Latest News

India beat Sri Lanka to top Group A

Published

3 hours ago

2025/01/23

Priyan

VJ Joshitha struck big blows in the powerplay

On the final day of group stage action, India took on Sri Lanka in Group A as both team eyed the top spot in their group but India managed to ease past Sri Lanka by 60 runs to ensure their remain unbeaten and top group A.

Sri Lanka won the toss and chose to bowl first, however, inclement weather interrupted the game with India at 17-2 off 4.2 overs. After the delay, India reached 48-3 at the 10-over mark.

Sri Lanka’s bowlers regrouped in the second half, claiming six quick wickets, and India managed to add 70 runs in the final 10 overs, setting a target of 119. Trisha Gongadi top-scored for India with 49 off 44 balls, just missing a half-century. Pramudi Methsara, Limansa Thilakaratne, and Aseni Thalagune each took two wickets as India lost 9 wickets in their innings.

In reply, India’s bowlers were sharp from the start, reducing Sri Lanka to 26-5 by the end of the powerplay. Shabhnam and Joshitha VJ each claimed two wickets, and Sri Lanka struggled further, reaching 39-8 at the halfway point. Aseni Thalagune and Pramudi Methsara offered some resistance, but despite their efforts, Sri Lanka could not chase down the challenging target and ultimately fell short by 60 runs.

Brief cores:
India Women Under 19s 118/9 in 20 overs [Gongaci Trisha 49, Niki Prasad 11, Mithila Vinod 16, VJ Joshitha 14; Rashmika Sewwandi 1-17, Chamodi Praboda 1-23, Pramudi Methsara 2-10, Limansa Thiakerathna 2-14, Aseni Thalagune 2-24, Manudi Nanayakkara 1-04] beat Sri Lanka Women Under 19s 58/9 in 20 overs [Rashmika Sewwandi 15; Shabnam Shakil 2-09, VJ Joshitha 2-17, Aayushi Shukla 1-13, Paruniks Sisodia 2-07, Vaishnavi Sharma 1-03] by 60 runs

All News Advertisement

Latest News

Sabalenka beats close friend Badosa to reach final

Published

31 mins ago

2025/01/23

Priyan

Aryna Sabalenka will have the chance to become the first woman in 26 years to win three successive Australian Open titles after reaching the Melbourne final with a commanding win over Paula Badosa.

Belarusian top seed Sabalenka, who previously described Badosa as her “soulmate”, recovered from an early setback to win 6-4 6-2.

Badosa, contesting her first major semi-final, quickly went 2-0 up but the Spanish 11th seed would win just four of the next 16 games.

Sabalenka will face Iga Swiatek or Madison Keys in the final, where she will aim to emulate Martina Hingis’ three straight titles between 1997-99.

“Just saying that, I have goosebumps. I am so proud of myself and my team that we were able to put ourselves in such a situation,” Sabalenka said.

“It’s a privilege and if I will be able to put my name in the history [books] it’s going to mean the world to me.

“At first I was dreaming to win at least one Grand Slam and now I have this opportunity and it’s incredible.”

It was a 20th straight victory at the Australian Open for two-time defending champion Sabalenka.

Sabalenka will keep her world number one ranking if Swiatek loses in the semi-finals – and if the Pole advances, the winner of Saturday’s championship match will take the top spot.

Should Swiatek join Sabalenka in the final, it would be the first time since 2018 that the Australian Open women’s final has featured the top two seeds.

Badosa, having stunned American third seed Coco Gauff in the quarter-finals, benefitted in the early stages as a tense Sabalenka conceded an immediate break of serve with four unforced errors.

Badosa was within a point of taking a 3-0 lead before Sabalenka switched up a gear.

The three-time major winner then took charge, reeling off four games in a row and was unrelenting from there.

Despite their off-court relationship, both players gave little away, barely exchanging a glance as they stayed focused on their respective tasks.

But, in a rare glimpse into their friendship, they shared relieved smiles after Badosa fell at the start of the second set before raising a reassuring thumb as she lay on the court.

What started as a fiercely-contested match began to drift away from Badosa when she gifted Sabalenka control of set two, conceding a break of serve with back-to-back double faults

Another double fault in the fifth game gave Sabalenka a chance for a second break, which she grabbed with one of her 32 winners before serving out victory in one hour and 26 minutes.

Sabalenka, who was later seen consoling Badosa in the players’ area, said: “It was a super tough match against a friend, I’m super happy to see her at her highest level.

“After a couple of battles against each other we have spoken and decided to put it aside, and here we both wanted it badly.”

[BBC]

Latest News

“Subjects of Aesthetics, Information Technology or Accounting will not be removed from curriculum” – PM

Published

48 mins ago

2025/01/23

Priyan

While responding to a question raised in the Parliament today (23) Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya said that the previous regime had not developed a plan to implement the education reforms presented. “Therefore, we expect to review those reforms, make necessary alternatives for a positive transformation in education and implement it from 2026 onwards”.

“We look forward to revising the content of subjects such as aesthetics, information technology and accounting to a more appropriate level rather than removing them from the curriculum. These subjects should be available in the curriculum”, she highlighted.

Dr. Amarasuriya claimed that special emphasis must be given to teacher training. Attention has already been given on reducing the gap between schools through the establishment of infrastructure needed by schools and on the content of the school curriculum. “It is our objective to create an environment where a child admitted to a school can have an educational experience that paves the way to the wide world in front of him or her” she expressed.

The curriculum is being revised in keeping with educational reform proposals. Accordingly, the curriculum will be revised in such a way that the number of subjects currently studied by the students and the pressure laden on them through the assessment process are minimized. The ultimate goal is to provide non-burdening practical education to children rather than an examination-centric system.

In terms of higher education, the Premier expressed hope for expanding higher education opportunities in the fields of science, technology and vocational training. “In this regard, we have focused more on improving the quality of vocational education that directly contributes to the country’s economy” she explained.

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, who stated that steps have been taken to provide footwear to selected 700,000 school children across the island.

[Prime Minister’s Media Division]