Latest News
South Africa hold nerve against England to continue unbeaten march towards semis

Is it too early to say it? That it looks like South Africa’s time has come.
They beat defending champions England in a thrilling encounter, overcoming several scares in Saint Lucia to remain unbeaten in the T20 World Cup 2024 and have one foot in the semi-finals.
South Africa didn’t seem to have enough runs, having scored 63 in the powerplay but only another 100 in the next 14 overs. They seemed to have got their selection slightly wrong on a slower-than-expected pitch by picking only one specialist spinner, who they had bowled out by the 13th over of England’s chase. And their quicks did not appear to have fully bought into pace-off, giving away 52 runs in three overs between the 15th and 17th over to leave England needing only 25 runs off the last 18 balls.
But then, Kagiso Rabada had Liam Livingstone caught at deep backward square off a full toss – and celebrated in his face – and he only gave away four runs in his final over. Marco Jansen sent down a phenomenal penultimate over, bowling into the pitch and taking pace off, and conceded only seven runs, leaving Anrich Nortje with 13 to defend off the last over. His first ball was hit down the ground by Harry Brook, in search of six, but Aiden Markam ran back from mid-on and took the catch over his shoulder. That was the moment the game was won but Nortje still had five deliveries and he kept it together, bowling full, and restricting England to six runs in the 20th over.
The drama aside, England may not too be unhappy after the close defeat. Their spinners Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid were impressive, taking 2 for 45 in 7 overs; Reece Topley conceded only 23 in his four overs; and Harry Brook brought up his first T20 World Cup fifty. The shot selection from the top order may come under scrutiny but with a positive net run-rate and a game against the USA to come, England will still fancy their chances of reaching the semi-finals.
England’s planning against Quinton de Kock was spot on as they chose to open the bowling with Reece Topley and Moeen Ali, both of whom have had the better of de Kock in the past. Topley had dismissed him four times in six meetings, and Moeen six times in 15, but neither got the early breakthrough in this game. Instead, de Kock opened the boundary count with a four and a six down the ground off Moeen and then punished Jofra Archer with a series of pick-up shots over the leg-side. Archer’s opening over cost 21 and de Kock scored 17 of them, including successive sixes. De Kock went on to bring up fifty off 22 balls, equalling Aaron Jones for the fastest half century of the tournament, but could have been out two overs later, on 58, when he slog-swept an Adil Rashid googly to deep backward square. Mark Wood had to reach forward to take the catch, which appeared clean until TV umpire Joel Wilson determined the ball had burst through his fingers and hit the ground.
De Kock added just seven more runs before Archer got his revenge. He banged in a short, slower ball, de Kock edged and Jos Buttler leapt one-handed to his left and hung on to a humdinger. And that was the entree. Buttler’s main course came when Heinrich Klaasen, on 8, responded late to the non-striker David Miller’s call for a run, after a short ball from Wood had deflected off the wicketkeeper’s pad towards short fine leg. Klaasen was slow between the wickets and Buttler pounced, showing incredible awareness and aim to throw the stumps down at the non-striker’s end with Klaasen well short.
England can catch? Hold my beer, said South Africa, as Reeza Hendricks grabbed on to the first chance they were given. Phil Salt was tempted into an aerial drive off Rabada but did not hit it as well as he hoped and Hendricks leapt two-handed to his left to hold on to a spectacular catch. Rabada should have had a second when Bairstow slashed him to deep third, but Klaasen was unable to hold on.
The drop only cost South Africa six runs due to another wonder catch. Keshav Maharaj tossed the ball up, Bairstow cut and Nortje flung himself to his right at backward point to grab a stunner. And Klaasen was able to redeem himself when Buttler tried to take Maharaj on and was caught at deep mid-wicket. None of those catches, however, compares with what Markram did in the final over when Harry Brook, set on 53, tried to hit Nortje down the ground. He ran back from mid-on and took the catch over his right shoulder; it was the final turning point in the game.
England needed 77 runs off the last six overs and with Keshav Maharaj bowled out, it was up to the seamers to defend starting with South Africa’s most experienced, Rabada. Tasked with the 15th over, Rabada bowled pace-on and conceded six first up when Liam Livingstone hit him over square leg. He ended up giving away 18 runs in the over to take some pressure off England. But it was Baartman’s third over, the 17th, which was the most disappointing from a South African perspective. He tried to find a yorker length but sent down four full tosses in a row, which Livingstone hit through cover, twice, for four and then over square leg. His fourth delivery was toe-ended without damage but a fifth full toss to end the over gave Brook another four and set the game up for a thrilling finish.
Brief scores:
South Africa 163 for 6 in 20 overs (Quinton de Kock 65, David Miller 43; Moeen Ali 1-25, Jofra Archer 3-40, Adil Rashid 1-20) beat England 156 for 6 in 20 overs (Harry Brook 53, Liam Livingstone 33; Keshav Maharaj 2-25, Kagiso Rabada 2-32, Ottneil Baartman 1-27, Anrich Nortje 1-35) by 7 runs
[Cricinfo]
Latest News
Showers above 75 mm can be expected at some places in Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central, Southern and North-western provinces.

WEATHER FORECAST FOR 16 MARCH 2025
Issued at 05.30 a.m. on 16 March 2025 by the Department of Meteorology
Misty conditions can be expected at some places in Western and Sabaragamuwa provinces and in Galle, Matara and Kurunegala districts during the morning.
Cloudy skies can be expected over the Southern half of the island.
Showers or thundershowers will occur at times in Northern, Eastern and Uva provinces and in Hambantota, Polonnaruwa, Nuwara-Eliya and Matale districts and at several places elsewhere in the island after 1.00 p.m. Fairly heavy showers above 75 mm can be expected at some places in Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central, Southern and North-western provinces.
The general public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimize damages caused by temporary localized strong winds and lightning during thundershowers.
Foreign News
US launches wave of air strikes on Yemen’s Houthis

The US has launched a “decisive and powerful” wave of air strikes on Houthi rebels in Yemen, President Donald Trump has said, citing the armed group’s attacks on shipping in the Red Sea as the reason.
“Funded by Iran, the Houthi thugs have fired missiles at US aircraft, and targeted our Troops and Allies,” Trump wrote on his Truth social platform, adding that their “piracy, violence, and terrorism” had cost “billions of dollars” and put lives at risk.
The Houthi-run health ministry said at least 13 people were killed and nine others injured in the strikes.
The group – which began targeting shipping in response to the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza – said its forces would respond to US strikes.
In a statement, the Houthis blamed the US and the UK for “wicked” aggression targeting residential areas in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa – though it is understood that the UK was not behind Saturday’s strikes on the Middle Eastern country.
The Iranian-backed rebel group, considers Israel its enemy. It controls Sanaa and the north-west of Yemen, but it is not the country’s internationally-recognised government.
Since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas, it has launched hundreds of attacks on commercial vessels travelling through the Red Sea.
These attacks, Trump said, “will not be tolerated”. “We will use overwhelming lethal force until we have achieved our objective.”
Initially, the group said it was attacking ships connected with, or that had docked in, Israel. However, many of the vessels have no connection with Israel.
Trump said that it had been more than a year since a US-flagged ship had sailed safely through the Suez Canal – which the Red Sea leads to – and four months since a US warship had been through the body of water between east Africa and the Arabian peninsula.
The Suez Canal is the quickest sea route between Asia and Europe, and is particularly important in the transportation of oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Addressing the Houthis directly, Trump wrote that if they did not stop, “HELL WILL RAIN DOWN UPON YOU LIKE NOTHING YOU HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE”.
But the Houthis were unwavering in their response, saying the aggression would not wane their support for Palestinians.
“This aggression will not go without response and our Yemeni armed forces are ready to answer escalation with further escalation,” the group said.
Meanwhile, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said that the Houthi’s “benefactor”, Iran, was “on notice”.

For more than a year, major shipping companies were forced to stop using the Red Sea – through which almost 15% of global seaborne trade usually passes – and used a much longer route around southern Africa instead.
The Houthis launched 190 attacks in the Red Sea between November 2023 and October 2024, according to the US Congress.
Previously, the UK and US conducted joint naval and air strikes against the group. Israel has also targeted sites linked to the Houthis in separate strikes.
Trump urged Iran to cease its support for the Houthis, warning that Washington would hold Tehran “fully accountable and, we won’t be nice about it”.
He also accused the previous White House administration, under Joe Biden, of being “pathetically weak” and allowing the “unrestrained Houthis” to keep going.
[BBC]
Latest News
Consumer Rights Protection Initiative launched under “Clean Sri Lanka” programme on World Consumer Rights Day

Coinciding with World Consumer Rights Day on March 15, a new initiative under the “Clean Sri Lanka” Programme is set to be implemented to promote awareness and attitudinal change regarding consumer rights protection within society.
A discussion on this initiative was held at the Presidential Secretariat under the patronage of Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, Secretary to the President, with the participation of officials from the Ministries of Health and Agriculture.
Secretary to the President Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake emphasized the need for the practical implementation of existing policies and plans of the Ministry of Health to ensure that citizens have access to safe and high-quality food.
Extensive discussions were held on ensuring consumers’ right to access high-quality and safe food. The dialogue focused on creating an environment that supports compliance with health standards, enhancing consumer confidence and exploring measures to involve both the public and private sectors in achieving these objectives.
Attention was also drawn to the practical implementation of existing policies and plans related to food standards and quality assurance through the “Clean Sri Lanka” Programme, exploring possible measures to achieve these objectives effectively.
Discussions also focused on integrating the “Clean Sri Lanka” Programme with the Ministry of Agriculture’s National Policy framework, particularly in ensuring the safety and proper storage of agricultural produce. Additionally, attention was given to the implementation of existing regulations related to restaurant certification, street vendor regulation, registration of street food establishments & food trucks and registration of personnel training.
The meeting was attended by Senior Additional Secretary to the President, G.M.R.D. Apponsu, Additional Secretary to the President, S.P.C. Sugiswara, along with senior officials from various ministries and institutions, including the Ministry of Public Administration, Provincial Councils, and Local Government, Ministry of Health and Mass Media, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation, Ministry of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development, Department of Food Commissioner, Department of Agriculture, Department of Health Services, Consumer Affairs Authority, Sri Lanka Standards Institution, National Medicines Regulatory Authority, Industrial Technology Institute, Central Environmental Authority, National Food Promotion Board, and Department of Measurement Units, Standards, and Services.
[PMD]
-
Opinion6 days ago
Insulting SL armed forces
-
News4 days ago
Alfred Duraiappa’s relative killed in Canada shooting
-
Foreign News16 hours ago
Search continues in Dominican Republic for missing student Sudiksha Konanki
-
Features3 days ago
Richard de Zoysa at 67
-
Editorial5 days ago
Ghosts refusing to fade away
-
Features3 days ago
SL Navy helping save kidneys
-
Features5 days ago
The Gypsies…one year at a time
-
Midweek Review4 days ago
Ranil in Head-to-Head controversy