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Hridoy’s stunning 96* lifts Bangladesh to 286
Following innings of substance Soumya Sarkar and Najmul Hossain Shanto, Towhid Hridoy’s slow-burn innings provided the ideal finishing touches as he propelled Bangladesh to a competitive total of 286 for 7 in the second ODI in Chattogram.
Hridoy, who had come into bat in the 13th over, ended unbeaten on 96 off 102, an innings and strike rate that belied the acceleration he provided at the death, to boost an innings that had looked in danger of stumbling at the final hurdle. Along with Taskin Ahmed, whose cameo of 18 off 10 also provided excellent support, the pair put on 50 off just 23 deliveries as Bangladesh scored 80 off the final 10 overs – 54 of which came in the final five. The hosts’ showcase of big hits late in the innings helped them grab the momentum at the break.
Before that Wanidu Hasaranga who had gone wicketless last time out, had threatened to derail Bangladesh’s efforts grabbing four wickets for 45 runs, while Dilshan Madushanka too proved pivotal grabbing two wickets early in the innings, as well as a superb take in the deep to dismiss Sarkar. But worryingly for Sri Lanka he walked off the field midway through his seventh over clutching his left hamstring.
With the potential of evening dew firmly on their minds, Sri Lanka had won the toss and elected to bowl first this time out. Madushanka wasted little time – just three deliveries in fact – in sending Litton Das packing for a second consecutive duck.
And it might have been even better for the visitors had Pathum Nissanka at slip held on to a thick edge from Shanto off Pramod Madushan an over later, or indeed if Sri Lanka had had the presence of mind to review a waft from the same batter two balls later, one which replays showed he had nicked.
Shanto to his credit rode this luck and used it as a catalyst to take the attack to the Lankan seamers, scoring 64 inside the first powerplay. A couple of sumptuous drives through the covers on the up showed his growing confidence, but his innings was cut short as he edged a seaming delivery from Madushanka through to Kusal Mendis for an acrobatic take.
The scoring rate however would not ease as by this time Sarkar had also got his eye in. With an uncertain Hridoy at the other end, Sarkar took on the role of aggressor and ensured the scoring rate stayed above six an over. The pair put on 55 off 54, and were threatening much more – particularly Sarkar who was starting to middle the ball with increasing consistency – before he was dismissed by an outstanding catch in the deep by Madushanka.
After Sarkar had nailed a reverse sweep off Hasaranga destined for the ropes, Madushanka sprinted to his right and threw himself at the ball grabbing an incredible catch with both hands in full flight. Sarkar could only stand there in disbelief, while the shouts of jubilation from Hasaranga provided insight into the pasting he had suffered at the hands of Sarkar before that.
One then brought two, as a moment of madness from Mahmudullah saw his charge Hasaranga and swing all around a googly to find himself stumped miles out of his crease. This meant Bangladesh had suddenly gone from 130 for 2 to 130 for 4, and it was left to Hridoy and Mushfiqur Rahim to consolidate. And so they did in a stand worth 43 off 57.
But just as Mushfiqur had begun to shift gears, Hasaranga struck once more. A tossed-up leg break on leg stump saw Mushfiqur miss his attempt at a sweep, and the resulting appeal for leg before was both loud and long. But with umpire Masudur Rahman unmoved, Sri Lanka went for the review, which vindicated their excitement with three reds.
When Hasaranga then dismissed Mehidy Hasan Miraz a couple of overs later, Bangladesh were suddenly in danger of floundering at the pivotal moment in their innings – much like Sri Lanka had two days earlier.
But Tanzim Hasan Sakib in a 33-ball innings of 18 proved an able and stubborn deputy, holding up one end as Hridoy kept the scoreboard ticking over before Hridoy and Taskin imparted the flourish the crowd in Chattogram was crying out for.
Brief scores:
Bangladesh 286 for 7 in 50 overs (Soumya Sarkar 68, Towhid Hridoy 96* Najmul Hossain Shanto 40, Mushfiqur Rahim 25; Dilshan Madushanka 2-30, Wanidu Hasaranga 4-45) vs Sri Lanka
(Cricinfo)
A seventh consecutive night of attacks by United States forces on targets across Iran has left 10,000 people without water after a desalination plant was hit, with Iran retaliating by launching another wave of drones and missiles at US-allied Gulf states.
Hamzeh Pour, chief executive of the Hormozgan Water and Wastewater Company, was quoted by the Tasnim news agency on Saturday as saying that a seawater pumping station and a power transformer at the Bunji desalination plant in Jask in southern Iran were “completely destroyed”, depriving 20 villages of water.
Iran’s retaliation also targeted civilian infrastructure, a war crime under international humanitarian law.
In the early hours of Saturday, Kuwait announced the closure of its airspace and said two power and water desalination plants were hit by Iranian attacks. Several Kuwaiti firefighters were wounded while responding to a fire sparked by the strikes, the country’s firefighting force said.
Air raid sirens also sounded repeatedly in Bahrain, where authorities urged residents to seek shelter.
In Jordan, authorities said they intercepted 10 Iranian ballistic missiles.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said its naval forces had targeted a US military fuel pier at Kuwait’s al-Ahmadi port and a US warplane assembly site at Bahrain’s Sheikh Isa Air Base. The IRGC also said it attacked a US base in Azraq in Jordan, claiming to have destroyed two American fighter jets.
The Iranian attacks came after the US military’s Central Command, or CENTCOM, announced it had carried another wave of overnight strikes targeting “surveillance sites, military logistics infrastructure, underground weapons storage, and maritime capabilities” in Iran.
[Aljazeera]
The world cup of tennis, the Davis cup Asia/Oceania Group IV 2026 will be held in Sri Lanka from the 20th to the 25th of July 2026 at the Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA) courts. This tournament is held under the guidance of World Tennis, is the main team event for the male tennis players of the world.
There will be seven nations participating in the event to be held in Colombo. The teams being Iraq, Northern Mariana Islands, Qatar, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyztan, Kuwait and the host country Sri Lanka.
The Sri Lanka team for the tournament comprises of Apna Perera, Thehan Wijemanna, Ganuka Fernando and Saha Kapilasena making up the team with a blend of youth and experience with Mineth Navarathna being the stand by player. The team is coached by the experienced Sankha Athukorala with Lakshan Wijerathna being the physio/ Masseur of the team. The manager of the team is Rukmal Cooray.
The seven teams will be divided into two groups. One group of three teams and the other one of four teams. Matches will be played in the round robin format in the initial stages and the top two teams from the two groups will compete in cross over matches. The two winners will be promoted from this event. The third placed teams from the two groups will play a demotion play off match. The loser will be demoted. The team which finishes in the 4th place in the group of four will automatically be demoted. As such two teams will be promoted and two teams will be demoted.
Official practice days are the 20th and the 21st of July and the matches will be held from the 22nd to the 25th of July.
The captain’s meeting and the draw for the tournament will be held at the SLTA on Tuesday the 21st at 10.00 am, while the opening ceremony of the event is expected to be held on Wednesday the 22nd of July at 9 30 am on the Center court.
The balls for the event will be Wilson US Open, with Trident Distributors, the official partner for Wilson sporting goods in Sri Lanka coming on board as the official ball suppliers for the event. Apart from this, Trident Sports under the guidance of Yasser Farook, the managing director has come on board as the official apparel partner for the Sri Lanka team as well.
All teams will be staying at the Cinnamon Lakeside hotel with Cinnamon Lakeside hotel coming on board as the official hospitality partner for this tournament. Dushyantha Tittawella, the General manger of the hotel is pulling out all the stops to make sure that the teams have a comfortable stay whilst they are in Sri Lanka.
Perera and Son bakers limited will be the official food and beverage partner for the tournament and will be in charge of making sure that the players’ needs are met throughout this event.
The tournament Director is Dinith Pathiraja and has S Thevanesan as his assistant.
Wan Xianling of China is the referee for the event and Dharaka Ellawala being his deputy. There are six Chair umpires who have been appointed with two of them being Sri Lankans, namely Anjana De Silva and Chamod Rupassara. Jeyachandirun Saarangan is the Chief of Umpires and Adheesha Paranagama, Prageeth Polgampola, Pasindu Sampath and Yumira Kuruppu rounding up the tournament staff for the event with Mrs Nipuni Maheshika being the safeguarding officer and the UNO official for the tournament.
The SLTA president Iqbal Bin Issack with General Secretary Pradeep Goonasekera have been advising and looking into all the arrangements to make this tournament a success.
From left: Dinith Pathiraja (Tournament Director, Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group IV Event), Iqbal Bin Issack (President, Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA)), Yasser Farook (Managing Director, Trident Distributors (Wilson Agents in Sri Lanka), Pradeep S. Goonasekera (General Secretary, Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA)), Rukmal Cooray (Vice President, Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA))
From left : Dinith Pathiraja (Tournament Director, Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group IV Event), Iqbal Bin Issack (President, Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA)), Dushyantha Tittawella (General Manager, Cinnamon Lakeside), Pradeep S. Goonasekera (General Secretary, Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA)), Rukmal Cooray (Vice President, Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA))
(PDES)
Rescuers are rushing to locate dozens of people missing in the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing, after a deadly landslide buried homes in the area, according to Chinese authorities.
The landslide took place around 9:10am (01:10 GMT) on Friday in Chongqing’s Pengshui county, killing eight people, leaving 34 unaccounted for and displacing more than 1,100, reported state media.
Footage shared by China’s CCTV broadcaster showed a huge buildup of rocks and dirt covering part of a residential and commercial street at the bottom of a mountain in the region.
Ten people have been rescued from the debris, including two who are seriously injured, reported China’s state-run Xinhua news agency.
Water, electricity and gas supplies were cut off within a one-kilometre (0.6-mile) radius of the landslide to prevent further disruptions. More than 800 rescuers have gone to the site, reported CCTV.
Authorities said they sent more than 8,000 disaster relief items to Chongqing, including tents, folding beds and family emergency kits.
Pengshui county is located in the southeast part of Chongqing, bordering the provinces of Hubei and Guizhou.
The area where the landslide happened is known for “unpredictable” steep terrain, a local official told a news conference, adding that dangerous rocks remain along the sides of the cliff.
The government has allocated 50 million yuan ($7.36m) in natural disaster relief funds to support the rescue and relief operations and to provide assistance to affected residents, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Emergency Management said.
[Aljazeera]
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