Dinesh Karthik to assist England Lions as batting consultant in India tour
London, Jan 10: Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik will work with England Lions' as batting consultant for a brief period of nine days when the side will tour India.
Karthik will be a part of the side's coaching team on the tour, starting with a warm-up game in Ahmedabad on January 12, followed by three unofficial four-day Tests from January 17 at the same venue.
Karthik mainly comes in as a cover for Lions' batting consultant Ian Bell, who is currently on Big Bash League duty with Melbourne Renegades.
He will be working alongside head coach Neil Killeen along with assistant coaches Richard Dawson and Carl Hopkinson, while former English spinner Graeme Swann would also be a part of the coaching team as a mentor.
"It's great to have such a strong coaching group supporting our players for what should be an exciting challenge versus India A. The group has a deep and diverse set of experiences and expertise," said England Men's Performance Director Mo Bobat.
"And it's fantastic to have Dinesh Karthik with us for a part of our prep period and leading into the first Test. I'm sure the lads will love spending time with him and benefiting from his experience of what it takes to be successful at Test level in India."
England Lions Squad for India tour: Josh Bohannon (c), Kasey Aldridge, Brydon Carse, Jack Carson, James Coles, Matt Fisher, Keaton Jennings, Tom Lawes, Alex Lees, Dan Mousley, Callum Parkinson, Matt Potts, Ollie Price, James Rew and Ollie Robinson.
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Karnataka power tussle: BJP leader calls Siddaramaiah 'Sultan for 15 days'
Bengaluru/Bagalkot (PTI): In the midst of the ongoing power tussle within the ruling Congress in Karnataka, senior BJP leader and MP Govind Karjol called CM Siddaramaiah "Pandrah din-ka-Sultan" (Sultan for 15 days), and said after that, he will not be the chief minister of the state.
Speculation has once again surfaced within the Congress party and political circles about a possible decision on leadership change and cabinet reshuffle after May 4, once the results for Assembly elections in four states and one union territory, along with bypolls to two Assembly constituencies in Karnataka, are announced.
"With the fight for the CM chair in the Congress, there seems to be no administration at Vidhana Soudha. The result for Siddaramaiah's CM chair fight will also be declared, along with election results for five states (four states and one union territory) and bypoll results for Bagalkot and Davanagere South Assembly seats in Karnataka," Karjol, a former Deputy CM, said.
Speaking to reporters here, he said, "As per today's information, Siddaramaiah is a Sardar for fifteen days, he is Pandrah din-ka-Sultan, after that Siddaramaiah will not be the chief minister of the state."
Stating that Shivakumar is ready to take up the top job, the MP said that this is the reason Siddaramaiah's supporters have gone to New Delhi to meet the Congress President.
"Already 40-odd legislators have lobbied in support of Siddaramaiah; about 50 are lobbying in support of Shivakumar. Amid this fight for the CM chair, the administration has completely collapsed," he said, urging the government to focus on addressing drinking water issues in various parts of the state amid summer by releasing at least Rs 50 crore per district.
PWD Minister Satish Jarkiholi on Monday met Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and General Secretary (in charge of Karnataka) Randeep Surjewala in New Delhi and requested them to address the speculation regarding the change of leadership in Karnataka.
Subsequently, Social Welfare Minister H C Mahadevappa too met the party leadership in Delhi.
Both Jarkiholi and Mahadevappa are considered close to Siddaramaiah.
While MLAs and leaders who want Shivakumar to be elevated as CM have recently claimed they expect some "sweet news" by May 15, which is their leader's birthday.
Meanwhile, a team of 40 MLAs is preparing to visit New Delhi to press the Congress high command for a Cabinet reshuffle.
Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly R Ashoka hit out at the Congress leadership for indulging in "power tussle" instead of addressing the people's concerns. He called the government "anti-people" and "dead" to the people of the state.
With the fight for the CM chair, the ruling Congress in Karnataka seems to be shifting to Delhi. Congress MLAs are repeatedly touring Delhi, upset over the state leadership amid a power struggle between the CM and Deputy CM. This proves that there is no value for the state leadership," he said.
Pointing out that the Deputy CM Shivakumar was not present at the recent special cabinet meeting, which decided on internal reservation among SCs, the opposition leader said, "If the cabinet meeting was held purposely, despite knowing that Shivakumar was in Delhi, it proves that there are factions within the party"
"This government is dead in a way," he said, as he hit out at the Congress MLAs and Ministers, including Shivakumar, for doing "Delhi Yatras" instead of addressing drinking water issues in various parts of the state amid summer, picking up in the state.
