The journey of the T20 World Cup trophy will start from Barbados today, spreading across different countries in the West Indies.
The ‘Out of the World’ trophy tour will cover 15 countries across four continents, where the trophy will visit famous sports teams, stadiums and historical places while also being taken to legendary cricketers.
The trophy for the event, which will begin on June 2, was unveiled by former West Indies captain Chris Gayle and Ali Khan of the United States at the Empire State Building in New York.
ICC has also shared pictures and videos of the trophy.
The ninth edition of the T20 World Cup will be played in America and West Indies from June 1 this year.
Apart from visiting West Indies and all host venues in the US, the trophy will also visit emerging cricket nations in the US like Argentina, Brazil and Canada.
On Thursday, Shehrbano Qureshi, daughter of imprisoned Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi, said that her father is hopeful and believes that justice will be served in the country.
Talking to journalists outside Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail after visiting her father, she states that she met Qureshi last Monday and found him to be in good health.
“Qureshi is very hopeful and seeing justice being done in the country,” the PTI leader said, adding that the bravery showed by six judges of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) boosted the courage of her father — who alongside the party founder Imran Khan is facing 10-year jail term in the cipher case.
She also said that both leaders want to see a strong and stable Pakistan despite facing difficulties.
Regarding the case against the former foreign minister, Shehrbano said that appeals against Qureshi’s sentences in the cipher case will be heard on April 16.
Pakistani squash players added to the joy of Eid by winning multiple titles at the Australian Junior Squash Open.
Five Pakistani players, including two sisters, lifted the titles.
In the girls category, Mehwish Ali won the title by defeating a Malaysian player in the final in Under-17 category while Mah Noor won the title by defeating a Japanese player in the U-13 category.
In the boys category, Pakistan’s Huzaifa Shahid won the title in the under-13 category.
Ibrahim Zaib won the Under-17 category title while Yahya Khan won the gold medal in the under-15 category.
Former President Dr Arif Alvi doesn’t think Khan was allowed to say Eid ki Namaz in jail, but even Alvi was confused. The former president first tweeted, alleging that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder Imran Khan was not being allowed to offer Eid namaz in Adiala Jail where he is currently incarcerated.
On April 9, Dr. Arif Alvi posted that Imran Khan’s ban on Eid prayers reminded him of the British rule. He wrote about a famous leader in India’s freedom struggle when he was sentenced by the occupying authorities.
He remarked, “He [Indian leader] remained in prison for four years and during that time Eid prayers were not even allowed. Because these oppressive rulers wanted to destroy the leadership of Muslim India, one of the various tactics to weaken their patriotism was to ban Friday and Eid prayers as well.”
However, when it was reported that Khan was allowed to offer Eid prayers, Alvi modified his statement.
Alvi wrote “Good sense has prevailed” in a post on X.
But again, in a twist, Dr Arif Alvi, a few hours later again, condemned authorities that Khan indeed was not allowed to offer Eid prayer quoting Meher Bano Qureshi, a PTI member and incarcerated Shah Mahmood Qureshi’s daughter. According to Meher Bano, both Khan and her father were not allowed to say Eid Namaz, as was confirmed to her by her father. He further stated that another party member Ejaz Chaudhary wasn’t allowed to do so either but “he led the prayer with Omar Cheema in their cell.”
He then edited his post with deploring fake news by saying, “in these times of falsehood and deceit no news source is trustworthy, except the crowdsourcing of PTI social media.”
Most of the New Zealand cricketers who refused to visit Pakistan for the Indian Premier League (IPL) are in trouble getting no opportunity to the Indian franchise to play in the league.
Currently the Kiwi players who are part of the Indian Premier League are facing difficulties, the New Zealand cricketers are looking forward to the matches for a good start in this season but they are not being fed by the franchise.
9 New Zealand cricketers have signed contracts in the Indian Premier League but so far only 4 cricketers have been given the opportunity to play matches while the rest have sat on the bench and watched the matches.
A team in the league can field up to 4 foreign players in the playing XI, New Zealand players are rarely selected to be part of the playing XI.
New Zealand media quoted the country’s cricketer as saying that Kiwi cricketers seem to run for water and only practice.
The surprising thing is that Kane Williamson sat out in three matches while in two matches he scored 27 runs. Fast bowler Trent Boult has taken 5 wickets in 4 matches.
Rachin Ravindra, who performed well in the World Cup, has scored 112 runs in 5 matches, New Zealand’s most expensive player Daryl Mitchell has added 118 runs in 5 matches.
Mitchell Santner, Dion Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Glenn Phillips and Matt Henry are yet to get a match in the IPL.
GAZA STRIP: Israeli strikes hit Gaza on Wednesday as Muslims marked the end of the holy fasting month of Ramzan and after US President Joe Biden labelled Israel’s approach to the war a “mistake”.
Palestinians gathered for morning prayers on the first day of the Eid al-Fitr holiday amid the ruins of Gaza, which has been devastated by more than six months of war since October 7.
Tens of thousands also flocked to Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa mosque compound where one worshipper, nurse Rawan Abd, said: “It’s the saddest Eid ever… you could see the sadness on people’s faces.
“Usually we come to Al-Aqsa to celebrate, this year we came just to support each other,” the 32-year-old said at Islam’s third holiest site, which is also revered by Jews as the Temple Mount.
Israeli forces kept up combat operations and air strikes on Gaza a day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed no let-up in the campaign to destroy Hamas and bring home the hostages.
Netanyahu insisted on that “no force in the world” would stop Israeli troops from entering Gaza’s far-southern city of Rafah which is packed with displaced Palestinians.
His threat came amid ongoing talks in Cairo involving US, Egyptian and Qatari mediators for a truce and hostage release deal.
Biden, voicing his growing frustration with hawkish Netanyahu, issued some of his sternest criticism yet of the war, which has brought mass civilian casualties and widespread suffering.
“I think what he’s doing is a mistake,” Biden told Spanish-language TV network Univision in an interview that aired Tuesday night after being recorded last week. “I don’t agree with his approach.”
He urged Netanyahu to “just call for a ceasefire, allow for the next six, eight weeks, total access to all food and medicine going into the country.”
‘Famine-like conditions’
The war broke out with October 7 against Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures.
Palestinian also took about 250 hostages, 129 of whom remain in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli army says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 33,360 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
Another 14 people were killed – including small children – in a strike on a home in Nuseirat camp in central Gaza, the health ministry said.
The army said Wednesday that “Israeli troops are continuing to operate in the central Gaza Strip and killed a number of terrorists over the past day”.
It added that aircraft had “struck dozens of terror targets in the Gaza Strip, including military sites, launchers, tunnel shafts and infrastructure.”
Israel has imposed a siege that has deprived Gaza’s people of most food, water, fuel, medicines, and other essential goods.
Humanitarian groups have accused Israel of using starvation as a weapon of war in Gaza, where UN experts say half the population is facing “catastrophic” food insecurity.
Washington’s recent tougher line with Israel, its main ally in the region, has brought some results, according to the US Agency for International Development.
Recent days had seen a “sea change” in aid deliveries, said USAID administrator Samantha Power, with Israel reporting 468 trucks entering from Egypt on Tuesday.
However, Power stressed that Israel needs to do more, saying that “we have famine-like conditions in Gaza, and supermarkets filled with food within a few kilometres away” in southern Israel.
Washington has also resumed funding to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees after cutting it weeks ago after Israel claimed that some UNRWA staff took part in the October 7.
‘It will be punished’
Hamas has said it is studying the latest proposal for a truce. A framework being circulated would halt fighting for six weeks and see the exchange of about 40 hostages for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
However, Hamas has so far also publicly insisted on a full withdrawal of Israeli ground forces and a permanent ceasefire – demands Israel has rejected outright.
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said Tuesday that Israel had to “take some steps forward” while Hamas’s public statements had been “less than encouraging”.
The US State Department has however also warned Israel that “a full-scale military invasion of Rafah would have an enormously harmful effect” on civilians and “would ultimately hurt Israel’s security”.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday he had no indication of an “imminent” assault on the city, where around 1.5 million Palestinians are sheltering.
Blinken also said he doubted Israel would attack Rafah before a delegation is set to visit Washington next week.
Regional tensions have surged amid the Gaza war, and Israel was widely blamed for an April 1 strike on arch foe Iran’s consulate in Damascus that killed seven Revolutionary Guards.
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned Israel that “the evil regime made a mistake in this regard. It must be punished and will be punished.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz swiftly replied with a Persian-language post warning that “if Iran attacks from its territory, Israel will respond and attack Iran.”
Louis Theroux, Aimee Lou Wood, Nicola Coughlan, Peter Capaldi, and Jenna Coleman are among the many celebrities who have donated items to help Cinema for Gaza.
Famous musicians, filmmakers, actors, and photographers like Annie Lennox, Jonathan Glazer, Brian Cox, Tilda Swinton, Misan Harriman, Gurinder Chadha, Juliette Larthe, and Naqqash Khalid have also donated to a Cinema for Gaza Auction.
Film journalists and filmmakers Hanna Flint, Julia Jackman, Leila Latif, Sophie Monks Kaufman, and Helen Simmons have started Cinema For Gaza with a planned auction to help Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP).
Many talented filmmakers from the UK and beyond have donated too. A-listers like Tilda Swinton, Jonathan Glazer, Ramy Youssef, Juliette Larthe, Peter Capaldi, Imelda Staunton, Brian Cox, Joseph Quinn, Mike Leigh, Misan Harriman, Joanna Hogg, Aimee Lou Wood, and Josh O’Connor.
Juliette Larthe, who helped start PRETTYBIRD UK and made the award-winning movie IN CAMERA, is giving a mentoring session over Zoom. And the director of IN CAMERA, Naqqash Khalid, is giving a mentoring session and two tickets to see his movie.
Some cool things in the auction are Tilda Swinton reading a bedtime story, special seats for the play Long Day’s Journey into Night with a chance to meet Brian Cox, signed movie posters from Jonathan Glazer, a photo taken by Misan Harriman, a small part in Gurinder Chadha’s next movie, handwritten lyrics to Annie Lennox’s song ‘Sweet Dreams’, and a Zoom serenade from Olly Alexander.
Louis Theroux, Aimee Lou Wood from Sex Education, Nicola Coughlan from Bridgerton, and Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman from Doctor Who have also given things to Cinema for Gaza.
MAP helps Palestinians living under occupation and as refugees by giving them medical aid and working on building up local healthcare. Right now, they’re helping with the emergency in Gaza.
The auction is online until Friday, April 12th, at midnight BST. You can bid on the lots here.
Former captain Muhammad Hafeez reacted to the announcement of the 17-member squad of the national team for the Pakistan New Zealand T20 series.
The 17-member squad for the national team was announced today, with the return of recently retired cricketers Mohammad Amir and Imad Wasim.
However, Mohammad Hafeez is not happy with the announcement of the national team for the series against New Zealand.
Muhammad Hafeez wrote ‘X’ “Rest in peace domestic cricket.”
Former cricketer Muhammad Hafeez parted ways with the director of the national team, Hafeez wanted to meet with PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi to present a report on the defeat in the tour of Australia and New Zealand, but Naqvi did not have time to meet Hafeez.
According to reports, PCB was not interested in working with Muhammad Hafeez due to which the two decided to part ways.
Pakistan has announced 17 member squad for the upcoming series against New Zealand.
The five-match series will be played in Rawalpindi and Lahore from April 18 to 27, for which the New Zealand cricket team will arrive in Pakistan on April 14.
2 new players Usman Khan and Irfan Khan Niazi have been included in the team announced under the leadership of Babar Azam.
Apart from this, Imad Wasim and Mohammad Amir will return to international cricket while 5 reserve players are also included in this series.
Muhammad Amir and Imad Wasim announced themselves to be available for the Pakistan cricket team by ending their retirement in the last few days.
Bollywood star Preity Zinta recently shared a precious memory from her early days in the industry on Instagram. The post featured a snapshot from her very first photoshoot at the age of 20.
In the caption, Zinta confessed to feeling clueless about posing for the camera back then. She wrote, “was going through some old stuff n found this photo! OMG!!! My first photo shoot ever… I was all of 20 & I thought I knew everything I needed to know about the world … except how to pose for a photo shoot.” Her candid reflection resonated with fans, who appreciated her honesty and humility.
Since her debut in the 1998 film ‘Dil Se,’ Preity Zinta has captivated audiences with her charm and talent. Alongside her successful acting career, she is also known for her philanthropy and advocacy work.
