Mirpur (PTI): KL Rahul was an aberration in a disastrous batting display that saw India getting bowled out for 186 against a Bangladesh attack led admirably by Shakib Al Hasan (5/36) in the first ODI here on Sunday.
Rahul struck a fluent 73 off 70 balls on a day when the others struggled to get going and when the side was packed with all-rounders. Rahul hit five fours and four sixes.
India's innings lasted 41.2 overs.
Opting to field, Mustafizur Rahman started the proceedings with a maiden, before India skipper Rohit Sharma opened the visitors' boundary count by smashing Hasan Mahmud through the gap between point and cover.
Shikhar Dhawan went down the ground and got his first boundary by sending the ball over cover. Bangladesh skipper Litton Das effected an early bowling change, bringing in off-spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz into the attack in the fourth over, and he started on a tidy note before castling Dhawan for seven.
The opener went for the reverse sweep but the ball bounced a bit more than usual, touched his wrist before going on to hit the stumps.
Rohit struck the first six of the series when he pulled Mahmud over deep square leg after the medium pacer drifted the ball on his pads.
The India skipper again found the deep square leg region but this time for a boundary as he employed the sweep shot against Miraz.
Rohit then chose the off-side, cutting Mahmud along the ground for a boundary after being given plenty of width.
It was then the turn of Virat Kohli to pick the deep square leg region as the former captain swept Miraz for a four.
Litton made another bowling change, summoning the seasoned Shakib, and again he was instantly rewarded thanks to a brilliant delivery by the star all-rounder.
Having got a start, Rohit (27 off 31 balls) went for the turn but the ball didn't, and instead, went past the inside edge before disturbing the middle and leg stumps.
There was more joy in store for the hosts as, two balls later, the left-arm spinner sent back Kohli (9) after Litton pulled off an incredible catch at cover after diving full length to his right, leaving Kohli stunned and the crowd at the Shere Bangla National Stadium elated.
At 49 for three in the 11th over, India needed a partnership. KL Rahul joined Shreyas Iyer (24) in the middle but the latter was dismissed by Ebadot Hossain (4/47), who was rewarded for bowling to a plan that works best against Iyer -- short-pitched stuffs.
With the small 43-run stand coming to an end, Washington Sundar (19) walked in and looked to help Rahul in building a partnership. However, the duo could add no more than 60 runs as, shortly after Rahul reached his half-century, Washington picked a fielder while trying to play the reverse sweep against Shakib.
In the next over, Ebadot sent back Shahbaz Ahmed and Shakib then dismissed Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar to leave India tottering at 156 for eight.
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Paradip (Odisha) (PTI): A 23-year-old woman was raped twice in a day in separate places by her boyfriend and a stranger offering help and then thrown off a four-storey building, leading to her death, in Odisha's Jagatsinghpur district, police said on Friday.
Police arrested both the accused and booked them under various sections of BNS for kidnapping, rape and murder.
"The incident took place on February 22 after the woman left her house with plans to elope with her boyfriend, who had asked her to come to a temple by promising to marry her. However, he took her to a secluded place, raped her and abandoned her at Rahama bus stand," Jagatsinghpur Superintendent of Police Ankit Kumar Verma told reporters.
As the victim was waiting at the bus stand, another man hailing from Jharkhand, who was heading to nearby Paradip on his motorcycle, saw the hapless woman and offered help.
He, however, took her to the roof of his rented accommodation at a place in Paradip town and raped her again, the SP said.
The accused then threw the woman from the roof of the building, leading to her death, he said, adding her body was found the next morning.
The SP said the victim's brother lodged a complaint at Paradip Model police station on February 25, alleging that his sister was raped and murdered on February 22. An unnatural death case was registered on February 23 following the recovery of the woman's body.
Earlier, in the evening of February 22, the woman's brother had lodged a missing persons case at Tirtol police station when his sister did not return home.
BJD supremo and Leader of the Opposition in the state assembly, Naveen Patnaik, condemned the incident and demanded justice for the woman and other victims of recent rape incidents.
"How many more innocent lives will be lost? From underage girls to differently abled young women, no one is safe. So, is the rule of law still in place in the state? The news of heinous crimes coming from Kanhari in Angul, Kuchinda in Sambalpur, and Paradip is deeply disturbing. Chaos everywhere, insecurity all around, O Mother!" he said in an X post.
"While the government delivers long-winded speeches on women's safety and law and order, the ground reality is extremely alarming. Even in broad daylight, an atmosphere of fear prevails. Despite repeated instances of such deplorable incidents, the government's failure to take any exemplary, stringent action is emboldening the criminals. The government should take proactive steps to spread awareness on women's safety and ensure the rule of law is upheld in the state," the former CM added.
