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IPL: Rajasthan to face Chennai in do-or-die game (Preview)
Jaipur, May 10 (IANS) Rajasthan Royals (RR) will aim to keep themselves alive in the Indian Premier League (IPL) when they take on a confident Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium here on Friday.
After a hat-trick of defeats, Rajasthan kept themselves afloat in the cash-rich league when they defeated Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) by 15 runs in their last game.
The Ajinkya Rahane-led side, placed at the sixth spot in the points table with just eight points in their kitty, will need to come out with their best in a do-or-die game against the yellow brigade.
Skipper Rahane will once again expect his team to get their act together and aim for consistency as they did against Punjab on Sunday.
Rahane and Samson have been average while the inconsistent run of Ben Stokes has affected their performance this season.
Stokes, the costliest buy in IPL auction 2018, has miserably failed to perform both with the bat and ball.
Jos Buttler played a 58-ball 82 run knock to lift Rajasthan to 158 for eight against Punjab, a target which their bowlers defended. The English batsman has accumulated 320 runs from ten games averaging 35.55.
Among the bowlers, young seamer Jofra Archer has done well to claim nine wickets from four matches while this IPL’s costliest Indian buy Jaydev Unadkat has also been amongst the wickets.
Spinner K. Gowtham, who has bagged eight wickets from ten matches, came out with an impressive performance in the last outing and will need to repeat the show as the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led side has struggled against spinners this season.
On the other hand, another win for Chennai will cement their place in the play-offs.
The southern outfit is in red-hot form this season after seven wins from 10 games and will look to consolidate their position in the top two.
Chennai batters are in top form however, death-over bowling still remains a concern.
Most of the batsmen — Ambati Rayudu, Australian Shane Watson, West Indian Dwayne Bravo, skipper Dhoni and Suresh Raina — have contributed whenever the team needed. Rayudu has batted well both as an opener and at number four, amassing 423 runs from 10 games.
With 360 runs from 10 innings, Dhoni is placed seventh on the run-scorers list.
Left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja, who struggled against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), emerged with a match-winning figure of 3/18 — in a major relief for the team management.
The pace attack will once again feature Lungi Ngidi, David Willey and Shardul Thakur.
Depending on their terrific form, Chennai will once again be the favourites in Friday’s clash, though a desperate Rajasthan will look to come out all guns blazing.
Squads:
Chennai Super Kings: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Captain/Wicket-keeper), Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Faf du Plessis, Harbhajan Singh, Dwayne Bravo, Shane Watson, Ambati Rayudu, Deepak Chahar, KM Asif, Kanishk Seth, Lungi Ngidi, Dhruv Shorey, Murali Vijay, Sam Billings, Mark Wood, Kshitiz Sharma, Monu Kumar, Chaitanya Bishnoi, Imran Tahir, Karn Sharma, Shardul Thakur, N Jagadeesan, David Willey
Rajasthan Royals: Ajinkya Rahane (Captain), Ben Stokes, Stuart Binny, Sanju Samson (Wicket-keeper), Jos Buttler, Rahul Tripathi, D’Arcy Short, Krishnappa Gowtham, Jofra Archer, Dhawal Kulkarni, Jaydev Unadkat, Ankit Sharma, Anureet Singh, Shreyas Gopal, Prashant Chopra, Sudhesan Midhun, Ben Laughlin, Mahipal Lomror, Aryaman Birla, Jatin Saxena, Dushmantha Chameera, Heinrich Klaasen, Ish Sodhi
–IANS
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Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma
World-renowned business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has supported Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission. In memory of his mother, Late Veena Verma, who was a 3 term Rajya Sabha MP.
Dr. Verma dedicated a state-of-the-art free permanent shelter for the attendants of patients at KGMU Medical University, Lucknow, under the aegis of Vijay Shree Foundation. His daughter, Nicolle Verma, inaugurated the shelter.
During the event, Foodman Vishal Singh honored Nicolle Verma by presenting her with a memento. Mrs. Nidhi Sharma and Avantika Yadav, associated with the organization, welcomed her with garlands. Following this, Nicolle Verma distributed essential items to the attendants and also handed out fruits. She became emotional remembering her grandmother on her birth anniversary.
On this occasion, she also inaugurated the “Veena Verma Sevalaya” in memory of her grandmother, Veena Verma, to serve the attendants. She expressed, “I feel proud that my family is engaged in nation-building as well as social service. Today, in collaboration with Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh Ji, I feel immensely proud to dedicate this shelter for the poor, helpless, and needy attendants of patients battling serious illnesses like cancer. I am honored to be associated with the Hunger-Free World Mission for humanity.”
Inspired by the continuous humanitarian service provided by Vijay Shree Foundation over the past 17 years, Nicolle Verma donated 10 lakh rupees to support the cause. The purpose of this donation is to ensure that services continue for the needy attendants of patients suffering from severe illnesses in hospitals, as facilitated by Foodman Vishal Singh.
It is noteworthy that Dr. Abhishek Verma’s family has a legacy of public and philanthropic service. They are helping millions to carry forward the values and service work of their parents. On the occasion of his mother’s birth anniversary, Dr. Abhishek Verma dedicated this state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College to serve the attendants of patients through the Vijay Shree Foundation.
Supporting Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission, Dr. Abhishek Verma assured that he would continually support keeping this flame of humanity alive. He also promised to assist in providing medicines to the helpless patients.
Continuing her grandmother’s legacy of service, Nicolle Verma personally served food to the needy patients and attendants. She said, “It is our good fortune to have received the joy of doing this noble work today through Foodman Vishal Singh. I have taken another step forward in carrying my family’s values and cooperation by joining hands with the Vijay Shree Foundation. My father taught me to serve and help the needy, and I feel happy when I bring a smile to someone’s face.”
On the birth anniversary of the late Veena Verma, the event organizer, Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh, said, “We feel proud and happy that Dr. Abhishek Verma, a globally renowned business tycoon, has extended his support to uplift our country from the hunger index. Today, on his mother’s birth anniversary, he inaugurated a state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College, which will always be helpful for the needy attendants of patients. It is a pleasure for me and the organization to receive the affection of Mr. Verma.”
The event was attended by General Manager Verma Family Office Hemant Garg, Sonu Rajput, and the organization’s volunteers, including Sandeep Singh, Parmeshwar Ji, Prashant Rao Gautam, Balram Singh, Ramesh Chaudhary, Suman, Jeetu, Anil, Suraj, Vinay, Manish Bhadauria, Manas Mehrotra, Vivek, Apurv, Happy, and others.