Australia enter Champions Trophy semifinals after washout against Afghanistan
Lahore, Feb 28 (PTI): Australia entered the semifinals of the Champions Trophy after their crucial Group B clash against Afghanistan was called off due to rain here on Friday.
The match was halted by a downpour when Australia were 109 for 1 in 12.5 overs, chasing a target of 274.
Despite the ground staffs' efforts to clear the field, several pools of water remained on the pitch and the umpires ultimately declared the match abandoned after an inspection.
The interruption came just an hour before the cut-off time for completing the match.
With the game called off, Australia advanced to the semifinals with four points. Their last match against South Africa in Rawalpindi was also abandoned.
At the time of interruption, Travis Head was in superb form, having scored 59 runs off 40 balls, including nine fours and one six.
His knock came after a lucky reprieve when Rashid Khan dropped him on six, diving at mid-on off Fazalhaq Farooqi.
Head capitalised on this opportunity and dominated the Afghanistan bowlers, particularly taking 28 runs off Farooqi's 17 balls.
Skipper Steve Smith was at the other end, playing a more measured knock with 19 not out from 22 balls, including two boundaries.
With no result from this match, Afghanistan's chances are slim and would depend on the result of Saturday's match between South Africa and England.
If South Africa win, they will top the group with five points.
If England emerges victorious, South Africa and Afghanistan will both finish on three points, leading to a net run-rate (NRR) calculation.
Afghanistan's current NRR of -0.99 would almost certainly eliminate them unless South Africa loses by a margin of over 200 runs.
Earlier in the day, Afghanistan posted a competitive total of 273, largely due to Sediqullah Atal's gritty 85 and Azmatullah Omarzai's explosive 67.
Atal anchored the innings after a shaky start, but it was Omarzai's late fireworks which propelled Afghanistan past 270 after they were 235 for 8 following Rashid Khan's dismissal.
Omarzai's 63-ball knock under pressure had five sixes and one four. He launched two massive sixes off Nathan Ellis in the penultimate over, including a breathtaking 102m hit over midwicket, sending the ball over Glenn Maxwell at the boundary.
He then struck a towering six wide of long-off as Afghanistan produced a late flourish for a total that would give their spin-heavy bowling lineup a big boost.
But he got out in the final over off Ben Dwarshuis who also dismissed Noor Ahmed in the final delivery of the day to finish with figures of 3/47 from nine overs.
World champions Australia also leaked 37 runs in extras that included 17 wides.
Opting to bat, Afghanistan suffered early blows as Spencer Johnson (2/49) cleaned up Rahmanullah Gurbaz for a five-ball duck and Ibrahim Zadran (22 off 28) gifted his wicket to Adam Zampa.
Atal then took charge, initially struggling against Johnson's movement, but settling in with crisp cover drives and flicks.
He found a steady partner in Hashmatullah Shahidi, and together they stitched a 68-run stand, navigating Australia's spinners on a sluggish pitch.
Atal brought up his second ODI fifty in style, launching Maxwell over mid-on for a six.
He later dismantled Zampa with two more sixes but fell 15 short of a maiden hundred, chipping a Johnson delivery to Steve Smith at short cover in the 32nd over.
His dismissal at 159/4 triggered a collapse, with skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi (20 off 49) falling soon after, and Mohammad Nabi getting run out in a bizarre fashion.
From 182/6, Afghanistan struggled to keep the momentum, and at 235/8 after Rashid's departure, they were staring at a modest total.
All-rounder Omarzai, fresh from a match-winning 5/58 haul and 41-run contribution against England, then took charge.
Unfazed by the situation, the No. 6 batter played with calm assurance, reaching his eighth ODI fifty off 54 balls with a single off Dwarshuis in the 48th over.
In doing so, he became the joint third-fastest Afghan player to reach the 1000-run milestone, achieving it in 31 innings -- behind Zadran (24), Gurbaz (27), and Shah (31).
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Delhi CM Rekha Gupta accuses Mamata Banerjee of stalling SIR; TMC hits back
Kolkata (PTI): Alleging that her West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee had approached the Supreme Court to stall the SIR exercise to prevent the identification of infiltrators, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Sunday claimed that the people of the state have made up their minds to dislodge the Trinamool Congress from power.
The TMC countered strongly, urging Gupta to "look into her own backyard" and accused her of making absurd allegations against the TMC government without checking facts.
Addressing participants at the 'Nari Sankalp Yatra' organised by the BJP's women's wing at Science City auditorium here, Gupta alleged that the "hands-off" and appeasement policies of the TMC government had allowed thousands of infiltrators to enter the state in recent years.
She claimed that this had put a strain on basic rights such as access to water, electricity, ration, education, livelihood and the right to vote for genuine citizens.
"She wants to perpetuate this and hence is trying to stall the SIR exercise, which aims at identifying and deporting infiltrators. Imagine a chief minister going to the apex court to argue against an exercise meant to ensure free and fair polls," Gupta said.
The BJP leader alleged that appeasement politics had reached an "alarming level" under the TMC regime.
Raising concerns over women's safety, she claimed that women in the state were not secure despite having a woman chief minister.
Referring to the rape-murder of a woman doctor at RG Kar Hospital, Gupta alleged that the state government had failed to respond adequately to such crimes.
She also referred to the alleged rape of a woman medic in Durgapur and another law student on a Kolkata college campus, claiming that criminals had been emboldened to commit brutalities against women.
She alleged that in crimes against women, overall crime incidents and child marriages, West Bengal remained among the top -- "a slur on a state which once led intellectual and social movements and set examples for the rest of the country," she said.
Criticising the state government's welfare initiatives, she said schemes such as Kanyashree were built on "false claims" and asserted that women needed security rather than assurances.
Accusing the state government of blocking central schemes, Gupta alleged that funds worth "lakhs of crores of rupees" had not reached the poor due to non-implementation of programmes such as Ayushman Bharat, PM Awas Yojana and Jal Jeevan Mission by the state.
"You are only interested in renaming projects and taking credit," she said.
Gupta also alleged that the education sector in the state had been adversely affected, saying several state-run schools had closed due to a shortage of teachers and that the government was opposed to the National Education Policy.
Drawing a comparison with BJP-ruled Delhi, Gupta said, "People have already voted out 'Bhaia' (a reference to former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal). Now it is your turn to bid farewell to 'Didi'." Calling upon women to resist what she termed "strong-arm tactics", she urged them to assert their strength, invoking the imagery of Goddess Durga.
"Bengal has the right to live with dignity, and women have the right to live with dignity," she added.
Reacting to Gupta's allegations, West Bengal Women and Child Welfare minister Shashi Panja accused her of making "absurd allegations" against the Trinamool Congress government ahead of elections.
Panja alleged that during Gupta's tenure in Delhi, several incidents had raised serious concerns, including reports of missing young women and a blast near the Red Fort.
She also criticised the air pollution situation in the national capital, claiming that people were struggling to breathe.
The TMC leader said that despite being in power for a year, Gupta was making "tall claims" instead of addressing key issues in Delhi.
Panja further alleged that the Delhi CM visited West Bengal during elections to "peddle false allegations" against the state government.
Rebutting Gupta, the TMC said in a post on X said, "Madam why did you go off-script again? For your edification, here are the cold, hard facts: In total cases of crimes (IPC + SLL), Bengal ranks a respectable 15th, far safer than BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat, which languish near the bottom."
"In overall crime rate, Bengal sits comfortably at 28th. Who's second? Your own Delhi. Double Engine Gujarat and Haryana grab 4th and 5th as top-tier crime havens," the TMC said.
"In child marriage, Assam again takes the shameful pole position. And yet you dare lecture Bengal? Stop embarrassing yourself, stop the hypocrisy, and maybe fix the rotting mess in your own backyard before pointing fingers at a state that's outperforming your disasters on every key metric," the TMC countered.
