New York: Japan’s Naomi Osaka came from a set down to beat Victoria Azarenka of Belarus to win the US Open on Saturday and clinch her third Grand Slam title.

Osaka, the fourth seed, overcame her unseeded opponent 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 inside a near-empty Arthur Ashe Stadium at Flushing Meadows.

It brought 22-year-old Osaka’s haul of tennis major trophies to three after her victories at the 2018 US Open and 2019 Australian Open.

“I didn’t really enjoy that. It was a really tough match for me,” Osaka said following her 1hr 53min victory that delivers her prize money of $3 million.

Azarenka, 31, sprinted to the first set in just 26 minutes, dominating Osaka with an 88 percent success rate on her first serve.

The Japanese was uncharacteristically sloppy, hitting a whopping 13 unforced errors.

Azarenka then went 2-0 ahead in the second set before Osaka fought back to break her opponent’s serve twice and take a 4-3 lead.

The momentum had quickly swung in Osaka’s favor and she broke a third time to push the match to a deciding set.
“I just thought it would be very embarrassing to lose this in under an hour so I just have to try as hard as I can and stop having a really bad attitude,” said Osaka, explaining the turnaround.

Osaka enjoyed the first breakthrough of set three in game four when she broke Azarenka’s serve to take a 3-1 lead.

Azarenka then blew a golden opportunity to get back into the match, wasting three break points as Osaka recovered from 0-40 to hold for a 4-1 lead.

Azarenka saved four break points to make it 4-2 as she battled to keep the contest alive.

When she broke Osaka in game seven, the set was back on serve.

But Osaka immediately broke back after Azarenka pushed a forehand wide to leave herself the opportunity of serving for the match and title.

On Osaka’s second championship point, Azarenka found the net.

– ‘This was fun’ –
After touching racquets with her opponent, Osaka lay down in the middle of the court and looked up at the sky in celebration.

“I always see everyone sort of collapse after match point. But I always think you may injure yourself so I wanted to do it safely,” Osaka said.

The match was watched by just a few dozen people, mostly officials, journalists and event staff after the coronavirus pandemic forced the tournament to be held behind closed doors.

Osaka was the first woman to win the US Open singles final from a set down since 1994 and rises to third in the WTA rankings.

She also becomes the first Asian player to win three Grand Slams, overtaking China’s Li Na on two.

Osaka had walked onto the court wearing a mask bearing the name of Tamir Rice, a 12-year-old African-American boy who was shot dead by a white police officer in Cleveland, Ohio in 2014.

Osaka, of Japanese and Haitian heritage, wore different masks honoring victims of racial injustice and police brutality in each round of the tournament.

She also donned face coverings bearing the names of Breonna Taylor, Elijah McClain, Ahmaud Arbery, Trayvon Martin, George Floyd and Philando Castile.

Azarenka, a two-time Grand Slam champion, was playing in her first major final since losing the 2013 US Open to Serena Williams.

The last few years of the former world number one’s career have been disrupted, firstly by injury then by a custody battle over her son, born in December 2016.

But she enjoyed a fairytale run in New York, clinching the Western & Southern title before reaching Saturday’s US Open final, where she lost for the third time.

“I want to thank my team for sticking with me, for believing in me,” Azarenka said. “It’s been a long road of getting here, but this was fun,” she added.

RAWALPINDI : Indian army troops resorted to unprovoked ceasefire violation in the Tatta Pani and Rakhchakri sectors of Kashmir along the Line of Control (LoC) on Sunday, targeting the civilian population.

According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), an 11-year-old girl was martyred and four other civilians including two children got injured as a result of Indian firing.

“Pakistan Army troops responded effectively to Indian firing,” the military’s media wing said.The latest ceasefire breach followed on the heels of another such incident on Sept 9 when Indian forces opened fire in the Bedori sector from across the Line of Control (LoC), resulting in the martyrdom of a Pakistan Army soldier.

“Indian Army troops initiated unprovoked ceasefire violation (CFV) in Bedori Sector along LOC, targeting Pakistan Army posts and civil population. Pakistan Army responded effectively,” the ISPR had said in a statement.

“Reports of heavy losses on the enemy in terms of men and material. During the exchange of intense fire, Havaldar Liaqat, age 39 years, resident of District Chakwal, embraced shahadat.”

Islamabad

(13 September 2020),Indian Charge d’Affaires Gaurav Ahluwalia was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs today to register Pakistan’s strong protest over ceasefire violations by the Indian occupation forces along the Line of Control (LoC) on the night between 11^th and 12^th September 2020, resulting in one shahadat and serious injuries to four innocent civilians.

Due to indiscriminate and unprovoked firing by the Indian occupation forces in Hotspring and Rakhchikri Sectors of the LoC, 10 year old Iqra Qamrez d/o Muhammad Qamrez, resident of Village Dera Sahib Zadian embraced shahadat while 16 year old Muhammad Iqrar s/o Muhammad Qamrez; 75 year old Motia Begum w/o Muhammad Zaman, residents of Village Dera Sahib Zadian; 8 year old Khwaar Ahmed s/o Saif Ullah; and 40 year old Murtaza Khan s/o Saif Ullah, residents of Village Degwar, sustained serious injuries.

The Indian occupation forces along the LoC and the Working Boundary (WB) have been continuously targeting civilian populated areas with artillery fire, heavy-caliber mortars and automatic weapons. This year, India has committed 2225 ceasefire violations to date, resulting in 18 shahadats and serious injuries to 176 innocent civilians.

Condemning the deplorable targeting of innocent civilians by the Indian occupation forces, it was underscored that such senseless acts are in clear violation of the 2003 Ceasefire Understanding, and are also against all established humanitarian norms and professional military conduct. These egregious violations of international law reflect consistent Indian attempts to escalate the situation along the LoC and are a threat to regional peace and security. It was added that by raising tensions along the LoC and the WB, India cannot divert attention from the grave human rights situation in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IIOJK).

Indian side was called upon to respect the 2003 Ceasefire Understanding, investigate this and other such incidents of deliberate ceasefire violations and maintain peace along the LoC and the WB. The Indian side was also urged to allow the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) to play its mandated role as per the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolutions.

Sunday, September 13, 2020

Karachi  : Preserving the environment and reducing carbon emissions are the main goals that the Institute of Business Management (IoBM) aims to achieve through its Cycle Friendly Campus Initiative. It was launched recently by its Alumni Association.

Tufail Group generously donated to IoBM 100 bicycles for this initiative. Through this campaign, IoBM plans to reduce carbon emissions and keep the campus clean and green. Mr. Zubair Tufail, CEO Tufail Group, appreciated the positive direction of IoBM’s management in making the campus carbon-neutral. 

Mr. Salman Tufail, Director, Tufail Group, was pleased to see that his ideas reciprocated with IoBM’s CSR endeavors and was hopeful that more collaborations will materialize. Mr. Talib Karim, President IoBM said that the late Founder President of IoBM, Shahjehan S. Karim, also focused on preserving the environment especially when he served at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

Mr. Talib Karim was hopeful that IoBM and Tufail Group could collaborate on several fronts especially in bridging the gap between academia and the industry. Representing IoBM Alumni Association were Mr. Farhan Ahmed, President, Alumni Association and Head of External Communications, Standard Chartered Bank (Pakistan); Mr. Asif Jafri, Founder & CEO, E-Ocean Private Ltd.; Mr. Aamir Ali, General Manager Sales, Samaa TV; Ms. Sara Haroon, Project Manager H & S Connect; and Mr. Salman Baig, Visiting Faculty IoBM. Dr. Asima Faisal, HoD Health and Hospital Management, and Dr. Shahid Amjad, HoD Environment and Energy Management were among the speakers from IoBM who discussed how a clean environment positively impacts our health and lifestyle.

ISLAMABAD : Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Shibli Faraz has said peace talks between Afghan government’s representatives and Taliban are historic and beginning of the new era.

Taking on micro-blogging website, Twitter, the minister said that commencement of peace talks is the success of Prime Minister Imran Khan’s stance about solution of Afghanistan conflict.

20 years ago Khan Sahab said that there is no military solution of the Afghan conflict, he stated and prayed for the prosperity and development of people of Afghanistan.

Historic peace talks opened between the Taliban and the Afghan government on Saturday, with the warring parties meeting face to face in Qatar even as violence continued on the ground in Afghanistan.

Abdullah Abdullah, the former chief executive for Afghanistan who is heading the peace process for Kabul, had called for an immediate ceasefire and highlighted the ongoing toll of the war, saying 12,000 civilians have been killed and another 15,000 wounded since the US and the Taliban signed a deal in February.

“We have to use this exceptional opportunity for peace,” Abdullah had said at the talks’ opening ceremony in Doha.

“We have to stop violence and agree on a ceasefire as soon as possible. We want a humanitarian ceasefire.”

Abdullah was joined at the opening ceremony by Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

LAHORE : Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader Hamza Shehbaz Sharif has tested positive for the novel coronavirus, confirmed party leader Atta Tarar.

Tarar in his tweet said that Hamza has been tested positive for coronavirus and hoped that he would be shifted from Kot Lakhpat jail to hospital soon.

On the other hand, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb in her statement has stated that negligence in the treatment of Hamza Shehbaz could pose threats to his life.

She appealed the nation to pray for early recovery of the party leader and urged the government to immediately shift Hamza Shahbaz from the jail to hospital.

Yesterday, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif met his son Hamza Shehbaz at the Kot Lakhpat jail.

According to the details, Shehbaz Sharif visited Kot Lakhpat jail to meet his incarcerated son. During the meeting, the PML-N president inquired about his health. The meeting continued for over one-and-a-half hours, said sources.

DNA

ISLAMABAD, SEPT 12 – Foundation University Islamabad (FUI), Pakistan has signed an MoU with University Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP), Malaysia on September 2020 to enhance scientific, technical, and engineering competencies of students and faculty.

The agreement aims at academic and research collaboration covering Faculty, Staff and Students Exchange as well as Joint Research and Academic Advocacy. DNA

===========

ATTOCK, SEPT 12 (DNA) – The police department reshuffled as many as 11 police officers including five station house officers (SHOs) and investigation officers (IOs) of different police stations across the district.

District Police Officer (DPO) Syed Khalid Hamdani has transferred five SHOs of different police stations and six other officers in the district.

According to official sources, Inspector Arshad Mehmood transferred from police lines and posted as SHO Hassanabdal, Sub Inspector Safdar Khan has been posted from Hassanabdal to New Airport, Sub inspector Saqib Abbassi transferred from New Airport Police station to Rangoo Police station, Sub inspector Gulfaraz Ahmed posted from Police station Hazro to Pindigheb Police station while Aabid Hussain has been posted from Police lines to Hazro Police station.

Similarly, Sub Inspector Ghulam Hussain who was serving as SHO at Police station Rango has been transferred and directed to report to the police line. Sub Inspector Zubair Hayat who was serving as incharge heinous crimes investigation unit Hazro has been posted as incharge patrolling post Ghorghushti, Sub Inspector Asif Javaid who was incharge patrolling post Ghorghushti has been posted and appointed as incharge patrolling post Kalla Chitta, Sub Inspector Karam Dad who was serving as incharge patrolling post Pindsultani was posted to city Police station Attock while Assistant Sub Inspector Mehar Saleem has been posted from Police lines and appointed as incharge patrolling post Pindsultani. DNA

==========================