Last Updated:March 15, 2026, 16:46 IST

most explosive opening pair in ipl: Former Indian batsman Cheteshwar Pujara has praised Sunrisers Hyderabad’s opening pair of Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma. Pujara has described them as the most dangerous opening pair in the history of the tournament and said that they are more lethal than Virat Kohli and Chris Gayle. Pujara said that no bowler would want to bowl against such an opening pair.

Who is the more dangerous IPL opening pair than Virat Kohli and Chris Gayle?

A new wave of Republican women running in competitive congressional races is aiming to chip away at Democrats’ long-held advantage with female voters — and flip key seats that could determine control of the House this November.

In an interview with Fox News Digital, one of these candidates, Laurie Buckhout, a former cattle rancher, U.S. Army veteran and mother, knocked the Democratic Party for trying to “pigeonhole” female voters into a single category.

“The Democrats try way too hard to pigeonhole us women in a certain role while they still can’t define what a woman is,” she quipped.

She believes that despite the rhetoric, Democrats are “really out of touch when it comes to women voters.”

DEMOCRATS SINK TO NEW VOTER LOW, REPUBLICANS ALSO UNDERWATER: POLL

Left to right: Republican congressional candidates Laurie Buckhout, N.C., Tiffany Burress, N.J., Jessica Steinmann, Texas, and Barb Regnitz, Ind. (Courtesy of the campaigns of an coCourtesy of the campaigns for Laurie Buckhout, Tiffany Burress, Jessica Steinmann and Barb Regnitz)

“They try to own that gender and try to stuff them in a box,” she went on. “’This is how you’re going to vote. Don’t tell your husband. This is how you are going to think.’ Republicans don’t do that.”

This midterm election, Buckhout is running to unseat Democratic Rep. Don Davis in North Carolina’s Congressional District 1. The district stretches across the northeastern corner of the state from the border with Virginia to the Atlantic coast. After narrowly losing to Davis in the 2024 election, Buckhout’s campaign has already garnered significant momentum this time around. She defeated a field of four other Republican candidates in the March 3 primary and, just this week, was further bolstered by an endorsement from President Donald Trump.

As the dominant party in an off-year midterm cycle, many expect that Republicans will take a beating at the ballot box this November. Buckhout, however, thinks it will be a very different story in North Carolina. With the GOP barely grasping onto a razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives, every seat matters.

“I can tell you the people of North Carolina, especially eastern North Carolina, they want to live their lives with a minimum of government interference, they don’t want big government leaning in, telling them how to live their life, what to do, taking their money out of their pockets for more and more taxes for programs that they don’t need and they didn’t vote for,” she said. “So, I can tell you that we feel very good about this being a Republican election, taking this, adding another seat to the House.”

Buckhout is not the only female Republican candidate who stands a good shot at flipping a blue district red this year.

In one of the GOP’s top targeted districts, Carrie Buck, a former school principal and self-described minivan mom, is angling to unseat Rep. Dina Titus in Nevada Congressional District 1 in Las Vegas. As of the latest Federal Election Commission filings, Buck has significantly outraised Titus, further signaling the incumbent’s vulnerability.

MINIVAN MOM PUTS DEM INCUMBENT ON NOTICE IN TOP GOP TARGET DISTRICT: ‘SHE HAS DONE NOTHING FOR US’

Left: Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev. Right: Nevada state Sen. Carrie Buck, who is running for Congress. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images; Campaign for Carrie Buck)

Buck told Fox News Digital that after serving in Congress since 2013, Titus has “had her chance, and Nevada families are still waiting for results.”  

“I spent 30 years in classrooms — teaching, running schools, and working to fix problems. During that same time, Dina Titus was in public office, unable and unwilling to address the challenges Nevadans face: rising inflation, soaring crime rates, an open border, and failing schools,” she said.

On the East Coast, Tiffany Burress, a New Jersey attorney who is a newcomer to the political scene, is running to unseat Democratic Rep. Nellie Pou, who is considered vulnerable.

If the GOP could pick up the seat, it would be a huge boon in retaining the majority.

“Voters are ready for something different, and that’s how I know we’re going to win,” Burress told Fox News.

She knocked Pou, saying she has “spent decades living on the taxpayers’ dime,” and “puts extreme progressive agendas ahead of the priorities of our district” by voting with the likes of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez nearly 94 percent of the time.

LEGALIZE PROSTITUTION EFFORT LEFT CANDIDATE ‘SHOCKED’ IN BLUE STATE WITH RAMPANT HUMAN TRAFFICKING

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., and Republicans are attempting to retain their majority this midterm election cycle. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Similarly, Barb Regnitz in Indiana’s first congressional district is running to flip a long-held Democratic seat currently filled by Rep. Frank Mrvan.

Regnitz, who is a former software engineer and current Porter County commissioner, told Fox News Digital that “for almost 100 years, Republicans have been powerless to stop the failed policies of the far-left that have resulted in falling incomes, struggling industry, and increasingly unsafe communities right here in Northwest Indiana.”

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

“I’m running for Congress because I believe our district deserves serious, principled leadership focused on results, not rhetoric,” she said.

Down in Texas, another Republican woman, Jessica Steinmann, is fighting to retain a Republican seat north of Houston, being left vacant by Rep. Morgan Luttrell, who opted not to seek re-election.

Steinmann formerly served in President Donald Trump’s Justice Department during his first term as director of the Office for Victims of Crime.

She told Fox News Digital she is running for Congress “because the next two years of President Trump’s administration are critical for our country.”

“I was proud to serve in the first Trump Administration, where I saw firsthand what strong, America First leadership can accomplish,” she said, adding, “I’m confident that message will carry us to victory in November.”

Last Updated:March 15, 2026, 16:43 IST

Hardik Pandya take Mahieka Sharma for ride: Indian cricket team’s star all-rounder Hardik Pandya is in the headlines these days for his personal life more than his sports. A video of Hardik Pandya is going viral on social media, in which he is in a car with his girlfriend Mahika Sharma. The price of that car is said to be Rs 12 crore.

Hardik Pandya with girlfriend Mahika in a car worth 12 crores

Political temperature has heated up over the horrific and inhuman incident that happened to a daughter in Chapra, Bihar. After this heinous crime, serious questions have started being raised on the working style of the police. MP Pappu Yadav has taken the Bihar Police to task in this matter and has seriously accused them of defaming the deceased daughter and her victim’s family.

Pappu Yadav has expressed his sharp reaction on the social media platform ‘X’ (formerly Twitter). He warned the police administration in a strict tone and asked them to desist from this shameful act.

Strong attack on the habit of ‘Victim Blaming’

In his statement, Pappu Yadav accused Bihar Police of working according to a pattern. He wrote, “It has become a habit of Bihar Police that whenever any daughter is tortured or brutalized in the state, instead of providing justice, the police starts questioning the character of the victim.” He further said that to hide its failure, the administration puts the victims’ families who are pleading for justice in the dock, so that attention can be diverted from the main issue.

Announced to fight strongly

Pappu Yadav said in clear words that this insensitive and anti-victim attitude of the administration will not be tolerated at any cost. He has announced to fight strongly against this injustice.

This incident in Chapra has created an atmosphere of anger in the entire state and has exposed the claims of women’s safety. This allegation of Pappu Yadav indicates that instead of conducting an impartial investigation, the police often resort to ‘Victim Blaming’. After their tough stance, it is clear that if the police do not change the direction of their investigation and do not assure justice to the victim’s family, then they can take to the streets on this issue. Now it remains to be seen what clarification the police headquarters gives on these serious allegations.

KAOHSIUNG, Taiwan: Last Christmas Eve, satellite tracking and ship-transponder data revealed an unusual maritime event in the East China Sea: thousands of Chinese fishing vessels gathered into tight, linear formations and holding position for extended periods. It happened again two weeks later.

Analysts from a geospatial analytical firm were the first to identify two large stationary formations involving roughly 1,400 and 2,000 fishing vessels. Cargo ships in the area were forced to reroute or carefully thread between thousands of stationary vessels that had ceased normal fishing activity. This flotilla behavior by Chinese fishing boats, analysts believe, was a “gray zone” exercise.

“There have been proposals by defense experts in the United States that the U.S. Navy should treat China’s maritime militia as a real naval force,” Holmes Liao, a defense expert who is currently a senior advisor for the Taiwan Space Agency (TASA), told Fox News Digital.

CHINA LAUNCHES LARGEST MILITARY DRILLS OFF TAIWAN IN 8 MONTHS WITH LIVE-FIRE EXERCISES CAUGHT ON CAMERA

ingeniSPACE detected large coordinated masses of fishing vessels, such as the one shown in this image, in late December 2025 and on two other occasions so far this year. (ingeniSPACE)

“I think Taiwan may need to adhere to that mentality and mindset,” said Liao. “If these Chinese vessels are operating under clear military direction, then their status under the law of armed conflict could be subject to reassessment, potentially affecting claims of civilian immunity.”

Liao said that Taiwan should consider deploying surveillance drones or air patrols over maritime militia formations to demonstrate presence and reinforce deterrence. “Taiwan has so far been very timid in response to PRC aggression,” said Liao. “They may be fishing boats, but they are actually under the PLA’s command… part of the maritime militia.” 

Indeed, several editions of the U.S. Department of Defense’s annual “Military and Security Developments involving the People’s Republic of China,” describe the People’s Armed Forces Maritime Militia (PAFMM) as a “state-organized, trained, and equipped” force that actively supports China’s navy and coast guard.

Chinese tourists watch a fishing boat sailing through the Taiwan Strait, on the coast of Pingtan island, the closest point in China to Taiwan, in southeast China’s Fujian province on April 16, 2023. (Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysts at the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative have previously documented swarms of dozens or even hundreds of Chinese vessels in the South China Sea near contested reefs, often remaining stationary for long periods. But the incidents late last year and early this year highlight how the scale of this fishing militia appears to be expanding.

Fishing vessels are inexpensive, numerous and legally ambiguous. When deployed in mass, they complicate navigation, create radar clutter and raise operational risks for commercial shipping. The civilian status of these boats also conveniently allows Beijing to frame any incidents as “rogue actions not sanctioned by authorities,” or as accidents.

BIPARTISAN HOUSE CHINA PANEL SLAMS BEIJING’S TAIWAN DRILLS AS ‘DELIBERATE ESCALATION’

The United States frequently cites freedom of navigation as the reason for navy patrols in the Indo-Pacific, with a U.S. State Department fact sheet noting that the region “accounts for 60% of global GDP.” The area around Taiwan is already treated by maritime insurers and shipping firms as a “higher-risk environment,” meaning even temporary flotilla formations could influence shipping decisions and significantly affect both regional and global economies.

Taipei-based security analyst Sasha Chhabra, however, warned of the risks China would face should it deploy civilian fishing vessels in an active conflict. “A U.S. Navy convoy could easily break through these lines, and the large commercial vessels that carry Taiwan’s much-needed imports would easily splinter most fishing vessels in a ramming incident.”

He noted that there is precedent for Beijing using Chinese fisherman as “live bait” during a conflict. “In 1973, China used civilian fishing vessels to bait the South Vietnamese Navy into conflict and seize full control over the Paracels (islands),” said Chhabra. “But what worked against teetering South Vietnam in 1973 won’t work against the U.S. Navy.” 

However, for independently ruled Taiwan, the concern could be cumulative pressure rather than a single dramatic incident. Encounters between Taiwanese patrol vessels and Chinese fishing boats have grown more frequent around outlying islands and in parts of the Taiwan Strait, with vessels sometimes operating in coordinated groups that shadow or crowd Taiwanese ships. The maritime militia could also be used as a tool to discourage the global shipping industry from doing business with Taiwan.

Fishing boats are seen in a harbour on Pingtan island, the closest point in China to Taiwan, in China’s southeast Fujian province on April 15, 2023.  (Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images)

Taiwan’s major ports are the energy and industrial lifelines for this de facto independent state. The port of Kaohsiung in the south, for example, handles large volumes of LNG imports and petrochemical shipments. Even partial disruption or perceived instability in surrounding sea lanes could ripple through supply chains and sharply raise costs for the global economy.

Jason Wang, CEO of ingeniSPACE, the company that revealed the fishing fleets on their satellite systems, told Fox News Digital that despite Taiwan’s semiconductor advantage, China is winning in space. Wang said data fusion and satellite-based maritime awareness are now strategic necessities. “Intelligence is deterrence without provocation. Intelligence ensures efficient targeted spending and is a force multiplier by shaping a more effective military force,” he said. “Taiwan, like all First Island Chain nations, must be prepared for a new kind of warfare.”

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Wang and other experts note that countries like Japan and South Korea have, for roughly a decade, aggressively augmented their satellite spy constellations with commercial satellites to “ensure sufficient coverage and revisit rates so that their leadership has the capability to distinguish both overt military and gray zone activity.”

Analysts say the broader lesson is that sea control no longer depends solely on destroyers and submarines. In the immediate future, the most consequential maritime pressure may come not from warships, but from vessels that look, at first glance, entirely harmless.

The American Culture Quiz is a weekly test of our unique national traits, trends, history and people — including current events and the sights and sounds of the United States.

This week’s quiz highlights tipping turmoil, burger buzz — and a lot more.

Can you get all 8 questions right?

Give it a try and see how you do!

CLICK HERE FOR MORE LIFESTYLE STORIES

To try your hand at more quizzes from Fox News Digital, click here. 

Also, to take our latest News Quiz — published every Friday — click here.

American Culture Quiz! How well do you know this week’s topics? (Getty Images; iStock)