Latest News

Salman Agha 105*, Hussain Talat half-century set Sri Lanka 300

Published

5 months ago

2025/11/11

Priyan

Salman Agha scored his second ODI century[Cricinfo]

A century from Salman Agha and a maiden ODI fifty from Hussain Talat helped revive a flagging Pakistan innings, as their 138-run fifth-wicket stand saw the hosts post 299 for 5 in the first ODI against Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi.

The pair came together at 95 for 4 in the 24th over, but by the time their partnership came to an end, they had taken Pakistan to 233 for 5 midway through the 44th over.

Agha then turned on the afterburners alongside Mohammad Nawaz, as Pakistan managed 104 runs off the last 10 overs to set Sri Lanka a 300-run target, which, if achieved, would be the second highest successful chase at the Rawalpindi Stadium.

Agha brought up his second ODI ton with a gentle dab behind point for a single off his 83rd delivery, but the ball prior to that highlighted the confidence with which he was batting – sweeping an attempted Dushmantha Chameera yorker for four. That Chameera over, the 48th of the innings, would end up going for 20 – the most expensive of the innings – as Nawaz, who had entered following the fall of Talat, also began to find his range in a cameo worth 36 not out off 23; their partnership of 66 came off just 40 deliveries.

Prior to Agha and Talat’s intervention, however, Sri Lanka had choked the Pakistan innings for large parts. Miserly opening spells from Asitha Fernando and Chameera ensured just 28 runs were scored inside the opening powerplay, and while just one wicket fell in that period the introduction of Wanidu Hasaranga saw wickets fall at a canter. He ended up with figures of 3 for 54, with Asitha and Maheesh Theekshana the only other wicket-takers.

Introduced into the attack in the 14th over, it wasn’t until his third over that Hasaranga was able to make his first breakthrough. Fakhar Zaman, who had earlier in the over skipped out and belted one over long-on for a six, was looking to break out of his early shell, but in attempting to repeat the trick he missed a wide one and found himself duly stumped for a 55-ball 32.

New batter Mohammed Rizwan was Hasaranga’s next victim, trapped lbw by a googly. A couple of overs later Hasaranga got the prize scalp of Babar Azam. It was his trademark googly doing the damage, as Babar sought to drive a floated one outside off only to see it sneak through his bat and pad.

Hasaranga might have had another to close out the over after he had Talat rapped on the front knee-roll only for the umpire to turn down the appeal. Ball-tracking showed it would have crashed into leg stump, but Sri Lanka had burnt both their reviews early on – both for lbw appeals where the ball pitched outside leg.

That proved to be a sliding doors moment of sorts as Pakistan’s fortunes gradually began to shift, and it was also some much-needed luck for Talat in particular, whose place in the side had come under increasing scrutiny of late – his six innings in ODIs leading up to this game had seen him score 107 runs with a high score of 41.

But with Pakistan in need of resuscitation, he and Agha set about rebuilding. Boundaries weren’t the aim, rather the focus was on running between the wickets. Thirty-two of Talat’s 62 runs came in either ones of twos; Agha was alongside him in lockstep having run 40 singles and 13 twos by the end of the innings.

The plan was clear at this point: keep wickets intact for the final overs and then launch. And in this instance the execution was perfect. Sri Lanka, who might have regretted their decision to not go with a genuine fifth bowling option, were left requiring Janith Liyanage to bowl eight overs of his part-time seam after Charith Asalanka was taken for 18 in his two solitary overs.

Liyanage, to his credit, gave away 48 runs during his efforts, though with Sri Lanka in the ascendancy at the halfway point of the innings, their need to get through the their fifth bowler quota allowed Talat and Agha to settle in nicely.

And while Talat was unable to see the innings to its close, Agha ensured he remained unbeaten to get his side to a competitive total after they were asked to bat first. Whether that will be enough on an ostensibly good batting track, one where dew is expected to come to the fore later on, remains to be seen.

Brief scores:
Pakistan 299 for 5 in 50 overs (Fakhar Zaman 32, Salman Agha 105*, Hussain Talat 62, Mohammed Nawaz 36*; Wanidu Hasaranga 3-54) vs Sri Lanka

[Cricinfo]

All News Advertisement

Latest News

Iran executes two convicted members of banned opposition group

Published

12 hours ago

2026/04/4

Priyan

Glenn Torshizi, whose brothers were executed by the Iranian government, joins others in a protest at the US State Department, to highlight the executions in Karaj, Iran, of People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran members, on March 30, 2026, in Washington, DC [Cricinfo]

Iran has executed two men convicted of being members of the banned People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) opposition group, in the latest action targeting dissidents, even as the United States – Israeli war on Iran drags on.

The two were executed on Saturday morning after the country’s Supreme Court upheld earlier sentences that convicted them of PMOI/MEK membership, and “armed rebellion through involvement in multiple terrorist acts”.

“Abolhassan Montazer and Vahid Baniamerian were hanged after trial and their sentences were upheld by the Supreme Court,” the Iranian judiciary website, Mizan Online, said on Saturday.

PMOI/MEK had initially supported the 1979 Islamic revolution that unseated the Iranian monarchy. However, in the 1980s, it fell out with the new leadership in Tehran and was designated a “terrorist” organisation. PMOI/MEK has since operated in exile.

Four other convicted members of the group were executed on March 30 and 31. According to information on the PMOI/MEK website, the men were: Mohammad Taghavi, Akbar Daneshvarkar, Babak Alipour and Pouya Ghobadi.

All six men were arrested and convicted by a Revolutionary Court in late 2024, according to PMOI/MEK.

The group condemned the executions in an April 2 statement, calling Tehran’s actions a “futile” attempt to suppress opposition.

“These brutal executions will not silence the opposition; instead, they will only intensify the resolve of Iran’s rebellious youth to overthrow the regime,” PMOI/MEK said.

Rights groups, too, have criticised the spate of hangings. Activists have long accused Iran of being the second most prolific executioner after China.

In a statement following the first set of hangings on March 31, Amnesty International accused Iranian authorities of torturing the men while they were held in prison and then abruptly transferring them to an unknown location shortly before their executions.

Amnesty further raised fears of more planned executions, including of protesters arrested during mass anti-government demonstrations in January, during which thousands were killed.

“It is unconscionable that even as the population is reeling from conflict and mass bereavement amid the ongoing aerial bombardment by Israel and the USA, the authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran continue to weaponize the death penalty to eradicate dissenting voices and further terrify people,” said Diana Eltahawy, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa.

Since the US and Israel’s war on Iran began on February 28, Tehran has executed several people, including Kouroush Keyvani, a dual Iranian-Swedish national convicted on charges of spying for Israel in a case that has drawn outrage from Stockholm and the European Union.

One man convicted of acting on behalf of Israel and the US during the protests was also executed on Thursday.

Earlier, on March 19, four people – Saleh Mohammadi, Mehdi Ghasemi, and Saeed Davoudi – arrested in connection with the uprising, were killed.

Amnesty warns that another five young protesters previously sentenced to death could soon be executed after they were moved from the Ghezel Hesar prison to an unidentified location this week.

[Aljazeera]

Latest News

Afghanistan earthquake kills eight members of same family

Published

13 hours ago

2026/04/4

Priyan

An Afghan man clears rubble from the courtyard of his damaged house, in the aftermath of an earthquake at a village in the Khulm district of Samangan province on November 4, 2025 [Aljazeera]

An earthquake in Afghanistan has killed eight members of the same family when their home collapsed in the Gosfand Dara area of Kabul province.

Health Ministry spokesman Sharafat Zaman said on Saturday that a child aged around two years old was the only survivor. Afghanistan’s disaster management agency said the boy was injured

The 5.8-magnitude quake struck at 8:42pm local time (16:12 GMT) on Friday at a depth of 186km (115 miles). The US Geological Survey (USGS) said the epicentre was in the northeastern province of Badakhshan.

The capital Kabul is about 290km (180 miles) southwest of the epicentre.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage in areas closer to the epicentre. The province is remote so it can often take several hours before local authorities can relay information back to Kabul.

Strong tremors were felt in multiple parts of Afghanistan, including Kabul and the Indian capital New Delhi, witnesses told the Reuters news agency.

Pakistan also felt the quake, including in the capital Islamabad and Peshawar, Chitral, Swat and Shangla. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage.

Afghanistan is frequently jolted by earthquakes along the Hindu Kush mountain range – near the junction of the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates. On average, 560 people are killed by quakes there every year.

The deadliest tremor in the country’s recent history struck last August. The shallow magnitude 6 earthquake in eastern Afghanistan wiped out mountain villages, killing at least 2,200 people.

Most casualties were in Kunar province, where Afghans typically live in wood and mud-brick houses along steep valleys.

Impoverished Afghanistan often faces difficulty in responding to natural disasters, especially in remote regions.

Many homes in rural and outlying areas are poorly built with bricks, wood and mud.

[Aljazeera]

Latest News

Breakdown of the teams and groups of the FIFA World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the US after the final playoffs

Published

16 hours ago

2026/04/4

Priyan

Bosnia and Herzegovina's Ermedin Demirovic and Dzenis Burnic celebrate qualifying for the FIFA World Cup after beating Italy in a penalty shootout at the Bilino Polje Stadium in Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina on March 31, 2026 [

Iraq’s qualification for the FIFA World Cup 2026 has completed the lineup of 48 nations for the tournament hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States.

The Lions of Mesopotamia edged Bolivia 2-1 on Tuesday to win the second final of the FIFA Playoff tournament in Mexico. In the first final earlier, Democratic Republic of the Congo beat Jamaica 1-0.

In the other games, Turkiye, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sweden and Czechia were the final four teams to complete the European quota of World Cup qualification.

Widely considered the most famous sporting event in the world, the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be its biggest ever. Forty-eight nations will play instead of the usual 32, with 104 matches in 16 venues across the three host nations.

Argentina will look to defend the trophy lifted by iconic captain, Lionel Messi at Qatar 2022. Cape Verde, Curacao, Jordan and Uzbekistan will make their debut.

The World Cup’s first game will be a throwback to 2010 when Mexico take on South Africa on June 11 in Mexico City in a replay of the tournament opener then. Football fans will hope the opening goal this year matches the screamer scored by Lawrence Tshabalala from the South African hosts then.

Mexico in group A – which includes South Korea and Czechia – will be one of the toughest of the 12 groups.

Team USA are alongside Australia, Paraguay and Turkiye.

Canada, too, face the challenging task of making it out of a group comprising Switzerland, Qatar and Bosnia.

Here’s a breakdown of the 48 teams in the 12 groups:

Group A: