Latest news with #Leask
Qatar Tribune
4 days ago
- Sport
- Qatar Tribune
Scotland lose to Nepal in low-scoring T20
Agencies Scotland fell short in their fightback against Nepal, as a single from the penultimate ball gave the tourists victory a low-scoring T20 Tri-Series match in Glasgow, reports After being put into bat in overcast and breezy conditions at Clydesdale, hosting its third match of the week, Scotland crumbled as Nepal wreaked havoc with the ball. Mark Watt was removed with just the fifth delivery of the afternoon by Dipendra Singh Airee and by the end of the fifth over the Scots were five down. After Michael Leask, who ended with 46, and captain Matthew Cross helped put up a brief resistance, Sandeep Lamichhane cleaned up the lower order by taking four wickets for just 11 runs to leave Nepal needing just 98 to win. However, despite looking like they would reach the winning line with plenty to spare, disciplined bowling from Scotland took another dramatic match right to the end. Safyaan Sharif had Kiran Thagunna caught in the final over as Nepal went eight down while needing just a single from the final two balls. But they composed themselves to get it with the penultimate delivery as Lamichhane added to his bowling heroics by grabbing the winning run. Scotland next face the Netherlands on Wednesday before finishing their series against Nepal on Friday as they warm up for next month's T20 World Cup qualifiers. 'It was a game of two halves,' Scotland captain Cross told BBC Scotland. 'We didn't bat very well to be honest. I think the first five or six overs being five wickets down is tough to come back from. 'Having said that, I think we put in a decent effort to make the game go as close to the wire as we could. So I'm proud of the performance in the second half. 'Losing five wickets in the powerplay, you don't win many games like that. The pitch was trickier but we expect more of ourselves to build a score when it is like that.' ScorescColor:> Nepal 98 for 8 (Bhurtel 30, Sharfi 2-13, Leask 2-21) beat Scotland 97 (Leask 46, Lamichhane 4-11, Karan KC 2-20) by two wickets.
United News of India
09-06-2025
- Sport
- United News of India
Scotland survive scare to beat Nepal in thriller
Dundee, June 9 (UNI) Scotland survived a major scare to beat Nepal in a thrilling Cricket World Cup League 2 match at Forthill. Nepal won with one ball to spare when the sides met at the same ground on Monday before beating the Netherlands two days later. They came close to a third straight win on Scottish soil, but fell two runs short in a chase of 323 in a game that swung back and forth throughout. A magnificent sixth one-day international hundred from Scotland captain Richie Berrington, along with an unbeaten 96 off just 62 deliveries from Michael Leask propelled the hosts to an imposing total. Nepal ultimately fell two runs short as debutant Mackenzie Jones took three wickets, while Leask and Safyaan Sharif claimed two apiece. "I don't think I was ready for another close game like that," captain Richie Berrington said. "Delighted to get over the line. Credit to Nepal for the way they fought back and it's great to see the guys hold their nerve. "Mackenzie Jones took really important wickets and then Safyaan Sharif showed all his experience at the end. "It's always nice to contribute to the team's efforts and Leasky took the pressure off me." After Berrington won the toss, opener Charlie Tear played well for his 68 after George Munsey and Brandon McMullen both fell victim to the new ball. His contribution, paired with his captain's fine effort, allowed Leask to attack in the final 10 overs. Scotland's number seven struck 12 fours and three sixes on his home ground in a brutal display of power hitting. Berrington's side then started in fine fashion with the ball, reducing Nepal to 34-3, including a first international wicket for Jones. Nepal rebuilt through Bhim Sharki (73) and Aarif Sheikh (39), but when they were removed by Leask and Jones, respectively, Scotland appeared to be in total control. However, a partnership of 105 for the seventh wicket between Dipendra Singh Airee (56) and Sompal Kami (67) brought Nepal right back into the contest. Jones caught Singh Airee off Charlie Cassell's bowling and removed Kami himself as the ball followed the Essex seamer on his first Scotland outing. Nepal needed seven to win off the final over - bowled by Safyaan Sharif - and Jones was called into action again, taking a towering catch at long-leg to remove the dangerous Karan KC. It left Nepal needing five off three balls, but Sharif held his nerve to bowl Lalit Rajbanshi and win the game for Scotland. It was the seamer's 258th wicket for Scotland, taking him level with Majid Haq as his country's all-time leading wicket-taker. UNI BM
Perth Now
06-05-2025
- Health
- Perth Now
‘Dire': Grim warning on deadly flu season
Australian health experts are sounding the alarm over low flu vaccination rates as winter sets in, warning children and older adults are particularly vulnerable to a dangerous and potentially deadly flu season. Despite being eligible for free flu shots, fewer than one in three children under five, and just 32.5 per cent of Australians aged 65 and over, have been vaccinated so far this year. In the first three months of this year, 84 people died from Influenza, according to data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, released last week. A social scientist with the University of Sydney's Infectious Diseases Institute, Professor Julie Leask, said the nation's flu vaccination coverage is 'perpetually low'. 'Our influenza vaccination rates in Australia are dire and they're not improving,' she said Professor Leask said some flu-related hospitalisations and deaths were 'potentially preventable'. Professor Leask suggested that the COVID-19 pandemic may have contributed to the unusually low vaccination rates. NCA NewsWire / David Geraghty Credit: News Corp Australia 'The vaccine isn't perfect, but it's much better than zero, which is what you're looking at if you don't have a vaccine. Of course, there are other measures to reduce the risk of respiratory infections, but nothing matches an effectiveness of even between 50 and 70 per cent and even better in children having that vaccine,' she said. The National Centre for Immunisation Research found that just 62 per cent of people received a flu vaccine by the end of the 2024 season, a drop compared to 2022. Children, aged six month to five year olds, had a low coverage rate of 28 per cent. Professor Leask said new data from the 2025 National Vaccination Insights Project, which surveyed more than 2000 adults in March, shows many Australians are underestimating the seriousness of influenza, with nearly one-third not having had a flu shot in the past two years. Professor Julie Leask said Australians are underestimating the seriousness of influenza. supplied Credit: Supplied By March, only 32.5 per cent of people aged 65 and over, one of the most vulnerable groups, had received their flu shot, a rate that shows no improvement on previous years. 32 per cent of all adults surveyed reported they hadn't received a flu vaccine at all in the past two years. Cost, inconvenience, and access, especially in rural areas, were key barriers to getting vaccinated, according to the survey. The most common places people received their flu shot were GP clinics, pharmacies, and workplaces. Although many respondents said they planned to get vaccinated, concern about catching the flu remained low, even among groups at higher risk of severe illness. While the majority of respondents believed the flu vaccine was safe, 22 per cent did not. With flu vaccination rates still low, experts stress that this year's flu season could have dire consequences, especially for the elderly and young children. NCA NewsWire / Daniel Pockett Credit: News Corp Australia Professor Leask suggested that the COVID-19 pandemic may have contributed to the unusually low vaccination rates. 'The idea here is that after Covid, people were really over the topic of vaccination,' she said.'There might have been a bit of a backlash in some groups about that, and people wanted to get on with their lives and were a little bit disengaged from vaccination.' Dr Paul Griffin, an infectious diseases physician, underscored the yearly devastation caused by the flu. 'We know that there's deaths in the order of thousands, hospitalisations around 20,000 every year,' Dr Griffin said. 'Hundreds of thousands of doctors at visits and quite a lot of financial implications in terms of lost work days. So while a lot of people underestimate the flu at the moment, the impact is very significant.' Dr Paul Griffin said the impact of the flu is 'very significant'. supplied Credit: Supplied He said people at higher risk include children, older adults, pregnant women, people with chronic medical conditions, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, and smokers. 'It's not just a flu, it's a very severe viral infection in its own right and can be life threatening,' he said. Professor Leask said that dispelling myths, along with effective campaigning and communication, and convenient access could help increase vaccine uptake. 'We need to keep busting those myths, such as the flu vaccine gives you the flu, it doesn't. 'Campaigns need to remind people of the benefits to self and others if we get a vaccine. We might not think we're at risk, but we may help protect other people who are. 'We might not think we're at risk, but we may help protect other people who are,' she said.
West Australian
06-05-2025
- Health
- West Australian
Flu vaccine coverage drops in Australia, experts call for urgent action
Australian health experts are sounding the alarm over low flu vaccination rates as winter sets in, warning children and older adults are particularly vulnerable to a dangerous and potentially deadly flu season. Despite being eligible for free flu shots, fewer than one in three children under five, and just 32.5 per cent of Australians aged 65 and over, have been vaccinated so far this year. In the first three months of this year, 84 people died from Influenza, according to data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, released last week. A social scientist with the University of Sydney's Infectious Diseases Institute, Professor Julie Leask, said the nation's flu vaccination coverage is 'perpetually low'. 'Our influenza vaccination rates in Australia are dire and they're not improving,' she said Professor Leask said some flu-related hospitalisations and deaths were 'potentially preventable'. 'The vaccine isn't perfect, but it's much better than zero, which is what you're looking at if you don't have a vaccine. Of course, there are other measures to reduce the risk of respiratory infections, but nothing matches an effectiveness of even between 50 and 70 per cent and even better in children having that vaccine,' she said. The National Centre for Immunisation Research found that just 62 per cent of people received a flu vaccine by the end of the 2024 season, a drop compared to 2022. Children, aged six month to five year olds, had a low coverage rate of 28 per cent. Professor Leask said new data from the 2025 National Vaccination Insights Project, which surveyed more than 2000 adults in March, shows many Australians are underestimating the seriousness of influenza, with nearly one-third not having had a flu shot in the past two years. By March, only 32.5 per cent of people aged 65 and over, one of the most vulnerable groups, had received their flu shot, a rate that shows no improvement on previous years. 32 per cent of all adults surveyed reported they hadn't received a flu vaccine at all in the past two years. Cost, inconvenience, and access, especially in rural areas, were key barriers to getting vaccinated, according to the survey. The most common places people received their flu shot were GP clinics, pharmacies, and workplaces. Although many respondents said they planned to get vaccinated, concern about catching the flu remained low, even among groups at higher risk of severe illness. While the majority of respondents believed the flu vaccine was safe, 22 per cent did not. Professor Leask suggested that the COVID-19 pandemic may have contributed to the unusually low vaccination rates. 'The idea here is that after Covid, people were really over the topic of vaccination,' she said.'There might have been a bit of a backlash in some groups about that, and people wanted to get on with their lives and were a little bit disengaged from vaccination.' Dr Paul Griffin, an infectious diseases physician, underscored the yearly devastation caused by the flu. 'We know that there's deaths in the order of thousands, hospitalisations around 20,000 every year,' Dr Griffin said. 'Hundreds of thousands of doctors at visits and quite a lot of financial implications in terms of lost work days. So while a lot of people underestimate the flu at the moment, the impact is very significant.' He said people at higher risk include children, older adults, pregnant women, people with chronic medical conditions, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, and smokers. 'It's not just a flu, it's a very severe viral infection in its own right and can be life threatening,' he said. Professor Leask said that dispelling myths, along with effective campaigning and communication, and convenient access could help increase vaccine uptake. 'We need to keep busting those myths, such as the flu vaccine gives you the flu, it doesn't. 'Campaigns need to remind people of the benefits to self and others if we get a vaccine. We might not think we're at risk, but we may help protect other people who are. 'We might not think we're at risk, but we may help protect other people who are,' she said.
