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Cricket returns as England bat in first Test against West Indies

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“England’s Ben Stokes won the toss against the West Indies. ©AFP” /> Southampton (United Kingdom) (AFP) – England captain Ben Stokes decided to bat in the first Test against the West Indies at Southampton on Wednesday as international cricket resumed after the coronavirus lockdown. Stokes was leading England for the first time, with regular captain Joe Root missing the match to attend the birth of his second child. For the first match of the three-Test series, England left out veteran paceman Stuart Broad, their second most successful Test bowler behind James…

England, West Indies take a knee as international cricket resumes

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“West Indies players take a knee at the Ageas Bowl. ©AFP” /> Southampton (United Kingdom) (AFP) – International cricket resumed after a four-month coronavirus shutdown on Wednesday as England and West Indies players took a knee in support of the Black Lives Matter movement under grey skies in Southampton. England stand-in captain Ben Stokes won the toss following a rain delay and opted to bat but just three overs were possible before the weather intervened again. The players gathered in a semi-circle on the pitch before play started to observe…

WHO acknowledges ‘emerging evidence’ of airborne spread of novel coronavirus

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COURTESY BY: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ The World Health Organization on Tuesday acknowledged “emerging evidence” of the airborne spread of the novel coronavirus, after a group of scientists urged the global body to update its guidance on how the respiratory disease is spread. Speaking at a briefing in Geneva, WHO expert Benedetta Allegranzi said the organization believed it had “been open to the evidence on modes of transmission” of the new virus.

ICE guideline forces students enrolled in colleges holding online classes out of US

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COURTESY BY: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ Panic has gripped Indian and international students in US colleges over the new guideline announced Monday by the Trump administration. The guideline forces foreign non-immigrant students to leave the country if they are enrolled in institutions holding only online classes for the fall semester. The state department will not issue visas to students on F-1 and M-1 — for academic and vocations students — enrolled in online-only institutions and the US border and customs will not let them enter the country, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) department said…

New at Saudi hajj: Bottled holy water, sterilized pebbles

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COURTESY BY: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ Saudi Arabia has issued guidelines for the 1,000 or so pilgrims that will be allowed to perform the hajj pilgrimage in Mecca later this month, an experience that will be unlike any before because of the coronavirus pandemic. The pilgrims will be only be able to drink holy water from the Zamzam well in Mecca that is packaged in plastic bottles, and pebbles for casting away evil that are usually picked up by pilgrims along hajj routes will be sterilized and bagged ahead of time. Pilgrims will…

Kenya declares school year ‘lost’, classes back in 2021

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COURTESY BY: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ Kenya on Tuesday declared that its school year was considered lost because of the coronavirus pandemic, and primary and secondary pupils would return to class next January. The school year in the East African country runs from January to November, when it climaxes with end-of-term exams. But Education Minister George Magoha said in a statement that the curve of Covid-19 infections was expected to flatten only by December. As a result, no primary and secondary school examinations will be held and “the 2020 school calendar year will…

Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro tests positive for Covid-19

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COURTESY BY: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro tested positive for Covid-19 in an escalation of the health crisis that has engulfed Latin America’s largest economy. “I’m perfectly well,” Bolsonaro told CNN Brasil in a live interview, after announcing the result of his test. He added he is taking hydroxichloroquine, an anti-malaria medicine he’s been touting as being effective against the virus though its use hasn’t been authorized by most health experts globally and could carry dangerous side effects. The 65-year-old president, who during his campaign to reopen the economy called…

Trump insists that school open, but teachers aren’t so sure

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COURTESY BY: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ President Donald Trump has made his position clear: “SCHOOLS MUST OPEN IN THE FALL!!!” he tweeted Monday. As Covid-19 surges in parts of the US, many teachers aren’t convinced. The pandemic’s ever-shifting nature has robbed school districts of the ability to plan with certainty — not only for instruction, but to provide protective equipment and intensive cleaning. Even if a sustained decline in infections allows them to open their doors, many are preparing a mix of in-person and remote education that is certain to fall short of…

All-rounders Stokes and Holder to lead from the front

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“Captaincy challenge – England’s Ben Stokes. ©AFP” /> London (AFP) – Two of the world’s best all-rounders in Ben Stokes and Jason Holder will be cap taining their respective sides when England face the West Indies in the first Test at Southampton starting Wednesday. Holder tops the ICC’s Test all-rounder rankings, with fellow paceman Stokes in second place as international cricket resumes for the first time since March 2 following the coronavirus lockdown. They both average in the 30s with the bat, with Holder’s bowling mark of 26.37 slightly more economical…

Lara warns West Indies ‘won’t last five days’ in England Tests

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“Former West Indies captain Brian Lara. ©AFP” /> London (AFP) – West Indies great Brian Lara says the Caribbean side must try and beat “overwhelming favourites” England in four days because their batting is not strong enough to last five days. The three-Test series, which marks the return of international cricket after the coronavirus shutdown, starts on Wednesday in Southampton behind closed doors. Jason Holder’s tourists boast a powerful pace attack but their batsmen have struggled to post challenging totals in recent years. “They have to be able to pounce…