Latest News
The Men’s 100: Chris Green’s night out in Cardiff inspires Fire to first win
Aussie pace bowler Riley Meredith cranked it up in front of a raucous Cardiff crowd, taking 4 for 9 as Welsh Fire defeated Manchester Originals by 25 runs.
There were also three-fors for both Chris Green (3 for 19) and David Payne (3 for 14) as a brilliant fielding and bowling performance earned Fire a much deserved win.
Bowling first, Originals got off to a flying start, Sonny Baker having Jonny Bairstow caught by Lewis Gregory at slip with his fifth ball.
Fire reached 28 for 1 after the powerplay, 22 of the runs to Steve Smith, including a stunning six over point off Josh Tongue.
Tongue soon got his revenge, seeing Smith caught behind for 26. Fire then lost Luke Wells to Scott Currie for 13, reaching 57 for 3 at the halfway point.
Tongue returned to remove Abell (22) and Currie got rid of Saif Zaib (15), both caught behind by Jos Buttler, the Fire innings threatening to fizzle out at 108 for 6.
Chris Green added some late impetus, striking two sixes in his nine-ball 19, as Fire closed on 137 for 8, Currie (3 for 21) and Tongue (3 for 25) the pick of the Originals’ attack.
A brilliant burst of 3 for 6 from 10 balls by Riley Meredith saw the backs of Phil Salt (3), McKinney (10) and Mark Chapman (0), Salt spectacularly caught at deep backward-square by Green, as the Fire started well on top.
Buttler began the counterattack, hitting Paul Walter for back-to-back boundaries, but the Fire struck a huge blow when they had Heinrich Klaasen (11) caught in the deep off Green.
Buttler kept going, bringing up his fifty from 28 balls with a six off Green, but the off-spinner then struck twice, taking the key wickets of Buttler (57) and Gregory (21), both caught at deep midwicket by Abell, before Payne and Meredith cleaned up the tail.
Meerkat Match Hero Chris Green said: “It was a lot of fun. The last two games here have been an amazing atmosphere. The support here in Cardiff has been fantastic and it was great to reward that support with a win here tonight.
“Tommy Abell thought 130 was defendable, there was a bit of hold for the off-cutters for the seamers and a bit of hold for the spinners as well.
“Riley Meredith was outstanding up front and probably should be standing here because I thought he broke the game open. The energy we had and the support we had tonight got us over the line and we go into a big game in London on Saturday.”
Brief scores:
Welsh Fire 137 for 8 in 100 balls (Steven Smith 26, Luke Wells 13, Tom Abell 22, Tom Kohler-Cadmore 26, Saif Zaib 15, Chris Green 19; Sonny Baker 1-29, Josh Tongue 3-25, Scott Currie 3-21, Tom Hartley 1-23) beat Manchester Originals 112 in 97 balls (Ben McKinney 10, Jos Buttler 57, Heinrich Klassen 11, Lewis Gregory 21; Riley Meredith 4-09, Chris Green 3-19, David Payne 3-14) by 25 runs
[Cricinfo]
Latest News
Everest record holder warns of Nepal danger as two Indian mountaineers die
Two Indian climbers have died on Mount Everest during a record-breaking period of ascents via Nepal’s southern route, as experts warn of overcrowding on the world’s highest peak.
Nepal is home to eight of the world’s 10 highest peaks and welcomes hundreds of adventurers each spring.
At least five climbers have died during this Everest season, including the two Indians and three Nepalis. A United States and a Czech climber died on Mount Makalu earlier this month.
Nivesh Karki, director at Pioneer Adventures, named the latest victims as Sandeep Are, who he said summited on May 20, and Arun Kumar Tiwari, who reached the peak on May 21.
“They fell ill while descending at high altitude. We are working out how to retrieve the bodies,” Karki told the AFP news agency.
Nepali climber Kami Rita Sherpa, who scaled Everest for a record 32nd time earlier this month, returned to the capital, Kathmandu, on Friday, where he expressed concern about the experience of some climbers.
Pictures posted by climbers show a long line of people climbing up fixed ropes, queueing in the icy, low-oxygen high-altitude zones.
“The expedition this time felt a bit crowded,” said Kami Rita Sherpa, dubbed the “Everest Man”.
“The government should regulate this a bit … They should let in only climbers of quality – there should be a limit,” he told AFP.
On Thursday, a record number of climbers reached the 8,849-metre (29,032-foot) Himalayan peak from the Nepali side, according to tourism officials, who gave a preliminary total of 275 pending final confirmation.
The peak can be tackled from both Nepal and the northern face in Tibet, but Chinese authorities have closed the latter route this year.
The Guinness Book of World Records lists the highest number to climb Everest in a single day as 354, in May 2019.
Nepali tourism officials said the final number will be tallied after the climbs are verified, which require photographs and statements from the climber’s expedition company and guides.
Among the successful climbers on Friday was British guide Kenton Cool, who reached the top for the 20th time – extending his own record for the most ascents of the world’s highest peak by a non-Nepali.
The high number of climbers has rekindled concerns about overcrowding on the mountain – especially if poor weather shortens the climbing window.
The country has issued a record 492 Everest permits for foreigners this season, with a city of tents set up at the foot of the mountain for climbers and support staff.
Approximately 600 people – including guides – have summited Everest since the start of this year’s spring climbing season in April.
[Aljazeera]
Latest News
Sunrisers Hyderabad win big but Royal Challengers Bengaaluru, Gujarat Titans seal top two spots
Sunrisers Hyderabad [SRH] won, and yet it didn’t feel like a win. Royal Challengers Bengaluru [RCB] lost, but it didn’t feel like that either. In a nutshell, that’s how Friday night went in Hyderabad as RCB secured a top-two finish – they finished No 1 – despite a 55-run defeat, while SRH remained third.
On the back of half-centuries from Abhishek Sharma, Heinrich Klassen and Ishan Kishan, SRH posted a monster total of 255, but had to restrict RCB to 166 or below for a chance to move into the top two. Rajat Patidar’s 56, Venkatesh Iyer’s 44 and Krunal Pandya’s unbeaten 41 ensured there were no blushes for RCB even as they finished the league stage with a defeat.
That left the top three teams all on 18 points, with Gujarat Titans sandwiched between the two teams at No. 1 and No. 3. Eventually, it came down to net run-rate to decide which team would go to Qualifier 1, and which team would play the Eliminator.
Going into the game, RCB wanted to win but also wanted to ensure they didn’t slip outside the top two should they lose. After SRH pumped 255 for 4 in 20 overs, the equation became clear – RCB had to avoid losing by 90 or more runs.
The start given by their new opener, Venkatesh, calmed the nerves. He gave Pat Cummins a four-six jab in the first over, and saved his best for the fourth over delivered by left-arm wristspinner Shivang Kumar. He punished Shivang for two sixes in one over, with a boundary sandwiched in between. Venkatesh fell for a 19-ball 44 but by then RCB had already scored 60 in 4.3 overs.
Even though Virat Kohli (15) failed to leave a mark in the game with the bat, a spunky 21 from No. 3 Devdutt Padikkal ensured RCB stayed on course for 166 even if the chase looked to get out of hand. Sakib Hussain, who delivered 1 for 31 in four overs, was a major reason why RCB could not push on.
Patidar scored his fourth half-century of the season, staying in from the sixth over to the 19th. His 39-ball 56 included crisp boundaries off Eshan Malinga, Cummins and Harshal Patel, but fell to part-timer Travis Head. Krunal stayed till the end with an unbeaten 41 in 31 balls as RCB finished on a commendable 200 for 4 by the end.
Dropped in the sixth, seventh and eighth overs, Abhishek made full use of the chances RCB’s fielders offered him. On a flat surface with no grass, he did not let purple-cap holder Bhuvneshwar Kumar settle. His early boundaries over the off-side against Bhuvneshwar’s awayswingers moved into his takedown of Suyash Sharma’s googly and Romario Shepherd’s seam-up balls.
Abhishek was finally out in the ninth over, but by then his turbo-charged innings had SRH almost touching triple-digits.
Kishan had three fifties against RCB in his last three outings, and on Friday, he made it four in a row with a 46-ball 79. While Abhishek was going, Kishan took his time to score nine off his first ten balls, but then found his groove.
His best shot of the night was probably the leg-side slog towards the bigger boundary against Krunal in the 11th over, a sign that timing and form continued to be on his side. A sixth 50-plus score for Kishan this season also made IPL 2026 his most prolific as a batter. His sweeps, cuts and pulls allowed SRH to pump 73 runs across overs 11 to 15.
Klaasen’s story was similar, starting off with only five runs in nine balls, but one that was unlocked with his takedown of Josh Hazlewood in the 13th over. One six over cow corner and two more over long-on made Hazlewood leak 27. His effortless loft of Bhuvneshwar over extra cover took him close to yet another landmark, and he brought up his sixth half-century of the season in the 16th over. He fell in the 17th over to a low-arm slinger from Krunal for 52, but not before becoming the first player to cross 600 runs while batting at No. 4 or lower in a T20 tournament.
Nitish Kumar Reddy scored a blazing unbeaten 29 in 12 balls to give SRH a late push. He hit Krunal for two sixes in his first three balls in the crease and then deposited Hazlewood for another.
The late flourish took SRH past 250 while also leaving RCB’s senior seam-bowling pair of Bhuvneshwar and Hazlewood ducking for cover. Hazlewood conceded 55 on the night while Bhuvneshwar leaked 51. They both finished the evening wicketless.
Brief scores:
Sunrisers Hyderabad 255 for 4 in 20 overs (Abhishek Sharma 56, Travis Head 26, Ishan Kishan 79, Heinrich Klaasen 51, Nitish Kumar Reddy 29*; Rasikh Salam 2-52, SuyashSharma 1-36, Krunal Pandya 1-24) beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru 200 for 4 in 20 overs (Venkatesh Iyer 44, Virat Kohli 15, Devdutt Padikkal 21, Rajat Patidar 56, Krunal Pandya 41*, Tim David 15*; Eshan Malinga 2-33, Sakib Hussain 1-31, Travis Head 1-07) by 55 runs
[Cricinfo]
Latest News
Flood warning issued to the Aththanagalu Oya basin extended until 0600AM on Monday [25]
The warning mentioned in the flood warning message No. 01 issued for the Aththanagalu Oya basin on 22.05.2026 at about 5.30 am will be extended for the next 48 hours.
It is requested that residents in the area and vehicle drivers running through those areas pay high attention in this regard by the . Disaster Management Authorities are requested to take adequate precautions in this regard
-
Features6 days agoSri Lankan Airlines Airbus Scandal and the Death of Kapila Chandrasena and my Brother Rajeewa
-
News6 days agoKapila Chandrasena case: GN phone records under court scrutiny
-
News6 days agoRupee slide rekindles 2022 crisis fears as inflation risks mount
-
Features3 days agoOctopus, Leech, and Snake: How Sri Lanka’s banks feast while the nation starves
-
Business6 days agoExpansion of PayPal services in Sri Lanka officially announced
-
News2 days agoSteps underway to safeguard Sri Lanka’s maritime heritage
-
News6 days agoCourt orders further arrests in alleged USD 42 Mn NDB fraud case
-
Opinion2 days agoMurder of Ehelepola family, Bogambara Wewa and Sightings of Wangediya
