Shubman Gill loses top ODI batters spot to Babar Azam
Dubai, Dec 20: India opener Shubman Gill's reign at the top of of the ODI batters' list was short-lived as he was replaced by former Pakistani skipper Babar Azam in the ICC Player Rankings issued on Wednesday.
The Indian attained the top spot during the ODI World Cup last month, but since then he has not played any ODI.
Babar is back at the top with 824 rating points, while Gill (810) is the second spot followed by teammates Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
Shreyas Iyer has dropped to 12th, while KL Rahul has moved a spot to 16th.
In the bowlers' chart, South African spinner Keshav Maharaj remains at the top followed by Australia pacer Josh Hazlewood.
Fast bowler Mohammed Siraj (3rd), Jasprit Bumrah (5th) and Kuldeep Yadav (8th) are the other Indians to feature in the top 10.
Mohammad Shami is at the 11th spot, while spinner Ravindra Jadeja is ranked 22nd.
The all-rounders' list remains relatively unchanged, with Bangladesh's Shakib Al Hasan staying at the top spot.
Jadeja (12th) and Hardik Pandya (17th) are the only Indians in the top 20.
In T20Is, India's Suryakumar Yadav remains atop the batting chart.
Adil Rashid holds the number one spot among T20 bowlers, becoming only the second English spinner after Graeme Swann to do so.
Rashid has replaced Afghanistan's Rashid Khan, thanks to his seven-wicket haul in four T20Is against the West Indies, while Ravi Bishnoi (3rd) is the top-ranked Indian.
Shakib leads the chart among T20 all-rounders, with Pandya (4th) being the highest-ranked Indian.
New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson dominates the number one spot among Test batters, followed by Joe Root (2nd) and Steven Smith (3rd).
Australia's Usman Khawaja has risen to the fourth spot following a stellar show in the opening Test against Pakistan in Perth. Rohit (10th) is the highest-ranked Indian.
Veteran India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin tops the Test bowlers' chart, followed by Kagiso Rabada, Shakib and Jadeja.
A few Aussies have scaled heights, with skipper Pat Cummins climbing to the third place, followed by Nathan Lyon (5th), Mitchell Starc (8th) and Josh Hazlewood (10th), thanks to their dominant display against Pakistan.
In the all-rounders' chart, Jadeja remains at the summit, followed by Ashwin in the second spot, while Axar Patel is ranked fifth.
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Noida International Airport appoints Nitu Samra as interim CEO
New Delhi (PTI): Noida International Airport on Friday announced the appointment of its Chief Financial Officer Nitu Samra as the interim Chief Executive Officer after authorities denied permission for foreign national Christoph Schnellmann to be at the helm.
"This change follows directions issued by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) that the Chief Executive Officer of an airport in India is required to be an Indian national," NIA said in a statement.
Samra will replace Schnellmann, a Swiss national who has led Noida International Airport (NIA) as the CEO since August 2020.
The regulatory issue related to the requirement of having an Indian national as CEO has been delaying the start of commercial operations of the airport, which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 28.
Schnellmann will join the airport's Board of Directors as Executive Vice Chairman. In this role, he will continue to support the project and its transition to operations, the statement said.
With immediate effect, NIA said Samra has been appointed as the CEO on an interim basis until the Board of Directors can conclude a formal selection process.
Samra has been serving as the CFO since October 2021 and was closely involved in the airport’s development journey, overseeing financial stewardship, governance, and strategic planning during a key phase of the project, the statement added.
NIA will be operated by Yamuna International Airport Pvt Ltd (YIAPL), a subsidiary of Zurich Airport International AG, under a public-private partnership.
Originally scheduled to commence passenger services in September 2024, NIA is being developed in four phases, along with a dedicated cargo terminal. It received an aerodrome license from the aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in March.
YIAPL Chairman Daniel Bircher said that since the inauguration of the airport by the Prime Minister, the goal was to enable the start of operations as early as possible.
"This management change brings the airport into compliance with Bureau of Civil Aviation Security requirements while maintaining continuity in the airport’s leadership team. The newly structured team will support a smooth transition into operations, guided by clear and transparent governance and a strong corporate culture," he said.
On March 28, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said commercial flight operations from the airport would start in the next 45 to 60 days.
Among the largest greenfield airport projects in the country, NIA will initially have a capacity to handle 12 million passengers per annum.
Once fully developed, the airport will have a total passenger handling capacity of 70 million.
The first phase of NIA has been developed at an investment of around Rs 11,200 crore. 'DXN' is the code for the airport.
The airport features a 3,900-metre runway capable of handling wide-body aircraft, along with modern navigation systems, including Instrument Landing System (ILS) and advanced airfield lighting.
The peak handling capacity in the first phase will be 30 flights per hour.
In the first phase, there will be 28 aircraft stands, and the projected cargo capacity is around 2.5 lakh tonnes.
Terminal 1 of the airport is spread across 1,37,985 square metres with 48 check-in counters. Over 40 acres of land have been earmarked for developing MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) facilities at the airport.
