First Test: Bumrah, Ashwin strike as England reach 67/2 at lunch on Day 1
Chennai: Pacer Jasprit Bumrah and off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin got one apiece to peg England back to 67 for 2 at lunch on the opening day of the first Test against India, here on Friday.
Skipper Joe Root, playing his 100th Test, was batting on 4 while opener Dominic Sibley was undefeated on 26 (96 balls, 3 fours) going into the lunch break.
Openers Sibley and Rory Burns provided England a solid start with a 63-run partnership during which they did not appear to be in too much trouble.
After negotiating the pace duo of Ishant Sharma and Bumrah (7-1-17-1), they kept Ashwin (10-0-31-1) and left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem (5-1-11-0) at bay, showing patience and also playing shots whenever offered the opportunity.
The openers appeared to be making a steady progress before Burns unnecessarily went for a reverse sweep off Ashwin and saw the ball lob to 'keeper Rishab Pant for an easy catch.
Newcomer Dan Lawrence was sent back by Bumrah with a beauty which tailed in sharply catching the batsman plumb in-front.
Indian captain Virat Kohli had introduced Ashwin into the attack in the eighth over. The openers Sibley and Burns negotiated the first hour without much trouble.
Ishant (5-1-8-0) and Bumrah bowled steadily but could not cause any damage. Sibley and Burns played sensibly and showed patience to deny India any early inroads.
Bumrah, playing his first test at home, saw Pant grass Burns off the first delivery which the batsman tried to glance.
England captain Root won the toss and elected to bat. Star all-rounder Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer and Rory Burns returned to the side after missing the series in Sri Lanka.
For India, Virat Kohli returned after the paternity break while Ishant Sharma returned to the squad while Shahbaz Nadeem got to play his second Test.
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Mangaluru: Two arrested, MDMA worth Rs 5.41 lakh seized
Mangaluru: Surathkal Police have arrested two persons and seized 54.06 grams of MDMA valued at Rs 5.41 lakh near a weighing bridge at Mukka within the Surathkal police station limits, Deccan Herald reported on Saturday.
According to DCP (Law and Order) Mithun H.N., the police acted on credible information that a resident of Kapu was arriving in the area to sell MDMA. Based on the tip-off, the PSI of Surathkal Police Station conducted a raid and found two cars parked side by side at the spot.
The arrested accused have been identified as Zakaria (38), from Kombugudde in Kapu and Mithun Poojary (23), from Santhekatte, Udupi district.
During interrogation, it was revealed that the accused had allegedly come to Surathkal to sell the MDMA to college students and the general public. Police arrested both and seized a total of 54.06 grams of MDMA from their possession,18.42 grams from Zakaria and 36.18 grams from Mithun Poojary.
Police confiscated two cars worth Rs 13 lakh, two mobile phones valued at Rs 20,000, and cash amounting to Rs 11,700. The total value of the seized property is estimated at Rs 18,72,700.
A case has been registered at the Surathkal Police Station under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. Further investigation is in progress.
The DCP said that Zakaria has a criminal history, with five previous cases registered against him. These include assault cases at Bajpe Police Station in 2009 and Mulki Police Station in 2020, a case involving assault on a woman in 2022, a kidnapping case at Udupi Town Police Station in 2021, and another assault case at Padubidri Police Station in 2022.
