By embracing these tips by Rizzo, any individual can embark on a journey towards improved health and well-being without resorting to drastic measures.
Below are three ways to transform your body even if you have crappy genetics as per Jenna Rizzo:
As someone who was genetically blessed to resemble a pudgy ruler, I feel your pain. Over the years I’ve been able to change my body by implementing 3 main things…
1. Start strength training. Unlike doing cardio alone, strength training allows you to target specific muscles that will tone and create shape. It’s important to follow a structured program to insure you see results - lifting weights without any rhyme or reason will get you nowhere.
2. Watch out for fake healthy foods. Granola, smoothies, açaí bowls, some yogurts, and dried fruit can seem healthy, but are sometimes super high in sugar and calories. While I’m not saying to NEVER eat these, eating them often can make it hard to lose weight.
3. Get some rest. Sleep plays a crucial role in weight loss and muscle gain and most people don’t even realize it. Aiming for 7 hours a night minimum will help your body recover and keep your metabolism working for you instead of against you.
The nurse has been identified as Samantha Abreu, 25, from Melbourne. Samantha was overweight since a teenager and struggled with her excess weight, an India Today report said. She would often binge eat which caused her to gain weight. This affected her daily life, and she also struggled to complete her shifts due to exhaustion at her job.
Fed up with her uneasy life due to her weight, Samantha decided to transform her health through daily morning walks and diet control. It was during the lockdown, Samantha started going for daily walks and soon realised it was a ‘blessing’ for her mindset and body.
With the daily walks, she also started practicing food control, decreasing the size of her meals. It took her almost 1 year to reduce 45 kg. She did not have to go to the gym and do complex exercises. Just daily walks and diet control help her reduce the desired weight.
“It’s lovely looking stronger. I hope other people can see themselves in me and realise that they can also slowly start implementing the change, that’s all I want,” she said, as per New York Post.
Without any fail, Samantha walks 10,000 steps daily and runs 5 km every day, and goes to gym four times a week. With this daily routine, Samantha revealed that she feels ‘comfortable and safe’ in her body.
In a recent post, the Australian captain posted pictures from his recent outing with his wife Becky Boston on the occasion of Happy Valentine’s Day. Cummins captioned the images as: “Super-mum, wife, my valentine and apparently a pro-surfer too. Happy Valentines.”
The picture went viral instantly and attracted comments from his fans. While the couple received a lot of love from the fans, one person named Farhan Khan went overboard and wrote, “I am India and I love your wife.”
In response, Cummins had an epic reply to this comment from the fan. “I’ll pass it onto her,” wrote Cummins.
Indian users who are following Cummins are trolling this fan. As per the Indian fans, he is bringing the reputation of Indians down by making such comments.
Notably, the Australia captain is enjoying time off cricket after playing the Tests vs West Indies last month. Cummins will be back in Australia colours soon and then fly to India for a two-month period.
A genuine all-rounder, Perry masters both batting and fast bowling. She was the first player to amass a combined 1000 runs and 100 wickets in T20Is. This apart, she also holds the record for the highest score by an Australian woman in Test matches (213 not out).
Due to her on-field performance, she is the ultimate role model for young girls and is credited as a leading figure for the rising female presence in Australia’s sporting culture. However, the path to success hasn’t been a cakewalk for Perry who has appeared in several leading magazines.
She makes sure to work hard on her body and fitness to reach the position that she is in today. Recently, the star woman cricketer gave insight into her exercise routine on Instagram and wrote, “I get a lot of enjoyment out of exploring different ways of training and trying to find new ways to help me improve.”
Since being shared online, her exercise video has gone crazy viral on social media.
A fan wrote, “If your teacher, coach, or mentor believes you can do something, you're more likely to do it ❤️❤️❤️ ellyse 🔥🔥🔥👏👏👏”
“So hard work you are very outstanding you are amazing ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️” commented another fan.
A third fan wrote, “@ellyseperry you did amazing and beautiful training and you look so beautiful and pretty and amazing and I like your INSIGHT and I like you😍💓👏🔥 from India.”
Apart from her gym routines, Perry makes sure to hit the field and practice cricket as much as possible. There can be no better exercise than running between the wickets in cricket. Here's a glimpse into her practice session with her father.
To recognize outstanding achievements in Australian cricket, Australian Cricket Awards are presented annually. The annual event witnessed Perry gracing the occasion with elegance and style.
Ellyse Perry won the Australian Women's ODI & T20I Player of the Year award. 🐐 pic.twitter.com/QqsFMzUoI6
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) January 31, 2024
Several fans flooded various social media platforms with praises for Perry’s impeccable fashion sense and radiant presence at the prestigious ceremony hosted by the Crown Casino in Melbourne.
Apart from her exceptional cricketing skills on the ground, Perry has managed to bowl out the hearts of fans with her beautiful look and grace off the ground as well. The accolades she got from fans for her glamorous appearance at the awards ceremony further cemented her status as one of the most admired figures in the world of women’s cricket.
Most beautiful women cricketer ever 😍 pic.twitter.com/ztw8aheBO2
— Pritam Pandey ✌️ (@ViratFan100) January 31, 2024
Perry graced the award ceremony in a mint green gown adorned with a mesmerizing ruffled design, crafting an elegant and bold silhouette that beautifully highlighted her athletic figure. The gorgeous dress emanated timeless glamour. Moreover, a daring split down the chest introduced an element of allure, distinguishing her as a standout presence on the blue carpet.
Most beautiful women cricketer ever 😍 pic.twitter.com/ztw8aheBO2
— Pritam Pandey ✌️ (@ViratFan100) January 31, 2024
Internet was abuzz with compliments and expressions of admiration for Perry’s stunning look and her charismatic presence.
“Ellyse Perry the most beautiful women cricketer ever,” a fan wrote on social media account X (earlier known as Twitter).
“Why she is so beautiful?” tweeted another fan.
In response to Perry’s stunning picture, a third user commented, “Queen @EllysePerry At cricketcomau Awards 2024.”
However, a cute moment happened during the match in Sydney when Warner was dismissed for 57 and walked towards the dressing room. Soaking the applause from the fans at Sydney Cricket Ground, he gave his gloves and helmet to a young kid in a sign of a great gesture by the Australian Legend.
FINAL WALK OF DAVID WARNER TOWARDS THE DRESSING ROOM...!!! 🫡
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) January 6, 2024
- Everyone stands up and applaud the legend.pic.twitter.com/jE4i1h38WE
Warner began his career as a T20 batsman but after his test debut against New Zealand in 2011, he never looked back. He went on to become one of the best openers Australia has ever produced.
After bidding farewell to test cricket, David Warner will focus on playing Big Bash League and other T20 league games.
Warner completed his test career with 8786 runs with an average of 44.6 with 26 hundreds to his name.
Harper sustained the injury while batting during a practice session at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday. He was immediately rushed to the hospital via ambulance after the head injury. He is reportedly conscious and stable.
Harper was preparing for Saturday’s match against Sydney Sixers. He sustained the injury while attempting a cross-bat shot. Subsequently, he was hit on the chin, causing a severe cut near his throat as the ball lodged under the grill of his helmet. The cricketer’s medical team promptly attended to him to control the bleeding.
Following the incident, the training session was cancelled immediately. With no backup wicketkeeper on their list, the Stars may bring in former player and Victoria limited-overs captain Peter Handscomb at short notice. Handscomb, without a BBL contract, was scheduled to play grade cricket for St Kilda in Melbourne on the same day.
Harper was hospitalized after colliding with Hobart Hurricanes bowler Nathan Ellis during a Big Bash League match in January 2020.
Notably, Phil Hughes died from bleeding on the brain in November 2014 after being hit on the neck by a rising ball from Sean Abbott while batting in a domestic match at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
The ICC World Test Championship 2023 winners secured the No.1 spot after India's hard-fought 1-1 series draw against South Africa.
Australia's stellar performance on home soil against Pakistan proved pivotal in their ascent to the top, a position they briefly held following their WTC Final victory. The closely contested battle for supremacy saw India and Australia tied with 118 rating points each before this update.
Australia are 2-0 up in a three-match Test series against Pakistan with the third ongoing Test at Sydney Cricket Ground.
Under the leadership of Pat Cummins, Australia's cricketing accolades in the past year have been nothing short of spectacular. Alongside their ICC World Test Championship Final triumph, they also clinched the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023, showcasing their prowess across formats.
The ongoing third Test between Australia and Pakistan, coupled with the upcoming five-match Test series between India and England, scheduled to start from January 25 in Hyderabad, promises further excitement and potential shifts in the Test Team Rankings.
The battle for the top spot intensifies, with crucial ICC World Test Championship points up for grabs, adding another layer of significance to these upcoming clashes. As the cricketing world eagerly awaits the outcomes, the narrative of supremacy in the Test arena unfolds with each gripping match.
On the final day, India produced their best both with the ball and bat to thwart a spirited Australian resurgence, first sparking a collapse in the visitors' ranks to snaffle the remaining five wickets for 28 and then knocking off a meagre target of 75 without much ado to script an eight-wicket win.
Smriti Mandhana (38 not out) and Jemimah Rodrigues (12 not out) embraced each other in a warm hug when the objective of beating a world-dominating side was accomplished, bringing back memories of India's shushed reaction in 2008 in Australia when MS Dhoni's side beat the hosts and made a statement by not indulging in any passionate celebrations.
Playing more than one Test at home for the first time since 1995, there was hardly a moment when the team put a foot wrong.
India Women's stuck to the promise of playing positive cricket', weathered all mini storms along the way and largely dictated terms against fancied opponents in Australia and England.
In fact, there was no disparity in Team India's clinical performance in the two home Tests played on different surfaces here at the Wankhede Stadium and at the DY Patil Stadium against England, considering they were playing at home for the first time in almost a decade.
While India scripted the biggest win for any team by margin of runs against England, their first-ever triumph over Australia in 11 Tests now has ensured more entries in the column of matches won' compared to matches lost'.
In 41 Tests, India now have seven wins and six defeats, while 27 have been drawn.
India's dominating show warrants the attention of the game's custodians to ruminate over more 'home' Tests in future since such games have only been few and far between.
If the win over England last week saw the emergence of new Test stars in Jemimah Rodrigues, Shubha Satheesh and Renuka Singh Thakur, the one against Australia witnessed the 20-year-old Richa Ghosh arriving at the scene with 52 on debut.
On the fourth day morning, Indian spinners ruled the roost as the trio of Sneh Rana (5-2-9-2), Rajeshwari Gayakwad (1.4-1-0-2) and Deepti Sharma (3-2-5-0) teamed up to wreck havoc on the Australian resistance.
Australia, looking to build on their slender lead of 46 runs, collapsed spectacularly to lose five wickets in the first 45 minutes of the day and concede the game to India.
Pooja Vastrakar began the damage by trapping Ashleigh Gardner for seven in front of the wickets, and Rana tiled the game in India's favour when she struck twice to remove Annabel Sutherland (27) and Alana King (0).
Rajeshwari Gayakwad, who was unlucky to have not got any success on the third day when she got a breakthrough nearly thrice, cleaned up Kim Garth (4) for her first wicket in the innings.
Gayakwad then bamboozled Jess Jonassen (9) with a delivery that turned into the left-hander sharply and crashed into middle and leg, with the last recognised Australian batter nearly toppling over on her front foot.
Australia were bundled out for 261 in their second innings, having scored a moderate 219 in their first essay after electing to bat.
India were supreme with the bat again as they made 406 in the first essay to also record their highest total ever against Australia in Tests.
Shafali Verma cracked the first ball of the innings for four but Garth produced a peach to find an outside edge off her bat, caught by skipper Alyssa Healy, for the first breakthrough of the innings.
Beth Mooney dropped a sitter off Gardner to give Richa Ghosh (13) an early reprieve when the batter was yet to open her account.
Ghosh went on to add 51 for the second wicket with Mandhana (38 not out off 61 balls, 6x4s) after Shafali Verma (4) fell in the first over. Rodrigues and Mandhana then complete the task.
Green is not the only cricketer who showed resilience by continuing to play with major health issues. Let’s have a look at some other top cricketers across the globe who fought with their diseases amid illustrious career.
Craig Mcmillan
The New Zealand batter was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of only fifteen. However, he did not lose heart of pursuing international cricket. He used to keep jellybeans with him in case he felt his blood sugar was starting to drop. Mcmillan garnered 3,116 Test runs and 4,707 ODI runs in a bright international career spanning 11 years.
Michael Atherton
England cricketer Michael Atherton was diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis when he was just 20. He could not duck under bouncers and had to stand tall due to the health issue. This caused him constant pain in the back during his career.
Wasim Akram
Pakistan’s legendary speedster Wasim Akram suffered with diabetes. He got to know about his health condition in 1997. He took a long break from the game to get cured. When he came back in 1999, Akram took several hat-tricks to herald his return.
Richard Hadlee
New Zealand great Richard Hadlee amassed 431 wickets in 86 Test matches during his illustrious career. He was suffering with Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome which causes fast heartbeat.
Brian Lara
West Indies great Brian Lara came within inching distance of bidding adieu to his career as he was smitten by Hepatitis B in 2002. However, Lara recuperated fast and in 2004 he claimed the mantle of the highest score in a Test Innings from Hayden after he went on to smash a brilliant 400.
Michael Slater
The Australian attacking batsman was suffering from an acute form of arthritis, Ankylosing Spondylitis. Despite suffering from intolerable throes, he is considered as one of the most phenomenal openers of the game.
Yuvraj Singh
Former India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh was diagnosed with cancer from an early stage. After fighting the toughest battle of his life with unprecedented courage, Yuvi emerged victoriously and announced his arrival in the world of cricket again with some brilliant performances.
Following the incident, Khawaja found himself at the center of a controversy surrounding his choice of footwear. International Cricket Council (ICC) has prohibited Khawaja from wearing shoes adorned with messages related to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, deeming them political.
However, Khawaja defended his stance and he is determined to challenge the ban, emphasizing his commitment to the principles of freedom and equality.
Khawaja has expressed his perspective on the controversy by posting an emotional video posted on Twitter. The Australian star batsman questioned whether freedom and equal rights were not universal concerns, irrespective of race, religion, or culture.
Moreover, Khawaja asserted that his intention was to give a voice to those who are voiceless, especially the innocent children affected by conflict. He clarified that his message was not political but a reflection of his belief that all lives are equal.
The video has reportedly gone viral on Twitter. It has so far garnered 1.6M views and 28k likes.
All Lives are Equal. Freedom is a Human right. I'm raising my voice for human rights. For a humanitarian appeal. If you see it any other way. That's on you... pic.twitter.com/8eaPnBfUEb
— Usman Khawaja (@Uz_Khawaja) December 13, 2023
Several fans have flooded the comment box with their opinions on Khawaja’s stance.
“You should focus on cricket dude...!! You are representing your country..!!” wrote a fan.
“In a world where most celebrities went quiet. You stood against tyranny and evil. Well Done Sir. You made us proud. People in Gaza need more voices like urs Usman Khawaja indeed #AllLivesAreEqual,” tweeted another fan.
In response to the video, a third user commented, “What a disgrace of a world we live in that the words he has written could even be considered controversial.”
Former Australia batter and current chief selector George Bailey has hit out at former pacer Mitchell Johnson’s criticism on Warner for playing his farewell Test.
Earlier, recollecting about Sandpaper Gate scandal, Johnson has asked why Warner, who ‘has been involved in some of the biggest scandals’ in Australian cricket in the recent past, deserved a farewell Test.
In response to Johnson’s comments on Warner, Bailey hit him back calling the legendary pacer distant and unaware of what the players are going through.
“I’ve been sent little snippets of it. I hope he’s OK. I’ve got no idea if he is. My only observation would be if someone can show me how being distant and unaware of what players are going through and what the plans are with the team and with the coaching staff, how that’s more beneficial, I’d be all ears,” said Bailey.
Notably, Warner had expressed his desire to end his Test career in Sydney, his home ground, in the final Test of the series against Pakistan.
Warner has represented Australia in 109 Test matches, scoring 8487 runs at an average of 44.33 including 25 hundreds and 36 half-centuries.
After being sent to bat by Australia, India went off to a sedate start. After losing 4 wickets for 111, it was Rinku Singh (46) and Jitesh Sharma (35) who provided the late blitz to take India to 174-9.
In reply, Australia didn’t get to a good start as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Indian spinners Axar Patel and Ravi Bishnoi checked the Australian batters during the middle overs. Both the spinners took 4 wickets between them. In the end, Australia only managed 154 runs which helped India win the 5-match series 3-1.
The last T20 match of the series will be played in M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
Maxwell walked in to bat in the final over of the Powerplay with Travis Head giving the side a good start in the run-chase, but with Marcus Stoinis struggling to middle the ball, the onus was on him to accelerate, states ICC.
The all-rounder, who hit the fastest Cricket World Cup hundred last month, was on 42 off 22 balls when Stoinis departed with Australia needing 95 runs off seven overs.
Ravi Bishnoi struck for the second time next over to dismiss Tim David to further dent the Aussies, but Maxwell wasn't flustered as he brought up his half-century with a six off Arshdeep Singh.
With 78 needed off five overs, India were clear favourites and it remained that way when Prasidh Krishna produced a six-run over in the 18th over of the innings. Australia's equation had become pretty tough with 43 runs needed off the last two overs.
Matthew Wade reduced the pressure on Maxwell with two fours and a six off Axar Patel in the penultimate over, but the Aussies still needed 21 runs off the last over.
Wade started the over with a boundary before handing the reins over to the well-set Maxwell. The all-rounder went on to smash Prasidh for a six followed by a hat-trick of fours to take Australia to a stunning win and also completed a record-breaking ton in the process.
With the 47-ball hundred, Maxwell equalled the record set by Aaron Finch and Josh Inglis (earlier in the series) for the fastest ton by an Australian in men's T20Is.
Maxwell also equalled Rohit Sharma's record for the most centuries in men's T20Is with his fourth hundred in the format.
Maxwell's previous T20I ton had also come against India in Bengaluru in 2019 in another tall run-chase that Australia successfully completed.
With the win, the series is still alive with two T20Is to go. The next match of the series will be played on December 1 in Raipur.
More women in management drives a decline in the gender pay gap, but every industry and almost three in four employers still have a gender pay gap larger than 5 per cent in favor of men, the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) said in its annual update on the state of workplace gender equality.
It's a decrease of 1.1 percentage points from 22.8 per cent in 2022, the second largest single-year drop since WGEA started collecting employer data in 2014, reports Xinhua news agency.
It means on average, for every 1 Australian dollar men earn, women earn 78 cents.
The average annual pay difference between men and women has narrowed by A$1,322, but a gap of A$26,393 remains, the report said.
The key driver of the lower gender pay gap is an increase in the proportion of women in management and in the upper pay quartiles.
The proportion of women managers is now at 42 per cent, up from 41 per cent last year, according to the report.
"Increased discussion and debate around gender equality, a tight labour market and impending legislative reform have helped drive action on workplace gender equality over the last year," WGEA chief executive officer Mary Wooldridge was quoted as saying in a news release.
Taking about India performance, they beat New Zealand in the first Semi Final at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Virat Kohli (117), Shreyas Iyer (105), and Mohammad Shami 7-57 made significant contributions which helped India to reach the final after 12 years.
Squad:
India Playing XI: Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj
Australia Playing XI: Travis Head, David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Josh Inglis (wk), Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
More to Follow
ICC World Cup final in 2015 between Australia and New Zealand saw the highest number of attendance with 93,013 people at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Team India is in outstanding form coming into the finals as they have won 10 games in a row which is a record itself. The players are in tremendous form with the bat as all batsmen have contributed significantly going into the finals of Cricket World Cup 2023. Rohit Sharma has led his team with precision and has marshalled his players, giving them the liberty to perform freely in the tournament.
Virat Kohli leads the batting chart by hammering 711 runs at an outstanding average of 101 with 3 hundreds to his name. Mohammad Shami also picked up 23 wickets and is the leading wicket taker.
Rohit Sharma had earlier pointed out that Indian players need to be aware of batting in crisis situations in order to help Team India to win crucial moments and phases in the match.
Australia have also made it to the finals after losing first two matches against India and South Africa. Many Australian players rose to the occasion helping their team to emerge victorious against other teams.
BCCI have organised various events which will be performed during the breaks of the Cricket World Cup final.
Virat Kohli and Ravichandran Ashwin know the feeling of winning the ODI World Cup and Rohit Sharma himself was in the thick of things at the 'Bull Ring' in Johannesburg when India won their maiden T20 World Cup in 2007.
But the final on Sunday will be completely different. It won't just be a mere cricket tournament that needs to be won but also caring about the emotions of all those invested in the game.
Rohit and his mates have time and again said that they don't care about the outside noise but it is this outside noise that has made the game and this team relevant.
All the stakeholders -- the fans, who treat these players as 'Demi Gods', the broadcasters who spend a bomb buy Indian cricket telecast rights and the sponsors, who support the game -- all want the game to thrive and survive.
When Kapil Dev's toothy grin at the Lord's balcony melted fans' hearts in 1983, it was the beginning and no one knew which direction the road ahead will lead us to.
When Dhoni hit that winning six in 2011 World Cup final, it was more about a final reiteration that the Mecca of Cricket' has shifted long back and everyone needed to take a bow and accept Indian domination.
Circa 2023, Indian cricket team will not just be looking to win a third ODI global title but also look at saving the '50-over format' which has been battling identity crisis for at least five years now.
An Indian victory will give the format the injection it needs.
Australia is the only team to have achieved title triumph with 11 wins in a row -- in 2003 and 2007 -- and Rohit indeed has a date with history since if the team gets the win on Sunday, it will only be the second side ever side to do so.
A near flawless effort
The skipper (550 runs @124 SR) has led from the front, literally walking the talk, with his aggressive in-your-face batting that has set the platform for
Virat Kohli (711 @90 plus SR) to be the 'run machine' that everyone is so used to seeing.
Shubman Gill has battled dengue and corresponding fatigue to show his class time and again. Shreyas Iyer has fought his short ball demons to score a semi-final hundred. He has conquered his head and thus was able to win hearts.
But the man who has made a huge difference to India's campaign is Mohammed Shami. The 'Amroha Express' has made this team enjoy an aura of invincibility with his 23-wicket show after initial exclusion from the playing XI.
Shami is once again proving that old adage correct that batters win you games but bowlers can win you tournaments. Shami has put this team right there.
There is KL Rahul's composure, Ravindra Jadeja's invaluable all-round game, Suryakumar Yadav's x-factor and Kuldeep Yadav's innate ability to create self-doubts in the minds of the batters. And there is Jasprit Bumrah, who is toe-crusher on call' and can pluck a David Warner or Steve Smith out for fun.
The pitch, made of black soil, will be a slow turner but expecting Indian team to go with a third spinner in Ashwin looks like utmost luxury as of now.Not ugly Aussies but lethal as always
Post Sandpaper Gate, Australians team has undergone a tectonic cultural shift but five-time World champions know the art of winning on big days. Australia is possibly the only team that can actually put India under immense pressure.
"They've certainly played really well this World Cup. I think we certainly didn't - I don't think we scored par in that first game but we're one catch away from potentially being in front of that game," Cummins referred to the dropped catch of Virat Kohli which became the turning point during the league game between two teams, which was also their opening match.
Cummins knows that 130,000 one-sided spectators would be rooting for India but he would harp on the fact that his team won an ODI series in India, earlier this year.
"We won an ODI series here early on in the year. There's lots of moments we can draw on where we've had success against, you know, a really good Indian side."
So who will win tomorrow? Ruthless Indians or nice Australians. It remains a multi-billion dollar question.
Squads:
India: Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (vc and wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Ishan Kishan and Prasidh Krishna.
Australia: Pat Cummins, David Warner, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood, Cameron Green, Josh Inglis (wk), Alex Carey (wk), Sean Abbott.
Match Starts 2pm.
It has been learnt that Atkinson has arrived here Friday afternoon and he will join the preparations tomorrow.
"Andy hasn't gone back home. He has come with ICC delegation today afternoon and hence didn't come to the ground. He will be available tomorrow to check on the preparation of the track," an ICC source told PTI on conditions of anonymity.
Atkinson isn't exactly a favourite with the BCCI brass after he accused the host nation of changing track for the semi-final between India and New Zealand from a fresh to a used one.
However, the ICC later sent a clarification that there is no such rule of holding knock-out matches on a fresh track and Atkinson was apprised of the development in advance.
On Friday, the two senior BCCI's chief of ground staff Ashish Bhowmick and his second in command Taposh Chatterjee, along with former India seamer and BCCI's GM (Domestic Cricket) Abbey Kuruvilla, closely monitored the pitch preparations for the mega final on Sunday.
It couldn't be confirmed if the track to be used for the final is a used one or a fresh surface. But the two senior curators and BCCI GM monitored the use of heavy roller on the designated 22-yard strip.
"If heavy roller is being used on a black soil strip then the idea is to create a slow batting track where you can get a big score but you possibly can't consistently hit through the line. 315 could be a defendable score as batting second will be difficult," a state association curator explained.
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma, along with first team regulars KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja, had an extensive net session, with reserve players Ishan Kishan, Ravichandran Ashwin and Prasidh Krishna for company.
As has been the custom, Rohit and Dravid spent a considerable amount of time looking at the track and also had extensive discussions with Bhowmick and Chatterjee.
The Indian Express reports that Pandya who is at the rehabilitation centre at National Cricket Academy, Bengaluru might be out of the action for another two months.
However, the medical team is yet to take a call ion whether Pandya needs surgery or not.
"Two weeks ago, Pandya was asked to bowl in the nets with strength and conditioning coaches advising him to increase speed slowly. The support staff didn’t want him to put too much pressure on his ankle. It is learnt that Pandya didn’t face any problem in the first three balls he bowled. He decided to increase the intensity of his bowling for the next delivery. It was during the fourth ball that he felt a bit of pain in his leg," a source was quoted as saying by Indian Express.
Pandya informed the support staff about the pain he felt on his right ankle. The NCA medical team decided to get another round of scans done.
The tournament’s Event Technical Committee had approved seamer Prasidh Krishna as Pandya’s replacement. The 27-year-old, Krishna, who has made a comeback after a long injury layoff, has played 17 ODIs for India and has bagged 29 wickets.
(Except for the headline, this story, from a syndicated feed, has not been edited by Odishatv.in staff)
Lanning will continue to play in domestic competitions, including the Women’s Big Bash League and the Women’s National Cricket League.
No captain in the history of cricket has lifted more World Cup trophies than Lanning, who retires as one of Australian sport’s most successful leaders. She captained Australia on 182 occasions, more than any other women’s player, and led the team to a historic five World Cup crowns.
The Australian women’s team had an 80%-win rate under Lanning’s captaincy and set the world record for consecutive wins in ODI cricket (26) between 2018 and 2021.
The seven-time World Cup winner and three-time Belinda Clark medallist amassed 8,352 runs from 241 international matches. The top-order batter scored 17 centuries across her international career.
Speaking on her retirement, Lanning said: "The decision to step away from international cricket was a difficult one to make, but I feel now is the right time for me. I’ve been incredibly fortunate to enjoy a 13-year international career, but I know now is the right time for me to move on to something new.
"Team success is why you play the game, I’m proud of what I have been able to achieve and will cherish the moments shared with teammates along the way."
She made her international debut on December 30, 2010, in a T20I against New Zealand and became the youngest Australian to score a century when she scored 104 not out against England at the WACA Ground aged 18 years and 288 days. It was just her third match and second ODI.
Lanning was already a T20 and ODI World Cup winner (2012 and 2013 respectively) when she was appointed Australian captain at 21 and oversaw a period of unrivalled dominance for the Australian women’s team.
The stylish batter was crowned the Belinda Clark medallist three times across a four-year period between 2014 and 2017, highlighting her sustained brilliance and ability to consistently deliver match-winning performances in all formats of the game.
Captaining Australia to one ICC Cricket World Cup (2022), four ICC Women’s T20 World Cup (2014, 2018, 2020 and 2023) titles and a Commonwealth Games gold medal ensures Lanning retires as one of the most decorated captains in the history of cricket.
The crowning moment of Lanning’s storied international career came in her hometown of Melbourne when she lifted the T20 World Cup in front of 86,174 fans at the MCG on March 8, 2020.
In what turned out to be Lanning’s final match in the green and gold, she led Australia to the 2023 Women’s T20 World Cup title in front of a packed crowd at Newlands in Cape Town earlier this year.
Cricket Australia CEO Nick Hockley said: "On behalf of Australian Cricket, I would like to congratulate Meg on her incredible career as an Australian cricketer and all she has achieved as captain of the Australian women’s cricket team.
"One of the finest cricketers Australia has produced, Meg’s supreme achievements with the bat have been matched by her inspiring leadership. As one of the best players in the world over a long period of time, Meg has made an immeasurable impact and led a generation which has helped revolutionise the game.
"Under Meg’s leadership, the Australian women’s cricket team has built a legacy of global dominance and has been at the forefront of growing the game and inspiring the next generation of cricketers all around the world.
"A seven-time World Cup winner and Commonwealth Games gold medallist, Meg retires from international cricket having achieved everything there is to achieve and we thank her for the immense contribution she has made."
Despite the loss, the Afghanistan cricket team has been one of the most loved groups this World Cup. Their performances have been top-notch with back-to-back wins. Cricket lovers across the world are super impressed with their performance. Indian cricket fans cannot help but cheer for the Shahidi-led team who are now the best Asian team after India.
They have had a record-breaking Cricket World Cup campaign so far, beating three former champions including England, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka as well as the Netherlands. While host India and South Africa have already booked a seat for the semifinals, Afghanistan had to win both the matches against Australia and South Africa.
However, Maxwell’s terrific performance broke their hearts. Now, they have to face South Africa in Ahmedabad. A win against South Africa will ensure that they will have the upper hand, but that is not enough.
Due to the low run rate, Afghanistan have to beat South Africa by a big margin. Their chances of qualifying for the semifinals will also grow if both New Zealand and Pakistan lose their next matches.
New Zealand will face Sri Lanka on November 9 in Bangalore while Pakistan is all set to lock horns with England on November 11 in Kolkata.
Speaking about the chances, Afghanistan captain Shahidi said, “As they say, the sky’s the limit.”
“As of now, our mission is to reach the semifinals. However, I would be happier if we won the World Cup. It is not that as far as if we reach the semifinals we would say it’s enough,” he was quoted as saying by Aljazeera.
In a rare visual, an Australian fan grabbed the attention of the fans during the high scoring match between Australia vs New Zealand at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala on Saturday.
In the video, the fan was found spreading his arms above and chanting the slogan of ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’, ‘Vande Mataram’ and ‘Jai Shri Ram’ aloud. He received huge support from the crowd on the ground during the match as well.
The video has reportedly gone viral over various social media platforms within no time. It has garnered more than 38.4 k views and 2.9 k likes on social media platform X (earlier known as Twitter) so far.
Aussies Fan chanting Jay Shree Ram & Bharat Mata Ki Jaypic.twitter.com/XPJfyJTxpb
— RVCJ Media (@RVCJ_FB) October 28, 2023
In response to the video, several fans have showered the comment box with amazing comments.
“Their winning secret,” wrote a fan.
“Aussies you are our Brothers,” wrote another fan.
Responding to the unusual video, a third user commented, “Why Pakistani crying in comment Section?”
Australia’s previous best against New Zealand in the World Cup came in the 2007 World Cup when they posted 348/6.
It is also the third-highest total for any team against New Zealand in men's ODIs.
Australia's previous highest ODI total against New Zealand (378/5) had come on December 6, 2016 in Canberra.
Australia now also holds the record of consecutive 350-plus totals, following up their 367 for 9 against Pakistan and 399 for 8 against Netherlands. They are the first team to score 350-plus in three successive men's ODIs.
Batting first in the match David Warner and Travis Head led the Australian inning and posted a mammoth total of 388/10 in 49.2 overs. Warner-Head's opening stand of 175 runs led the base of the Australian innings, Travis Head in his World Cup debut scored a century before getting out on 109.
Head was also the top scorer from Australia with a blistering 109 runs knock comprised of ten boundaries and 7 maximum.
"It's nice to be back with the boys. I was there for a couple of weeks, but coming back and playing in the middle was excellent. Nice to be in the fixture, nice to be playing, and it is nice to be back. Nice to contribute. It was a very good wicket, said Heag in the innings break
The hand felt good. It felt comfortable, and well, I felt back on track, which is nice.
I think Davey and I just looked to play aggressively and forged a partnership. Looked to go as hard as we could, and yeah, it was nice. 388 looks like a brilliant total.
Glenn Maxwell batting in the middle played a thrilling inning of 41 runs off 24 deliveries with skipper Pat Cummins (37 off 14) giving the final touch with the bat to the Australian inning.
At the time of writing, New Zealand are 75/2 after 10.3 overs.
As per reports, Greg’s friends are pitching in to set up an online fundraising platform to enhance his last few years.
The 75-year-old was the former captain of the Australia cricket team. He had a controversial stint as the head coach of the Indian team from 2005-2007.
“I certainly don’t want it to sound like we are in desperate straits, because we are not but we are not living in luxury either. I think most people assume that, because we played cricket, that we are all living in the lap of luxury. While I am certainly not crying poor, we are not reaping in the benefits that today’s players are,” said Greg during an interview.
Meanwhile, Chappell reluctantly agreed to a GoFundMe page being set up for him, along with a testimonial lunch held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) last week hosted by Eddie McGuire and attended by cricket greats, including brothers Ian and Trevor.
According to Greg, he is not the only player from his era who experienced financial difficulties, even though the landscape of professional cricket has come a long way since his retirement.
In the rare visual, the fan was found spreading his arms above and chanting the slogan of ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ aloud. He received huge support from the crowd during the match as well.
The video has reportedly gone viral over various social media platforms. It has garnered more than 460.4k views and 30.2k likes on X (earlier known as Twitter) so far.
In response to the video, several fans have showered the comment box with amazing comments.
Australia fans saying "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" at Chinnaswamy Stadium.pic.twitter.com/udVosrzhbv
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) October 21, 2023
“Respect earned,” wrote a fan.
“Australia India gonna be finest,” tweeted another fan.
Responding to the rare video, a third user commented, “Jai Shree Ram.”
Coming back to the match, Pakistan faced their second consecutive loss as Australia clinched a convincing victory by 62 runs. Earlier, Pakistan had suffered a humiliating loss against Australia on October 14.
After a bad start in the mega event, Australia have now emerged victorious in their last two games.
Panda today hosted a 6-member delegation of Australian Senators and MPs led by Australian Senate President Sue Lines and Australian House of Representatives Speaker Milton Dick and discussed various issues related to India-Australia relations.
The visiting delegation was inspired by India's popularity and growth on the world map under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the esteem of BJP, the world's largest political party.
India – Australia ties are anchored in 3 D’s : Democracy, Diaspora & Dosti, as explained pithily by PM @narendramodi
— Baijayant Jay Panda (@PandaJay) October 11, 2023
Today i was honoured to host a visiting delegation of Australian Senators & MPs, led by Hon’ Senate President @linessue & Hon’ Speaker of the House @MiltonDickMP pic.twitter.com/VXQgH4qJGm
The meeting emphasized India-Australia ties and diplomatic relationships. Among others present at the meeting were Member of the Australian House of Representatives, Libby Coker, Joanne Ryan, Senator Dean Smith, Senator Ralph Babet.
Taking to his X, formerly known as Twitter, Jay Panda also shared, “India – Australia ties are anchored in 3 D’s : Democracy, Diaspora & Dosti, as explained pithily by PM @narendramodi.”
“Today I was honoured to host a visiting delegation of Australian Senators & MPs, led by Hon’ Senate President @linessue & Hon’ Speaker of the House @MiltonDickMP,” he added.
Australia were given the target of chasing 400 after Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer smashed sparkling centuries, hitting 104 and 105 respectively while sharing a 200-run partnership. Captain KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav lit up the innings with their blazing half-centuries, 52 and 72 not out respectively as an absolute run-fest propelled India to a mammoth 399/5, their highest ODI score against Australia.
In the start of the chase, Krishna landed huge blows by taking out Matthew Short and Steven Smith on consecutive deliveries, before rain stopped proceedings for Australia at 56/2 in nine overs. With a revised target of 317 in 33 overs, the pitch gave more turn to spinners.
It resulted in Ashwin taking 3-41 in seven overs and triggering an Australian collapse, while Jadeja took 3-42 in 5.2 overs. Sean Abbott made 54 and had a stand of 77 off 44 balls with Josh Hazlewood for the ninth wicket before the duo were dismissed in three balls as Australia were all out for 217 in 28.2 overs, also their fifth straight loss in the format.
More to follow….
Brief Scores: India 399/5 in 50 overs (Shreyas Iyer 105, Shubman Gill 104; Cameron Green 2-103, Josh Hazlewood 1-62) beat Australia 217 in 28.2 overs (Sean Abbott 54, David Warner 53; Ravichandran Ashwin 3-41, Ravindra Jadeja 3-42) by 99 runs via DLS method
The pilot was on board the aircraft when it crashed and was forced to swim to shore after the helicopter began to sink, 7NEWS quoted police as saying.
"Shortly before 3:00 p.m. local time, the helicopter hit the water surface and rolled while collecting water from the dam. After the crash in Tarome, the pilot escaped the wreckage and managed to swim to shore," Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) said in a statement.
The aircraft was deployed to help douse a vegetation fire in Tregony, which has been burning for the past several days. The authority has been dealing with the fire since September 16, Xinhua news agency reported.
"The cause of the crash is unknown at this time and QFES will assist the Australian Transport Safety Bureau with its investigation," said the authority.
After experiencing the warmest winter on record since 1910, Queensland saw the onset of an unseasonal heatwave in early spring, which elevated fire risks across the state.
Australian Bureau of Meteorology senior meteorologist Miriam Bradbury said in a severe weather update that on Thursday, extreme fire dangers would be expected through the Channel Country of Queensland with a fire weather warning likely to be issued.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)’s Tours, Fixtures and Technical Committee on Tuesday confirmed the venues for the home season 2023-24.
The upcoming season promises to be an exciting period for cricket enthusiasts, as the senior men's team is scheduled to play a total of 16 international matches, comprising 5 Tests, 3 ODIs, and 8 T20Is, the BCCI informed on Tuesday.
BCCI's Tours, Fixtures and Technical Committee comprising Amitabh Vijayvargiya, Jayendra Sahgal and Hari Narayan Pujari confirmed the venues allocated as per the BCCI venue rotation policy, the BCCI honorary secretary Jay Shah said in a release on Tuesday.
The upcoming home season will commence with India hosting Australia for a three-match ODI series ahead of the marquee ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, the season's biggest prize.
The ODI series will be held in Mohali, Indore, and Rajkot. Following the 50-over World Cup, India will play a five-match T20I series against Australia, beginning on November 23 in Visakhapatnam and concluding on December 3 in Hyderabad.
The start of the new year will see Afghanistan arriving in India for their maiden white-ball bilateral tour.
The three-match T20I series will take place in Mohali and Indore, with the final clash at Bengaluru, the venue where Afghanistan played their first-ever Test match.
Test cricket will then take over as India will host England for a five-match Test series starting on January 25, 2024. The exciting Test series will be played at Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, Rajkot, Ranchi, and Dharamsala.
Promising batter and debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal delivered an impressive knock of 171 runs. Veteran off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin also made a significant impact in the emphatic victory by taking an impressive total of 12 wickets.
India hold the top position in the ICC Test team rankings currently with a rating of 121 points. World Test Championship (WTC) Final winner Australia follow India closely and are currently on the second spot with 116 points in their kitty. Australia are currently engaged in the ongoing Ashes series against arch-rival England.
Australia are leading the five-match series 2-1. They have the chance to surpass India and claim the top spot. Despite India’s current success, their chances to retain the top spot is not guaranteed, even if they secure a 2-0 victory against West Indies.
If the second Test between India and West Indies ends in a draw, Australia must win the Ashes series with a minimum margin of 3-1 to topple India from the top position.
Moreover, if India manage to defeat West Indies by a margin of 2-0, Australia will be required to secure a minimum margin of 4-1 against England in order to topple India from the No.1 spot in Test ranking.
The incident took place when the Air India official, who was downgraded from business class to economy due to the seat malfunctioning, tried to correct his co-passenger about his loud voice, the source said.
Despite the physical assault, Air India cabin crew did not use restraining devices to contain the unruly passenger, the source alleged.
An Air India spokesperson, in a statement, said, "A passenger on board AI-301 operating Sydney-Delhi on July 9, 2023, behaved in an unacceptable manner during flight, despite verbal and written warnings, causing distress to other passengers, which included one of our employees."
"Upon the flight's safe landing at Delhi, the passenger was handed over to the security agency, and the passenger later apologised in writing," the airline said.
It also said that the DGCA was "duly informed" of the incident and added that the airline "will take a firm stand against misbehaviour. We will pursue this to the full extent of the law."
According to the source, the seat allotted to the Air India official was 30-C since there were other passengers he chose to shift.
"Later he was reseated in 25 ABC," the source said.
"The AI official began correcting his co-passenger about his loud voice. The passenger seated next to him slapped, twisted his head and abused him," the source alleged.
As the five young cabin crew could not contain the rowdy passenger, the AI official rushed to the rear seats, as per the source.
"This unruly passenger was playing with emergency equipment and walking freely in the galley," the source alleged.
According to the source, the male cabin supervisor was called and the passenger was "issued a verbal warning and a written warning."
Resuming the final day on 114/4, Stokes and Ben Duckett (83) added a further 63 runs before the former fell to Josh Hazlewood just after the first hour of the morning session was over.
Jonny Bairstow was run-out in controversial circumstances for 10, as wicketkeeper Alex Carey threw the ball at the stumps after the batter wandered out of the crease while avoiding a bouncer, leaving England at 193/6, with the crowd booing Australia and some confrontational scenes happening in Long Room at lunch break.
In between, Stokes went for an ultra-attacking approach with the bat, reaching his century with three scintillating sixes and paving the path for another great escape for England by hitting nine fours and as many maximums.
As Stokes marched forward in his onslaught, Australia, minus Nathan Lyon’s bowling, were having flashbacks of Headingley 2019 coming true at Lord’s 2023. But once Stokes fell to Hazlewood and his 108-run stand with Stuart Broad came to an end, Australia were able to bowl out England for 327 in 81.3 to go 2-0 up in the five-game series.
For England, what came back to hit them hard was allowing Australia to get too many runs in the first innings after electing to bowl first and then throwing away too many wickets in their first essay while looking to attack the short ball, giving the visitors a 91-run lead.
They now must win the third Test at Headingley, starting from Thursday, otherwise, they won’t be able to regain the Ashes.
Earlier on Sunday morning, Stokes and Ben Duckett resumed from where they had left off, nurdling the ball around and getting on top of the bounce.
The Australians persisted with the short-ball ploy without much success early in the session. Stokes survived an lbw review off Mitchell Starc’s sharp yorker and his century stand with Duckett was up soon.
Just as England seemed to be on course to push Australia into panic mode, Hazlewood struck by finding Duckett’s top edge as the batter tried to pull off a short ball. Bairstow joined Stokes in the middle as the visitors continue to barrage them with short balls.
However, the wicket came in highly-unexpected fashion when Bairstow wandered outside the crease after leaving a delivery, with an alert Carey throwing down the stumps to catch the England batter well short.
Post the bizarre dismissal, Stokes began to tee off, taking on the short ball with relentless pulls through the leg side. In the 54th over, he smashed Cameron Green for three fours, all off pull shots, and treated him to another four followed by a hat-trick of sixes in his next over to reach his hundred in quite dramatic fashion, with Stokes celebrating in subdued fashion.
Broad held his end firm as Stokes continued to flay the Aussie attack. What appeared to be well outside England’s reach suddenly seemed possible with the skipper’s unrelenting onslaught.
Two sixes came in the 60th over bowled by Hazlewood and two more followed in the 65th over from Mitchell Starc with the left-arm seamer resorting to T20 tactics to outfox Stokes. The duo soon brought up the century stand at more than run-a-ball, with Broad contributing only 11 runs to it at that point in time.
Stokes, targeting bowlers from only one end to evade the deep fielders, raced past 150, but Headingley 2019 was not to be repeated at Lord’s as Hazlewood eventually bounced Stokes out -– the batter edging one to the keeper off a short delivery and departing for 155.
The rest of the line-up hung around for a while, but Starc sent Josh Tongue back with a searing yorker and uprooted his leg-stump to hand Australia a memorable win and a 2-0 lead in the series after two Tests.
Brief scores:
Australia 416 & beat England 325 & 327 in 81.3 overs (Ben Stokes 155, Ben Duckett 83; Pat Cummins 3-69, Mitchell Starc 3-79) by 43 runs
Only two minutes into the match, Messi intercepted a cross at the top of the penalty area. He dribbled past a defender before dispatching a curling left-foot shot into the net, Xinhua reported.
Substitute Pezzella augmented the lead to 2-0 in the 68th minute, directing a header into the middle of the goal box.
Both teams put up an exhilarating match that kept the spectators on their toes until the final whistle.
The friendly match attracted more than 50,000 Chinese football fans to the stadium.
During the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Argentina secured a 2-1 victory over Australia in the Round of 16.
Navneet Kaur (10') and Deep Grace Ekka (25') scored the goals for India while Abigail Wilson (22') scored the lone goal for Australia 'A'.
Having won the previous encounter 3-2, Australia 'A' started with confidence, maintaining possession early on. Gurjit Kaur remained alert in the defence for the Indian women's hockey team, not allowing the opposition entry inside the circle.
Earning three quick penalty corners, India put pressure on the Australia 'A' defence and Navneet Kaur (10') scored the first goal with a reverse hit to give India the lead.
The second quarter started with India continuing to build momentum from the backward line. But Australia 'A' managed to get a shot on target from a quick counter-attack, only for captain Savita to make the save. Australia 'A' earned their first penalty corner of the night midway into the second quarter, and Abigail Wilson (22') struck the back of the nets with a drag-flick to level the scoreline. But minutes later, Deep Grace Ekka (25') put India back in the lead with a drag flick of her own on a penalty corner.
With Vandana Katariya building an attack from the left flank at the start of the second half, India earned another quick penalty corner. But this time, the Australia 'A' defence managed to avert the danger.
Controlling the midfield, Neha Goyal set up penetrating runs for Indian attackers as Australia 'A' defence felt the pressure. India managed to maintain their 2-1 lead as the third quarter came to a close.
Vandana continued to put pressure on Australia 'A', at the start of the final quarter, with a dribbling run inside the circle. With 15 minutes left on the clock, both teams started showcasing urgency.
India earned a late penalty corner to create another chance to increase their lead. But the Australia 'A' defence managed to save the set-piece to keep themselves in the contest. India kept possession in the final few minutes to prevent Australia 'A' from creating an attacking opportunity and won the thrilling encounter 2-1.
India started the first quarter of the game on a positive note by keeping the possession and making some good passes. The visitors also displayed a pressing game to win the ball back when Australia had possession and also won two penalty corners. On the other hand, the hosts also tested India’s defence on multiple occasions and won a penalty corner as well, however, neither of the teams was able to capitalise on the chances that they got as the opening quarter ended goal-less.
The second quarter witnessed India players show some terrific ball control and play an attacking game, however, it was Australia who took the lead as Maddison Brooks (25’) scored a field goal after she received a pass through a quickly taken free hit following which, Brooks, who was standing free at the far post, put the ball beyond India’s goalkeeper and Captain Savita. The hosts went into the half-time break with a 1-0 lead.
The third quarter began with India controlling the tempo of the game in their bid to find the equaliser and it paid off as defender Deep Grace Ekka (42’) converted a penalty corner to level the score. The visitors continued to test Australia’s defence as they were eyeing to take a lead, however, the third quarter didn’t see any more goals and it ended with the score tied at 1-1.
Australia came out all guns blazing in the final quarter but India’s defence line stood strong and denied the hosts from taking a lead. In the meantime, the visiting team’s attackers also made some good chances and came close to scoring on multiple occasions but couldn’t find the back of the net as the match ended in a 1-1 draw.
The letter contains threatening and sexualised messages, the report said. The bizarre incident has been reported from women living across south-eastern and eastern Melbourne in Australia. Based on complaints by the victims, police have registered a case and launched an investigation.
Interestingly, all the victims are linked and went to the same college, an independent Catholic school for girls.
“All the women who have come forward attended Kilbreda College, a private girls’ school, in 1999,” police said.
The cops have collected the parcel received by the victims and are currently carrying out DNA and handwriting analysis to track down the perpetrator.
It is suspected that the perpetrator got the addresses of the women from a yearbook they had written while they were students at the college.
Speaking to the media, Detective Acting Senior Sergeant Grant Lewis said, “You need to stop this and we’ll find you soon.”
“We don’t know what the connection to the school is. It might be an ex-student, an employee… it could be someone who found this yearbook and is currently playing a game,” the police said.
The principal of the college has requested the victims to come forward to the police.
The development comes after US President Joe Biden pulled out from the meeting at the last minute citing the domestic debt ceiling crisis, and now all four leaders of the Quad grouping -- the US, Japan, India and Australia -- are likely to instead meet on the sidelines of the G7 meeting in Japan this weekend, the ABC News reported.
The meeting was slated to take place on May 24.
Modi is scheduled to travel to Japan, Papua New Guinea and Australia this month with the power-packed visit concluding 'Down Under' where he will address the diaspora.
"Prime Minister Modi has a bilateral program that is organised, so I'm certain that he will be here. And, of course, we have a very large growing diaspora here in Australia and there are events including a large event at Qudos Bank Arena to be held next Tuesday night (May 23)," Albanese said in a statement.
More than 20,000 members of the Indian diaspora have registered so far for the grand community reception organised for Modi in Sydney during his visit to Australia on May 23.
The event -- 'Australia Welcomes Modi' -- organised by non-profit Indian Australian Diaspora Foundation (IADF) will provide Indians Down Under an opportunity to see Modi and listen to his address to the community.
According to media reports, the Parramatta Council has formally extended an invitation to Modi to visit Harris Park, informally referred to as 'Little India', this time.
Albanese, who visited India this year, formally extended the invite to his Indian counterpart.
The University of Wollongong (UOW) received licence approval to conduct courses in India after a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UOW Vice-Chancellor Professor Patricia M Davidson on May 12.
"We are delighted to receive the approval and plan to start our operations in GIFT City by the end of this year," Professor Davidson said in a university statement.
"I would like to thank the Australian government, Prime Minister Modi and his government for the support and bringing our mutual vision of providing high-quality Australian teaching and learning environment that UOW is known for to India," Davidson added.
As of 2023, more than 2,500 Indian students are enrolled at UOW in Australia, with business, engineering and information sciences the most popular degrees.
The country is reportedly set to enrol the highest number of Indian students ever, surpassing the previous high of 75,000 in 2019.
Davidson further said UOW aims to create a location for learning, research and industry collaboration that supports the mission of GIFT City, and provides an affordable Australian education within India, by a highly ranked and experienced global university.
UOW plans to commence at GIFT City later this year with a Graduate Certificate in Computing and a Master of Computing in the Finance domain, and then add a Master of Applied Finance and Master of Financial Technology (FinTech) in 2024.
This will be followed by Bachelors of Business and Computing Science in 2025, according to the University statement.
The University also plans to establish a Global Capital Markets Research Centre in its GIFT City location focussed on training PhD students and delivery of research with a focus on Indian capital markets.
For this, UOW said it has commenced work with the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) and has in-principle support from the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and Singapore Exchange (SGX).
The University will set the student fees at 50 per cent of those incurred by international students studying at UOW's Australian campus.
This will be supplemented by merit scholarships to ensure bright and capable students can study with us at GIFT City, the statement read.
"The 21st century is truly India's century, and we are proud to be part of its success story and its contribution to shaping a better world," UOW's Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Alex Frino, said.
"India's young and expanding workforce and growing demand for expertly trained talent has provided a unique opportunity for UOW to invest its high-quality teaching and learning capabilities into the country and produce the skilled workforce of the future," Frino added.
An investigation by the Australian media last month said that UOW was among five universities that had placed a ban or restriction on students from some Indian states in response to a surge in fraudulent applications seeking to work, and not study, in the country.
Denying the claims, the UOW said in a statement that it "does not have any restrictions on student applications from India other than the standard entry criteria we apply to all international students and the requirements of the Australian Department of Home Affairs".
Instead of introducing restrictions, UOW said it has streamlined its application process for all international students, including Indian students, to speed up the turnaround time on their applications.
Last year, UOW had launched the Vice-Chancellor's Leadership Scholarship-India, which provides recipients with generous financial assistance, leadership training, dedicated academic support, community networking, and global mobility opportunities.
UOW has campuses in Dubai, Hong Kong and Malaysia, each employing over 200 academic staff and enrolling at least 3,000 students each, in addition to its Australian campuses.
Pakistan are in the second spot with India just a point away as the three teams look set to go into the year-end's ODI World Cup in India with a lot to play for.
Australia are two rating points clear of Pakistan at 118 points after the update, which weighs matches completed before May 2022 at 50 per cent and subsequent matches at 100 per cent.
Pakistan, who had grabbed the number one position briefly on May 5 before losing the final ODI of their five-match home series to New Zealand and slipping back behind Australia, are on 116 points, one more than India (115).
Pakistan would have remained at the top of the ODI rankings even after the annual update had they completed a 5-0 sweep in the series against New Zealand.
An interesting battle at the top of the rankings is imminent in the year of the World Cup as only three points separate Australia, Pakistan and India, who are comfortably ahead of the others in the 20-team table.
The matches dropping out of the rankings include the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019. England and New Zealand, who played an epic final at Lord's four years ago, have both lost points in the annual update.
New Zealand are in fourth position but 11 points behind India at 104 after losing four points over the cycle. England, who will defend their World Cup title in India this year, have lost 10 points and are in fifth position with 101 points.
South Africa and Bangladesh retain sixth and seventh positions, respectively, while Afghanistan have overtaken former World champions Sri Lanka and the West Indies to grab the eighth position. The top eight teams have qualified directly for this year's World Cup.
A report in Cricbuzz says India's opening match of ODI World Cup against Australia in all likelihood will be in Chennai. It added that India's blockbuster game against Pakistan will be on October 15, which is a Sunday, like the final on November 19.
The tournament is likely to start with England-New Zealand clash, also a rematch of the 2019 ODI World Cup final, at the Narendra Modi Stadium on October 5, with the final to be held at the same venue.
"The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is expected to come up with the schedule soon, most likely after the on-going Indian Premier League (IPL), after obtaining the formal approval from all concerned. As the host, the BCCI of course could have the final say on the dates and venues," said the report.
The report also confirmed that Pakistan has agreed to tour India for the World Cup despite the standoff over Asia Cup, though it said few concerns have emerged. "Majorly, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is understood to be having reservations over playing the big game against India in Ahmedabad and that could be one of the reasons, it is being assumed, why Najam Sethi, the chairman of the PCB, visited the ICC office in Dubai over the last couple of days."
"Having agreed in principle to come to India for the quadrennial championship, the PCB chief seems to be asking for a few changes to the venues of its matches as a face-saver. However, it is learnt that the PCB has agreed to play the final in Ahmedabad, should its team reach the title clash," it added.
The report further said Pakistan will play its games as per the tentative schedule in Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Chennai and Bengaluru, along with Kolkata, Delhi, Indore, Dharamsala, Guwahati, Rajkot, Raipur and Mumbai being other designated venues with Mohali and Nagpur missing out from the list.
"The Wankhede in Mumbai is likely to get a semifinal. Each team will play nine league games which means most centres, if not all, will get an India game each," it added.
2023 Men's ODI World Cup will be played between 10 teams and 48 matches will be played. India, England, Australia, New Zealand, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh and South Africa earned direct qualification.
The last two spots will be filled through a qualifying tournament from June 18 to July 9 in Zimbabwe in which two World Cup winners, West Indies and Sri Lanka, will compete alongside the Netherlands, Ireland, Nepal, Oman, Scotland, UAE and hosts Zimbabwe.
The front wall of the BAPS Swaminarayan temple in Rosehill suburb of western Sydney was spray-painted with the message "Declare Modi Terrorist" early on Friday morning, The Australia Today reported.
"When I came this morning for prayers I saw ugly vandalism on the front wall," Sejal Patel, a daily visitor to the temple, said.
Temple authorities also found a Khalistani flag hanging on the gate, and reported the matter to New South Wales police.
According to the report, police officers visited the temple and have been provided with the CCTV footage of the attack.
This incident comes after a brief almost two months of Khalistan activities in Australia.
In March, the boundary wall of the Shree Laxmi Narayan Temple in Brisbane was vandalised.
In January alone, three Hindu temples in Melbourne were defaced with anti-India graffiti and pro-Bhindranwale slogans by Khalistani supporters, and later, temple priests received threatening calls to raise 'Khalistan Zindabad' slogans.
Following vandalisation of Hindu temples, Khalistani flags were found attached to the Indian consulate in Brisbane in February -- just days after External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar's visit to Australia.
India has time and again registered a strong protest with the Australian government asking it to take swift action and bring perpetraters to the book.
During his visit to India this year, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had assured Modi of strict action, saying that safety of the Indian community is a priority of his government.
Modi is scheduled to travel to Japan, Papua New Guinea and Australia in May with the power-packed visit concluding Down Under where he will attend the Quad summit from May 23-24 in Sydney.
The India pacer, who is playing for Royal Challengers Banaglore in the ongoing IPL, had promptly reported the matter to BCCI's ACU unit.
It is understood that the gambler had lost a lot of money during the India games and messaged Siraj out of sheer frustration.
India had played white-ball home series against New Zealand and Sri Lanka in January-February before Australia arrived. India won the T20 series against Sri Lanka 2-1 before blanking them 3-0 in the ODI series.
Against New Zealand, India won the ODI series 3-0 before triumphing in the T20 series with a 2-1 margin, with the Black Caps winning the lone game of the tour in Ranchi.
"It wasn't a bookie who approached Siraj. He is a driver from Hyderabad who is addicted to betting on India matches. He had approached Siraj via WhatsApp after losing a lot of money on India games," a senior BCCI source privy to the developments told PTI on condition of anonymity.
"Siraj reported the approach immediately. The law enforcement (Andhra Police) authorities had nabbed the person," the source added.
The BCCI had beefed up its ACU network ever since the spot-fixing scandal, involving S Sreesanth, Ankeet Chavan, Ajit Chandila and then Chennai Super Kings (CSK) team principal Gurunath Meiyappan, was unearthed in 2013.
Now, each IPL team has a dedicated ACU official who stays in the same hotel and is there at the ground monitoring all the movements.
Also, there is a mandatory ACU workshop for players on the dos and don'ts, and if any player fails to report a corrupt approach, there are sanctions in place.
Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan was suspended in 2021 for not reporting a corrupt approach during his IPL stint in the previous season.
RCB are currently placed eighth with four points after two wins and three defeats.
Electing to bat first, Australia seemed to have read the conditions well by maximising the powerplay. But despite getting into double figures barring Steve Smith falling for a two-ball duck, none of the batters could make a big score.
A majority of their batters lost their wickets on a slow pitch where shot-making wasn't easy, especially of aerial shots. Hardik kept banging his deliveries to pick 3/44 while Kuldeep got sharp turn to take 3/56. The duo were supported by Mohammed Siraj and Axar Patel taking two wickets each, while Ravindra Jadeja bowled tight lines while conceding only 34 runs in his ten uninterrupted overs.
After Travis Head drove Mohammed Shami down the ground for four in the opening over, Marsh began to dominate the Indian bowlers. He was quick to pick lengths from Mohammed Siraj and flicked him through mid-wicket with perfection for two boundaries.
After whipping Shami over the same region for six, Marsh again drove off Siraj twice on both sides of the 'v' for boundaries. Shami came under attack again when Head whipped for six, while Marsh clipped for four through the leg-side.
When Axar Patel overpitched on the first ball of eighth over, Head lofted down the ground for six, followed by Marsh bringing up Australia's fifty with a four thumped through extra cover. Head looked in great touch, pulling and upper-cutting off Siraj for two fours.
But on the fifth ball of 11th over, Head was caught at deep third man off Hardik after Shubman Gill dropped him at deep square leg just two balls before. In his next over, he extracted a drive from Steve Smith and the outside edge went behind to KL Rahul.
Hardik had his third wicket in three overs when Marsh looked to drive a length ball outside off-stump, but inside edged to the stumps. David Warner, batting at number four for the first time in ODIs, tried to loft Kuldeep over deep mid-wicket, but the ball turned and took the leading edge to long-off in the 25th over.
Four overs later, Labuschagne too fell to Kuldeep when he never got close to pitch of the ball and holed out to long-off. Carey and Stoinis were proactive in their sixth-wicket stand, where the duo relied a lot on strike rotation and used a lot of reverse sweeps as well as slamming boundaries over long-on.
Axar broke the partnership in the 37th over when Stoinis went for a loft, but the bat turned on impact and took the inner edge to long-on. Two overs later, Carey looked to defend against a leg-break from Kuldeep which was pitched around leg-stump. But the ball spun away sharply to hit the top of off-stump, leaving everyone bewildered.
With Australia's batting going deep, Abbott pulled Hardik for four, before unfurling a superb reverse sweep off Kuldeep to pick another boundary. After slamming Axar over long-on for a big six, Ashton Agar joined the party by smacking another maximum over the same region.
But Patel ended the joyride on last ball of the 45th over by castling Abbott, who was shaping up for a swipe across the line. Agar departed in the next over by pulling a Siraj bouncer straight to deep mid-wicket. Adam Zampa and Mitchell Starc hit a boundary each, before Siraj had the latter caught at deep square-leg to end Australia's innings in 49 overs.
Brief Scores: Australia 269 all out in 49 overs (Mitchell Marsh 47, Alex Carey 38; Hardik Pandya 3/44, Kuldeep Yadav 3/56) against India
But the spirits were dampened as it turned into a horror show for India as the hosts crashed to 117 all out in 26 overs after being asked to bat first. Left-arm fast-bowler Mitchell Starc emerged as the main architect of Australia bundling out India for their fourth-lowest total at home, claiming his ninth five-wicket haul in ODI cricket.
Starc, who had picked a three-fer in the first ODI in Mumbai, produced yet another stunning exhibition of early swing bowling to scythe through the top order and then took out Mohammed Siraj to finish with 5-53. Sean Abbott was excellent in his 3-23 while Nathan Ellis provided great support through 2-13.
If India's highly disappointing batting wasn't enough, then the bowlers were made to look utterly pedestrian by the tremendous display of spectacular hitting by the opening pair of Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head. The left-right duo thrashed Indian bowlers all around the park to chase down the total with 39 overs to spare, making it the heaviest defeat for the hosts in terms of balls left.
The result meant the series scoreline now stands at 1-1, with the decider to be held in Chennai on Wednesday. India had a game which they would like to delete from their memory forever.
They couldn't handle pace and swing from Starc, losing four wickets in Power-play for the first time since the 2019 ODI World Cup semifinal loss to New Zealand. Four batters fell for ducks as only Virat Kohli and Axar Patel could go beyond 25. With the ball, they were just relentlessly thrashed by Marsh and Head as Australia completely outplayed them in all departments of the game.
Starc's stellar show began from the first over, with Shubman Gill slashing a full and wide delivery straight to point. Rohit Sharma, coming in for Ishan Kishan, clipped him through square leg for four on the last ball of the opening over.
He and Virat Kohli took a boundary each off Cameron Green's half-volleys in the next over, before the latter drove and clipped off Starc in the third over. Starc bounced back in the fifth over, enticing Rohit to chase a wide delivery and a thick outer edge was caught by Steve Smith at first slip.
On the very next ball, Starc's inswinger comprehensively beat Suryakumar Yadav on the inside edge to trap the right-hander lbw for a second straight golden duck. The inswinger from Starc then took out KL Rahul, who looked to flick, but was struck on the front pad in front of the stumps.
India lost their fifth wicket in the tenth over when Hardik Pandya pushed away a Sean Abbott delivery without any footwork and Smith dived to his right to take a one-handed screamer of a catch with his right hand.
There was no respite for India as Nathan Ellis struck on his second delivery in the 16th over, trapping Kohli lbw with a straighter delivery while trying to play across the line. Four overs later, Ellis had his second wicket when his good length delivery got extra bounce and took the thick edge off Ravindra Jadeja's gloves to wicketkeeper Alex Carey.
Axar and Kuldeep Yadav tried to put up some resistance. But Abbott lured Kuldeep into pulling to square leg. On the very next ball, Mohammed Shami poked at a full delivery and nicked behind to Alex Carey.
Axar smacked Starc for delightful sixes down the ground and backward square leg in the 26th over. But the left-arm pacer ended the over by rattling Mohammed Siraj's top of off-stump to complete a fantastic five-wicket haul.
In chasing 118, Head clipped and flayed off Siraj for a brace of fours in the second over. Marsh continued from where he left off in the first ODI at Mumbai, starting by punching Shami between cover and point for four, followed by lofting over mid-on in the third over.
He welcomed Siraj by standing tall to flay past cover before Head pulled a short ball from him through square leg for the second four of the fourth over. Marsh's dominance continued by flicking, punching and pulling Shami for two fours and a six in the fifth over.
Head took it to another level by pulling Siraj twice, apart from flicking and punching for four straight boundaries in the sixth over. Axar's introduction in the seventh over couldn't stop Marsh as he creamed a drive through cover for four.
He then welcomed Hardik by slamming a six down the ground, followed by clubbing back-to-back sixes over deep mid-wicket and long-on to reach his fifty in just 28 balls. Head feasted on Axar's deliveries with a cut through point and whipped past short fine leg to get back-to-back boundaries as the opening partnership raised its century in just 8.5 overs.
Marsh welcomed Kuldeep Yadav by pulling him to the second tier over deep midwicket for six before Head went back to pull through the same region for four. After being dropped by Shami running in from long-on, Head got his fifty in 29 balls. Marsh finished off the chase in 11 overs with a square drive through point off Axar for a boundary to complete Australia's drubbing of India.
Brief scores:
India 117 in 26 overs (Virat Kohli 31, Axar Patel 29 not out; Mitchell Starc 5-53, Sean Abbott 3-23) lost to Australia 121 for no loss in 11 overs (Mitchell Marsh 66 not out, Travis Head 51 not out) by 10 wickets
Starc, who had picked a three-fer in the first ODI in Mumbai, produced yet another stunning exhibition of early swing bowling to scythe through the top order and then took out Mohammed Siraj to finish with 5/53.
Sean Abbott was excellent in his 3/23 while Nathan Ellis provided great support through 2/13. For India, who lost four wickets in power-play for the first time since the 2019 ODI World Cup semi-final loss to New Zealand, Virat Kohli and Axar Patel top-scored with 31 and 29 not out respectively.
It was a disappointing batting performance from the hosts' where four batters fell for ducks, while rest didn't have any answers to tough questions posed by Starc & Co to crash to their fourth lowest total at home.
Starc's stellar show began from the very first over, with Shubman Gill slashing a full and wide delivery straight to point. Starc found some inward movement, but Rohit Sharma clipped him through square leg for four on the last ball of the opening over.
He and Virat Kohli took a boundary each off Cameron Green's half-volleys in the next over, before the latter drove and clipped off Starc in the third over. Starc bounced back in the fifth over, enticing Rohit to chase a wide delivery and a thick outer edge was caught by Steve Smith at first slip.
On the very next ball, Starc's inswinger comprehensively beat Suryakumar Yadav on the inside edge to trap the right-hander lbw for a second straight golden duck. The inswinger from Starc then took out KL Rahul, who looked to flick, but was struck on the front pad in front of stumps.
India lost their fifth wicket in the tenth over when Hardik Pandya pushed away a Sean Abbott delivery without any footwork and Smith dived to his right to take a one-handed screamer of a catch with his right hand.
There was no respite for India as Nathan Ellis struck on his second delivery in the 16th over, trapping Kohli lbw with a straighter delivery while trying to play across the line. Four overs later, Ellis had his second wicket when his good length delivery got extra bounce and took the thick edge off gloves to wicketkeeper Alex Carey.
Axar and Kuldeep Yadav tried to put up some resistance. But Abbott lured Kuldeep into playing a pull and the ball went into the hands of forward square leg. On the very next ball, Mohammed Shami pokes at a full delivery and nicked behind to Carey.
Axar smacked Starc for delightful sixes down the ground and backward square leg in the 26th over. But the left-arm pacer ended the over by rattling Mohammed Siraj's top of off-stump to complete a fantastic five-wicket haul.
Brief Scores: India 117 in 26 overs (Virat Kohli 31, Axar Patel 29 not out; Mitchell Starc 5/53, Sean Abbott 3/23) against Australia
After winning the toss, Smith said fast bowler Nathan Ellis comes in for Glenn Maxwell, who he said "has pulled up a bit sore" while Alex Carey is back to be the wicketkeeper-batter for Australia in place of Josh Inglis.
"Different surface, been under covers for a while, might do something. Just a partnership through the middle would have helped us. It's good learning for us playing on these surfaces," he said.
Rohit said with him coming in the eleven, Ishan Kishan misses out, while left-arm spin all-rounder Axar Patel replaces seam-bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur.
"If we win the toss, I thought we could do something with three spinners if we bowl first. I think it will still turn in the second innings. And three spinners is something we might go with in the World Cup, so we want to try," he said.
"Pitch has been under the covers for a long time, we got to bat well and see where we are. Every game you play for India is a pressure game, so you got to stay calm and make the right decision. We have tried to remain calm in the last few ODI series we have played," he added.
India are currently leading the three-game series 1-0 after registering a win in Mumbai.
Playing XIs:
India: Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma (captain), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, KL Rahul (wicketkeeper), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj and Mohammed Shami
Australia: Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith (c), Marnus Labuschagne, Alex Carey (wk), Cameron Green, Marcus Stoinis, Sean Abbott, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Ellis and Adam Zampa
With more than an hour left on the clock for the game to end, both teams called for the match to end, as it reached the inevitable result of draw, as India pocketed their 16th consecutive series win at home. Also, it is the fourth straight series between India and Australia that has ended at 2-1 scoreline.
India and Australia will meet again in the World Test Championship final at the Oval in England from June 7-11. India's spot was sealed after New Zealand beat Sri Lanka by two wickets in a thrilling last-ball finish at Hagley Oval.
It was a Test match in Ahmedabad where the batters were dominant on a slow, flat pitch, completely opposite of the spin-friendly pitches in the first three Tests, which all ended in three days.
Despite that, ace off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin took a six-wicket haul. Usman Khawaja, and Cameron Green notched up centuries for Australia, while Shubman Gill made a sparkling 128 and Virat Kohli made a magnificent 186 for India.
On Monday, with the draw looming as a foregone conclusion, Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne notched up fifties as Australia reached 175/2 before the end arrived as hopes for an unlikely win for both teams terminated.
Twenty minutes into the first session, Ravichandran Ashwin had Matthew Kuhnemann lbw with an off-break delivery which went past his forward defence to smash into the front pad. Replays later showed Kuhnemann could have survived if he had taken the review.
With not much in the pitch to create trouble for the batters, Marnus Labuschagne comfortably came down the pitch to hit Ashwin through mid-wicket for four. Travis Head also joined boundary hitting when he cut a short ball from Ravindra Jadeja through off-side.
Labuschagne used his feet again when he lofted Ashwin over mid-wicket for four, followed by Head making use of width from Jadeja to fetch another boundary. Though India got something as the ball began to show some tricks, there was no stopping Head, who danced down the pitch to slam a six off Ashwin straight down the ground.
Head then tore into Axar Patel, taking back-to-back boundaries off him - a straight drive was followed by a punch leading to an edge past the slip fielder. He and Labuschagne played out the remaining overs in the session comfortably to ensure Australia didn't suffer any more damage.
Post lunch, Head reached his fifty when he guided a delivery from Axar past slip for four to take Australia towards safety. He then launched into Ashwin - a flick through mid-wicket for four was followed by a lofted six slammed down the ground. With the bowlers tiring, Head was turning out to be aggressive with his slogs and cuts.
Labuschagne looked comfortable with the pitch not doing much and easily put away anything offered on pads by Umesh Yadav for boundaries, before reaching his fifty with a brace through square leg.
Head was firmly on the verge of his sixth Test century, but Axar got one to spin sharply and go past the inside edge on the drive to clip the top of off-stump. Labuschagne went into the tea break unbeaten on 56, while Steve Smith is yet to get off the mark after KS Bharat dropped his catch on the last ball of 62nd over.
After tea, Smith slammed a boundary each off Ashwin and Jadeja. He then put up another defensive clinic with Labuschagne for company till the draw arrived, bringing an end to a fascinating series which saw India retaining the trophy, before Australia fought back in Indore and Ahmedabad produced a batting paradise for both teams to be tied down in a draw.
Brief Scores: Australia 480 in 167.2 overs and 175/2 in 78.1 overs (Travis Head 90, Marnus Labuschagne 63 not out; Axar Patel 1/36, Ravichandran Ashwin 1/58) draw with India 571 in 178.5 overs
Sri Lanka was the other team in contention for a spot in the WTC final. But now after losing the first Test to New Zealand by two wickets, it has cleared the path for India to go into the final and meet Australia in the summit clash.
With the Ahmedabad Test now heading towards a draw, Sri Lanka needed to beat New Zealand 2-0 in the two-match Test series to qualify. But rain in Christchurch took an entire session away in their quest to defend 284 runs against the Blackcaps.
Kane Williamson's unbeaten 121, and backed by Daryl Mitchell's outstanding 81 handed New Zealand a thrilling win and also ensured that India will meet Australia in the WTC final at The Oval from June 7-11, nine days after the end of IPL 2023.
Taking a 2-1 series lead in the opening three of four Border-Gavaskar Trophy Tests at home against Australia proved to be enough for Rohit Sharma's side to clinch their spot in the WTC final.
But the icing on the cake to confirm their WTC final spot was to avoid defeat in the ongoing fourth Test at Ahmedabad, which is heading towards an inevitable draw. With Sri Lanka's defeat to New Zealand, Rohit Sharma's men cannot drop below second position in the WTC points table.
India began their WTC campaign for the 2021-23 cycle in England, taking a 2-1 lead in their series against Joe Root's men, before the fifth Test in Manchester was postponed until July 2022 due to Covid.
They would go on to lose the fifth Test match in Birmingham, though series wins against New Zealand, Sri Lanka at home, followed by an away series victory over Bangladesh set up their charge to the WTC final.
Their Border-Gavaskar Trophy series win sets up a final against Australia on neutral ground at The Oval in London, with the winner claiming the World Test Championship mace. India lost the inaugural World Test Championship final to New Zealand in 2021, as Kane Williamson's side chased down a target of 139 in Southampton.