Rohit finds his groove as India outplay Australia in final warm-up; also enter Kohli the 6th bowler
Dubai, Oct 20: India fine-tuned their T20 World Cup preparations with a convincing nine-wicket win over Australia in their final warm-up game here on Wednesday but the sixth bowler's slot remained a worry as even Virat Kohli rolled his arm over going into the tournament proper.
Captaining the side with Kohli only taking the field to bowl, Rohit Sharma (60 retired off 41) showed sublime touch alongside opening partner K L Rahul (39 off 31) as India chased down Australia's 152 for five in 17.5 overs.
Suryakumar Yadav (38 not out off 27) came at number three in Kohli's absence and got valuable time in the middle which should boost his confidence going ahead.
Hardik Pandya (14 not out off 8) came at four to finish the game and he did it with a clean hit over the bowler's head.
Another plus for India was seasoned pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar finding rhythm after a poor outing against England. India had also beaten England in their earlier practice game.
The batting department looks more or less settled and the five specialist bowlers also inspire confidence but the same can't be said about the extra bowling option with Hardik not bringing his all-round skills to the table at the moment.
"Hardik is coming along pretty well, but it'll be a while before he will start to bowl. He hasn't started bowling, but he should be ready by the start of the tournament," said Rohit at the toss for the warm-up match against Australia.
The team management is hoping he will be ready to bowl during India's World Cup campaign which begins with the marquee clash against Pakistan on Sunday.
Skipper Kohli kept things tight with two overs of medium pace but to expect him to do the job in high-pressure scenarios would be asking for too much from him.
India conceded 58 runs off the last five overs and that is something they would like to improve on.
After losing the toss, India put up a decent bowling effort.
Rohit mentioned at the toss that Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami were rested from the game but the skipper took the field to bowl a couple of overs in which he conceded 12 runs.
India had Australia on the mat at 11 for three after Aaron Finch opted to bat first. David Warner's barren run continued after a failed attempt at a reverse sweep had him trapped in front off Ravichandran Ashwin.
With his very next ball, Ashwin got rid of birthday boy Mitchell Marsh who played for the turn which wasn't there only to edge it to the first slip.
Ravindra Jadeja had Finch trapped LBW with a slider off his very first ball, leaving Australia with a lot of work to do.
Steve Smith (57 off 48) and in-form Glenn Maxwell (37 off 28) tried to break the shackles with a 61-run partnership.
While Maxwell used his reverse sweep to good effect, Smith kept himself busy by rotating the strike.
After Maxwell fell to a conventional sweep, Smith and Marcus Stoinis (41 not out off 25 balls) got together and provided a much needed final flourish to the innings.
Smith smashed Shardul Thakur for three successive fours in the 17th over before Stoinis hit a straight six and a boundary off mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy, who conceded 23 runs off his two overs.
After a bad day in office against England, Bhuvneshwar found his rhythm and was effective both at the start and in the death.
India, however, would be a tad disappointed to give away so many runs in the death overs and help Australia's recovery.
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Commercial LPG hike: Delhi restaurant owners warn of higher menu rates, job losses
New Delhi (PTI) A day after a 50 per cent rise in commercial LPG cylinder prices, Delhi's food business, with restaurant owners and street vendors have warned of higher menu rates, financial strain and potential job losses if the trend persists.
The price of commercial LPG was hiked by a steep Rs 993 per 19 kg cylinder, marking the third consecutive monthly hike amid rising global energy prices linked to the West Asia conflict.
For many in the restaurant industry, the spike has been both sudden and steep.
Manpreet Singh, honorary treasurer of the National Restaurant Association of India, said that eateries are already grappling with supply challenges alongside rising costs.
"There is a huge difficulty in getting these cylinders, and black marketing is also increasing in many unregulated sectors," he said, noting that prices that were once around Rs 1,600, often dropping to nearly Rs 1,300 with discounts, have now surged to between Rs 3,000 and Rs 4,000 per cylinder.
He further added that a medium-sized restaurant typically uses between two and five cylinders daily, making the increase particularly burdensome as costs mount.
Singh further said that as costs mount, smaller establishments could struggle to stay afloat. Instead, the association has advised restaurants to shift towards piped natural gas connections through Indraprastha Gas Limited as a more sustainable alternative.
"If this problem continues, PNG is the only long-term solution," he said, adding that temporary measures like coal offer limited relief due to slower cooking times and that it can largely be used only for tandoors.
Echoing similar concerns, Kabir Suri, owner of Mamagoto in Khan Market, said the impact is already visible across the industry. "There has been almost a threefold increase in cylinder prices for restaurants," he said, adding that rising fuel and logistics costs are compounding the pressure.
"If this continues, it will become a significant financial burden, and food prices will inevitably go up. Adding to this burden, higher fuel costs are also affecting logistics and transportation, making a price rise unavoidable. The extent of the impact will vary between small eateries and large chains depending on their scale," he said.
Global oil prices have surged nearly 50 per cent following disruptions in energy supply chains due to the West Asia conflict, pushing up commercial fuel costs and transport expenses.
A West Delhi-based restaurateur said they are trying to manage rising costs while keeping their staff secure. "We are trying to ensure that our staff, from kitchen workers to waiters, are paid on time and do not face immediate hardship," the owner said.
"We are a small restaurant with seating for about 20 to 25 people at a time. But if this continues for long, we will have to take difficult calls. There is only so much we can absorb, and menu prices will have to go up. We hope this does not continue for a longer period," he said.
Another restaurant owner in North Delhi, who did not wish to be named, said operational adjustments alone may not be enough. "We are checking our costs very carefully and trying to cut wherever possible, but if fuel prices remain high, it will eventually affect how we run the business," the owner said.
"Coal helps in tandoor cooking, but it takes more time," the owner further added.
The strain is even more acute among street vendors, many of whom operate on thin margins. A vendor in Saket said he had recently expanded his business, moving from a mobile cart to a rented outlet.
"I have a family to feed and more responsibilities now. Earlier, I managed with a moving cart, but after renting the place, expenses increased," he said. "Whenever cylinders were unavailable, I had to buy them at higher rates in the black market. Now even regular supply is too expensive, and if this continues, we may have to shut down," he added.
In Laxmi Nagar, another vendor said they are struggling to keep the business running. "Sometimes we even used domestic cylinders from home when supply ran out because we had to keep the stall running," he said, adding that rising costs leave little choice but to increase prices or bear losses.
On April 1, the rates of commercial LPG cylinders were hiked by Rs 195.50 per cylinder, followed by a Rs 114.5 hike on March 1, taking the total increase over the past three months to Rs 1,303. With the latest revision, a 19 kg commercial LPG cylinder now costs Rs 3,371.5 in Delhi, up from Rs 2,078.5 earlier.
The prices of domestic LPG cylinders used for household cooking have remained unchanged. They were last increased by Rs 60 per 14.2 kg cylinder on March 7 and currently cost Rs 913 in Delhi.
