Gulbadin, lower-order batters lift Afghanistan to 172 all out
Indore, Jan 14: Gulbadin Naib top-scored with a breezy 35-ball 57 before a flurry of fours and sixes by the lower-order batters propelled Afghanistan to 172 all out against India in the second T20I here on Sunday.
Mujeeb Ur Rahman (21 off 9 balls) and Karim Janat (20 off 10) chipped in with useful contributions to prop up the innings.
Asked to bat first, Afghanistan opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz signalled his intent straightaway and flicked Arshdeep Singh (3/32 in 4 overs) for a four through square leg and then tried to hit one straight down the ground, which however did not result in a boundary.
While Arshdeep started the proceedings with two wides on either side of the wicket, Mukesh Kumar was welcomed with a six over the bowler's head by Gurbaz, before his opening partner Ibrahim Zadran, having got a review for lbw in his favour, got into the act by lofting one over cover for a boundary.
Trailing 0-1 in the three-match series, Afghanistan raced to 20 for no loss in no time, forcing Rohit Sharma to introduce spin in the form of Ravi Bishnoi (2/39 in 4 overs).
Leg-spinner Bishnoi, who has a penchant for picking a wicket in his first over, did an encore as he lured Gurbaz to offer a catch to Shivam Dube at mid-on, having failed to get elevation.
Taking a cue from Gurbaz's approach, one-down batter Gulbadin Naib started to play his shots from the get-go, pulling Mukesh through mid-wicket and then driving him through for successive fours.
Fresh from a wicket in his very first over, Bishnoi found himself at the receiving end of Gulbadin's onslaught as the batter pulled a short ball over deep mid-wicket for a maximum before hitting back-to-back fours in an 18-run over at the Holkar Stadium.
There was another bowling change and it paid dividends as left-arm spinner Axar Patel bowled visiting captain Ibrahim Zadran with a beautiful flighted delivery that turned just enough to beat the batter and hit the stumps.
Azmatullah Omarzai did not last long as Dube hit the stumps after the batter went for a cross-batted pull shot and missed.
Axar bowled an economical eighth over before Gulbadin carted a Dube slower ball into the stands over deep mid-wicket and followed that by launching a half tracker towards the long-on region for another maximum.
Promoted to number three, Gulbadin brought up his fifty in 28 balls. There was no respite for Washington Sundar either, as Gulbadin swept the off-spinner for a big six over deep mid-wicket.
India's best bowler on the day by some distance, Axar (2/17 in 4 overs) provided the crucial breakthrough when he had Gulbadin caught at mid-wicket by Rohit, having bowled one slightly slower than his usual deliveries.
Afghanistan's innings lost momentum after Gulbadin's departure even as Bishnoi dismissed Mohammad Nabi.
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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.
