American Stephens stayed calm and saw off an increasingly agitated Angelique Kerber in the winner-takes-all night match to complete round-robin play with a spotless 3-0 record after she wrapped up a 6-3, 6-3 victory against the German.
The agreement would divert China's attention and keep them busy in the Pacific theatre, probably resulting in a reduction in threat perception in our area of interest in the Indian Ocean, notes Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
Russia's Svetlana Kuznetsova raced to a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Australian Daria Gavrilova to defend her Kremlin Cup title in Moscow on Saturday and secure a place at the season-ending WTA Finals.
Neither Biden nor his successors can any longer ignore the threat China has come to pose to the US in both economic and military fields, observes Virendra Kapoor.
With 2016 officially behind us, let's look forward and speculate about the events, people and issues that will shape 2017.
Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama is spending a whopping US $ 4.5 million daily on campaign advertisements on TV, four times more than his Republican rival, John McCain as the two slug it out in the race for the White House.
Disgraced Olympic and Paralympic gold medallist Oscar Pistorius will face sentencing in June following his conviction for murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine's Day in 2013.
China will flood direct flights to India with wholesale takeaways of the authentic stuff; Indian businessmen will fight for the commission and the consumers for the cuisine, predicts Sunanda K Datta-Ray.
Will Indian democracy benefit from the potential that Shashi Tharoor stores in his mind, spirit and intellect? Or will it be the saga of another leader who promised much but delivered too little, asks Dr Sudhir Bisht.
"The granting of the Freedom of the City of London recognises how they have added their voices to the growing global movement to stamp out racism."
In strong observations while hearing the plea, the high court cited the death of Princess Diana while trying to escape the media chase, and said there needs to be "some toning down" as people are "afraid of the fourth pillar of democracy" because of its powers.
But his nature, temperament, his skill to listen to others, and empathise with their pain and hardships will make him a far better president, a leader America has been longing for four years, notes Aseem Chhabra.
Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska stayed patient in the face of a barrage of big serving to advance to the last four of the WTA Finals for the third time in a row with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Karolina Pliskova on Friday.
Former FIA president Max Mosley has warned that Formula One risks serious difficulties unless it changes direction and cuts costs.
Ashok Kumar and Dharen Singh, who were drunk, had driven into the sanitised area on Rao Tula Ram Marg, New Delhi, as Vajpayees cavalcade was passing by.
What startles a visitor like me from India is how the 2020 US presidential election has divided families, husband and wife, parents and children, observes Payal Mohanka.
It was in the 1960s that the Beetle attained its cult status, when it became almost synonymous with the hippie movement -- and succeeded in shaking off the grim history of its origins. As Volkswagen announces the end of the Bug's journey, Amrita Singh goes down a nostalgic road.
A decision on this could be taken before Christmas, which might not necessarily result in a formal announcement as that could be delayed till the next year, people familiar with her thinking process said.
National Geographic's Travel Photo Contest is open for entries and has already attracted incredible snaps from across the globe. Week 2 of the contest include images of a newborn lion being carried to safety in the jaws of its mother, a daredevil slackliner in the USA, and a penguin being chased by a fur seal. The international competition runs from 18 March to 3 May, with budding photographers able to enter their work in one of three categories: nature, cities and people.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday
Political analysts believe that an aggressive Harris, 55, will easily prevail over Pence, 61, during the only vice-presidential debate and help her running mate Joe Biden, 77, to widen his lead over Trump, 74.
Pence and Trump will challenge Democratic Patry's presidential candidate Joe Biden and his running mate Indian-origin Senator Kamala Harris in the November election.
A 21-year-old Indian-origin student was allegedly subjected to a racial slur at a prestigious US university, prompting the student's body to pass a "diversity resolution" to promote an inclusive atmosphere on its campus.
Sukanya Verma offers some amazing opening scenes in Hindi films that fuels an excitement for what happens next.
Oscar Pistorius shuffled without his prosthetic legs through a Pretoria court on Wednesday to demonstrate how vulnerable he is without his artificial limbs, an attempt by the athlete's defence team to avoid a long jail sentence for murder.
Ravin Gandhi wrote an op-ed for CNBC following Trump's Charlottesville remarks but was quickly trolled and racially abused by readers.
In a letter signed by 16 of 17 committee members including two Indian-Americans Jhumpa Lahiri and Kal Penn, they said reproach and censure are necessary following Trump's "support of the hate groups and terrorists who killed and injured fellow Americans in Charlottesville."
They cheer, dance and sing in perfect unison. But these are not your ordinary cheerleaders.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Wednesday.
Caroline Wozniacki overcame a mid-match wobble and withstood a barrage of big hitting to get her WTA Finals title defence back on track with a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 victory over Petra Kvitova at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
The New York Film Festival served an amazing plate of films. Aseem Chhabra picks the best ones.
Much-fancied Belgium fought back from a goal down to score twice in the final 20 minutes and earn a hard-fought 2-1 victory over gutsy Algeria in their World Cup Group H opener on Tuesday.
Hidden Figures tells us a genuinely inspirational story in obvious fashion, and is buoyed by the performances all around, writes Raja Sen.
North Korean pair given warm welcome on Pyeongchang debut
The much-awaited World Cup clash between co-hosts Australia and New Zealand will be about more than just the race for quarter-final places with the cricket boards of both countries confirming that the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy will be at stake.
The Republican White House contender took the time to pat himself on the back for 'being right on radical Islamic terrorism' and sought the resignation of US President Barack Obama.
The Finns started using the unique method of stress relief at the Sochi Games, where they knitted a scarf. Two years later at the Rio Olympics they added to it.
'I have only one life and that is enough.'
A summary of sportspersons in the news on Sunday.
'Hate and violence are an ever-present threat to us.' 'The community is staying vigilant of their surroundings.'
