Fraser-McGurk, Kuldeep steer DC to their second win of season
Lucknow, Apr 12: Australia's Jake Fraser-McGurk announced himself with a belligerent half-century on his IPL debut after spinner Kuldeep Yadav dazzled with the ball as Delhi Capitals recorded a morale-boosting six-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants here on Friday.
Ayush Badoni (55 not out off 35 balls) smashed a quick-fire unbeaten half century to help the Super Giants recover to a respectable 167/7 after Kuldeep (3/20) sizzled with a three-wicket haul.
Fraser-McGurk (55 off 35 balls) and skipper Rishabh Pant (41) struck a 77-run partnership to take the match away from the hosts and secure DC's second win of the season.
The 22-year-old Australian, known for his aggressive approach, smoked a shot of length delivery off Yash Thakur over deep mid-wicket to get his first-ever runs in the IPL. He followed that with another six in the next over.
Prithvi Shaw (32) was looking in good nick but Ravi Bishnoi made an instant impact as he entered the game, getting rid of the opener, as DC fell to 63/2. The LSG bowlers were able to dominate the visitors for sometime as Fraser-McGurk also struggled to find the boundaries.
But Pant hoisted the ball over Bishnoi's head for a straight six to not only reach the 3,000-run milestone in IPL but also collected Delhi's first boundary in 29 deliveries in the 11th over.
The dashing wicketkeeper-batter gave a glimpse of his vintage self, playing some audacious shots, including a reverse scoop off Marcus Stoinis.
Pant's power-hitting eased the pressure of Fraser-McGurk who slammed compatriot Stoinis for a hat-trick of sixes to bring the equation to almost a run a ball.
Earlier, returning to the side after missing three matches due to a groin niggle, Kuldeep picked three wickets while giving away 20 runs and conceding no boundaries in his quota of four overs.
His victims included skipper KL Rahul (39), Marcus Stoinis (8) and the dangerous Nicholas Pooran (0).
Khaleel Ahmed (2/41), who landed the early blow, Ishant Sharma (1/36) and Mukesh Kumar (1/41) also took wickets to leave LSG reeling at 94/7.
But then Badoni took the onus upon himself to resurrect the LSG innings. He smashed five boundaries and a six and alongside Arshad Khan (20 off 16 balls) stitched a 73-run unbeaten stand.
Opting to bat, Quinton de Kock (19) had started strong with four boundaries but was dismissed by Khaleel with a leg-before wicket decision in the third over.
Devdutt Padikkal's (3) wretched run continued as he became Khaleel's second victim of the day. The pacer pinned Padikkal in front of middle and leg for his fifth consecutive single-figure score.
Khaleel had the opportunity to make it two out of two but the pacer dropped Stoinis on 0 off his own delivery in the very next ball.
However, Rahul continued to collect boundaries at the other end, taking his side to 57/2 in the powerplay.
But the introduction of Kuldeep in the eighth over helped trigger a batting collapse,
The left-arm spinner first bowled a nicely tossed up delivery with Stoinis throwing his hands at it only to get a leading edge that flew straight to Ishant at backward point.
He then bamboozled the in-form Pooran, who looked clueless as the ball uprooted the off stump.
The batting collapse forced the hosts to send Deepak Hooda (10) as an Impact Substitute but Kuldeep picked up his third wicket in eight balls to get ride of Rahul, completely deflating the LSG batting.
Delhi bowlers choked the LSG batters as the boundaries dried up.
Ishant and Mukesh, who also returned to the Delhi playing XI after recovering from an injury, joined the act accounting for Hooda and Krunal Pandya (3) respectively.
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.
West Bengal: BJP holds protest against Sandeshkhali videos, TMC worker 'heckled'
Sandeshkhali (WB), May 12: BJP workers on Sunday demonstrated against the circulation of purported videos "to malign the image" of saffron party leaders in West Bengal's Sandeshkhali, and allegedly heckled the local TMC legislator for spreading "misinformation" over complaints of sexual abuse, lodged by women in the area.
They also beat up a local TMC activist in Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district for allegedly being involved in "disseminating false information about atrocities on women" in the area.
Led by BJP's Basirhat Lok Sabha constituency candidate Rekha Patra, the protestors demonstrated in front of Sandeshkhali Police station, also demanding the release of a party activist arrested in a "false dacoity" case.
Patra accused police of "slapping trumped-up charges on BJP activists" in Sandeshkhali, while "turning a blind eye to the filming and circulation of fake videos" implicating her party leaders and women in the area.
A section of women protestors allegedly dragged the local TMC activist from a house and beat him up in the presence of the party's Sandeshkhali MLA Sukumar Mahata who was there for campaigning, a leader of the ruling party claimed.
As Mahata tried to intervene he was allegedly shoved by the protestors, he said.
Mahata blamed Patra and her supporters for "orchestrating" the attack on the local TMC activist, stating that the "BJP's gameplan to defame Bengal is clear before the people of the state".
"The BJP broke all precedents and tried to disrupt our campaign but we did not retaliate," he said.
A team of police personnel rushed to the spot and managed to rescue the TMC activist.
The riverine Sandeshkhali area — situated on the borders of the Sundarbans, about 100 kilometres from Kolkata — had been on the boil in February with protests over allegations of sexual abuse and land grab against now arrested TMC leader Shajahan Sheikh and his supporters.
In a purported video that surfaced from Sandeshkhali on Saturday night, a local BJP leader was heard saying that over 70 women had received Rs 2,000 each for taking part in protests against local TMC satrap Sheikh and his aides who were accused of sexual assault and land grab.
In the video, lasting over 45 minutes, a man resembling BJP's Sandeshkhali mandal president Gangadhar Kayal told this to the questioner.
It was Kayal who had earlier said in another purported clip, the first in a series in the past week, that the rape allegations were “staged”.
PTI did not independently verify the authenticity of the videos.
One of the women, who demonstrated outside the police station, denied the allegation, and said, "Were we protesting in February for money? The TMC are making false claims".
Patra, the BJP candidate for the Basirhat Lok Sabha seat, alleged that a saffron party worker in the area was "arrested on a false dacoity charge but many TMC activists, allegedly involved in atrocities on women, are roaming around freely".
Branding the BJP as a "violent" party, TMC spokesperson and state minister Shashi Panja said, "TMC poll campaigners are being attacked by BJP candidate from Basirhat, Rekha Patra, and her followers in Sandeshkhali after the conspiracy hatched by the BJP has come to light."
The incident of attack on the TMC activist and the party MLA took place on the day of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to West Bengal and "possibly under his instruction", the state minister alleged.
BJP candidate for Baranagar assembly bypoll and party's spokesperson Sajal Ghosh said the incident reflected the simmering anger of people of Sandeshkhali against TMC.
"The assault on the TMC activist and manhandling of the local MLA is just a pointer. More such incidents may follow if the TMC does not stop bringing disgrace to the mothers and sisters of Sandeshkhali by releasing such fake videos," he said.
TMC's "diabolical gameplan" to deflect attention from the atrocities on women by its leaders in the area will backfire, Ghosh told reporters.
Patra, before being fielded by BJP, was at the forefront of the series of agitation by women in Sandeshkhali in February and March.
