SRH restrict Punjab Kings to 125/7
Sharjah, Sept 25: West Indian Jason Holder's impressive spell of three wickets for 19 runs helped Sunrisers Hyderabad restrict Punjab Kings to 125 for 7 in their Indian Premier League match here on Saturday.
Sent in to bat, Punjab Kings batsmen struggled to get going on a slow wicket and failed to stitch any big partnership, the highest being the 30-run stand between Chris Gayle and Aiden Markram, who top-scored with a 32-ball 27, for the third wicket.
Captain KL Rahul had scored 49 in the previous match but got dismissed early this time as he fell to Holder's first ball for a run-a-ball 21 in the fifth over.
The other opener Mayank Agarwal (5), who had scored 67 against Rajasthan Royals on Tuesday, was out four balls later as he sliced a Holder delivery to Kane Williamson at mid off.
Punjab Kings were 29 for 2 after Power Play and could have been three wickets down the next over but David Warner dropped Markram off Khaleel Ahmed.
The Mohali-based side were 55 for 2 at halfway mark.
Chris Gayle shunned playing his trademark big-hitting shots but got dimissed for 14 off 17 balls off the bowling of Rashid Khan.
Nicholas Pooran (8) followed his senior West Indian colleague to the dressing room the next over, while Markram's promising innings ended in the 15th over while looking for big shots to accelerate the innings.
Deepak Hooda (13) hit some lusty blows before substitute fielder J Suchith plucked the ball out of thin air in an outstanding fielding effort to dismiss the batsman.
Punjab Kings took 14 runs from the final over bowled by Bhuvneshwar Kumar to end their innings at 125 for 7.
Harpreet Brar remained not out on 18 from as many balls.
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India & Israel elevate ties to special strategic partnership, vow to soon conclude free trade deal
Jerusalem (PTI): India and Israel on Thursday elevated their "time-tested" relationship to a special strategic partnership and agreed to soon firm up a "mutually beneficial" free trade deal even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi strongly backed the Gaza peace initiative, asserting that humanity must never become a victim of conflict.
Following talks between Modi and his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, the two sides inked a plethora of agreements to expand cooperation in areas of trade, agriculture, energy, cyberspace and digital payment.
India and Israel also vowed to expand their already close defence partnership by working towards joint development and joint production of military hardware under the framework of the transfer of technologies.
In his media statement, Modi said India's security interest is linked to peace and stability in the Middle East, adding that New Delhi fully supports the Gaza Peace Initiative.
"India's stance is clear: humanity must never become a victim of conflict. A path to peace has been created through the Gaza Peace Plan. India has fully supported these efforts," he said.
"In the future as well, we will continue dialogue and cooperation with all countries," he said.
PM Modi landed in Israel on Wednesday on a two-day visit. It is his second visit to Israel in nine years.
In his remarks, the prime minister said India and Israel have a united view that there is no place for terrorism in the world and both sides stand shoulder-to-shoulder in countering terrorism and its supporters.
"Our relationship is founded on the strong bedrock of deep trust, shared democratic values, and human sensitivities. Our bond has stood the test of every trial of time," he said.
"Today, we have taken the historic decision to elevate our time-tested partnership to the status of a 'Special Strategic Partnership'," he said.
The prime minister also announced the establishment of an India-Israel critical and emerging technologies partnership to impart a new momentum for cooperation in areas of artificial intelligence, quantum, and critical minerals. "I am pleased that an agreement has been reached for the use of UPI in Israel," he said.
The prime minister, referring to the threat of terrorism, said India and Israel will continue to confront the menace unitedly.
"India and Israel are completely clear that there is no place for terrorism in the world. In any form, in any expression, terrorism cannot be accepted," he said.
"We have stood shoulder-to-shoulder in opposing terrorism and its supporters, and we will continue to do so," he added.
India and Israel also discussed the implementation of the India-Middle East Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) and cooperation under the framework of I2U2 (India-Israel-UAE-USA).
