Aussies to warm up for Ashes with Afghanistan Test

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Aussies to warm up for Ashes with Afghanistan Test

Cricket Australia (CA) on Wednesday announced the schedule for the five-Test Ashes series which will begin on December 8 with the first Test in Brisbane.

In addition to Ashes, the Australian men’s team will play Afghanistan for the first time in Test cricket in a one-off Test at Bellerive Oval in Hobart from November 27.

The Australian summer will comprise nine ODI and T20 matches against New Zealand and Sri Lanka, while the Australian women’s team will host India at the start of the summer.

“The Australian men’s team will begin its Ashes series defense at the Gabba from December 8-12 ahead of a day-night Test at the Adelaide Oval from December 16-20. The traditional Boxing Day and New Years’ Tests will be played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (December 26-30) and Sydney Cricket Ground (January 5-9) respectively, with the final Test scheduled for Perth’s Optus Stadium (January 14-18),” said a statement from CA.

“Preceding the Ashes will be a historic first Test match against the Afghanistan men’s team at Blundstone Arena (Bellerive Oval) on November 27,” added the statement.

“The conclusion of the men’s Test program will usher in the arrival of the New Zealand and Sri Lankan white-ball squads, who will play a combined three ODIs and six T20Is against Australia as teams finalize their preparation for the coveted ICC T20 World Cup in Australia, scheduled to begin in October 2022,” it said further.

India women are also expected to play a series, the details of which will be worked out later.

Australian summer schedule

One-off Test versus Afghanistan: Nov 27 – Dec 1: Bellerive Oval, Hobart.

Ashes series
1st Test: Dec 8 – Dec 12: Gabba, Brisbane
2nd Test: Dec 16 – Dec 20: Adelaide Oval (day-night)
3rd Test: Dec 26 – Dec 30: Melbourne Cricket Ground
4th Test: Jan 5 – Jan 9: Sydney Cricket Ground
5th Test: Jan 14 – Jan 18: Perth Stadium

Women’s Ashes
One-off Test: Jan 27 – Jan 30: Manuka Oval, Canberra

Women’s Ashes – T20I series
1st T20I – North Sydney Oval (Feb 4)
2nd T20I – North Sydney Oval (Feb 6)
3rd T20I – Adelaide Oval (Feb 10)

Women’s Ashes – ODI series
1st ODI – Adelaide Oval (Feb 13)
2nd ODI – Junction Oval, Melbourne (Feb 16)
3rd ODI – Junction Oval, Melbourne (Feb 19)

Men’s ODI series versus New Zealand
1st ODI – Perth (Jan 30)
2nd ODI – Bellerive Oval (Feb 2)
3rd ODI – Sydney Cricket Ground (Feb 5)

Men’s T20I series versus New Zealand
One-off T20I — Manuka Oval (Feb 8)

Men’s T20I Series v Sri Lanka
1st T20I – Sydney Cricket Ground (Feb 11)
2nd T20I — The Gabba, Brisbane (Feb 13)
3rd T20I — Metricon Stadium, Gold Coast (Feb 15)
4th T20I — Adelaide Oval (Feb 18)
5th T20I – Melbourne Cricket Ground (Feb 20)

Good coordination key to India’s success: Hockey defender Gurinder

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Good coordination key to India’s success: Hockey defender Gurinder

While skills are important, good coordination helps you win matches, and that’s what India did right during the successful tour of Argentina recently, said India men’s hockey team defender Gurinder Singh on Tuesday.

India defeated the Olympic champions in the two FIH Pro League matches besides winning two of the four practice games in Buenos Aires in April. India also remained unbeaten on their tour of Europe where they played Germany and Belgium in March.

“One of the things that we have always focused on is good coordination on the field. Skill is important, but if there is no coordination between players then the skill of players will not be utilized properly,” said Gurinder, who has played 58 international matches.

“We coordinated very well during our tours of Europe and Argentina. We didn’t hesitate while passing the ball as the players were moving well on the pitch. This is a very good sign for us and the coordination we had helped us achieve results in our matches this year,” said the 26-year-old.

Gurinder added that India’s defense was more solid now, with the likes of experienced Harmanpreet Singh and Surender Kumar manning the backline.

“We have a fantastic balance between youth and experience on our side. I feel very fortunate to have senior players such as Harmanpreet Singh and Surender Kumar on our team. They have played over 100 matches for India,” added Gurinder.

Raghav Tiwari on the importance of ‘Visit Your Relatives Day’

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Raghav Tiwari on the importance of ‘Visit Your Relatives Day’

Actor Raghav Tiwari, who is currently seen in the television show “Hamari Wali Good News”, enjoyed virtual visits to relatives on the occasion of ‘Visit Your Relatives Day’ on Tuesday.

Due to Covid19 and lockdown, the actor hasn’t been able to meet and spend quality time with relatives. Therefore, to celebrate a family day, everyone gathered virtually.

“The day encourages family members to stay connected. Our hectic lives and today’s fast-paced lifestyle often lead to losing touch with relatives. The observance reminds us to stop for a moment, take out much-needed time and visit relatives we care for and have not seen or spoken to for a while,” Raghav tells in an interview.

He adds: “Especially now when we are fighting a war against Covid-19, the day is more significant. So, I’m paying virtual visits to my relatives and will take a check over their health and well-being.”

The actor reveals he is a very emotional person since childhood. “I’m very emotional and very strongly connected with my cousin and other relatives. Though every year we plan a family get-together since last year it has gone missing. So, this year we decided the celebrate the occasion and cheer our moments.”

Raghav has worked in films like “Ranthambore” and “Mary Kom”.

Covid-19 can infect cells in eye: Study

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Covid-19 can infect cells in eye: Study

A team of US researchers has, in an alarming study, found direct evidence that Covid-19 can infect cells in the eye.

SARS-CoV-2, which causes Covid-19, is thought to transmit and begin infection in the upper respiratory tract. For this reason, the use of face masks has been recommended for the general public.

However, the new study by the Mount Sinai Hospital researchers found that cells in the eye can be directly infected by SARS-CoV-2. While the aerosol transmission is thought to be the primary route of spread, viral particles have been detected in ocular fluid suggesting the eye may be a vulnerable point of viral entry.

The findings showed that SARS-CoV-2 can infect surface cells of the eye. The exposed cells revealed the presence of infection-associated proteins including ACE2 — the virus receptor — and TMPRSS2 — an enzyme that allows viral entry. IFN-beta — a protein that has antiviral and antibacterial properties — was also found to be suppressed from exposure to the virus.

In addition, the researchers found that ocular surface cells, particularly the limbus, were susceptible to infection, while the central cornea was less vulnerable.

“We hope this new data results in additional measures to protect the eyes. We also intend to use these models to test approaches to prevent ocular infections,” said Timothy Blenkinsop, Assistant Professor, at Mount Sinai.

The study, published in the journal Cell Stem Cell, has an immediate impact on preventive measures to help mitigate the spread of Covid-19 and support new guidance for eye protection that can be instituted worldwide. It also highlights the importance of washing hands, as rubbing one’s eyes should now be viewed as an entry point for infection, the researchers said.

For the study, the team examined adult human eyes in an in vitro stem cell model. The donor cells were infected with SARS-CoV-2 and then analyzed through RNA sequencing. The sequences were then mapped to the human genome and compared to non-infected control cells from adult tissues.

The expression of the exposed cell was then evaluated. The study also evaluated whether SARS-CoV-2 could infect both tissues and primary cells in the eye.

Shama Sikander is ‘trying to help as many lives as possible’ through virtual fundraiser

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Shama Sikander is ‘trying to help as many lives as possible’ through virtual fundraiser

Actress Shama Sikander has joined a virtual fundraiser initiative to raise money for Covid patients, and she says she is trying to reach as many people as she can to provide help.

“It’s the most difficult time we have seen in our lives. We are trying to reach as many people as we can. I am taking part in this virtual fundraiser to raise money, which can directly go to the aid of the suffering people through verified institutions. We have to follow all the SOPs asked of us. We are trying to save as many lives as possible. I pray and hope that we all get through this sooner than later,” said Shama, who is on board with Mission Oxygen to raise funds, and is also trying to get beds and oxygen for those in need.

The actress told that she, too, has experienced loss due to the pandemic.

“My heart cringes to see our country in this state last few days have been really heavy, I have my own family members going through lack of oxygen, one of my very dear friend’s sisters lost her life to Covid due to lack of oxygen. It’s been too much on us as a family and as a nation,” shares the actress.

Krystle D’souza posts a pic from the beach

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Krystle D’souza posts a pic from the beach

Actress Krystle D’souza took to Instagram on Tuesday to share a stunning picture from the beach.

In the image, she looks gorgeous in black net beachwear worn with a sarong. She completes the look with stylish shades and open hair. The sun can be seen setting behind her, against the backdrop of serene ocean waves.

“Sometimes in the winds of change we find our true direction,” she captioned the image, on a philosophical note, with an orange heart emoji.

The actress recently featured in the recreated version of the song “Ek bewafaa” by Bharat Goel. She shares the screen with Siddharthh Gupta and Akshay Kharodia in the song. The original song is from Akshay Kumar-Kareena Kapoor Khan’s film “Bewafaa”, which released in 2005.

Krystle is also part of the Amitabh Bachchan and Emraan Hashmi-starrer “Chehre”. The thriller is helmed by Rummy Jafry. The film’s release date has been pushed multiple times owing to the pandemic.

NASA-ESA Sun-watching spacecraft captures first solar eruption

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NASA-ESA Sun-watching spacecraft captures first solar eruption

NASA and European Space Agency’s Sun-watching spacecraft has captured the first solar eruption.

On February 12, the Solar Orbiter caught sight of the coronal mass ejection, or CME, NASA said in a statement.

The CME was captured by NASA instrument, the Solar Orbiter Heliospheric Imager (SoloHI) onboard the spacecraft.

SoloHI watches the solar wind, dust, and cosmic rays that fill the space between the Sun and the planets. It used one of its four detectors at less than 15 percent of its normal cadence to reduce the amount of data acquired. A

The view captured is brief and grainy, but shows a sudden blast of particles, the CME, escaping the Sun, which is off-camera to the upper right.

The CME starts about halfway through the video as a bright burst — the dense leading edge of the CME — and drifts off-screen to the left.

At the time the eruption reached the spacecraft, Solar Orbiter had just passed behind the Sun from Earth’s perspective and was coming back around the other side.

When the mission was being planned, the team wasn’t expecting to be able to record any data during that time.

Two more images on Solar Orbiter — ESA’s Extreme Ultraviolet Imager and Metis — also captured views of the CME. NASA’s STEREO-A spacecraft, short for Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory, also caught a glimpse from its COR2 detector, which blocks out the Sun’s bright disk to see otherwise faint phenomena in the solar wind.

NASA spacecraft have been watching CMEs for decades, but Solar Orbiter is still a game-changer.

“We’ve realized in the last 25 years that there’s a lot that happens to a CME between the surface of the Sun and Earth,” said Robin Colaninno, principal investigator for SoloHI at the US Naval Research Laboratory in Washington DC.

“So we’re hoping to get much better resolution images of all of these outflows by being closer to the Sun,” Colaninno added.

Solar Orbiter was launched in February 2020.

The spacecraft has already taken the closest picture of the Sun to date. Its official mission begins in November when SoloHI and the rest of the remote-sensing instruments will be switched on in full science mode.

Saha recovers from Covid-19, to join team on May 24

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Saha recovers from Covid-19, to join team on May 24

India wicketkeeper-batsman Wriddhiman Saha reached Kolkata on Monday night after recovering from Covid-19 and is now fit and available for selection to the India squad. The 36-year-old will be joining the Indian team in quarantine in Mumbai on May 24.

Saha, who has played 38 Tests and effected 103 dismissals, had been picked in the India squad for the tour of England subject to fitness after he tested positive for Covid-19 during the postponed Indian Premier League (IPL) this month.

“He is keeping fine. He returned home to Kolkata (from Delhi) on Monday night. He will be joining the team on May 24,” a source in the know of things told.

Saha, who is a reserve wicketkeeper with the Indian team behind Rishabh Pant, was part of the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) team in Delhi when he got infected with Covid-19.

While the remaining members of the team dispersed, he had to stay back in New Delhi to serve quarantine.

The Indian team leaves for England on June 2 from Mumbai on a charter flight.

India plays the World Test Championship final against New Zealand from June 18 and then play five Test matches against England in August-September.

T-Hub onboards new service providers to accelerate startups growth

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T-Hub onboards new service providers to accelerate startups growth

T-Hub, which leads India’s pioneering innovation ecosystem, on Tuesday, announced that it is working with nine new leading companies to help its startups accelerate their growth during a pandemic by providing various operational services.

It has joined hands with Cashfree, Cassixcom, CFO Bridge, Conduira, Fireflies.ai, Handysends, Lunchclub, Sapience and The Legal Capsule as its premium partners.

These new partners of T-Hub will support all its startups with a suite of services for efficient functioning and will be aligned to the drastically changing needs of startups to grow since the pandemic. This alliance benefits the service providers as well by giving them a platform showcase their offerings and establish them as reliable partners for our startups, T-Hub said.

“Our partnership with these new service providers is an effort to support our startups who are facing immense operational challenges because of the pandemic. Our startups have always been aided with world-class tools, guidance, libraries, and other services that has enabled them to cut operational costs and gain efficiency,” said Ravi Narayan, CEO of T-Hub.

“These new partnerships will further help our startups to be confident with their technical, operational and sales processes so that they can completely focus on innovation and impact at a global level,” he added.

These nine companies have been added to T-Hub’s existing group of 70 service providers like Amazon Web Services (AWS), DigitalOcean and Google Cloud among others, that has been offering valuable benefits to the startups. These service providers enable T-Hub to create a strong entrepreneurial support infrastructure to aid in the long-term sustainability of startups, especially the early-stage ones.

Each startup has different budgets and requirements, hence T-Hub has carefully curated this pool of service providers to propel startups on the path to success and makes them economically viable entities, it said.

T-Hub’s service provider partners offers startups free credits and access to various service offerings starting from automating their management process to executing well-planned marketing strategies. After exhausting the free credits, the startups can continue to avail themselves of these services at an affordable price. T-Hub plans to explore such exclusive tie-ups to benefit startups continually.

Declining Covid trend pushes equities higher; Sensex above 50K

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Declining Covid trend pushes equities higher; Sensex above 50K

A steady decline in new Covid cases along with accelerated vaccination drive powered the rise of India’s benchmark stock indices during the mid-afternoon trade session on Tuesday.

Accordingly, both key indices started on a positive note with a gap up opening and maintained their gains with the Nifty50 of the National Stock Exchange breaching the over 15,100 points-mark and the S& BSE Sensex reclaiming the 50,000-points threshold.

Globally, robust trends were witnessed across Asian stock markets.

Sector-wise, except for marginal losses in the FMCG space all other sectors traded in the positive territory.

Around 2.00 p.m., the S&P BSE Sensex traded at 50,266.92, higher by 686.19 points, or 1.38 per cent, from its previous close.

Similarly, the Nifty50 of the National Stock Exchange traded at 15,110.95, up 187.80 points, or 1.26 per cent, from its previous close.

“Indian market started on a strong note and opened gap up above 15,050 marks and touched 15,134 zones. It has been moving in the positive territory but some consolidation can be seen at current junctures,” said Jay Purohit, Technical & Derivatives Analyst, MOFSL.

“India VIX traded below 19 zones which provides support to the bulls. Market breadth continues to strongly be in favour of the advancing counters.”

According to Gaurav Garg, Head of Research at CapitalVia: “Another day of lower daily Covid-19 cases boosted investor confidence. The US market ended lower after the signs of increasing inflation in the economy kept the investors worried about the tightening monetary policy.”

“Asian markets also carried the momentum in the market and were mostly trading in green.”

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