West Indies cricket coach Stuart Law has defended out-of-form batsman Chris Gayle, saying critics who suggest his international career may be over “write him off at your peril.”

The 38-year-old Gayle scored only 38 runs in four innings on the West Indies’ disastrous tour to New Zealand which ended yesterday with a 119-run loss in the third Twenty20 international.

The tourists lost the two-match Test series 2-0, the three-match one-day series 3-0 and the Twenty20 2-0 with one match washed out.

Gayle looked largely disinterested, missing one of the one-day matches with a reported virus. He was out for a duck in his latest innings on Wednesday, throwing up his gloves to defend himself against a relatively innocuous short-pitched ball from Tim Southee.

Gayle came to New Zealand immediately after scoring 146 from 69 balls for the Rangpur Riders in the final of the Bangladesh Premier League, after which he proclaimed himself the best T20 batsman in world cricket.

His subsequent performances in New Zealand led to speculation he may soon retire from international cricket to continue his career in more lucrative professional leagues.

But Law said Gayle still has much to offer the West Indies.

“Right now it probably doesn’t look like it but there’s plenty of cricket left in the big man,” Law said. “He can destroy any attack, it doesn’t have to be a minnow.

“He’s central to the way this dressing room ticks and commands a lot of respect. He’s just got to start performing in the middle again.

“He didn’t click in this series. He had a viral infection in the one-dayers and, while T20 is probably his best format, he didn’t get the starts he wanted. He’s played this game long enough. He knows how to do it. He was pretty good in England a few months ago.”

Law said the West Indies’ form in New Zealand was disappointing but was due in part to the absence of a number of senior players who were key contributors to the team’s win in the World T20 two years ago.

“It was a pretty disappointing tour,” Law said. “New Zealand played good, disciplined cricket but we fell short.

“We need to do a lot of hard work, planning and understanding. That means some soul-searching by looking in the mirror and asking if we gave it everything to change a game, get into a game and win a game.”

Injured Japanese star Kei Nishikori pulled out of the Australian Open on Thursday, while Novak Djokovic says he will test his problem elbow at an exhibition before deciding whether to play.

Asian number one Nishikori has not played competitively since last August after suffering a torn tendon in his right wrist during a practice session at Cincinnati.

He said he still wasn’t ready for a gruelling Grand Slam campaign.

“I am very sorry to announce that I will miss the Aussie Open this year,” he said on his website of the opening major of the year, starting in Melbourne on January 15.

“The Aussie Open is my favourite Slam … it’s my ‘home’ Slam,” he added.

“It’s the Slam that takes incredible care of the players and their teams, and it hurts that I will have to miss it this year.

“My rehab is going well but I am just not ready 100 percent to come back yet in best of five set matches.”

Nishikori is not the only leading player struggling with injury, with a who’s who of the top names in the game battling to be fit for Melbourne Park.

Former world number one Djokovic hasn’t played since a right elbow issue forced him to quit Wimbledon in the quarter-finals in July.

He has already cancelled scheduled appearances at an exhibition in Abu Dhabi and the Qatar Open, and said he will test the injury next week at the Kooyong Classic in Melbourne and a Tie Break Tens tournament in the same city.

“Novak is travelling to Australia where he will take part in two exhibition tournaments,” said a statement on 12-time Grand Slam winner’s website early today.

“After the two events, the decision will be made about his participation at the first Grand Slam of the season, the Australian Open, where ‘Nole’ has been crowned champion six times.”

– Writing on wall –

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Another former number one, Andy Murray, is also struggling and withdrew from this week’s Brisbane International as he works to overcome a right hip injury which has sidelined him since Wimbledon.

The Scot raised the prospect this week of surgery, but still holds out hope of playing in Melbourne, saying he will decide by the weekend whether to stay in Australia or fly home.

Also returning from injury but set to play at the Grand Slam are Stan Wawrinka and Milos Raonic.

World number one Rafael Nadal, the reigning French Open and US Open champion, pulled out of Brisbane with a knee injury, but the Spaniard has said he still intends to be on court at the Australian Open.

The writing was on the wall for Nishikori, who also withdrew from Brisbane.

The 28-year-old, who reached a career high world number four in 2015, said in November he had chosen rehabilitation over surgery to repair the damage and was targeting a return to action in Australia.

His no-show is a major blow for the popular Japanese player, who concluded his 2017 season with a 30-13 match record.

The winner of 11 ATP Tour titles, he made the fourth round of the Australian Open last year, losing in five sets to eventual champion Roger Federer, who, aged 36, is one of the few top names to be fully fit.

The key Indian equity indices on Thursday were trading higher soon after opening.

The 30-scrip Sensitive Index (Sensex), was trading 69.56 points or 0.21 per cent higher soon after opening.

The wider 50-scrip Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) was also trading 6.25 points or 0.06 per cent higher at 10,449.45 points.

The Sensex of the BSE, which opened at 33,912.49 points, was trading at 33,862.94 points (at 9.18 a.m.), higher 69.56 points or 0.21 per cent from the previous day’s close at 33,793.38 points.

The Sensex touched a high of 33,916.75 points and a low of 33,847.51 points in the trade so far.

On the penultimate day of Parliament’s winter session, the showdown between the government and opposition over the Triple Talaq Bill is likely to continue in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday with both sides refusing to budge.

As soon as the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017 was tabled in the Rajya Sabha by Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Wednesday, the house witnessed noisy scenes as a united opposition led by the Congress demanded that the bill be sent to a Select Committee.

The government however, was against any climbdown on the bill that also provides for maintenance for victims of triple talaq and custody of children resulting in a stalemate which triggered a fierce slugfest forcing the house to be adjourned for the day.

On Thursday, when the upper house reconvenes at 11 am, it’s likely that the legislation which was passed in the Lok Sabha last week, could be put to a vote over disagreement relating to the clause providing for a three-year jail term for Muslim men.

While, opposition leaders are claiming that an isolated BJP is in no position to stop them from moving a resolution seeking the legislation be sent to a select committee.

And if the bill is indeed sent to a select committee by the Rajya Sabha, it will not get passed in the current winter session, which ends on Friday.

With no solution in sight, the fate of the crucial bill and millions of Muslim women hangs in balance.

The rupee weakened by 8 paise to trade at 63.61 against the US dollar in opening session on Thursday due to increased demand for the American currency from importers.

The dollar’s gains against major world currencies after a strong US manufacturing data also impacted the rupee sentiment, a currency dealer said.

On Wednesday, the rupee had retreated from its multi-year high and ended marginally lower by 5 paise at 63.53 against the US currency.

Meanwhile, the benchmark BSE Sensex recovered by 123.37 points, or 0.36 per cent, at 33,916.75 in early trade on Thursday.

The sentencing of RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav in a case of fodder scam is likely to take place on Thursday, a day after a special CBI court in Ranchi deferred the pronouncement of the quantum of punishment.

The special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) judge Shivpal Singh delayed the sentencing of the former Bihar chief minister along with 15 others due to a condolence meet for an advocate which was held in the court premises in the afternoon.

The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief, who was lodged in the Birsa Munda jail in Ranchi after being convicted on December 23, was brought to the court in the morning on Wednesday and was present inside when the hearing was on.

He was taken away at around 12 noon.

Lalu’s lawyer had on Tuesday said that they would urge the court for minimum punishment owing to the RJD chief’s age.

Lalu is likely to get three to seven years’ punishment, as per reports. If he is awarded three years’ sentence, he will be able to get bail soon.

His co-accused and former Bihar Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra was let off in the case pertaining to embezzlement of over Rs. 85 lakh from the Deoghar Treasury between 1991 and 1994.

A total of 17 accused including Lalu were pronounced guilty by the court while six were let off.

The RJD chief has already been convicted in another fodder scam case that cost him his Lok Sabha seat and disqualified him from contesting elections. Both Lalu and Jagannath Mishra are out on bail in the case.

Hearing in the multi-million fodder scam case was completed on December 13 in a special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court of Ranchi.

In all, there were 34 accused in the case, out of which 11 died during the course of the trial, while one turned CBI approver and admitted the crime.

Infosys CEO Salil Parekh will be paid a fixed salary of Rs 6.5 crores and would be eligible for variable pay of Rs 9.75 crores at the end of the 2018-2019 fiscal year, according to a top company executive.

“Infosys CEO Salil Parekh will be paid a fixed salary of Rs 6.5 crores. He would be eligible for variable pay of Rs 9.75 crores at the end of the fiscal year,” independent board member at Infosys Kiran Mazumdar Shaw told PTI here.

Former CEO Vishal Sikka earned USD 6.75 million in FY17 much to disliking of Infosys founder NR Narayana Murthy.

Wipro CEO Abidali Neemuchwala is getting a bit over USD 2 million.

Shaw, who is part of the Nomination and Remuneration Committee (NRC), said Parekh will also receive Rs 3.25 crores in restricted stock units.

“He will also get Rs 13 crores in annual performance equity grants,” she said.

Parekh will also get a one-time equity grant of Rs 9.75 crores, Shaw said.

The stock compensation will vest at different points over Parekh’s term. He has been appointed for a 5-year term,

Parekh’s employment contract also comes with a non- compete clause, Shaw said.

Parekh’s contract also specifies the amount he will be paid should he fail to meet minimum performance targets, company said in a postal ballot, Shaw said.

The company said in a postal ballot that Parekh will not work with named competitors for six months from the day he leaves the company.

He will also not work with or for a client to whom he has rendered service for the last 12 months, Infosys said.

The Jihadis are spreading chilling selfies of a man brandishing the Islamic State (IS) logo while posing on New York City streets, according to new reports.

The photos were spotted in pro-Islamic State channels on instant messaging app Telegram, according to terror watchdog group Memri.

One shows a man wearing an IS-branded scarf over his face outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art – and right near an New York Police Department (NYPD) security camera. Pedestrians can be seen walking by on the snow-dusted street, New York Post reported.

Another is of someone holding a smartphone with the terror group’s logo on its screen in front of the World Trade Centre. The phone-holder appears to be standing near the corner of Houston Street and the West Side Highway.

The NYPD said it was aware of the images and is investigating, but “at this time there are no credible threats related to New York City”.

The department would not answer questions about whether it was looking at security footage or what else it was doing to establish whether there was a credible threat, the Post said.

Police see these kinds of photos all the time and they often end up being fakes, law enforcement sources said.

The photos come just weeks after an IS-inspired bomber tried to blow himself up at the Port Authority Bus Terminal during rush hour.

Suspect Akayed Ullah told investigators that he was radicalised through online propaganda.

The White House has questioned the mental health of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un after his repeated threats to the US that he has “nuclear button on his desk.”

“I think the President and the people of this country should be concerned about the mental fitness of the leader of North Korea. He’s made repeated threats. He’s tested missiles time and time again for years,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters at her daily news conference.

Sanders was responding to questions on Trump’s nuclear button tweet, after which some political analysts in the US have been questioning his mental fitness.

“This is a President who’s not going to cower down and he’s not going to be weak, and is going to make sure that he does what he’s promised to do, and that’s stand up and protect the American people,” Sanders said.

A day earlier, Trump, responding to the latest rhetoric of North Korean leader Kim Jong un, said that he too has a nuclear button which is not only much bigger and powerful, but also works.

“North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un had said that the “Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times.”

“Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!” Trump said in a tweet on Tuesday.

Trump was apparently responding to a statement of Kim Jong Un that North Korea is a now a nuclear country and that he has a nuclear button at his desk.

“The US should know that the button for nuclear weapons is on my table. The entire area of the US mainland is within our nuclear strike range. The US can never start a war against me and our country,” he said in a televised address to the nation.

“We need to mass-produce nuclear warheads and ballistic missiles and accelerate their deployment,” the North Korean leader had said.

Trump is concerned about the continued threats that this individual has made towards the US and others, Sanders said.

Trump is not going to allow him to continue doing that without saying something and standing up for the people of the country, the White House spokesperson said.

Sanders told reporters that it’s extremely clear what Trump’s position is.

“Our position on North Korea hasn’t changed since the beginning. This is a President who is committed to protecting Americans and protecting the people of this country, and he’s not going to back down from that,” she said.

The white House defended Trump’s tweet.

“Has there been any consideration that tweets like the one on North Korea actually don’t advance the agenda, meaning working with other partners in the region?” she was asked.

“I think what didn’t help was the complacency and the silence of the previous administration. This is a President who leads through strength, and he’s going to do that and he’s going to focus on everything that he can do in order to keep Americans safe, and he’s not going to be pushed around by the leader of North Korea,” Sanders said.

America’s policy with North Korea has not changed, she asserted.

“We’re fully committed to continuing to apply maximum pressure and working with all of our partners in the region including South Korea, who we have a better relationship now than ever before. We’re going to keep working with them and keep pushing forward, and hopefully North Korea will start making better decisions, Sanders said.

The White House Press Secretary refuted allegations that by his tweet, Trump was taunting the North Korean leader.

“I don’t think that it’s taunting to stand up for the people of this country. I think what’s dangerous is to ignore the continued threats, “she said.

“If the previous administration had done anything and dealt with North Korea, dealt with Iran, instead of sitting by and doing nothing, we wouldn’t have to clean up their mess now,” she added.

Israeli Knesset (parliament) vote on the “unified Jerusalem law” breaches the international resolutions relating to the disputed city, spokesman for Egyptian Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.

“The vote violates the international legitimacy on Jerusalem as a city under occupation,” Xinhua quoted ministry’s spokesman Ahmed Abu Zaid as saying.

He added that the bill stands as an obstacle against the Palestinian-Israeli peace process as well as reaching a just solution to the prolonged conflict.

On Monday, Israeli Knesset approved the “unified Jerusalem” bill provided for separating Palestinian neighbourhoods from Jerusalem.

It requires the approval of 80 of its members for any decision to hand over parts of Jerusalem to the Palestinian authority in the future.

The Knesset approval came a day after Israel’s ruling Likud party overwhelmingly approved a draft resolution that calls on Israeli lawmakers to agree on annexing Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and occupied Jerusalem, which was officially condemned by the Palestinians.

Paul Manafort, former campaign manager of US President Donald Trump, has filed a lawsuit against the Department of Justice (DOJ) in a federal court, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, and Special Counsel Robert Mueller, it was revealed on Wednesday.

Manafort accused that Rosenstein’s order appointing Mueller “exceeds the Deputy Attorney General’s authority,” and Mueller has strayed beyond the scope of the investigation he was authorised to pursue over the alleged Russia meddling in the 2016 US election.

“The actions of DOJ and Rosenstein in issuing the Appointment Order, and Mueller’s actions pursuant to the authority the Order granted him, were arbitrary, capricious, and not in accordance with the law,” Xinhua cited the suit as saying.

All actions taken by the special counsel “must be set aside,” a CNBC report quoted Manafort’s lawyers as saying.

Manafort, who served as Donald Trump’s presidential campaign manager from June to August 2016, was indicted on October 27 last year on 12 counts related to unlawful financial dealings.

The authorities said Manafort laundered more than $18 million.

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon has “lost his mind” and had “no influence” within his government.

Trump’s remarks came after Britain’s The Guardian newspaper earlier on Wednesday revealed that Bannon, quoted from excerpts of a new book, described the 2016 meeting at Trump Tower between Trump’s son and campaign aides and a Russian lawyer as “treasonous” and “unpatriotic.”

“Steve Bannon has nothing to do with me or my presidency,” Xinhua cited Trump as saying, “When he was fired, he not only lost his job, he lost his mind.”

“Steve was rarely in a one-on-one meeting with me and only pretends to have had influence to fool a few people with no access and no clue, whom he helped write phony books,” the president said.

“Steve pretends to be at war with the media, which he calls the opposition party, yet he spent his time at the White House leaking false information to the media to make himself seem far more important than he was,” he added.

“Steve does not represent my base — he’s only in it for himself,” Trump said in his statement.

Following Trump’s statement, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders fiercely slapped Wolff’s book, which is said to draw on more than 200 interviews.

“This book is filled with false and misleading accounts from individuals who have no access or influence with the White House,” Sanders was quoted as saying.

“Participating in a book that can only be described as trashy tabloid fiction exposes their sad, desperate attempts at relevancy.”

Bannon was chief executive of the Trump campaign in its final three months during the 2016 US elections.

He became the White House chief strategist after Trump took office in January 2017 and left the White House in August before returning to his perch as chairman of Breitbart News.

Four members of a family, including two children, were charred after a fire broke out as they slept in a residential building in Andheri East area of Mumbai.

A least five others were brought out injured from the fire that broke out at 2 a.m. in Marol’s Maimun Manzil at the sprawling Dawoodi Bohra Colony, the BMC Disaster Control said.

The deceased were identified as: Sakina A. Kapasi (14), Mohsin A. Kapasi (10), Tasleem A. Kapasi (42) and a senior citizen, Dawood Ali Kapasi (80).

They were all residing in a flat on the third floor of the four-storey building.

Some members of the neighbouring family of Kotharis also sustained injuries in the fire and were being treated.

They are: as Ibrahim Kothari (57), Sakina Kothari (53), Hussain Kothari (26) and Hafiza Kothari (21).

Of the four, Ibrahim was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of Cooper Hospital.

Another injured woman, Zara Cutlerywalla (42) was discharged after treatment.

The cause of the fire was not yet known but short-circuit in the electrical fittings has not been ruled out.

Fire Brigade officials said the blaze engulfed the flat from all four sides, trapping the ill-fated Kapasi family.

Finally, it was brought under control around 5 a.m.

Delhi Food and Civil Supplies Minister Imran Hussain ordered action against city Fair Price Shops (FPSs) which were found to be flouting rules, after the government started distributing rations through electronic Point of Sale (e-PoS) machines.

The Food and Civil Supplies Department started distributing ration to beneficiaries through e-PoS devices at all 2,254 FPSs in the city from Monday.

The new system verifies beneficiaries through Aadhaar authentication and e-PoS devices are integrated with electronic weighing machine to ensure correct amount of rations to beneficiaries.

The minister visited nine FPSs and a number of deficiencies and shortcomings were noticed.

Four FPSs were not displaying mandatory information on the display boards and one shop was found closed. Hussain directed officials to take stringent action against the dealers concerned.

In a year marked with a series of policy changes to bring in more transparency, real estate remained a desirable asset for Indians as more than 15 lakh people actively searched to buy property in 2017, according to a report released on Wednesday.

“How India searched for Homes in 2017”, prepared by online realty site Magicbricks, analysed consumer behaviour over the last 12 months to capture interesting consumer trends in 2017.

According to it, Maharashtra occupied the top spot with seven of its localities being the most preferred localities around the country. New Delhi remains a winner when it comes to rented properties while Navi Mumbai and Hyderabad are high on the buying meter.

“In a year marked with several policy changes, the fact that there were more than 15 lakh active searches for a property in 2017 debunks the myth that buyers have exited the market and establishes that real estate continues to be a desirable asset for Indians,” said the property site’s Head Marketing Prasun Kumar.

With prices remaining flattish over the last one year and demand-supply equation balancing out due to fewer project launches, it is certainly the right time for home buyers to invest in their home, he said.

The report also revealed that residents are also especially particular about the type of property.

Bengaluru is the one city open to mostly all building types. When it comes to specific choices, Hyderabad and Chennai prefer residential houses, plots and villas. Multi-storey apartments are popular in Pune and Navi Mumbai, whereas Delhi, Ghaziabad and Chennai prefer builder floors. Metro cities like Ahmadabad and Mumbai favour penthouses, the report said.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday arrested an income-tax officer here for demanding and taking a bribe of Rs 100,000 from a complainant, an official said.

According to the complainant, IT officer Ulhas Lokhande, posted at Ward 34(1), had demanded a bribe for completing an assessment of income of the complainant’s sister for financial year 2009-2010.

Lokhande had summoned the complainant and his sister to his officer in this connection on December 29 last year and demanded Rs 125,000 for giving a favourable assessment Order.

After negotiations, he settled for Rs 100,000 and fell into the CBI trap while accepting the amount.

The CBI also conducted searches at his office and residential premises and other investigations before producing him in the Special CBI Court on Thursday.