Sri Lankan Tillakaratne Dilshan hit an unbeaten 47 to guide Asia XI to a six-wicket victory over Africa XI in the one-off Twenty20 cricket match in Bangalore on Tuesday. The Asian team were struggling at 34-3 before surpassing their opponents’ modest total of 109-8 with more than four overs to spare in the day-night game on a seamer-friendly pitch.
France have accused All Blacks coach Graham Henry of showing disrespect by criticising them for playing negatively in their 42-11 first-Test loss. ”We’re going to show them on the pitch that we deserve a bit more respect than what they give to us,” French fullback Thomas Castaignede told reporters on Wednesday.
Kenyan police faced protests on Wednesday after killing 22 people in a slum believed to be a stronghold of the Mungiki gang, branded ”agents of the devil” by a government minister. Police spokesperson Eric Kiraithe said officers had shown ”restraint” while flushing out known members of the group.
Lebanese troops and al Qaeda-inspired militants fought sporadically at a refugee camp in north Lebanon on Wednesday and a Palestinian force took up positions to defuse tension at another camp in the south. Soldiers fired artillery at the Nahr al-Bared camp overnight as the army tightened its grip around militants.
Ethiopia has charged 55 opposition members with trying to launch a rebellion, a government prosecutor told said on Wednesday. More than one hundred opposition figures are already on trial, accused of plotting a coup after disputed 2005 elections.
With a contract in his back pocket that was ”simply too good to refuse”, 42 year-old Roger de Sa rejoined Wits University on Tuesday after two years as coach of Cape Town PSL club Santos. De Sa’s return to the club where he spent eight years as a goalkeeper and coach was announced by Bidvest boss Brian Joffe.
Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko overcame Argentine baseliner Guillermo Canas 7-5 6-4 6-4 on Tuesday to set up a semifinal showdown with world number one Roger Federer. World number four Davydenko (26) showed more composure when it mattered to reach the last four at Roland Garros for the second time in three years.
Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang has withdrawn from the third South African Aids Conference after apparently being sidelined by the conference’s organisers, it emerged on Tuesday. Speaking at the official opening, the South African Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka said: ”The minister has withdrawn because of the place you have allocated to her.”
A clerk with no knowledge of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown allowed a tribute to victims slip into the classified advertisements page of a newspaper in south-west China. An investigation was launched by Chinese authorities to find out how the advertisement slipped its way past censors.
Republican candidates in the 2008 presidential race on Wednesday sharply criticised United States President George Bush for being a vote-loser, during a live televised debate. During the two-hour debate in Manchester, New Hampshire, the third since the campaign began, the candidates were asked what job they would give Bush.