WC Warm-Up: Pakistan left with plenty to ponder following 14-run loss to Australia
Hyderabad (PTI): The form of openers and bowlers remained a concern as Pakistan was handed a 14-run loss by Australia on the concluding day of the World Cup warm-ups here on Tuesday.
David Warner (48 off 33) and Glenn Maxwell (77 off 71) got valuable time in the middle as Australia amassed 351 for seven after opting to bat.
Babar Azam (90 retired hurt) was once again amongst the runs while middle-order batter Iftikhar Ahmed (83 off 85) got a good hit batting at number four.
Pakistan should have closed down the chase comfortably but found a way to lose and ended at 337 all out with 12 balls to spare.
The form of openers especially Fakhar Zaman (22 off 24) has been a worry for a while and that did not change as he perished while trying to hit Maxwell out of the ground.
His opening partner Imam-Ul-Haq (16 off 11) hit a delightful straight drive and flick off Mitchell Starc before getting caught behind for the second consecutive innings.
Another opening option Abdullah Shafique (12 off 16), who batted at three as Babar wanted to give batting time to others, too did not last long.
At 83 for four in 15 overs, Pakistan had a mountain to climb but Babar, who came to bat at six, and Iftikhar changed the course of the innings with their free flowing strokeplay.
Babar decided to retire in order to give the lower-order the chance to finish the game.
Mohammad Nawaz (50 off 42) tried but could not take his team over the line. Pakistan were within touching distance of the target but ran out of wickets.
In the bowling department, the performance of Shadab Khan and Haris Rauf, who conceded 97 runs in nine overs, was a cause of a concern while bright spots were the spells of leggie Usamar Mir and medium pacer Hasan Ali who is expected to open the bowling alongside Shaheen Afridi in the team's tournament opener against Netherlands on October 6.
From the Australian perspective, Maxwell was at his marauding best after coming from an ankle injury and that augurs well for him and his team going into the World Cup opener against India on October 8.
Known for his audacious strokeplay, Maxwell's six off reverse sweep on Nawaz's bowling stood out.
Warner, who did not bat in the first warm-up against Netherlands, too entertained the Hyderabad crowd with his fluent hitting which included two sixes off Rauf.
Skipper Pat Cummins, Sean Abbott and Mitchell Starc bowled six overs each. Australia used as many as eight bowling options including Steve Smith and Warner, who was hammered for 41 runs in two overs.
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2nd phase of Bengal poll: 39.97 per cent polling till 11 am amid sporadic violence
Kolkata (PTI): Nearly 40 per cent of the 3.21 crore electors voted till 11 am of the second phase of polling in West Bengal amid sporadic violence, while tension gripped the Bhabanipur seat briefly as Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Suvendu Adhikari took swipes at one another in the same booth area.
Voters queued up from 7 am outside booths in Kolkata, Howrah, Hooghly, Nadia, North and South 24 Parganas and Purba Bardhaman districts, which form Bengal's electoral and political core.
Of the total electorate eligible to vote in this phase, 1.57 crore are women, and 792 are third-gender.
Till 11 am, West Bengal recorded 39.97 per cent polling with Purba Bardhaman registering the highest turnout at 44.50 per cent, followed by Hooghly at 43.12 per cent and Nadia at 40.34 per cent.
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Howrah recorded 39.45 per cent polling, while North 24 Parganas registered 38.43 per cent. Kolkata North and Kolkata South recorded 38.39 per cent and 36.78 per cent turnout, respectively.
South 24 Parganas, a politically crucial district witnessing several high-profile contests, recorded 37.9 per cent voting.
The first phase of polls in 152 Assembly seats of West Bengal on April 23 also recorded more than 41 per cent polling till 11 am.
"Polling is underway peacefully, barring some minor incidents in certain areas. We have sought reports from the officials concerned," a poll panel official said.
The early-morning convergence of Banerjee and Adhikari at the same booth area in Chakraberia turned Bhabanipur -- the chief minister's electoral bastion -- into the centrepiece of the day, reinforcing the symbolic weight of their prestige battle seen as a rematch of Nandigram, where the BJP leader had defeated her in 2021.
Banerjee was already seated outside the booth after receiving complaints of alleged intimidation of local TMC leaders when Adhikari arrived there amid heavy deployment of central forces.
Stepping out of his car, Adhikari declared, "I will not allow any hooliganism", while Banerjee accused the BJP of trying to "rig" the election using central forces, police observers and election officials.
"BJP wants to rig this election. Polls in Bengal are usually peaceful. Is there goonda raj here?" Banerjee told reporters, alleging CRPF personnel had visited the homes of TMC leaders late Tuesday night and unleashed terror in the area.
She alleged that election observers were acting at the BJP's behest and claimed TMC workers were being selectively targeted across districts.
Adhikari dismissed the charges as signs of "frustration", claiming Banerjee had realised that "not a single vote" was coming her way.
Banerjee, who usually steps out of her Kalighat residence late in the day to cast her vote at Mitra Institution School, broke convention and hit the ground before 8 am, moving through Chetla, Padmapukur and Chakraberia, underlining the stakes attached to Bhabanipur and the wider battle for south Bengal.
Reports of violence, vandalism and tension surfaced from several districts.
In Nadia district's Chapra, a BJP polling agent was allegedly assaulted inside a booth during a mock poll. The BJP accused TMC supporters of attacking its agent, while the ruling party denied the charge. In Shantipur, a BJP camp office was found vandalised.
In South 24 Pargana's Bhangar, the ISF alleged that its polling agents were prevented from entering booths.
Howrah's Bally constituency saw tension at a booth in Liluah after an EVM malfunction delayed voting, prompting central forces to lathi-charge agitated voters. Two people were arrested in the matter.
Police and RAF personnel were also seen chasing away crowds near a booth in Amdanga following complaints of unlawful gathering by bike-borne supporters.
In Panihati, BJP candidate Ratna Debnath, the mother of the RG Kar victim, faced protests and her car was allegedly stopped by TMC workers, while in Jagaddal, the recovery of a firearm near a polling booth triggered tension before police and central forces restored order.
BJP candidate from Basanti assembly constituency in South 24 Parganas, Bikash Sardar, on Wednesday, alleged that "200-250 TMC goons" attacked his car and assaulted his driver when he was visiting polling booths in the constituency.
The TMC did not immediately respond to the allegations.
Unlike the first phase, where the BJP sought to defend its north Bengal gains, the final round has shifted the battle squarely to the TMC's strongest belt.
In 2021, the ruling party had won 123 of these 142 seats, leaving just 18 for the BJP and one for the ISF. For the BJP, breaching this southern fortress remains critical if it hopes to mount a serious challenge for power in the state.
