The year 2021 was decisive in cricket in many ways.
It showed us that New Zealand are the best all-format, all-conditions team after winning the World Test Championship title and making it to the final of the T20 World Cup. Australia showed once again why they are always a danger in ICC competitions, winning the T20 title in Dubai — the only white-ball trophy missing from their cabinet.
We also witnessed India failing in another multi-nation tournament, resulting in a farewell to Virat Kohli as the 20-over captain. And finally, Pakistan showed that when the going gets tough — as was the case after successive withdrawals of New Zealand and then England from their tours to Pakistan right before the T20 World Cup — the men in green raise their game to another level.
A major driving force behind Pakistan's superb run in the T20 showpiece event was the form of captain Babar Azam and wicketkeeper batsman Mohammed Rizwan at the top of the order.
Their consistent runs on extremely challenging surfaces in the UAE allowed Pakistan's razor-sharp bowling attack to dictate terms. That was the case even in the semi-final against Australia until a dropped catch and then three extraordinarily brave hits from Matthew Wade denied them victory.
Slowly but surely, Babar and Rizwan have matched and then bettered the king of T20 cricket in Kohli. The India great has not lost form, but has not been as explosive either. Rizwan especially enjoyed a sensational 2021 in T20 cricket, scoring more than 1,000 runs and emerging as one of the foremost batsmen in the format.
Rizwan scored almost 48 runs per outing in 23 innings this year, while topping the run-scoring charts. Babar is behind him at nearly 37 runs per innings in 23 outings. Kohli scored 299 runs from eight innings, which is as good as Babar's numbers. Meanwhile, India's new T20 captain Rohit Sharma made 424 runs from 11 outings in 2021, which is around 38 per innings.
So how good has Rizwan been? Below are three graphics that show just how much.
Pakistan captain Babar has regained his number one spot in T20 cricket. Rizwan has made giant strides, attaining his highest career ranking during the World Cup. With more T20 matches lined up, as the next World Cup is less than one year away, expect more from the Pakistan gloveman.
If we go purely by numbers, Rizwan is the top run-getter in T20 cricket in 2021 with 1,123 runs and Babar behind him on 853 runs. While very few have played as many games as them — 26 apiece — the two are still well before the pack.
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Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
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- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
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F1 The Movie
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Rating: 4/5
