Why Southeast Asia is Drifting Away from Washington

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The geopolitical landscape of Southeast Asia is undergoing a tectonic shift. For decades, the United States was viewed as the indispensable powerthe security guarantor that allowed the region’s tiger economies to flourish. However, recent events, culminating in the devastating economic fallout of the Iran war, have accelerated a trend that many in Washington failed to see coming: Southeast Asia is increasingly looking toward Beijing, not out of ideological love, but out of pragmatic necessity. This shift is not merely a preference for one superpower over another; it is a profound vote of no confidence in the predictability and reliability of Western leadership. The Credibility Gap: From Trade Wars to Kinetic Wars The erosion of trust didn't happen overnight. It began with a series of inconsistent trade policies and sudden tariffs that left regional exportersfrom Malaysia to Vietnamreeling. When global leadership feels like a moving target, Southeast Asian nations, which prioritize...
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Noman Ali Becomes First Pakistani Spinner to Achieve Hat-Trick in Cricket History

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Noman Ali, Pakistan left-arm spinner, made history in cricket as he became the first spinner of his country to take a hat-trick against West Indies on Saturday.

On the very first day of the second and final Test against the West Indies at Multan Cricket Stadium, Noman Ali achieved that unmatchable feat. Until lunch, after losing seven wickets by the time, the tourists were reeling on 44-7 and that's when the Noman's hat-trick played a turning-point game.

By achieving his hat-trick, Noman became one of the few Pakistani bowlers and entered an elite list in the history of the country's Test cricket players. Some other notable names among those he emulated are that of Wasim Akram who was the first Pakistani fast bowler to achieve a Test hat-trick back in 1997 and Naseem Shah, the last Pakistani who achieved it against Bangladesh in 2020.

On a Multan surface that offered plenty of assistance to the spinners, Noman came in as the first-change bowler and tore apart the West Indies batting order with precision and guile. He made his first breakthrough when he hit West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite with a strike that crushed the visitors' spirits in his second over.

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