Author: Gulf News Week

Miller’s 63 and Jansen’s 4-22 headline statement win as defending champions suffer first defeat of tournament Ahmedabad — In a high-voltage rematch of the 2024 T20 World Cup final, South Africa delivered a resounding statement of intent, thrashing tournament co-hosts India by 76 runs in their Super Eight Group One clash at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday. The Proteas not only avenged their final defeat but announced themselves as genuine title contenders in emphatic fashion, handing India their first loss of the campaign. Electing to bat first, South Africa recovered from a disastrous 20/3 to post a imposing 187/7, before…

World No. 5 draws inspiration from Flavia Pennetta, the only woman to win maiden major after turning 30 in Open Era Dubai — Jessica Pegula received an early birthday present in more ways than one. The American’s commanding 6-2, 6-4 victory over Elina Svitolina in Saturday’s Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships final wasn’t just her third WTA 1000 title—it was a statement of intent from a player who refuses to let age define her ambitions. As Pegula prepares to turn 32 on February 24, the world No. 5 finds inspiration in an unlikely tennis footnote: Flavia Pennetta remains the sole player…

WASHINGTON (news agencies) — The Food and Drug Administration plans to drop its longtime standard of requiring two rigorous studies to win approval for new drugs, the latest change from Trump administration officials vowing to speed up the availability of certain medical products.Going forward, the FDA’s “default position” will be to require one study for new drugs and other novel health products, FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary and a top deputy, Dr. Vinay Prasad, wrote in a New England Journal of Medicine piece published Wednesday.The announcement is the latest example of Makary and his team changing longstanding FDA standards and…

Cnews agenciesE CANAVERAL, Fla. (news agencies) — Grounded until at least April, NASA’s giant moon rocket is headed back to the hangar this week for more repairs before astronauts climb aboard.The space agency said Sunday it’s targeting Tuesday for the slow, four-mile (6.4-kilometer) trek across Kennedy Space Center, weather permitting. NASA had barely finished a repeat fueling test Thursday, to ensure dangerous hydrogen fuel leaks were plugged, when another problem cropped up.This time, the rocket’s helium system malfunctioned, further delaying astronauts’ first trip to the moon in more than half a century. Engineers had just tamed the hydrogen leaks and…

Early prenatal care improves the chances of having a healthy pregnancy and baby. But a new federal report shows it’s been on the decline.The share of U.S. births to women who began prenatal care in the first trimester dropped from 78.3% in 2021 to 75.5% in 2024, according to data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday.Meanwhile, starting care later in pregnancy or getting no care at all has been on the rise. Prenatal care beginning in the second trimester rose from 15.4% to 17.3%, and starting care in the third trimester or getting no care…

Cnews agenciesE CANAVERAL, Fla. (news agencies) — NASA aims to send astronauts to the moon in March after acing the latest rocket fueling test.Officials announced the decision Friday, two weeks ahead of the first targeted launch opportunity on March 6.“This is really getting real, and it’s time to get serious and start getting excited,” said Lori Glaze, NASA’s exploration systems development chief.Administrator Jared Isaacman noted that launch teams made “major progress” between the first countdown rehearsal, which was disrupted by hydrogen leaks earlier this month, and the second test, which was completed with exceptionally low seepage Thursday night. The test…

Eric Dane, known for his roles on “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Euphoria,” died this week from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis at age 53.The fatal nervous system disease, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, killed Dane less than a year after he announced his diagnosis.According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ALS is rare. In 2022, there were nearly 33,000 estimated cases, say researchers, who project that cases will rise to more than 36,000 by 2030. The disease is slightly more common in men than in women and tends to strike in midlife, between the ages of 40 and 60.Here’s what…

Cnews agenciesE CANAVERAL, Fla. (news agencies) — In the latest setback to return astronauts to the moon, NASA delayed the highly anticipated flight yet again after a new problem cropped up with the rocket Saturday.April is now the earliest that the four Artemis II astronauts could fly to the moon.NASA revealed the latest problem just one day after targeting March 6 for Artemis II, humanity’s first flight to the moon in more than half a century. Overnight, the flow of helium to the rocket’s upper stage was interrupted, officials said. Solid helium flow is essential for purging the engines and…

President Aoun decries “blatant aggression” as Hezbollah lawmaker calls for boycott of multinational truce monitoring committee scheduled to meet next week. BEIRUT – Lebanon’s fragile ceasefire with Israel faced its most severe test yet on Saturday as political leaders condemned deadly Israeli airstrikes that killed 12 people, prompting calls from Hezbollah to suspend the very mechanism designed to uphold the truce. President Joseph Aoun led the condemnation, describing Friday’s attacks on southern and eastern Lebanon as “a blatant act of aggression aimed at thwarting diplomatic efforts” by the United States and other international actors seeking to stabilize the region . The…

In an unprecedented move, British police took the Duke of York into custody on his 66th birthday over allegations he passed confidential government papers to the disgraced financier. LONDON – In a historic first for the British monarchy, Prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office, plunging the House of Windsor into its deepest crisis of the 21st century. The Duke of York, 66, was detained by Thames Valley Police on Thursday at Wood Farm on the Sandringham Estate. The arrest stems from allegations that, while serving as a UK trade envoy, he supplied classified government…