Virat Kohli, SKY, Hardik Pandya in ICC T20 Team of 2022
Dubai, Jan 23: Former India captain Virat Kohli, all-rounder Hardik Pandya and shortest format's number one batter Suryakumar Yadav were on Monday picked in ICC 'Men's T20I team of 2022'.
The ICC also announced the Women's Team of 2022 with four Indians in the lineup -- Smriti Mandhana, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh and Renuka Singh.
Kohli returned to his vintage form in 2022 and took the Asia Cup by storm, finishing as the second-highest run-getter with 276 runs in five games.
He also brought an end to his century drought of close to three years with a magnificent century against Afghanistan.
Kohli played one of the greatest T20I innings of 82 not out in India's heist against Pakistan in the World Cup opener in Melbourne.
Kohli ended the tournament with three more fifties and finished as the highest run-scorer with 296 runs.
Surya became the only second batter to score more than 1000 runs in a calendar year. He ended as the top-run getter (1164 runs) with two hundreds and nine half-centuries while striking at a stunning 187.43.
In the World Cup, he amassed 239 runs at a strike rate of 189.68 and finished the year as the No 1 batter in the T20I Rankings.
On the back of leading Gujarat Titans to their IPL title in their maiden appearance, Hardik came into his own as the all-rounder.
He enjoyed his best year by numbers in the Indian colours, scoring 607 runs while also picking up 20 wickets.
The 11-member side is led by World Cup-winning England skipper Jos Buttler and has runners-up Pakistan's Mohammed Rizwan as the opener, and Haris Rauf as one of the two pace spearheads.
India's batting superstar Smriti Mandhana finished the year as the fourth highest run-scorer with 594 runs at an average of 33.00 and a strike-rate of 133.48.
She also made two half-centuries and played a key role in India winning a historic silver at the Commonwealth Games.
Off-spin all-rounder Deepti had a standout year and was the Player of the Tournament in India's Asia Cup triumph.
She finished the year with 29 wickets, the joint third highest. She also made 370 runs averaging 37 with a strike-rate of 136.02.
Richa was named the wicketkeeper-batter following a stupendous year that saw her accumulate 259 runs in 18 matches.
With 22 T20I wickets at an average of 23.95 and an economy rate of 6.50, Renuka had a standout year and was one of the nominees for the ICC Women's Emerging Cricketer of the Year.
Men's Team: Jos Buttler (c/wk), Mohammed Rizwan, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Glenn Phillips, Sikandar Raza, Hardik Pandya, Sam Curran, Wanindu Hasaranga, Haris Rauf and Josh Little.
Women's Team: Sophie Devine (c), Smriti Mandhana, Beth Mooney, Ash Gardner, Tahlia McGrath, Nida Dar, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wk), Sophie Ecclestone, Inoka Ranaweera and Renuka Singh.
The ICC Men's T20I Team of the Year 2022 is here 👀
— ICC (@ICC) January 23, 2023
Is your favourite player in the XI? #ICCAwards
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Trump rushed out of dinner event after shots fired; one arrested
Washington (PTI): US President Donald Trump and other top White House officials were evacuated unharmed from the annual dinner of White House correspondents after a man armed with multiple weapons fired shots outside the ballroom of the hotel.
The incident took place at around 8:34 PM local time when dinner was served. At that time, Trump was seen having a conversation with Weijia Jiang, the President of the White House Correspondents' Association, and mentalist Oz Pearlman, who was scheduled to present a show at the marquee event at the Washington Hilton here.
Secret Service officials and other security personnel covered the President, First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President J D Vance, and the Second Lady Usha Vance, who were seated at the head table, and escorted them out of the ballroom.
Several guests at the dinner, including leaders across the political spectrum, journalists and other invitees, ducked under the table, apparently as a reflex reaction.
Putting up a brave face, President Trump later announced on Truth Social that the dinner would be rescheduled within 30 days.
“Boom, boom, boom, boom is all that I heard, and many guests ducked under the table,” a C-SPAN reporter at the dinner said.
Hours later, Trump addressed a press conference at the White House and announced that the security personnel had captured one person who hails from California.
“I heard a noise and sort of thought it was a tray going down. I've heard that many times. It was a pretty loud noise, and it was from quite far away. He (the attacker) hadn't reached the area at all. They really got him,” Trump told reporters, recalling the incident.
Trump said one security officer was shot at but saved as he was wearing a bulletproof vest.
Several protestors had lined up on the road outside the hotel, raising slogans against the Trump administration and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth.
A CNN reporter who was outside the ballroom at the Washington Hilton said he saw a gunman opening fire just a few feet away. He was among the dozens of attendees who took cover as law enforcement swarmed the venue.
The suspect has been identified as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen from California.
Asked how Saturday’s incident impacts him as the US president, Trump told reporters he is in a dangerous job but that he is no “basket case.”
“I like not to think about it. I lead a pretty normal life, considering, you know, it’s a dangerous life. I think I handle it as well as it can be handled,” Trump said.
Trump has survived two assassination attempts over the past two years – first at a presidential election campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024, and later in Palm Beach, Florida, on September 15, 2024.
“I will say you had Republicans, Democrats, independents, conservatives, liberals, and progressives...everybody in that room, big crowd, record-setting crowd,” he said.
“We had some great work done by law enforcement, but in light of this evening's events, I ask that all Americans recommit with their hearts in resolving our differences peacefully,” Trump said.
