As anticipated, the political masters of Pakistan have finally directed its national cricket team to lift the boycott and play India on 15 February, 2026, as scheduled in Colombo . The Masters must've thought the money at stake is too lucrative to continue indulging in such kind of grumpy politics. Of course, they had imposed some pre-conditions that included making the 'handshake' a mandatory protocol, but the ICC looked the other way. So, the PCB takes it as protecting the 'spirit of cricket'. The Indian cricket board , the sponsors, the TV channels and millions of fans who do not necessarily mix patriotism with sports, if it's cricket in particular, must be deliriously ecstatic that all the revenues and hype and excitement shall be there for harvest thr oughout the ICC Men's T20 World Cup-2026 , co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka . Most of the Indians fans must also be ecstatic to have their heroes go on vanquishing the enemy neighbor and humiliating t...
Whenever I use my bank's ATM card on other-bank ATMs I get a message from my bank starting 'It would be a pleasure to serve you at (so many of) our ATMs...' and then confirming the transaction. So today, while heading for the vegetable market in the evening, I decided to try only my-bank ATMs as I needed to withdraw cash first. Inside one I completed the procedure and waited for the cash. But the usual shuffling sound was not there and no cash ejected. I tried again with the same result. I now wanted to check my balance, but the machine failed to do even that. Other 'knowing' customers told me 'no cash'! True to my vow I found another my-bank ATM, and the same frustration there too. The attendant was also missing. Angry now, I asked the nearby shop about the attendant and eventually found him playing carom! I demanded, 'Why don't you at least put up a notice for the customers?' Refusing to look up from his striker he replied indifferently, 'I...