Australia set India 162-run target in CWG final
Birmingham, Aug 7: Beth Mooney struck a fine half-century as the Australian women's cricket team managed to reach 161 for 8 despite a spirited fielding effort from India in the Commonwealth Games final at Edgbaston here on Sunday.
Australia opted to bat on a bright and sunny afternoon with a packed house witnessing the title clash of the first ever women's cricket competition in CWG history.
Renuka Singh, the stand-out pacer for India in this tournament, once again provided an early breakthrough by trapping the dangerous Alyssa Healy leg before with a delivery that moved in a shade.
The Indians went for the DRS in the last second and it was successful.
Mooney (61 off 41)and skipper Meg Lanning (36 off 26) then stitched a 78-run stand and once again it seemed Australia would bat India out of the game like they had done in the T20 World Cup final couple of years ago.
Lanning made her intent clear as she dispatched a length ball off Renuka over mid off for the first six of the match.
The Indian fielders who are often criticised had a fine day in the middle. It started with a close run out of Lanning and included two fine catches from Deepti Sharma and Radha Yadav.
Deepti plucked one off the right hand to get rid of a well set Mooney while Radha took a low diving catch at backward point to dismiss Tahlia McGrath, who played the game despite testing positive for COVID-19.
Australia looked set for a 180 plus total but India fought back in the last five overs taking five wickets for 35 runs.
Renuka ended with tidy figures of 2 for 25 in four overs while fellow pacer Meghna Singh was underbowled as India used seven bowling options.
Sneh Rana (2/38) was the most expensive bowler who bowled their full quota but took two crucial wickets of Mooney and Ashleigh Gardner.
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Truck driver arrested with cannabis worth over Rs 80 lakh in UP
Bhadohi (UP) (PTI): A truck driver was arrested here on Tuesday with cannabis worth over Rs 80 lakh, police said.
Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Shubham Agrawal said that during vehicle checking on National Highway 19 in the Gopiganj police station area, a container truck was stopped near a roadside eatery for inspection.
During the search, police recovered several sacks containing 3 quintals and 78 kg of cannabis from the truck. The seized contraband is valued at around Rs 81 lakh, the officer said.
The truck driver, Son Pal, has been arrested and a case has been registered against him and four others under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Agrawal said.
During preliminary interrogation, Pal revealed that the cannabis was smuggled from Odisha by Salim and Chaman Khan, residents of Etah district. Half of the consignment was to be delivered to a person named Khalik in Bareilly, while the remaining half was for a person in Punjab, Agrawal said.
Pal further told police that he was promised Rs 1 lakh for safely transporting the consignment, the officer said.
