P V Sindhu storms into third successive finals at BWF World Championships
Basel (Switzerland): India's P V Sindhu stood one win away from an elusive World Championships gold medal after storming into her third successive final with a straight-game win over All England champion Chen Yu Fei here on Saturday.
Sindhu, who had claimed successive silver in the last two editions of the prestigious tournament beside two bronze, was a picture of perfection as she outclassed World No. 3 Chen of China 21-7 21-14 in a 40-minute semifinal.
The 24 year old from Hyderabad will face either 2013 world champion Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand or 2017 winner Nozomi Okuhara of Japan in the summit clash on Sunday.
Olympic silver medallist Sindhu, who came into the match with a 5-3 head-to-head record against Chen, grabbed the initiative quickly.
The Indian dished out a compact game, producing angled returns to push Chen to the corners. Sindhu retrieved well and punished any weak return from her rival to dominate the rallies.
Sindhu entered the first break with a 11-3 lead after the Chinese went wide. Chen continued to find the going tough as she missed the lines, allowing the indian to gather points at will. Another weak return at the net by Chen gave Sindhu as many as 14 game points. The Indian then sealed the opening game in her second attempt.
Chen made a better start in the second game and was neck-and-neck at 3-3 with Sindhu, but the errors again crept in her game as Sindhu moved to a 10-6 lead. Sindhu exploited a weakness in the backhand side of Chen to lead 11-7 at the breather.
The Indian worked hard during the rallies, not giving an inch to her Chinese rival and was rewarded for her effort. Chen committed too many unforced errors in her desperation as Sindhu jumped to a 17-9 lead in a jiffy.
The Indian eventually grabbed eight match points with a cross court smash. Chen saved a couple before hitting long again as Sindhu celebrated.
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Cong leader Sam Pitroda slams BJP, media for twisting his words on US inheritance tax
New Delhi: In response to severe criticism by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for his statement on the inheritance tax in the US during a recent interview, Chairman of Indian Overseas Congress Sam Pitroda hit back on Wednesday, alleging that his words had been tweaked by the media in order to divert attention from the 'lies that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was spreading' about the Congress party's manifesto for the current Lok Sabha elections.
Pitroda, in a post on his personal account on 'X' on Wednesday, clarified that his statement during the interview had nothing to do with either the Congress party or its election manifesto. "It is unfortunate that what I said as an individual on inheritance tax in the US is twisted by Godi media to divert attention from what lies PM is spreading about Congress manifesto. PM’s comments Mangal Sutra & gold snatching is simply unreal," Pitroda has posted.
Pitroda had said during the interview that there was inheritance tax in the US, which could be an interesting topic of discussion for the people, explaining further, “In America, there is an inheritance tax. If one has $100 million worth of wealth and when he dies, he can only transfer probably 45% to his children and 55% goes to the government. That’s an interesting law."
He added that about half the wealth earned by a person in his or her lifetime would pass on to the public after the death of the person. Calling it a fair legal procedure, Pitroda said, "In India, you don’t have that. If somebody is worth 10 billion and he dies, his children get 10 billion and people get nothing… So, these are the kind of issues people will have to debate and discuss."
The BJP slammed Pitroda for his comments, with party spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla saying that the Congress aimed at grabbing the people's hard-earned money.
BJP's IT cell chief, Amit Malviya posted on his account on Wednesday, "Congress has decided to destroy India. Now, Sam Pitroda advocates 50% inheritance tax for wealth redistribution. This means 50% of whatever we build, with all our hard work and enterprise, will be taken away. 50%, besides all the tax we pay, which too will go up, if the Congress prevails."
Asking if the BJP and the media were panicking due to his statement and pointing out that he was merely stating facts, Pitroda hit back, asking, "Who said 55% will be taken away? Who said something like this should be done in India?"
The Congress has also criticized the BJP for sensationalizing Pitroda's words and putting them out of context.
Party spokesperson Jairam Ramesh, in his tweet on Wednesday, concurred with the senior Congressman, stating that his words in the interview were not presented on behalf of the party. He has called it a desperate attempt by the BJP to divert attention from Modi's 'malicious and mischievous election campaign'.
Ramesh posted, "Sam Pitroda has been a mentor, friend, philosopher, and guide to many across the world, including me. He has made numerous, enduring contributions to India’s developments. He is President of the Indian Overseas Congress. Mr Pitroda expresses his opinions freely on issues he feels strongly about. Surely, in a democracy an individual is at liberty to discuss, express, and debate his personal views. This does not mean that Mr. Pitroda’s views always reflect the position of the Indian National Congress. Many times they do not."
It is unfortunate that what I said as an individual on inheritance tax in the US is twisted by Godi media to divert attention from what lies PM is spreading about Congress manifesto. PM’s comments Mangal Sutra & gold snatching is simply unreal.
— Sam Pitroda (@sampitroda) April 24, 2024
#WATCH | Chicago, US: Chairman of Indian Overseas Congress, Sam Pitroda says, "...In America, there is an inheritance tax. If one has $100 million worth of wealth and when he dies he can only transfer probably 45% to his children, 55% is grabbed by the government. That's an… pic.twitter.com/DTJrseebFk
— ANI (@ANI) April 24, 2024
