T20WC 2024: Indian pacers mow down Ireland for 96
New York, Jun 5: India's quartet of fast bowlers were simply menacing on a pitch offering variable bounce and seam movement dismantling Ireland for a lowly 96 in their opening T20 World Cup match here on Wednesday.
Arshdeep Singh (2/35 in 4 overs), Mohammed Siraj (1/13 in 3 overs), Jasprit Bumrah (2/6 in 3 overs) and Hardik Pandya (3/27 in 4 overs) didn't give any breathing space to Irish batters who were made to look like novices in front of swing, seam and extra bounce that the four-pronged attack produced during the 14 out of 16 overs they bowled.
Such was their plight that none of the Irish batters save one --- Gareth Delany (26 n.o, 14 balls) could even cross 20-run mark individually. Delany's innings took them close to the 100-run mark.
Rohit Sharma was lucky with the coin and the overcast conditions was just the kind of help Arshdeep needed first up as he bowled an ideal Test match length with the white Kookaburra.
Most of his deliveries were pitched up and reared up from length making life miserable for the seasoned duo of Paul Stirling and Andrew Balbirnie.
It only helped that Mohammed Siraj also kept up the relentless pressure from the other end as the two openers found it difficult to even put bat on balls that were jagging around allowing Rishabh Pant to dive full stretch on both sides of the track.
Stirling tried to pull one which climbed up on him from good length and Pant ran backwards to pouch the skier.
For Balbirnie, his 'one-leg' stance turned out to be a wrong strategy to counter Arshdeep as he bowled one that was pitched on middle and moved a shade towards off with the batter with no footwork unable to cover the line of the swing.
The Powerplay gone horribly wrong at 26 for 2 for Ireland, and there was no coming back for them.
Pandya as the second change pacer bowled a perfect nip-backer with a wobbly seam to breach through Lorcan Tucker's defence.
Bumrah then scarred an already rattled Harry Tector with a nasty bouncer that took his gloves and almost blew away his head lobbing off the helmet.
At the halfway stage, Ireland, who recently beat Pakistan in a T20I at home, were 49 for 6 and the match had already becoming lopsided.
The biggest gain from the game was Pandya bowling his full quota of overs and the lengths that he hit during his spell which will give his skipper a chance to play an extra batter or bowler as per the demands of the conditions in coming games.
His three dismissals were different deliveries -- first one was swing, the second seam and the third extra bounce.
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Teenager killed, neck 'broken' in cricket brawl in Delhi's Tilak Nagar; 3 juveniles held
New Delhi (PTI): A neighbourhood cricket game turned deadly in west Delhi's Tilak Nagar after a 15-year-old boy allegedly had his neck broken in a violent confrontation with three juveniles, police said on Tuesday.
The incident took place on Monday evening following an argument over a cricket match in a local park.
According to police, a verbal altercation first broke out between the victim and a 12-year-old boy at the game.
"The argument escalated into a scuffle. The 12-year-old later went home and informed his cousins, aged 17 and 13. The three then allegedly went looking for the victim," a senior police officer said.
At around 7.22 pm, the three confronted the teenager in the area. A fight ensued during which the boy sustained injuries to his neck and head and fell unconscious. He was rushed to Deen Dayal Upadhyay (DDU) Hospital by family members and locals, where doctors declared him dead.
An FIR was registered at Tilak Nagar Police Station, and all three juveniles were apprehended.
The victim, Nishant, is survived by both his parents and three brothers. His father works as a tea vendor in the locality.
The boy's mother, Jyoti, said the assault was far more brutal than a routine fight among children.
"They broke my son's neck. Which children don't fight? But they killed him. When we went to the police station, no one listened to us. Instead, they beat us and detained some of our relatives," she told PTI.
The boy's aunt, Rachna, also alleged police apathy.
"My nephew is dead, and the police are doing nothing but harass us. My brother was beaten, and he has injuries. They have not even given us a copy of the FIR. They tore our clothes. Three boys killed my nephew, but no action is being taken," she said.
Rinku, an uncle of the teenager, said the alleged assailants had come looking for the boy at his home.
"I received a call that some boys had come asking for Nishant. My sister-in-law, who was washing clothes, questioned them. Soon after, they took him away. They choked and beat him," he told PTI.
"At first, we thought it was a minor scuffle like children often have, but then we were told he was dead. We rushed him to DDU Hospital," he said.
Rinku, too, alleged harassment at the police station.
A brother of the teenager, who claimed he was in the park earlier, said, "A friend called me saying my brother had been attacked by three to four boys. When I saw him, he was lying unconscious. There was swelling on his neck, punch injuries on his cheek and slap marks on his face. I don't understand what enmity small boys could have that led to this."
The area is charged with tension since the death.
The family members were gathered outside the police station, demanding action against the assailants.
