’s mother.

An attending doctor said he is in a “stable” condition but the words hardly offered any relief to the family, particularly in the wake of Keshri’s death.

Keshri, a former Bengal Under-19 cricket captain, died at the same private city hospital on Monday following the head injury he picked up in a collision with a fellow fielder Sourav Mondal while taking a catch during a local knockout tournament Friday last.

His tragic fate invoked the memories of the unfortunate death of Australian cricketer Phillip Hughes who was fatally hit by a bouncer during a domestic match on November 25 last year, and died from the injuries two days later.

(IANS)

Misery for Pakistan as Bangladesh seal historic series win

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Tamim Iqbal reacts after scoring his second consecutive century against Pakistan. — AFP

Tamim Iqbal reacts after scoring his second consecutive century against Pakistan. — AFP

Dhaka: Tamim Iqbal smashed a second consecutive century to steer Bangladesh to their first ever one-day series win over Pakistan with a seven-wicket victory in the second match in Dhaka on Sunday.

The left-handed opener hit an unbeaten run-a-ball 116 as the hosts, chasing Pakistan’s 239 for six, cruised home in the 39th over to take an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.

The new-look Pakistan, with just four World Cuppers in their ranks and led for the first time in a series by Azhar Ali, needed a massive improvement after their 79-run defeat in Friday’s opening match.

But a top-order collapse pushed them in a corner and left the tourists seeking a consolation win in the third and final match at the same Sher-e-Bangla stadium in Dhaka on Wednesday.

Saad Nasim and Wahab Riaz hit unbeaten half-centuries to lift Pakistan to a seemingly competitive score after they were reduced to 77-5 by the 22nd over of the day-night international.

Tamim, who made 132 in the previous match, made a mockery of the target after racing to his half-century off just 31 balls.

Junaid Khan removed fellow-opener Soumya Sarkar cheaply for 17, but Tamim calmed the home supporters’ nerves with three successive boundaries off both Saeed Ajmal and Wahab Riaz.

By the time Ajmal bowled Mahmdullah for 17 to give Pakistan their second wicket, Bangladesh had taken control of the game by reaching 100 in just 14 overs.

Mushfiqur Rahim, who also hit a century in the first game, continued his good form with 65 off 70 balls as Bangladesh ended their series drought against Pakistan with 71 ball deliveries to spare.

Shakib Al Hasan hit the winning run soon after Tamim, who struck 17 fours and six, completed his sixth one-day century by gliding Junaid to fine-leg.

Earlier, Nasim was unbeaten on 77 in only his second international and Riaz struck 51 off 40 balls as Pakistan crossed the 200-run mark on the slow pitch.

Nasim began the rescue act by adding 77 for the sixth wicket with Haris Sohail, who made 44.

Skipper Azhar Ali and Sarfraz Ahmed put on an opening stand of 36 before the top-order crumbled in dramatic fashion.

Seamer Rubel Hossain had Sarfraz caught at slip by Soumya Sarkar off his first delivery, before spinner Arafat Sunny bowled the experienced Mohammad Hafeez for zero in the next over.

Left-arm spinner Shakib removed Ali for 36 through a catch by wicket-keeper Rahim, and trapped Mohammad Rizwan leg-before for 13.

In between those two dismissals, Nasir Hossain bowled Fawad Alam for a duck to open up the lower order.

Bangladesh were boosted by the return of captain Mashrafe Mortaza, who had missed the opening match due to a one-match ban for his team’s slow over-rates at the World Cup.

Mortaza, playing his 150th one-day international, claimed one wicket when he took a return catch to end Sohail’s resistance.

(Agencies)

Mumbai Indians notch first win in IPL 8

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Photo: Bhagya Prakash K

Photo: Bhagya Prakash K

Bengaluru: Mumbai Indians put in their best performance so far to chalk up their first win in five matches of the 2015 Indian Premier League T20 tournament as they defeated a fighting Royal Challengers Bangalore by 18 runs here on Sunday.

Playing with a positive intent, Mumbai Indians, thanks to half-centuries by Lendl Simmons (59, 44b, 9×4, 2×6) and India Under-19 captain Unmukt Chand (58, 37b, 8×4, 2×6) along with a 15-ball 42 (3×4, 4×6) by skipper Rohit Sharma, piled up 209 for 7 after being asked to bat first.

In reply, the RCB were never really in the hunt despite cameos by South Africans AB de Villiers (11b, 5×4, 3×6) and David Wiese (47 not out, 25b, 6×4, 2×6). They could only manage 191 for seven as the Mumbai Indians attack, spearheaded by off-spinner Harbhajan Singh (3 for 27) restricted the hosts.

The RCB chase stuttered and nearly stalled with Chris Gayle, dropped twice, making just 10 runs off 24 balls, before being bowled by the crafty Harbhajan Singh, who brought into play his vast experience and guile to contain the rival batsmen.

At the other end, opener Manvinder Bisla (20), Kohli (18) and Dinesh Karthik (18) threw their bats around but did not stay long enough to make a difference as RCB slid to their second defeat in three matches.

Thus, it was left to de Villiers to do a rescue act as the South African blasted a 11-ball 41 (5×4, 3×6) before lofting seamer Jasprit Bumrah straight to Kieron Pollard at long-on, and with his exit, RCB’s hopes of even making a match of it, much less win, sank despite some heavy hitting by Wiese in the latter half of the chase.

Earlier, the Mumbai Indians batsmen took advantage of wayward RCB bowling as Simmons and Chand laid the foundation with a 72-run partnership for the second wicket after the early exit of Parthiv Patel (12).

Later, Rohit Sharma, coming in at No.4 instead of his customary opening slot, and Chand added 63 runs for the third wicket to ensure a 200-plus total.

While Simmons unleashed a flurry of power-packed shots, Chand, having switched from Delhi Daredevils with whom he had a disappointing season last year, excelled with well-timed shots and Sharma, as usual, was all class as the trio took the RCB bowling to the cleaners.

The hosts derived some solace when South African all-rounder David Wiese, playing his first game this IPL season, picked up three wickets in his final over, the 19th of the innings when he dismissed Kieron Pollard (5), Ambati Rayudu (0) and Rohit Sharma in four deliveries to add to the wicket of Parthiv Patel for a haul of 4 for 32.

Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal did well to pick up two for 28, but with other bowlers leaking runs, his impact was almost negligible.

(IANS)

Royals beat Sunrisers, win fourth successive match

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ajinkya-rahane-ipl-2015

Visakhapatnam: An overall strong team performance and a thrilling finish from the Rajasthan Royals helped them beat the Sunrisers Hyderabad by six wickets on the last ball of the match to earn their fourth successive victory in the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the ACA-VDCA Stadium here on Thursday.

Put in to bat by Royals skipper Steven Smith, the Sunrisers were restricted to a mere 127/5 from their 20 overs.

In reply, the visitors were steady but extremely slow, considering the low target. However, the Royals chased down the required score off the last delivery as opener Ajinkya Rahane top scored with a match-winning 62.

At the start, the Sunrisers never really got any partnership going as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals.

Leg spinner Pravin Tambe (2/21), the oldest player of the tournament at 43, and medio Dhawal Kulkarni (2/9) were the star performers as the duo made sure they kept the Sunrisers’ run rate in check. Together they bowled seven overs, including a maiden, taking two wickets and giving away only 30 runs.

There were a few mediocre performances from Sunrisers batsman. Captain David Warner (21), wicketkeeper-batsman Naman Ojha (25), Eoin Morgan (27) and Ravi Bopara (23 not out) got starts but none of them were able to play the anchor’s innings to take the home team to a challenging total.

Chasing 128, the Royals played patiently as opening batsmen Rahane and Sanju Samson (26) struck an important 64-run partnership. Though they were off to a good start, they were quite slow in their chase which tightened things up towards the end, thanks to some disciplined bowling from the Sunrisers.

Wickets in hand proved to be Royals’ boon. With only one run needed off the last ball, James Faulkner connected well to put the ball past the point boundary for the visiting team.

Rahane was the star performer as he caressed nine boundaries in his 56-ball innings. However, a slow chase meant that the Royals had to wait till the last ball to win the match but wickets in hand eased off the pressure for them.

(IANS)

Delhi snap 11-match losing streak in IPL

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Yuvraj Singh

Pune: A responsible innings of 55 runs by Yuvraj Singh and some aggressive hitting from Mayank Agarwal (68) helped Delhi Daredevils register their first win of the Indian Premier League (IPL), beating Kings XI Punjab by five wickets, in a group league match at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium here on Wednesday.

This was the Daredevils’ first win after losing 11 matches on the trot in the competition (nine last year, two this year) that propelled them to the fourth spot in the standings with 2 points from three matches. Punjab were at the fifth spot with a win from three matches.

Chasing 166, Daredevils did not get a brisk start and when they lost skipper Jean Paul Duminy (21) in the 8th over with the score at 53, things looked bleak for them. But Yuvraj took over the responsibility from thereon. He forged an innings-resurrecting 106-run third-wicket partnership with Agarwal that brought the Daredevils closer to their target and paved their way to the victory on the penultimate ball of the match.

The pair engaged in some lusty hitting when they came closer to the target but both got out when Daredevils were inches away from their win.

But in the end it was just a minor blip on their way, though they would have liked to win more comfortably.

Earlier, experienced opener Virender Sehwag (47) and Wriddhiman Saha (39) scored the bulk of the total. Kings XI were provided a decent start through Sehwag and Murali Vijay (19). And even after Vijay’s dismissal in the fifth over, they continued their run flow.

The second-wicket partnership of Sehwag and Saha played sensibly to build a strong platform for Punjab to capitalise in the death overs. But as they tried to up the ante, seasoned leg-spinner Amit Mishra (3/41) struck to send Saha back to the pavilion.

But that did not deter Sehwag, who launched the Daredevils skipper for a huge six over mid-wicket but perished off the next ball trying to hoick him again, only managing to offer a catch in the deep.

The two quick dismissals brought South African David Miller (5) and Australian Glenn Maxwell to the crease.

Maxwell (15) struck two huge sixes but was soon talking the long walk back after mistiming a similar big shot. Miller departed soon after and Daredevils by then had lost the momentum in their bid to score rapidly and mustered to score only three runs off the last over bowled by South African leggie Imran Tahir(3/43).

 (IANS)

Saina Nehwal regains top spot in rankings

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SAINA NEHWAL

New Delhi: India’s Saina Nehwal has regained the women’s singles World No.1 spot in the latest Badminton World Federation (BWF) rankings released on Thursday.

The Hyderabadi became No.1 for the first time exactly two weeks back. She dropped to No.2 position last week but once again overtook China’s reigning Olympic champion Li Xuerui to retake the top spot.

The 25-year-old has had a good 2015. She won the India Grand Prix Gold in January, India Open Superseries in March, and reached the All England Open final also last month. In the last tournament, she played — Malaysia Open Superseries Premier — Saina reached the semi-finals earlier this month.

On the other hand, P.V. Sindhu, who has been out of action due to an injury, dropped three places to No.12.

In men’s singles rankings, Kidambi Srikanth has retained the No.4 spot while reigning Commonwealth Games champion Parupalli Kashyap has risen a place to No.14 following his semi-final appearance at the Singapore Open Superseries.

Meanwhile, H.S. Prannoy, who is nursing a toe injury, dropped a spot to No.15.

In women’s doubles, Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa are ranked No.18. There are no Indian shuttlers in the top-25 of the men’s and mixed doubles rankings.

(IANS)

Smith's unbeaten 79 guides Rajasthan to seven wicket win over Mumbai

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steve-smith

Ahmedabad: Rajasthan Royals(RR) skipper Steve Smith smashed an unbeaten 79 off 53 balls to steer his side to a thrilling seven wicket victory over Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) encounter at the Sardar Patel Stadium here on Tuesday.

The winning runs came from the captain’s willow, as Rajasthan hunte d down MI’s total of 164 for five. With five balls still remaining, Rajasthan reached 165 for three.

With this win, the Royals have registered their third straight win of the season. In stark contrast, 2013 IPL champions Mumbai slumped to their third defeat in as many matches.

Chasing a challenging 164-run target set by Mumbai Indians, the hosts got off to a modest start, but lost opener Sanju Samson for 17 in the fifth over when Mumbai’s Rohit Sharma caught him at mid off off the bowling of Vinay Kumar.

But Rajasthan didn’t let the asking rate go up, as Steve Smith and opener Ajinkya Rahane (46; 39 b, 4 x4) piled up a vital 64-run partnership for the second wicket to set the tone for the run chase.

As the duo was looking to take the game away from the visitors, Shreyas Gopal struck for Mumbai as he put the break on the run flow by dismissing Rahane, when he was caught at long off by Corey Anderson.

New man Deepak Hooda (13; 2×6), the hero of Royal’s match against Delhi, didn’t take much time to settle down as he smashed two consecutive sixes in the same over, one over deep mid wicket and the other over the bowler’s head.

But Hooda’s cameo ended when Malinga rattled his stumps .

Earlier on in the innings, Mumbai skipper Rohit Sharma opted to bat first but the visitors got an early jolt, when opener Aaron Finch cramped himself up while taking a run and was forced to leave the field in the fourth over.

Finch’s opening partner Parthiv Patel (16), who opened the innings in place of skipper Rohit Sharma, departed in the fifth over.

The 2013 champions found themselves in more trouble when skipper Rohit who dropped himself two places down the batting order didn’t trouble the scorers (out for zero in the second successive match) as he was caught at first slip by Steve Smith while attempting to hit a wide delivery of the bowling of Stuart Binny.

With his dismissal, came in Anderson. At the other end, a struggling Unmukt Chand (12) was clean bowled by Pravin Tambe. Mumbai were then 45/3 in 9.5 overs.

Pollard walked in next, and changed the complexion of the game by authoring a 104-run stand with Anderson (50; 38 b, 5 fours, 3 sixes). Pollard (70; 34 b, 7×4, 5×6) smashed the ball to all parts of the ground to provide a breezy momentum to the Mumbai Indians.

Anderson was earlier caught of the bowling of Kulkarni when he was batting on 23 but the delivery was judged a no ball.

(IANS)

Easy win for Sunrisers over Royal Challengers

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david-warner

Bengaluru: Skipper David Warner blasted a 27-ball 57 (6×4, 4×6) to help Sunrisers Hyderabad notch their first success in two outings with an eight-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League T20 tournament here on Monday.

Warner and fellow-opener Shikhar Dhawan (50 not out, 42b, 4×6, 2×4) put on 82 runs in 7.2 overs as Sunrisers hunted down RCB’s total of 166 all out, posting 172 for two in 17.2 overs.

Dhawan played a mature innings as he along with Lokesh Rahul (44, 28b, 4×4, 1×6) added 78 runs for the unfinished third wicket to carry Sunrisers over the finish line in style.

Warner thus justified his decision of opting to field on winning the toss on a damp night following heavy rains in the evening. Fortunately, the rains stayed away, but the large partisan crowd was left disappointed by RCB’s limp performance.

Warner’s power-packed innings took much the pressure off the chase as the visitors took control while Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers turned increasingly disheartened as Sunrisers made light of the target.

The closest that RCB came to checking the chase was when leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal removed Warner, who was trapped leg-before and Kane Williamson (5), stumped by Dinesh Karthik, but Dhawan dropped anchor to guide Sunrisers home.

Earlier, RCB promised a lot but delivered little as their frontline batsmen, openers Chris Gayle (21, 16b, 3×4, 1×6) and Kohli (41, 37b, 4×4, 2×6), and AB de Villiers (46, 28b, 5×4, 2×6) failed to build on good starts.

Once the Sunrisers got rid of Gayle who chanced his arms once too often, it was a gradual downhill ride for the home team although Kohli and de Villiers raised visions of a big total.

Sunrisers kept their composure to strike telling blows at vital moments with Boult claiming three wickets in the 19th over and fellow-seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar taking two in the 20th to peg RCB after Ravi Bopara, the former England star, had removed Kohli and Mandeep Singh off consecutive deliveries, in the 12th over.

RCB never quite recovered from these body blows to crash to their first defeat in two outings while the Sunrisers, who played better cricket, emerged deserving winners.

Brief scores: Royal Challengers Bangalore 166 all out in 19.5 overs (Chris Gayle 21, Virat Kohli 41, AB de Villiers 46, Trent Boult 3 for 36, Bhuvneshwar Kumar 2 for 30, Ravi Bopara 2 for 31) lost to Sunrisers Hyderabad 172 for 2 (David Warner 57, Shikhar Dhawan 50 not out, Lokesh Rahul 44 not out, Yuzvendra Chahal 2 for 28) by 8 wickets.

(IANS)

India claim Sultan Azlan Shah bronze beating South Korea on penalties

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hockey-india

India continued their dominance over South Korea and claimed a podium finish at the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in Malaysia with a 4-1 win on penalties in the bronze-medal playoff.

After the regulation period ended in a 2-2 draw identical to the result of the league phase encounter between the two, India outclassed the Koreans in penalty shootout, where PR Sreejesh once again turned out to be the hero making as many as three saves.

For India, Akashdeep Singh, Sardar Singh, Rupinderpal Singh and Birender Lakra scored in the shootout to give India the win.

Earlier, the last two quarters following half-time failed to produce any goals as the teams went into the breather at the end of 30 minutes locked 2-2.

Nikkin Thimmaiah (10th min) and Satbir Singh (22nd) were the scorers for India during the regulation period. South Korea drew level twice through goals by Hyosik You (19th) and Hyunwoo Nam (28th) to take the match to a shootout.

India scored both their goals though field strikes while Korea scored from penalty corners.

For India, who had earlier drawn 1-1 with Korea in the league stages, the victory came on the back of a stunning 4-2 win over world champions and title holders Australia yesterday at the Azlan Shah Stadium.

India’s vice-captain and goalkeeper Sreejesh had a fantastic day under the bar as he not only made numerous saves in the entire 60 minutes, but also turned out to be India’s hero in the shoot-out, denying two Korean efforts to help his side register the much-needed victory.

The only blemish for India was penalty corners. The Sardar Singh-led side failed to secure a single set piece but their back-line as usual crumbled under pressure and gave away seven short corners.

Both the teams were slow to get off the block and were sloppy in the initial few minutes.

It was India who had the first shy at the goal in the sixth minute but Akashdeep Singh shot wide after a scramble inside the circle.

Three minutes later, Korea secured their first penalty corner but Nam Hyunwoo’s effort couldn’t get past the defence of an agile Indian goalkeeper, Sreejesh.

The Indians took the lead in the next minute through last match’s hero Nikkin. Dharamvir Singh started the move and passed the ball to SK Uthappa, who beat a few Malaysian defenders to enter the circle from the right flank and then neatly pushed the ball towards Nikkin and he made no mistake in slapping the ball home from close range.

After a relatively sedate start, the Indians started to get into the groove as time passed by.

Five minutes into the second quarter Korea got their second penalty corner and You Hyosik scored from a rebound with a reverse shot after Jang Jonghyun’s dragflick was well saved by Sreejesh.

India restored their lead two minutes later through Satbir’s fine field effort. After stealing the ball at the midline, Satbir played a delightful one two with Dharmvir Singh before tapping in the ball pass Korean keeper Hong Doo Pyo.

But an unnecessary foul by Ramandeep Singh reduced India to 10-man in the last two minutes of the second quarter and that cost them dearly.

With India one man short, the Koreans piled on the pressure and managed to earn three penalty corners in succession, the last of which was converted by Hyunwoo with a powerful flick that beat Sreejesh all ends up as both the teams went into halfway break locked a 2-2.

After the change of ends, Korea had the first shot at the goal but Hyosik’s reverse hit sailed over the bar.

Then Satbir was denied in the 39th minute when his reverse hit was blocked by the Korean goalkeeper.

Korea went on the offensive in the fourth and final quarter and earned two more penalty corners but India custodian Sreejesh was up to the task.

In the 50th minute, Satbir once again came close to ensuring the lead for his side but his gentle touch from Birendra Lakra’s cross was well anticipated by the Korean goalkeeper.

It was nerve-wrecking final three minutes as Korea went all out in search of the winner, but the Indian defence did enough to hold the rampaging Koreans and take the match into shoot-out.

In the shoot-out, the Indians were clinical and converted their tries with consummate ease.

But credit should go to Sreejesh as he pulled off two brilliant saves to deny Kim Kihoon and Kim Juhun, and secure the third place finish for India.

(Agencies)

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