Opening shocker to Warner woe: how Australia’s World Cup defence crumbled

Australia’s Twenty20 World Cup defense came to an end on Saturday after old rivals England made it to the semi-finals.

The late champions won three, lost one and a game was washed out as they finished third behind New Zealand and England in a tight Group 1.

AFP Sports looks at where it went wrong for England as well as the side, which were considered pre-tournament favourites.

Australia never really recovered from their 89-run loss by New Zealand in their opening match. It was the worst start.

The hosts’ bowlers helped the Black Caps reach 200-3 with Devon Conway’s unbeaten 92 to avenge their loss to their neighbors in last year’s final. The hosts were bundled out for 111 runs.

The big margin of defeat came back to haunt Australia. They crashed out of the tournament despite being tied on seven points with England and New Zealand – their very low net run rate earned them a last-four spot.

Captain Aaron Finch came into the tournament under pressure due to poor form with the bat.

He scored 13 runs in the first match and then scored an unbeaten 31 in the next match against Sri Lanka, giving the team almost a loss of victory, but for Marcus Stoinis blitz.

Finch later called his 41-ball struggle in Perth “one-sided” and soon followed suit in his team’s win over Ireland with 63 runs, but the knock came late.

He missed the final match with a hamstring injury as Australia went into a tense four-run win over Afghanistan as of late.

David Warner was Australia’s leading batsman with 289 runs in their maiden T20 World Cup win in the United Arab Emirates last year but he inexplicably failed to set the home conditions on fire.

His scores of 5, 11, 3 and 25 are reflected in the team’s total, with the highest being 179 against ranked-outside Ireland.

The left-handed opener was bowled by Afghanistan pacer Naveen-ul-Haq after attempting to hit the switch and was trolled by England’s Barmy Army, who tweeted: “David Warner batting with left hand Cleaned up while sanitizing hands.”

The Burmese Army was retweeting on Saturday, “Let the tears begin.”

If keeping Glenn Maxwell swimming between five and six was not enough, the opposition in Adelaide was also shocked by Australia’s decision not to pick paceman Mitchell Starc in the XI.

They needed a shot in the semi-finals to win against Afghanistan by a huge margin and Starc’s replacement Kane Richardson scored 48 runs in his four overs.

Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott said he was “shocked” by Starc’s omission and former Test captain Michael Clarke said: “I don’t get it.”

Maxwell, who hit a match-winning 54 against Afghanistan, would not be drawn on Starc, but said the hosts “probably missed the big moments at times”.

“The start of the first game of the tournament was not so good that it might have hurt us too,” he said. “Maybe it goes without saying.”

Originally published at Pen 18

Qatar offered fans free World Cup trips, but with a rider

This is a great proposition for any football fan to stop and listen. Free flights to the world cup. Free tickets for matches. Free accommodation during the tournament and even a little bit of money to spend. But the offer comes with a catch.

Selected fans who accept the trip of a lifetime – financed by Qatar, hosts of this year’s World Cup – will be required to abide by contracts that require them to sing what they say. , they would need to sing to see that. Reporting, most controversially, social media posts made by other fans criticizing Qatar. Yet despite those rules, hundreds of supporters have signed up.

The invitations went out at the end of September, and targeted some of the most well-connected and well-known fan leaders supporting 32 teams for the World Cup. A Dutch fan told broadcaster NOS that he has agreed to investigate other Netherlands supporters. A board member of the largest pro-American group, American Outlaws, agreed to participate, and then helped fellow members and others sign up.

On Thursday, members of the Outlaws, who accepted a previous trip to Qatar as part of the programme, said they had decided not to accept free travel or accommodation from Qatar at the World Cup weeks earlier. Meanwhile, fans from all FIFA federations have accepted the offer; Dozens of players have already traveled to Qatar at least once for their wonderful pre-World Cup tours. He, too, was paid by the tournament organisers.

However, other fans have declined. The terms attached to the proposal, a French fan told Le Parisien, felt like a step too far. “Despite the savory side of the cuisine, I chose to stay true to my values,” said Joseph Delage, a member of the pro-French group.

Qatar’s proposal, which stems from a fan engagement program that began in 2020, marks the first time a host country has paid for groups of fans from all competing countries to participate in a World Cup. But this isn’t the first time Qatar has filled stadiums with friendly voices; In 2019, migrant workers and school children were shortlisted to fill vacant seats at the World Track and Field Championships in Doha.

In exchange for their World Cup benefits, this year’s fans – more than 50 from each country – will be required to perform in a ceremony before the tournament starts on November 20 against Ecuador. The organizers have dedicated five minutes of that celebration to a fable. Clause in which beneficiaries of Qatar’s generosity will be required to perform specific chants or songs for their country, chosen not by them but by tournament organisers. Representatives from Qatar’s World Cup organizing committee this week tried to downplay the explicit and implicit requirements in the proposal. “There’s no compulsion to campaign or do anything,” Ahsan Mansoor, Fan Engagement Director for the 2022 World Cup, said in an interview.

But a closer look at the terms of the relationship revealed that elected supporters are encouraged to do so, as well as support the World Cup from the organizers by “liking” the message and posting third-party posts. Re-sharing is encouraged. At the same time, according to documents and contracts reviewed by The New York Times and certified by many fans, the participants are warned that although they are not being asked to be the “mouthpiece” for Qatar, “it is clearly Wouldn’t suit you for disliking the country or the tournament.

Fan leaders have also signed up to be on the lookout for such negativity in the comments on their posts; A section in the code of conduct says to “report any offensive, derogatory or derogatory remarks” to the organizers. Where possible, the code says, they should supply screenshots of any offending posts.

Violators of the rules are warned that they may be dismissed from the program. “At best they are volunteers for the World Cup and at worst they are a mouthpiece for the Supreme Committee,” said Ronan Evenn, executive director of Football Supporters Europe, an umbrella organization of fan groups known as European football’s governing body. Recognized by. UEFA. In the dozen years since Qatar was awarded the World Cup, the country has worked hard to shape and protect its national image amid corruption claims, environmental concerns and human rights issues.

Originally published at Pen 18

t20 world cup: T20 World Cup: England eliminate Australia, reach semis

England advanced to the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup and knocked out hosts Australia by net run-rate (NRR) after a 4-wicket win over Sri Lanka on Saturday.

New Zealand, England and Australia all finished in Group 1 with 7 points from 5 matches but the Kiwis topped the group with a better NRR. Ben Stokes kept his composure and scored an unbeaten 42 off 36 balls as England reached 144/6 in 19.4 overs when Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat. Sri Lanka could not go on even after beating England, but the islanders made a blistering 52/1 in five overs before ending on a disappointing 141/8.

Opener Pathum Nissenka suffered pain in his sprained ankle and scored 67 to hit England back through his spinners. Adil Rashid was 1-16 and pacer Mark Wood scored 3-26 in his first over after two sixes by Nissanka.

England drenched Sri Lanka in the death overs when Nissanka was dismissed at long on in the 16th over and Wood then took three wickets in his return spell, leaving the islanders to score only 25 runs in the last five overs. England feared injury when David Malan was ruled out after suffering a groin injury.

But England did not feel Malan’s absence after scoring 70 runs in the first six overs from Alex Hales (47) and Jos Buttler (28). Sri Lanka’s premier spinner, Wanindu Hasaranga, ignited the collapse by removing both the batsmen in his successive overs. Harry Brooke and Liam Livingstone then fell cheap and Moeen Ali offered a brilliant catch against offspin from Dhananjaya de Silva (2-24) in covers as Sri Lanka rolled to 111-5 in the 15th over.

But Stokes, promoted to No. 3 in place of the injured Malan, kept calm as wickets fell around him and took England home with two balls to spare.

Originally published at Pen 18

Table Tennis legend Sharath Kamal recommended for Khel Ratna Award; Zareen, Punia, Lakshya Sen for Arjuna Award

Originally published at Pen 18

england: England beat Sri Lanka, make semifinals at expense of hosts Australia

England rode on the experience of Ben Stokes to reach the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup with a four-wicket win over Sri Lanka, ending the campaign of defending champions and hosts Australia in the tournament.

Sri Lankan opener Pathum Nisanka gave him an explosive start to 67 off 45 balls, but England’s bowlers restricted him to 141 for eight.

Chasing a tough target on a dry SCG wicket, Alex Hales (47; 30 b) and skipper Jos Buttler (28; 23 b) shared a ruthless 43-ball 75.

From there, they needed 67 off 77 balls, but in no time, half the English side fell once again with cunning spinner Wanindu Hasaranga (2/23).

He dismissed the English openers for just seven runs apart, before coming on the likes of Dhananjaya de Silva (2/24) and Lahiru Kumara (2/24).

With their designated No. 3 David Malan injured (groin), England’s batting order had changed and looked shaky, needing 31 off 33 balls when Moeen Ali became Dhananjaya de Silva’s second victim.

But English Test captain Stokes, in search of form in this tournament, held his nerves and closed the chase with an unbeaten 42 off 36 balls. He joined Chris Woakes in a thrilling 15-run partnership.

After rain proved to be a disappointing Australia-England clash at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the first Super 12, the Aussies ended their group stage campaign with seven points, and their semi-final hopes rested on Lanka’s victory over the British. Had happened.

England finished second in Group 1 behind New Zealand and will take on Group 2 toppers in the last-four.

It was an exciting start for England as Hales played the role of the attacker while Buttler took time to settle down.

Slowly, the English captain also swung into action as he smashed Hasranga for four consecutive boundaries and a six.

Earlier, Nissanka made a scintillating 33-ball fifty after his team elected to bat.

The stylish opener took the English attack to the cleaners and hit five sixes and two fours, but leg-spinner Adil Rashid (4-0-16-1) put on a stellar performance as Nissanka took his first wicket of the tournament. ,

Seamer Sam Curran (4-0-27-1) also bowled a decent run in the middle overs as Sri Lanka, who were running at over eight runs per over at the halfway point, faltered in the back-end.

The lack of power-hitters cost the Sri Lankans as the boundary dried up, and they could manage only 25 runs in the last five overs, a phase where they also lost five wickets.

England pacer Mark Wood also got off to a poor start and hit his straps at the back end and took 3 for 26 as England denied their opposition around 15-20 extra runs.

Buttler brought on his pacer Wood in the third over and Mendis dismissed him for a six over deep square leg off the very first ball. Taking cues from his opening partner, Nissenka ended the over with another maximum as 17 runs came off the over.

Rashid’s entry slowed his run-rate and wickets kept falling at the other end, but Nisanka continued his counter-attack in his ninth half-century and the second half of this World Cup. Rashid and Kuren then beat the Lankans with their smart variations.

Originally published at Pen 18

T20 World Cup 2022: Defending champions Australia knocked out as England beat Sri Lanka to reach semifinals

Originally published at Pen 18

virat kohli: Watch: Virat Kohli celebrates his birthday with team India in Melbourne – The Economic Times Video

Team India celebrated the birthday of Virat Kohli and mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton on 5 November. Kohli, who has turned 34, is in excellent form in the ongoing T20 World Cup in Australia. The former India captain has already scored 220 runs in four matches, including three fifties.

Originally published at Pen 18