8.3 C
Madrid
Sunday, April 2, 2023
type here...
Home Blog Page 52

Ferrari Drivers Seek Improvements Despite Being the Fastest

Aditya Saikrishna
-
0
Ferrari Drivers Seek Improvements Despite Being the Fastest

UNITED STATES: Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz topped the timing charts during the first practice session of the 10th American GP. He was two-tenths of a second ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. His Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc took over the top position in the subsequent second practice session in Austin. The second practice was extended as a dedicated session for testing the Pirelli prototype tyres for the 2023 season. 

Despite being the fastest by a margin and the car having outright pace, Sainz termed his F1-75 as an “uncomfortable” car to ride throughout Friday’s running. He would hope the situation is fixed by the mechanics before the all-important qualification on Saturday. Sainz said that the bumps were a major factor in the ride quality.

He admitted that it was a challenge to obtain a good balance in the car and have a good ride over the kerbs and bumps of the Austin track. On a positive note, he added that the car had a good pace which is what matters the most. According to Sainz, the team is yet to test a few things in FP3 which couldn’t be tested in FP2 due to the Pirelli tyre test.

Charles Leclerc, who had made way for Ferrari junior, Robert Schwartzman’s FP1 debut in the Scarlett car, made up for the lost time during the FP2 session, which he finished on top. He felt that the second practice session of the American GP was the busiest he had done. He was upbeat about the team’s chances on Saturday for the qualification session. 

The highly anticipated American GP witnessed four FP1 debutants. Theo Pourchaire, Alex Palou, Logan Sargeant, and Robert Schwartzman made their first appearance in an F1 session in Alfa Romeo-Sauber, McLaren, Williams, and Ferrari, respectively.

Antonio Giovinazzi replaced Mick Schumacher in his Haas, only to spin off at turn 6, 10-minutes into the FP1 session. The car got lodged in the tech-pro barriers, and as a result, the gearbox and clutch of the Haas received extensive damage, so no further action was taken in the session. 

The final grid for the American GP will consist of a few drivers with grid penalties. Red Bull’s Sergio Perez and Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu will take a 5-place grid drop for a new internal combustion engine, their fifth of the year. 

Mercedes brought their final upgrade package of the season at the American GP, but it remains to be seen if the intriguing front wing, which is a part of the upgrades along with the reprofiled floor edges, will be used through the American GP weekend.

Also Read: Ferrari 296 GTB: Ferrari’s Latest V6 830 Horsepower Plug-In Hybrid Supercar

Early Diwali for ISRO: Record-breaking 36 OneWeb Satellites to Be Launched

Aditya Saikrishna
-
0
Early Diwali for ISRO: Record-breaking 36 OneWeb Satellites to Be Launched

INDIA: ISRO’s (Indian Space Research Organisation) ambitious LVM3 M2 mission is planned to carry 36 OneWeb satellites to Low Earth Orbit (LEO). A Low Earth Orbit is an orbit whose altitude is 2000 kilometers or less from the Earth. Spacecrafts in LEO have an orbital period of 128 minutes or less.

The LVM3 M2 mission is the first to be commissioned through NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), which is the nodal agency for Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) production through Indian Industry under the consortium route.

ISRO is set to launch OneWeb satellites

The launch will witness the heaviest Payload mass so far at 5,796 kilograms. This will be the first commercial mission of the LVM3 (Launch Vehicle Mark 3), which is a three-stage launch vehicle with two solid motor strap-ons, a liquid propellant core stage, and a cryogenic stage.

The rocket is capable of launching 4-tonne class satellites into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit. The launch is also set to be the first instance of an LVM3 to a Low Earth Orbit.

The technical highlight of the launch will be the handling of multiple satellite separation events in orbit. A safe separation distance of the satellites will be ensured through C25 stage re-orientation and velocity addition. Data availability for the entire mission duration is also ensured. A New payload adaptor and interface ring for the satellite dispenser will also be tested in operation for the first time.

OneWeb is a private satellite communications company that aims to build broadband satellite internet services. Based in London, the company has offices in Virginia, the USA, and a satellite manufacturing facility in Florida, which is a joint venture with Airbus Defence and Space.

The OneWeb satellite constellation is a planned 648-satellite internet constellation to provide global broadband internet services by 2023. The constellation operated in an LEO Polar Orbit. The satellites are arranged in 12 rings or orbital planes with 49 satellites in each. The orbital planes are inclined to be near polar, i.e., 87.9°. Each satellite will complete a full trip around the Earth every 109 minutes.

The first batch of OneWeb satellite constellations was launched in February 2019 with 6 satellites. The first large batch of 34 satellites was launched in February 2020, and a further 34 were put into orbit a month later in March.

Also Read: ISRO’s Chandrayaan-2 Tracks a Large Amount of Sodium on the Moon for the First Time

England Pip Valiant Afghanistan by 5 Wickets in Tightly Contested Match

Aditya Saikrishna
-
0
England Pip Valiant Afghanistan by 5 Wickets in Tightly Contested Match

AUSTRALIA: England began their T20 World Cup campaign with a 5-wicket victory. The team produced an amazing display of bowling and fielding to bundle out Afghanistan for 113 runs.

The Afghanistan bowlers squeezed the flow of runs and picked up wickets at regular intervals, never letting go of the pressure on England’s batsmen.

The Afghan batting failed to set a defendable score as Livingstone’s cameo carried England to the win.

Afghanistan Innings:

England won the toss and elected to bowl first on a skiddy and bouncy Perth track. The English bowlers bowled disciplined lines early on without allowing the Afghan openers to free their arms.

The consistent bowling reaped rewards as Rahmanullah Gurbaz (10 off 9 balls) was caught behind the stumps off the bowling of Mark Wood (23/2). Hazratullah Zazai (7 off 17 balls), in particular, struggled to both get his timing right as well as rotate the strike.

At the end of the powerplay, Afghanistan reached 35/1, their score consisting of only three boundaries and two sixes. Ben Stokes (19/2) bowling the 7th over ended Zazai’s struggles by having the left-hander hit an aerial shot which was caught by a diving Liam Livingstone.

Afghanistan stumbled to 55/2 after 10 overs as the English bowling never let go of the stranglehold over the scoring rate.

The mounting pressure got the better of Ibrahim Zadran (32 off 32 balls) and the attempted loft off Sam Curran (10/5) ended up in the hands of Moeen Ali at backward point.

The 13th over from Adil Rashid (32/0) yielded 13 runs for the struggling side after Najibullah Zadran (13 off 11 balls) smashed the leggie straight over his head for an 85-metre maximum.

Ben Stokes came back for his final over and straightaway got the scalp of Najibullah Zadran in the 15th over.

Najibullah tried to hit the pacer out of the park but mistimed the lofted shot, which popped up in the air only to be pouched by a running Adil Rasheed.

The new man in, Mohammad Nabi (3 off 5 balls), didn’t last long, becoming Mark Wood’s 2nd wicket of the day. Jos Buttler made a brilliant diving catch to dismiss the right-hander.

Afghanistan’s hopes of posting a competitive total were all but ended when Sam Curran bowled the 18th over. The medium-pacer claimed the wickets of Azmatullah Omarzai (8 off 6 balls) and Rashid Khan (0 off 1 ball) off successive balls while giving away just 3 runs.

Chris Woakes (24/1) exhibited quick reflexes to catch Mujeeb Ur Rahman (0 off 1 ball) off his own bowling in the 19th over.

Sam Curran returned to bowl the last over, missed out on a hat-trick but dismissed Usman Ghani (30 off 30 balls) and the last batsman, Fazalhaq Farooqi (0 off 2 balls) within 4 balls to wrap up the Afghanistan innings at 112 in 19.4 overs.

The Afghans lost their last 5 wickets inside 12 deliveries while adding only 3 runs to the team total.

England Innings:

In response to the 113-run target, England was off to a brisk start thanks to the opener, Jos Buttler (18 off 18 balls), while Alex Hales (19 off 20 balls) happily played the second fiddle.

Fazalhaq Farooqi created an opportunity for Afghanistan in the form of Alex Hales, who slashed at the ball which flew towards backward point only to be dropped by substitute fielder Qais Ahmed.

Alex Hales added insult to injury by hitting the very next delivery for a massive six, over long-on.

Farooqi kept bowling his heart out, which reaped rewards as dangerous-looking Buttler hit a full-length delivery to Mujeeb Ur Rahman (22/1), who caught the ball without any fuss at deep mid-wicket. At the end of the powerplay, England was comfortably 40/1.

Alex Hales got another reprieve in the 8th over when he hit Mujeeb towards long-on. Mohammad Nabi, stationed at long-off, ran toward the ball but failed to hold onto the catch.

Hales couldn’t make the most of his fortune and became Fareed Ahmad’s first victim. He hit a short delivery from Ahmad into the waiting hands of Fazalhaq Farooqi at backward square leg.

The bowlers, led by Rashid Khan (17/1), dried up the runs, giving away only 22 runs in the 4 overs after powerplay as England reached 62/2 after 10 overs.

Mohammad Nabi struck immediately by catching big-hitting Ben Stokes (2 off 4 balls), who came down the pitch to play the delivery only to miss the line of the ball, which brushed past his pad before disturbing the stumps.

England’s first boundary since the 5th over came in the 14th over when Liam Livingston (29 off 21) welcomed Mujeeb Ur Rahman in the 14th over with a boundary.

Livingstone looked to play across the line off the very next delivery and was struck on the front pad. Umpire Aleem Dar turned down the appeal as Afghanistan decided to review the decision. The delivery seemed to be missing the leg stump, and Afghanistan lost the review.

Photo Credit: Twitter/ICC

Mujeeb struck three deliveries later as he tricked Dawid Malan (18 off 30 balls) into a poor shot and Mohammad Nabi took a stunning catch to get rid of the batsman.

Liam Livingstone hit two consecutive boundaries off Fareed Ahmad in the 15th over, which yielded 14 runs.

Just as the English innings seemed to gain some momentum, Rashid Khan, bowling his last over, invited Harry Brook (7 off 6 balls) to hit a fullish delivery. The batsman ended up hitting it straight to long-on where Ibrahim Zadran finished the job.

Moeen Ali joined forces with Livingstone for a 16-run partnership for the unbroken 6th wicket to bring England home with 11 balls to spare.

Also Read: Conway, Allen Helps New Zealand Defeat Australia By 89 Runs

Do’s and Don’ts for the October 25th Solar Eclipse

Aditya Saikrishna
-
0
Do’s and Don’ts for the October 25th Solar Eclipse

INDIA: A solar eclipse is a celestial event that occurs when the moon passes between the Earth and the Sun.

Solar eclipses coincide with the new moon. i.e., the beginning of a lunar cycle where the moon is either absent from the night sky or is visible as a thin crescent.

A Solar Eclipse, or Surya Grahan, is set to take place on October 25th, a day after the Indian festival of Diwali. The partial eclipse will be visible from 5:12 PM to 5:56 PM.

According to the Hindu myths and legends, there are certain things that one should do as well as refrain from doing while the sun is veiled by the moon.

DO’S:

1. As per the ancient scriptures, once the solar eclipse is over, people are advised to take a bath, wear new clothes, and clean the house.

2. Pregnant women should stay indoors throughout the duration of the eclipse as it may harm the foetus.

3. A sprinkle of Ganga Jal, or rose water, is considered auspicious once the eclipse concludes.

4. As per belief, people should put basil or Tulsi leaves in water and all food items before the solar eclipse commences.

5. Chanting Lord Shiva’s hymns during the eclipse helps to fend off the negative effects of the eclipse.

DON’TS:

1. Looking at the sun directly without covering the eyes during the eclipse should be avoided as it can cause permanent damage to the retina.

2. According to belief, sleeping while the solar eclipse is in progress attracts negative energy.

3. Preparation and consumption of meals during the eclipse are considered unfavourable.

4. Performing any auspicious work, beginning a new project, or purchasing a new property is to be avoided during the solar eclipse.

5. Avoiding the use of sharp objects is advised.

Also Read: Blood Super Moon Eclipse Flight By Qantas Airways

Ricciardo Shines as Formula 1 Returns for the 10th Edition of American GP

Aditya Saikrishna
-
0
Ricciardo Shines as Formula 1 Returns for the 10th Edition of American GP

UNITED STATES: McLaren driver Daniel Ricciardo adores the Circuit of The Americas. Every time Formula 1 has visited Austin, the lanky Australian nicknamed the “Honey Badger” finds himself a set of boots or a cowboy hat, not to mention the handlebar moustache that he grows for the star-studded weekend.

This weekend, Daniel Ricciardo took his love for the American GP to the next level. He made a theatrical entrance, riding around the Formula 1 paddock on a horse. The horse, named Horsey McHorse, even had its own VIP paddock pass for the day.

Ricciardo rocked a star-spangled jacket, which instantly became a hit on the internet. He was accompanied by his friends, who sang and played the guitar.

Another ex-Red Bull driver, Alexander Albon, who now drives for Williams Racing, rocked up with blonde hair.

Later in the day, during the press conference for the drivers, he joked about how “blondes have more fun,” prompting Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton to quip in with a quick question, asking the Thai driver if he was “blonde everywhere.”

Max Verstappen, the newly crowned two-time World Champion, was in the paddock doing media duties when former teammate Daniel Ricciardo arrived.

He snuck up behind Max and ambushed the Dutchman with a hug. “It’s a bit late,” said Ricciardo, referring to the delay in celebrations after Max’s championship-winning race in Japan a fortnight ago.

Max noticed Ricciardo’s moustache and jokingly asked if his old friend was alright. In response, the Honey Badger joked, “You can’t grow a beard yet, huh? “Two-time world champion and he can’t even grow a beard.

It’s safe to say that the Formula 1 paddock, at least during the American GP weekend, will sorely miss the bright smile of Daniel Ricciardo in case he finds himself without a seat for the upcoming season in 2023.

The American GP weekend could potentially witness Red Bull clinch their first Formula 1 Constructors’ Championship since 2013.

It would be the fifth instance in Red Bull history where the team clinched both the driver’s and constructors’ championships in the same year. The American GP will be held from the 21st to the 23rd of October.

Also Read: Toxicity Among Formula 1 Fanbases: Impact of Social Media

Paul Stirling’s Stunning Effort Knocks the West Indies Out of the T20 WC

Aditya Saikrishna
-
0
Paul Stirling’s Stunning Effort Knocks the West Indies Out of the T20 WC

AUSTRALIA: Paul Stirling and Lorcan Tucker led Ireland to a dominating victory over West Indies by 9 wickets. Ireland became the third team to progress into the group stages of the T20 World Cup.

After the Ireland bowlers restricted West Indies to 146/5 in 20 overs, opener Paul Stirling and wicketkeeper-batsman Lorcan Tucker stitched together an unbeaten 77-run partnership for the second wicket.

West Indies Innings

Skipper Nicholas Pooran won the toss and elected to bat first on a pitch that seemed to have something in it for the spinners. The West Indies’ top order failed to fire as a unit.

Kyle Mayers (1 off 5 balls) was dismissed cheaply by medium pacer Barry McCarthy (33/1) in the 3rd over for a team score of 10. Johnson Charles (24 off 18 balls) got a decent start but threw away his wicket as off-spinner Simi Singh (11) got the batsman to hit one straight to the hands of Curtis Campher at backward point.

Evin Lewis’ wretched run of form continued in the crucial game for the West Indies. Lewis scratched around to score 13 runs off 18 balls before becoming Gareth Delany’s (16/3) first victim of the day.

Brandon King’s unbeaten 62 from 48 balls, which included six hits to the fence and one over it, kept the game alive and helped West Indies post a competitive total.

Photo Credit: ICC

Nicholas Pooran (13 off 11 balls) and Rovman Powell (6 off 8 balls) fell to the guile of Gareth Delany as the leggie gave away only 16 runs in his 4 overs while claiming 3 wickets.

Ireland Innings

The Ireland openers came out to the middle with only one goal in mind and that was to lead their team to victory. They did just that in a thunderous display of aggressive batting.

Paul Stirling (66 off 48 balls) and Andrew Balbirnie (37 off 23 balls) went after the West Indies bowling from the very start as the opening duo put together 73 runs in just 7.3 overs.

Photo Credit: ICC

Andrew was the only Irish wicket to fall as Lorcan Tucker (45 off 35 balls) joined forces with Stirling to bring the team home. Stirling hit six boundaries and two huge sixes, while Balbirnie helped himself to three boundaries and three maximums.

Lorcan Tucker chipped in with a couple of boundaries and two sixes, one of which was a beautiful stroke over long-on off the bowling of Obed McCoy.

Also Read: Namibia Creates History by Defeating Sri Lanka in the Qualifiers

Toxicity Among Formula 1 Fanbases: Impact of Social Media

Aditya Saikrishna
-
0
Toxicity Among Formula 1 Fanbases: Impact of Social Media

UNITED KINGDOM: Formula 1 holds a massive fanbase. When the Australian GP was canceled in the aftermath of Covid-19, and the global lockdown ensued, the fans of “the pinnacle of motorsport” took to various online platforms to quench their thirst for Formula 1.

Countless esports gamers and even real-life racing drivers took to online streaming platforms to create Formula 1 content as the world began to embrace life indoors. Online shows and videos of the popular Formula 1 games quickly captured the minds of thousands of netizens and attracted them to the world of racing.

When Formula 1 finally resumed in mid-2020, the sport witnessed unprecedented numbers of new viewers. This massive rise in the popularity of F1 was seen by many pundits as a positive trend for the sport. The community took to social media platforms to share as well as spread their views and opinions. 

Along with the new fans, a horde of ill-mannered people found the guts to freely voice their racist and homophobic thoughts under the pretence of being a fan of a driver or team. Ironically, all this happened as Formula 1 management embraced a new era of social diversity, inclusivity, and abolishment of racist abuse within the sport under the ”We Race as ‘One initiative”.

Lewis Hamilton, the only person of colour in a white-dominated sport, was often the centre of racist abuse. In the wake of the death of George Floyd at the hands of a police officer, Lewis had spearheaded the awareness for fighting racism inside the sport. He, along with a handful of drivers, including Sebastian Vettel, “took a knee” before the start of races to spread the initiative.

In the high-octane 2021 Formula 1 season, the racist abuses aimed at Lewis Hamilton and his fans reached an all-time high on Twitter after Max Verstappen crashed out of the Silverstone Grand Prix after making contact with Lewis Hamilton at the Copse corner. The abusers stooped to another low after reports of a few fans burning Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes merchandise came to the fore during the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend. 

The toxicity of some Formula 1 fans on social media continue to grow without bounds

Certain others project their insecurity by name-calling other well-mannered fans. Twitter user @LastLapLucy made an innocuous comment regarding Max Verstappen’s latest hairstyle, asking her fans if they too felt that Max’s hairstyle reminded them of an actor from the famous pop culture movie, Back to The Future. A certain Twitter user felt that her tweet was inciting hate toward his driver, and in the exchange of comments that followed, the said Twitter user called Lucy an inappropriate word.

Homophobic tweets became common during June when Pride Month was observed. Multiple hate tweets were posted underneath the tweets by various F1 teams in which they supported the raising of awareness for the LGBTQ+ community. When the official Twitter handle of the Mercedes F1 Team announced their logo coloured with the pride rainbow, some of the comments made under the tweet were outright disgusting, to say the least.

 The Austrian Grand Prix weekend witnessed a lot of complaints from the visitors, especially women and the members of the LGBTQ+ community who were the target of sexual and homophobic abuse.

A video surfaced in June showing an interview with ex-Formula 1 driver Nelson Piquet, in which he used racial and homophobic slurs against Lewis Hamilton. He received wide backlash from the F1 paddock, which resulted in a ban from attending all Formula 1 events in the future. The Majority of the Formula One teams condemned the comments made by the 3-time World Champion.

Photo Credit: Twitter/F1

Interestingly, Red Bull refrained from making any comment on the situation. When the team officials regarded the teams’ silence, they responded by saying they had already put out a statement condemning racist abuse in any form, referring to the incident where Red Bull junior driver Jury Vips used a racial slur during a live stream.

Nelson Piquet is the father of Red Bull driver Max Verstappen’s partner, Kelly Piquet. Nelson later apologized for his remarks and said that his words were misconstrued and that the word he used is common in the Brazilian vocabulary.

Formula 1, along with the FIA, launched the #DriveItOut campaign to address the rising toxicity in the online F1 community, which has seemed fruitless so far.

Also Read: FIA Releases 2021 Financial Regulation Review: Redbull Guilty of ‘Minor’ Breach

Liz Truss’ Resignation Triggers a Political Contest for the Prime Ministerial Role

Aditya Saikrishna
-
0
Liz Truss’ Resignation Triggers a Political Contest for the Prime Ministerial Role

UNITED KINGDOM: Liz Truss became the shortest-serving Prime Minister in history after the Conservatives openly revolted against her and demanded her departure.

While addressing the media in Downing Street, Liz Truss said that she had informed the King that she was resigning as the leader of the Conservative Party after the realisation that she “cannot deliver the mandate,” which Tory members had given her six weeks prior.

The chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbench Conservatives, Sir Graham Brady, held talks with Liz Truss and the duo agreed to a fresh election for the leadership to be completed in the coming week.

Responding to the turn of events, Sir Keir Starmer, the Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party since 2020, called for a general election so that the public could make up their minds over the chaos which has descended on the UK political scene.

He described the situation as a mess and said the UK has a “stable” alternative in the form of a Labour government.

Liz Truss succeeded the former foreign secretary, Boris Johnson, on September 6 after winning the election against former chancellor Rishi Sunak.

Soon after taking charge of the office, her position became untenable as her policies came under immense questioning from the same members who had backed her during the elections. The public’s opinion regarding Truss’ capabilities turned against her.

Truss also made a U-turn on the historic tax cuts which threatened to empty the public coffers and sacked Kwasi Kwarteng as chancellor after 38 tumultuous days and apologised to the British public and the Conservative party. Jeremy Hunt was appointed to take over Kwarteng’s role.

A cloud of uncertainty has been hanging over Liz Truss’ government over the past 24 hours after Home Secretary Suella Braverman was sacked by Truss, stating an “accidental national security leak” after Suella had inadvertently shared an official document with a colleague from her personal email.

Also Read: Liz Truss’ Government is on the Brink after Suella Braverman’s Resignation

Curiosity Rover Reaches Mars’ Astonishing Salty Region

Aditya Saikrishna
-
0
Curiosity Rover Reaches Mars’ Astonishing Salty Region

UNITED STATES: NASA’s Curiosity rover trekked through the narrow and sandy Paraitepuy Pass on Mars to reach the long-sought-after region of Mount Sharp. The region is enriched with salty minerals and is also known as the “sulfate-bearing unit.”

According to scientists’ hypotheses, the region was created as the streams and ponds on the Martian surface dried up billions of years ago, leaving behind the minerals. If true, the minerals offer enticing clues as to how and why the red planet’s climate changed from Earth-like to the barren desert it is today.

The arrival of the Curiosity rover at the region has been long-awaited since NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spotted the minerals many years before Curiosity touched down on Mars. This was the first time that the scientists were able to see the terrain up close.

The rover discovered a vast range of types of rocks and found signs of the existence of water at some point in time on Martian soil. Salty minerals like Magnesium sulfate, Calcium sulfate (including gypsum), and sodium chloride were present in the rocks found on the surface.

In the mission’s 36th drill sample, a rock termed “Canaima” was selected. Curiosity’s new project manager, Kathya Zamora-Garcia of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, said that the lack of scratch marks and indentations on Canaima when its top surface was poked by the drill indicated that the drilling operation might be difficult.

Curiosity uses a percussive-rotary drill at the end of its 7-foot arm to crush rock samples for analysis. Kathya adds that the team took their time to decide if the drilling operation posed any risk for the old, worn-down rover, which has been operational for over a decade.

In the end, the team was confident enough to proceed with the operation, and as it turned out, the percussive drill was not required.

Also Read: New Evidence Suggests Presence of Water on Mars

Max O’Dowd’s Effort Goes in Vain as Sri Lanka Defeats the Netherlands

Aditya Saikrishna
-
0
Max O’Dowd’s Effort Goes in Vain as Sri Lanka Defeats the Netherlands

AUSTRALIA: Sri Lanka beat the Netherlands by 16 runs as Kusal Mendis, aided by a handful of cameos by Asalanka and Rajapaksa, propped up their nation to the Super-12 at the Geelong stadium.

Sri Lanka’s Innings

After winning the toss and deciding to bat first, Sri Lanka was off to a slow start as openers Kusal Mendis (79 off 44 balls) and Pathum Nissanka (14 off 21 balls) took their time to get their eye in.

Nissanka, who got a reprieve in the 5th over as Paul van Meekeren (25/2) couldn’t latch onto a difficult catch off his own bowling, was the first wicket to fall as he was caught by a fuller ball from Meekeren in his next over.

Meekeren sent back Dhananjaya de Silva (0 off 1 ball) by trapping him LBW on the very next ball.

Photo Credit: Twitter/ICC

Meekeren missed out on his first hat trick and the tournament’s second in two days as the new man, Charith Asalanka (31 off 30 balls), edged the ball away for a single.

Sri Lanka scampered along to 60/2 after 10 overs as the batsmen couldn’t get the momentum going.

The 12th over by Timm van der Gugten (31/1) injected some life into the Sri Lankan innings as 12 runs came from it by virtue of Kusal Mendis’ six over the long leg boundary and quick running between the wickets by the batsmen.

The fruitful 60-run partnership for the third wicket came to an end after Asalanka edged a slow off-cutter from Bas de Leede (31/2) only to be caught behind by the wicketkeeper. Kusal Mendis soon brought up his ninth half-century in T20Is with a six off the lanky pacer and followed it up with a boundary through the off-side.

Bhanuka Rajapakse (19 off 13 balls) got a start but couldn’t convert it into a bigger score as he holed out at mid-wicket off de Leede in an attempt to clear the fence.

The Sri Lankan skipper, Dasun Shanaka (8 off 5 balls), made his intentions clear with a huge six over backward square leg off just the 3rd delivery he faced.

Kusal Mendis took Fred Klaasen (34/1) to the cleaners in the penultimate over of the Sri Lankan innings as he smashed consecutive sixes off the pacer.

Shanaka was caught off the bowling of Klaasen as he tried to up the scoring rate. In the last over, Mendis followed suit off the bowling of Timm van der Gugten after he had hit the pacer for a boundary in the previous delivery.

At one point, Wanindu Hasaranga (5 off 4 balls) and Chamika Karunaratne (2 off 2 balls) saw off the remaining deliveries to take Sri Lanka to 162/6, which at one point seemed improbable early in the Sri Lankan innings.

Netherland’s Innings

The Netherlands lost the plot early in their chase of the 163-run target. Openers Max O’Dowd (71* off 53 balls) and Vikram Singh (7 off 14 balls) couldn’t deliver the big scoring shots early on in the innings.

Vikram Singh looked out of sorts throughout his stay at the crease before handing an easy catch to Shanaka at mid-on.

Bas de Leede (14 off 10 balls) showed intent but threw away his wicket when he nicked an away going to the wicketkeeper off Lahiru Kumara (28/1).

Number four batsman Colin Ackermann (0 off 1 ball) was out for a golden duck as he lobbed one back to Wanindu Hasaranga (28/3).

Photo Credit: Twitter/KNCBcricket

At the end of the 10th over, the Dutch were 63/3, 100 runs in arrears. With the required run rate of above 10 per over, runs were needed from both ends, but it wasn’t to be as Tom Cooper (16 off 10 balls) was castled by Maheesh Theekshana (32/2) in the 12th over.

Max O’Dowd kept rotating the strike with some good running between the wickets, but with the required run rate well above 11 runs per over, big shots were needed.

The Netherlands’ skipper, Scott Edwards, took charge of Wanindu Hasaranga as he smashed the spinner for consecutive boundaries in the 14th over, which yielded 14 runs for the Dutch. He became Binura Fernando’s (33/1) first victim soon after he hit the pacer for a boundary in the 15th over.

Edwards tried to sweep a slower delivery, only for the ball to crash into the leg stump. Tim Pringle’s (1 off 2 balls) brief stay ended in the 16th over after he fell short of his crease in an attempt to steal a risky second run.

Wanindu Hasaranga tightened the noose around the Netherlands by having Timm van der Gugten bowled for a duck off the first ball he faced, leaving the Dutch side staring down the barrel at 107/7.

Hasaranga ended his spell with the wicket of Fred Klaasen (3 off 3 balls), who came running down the pitch but was beaten by the ball which stayed low and went on to disturb the stumps.

Max O’Dowd hit Fernando for a six and consecutive fours in the 18th over to bring up a fighting half-century.

Theekshana, bowling his last over and the 19th overall of the innings, was hit for two sixes by Max O’Dowd to bring the equation down to 23 off the last over.

Lahiru Kumara gave away only 6 runs, giving Sri Lanka a 16-run win which saw them qualify for the super-12 stage of the T20 World Cup.

An injured Roelof van der Merwe (0 off 1 ball) came in at 11, braving an injury and showed a lion-hearted performance as he ran swiftly between the wickets to give the strike to Max O’Dowd despite being in excruciating pain.

Also Read: Virat Kohli’s Exceptional Fielding and Shami’s Brilliant Last over Lead India to Victory

1...515253...57Page 52 of 57
Logo

Sitemap

Popular Categories

Global news

Sunday, April 2, 2023

Copyright © 2023 Transcontinental Times | All Rights Reserved