RAWALPINDI, Pakistan (AP) — World test champion South Africa will be heavily relying on its fit-again spinner Keshav Maharaj to level the two-test series against Pakistan as yet another dry pitch is prepared for the second test, starting on Monday.

The tenuous peace between Pakistan and Afghanistan appears to have ended after days of escalating conflict that came to a head as Afghanistan accused its neighbor of carrying out airstrikes on its territory on Friday.

The now-uneasy neighbors exchanged fire again on Friday, Taliban-controlled media reported, days after agreeing to a ceasefire and talks this weekend in Qatar.

Afghanistan and Pakistan say they will respect a ceasefire mediated by Qatar and Turkey. The truce comes into effect immediately and is intended to pause hostilities.

Afghanistan has pulled out of an upcoming cricket series after three players in a local tournament were killed in an air strike it blamed Pakistan for. The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) said it would withdraw from November's tri-nation T20 series out of respect for the dead. The three did not play for the national team.

Actor Salman Khan recently stirred quite a buzz on social media by mentioning Balochistan and Pakistan separately while referring to expatriate communities working in the Middle East.

Despite years of eradication efforts, Pakistan remains one of two countries in the world where polio remains endemic.

Pakistan’s rising squash star Ashab Irfan secured his maiden PSA World Tour title by winning the Richardson Wealth Men’s Vancouver Open 2025, defeating England’s Sam Todd