Shakib Al Hasan becomes T20 World Cup's highest wicket-taker
Sharjah, Oct 24: Bangladesh's premier all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan on Sunday became the leading wicket-taker in the history of T20 World Cups, surpassing former Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi when he dismissed Sri Lanka's Pathum Nissanka during their Super 12 match here.
Shakib entered the game with 39 wickets in 28 matches.
Having produced a match-winning spell (4/9) against Oman in the preliminaries, Shakib, one of the world's leading all-rounders, found himself among the wickets in the team's first Super 12 game, against Sri Lanka.
Afridi picked 39 wickets in 34 matches.
Shakib went past Afridi's record when he used his vast experience to get the better of Nissanka with a flighted delivery.
Two balls later, Shakib bowled Avishka Fernando for his 41st wicket in the tournament.
With Bangladesh having made the Super 12s and guaranteed to play at least five matches, it was only a matter of time before the left-arm spinner bettered Afridi's record.
Shakib is also the current highest wicket-taker in T20Is.
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Air India flights to North America, Europe to use alternative routes
New Delhi (PTI): Air India will operate its flights to North America and Europe using alternative routes over available airspaces in the Middle East and cancel six flights to various European cities on March 2.
The airline, which cancelled 50 international flights on Sunday, said it would extend suspension of all flights to and from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Qatar till 23:59 hours (IST) on March 2.
In a post on X on Sunday, the carrier said six flights, including Amritsar-Birmingham (AI117) and Birmingham-Delhi (AI114), would be cancelled on Monday.
Besides, AI151 and A152 flights between Delhi and Zurich, as well as AI157 and AI158 flights between Delhi and Copenhagen, would be cancelled on Monday.
“All other flights to North America and Europe will operate as per schedule using alternative routings over available airspaces in the Middle East, which is expected to add to the flying times.
"Additionally, flights to New York (JFK) and Newark (Liberty International) will operate with technical stops at Rome (Fiumicino Airport)," Air India said.
With stops in Rome, the flying time for Air India flights to North America would increase and also result in increased operating expenses.
Since the Iran and Iraq airspaces remain closed, officials said the airline would take the Egypt route to reach Europe, which would mean 30-40 minutes of additional flying time.
The flights would take the route through Oman, the southern part of Saudi Arabia and Egypt for European and North American destinations, the officials added.
The airline also said that it continues to closely monitor the situation and has carefully assessed the evolving circumstances across multiple parameters, including safety, security, airspace availability, and operational feasibility, before deciding on these operations for March 2.
In the wake of the escalating Middle East crisis, flight operations have been significantly disrupted, with the civil aviation ministry saying Indian carriers cancelled 350 international flights on Sunday.
