Harbhajan
Singh has been out of the Indian side for over a year. On Sunday, he
was drafted in to face the might of defending champions and the veteran
bowler fired on all cylinders to blow the opposition into smithereens.
His four in four for twelve saw England crash to their lowest T20 total
ever.
Defending 170, the start was made by Irfan Pathan who took two early
wickets. Harbhajan soon took over and showed that having him in the side
in place of R Aswhin was a decision that could linger going further
into the tournament. He lofted, bowled short, tried full and offered
every other bit of variation only to have English batsmen walking back,
almost in a trail-like march.
For someone who has been criticised as a player who is past his
prime, Harbhajan showed being 30 is good and if a spin-friendly track is
laid out in front, the ball can be at his command just as well as in
the hands of any other.
To give the pitch the credit though would be unfair. Credit however
was also due to the other bowlers, especially Piyush Chawla who took
over from the other end and kept the pressure up.
Harbhajan claimed the man-of-the-match award for his efforts and said
it was great to be back in the thick of things. " Today was one of
those days that everything went my way. I would like to thank everybody
who supported me. I would also like to thank all at Essex," he said at
the post-match conference. He played for Essex earlier this year as part
of his county stint.
"It has been a tough year. I was injured and did not have a great IPL
or Ranji. Then, I went to Essex and that was a right thing to do.
Thankfully, today I got my reward."
Monday 24 September 2012
RoAmInG cHaRgEs EnDeD fRoM nExT yEaR
No roaming charges from next year!!!!
Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal today said that mobile phone subscribers will not have to pay roaming charges from next year.
"From next year. Our secretary has told you that it will be free from next year," Mr Sibal said in response to a query on the timing of removing roaming charges as proposed in the National Telecom Policy (NTP) 2012.
The Minister was speaking to the media on the sidelines of the curtain raiser event of India Internet Governance Conference.The Minister was speaking to the media on the sidelines of the curtain raiser event of India Internet Governance Conference.
NTP 2012, approved in May, aims to abolish roaming charges and allow mobile phone subscribers to use same number across country without having to pay extra charges for services once they are outside their telecom circle.
Meanwhile, Telecom Secretary R Chandrashekhar said the Department of Telecom (DoT) is working on Notice Inviting Applications for spectrum auction after which it will work on unified licence (UL) guidelines - also a part of the NTP 2012.
"We are first going to attend to all issues linked to auction. The moment NIA is issued this week, we will focus on UL. After details of full UL is worked out, the modalities for free roaming will follow," he said.
"From next year. Our secretary has told you that it will be free from next year," Mr Sibal said in response to a query on the timing of removing roaming charges as proposed in the National Telecom Policy (NTP) 2012.
The Minister was speaking to the media on the sidelines of the curtain raiser event of India Internet Governance Conference.The Minister was speaking to the media on the sidelines of the curtain raiser event of India Internet Governance Conference.
NTP 2012, approved in May, aims to abolish roaming charges and allow mobile phone subscribers to use same number across country without having to pay extra charges for services once they are outside their telecom circle.
Meanwhile, Telecom Secretary R Chandrashekhar said the Department of Telecom (DoT) is working on Notice Inviting Applications for spectrum auction after which it will work on unified licence (UL) guidelines - also a part of the NTP 2012.
"We are first going to attend to all issues linked to auction. The moment NIA is issued this week, we will focus on UL. After details of full UL is worked out, the modalities for free roaming will follow," he said.
Sunday 23 September 2012
Deepika Kumari settles for silver in Archery World Cup
Deepika, who slipped to the number two spot in the rankings following her shocking first round loss in the London Olympics last month, gave the South Korean a tough fight before going down 4-6.
It turned out to be a low-scoring tie with Ki's 28 in third end being the highest score. Deepika shot a 27 in the second end for her best score in the match.
Another South Korean, Hyeonju Choi, secured the bronze defeating America's Jennifer Nichols 6-4 in the third place play-off.
Deepika had beaten Nichols in the semifinals following her win over Miki Kanie of Japan in the last eight stage.
India Thrashed Egland by 90 Runs
You cannot keep him out of the celebrations of an Indian
dugout. It was a dream comeback for Harbhajan Singh who has seen lots of
ups and downs in the last one year. But he once again proved how
impactful he is in the shorter format of the game. Rohit Sharma was back
in form as well and MS Dhoni now has an uphill task ahead with the
problem of plenty with the spinners.
Nomination for oscar
'Barfi' Nominated for oscars:
The magic of Anurag Basu's Barfi! has worked. The heartwarming movie, about love between a deaf and mute boy and an autistic girl, has been chosen as India's official entry for the Academy Awards in the best foreign language film category.
The decision was taken at a Film Federation of India (FFI) meeting in Hyderabad on Saturday night.
"Barfi! has indeed been chosen as the country's official entry this year," FFI secretary general Suparn Sen said.
The movie, starring Ranbir Kapoor as Murphy aka Barfi, and Priyanka Chopra as Jhilmil, has been lauded in film circles for its simplistic and moving narrative that has managed to tug at the heartstrings of audiences which equally enjoy commercial potboilers.
The makers are joyous about the news.
"We are honoured that Barfi! has been selected to represent India as its official entry to the Academy Awards 2013. Barfi! is very close to the hearts of all of us at UTV, and it gives us great satisfaction that a film we have developed and nurtured from its inception has met with so much love from audiences and critics worldwide," Siddharth Roy Kapur, managing director - Studios, Disney UTV, said in a statement.
"An added source of pride is that this is the fourth UTV film in the last seven years to have been selected to represent India at the Academy awards; our earlier selections being Rang De Basanti (2006), Harishchandrachi Factory (2009) and Peepli Live (2010)," he added.
Barfi! released September 14, and is still drawing full houses in theatres.
SUPER SUNDAY
India to take on defending champions today at 7.30pm:
India's
listless bowling attack will aim to put up an improved performance
ahead of the Super Eight stage when the team takes on England in its
final group league encounter in the ICC World Twenty20 here on Sunday.
Both India and England are through to the 'Super Eight' but the contrasting manner of their respective victories certainly makes Stuart Broad and Co favourites ahead of a clash that has gained marquee status over the years.
While the Indian team management will be looking to plug the loopholes that appeared in the match against Afghanistan, England, after a facile 116-run win, will look to repeat that performance against a much better team.
The cause of concern for India across all formats has been their bowlers and it is no different in Twenty20.
It is Zaheer's poor show that has led to the entire Indian attack looking ordinary.
Add to it, skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's penchant for playing only four specialist bowlers always leaves the team in a high risk zone where it is expected that the part-timers need to perform above expectations.
The Mumbai-pacer has looked totally out of sorts in the net sessions so far.
Although it is too early to predict whether Zaheer will be benched considering that both Irfan Pathan and Laxmipathy Balaji have bowled better than him, but it can be said that he is playing the shortest format on borrowed time.
The 22-yard strip at the R Premadasa Stadium has been of great help for the pace bowlers but the 'Men in Blue' are more reliant on their spinners.
The big question, however, will be whether senior off-spinner Harbhajan Singh will get a chance in the playing XI. Knowing the perennial weakness of the English batsmen against spinners, Dhoni might just feel tempted to play the veteran of 98 Tests and 229 ODIs.
Both India and England are through to the 'Super Eight' but the contrasting manner of their respective victories certainly makes Stuart Broad and Co favourites ahead of a clash that has gained marquee status over the years.
While the Indian team management will be looking to plug the loopholes that appeared in the match against Afghanistan, England, after a facile 116-run win, will look to repeat that performance against a much better team.
The cause of concern for India across all formats has been their bowlers and it is no different in Twenty20.
It is Zaheer's poor show that has led to the entire Indian attack looking ordinary.
Add to it, skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's penchant for playing only four specialist bowlers always leaves the team in a high risk zone where it is expected that the part-timers need to perform above expectations.
The Mumbai-pacer has looked totally out of sorts in the net sessions so far.
Although it is too early to predict whether Zaheer will be benched considering that both Irfan Pathan and Laxmipathy Balaji have bowled better than him, but it can be said that he is playing the shortest format on borrowed time.
The 22-yard strip at the R Premadasa Stadium has been of great help for the pace bowlers but the 'Men in Blue' are more reliant on their spinners.
The big question, however, will be whether senior off-spinner Harbhajan Singh will get a chance in the playing XI. Knowing the perennial weakness of the English batsmen against spinners, Dhoni might just feel tempted to play the veteran of 98 Tests and 229 ODIs.
Saturday 22 September 2012
What’s cooking between Salman Khan and his ex Sangeeta Bijlani?
Mumbai: You have got to give it to
Salman Khan. The man surely knows how to keep his former flames happy
and even be friends with them after breaking up. We all know that
Katrina Kaif is a regular feature at the Khan household, but it seems
even Sangeeta Bijlani is warmly welcomed to the Khan-daan.
At the recent Ganpati visarjan, the entire Khan family came together and so did some of Salman’s close friends. Sangeeta was spotted bonding with Salman’s sisters Alvira and Arpita along with actresses Preity Zinta and Sonakshi Sinha.
Bijlani even came for the special screening of ‘Heroine’ with the Khan family and happily posed with them for the shutterbugs post screening of the film.
The big question is, Is Sangeeta planning to make a comeback in films or in Salman’s life?
review
'Heroine': Kareena's bravest film till date
Bhandarkar narrates the story of a shining actress Mahi Arora (Kareena Kapoor) who seems to be slowly losing her sheen all thanks to her personal life and erratic mood swings. Even though Mahi is considered the best in the industry and is the reigning queen of Bollywood who everyone wants to compete with, Mahi seems to be more interested in getting married to her boyfriend, superstar Aryan Khanna (Arjun Rampal). Aryan, meanwhile, is going through a divorce and remains non-committal towards Mahi, which leads to her downfall.
Wronged by the people whom she is most close to, Mahi seeks psychiatric treatment and plans to resurrect her career and her life. While she manages to re build her image, get a new boyfriend (Randeep Hooda), sign some fabulous endorsements and also some films, Mahi realises that to be at the top of the game, she needs to compromise her own morals and ethics and leave behind people who probably care for her the most.
The premise of the film, like every other film of Bhandarkar's, remains the same. Lead protagonist who has negative shades goes through the highs and lows in her life, enjoys a period of success and then goes through a low phase only to reform and rebuild herself as a human being. What Bhandarkar shows is not new to most of us; it is just presented in a snazzy, glamorous way.
The film could easily be written off but for Kareena’s performance. As the bi-polar, erratic, insecure and vulnerable fading star, Kareena gives a superb performance. She looks beautiful, glamorous and makes Mahi her own. In fact, some of the incidents seem to be lifted straight out of Kareena’s life (yes, there is an MMS scandal as well). Kareena, who has for a long time been used as a glamour quotient in Rs 100 crore films, gets a meaty role and gives it her best shot. Some of the scenes in the film, although a bit unnecessary, need courage to be enacted and it comes as a surprise when a hard-core commercial actress like Kareena agrees to do such scenes. And then, does them so convincingly.
Arjun Rampal, as the confused, non-committal, playboy Aryan Khanna, gives a believable performance. It is also refreshing to see Randeep Hooda play a charming cricketer madly in love with Mahi, especially after doing a dark role in ‘Jism2’. The man though, is underused. In fact, Madhur manages to cast some very talented actors like Shahana Goswami, Ranvir Shorey and Sanjay Suri in walk away cameos who ably support the film’s narrative.
The film has a very linear narrative and for the greater part of the first half, one keeps wondering what exactly the plot is. A little bit of editing would also do a lot of good to the otherwise predictable storyline.
Does ‘Heroine’ work? Yes, but only because of Kareena Kapoor. From doing the raunchy act in ‘Halkat Jawaani’ to the scenes where she is battling depression and popping pills, to the I-don’t-care-attitude of a confident actress, Kareena makes Mahi memorable and lovable.
Friday 21 September 2012
problems for india against england
WT20 Preview: Indian batsmen in slam bang mode ahead of England tie
Colombo: The
booming drives, the ferocious cuts and the lofted shots were the order
of the day at the Indian team's training session on Friday as batsmen
concentrated on taking the aerial route after a subdued start to the
World Twenty20 against Afghanistan.
If one takes a close look at the Indian batting card in their opening game against Afghanistan, the champions of the 2007 edition could hit only four sixes, and that too against an inexperienced attack.
Virat Kohli hit two while there was just one each for Yuvraj Singh and Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Kohli's second six, in fact, could have ended in a catch had the fielder stationed at the deep mid-wicket not made a mess of it.
No wonder, each and every batsman decided to go all out during the gruelling three-hour training session at the P Sara Oval ground here, two days ahead of the big-ticket encounter against defending champions England.
From Gautam Gambhir to Irfan Pathan, everyone seemed to be in a mood to clear the ropes whether while facing the bowlers at the nets or while receiving throwdowns..
The drill was simple -- each and every batsman faced throwdowns from Trevor Penney and Joe Dawes before going to the nets. The instructions seemed to be clear -- go for the maximum.
While the batsmen played the big shots, the bowlers looked like going through the motion.
If one takes a close look at the Indian batting card in their opening game against Afghanistan, the champions of the 2007 edition could hit only four sixes, and that too against an inexperienced attack.
Virat Kohli hit two while there was just one each for Yuvraj Singh and Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Kohli's second six, in fact, could have ended in a catch had the fielder stationed at the deep mid-wicket not made a mess of it.
No wonder, each and every batsman decided to go all out during the gruelling three-hour training session at the P Sara Oval ground here, two days ahead of the big-ticket encounter against defending champions England.
From Gautam Gambhir to Irfan Pathan, everyone seemed to be in a mood to clear the ropes whether while facing the bowlers at the nets or while receiving throwdowns..
The drill was simple -- each and every batsman faced throwdowns from Trevor Penney and Joe Dawes before going to the nets. The instructions seemed to be clear -- go for the maximum.
While the batsmen played the big shots, the bowlers looked like going through the motion.
T20 wrld cup
World T20: Wright's unbeaten 99 takes England to 196/5
Colombo: Afghanistan did on Friday, what they had done from their previous clash against India. Versus England, they opted to bowl, struck early, shuddered on the field and eventually allowed Luke Wright (99*) to wallop his side to 196/5.Shahpoor Zadran steamed in at the start and was rewarded with the wicket of Criag Kieswetter (0) in the first over itself. Partnered by Dawlat Zadran, he bowled a tight line to have English batsmen treading with caution.
Luke Wright had come as Kieswetter's replacement and though he took a bit of time to get his eyes in, eventually began to snatch the momentum away from the Afghans.
Breaking news: PM on Reform
PM addresses nation on reforms: Who said what
Here are the political reactions to Dr Singh's speech:
Sitaram Yechury, CPI(M) leader
There is nothing new in the PM's speech
Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, Trinamool Congress leader
PM is a gentleman, a learned man. But the Congress has no touch with the common man, though they keep talking about aam aadmi. Cut in subsidy will create problems for the middle class.
Prakash Javadekar, BJP spokesperson
If PM wanted to show intent, he should have acted against corruption. Instead he has burdened the common man.
Tarun Vijay, BJP spokespersonMoney doesn't grow on trees, yes. Thanks for telling us, but money stashed in foreign banks? No mention of financial irregularities. Just Words.
Shabana Azmi, actor and activist
Sound speech by PM. There should be many such addresses to a bewildered nation so people know what's going on and why.
Ajay Maken, Union sports minister
PM shows strong resolve, aggression and focus for fast economic growth, for welfare of the common man! "Those opposing now, did so in 1991 too."
Thursday 20 September 2012
breaking news
Mamata Banerjee suggests it's over now, She quits from congress, Pawar says she was consulted about FDI
At an aggressive press conference in Kolkata, her third in as many days, Ms Banerjee reiterated that her six ministers have asked the Prime Minister's Office to see him tomorrow to hand in their resignations. On Facebook, which Ms Banerjee says she is compelled to use to counter media with vested interests, she repeated the charge that she was not consulted by the government before it decided to implement the new reforms.
Sharad Pawar said that is not correct. Mr Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party is also a member of the ruling coalition. He said that Ms Banerjee was consulted by the Prime Minister about allowing Foreign Direct Investment or FDI in retail.
Trinamool sources say that before Ms Banerjee announced her divorce from the UPA, at a three-hour meeting in Kolkata, some of her ministers argued that it may be expedient to pull out of the government, but provide external support to the UPA, to ensure that their party remained in a position of influence. Ms Banerjee allegedly rejected this suggestion. Her Finance Minister Amit Mitra told NDTV last night that there were no differences within the party, and that she should be lauded for having the courage of her convictions.
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