Australia wins 2nd Ashes test by 275 runs to take 2-0 lead
Adelaide: Australia took a 2-0 lead in the five-test Ashes series on Monday by beating England by 275 runs and all but ensured the century-old urn will remain Down Under.
Set 468 runs to win, England was bowled out for 192 with 21 overs remaining on the final day of play in the day-night test at Adelaide Oval.
Jos Buttler (26) faced 207 deliveries for England before treading on his stumps to be out hit wicket in a losing cause.
Only one team has come from 2-0 down to win an Ashes series: Don Bradman's Australians in 1936-37. As holders of the Ashes, Australia needs only to draw the next match.
Paceman Jhye Richardson took five wickets as Australia followed its nine-wicket triumph in the first test in Brisbane with another resounding win, its ninth consecutive win in day-night matches.
Meanwhile, Australia has named an unchanged 15-man squad for the remaining three Ashes tests.
Josh Hazlewood missed the Adelaide test because of a side strain. Fast bowler and captain Pat Cummins, a late scratch from the second test because he was a close contact of a COVID-19 case, will rejoin the squad on Thursday.
Hazlewood will need to prove his fitness in the Melbourne Cricket Ground nets to play the Boxing Day test starting Dec. 26. The fourth and fifth tests in Sydney and Hobart, respectively, are in January.
Under-pressure opener Marcus Harris, who averages 22.19 from 12 tests after scores of three and 23 in Adelaide, is expected to remain at the top of the order.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
CPI(M) rebel Kunhikrishnan hopes for 5,000-vote win in Payyanur
Kannur (Kerala) (PTI): CPI(M) rebel candidate V Kunhikrishnan, who contested as a UDF-backed Independent from Payyanur here, on Saturday said he was hoping to win the Assembly election by a margin of 5,000 votes.
Kunhikrishnan was expelled from the CPI(M) earlier this year after raising allegations of corruption in the party’s martyrs’ fund against sitting MLA T I Madhusoodanan.
Speaking to a TV channel, Kunhikrishnan said he had announced his candidature as a mark of protest and not with expectations of victory.
However, he said the situation had changed drastically, with a strong undercurrent within CPI(M) votes favouring him.
"The undercurrent in CPI(M) votes cannot be measured. Now people are giving a response indicating victory with a margin of at least 5,000 votes," he said.
Payyanur is considered a CPI(M) stronghold, and a defeat for Madhusoodanan there would be a major setback for the party.
On political violence in Payyanur, Kunhikrishnan said he had been facing it since filing his nomination.
"The people leading this violence should think about how long they can continue it. It is the police which has to take the initiative to stop this violence as part of maintaining law and order. But the police are not intervening at the required level," he said.
Regarding his political future, Kunhikrishnan said efforts were underway to strengthen Left groups, and discussions were being held across Kerala in that regard.
"After discussing with others, a decision will be taken," he said.
Kunhikrishnan is among six former CPI(M) leaders who either exited the party or were suspended before contesting for the UDF in the April 9 Assembly elections.
Elections to the 140-seat Kerala Assembly were held on April 9, and the counting of votes will be held on May 4.
