Surya shows the way as India score 213 for 7 against Sri Lanka in first T20I
Pallekele (Sri Lanka), Jul 27: Skipper Suryakumar Yadav was swift and brutal in equal measure on his first day in office as the Indian top-order plundered Sri Lankan bowling to post a commanding 213 for 7 in the opening T20I if the three-match series here on Saturday.
In his first match as permanent skipper of India's T20 team, Surya made a firm statement with a sparkling 58 off 26 balls, maintaining his aggressive approach that made him world's premier batter.
While Surya was at his dominant best while hitting eight fours and two sixes en route his 20th half-century, the foundation for a big score was laid by young stars Yashasvi Jaiswal (41 off 20 balls) and Shubman Gill (34 off 15 balls) in a 74-run opening stand in the powerplay.
Rishabh Pant (49 off 33 balls) struggled initially but did well to end just one short of half-century with some audacious shots both in-front and behind the square.
If Jaiswal's approach was a bit on muscular side, Gill showed his artistry bleeding the Lankans with thousand cuts.
The refreshing part was Gill's approach in the very first game under new coach where he didn't exactly employ the safety first approach.
Jaiswal whipped the very first delivery of the match by Dilshan Madushanka while Gill followed the suit with back-to-back cuts to start in earnest with a 13-run over.
With a flurry of boundaries coming in first two overs, Charith Asalanka was forced to bring in Maheesh Theekshana in the third over and Jaiswal welcomed him with a six over long-off and then a whip behind square for a boundary with fifty coming in just four overs.
If Gill waited for Asitha Fernando's delivery taking that split second to back cut it for boundary behind point and then roll his wrists to put a slow short ball towards backward square leg, Jaiswal just thumped the same bowler wide of long on for a maximum.
While Gill (34 off 15 balls) was out playing one shot too many off the final ball in the powerplay but by then India had scored 74, their highest total in first six overs this season.
Jaiswal failed to read Wanindu Hasaranga's well disguised googly as the southpaw played for the conventional leg-break bringing in skipper Surya and Pant together.
Surya played his customary inside the line shot over fine leg for six and four. He was lucky to survive as he was also dropped once trying to repeat the shot and also got a four in the process.
The team century came in 8.4 overs as the Indian skipper didn't let the momentum drop even as Pant was struggling to middle the ball.
Once Surya was adjudged leg before to a Matheesha Pathirana yorker, the final few overs saw Pant finally breaking shackles as a helicopter shot off Asitha landed into the stands and was followed by a boundary.
The Sri Lankan pacers were erratic in their lengths on a slowish track but Hasaranga (1/28 in 4 overs) was fantastic as visiting batters couldn't really get going against him while Matheesha Pathirana despite getting some stick landed perfect yorkers to end up with 4 for 40.
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J-K: Six held with drugs, assets worth Rs 73 lakh attached in Udhampur
Jammu (PTI): Six persons were taken into custody during an intensified anti-narcotics crackdown, with police recovering contraband substances and over Rs 23 lakh in Doda and Kathua districts of Jammu and Kashmir, police said on Monday.
In a parallel action, properties worth over Rs 73 lakh linked to drug peddlers were also attached in Udhampur district under relevant legal provisions, the police said.
Additional Superintendent of Police, Doda, Mohd Aslam said three persons, including a woman, were detained during a raid on a house at Dak Mohalla in the main town following recovery of 85 grams of suspected brown sugar and over Rs 23 lakh on Sunday evening.
He identified the woman as Zareena Begum, stating that she had been under police surveillance following inputs indicating her involvement in drug peddling.
Besides Zareena, officials said her daughter and son-in-law were also picked up by police during the raid.
“We have taken three individuals into custody. Their roles are being examined, and based on that, arrests will be made. We are continuing raids at other suspected locations,” Aslam said.
Three drug peddlers --Pardeep Singh of Hiranagar, Rahees Butt of Billawar and Ali Sen of Amritsar (Punjab) -- were arrested along with heroin at different places in Kathua district, a police spokesman said.
He said while 2.79 gm of heroin was seized from Singh, 2.66 gm were recovered Butt. Similarly, 303 gm of heroin was seized from Sen who was intercepted near Berrian-Pattan village while moving in a private car from Bhagthali to Maggar Khad on the Jammu-Pathankot highway.
All the three were booked under the NDPS Act and further investigations are on, the spokesman said.
In Udhampur, the spokesman said properties worth Rs 73 lakh were attached in two separate cases registered under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
The attached properties included a newly constructed residential house, a car, a motorcycle and a mobile phone with a total value of Rs 65 Lakh, belonging to accused Saif Ali who was booked under the NDPS case in Majalta area early this year, he said.
In another action, movable property worth Rs 8 lakh comprising a car, belonging to accused Danish Butt of Doda has been attached under Section 68(F) NDPS Act in connection with an FIR registered at Rehambal police station, the spokesman said.
