Apart perhaps from Giulio Andreotti, his fellow Christian Democrat and occasional rival who died seven weeks before him, no single politician embodied the history of postwar Italy, with all its successes and failures, more completely than Emilio Colombo.

Betting on the Qipco 2,000 Guineas is so skewed towards the two favourites that neither retains any vestige of value.

Not for the first time, the beat of the betting tom-tom has proved accurate.

Faraz Shauketaly shot by three men at his Colombo home

The United Nations failed miserably to protect hundreds of thousands of civilians caught up in the last months of Sri Lanka’s civil war, says an internal inquiry.

India have recalled Harbhajan Singh to their squad for the first two Tests against England. The off-spinner has not played at the highest level since August 2011 but, after dismantling England in the World T20 in September, he has been brought back into the 15-man India party for the four-match series, which starts on 15 November in Ahmedabad.

Hundreds of Sri Lankans took to the streets today to demand that the government halts a plan to impeach the country's top judge and to condemn what they claim is the intimidation of the judiciary.

Judges and lawyers boycotted courts yesterday in protest against an assault on an outspoken judge.

Batsman signs new temporary contract and now begins process of 'reintegration' into England squad

Australia sustained a 32-run defeat in their final Super Eights match against Pakistan yesterday, but were still able to celebrate a place in the World Twenty20 semi-finals alongside their conquerors as India went out despite beating South Africa in Group F's other game.

ICC World Twenty20 champions England insist they can still complete a successful defence of their title, despite back-to-back defeats in their last two matches.

West Indies 179-5 beat England 164-4 by 15 runs

Practice pays off for young left-armer as he takes three wickets in last over for Hampshire

She has some chunky statistics to defy in the future, but for the mom-ent the classy young filly Certify is heading in the right direction. The daughter of Elusive Quality maintained her unbeaten record at Newmarket with a clear-cut success in the afternoon's two-year-old feature, the Sweet Solera Stakes, and so moved up the betting for next year's 1,000 Guineas.