Former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik retires from ODI cricket after World Cup campaign
Shoaib Malik has announced his retirement from One-Day International (ODI) cricket after Pakistan failed to qualify for the World 2019 semi-finals but the all-rounder will continue to ply his trade in the Twenty20 format. Pakistan ended their World Cup 2019 campaign on a winning note after defeating Bangladesh by 94 runs at Lord's on Friday.
Shoaib Malik played three matches in the showpiece event. After Pakistan's heavy defeat to arch-rivals, India, the 37-year-old Shoaib Malik was heavily criticised and was later dropped from the side for the remainder of the tournament. Shoaib Malik represented Pakistan in 287 One-day Internationals (ODIs) and scored 7534 runs at an average of 34.55. The right-handed batsman also featured in 35 Test matches and scored three hundreds for his country.
"As I mentioned in my previous interviews that I am going to retire right after the World Cup and today was our last game. I am retiring from ODI cricket. I had decided a few years ago to retire on last Pakistan World Cup match. I am sad that I'll be leaving the format of cricket, I once loved but happy that I will have more time to spend with my family. This will also allow me to focus on T20s," said an emotional Shoaib Malik at the post-match press conference.
Shoaib Malik also thanked his teammates, coaches, his family, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) but "most importantly my fans, who I love you all".
In Pakistan's last encounter at World Cup 2019, Malik was again missing from the playing XI. Pakistan decided to field the same team that beat Afghanistan.
courtesy: ndtv.com
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30th International Film Festival of Kerala to open with ‘Palestine 36’ film
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): The 30th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) beginning here on December 12, will open with the film “Palestine 36,” directed by Annemarie Jacir.
The film is an epic historical drama which portrays the Palestinian uprising against the British colonisation.
The opening film takes its name from the year when Palestine began to revolt against British rule and Zionism, a release from the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy, the organisers of the event, said on Sunday.
The IFFK, which enters its 30th edition, will be held at the state capital here from December 12 to 19.
The inaugural film was awarded the best film at the Tokyo International Film Festival and was Palestine's official entry for the best international feature film at the 98th Academy Awards.
Another film by Jacir, ‘Wajib’ for which she won the IFFK's Golden Crow Pheasant in 2017 will also be screened as part of the package of films which won Suvarna Chakoram in the early editions of the IFFK.
The Chalachitra Academy also announced that the Lifetime Achievement Award of the 30th IFFK will be conferred on renowned Malian filmmaker Abderrahmane Sissako, in recognition of his profound contribution to world cinema.
Born in Kiffa, Mauritania, Sissako’s family moved to Mali, where he spent his childhood. He made his first short film Le Jeu (The Game) in 1989 as his graduation project.
His full-length feature film debut, Life on Earth (La Vie Sur Terre), released in 1999, was featured in the Directors' Fortnight sidebar at the Cannes Film Festival that year, and the definitive breakout hit was the 2014 film "Timbuktu."
Sissako's films are primarily focused on globalisation, displacement, exile, identity, and the struggles of everyday life in Africa, which helped bring African cinema into the global spotlight.
Sissako’s five films will be screened this year at IFFK. Life on Earth (1999), Waiting for Happiness (2002), Bamako (2006), Timbuktu (2014), and Black Tea (2004) are the movies to be screened at the festival.
The IFFK’s lifetime achievement award, introduced in 2009, is presented to a filmmaker who made significant contributions to the art of cinema during their career.
Earlier recipients of the award include Jean-Luc-Godard, Werner Herzog, Fernando Solanas, Alexander Sokurov, Jiri Menzel, Majid Majidi and Bela Tarr.
