Parag, bowlers hand RR 29-run win over RCB
Pune, Apr 26: Riyan Parag smashed a match-defining unbeaten half-century before the bowling unit lived up to its reputation to hand Rajasthan Royals a 29-run win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in an Indian Premier League match here on Tuesday.
Parag (56 not out off 31 balls) single-handedly took his side to 144 for 8 with his unbeaten half-century, which is his highest score in IPL. He struck three boundaries and four sixes during his knock.
Parag marshalled the RR lower-order brilliantly and smashed Harshal Patel for a boundary and two huge sixes in the final over to take RR to a decent total after being sent in to bat.
But RCB's chase never got going as RR bowlers, led by young Kuldeep Sen (4/20), Ravichandran Ashwin (3/17) and Prasidh Krishna (2/23), bundled out RR for 115 in 19.3 overs.
Opening the innings on the back of two consecutive first-ball ducks, Virat Kohli started on a cagey note but lit up the stadium and raised hopes of his fans when he struck two back-to-back boundaries of Trent Boult to start his innings.
But as it has been happening in the tournament, Kohli flopped once again when a Prasidh Krishna bouncer got the better of him in the next over.
RCB's problems compounded in the seventh over when Kuldeep Sen, who replaced Obed McCoy in the playing XI, picked up two big wickets -- of captain Faf du Plessis (23) and Glenn Maxwell (0) -- with successive balls.
But Shahbaz Ahmed somehow kept his wicket intact to deny Sen a hat-trick.
With RCB struggling at 38 for three in the seventh over, it was match on from here on.
Indian domestic players -- Rajat Patidar (16) and Suyash Prabhudessai -- failed miserably, leaving the difficult task of finishing the innings once again on the shoulders of Dinesh Karthik (6).
But it was not Karthik's day as he was run out cheaply.
Ahmed (17 off 27) too was not in his elements and struggled to hit the ball.
Earlier, RCB's decision to bowl first yielded great results as they picked up wickets at regular intervals, not allowing RR any scope of building a big partnership.
Josh Hazlewood (2/19), Wanindu Hasaranga de Silva (2/23) and Mohammed Siraj (2/30) picked up two wickets each to stifle the Royals' batting line-up.
Devdutt Padikkal (7) and Jos Buttler (8) failed to give RR a good start and the decision to promote Ashwin (17) also backfired.
Siraj accounted for both Padikkal and Ashwin in his successive overs, while Hazlewood picked up the all-important wicket of Buttler, caught by Siraj inches above the ground as the batter failed to get over a short delivery, looping his pull to mid-on.
Sanju Samson (27 off 21 balls) and Daryl Mitchell (16) tried to forge a partnership, sharing 35 runs for the fourth wicket before de Silva went through the gates of RR skipper as the batter went for an extravagant reverse sweep.
Mitchell failed to get going and tried to play the role of an anchor, holding one end up and together with Parag added 31 runs.
But the New Zealander's struggle was cut short by Hazlewood as in a desperate effort to break the shackles, he gave a simple catch to Maxwell at long-on.
At 100 for 5 after 15 overs, RR's effort to post a decent target received yet another jolt in the form of Shimron Hetmyer (3), who fell to de Silva caught in the deep while going for a slog sweep.
Boult (5) was the next to depart, courtesy a stunning catch from Kohli at midwicket off Harshal Patel.
RR's struggle can be gauged from the fact that they failed to find the fence for seven consecutive overs from 12 to 18th. Parag finally broke it in the 19th over by lifting Hazzlewood over the extra cover fence.
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UP Cong holds statewide protest seeking probe into FIR against Swami Avimukteshwaranand
Lucknow (PTI): The Uttar Pradesh Congress on Wednesday staged a statewide protest demanding a fair and transparent inquiry into the FIR lodged against Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati and those who filed the complaint against him.
In a statement issued here, the party said memorandums addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi were submitted through district magistrates in all districts of the state.
Uttar Pradesh Congress spokesperson Manish Hindvi told PTI that the memorandums were handed over through the district administration in all 75 districts.
In the memorandum, the party alleged that Saraswati and his disciples were "unnecessarily harassed and humiliated" by police on the occasion of Amavasya and were prevented from taking a ritual bath (at the Magh Mela). It further alleged that some disciples were manhandled and taken to a police station.
The memorandum also claimed that an FIR was later registered against Saraswati, his disciple Swami Mukundanand Brahmachari and several unidentified persons in a sexual harassment case. It termed the case a "conspiracy" aimed at tarnishing the seer's reputation.
Citing Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution, the memorandum stated that these provisions guarantee religious freedom and the right of religious denominations to manage their own affairs.
It described the position of shankaracharya held by Saraswati as "one of the highest spiritual posts in Sanatan tradition" and alleged that the entire episode appeared to have been "orchestrated in a planned manner".
"We request that the background of the persons who got the FIR registered be investigated in a transparent manner by a retired high court judge and strict action be taken against them," the memorandum said.
It also sought a "fair and transparent probe" into the allegations levelled against Saraswati so that the truth could be established.
Earlier, Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai had told reporters in Varanasi after meeting Saraswati that the party stood firmly with him.
The Congress said it would continue to press for an impartial inquiry into the entire episode.
On February 21, an FIR was lodged in Prayagraj against Saraswati and his disciple Mukundanand Brahmachari on charges of sexually abusing two persons, including a minor, over the past year at a gurukul and religious congregations, including the recently concluded Magh Mela.
Days after he was booked, Saraswati had said on Monday that he would not oppose his arrest and asserted that the "fabricated story" would be exposed sooner or later.
At a press conference on Wednesday, Saraswati alleged that criminals rule in Uttar Pradesh, level allegations and influence investigations, as he denied having any contact with the two persons for whose alleged sexual abuse he has been booked.
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