oppn parties First Semifinal: Will India Prevail Over A Resurgent New Zealand?

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  • Supreme Court questions the continuing relevance of two-child norms. The Court observed that falling fertility rates have weakened the population-control rationale behind laws disqualifying people with more than two children from contesting local body elections. It referred the issue to a larger Bench for consideration
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  • Two killed in Delhi building collapse; contractor booked. Two bodies were recovered after a building collapsed in Chawri Bazaar. Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said the contractor had been booked and the concerned junior and assistant engineers suspended
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  • Maaya Rajeshwaran reaches WTA-level quarter-final. The 17-year-old Indian defeated Poland's Weronika Falkowska 6-4, 6-3, becoming the first Indian woman since Sania Mirza in 2012 to reach a quarter-final at a WTA Tour-level singles event
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  • India beat Pakistan 3-2 in SAFF Championship. India defeated Pakistan in a closely contested match, having led 3-0 before conceding two late goals. The victory was reported as a significant result for India's second-string side
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  • The Supreme Court issued notice to the Centre and the Election Commission on a petition challenging Section 16 of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023, which grants the CEC and Election Commissioners protection from legal proceedings for acts performed in their official duties. The petition argues that such blanket immunity could leave citizens without an effective remedy for alleged wrongdoing by the Commission
  • The Supreme Court told voters whose names were deleted from Delhi's draft electoral rolls not to be apprehensive about seeking re-enrolment through Form 6, after the Election Commission assured it that such applicants would not be prosecuted merely because their names had appeared in earlier rolls
  • Congress leader Rahul Gandhi opened the party's campaign for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections with an Insaaf rally in Sangrur, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann's home district, accusing the AAP government of failing to control drugs, gangster violence and corruption. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge outlined six commitments, including a drug-free Punjab, protection of farmers, employment for young people and action against corruption
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First Semifinal: Will India Prevail Over A Resurgent New Zealand?

By Sunil Garodia
First publised on 2023-11-15 02:36:12

About the Author

Sunil Garodia Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator. Author of Cyber Scams in India, Digital Arrest, The Money Trap and The Human Hack

The business end of the ODI World Cup begins today with unbeaten India taking on a resurgent New Zealand at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai. The Wankhede pitch is expected to be slow as the Indian team management has requested the curators to prepare a slow surface. With the New Zealand bowlers coming back to form in the last couple of matches after their lackluster showing in the opening matches, the Indian team management fears Trent Boult & Co to restrict them in the power play. Also, with Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav in good form, India wants them to choke the New Zealanders in the middle over on a slow pitch.

But ultimately it will boil down to a test of Indian bowlers, who are on fire in the tournament, coming up against the likes of the in-form Rachin Ravindra, Kane Williamson, Devon Conway and Glenn Phillips and the Indian plan of getting hitman Rohit Sharma to give them a flying start against Trent Boult, Tim Southee, Lockie Ferguson and Mitchell Santner. The team that gets its plan rolling will have an upper edge in what promises to be a nail-biting match.

Form favours India as they have been ruthless in the tournament with all the batters firing at right moments and the bowlers becoming unplayable in some matches. The best thing about this Indian team is that it is not overly dependent on any one batsman or bowler. They are firing as a team and that has given them excellent results. Both teams are well balanced and New Zealand will be hoping for a repeat of the 2019 WC when they met and beat the till then unbeaten India in the semifinals by 18 runs. India, on the other hand, would like to maintain their winning run and enter the final unbeaten. They would need a bit of luck too and as skipper Rohit Sharma said the team would be hoping that fortune favours the brave.