Ben Strang: Pranav Dhanawade showed terrible sportsmanship in record 1009

Pranav Dhanawade slammed 1009 from 323 balls, including 129 fours and 59 sixes, for his KC Gandhi School against a second string Arya Gurukul School. 

REUTERS

Schoolboy Pranav Dhanawade, 15, scored a world record 1009 in one innings.

That's right. One thousand and nine runs. It's such a large number you feel an urge to put it into Roman numerals, which would be MIX, for the record.

More than half his runs came from fours (516) and a further 354 runs came from sixes.

Whoop-de-doo. A 15-year-old me could have scored 1009 against a bunch of 12-year-olds, too. 

It's just not cricket.

Then you take into account the 27m boundaries, which of course is smaller than a normal in field, it makes things even worse.

Sure, on a full size ground hitting 59 sixes against anyone is impressive, but 27m boundaries? Really? That's a mishit.

That would be like putting Martin Guptill up against the Kapiti College first-XI at Eden Park. Who wouldn't back Guptill to send one or 50 booming into the stands.

It's just not cricket.

But wait, like a television infomercial, there's more.

These 12-year-olds were terrified of the leather ball, as most kids are when they haven't played with one before.

Most fully grown adult cricketers fear a hard cricket ball when rocking up for their first training of the year. It slaps into the hands, sprains fingers, and generally leaves you searching for ice just before bedtime.

So to take a bunch of kids who have only played with tennis balls, and have them attempt to take catches with this red demon for the first time. Good luck.

No wonder it has been reported there were about 21 dropped catches during the innings.

It's just not cricket.

Oh, and that's right. Dhanawade's team bowled first. They rolled the 12-year-olds for only 31 runs, 12 of which were extras.

Dhanawade opened the batting. The first wicket fell at 546. The second wicket fell at 1077. At what point did KC Gandhi think they had enough runs to win the match.

Have you heard of the Spirit of Cricket? Here's what comes up in the rule book.

"Cricket is a game that owes much of its unique appeal to the fact that it should be played not only within its Laws but also within the Spirit of the Game. Any action which is seen to abuse this Spirit causes injury to the game itself."

Not to mention a bunch of 12-year-old kids, right?

There is no way Dhanawade's innings was within the spirit of cricket.

He was 15, you might say, but that doesn't matter. At 15, playing backyard cricket, you always knew when your turn at bat was getting a little long. That's generally when you'd start batting with the wrong hand, looking to lob catches to anyone on the back lawn.

I'm not saying I'm a perfect example of the laws of cricket.

In a club game I once successfully appealed for a player to be out for obstructing the field. Part of me still thinks that was the right call, but with the commotion it caused, and there was some serious commotion, a larger part of me wishes I'd allowed the guy to continue batting.

That conundrum in my head seems insignificant compared to smashing a bunch of toddlers around to the tune of a thousand runs.

So here's my final plea.

Hey, Sachin Tendulkar, give me a signed bat. I'd be capable of destroying the bowling of 12-year-olds just as well, if not better, than Pranav Dhanawade.

Gachhadar rules out possibility of splitting Madhes into 2 states

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Media caption3D reconstructions of the dust tracks are built using a microscope (video: A White/D Ebel)

Scientists in the US are making detailed 3D maps of the cavities carved by comet dust in blocks of foam carried by Nasa's Stardust spacecraft.

Stardust visited Comet Wild 2 in 2004, catching samples from its dusty tail in specially made slabs of "aerogel".

By studying the tracks with microscopes and synchrotron X-rays, researchers aim to reconstruct exactly what kind of particles first hit the gel.

They are also identifying extra, tiny grains to be extracted and tested.

"We want to tell people where the interesting grains are," said Amanda White, a student working on the project at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.

None of the volatiles made it back to earth... The idea is to make simulations where we can put those ices and gases back in

Amanda White, American Museum of Natural History

She presented her work this week at the 227th meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Florida.

Most work on Stardust samples to date has selected the grains using regular optical images, concentrating on the relatively large particles that burrowed their way right into the foam.

But when the dust first slammed into the gel at 6km/s (13,421mph) it carved out complex shapes, often resembling a teardrop, with a large bulb near the entry point that gradually narrows down to a point, where the biggest remaining grain can be found.

Image copyrightNASA/Science Photo Library

Image captionThe precious samples were returned to Earth in a capsule in 2006

Ms White and her colleagues believe that mapping these tracks - made of empty space, squashed and melted aerogel, and minuscule amounts of comet residue - will yield valuable information about the original culprit grain. What was its size, its consistency, its chemical composition?

"We can estimate the size of the original particle, just by looking at the entry hole of the track. But we think we can do better than measuring the hole," she told the BBC.

"We essentially want to do the same thing as what they do in a crime show, when they're doing ballistics."

The reconstruction effort is complicated, Ms White explained, because the remains are partial.

"None of the volatiles - none of the gases or the ices that we know were in the comet - made it back to earth. They all evaporated or sublimed. We may have some residue in the track walls, but for the most part we just have the rocky materials.

"The idea is to make simulations where we can put those ices and gases back in - and then see if they make similar shapes to what we see."

Image copyrightNASA/JPL/Science Photo Library

Image captionDust grains slammed into the gel at about 6km per second

To scan the precise shape of the tracks, the team has been using a confocal microscope. This makes very fine optical slices of the sample, which can then be stacked up to recreate it in 3D.

This microscopic map can reveal additional complexity, such as the two offshoots to the main bulb seen in the video above.

But the researchers have also been using a synchrotron - a huge particle accelerator that makes powerful X-rays - to determine some of the chemical make-up of any material lining the walls of the cavity.

When these views are combined, according to project leader Denton Ebel, the result is a valuable map for other teams wanting to take a closer look at the juiciest, tiniest comet fragments.

"The synergy of the data sets and their utility in identifying, harvesting, and analyzing high-value cometary samples is the big payoff," Prof Ebel said.

Image copyrightA White/D Ebel

Image captionImages from a confocal microscope create a 3D scan of the track...

Image copyrightA White/D Ebel

Image caption...while synchrotron X-rays map the presence of particular elements - in this case, iron

Next, the team is planning to add a Raman spectrometer, which can reveal even more complex chemistry than the X-rays, directly to the confocal microscope.

"Then we can get preliminary compositional data from the confocal as well," said Ms White.

"Other groups have used a Raman spectrometer in the past, but they can only really see the larger particles on the end of the track. With our microscope, we can see all the fine material in the bulb."

Zidane's arrival breathes new life into Real Madrid

Jan 10, 2016- There is definitely something different about Real Madrid since Zinedine Zidane took over.

Obviously, it's still too early to know whether he'll succeed in his first head-coaching job, but it's already clear that his arrival has breathed new life into the Spanish giant.

Just like that, there's no more jeering at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. Players seem to have a new attitude. Critics have stopped talking about a crisis.

Putting a former club idol in charge apparently has produced the right result.

Real Madrid routed Deportivo La Coruna 5-0 on Saturday in its first game under the new coach. Although there was nothing unusual about the victory — anything other than a win wasn't expected — it was obvious that the atmosphere at the Bernabeu had changed.

"When a game is won the manager can only be happy," Zidane said. "I am happy with our first game and with the three or four days that we had of training sessions. What I liked most was the team's attitude."

The doubts that hung over the team when Rafa Benitez was in command were not there anymore. Even before the game started, there was a sense that things had improved. The confidence was back. Fans were smiling again.

"I was absolutely delighted with the fans, it was clear that they were right behind the team from beginning to end," Zidane said. "There was a good atmosphere."

Nearly two months after an embarrassing 4-0 loss to Barcelona at the Bernabeu, spirits were finally high again at the club that calls itself the best in the world. For a change, Florentino Perez had a peaceful night at his presidential suite.

Real Madrid was inconsistent under Benitez, who struggled to get the team back on track following the defeat to Barcelona and the embarrassing elimination from the Copa del Rey for using an illegible player. He was being jeered at nearly every game at home, even in 8-0 and 10-2 wins, and setbacks in important league games eventually led to his firing after only seven months in the job.

"Everybody knows that Zidane was a great player and I'm sure he'll be the same as a manager," said forward Gareth Bale, who scored a hat trick against Deportivo. "We've only trained a few times but we are professionals and we work hard to try to win games and all of the titles available. We have to carry on the same way, like we were doing before."

Although the tested Jose Mourinho was on the market, Perez took the popular route and hired the largely inexperienced Zidane, the former France great who thrived with the club as a player more than a decade ago. He was Carlos Ancelotti's assistant when the club won its 10th Champions League, but his head-coaching experience was limited to Madrid's B team in the third division.

"I am happy because this is another challenge for me," the 43-year-old Zidane said. "It is important to be here as a manager and what I want to do is enjoy it."

He will have a week before Madrid gets back on the field, against Sporting Gijon in the Spanish league, again at home. The team is two points off provisional Spanish league leader Barcelona.

"The first game was really good but it is the start and we have to keep going," Zidane said. "Real Madrid always needs to win and we have to keep winning. We have to improve a lot of things and we are going to do it. We have weeks to work and we are going to improve, I am convinced of that."

Parties inch closer to deal on demarcation

Jan 11, 2016- Three major forces and Madhes-based parties have agreed, in principle, to settle demarcation row through a high level political mechanism within next three months.
The Smyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha, an alliance of four Madhes-based parties, agreed to go ahead with major parties’ four-point proposal, which calls for settling boundary row through a political mechanism in three months, after the major parties gave assurances that there would be “legal guarantee” on the implementation of the four-point proposal. But interlocutors from both sides are still divided over the framework of the demarcation.
During closed-door negotiations with the joint taskforce of major parties on Sunday, representatives of the SLMM insisted on need of a prior political agreement to carve at least another province along the Tarai plains.
However, representatives of major parties were unwilling to make any specific pledge on the details of demarcation.
“Three parties seem to be ready to mention demarcation in the terms of reference of the political mechanism, but they are unwilling to mention anything more than that,” said Rajendra Shrestha, co-chair of Sanghiya Samajbadi Forum Nepal. “We are asking them to specify what exactly the proposed mechanism will do.”
Shrestha said that the Morcha wants “credible assurance” that the federal boundaries would be revisited by taking the report of the state restructuring commission into consideration. The report has recommended two provinces in Tarai plains on the basis of capability and identity.
Major parties are also reluctant to describe Jhapa, Morang, Sunsari, Kailali and Kanchanpur—the five districts that Morcha stress should be termed disputed—as disputed.
During the discussions, Morcha leaders said that they cannot accept “any vague offer” on demarcation, as there is a danger of disownment from their constituencies. “We are already taking a big risk by agreeing on ‘an agreement on credit’. Signing a vague deal with major parties after loss of more than 40 lives is almost like committing suicide for the Morcha leadership. We want a deal that is tangible, which could be owned by our constituencies,” said a Morcha leader.
Taskforce members said that negotiations were heading towards a positive direction on ironing out differences on other contentious issues, notably constituency delineation and proportional and inclusive representation in state bodies.
Morcha leaders have hinted that they could own up the Constitution Amendment Bill, which is waiting a vote in Parliament, if it is endorsed in line with  revision proposals filed by Nepali Congress parliamentarians including Bimalendra Nidhi.
Interlocutors from both sides have agreed to meet again to formulate a common position.
“The meeting could not make any significant progress today, but discussions are underway on several acceptable alternatives to end the crisis,” said Nepali Congress leader Mahesh Acharya, stopping short of giving further details.

Tata Steel union to meet bosses over Port Talbot jobs

Image copyrightReuters

The Community Union says it expects to meet bosses from Tata Steel this week amid reports of hundreds of potential job losses at Tata's Port Talbot plant.

There are reports that a quarter of the workforce could lose their jobs in a major restructuring at the plant.

Tata Steel Europe, which employs 17,000 in the UK. including 4,000 at Port Talbot, is in the throes of a wide-scale reorganisation of its business.

The moves have been prompted by a slump in the price of steel.

The Port Talbot plant is the UK's largest steel works.

A spokesperson for Community, the steelworkers' union said: "These reports of potential job losses at Port Talbot should serve as a stark reminder of the ongoing steel crisis and the urgent need for government to deliver upon the agreed steps to protect this vital foundation industry.

"We need a level playing field for UK steel makers, especially on issues like business rates and energy costs.

"Community will be meeting with Tata Steel... to discuss these reports and how best we can build a sustainable steel industry together."

Late last year, Tata Steel said it was in talks with an investment firm to sell its Long Products business, which includes plants in Scunthorpe and Lanarkshire.

There have been waves of job losses in the steel industry in the UK, which the sector has blamed on cheap Chinese imports and a collapse in prices.

In October, Tata Steel announced nearly 1,200 roles were to be axed in Scunthorpe and Lanarkshire

Chinese markets start week with new falls

Image copyrightAFP

Asian shares headed lower on Monday as jitters from the sell-off in the markets last week continued to keep investors on edge.

Global markets made big losses after Chinese trading was suspended twice last week on dramatic plunges in values that triggered a circuit breaker mechanism, and spurred more volatility.

China suspended the use of that tool on Friday, a move that reassured traders.

But the Shanghai Composite index was down 2.5% to 3,106.38 in early trade.

Weak inflation data over the weekend did little to encourage investors.

China's consumer inflation edged up 1.6% in December from a year ago. That compared to a 1.5% rise in the previous month.

But deflation risks remained in the world's second largest economy as factory-gate prices continued to fall for the 46th consecutive month, down 5.9%.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 2.4% to 19,964.64, following the mainland markets.

"It feels as though we are right in the epicentre of the fear, panic and confusion in global markets," said Chris Weston, market strategist at trading firm IG in a note.

Oil tumbles further

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index was down 2% to 4,892.60 as falling oil prices continued to weigh on the market.

The price of Brent crude oil fell another 50 cents to $33.05 a barrel.

Mining heavyweights BHP Billiton and Rio Tino both plunged over 4% in Sydney.

Japanese markets are closed for a public holiday.

In South Korea, the benchmark Kospi index was down 0.7% to 1,904.14 points