A German team practises mallakhamb with coach Uday Deshpande

In a TEDx Gateway talk held in 2017, 65-year-old Uday Deshpande talks of how he started learning mallakhamb at Shivaji Park's Samarth Vyayam Mandir (SVM) at the age of three. The passion for the sport, which has its origins in Maharashtra, gripped him so much, he says, that he even stuck to his daily regime on the day of his wedding. As the audience laughs, Deshpande moves on to talk about what he returned to the sport — spreading its awareness not just to other Indian cities across 29 states, but globally as well. He rattles off a statistic: in the last 25 years more than 2,500 foreigners from 52 countries have learnt mallakhamb.

His passport — which thanks to the several added visa pages has increasing so much in girth that it is a candidate for bariatric surgery — bears signs of his visits to countries like USA, Singapore, Nepal, Germany, France, Austria, Hong Kong. And now, says Deshpande, the director at SVM who also coaches there, all this effort is going to culminate into the first mallakhamb world championship to be held at Shivaji Park, next February. Speaking to mid-day from his Shivaji Park office, keeping a stern eye on the practice sessions on the grounds, Deshpande announces proudly," Mallakhamb is ready to go the next mile. France and Germany in fact, have mallakhamb federations in their countries. We need to now harness that exposure into a competition." The championships — to be held under the auspices of the newly-formed Vishwa Mallakhamb Federation (VMF) — will be held between February 16-17 2019. Deshpande, the secretary of VFM, says all the details of the organisation of the event are being taken care of by SVM officials.

Uday Deshpande

And 15 countries have already announced their participation. Dr (PhD) Neeta Tatke, administrative secretary, SVM, whose thesis was on the mental benefits of the sport, says, "A competition is one way to kindle curiosity, sustain the sport and watch it grow. We also need to increase participation at home." For Tatke, GenNext will take a shine to the rope and pole, "if we have national and world champions here, nurtured and made in our backyard. For instance, see the boost tennis and badminton got in India. This is because with the Saina Nehwals, Sania Mirzas and P V Sindhus, young Indians have role models to look up to. We need to create that in mallakhamb. Competition is one way to do so."

A couple of years ago, when Deutschland came to Dadar, the German mallakhamb team given an Indian experience by Samarth volunteers. After their morning mallakhamb practice, Samarth members taught the Germans, Lezim (a Maharashtrian folk) dance, they learnt to play the flute and even dabbled in Warli painting. This time, organisers say that at the World Championships, there will be a food court at the venue and an exhibition centre outlining the history of mallakhamb.

Ruth Azenberger, German mallakhamb coach — who started learning mallakhamb when she was eight years old, in 2004, and then received the Mallakhamb Trainers Certificate in 2012 from the University of Mumbai and Mallakhamb Federation of India — says, "We are thrilled to be a part of the competition and show what we have learned for the last 15 years." Azenberger adds that the final mallakhamb team will be selected in September.

Shreyas Mhaskar, trustee, SVM and former national Mallakhamb champion adds, "Mallakhamb's origins are Indian, so it is natural that India hosts the debut World Championship." Officials say that, "we also have plans of how to make this a more equitable field for all nations. We are going to negate the obvious advantage India will have, with its long tradition of mallakhamb with a few surprises in rules that we will not divulge now." Ambition is expensive. The committee says they are earmarking R2 crore expense overall and are now hunting for sponsors. Yet, to zero in on that elusive one with deep pockets, the organizers are holding on to their dream because they have the courage of conviction, or when it comes to mallakhamb, like the practitioners that should be courage of their contortions.

Pic Courtesy/Saffron and Pearls, Harpercollins India

As a 20-year-old, when Sarina Kamini first learnt that her Australian mother was suffering from Parkinson's, a part of her own Indianness, which her mother had so devotedly brought to the kitchen table at their home in Torquay, died. In a new book, titled Spirits in a Spice Jar (Westland Books, Amazon), Kamini says, it's possibly then that she had "stopped eating Indian food". It's ironic that while she attributes her Indian heritage to her father — he was Kashmiri — it was through her mum that she learnt the traditional family recipes, who in turn learnt how to cook Indian food from her mother-in-law, fondly known as ammi. Cooking these recipes would eventually be a way to heal, helping her make sense of the resentment she felt towards her mother's condition.

If Spirits in a Spice Jar traces the arc of a woman, coming to terms with the illness, another book, Saffron and Pearls: A Memoir of Family, Friendship and Heirloom (HarperCollins India) by Delhi-based Doreen Hassan, recounts how the author, who belonged to a Goan Catholic family, warmed up to her Hyderabadi husband's family and his rich food legacy. Last year, US-based Pakistani writer Bisma Tirmizi revisited her favourite dishes from the subcontinent through a journey of self-discovery of a young, obese girl, in the novel, Feast: With A Taste of Amir Khusro (Rupa Publications).

Doreen Hassan. Pic Courtesy/Saffron and Pearls, Harpercollins India

More writers are now exploring narratives around food, while showing how recipes too, are important to great storytelling. "I set out to tell the story of me, because I was so confused about who I was. I quickly realised that I couldn't understand mum unless I understood her connection to India. From my point of view, the connection was a mix of the material and the mystic [she loves the fashion as much as she appreciates the stories of faith], and food within our family is a real representation of that. Food ties my family to Hinduism through offerings and stories. So I had to write about Kashmiri food. Spices, for me, became the axis point where I could draw all of these thoughts together," says Australia-based Kamini.

Doreen says she started writing the book, with the intention of sharing heirloom recipes she had inherited after marrying her husband, Peter Toghrille Hassan, who is honorary Counsel General for the Russian Federation in Hyderabad. But, as she started work on the book, she "thought it might be interesting for people to know where the recipes came from". "That's how it turned into a memoir along the way," she says. Doreen believes that Hassan family's history is deeply influenced by food, and hence, it was crucial to the memoir too. "When people marry into a family, they often bring their own food traditions with them. It's fascinating to understand it," she says.

Sarina Kamini. Pic Courtesy/Kristy Jane Hoghton

In the book, she writes about the time she struggled with learning to cook, after she and her husband moved to Delhi from Hyderabad, with their two children. She, eventually went back to Hyderabad, and "met Peter's aunt, Zehra Alambardar, whom we called Phuppu Jani, and said, 'Please teach me how to make a few dishes.' She told me that she cooked by andaaz, or instinct. 'Beta, you have to watch and learn. I will make the dishes in front of you, and you write them down.'" That was how Hassan was indoctrinated into cooking.

She remembers the time when her husband invited the famous Pakistani singer Mehdi Hasan, to their home for dinner. "He was to sing at our home, and there would be 100 guests in attendance. I decided to make a Salim bakra, which is an entire goat, stuffed with eggs," she writes. Kamini says her fondest food memory is associated with paneer. "I'd always make sure I was close by when mum or dad began chopping the fresh paneer into pieces; I became adept at stealing bites," she says. Adding, "When I began cooking it for my own two boys, I, too, would have to shoo them away from the chopping block as they made attempts to sneak away with it. This kind of emotional continuity around food is what cements recipes into our hearts."

The Salim Bakra stuffed with chicken and eggs, and served with rice, which Doreen prepared for ghazal singer Mehdi Hasan

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As all-rounder, Ravindra Jadeja shared a video to show-off his swashbuckling swordsmanship, former England skipper Michael Vaughan left a cheeky comment on the Instagram post.

Jadeja had shared a video on Instagram on Sunday to show off his trademark swordsmanship. However, taking the note of the grass in Jadeja's lawn, Vaughan replied: "Your grass needs a mow rockstar".

On Sunday, the left-handed Jadeja was displaying various moves with the sword in the video posted on Instagram.

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

A “SWORD” MAY LOOSE IT’S SHINE,BUT WOULD NEVER DISOBEY IT’S MASTER. #rajputboy

A post shared by Ravindra Jadeja (@royalnavghan) onApr 12, 2020 at 6:45am PDT

The cricketer is very-well trained in swordsmanship and he has also made it popular by swinging his bat like a sword in cricket matches whenever he crosses the mark of 50 or 100.

Last week, Australian batsman David Warner had also shared a throwback video from the last year's Indian Premier League (IPL) in which he was swinging his bat like a sword.

The SunRisers Hyderabad skipper was swinging the bat like a sword for a commercial and he immediately broke into laughter once the director said cut.

 

 

 

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Throwback to this time last year to a commercial we were doing for @sunrisershyd Do you think I’ve got @royalnavghan covered for the sword?? 😂😂

A post shared by David Warner (@davidwarner31) onApr 7, 2020 at 11:21pm PDT

Warner had also asked the fans to give their opinion on as to how he did as compared to Jadeja.

With the country battling COVID-19, all sporting activities have been either postponed or stand cancelled. The upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) has also been suspended till April 15.

Jadeja is part of the IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings and he would have been in action if the tournament had started as planned on March 29.

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With people finding various ways to spend time during quarantine amid the Coronavirus pandemic, a Brazilian model challenged her cricket coach boyfriend to teach her how to bat during the 21-day isolation period.

And they are doing it. According to a report in dailymail.co.uk, Coco Cuhna suggested her boyfriend Gio Colucci that it might be fun to see if he could show her how to bat. "I was joking...he took it very seriously," Coco said.

"I thought Oh my gosh, what have I got myself in for!" Coco revealed she is spending 25 minutes a day learning how to pull, cut and drive from Gio, who is a director at The Cricket Academy in Cape Town, South Africa and has coached the likes of England batsman Tom Wesley, Derbyshire captain Billy Godleman and Ben Curran, brother of England duo Tom and Sam.

"I had never had any contact with cricket before, I never even knew about it before I moved to South Africa," said the Brazilian model. However, after a fortnight, Coco is now enjoying the drill.

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Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ehsan Mani has asserted that the PCB will not agree to cancelling the Asia Cup, scheduled in the UAE in September, to make room for the Indian Premier League, which has been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The IPL was to be held from March 29 to May 24 but has been postponed indefinitely because of a extended lockdown to combat the deadly virus in India. "I have read and heard about these speculations but right now just remember that having or not having the Asia Cup is not a decision between Pakistan and India it involves other countries as well," asserted Mani here on Tuesday.

Pakistan were to host the event but it was shifted to Dubai and Abu Dhabi after India expressed reluctance to come here owing to security concerns and the strained diplomatic ties between the two countries. "...it is important to have the Asia Cup if cricket activities resume by then because development of Asian cricket depends on funding from the tournament. It is important for many countries who are members of the Asian Cricket Council," he added in a podcast released by the PCB.

However, he also conceded that holding the Asia Cup this year is a big challenge because right now "we don't know if it can be held or not." "But if the conditions change and we can have the Asia Cup, it must be held as earnings from it are distributed as development funds to member countries for next two years," he said.
He said reports about the Asia Cup being hosted by Bangladesh or UAE were mere speculation at this stage.

Speaking about another big event, Mani warned that if the T20 World Cup, to be held in Australia in October-November, is postponed, the financial fallout will be big for many countries. "The financial impact will be felt by many countries if the ICC can't distribute their shares from the tournament. Many countries including Pakistan will feel the pinch," he admitted.

Mani confirmed that Pakistan was to receive around USD 7 to 8 million in June and January. "Pakistan is fortunate it has good financial controls in place and in short term, it will be better off than most countries if the lockdowns continue because of the coronavirus pandemic," he claimed. "We are to get 7 to 8 Million dollars from the ICC in June but we know they might not come so we have planned accordingly," he added.

On whether Pakistan's forthcoming tours to Holland, Ireland and England between late June and August will gohead, Mani said the PCB was prepared for disruptions.
But he ruled out resumption of international cricket in empty stadiums. "Empty stadiums also offer their big challenges as teams have to travel by air and stay in hotels so the risks start there. The logistical arrangements have to be manageable," he explained. Mani said Pakistan was prepared to show goodwill and flexibility and support the hosts of these tours.

"We wouldn't mind if two series are held at the same time like one team playing Tests and another white-ball cricket. In these difficult times we need to support each other," he said. Mani also revealed that Pakistan had shown interest in hosting several ICC tournaments to be held between 2023 and 2031, including the ICC Youth Cup and World Cups.

"Unfortunately the last time the cycle of ICC events were bid for the big three, India, Australia and England distributed all the main events among themselves. This time I can say there are more countries interested in hosting the events," he said.

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The International Cricket Council (ICC) is 'exploring all options available' to them to complete the World Test Championship amid the coronavirus pandemic. "We are continuing planning for ICC events as they are but given the rapidly evolving situation as a prudent and responsible measure we are also undertaking a comprehensive business contingency planning exercise," a source within ICC told ANI. "This includes exploring all options available to us based on a range of scenarios connected to the pandemic," the source added.

The source further added that as of now, no decision has been taken. The coronavirus pandemic has taken a huge toll on sports all across the globe and cricket also had to bear the brunt of the deadly virus as several series have been postponed owing to COVID-19. In the ongoing World Test Championship, a total of 71 Test matches will be played across 27 series over two years. The championship began on August 1 last year when Australia faced England in Ashes.

The top two teams will then contest in the ICC World Test Championship final in June 2021 in the UK. Currently, India hold the top spot on the World Test Championship table with 360 points followed by Australia and New Zealand with 296 and 180 points respectively.

The second ICC World Test Championship will run from July 2021 to June 2023.

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Bollywood actor Athiya Shetty seems to have found the perfect day to make her relationship with India cricketer KL Rahul official on social media as he turned 28 on Saturday. She shared the picture with her 2.3 million Instagram followers along with a white heart emoji and wrote: "Happy birthday, my person. @rahulkl." To which, Rahul replied with three heart emojis.

 

 

 

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happy birthday, my person ðŸ¤Â @rahulkl

A post shared by Athiya Shetty (@athiyashetty) onApr 18, 2020 at 12:59am PDT

Rahul's friend Hardik Pandya commented: "Hay," while tennis star Sania Mirza wrote: "Awee" along with two heart emojis.

Rumours about them seeing each other began last year after the cricketer posted an adorable picture, recreating a scene of Athiya's dad Suneil Shetty's film, Hera Pheri and captioned it: "Hello, Devi Prasad?"

 

 

 

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Hello, devi prasad....?

A post shared by KL Rahul👑 (@rahulkl) onDec 27, 2019 at 10:15pm PST

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Cricket is rightly considered as a religion in India and is the most celebrated sport in the country. Whoever makes a career in cricket has one longing wish to play for the country and Indian cricketers rightly inspire with their story and innumerable achievements. With a dream to become a cricketer since childhood, Jeel Pareshbhai Gajipara grew up looking at his hero Mahendra Singh Dhoni's journey as a sportsperson. Gajipara born on October 24, 2001, in Ahmedabad, Gujarat is a notable name in the cricket. Since his school, he was fascinated by the sport after which he decided to make become a cricketer.

Currently, he is pursuing his B.Com from GLS University. The young and good looking guy also loves to do modeling. However, he considers cricket as his only passion in life. He has played for both domestic as well as international tournaments. He has played for many tournaments from Nepal, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, and Hyderabad. The batsman has also created many records for himself including his smashing batting of 97 runs from 32 deliveries for the Mumbai domestic team. Some of his other best scores include 136 runs in 67 deliveries, 116 runs in 71 deliveries and 177 runs in 122 deliveries respectively.

These batting scores totally show his love for the sport and prove that he is here to stay. His hard work and passion for cricket will one day surely fulfill his dream. Calling MS Dhoni as his idol, Jeel has a dream of playing for India and be successful as the former Indian skipper. "Before playing for India, I want to play in the IPL (Indian Premier League)", he quoted. For his achievements, Jeel was also featured in a Gujarati newspaper and had his interview on E24 news channel. The young blood's journey is commendable and we hope to see him play for the Indian Cricket Team one day.

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The ICC's Chief Executives Committee (CEC) will discuss the financial implications of the COVID-19 pandemic over a conference call on Thursday in which the World Test Championship and the ODI league schedule will also come up for deliberation. The ODI league was to start in June but the first series under it -- South Africa's away three-match rubber against Sri Lanka in the first week of June -- was cancelled on Monday due to the pandemic.

ICC Chief Executive Manu Sawhney said: "This meeting is the first step of a collective process as we assess the impact of this ongoing global pandemic and work together so the sport can emerge from it in a strong position. "We need to share knowledge and start to build a deep understanding of what it will take to resume international cricket." It is clear that no concrete decision can be taken unless the ICC is able to figure out how many events it will lose due to the global lockdown which has brought the world to a standstill. "We are almost at the halfway point of the World Test Championship, and the Super League is yet to commence so we will consider a range of options for each with our Members. But it's still some way to go before," a senior ICC Board member told PTI on conditions of anonymity.

Sawhney admitted that they have a tough road ahead in uncertain times. "The scale of this task should not be underestimated and will encompass a myriad of factors until the public health situation has improved to a point that it is safe for our players, our employees, our fans and in a way that will not impact the public health situation adversely. "Countries will start to reopen at different stages and in different ways and we will need to respect that and have a holistic view of this to enable us to take well-informed decisions that mitigate the various risks as much as possible," the ICC Chief Executive added. Sawhney said that ICC is taking advice from Australian government with regards to hosting the World T20 in October.

"...we will continue to take advice from experts and authorities, including the Australian government. We will utilize all of the data and information available to us to ensure we can take responsible decisions around all competitions at an appropriate time that are in the best interests of our sport." The senior official, who has attended a number of ICC board meetings, made it clear that cancellation of another couple of Test series could heavily impact the WTC calendar. "Look, we had to finish the league phase by March 2021 with final at Lord's in June, 2021. India are more secured as they don't have any cancelled series till now and their next Test series in Australia starts end of November," the official said. "But England already have lost one against Sri Lanka. Also you don't know if West Indies and Pakistan can tour England this summer," he added. Although everyone is tight-lipped, an option of extending the calendar for the WTC might be explored where teams get to complete their bilateral Test engagements. Add to that, the 13-team ODI league with points system, where each team has to play eight bilateral 50-over series (three-match series). The ODI league will continue till March, 2022.

As per points table as on March, 2022, India as hosts (automatic qualification) and seven other teams will qualify directly to the World Cup. The bottom five will play a Qualifier with five associates and top two from there will complete the 10-team World Cup in 2023. "At this time CEC will discuss the collective process to consider impact of COVID-19 on the sport. The members would like to get an understanding from each other as to when cricket might restart in their respective regions and under what conditions," a CEC member said. It has also been learnt that as of now, the ICC won't tinker with the existing World T20 schedule in October-November as save 'Big Three' -- India, Australia and England-- the smaller nations might find it difficult to sustain without the event is expected to generate. In case the World T20 is shifted, the revenue stream, especially cash-flow will be severely affected. India will be represented at the CEC meet by BCCI secretary Jay Shah.

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Former New Zealand skipper Brendon McCullum on Wednesday advocated for this year's T20 World Cup to be postponed to early next year, saying the currently-suspended IPL should take the mega-event's slot. The COVID-19 pandemic has halted all global sporting activities, jeopardising the T20 World Cup, scheduled in Australia from October 18-November 15, and also "indefinitely" suspending the 13th IPL, which was slated to begin on March 29. "I think the IPL will try and target that October window and the T20 World Cup will get pushed back," McCullum, the coach of IPL side Kolkata Knight Riders, told 'Sky Cricket Podcast'. There is also the women's ODI World Cup scheduled in New Zealand in February, 2021.

"That may mean the Women's World Cup gets pushed back but hopefully we get to see all three tournaments operate." McCullum said he neither sees the T20 World Cup happening without the stadium fans nor does he believe that teams from 16 nations will be able to travel to Australia in the wake of the pandemic, which has infected more than 20 lakh people globally. If IPL doesn't happen, none of the players or support staff get paid. The ICC's Chief Executives Committee (CEC) is set to meet on Thursday to discuss the financial implications of COVID-19 and also the contingency planning for all ICC global events, including the T20 World Cup, over a conference call. "For Australia to move 16 international teams plus all of their support staff and then broadcasters, seems a bridge too far. I can't see them playing the T20 World Cup behind closed doors either," McCullum said. "There may be a window a bit later in the new year of 2021 which could then open up a window for the IPL (in October and November). You'd have to move some overseas players for the IPL but with the broadcasters based in India, it is a lot easier to pull it all together. "The ICC and world cricket need crowds to operate but India can probably sustain things commercially behind closed doors because they are going to get so many eyeballs."

Former New Zealand seamer Simon Doull, who joined McCullum and Ian Smith on the podcast, also believes spectators will be important to get the revenues flowing from the T20 World Cup. "A lot of the ICC's revenue for down the track comes from the World Cups so they want as many people in the stands as possible," he said. "They would hate to see a T20 World Cup under lockdown where no one could go and watch and the atmosphere would probably be a little bit less." Doull also said ICC needs to decide how important is the T20 World Cup. "How important is the T20 World Cup? That the first question from an ICC point of view," he said. "Is it important enough to have private jets out of each county with cricket teams on them, two weeks in quarantine in Australia and then the tournament taking place, whether there are fans in the stands or not? Is it that important?".

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Former Australia cricket captain Michael Clarke is reportedly still seeing fashion designer Pip Edwards, but doesn't want the world to know. According to British tabloid, The Daily Mail, Michael was spotted at Pip's apartment, but made a dash for it moments later.

Michael, nicknamed Pup, and Pip broke up earlier this month as the former cricketer was not too happy about the publicity that accompanied their relationship.  However, on Monday morning, he was spotted with Pip at Sydney's Bondi Beach.

It is learnt that the couple emerged from Pip's home in a black car at around 9am and drove to a nearby juice bar. Pip, who turned 40 on the day, then headed to collect their order, but on noticing the paparazzi, left in a huff, forgetting to pick their drinks.They then drove back to her place from where Michael took off on his motorbike. Later, Pip returned to the juice bar and picked up three juices.

Michael separated from his wife of seven years, Kyly in September last year. They have a daughter Kelsey Lee, four.Pip has a teenaged son Justice.

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Veteran Bollywood actor Rishi Kapoor passed away today after he was admitted at the Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital in Mumbai.

Earlier today, Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan took to social media site Twitter to confirm the news of the death of Rishi Kapoor.  Sachin Tendulkar, Mithali Raj, Harbhajan Singh and his wife Geeta Basra all took to Twitter to express their feelings on the sudden death of Rishi Kapoor this morning.

"Very very sad to hear about the passing away of Rishi ji. I grew up watching his movies and he was always very gracious when we met over the years. May his soul Rest in Peace. My heartfelt condolences to Neetu ji, Ranbir and the whole Kapoor family," said Tendulkar on Twitter.

Indian women's ODI team skipper Mithali Raj termed the actor's demise as "huge loss" and said she will miss him on the silver screen.

"Shocked by the demise of veteran actor Rishi Kapoorji.Never quite got his due for the acting genius that he was! His boyish smile,straight talking ,jovial & endearing personality won him millions of followers.Huge loss.Will miss dearly on the silver screen. OM Shanti #gonesoon," Raj tweeted.

Shocked by the demise of veteran actor Rishi Kapoorji.Never quite got his due for the acting genius that he was! His boyish smile,straight talking ,jovial & endearing personality won him millions of followers.Huge loss.Will miss dearly on the silver screen. OM Shanti 🙏🏻 #gonesoon

— Mithali Raj (@M_Raj03) April 30, 2020

India spinner Harbhajan Singh also mourned the death of the actor and wrote, "Woke up with this very sad news @chintskap is no more #RIPRishikapoor ji Condolence to the family.."

When we haven’t got over yesterday.. today another tragedy! This year is full of grief and such sadness! @chintskap ji.. may you rest in peace! A legend always.. a library of films you have left us with! To even write this just doesn’t feel right... 💔🙏

— Geeta Basra (@Geeta_Basra) April 30, 2020

Harbhajan Singh's actress wife Geeta Basra also took to Twitter to share a quote from his film as a tribute to Rishi Kapoor.

Ek hasina thi.. ek deewana tha.. kya umar.. kya sama.. RIP to a legend.. @chintskap my condolences to the whole family 🙏💔 a very sad day.. pic.twitter.com/3DVNq6IUHu

— Geeta Basra (@Geeta_Basra) April 30, 2020

In September 2019, the veteran actor returned to Mumbai after staying in New York for almost a year for cancer treatment. He was last seen in the 2019 film 'The Body' alongside Emraan Hashmi and Shobita Sobhita Dhulipala.

Inputs from ANI

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Former India cricketer Gautam Gambhir believes the credit for Rohit Sharma's meteoric rise in white-ball cricket must be given to former captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Since making his debut in 2007, Rohit was languishing in the middle-order with consistency being his main issue.

Dhoni seemingly took note of Rohit's hidden talent and gave him a long rope. He then promoted Rohit as opener in 2013 and that move worked wonders for him as the right-hander has gone on to become one of the most lethal top-order batsmen in white-ball cricket.

"Where Rohit Sharma is today, it is because of M.S. Dhoni," Gambhir told Sports Tak as per India Today.

"You can talk about the selection committee and team management, but if you do not have the backing from your captain then it is all useless. Everything is in the hands of the captain.

"How Dhoni backed Rohit Sharma over a period of time, I don't think any other player has been given such support," he added.

Earlier, Gambhir had described Rohit as the best white-ball cricketer in the world. In his birthday wish for Rohit, Gambhir wrote: "Happy Birthday to the best white-ball cricketer in the world Rohit Sharma! Have a great year ahead!!"

"Don't know about that Gauti bhai. But loving your work," Rohit responded to the high praise from his former teammate.

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Equity benchmark indices slipped by 2.7 per cent during early hours on Tuesday in line with Asian peers after US oil prices slipped below zero dollar a barrel in overnight trade.

US crude futures turned negative for the first time in history following a collapse in oil demand as the coronavirus pandemic derails the global economy.

At 10:15 am, the BSE S&P Sensex was down by 870 points or 2.75 per cent at 30,778 while the Nifty 50 edged lower by 248 points or 2.69 per cent at 9,013.

Except for Nifty pharma and FMCG, all sectoral indices at the National Stock Exchange were in the red with Nifty metal down by 5.2 per cent, auto by 5.1 per cent and private bank by 4.3 per cent.

Among stocks, index heavyweight Reliance Industries fell by 3.93 per cent to Rs 1,195.60 per share. Metal majors Hindalco dropped by 8.9 per cent at Rs 106.10 per share while Tata Steel lost by 7.1 per cent and Vedanta by 6.6 per cent.

Auto major Maruti skidded by 6.8 per cent to Rs 4,964.70 per share and Tata Motors by 5.2 per cent.

Private lenders IndusInd Bank, Axis Bank and ICICI Bank dipped by 6.7 per cent, 6.1 per cent and 5.8 per cent respectively.

However, those which gained were Dr Reddy, Cipla, Nestle India, Hindustan Lever and ITC.

Meanwhile, Asia shares were in the negative zone after an overnight tumble at Wall Street with US crude futures turned negative for the first time in history. However, it bounced back into positive territory this morning.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan fell half a per cent. Japan's Nikkei fell by 2.26 per cent while Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost by 2.38 per cent and South Korea's Kospi slipped by 1.67 per cent.

Overnight stateside, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 592 points lower at 23,650, the S&P 500 slipped by 1.8 per cent to end its trading day at 2,823 and the Nasdaq Composite pulled back 1 per cent to close at 8,561.

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A clip of the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addressing the nation from his home in Ottawa as a part of a press conference has gone viral. It shows him doing a hair flip after some strands of his mane fell in front of his eyes due to the wind that got netizens swooning over him!

The clip went viral on many social media platforms, but one posted by a Facebook user Jason Hanson is the one that is being shared the most. The user has edited the clip in which Trudeau stands in front of a microphone and added a melodious background tune at the portion where he looks at the camera and flips his hair with the back of his hand in slow motion.

The clip, posted on the social networking app on April 19 garnered more than 5.6 million views and over 135,000 likes. It was shared on Facebook more than 182,000 times. The users commenting on the post lauded the creativity of the user with tons of hilarious reactions.

One user said, "The fact that this isn’t staged and genuinely how he looks fixing his hair in slomo." Another user  called the prime minister "charming." A user said, "Who can criticize this kind of leadership?"

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The Disneyland theme park in Shanghai will reopen on May 11 under "enhanced health and safety measures," the firm said. Only limited attendance will be allowed initially, and visitors will need to book tickets and make reservations in advance. Social distancing will be maintained in lines for amenities, in restaurants, on rides and other facilities and sanitisation and disinfection will be boosted, it added.

With warmer weather and new virus cases and deaths falling to near-zero, China has been steadily re-opening, parks, museums and tourist sites such as the Great Wall of China and the Forbidden City ancient palace complex in Beijing. China has reported two confirmed cases and 20 new asymptomatic infections.

China asks US for proof
China on Wednesday dared US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to show "enormous evidence" he claimed to have to prove that the virus originated from a lab in Wuhan and said he has no proof to back up his claims.

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The Dutch Government has confirmed that a registry of ultimate beneficial owners of companies will enter into force in the Netherlands from January 2020.

The Government of Luxembourg has published in its Official Gazette the law for the introduction of the new intellectual property tax regime.

The Luxembourg direct tax administration has published a circular including comprehensive guidance for the recently introduced changes to the special tax regime for intellectual property income.

COVID-19 will lead to fundamental, and possibly, permanent behavioural changes in the way people shop, consume media and how they regard the brands they do business with, said Prabhu Ram of CMR

Xiaomi has finally launched the Mi 10 in India, and with starting price of Rs 49,999, it goes up against the likes of the OnePlus 8 and the OnePlus 8 Pro, which were recently launched in India. Here it is compared with the OnePlus 8 Pro.

The European Commission has invited comments on commitments offered by fifteen container liner shipping companies to address concerns raised relating to concerted practices.

Representatives of the European Free Trade Association - Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland - and the Philippines signed a free trade agreement in the Swiss capital of Bern on April 28.

The European Free Trade Association Surveillance Authority has approved a Norwegian state aid scheme which grants tax refunds to ship owners.

The European Free Trade Association Surveillance Authority has approved a tax-based state aid scheme aimed at reducing maritime transport pollution in Norway.

The Greek shipping industry has agreed to renew a tax agreement under which shipping companies pay additional tax to the Government.

Tax regime instability has been cited by Greek shipping companies as a reason why they would consider switching to an alternative jurisdiction, according to a report by EY.

Having endorsed the deal, the President of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, has forwarded on a bill to ratify the free trade agreement with the European Free Trade Association states to the Senate.

The European Commission has opened an in-depth investigation into a Polish tax scheme for shipyards, which it says could give shipbuilders an unfair competitive advantage over rivals.

The Hong Kong Government has published in the Gazette legislation to provide profits tax concessions to certain ship lessors and ship leasing managers.

The findings, published in the Lancet medical journal, showed that on average, people who got the triple drug reached the point of no detectable virus five days earlier than those in the control group - at 7 days versus 12 days

Singapore has gazetted a law to repeal the income tax concession for intellectual property income derived by companies benefiting from the Pioneer Service Companies Incentive or the Development and Expansion Incentive schemes.

Higher tax receipts helped Switzerland to another surplus in 2019, with withholding tax and direct federal tax performing particularly well.

Dengvaxia, manufactured by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi, secured its first regulatory approval in Mexico a fortnight ago and is currently being

In 2015, as many as 15,867 cases of dengue were reported in Delhi. A case of dengue has been reported from Okhla area of the national capital, reported an official.

Nearly 433 people have been confirmed to be affected by dengue since January including Navneet Sehgal, principal secretary, Khadi Gram Udyog. Sehgal

Highlights: COVID-19 can stick on to kids' toys and play equipment Parents must advice your naughty little

The Philippines' House of Representatives on September 9, 2019, approved two bills to overhaul the rates in place on financial services and passive income.

Malta's Minister for Finance, Edward Scicluna, told delegates to a recent law conference at the Old University in Valletta that beneficial ownership regulations will be published in the coming weeks.

The Hong Kong Government has published in the Gazette legislation to provide profits tax concessions to certain ship lessors and ship leasing managers.

Higher tax receipts helped Switzerland to another surplus in 2019, with withholding tax and direct federal tax performing particularly well.

Ministers from 11 countries have announced their agreement upon the "core elements" of a new Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.

For the first time, the Commission has presented a comprehensive report on investor citizenship and residence schemes operated by a number of EU member states.

The implementation of a new system by the Isle of Man Ship Registry for processing online applications for Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping for Seafarers endorsements has been hailed a great success by its clients.

More than 20 jurisdictions have signed up to a pilot project to exchange data held on beneficial ownership registers and registers of trusts, according to UK Chancellor George Osborne.