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Sri Lanka pull off a heist after Bangladesh collapse in magnificent fashion

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Nigar Sultana plays a shot on the on-side [Cricinfo]

A tournament lacking in genuine tight finishes has now produced two in two days, as Bangladesh and Sri Lanka played out a low-scoring thriller in Navi Mumbai. But in truth this game should have never got to that stage, as Bangladesh nursed their chase of 203 only to stumble at the last and fall to a seven-run defeat. The result means, Bangladesh are eliminated from semi-final contention, while Sri Lanka live to fight another day.

This was a chase that Sri Lanka were behind for around 48 overs, but in a tantalising final dash they picked up five wickets and gave away two runs off the final nine deliveries, as Bangladesh were unable to close out a game that they had controlled for large parts.

The final scorecard will read that Chamari Athapaththu picked up figures of 4 for 42, but three of those came in a game-stealing final over, where Bangladesh lost four wickets off the first four deliveries – a run-out in the middle ensuring it wasn’t an Athapaththu hat-trick.

Up until then Nigar Sultana had anchored the chase, if not expertly then at least safely. Her 77 off 98 came mostly as part of two major partnerships – the first 82 off 120 with Sharmin Akhter and the second 50 off 58 with Shorna Akter – during which Sri Lanka were like passengers aboard a rudderless ship, just merely on for the ride.

To stick with the analogy, this was not a ship moving particularly swiftly. With a pretty chaseable target of 203 on the board, Bangladesh were guilty of being overly cautious – perhaps bearing in mind their poor batting efforts earlier in the tournament – as they inched along.

On a pitch, not offering much for the many spinners they picked, Sri Lanka were resigned to simply keeping things tight, unable to really impose themselves on the game with the ball until the dying moments when everything seemed to happen all at once.

Earlier however, it was Sri Lanka who had been slowed to a crawl, after a stunning mid-innings collapse had halted them. Hasini Pererfa struck a maiden international fifty in her 143rd match, a shining light (85 off 99) in and otherwise disjointed batting effort and was one of only three batters – Athapaththu (46) and Nilakshika Silva (37) the other two – to reach double-digits.

Both Athapaththu and Hasini brought up milestones – 4000 and 1000 ODI runs, respectively – during their knock as well, while Hasini was eventually named Player of the Match.

Shorna once more proved decisive – despite only being introduced at the halfway point of the innings – as she picked up figures of 3 for 27, including the crucial wickets of both Hasini and Nilakshika. The rest of the wickets were spread out, with only Ritu Moni going wicketless.

Bangladesh were sloppy in the field, missing several chances, including run-outs and stumpings, but they were also spot on with their reviews. Despite this, Sri Lanka had at several points been on the up – in control, even. There was the 72-run stand between Athapaththu and Hasini after the fall of that first wicket, which had Sri Lanka romping along at nearly run-a-ball.

On a wicket with few demons, Athapaththu’s 46 off 43 included six fours and two sixes. For the most part she looked unfazed by what Bangladesh threw at her so when she was trapped lbw by one that snuck past her forward defence, it was against the run of play.

After this point Sri Lanka were both unfortunate and architects of their own demise. A fledgling partnership of 15 between Harshitha Samarawickrama and Hasini was brought to an end after the former called for a non-existent second run and found herself a metre short.

If that was self-inflicted, the next wicket was pure unadulterated bad luck. Kavisha Dilhari chopped an attempted cut into the ground, as the ball promptly bounced past the stumps, struck keeper Sultana, and bobbled on to the stumps. Bangladesh went about their business after this, the fielders even getting back into their positions, but the third umpire was alert and used the Smart Replay system in effect at this tournament to inform the on-field umpires of a possible stumping.

And as it turned out, Dilhari’s back foot had momentarily lifted off the ground as she searched for balance. It was in that moment the bails had lit up – a fitting tribute to the Diwali celebrations around the stadium.

As Bangladesh celebrated wildly, Sri Lanka had suddenly stumbled from 72 for 1 to 100 for 4, a worrying blip with them being a batter light after replacing allrounder Piumi Wathsala with seamer Udeshika Prabodani. Thankfully for the Lankans, in Hasini and Nilakshika they had the exact counterattacking pair the occasion called for.

Together they strung a 74-run stand off just 75 deliveries. It was a period in which batting seemed the easiest, with both players finding boundaries with regularity. If there was one criticism – and this would be one across Sri Lanka’s innings – it would be their lack of strike rotation.

Despite the pair hitting nine boundaries (including three sixes) across their partnership lasting a shade over 12 overs, they were unable to usher in a run rate above six an over. This was a problem that would plague Bangladesh’s innings as well, later on.

Perhaps it was their awareness of the lack of batting to follow that kept them in check, but it was unusual to see so many tossed up deliveries of spin dead-batted away. As it transpired, Nilakshika’s innings came to an end prematurely, as she shanked an on-side heave off Shorna to short third.

This wicket proved to be a catalyst for Sri Lanka’s most devastating collapse, losing their next three wickets for just eight runs – Shorna getting two of them.

From then on, Sri Lanka’s innings slowed to a trickle as they sought to bat time, before eventually being bowled out with eight deliveries remaining. Their final 103 balls saw 28 runs scored and six wickets fall, a feat somehow surpassed by Bangladesh.

Brief scores:
Sri Lanka Women 202 in 48.4 overs  (Chamari Athapaththu 46, Hasini Perera 85, Nilakshika Silva 37; Shorna 3-27, Rabeya Khan 2-39) beat Bangadesh Women 195 for 9 in 50 overs (Sharmin Akhter 64*, Nigar Sultana 77; Sugandika Kumari 2-38, Chamari  Athapaththu 4-42) by seven runs

[Cricinfo]



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US, Israel launch attack on Iran, explosions in downtown Tehran

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Smoke rises on the skyline after an explosion in Tehran, Iran, February 28 [Aljazeera]

The United States and Israel have launched an attack on Iran,  with explosions heard and seen across Tehran.

Several missiles have struck University Street and the Jomhouri area in Tehran, Fars news agency reported. Smoke was seen rising in the city, according to an Al Jazeera correspondent on the ground.

Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz claimed Israel launched the missile attack in order to “remove threats to the State of Israel”.

A United States official told Al Jazeera that the attacks were carried out as a joint military operation between Israel and the US, which has assembled a vast fleet of fighter jets and warships in the region to try to pressure Iran into a deal over its nuclear programme.

The Associated Press news agency reported that the strike in Iran’s capital happened near offices of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. According to an official cited by Reuters, Khamenei is not in Tehran and has been transferred to a secure location.

Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency reported that explosions also occurred in Tehran’s northern Seyyed Khandan area.

As sirens sounded and a state of emergency declared in Israel, the Israeli military said it had issued a “proactive alert to prepare the public for the possibility of missiles being launched toward the state of Israel.”

Israel’s Airports Authority announced airspace had been closed to all civilian flights and urged the public not to come to the airport.

Meanwhile, the ⁠US Embassy in Qatar ⁠implemented shelter-in-place for ⁠all personnel, recommending that all of ‌its citizens to do the same until further notice.

Reuters cited an Israeli deence official as saying the attacks had been planned for months ⁠and the ⁠launch date ⁠was decided ⁠weeks ago.

[Aljazeera]

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At least 11 killed after military plane carrying banknotes crashes in Bolivia

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At least 11 people have been killed after a Bolivian air force cargo plane crashed in the western city of El Alto, according to media reports quoting firefighters.

The incident happened at 18:15 local time (22:15 GMT) on Friday as the plane was arriving at El Alto’s airport from the city of Santa Cruz, aviation officials said. It reportedly skidded off the runway and hit nearby vehicles.

The defence ministry later confirmed its C-130 Hercules was involved and that it had been transporting banknotes to the Central Bank of Bolivia. It did not say how many people were on board, and gave no casualty numbers.

Police fired tear gas to disperse crowds allegedly trying to take the scattered banknotes.

Video footage showed people running away from the tear gas and police officers, some holding shields, forming a line. Some in the crowds are seen throwing rocks at police.

The crashed plane can be seen on the ground and badly damaged vehicles can be seen in other videos.

“I want to make it clear to those who are trying to take money from the plane involved in this tragedy that this money has no legal value since it has not been issued by the Central Bank and does not have a serial number, and that attempting to use this money is a crime,” the Minister of Defence, Marcelo Salinas, said.

“We also ask all those who are engaging in acts of vandalism in this area to refrain from doing so and to respect the mourning and grief we are experiencing at this difficult time.”

Firefighters working at the crash site said that at least 20 people were injured, local media reported.

El Alto International Airport was temporarily closed following the crash.

“My sister told me that she was in the car when the plane crashed. The plane’s tire fell on the car, and my sister was injured because the impact of the tire hit her on the head, so we rushed her to the hospital,” a man told the Reuters news agency.

It was not immediately clear what caused the crash, but some witnesses said the weather at the time was treacherous.

“A heavy hailstorm” was falling and “there was lightning” when the plane went down,” a woman whose car was struck by the aircraft wreckage told the AFP news agency.

An investigation into the incident is under way.

[BBC]

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A ‘delicate’ balance for Canada and a ‘win-win’ for Modi as Carney visits India

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Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is in India for a pivotal trip aimed at repairing ties with the world’s largest democracy, as both countries seek to reduce their trade reliance on the US.

Carney began his visit in Mumbai, where he is meeting with business leaders. He will then travel to New Delhi for talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The trip marks a remarkable turnaround in relations, which had collapsed when Canada accused India of carrying out an extrajudicial killing of a Canadian Sikh separatist on Canadian soil — an allegation India strongly denied.

Both sides now appear ready to move forward.

Here’s what has changed, and what each country hopes to gain as Carney’s trip gets underway.

For Carney, this trip is strictly business, aligned with his broader goal of diversifying Canada’s trade partners to reduce economic dependence on the US.

A big focus will be making progress on a comprehensive free trade agreement with India, which has been discussed on-and-off for the last 15 years.

The latest derailment in trade talks occurred after former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made a bombshell public accusation against India in 2023, alleging it was involved in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh separatist, who was gunned down in British Columbia. Four men were later charged in his death, and their case is still before the courts.

India has repeatedly denied any involvement.

Now faced with US tariffs, and under Carney’s more “pragmatic” approach to foreign policy, Ottawa is repairing ties with Delhi.

Still, the allegations remain a point of contention for some members of Canada’s Sikh community, who say they continue to be targeted by India through transnational repression, and have criticised Carney for prioritising economic interests over their safety.

It is a situation that will require “delicate handling”, Vina Nadjibulla, vice-president of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, told the BBC.

Asked repeatedly about these concerns, Canadian officials told reporters ahead of Carney’s trip that the two countries are engaged in “robust” discussions on national security and foreign interference.

They added that Canada does not believe the Indian government is currently linked to any violent crimes or threats on Canadian soil, and that they “probably would not be taking this trip” if that were the case.

Not everyone is convinced. Sukh Dhaliwal, an MP from Carney’s Liberal party, told Canadian media that the claim of India no longer being a threat is “disconnected from the reality”.

Canada has made several diplomatic overtures to India since Carney took office last year, beginning with inviting Modi to the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta last summer.

That was followed by a series of meetings between Foreign Minister Anita Anand and her Indian counterpart, S Jaishankar, as well as a visit to Ottawa last month by India’s national security advisor, Ajit Doval.

Carney’s itinerary in India offers some insight into his priorities.

He will stop only in Mumbai, India’s financial hub, to meet with business leaders, and New Delhi, where he will sit down with Prime Minister Modi on Monday.

Unlike Trudeau, Carney will not be visiting cultural sites like the Taj Mahal. Nor will he travel to Punjab, the home state of many of India’s Sikhs, which was a stop for both Trudeau and another former prime minister, Stephen Harper.

Those stops were often seen as nods to Canada’s large Indo-Canadian and Sikh communities. Their omission signals that, this time, Canada’s focus is squarely on trade.

On the agenda will be discussions around energy, technology, artificial intelligence and defence, Carney’s office has said, as well as attracting top talent to Canada.

Carney and Modi are also likely to discuss tariff policies enacted by President Donald Trump, which have had an impact on both their economies.

Heading into the trip, Canada remains the only G7 country that has not reached a preferential trade agreement with India. Nadjibulla of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada said that fact “adds urgency” for Carney.

“There is a window of opportunity, and it needs to be seized,” Nadjibulla said.

It was in 2024, not too long ago, that both countries were openly trading barbs, suspending visa services and expelling diplomats.

But a lot has changed since then.

India is now more open for business, which is evident from a flurry of free trade deals that it has signed recently.

Then there is Trump, who has targeted both India and Canada with steep tariffs.

In Carney’s own words, the world is “in the midst of a rupture, not a transition” and “if you are not at the table, you are on the menu”.

For India’s Prime Minister Modi, a reset with Canada is a win-win situation.

Domestically, the visit will boost Modi’s image as a leader who refused to come under pressure from Canada.

Ottawa has already said it believes India is not currently linked to violent crimes or threats on Canadian soil.

But more broadly, it is the trade potential between the two countries that will drive the outcome of this visit.

EPA Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds his hands together in a prayer style, as he stands before a microphone. Behind him can be seen the flags on India and Malaysia.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is interested in buying more Canadian energy [BBC]

[BBC]

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