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Duckett, Crawley flatten India on day headlined by Pant’s bravery

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9 months ago

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Rishabh Pant walked out to loud applause at Old Trafford [Cricinfo]

India had one high moment at Old Trafford, the kind that cuts through eras, uniting the hardcore fan, radicalising the casual ones and irritating those who have no idea about cricket because why is a video of a man walking down the stairs wearing weird body armour suddenly blowing up on social? Rishabh Pant’s bravery rendered trivial things like the match situation and its result as he walked out to bat on a fractured foot, which is just as well because by the end of the day his team was losing control of the Manchester Test.

England’s openers alone took a massive bite out of India’s total of 358 as Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley put on a 166-run stand at 5.18 runs an over. It was accidental Bazball though. Neither of them was really looking to score quickly but they were given no choice in the matter by a bowling performance so error prone that packaging it as a highlights reel would be a missed opportunity. There’s a word starting with ‘B’ and ending with ‘looper’ that fits better.

India might contend that they were doing what England had done. Jofra Archer bowled leg stump to left-handers and kept picking up wickets. When the debutant Anshul Kamboi tried that he gave up three fours in the second over. Ben Stokes claimed his first five-for in eight years by pitching the ball right up. When Mohammed Siraj tried that he kept getting driven for boundaries. It took until the last 45 minutes of play for a contest to break out as Ravindra Jadeja removed Crawley for 84 and Kamboj KO’d Duckett for 94.

It is a quirk of the Dukes ball that it isn’t at it’s most threatening when its brand new. The lacquer needs to wear off, whch takes about 10-15 overs. India found ways to manage this period better in the previous Tests (barring maybe the second innings at Headingley) but here they were found rather wanting. Which meant even the last half-hour when they had two new batters, including a skittish Ollie Pope, to prey on and the opposition finally felt some pressure, it didn’t really matter. England gritted it out and went to stumps at 225 for 2 in 46 overs, with batting all the way down to No. 10 to get the other 133 they need to take a first-innings lead.

A largely uneventful morning session got its adrenaline shot when Stokes dismissed the stubborn Shardul Thakur for 41. The BCCI had sent word that Pant, who had injured his right foot on the first day’s play so badly that he required four-wheeled transportation from the pitch to the dressing room, was available to bat if the team needed it. The assumption was he would come out as the last man standing. But, having bucked a diagnosis of six-eight weeks rest to join the squad at the ground, Pant grabbed his bat and his gloves and began to make his way down the stairs at Old Trafford.

Applause rained down from all corners. Cricket has seen its share of wounded warriors. Anil Kumble with a bandage around his head. Graeme Smith with one working arm. Shamar Joseph steaming in with a broken toe. Rick McCosker and his shattered jaw. Moments like these transcend sport. They live on for years and years.

Pant’s willingness to put his body on the line – he is set to miss the fifth Test – ushered India to an above-par total. He finished with 54 off 75 balls and hit the 90th six of his Test career, equalling Virender Sehwag who holds the national record. He also went past 479 runs on this tour, which meant he eclipsed Alec Stewart and now has the highest tally for a wicketkeeper in a Test series in England. Not bad for a man who came to his office wearing a moonboot. Between those wild shots, the back flip celebrations, the silly mistakes, the commentary from behind the stumps, Pant’s heart often goes unnoticed. It shouldn’t. Not when it’s so overwhelmingly big.

Stokes continued his stellar series with the ball, picking up 16 wickets – a new career best going past his efforts on debut in the 2013-14 Ashes. It is often said when he has the ball in hand that he makes things happen. That’s possibly because he’s never afraid of having a punt. Sometimes, he bowls too full and that works because he gets movement both ways – Thakur found that out the hard way. Sometimes, he bowls way too short for way too long and that works because he has the strength to hurry batters up – Washington Sundar found that out the hard way. A peach brought him his fifth wicket – angled in, nipping away, taking Kamboj’s outside edge for a duck.

England built on their captain’s hard work with Duckett especially showing how little the margin of error is to him now. He turned a pretty good ball, on the base of off stump, maybe even outside, into a boundary through midwicket that kept two fielders interested right the way through and the crowd absolutely loved it. They went “oooooooohhhhh…yaaaaaaaayyyyyy” as Siraj and Washington were beaten. Given he was able to do that, it was barely a surprise that any time India went too straight, Duckett was able to access the square-leg region to great profit. He went to fifty without a single boundary on the off side and celebrated the landmark with a backfoot punch for four through cover.

Crawley, at the other end, had to be a lot more circumspect. He took 13 balls to get off the mark and those runs came with a reminder of the danger the pitch still posed as a Jasprit Bumrah delivery rose up sharply to rap him on the bottom hand. That is why India would feel like they’ve let themselves down. There was help to the fast bowlers right through the day. Those late wickets they picked up resulted in a mini-session where it was revealed how hard it was to bat out there when the ball was in the right areas. Just that it was difficult to find for a bowling unit that isn’t used to this kind of bounce. Their stock length coupled with the movement on offer kept beating the edge. So they went fuller, only to stray a little too close to the pads or the half-volley mark.

Crawley, in particular, played some sumptuous drives through cover and down the ground, and it looked like the opening partnership itself might see England through to stumps. India did raise their game towards the close and they need to raise it again on the third day to keep themselves in the fight. Otherwise the revellers in the party stand – repurposing the Mitchell Johnson song for Siraj – would be proven right. India bowled to the left. They bowled to the right. Their bowling was, well…

Brief scores: [Day 2 stumps]
England 225 for 2 in 46 overs  (Ben Duckett 94, Zak Crawley 84, Ollie Pope 20*, Joe Root 11*; Ravindra Jadeja 1-37) trail India 358 in 114.1 overs  (Yashaswi Jaiswal 58,KL Rahul 46, B Sai Sudharsan 61, Rishabh Pant 54, Shardul Thakur 41; Ben  Stokes 5-72, Joffra Archer 3-73) by 133 runs

[Cricinfo]

 


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Kohli, Padikkal hit fifties as Royal Challengers Bengaluru ace the chase against Gujarat Titans

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3 hours ago

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2026/04/25

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Virat Kohli hit eight fours, to go with four sixes [Cricinfo]

An exhibition of clean hitting by Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal ensured Sai Sudarshan’s measured 100 off 58 balls ended in a losing cause as Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) beat Gujarat Titans (GT) by five wickets at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

After winning the toss, RCB captain Rajat Patidar had no hesitation in putting GT in. Sudharsan laid a strong foundation on a pitch he described as “two-paced and sticky to start with”. But even when the surface became easier to bat on, GT could not get into overdrive. They scored only 35 in the last four overs and finished on 205 for 3.

In response, Kohli, who was dropped on zero, smashed 81 off 44 balls and Padikkal blasted 55 off just 27. They put on 115 in 9.5 overs for the second wicket, and despite a bit of wobble towards the end, RCB romped home with seven balls to spare.

The GT openers prefer to take as few risks as possible and it was no different on Friday. Sudharsan was circumspect at the start and was on 17 off 16 after three overs. But he found his timing after that and moved to 41 off 27 by the end of the fifth. Gill had faced just three balls till then. GT finished the powerplay on 57 for no loss.

Sudharsan went inventive after the powerplay, scooping Romario Shepherd for a six. When Krunal Pandya bowled a bouncer, he uppercut him over deep third. Later in the over, he slog-swept the spinner for another six, reaching 2000 runs in the IPL. Taking 47 innings, he was the fastest to get there, bettering Chris Gayle’s record by one.

He and Gill added 128 in 12.4 overs, with Gill contributing 32 off 24 balls. The GT captain was starved of strike throughout his stay and holed out to long-on off Suyash Sharma. Sudharsan brought up his hundred off 57 balls, the slowest of the six so far this season. There was no cutting loose after reaching the milestone either. He was out on the very next ball he faced.

GT were 170 for 2 after 16 overs but Suyash, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Hazlewood gave away only 17 in the next three. At 187 for 3, Rasikh Salam ran in to bowl the final over but he stopped even before he could bowl a delivery. It looked like cramps and despite the physio working on him, he had to walk off the field. Krunal replaced him and was hit for a six by Jason Holder off the first ball. After another ball, Krunal too pulled out of his delivery stride holding his groin. But after a bit of medical attention, he completed the over, but ended up leaking 18 runs.

With Phil Salt injured, Jacob Bethell finally got a chance to play this season. Opening the innings after coming in as Impact Player, he had a close shave in the second over. He got an inside edge to a length ball from Kagiso Rabada but it missed the stumps and beat Buttler for four. In the next over, he shuffled across and hit Mohammed Siraj for a four on either side of the wicket. But when he tried the same trick later in the over, he hit it straight to the backward point. He made 14 off ten.

Kohli was dropped off the first ball he faced. It was a length delivery from Siraj that he flicked uppishly towards short midwicket but Washington Sundar grassed a regulation chance. Kohli made his intentions clear in the following over when he hit Rabada over mid-on for a four.

Padikkal was even more ruthless. He opened his account with a first-ball six, picking up a 153.6kph length ball from Rabada over square leg. The GT bowlers didn’t help themselves by bowling onto his pads, and he kept flicking them fine for boundaries.

Rashid Khan wasn’t spared either. He dropped one short to Kohli and the batter duly pulled it over deep midwicket for a six before cutting the following delivery for four. In the spinner’s second over, Padikkal hit him for two sixes, the second one taking him to his fifty off just 20 balls. It made Kohli’s 30-ball fifty look pedestrian.

Rashid bowled Padikkal with a googly from around the wicket, and Kohli played Holder on but not before hitting the allrounder for back-to-back sixes.

Rajat Patidar and Jitesh Sharma kept the attack going. They hit a six each off Rashid but fell in quick succession. Suddenly, RCB were five down with 31 required from four overs. Krunal, though, bashed Manav Suthar for two fours and a six in the 18th over, bringing the equation down to seven needed from 12. In the penultimate over, he swatted Holder through midwicket for four before wrapping up the game with a gentle pull to fine leg.

Brief scores:
Royal Challengers Bengaluru 206 for 5 in 18.5 overs (Jacob Bethell 14, Virat Kohli 81, Devdutt Padikkal 55, Jitesh Sharma 10, Tim David 10*, Krunal Pandya 23*; Mohammed Siraj 1-25, Jason Holder 1-35, Rashid Khan 2-49, Manav  Suther 1-19) beat Gujarat Titans 205 for 3 in 20 overs (Sai Sudharsan 100, Shubman Gill 32, Jos Buttler 25, Washington Sundar 19*,Jason Holder 23*; Bhuvneshwar Kumar 1-31, Josh Hazelwood 40, Suyash Sharma 1-36) by five wickets

[Cricinfo]

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Heat Index at Caution Level in the Northern, North-central, North-western, Western, Sabaragamuwa and  Eastern provinces during the day time

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4 hours ago

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2026/04/25

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Warm Weather Advisory
Issued by the Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre
Issued at 3.30 p.m. on 24 April 2026, valid for 25 April 2026.

Heat index, the temperature felt on human body is likely to increase up to ‘Caution level’ at some places in Northern, North-central, North-western, Western, Sabaragamuwa and
Eastern provinces during the day time.

The Heat Index Forecast is calculated by using relative humidity and maximum temperature and this is the condition that is felt on your body. This is not the forecast of maximum temperature. It is generated by the Department of Meteorology for the next day period and prepared by using global numerical weather prediction model data.


Effect of the heat index on human body is mentioned in the above table and it is prepared on the advice of the Ministry of Health and Indigenous Medical Services.

ACTION REQUIRED
Job sites: Stay hydrated and takes breaks in the shade as often as possible.
Indoors: Check up on the elderly and the sick.
Vehicles: Never leave children unattended.
Outdoors: Limit strenuous outdoor activities, find shade and stay hydrated.
Dress: Wear lightweight and white or light-colored clothing.

Note:
In addition, please refer to advisories issued by the Disaster Preparedness & Response Division, Ministry of Health in this regard as well. For further clarifications please contact 011-7446491.

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Oil rises above $106 per barrel as US, Iran deadlocked in Strait of Hormuz

Published

1 day ago

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2026/04/24

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Oil tankers and cargo ships line up in the Strait of Hormuz as seen from Khor Fakkan, the United Arab Emirates, on March 11, 2026 [Aljazeera]

Oil prices have jumped on heightened tensions between the United States and Iran in the Strait of Hormuz following Washington and Tehran’s tit-for-tat captures of commercial vessels.

Brent crude, the international benchmark, topped $106 per barrel early on Friday morning as Washington and Tehran stepped up their confrontation over the key maritime route for transporting the world’s energy.

Brent stood at $106.80 as of 01:00 GMT, up nearly 5 percent from its closing price on Wednesday, when it surpassed $100 per barrel for the first time in two weeks.

US stocks fell overnight, with the benchmark S&P 500 index dipping 0.41 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dropping 0.89 percent.

Shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, which normally carries about one-fifth of the world’s supply of oil and natural gas, remains at a standstill as Iran continues to demand the right to decide which vessels may pass and the US blocks Iran’s maritime trade.

US President Donald Trump said in a Truth Social post on Thursday that he had ordered the US Navy to destroy any Iranian boats laying mines in the strait, shortly after the Pentagon announced that it had seized a tanker carrying sanctioned Iranian oil for the second time in less than a week.

Trump also appeared to expand the scope of the US naval blockade beyond Iranian ports, writing on Truth Social that no ship “can enter or leave” the strait without the approval of the US Navy.

“It is ‘Sealed up Tight,’ until such time as Iran is able to make a DEAL!!!” Trump said.

Trump’s threats came a day after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced the capture of two foreign cargo ships in the waterway.

The IRGC said it had seized the Panamanian-flagged MSC Francesca and Greek-owned Epaminondas after the vessels had endangered maritime security “by operating without the necessary permits and tampering with navigation systems”.

The Greek Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy Ministry has denied that the Epaminondas was captured and said the vessel remains under the control of its captain.

Only nine commercial vessels transited the strait on Wednesday, compared with seven on Tuesday and 15 on Monday, according to maritime intelligence platform Windward.

Before the US and Israel launched their war against Iran on February 28, the waterway saw an average of 129 transits each day, according to United Nations Trade and Development.

[Aljazeera]

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