Day 2 Lunch: Gill, Reddy take India to 427 for 4
New Delhi (PTI): Skipper Shubman Gill treated the West Indies bowlers with utter disdain while inching closer to his 10th Test hundred as India piled on the visitors’ misery, reaching 427 for four at lunch on the second day of the second Test here on Saturday. At the break, Gill was batting on 75 in company of Dhruv Jurel (7 batting).
Even as Yashasvi Jaiswal (175, 258 balls) was unfortunately run-out at the start of the day, Gill's concentration didn't waver with his boundary count reaching 11 fours along with a maximum, going into the break.
Nitish Kumar Reddy (43 off 54 balls), promoted to get some valuable batting time and prop up the score in quick time, added 91 for the fourth wicket in just 17.1 overs.
The best shot of the morning session and that too by a distance was the one that brought up Gill's second fifty of the series. With a packed off-side field, Jayden Seales bowled on middle-leg with Gill flicking it through the vacant mid-wicket region. When Justin Greaves was brought into the attack, his lack of pace allowed Gill to step out and loft him over mid-wicket for his first six.
Gill, who had decided to defend during the final hour of the opening day, came out with a different mindset.
It only helped that Anderson Phillip sprayed all over and was hit for a flurry of boundaries. A delivery on the pads was quickly dispatched behind square on the leg-side.
In his next over, Phillip was cut square of the wicket -- one a bit late behind square and the other in-front with same intent that produced same result. There was an on-drive and when the keeper was brought up to the stumps with '7-2' off-side field, he stepped out and hit over extra cover.
Reddy started with a cover drive off Seales and then hit another couple of fours by deliberately opening the bat face, guiding the ball through the slip cordon. After being dropped by Phillip off Warrican's bowling, Reddy thumped the same bowler over long on fence for a six. He repeated the same shot in his next over.
The only possible mode of dismissal for Jaiswal (175) seemed to be a run-out, and that’s exactly how his marathon innings ended following a mix-up with Gill, who sent him back after the batter had crossed more than halfway down for a quick single.
Gill could be held partly responsible as it was Jaiswal’s call after he had pushed the ball slightly to the right of mid-off. Had Gill trusted his partner and continued running, the single looked very much on, with Jaiswal already sprinting towards the danger end.
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1,850 missing mobile phones recovered as Delhi Police focusses on victim-centric policing
New Delhi (PTI): Delhi Police has recovered 1,850 stolen and lost mobile phones worth around Rs 4 crore in past 40 days under "Mission Reconnect", an initiative aimed at returning phones to their rightful owners in outernorth Delhi, an official said on Saturday.
The recovered phones were traced from different parts of the country, including remote areas, through technical surveillance and sustained field operations, police said, adding that the devices were handed over to their owners during a programme at the Sports Ground, New Police Lines, Kingsway Camp.
The initiative focused on a victim-centric approach and aimed at strengthening public trust through proactive policing and coordinated efforts across states, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Outernorth) Hareshwar Swami said.
As part of the programme, teams performed 'nukkad nataks' and screened awareness videos on cybercrime, drug abuse prevention, and senior citizen safety, sensitising the public about digital frauds and safety measures, officials said.
The initiative combines technology, investigation and community participation to ensure recovery of lost property and reconnect citizens with their valuables, they added.
