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Muscular South Africa stroll into Super Eight with all-win record

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Corbin Bosch returned 1 for 18 from his four overs [Cricinfo]

South Africa go to the Super Eight of the T20 World Cup undefeated after brushing UAE aside in Delhi by six wickets with 40 balls to spare. Corbin Bosch’s three-for and George Linde’s 1 for 17 stood out with the ball as South Africa rested Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj and Lungi Ngidi. Aiden Markram, Ryan Rickelton and Dewald Brevis all got fast starts in a chase that required just that ahead of potentially tougher tests.

UAE could not make a dent in their final game of the tournament. Alishan Sharafu top-scored with 45 in an innings where six of the eight batters on show scored 13 or fewer. Four of their bowlers took a wicket each but none threatened South Africa in a modest chase.

Muhammad Waseem’s intent was clear from the start when he drove Kwena Mapakha for four down the ground. He hit three boundaries off Kagiso Rabada to start the third over, making room and going down the ground twice and then helping one down to fine leg.

But when Waseem looked to take down spin in similar fashion, he missed a sweep off Linde and was pinned in front.

Sharafu couldn’t get going for large parts of his 38-ball 45. He was hit on the helmet twice and was dropped twice. He started well with an inside-out drive off Linde and carved Anrich Nortje over deep third, but he then went 17 balls without a boundary. He got three fours in his last ten balls before edging a cramped pull to midwicket.

On a tacky surface in Delhi, South Africa’s pacers worked out their lengths early and stuck to them well. According to ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball data, they bowled 46 balls on a short or short-of-good-length spot and conceded just 41 runs and took four wickets with those.

The death overs also had a lot of short balls, with some cutters thrown in, and UAE made just 20 runs and lost two wickets in that period.

Bosch bowled across all phases, took a three-for, and was the most economical bowler. He had Aryansh Sharma and Muhammad Arfan pull to midwicket, and got rising bounce to get Sohaib Khan nicking to the keeper.

Nortje conceded 18 in his first two overs but came back sharply with the wickets of Syed Haider and Sharafu in his back two, both of them with into-the-pitch balls that were pulled to fielders.

Linde had a great day in Maharaj’s absence too. He got Waseem, kept it slow, and often hit the length length to concede just one boundary in his four-over spell.

South Africa dropped four catches in UAE’s innings, it was a major blemish in an otherwise clinical performance for them.

It started with a regulation chance to Quinton de Kock off an Aryansh Sharma miscue. De Kock ran back but couldn’t get underneath the swirling ball and a late turn to the side didn’t help as the ball popped out.

Then there were three drops between the 15th and 17th overs. Nortje tried to relay a catch to Jason Smith, who couldn’t collect it. Sharafu survived again next over as Nortje ran in from deep third but couldn’t hold on to a low chance in front of him. Bosch dropped a regulation chance off Muhammad Arfan, running in from mid-off, and juggling a high catch to the ground.

A rain break between innings did not matter to South Africa’s top-order batters, who approached the chase with free-flowing batting that resulted in 11 fours and a six in a 56-run powerplay.

Markram hit five fours and a six in 11 balls. He was severe on Junaid Siddique, who bowled too straight, and Haider Ali, whom he hit both sides of the ground before missing a slog and losing his stumps.

Rickelton and de Kock kept South Africa rolling by punishing Siddique and Muhammad Jawadullah as they bowled short and wide. It did work as de Kock fell cutting to deep-backward point but by then the required rate was under five.

With the game in the bag, Brevis flayed and pulled Jawadullah before slapping Haider over extra cover for boundaries. Rickelton looked to finish in a hurry as he whacked two sixes off Muhammad Farooq before pulling to the fielder on the deep-midwicket boundary. Tristan Stubbs then belted a six and then top-edged a pull to mid-off with the game effectively over. It got over soon after.

Brief scores:
South Africa 123 for 4 in 13.2 overs  (Aiden Markram 28, Quinton de Kock 14, Ryan Rickelton 30, Dewald Brevis 36; Haider Ali 1-33, Muhammad Jawadullah 1-20, Muhammad  Arfan 1-16, Muhammad Farooq 1-19) beat UAE 122 for 6 in 20 overs (Aryansh Sharma 13, Muhammad Waseem 22,  Alishan Sharafu 45, Muhammad Arfan 11;  Corbin Bosch 3-12, Anrich Nortje 2-28, George Linde 1-17) by six wickets

[Cricinfo]



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Munoz sends Colombia into World Cup knockouts with 1-0 win over DR Congo

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Daniel Munoz celebrates scoring the winning goal for Colombia during the 2026 World Cup Group K match against the Democratic Republic of the Congo at Guadalajara Stadium in Zapopan [Aljazeera]

Daniel Munoz has fired ‌Colombia into the World Cup round of 32 with a ⁠1-0 win over the Democratic Republic of the ⁠Congo in Group K after goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi had threatened to turn the match into a night of frustration.

Munoz struck the winner from the right ⁠side of the penalty area in the 76th minute on Tuesday, finally beating Mpasi, who had repeatedly denied Colombia with an inspired performance.

Colombia, who opened their World Cup campaign with a 3-1 win over Uzbekistan, commanded possession and created numerous chances.

Soccer Football - FIFA World Cup 2026 - Group K - Colombia v DR Congo - Estadio Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Mexico - June 23, 2026 Colombia's Daniel Munoz celebrates scoring their first goal with Luis Diaz and Juan Quintero REUTERS/Raquel Cunha
Colombia’s Daniel Munoz celebrates with Luis Diaz and Juan Quintero after scoring a goal [Aljazeera]

James Rodriguez, making his 10th World Cup appearance to equal the Colombian record jointly held by Freddy Rincon and Carlos Valderrama, forced Mpasi into action with a powerful strike in the 11th minute.

The goalkeeper stood firm, repelling efforts ‌from Jhon Arias and winger Luis Diaz, who came close to breaking the deadlock in the 18th minute, controlling a chipped pass inside the penalty area, turning smartly, and firing a shot goal-wards, only for Mpasi to save it with his foot.

The African side, buoyed by their opening 1-1 deaw with Portugal, threatened sporadically through Edo Kayembe, Cedric Bakambu and Yoane Wissa, but lacked a clinical finish.

By half-time, Colombia had registered 15 ⁠shots, including six on target, with nine of their 10 ⁠outfield players attempting efforts.

Soccer Football - FIFA World Cup 2026 - Group K - Colombia v DR Congo - Estadio Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Mexico - June 23, 2026 Colombia's Luis Diaz has his shot saved by DR Congo's Lionel Mpasi REUTERS/Raquel Cunha
Colombia’s Luis Diaz has his shot saved by DR Congo’s Lionel Mpasi [Aljazeera]

In the stands, DR Congo had support from Michel Nkuka Mboladinga, the team’s famous “living statue” fan, who made his World Cup debut after missing the opener against Portugal because of Ebola quarantine requirements.

Colombia resumed ⁠on the front foot after the break, with Diaz forcing another fine save from Mpasi in the 51st minute before Arias dragged ⁠the rebound wide.

Wissa almost snatched the lead for DR Congo ⁠in the 73rd minute, when his shot from Simon Banza’s assist was blocked, but Colombia struck shortly after through Munoz.

Diaz later thought he had doubled the advantage with a finish into the top corner, only for the ‌effort to be ruled out for offside.

Colombia moved to six points from two matches and guaranteed their progress to the knockout stage ahead of their final group game against Portugal, ‌who beat Uzbekistan 5-0 earlier on Tuesday.

DR Congo remained on one point and will need a result against Uzbekistan to keep their qualification hopes alive.

Soccer Football - FIFA World Cup 2026 - Group K - Colombia v DR Congo - Estadio Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Mexico - June 23, 2026 DR Congo fan Michel Nkuka Mboladinga, also known as Lumumba Vea in the stands during the match REUTERS/Daniel Becerril TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
DR Congo fan Michel Nkuka Mboladinga, also known as Lumumba Vea, in the stands during the match [Aljazeera]

[Aljazeera]

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July 6th declared as Sri Lanka National Legal Aid Day

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The Legal Aid Commission of Sri Lanka was established under the Legal Aid Act No. 27 of 1978 with the objective of facilitating access to justice for all citizens, including vulnerable groups and marginalized persons.

The commission makes a significant contribution to the protection of fundamental rights through the provision of legal aid services promotion of legal awareness, strengthening the rule of law and promoting access to justice.

It has been identified the appropriateness of declaring a National Legal Aid Day to enhance the public awareness of legal rights and remedies, facilitate a national dialogue on law enforcement and enhance the public understanding of the importance of legal services.

Accordingly, having ratified the legal Aid Act No.27 of  1978, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the resolution furnished by the Minister of Justice and National Integration to declare July 06th as the National Legal Aid Day.

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Appointment of a special Committee for protection of lands in Eastern Province

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A series of political, economic, and administrative problems in the Eastern Province have arisen due to the misuse of government power and political patronage, as well as illegal land grabbing, unauthorized land grabbing, and unauthorized constructions along the coastline.

As a result, the natural ecosystem of the region has been severely endangered, and these informal and illegal human activities have also become a major factor in the rapid creation of severe soil erosion along the entire eastern coastal area.

Furthermore, despite 16 years having passed since the end of the civil war, the lack of a formal program to permanently resettle the displaced people and the deviation from common criteria in the formation of the administrative structure have had a direct impact on the development activities of the province, as well as national security.

Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the resolution furnished by the  President to implement the following proposals and find prompt and permanent solutions to the aforementioned problems, take legal action and  strengthen institutional coordination.

• Appointing a committee by the name of “Protecting Eastern Province Lands’ with the chairmanship of the former Land Commissioner of the Southern Province and current Local Government Commissioner of the Southern Province, Senaka Palliyaguruge, and comprising of representatives of relevant institutions.

• Establishing of a special unit headed by a Deputy Inspector General of Police and granting of full powers to the security forces to stop unauthorized land acquisitions and land reclamations carried out using political power.

• Taking over the government lands that were provided by the Sri Lanka Mahaweli Authority 05 years ago, to the government where no project has been implemented so far.

• Handing over the acquired lands to the Divisional Secretaries to use for the development activities of the people under a formal program.

• Preparing of a formal plan to promote the tourism industry by utilizing the high potential of the eastern coastline while protecting the coastal system.

• Formulating a mechanism to ensure that the government officials implement the law impartially and transparently when operating hotels along the eastern coastal area.

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