No country, including India, raised any concerns about the proposed schedule for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan during the ICC Board meeting in Dubai last month, held alongside the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.

Minutes from the board meeting indicate that the schedule, also approved by ICC broadcasters, was shared with all participating teams, and no objections were raised, highly placed sources confirmed.

“A match schedule has been developed in conjunction with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). The 15 matches are to be hosted across three venues in Pakistan: Rawalpindi, Lahore, and Karachi.

“The match schedule has been approved by ICC’s main broadcast partner, Star, and each participating team has received a copy of their schedule for the event. No member has raised any concerns with the schedule as circulated,” it stated.

A source in Islamabad with knowledge of the matter suggested that recent developments, including India’s verbal communication to the cricket’s regulatory body about its inability to travel to Pakistan, may point to “mala fide intentions” aimed at creating disruption ahead of the Champions Trophy.

“There was no discussion of such concerns during the ICC Board meeting, the appropriate forum to address such matters. Yet, just as Pakistan was set to host an event marking 100 days to the tournament, the BCCI informed the ICC of its position verbally,” the source said.

The source further confirmed that a high-profile event was planned for November 11 to unveil the match schedule, event identity, and trophy tour.

During the October board meeting, the PCB had also provided updates on the progress of development work at the three venues.

The source added that the ICC had also green-signalled the PCB to host an international testing event at all three venues before the Champions Trophy which the PCB was planning to hold in January.

Before the October meeting, the PCB and ICC had jointly briefed security managers from all participating teams on the tournament’s master security plan. No objections were raised at any stage, the source added.

The PCB, meanwhile, is awaiting a response from the ICC to a questionnaire sent two days back following India’s verbal communication to the ICC about its inability to travel to Pakistan.

“The delay in ICC’s reply suggests there is no written communication from the BCCI. If such a document existed, it would have been shared with the PCB by now. It has been two days since PCB wrote to the ICC,” the source noted.

“Pakistan was announced as the host of the Champions Trophy long ago, and the host agreement was signed in December 2023. Why didn’t the BCCI consult its government about travelling to Pakistan when the event was announced? Why wait until the last minute?” the source questioned.

With less than 100 days to go before the ICC Champions Trophy, the uncertainty surrounding the schedule is not only frustrating cricket fans globally but also affecting stakeholders with commercial interests tied to the tournament.

“A lot of branding and brand activation activities are currently on hold due to this uncertainty,” another source said.

The final schedule, though already shared with participating teams and broadcasters, for the Champions Trophy 2025 is yet to be announced, officially.

Reliance Industries Limited announced the completion of a merger with the India business of global media house Walt Disney on Thursday. With this, Viacom 18 Media Private Limited, Reliance Industries Limited, and The Walt Disney Company announced the formation of a joint venture. The joint venture was formed after the approval by the National Company Law Tribuna (NCLT) Mumbai, the Competition Commission of India (CCI), and other regulatory authorities. Reliance also announced that the transactional value of the joint venture was evaluated at Rs. 70,352 crores on a post-money basis.

Reliance, Disney Complete Merger

In a press release, Reliance announced the completion of the merger with Disney following approvals from regulatory bodies. This comes after the two entities announced a strategic partnership to form a joint venture in February. Reliance Industries has invested Rs. 11,500 crores into the joint venture and holds 16.34 percent of the stake in the company. Reliance’s step-down unit Viacom 18, which is also a partner in the joint venture, holds a 46.82 percent stake in the venture while Disney holds the rest of the 36.84 percent.

The joint venture will combine Star and Colors channels on the television side, while it will bring together JioCinema and Hotstar on the digital front. The joint venture will be headed by Nita Ambani, who will act as the Chairperson of the entity.

Highlighting the size of the joint venture, the press release claimed that it holds a combined revenue of approximately Rs. 26,000 crores for the fiscal year that ended in March 2024. Further, the joint venture will now operate more than 100 television channels that produce more than 30,000 hours of content annually.

On the digital front, Reliance claimed that JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar have an aggregate subscription base of more than 50 million, however, this does not account for any overlaps where a user subscribes to both platforms. Additionally, the joint venture also holds digital sports rights across cricket, football, and other sporting events.

Mukesh Ambani, the Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries said after the merger, “Our deep creative expertise and relationship with Disney, along with our unmatched understanding of the Indian consumer will ensure unparalleled content choices at affordable prices for Indian viewers.”

India’s top product certification agency will investigate e-scooter maker Ola Electric’s deficiency in service standards and product issues, India’s consumer affairs secretary told Reuters on Thursday.

Last month, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) sent Ola Electric a notice seeking an explanation from the SoftBank-backed company after the consumer rights agency received an unusually high 10,000 complaints.

Ola, India’s top e-scooter maker, responded that it had resolved 99.1 percent of the complaints.

After reviewing that response, the CCPA has now asked the Bureau of Indian Standards to conduct a detailed investigation into the matter, consumer affairs secretary Nidhi Khare said on Thursday.

Ola Electric did not immediately respond to a Reuters email seeking comment.

The complaints were mostly for “minor” issues, Ola’s founder Bhavish Aggarwal said on an earnings call last week.

“Two-thirds of it actually are just minor issues like loose parts or customers unfamiliar with the software used,” Aggarwal said.

The rising complaints and ensuing regulatory scrutiny have cast a shadow on the e-scooter maker, following its stellar market debut in August.

Ola Electric’s shares are down about 7.6 percent from their listing price of 76 rupees. On the day, its shares were down about one percent, while auto stocks had risen 0.5 percent.

© Thomson Reuters 2024

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Gemini in Gmail is getting support for more artificial intelligence (AI) functionalities. On Wednesday, Google announced the integration of the Google Calendar app with its native AI model Gemini. This way, eligible users can use Gemini within Gmail to ask Calendar-based queries to users. The feature is available to those Google Workspace users who have one of the Gemini add-ons. This feature is currently only available on the web. Notably, last month the Mountain View-based tech giant expanded the AI-powered ‘Help Me Write’ and ‘Polish’ features on the web.

Gemini in Gmail Gets Google Calendar Integration

In a blog post, the tech giant detailed the new feature. Gmail already has several Google apps integrated with the mail client. Google Calendar is one of them. Users can use the Calendar integration to add tasks on a future date, set up meetings, and check the day plans of coworkers.

Now, the tech giant is rolling out the integration of Gemini to the Calendar app available on the side panel of Gmail. With this, users can tap on the ‘Ask Gemini’ icon present on the top right corner of Gmail’s web interface and ask several queries that require the Calendar functionality.

Gemini in Gmail gets integrated with Google Calendar
Photo Credit: Google

For instance, users can ask about their own upcoming calendar events or ask Gemini to create a one-time and repeating calendar event. Highlighting an example, the post said users can ask Gemini to “Create a [30 min] calendar event for my weekly [yoga class] every [Monday and Wednesday] at [9 AM]”, and the AI will add it immediately.

However, there are several limitations to what the AI can do currently. Gemini cannot add or remove guests from events, create events by extracting information from an email, pull up attachments from calendar events, or add or manage meeting rooms. Further, the AI tool also cannot perform complex tasks such as finding the best time to meet another person in the organisation.

Notably, Google Calendar integration for Gemini in Gmail is available to Workspace users with Gemini Business, Gemini Enterprise, Gemini Education, Gemini Education Premium, or the Google One AI Premium add-ons.

• Pakistan could only scored 64 in pursuit of 94-run target.
• Men in Green lost six batters on single-digit scores.
• Australia’s Bartlett and Ellis claim three wickets each.

BRISBANE: In a rain-hit T20I series opener, a dominant Australia secured victory by 29 runs after the bowlers sparked a Pakistan batting collapse in the rain-hit first T20I of the three-match series against Pakistan at The Gabba on Thursday.

The Men in Green only managed to score 64/9 in pursuit of a daunting 94-run target in seven overs.

The visitors had a decent start as they amassed 12 runs for the loss of one wicket in the first over.

Pakistan then ran into a disastrous middle-order collapse, including the the dismissals of key batters Babar Azam (3) and captain Mohammad Rizwan (0), and were consequently reduced to 20/5 in three overs.

Xavier Bartlett, who picked up two wickets in his first over, dismissed Salman Ali Agha (4) to keep Pakistan under pressure. The right-arm pacer recorded brilliant bowling figures of 13/3 in his quota of two overs.

Coming out to bat at No.8 with the visitors reeling at 24/6 in 3.2 overs, Abbas Afridi offered a notable fightback against the momentum-filled Australian bowling attack with an unbeaten 20-run cameo.

His efforts, however, were not enough to steer his side over the line as Pakistan succumbed to a 29-run defeat in the series opener.

Nathan Ellis led the bowling charge for Australia with astounding figures of 3/9 in two overs, while Adam Zampa bagged two wickets.

Earlier, Glenn Maxwell’s blitzing powered Australia to a formidable total of 93 in first T20I.

In a match that was reduced to seven overs per side, Pakistan’s captain Rizwan won the toss and put Australia into bat.

The hosts came out all guns blazing with openers Jake Fraser-McGurk and Matthew Short scoring 16 runs off the first over, bowled by ace pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi.

Naseem Shah drew first success for Pakistan by dismissing Fraser-McGurk, nine off five, on the first delivery of his spell.

But Maxwell, promoted to bat at No.3, dominated the proceedings despite Short’s departure in the third over.

The hard-hitting batter eventually fell victim to Mohammad Abbas in the penultimate over, which also saw the ouster of Tim David (9) as Australia slipped to 73/4 in six overs.

Maxwell remained the top-scorer for Australia with a 19-ball 43, laced with five fours and three sixes.

Marcus Stoinis then smashed Naseem for 20 runs in the final over and bolstered Australia’s total to 93/4 in the allotted seven overs.

The right-handed batter remained unbeaten with a seven-ball 21, which featured two fours and a six.

For Pakistan, Abbas bagged two wickets, while Shaheen and Naseem shared two between them.

Days earlier, the Men in Green celebrated a significant triumph after defeating the Kangaroos in the third and final ODI, clinching the three-match series 2-1.

With this win, the Green Shirts marked their first ODI series win on Australian soil in 22 years, with the previous 50-over series victory dating back to 2002.

Additionally, it is worth noting that Pakistan are playing their first match since their dismal ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 campaign, which saw them crashing out from the group stage of the tournament for the first time due to their gut-wrenching defeats against the United States and arch-rivals India.

Australia, on the other hand, are fresh from a 3-0 routing of Scotland and a 1-1 stalemate against fierce rivals England.

Playing XI

Pakistan: Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan (c/wk), Sahibzada Farhan, Usman Khan, Salman Agha, Irfan Khan, Abbas Afridi, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haseebullah Khan, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah

Australia: Jake Fraser-McGurk, Matt Short, Josh Inglis (c/wk), Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Aaron Hardie, Xavier Bartlett, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Spencer Johnson

Donald Trump’s second term will be a historic four years for sports. 

The entire world will turn its eyes to the U.S. as it hosts a World Cup and a Summer Olympics in a single presidential term. 

And for sports in America, Trump’s controversial standing among many of the country’s biggest stars and figures could burn even hotter than it did four years ago.

Here’s a look at all the sports history that will come under a political and global microscope with Trump in the White House over the next four years.

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The first college football national champion White House visit of the expanded playoff era

The 2024 college football season is the first in history with a 12-team playoff, and the first with a massive realignment in the sport’s most prominent conferences after a mass exodus of programs from the Pac-12. 

The first official championship will technically take place just days before Trump is inaugurated in January, but the champions’ White House visit will be one of the first of Trump’s second term.

Trump should expect respect from the sport’s coaches and stars. During Trump’s first term, and even during his recent campaign, college football has been the sport to embrace Trump the most unanimously in the U.S. His appearances at games, including multiple Army-Navy games in his first term and a Georgia-Alabama game in September, were met with rousing applause.

No college football national champion skipped a White House visit during Trump’s first term. Meanwhile, Georgia skipped a visit to President Biden’s White House in 2023.

And no notable college football coach has spoken out against Trump publicly, while many have spoken positively about the next president.

With 12 teams now in the college football playoff, it’s possible that in the next three years Trump’s White House could host the lowest-ranked team to ever win the national title, a potential American underdog story. 

Four WNBA seasons at the dawn of the Caitlin Clark era

Trump infamously declined to invite several major women’s basketball championship teams to the White House during his first term, including every WNBA champion.

Among those were the 2017 women’s college basketball champion South Carolina Gamecocks, the 2017 WNBA champion Minnesota Lynx and the 2018 women’s college basketball champion Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The 2018 WNBA champion Seattle Storm were not invited but made it clear they would not have attended the ceremony if they had.

The one time Trump’s White House ever hosted a women’s basketball team was the 2019 national champion Baylor Bears.

Angel Reese of LSU, right, and Caitlin Clark of Iowa (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images/File)

The reigning WNBA champion New York Liberty would be scheduled to visit Trump’s White House in May. However, it is possible they will not be invited or might not even attend if they are invited. Liberty star Breanna Stewart has been an activist for left-wing values and joined the protests against Trump’s travel ban in January 2017, shortly after he took office the first time. 

Meanwhile, 22-year-old superstar Caitlin Clark has brought a significant new spotlight to the sport since Trump was last in office, and Trump himself has complimented Clark and suggested she is underpaid during an interview on the “Let’s Go!” podcast. 

“She’s incredible, by the way,” Trump then said of Clark. “I’ve watched her. I think she’s incredible. The shot – I watch her shot go in, it’s like, could she shoot that way in the NBA? She’s unbelievable.”

It’s possible that Clark will lead the Indiana Fever to an WNBA title in the next three years, considering the rookie star led the team back to the playoffs for the first time in eight seasons. If that happens, then whether Clark and her teammates attend a Trump White House visit will be a cornerstone moment in the history of the WNBA and the future of its audience.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup

Trump will present the 2026 World Cup trophy after the final at MetLife Stadium in 2026. It was Trump’s first administration that made the bid to host the 2026 World Cup, and now he will preside over it when it happens. 

However, that deal was initially agreed upon with the understanding that Trump wouldn’t be president when the event took place amid concerns over the controversy he stirred in the global community. In a meeting with FIFA President Gianni Infantino at the White House in August 2018, Trump didn’t factor in the possibility of losing the 2020 election, which opened the door for him to run again four years later and thus return to office in time for the 2026 World Cup.

“2026, I won’t be here,” Trump said at the time, per the Associated Press.

Infantino nevertheless used his Instagram account to congratulate Trump even before his election victory early on Nov. 6. Infantino also recently moved to Miami, 70 miles south of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate. FIFA even seems to have an open line of communication with Trump to talk through potential challenges, such as Iran’s probable qualification for the men’s World Cup and the political implications it may bring.

Whether the players on the field are as receptive to Trump in two years is a different question. But Trump may be spared an awkward trophy interaction with one of soccer’s biggest stars, based on past interactions, if one of the sport’s powerhouse countries prevails.

France superstar Kylian Mbappé, who led his country to the final for the second straight time in 2022 before losing to Lionel Messi and Argentina, once posed with Trump’s daughter and son-in-law; Mbappé posed for a photo with Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, and the French star even put his arms around Trump’s grandchildren in the photo. 

However, Mbappé also went out of his way to speak out against his country’s right-wing presidential candidate, Marine Le Pen, in France’s election this year. Mbappé criticized Le Pen for her anti-immigration stances. 

Mbappé may well be the biggest star in all of soccer in 2026 at his current pace.

Four Super Bowls that could involve Taylor Swift’s boyfriend after Trump said he hates her

The Kansas City Chiefs could be in the last leg of their quest for a third straight Super Bowl when Trump is inaugurated in January. The Chiefs are currently undefeated and have the best odds in the league to make the big game.

If they pull it off, it would also earn the team its first Trump White House visit. They couldn’t make it during the summer of 2020 thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. Their last two championships have resulted in trips to Biden’s White House, where all notable players except for kicker Harrison Butker attended.

But tight end Travis Kelce would have his own dilemma if his team gets the job done and gets invited to Trump’s White House. Kelce’s girlfriend, pop star Taylor Swift, endorsed Trump’s Democrat opponent, Vice President Harris, in the recent election, and she has endorsed Democrats since 2018. But Swift’s endorsement of Harris prompted a hostile response from Trump himself when he wrote, “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT” on his Truth Social platform in September.

Kelce has not spoken about politics or the election at all in this year’s cycle. He was previously criticized by Aaron Rodgers for endorsing a Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.

Meanwhile, family members of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes showed support for Trump in the recent election cycle. Mahomes’ mother officially endorsed Trump, and his wife, Brittany, liked multiple posts and comments on social media in support of Trump.

The Chiefs are the active dynasty of the NFL, and that could easily continue into Trump’s presidency, along with awkward White House invitations.

The only two NFL teams to get invitations to Trump’s White House during his first term were the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles. The Patriots accepted both invitations in 2017 and 2019. The Eagles’ visit was canceled, and the team released a statement saying it was in relation to Trump’s stance on players standing for the national anthem.

The Eagles are another team that could be in regular contention to win the Super Bowl throughout the rest of Trump’s second term, and if they do, a second White House invitation could incite a national controversy as it did the first time.

The 2028 Los Angeles Olympics

Like the 2026 World Cup, Trump had an active hand in America’s bidding to host the 2028 Olympics. And now he is set to preside over it in the final year of his second term.

However, cooperation with Trump has not been publicly embraced the same way with the International Olympic Committee as it has with FIFA.

IOC President Thomas Bach made one visit to the White House in June 2017 that is part of Olympic lore for how badly it went.

“Pray for our world,” Bach was heard to say on a cellphone call later that day in Washington, D.C.

The IOC has not yet acknowledged Trump’s presidential victory. Asked why there was no formal acknowledgment of Trump’s win last week, the IOC cited its tradition of neutrality and not taking political sides, according to the AP.

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Potential conflict between Trump and the IOC could arise over the issue of gender eligibility for athletes in women’s sports. Trump has pledged to ban trans athletes in women’s sports as part of his presidency, and he spoke out against the inclusion of boxers Imane Khelif and Lin Yu-ting. Both of those boxers failed gender eligibility tests for previous international competitions.

However, the IOC has defended the inclusion of the boxers. More cases could arise by 2028; the United Nations says nearly 900 biological females have fallen short of the podium because they were beaten out by trans athletes.

The NBA at the twilight of LeBron James and Steph Curry’s careers

Not a single NBA champion attended a Trump White House visit during his first term.

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LeBron James and Stephen Curry, the two players who dominated those four years, have lambasted Trump on multiple occasions while endorsing Democrat candidates. They both endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2016, Biden in 2020 and Harris in 2024.

But both players are now coming to the end of their careers, and whether they will even have the opportunity to decline a Trump White House visit is no guarantee.

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