Nissanka, Wellalage fifties help Sri Lanka score 230/8 against India in 1st ODI
Colombo, Aug 2: Sri Lankan top-order crumbled against accurate Indian bowlers but intelligent fifties by Pathum Nissanka and Dunith Wellalage carried them to a fighting 230 for eight in the first ODI here on Friday.
Nissanka (56, 75b, 9x4) was a picture of concentration and Wellalage (67 not out, 65b, 7x4, 2x6) of confidence on a pitch that offered some turn after Lanka skipper Charith Asalanka opted to bat first, but several of their colleagues were unwilling to mimic them.
Lanka had a shaky start to their innings when Mohammed Siraj ousted Avishka Fernando but Nissanka and Kusal Mendis (14) added 39 runs for a steady second wicket as the hosts staged a mini-recovery.
Just as it happened in the preceding T20I series, the Islanders showed the propensity to throw their wickets away from that point.
This is not to undermine the excellent effort put in by the Indian bowlers, who elicited several false shots from the Lankan batters.
Mendis fell leg before to Shivam Dube, who made his return to one-day cricket after a hiatus of five years with that scalp.
From a relatively comfortable 46 for two, the Lankan innings soon crash-landed to 101 for five in the 27th over.
Sadeera Samarawickrama, Lanka’s best batter in ODIs for a while now, was never really able to read the spinners during his painful eight off 18 balls.
His dismissal underlined that point. The right-hander looked to push left-arm spinner Axar Patel (2/33) on the front foot but was too early into his shot, eventually chipping the ball to Shubman Gill at short cover.
Asalanka helped Nissanka to raise 31 runs for the fourth wicket but Kuldeep Yadav’s stock ball did him in. The left-hander guided the ball that spun away from him to his counterpart Rohit Sharma at first slip.
Amidst the constant turbulence at the other end, Nissanka stood like a rock and played a few delectable shots like a well-connected loft off Kuldeep Yadav to long-off for a boundary.
But Washington Sundar, who bowled his off-spin beautifully without much luck, finally managed to enter the wicket-takers’ list and he caught the big fish too.
A delivery that spun in from the off-stump trapped Nissanka in front of the wicket to reduce Lanka to 101 for five.
Wellalage and Janith Liyanage (20) added 41 runs off 43 balls for the sixth wicket to show some positive intent despite often failing to pick the Indian spinners.
Rohit’s inexplicable call to give an over to Gill for his dibbly-dobbly spin too added to the pair’s growing comfort, as Liyanage pulled a short-pitched ball for a six.
But a perplexing decision by Liyanage to walk off without taking the DRS ended the alliance.
The right-hander stepped out to whack Axar but the sharply-turned ball ended in the hands of Rohit at first slip.
There was a massive appeal from the Indians, and Liyanage trudged off the field, forcing the on-field umpire to raise his finger. It was clear from the replays that the ball did not take any edge off the bat.
From there, Wellalage and Wanindu Hasaranga (24, 35b, 1x4, 2x6) batted with purpose that some of their top-order comrades lacked, milking 36 runs for the seventh wicket.
Wellalage was quite impressive after his initial struggles against Kuldeep. The crunchy backfoot punch through the covers for four off Washington and a few other ramps and scoops testified the youngster’s potential.
The left-hander, who added another 46 with Akila Dhananjaya for the eighth wicket, brought up his maiden ODI fifty in 59 balls, also assisting his side to go past the 200-run mark that once appeared far away.
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Chamoli hydropower tunnel train collision: 88 injured, magisterial probe ordered
Gopeshwar/Dehradun (PTI): Chamoli District Magistrate Gaurav Kumar on Wednesday ordered a magisterial inquiry into the collision between two loco trains inside the Pipalkoti tunnel of the under-construction Vishnugad-Pipalkoti hydropower project, which left 88 people injured.
Earlier in the day, Kumar said that the accident occurred around 8.30 pm on Tuesday at the TBM (Tunnel Boring Machine) site inside the tunnel being built by THDC (India).
A loco train carrying workers for tunnel excavation during the night shift was about two kilometres inside the tunnel when another loco train coming from the opposite direction lost control and collided with it.
One of the trains had workers and officials on board, while the other carried material.
Upon receiving information about the collision, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami ordered proper treatment for the injured. He spoke to the DM over the phone and instructed him to ensure that all the injured receive the best possible medical facilities.
DM Kumar and Superintendent of Police Surjit Singh Panwar met the injured at the Gopeshwar District Hospital.
Kumar said 109 people were on board the loco train at the time of the accident, most of them labourers. None of the injured was serious, he said.
He said that 88 of them were injured, although none of them are in serious condition. They said that 84 workers were discharged after receiving first aid, while four are still hospitalized.
DM Kumar and SP Panwar also inspected the project site and sought detailed information about the incident from the project officials.
They instructed them to strictly implement all necessary safety standards to prevent a recurrence of such an incident in the future.
After inspection, the DM issued orders for a magisterial inquiry into the accident caused by the collision of the loco trains.
Meanwhile, the Railways said the trains involved in the collision had no connection with it.
"It is clarified that this unfortunate incident occurred in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district, involving a trolley used in the local transportation system during the construction of a hydroelectric project tunnel. The train referred to in the news reports is not an Indian Railways train, but a transportation system being used locally by the project team," the government entity said in a statement.
According to officials, rail-like vehicles are used to transport workers, employees, and materials for construction work inside the tunnel.
The project, being built between Helang and Pipalkoti on the Alaknanda River, will generate 444 megawatts of electricity through four turbines. The project is targeted for completion by next year.
