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Happy to buy N95 masks & give them to people who can’t afford them: R Ashwin

India off-spinner R Ashwin shut a troll on social media after the user made a query on the price of N95 masks. “A single N95 mask starts from 70rs , A normal surgical mask costs 10rs which we can't and shouldn't use for more than 8 hours. People who suffer to get food, people who have low income , how can they afford this? Solution?,” the user had asked. 

Ashwin probably had the perfect solution for the problem and the right-arm bowler suggested that he would like to buy and give it to people who can’t afford it. 

“N 95 masks can be washed and reused. I am happy to buy and give it to people who can’t afford it! Please let me know ways to distribute them if you or anyone on my timeline knows how,” Ashwin had replied. 

Earlier, the Delhi Capitals player had withdrawn his name from the IPL 2021 mid way to spend time with his family. "I will be taking a break from this year's IPL from tomorrow. My family and extended family are putting up a fight against #COVID19 and I want to support them during these tough times," Ashwin wrote on Twitter earlier. 

The IPL 2021 though was eventually suspended with immediate effect earlier this week after there were COVID-19 positive cases within the franchise teams. DC’s Amit Mishra, SRH’s Wriddhiman Saha, KKR’s VarunChakravarthy and Sandeep Warrior and CSK’s bowling coach L.Balaji were among the members tested positive for the disease. 

Ashwin played five matches in this edition of the IPL before opting out. 


 

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World T20 sub regional Europe Qualifiers cancelled due to COVID-19

The COVID-19 outburst has either led to the postponement or cancellation of a number of sporting events around the globe. To add to this tally are the three T20 World Cup sub regional Europe Qualifiers for the 2022 edition. Finland was slated to host the Sub Regional Europe A and B qualifiers next month which would have been their first ICC event. The Europe B Qualifier was scheduled to take place between June 30 and July 5 with hosts, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Guernsey, Hungary, Luxembourg and Sweden being a part of it. The A qualifier had Bulgaria, Cyprus, France, Israel, Italy, Malta, Norway, Spain and was scheduled to begin on July 13. Belgium was to host Europe C qualifier between July 5 and 10 which included Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Isle of Man, Portugal, Romania, Serbia. The ICC Head of Events said in a statement that the three T20 World Cup Sub Regional Europe Qualifiers had to be cancelled. “We have unfortunately had to cancel the three T20 World Cup Sub Regional Europe Qualifiers due to start next month as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic,” ICC Head of Events, Chris Tetley said in a statement. “…due to COVID-19 restrictions and the short timelines that the European season provides to allow us to progress with the next step in the pathway, there has been no other option than to cancel.” Now, Italy, Germany, and Denmark will now qualify from the Europe sub regional qualifiers A, B and C respectively based on their position in the ICC T20I Rankings as on April 30, 2020. Apart from this, the T20 World Cup Americas Qualifier which was scheduled to be hosted in Canada between July 17 and 23 has been postponed due to the travel restrictions. The tournament included Argentina, Bahamas, Belize, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Panama and the USA. The Asia B Qualifier had to take place between July 11 and 17 but has been postponed. Bhutan, China, Malaysia, Myanmar, Hong Kong and Thailand are the teams that had to feature in these fixtures. Though, it has now been rescheduled and will take place between November 9 and 15 in Malaysia. The Women’s T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier has also been rescheduled and will be played between November 22-28 in Malaysia.

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Alarm bell started ringing as COVID breached bio-bubbles, says a relieved Chris Morris after reaching home

South African all-rounder and the costliest buy ever in IPL Auction history, Chris Morris is relieved after being sent back home following a chaotic situation in the IPL bio-bubbles after as many as ten personnel from different franchises tested positive for the novel Coronavirus which included Varun Chakravarthy, Sandeep Warrier, Amit Mishra and Wriddhiman Saha. Morris along with his ten South African mates have reportedly reached their home. Morris said that it’s a relief that he has managed to reach home amidst such difficult times in India. “The moment we heard that, when players are testing positive, inside the bubble, then everyone starts asking questions. The alarm bells definitely started going off for all of us,” Morris said. “By Monday when they postponed that game (between Kolkata and Royal Challengers Bangalore), we knew the tournament was under pressure to continue.” The tournament had to be postponed indefinitely after SRH wicket-keeper batsman Wriddhiman Saha tested positive on the matchday against the Mumbai Indians. The BCCI had no other options but to delay the tournament. However, the SRH management and all its player and staffs are quite surprised to see Saha testing positive despite stringent measure being in action. . “I was chatting to our team doctor, whose room was across the hallway from my mine in the hotel, and Kumar (Sangakarra, the Royals’ head coach) came around the corner, and drew his finger across his throat, and then we knew it was over,” Morris said. Meanwhile, Gerald Coetzee who was named as the replacement for Andrew Tye who decided to pull out midway through the tournament had just arrived a week ago. Morris said that he tried to comfort the young fast bowler who was panicking quite a bit. “And then it was chaos! The England guys especially were panicking because they needed to isolate in hotels in England first, and apparently, there weren’t any rooms,” Morris said. “I know poor Gerald was panicking a bit, I mean he’s only 20 and all this is going on. I tried to keep him under my wing a bit and made sure he was ready when the 12.30 am pick up came at the hotel. It was eerie, it was just a handful of us in that whole hotel at the time,” Morris further added. Morris had earlier told that it was important for the cricketers to give their heart out in the field especially for the people who are going through tough times. He added that IPL was actually helping people to stay home atleast for that duration of time. “For me, this was always a two-fold thing; on the one hand we’re playing a tournament, all happy and smiling in a bubble, while outside so many people are suffering,” Morris said. “On the flip side of it, there was the fact that by playing, we were ensuring people actually stayed at home, watched us and at least had something to smile about or something else to think about – even if it was being unhappy with how we played in a game – for three hours each night,” he concluded.

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Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma start new campaign to raise funds for COVID pandemic

India is going through extremely tough times as they try to come to terms with the second wave of COVID-19 which has put the medical system under immense pressure. With more than four lakh cases reported each day across the country and with thousands of people dying each day, celebrities from all walks of life has come forward to help India in these tough times. The recent entry into the list is none other than Indian skipper Virat Kohli and his wife and Bollywood actor Anushka Sharma. Both have started a campaign to raise funds for the same. Taking to their Instagram handle, the duo shared a video where they made the revelation of their new campaign. They aim to raise atleast Rs 7 crore besides donating Rs 2 crore personally. Sharing the clip on Instagram, Anushka wrote, "As our country battles the second wave of Covid-19, and our healthcare systems are facing extreme challenges, it breaks my heart to see our people suffering. So, Virat and I have initiated a campaign #InThisTogether, with Ketto, to raise funds for Covid-19 relief." "We shall all overcome this crisis together. Please step forward to support India and Indians. Your contribution will help in saving lives during this critical time," she further added. The campaign will run for one week on Ketto and the proceeds from there will be raised directly to ACT Grants which is the implementation partner for this campaign. Speaking about the same, Anushka said that it’s high time everyone joins hands and come together to help India as they fight the deadly pandemic. "India is going through an extremely difficult time and the second wave of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic has pushed our country to a state of crisis. It is time for all of us to come together and do our bit for our fellow countrymen who are in serious need for support,” Anushka said. "Virat and I have been hugely pained looking at the inexplicable suffering that people are going through and we hope that this fund will aid in our fight against the virus that we are all helplessly witnessing. We are praying for everyone’s safety. We hope that you join us in our prayers to save as many lives as possible because we are all in this together,” she further added. Meanwhile, the Indian skipper is confident of the fact that the country will fight the pandemic together and will come forward in support of their fellow countrymen. On work front, Virat Kohli returned home a couple of days ago after the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League was suspended indefinitely after several cases were reported in different team bio-bubbles.

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At 36 years & 146 days, Tabish Khan becomes second oldest player to make debut for Pakistan in Tests

Pakistan pacer Tabish Khan became the second-oldest player to make a Test debut for the national team. Tabish was handed over the cap at the age of 36 years and 146 days, on the second Test against Zimbabwe in Harare on Friday. The oldest player to make their debut for Pakistan was Miran Bakhsh, who played his first Test match at the age of 47 years and 284 days. He played against India in Lahore in the 1954-55 season. Tabish expressed his delight and said that he has fulfilled his childhood dream to play for the country in the longer format of the game. "I cannot express my happiness in words for my Test debut. Every kid who starts playing cricket in Pakistan has a dream of representing the country, especially in Test format and it's been a long journey for me but I have achieved my dream today," Tabish said in a video released by PCB. "I will try my level best to meet everyone's expectations and give my 110% for the crest on my chest." Tabish has picked up 598 First-Class wickets and has been a consistent performer at the domestic level. Though, England's James Southerton holds the record for being the oldest player to make a Test debut. He played against Australia at the age of 49 years 119 days, in 1877. Southerton during his days, was regarded as one of the rare bowlers who could contain WG Grace, one of cricket's greatest exponents. Pakistan, at the moment, lead the two-match Test series 1-0 and would be looking to complete a clean sweep win in Harare. The visitors thumped Zimbabwe by an innings and 116 runs in the first encounter. They earlier won the three-match T20I series 2-1.