New Zealand thrash Sri Lanka by 10 wickets in World Cup
Cardiff, United Kingdom, Jun 1: New Zealand paceman Matt Henry led an inspired bowling unit to run through Sri Lanka's batting and power the Black Caps to a 10-wicket win in their World Cup opener on Saturday.
Henry returned figures of 3-29 and combined with fellow paceman Lockie Ferguson who also took three wickets to bowl out Sri Lanka for 136 in 29.2 overs in Cardiff.
Martin Guptill and Colin Munro then struck unbeaten half-centuries to make short work of their modest target. The Kiwis cruised home in 16.1 overs to register their third win in a World Cup game by 10 wickets.
The right-left batting combination of Guptill, who hit 73, and Munro, who scored 58, had little trouble in smashing the Sri Lankan bowlers to all parts of the ground.
Guptill hammered eight fours and two sixes including one hit that sailed out of the ground.
But it was Henry's spell of seven straight overs that opened the gates for New Zealand's domination against the 1996 champions.
Henry stood out in the absence of senior paceman Tim Southee, who missed the game due to a calf injury, with his incisive pace and swing.
He struck with the second delivery of the game to send Lahiru Thirimanne trudging back to the pavilion after the left-handed opener had hit a boundary from the first ball.
Thirimanne was initially ruled not out by the on-field umpire, but the Kiwis successfully reviewed the lbw call in their favour after replays suggested the ball pitched on line and would have hit the batsman's leg stump.
The left-handed Karunaratne, who has returned to the one-day side after a gap of four years, then put on 42 runs for the second wicket with Kusal Perera.
But Williamson kept Henry on for the bowler's fifth over and the move paid off as he got Perera for 29 and Kusal Mendis without scoring on successive deliveries.
Dhananjaya de Silva played the hat-trick ball with a glorious off drive, but soon fell to the pace of Lockie Ferguson after being trapped lbw.
Sri Lanka skipper Dimuth Karunaratne stood out amid the ruins with his unbeaten 52 including a 52-run stand with Thisara Perera, who made 27 off 23 balls, to give his team's total some respect.
The rest of the batting showed little promise with three scores of nought in the innings including from former captain Angelo Mathews.
Karunaratne registered his third ODI fifty in 81 balls as he ran out of partners after Lasith Malinga was bowled by Ferguson for one.
Pacemen Colin de Grandhomme, James Neesham, Trent Boult and the team's only spinner in the XI Mitchell Santner claimed a wicket each.
The Black Caps, runners-up in the 2015 edition, will next face Bangladesh on June 5 in London.
Sri Lanka meet Afghanistan in Cardiff on June 4.
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Jagan accuses Sharmila of 'illegally' transferring shares, moves tribunal saying "no love left"
Hyderabad (PTI): YSRCP chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has moved the NCLT accusing his sister and AP Congress president YS Sharmila of illegally transferring shares of Saraswati Power and Industries holding by him and his wife Bharathi, on her and their mother Vijayamma's name.
The feud between Jagan and Sharmiala took a new turn in the form of the legal battle with the petition filed last month in the Hyderabad Bench of National Company Law Tribunal being taken up and posted to November for further hearing.
In the petition, Jagan said he entered into an MoU with Sharmila wherein he said that "out of love and affection" would transfer his and his wife's shares of Saraswati Power and Industries through gift deed to his estranged sister, subject to pending cases in respect of some properties including attachments by the Enforcement Directorate.
Jagan in a letter to his sister opined that the share transfer without fulfilling the legal obligations and clearance from court would potentially have adverse implications.
He, however expressed his desire to revoke the memorandum of understanding saying, "it is no secret that we are no longer on the best of terms, and in view of this changed situation, I wanted to formally intimate you and put you on notice that I have no further intent to act upon my original intent as expressed in the MoU."
Jagan said the properties, acquired by their father, former chief Minister YS Rajasekhar Reddy and the ancestral ones, were divided among the family members.
He intended to transfer the shares (Jagan's own property), in addition to Rs 200 crore he, directly or through their mother, gave to his sister during the past decade.
The former chief minister in his petition said he and Sharmila entered into a MoU on August 31, 2019 wherein he will transfer his and Bharathi's shares to his sibling at a later date after completing due process "unrelated to any consideration and purely out of love and affection".
"It is humbly submitted that to the utter shock and surprise of the petitioners…respondent No 1 (Saraswati Power and Industries) company wide board resolution has transferred the entire shareholding of petitioner no 1 and 2 (Jagan and his wife, respectively) in favour of respondent no 2 (Sharmila) and entire shareholding of petitioner number three (Classic Realty, owned by the family), herein in favour of respondent No 3 (Vijayamma)..." Jagan alleged.
The YSRCP chief said Sharmila, without gratitude and regard to the well-being of her brother, conducted a series of actions that deeply hurt him and that she also made several untrue and false statements publicly.
She also conducted actions that have not only been politically opposed to Jagan but are also blatantly untrue and have caused deep personal dissemination to him, Jagan said in his petition.
"The actions of Respondent No 2 (Sharmila) herein have strained the relationship between the siblings and have further resulted in melting down of all the love and affection the brother had for his sister," his petition said.
Due to actions by his sister, there is "no love left between the two siblings", and he decided not to proceed with his expression of intent to transfer the shares/properties as envisaged under the MoU and gift deed.
After differences cropped up with his brother, Sharmila joined the Congress party earlier this year and was made the president of its Andhra Pradesh unit. She unsuccessfully contested from Kadapa Lok Sabha constituency in the May general elections.
