AFP Asia

Pakistan will play their matches at this year’s Women’s Cricket World Cup in Sri Lanka under an International Cricket Council deal that allows them to avoid playing in host nation India.The refusal of India to travel to Pakistan for the men’s Champions Trophy earlier this year resulted in the ICC introducing neutral venues to tournaments hosted by either of the neighbouring countries.Nuclear-armed India and Pakistan were last month involved in a four-day military conflict, their worst since 1999, before a ceasefire was agreed.Sri Lanka’s Colombo will join Indian host cities Bengaluru, Guwahati, Indore and Visakhapatnam in staging matches from September 30 until the final of the 50-over tournament on November 2, the ICC announced late on Monday. Colombo will be Pakistan’s home for seven group games.The first semi-final will take place in either Guwahati or Colombo, if Pakistan progress that far, on October 29 with the second semi-final a day later in Bengaluru.The final will be in either Bengaluru or Colombo on Sunday, November 2.”The venues for the knockouts are dependent on Pakistan qualifying”, the ICC said in a statement.”Two alternative venues have been identified for one semi-final and the final.”Eight teams will contest the World Cup — Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa and Sri Lanka. Australia beat England by 71 runs in the final of the last Women’s World Cup, hosted by New Zealand in 2022.

Bangladesh’s caretaker government launched a fresh bid on Monday to seek agreement between rival political parties on critical democratic reforms after a mass uprising last year.The South Asian nation of around 170 million people has been in political turmoil since former prime minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted by a student-led revolt in August 2024, ending her iron-fisted rule of 15 years.The National Consensus Commission is headed by Muhammad Yunus, the 84-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner who is leading the caretaker government as its chief adviser until elections are held.”Let’s not miss this opportunity”, Yunus said in a speech at the opening as a second round of meetings began. “The remaining differences can be narrowed”.Last month the consensus commission said political parties had failed to reach agreement.Yunus has previously said he inherited a “completely broken down” system of public administration, and said it required a comprehensive overhaul to prevent a future return to authoritarian rule.He set up six commissions to do that work, overseen by the consensus commission, which he heads.On May 26, Ali Riaz, the commission’s vice president, said that despite marathon efforts — stretching over 45 sessions with 38 political parties and alliances — they had not reached a deal in the first round.Several political parties, especially the powerful Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) have demanded an election date be set.Salahuddin Ahmed, a senior BNP leader, last week said there was growing impatience at the pace of progress made by the reform commission.”How many times do they want to stage the drama of reforms?” he said. “A first launch, followed by a second… This is nothing but dancing with bananas”.Contentious issues include whether a prime minister can serve more than two terms, and the process for selecting the president.Hasina’s rule saw widespread human rights abuses, and her government was accused of politicising courts and the civil service, as well as staging lopsided elections to dismantle democratic checks.Yunus has said polls could be held as early as December but that holding them later — with the deadline of June 2026 — would give the government more time for reform.

Punjab Kings stand in the way of Virat Kohli’s dream of finally winning the Indian Premier League in Tuesday’s final at the world’s biggest cricket stadium.No matter which team prevails at the 132,000-capacity venue in Ahmedabad it will be a first — neither Punjab nor Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bengaluru have won the IPL since it launched in 2008.Punjab booked their place in the decider with a five-wicket victory over five-time champions Mumbai Indians on Sunday.Shreyas Iyer played a captain’s knock with an unbeaten 87.Kohli and Bengaluru will have a psychological edge after thrashing Punjab by eight wickets at the start of the playoffs last week.It is the fourth time that Kohli and his team have reached the final of cricket’s richest tournament, but they have never been able to take that last step.The vast majority in attendance will be cheering on Kohli, the 36-year-old superstar batsman and icon to Indian cricket fans.Kohli, who last month retired from Test cricket alongside Rohit Sharma, has again been Bengaluru’s go-to batsman with 614 runs, including eight half-centuries, in 14 innings this season.He has made no attempt to hide his desperation to win the IPL at the 18th attempt and add it to a long list of accolades that includes two World Cup crowns.He has talked about his “heartbreak” of failing to win the IPL, and celebrated last week’s win against Punjab saying: “One more to go.”Asked if the Kohli factor was weighing on the finale, Bengaluru skipper Rajat Patidar said: “Of course”.”I think he has given a lot of years to RCB and the international side also,” Patidar told reporters on the eve of the final.”I think we will try to do our best in the game.”Punjab’s fast bowling coach James Hopes said his team will be “recovering and getting mentally prepared” for what he anticipates will be a “pretty big crowd, and a pretty big pro-Kohli crowd as well”.- Sensational Iyer -As well as Kohli, Bengaluru boast the significant threat of Australian fast bowler Josh Hazlewood.The 34-year-old returned following a shoulder injury and a stint back home to put in a match-winning performance in the win over Punjab in the qualifier.He returned figures of 3-21 to help bundle Punjab out for 101.Hazlewood spearheads a seam-bowling attack alongside Bhuvneshwar Kumar and left-armer Yash Dayal.Punjab, coached by Australia great Ricky Ponting, recovered from defeat to win the rain-delayed second qualifier in Ahmedabad.Skipper Iyer, who led Kolkata Knight Riders to the title last year and then cost Punjab $3.17 million in November’s auction, is narrowly behind Kohli in the batting charts with 603 runs from 16 innings.His latest chase masterclass off 41 balls, laced with five fours and eight sixes, is a reminder that he is lethal on his day.”When I back myself and back my instincts, I think that’s when I get the best out of myself,” said Iyer.”And also when other players revolve around you and keep performing, that also gives you a little bit of extra push to keep going.”Former Australia medium-pace bowler Hopes said Iyer “doesn’t get flustered very easily”.”He knows what he has to do and he’s prepared to take that risk,” said Hopes.”He is a sensational captain and a sensational player,” he added.Punjab openers Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh are in good form, and they have another potential match-winner in Australia’s Josh Inglis.All-rounders Marcus Stoinis from Australia and Afghanistan’s Azmatullah Omarzai can also threaten Kohli’s long-awaited dream.

Australia’s defence minister announced Monday the gifting of a naval patrol boat to the Maldives to “maintain regional security”, during a visit to the strategically-located Indian Ocean archipelago.Global east-west shipping lanes pass the nation’s chain of 1,192 tiny coral islands, stretching around 800 kilometres (500 miles) across the equator.Australia is part of the Quad grouping — alongside the United States, Japan and India — seen as a bolster against China’s growing presence in the wider Indian Ocean.”In line with our national defence strategy, Australia is working with partners across the Northeast Indian Ocean to maintain regional security and stability”, Richard Marles said in Male.”As Indian Ocean countries, Australia and the Maldives share a vision of our region that is peaceful, stable and prosperous,” Marles said in a statement following talks with his counterpart, Mohamed Ghassan Maumoon.The 39.5-metre long (129-foot) Guardian-class boat, a type of craft which Australia uses to patrol Pacific island nations, possesses a 3,000 nautical mile range, and can accommodate 23 people.The promised craft is under construction and would be ready by next year.Australia is also providing hydrographic equipment to help the Maldives map its ocean floor, to increase maritime safety and unlock economic development, Marles said.Better known as a luxury holiday destination with pristine white sand beaches and secluded resorts, the Maldives has also become a geopolitical hotspot.Neighbouring India and China have jostled for influence in Male, whose pro-Beijing president came to power in 2023 on a promise to evict dozens of Indian troops based there.But after initially frosty relations with New Delhi, President Mohamed Muizzu was given a red carpet welcome in October 2024 on a state visit to India, a trip which Prime Minister Narendra Modi said marked a “new chapter” to reset troubled ties.

A passenger smuggling dozens of venomous vipers was stopped after flying into the financial capital Mumbai from Thailand, Indian customs officials said.The snakes, which included 44 Indonesian pit vipers, were “concealed in checked-in baggage”, Mumbai Customs said in a statement late Sunday.”An Indian national arriving from Thailand was arrested,” it added.The passenger, details of whom were not released, also had three Spider-tailed horned vipers — which are venomous, but usually only target small prey such as birds — as well as five Asian leaf turtles.Mumbai Customs issued photographs of the seized snakes, including blue and yellow reptiles squirming in a bucket.The snakes are a relatively unusual seizure in Mumbai, with customs officers more regularly posting pictures of hauls of smuggled gold, cash, cannabis or pills of suspected cocaine swallowed by passengers.However, in February, customs officials at Mumbai airport also stopped a smuggler with five Siamang gibbons, a small ape native to the forests of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand.Those small creatures, listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, were “ingeniously concealed” in a plastic crate placed inside the passenger’s trolley bag, customs officers said.In November, customs officers seized a passenger carrying a wriggling live cargo of 12 turtles, and a month before, four hornbill birds, all on planes arriving from Thailand.In September, two passengers were arrested with five juvenile caimans, a reptile in the alligator family. 

Mohammad Haris hit a swashbuckling maiden international century to guide Pakistan to a 3-0 clean sweep of Bangladesh with a seven-wicket win in the third and final Twenty20 international in Lahore on Sunday.Haris, playing in his 17th T20I, carted seven sixes and eight fours in his 107 off just 46 balls as Pakistan chased down a challenging 197-run target in 17.2 overs for their first home T20 international series win in three-and-a-half years.Pakistan won the first two matches by 37 and 57 runs at the same venue.”It’s a massive win,” said Pakistan captain Salman Agha. “I am very happy the way the boys played. The great thing is we managed to play the brand of cricket we wanted to play and we did well in every game.”Bangladesh skipper Litton Das did not hide his disappointment at losing the series 3-0.”We did bat well in this game but didn’t bowl and field well,” said Litton. “Losing a series is always disappointing.” Parvez Hossain smashed four sixes and seven fours in his solid 34-ball 66 to lift Bangladesh to 196-6 in their 20 overs.Pakistan lost Sahibzada Farhan for one in the first over but Haris, whose hundred came up off 45 balls, added 92 for the second wicket with Saim Ayub and an unbroken 60 for the fourth with Salman Agha who made 15 not out.Ayub hit four sixes and two fours in his 29-ball 45 while Hasan Nawaz scored 13-ball 26 as the home batsmen enthralled a near-capacity 30,000 crowd at Gaddafi Stadium.Earlier, Parvez shared a 110-run opening stand with Tanzid Hasan after the tourists were sent in to bat.The Parvez-Tanzid stand gave Bangladesh an ideal start for their highest T20 total against Pakistan, beating the 175-6 they made against them at Pallekele in 2012.Towhid Hridoy, who scored 25 from 18 balls with a six and two boundaries, then added 49 for the third wicket with Litton who made 22.Fast bowlers Abbas Afridi (2-26) and Hasan Ali (2-38) were the pick of the home bowlers.

Shreyas Iyer led from the front with an unbeaten 87 as Punjab Kings beat Mumbai Indians by five wickets on Sunday to set up an IPL final against Royal Challengers Bengaluru.Chasing 204 for victory in a rain-delayed last playoff, Punjab rode Iyer’s 41-ball knock, laced with five fours and eight sixes, to achieve their target with six balls to spare in Ahmedabad.Iyer hit the winning six as Punjab reached their second IPL final. It will be played at the same venue —  the world’s biggest cricket stadium — on Tuesday.The final will produce a new IPL winner with both Bengaluru, with star batter Virat Kohli, and Punjab in hunt for their first title in the T20 tournament.Punjab lost opener Prabhsimran Singh for six but England’s Josh Inglis set up the chase with quick scoring as he and left-handed opener Priyansh Arya put together 42 runs in 18 balls.Arya fell for 20 and Inglis for 38 after three fours and two sixes.Iyer and left-handed Nehal Wadhera, who hit 48, turned the tide in overs 13 and 14 as the captain smashed England left-arm quick Reece Topley for three straight sixes.Wadhera departed in the 16th over to raise Mumbai’s hopes, but Iyer stood firm as he finished with a masterclass.The second qualifier began two hours and 15 minutes late  due to persistent drizzle after the toss.Punjab elected to field first before rain forced the players indoors for more than two hours. Officials did not cut any overs when play resumed.Five-time champions Mumbai, who posted 203-6, lost veteran opener Rohit Sharma for eight off Marcus Stoinis in the third over but England’s Jonny Bairstow took on the opposition bowlers with regular boundaries.Bairstow, who joined Mumbai ahead of the playoffs and played a key role in their win in the eliminator against Gujarat Titans, made 38 in a 51-run stand with the left-handed Varma.Medium-pace bowler Vijaykumar Vyshak dismissed Baristow, who attempted to play a scoop shot but fell caught behind.Tilak Varma kept up pace with Suryakumar Yadav as the pair put on 72 runs. Both made 44 each.The two fell in the space of three deliveries, but number six Naman Dhir hit an 18-ball 37 to boost the total, which in the end proved insufficient.The league was extended by nine days after being paused due to a military conflict between India and Pakistan and some overseas players including Mumbai imports Will Jacks (England) and Ryan Rickelton (South Africa) left before the playoffs.

The airline industry’s flagship goal of decarbonising by 2050 is now “in peril” due to climate-sceptic policies, including those of US President Donald Trump, the leading airline association IATA warned on Sunday.The emergence of leaders favouring fossil fuels and recent regulatory rollbacks are “obviously a setback… it does imperil success on the 2050 horizon”, Marie Owens Thomsen, the International Air Transport Association’s senior vice president for sustainability, told reporters.”But I don’t think it’s going to halt or reverse progress. I think it will just slow progress,” she said at the IATA annual industry conference in India.Trump’s Republican administration is supporting the development of fossil fuels in contrast to his Democratic predecessor Joe Biden, who had massively supported the production of renewable aviation fuels through tax credits.UN aviation agency members, from the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), have set the year 2050 as their goal for achieving net-zero carbon emissions for air travel — an industry often criticised for its outsized role in climate change.- ‘Entirely achievable’ -The air transportation industry has faced growing pressure to deal with its contribution to the climate crisis.Currently responsible for 2.5 percent to three percent of global CO2 emissions, the sector’s switch to renewable fuels is proving difficult, even if the aeronautics industry and energy companies have been seeking progress.To achieve net-zero emissions, airlines rely on non-fossil sources known as Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).However, SAF biofuels are still three to four times more expensive than petroleum-based jet fuel.”Another problem, which is related, is the fact that oil is so cheap,” Owens Thomsen said. “I think that also diminishes the sense of urgency that people have.”A barrel of Brent North Sea crude, the international benchmark, stands below $65 as a result of Trump’s tariffs, his call to “drill baby drill” and especially a decision by OPEC+ to hike crude output quotas.This represents an immediate boon for airlines, whose fuel costs represent between a quarter and a third of operating expenses. SAF is seen as a crucial ingredient in hitting emissions targets. The biofuel produces lower carbon emissions than traditional jet fuel and is made from plant and animal materials such as cooking oil and fat.European Union rules require carriers to include two percent of SAF in their fuel mix starting this year, rising to six percent in 2030 before soaring to 70 percent from 2050.Owens Thomsen estimated on Sunday that $4.7 trillion in investment is needed to establish SAF sectors capable of meeting the needs of air transport by 2050.”It is entirely achievable,” she said, adding that the raw materials and technology already exist and simply need to be developed. “The money involved is very comparable to the money that was involved in creating the previous new energy markets, notably obviously wind and solar,” she said.That money could be found just by stopping subsidies to oil producers, she said.”The world is subsidising large oil companies to the height of $1 trillion per year,” she said.”With that money, if it were redirected in its totality, we could solve our energy transition in less than five years.”IATA also indicated on Sunday that it expects global SAF production to double this year compared with 2024 to 2.5 billion litres — slightly down from its previous projections of 2.7 billion litres.”This represents only 0.7 percent of total aviation needs,” IATA Director General Willie Walsh said. 

Indian airline IndiGo said on Sunday it had signed an order for 30 more Airbus A350-900s, bringing its shopping list for the widebody aircraft from the European aircraft manufacturer to 60.”We are placing a firm order for 30 Airbus A350-900s,” said Pieter Elbers, the CEO of IndiGo, which was founded in 2006 and is behind the largest contract by volume in the history of civil aviation — 500 Airbus single-aisle aircraft by 2023.The low-cost carrier, India’s biggest by market share, is positioning itself as a significant player in the long-haul market.”This strategic move will enable IndiGo to spread its wings further and expand its long-haul international network,” the company said in a statement.”This is yet another step in defining the airline’s long-term plans of international expansion.”Benoit de Saint-Exupery, Airbus commercial aircraft vice-president of sales, hailed “IndiGo’s incredible rise”.”You have democratised flying in India, and now you want to expand internationally,” he said.The A350 planes, with ranges of up to 15,000 kilometres (9,300 miles), will allow it to expand its network further.Overall, IndiGo has placed orders for around 1,000 aircraft from the A320 family, Airbus’s most successful model and rival of the Boeing 737 MAX, which has endured multiple setbacks after a series of safety scares.- ‘Phenomenal’ -Willie Walsh, director general of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which began its annual industry conference in New Delhi on Sunday, said “the development of India’s air connectivity in recent years has been nothing short of phenomenal”.Indian domestic air growth is “running at over 10 percent” per year, Walsh said ahead of the conference.The growth of its economy has made India and its 1.4 billion people the world’s fourth-largest air market — domestic and international — with IATA projecting it will become the third biggest within the decade.Air India, IndiGo’s rival, ordered 100 more Airbus planes last year after a giant contract in 2023 for 470 aircraft — 250 Airbus and 220 Boeing.India’s domestic air passenger traffic reached a milestone last year by “surpassing 500,000 passengers in a single day”, according to India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation.The ministry boasts of a sector “experiencing a meteoric rise”.Railways remain hugely popular but travelling by trains crisscrossing a country about three-quarters the area of the European Union is often slow and chaotic.Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will address IATA delegates on Monday, has made the development of the air sector a priority since coming to power in 2014.India has doubled its number of airports in the past decade to 157, with plans to have as many as 400 by 2047.Indian airline capacity is expected to reach 230 million seats in 2024, doubling since 2014, according to British aviation data provider OAG.However, such growth comes with immense demands for aircraft, skilled personnel, airports, and aviation safety.Some 10,000 pilots are expected to be trained in the next five years but India also faces a major challenge to supply flight crews, engineers, mechanics, and air traffic controllers.India already has the highest number of women pilots, who make up 15 percent of its captains, three times the global average. 

Indian airline IndiGo said on Sunday it had signed an order for 30 more Airbus A350-900s, bringing its shopping list for the widebody aircraft from the European aircraft manufacturer to 60.”We are placing a firm order for 30 Airbus A350-900s,” said Pieter Elbers, the CEO of IndiGo, a company founded in 2006 and already behind the largest contract by volume in the history of civil aviation — 500 Airbus single-aisle aircraft by 2023.The Indian low-cost carrier, the country’s biggest by market share, is positioning itself as a significant player in the long-haul market.”This strategic move will enable IndiGo to spread its wings further and expand its long-haul international network”, the company said in a statement.”This is yet another step in defining the airline’s long-term plans of international expansion”.The A350 planes, with ranges of up to 15,000 kilometres (9,300 miles), will allow it to further expand its network.Overall, IndiGo has placed orders for around 1,000 aircraft from the A320 family, Airbus’s most successful model and rival of the Boeing 737 MAX, which has endured multiple setbacks after a series of safety scares.Willie Walsh, director general of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which began its annual industry conference in New Delhi on Sunday, said “the development of India’s air connectivity in recent years has been nothing short of phenomenal”.Indian domestic air growth is “running at over 10 percent” per year, Walsh said, ahead of the conference.The growth of its economy has made India and its 1.4 billion people the world’s fourth-largest air market — domestic and international — with IATA projecting it will become the third biggest within the decade.Last year, India’s domestic air passenger traffic reached a “historic milestone, surpassing 500,000 passengers in a single day”, according to India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation.The ministry boasts of a sector “experiencing a meteoric rise”.Railways remain hugely popular but travelling by trains crisscrossing a country about three-quarters the area of the European Union is often slow and chaotic.Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is slated to address IATA delegates on Monday, has made the development of the air sector a priority since coming to power in 2014.India has doubled its number of airports in the past decade to 157, with plans to have as many as 400 by 2047.