'King and The Prince': Tons by young Jaiswal, veteran Kohli put India in winning position
Perth (PTI): Virat Kohli brought all his technical expertise into play while dealing with vagaries of variable bounce during his 30th hundred after heir apparent Yashasvi Jaiswal's classy 161 put India in sight of a remarkable Test victory against a nervous and fumbling Australia here on Sunday.
The Indians dominated the third day to first set an improbable 534-run target for the hosts before reducing them to 12/3 at close of play.
Once Kohli reached an unprecedented seventh Test century Down Under, Indian skipper Jasprit Bumrah declared at 487 for 6 with five overs to go flat out.
The skipper then immediately disposed off debutant Nathan McSweeney (0) and Marnus Labuschagne (3), both of whom got balls that kept perilously low.
The nervousness was palpable when rival captain Pat Cummins walked in as the night-watchman and the decision proved to be a not so wise one.
The match would be memorable for many reasons and one of them would be the exhibition of top quality batsmanship by the 'King' and 'Prince' of current India batting but in contrasting conditions and different match situations.
Jaiswal built a fascinating structure with care and Kohli (100 not out, 143 balls) polished it and put a beautiful coat of paint while throwing caution to the wind while reaching the landmark.
The 22-year-old Jaiswal, on Sunday, emerged as the unofficial flag-bearer of Indian batting for the next decade and a half during his 297-ball stay at the wicket, giving a glimpse of his ever-improving technique and composed temperament.
But it was veteran Kohli, who showed how to play on a wicket that consistently misbehaved during his second hundred at the Perth Stadium and 30th overall, which incidentally took him past Sir Don Bradman's 29 Test tons.
There were deliveries that simply didn't bounce. One from Mitchell Starc was upper cut for six over backward point while the shot of the day was an on drive off Cummins.
When Nathan Lyon started turning the ball square, he either got a big stride forward or brought the sweep shot, which he doesn't play often, out of his closet. His hundred, in fact, came off a sweep.
The straight six off Lyon with the turn was exhilarating as young Nitish Reddy (38 not out off 27 balls) only enhanced his reputation with some muscular IPL-like strokes that took India past the 500-run mark.
Before 'King Kohli' took charge, the new 'Prince' Jaiswal, just a month short of his 23rd birthday, notched up a classic fourth century in Tests. The knock has provided his skipper Bumrah with enough ammunition to exploit the treacherous bounce that is starting to trouble batters.
The post-lunch session turned out to be the most productive one for Australia since the opening day as India, starting the session at 275 for 1, slumped to 321 for 5 but by then, the lead was well past the 360-run mark and it didn't hurt the team much.
With no seam movement, Kohli was able to control the other factor -- variable bounce -- and his front-foot stride was way more assured than the first essay.
While he was completely side-on in his stance while facing the pacers, against Lyon, he turned it into a open-chested one. There was a minor back-foot trigger before he would stride on the front-foot for either drive or defence.
However, if India go on to win the Test match, Jaiswal and KL Rahul (77)'s 201-run opening stand would be as important as Bumrah's first innings five-for.
Jaiswal 'Arrives' in Australia
Exactly 32 years ago, 17-year-old Sachin Tendulkar became a global phenomenon with a hundred for the ages at the old WACA ground on a track that had those snake-like cracks and in the last two days, Jaiswal has shown the entire world that he is here to be the torch-bearer of Indian batting for the next decade and a half.
He became the second youngest Indian batter after Sachin Tendulkar to score a hundred at Perth.
Jaiswal completed his fourth Test hundred and first in a SENA country with a beautifully executed ramp shot off a bouncer bowled by Josh Hazlewood.
The celebration was one for the keeps with hands in the air and gratitude towards the almighty before showing his lean but muscular biceps. All his four Test hundreds are now scores of 150 plus.
The six also ensured that Jaiswal and KL Rahul's opening pair surpassed the previous record stand of 191 set by Sunil Gavaskar and Krishnamachari Srikkanth way back in Sydney in 1986.
When Jaiswal was finally out trying to cut a long hop from Mitchell Marsh, the 'Prince' looked distraught even as the entire stadium gave him a standing ovation while the 'King' clapped with his bat at the other end as one witnessed a silent passing of the baton.
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Trump warns he's considering limited strikes as Iranian diplomat says proposed deal is imminent
Washington (AP): President Donald Trump warned on Friday that limited strikes against Iran are possible even as the country's top diplomat said Tehran expects to have a proposed deal ready in the next few days following nuclear talks with the United States.
In response to a reporter's question on whether the US could take limited military action as the countries negotiate, Trump said, “I guess I can say I am considering that.” Earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a TV interview that his country was planning to finalise a draft deal in “the next two to three days” to then send to Washington.
“I don't think it takes long, perhaps, in a matter of a week or so, we can start real, serious negotiations on the text and come to a conclusion,” Araghchi said on MSNOW's “Morning Joe” show.
The tensions between the longtime adversaries have ramped up as the Trump administration pushes for concessions from Iran and has built up the largest US military presence in the Middle East in decades, with more warships and aircraft on the way. Both countries have signalled that they are prepared for war if talks on Tehran's nuclear programme fizzle out.
“We are prepared for war, and we are prepared for peace,” Araghchi said Friday.
Trump said a day earlier that he believes 10 to 15 days is “enough time” for Iran to reach a deal following recent rounds of indirect negotiations, including this week in Geneva, that made little visible progress. But the talks have been deadlocked for years, and Iran has refused to discuss wider US and Israeli demands that it scale back its missile program and sever ties to armed groups.
Araghchi also said Friday that his American counterparts have not asked for zero enrichment of uranium as part of the latest round of talks, which is in contradiction to what US officials have said.
"What we are now talking about is how to make sure that Iran's nuclear programme, including enrichment, is peaceful and will remain peaceful forever," he said.
He added that in return Iran will implement some confidence-building measures in exchange for relief on economic sanctions.
In response to Araghchi's claim, a White House official said Trump has been clear that Iran cannot have nuclear weapons or the capacity to build them and that it cannot enrich uranium. The official wasn't authorised to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Tehran has long insisted that any negotiations should only focus on its nuclear programme and that it hasn't been enriching uranium since US and Israeli strikes last June on Iranian nuclear sites. Trump said at the time that the strikes had “obliterated” Iran's nuclear sites, but the exact damage is unknown as Tehran has barred international inspectors.
Iran has also insisted that its nuclear programme is peaceful. The US and others suspect it is aimed at eventually developing weapons.
