World,Back Page

End of the line nears for NASA InSight Mars lander

After some four years probing Mars' interior, NASA's InSight lander will likely retire this summer as accumulated dust on its solar panels saps its power.The lander will, however, leave behind a legacy of data that will be tapped by scientists around the world for years to come, helping to i...

Sports,Cricket

England appoint Matthew as men’s white-ball coach

England on Wednesday named the "outstanding" Matthew Mott as head coach of their men's white-ball team following his succesful stint in charge of the Australian women's team.Mott, 48, won Twenty20 world cups in 2018 and 2020 and the 50-over equivalent earlier this year during his s...

Sports,Tennis

Medvedev rules himself out for French Open crown

World number two Daniil Medvedev on Tuesday ruled himself out as a title contender at next week's French Open after losing his first match back after a hernia operation.The US Open champion, who underwent surgery last month, was beaten 6-2, 7-6 (7/5) by French veteran Richard Gasquet in the Gene...

Sports,Cricket

England recall Broad and Anderson for NZ Tests

England have recalled all-time leading wicket-takers James Anderson and Stuart Broad for the opening two matches of a three-Test series against New Zealand in June.The pacemen were controversially left out of the squad for the recent tour of the Caribbean, which England lost 1-0, hot on the heels of...

Sports,Football

Klopp has ‘no reason’ to talk to Gerrard before title climax

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said he'd no intention of contacting club great Steven Gerrard to offer words of encouragement before the climax to a thrilling Premier League title race this weekend.Klopp's much-changed side beat Southampton 2-1 on Tuesday to move just one point behind leader...

Sports,Football

Liverpool take title race to final day

Liverpool ensured the Premier League title race will go to the final day of the season as the under-strength quadruple chasers survived a scare to beat Southampton 2-1 on Tuesday.After Liverpool defeated Chelsea on penalties in a gruelling FA Cup final just three days earlier, Jurgen Klopp took a ga...

Business

UK inflation jumps to 40-year peak

Britain's annual inflation rate surged to a 40-year high last month on rocketing energy costs, official data showed Wednesday, deepening a cost-of-living crisis.Consumer prices index inflation hit 9.0 percent in April from 7.0 percent in March, the Office for National Statistics said in a statem...

Business

IMF holds talks with Pakistan over release of funds as economy falters

The International Monetary Fund began talks with Pakistani officials on Wednesday over the release of crucial funds, a process slowed by concerns about the pace of economic reforms in the South Asian country.Pakistan has repeatedly sought international support for its economy, which has been hit by ...

World,Front Page

Sri Lanka’s president escapes censure motion

Sri Lanka's beleaguered president side-stepped a censure motion on Tuesday after his fractured coalition rallied to delay a resolution blaming him for the country's worst economic crisis.Gotabaya Rajapaksa's shaky coalition voted against taking up the unprecedented "displeasure of p...

World,Back Page

Japan to trial group tours in move to ease Covid border rules

Japan will trial small group tours with travellers from the US, Australia, Thailand and Singapore from this month, the government said on Tuesday, as it experiments with easing strict Covid border rules.The country's borders have been closed to almost all arrivals since the spring of 2020 in res...

World,Back Page

Russia quits Council of Baltic Sea States

Russia said Tuesday it was quitting the Council of the Baltic Sea States amid raging tensions with the West over Moscow's offensive in Ukraine.The organisation is a political forum for regional cooperation that groups together 11 member states such as Germany, Finland and Norway as well as the E...

Sports,Cricket

SA name uncapped batsman, recall Nortje for India series

Uncapped batsman Tristan Stubbs was on Tuesday named in a 16-man South African squad for a series of five Twenty20 internationals in India next month.The 21-year-old starred in a domestic T20 competition in February when he hit 23 sixes for the Gqeberha-based Warriors in scoring 293 runs in seven in...

Sports,Football

Salah, Van Dijk fit for Champions League final, says Klopp

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is sure Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk will be fit to face Real Madrid in the Champions League final despite going off in Saturday's FA Cup final win over Chelsea.Both will be left out of Klopp's squad for Tuesday's visit to Southampton as a precaution d...

Sports,Cricket

England cricket chief executive to step down as part of shake-up

Tom Harrison is to step down as chief executive of the England and Wales Cricket Board in June -- part of a major overhaul following a slump in Test results.Since the turn of the year, managing director of men's cricket Ashley Giles, head coach Chris Silverwood and Test captain Joe Root have all...

Sports,Football

Chiellini says goodbye to Juve fans

Giorgio Chiellini bid farewell to Juventus fans on Monday in his last home match for the Turin giants, a disappointing 2-2 draw which earned Lazio a place in the Europa League after Sergej Milinkovic-Savic levelled with the last kick of the game.Fans chanted "there's only one captain" ...

World

Spain, Morocco reopens land borders after two-yr closure

Morocco and Spain have reopened the land borders between the north African country and the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla, two years after they were shut due to Covid-19 restrictions and a major diplomatic row.The enclaves on the Mediterranean coast in northern Morocco have the European Union...

World

UN chief calls for ‘inclusive govt’ after Lebanon vote

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called on Lebanon to form an "inclusive government" to tackle the country's economic crisis, after elections held over the weekend, his office said Monday.Guterres "looks forward to the swift formation of an inclusive government that can final...

Business

Wheat-laden trucks, ships stranded at Indian port

Hundreds of thousands of tonnes of  wheat were stranded at a major port in India on Tuesday after New Delhi's  surprise ban on exports over inflation and food security worries.India, the world's second-largest grower of wheat, last week ordered that  traders could not enter in...

Business

Thailand’s economy‌ grows 2.2 pc in Q1

Thailand's economy grew 2.2 percent in the first quarter following an export and tourism boost after the relaxation of pandemic entry restrictions, the kingdom's main economic agency said Tuesday.During the pandemic, Southeast Asia's second-largest economy suffered its worst economic per...

World,Back Page

First commercial flight in 6 years leaves Yemen's rebel-held capital

The first commercial flight in nearly six years took off from Yemen's rebel-held capital on Monday, a major step forward in a peace process that has provided rare relief from conflict.The Yemenia plane carrying 126 passengers, including hospital patients needing treatment abroad and their relati...