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Rajkot: South Africa beat India by 18 runs in the third of their five-match One-Day International (ODI) series at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium here on Sunday.
Quinton de Kock (103) and Faf du Plessis (60) helped South Africa reach 270/7 in 50 overs. In reply, India managed 252/6 despite Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli scoring fluent fifties.
With this win, the visitors took a 2-1 lead.
(IANS)
India trounced Pakistan 5-1 in their title defence of the 5th Sultan of Johor Cup junior hockey tournament.
Johor Bahru: India trounced traditional rivals Pakistan 5-1 to make an emphatic start to their title defence of the 5th Sultan of Johor Cup junior hockey tournament here on Sunday.
Ajay Yadav (fifth minute), Sumit Kumar (23rd), Armaan Qureshi (27th), Parvinder Singh (34th) and Santa Singh (45th) scored for the defending champions, who put up a completely dominating show.
The onset of the game saw the Indians going immediately on the attack, not wanting to waste any time and in the fifth minute, India scored their first goal Ajay made the most of a clean pass inside the circle, giving no chance to the Pakistani goalkeeper to react.
With the initial goal, India intensified their attack further, keeping the Pakistan defence busy all through. Mid way into the first half, India were awarded their first penalty corner but the opportunity was missed as the Pakistan goalkeeper cleared the danger.
Pakistan counter attacked and were given a penalty corner, but they were unable to capitalise as the Indian goalkeeper was alert and in control.
In the counter-attack, vice-captain Dipsan Tirkey passed the ball from the left flank to Sumit who was right in front of the goal box and made no mistake in finding the nets in the 23rd minute.
Four minutes later, Harmanpreet Singh hit the ball into the opponents D and Parvinder Singh received it before passing it to Qureshi, who completed the job cleanly, giving India a 3-0 lead.
While Pakistan were trying to get some rhythm back, India had another game plan as they ventured to add another goal right before going into the break. It was in the 34th minute when Parvinder through a brilliant field goal took the scorecard to 4-0.
The second half saw a similar game plan by the young Indian side as they continued putting pressure on the opponents. But Pakistan finally opened their account in the 45th minute as Muhammad Dilber scored a field goal.
Half way into the session, Pakistan had another chance on the goal through a penalty corner but was yet again denied by the Indian defence.
In the very next minute, India were again on the attack when Harmanpreet from the left flank saw an opportunity with Santa standing right in front of the goal post. Harmanpreet passed it to Santa and the later was quick to pounce on the opportunity and make it 5-1.
With five goals in their kitty, India yet again upped the ante as they were seen regularly attacking Pakistan thereafter.
In the 68th minute, Pakistan got another penalty corner to their name but was hit off target, giving India the 5-1 triumph.
The Harendra Singh-coached India face Britain on Monday.
(PTI)
India went in to attack right from the start which helped them build the initial pressure over the hosts. (Photo Credit: Twitter/HockeyIndia)
After losing their opener, the Indian hockey team came back strongly to beat New Zealand 3-1 in the second game to level the four-match bilateral Test series 1-1 here on Wednesday.
Unlike the previous match where the visitors lost 0-2, India lifted their tempo and displayed attacking hockey which helped them score three goals, one each coming from the sticks of Ramandeep Singh, Lalit Upadhyay and Nikkin Thimmaiah.
India went in to attack right from the start which helped them build the initial pressure over the hosts. The opening minutes saw Chinglensana Singh attack from the right flank as he entered the D of the opponents, but the alert New Zealand defence thwarted the attempt.
Keeping constant pressure, World No.8 India earned a penalty corner in the 10th minute but the ball was hit wide of the post.
But only three minutes later, Birendra Lakra gave a crucial cross to Ramandeep who opened the account for India on a rebound, giving his team the lead.
India continued their attacks in the second quarter. A brilliant move by Dharamvir Singh caught the New Zealand defence on the back foot but his shot was blocked by an observant Black Sticks goalkeeper.
The Kiwis in turn capitalised on a counter attack, but could not break the Indian defence.
In the 23rd minute, the hosts were awarded with a penalty corner but Indian custodian P.R. Sreejesh came out with a brilliant save to make sure India went into halftime with a 1-0 lead.
At the restart, an unmarked Gurjinder Singh had a great chance to double the lead in the 33th minute but he deflected the ball wide of the post. New Zealand immediately counter attacked and won a penalty corner two minutes later Sreejesh stood tall and cleared the danger yet again.
New Zealand kept on pressing hard for their equaliser throughout the third quarter and they were successful when Kane Russell, in the 45th minute, converter a penalty corner chance for the much needed equaliser to go into the last 15 minutes 1-1.
Both sides tried out different strategies to score the goal in the last quarter but it was India who were rewarded for being consistent with their attacks when Manpreet Singh’s accurate pass to Upadhyay helped India take the 2-1 advantage in the 52nd minute.
Then in the last minute of the match Thimmaiah put it completely beyond New Zealand’s reach when he scored his side’s third goal to level the series for the India.
The third match between the two sides will be played on October 9 at Christchurch.
(IANS)
Cuttack: South Africa backed up their fierce bowling performance with the willow to inflict a crushing defeat on India by six wickets in the second Twenty20 International at the Barabati Stadium here on Monday.
With the win, South Africa have taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series the last of which will be played the Eden Gardens on October 8.
Chasing India’s total of 92, South Africa crossed the line with six wickets in hand.
J.P. Duminy top scored with an unbeaten knock of 30 for the tourists while off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin for India returned figures of 3/24.
(IANS)
Dharamsala: South African cricket captain Faf du Plessis won the toss in the first of the three-match Twenty20 international series in Dharamsala on Friday and chose to bowl first, keeping the possibility of dew at the high-altitude venue in mind.
Indian limited overs skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni said he wanted to bowl first too, and praised debutant Karnataka medium-pacer Sreenath Aravind’s IPL performance, backing the debutant. India have left out legspinner Amit Mishra, offspinner Harbhajan Singh, allrounder Stuart Binny and batsman Ajinkya Rahane.
South Africa have left out allrounder Albie Morkel, legspinner Edie Leie and batsman Khaya Zondo. Quinton de Kock isn’t playing either, so Amla will open with AB de Villiers, who will also keep wickets.
Aided by the return of Dhoni as the limited overs skipper, India will aim for a winning start against South Africa, who begin their 72-day long tour of India at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium (HPCA) on the back of a T20 loss against India A in their only warm-up match.
However, they will aim to put that poor performance behind them and look for a positive start to the hectic tour. The three-match T20 series is mostly seen as a preparation for the upcoming World Cup T20 in 2016 scheduled to be played in India.
Dhoni will be back into the side after a gap of three months and will aim to make the most of the preparations ahead of the next year’s tournament. Youngsters Axar Patel, Sreenath Aravind and Ambati Rayudu will be tested.
With India’s batting line-up comprising Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Ajinkya Rahane being the strength, the Proteas’ bowlers need to be disciplined to dismantle them in conditions favouring the batsmen.
South Afica’s batsmen, such as the likes of Plessis, de Villiers, J.P. Duminy, de Kock, David Miller will aim to use their Indian Premier League (IPL) experience as much as possible in the three T20 matches. Leg-spinner Imran Tahir will come into play on the turning tracks and can turn out to be the visiting team’s best bet at taking wickets.
India, on the other hand, have a strong bowling line-up, with spin trio of Harbhajan Singh, Amit Mishra, Ravichandran Ashwin leading the lines, assisted by pacers Mohit Sharma and Sreenath Aravind.
With both teams looking strong on paper, one cracker of a contest can be expected.
Auckland: The Indian men’s hockey team outplayed New Zealand A 3-1 to get its Kiwi tour off to a positive start here on Friday.
Akashdeep Singh (third minute), Ramandeep Singh (20th) and Nikkin Thimmaiah (26th) scored for the visitors, who will play their second match on Saturday.
During the match, the first quarter started with New Zealand A going on the attack and earning two back-to-back penalty corners in the first few minutes. India’s star goalkeeper P.R. Sreejesh displayed his quick moves to thwart both the attempts.
Later Ramandeep was seen brilliantly dribbling past the defenders and gave a beautiful pass to fellow forward Akashdeep, who was quick to put the ball into the nets without giving any chance to the New Zealand custodian in the third minute.
After conceding a goal, New Zealand A players attacked again and looked for opportunities to score the equaliser. However, the Indian defenders restricted their moves and maintained pressure on the home team.
In the second quarter, centre-half Sardar Singh-captained India started with fierce attacks and kept the ball moving in the other half. In the 20th minute, Ramandeep sneaked into the defence line and scored a spectacular field goal, taking the score to 2-0.
Inspired by Ramandeep’s goal, defender Gurjinder Singh raced into the Kiwi circle and passed the ball to forward Thimmaiah, who outfoxed the defenders with his dribbling skills and made it 3-0 in the 26th minute. With this marvellous field goal, the Indians were in the lead 3-0 by the end of the second quarter.
Trailing 0-3, the New Zealand players managed to keep the ball in the Indian half and tried to create opportunities. In the 36th minute, they earned a crucial penalty corner and successfully converted it for their opening goal.
The Indians counter-attacked the home team and created pressure again. New Zealand were now playing a defensive game and kept their goal post protected. The scorecard stood 3-1 by the end of the third quarter in India’s favour.
In the fourth quarter also Indian forwards Ramandeep, Akashdeep and Nikkin kept the defenders busy and played most of the game in the opponent’s half. After a series of attacks from India, the match finished 3-1 in favour of the Asian Games champions.
(IANS)
MS Dhoni to lead the 15-member squads in T20Is and one-dayers
The All-India Senior Selection Committee met earlier today in Bengaluru to announce the India teams for three T20 Internationals and the first three One-day Internationals against South Africa.
They are the first games between the two sides since India’s emphatic victory over South Africa at the MCG in Pool B of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.
T20Is: MS Dhoni, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Ajinkya Rahane, Ambati Rayudu, Stuart Binny, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Harbhajan Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohit Sharma, Amit Mishra, S Aravind.
First three ODIs: MS Dhoni, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, Ajinkya Rahane, Stuart Binny, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Amit Mishra, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohit Sharma, Umesh Yadav.
AFP PHOTO/Aamir QURESHI
Rawalpindi: In an obvious reference to India, the Pakistani Army chief, General Raheel Sharif, has said the force is “fully capable” of dealing with any kind of threat” and that any “misdaventure” would come at an “unbearable cost”.
“(The) armed forces of Pakistan are fully capable of dealing with all types of internal and external threats, may it be conventional or sub-conventional; whether it is cold start or hot start. We are ready,” Dawn quoted Gen. Sharif as saying at the Defence Day ceremony at the General Headquarters here to mark the 50th anniversary of the 1965 war with India.
“If the enemy ever resorts to any misadventure, regardless of its size and scale – short or long – it will have to pay an unbearable cost,” the army chief said.
“Gen. Sharif’s curt comments came against the backdrop of Indian Army chief General Dalbir Singh Suhag’s remarks (that) his troops were ready for the ‘swift, short nature of future wars’. Indian Army’s 2 ‘Kharga’ Strike Corps had, in April, also carried out large-scale war games codenamed ‘Brahmashira’ to rehearse ‘swift multiple offensives’,” Dawn said.
Gen. Sharif paid rich tributes to the nation’s martyrs, saying that their sacrifices will not go in vain.
“I am honoured that soldiers from that war are present among us today,” he sid.
The army chief said in the past 50 years, Pakistan has seen many ups and downs.
“But I can say with certainty that today we are stronger than before and the nation is more hopeful than ever,” he said.
Gen. Sharif also said that Kashmir is an unresolved regional issue since the partition of the subcontinent.
“There can be no peace in the region without resolution of the Kashmir issue according to the UN resolutions and the wishes of the Kashmiri people,” he said.
(IANS)
Critics lament New Delhi’s fading pro-Palestinian stance at solidarity convention as Israel relations flourish.
![Indian supporters of Palestine want their government to champion Palestinian statehood [Urvashi Sarkar/Al Jazeera]](https://i0.wp.com/nasheman.in/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Palestine.jpg)
Indian supporters of Palestine want their government to champion Palestinian statehood [Urvashi Sarkar/Al Jazeera]
New Delhi: Once a champion of the Palestinian cause, India should now use its deepening diplomatic relations with Israel to press for an independent Palestinian state, critics say.
Zikrur Rahman – a former Indian representative to Palestine – was one of 10 delegates at a Solidarity with Palestine convention last weekend, which was held to mark the first anniversary of Israel’s attack on Gaza.
“India does not have to sever its ties with Israel, but why should it give up its stand of supporting the anti-colonial struggle in Palestine?” Rahman told Al Jazeera.
“Palestine has never been detrimental to Indian national interest,” he said, adding India should use its position as the second-largest buyer of Israeli arms to pressure Israel to end its decades-old occupation of Palestine.
“All Palestine demands is 22 percent of historic Palestine. India should play a proactive role in supporting the demand,” said Rahman.
Patronage to neglect
Though India recognised Israel in 1950, diplomatic relations were established only in 1992.
“Prior to the 1990s, there was popular support, as well as official patronage for the Palestinian struggle. Members of the Congress and the left were vocal on solidarity platforms,” said journalist Sukumar Muralidharan, who has written extensively on India-Palestine relations.
“But these platforms lost their political backbone in the 1990s. Now it is only the left and some individuals from other parts of the political spectrum that still support the [Palestinian] struggle.”
Muralidharan traced the transition to the rightward political shift and rise of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the 1990s.
“The 1990s were a period of unrest in Kashmir, and the BJP and the mainstream media, which had no time for complexity, began increasingly to see both Palestine and Kashmir under the rubric of Islamic militancy. Following [India’s] 1998 nuclear tests, there was a big expansion in defence budgets, and India began buying increasingly from Israel,” Muralidharan said.
Guns and butter
Military ties with Israel continued under the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance as well. But the victory of the BJP in 2014 led to a decisive shift, with the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi giving clear indications of its desire to be a close ally of Israel.
India recently abstained from voting on a UN report that indicated the possibility of war crimes committed by both sides, especially Israel, during the 2014 Gaza assault – resulting in allegations of India having withdrawn its support for Palestine.
The Palestinian ambassador in India expressed shock and said the abstention was a departure from India’s traditional position, and the move was affected by India’s growing military ties with Israel.
The spokesman for the Ministry of External Affairs could not be reached for comment.
The Indian government said in a statement, however: “There is no change in our policy of extending traditionally strong support for the Palestinian cause while maintaining good relations with Israel.”
Currently ties between India and Israel are extensive – spanning defence, agriculture, trade, infrastructure, water, technology, and culture.
Forgetting Palestine
Popular mobilisation in India on the issue of Palestine has sharply declined over the years. While there were protests and solidarity eventsin 2014 over the attack on Gaza, they were not widespread.
For members of the Palestine Solidarity Committee, organising the August 22-23 convention proved to be an uphill battle.
Satyam Varma, a member of the organising committee, described “threats and psychological pressure” to not hold the event, which was attended by about 350 people.
“We started receiving calls from law and enforcement agencies and right-wing organisations. Some callers wanted to know why we were supporting Palestine, others wanted to know if the organisers were Hindu or Muslim, and how many Muslims would attend,” Varma said.
Shweta Kaul, another committee member, blamed the media for not detailing the plight of the Palestinian people.
“Even educated people do not know about what is happening in Palestine,” Kaul said. “Much of the mainstream media has an ahistorical perspective of the Israel-Palestine conflict. Existing coverage tries to provide a ‘balanced’ picture, which misleads readers.
“We are organising this convention to build awareness about the situation in Palestine and why it needs India’s support.”
Flourishing ties
Israeli embassy spokesman Ohad Orsandi told Al Jazeera he was not aware of what was said at the two-day gathering.
“The Palestine solidarity convention was an Indian event, of which I do not have details. I do not see where Israel sits in this.”
Orsandi added: “Relations among India, Israel and Palestine is far from a zero sum game. India’s support for Palestine is not affected by its flourishing ties with Israel. This used to be joined in the past, but not any more.”
A Palestinian official in India, Yasser Dahlan, urged Indian officials to use their relations with Israel to promote the Palestinian cause.
“India was the first non-Arab state to recognise Palestine [Palestine Liberation Organisation]. We want India to play a positive role in putting pressure on its friend, Israel – with whose leaders it has a personal relationship – for a sovereign state of Palestine based on 1967 borders and on international agreements.”
Colombo: India defeated Sri Lanka by massive 278 runs in the second cricket Test to level the three-match series just after lunch on the fifth and final day here Monday.
Brief Scores:
India: 393 and 325/8 declared
Sri Lanka: 306 and 134 all out in 43.4 overs (Dimuth Karunaratne 46; Ravichandran Ashwin 5/42, Amit Mishra 3/29).