Harmer’s double strike has Pakistan 36-2, lead South Africa by 145

South Africa's Simon Harmer (Center) celebrates with teammates after taking the wicket of Pakistan's captain Shan Masood during the third day of the first Test cricket match between Pakistan and South Africa at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on October 14, 2025. (AFP)
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Updated 14 October 2025
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Harmer’s double strike has Pakistan 36-2, lead South Africa by 145

  • Abdullah Shafique and Babar Azam were at the crease at lunch
  • Pakistan dismissed South Africa for 269 in their first innings

LAHORE: South Africa spinner Simon Harmer took two wickets as Pakistan reached 36-2 at lunch Tuesday in their second innings of the first Test in Lahore, extending their lead to 145.

Earlier, South Africa had been dismissed for 269 an hour before lunch, having resumed on 216-6 on day three.

Pakistan spinner Noman Ali took 6-112 for his ninth haul of five wickets or more in Tests.

It gave Pakistan a 109-run lead after they scored 378 in the first innings, but left their openers with a tricky 11 overs to negotiate against the new ball before the break.

The 36-year-old Harmer had Imam-ul-Haq stumped by wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne for nought in his first over before trapping Shan Masood lbw for seven.

Abdullah Shafique, 21 not out, and Babar Azam, on one, were the not out batsmen at lunch.

South Africa’s Tony De Zorzi resumed on 81 at the start of the day and carried the fight to Pakistan on a turning Qaddafi Stadium pitch as he completed his second Test century with a six and two singles off Noman.

The left-hander finally holed out for 104 to long-on off Noman, where Shaheen Shah Afridi took a low catch, ending a 208-minute innings containing 10 fours and two sixes.

Noman, who bowled a probing 35 overs, also removed Prenelan Subrayen for four during the session.

Fellow spinner Sajid Khan took the first wicket of the day when he had Senuran Muthusamy caught by Salman Agha for 11.


Hundreds of migrants, including Pakistanis, land in Greece after search operation at sea

Updated 19 December 2025
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Hundreds of migrants, including Pakistanis, land in Greece after search operation at sea

  • Rescued migrants were taken to a temporary facility on Crete after reaching the port of Agia Galini
  • Greece has made deportations of rejected asylum seekers a priority under its migration policy

ATHENS: Greece’s Coast Guard rescued about 540 migrants from a fishing boat off ​Europe’s southernmost island of Gavdos on Friday, one of the biggest groups to reach the country in recent months.

The migrants were found during a Greek search operation some 16 nautical miles (29.6 km) off Gavdos, a Coast Guard statement said. They are all well and are being taken ‌to a ‌temporary facility on the nearby ‌island ⁠of ​Crete after ‌reaching the port of Agia Galini, a Coast Guard official said, adding most of the migrants were men from Bangladesh, Egypt and Pakistan.

In a separate incident on Thursday, the EU’s border agency Frontex rescued 65 men and five women from two ⁠migrant boats in distress off Gavdos, the Greek Coast Guard ‌said.

Greece was on the front ‍line of a 2015-16 ‍migration crisis when more than a million people ‍from the Middle East and Africa landed on its shores before moving on to other European countries, mainly Germany.

Flows have ebbed since then, but both Crete ​and Gavdos — the two Mediterranean islands nearest to the African coast — have seen a steep rise ⁠in migrant boats, mainly from Libya, reaching their shores over the past year and deadly accidents remain common along that route.

Greece, Cyprus, Spain and Italy will be eligible for help in dealing with migratory pressures under a new EU mechanism when the bloc’s pact on migration and asylum enters into force in mid-2026.

The center-right government of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has said deportation of rejected asylum ‌seekers will be a priority.