Cristiano Ronaldo says his dream of winning World Cup has ''ended''
Doha, Dec 11: Cristiano Ronaldo said in a cryptic social media post that his dream of winning the World Cup with Portugal has ended, while stopping short of announcing his retirement from international duty.
The 37-year-old Ronaldo left the field in tears after Portugal lost 1-0 to Morocco in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
In his first comments after the elimination, Ronaldo said Sunday that it was "time to take stock" without saying explicitly if he wants to carry on being available for Portugal after 19 years in the national team.
"There's no point in reacting rashly," Ronaldo wrote on Instagram. "I just want everybody to know that a lot has been said, a lot has been written, a lot has been speculated about, but my dedication to Portugal has never wavered for an instant.
"I've always been just one more (Portuguese) fighting for everyone's goal. I would never turn my back on my teammates or my country."
Ronaldo, who is the all-time leading scorer in men's international soccer with 118 goals, said putting Portugal "on the highest level in the world" was his biggest dream.
"In my five appearances at World Cups over 16 years, always playing alongside great players and supported by millions of Portuguese, I have given my all," he wrote. "I left everything I had on the pitch. I'll never shrink from a battle and I have never given up on that dream.
"Unfortunately, that dream ended yesterday."
Ronaldo said he would now "let everyone draw their own conclusions."
"For now. There's not much else to say. Thank you, Portugal. Thank you, Qatar. The dream was beautiful as long as it lasted."
The next major tournament is the European Championship in 2024. The next World Cup will be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico in 2026, by which time Ronaldo will be 41 years old.
Ronaldo is without a club after leaving Manchester United during the World Cup in the wake of an explosive interview before the tournament when he criticized the manager, board and his teammates at the English club.
His only goal at the World Cup was a penalty against Ghana in Portugal's opening group game. He became the first male player to score at five World Cups.
Ronaldo started on the bench for Portugal's games in the last 16 a 6-1 victory over Switzerland and the quarterfinals.
Before the game against Morocco, Portugal coach Fernando Santos denied reports Ronaldo threatened to leave the World Cup after being told he wasn't going to be in the starting lineup against Switzerland.
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Mysuru: Man serves jail time for wife's 'murder'; she resurfaces alive in court
Mysuru, Apr 04 (PTI): A court here, taking serious note of lapses on the part of the police, has ordered the Superintendent of Police to submit a complete report before April 17 in connection with a case in which a woman, allegedly murdered by her husband in 2020, has now appeared before it—alive.
This comes even as Suresh, the husband of the woman named Mallige, had spent almost one-and-a-half years in jail on murder charges.
The case pertains to the arrest and imprisonment of Suresh, aged about 38, who had lodged a complaint in December 2020 stating that his wife Mallige had gone missing from Kushalnagar in the Kodagu district.
Subsequently, the police found the skeleton of a woman in Bettadarapura and filed a charge sheet in court, alleging that the skeleton belonged to Mallige and that Suresh had murdered her. He was then jailed.
On April 1, Mallige was found in Madikeri by a friend of Suresh, who saw her with another man.
The matter was brought to the notice of the Fifth Additional District and Sessions Court, and she was subsequently produced before the court.
Taking serious note of the police's lapses, the court on Thursday directed the SP to submit a complete report on the case by April 17.
Speaking to reporters, Suresh's advocate, Pandu Poojari said, "Suresh, who is from a village in Kushalnagar, had lodged a complaint in 2020 at the Kushalnagar Rural Police Station regarding his wife's disappearance. Around the same time, a skeleton was found within the Bettadarapura police station limits. A year later, Bettadarapura police arrested Suresh, alleging that he had killed his wife over an illicit affair. A case was registered against him."
The police had sent the skeleton for a DNA test along with blood samples from Mallige’s mother.
"Even before the DNA report came, the police filed the final charge sheet in court. Later, though he got bail, the DNA test report that eventually came showed a mismatch," he said.
When a discharge application was filed citing the DNA mismatch, the court did not accept it and asked for witness examination, including that of Mallige’s mother and villagers.
"Everyone deposed before the court that she was alive and had eloped with someone. The court questioned the Kushalnagar and Bettadarapura police about the loopholes in the charge sheet, but they defended their investigation and maintained that the skeleton belonged to Mallige and that Suresh had murdered her," the advocate said.
Meanwhile, on April 1, Mallige was found at a hotel in Madikeri, having a meal with a man. She was spotted by Suresh’s friend, who is also a witness named in the charge sheet.
She was taken to the Madikeri police station, following which an "advancement application" was filed before the district judge's court.
"The court, treating the matter seriously, asked police to produce her immediately. She was then presented in court. When questioned, she admitted to eloping and marrying another man. She said she was unaware of what had happened to Suresh. She had been living in a village named Shettyhalli, just 25–30 km from Madikeri, but police made no effort to trace her," he added.
Calling this a very serious and rare case, the advocate said the key questions before the court now are: whose skeleton was it, and why did the police file a false charge sheet?
"The court had summoned the SP and the investigating officers in the case, but they had no answers to offer. It has now directed the SP to file a complete report on the lapses before April 17 before delivering the judgment declaring Suresh innocent," he said.
Stating that he is awaiting the court’s final order, the advocate said that once it is issued, he will file a writ petition in the High Court regarding the trauma his client endured and against the police for filing a false case against him.
"I will seek justice and compensation for my client. We will also approach the Human Rights Commission and the ST Commission, as Suresh is a poor man from the ST community," he said.
Further, he added there should be a probe into the skeleton case and whether there was a conspiracy by the police to close both cases by naming Suresh as the accused.
