Lungi Ngidi grabs six as India collapse to 327, South Africa 21/1
Centurion(PTI): Lungi Ngidi bowled a fiery morning spell to run through the Indian middle-order as South Africa restricted the visitors to 327 on day three of the first Test.
On a pitch spruced up by second day's persistent rainfall, Lungi made full use of the underlying moisture to finish with figures of 6 for 71 in 24 overs as India lost 7 wickets for 55 runs starting from an overnight score of 272 for 3.
Ngidi did get a lot of support from Kagiso Rabada, whose 3 for 72 also had centurion KL Rahul (123)'s wicket.
However India did strike back before the lunch with Jasprit Bumrah's unplayable away swinger found opposition skipper Dean Elgar's (1) outside edge. South Africa went into the break with scoreboard reading 21 for one.
Aiden Markram (9 batting) and Keegan Petersen (11 batting) were at the crease.
The morning belonged to Ngidi and Rabada as the Supersport Park track stayed true to its reputation of quickening up as time progressed.
The bounce was more and the length that Rabada and Nigidi bowled consistently was a touch fuller compared to first day.
Unlike the opening day, the two overnight batters Rahul and Ajinkya Rahane (48) didn't get anything short or wide to get going first up. It was Rabada, who drew the first blood on the day with a well directed short ball aimed at Rahul's rib-cage.
The batter simply couldn't manage the pull-shot and the tickle landed in Quinton de Kock's gloves.
In case of Rahane, Ngidi hadn't provided enough length for the drive and the ball reared up from length to take his edge and into keeper's gloves.
Ravichandran Ashwin's batting in SENA countries has gone downhill and the leading edge that lobbed up to Keshav Maharaj was a result of not being able to negotiate extra bounce generated by Ngidi.
Rishabh Pant (8)'s dismissal was a carbon copy of Cheteshwar Pujara's where an angular delivery climbed up and it was an easy bat-pad catch for forward short leg.
Bumrah (14) did hit a few boundaries to take the score past 325 which was at least 75 runs short of what India had envisaged at the start.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Ajit Pawar's support to Waqf Bill shows his hypocrisy and helplessness for power, alleges Sapkal
Mumbai, Apr 4 (PTI): Maharashtra Congress president Harshvardhan Sapkal on Friday said Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar's support to the Waqf (Amendment) Bill was a sign of his helplessness for power and shows the hypocrisy of his politics.
He also said the Waqf (Amendment) Bill was a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government's ploy to intimidate the Muslim community and seize thousands of acres of land.
The contentious Waqf (Amendment) Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on Thursday and by the Rajya Sabha in the early hours of Friday after marathon debates in both Houses of Parliament. The bill aims to streamline the management of Waqf properties (assets permanently donated by Muslims for religious or charitable purposes) with provisions to safeguard heritage sites and promote social welfare.
The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) led by Ajit Pawar supported the bill in Parliament.
"Ajit Pawar's support to the Waqf (Amendment) Bill is a sign of his helplessness for power. His secular mask has been exposed and he has betrayed the Muslim community," Sapkal told reporters.
Despite joining the government in alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Ajit Pawar and his NCP claimed they had not abandoned the legacy of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Shahu Maharaj, Mahatma Phule and Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar. However, their true face has now been exposed, he alleged.
By supporting the BJP-led government's Waqf Bill, Ajit Pawar has completely surrendered to the BJP for the sake of power. He not only betrayed his uncle, Sharad Pawar, by taking the party's name and symbol with the BJP's help, but also aligned himself with communal forces for power, the Congress leader hit out at the deputy CM.
"Ajit Pawar continues to claim that his participation in the Mahayuti government is for the sake of development and that he has not abandoned the progressive ideals. However, his actions tell a different story," he said.
"At an Iftar party, he made bold declarations that those harassing the Muslim community would not be spared or forgiven. But within a few days, his NCP faction supported the Waqf Bill, thereby betraying the Muslim community," he said.
The bill is nothing more than a ploy by the BJP government to intimidate the Muslim community and seize thousands of acres of land, he said.
The BJP government has already set a course to hand over key properties, including those in Dharavi, to a particular industrialist. After acquiring Waqf lands, this government will hand them over to their favoured business tycoons. Ajit Pawar, a senior leader, is fully aware of this, yet he is unable to stay away from power. He has bowed before the BJP and supported the bill, Sapkal alleged.
"Ajit Pawar's actions reveal the hypocrisy of his politics. What he preaches and what he practices is entirely different. People must recognise this deception and stay alert," he warned.
