Pakistan win toss, opt to field against New Zealand
Bengaluru: Pakistan skipper Babar Azam won the toss and elected to field against New Zealand in a World Cup match here on Saturday.
Pakistan made one change, bringing Hasan Ali in place of Usama Mir.
New Zealand made three changes with fit-again Kane Williamson returning to captaincy duties. He replaced Will Young while Ish Sodhi came in for Matt Henry, who has been ruled out of the tournament with a hamstring injury.
The other change in New Zealand's playing eleven is Mark Chapman, who replaced Jimmy Neesham.
Teams:
New Zealand: Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, Kane Williamson(c), Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham(wk), Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Trent Boult.
Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam(c), Mohammad Rizwan(wk), Iftikhar Ahmed, Saud Shakeel, Agha Salman, Shaheen Afridi, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Haris Rauf.
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Opposition raking up Dalit CM issue to divert attention: Karnataka Minister
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Monday accused the opposition of "unnecessarily stoking" the debate over a Dalit Chief Minister to deflect attention from governance.
He asserted that only the Congress has the commitment to elevate a Dalit leader to the top post.
Speaking to reporters here, Parameshwara said the ongoing discussion on a Dalit Chief Minister was being amplified by opposition parties.
“This is the work of the opposition. To hide their own failures, they are raising the issue of the Chief Minister. Isn’t the administration running smoothly? Isn’t the Chief Minister governing?” he asked.
The Minister noted that for the past 10–12 days, detailed budget discussions had been held across departments and governance was progressing normally.
Parameshwara, who is a Dalit, said the Congress alone had the history and political will to make a Dalit Chief Minister.
“Yes, it must be the Congress party. Who else will do it?” he said, while clarifying that the timing of any such decision would be determined by the party high command.
On Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s media statement targeting the JD(S) and invoking social justice, Parameshwara said Siddaramaiah had earlier been part of the JD(S) and even served as its president before being expelled.
He noted that the internal history of that party was best known to those within it and declined to comment on specific internal matters.
Defending the Chief Minister’s ideological position, Parameshwara said Siddaramaiah’s politics had always been rooted in social justice and that there was nothing new or opportunistic about his stance.
The Chief Minister, he said, had consistently built his political career on that foundation.
