Infantino defends use of video replays at Club World Cup
FIFA President Gianni Infantino has defended the use of the video assistant referee system at the ongoing Club World Cup in Japan after the technology sparked controversy on both instances it was used.Midfielder Luka Modric and manager Zinedine Zidane were critical of the new video technology after Real Madrid’s win over Club America on Thursday and Infantino emphasised that the technology was still at the testing stage.”We are making the mistakes to take the right decisions,” Infantino was quoted as saying by the Kyodo news agency. (FIFA insists Video Assistant Referees results are extremely positive)”Mr. Modric will certainly be very happy if next time, thanks to the video assistant referee, he wins a match even if it takes a few seconds to find out whether the match should have been won or not.”Even if we take 30 seconds, one minute — it should be less, and we will obviously work on it — but (we should) help the referee take the right decisions which can decide the most important competition in the world, the World Cup.”The video assistant referees, introduced to eradicate human error in the sport, was used to award a penalty for the first time as Japanese team Kashima Antlers beat Colombia’s Atletico Nacional in the semi-finals on Wednesday.Infantino made it clear that under no circumstances will the flow of the game be compromised in favour of video replays.”We don’t want the flow of the game to be interrupted. This is one of the biggest assets of our sport, the flow of the game,” he said.advertisement”Of course we continue, of course we continue with the tests and I sincerely hope they continue to be as positive as they are.”In the next World Cup, I hope that the results of the video referring tests will have been so positive that we will not only test it but in fact implement it.” (Zidane, Modric critical of FIFA’s new video technology)Despite recent objection from the European clubs, Infantino was still in favour of expanding the World Cup.”I would like to just underline that even a 48-team format does not require more matches per team… It does not require more days,” the 46-year-old Swiss added.”The only difference is that eight or 16 — depending on whether it’s a 40 or 48-team format — countries will participate in the biggest event of the world, which is the FIFA World Cup.”So there is no downside at all, only upsides.”
Ashish Nehra has recovered from the spate of injuries which kept him out of action for more than six months. Under the watchful eyes of his coach Tarak Sinha, Nehra was putting in the hard yards as he seeks to make a comeback in the national fold.The speedster has not played an international match since the semi-final loss to West Indies in the World Twenty20 in March this year.But Nehra is now looking to make a comeback to international cricket and will get his chance to prove his match fitness against England in the two practice matches before the three match ODI series.The 37-year-old could well be the surprise pick for the three ODIs and T20Is that India is scheduled to play against England, starting January 15 in Pune.Nehra was ruled out of the IPL this season after a hamstring injury and has been trying hard to get back to his top-level fitness.The 37-year-old impressed everyone with his lethal bowling and also played a significant role in guiding other pacers in the team during India’s T20 matches. In fact, his name even came up for the bowling coach’s job for which Zaheer Khan was also in the running before he turned down the offer.
9th Race : The T2 Cup (abt) 1600mts.. 9th Race : The T2 Cup (abt) 1600mts.. Splash Proof (Mr. Subir Dasgupta rep, Cairnhill Stud Farm Pvt, Ltd. & Mr. Jeet Bannerjee) 56.5 Dasrath Singh First. King?s Crown 54.5 A. Ashhad Asbar second, Rewalding 58 Mohit Singh third and Jordana 61 crd 57 S. Jaykumar fourth All Ran Won by 2-1/4, 1-1/4 and 1-1/4 Time : 1m 37.956 secs. Tote : Rs 45/-for win, Rs. 17/-, Rs. 14/- and Rs 25/- for places Fc : Rs 79/- Shp: Rs 53/- Tanala : Rs 594/- Favourtie : King?s Crown. Winner Trained by Vijay Singh. — (more) PTI Corr LNS LNS KHS
Captain Parthiv Patel’s 90 lifted Gujarat to 291 for six in their first innings as they took a crucial 63-run lead over defending champions Mumbai on the second day of the Ranji Trophy final here on Wednesday. (Latest Cricket stories)Apart from the seasoned left-hander, Manprit Juneja scored 77 as the duo shared a 120-run stand for the fourth wicket to help Gujarat move past record champions Mumbai’s first innings total of 228 all out.Parthiv’s experience came to the fore as Gujarat were in deep trouble early, losing openers Samit Gohel (4) and Priyank Kirit Panchal (6).Gohel fell to medium pacer Shardul Thakur offering a catch to Suryakumar Yadav, while Panchal edged it to wicket-keeper Aditya Tare off medium pacer Abhishek Nayar’s bowling, with Gujarat at 37-2.Bhargav Merai (45) was then joined in the middle by Test wicket-keeper Parthiv. They warded off the danger with a 69-run stand. The partnership provided the stability that was required after Gujarat lost two early wickets.Merai fell five short of a half-century as he edged it to Tare off Nayar, who picked up his second wicket at the Holkar Cricket Stadium.At 106-3, Juneja joined hands with Parthiv and the left-right combination flourished with ease. Stroke-making was the best part of the partnership and both of them scored fours regularly, piling pressure on the Mumbai bowlers.While Parthiv recorded his 56th fifty in the first-class cricket, Juneja too enjoyed the limelight during his 14th first-class half-century.Their 120-run stand was halted by Nayar, who forced an edge off Parthiv to glovesman Tare, with Gujarat at 226-2, barely two runs behind Mumbai’s first innings. Parthiv’s 90 came from 146 deliveries and featured 12 fours.advertisementJuneja soon joined his captain in the pavillion when he was caught and bowled by Thakur at his personal score of 77 off 95 deliveries, with Gujarat at 254-5. His knock was studded with 11 hits to the fence.Mumbai bagged another wicket in the form of Rujul Bhatt (25), who was caught by Prithvi Shaw off seamer Balwinder Sandhu.Then, Chirag Gandhi (17 not out) and Rush Kalaria (16 not out) ensuired that no more wickets fall as they took Gujarat to 291-6 — a lead of 63 runs.Brief scores: Mumbai first innings 228. Gujarat first innings 291-6 (Parthiv Patel 90, Manprit Juneja 77; Abhishek Nayar 3-91, Shardul Thakur 2-67) on Day 2.
As a row erupted over Prime Minister Narendra Modi replacing Mahatma Gandhi on Khadi and Village Industries Commission diaries and calendars, sources in the government today said the controversy is “baseless and unnecessary”.Responding to the Khadi controversy, PMO sources said, “It is an unnecessary controversy. In 1996,2002, 2005, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016 Mahatma Gandhi photograph was not there on calendar.” “There is no rule in the Khadi Village and Industries Commission (KVIC) that only Mahatma Gandhi’s photo must be printed on the calendar,” the sources quoted by news agency ANI said today.The government claims this is not the first time that Gandhi’s photo has not been used. “No photo of Gandhi appeared on the calendar or the diary in years 1996, 2002, 2005, 2011, 2013, 2016. So there is no question of saying PM Modi’s photo replaced Gandhi,” the sources said.”Modi is a youth icon and he is the reason behind the increasing popularity of khadi products among the youths,” the sources said.READ| Gandhi’s iconic charkha pose replaced by Modi’s in Khadi Gram Udyog calendar, diaryKVIC EMPLOYEES PROTEST MOVEOn Thursday, most KVIC employees and officials were taken aback to see the cover photo of the calendar and diary showing Modi weaving khadi on a large ‘charkha’ – in the same iconic pose as Gandhiji.While Gandhi’s historic picture weaving khadi on a simple wooden charkha, wearing his trademark loin cloth, is legendary and imprinted in the minds of the masses since generations, Modi comes across in his signature attire of kurta-pyjama-waistcoat, weaving khadi on a slightly modernised charkha.advertisementUpset over Gandhi’s picture missing, a section of KVIC workers in Mumbai protested and sought to know as to why the image of the father of the nation was left out, while featuring Modi.Virtually rendered speechless, employees of KVIC at Mumbai’s Vile Parle headquarters staged “a silent, soul-cleansing” protest during lunch hour on Thursday.READ| PM Modi has put Khadi back in vogueDuring the four-month period between Gandhi’s birthday on October 2 and his martyrdom on January 30, the KVIC launches special promotions and offers special rebates to boost khadi sales across India.Incidentally, Modi already has a khadi garment unofficially named after him – the casual, half-sleeved ‘Modi Kurta’ – since the days he was Gujarat Chief Minister and sported it regularly in public in various shades and styles.Meanwhile, the news was received with consternation and went viral on various social media networks with a vast majority sharply critical of the KVIC move.WATCH | PM Modi removes Mahatma Gandhi’s image from Khadi Gram Udyog calendars
Arsenal’s clash against London rivals Chelsea is the north London side’s last chance to stop the Premier League leaders from running away with the title, former France winger Robert Pires has said.Arsenal, in third, failed to capitalise on Chelsea’s draw at Liverpool as they lost at home to Watford on Tuesday and will go 12 points behind the table-toppers if they are beaten at Stamford Bridge.”I think this is the last chance for Arsenal and it is a final for the Premier League,” Pires, who enjoyed a highly-successful seven-year spell at Arsenal, told Sky Sports.”If Chelsea beat Arsenal, I think the Premier League is totally finished. Chelsea have played well for four months but if Arsenal beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, anything is possible.”Arsenal will be more concentrated and more focused and when I see (Alexis) Sanchez and (Mesut) Ozil, they can do something at Stamford Bridge.” (Arsenal face day of reckoning at vengeful Chelsea)Pires believes the battle between Arsenal defender Laurent Koscielny and Chelsea striker Diego Costa will influence the outcome of the match.”Koscielny is a good defender, maybe one of the best defenders in the Premier League,” Pires added.”He’s very strong, he’s very fast and everybody knows Diego Costa loves to fight, he has scored a lot of goals. So, maybe this is the key for the game.”
Like most international smartphone makers, Chinese telecom giant might have something to announce at the MWC event this month suspecting a new flagship Honor 8 Pro. It can’t be anything less.But a company insider has told Russian website Hi-Tech Mail.RU that it would not be a new device, but similar to what the company is scheduled to launch on February 21 — Honor V9. It said Huawei would just refinish the phone by removing the telecom operator’s logo printed on its rear.Also Read: A 5-inch Xiaomi smartphone clears TENNA, could be Redmi 5Of course there would be some changes needed in respect to the network hardware that are specific to the bands and telecom regulations of the country it will be sold in. But the phone — the specs and even the look of it — would largely remain the same.If that is true, Honor 8 would be a high-end smartphone like the Honor V9, which is a big screen smartphone sporting a 5.7 inch Quad HD panel.The phone is powered by Kirin 960 octa-core chipset clocked at 2.4 GHz with 4GB and 6GB RAM options and 64 GB or 128 GB respective storage options. The processor has four Cortex-A73 cores and four battery efficient Cortex-A53 cores, working alongside the Mali-G71 MP8 GPU.Huawei Honor V9 has a dual camera setup at its rear — like the Honor P9 — with two 12-megapixel sensors. It has an 8-megapixel selfie shooter at front, packs a 3,900 mAh battery and there is a fingerprint sensor on the back.advertisementThe phone runs Android Nougat. All the leaked specs of Honor 8 Pro are same as that of Honor V9, but the Russian website claims the rear camera to have a 20-megapixel sensor with a 12-megapixel one, instead of two 12-megapixel sensors. It is not uncommon to for phones to have a dual camera with two different sensors, so it can’t be shunned as a typing error. But this could only be cleared with a more credible leak or ultimately the launch itself.Also Read: Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 Vs Huawei Honor 6X: The dependable ones
Superstar Allu Arjun’s Duvvada Jagannadham is one of the highly expected films of this year. Sporting a brahmin look, Bunny’s new makeover created quite a stir on social media.DJ’s teaser, which was out yesterday has received terrific response from fans, clocking more than 2.3 million views on YouTube.Last seen in the blockbuster film Sarrainodu, Allu Arjun is joining hands with director Harish Shankar, who is known for blockbusters like Gabbar Singh and Mirapakay.Rockstar Devi Sri Prasad is in charge of the music. This is the 7th time Devi Sri Prasad is scoring an Allu Arjun film. The Allu Arjun films he has previously worked on are S/O Satyamurthy, Arya, Julayi, Arya 2, Iddarammayilatho and Bunny.Duvvada Jagannadham is bankrolled by Dil Raju, who is collaborating with Allu Arjun after seven years. The film has Pooja Hegde playing the female lead and is slated to release later this year.After DJ, Allu Arjun is supposed to team up with director Lingusamy for a Tamil-Telugu bilingual. However, reports suggest that the film has been put on hold.ALSO READ: Kamal Haasan should SHUT UP. Here’s whyALSO READ: Baahubali 2 New Poster ALSO READ: Baahubali 2- 5 answers the sequel will give usWATCH: Duvvada Jagannadham Teaser
Mahendra Singh Dhoni was last week sacked as the captain of Rising Pune Supergiants for the upcoming 10th edition of the Indian Premier League.Dhoni has always played his cricket on his own terms. He retired from Test cricket in December 2014 and relinquished India’s limited-overs captaincy last month. But it was the first time that Dhoni was axed from any top job in Indian cricket.He will not be playing anymore as a captain at least in the near future but as a player he will continue to contribute to the team’s cause and express himself. He dreams of representing India at the 2019 World Cup in England and not captaining the national team will allow him to concentrate more on his batting.Free from the burden of captaincy, Dhoni slammed his first ODI century in four years in January, against England and also hammered his maiden fifty in Twenty20 Internationals in his 76-match career.It has been a rollercoaster ride for Dhoni this year. After vacating the national team’s top job, he was sacked as RPS captain for, and Australia’s Steve Smith was named the skipper of the side.This after RPS, who made their IPL debut last season, finished seventh in the eight-team tournament. Under Dhoni, the team had managed to win only five of their 14 matches in the IPL 9. (Dhoni can still play Test cricket: Kaif)Dhoni’s form was also a cause of concern for the side. He managed to score only 284 runs from 12 innings with only one fifty to his credit.advertisementBATTING UP THE ORDEREven before Dhoni quit as limited-overs captain, he showed signs that he is eager to bat up the order as long as he plays cricket. He badly needed to spend time at the crease which batting at No.4 or No.5 allowed him to.In his first match — against England in January — after giving up captaincy, Dhoni failed to get going and managed only 6 runs. However, he bounced back strongly and proved why he is one of the best to dealing with pressure cooker situations when he joined forces with his longtime India teammate Yuvraj Singh to overcome early jitters that England bowlers had caused.Dhoni had joined Yuvraj, who blasted his way to his 14th hundred, after India were reduced to 25/3 in 4.4 overs. However, after getting out to a short ball in his previous match, Dhoni stayed calm under immense pressure and with Yuvraj at the other end toyed with the English attack.Dhoni and Yuvraj put on a 256-run stand for the fourth wicket, bettering their 148-run partnership, their 10th century-plus stand. Dhoni brought up his 10th hundred, which came after a long gap of four years and 46 innings.Reuters PhotoMAIDEN T20I FIFTYIt took Dhoni a litte over 10 years to register his first half-century in T20 Internationals. He struck a blistering 56 of just 36 balls against England in the third and final T20 in Bengaluru.VIJAY HAZARE CENTURYThe 35-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman is leading Jharkhand from the front at the Vijay Hazare Trophy. After his 43 went in vain in the first match, Dhoni hammered his 17th List A century to lead Jharkhand to a comfortable 78-run win over Chhattisgarh in a Group D match.It was a special knock from Dhoni, who a hit blazing 129 off only 107 balls, especially after his team was reduced to 57/6 in the 20th over.Dhoni, who batted at No.6, was involved in a 151-run stand for the seventh wicket with Nadeem, who struck 53 off 90 balls to help Jharkhand post 243/9.FITNESSDhoni will play at least two more matches in Vijay Hazare before he kit up for IPL 10, beginning April 5. Meanwhile, the next major tournament for India is the Champions Trophy in England in June and fitness will be key.Though ageing, he is one of the fittest players in the team and fitness freak Virat Kohli would want athletic and in-form players to fly to England for the mega event.India enter the tournament as defending champions and of course as favourites. India have been pooled alongside Pakistan, South Africa and Sri Lanka in Group B.
India opener Murali Vijay on Wednesday promised better catching from his side in the second Test against Australia after the hosts spilled several in their sobering defeat in the series opener in Pune. (Why Australia’s spinners won’t threaten India again in this series)CLICK TO WATCH VIDEOVisiting captain Steve Smith hit the only century of the match in Pune after being spilled four times by the butter-finger hosts who were thumped by 333 runs inside three days in the spin-dominated contest.Smith’s 109 allowed Australia to set India an improbable target of 441 to win the first match of the four-Test series and the hosts duly collapsed. (Rahul, trolled over his recent form, shuts man down with epic response)”We had a chat about it and we are working on few of the areas where we could have done much better in the last Testmatch,” Vijay, who spilled one himself, said ahead of the second Test beginning on Saturday.”We are looking forward to this game and hopefully we can pull of those catches.” (Can Virat Kohli’s India repeat 2001 heroics vs Australia? Harbhajan Singh and Nayan Mongia recall Kolkata miracle)Having conceded a 155-run first innings lead, India badly needed to restrict Australia in the second but poor catching allowed the visitors to post 285 and effectively bat the hosts out of the contest.’You hit – I catch’ in beautiful slow-mo #TeamIndia #INDvAUS pic.twitter.com/CBHCaseq2V BCCI (@BCCI) March 1, 2017″The first innings lead was little more than what we expected. From there on it was always going to be tough for us to get into the game,” Vijay said. (Also read: Exclusive: Sourav Ganguly recalls 2001 miracle vs Australia at Eden Gardens)advertisement”We had the opportunities, if we had taken those catches maybe we would have put lot more pressure on the Australians.”But it didn’t happen and we got to take it in our chin and move forward.” (India vs Australia: Pune pitch rated ‘poor’ by International Cricket Council)The defeat snapped India’s 19-Test unbeaten run, shocking fans who expected the team to steamroll Australia.Vijay said it was a challenge for his team to show their character and bounce back in the remainder of the series.”We have lost the game and we have to accept that fact. We have to move forward,” Vijay said. “We are looking forward to this game and start fresh… We will look to put the pressure back on the Australians.”It’s going to be a good challenge for us as a team and test our character. That’s why we are playing cricket and hopefully we can play the way we have to play and we have played before.”
From Lalit K JhaWashington, Mar 9 (PTI) Two influential American lawmakers have urged Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to help facilitate the US visit of a Tibetan women soccer team to participate in an international tournament in Dallas.The members of the Tibetan Womens Soccer team ? a registered charity in New Jersey and India ? were recently denies visa by the United States.”Tibet Womens Soccer does such good work with refugee girls who have experienced real persecution and dislocation,” said Congressman Chris Smith, who authored the letter to Tillerson along with Congressman Tom McArthur.”The team is truly inspiring. These girls shouldn?t be denied a chance to participate in programmes and play in exhibition games during the event in Dallas,”said Smith, who is the co-Chair of the bipartisan Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) and Chair of the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Human Rights, Global Health and International Organisations of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.The lawmakers said the team was invited to participate in the events surrounding the prestigious Dallas Cup international soccer tournament in April. The team would play in exhibition matches with Dallas area soccer teams and all of the team?s expenses would be covered by the Dallas Cup.However, when the team applied for US entry tourist visas in February, each applicant was only asked one or two basic questions?and none of their supporting documentation was reviewed?before being denied, the Congressmen alleged.”International sports tournaments, such as the Dallas Cup, have a way of healing wounds and developing peaceful ties between nations. The US needs to do more to foster the organizations that make these peaceful gatherings possible. We must ensure that these girls applications are clearly reviewed and given fair consideration,” Smith said.advertisementThe letter also asks Tillerson to “give their visas applications careful consideration”, saying “we believe that the visit of the Tibet Women?s Soccer team advances the goals of both US foreign policy and international sports diplomacy”. PTI LKJ NSA ZH
Mumbai, Mar 17 (PTI) Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Maharashtra Assembly today pointed out various tax liabilities of Lavasa City Corporation (LCL) in Pune district, including Rs 3.97 crore of land tax. The company had purchased 214 hectares of land without necessary permissions, the committee said. PAC report, tabled in the legislature today, also said the mining department of Pune Collectors office did not show any seriousness in recovery of mining royalty from LCL. LCL, which manages the planned hill-town of Lavasa, purchased 214 hectares of land worth Rs 4.23 crore during October 2002 to February 2009. This land came under the Urban Land Ceiling (ULC) Act. “Not in a single case did LCL have pre-permissions from the Pune Collectors office to purchase ULC land,” PAC said. The Collectors office did collect penalty of Rs 11.90 crore for some of these transactions, but the company still owed Rs 3.97 crore in nine cases, it said. The process of recovery started only after Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) passed a stricture, so action should be taken against the responsible officers, it said. “In future, before granting permissions to projects submitted by a Special Project Authority, it should be confirmed that the company has paid all the taxes,” PAC said. It also noted that LCL excavated 8 lakh brass of `murum soil for construction, for which the government demanded Rs 15.05 crore as a royalty. LCLs challenge to the order was pending in the court, but the mining department wasnt showing any seriousness to recover the amount, the committee said, suggesting that a good lawyer be appointed to make the governments case. PAC also asked the Pune Collector to ensure fixing of entertainment tax liability of LCL for water games and other sports. LCL hadnt taken permissions for these activities, it pointed out. PTI MM KRK BASadvertisement
The Indian cricket team on Tuesday retained the International Cricket Council (ICC) Test Championship mace and also won a cash award of $1 million for ensuring the top position in the Test Team rankings on the annual April 1 cut-off date. (SCORECARD | 4th TEST HIGHLIGHTS)The ICC Test Championship mace is awarded to teams that reach the number-one spot in the ICC Test Team Rankings. (Kohli says his friendship with Australian cricketers is over)Watch: Biggest takeaways from India vs Australia Test seriesSkipper Virat Kohli received the mace and cheque from ICC Cricket Hall of Famer Sunil Gavaskar at a ceremony after the fourth and final Test against Australia here, in which Ajinkya Rahane led the side as Kohli could not play due to a shoulder injury. (Kohli ecstatic after historic triumph: ‘Our best series win so far’)India had entered the series against Australia needing to win at least one Test to retain possession of the prestigious mace, which it had reclaimed following the Indore Test against New Zealand in October 2016. (Ashwin receives Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy)The second and third places in the rankings will be decided after the ongoing Hamilton Test between South Africa and New Zealand. (If anyone pokes us, we won’t back down: Kohli)If South Africa wins or draws the Test, it will be assured of second place but a loss will see Australia finish ahead of it in second place. (Kohli has ensured India will never back down: Clarke to India Today)The side to finish second will get $500,000 while the side finishing third will receive $200,000. The fourth-placed team, which is England, will get $100,000.advertisementCommenting on the achievement, Kohli said :”We are absolutely delighted to have topped the ICC Test rankings. The longest format of the game really tests a team’s character and I’m proud that we have proved ourselves to be the best.” (Rahane’s captaincy draws high praise from Clarke, Ganguly)”Being presented with the Test championship mace last year was an exhilarating experience and the feeling is no different this time. I’d like to both congratulate and thank everyone who has been part of this success.”This includes not only all the players who have been in the squad but also the team management and support staff, without whom we could not have done so well. It has not been an easy journey but all the hard work has been worth it. We have maintained our position with some really good cricket in recent months. The team has shown the tenacity to bounce back from difficult situations,” he added. (Twitter reactions: Sehwag calls Smith ‘tubelight’, Pujara ‘inverter’)ICC Chief Executive David Richardson congratulated the Indian team and said: “On behalf of the ICC, I would like to congratulate India for achieving and maintaining number-one status amid some stiff competition, particularly from Australia and Pakistan who both held the top spot over the last year, and South Africa who have had some great Test series wins of late.” (Jadeja and I’ve been hand-in-glove all season: Ashwin)”The team has shown great consistency over the last 12 months, it possesses a variety of talent and is an exciting team to watch.”I’m sure being recognised as the best Test nation is something that the team will really be proud of and I look forward to another year of outstanding Test cricket being played as they look to defend their position,” he added.
Skipper Glenn Maxwell’s belligerent 20-ball unbeaten 44 helped Kings XI Punjab start their 2017 Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign with a six-wicket win over Rising Pune Supergiant a Holkar Stadium here on Saturday.Maxwell, along with South African David Miller (30 from 27 balls), raised an unbeaten 79-run fifth wicket stand to guide Punjab to safety with six balls to spare. Preity Zinta cheers on as KXIP open campaign with emphatic win Chasing a decent 164, medium pacer Ashoke Dinda, guilty for leaking 30 runs in the final over against Mumbai Indians, mended his ways and provided the early breakthrough for Pune with the wicket of opener Manan Vohra, who smacked him for a massive six, four balls earlier. How ‘Big Show’ Glenn Maxwell got the better of his Australian captainSouth African veteran Hashim Amla held firm at one end, scoring almost at a run-a-ball rate and managing to clear the fence on three occasions. He along with stumper Wriddhiman Saha (13) put on 22 runs for the second wicket. Kings XI Punjab vs Rising Pune Supergiant: As it happenedSaha failed to take advantage of the life, he got on 5 when he was dropped by Daniel Christian off Ben Stokes, before a googly from leg-spinner Imran Tahir crashes into his middle and off-stump.Tottering at 49/2, Punjab were in need of a partnership and Amla provided it with southpaw Axar Patel, who was surprisingly promoted above the likes of skipper Glenn Maxwell and David Miller.The right-left combination of Amla and Patel hung on for the next four overs, milking the easy singles and an odd six to gather 34 runs for the third wicket before the Protea was undone by debutant leggie Rahul Chahar to be safely caught by Stokes at long-off.advertisementThereafter, Pune skipper Steve Smith immediately brought back his strike bowler Tahir for a second spell and the South African delivered in his very first delivery, picking the wicket of Patel off his own bowling. Patel’s 22-ball 24 had a boundary and a six as Punjab found themselves at a precarious 85/4.With Miller and Maxwell at the crease, Punjab’s hopes for a turn-around could never be written off and the duo ensured their side got those two vital points.While Maxwell belted two boundaries and four massive sixes, Miller dispatched the ball once to the fence and twice over it.Earlier, riding on a disciplined bowling effort, Kings XI restricted Pune to 163/6 in the afternoon match of the double-header.Pune were rescued by the late order heroics of their English import Ben Stokes, who brought up his maiden half century, 50 off 32 balls, along with Manoj Tiwary, who remained unbeaten on 40 off 23 deliveries.Stokes lived up to his billing of being the costliest buy in this year’s IPL auctions. After getting a feel of the wicket, the southpaw used the long handle quite well to spank left-arm spinner Axar Patel for a four and a six off consecutive deliveries.Joined by the in-form Manoj Tiwary (40 not out), Stokes brought up a 61-run fifth wicket stand, as he completed his maiden IPL half ton with a deaf touch to long on off Stonis.In the very next over, Patel ended Stokes’ resistance with a simple return catch off his own ball but could not stop Daniel Christian (17) and Tiwary to throw their bats around in the last couple of overs as Pune milked 30 runs to take their score to 163.
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of Indian Premier League encounter between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Daredevils.DD INNINGS:#IPL Match 5 – @RCBTweets 157/8 beat @DelhiDaredevils 142/9 by 15 runs. Relive the game here – https://t.co/SrxsUEGXzf #RCBvDD pic.twitter.com/Q4Q1G6XxCG- IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) 8 April 2017Kedar Jadhav: At the age of 15, I was improvising. Once I got power, I started hitting big shots. I keep all the options open and just react to the ball. I look short but I work hard on my fitness in the gym. When two of your top players are not playing, you need to take responsibility.Shane Watson: It was a great win, to get that score Kedhar did really well. We stepped it up from the first game with the ball and in the field. Kedhar got the momentum going. My gut feeling went with Negi. Pant had not seen him all night. Negi did it against his old team. Chahal has done it for RCB for a long time, he has done it for India as well.Zaheer Khan: Eight out of ten times we would got over this total. Just couldn’t get the partnerships going today. The wicket was playing well and we could have applied ourselves better. As soon as a new batsman is in, we needed to spend time in the middle getting used to the conditions but that wasn’t to be. Pant played really well and he needed some support at the other end. He showed real heart with his commitment and we are all there for him as a team. The ball was sitting up nicely and that is why 157 was possible to get is what I felt. Glad that Nadeem got the opportunity in this game. We have someone like Jayant sitting out and we have enough depth in the bowling. It is the batting that is inexperienced but once they get in, they would be unstoppable. I am happy to be back on the field, enjoying every moment with the boys.advertisement23.47 IST: That’s it, BANGALORE WIN BY 15 RUNS AND HOW! Mishra dances down the track and connects one when it doesn’t matter. The ball rolls towards long on for one. Watson is all smiles, Negi earns the limelight on what turned out to be an epic game.A highly entertaining contest. Some good bowling, a fighting knock from young Rishabh Pant, a brain fade from Amit Mishra and some smart captaincy at the death has seen Bangalore clinch an amazing victory at the Chinnaswamy. The crowd has something to cheer about as Bangalore have their first win of the tournament.23.43 IST: WICKET! Negi has another! Loopy delivery around middle, Nadeem looks to slog it across the line but gets a top edge towards mid-wicket. The bowler runs to his left and swallows it all by himself. What a stunning move here from the home side. No body can stop them from winning this battle now.23.40 IST: WICKET! Bowled ’em! Pawan Negi has delivered it on the very first ball! Is that the game? Should be! Fires it down the leg side, Pant gets down and across to paddle it but misses it completely and the leg stump it uprooted. The crowd keeps chanting RCB! RCB! RCB! Rishabh Pant walks back and would be disappointed to not help his team cross the line.Down to the final over. Which ever way this goes now, it’s been a great game of cricket. #RCBvDD #DDTweets #DilDilliHai- Delhi Daredevils (@DelhiDaredevils) 8 April 2017Match 5. 17.6: T Mills to R Pant, 6 runs, 137/7 https://t.co/Mxmua47wam #RCBvDD- IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) 8 April 201723.29 IST: FIFTY! Rishabh Pant completes his second fifty and what a knock it has been from the young man. DD 130/7 (18.3 overs) vs RCB 157/823.22 IST: WICKET! Shane Watson strikes. Dragged on! Watson with his left hand up and gets the crowd right behind him. Hurls in a length delivery, angling in, Cummins looks to hit it over the top but gets a faint inside edge onto the stumps. We surely have a game on our hands. DD 125/7 (16.2 overs) vs RCB 157/823.18 IST: Time Out! This could be anybody’s game from here on! Delhi will be pinning their hopes on Pant and Bangalore would feel if they can remove him, it could be the final nail in the coffin. 37 needed from 24 balls, a cracking finish beckons.Flick off the pads and gone for a 4. Let’s do this #DilliBoys. #RCBvDD #DDTweets #DilDilliHai- Delhi Daredevils (@DelhiDaredevils) 8 April 201723.10 IST: Pat Cummins is the next batsman in for the visitors. They need 45 off 31 to win this game.advertisement23.09 IST: WICKET! The big man departs. Chahal doesn’t need approval from the umpire this time! Carlos Brathwaite has to walk. Floated around middle, Carlos gets down to slog it but misses it and the ball goes on to disturb the woodwork behind. Look at Chahal, he’s unstoppable at the moment. The Bangalore crowd erupts. DD 113/6 (14.5 overs) vs RCB 157/8Chahal thinks he’s got Brathwaite but the umpire’s not interested! Looked plumb ?? #RCBvDD #PlayBold- Royal Challengers (@RCBTweets) 8 April 2017Carlos Brathwaite walks in to bat for #DD. We all remember the name. #RCBvDD #PlayBold- Royal Challengers (@RCBTweets) 8 April 201723.01 IST: WICKET! Iqbal Abdulla strikes after being hammered away for 13 runs. A wicket at a crucial stage here. Iqbal Abdulla has made things really interesting here. He bowls a quicker one on middle, skids off the surface a bit too and raps Morris flush in front of the stumps. The umpire doesn’t have to think twice to raise his finger to the lbw appeal. Delhi need 51 to win off 42 deliveries. DD 107/5 (13 overs) vs RCB 157/822.52 IST: SIX! Rishabh Pant is keeping Delhi Daredevils alive and he is not shy of taking on the bowlers. This time he pulls one over deep square leg for six off Shane Watson. That was a difficult chance, technically a dropped chance but a good effort. Watson brings out the short one out of nowhere and bowls it on middle and leg, hurries on to Pant who is in no control of the pull shot. Gets a big top edge which flies towards the square leg rope. Binny out there leaps and gets a hand to it but it’s just a little too high for him to hold on. Over the ropes and that’s a biggie.22.46 IST: WICKET! Sanju Samson bites the dust as Delhi lose their fourth. Tried to dominate the bowler and his failure has cost him. Back of a length on off, Samson stands his ground and mistimes his pull shot. It lobs towards Binny at mid on who takes the easiest of catch. Another one bites the dust, Delhi still need 74 off 55. DD 84/4 (10.5 overs) vs RCB 157/822.46 IST: FOUR! Mills with a horrendous spill. Shortish in length, outside off, Samson cuts it down to third man. It’s right to Tymal but he somehow manages to let it through him. Slips right between his palms and goes across the rope. Poor. DD 84/3 (10.3 overs) vs RCB 157/8Match 5. 9.4: T Mills to R Pant, 4 runs, 76/3 https://t.co/Mxmua47wam #RCBvDD- IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) 8 April 201722.30 IST: SIX! What a way to get off the mark! Superb hit from the southpaw. It’s loopy on a length, Rishabh Pant dances down, gets to the pitch and slogs it high and mighty over the mid-wicket boundary for a biggie.22.28 IST: WICKET! Sam Billings departs and Delhi’s chase is in tatters. Iqbal Abdulla has provided his side with a vital breakthrough. He floats it outside off, Billings goes for the booming drive but ends up getting it off the splice. It lobs towards Stanlake at backward point who runs to his left and takes a simple catch. DD 55/3 (7.3 overs) vs RCB 157/8advertisementWhat a beautiful reverse sweep!Crosses the boundary in style. Wham-Bam- Sam!#DDTweets#RCBvDD#DilDilliHai- Delhi Daredevils (@DelhiDaredevils) 8 April 2017Straight of the mark as #SanjuSamson flicks it off the pad for 3 runs. #RCBvDD #DilDilliHai #DDTweets- Delhi Daredevils (@DelhiDaredevils) 8 April 201722.18 IST: WICKET! Karun Nair is cleaned up. Stanlake with another venomous delivery and this time he’s struck gold. Bowls it straight on off and Karun Nair is just purely beaten for pace here. Tries to meet it with a straight bat but fails in his effort to do so. The stumps are knocked over and that’s another wicket down for the visitors. DD 38/2 (5.3 overs) vs RCB 157/8A little nervous @RCBTweets pulling my hair out but we can do it team. pic.twitter.com/sn6wYNSGyw- Yohan Blake (@YohanBlake) 8 April 201722.13 IST: WICKET! Mills strikes in his very first over. Angles in a length ball on off, Tare with an angled bat looks to cut it away but misses. Wrong choice of shot honestly, it’s coming in and always dangerous to play that. It rattles the off pole and the Indian opener is out of here. First breakthrough for Bangalore. DD 33/1 (4.4 overs) vs RCB 157/8Tymal Mills enters the attack for #RCB #RCBvDD #PlayBold- Royal Challengers (@RCBTweets) 8 April 201722.07 IST: FOUR! Edged and away! Short and turning away from around off, Tare goes back and cuts it away. Gets a big edge though which flies between the keeper and Gayle at first slip and goes away to the third man boundary. DD 26/0 (3.2 overs) vs RCB 157/822.05 IST: FOUR! Aditya Tare flicks for four off Stanlake to finish the over. DD 21/0 (3 overs) vs RCB 157/822:01 IST: Four runs from Chahal’s first over. DD 14/0 from two overs, need another 145 runs to win. 21:58 IST: Yuzvendra Chahal to share the new ball with Stanlake.21:57 IST: Nine from the first over. DD 9/0 after one over, still need 149 runs to win.21:56 IST: FOUR! Too full and too straight which Billings dismisses out of his sight. Just flicks it down across the fine leg fence for a boundary.21:55 IST: Aditya Tare and Sam Bilings walk out to bat, Stanlake with the ball RCB INNINGS:21.38 IST: That’s it! A brilliant comeback by Delhi Daredevils bowlers to restrict Bangalore to 157/8. Chris Morris picked up three wickets while captain Zaheer Khan finished with two. Kedar Jadhav was RCB’s saving grace with his 37-ball 69 that helped the hosts post a fighting total.A terrific bowling performance from Delhi. They were hit for a lot of runs in the middle, but came back well towards the end. Bangalore got off to a good start but then lost wickets quickly. But, it was Kedar Jadhav who took over the mantle and started hitting the ball around smartly. Presenting a stunning batting display, made a fifty and stitched a fifty 66-run stand as well which helped the hosts post a total in excess of 150. Morris and Zaheer Khan in particular were excellent in the death and managed to scalp wickets and keep Bangalore to a score, which on this ground, is below par.Bowled! #ChrisMorris does the trick and Negi has to depart. #RCB 157/7 #RCBvDD #DDTweets #DilDilliHai- Delhi Daredevils (@DelhiDaredevils) 8 April 2017What an over from #ChrisMorris. Only 2 runs coming from that one. #RCB 144/6. #RCBvDD #DilDilliHai #DDTweets- Delhi Daredevils (@DelhiDaredevils) 8 April 2017Pawan Negi and Iqbal Abdulla are the two batsmen in the middle for #RCB now. How many can they get in the last 3 overs? #RCBvDD #PlayBold- Royal Challengers (@RCBTweets) 8 April 2017Zak strikes back, foxes Kedar with the knuckle-ball! He’s gone for 69 (37b 5×4 5×6, SR: 186.48), #RCB 142/6 in 17 overs #RCBvDD #PlayBold- Royal Challengers (@RCBTweets) 8 April 201721.23 IST: WICKET! Another power-packed innings from Kedar Jadhav comes to an end. RCB 142/6 (16.5 overs) vs DD21.22 IST: WICKET! Vishnu Vinod is run out and RCB are five down. Zaheer Khan bowls a full length delivery on off, Vinod drives it on the up towards short extra cover where Nadeem grabs it on the bounce and then immediately returns a throw at the bowler’s end. Zaheer collects and dislodges the bails. He doesn’t even wait for the umpire and starts walking towards his run up. Vinod walks back to the pavilion. RCB 142/5 (16.4 overs) vs DDFew years ago a guy called @RobWalter17 told me that this @JadhavKedar guy can play.. Not that I didn’t believe him, but oh my, this is good- AB de Villiers (@ABdeVilliers17) 8 April 201721.14 IST: WICKET! Stuart Binny is holes out to Sam Billings at deep mid wicket. It’s full on the pads, Stuart Binny flicks it over mid-wicket. But unfortunately for him, it’s straight down the throat of Sam Billings who takes a well-judged catch out in the deep. RCB 121/4 (15 overs) vs DD21.13 IST: FOUR! Back of a length on off, Jadhav heaves this hard across the line and gets a lot of height on it. Clears the infield over square leg and the ball falls safely. Nobody out in the deep so it well roll away for a boundary.Captain #ZaheerKhan putting in some good deliveries. #RCBvDD #DDTweets #DilDilliHai- Delhi Daredevils (@DelhiDaredevils) 8 April 201721.09 IST: FIFTY! Kedar Jadhav smashes his third half-century. He is certainly the fan-favourite now. RCB 112/3 (13.4 overs) vs DD21.01 IST: Kedhar Jadhav ups the ante as he takes the attack back to the opposition. Jadhav hammers Mishra for 2,6,4,4,2,6 in the over. Time out taken!20:55 IST: Jadhav and Binny keep the scoreboard ticking. RCB 74/3 after 12 overs. Jadhav 15*, Binny 13*20:54 IST: FOUR! Beautiful timing, good shot from Binny. Angling in on middle and off, Binny whips this beautifully through mid-wicket. Beats the fielder out in the deep as the ball goes across the rope for a boundary.20:52 IST: Only five runs from the 11th over. RCB 66/3 from 11 overs. 20:48 IST: Bangalore have to up the ante if they want to score at least 160. RCB 61/3 from 10 overs. Jadhav 12 *, Binny 4*20:43 IST: OUT! Stumped! Watson departs against the run of play! Nadeem drags his length back, Watson skips down the track but is deceived by air, there is some extra bounce as well which beats the lofted drive of the Bangalore skipper. Pant behind the stumps is quick to whip the bails off. A big wicket for Delhi and they have done really well here. RCB 55/3 from 8.4 overs.Stumped! #ShahbazNadeem strikes big and #ShaneWatson has to go back to the dug out. #RCB 55/3. #DilDilliHai- Delhi Daredevils (@DelhiDaredevils) April 8, 2017Match 5. 7.4: A Mishra to K Jadhav, 6 runs, 52/2 https://t.co/Mxmua47wam #RCBvDD- IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) 8 April 201720.33 IST: Time out has been taken. Delhi have been highly competitive so far, getting rid of Gayle and Mandeep.20.30 IST: WICKET! Mandeep Singh departs for 12. Mandeep fumed at himself as he drags it on for the second time in as many games. Cummins serves it on a length outside off, Mandy looks to go at it with hard hands, manages to get an inside edge that cannons back onto the sticks. Cummins is pumped up as he gets a crucial breakthrough. RCB 41/2 (5.5 overs) vs DD20.29 IST: FOUR! Consecutive fours for Mandeep. Slightly ahead of a length, outside off, Mandeep Singh presses forward and packs a punch through covers. Splits the gap and races away to the fence for consecutive times.20.29 IST: FOUR! Mandeep Singh punches through covers for four. Crackling shot, that! That will get M.Chinnaswammy going! Back of a length, in the channel outside off, Mandeep Singh rides the bounce and cracks it through covers. Delightful!Shahbaz Nadeem comes into the attack for #DD #RCBvDD #PlayBold- Royal Challengers (@RCBTweets) 8 April 201720.23 IST: FOUR! Mandeep Singh off the mark with a four off Chris Morris. Horrible delivery to end on what could have been a wicket-maiden! Morris dished out a help yourself delivery, a low full toss down the leg side, all Mandeep had to do what to get some wood on it. He does so and the ball rockets towards the fine leg fence.20:22 IST: What a catch it was by Samson.What a catch by our #DilliBoy Sanju Samson! #DilDilliHai #DDTweets pic.twitter.com/1fUbyuE27e- Delhi Daredevils (@DelhiDaredevils) April 8, 201720.19 IST: WICKET! Chris Gayle fails to fire, departs for 6. Gayle departs off a full toss! That’s not a wicket-taking delivery by any means. Morris slips out a full toss on off, Gayle fails to middle it as the ball hits the splice of the bat and lobs up towards mid off. Sanju Samson at mid off flies to his right to take a good catch. He fell down but did well to cling onto it. The Big West Indians walks back cheaply, Delhi will be relieved. RCB 26/1 (3.2 overs) vs DD20.09 IST: FOUR! Chris Gayle joins the party. Creamed it! That’s not a Gayle-profile shot but he’s played it to perfection! A low full toss outside off, Gayle brings his bat down in time and creams it past a diving cover-point fielder for a boundary.#ChrisMorris comes in for the 2nd over. C’mon boys. #RCBvsDD #DilDilliHai- Delhi Daredevils (@DelhiDaredevils) 8 April 201720.07 IST: FOUR! Third one from the skipper. What happened there? Morris pitches it right up there, searching for the swing, Watson looks to go big but slices it over backward point. Cummins at third man does well to get to the ball but then the ball bursts out of his hands and rolls towards the fence. A bit of a sloppiness.20.04 IST: FOUR! Rocketed to the fence! Watson is timing it pretty well. Gets a full length delivery, just around the off stump, Watson leans into it and drives it on the up past covers for the second boundary of the over.20.03 IST: FOUR! Shane Watson flicks it for four to get off the mark. An off cutter served on the pads, Watson quikcly transfers his weight on the front foot and flicks it beautifully through mid-wicket for a boundary. Good timing from Watson!19.58 IST: RCB openers Chris Gayle and Shane Watson are out in the middle. Zaheer Khan opens the attack.BCCI PhotoShane Watson says they will bat first. Mentions it looks a good wicket to score some run on. Is eager to play in front of their home crowd and get the fans going. (On where to improve) Chuckles and says in all aspects – batting, bowling and fielding. Reckons anything over 170 is a good score at the M.Chinnaswamy, feels he has good batsmen in his side and they can do the job. States there are few changes, 4 of them actually – Billy Stanlake for Travis Head, Iqbal Abdulla for Sreenath Aravind, Vishnu Vinod for Aniket Choudhary and Pawan Negi for Sachin Baby.The @RCBTweets are warming-up for their first home game this #IPL season #RCBvDD pic.twitter.com/VPVCLK60Qs- IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) 8 April 201719.40 IST: TEAMS!Delhi Daredevils: Sam Billings, Aditya Tare, Sanju Samson, Karun Nair, Rishabh Pant, Carlos Brathwaite, Chris Morris, Pat Cummins, Shahbaz Nadeem, Zaheer Khan, Amit MishraRoyal Challengers Bangalore: Chris Gayle, Mandeep Singh, Vishnu Vinod, Kedar Jadhav, Shane Watson, Stuart Binny, Pawan Negi, Iqbal Abdulla, Tymal Mills, Yuzvendra Chahal, Billy Stanlake. @ImZaheer & his boys are ready in Bengaluru for #IPL #RCBvDD – @DelhiDaredevils pic.twitter.com/gYtZO8ZGaC- IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) 8 April 2017Play Hard, Play Fair – Spirit of Cricket at #IPL – @ShaneRWatson33 and @ImZaheer pic.twitter.com/gDlIOr5gJ6- IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) 8 April 201719.33 IST: TOSS! Royal Challengers Bangalore opt to bat against Delhi Daredevils. The visitors has included Sam Billings, Chris Morris, Carlos Brathwaite and Pat Cummins in their playing XI.Only a few moments left before we head into the big game tonight. Are you ready for #IPL Dilli? #DilDilliHai- Delhi Daredevils (@DelhiDaredevils) 8 April 2017Take a look at our #DilliBoys during their final practice session as they gear up for the big game tonight. C’mon Dilli! #DilDilliHai. pic.twitter.com/XzwnWIlkH3- Delhi Daredevils (@DelhiDaredevils) 8 April 2017Royal Challengers, without Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers, looked completely out of sorts in their opening defeat to Sunrisers Hyderabad on Thursday. (Kohli keeps my passion for cricket alive: De Villiers)Under Shane Watson, RCB did not look like the same sharp unit they were last year. Their bowling was listless and their fielding shoddy. A dropped chance off Yuvraj Singh hurt them particularly. (Kohli to return soon for RCB?)Tonight against Delhi Daredevils, they would want to find some kind of rhythm and show that they can be just as destructive even without Kohli in their midst. After all, the RCB batting line-up consists of Chris Gayle, Watson and they very impressive Kedar Jadhav among others.RCB finished second last night and were very dominant right through the 2016 season. Who will provide the inspiration to find that rhythm till Kohli and de Villiers get back?Daredevils, meanwhile will bank on their power-packed bowling line-up.Zaheer Khan, at 38, will be just as potent while Mohammed Shami would be eager to bounce back after his injury lay off. Amit Mishra is a wily customer as is Shahbaz Nadeem. Chris Morris, too, could be dangerous with the ball.
Network for Good hosted a special #GivingTuesday campaign, N4G Gives, focused on equipping nonprofits with the tools and knowledge for #GivingTuesday success. The N4G Gives campaign provided free #GivingTuesday resources to the entire nonprofit community and special training and matching funds to nonprofits using DonateNow, our online giving platform. In addition to matching funds, we also recognized the leaders in 10 fundraising categories with special awards. Read about seven special award winners below and learn more about the top three winners in a previous post.Honorable Mention Most Dollars Raised: The Sikh CoalitionThe Sikh Coalition was founded by volunteers on the night of September 11, 2001 in response to a torrent of violent attacks against Sikh Americans throughout the United States. The Sikh Coalition is the largest Sikh American advocacy and community development organization in the United States. Today, the Sikh Coalition works toward the realization of civil and human rights for all people.Key tacticsThe Sikh Coalition built their #GivingTuesday campaign around a core tenet of Sikhism focused on the obligation to be generous. They “love #GivingTuesday because of the urgency created around a one-day campaign and the ability to inspire donors to give earlier in December.”Key elementsTwo emails really drove the campaign. On Monday, 12/1, they sent an email out focused on driving #GT donations in a general way. On #GivingTuesday, they sent an email focused on the story of the wife of a Sikh hate crime victim. They believe it was a powerful one-two punch and their results would support that.Then, on #GivingTuesday, the Sikh Coalition rallied their supporters around the competition of the N4G Gives campaign. They shared updates about their position on the leaderboard through social channels throughout the day.As they saw their position rising on the leaderboards, they asked a longtime supporter to add a match to dollars raised, which he did, and they were able to build significant momentum late in the day. (This willingness for a donor to come forward with matching funds on the day of a campaign with good momentum is something we have seen in many giving days around the country.) ‘Rookie of the Year’ for an organization new to the N4G Family: Our Little RosesLittle girls begging for food is an all too common sight in Honduras, one of the poorest countries in Central America. Our Little Roses (OLR) provides a full-time residential home for abused, abandoned and neglected girls in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, dedicated to transforming neglected girls into productive, joyful young women. The girls who arrive at Our Little Roses often come from overwhelming situations of abject poverty, physical or sexual abuse, abandonment and oppression.Our Little Roses new Executive Director, Cheryl Chapman, followed a legendary founder who recently retired after 25 years. Cheryl is not a professional fundraiser, but clearly she is a fundraiser at heart. Just six weeks ago, she decided that OLR needed a much improved online giving capability and she turned to Network for Good. She followed the NFG recommendations for best practices and geared up to launch her first-ever #GivingTuesday campaign. OLR’s straightforward, focused campaign was so successful that they were in the top ten for dollars raised among all N4G organizations!Key tacticsOLR focused on board activation and email outreach as core strategies for #GivingTuesday. They also highlighted the availability of NFG matching funds and bonus funds. Throughout the day they used their leaderboard standing as a reason to pump up their communication.Key elementsBeginning Thanksgiving week, OLR actively communicated with their board about the campaign, the opportunity for matching funds, and the importance of spreading the word about Our Little Roses to friends and family.On #GivingTuesday, OLR sent two emails, one in the morning and one in the evening.They actively marketed their leaderboard standing on Facebook throughout the day.A supporter was so energized by the success of the OLR #GivingTuesday campaign that he came forward on December 3rd with an unsolicited offer to match the entire campaign! Most time on the Leaderboards without “Winning” a Category: Sankara Eye FoundationSankara Eye Foundation (SEF) is dedicated to eradicating curable blindness in India. Sankara has a big job: to provide eye health and surgery for the 55 million blind people in India. They are heavily volunteer driven with only 1 full-time and 2 part-time staff people.Key tacticsSEF participated in #GivingTuesday for the first time this year. They developed their campaign as one element in a year-long matching gift challenge. The campaign message centered around the concept that for less that the cost of a movie and popcorn, you can give the gift of sight. Hey also focused on the opportunity to earn extra funds by winning a category in the N4G Gives campaign as an additional motivator.Key elements“Thanks for providing 1.2 million free surgeries” email on the Monday of Thanksgiving week, highlighting opportunity to give on #GivingTuesdayOn the day of #GT, heavy focus on outreach through social channels, including individual channels of CEO and Development DirectorPublicized the campaign on portals of a couple of related advocacy organizationsRan a few targeted radio ads to build awareness for their campaignProvided hourly updates of their progress moving up the leaderboards Best Social Campaign: Collective Action for Safe SpacesFounded in 2009 as Holla Back DC!, Collective Action for Safe Spaces (CASS) has evolved from a blog to a dynamic organization that mobilizes the community to end public sexual harassment and assault in the DC metropolitan area. It does this through both online and offline activism. CASS has only one paid staff member and a committed base of volunteers.Key tacticsCASS participated in #GT 2013 with a campaign that was put together in a hurry and had a good response but felt that they could do better. So this year, a core team met to plan a robust #GivingTuesday campaign. They read materials from experts like N4G and followed the recommendations for building a powerful campaign, with a heavy emphasis on social outreach. The result was that they quadrupled their results over 2013 and ranked 4th among all N4G nonprofits for number of donors on #GivingTuesday.Key elementsBeginning in October CASS shared messaging every Tuesday about their good work and the opportunity to support them on #GTThey scrubbed and segmented their donor list so that emails could be written with an emphasis on what was important to each audience12 people were trained to reach out effectively to their networks on #GTA phone bank pizza party was held to prime the pump and get people excited about #GivingTuesdayThey emailed before, day of and after #GivingTuesday, including a terrific Thank You email!They made effective use of social channels and reaped the benefits of training an outreach team to leverage their messagesThey raised more than $17,000 and exceeded their original #GT goal by 43% N4G Staff Pick for Best Campaign: Badass Brooklyn Animal RescueBadass Brooklyn Animal Rescue (BBAR) won over the N4G team with their amazing campaign and straightforward mission: Saving badass dogs from idiot humans. BBAR is a nonprofit, all-volunteer dog rescue composed of a network of fosters and volunteers who work together to rescue sweet, adoptable dogs from high kill, rural shelters in the southern U.S. and get them adopted into wonderful forever homes.BBAR has grown through the commitment of its passionate volunteers and they recognized earlier this year that they need to define a strategy for sustainable funding streams. Recurring givers were identified as a key emphasis. And #GivingTuesday became the jumping off point for their first-ever planned campaign.Key tacticsWhat made the BBAR campaign special was that they brought together an actual rescue of 11 dogs from a shelter in Georgia (the #GivingTuesday dogs) with email and social outreach. They live tweeted and instagrammed the rescue of the 11 dogs while asking supporters to give, spread the word, and set up a recurring gift.Key elementsBBAR has built a “badass” website, so all outreach leading up to, and on the day of #GT, centered around driving people to the BBAR websiteThey did a series of emails and posts using #GT as the kickoff of year end, with the theme “Give a Little. Save a Life.”Emails stressed both one time and recurring gifts, and asked donors to consider making both a #GivingTuesday gift and to set up a recurring gift to start in January. They had a meaningful number of donors who did both…it pays to ask!Online giving page was set up to support the visuals and strategy of the campaign, including an emphasis on recurring givingAdded a banner to their homepage driving visitors to #GivingTuesday donation pageCreated a Facebook event for #GivingTuesday and then paid for Facebook ads to drive people to the event/campaignEncouraged adopters to share #UNselfies with their Badass dogs
Make this #GivingTuesday your best yet! Kick off your year-end fundraising with our tools, training and matching funds. It doesn’t matter if your organization has 2 staff members or 200, you can raise money on #GivingTuesday and we can help.Free #GivingTuesday resources are available to all nonprofits through Network for Good’s All TUEgether campaign. Network for Good customers can leverage matching funds for all donations made on December 1, 2015. Plus, customers have access to expert coaching, new donors, and exclusive resources to help plan a stellar #GivingTuesday campaign.Not a Network for Good customer yet? No problem. Sign up for a demo and find out how easy it is to raise money online. Get ready to have your best giving season ever. Honorable Mention Most Donors: Harding UniversityHarding University is a liberal arts college in Arkansas with about 6200 students. With the growing popularity of giving days among colleges, the team at Harding has been thinking about launching a giving day. In November, they decided that #GivingTuesday would be a great day to test the concept.Key tacticsBranded campaign theme and visuals5 emails sent during the last 10 days leading up to and on #GivingTuesdayThank you email sent early on 12/3Fun contests launched during Thanksgiving week on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram to build excitement for the campaignA video of their President sharing the goals of the campaign was shared on social channels and included in the email on Monday 12/2On #GivingTuesday, they posted on social channels at least hourly and asked faculty, students and staff to share activelyA #GivingTuesday giving area was set up in the student commons with tables, iPads, couches, donuts, balloons to spur spontaneous giving and sharing – and great picture opportunities. Honorable Mention, Most New Recurring Donors: YogaSeed Collective Yoga Seed Collective is a group of community members who bring yoga to vulnerable and high risk populations that suffer from high rates of chronic disease, behavioral health problems and lack of accessibility to culturally sensitive services.Key tacticsYoga Seed focused its #GivingTuesday campaign on recurring givers at $15 a month. They believe that, while recurring donors may produce lower donations in December, the long-term impact of committed sustaining donors is more powerful in the long run. They even plan to refocus 2015 development efforts so that half their time is spent on communicating and collaborating with these dedicated supporters, instead of constantly asking for more.Key elementsYoga Seed focused heavily on social marketing for #GT.They created and shared a youtube video alongside thank you memes.One of the most creative campaign elements we saw were the personal graphics that Yoga Seed created for supporters, like the example on the right.
Gone are the days of having to dig through a dusty encyclopedia to find the information you seek.Personally, I’m delighted to live in a time where all of the world’s information can be accessed from a magical, pocket-sized device.But with so much information available to us, how do we identify the most important blogs for a freelance lifestyle?At Freelancers Union, we do our best to keep tabs on those blogs providing the most practical advice for freelancers, as well as those that feature the brilliant innovations being made by those pioneers laying the groundwork for the new economy.What kind of a union would we be if we didn’t share these blogs with you, the freelance workforce?Whether they’re hosting job boards, providing tips for making your website more user-friendly, or simply keeping you up to date on the shape of the new economy, we believe that all of these blogs are important resources for the growing freelance workforce.Here are the 25 best blogs for freelancers.Do you have a favorite that you think we’ve left out? Let us know in the comments section!Freelancers Taking Care of Their OwnWork Made for HireThis blog features creative business advice from an incredibly creative person. You name it, Katie Lane has probably done it. Luckily, she’s nice enough to share her wisdom with the world.**The Renegade Writer **There are no rules, you need to do what works for you. That’s the concept behind Diana Burrell and Linda Formichelli’s blog on developing a meaningful freelance life. This blog features posts meant to inspire freelancers to establish their own rules for success.**oDesk Blog **A collaborative online workplace that provides freelancers with the tools necessary for success. It’s freelancers looking out for freelancers.**The Freelance Strategist **Ready to quit your job and join the freelance workforce? This blog will help you develop a strategy for finding the right job, making it work, and getting paid.**Write to Done **There’s nothing wrong with keeping your writing skills sharp and keeping up with this blog will help you do just that. Their blog specifically focuses on freelancing, the art of writing, blogging, copywriting, and a number of other topics.**Freelance Switch **One of the more popular resources for all things freelance. Freelance news and advice, a job board and more.Job StockPractical tips for all freelancers, from the experienced to the uninitiated. Includes a job board and freelancer search as well.A Successful Freelancer is a Healthy FreelancerLifehackerNews on recent technology and profiles on innovative thinkers and advice for your daily life.**Zen Habits **Freelancer or not, we all need to allow ourselves time to breathe. Give yourself a minute and meditate on one of Leo Babauta’s regular postings on the many ways to keep your cool during those more chaotic moments.**Dumb Little Man – Tips for Life **Given the abundance of great advice included on this blog, this guy clearly doesn’t give himself enough credit. Advice on stress reduction and staying physically and financially healthy.The Latest in Technology**Mashable **Blog featuring the latest on business, tech, and social media news. They’re making it easier for you to keep your thumb on the pulse of the latest technological advances.**Venture Beat **New technology is a major component of the new economy, so Venture Beat is here to keep us informed on the latest developments.Web Designer DepotTheir website is beautiful and they want yours to look just as good. Features a number of free web designer kits, as well as articles on social media, html, branding, contests, and more.Pro BloggerBlogging can be exhausting and tedious, but sometimes it’s critical for freelance success. Incredibly useful blog content on the art of blogging, as well as an active job board. Give them a shot!New Mutualism and the Changing Economy99u99u is a blog that features great ideas from creative people with specific focus on trending topics, collaboration, skill development, decision making, and more. No matter how ambitious your idea, the bloggers at 99u will help you get started.Fast CompanyInspiring the rest of us by putting the primary innovators of our day at center stage. Features articles on design, life, and technology.ShareableThey want to create a more equitable world through sharing, and we think that sounds like a great idea. Blog posts focus on the inspiring developments being made in the new economy.**Under 30 CEO **The future of business should allow for everyone to lead successful, fulfilling lives, right? These guys think so too. Their blog focuses on entrepreneurship, personal finance, travel, career advice, and living a healthy lifestyle.**Good **What better way to build a community of “people who give a damn” than by creating an online platform for everyone to share information? Features a number of interesting blog posts on technology, books, lifestyle, and design. Also features recommendations for organizations and innovative thinkers to follow.**The Marketing Mix **Freelance warrior Ilise Benun has been working for decades to bring the new workforce together. Her blog provides advice for freelancers and small business owners on how to create successful enterprises, as well as event announcements.OuiShareThe sharing economy, collaborative consumption, new mutualism, whatever you call it the folks at Ouishare are working to bring about a more collaborative future. Blog features contributions from the leading voices in the new economy.DeskmagA new economy requires workplaces that foster innovation. Deskmag focuses on the ways in which our workplaces are contributing to the new economy.Gar AlperovitzA writer, political economist, activist and historian that loves the idea of community-oriented change just as much as we do.Inc.Business advice for the prime movers and shakers of the new economy. Features blog posts on small business owners, startups, and personal finance strategies.Work AwesomeThey think that work should be, well, awesome. They might be on to something. This blog offers advice for ways to improve your work life.
Name: Rita Lee AKA Mamba AKA “Fiesta Chip”Owner: Mel Larsen | Freelance Graphic Designer | mlrsn.comFavorite activities: Eating, cuddling, singing & charming strangers with her puppy dog eyes.Items she has destroyed: She seems to have a discerning sense of fashion because she only destroys my best shoes. She can also destroy a full bowl of food in 5 seconds flat then immediately beg for more.Ways she brightens my work/life: Whenever I come back into the “office” I am greeted with a lovely ‘woo-woo!’ My work day would be so dull without my Rita cuddle breaks.If she could speak, she would say: “What’s that? Did you hear that? I’m on the case!” runs awayHere’s a great illustration of some doggies from Rita’s owner Mel (who has a really great portfolio you can check out here.)Have a pet that helps you get through your freelance life? Share your pet story today by emailing a photo and filling out the form above to lvanthoen@freelancersunion.org, and we’ll feature your freelance pal on this blog and in a photo gallery! Just as we are united through our common love of independence, may this allow our freelance partners-in-crime to be united in a bond of common, loveable insanity.Previous features: Ramsay, Pedro, Triscuit, Pekoe, Fritz
Most freelancers would love to raise their rates. But how? When? Will you lose clients?This isn’t a decision freelancers should take lightly — and I doubt you do. It involves stepping back, assessing the value you’re bringing to clients, and developing a pricing strategy — not just a one-time price increasae.It means being more intentional about what you’re charging clients. It means not allowing fear to prevent financially stability.Why raise your prices?There’s only one reason to raise your rates: because you are providing more value to clients.(Not because you just want to make more money, or because you just bought a house, or because you hear about other people doing it.)But what does it mean to provide more value?You’ve gained more experience that you’re applying to your clients’ projectsYou’ve learned new skillsYou’re offering new, complimentary servicesYou’re offering the same services with a higher qualityYou’re paying more attention to your clientsIf you’re working as a full-time freelancer, chances are that you’re gaining experience and skills at every gig. Your work gets better and you learn more about your field. So the longer you work with a client, the more you’re worth to that existing client and the more you will be worth to new clients.If you’re delivering more value to clients, you deserve to be compensated for it.This is the foundation for the whole idea of raising your prices. You have to deserve it, and then you have to believe you deserve it.The extra benefits of raising your pricesEven if you feel you deserve a raise, you’re probably still unsure about the impact that decision will have on your business and your clients.Obviously, the main benefit of raising your prices is that you get paid more per client. This has a lot of related benefits that may not be as obvious to you:1. Yes, you may lose clients. But chances are, if your rate increase is reasonable, you’ll be getting rid of your cheapest clients — the ones who are the stingies, the hardest negotiators, and the clients who don’t recognize your worth. These are probably also the most time-consuming clients.2. If you have fewer new clients, you will be able to use that extra time with the clients you care more about. So your current clients will be getting even more value. This is also great for your stress level; you’re not running around answering 1,000 emails from a hundred little clients, you’re spending the same time answering 30 emails from 10 bigger clients.3. A rate increase may actually make you appear more valuable to new clients. Some freelancers have found that raising their rates makes them more appealing to clients, not less. According to freelancer Corbett Bar, “I’ve raised rates twice already since I started six months ago. Raising rates doesn’t necessarily lead to fewer clients. On the contrary, there is a perceived value effect that can lead more people to want to work with you when your rates are higher,” he wrote here.4. It will change your attitude about your business. There’s nothing like getting a raise for giving you a new sense of value and purpose. I think most people do better work when they feel that they’re properly compensated. In fact, research says feeling underpaid is the leading cause of work stress! You may actually do better work because you raised your rates.5. You’re making sure that you’re on the right track. Even the process of considering raising your rates makes you take a step back to evaluate your business. You may see that your current business plan — how you market yourself, your job title — isn’t bringing you the kinds of clients who will pay more for you. Perhaps you’ll realize that you’re not just a copywriter, you’re a Content Strategist. You’re not just a Personal Assistant; because of the client work you’ve taken on, you’ve become a Project Manager or Email Marketing Specialist.In cases like these, you’re raising your rates because of your new business strategy and because you’re now effectively communicating your true value. You’re marketing yourself differently and providing a better set of services.How do you go about increasing your rate?As you probably guessed, it’s easier to change your rates for new clients than to up your rates for existing clients.That’s why many freelancers change their rates by increasing them for new clients first. And some even test out their market’s acceptance of these rates by only asking one new client first, and gauging their reaction.This is a smart strategy for freelancers who are still nervous about rate increases. See if your market will bear your new rate, and if they accept that rate without blinking an eye, maybe you’ll try an even higher rate for your next new client.But how do you raise your rates on existing clients?The best strategy I have ever heard of comes from personal finance expert Ramit Sethi. I think he has a killer strategy for raising rates on existing clients — and he even provides a script for exactly what to say.1. Ask your client how you can improve your work with them. I was nervous about this one at first, but this doesn’t have to be a very formal thing. In your next phone call with your client, ask them whether they’re OK with the way you’ve been working together and ask them if there’s anything they’d like you to do differently. I bet that your client will admire your professionalism and forthrightness in asking this question.This will give you invaluable insights into how your clients see you. They may even tell you a value you’re providing to them that you don’t even realize you’re providing.2. In a separate discussion, start by letting them know what you’ve done this year. “First of all, in the last year, we’ve done x, y, and z together. We designed a website with great response times and great user feedback that resulted in an increase in sales and web traffic. We did A that got B result.” Give them stats. Remind them of all the good times and the rough times that you helped them through.3. Repeat back to them what they’re looking for to this year…and provide that service for free. “This year, you’re looking for a, b, and c.” This a, b, and c is information about what values your client already appreciates in your services and what improvements or new services they said you could offer. So something like, “This year, you’re looking not just to increase your blog traffic, but to develop affiliate relationships with other high-traffic blogs and news sources. I am now offering 1 hour of affiliate partnership consultation per week as a complementary service to all my best clients.”This is the most important part of the process — it’s the part that makes all clients willingly accept your rate increase (which is coming next).For clients, whether or not they’re going to continue to work with you is simple. Are you going to be making their lives better? Are you going to make them more money, save them more time? Are you going to become so valuable, so tuned into what they want and where their business is going, that they can’t possibly let you go?4. Tell them you’re becoming more selective with your clients. “I’m becoming more selective in the clients I work with. You and I have had a great time working together and I hope we can continue to work together in the future. In order to have more time to work with my best clients and provide even more value to you, I’m going to raise my rate from X to Y.” Here, you’re reinforcing your value through selectivity. They know only a few people have access to you, and so the access you’re offering them just became more desirable.5. Offer to refer them. “If that’s something you’re not comfortable with, please let me know. I’d be happy to refer you to someone else that might be a better fit for your cost needs.” Now you’re not only behaving in a professional way but you’re still offering value to them.This entire script is talked through in Ramit Sethi’s interview with master career coach Marie Forleo here:6. If appropriate, let them know what your competitors are charging. If you’re in a position where you know that agencies or larger companies charge X for your same services, tell your client. Chances are they already know, but make sure they know that you know.7. Do this over the phone if possible. This is a serious discussion, and shouldn’t be left to a surprise email in the middle of your clients’ stressful day, that’s then forgotten about.These freelancers increased their prices…and were happy they didI’ve found many freelancers who were willing to share the stories of how they increased their prices. Hopefully they inspire you too!Amy HoyPassive PandaLeah (The Freedom to Freelance Project)Christine KaneMiranda MarquitBidsketchLooking for other freelance tips? Join Freelancers Union today to gain access to even more great content.