World Cup 2015: No Place for Yuvraj Singh, Fit-Again Ravindra Jadeja Makes Cut

Defending champions India will be led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni in the World Cup 2015, which will be played in Australia and New Zealand from February 14 to March 29.

Reported by: NDTVSports

Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin will lead India's spin attack.

© AFP

India announced a 15-member squad for the World Cup under the captaincy of Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The defending champions start their campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan on February 15. India's 2011 World Cup hero Yuvraj Singh was ignored despite a hat-trick of hundreds in the Ranji Trophy. (Highlights of Selection Meeting)
The likes of Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja, Umesh Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami and Ishant Sharma were obvious selections. The selectors gathered in Mumbai for a much-anticipated meeting to announce the squad on Tuesday.
Rookie left-arm spinner Akshar Patel got his maiden World Cup berth while Stuart Binny, who holds the best bowling figures by an Indian in ODIs, also made the cut. India chose to stick with the experienced Ishant despite suffering an injury which ruled him out of the SCG Test.
There were questions on Jadeja's fitness, who is currently nursing a shoulder injury. Physio Nitin Patel, who supervised Jadeja's fitness at the new BCCI center in Chennai, submitted a progress report to the selectors. The Saurashtra all-rounder had returned home after sustaining an injury in the Test series in Australia. There was uncertainty over his availability for the showpiece event, raising hopes for an out-of-favour Yuvraj.
Yuvraj was not named in the 30-man probables list. BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel said Yuvraj's name was discussed in the meeting along with several other players. Many names apart from the probables were also considered, the BCCI said on Tuesday.

Patel said Jadeja's rehabilitation program was going along well and he should be completely fit in 10 days. The selection committee had a detailed discussion with the physio Nitin Patel.
India, the No. 3 ODI side in the world, are clubbed in Pool B with South Africa, Pakistan, West Indies, Zimbabwe, Ireland and the United Arab Emirates.
India's 15-man squad for World Cup 2015
MS Dhoni, S Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Ambati Raydu, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Akshar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Stuart Binny and Umesh Yadav
India's Squad for Tri-Series in Australia
MS Dhoni (Captain), Virat Kohli (V Captain), Ajinkya Rahane, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Stuart Binny, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Ambati Rayudu, Axar Patel, R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Md. Shami, Umesh Yadav, Mohit Sharma, Ishant Sharma, Dhawal Kulkarni

Story first published on: Tuesday, 06 January 2015 13:57 IST

Pose for the Camera, Netaji Said to Teen Rape Survivor's Mother

Sonal Mehrotra (Sonal Mehrotra is Senior Correspondent, NDTV 24X7)

My New Year started with the news of yet another brutal rape from the now infamous Badaun district of Uttar Pradesh. So my cameraperson and I travelled back there just six months after this western part of the state snatched the world's attention and headlines when it was reported that two teen girls who were cousins had been found hanging from a mango tree.

This time, the victim was a 14-year-old girl, who was gang-raped allegedly by two constables in their official police quarters. When I visited the crime scene with my cameraman, we were shocked to see that the police quarters were built inside the police station compound. In fact, 'Room No. 3', which had been sealed since, was bang opposite the residence of the Station Officer. How could an area home to police officers turn into a zone of brutality?

According to the mother, the girl was picked up from fields in a car in the night on New Year's Eve, driven to the police station eight km away, taken to the constables' room, and raped by them in turn. Later, she was dropped back to her house.

I caught a glimpse of the survivor at the Badaun hospital as she was being taken for her medical examination. Her face veiled, she was surrounded by a dozen female constables and photographers who took pictures of her. As she had already given her statement to the police, I didn't have the heart to ask her questions, making her relive the tragedy once again.

For now, let's ignore the facts that the FIR was registered an entire 24 hours after the crime only after a senior cop intervened, that the medical examination was conducted a full two days later, and that several reports alleged that the relatives of the two suspects - one of whom has now been arrested - cleaned up the crime scene and forged the duty records to reflect he was off duty.

What can't be ignored is what followed.

Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav's office tweeted on January 3 and sent all the right signals by dispatching senior officers from Lucknow to investigate the case and announcing compensation of Rs. 5lakh for the teen's family.

What actually happened to these measures is a deeply disturbing tale of how police and politicians operate in UP's sarkar raj, and perhaps, also a reason why crime continues to flourish here.

The Additional Director General, Crime of UP Police, HC Awasthi, had been sent from Lucknow with a cheque of five lakh rupees. The cheque was to be presented to the victim's mother by a local politician of the Samajwadi Party.
Meanwhile, the Badaun District Magistrate's office was dressed up for a press interaction. Senior police officers and Banwari Singh Yadav of the Samajwadi Party came and sat there, exchanging pleasantries and chatting with the local media.

After the mother - a woman in her 40s with her face hidden beneath a ghunghat - arrived, the District Magistate made a speech and invited netaji to give her the money. The politician's face lit up. Smiling broadly, he sprung up to present the cheque. The woman kept weeping, saying "paisa nahi chahiye sahab, nyaye chahiye" ("I don't need money, sir. I want justice").
But local councillor Yadav, still smiling, responded in Hindi: "The Chief Minister has sent 5 lakhs especially for you. He is so great and kind that he sent the money immediately. Now, hold it and look at the camera." He forced the mother to flash the cheque towards the waiting cameras, and then offered this priceless gem: "God will get you justice. Don't cry."

That wasn't it, though. We were later told that the cop sent by the Chief Minister to supervise investigations would give us a soundbite and update us on the progress made in the case. As we lined up, the second-most senior policeman in UP started his statement by naming the rape survivor's parents. Oblivious of the blunder he had committed, he continued with the rest of his update. Later, when I got a chance of confront him for violating the law, he fumed at me, pushed the camera aside and slammed the door of his car in my face, claiming he had done "no wrong."

Agitated, angry, hurt and downright powerless. That's how I felt on my way back from Badaun.
One of the two accused constables, Avneesh Yadav, continues to be on the run. The other cop was arrested on Sunday from Safai. He is understood to have gone there to find refuge with a Yadav politician.

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Story First Published: January 06, 2015 11:06 IST

Sony expands distribution for 'Interview'

LOS ANGELES, Jan 01, 2015 (BSS/AFP)- Sony Pictures said Wednesday it had expanded distribution of the controversial comedy "The Interview" to include more theaters and video-on-demand platforms, after hackers threatened to attack cinemas screening the film.

From Friday, a total of 580 independent theaters will show "The Interview" -- a madcap satire about a fictional CIA plot to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un.

Threats by hackers issued after a November cyberattack on Sony Pictures initially prompted the movie giant to cancel the film's Christmas Day release, after many large US theater chains got cold feet.

The United States has blamed North Korea for the cyberattack, but Pyongyang has vehemently denied any involvement.

The comedy, starring Seth Rogen and James Franco, eventually opened on December 25 in more than 300 independent movie houses that offered to show the film after Sony came under fire for pulling it.

It was also made available last week on Google Play, YouTube Movies, Microsoft's Xbox Video and on a dedicated website, www.seetheinterview.com.

Sony said the film would now also be available from Wednesday either as video on demand or pay-per-view via major US cable and satellite providers including Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cablevision and Verizon FiOS.

The film price starts at $5.99.

"The Interview" will also be available on Sony's PlayStation Network from Thursday.

"We have always sought the widest possible distribution for 'The Interview,' and want to thank our new partners for helping us make that happen," said Sony Pictures boss Michael Lynton.

So far, the film has earned a combined $18 million in online rentals or purchases, as well as theater ticket sales, since its release.