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Pope tells Zelensky he is ‘praying for peace’

Published

3 years ago

2023/05/14

Priyan

Pope Francis has told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky he is constantly praying for peace after the two met privately at the Vatican.

The pontiff also stressed on the urgent need to help “the most fragile people, innocent victims” of the full-scale invasion launched by Russia last year.

Zelensky earlier met Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni who assured him of Rome’s support for united Ukraine.

More than 1,000 police are deployed and a no-fly zone over Rome is in place.

In a statement on Saturday, the Holy See said Pope Francis and President Zelensky “discussed the humanitarian and political situation in Ukraine caused by the ongoing war” during a meeting that lasted about 40 minutes.

The Argentine pontiff and President Zelensky “both agreed on the need to continue humanitarian efforts to support the population”.

The statement added: “The Pope has assured his constant prayer and continuous invocation to the Lord for peace – since last February” – when Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the full-scale invasion.

Pope Francis has often said that the Vatican stands ready to act as a mediator in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

(BBC)

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Taskin Ahmed withdraws from LPL to prepare for Australia tour

Published

4 hours ago

2026/07/23

Priyan

Taskin was supposed to play for Jaffna Kings [Cricbuzz]

Bangladesh pacer Taskin Ahmed said on Wednesday (July 22) that he has withdrawn from the Lanka Premier League (LPL) to prepare for the upcoming Test tour of Australia. Taskin, who arrived in Dhaka with the team from Zimbabwe, was supposed to head to Sri Lanka due to play for Jaffna Kings in the tournament.

Bangladesh are scheduled to depart in August for the all-important Australia tour where they will play a two-Test series down under for the first time since 2003.

Taskin had initially obtained a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) to feature in the tournament and was expected to skip the T20I series against Zimbabwe. However, he stayed back in Zimbabwe for the series after Mustafizur Rahman was ruled out due to injury.

“Yeah, I had withdrawn myself from LPL and it is mainly for Australia Test series preparation,” Taskin told Cricbuzz. “We played six back-to-back matches in Zimbabwe, maybe I would have got four matches there (in LPL). After my stint there (in LPL) if I return home and immediately go to Australia my Test match preparation would be hampered,” he said.

“Despite a little loss I thought it’s okay as Australia series won’t come around often.That’s why I took the decision and so I pulled out from the LPL even after having the NOC,” he added.

The Bangladesh team management are also waiting anxiously on Nahid Rana after he sustained a left side strain during the second T20I against Zimbabwe. The young fast bowler was unable to complete his spell. Rana, who arrived earlier in the day, will undergo scans to determine the extent of the injury.

Meanwhile, left-arm pacer Shoriful Islam is undergoing rehabilitation after suffering a hamstring injury during the Zimbabwe tour. If his rehabilitation progresses as planned, he will be in contention for the opening Test as a standard recovery period for such an injury is around three weeks.

The two Test matches, part of the ongoing World Test Championship cycle, will be played in Darwin (August 13-17) and Mackay (August 22-26).

[Cricbuzzz]

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Sri Lanka edge Qatar in Davis Cup opener

Published

8 hours ago

2026/07/23

Priyan

Thehan Wijemanne ( Pix by Kamal Wanniarachchi)

Hosts Sri Lanka made a winning start to their Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group IV campaign, edging out Qatar 2-1 in a closely contested opening-day tie at the Sri Lanka Tennis Association courts in Colombo on Wednesday.

The visitors struck first when Mubarak Alharrasi defeated Sri Lanka’s Apna Perera 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 in a hard-fought opening singles encounter, giving Qatar an early 1-0 lead.

Sri Lanka bounced back in the second singles as Thehan Wijemanne produced a spirited comeback to overcome Mossa Alharrasi 3-6, 6-4, 6-4. After dropping the opening set, Wijemanne showed great composure to win the next two sets and level the tie at 1-1.

The decisive doubles match proved to be a tense affair, with Apna Perera returning to partner Saha Kapilasena. The Sri Lankan duo held their nerve in two tie-breaks to defeat Jabar Al Mutawan and Mossa Alharrasi 7-6, 7-6, sealing the tie 2-1 for the hosts.

Sri Lanka’s ability to recover from the opening singles defeat highlighted the team’s resilience as Wijemanne’s comeback victory and the doubles pair’s clutch performance ensured a successful start to their campaign. The hosts will now look to build on the opening-day victory as they continue their quest for promotion in the Asia/Oceania Group IV competition.

Apna Perera and Saha Kapilasena

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Dambulla Sixers hand Galle Gallants first defeat in LPL 2026

Published

11 hours ago

2026/07/23

Priyan

The Dambulla Sixers bowlers kept Galle Gallants to 178 [Cricinfo]

Dambulla Sixers powered by an all-round performance from Marques Ackerman [2-27 and 35] and an unbeaten 64 off 37 balls from Reeza Hendricks handed the Galle Gallants their first defeat in LPL 2026. The match, the 8th game in LPL 2026 was played on Wednesday [22nd July] at Dambulla. The Gallants used nine bowlers but were unable to restraint the Dambulla batsmen who won with six wickets in hand 23 balls remaining.

Scores:
Galle Gallants 178/8 in 20 overs [Lasith Croospulle 12, Sam Harper 40, Charith Asalanka 25, Chamika Karunarathne 45, Dasun Shanaka 20, Mehidy Hasan Miraz 16; Vishwa Lahiru 1-20, Fazalhaq Farooki 3-39, Maheesh Theekshan 1-29, Gulbadin Naib 1-23, Marques Ackerman 2-27]
Dambulla Sixers 180/4 in 16.1 overs [Niroshan Dickwella 14, Shaibzada Farhan 13, Reeza Hendricks 64*, Pavan Rathnayake 29, Marqes Ackerman 35, Gulbadin Naib 20*; Dasun Shanaka 1-18, Mohammad Nawaz 1-40, Eshan Malinga 1-35, Chamika karunarathne 1-07]