Jelena Ostapenko stuns Simona Halep to reach final of Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships

Ostapenko had won just two matches in her previous five appearances in Dubai. (dubaidutyfreetennischampionships.com)
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Updated 19 February 2022
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Jelena Ostapenko stuns Simona Halep to reach final of Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships

  • The Latvian will face Veronika Kudermetova who received a walkover in her semi-final

DUBAI: Jelena Ostapenko earned a surprise victory over two-time former champion Simona Halep on Friday to reach the final of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. Her opponent will be Veronika Kudermetova, who received a walkover when Marketa Vondrousova forfeited her semi-final due to a right adductor injury.

Ostapenko had won just two matches in her previous five appearances in Dubai, but the 2017 French Open winner has overcome four former Grand Slam champions this week, beating Sofia Kenin, Iga Swiatek and Petra Kvitova before claiming a 2-6 7-6 6-0 win over Halep.

Halep seemed to be in control as she comfortably took the first set, surrendering just five points on serve and closing out the set with an ace. Ostapenko responded by reducing her errors, becoming more aggressive and taking a 3-0 lead in the second set. Halep managed to level at 3-3 but Ostapenko continued to raise her level.

“Again, playing a Grand Slam champion fourth match in a row, it’s not easy,” said Ostapenko. “She was playing completely different tennis from what Petra (Kvitova, her quarter-final opponent) was playing. She was playing much slower, almost no pace comparing to Petra. So I really had to step in from the beginning, which I didn’t do. I was stepping back. I didn’t go into the court. When I understood it and changed things, so it started to go my way.”

With Ostapenko leading 6-5, Halep was forced to save two set points on her serve as the set went to a tiebreak, which Ostapenko astonishingly took 7-0. She won the final set 6-0 in just 21 minutes as Halep crumpled in the face of Ostapenko’s confident assault.

“I knew I have to play aggressive no matter what, no matter what the score is,” Ostapenko added. “She really doesn’t like to play against players who are playing aggressive and take time away from her. I really knew that I have to do it today, all the match, even if I miss sometimes, which I did. I think it helped me to win.”

Halep admitted she let the match get away from her, but she still has positive thoughts about her week.

“I kind of stopped playing after the second set,” she said. “That is the only one moment that I’m disappointed. But the rest I think was a good game. I lost the focus a little bit. Probably I need more matches in tension to get more used to it. I just mentally stopped playing and I didn’t make anything anymore.

“I’m happy with the week I played here. The game was good. Everything was good. I never expect to win all the matches because it’s just the beginning of the year and I’m really patient with myself.”

Colm McLoughlin, Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of Dubai Duty Free, congratulated the two finalists, saying: “Ostapenko’s success here means that she will return to the top 20 next week for the first time since October 2018, and Kudermetova has also earned wins over two former Grand Slam winners and world number ones this week, beating both Victoria Azarenka and our defending champion, Garbine Muguruza. We can now look forward to what is certain to be a very interesting final.”

Vondrousova revealed that she had been feeling uncomfortable before having to withdraw from the tournament.

“The injury, it started a few days ago and I’ve played so many matches here which has aggravated the injury,” she said. “I’m really sad to leave the tournament this way but I’ve still enjoyed a great week and proud of how I’ve played. I’ve played six amazing matches this week having come through qualifying and proud of my performances so it’s unfortunate this has happened.”


Pakistan sacks 18% railways employees in bid to implement IMF reforms in state entities

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Pakistan sacks 18% railways employees in bid to implement IMF reforms in state entities

  • Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chairs review meeting on Pakistan Railways performance
  • IMF has pressed Pakistan to improve governance in state-owned assets for financial bailouts

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Railways has sacked 18% of its “unnecessary staff” in a bid to improve the state-owned asset’s performance, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was briefed on Monday according to a statement from his office, as Islamabad moves to implement ambitious reforms mandated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in exchange for a financial bailout. 

Improving governance in loss-making state-owned enterprises (SOEs) has long been on the IMF’s list of recommendations for Pakistan, which has turned to the international lender for frequent financial bailouts, the latest of which was a $7 billion loan last year. Pakistan’s prolonged economic crisis has forced the country to implement an ambitious reforms program designed by the IMF, which includes privatizing public sector organizations and laying off unnecessary staff to enhance their revenue.

Pakistan’s SOEs have accumulated losses in the billions over the years due to mismanagement, operational challenges, high debt loads, inefficiencies and alleged corruption. Pakistan’s railways sector has also been poorly managed over the years, with the country witnessing several train accidents over the past few years due to decades-old signal systems and tracks.

Sharif chaired a meeting to review the railway sector’s performance on Monday which was attended by senior cabinet ministers and officials, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement. 

“As part of the Pakistan Railways rightsizing process, 18% of unnecessary staff has been laid off,” Sharif was briefed during the meeting, according to the PMO. 

Sharif issued instructions to Pakistan Railways to attract passengers in a competitive manner, calling on the organization to provide better travel services to passengers through public-private partnerships. 

He also instructed railways to hire professional and capable manpower, and replace its old system with modern technology that is more in line with today’s age, the PMO said. 

Sharif was briefed that the railways suffered losses of Rs10 billion during the devastating floods of 2022, during which most of its tracks remained underwater for 35 days. 

“Pakistan Railways improved its performance through various measures after the 2022 floods and has so far earned a profit equal to the initial cost of its freight operations,” the PM was told. 

The Pakistani premier urged railways to use its land for business activities in collaboration with the private sector, directing it to formulate a strategy to increase trade in the region, especially with Central Asian countries. 


Pakistan ex-PM Imran Khan, wife appeal graft convictions: lawyer

Updated 16 min 42 sec ago
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Pakistan ex-PM Imran Khan, wife appeal graft convictions: lawyer

  • Imran Khan was sentenced to 14 years and his wife to seven earlier this month
  • A special graft court found the pair guilty of ‘corruption and corrupt practices’

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s jailed former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi on Monday appealed their convictions for graft, his lawyer said.
Khan was sentenced to 14 years and his wife to seven earlier this month in the latest case to be brought against them.
“We have filed appeals today and in the next few days it will go through clerical processes and then it will be fixed for a hearing,” Khan’s lawyer Khalid Yousaf Chaudhry said.
The papers were filed at the Islamabad High Court.
A special graft court found the pair guilty of “corruption and corrupt practices” over a welfare foundation they established together called the Al-Qadir Trust.
Khan, 72, has been held in custody since August 2023 charged in around 200 cases which he claims are politically motivated.


Kremlin says it has yet to hear from US about a possible Putin-Trump meeting

Updated 15 min ago
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Kremlin says it has yet to hear from US about a possible Putin-Trump meeting

MOSCOW: The Kremlin said on Monday it had yet to receive any signals from the United States about arranging a possible meeting between President Vladimir Putin and President Donald Trump, but remained ready to organize such an encounter.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it appeared a “certain amount of time” was needed before a meeting between the two leaders could take place. He said Russia understood that Washington was still interested in organizing such a meeting.
Putin said on Friday that he and Trump should meet to talk about the Ukraine war and energy prices, issues that the US president has highlighted in the first days of his new administration.


India minister pledges to evict ‘illegal’ immigrants from capital

Updated 27 min 9 sec ago
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India minister pledges to evict ‘illegal’ immigrants from capital

NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s closest political ally has pledged to rid the capital of “illegal’ immigrants if his party wins looming elections, in a forceful appeal to his party’s Hindu constituency.
Interior minister Amit Shah said every unlawful migrant from neighboring Bangladesh would be expelled from New Delhi “within two years” if his party succeeded in next month’s provincial polls.
“The current state government is giving space to illegal Bangladeshis and Rohingyas,” Shah told an audience of several thousand at Sunday’s rally.
“Change the government and we will rid Delhi of all illegals.”
India shares a porous border stretching thousands of kilometers with Muslim-majority Bangladesh, and illegal migration from its eastern neighbor has been a hot-button political issue for decades.
There are no reliable estimates of the number of Bangladeshis living illegally in Delhi, a city to which millions have flocked in search of employment from elsewhere in India over recent decades.
Critics of Modi and Shah’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accuse the party of using the issue as a dog whistle against Muslims to galvanize its Hindu-nationalist support base during elections.
Delhi, a sprawling megacity home to more than 30 million people, has been governed for most of the past decade by charismatic chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and his Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
Kejriwal rode to power as an anti-corruption crusader a decade ago and his profile has bestowed upon him the mantle of one of the chief rivals to Modi and Shah’s party.
His popularity has been burnished by extensive water and electricity subsidies for the capital’s millions of poorer residents.
But he spent several months behind bars last year on accusations his party took kickbacks in exchange for liquor licenses, along with several fellow party leaders.
Kejriwal denies wrongdoing and characterised the charges as a political witch-hunt by Modi’s government, and despite resigning as chief minister last year vowed to return to the office if his party won re-election.
The BJP has led a spirited campaign in its efforts to dislodge Kejriwal’s party ahead of the February 5 vote.
Modi is expected to make a pilgrimage to the ongoing Kumbh Mela, the biggest festival on the Hindu calendar, to bathe in the sacred Ganges river on the day of the Delhi assembly vote.
Results of the election will be published on February 8.


Ukraine’s Zelensky urges action against ‘evil’ on Auschwitz anniversary

Updated 29 min 20 sec ago
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Ukraine’s Zelensky urges action against ‘evil’ on Auschwitz anniversary

  • The Kremlin launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022
  • Zelensky warned that the memory of the Holocaust is growing weaker

KYIV : Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday said the world must unite against evil, in comments marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz Nazi death.
The Kremlin launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 claiming that the government in Kyiv contained neo-Nazi elements and saying the country must be demilitarized.
Zelensky warned that the memory of the Holocaust is growing weaker and said some countries are still trying to destroy entire nations.
“We must overcome the hatred that gives rise to abuse and murder. We must prevent forgetfulness,” he said, according to a statement from the presidency.
“And it is everyone’s mission to do everything possible to prevent evil from winning,” he added.
The foreign ministry said in a statement that Russia’s invasion “brought back to Ukrainian soil horrors that Europe has not seen since World War II.”
“Jewish communities of Ukraine are also suffering from constant Russian terror, in particular in the cities of Dnipro and Odesa, which have a population of over a million, and other localities,” it added.
The Holocaust decimated the Jewish community in Ukraine, which during World War II was part of the Soviet Union.
It was not the first massacre of Jewish people in Ukraine’s history, which had seen previous anti-Semitic pogroms.