Saturday 12 October 2013

Dunya TV

Dunya TV

US headed toward 'very dangerous moment': World Bank

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WASHINGTON (AFP) - World Bank chief Jim Yong Kim warned Saturday that the United States was headed toward peril as politicians failed again to resolve a standoff over the budget and debt ceiling.We are now five days away from a very dangerous moment, Kim said at the close of the annual World Bank-International Monetary Fund meetings in Washington.The US and world economies face higher interest rates, falling confidence and slower growth if the US Congress does not raise the $16.7 trillion borrowing cap, Kim said.The US Treasury has said that it would run out of adequate cash to pay all the country's bills as early as October 17 without a debt cap increase.That has sparked worries that Washington could default on its debt, something that would rock the world's financial markets.The closer we get to the deadline, the greater the impact will be for the developing world, Kim said.If this comes to pass, it could be a disastrous event for the developing world, and that in turn will greatly hurt the developed economies as well.I urge US policy makers to avert this crisis, Kim said.Finance officials from around the world expressed deep worries during the IMF-World Bank meetings this week over the partial government shutdown that has now gone on for 12 days, and the failure to raise the debt ceiling.

Muslim pilgrims throng Mecca for Hajj

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MECCA (AFP) - Hundreds of thousands of Muslims have poured into the holy city of Mecca for the annual Hajj pilgrimage as Saudi Arabia issued a stern warning against politicising the world's largest annual gathering.People dressed in ihram, a two-piece seamless garment of white cloth, filled the area around the Grand Mosque.Just two days before the official start of the Hajj, around one million faithful performed Friday prayers at the Grand Mosque as the cleric who officiated called for a peaceful and quiet Hajj.Sheikh Saleh bin Mohammed al-Taleb also called on Muslims to unite and end disputes.Authorities stepped up preparations as police closed most entrances to the Grand Mosque to vehicles, turning traffic in the area around the site into a menacing experience.The Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam and is mandatory once in a lifetime for all Muslims provided they are physically fit and financially capable.I am very excited and extremely happy. I feel I am a very lucky person that I am performing the Hajj, said Hamza Suleiman, a 56-year-old civil servant from Malaysia.I registered for the Hajj 10 years ago and my turn came this year. I really want to come here every year, he told AFP in the Grand Mosque courtyard.Egyptian businessman Ahmad al-Bahrawi, who is performing the Hajj for the sixth time, accompanied by his wife, said it's an entirely different feeling that cannot be described when I enter the Grand Mosque and look at the Kaaba.Due to the scare from the MERS coronavirus, which has already killed 51 in Saudi Arabia, and high pollution from vehicles emissions, some pilgrims and security men wore face masks and also covered their heads to protect themselves from the scorching heat.Saudi Health Minister Abdullah al-Rabaia was quoted in the local media Thursday as saying that no MERS case has been discovered among pilgrims.An unexpected heavy downpour accompanied by lightning washed the holy sites around Mecca on Wednesday slightly delaying a planned parade by Hajj security forces. Local media said seven people were slightly hurt.Officials said around 1.4 million pilgrims have already arrived from abroad, with expectations of around two million pilgrims this year. That is sharply down from last year's 3.2 million, due to forced cuts as a result of expansion work and the scare from MERS, short for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome.Road blocks were set up on all roads leading to Mecca and people who did not carry official permits were turned back. This year, security patrols are deployed in remote and deserted roads to block illegals.As turmoil continues to hit most of the Arab world, Interior Minister Prince Mohamed bin Nayef Wednesday warned Muslim pilgrims against exploiting the Hajj for political purposes.The kingdom is taking all possibilities seriously especially that Saudi Arabia has recently been the target of a violent terrorist campaign that did not exclude holy sites, the minister said.That was a reference to Al-Qaeda attacks that rocked the kingdom between 2003 and 2006, prompting a relentless crackdown by authorities, which he oversaw.Hajj is not a place for political disputes and sectarian differences, he said.Although Riyadh issues such a warning at every pilgrimage, this year it was indirectly linked to reports that members of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood have been urging pilgrims to express their support for the group after Islamist president Mohamed Morsi was ousted in July.The oil-rich kingdom strongly backed Morsi's ouster, immediately pledging millions in aid to the new government.The pilgrimage starts on Sunday and ends on October 18.Monday marks the most important day, when everyone assembles at Mount Arafat, just outside Mecca, for the peak of the Hajj.The kingdom has mobilised 95,000 members of the security forces, in addition to troops supporting the defence ministry, the national guard and intelligence, according to the interior minister.He also said the king has approved the creation of a permanent 40,000-strong special force to secure the pilgrimage.Though marred in the past by deadly floods, stampedes and fires, the Hajj has become nearly incident-free in recent years because of multi-billion dollar projects to improve security.

Peru bus plunge kills 52, including 13 children

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LIMA (AP) - A makeshift bus carrying 52 Quechua Indians back from a party in rural Peru plunged off a cliff into a river southeast of the capital Lima, killing all passengers, including 13 children.The accident occurred Friday night as the red-and-yellow cargo truck made its way back from a party in the provincial capital of Santa Teresa. It fell about 650 feet (200 meters) into the chasm.Rescuers equipped with little more than flashlights spent the night searching the ravine for survivors amid the twisted steel and large boulders. Authorities said bodies were found as far as 330 feet (100 meters) away from the impact site. There were no survivors.Authorities haven't determined the cause of the accident, and firefighter Capt. David Taboada told the AP that the truck was returning from a party celebrating Santa Teresa's founding. Fedia Castro, mayor of the district where Santa Teresa is located, told Canal N television that rural farmers must rely on informal forms of transport because no public buses exist in the area.The high-altitude roads of the Peruvian Andes are notorious for bus plunges, with poor farmers comprising many of the victims. Last year, more than 4,000 people were killed in such accidents.

Five killed as Cyclone lashes India: report

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NEW DELHI (AFP) - Four people were killed by falling trees in cyclone-hit eastern India on Saturday while an elderly woman was crushed to death when her home collapsed in the storms, a report said.Two died in the Ganjam coastal district of Orissa state as a tree was uprooted by strong winds before Cyclone Phailin made landfall, The Times of India reported on its website.Two others died in a similar way in Orissas Jagatsinghpur district while an 80-year-old woman died after her mud house collapsed, the report added.While there was no official confirmation from the emergency services, a government source said at least six people had been reported killed.We are getting reports on the ground of six dead in Orissa and Andhra Pradesh, the source told AFP on condition of anonymity.The source could not confirm the cause of the deaths or give more information on where they had occurred.

Mali boat accident leaves 20 dead, 23 missing: official

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BAMAKO (AFP) - Twenty people died when a boat on the Niger river broke up overnight near the central Malian city of Mopti, officials said Saturday, adding that another 23 people were missing.We don't know yet why the boat broke up, Commander Dramane Diallo, from the rescue services, told AFP.Investigations are under way. The boat broke at the stern in a branch of the river near the village of Koubi and 210 passengers survived the accident, he said.Diallo said the large dugout was also loaded with goods. No further details were immediately available.The governor of Mopti said the Malian rescue services were assisted by residents of Koubi.This is what allowed for 20 bodies to be recovered. The search and rescue operation is ongoing, Ibrahima Hama Traore said on public television.He said that accidents were not uncommon on the river but that the human loss from Friday's disaster was extremely unusual.Traore said consultations would be undertaken with river transport companies to regulate traffic and prevent overloading.Those rudimentary canoes are the main means of transportation for residents of Mali's central and northern regions travelling to the towns dotting the Niger, the main river in West Africa.The Niger is more than 2,500 miles long. It connects landlocked Mali's arid north to the more fertile south.

Nadal ousted by del Potro in Shanghai Masters

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SHANGHAI (AP) - Rafael Nadal lost his first match since reclaiming the No. 1 ranking this week, falling to a resurgent Juan Martin del Potro 6-2, 6-4 in the Shanghai Masters semifinals on Saturday.The fifth-ranked del Potro will try to win his first Masters title on Sunday against top-seeded Novak Djokovic, who defeated Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the other semifinal 6-2, 7-5.Del Potro hadn't beaten Nadal since the semifinals of the 2009 U.S. Open where the Argentine went on to win his only Grand Slam title.But del Potro is playing fully fit and with confidence he's coming off a win last week at the Japan Open that returned him to the top five in the rankings for the first time in three years.He completely overpowered Nadal with his deep, punishing groundstrokes and fended off all six break points he faced.Nadal's serve, on the other hand, was under threat for the entire match. After not dropping serve in 28 games this week, the Spaniard was broken twice to start the match as del Potro raced out to 4-0.Del Potro started to make a few mistakes in the second set, giving Nadal two chances to break in the second game. But the Argentine saved both with huge serves and put the pressure right back on Nadal, breaking him for a third time in the following game.I played so solid all the time, hitting so hard the ball. I saw Rafa playing very far off the baseline, which is good for my game, for my serve and confidence. That's the way to beat this guy, del Potro said.Nadal said he hadn't seen del Potro play this well in years. Or anyone, for that matter.Very few times I played against a player with a level like today I played against, the Spaniard said. At the end, I played against a player who served 80 percent of first serves, who hit every ball as hard as he can, I think, and with no mistakes.The big-hitting Argentine, who wrapped up a spot in the ATP Finals in London with the win, has been working his way back into top form since a wrist injury knocked him off the tour for most of 2010 just after he got his breakthrough win as a 20-year-old at the U.S. Open.Now he believes he can challenge Djokovic, Nadal and Andy Murray for major titles again, as his run to the semifinals of Wimbledon this year showed. He lost a tight, five-setter to Djokovic in that match, but he had beaten the Serb a few months earlier at Indian Wells.I always believe (in) myself. I always believe (in) my game, he said. It could be my biggest challenge of my career, getting closer to the top position.Djokovic, meanwhile, will be trying to win his 20th straight match and fourth straight tournament in China on Sunday. He won the China Open and the Shanghai Masters in 2012, and then successfully defended his title in Beijing last week, beating Nadal in the final.I've always been coming out in China and making some really, really good results, winning trophies, Djokovic said. It's very positive because most of the people would think after the fourth Grand Slam of the year is over, that somehow the season is finished in the minds of maybe people who are not following consistently the tennis season.Djokovic raced to 3-0 after only seven minutes against Tsonga, who came out looking flat and misfiring wildly at times on his groundstrokes and volleys.However, Djokovic then lost his temper in the second set when serving at 4-2, yelling angrily at chair umpire Ali Nili after two disputed calls. Tsonga twice challenged late calls that went against him - and both times the Hawk-Eye camera replay showed the balls had clipped the line.The umpire awarded both points to Tsonga, prompting a furious reaction from Djokovic who thought the points should have been replayed.Twice I was on the ball, twice you take the point away from me, Djokovic yelled. FocusTsonga managed to break the rattled Serb to get back on serve at 4-3, but his comeback was short-lived as another error-strewn game allowed Djokovic to break him at 6-5 to close out the match.When you're on the tennis court, it feels like an arena, Djokovic said about his outburst. You're fighting. It's emotional. It's intense. It's normal. It's not the first nor the last time.

Tennis: Struggling Federer splits with coach Annacone

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PARIS (AFP) - Roger Federer split with coach Paul Annacone on Saturday as the 17-time Grand Slam title winner attempted to pull his career out of its worrying tailspin.Former world number one Federer, now at seven in the rankings, revealed that he was calling time on his relationship with Annacone, who guided Pete Sampras during the American's glory years.After a terrific three and a half years working together, Paul and I have decided to move on to the next chapter in our professional lives, Federer wrote on www.rogerfederer.com.When we started together we had a vision of a three-year plan to win another Grand Slam title and get back to the number one ranking. Along with many other goals and great memories, these two main goals were achieved. After numerous conversations culminating at the end of our most recent training block, we felt like this was the best time and path for both of us. Paul remains a dear friend, and we both look forward to continuing our friendship. I want to thank Paul for his help and the value he has added to me and my team.Annacone started working with Federer in August, 2010, and the American took the Swiss star to a seventh Wimbledon title in 2012, his most recent major title.Federer's announcement comes just two days after he lost in the third round at the Shanghai Masters to Gael Monfils.That was his first tournament since losing in the fourth round of the US Open.Earlier this year, Federer saw his incredible record of 36 consecutive Grand Slam quarter-finals ended abruptly in the second round at Wimbledon where he was beaten by Sergiy Stakhovsky, who was 116 in the world at the time.Federer, who has carried a back injury for most of the year, has won just one title in 2013 and is in danger of missing out on next month's eight-man, end-of-season World Tour Finals, which he has won a record six times.But the man who has spent a record total of 302 weeks at world number one insisted in Shanghai that he could turn his career around.My mindset now is, OK, next year is going to be a great year again where I'm not going to have that many points to defend, especially at some very key moments where I consider myself a favourite, he said.For that reason I'm really looking forward to 2014 already.

Top-seeded Kerber, Ivanovic reach final in Linz

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LINZ, Austria (AP) - Two-time former champion Ana Ivanovic defeated Stefanie Voegele of Switzerland 6-4, 6-4 Saturday to set up a final against top-seeded Angelique Kerber at the Generali Ladies.Kerber overpowered Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain 6-2, 6-0 to reach her second final of the season. The 10th-ranked German was beaten by Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic in the Tokyo final two weeks ago.Apart from the first set of my first match, everything is going very well this week, said Kerber, referring to her 0-6, 6-1, 6-2 first-round win over Monica Niculescu.The former top-ranked Ivanovic won the event in 2008 and '10 and holds nine more WTA titles, but this will be the Serb's first final of the season.Ivanovic is 3-1 against Kerber, but the German won their most recent match in straight sets in Tokyo last month. Kerber is eyeing her third career title.It wasn't an easy draw for me so I am happy to get though, said Ivanovic, who didn't concede a set in the previous rounds against Yanina Wickmayer, Francesca Schiavone and Dominika Cibulkova. I am still looking for more consistency.The opening set against Voegele went with serve until Ivanovic broke her 58th-ranked opponent in the ninth game. Ivanovic dropped serve early in the second set but dominated the remainder of the match.Voegele upset second-seeded Sloane Stephens of the United States in the quarterfinals.Earlier, Kerber used two breaks for a 3-2 lead in the opening set against Suarez Navarro and didn't concede a game afterward. Kerber dominated with strong ground strokes, forcing Suarez Navarro to a total of 16 baseline errors.I feel better with every round, Kerber said. Today I was more aggressive than in my previous matches.The fourth-seeded Suarez Navarro, who hadn't lost a set getting to the semifinals, defeated Kerber in the fourth round of the U.S. Open last month.Kerber was given a late wildcard entry in Linz to replace Kvitova after the former Wimbledon champion pulled out with a back injury. By reaching the semifinals, Kerber secured the eighth and final spot in the season-ending WTA Championships in Istanbul.

ICoast, Burkina Faso win in World Cup playoffs

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JOHANNESBURG (AP) - Didier Drogba hit a fifth-minute penalty to send Ivory Coast to a 3-1 win over Senegal in the first leg of their World Cup playoff on Saturday, putting Africa's top-ranked team and its big-name players within reach of a berth in Brazil next year.Also, Burkina Faso edged Algeria 3-2 with Aristide Bance's late spot-kick as the German-based forward made up for an earlier missed penalty, although the Algerians will be boosted by their two away goals ahead of the second leg next month.Africa's two-year World Cup qualifying competition has come down to 10 teams in five playoffs for the continent's five places at the showpiece tournament. Ethiopia hosts African champion Nigeria and Tunisia plays Cameroon on Sunday. Egypt is away at 2010 World Cup quarterfinalist Ghana on Tuesday in the last of the first legs.Drogba's early goal began Ivory Coast's strong showing against its West African rival in Abidjan, but some of the gloss was taken off the Ivorians' performance at the very end by striker Papiss Cisse's goal for the Senegalese in the sixth minute of injury time at Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium.After Drogba's opener, Lamine Sane scored an own goal in the 14th and Salomon Kalou made it 3-0 early in the second half.Cisse struck in a long period of time added on by the referee to give Senegal a glimmer of hope in the second leg on Nov. 16 in neutral Morocco. The teams will meet in the crucial second leg in Casablanca because Senegal's main stadium in Dakar is under a ban because of a fan riot when the teams met in an African Cup qualifier a year ago.In Ouagadougou, Bance clinched a narrow victory for the Burkinabes, who have never been to the World Cup, after Algeria twice came back to equalize away from home. Burkina Faso, a surprise African Cup finalist this year, also recovered from the early loss to injury of important defender Bakary Kone and Bance's initial miss from the spot in the 45th to take a slim advantage to Blida on Nov. 19.Algeria is looking for back-to-back World Cup appearances, however, and is only a goal behind.If we win by 1-0 it will be enough, Algeria assistant coach Nourredine Kourichi said. The second leg will be difficult for Burkina and for us as well but we are hopeful. We are optimistic.Jonathan Pitroipa's header pushed Burkina Faso in front in first-half injury time only for Sofiane Feghouli to score Algeria's first equalizer in the 50th. Djakaridja Kone made it 2-1 in the 65th and Carl Medjani put Algeria level for a second time four minutes later before Bance's late winner from a penalty for handball.The Burkina Faso supporters packed into the 40,000-seat 4 August Stadium as early as 10 a.m. local time for a 4 p.m. kickoff, showing some of the fervor felt by the nation of around 15 million people that has never qualified for a World Cup but showed great progress under Belgian coach Paul Put to reach the African Cup final this year.Ethiopian fans are expected to be as excited in Addis Ababa on Sunday when they host the continental champion Nigeria and hope for a strong first-leg showing to boost their hopes of also playing at their first World Cup.

Brazil beat South Korea 2-0 in friendly in Seoul

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SEOUL (AP) - Neymar and Oscar scored either side of halftime to give Brazil a 2-0 win over South Korea in a friendly on Saturday.Neymar curled home a free kick from just outside the area to put the 2014 World Cup host ahead in the 44th minute. Three minutes after the break, a simple through pass from Paulinho freed Oscar and the Chelsea star rounded goalkeeper Jung Sung-ryong to extend Brazil's lead.While it was good to score from a free kick, I prefer to score from open play Neymar said. It was not an easy game and there were many tackles on me but when I got used to it, it was not a big problem.The five-time world champion did not play at its best but took the chances that came its way in clinical fashion.We played better than I expected, said Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari, referring to the lengthy trip to East Asia. We overcame the situation well, started to play the way we wanted to play and picked up a good win against a strong team. Korea had us worried and was excellent in the final 20 minutes.After a shaky start, South Korea exerted considerable pressure on the South Americans but struggled to create clear openings.We can take confidence from this game, said South Korea coach Hong Myong-bo, who was captain of the team that defeated Brazil in Seoul in 1999, the last Asian team to do so.We made just two mistakes and lost the game, Hong added. The players did their best against a very good opponent and while I am sorry we did not win in front of a big crowd, we can build upon the performance.Brazil continues its Asian tour on Tuesday by taking on Zambia in Beijing while South Korea, which has already qualified for the World Cup, hosts Mali.

Bouhanni wins 2nd stage of Tour of Beijing

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BEIJING (AP) - Bouhanni, riding for the Francaise des Jeux team, clocked 4 hours, 59 minutes, 49 seconds on the testing 102-mile course.Italian Roberto Ferrari of Lampre-Merida finished second while Australian Mitchell Docker of Orica-Green Edge was third.It was difficult but I had a good team around me to help me get back after each climb and Dominque Rollin was very helpful, Bouhanni said after his 10th victory of the season. The (stage) victory at Paris-Nice was certainly a big victory, I got the yellow jersey, but this one is a good victory (too).Bouhanni leads the overall standings ahead of first-stage winner Thor Hushovd of Norway, with Frenchman Maxime Bouet in third.Hushovd said he was happy with the way his team competed on the second stage.I was too many places back and then tried to go, and then I got boxed in so it was over, Hushovd said. The team did a great job to control the breakaway. Unfortunately, we did a big effort and lost the stage and lost the jersey. But sometimes its like this.The third edition of the Tour of Beijing has five stages and ends on Tuesday.

Malala Yousafzai honoured by JFK Library

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BOSTON (AP) - A nonprofit that promotes the legacy of President John F. Kennedy is honoring a Pakistani teenager who survived a Taliban assassination attempt on her life for advocating for girls' education.Sixteen-year-old Malala Yousafzai was in Boston on Saturday and spoke at a forum sponsored by the JFK Library Foundation. She received a bronze bust of Kennedy in recognition for her work for the universal right to freedom of education. Foundation board member and Wheelock College President Jackie Jenkins-Scott presented the honor.Yousafzai was shot in the head in October 2012 while going home from school. She and her family now live in England. Her memoir I am Malala was published last week, when she became the youngest nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Misbah, Smith reckon Ajmal key in Tests

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ABU DHABI (AFP) - Rival captains Misbah-ul Haq and Graeme Smith both agreed Pakistani off-spinner Saeed Ajmal will be the key in the two-Test series starting here on Monday.Ajmal, who turns 36 on the first day of the match, took 24 wickets when Pakistan humbled then world number one England 3-0 in the United Arab Emirates last year.But Misbah urged his wily spinner to lift his game.I think it (bowling to South Africans) will be a big challenge for Ajmal, said Misbah at the unveiling of the trophy for the series.Misbah conceded South Africans play Ajmal better than English batsmen.He (Ajmal) was new to England and that's why they struggled against him. South Africans have played him more, so it's a big challenge for Ajmal and he will have to lift his bowling because he is up against a team who plays him well, said Misbah.Excluding his ten wickets on a spin-friendly Cape Town pitch earlier this year, Ajmal has only four wickets in four Tests against South Africa. Smith agreed his batsmen play Ajmal well, but the off-spinner can still pose a challenge.I think last time we were on this tour, we played Ajmal really well and I think he ended up missing a few games on the tour, said Smith of South Africa's last series here in 2010 when Ajmal was dropped after taking only three wickets in the first Test. He still is a key performer for Pakistan and he's a world class performer... it's real respect factor for what he can do... he's a world class bowler, I think we've had a good success against him and that's nice to know, said Smith, who returns to international cricket after a 21-week break following an ankle operation.But besides Ajmal, Pakistan also has the option of playing two more spinners -- both left-armers -- in Abdur Rehman and Zulfiqar Babar.Babar, at 34, has yet to play a Test but has been a prolific wicket-taker in Pakistan's domestic season.Smith admitted he didn't know what to expect of Babar.He (Babar) is probably the unknown factor for us, we've got a little bit of footage of him, some of our guys have seen him bowl before, but until you've really played against someone there's always an unknown factor, said Smith, whose side has been unbeaten away from home since losing 2-0 in Sri Lanka in 2006.We haven't dwelled on any of sort of past experiences away from home, but I think every time you do overcome winning away from home, there's a certain strength that you get as a team.Smith played down any pressure of being the world's best Test team.I would say only the pressure we put on ourselves, I mean naturally, is an expectation of performance, said Smith whose team took over as number one from England last year.The second and final Test will be played in Dubai from October 23. Both teams will also play five one-day internationals and two Twenty20 internationals.

ICC wants an attractive world test championship

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ABU DHABI (AP) - Four teams will vie for the first world test championship in England in 2017, and the ICC is still working out how to make the competition attractive and lucrative.Ideas were welcome, International Cricket Council chief executive David Richardson said at the logo unveiling ceremony on Saturday.We are asking people at this stage (about the format), it's still four years away and we also have the cricket committee with people like Mark Taylor, Ravi Shastri and Anil Kumble in it, Richardson said.We want to have something worthwhile in place to make sure that it doesn't diminish the credibility of what test cricket needs to be.While the prize money has yet to be finalized, Richardson hoped it won't be less than $10 million distributed among the four teams.The ICC set May 1 this year to Dec. 31, 2016 as the qualification period.Some teams play more than others, a handicap for low-ranked teams such as New Zealand, Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, and Richardson said the ICC has yet to set a minimum number of tests required to gain enough points in the rankings to finish among the top four.Graeme Smith, captain of top-ranked South Africa, who was accompanied by Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq, said the world test championship has added more meaning to all and future test series.It's fantastic to have a pathway clearly identified for the world test championship and to know that the top four teams will have a chance to battle it out to be crowned the ultimate champions, Smith said.Misbah said he would like to see a longer championship instead of a format offering two semifinals and final.If you have some time and you want people to enjoy test cricket you need to give equal chance to all the teams, like they could play against each other and then you go for semifinal and final, Misbah suggested.People want to see test cricket and if you have only three games it won't work.Misbah has quit playing Twenty20 internationals, but still leads Pakistan in tests and one-day internationals at 39.He said the shortest format as one of the reasons for the reduced popularity of test cricket.Twenty20 cricket is dominating nowadays, but this (world test championship) will generate some sort of interest among players, he said.Winning a World Cup is something different. You can be No. 1 for some time and then you can just drop to No. 2 or No. 3, but once you become world champion, it means a lot to you.

Punjab bans sacrificial hides collection points

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LAHORE (Online) - Punjab government, Saturday, banned setting up of sacrificial hides collection points by any political, religious or welfare organization on roadsides on Eid-ul-Azha.Provincial Minister for Environment Protection and Chairman Police Reforms Committee Col (Retd) Shuja Khanzada disclosed this while presiding over a meeting to review law and order situation on Eid-ul-Azha.Security has been made tightened to avoid any unpleasant situation on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha.Eight to ten thousand security officials have been deputed to maintain law and order situation in the province.The minister said that viewing the security issues Punjab government has decided to ban the “khaal (sacrificial hides) points” all over the province.The minister further said that there are security threats and security arrangements have been completed to deal with these threats.He said that police officers have been deputed in cattle markets and their numbers have been increased on check posts already established at entrance and exit points of the city.The minister told that intelligence agencies have been directed to give their report on daily basis.Col. (Retd.) Shuja Khanzada said that foolproof security measures have been adopted for security in mosques and Eid Gahs.He informed that CCTV cameras and walk through gates will also be installed on Eid Day in sensitive mosques and Eid Gahs and no one will be allowed to enter without thorough checking.The Minister made an appeal to the masses that if they find any suspicious person or thing around them immediately inform to the police, make call on 15, so that rapid action could be taken on it.
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