24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic advanced to the US Open third round when his compatriot Laslo Djere retired early in the third set. The second seed led 6-4, 6-4, 2-0 before the retirement under the roof of Arthur Ashe Stadium.

By advancing, Djokovic became the first male player to record 90 wins at all four majors. He is eight victories shy of tying Jimmy Connors for most US Open match wins.

The first set alone took a full hour. Djokovic prevailed, 6-4, by winning every point on Djere’s serve in the 10th game.

The first game of the second set was another battle. It took 16 minutes and included four deuces as the stifling humidity took its toll. Djokovic slipped on the court a few times, including once on his braced right knee, the one that suffered a torn meniscus at the French Open back in May. But the Serb held serve despite his fifth double fault of the match.

Indian equity indices opened flat on Thursday due to negative cues from Asian and US markets.

At 9.40 a.m., Sensex was at 81,816, up 31 points and Nifty was up 19 points at 25,071.

During the early trading hour, the Overall market trend remains positive. On the National Stock Exchange (NSE), 1,134 shares are in the green and 759 shares in the red.

Marginal buying is seen in the smallcap and midcap stocks. Nifty midcap 100 index is up 21 points or 0.04 per cent at 59,179 and the Nifty smallcap 100 index is up 46 points or 0.23 per cent at 19,369.

Among the sectoral indices, PSU Bank, fin service, pharma, FMCG and media are the major gainers. Metal, energy, realty and infra are major laggards.

In the Sensex pack, Tech Mahindra, HDFC Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Sun Pharma, Power Grid, NTPC, Nestle, ITC, Wipro and Tata Motors are the top gainers. UltraTech Cement, Infosys, HCL Tech, Tata Steel, Maruti Suzuki, JSW Steel and Axis Bank are the top losers.

Shares of budget carrier Indigo marginally fell in the morning trade on Thursday after a block deal where at least 2.3 crore shares of the aviation major exchanged hands in a deal worth Rs 11,000 crore at a floor price of Rs 4,760 apiece.

Nearly 6 per cent stake in InterGlobe Aviation, parent company of IndiGo, were sold in a block deal.

According to multiple reports, promoter and co-founder Rakesh Gangwal is the likely seller in the block deal.

At 9.15 am, a block of 22,652,485 shares changed hands on the BSE at a price of Rs 4,762.55 per share. Further, 23.23 million shares had changed hands on the BSE.

According to reports, Gangwal was expected to offload nearly 5.8 per cent of his stake in InterGlobe Aviation. At the end of the June quarter, Gangwal held 5.89 per cent stake in IndiGo.

Argentine midfielder Carlos Alcaraz has joined Flamengo from Premier League side Southampton, both clubs have announced.

The 21-year-old agreed to personal terms of a deal that ties him to the Brazilian Serie A outfit until August 2029.

"Another signing is confirmed," read a statement on Flamengo's official website. "[Alcaraz] arrives to strengthen the squad for the league, Copa do Brasil and Copa Libertadores."

Alcaraz made 48 appearances for Southampton and scored eight goals following his 2023 move from Racing Club. He spent the second half of last season at Italian giants Juventus, reports.

"The club would like to thank Charly for his efforts during his time at Southampton, and wish him well for the future," the English club said in a statement.

Three terrorists were killed on Thursday in two encounters in J&K’s Kupwara district as the third operation against terrorists continued in the Rajouri district.

Officials said that two terrorists were killed in the Machail sector and one in the Tangdhar sector of Kupwara district when the Army foiled infiltration bids in these areas of the Line of Control (LoC).

“Three terrorists have been killed in two anti-infiltration operations, two in Kumkadi area of Machail and one in Tangdhar sector in Kupwara district on Thursday. In the ongoing anti-Infiltration operation two terrorist bodies have been seen by distance in the Kumkadi area and one terrorist body in the Tangdhar area. Due to inclement weather as it is raining heavily in the area, the search operation has been hampered. Once the weather improves operation in the area will continue”, officials said.

The Officials said earlier that following intelligence inputs about the presence of a group of terrorists in Lathi village of Rajouri district, security forces including the Army, local police and the CRPF started a CASO (Cordon & Search Operation).

Actor Pankaj Tripathi has opened up on his 'no-birthday' policy, sharing his views about the birthday celebrations done on the social media now a days.

In a podcast with Samdish Bhatia, titled 'Unfiltered by Samdish', Pankaj expressed the reason why he doesn't celebrates his birthday.

The video shows Samdish asking Pankaj: "aapka janamdin kab aata hai?" (When is your birthday?)

India's FinTech sector has received investments of about $6 billion in the last two years alone while the number of FinTechs in the country has gone up to around 11,000, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said on Wednesday.

Addressing the 5th edition of the Global Fintech Fest here, Das said: "India is now a fast-growing economic powerhouse with an increasingly tech-savvy population. India's financial sector has witnessed a remarkable transformation, driven among other factors by the FinTech sector."

Setting the priorities for India@100, the RBI Governor said that this journey will be marked by dynamic shifts in technology, regulation, geopolitics and societal expectations. Financial institutions and FinTech startups alike must, therefore, adapt swiftly, leveraging agile strategies and robust frameworks to capitalise on the new opportunities while mitigating the connected risks.

RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das on Wednesday said that based on the encouraging response received from several jurisdictions, the apex bank is now focusing on making "UPI and RuPay truly global".

"The deployment of UPI-like infrastructure in foreign jurisdictions, facilitating QR code-based payment acceptance through UPI apps at international merchant locations, and interlinking UPI with Fast Payment Systems (FPS) of other countries for cross-border remittances are on top of our agenda," Das said in his address at the Global Fintech Fest here.

He pointed out that notable progress in this direction has already been made in countries like Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Singapore, the UAE, Mauritius, Namibia, Peru, France and a few other countries.

"These endeavours underscore collaborative efforts for the adoption of India’s initiatives across the globe. I would like to compliment the NPCI and my colleagues in the Reserve Bank for what has been achieved so far, but we must resolve to do more in this national endeavour," the RBI Governor said.

A total of 31 people were killed in unprecedented floods caused by seasonal rains in parts of Bangladesh, a government report said on Wednesday.

According to the report by the National Disaster Response Coordination Center under the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief, 12 deaths were reported in Cumilla district, some 96 km east of the capital Dhaka.

The ongoing devastating floods have left 1.23 million people marooned in about a dozen southeastern and northeastern districts. Nearly 6 million people were affected by the sudden flash flood and water congestion in 11 out of the country's total 64 districts, said the report.

The amount of cannabis seized from smugglers at airports in the United Kingdom (UK) so far this year is already three times the total for 2023, the National Crime Agency (NCA) said on Wednesday.

According to the NCA, an estimated 15 tons of cannabis have been seized so far this year, compared to approximately five tons in all of 2023. This also represents "a staggering increase" from the two tonnes seized in 2022,

The trend has been fueled by organized crime gangs, who have access to cannabis grown overseas in locations where it is legal, the NCA said. These gangs recruit couriers to transport the drugs to the UK, where they generate greater profits.

"Illegal drugs cause harm to communities and fuel criminal gangs," said Seema Malhotra, minister for immigration and citizenship. "We will not tolerate people attempting to bring them into our country,"news agency reported.