As India reflects on its historic Women’s World Cup 2025 triumph, the focus has swiftly shifted toward the future of the team’s leadership. With current captain Harmanpreet Kaur now 36 and entering the twilight of her illustrious career, the search for a long-term successor has intensified. While Smriti Mandhana has long been the frontrunner, South African legend Marizanne Kapp has thrown a curveball by backing a different star. Kapp believes that the next captain should be someone who ‘brings people together’ and possesses an innate ‘caring factor.’ Her endorsement comes at a pivotal time as the WPL 2026 season approaches, marking a significant transition in leadership roles across the league.

Marizanne Kapp endorses Jemimah Rodrigues for India captaincy

In a recent interview on January 5, 2026, Kapp made a strong case for Jemimah Rodrigues to succeed Harmanpreet Kaur as the leader of the national side. Kapp emphasized that she had identified Jemimah as “captaincy material” several years ago, citing her infectious personality and natural ability to lead from the front.

Kapp argued that leadership isn’t just about tactical acumen but also about the personality factor, where Jemimah excels by fostering a sense of unity within the squad. With Jemimah having just guided India to a World Cup title, highlighted by her monumental unbeaten 127 in the semi-final against Australia, Kapp believes the 25-year-old is now fully prepared to handle the immense pressure of leading a cricket-obsessed nation like India.

“I actually said a couple of years ago that Jemimah should be India’s next captain. She’s always been a leader. Her personality, the way she brings people together, the caring factor, that all matters. Even experienced captains face challenges. Jemimah has a lot of senior players around her, and I think she’ll take this opportunity with both hands,” Kapp said in an interview with Cricbuzz.

Also READ: From emerging player to WPL 2026 winner: Deepti Sharma shares bold predictions for the Women’s Premier League

The WPL 2026 leadership shift: From Meg Lanning to Rodrigues

The discussion around Jemimah’s captaincy is no longer theoretical, as she was officially named the Delhi Capitals (DC) captain for the WPL 2026 season. She steps into the massive shoes of the legendary Meg Lanning, who has moved to lead the UP Warriorz. This appointment is seen as a strategic “test run” by the Indian cricketing fraternity to evaluate her leadership in a high-stakes environment.

“Losing Meg as a captain is obviously a big thing. She’s a very successful captain, not only for DC but in world cricket in general,” Kapp added.

DC co-owner Parth Jindal expressed total confidence in her, noting that her journey from being the franchise’s first-ever pick to now leading them in their fourth season is a ‘full-circle moment.’ As DC kicks off their campaign against Mumbai Indians on January 10, all eyes will be on Jemimah to see if she can lead the three-time runners-up to their first title, potentially cementing her claim as Harmanpreet’s heir apparent.

Also READ: India’s rising star Vaishnavi Sharma reveals her top 3 favourite male and female cricketers

This article was first published at WomenCricket.com, a Cricket Times company.

49 Crypto Exchanges, majority based in India, registered with financial intelligence unit (FIU) which works under ministry of finance, in fiscal year 2024-2025. Such a move comes as part of the country’s efforts to combat money laundering and prevent terrorist financing risks in the digital currency sector. It comes as a strategic analysis of suspicious transaction reports (STRs), submitted by crypto exchanges to a federal agency found “exploitation” of crypto funds for “serious” criminal activities, including hawala-unaccounted transactions, gambling, scams, fraud, and even an instance involving an illegal adult content website.Cryptocurrency is legally termed a Virtual Digital Asset, and the exchanges are referred to as VDA Service Providers. These exchanges were brought under India’s anti-money laundering framework, the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, through a linked reporting system in 2023. As reporting entities under the PMLA, VDA SPs are required to submit STRs to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), the federal agency tasked with preventing, deterring and detecting misuse of India’s financial system.The exchanges must also identify and report beneficial ownership of wallets, monitor crowdfunding activities by blockchain projects, similar to IPOs and referred to as initial coin offerings or initial token offerings, and track transfers between hosted and un-hosted wallets.According to the FIU report for the 2024–25 financial year accessed by PTI, the cryptocurrency ecosystem in India has been “rapidly” evolving and attracting “significant” attention in recent years due to its potential to “transform” the financial sector and create opportunities for wealth generation.“However, VDAs, VDA SPs have certain potential money laundering and terror financing risks, owing to their global reach, capacity for rapid settlement, ability to enable peer-to-peer transactions, and potential for increased anonymity and obfuscation of transaction flows and counterparties,” the report said.Unlike several countries where multiple agencies oversee crypto exchanges, India has designated the FIU under the Union finance ministry as the single-point authority responsible for registering and monitoring VDA SPs for money laundering and terrorist financing risks.As of March 2025, the report said, 49 VDA SPs were registered with the FIU as reporting entities. Of these, 45 exchanges were based in India, while four operated offshore.STRs filed by these exchanges during the last fiscal were selected for strategic analysis and categorised under “well defined” and “high-risk” segments such as scam and fraud, gambling, and peer-to-peer scams.Some STRs also carried red flags linked to child sexual abuse material (CSAM), terror financing, dark net services and proceeds of crime, highlighting the “growing exploitation” of crypto assets for “serious criminal activity,” the report said.The geographic analysis of these reports revealed a “significant regional concentration of suspicious activities” and also identified the “commonly used digital asset for these illegal activities.”During FY 2024–25, the FIU imposed penalties totalling Rs 28 crore on certain “non-compliant” crypto exchanges, the report added.Post-registration, exchanges are required to disclose bank and financial institution accounts, appoint a designated director and principal officer, and provide complete platform contact details to the FIU.They must also conduct internal audits, adopt risk-based customer due diligence and enhanced due diligence (CDD/EDD), carry out sanctions screening, and undertake periodic risk assessments to be shared with the federal agency.As per the FIU report, India has addressed risks arising from cryptocurrencies and exchanges through legislative measures, including the introduction of taxation on crypto income and withholding taxes under the Income-Tax Act.

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OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has revealed that he has zero interest in leading a publicly traded company, despite acknowledging that the ChatGPT maker will likely need to go public to secure capital and manage growth. Speaking on the “Big Technology Podcast” last month, Altman said, “Am I excited to be a public company CEO? 0%.” He expressed mixed feelings about a potential initial public offering for OpenAI, adding, “Am I excited for OpenAI to be a public company? In some ways, I am, and in some ways I think it’d be really annoying.” However, the AI startup’s CEO recognised the practical reasons pushing toward an eventual IPO, noting that OpenAI needs substantial capital and will eventually exceed shareholder limits.Altman said, “I do think it’s cool that public markets get to participate in value creation. And in some sense, we will be very late to go public if you look at any previous company. It’s wonderful to be a private company. We need lots of capital. We’re going to cross all of the shareholder limits and stuff at some point.”

OpenAI’s path toward becoming a publicly traded company

OpenAI was co-founded in 2015 by Altman and eleven others. The company has grown considerably since launching its AI chatbot, ChatGPT, in 2022. ChatGPT now has around 800 million weekly users, and OpenAI has signed deals worth about $1 trillion with major tech companies, including Oracle, Nvidia, and AMD.Signs point to the company preparing for an IPO. In October, Reuters reported that OpenAI is considering filing with securities regulators as early as the second half of 2026. However, when asked earlier this year on a podcast whether OpenAI would go public next year, Altman said, “I don’t know.”Recent reports claim OpenAI is taking early steps toward an IPO, with the company in early discussions and being valued at about $830 billion. A higher estimate from Reuters in October 2025 suggested OpenAI could be valued at as much as $1 trillion, citing three sources. The Reuters report also stated that chief financial officer Sarah Friar is aiming for a stock market listing in 2027, with a possible IPO filing in late 2026.Going public would help OpenAI raise the large amounts of money needed to compete in the AI industry. OpenAI was founded as a nonprofit in 2015 but completed a significant restructuring in October that turned it into a more traditional for-profit company.Under this change, the nonprofit that controls OpenAI received a $130 billion stake. The restructuring also reduced Microsoft’s stake to 27% and expanded its research access, while allowing OpenAI to partner with other cloud-computing companies.OpenAI’s push to keep pace with competitors became clear in December when Altman issued a “code red” in an internal memo after Google quickly launched its Gemini 3 model. The “Code red” called for an eight-week focus on accelerating OpenAI’s core work while pausing other initiatives such as advertising and e-commerce expansion.The strategy seems to be working, as OpenAI recently launched its new GPT-5.2 model and followed it with a new image-generation model to rival Google’s Nano Banana. OpenAI’s apps CEO Fidji Simo said the release was not a direct response to Gemini 3 but added that the extra resources from the “code red” helped speed up the launch.

Mohammed Siraj (Photo by Ayush Kumar/Getty Images)

Former South Africa batter AB de Villiers has said Mohammed Siraj has been unfortunate to miss selection for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, pointing to team balance rather than form as the deciding factor. Speaking on his YouTube channel, De Villiers explained that Siraj’s exclusion was more about combination choices than performance. “We see Siraj in the ODI squad, he is one of the unlucky guys to miss out. But that is once again down to the balance,” De Villiers said.

He highlighted India’s preference for a varied bowling attack, with Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh leading the pace group and Harshit Rana offering added depth with the bat. “You have got Bumrah and Arshdeep. Harshit can hold the bat as well. So there are your three seamers. I think that is the reason why you went for Harshit because Siraj is only an outright bowler,” he added. De Villiers also pointed to India’s strategic focus on spin during the tournament. “They do not want to focus too much on seam bowling. The focus is on the spinners. If they get wickets with the seamers upfront, they almost see it as a bonus in a way,” he said, while stressing that Siraj remains firmly in India’s long-term plans. “So Siraj is unlucky but at least he is in the ODI plans moving forward for the 2027 World Cup.” Siraj had a solid IPL season with Gujarat Titans, picking up 16 wickets from 15 matches, but did not feature in a single T20I in 2025. De Villiers believes India have covered all areas heading into the World Cup. “The problem with Harshit Rana with the new ball is that he doesn’t have a lot of experience at the international level. But if he can give you a few overs with Bumrah and Arshdeep, there is enough overs, and then Shivam and Hardik can fill up,” he said. He underlined the depth in India’s bowling unit and its ability to shift momentum. “They also cover all bases with spin, and that’s where they will focus on trying to win games. When Bumrah has a quiet night, a Kuldeep comes through and gets you four and vice versa. Then there is Hardik coming through in the middle and turning the momentum around,” “Those are the kind of championship teams you want, and India has got all those bases covered,”De Villiers said.

Abhishek Banerjee; Sunali Khatun

NEW DELHI: Sunali Khatun, the pregnant woman who was repatriated from Bangladesh on the Supreme Court’s directions after being deported on suspicion of being a Bangladeshi national, has delivered a baby boy in West Bengal’s Birbhum district.In a series of posts on X, Trinamool Congress (TMC) national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee said he was “deeply moved,” noting that the occasion was made even more poignant by the “injustices” she had suffered.Also Read | The why and how of Sunali’s sorry state“I am deeply moved and genuinely heartened to learn that Sunali Khatun has given birth to a healthy baby boy at Rampurhat Medical College in Birbhum. This moment of joy feels even more profound against the backdrop of the injustice she was subjected to. In a shocking abuse of power, she was falsely branded as a Bangladeshi and forcibly deported to Bangladesh by the Delhi Police and the Union government,” Banerjee, the nephew of West Bengal chief minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, wrote.The Lok Sabha MP added that Khatun’s ordeal amounted to a “violation of dignity” that no citizen—let alone a pregnant woman—should be made to endure, and praised her for her “extraordinary courage” and resolve.Also Read | Kept saying we’re Indian, they didn’t listen: Sunali KhatunBanerjee also announced that he would meet Khatun on Tuesday.“This is a triumph of humanity. Tomorrow, during my visit to Birbhum, I will personally meet Sunali at the hospital to convey my best wishes to her and her newborn. My prayers remain with her family,” he posted.On December 5 last year, Sunali Khatun and her eight-year-old son—who had earlier been deported from India—were repatriated on “humanitarian grounds” following a directive from the Supreme Court.The top court had also asked the Centre to ensure free medical treatment for Khatun in view of her advanced pregnancy and to take care of her son.After returning to India, she expressed relief and gratitude, and appealed for her husband to be brought back as well. Khatun has maintained that she is the daughter of Bhodu Sheikh, an Indian citizen.(With agency inputs)

NEW DELHI: University of Delhi’s push to bring in philanthropic funding for campus development by offering timebound naming rights to major donors has had a slow start, with only one donation-backed construction project underway and no building renamed.Data provided by the university shows that donation inflow till last year amount to about Rs 2.3 crore, largely from a single trust for the expansion of the faculty of management studies, alongside corporate social responsibility (CSR) contributions of laptops and tablets aimed at student support.

Just One Donation-Backed Construction Project Under Way

While university officials say the model marks an important shift from total dependence on govt grants, donations last year appear lower than in 2024, both in volume and the number of alumni contributors, indicating that the policy is yet to gain traction.

Between May 2023 and March 2024, 68 alumni contributed over Rs 1 crore. From April to Dec 2024, 32 alumni contributed Rs 43.1 lakh. Only four have given Rs 1.8 lakh so far last year.Donations from trusts, societies and companies have also declined. Between May 2023 and March 2024, DU received Rs 30 lakh from 10 donors, while only three donors contributed Rs 2 lakh from April to Dec 2024. The university is yet to receive any philanthropic corporate or trust funds beyond the instalments from a project committed earlier.The bulk of the Rs 2.3 crore received last year comes from a single donor — Rita Bhargava Mukerji Memorial Charitable Trust, which has pledged Rs 5 crore for the construction of a floor in the new extension building of the faculty of management studies. It is also the only donation-backed construction project currently underway at Delhi University.CSR support for the university has mostly been in the form of devices rather than cash grants for infrastructure. Since 2024, BSES companies have donated 824 laptops and 454 tablets worth over Rs 4.6 crore for projects like Sashakt Beti and e-Drishti, aimed at improving digital access for girls and visually impaired students.Scholarships and studentsupport programmes have also attracted contributions, including a grant of Rs 12 lakh per year from a Japanbased foundation to support 20 students annually for two academic cycles.The naming-rights policy approved earlier last year sets donation slabs that determine how long a facility may be named after a donor: up to 33 years for Rs 5 crore and above, 20 years for Rs 2 crore to Rs 5 crore, and 10 years for Rs 1 crore to Rs 2 crore. However, no facility has been renamed yet, DU officials said. The rules also require that a donation must cover at least 60% of the construction cost to qualify for naming rights.DU Foundation receives an annual grant of Rs 50 lakh, with a 5% yearly increase, to support operations and fundraising efforts, the officials said. Overall, Rs 4.3 crore has been raised by DU’s funding agency through alumni and philanthropic contributions since its inception in April 2023.Anil Kumar, CEO of Udhmodya Foundation, which oversees DU’s fundraising, said the foundation has begun organising regular alumni meets. Recent networking events have been held in Mumbai and Singapore.Delhi University’s alumni circle includes prominent names from govt, judiciary, media, academia and business, many of whom continue to contribute to their individual colleges. University officials hope to channel this network more effectively.Unlike in US, fewer alumni in India donate for the development of educational institutions. Even those who do often feel a personal connection with their individual college rather than the university as a whole, Kumar said.DU’s Hindu College, for instance, has built a strong alumni network over the years and continues to receive significant contributions from its ex-students for new laboratories, scholarships and renovation, its principal Anju Srivastava said.

On January 4, 2026, ahead of India’s first international series of the year, star all-rounder Hardik Pandya and his girlfriend, model Mahieka Sharma, were spotted at Jamnagar Airport alongside veteran batter Rohit Sharma. The group, which included Rohit’s wife Ritika Sajdeh and their young son Ahaan, appeared to be in high spirits as they transitioned from domestic duties to international commitments.

Mahieka Sharma meets Rohit Sharma’s son Ahaan  at Jamnagar Airport

Mahieka, who made her relationship with Hardik ‘Insta-official’ in October 2025, was seen sharing a particularly warm and adorable moment with little Ahaan, who was being carried by Ritika. The viral footage has melted hearts on social media, showcasing a close familial bond between the two cricketing icons’ families as they prepare for a demanding home season.

The viral video captured a rare, candid glimpse of the off-field camaraderie between India’s top cricketers and their families. As they exited the Jamnagar Airport, Mahieka was seen all smiles, playing and interacting with Ahaan Sharma in an adorable” manner while Ritika looked on. Hardik and Mahieka have been the subject of intense media interest since they went public with their relationship; however, this latest outing suggests Mahieka is now a well-integrated part of the team’s inner family circle. The group had reportedly gathered in Jamnagar, a city often used by the Ambani family for high-profile gatherings, possibly for a brief bonding session before the squad assembles in Vadodara on January 7.

Here’s the video:

Ritika holding Ahaan while Mahieka plays with him.🤍

-A cute moment.🤌👌 pic.twitter.com/RD7xWs5Sox

— Rohit Nation (@Rohitnation45) January 4, 2026

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Rohit’s red-hot form and Hardik’s workload management

While the families shared a lighthearted moment, the professional contrast between the two stars for the upcoming New Zealand ODI series is significant. Rohit Sharma enters the series in peak physical and competitive condition, whereas Hardik Pandya will be watching the 50-over leg from the sidelines.

• Rohit Sharma’s dominance: Rohit has been in blistering form, recording scores of 73, 121, 57, 14, and 75* in his last five ODIs. He recently validated his readiness by smashing a massive 155 off 94 balls for Mumbai in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
• Hardik’s T20 focus: Despite a brilliant 133 for Baroda recently, Hardik has been rested for the ODIs. The BCCI stated he is currently not fit to bowl a full 10-over quota in the 50-over format. With the T20 World Cup 2026 scheduled for February, the selectors are prioritizing his fitness for the T20I leg, which begins on January 21.

Also READ: From emerging player to WPL 2026 winner: Deepti Sharma shares bold predictions for the Women’s Premier League