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Madison Keys of the US hits a return during her women's singles match against Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on January 9, 2026. Passing through Paris to play
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Danish Quereshi claimed victory in the Last Chance Race (Group 1) of Round 2 of the 2026 Qatar Karting Championship at the 1.124km Lusail Track. Quereshi completed the 12-lap race in a total time of 14:02.802 secs to finish narrowly ahead of Gabriel al-Badawi, who crossed the line just 0.290 secs behind. Liam Landy secured third place, finishing 2.581 seconds off the lead, while Maxence Boudard took fourth after ending 3.323 seconds adrift of the winner. Abdulaziz al-Mohannadi completed the top five, clocking a total time of 14:09.274, 6.472 seconds behind Quereshi.
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From Meta to Tesla and BlackRock, the US business delegation for President Donald Trump’s summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping this week consists mainly of companies seeking to resolve business issues with the world’s second-largest economy. More than a dozen CEOs and top executives from companies such as Tesla, BlackRock, Illumina, Mastercard and Visa are accompanying Trump on his visit on May 14 and 15. Unlike Trump’s 2017 visit, which was heavy on pomp and trade deals, the scaled-back delegation this time includes companies seeking to advance long-standing business priorities in China, said two people familiar with the preparations who sought anonymity. “Besides Boeing and Cargill being linked to purchase agreements, the others are mainly there to deliver demands on critical input supply,” said Reva Goujon, a geopolitical strategist at Rhodium Group. “This could help the US administration’s messaging that to even be able to discuss a board of investment, China needs to be a reliable investment partner and not weaponise supply.” The US business delegation hopes the summit will generate enough political goodwill to unlock regulatory approvals, market access and investment opportunities, the sources said, as they face broader operational challenges in China beyond commercial dealmaking. US gene-sequencing company Illumina said in a statement that its CEO Jacob Thaysen was honoured to be part of the US business delegation. “This is an opportunity to strengthen relationships and shape the future of precision medicine,” the company said, without elaborating. The other companies did not respond to requests for comment on their goals for outcomes from the summit. A critical precondition for companies to join the trip was having a “tangible ask” that promised a concrete outcome or handshake deal during or after the summit, one of the sources said. Another source cautioned that US firms viewed the summit less as a venue for formal announcements and more as a political opening that could help accelerate regulatory discussions already underway in China. For example, Meta needs to tackle an order last month from China’s powerful state planner to unwind its $2-bn-plus acquisition of artificial intelligence startup Manus, as Beijing tightens scrutiny of US investment in domestic startups developing frontier technologies. China is also weighing curbs on exports of solar manufacturing equipment to the United States, which could threaten plans by US firms such as Tesla to build new factories or expand existing ones to boost local production. In March, Reuters reported that Tesla was looking to buy $2.9bn of equipment for making solar panels from Chinese suppliers such as Suzhou Maxwell Technologies, which was seeking export approval from the commerce ministry. Tesla is also seeking Chinese regulatory clearance to expand the adoption of its Full Self-Driving assistance system in the world’s largest auto market. Its CEO, Elon Musk, has previously acknowledged the difficulties stemming from tech curbs imposed by both US and Chinese authorities, but voiced optimism about receiving such an approval in China this year. BlackRock CEO Larry Fink also arrives in Beijing as a consortium led by the US asset manager faces scrutiny over a planned $23-bn acquisition of ports, including two near the Panama Canal, from Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison . Payment giants Mastercard and Visa are hoping to use the summit to improve their positions in China’s tightly regulated payments market, according to the two sources. One source familiar with the matter said Mastercard was hoping the US government would advocate for a higher stake in its joint venture in China. Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser and Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon are also joining the trip as Wall Street firms keep up efforts to deepen access to China’s capital markets. China and the United States may reach a farm deal at the summit to expand Beijing’s purchases of grains and meat, but market watchers do not expect major new soybean purchases beyond those agreed in a deal last October.
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England have dropped struggling opening batsman Zak Crawley from their squad for next month's first Test against New Zealand at Lord's as they look to rebuild following a woeful 4-1 Ashes loss.Durham's Emilio Gay, one of three uncapped players in a 15-man squad including Hampshire fast bowler Sonny Baker and Somerset wicketkeeper-batsman James Rew, is set to replace Crawley as he is a specialist opener.Meanwhile paceman Ollie Robinson, following a two-year exile from England duty, is back and leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed has also been recalled.Crawley managed a mere 273 runs in 10 innings at 27.30 during England's dire 2025/26 tour of Australia and the 28-year-old has found runs hard to come by for Kent this season.This is the first time since captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum took charge of the Test team in 2022 that Crawley has been left out of a squad when available.England could field three debutants in their XI for the first of a three-Test series against New Zealand at Lord's starting on June 4.England's new-ball spearhead?But just as intriguing is the prospect of a recall for Robinson after a long spell in the international wilderness.The 32-year-old has a superb Test record, with 76 wickets at a miserly average of 22.92 in just 20 appearances.Robinson, however, has not played for England since February 2024, with doubts raised over the Sussex seamer's fitness and attitude.But with England in dire need of a new-ball spearhead following the various retirements of James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Chris Woakes, he now has a chance to revive his Test career.The in-form Gay, 26, is a county colleague of Stokes at Durham - whose departing director of cricket Marcus North, the former Australia batsman, was named as England's new national selector on Wednesday.Gay, batting at number three but with long experience as an opener behind him, has scored 522 runs, including three centuries, at a huge average of 92 for his county this season.Rising star Rew, 22, looks set to be the reserve batsman and a back-up wicketkeeper to Jamie Smith.Ahmed, who became England's youngest men's Test cricketer aged 18 in Pakistan in 2022, is one of two specialist slow bowlers in a 15-man squad alongside Shoaib Bashir, unused during the Ashes.Occasional off-spinner Will Jacks, who featured in Australia, has been dropped along with Ollie Pope, who lost his place during the Ashes following a run of low scores.England managing director Rob Key said the squad was an "exciting blend" of proven international performers and strong county form."Emilio, James and Sonny have all earned their opportunities through consistent performances and have impressed us not only with their talent, but with the way they've gone about their cricket in high-pressure situations," added former England batsman Key."It's also great to welcome back players like Rehan, Matt and Ollie, who all bring different qualities and experience to the group."England squad:Ben Stokes (capt), Rehan Ahmed, Gus Atkinson, Sonny Baker, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Ben Duckett, Matthew Fisher, Emilio Gay, James Rew (wkt), Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Jamie Smith (wkt), Josh Tongue Related Story
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Italy's Lorenzo Musetti looks dejected after losing his round of 16 match against Norway's Casper Ruud at the Italian Open in Rome, Italy, on May 12, 2026. (Reuters) Italian Lorenzo Musetti has withdrawn from the French Open with a thigh injury, the world number 10 said on Wednesday, describing the decision as extremely difficult.Last year's Roland Garros semi-finalist struggled physically during his round-of-16 defeat by Norway's Casper Ruud at the Italian Open in Rome on Tuesday."After yesterday's match, I underwent medical examinations which revealed a rectus femoris injury, requiring several weeks of rest and recovery," Musetti wrote on Instagram. Unfortunately, this means I won't be able to compete in Hamburg and Roland Garros - news that is incredibly hard to take."A huge thank you to the Rome crowd for your incredible support. That's exactly why, despite not being 100%, I chose to step on court and give everything I had in my home tournament. I'll keep you updated."The 24-year-old, who reached a career-high ranking of world number five in January, had been expected to mount a strong challenge at Roland Garros, where the main draw begins on May 24.Musetti has shown steady progress at the Grand Slams, reaching the Australian Open quarter-finals this year, the Wimbledon semi-finals in 2024 and the U.S. Open quarter-finals in 2025. His withdrawal added to a growing list of high-profile injury absentees at Roland Garros. Two-times defending champion Carlos Alcaraz has pulled out with a wrist issue along with Dane Holger Rune and Briton Jack Draper. Related Story
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Jim Furyk of the United States talks with media during a press conference prior to the PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club on May 13, 2026 in Newtown, Pennsylvania. (AFP) Jim Furyk said Wednesday he wants a long-term blueprint for United States success in the Ryder Cup, with the 2027 American captain also seeing a possible role next year for Tiger Woods.Furyk, the 2018 US captain in a Ryder Cup loss in France, was handed the captain's role by the PGA of America last month.Woods had been considered for the job but the 15-time major winner has taken a break from golf while undergoing treatment after facing DUI charges from a March car crash."We haven't spoken yet," Furyk said of Woods. "Out of courtesy and for him, his family, and I know maybe a road to health, I haven't reached out, but I will. Definitely."Woods could have a role with the 2027 team, Furyk said."We'll see where that role may fall," Furyk said. "In the past, he has kind of taken a backseat and maybe served as an advisor."I enjoyed serving as a vice captain with him a number of times. He brought a lot to the team room, a lot of knowledge and a lot of experience."Furyk, who turned 56 Tuesday, spoke at Aronimink on the eve of the PGA Championship and only miles from where he grew up.The Americans, who have lost 11 of the past 15 Cups, will try to win in Europe for the first time since 1993 when they face Luke Donald's trophy holders next year at Adare Manor in Ireland."When I look at my job, it's really to create a culture, a chemistry amongst them, and put them in positions where they can be really successful," Furyk said."We want to go over there and win on foreign soil, something we haven't done in a long time. It's not going to be easy. We have to scratch and claw, but I think we have the talent to be able to do that."Then I really look at it from a long-term perspective. We need to create a blueprint. We need to create more continuity for our players and our future captains."Since making his debut as a player in 1997, Furyk has been in 14 consecutive Cups as US player, assistant captain and captain.Furyk said some captains had not been put in a strong place to succeed, noting Tom Watson in a 2014 loss at Gleneagles that led to the creation of a Ryder Cup board to better prepare American teams."I'm not going to point a finger at anyone. We're all in this together, from the PGA of America to Team USA to our captains to our players," Furyk said."But I believe we had a vision in '14 that got us to a certain point. I just don't think we evolved along the way. Whether it's PGA of America, and its captains, probably could have done a better job together creating a better team atmosphere."Grow and evolveFuryk also sees his role as setting up a roadmap to success at Adare Manor and beyond."I don't think the idea is much different than 2014, but I think we could grow, we could evolve, at a much better rate," Furyk said. "There's a lot of stones to be unturned."Furyk noted Europe's foursomes domination, a combined 13-3 edge in the past two events."It's pretty glaring we're not prepared for that format," Furyk said.He said US players were not put in the best position to win last year in a loss at Bethpage."They gave us 110 per cent. Did we get the result we wanted? No. Did we play our best? No," Furyk said. "Our captains, did we put them in the best position to be successful? Probably not." Related Story
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A woman in evening attire stands in front of a Yves Saint Laurent shop during the official ceremony on the sidelines of the 79th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on
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FILE PHOTO: The TikTok app icon on a smartphone in this illustration taken October 27, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo The head of the European Commission yesterday called for more protections for children against the “addictive designs” of social media platforms like TikTok, Meta and X, raising the possibility of an age limit on teens accessing them. Europe is hardening its stance against social media, with nations from Norway and France to Turkey and Britain debating or rolling out legislation to ban or limit teenage social media use, looking to Australia’s early move for inspiration.“The question is not whether young people should have access to social media, the question is whether social media should have access to young people,” Ursula von der Leyen, president of the EU’s executive Commission, said in Copenhagen. “Sleep deprivation, depression, anxiety, self-harm, addictive behaviour, cyberbullying, grooming, exploitation, suicide. Risks are multiplying fast.” Von der Leyen said the Commission would target “addictive and harmful design practices” in its Digital Fairness Act (DFA), to be proposed towards the end of the year, while an expert panel was preparing advice on how to proceed. “Without pre-empting the panel’s findings, I believe we must consider a social media delay. Depending on the results, we could come with a legal proposal this summer,” she said.The DFA would ban manipulative practices, addictive features and misleading influencer marketing on digital platforms. Digital world risks are “the result of business models that treat our children’s attention as a commodity,” von der Leyen said, calling for strict limits on AI use in social media. “We are taking action against TikTok and its addictive design, endless scrolling, autoplay and push notifications,” she said, adding: “The same applies to Meta, because we believe Instagram and Facebook are failing to enforce their own minimum age of 13.” Spokespeople at TikTok, Meta and X did not immediately respond to requests for comment.The new regulation will strengthen and expand the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), which requires large platforms to do more to tackle illegaland harmful content, von der Leyen said. Under the DSA rules, the Commission is already investigating TikTok, X and Meta Platforms’ Instagram and Facebook. It has been investigating X over possible risks from deploying Grok in the EU, including the spread of manipulated sexualised images. Yesterday, Europe’s top court sided with Italy’s telecoms watchdog against Meta saying it should compensate publishers for using snippets of their articles.
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India and Russia are in advanced talks to sign a preliminary agreement on critical minerals covering exploration, processing and technological collaboration, two sources familiar with the matter said. The deal is expected to focus on lithium and rare earths, with the two governments also set to facilitate corporate investments, the sources said, declining to be identified as the deliberations were not public.The agreement could be signed within two months, they added. “We have shared a draft of the proposed agreement with our Russian counterparts,” one of the sources said. The Ministry of Mines, which is leading discussions with Russia, did not respond to a Reuters e-mail seeking comment. Russia’s Ministry of Industry and Trade and the office of First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov also did not respond to requests for comment. India is keen to cut its dependence on China, which dominates global supplies of several key minerals and has advanced mining and processing technology, and secure new overseas supplies to support its energy transition and infrastructure development. New Delhi has signed critical minerals agreements with Argentina, Australia and Japan, and is in talks with Peru and Chile on broader bilateral agreements that also include critical minerals. However, India has had limited success in securing overseas critical minerals assets and has so far signed only a single lithium exploration and mining project agreement, covering five blocks in Argentina in 2024. India could also revisit Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom’s lithium exploration project in Mali if the political situation in the West African nation stabilised, one of the sources said. Earlier this year, Reuters reported that India withdrew from the Mali lithium project because of security concerns. Related Story
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Police officers detain members of the Students' Federation of India (SFI), a student union, during a protest against the cancellation of National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), in New Delhi, yesterday. (Reuters) Dozens of members of the student wing of India’s opposition Congress party protested in New Delhi yesterday against the cancellation of a key undergraduate college entrance test after authorities discovered its questions had been leaked. Here are some details. About 2.3mn students across India took the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) on May 3 for admission to undergraduate medical programmes.The federal National Testing Agency scrapped the test yesterday, saying the process could not be allowed to stand and a new date would be set. Visuals from news agency ANI showed dozens of protesters from the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) chanting slogans, with some also trying to jump police barricades. NSUI President Vinod Jakhar demanded “strictest possible action” against those involved in leaking the questions, and the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, saying protesters had no faith in the government. NEET questions had been similarly leaked in some parts of India in 2024, but the test was not re-run.
