NEW DELHI: Saudi ​Arabia will stage its ‌first ​professional Twenty20 league in October, marking a major milestone in the Kingdom's sporting development, organisers said on ⁠Thursday.Here are some details:The six-team league will begin in the second ‌week of October featuring "legends of the international game" alongside ‌emerging talentSouth Asian ‌Network Limited was awarded ‌the rights by ‌the Saudi Arabian Cricket Federation in ​2025 to ‌establish ​and run the ⁠Kingdom's first professional T20 cricket competitionThe league aims ​to ⁠grow ⁠cricket across the Gulf by creating opportunities for local ⁠players and delivering a world-class sports and entertainment product.Retired India stalwart Yuvraj Singh will act as ‌league ambassadorDetails on venues, teams, broadcast ​partners, and commercial partners will be announced later 

ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE: U.S. President Donald Trump said his ‌patience with Iran was running out and ​that Chinese President Xi Jinping had agreed during their talks in Beijing that Tehran must reopen the Strait of Hormuz.Trump said later that he was considering whether to lift sanctions on Chinese oil companies buying Iranian oil imposed by Washington ahead of his trip to China.But his comments gave little indication of whether Beijing might use its influence with Tehran to end a conflict it said should never have started."We've settled a lot of different problems that other people wouldn't have been able to settle," Trump said on Friday after he met Xi in Beijing on the second day of talks which included the Iran war, Taiwan, trade and other issues.Xi did not comment on his discussions with Trump about Iran, although ⁠China's foreign ministry issued a blunt statement outlining Beijing's frustration with the Iran war."This conflict, which should never have happened, has no reason to continue," the ministry said.Iran effectively shut the strait to most shipping traffic in response to U.S.-Israeli attacks which began on February 28, causing an unprecedented disruption to global energy supplies.'WE WANT THE STRAITS OPEN'The U.S. paused its attacks on Iran last month but began a blockade of the country's ports. Tehran said it would not unblock the strait until the U.S. ended its blockade. Trump has threatened ‌to attack Iran again if it does not agree a deal."We don't want them to have a nuclear weapon, we want the straits open," Trump said in Beijing sitting alongside Xi.Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Tehran had received messages from the U.S. indicating Washington was willing to continue talks. He did not immediately elaborate.Iran, which denies it intends to build a nuclear weapon, has refused to end ‌its nuclear program or relinquish its hidden stockpile of enriched uranium, to Trump's frustration."I am not going to be much more ‌patient. They should make a deal," Trump said in an interview aired on Thursday night on Fox News' "Hannity" program, suggesting the enriched uranium only needed to be secured by the ‌U.S. for public relations purposes.Oil prices rose around 3% to near $109 a ‌barrel on concerns over a lack of progress in resolving the conflict.After talks between Trump and Xi on Thursday, the White House said that Xi had made clear China's opposition to any Iranian effort to charge a toll for use of the strait.Trump ​said Xi also promised not to send ‌Iran military equipment. "That’s a big statement," Trump said on "Hannity".Asked about U.S. ​sanctions on Chinese oil refineries buying Iranian oil, he told reporters on his ⁠plane home: "We talked about that and I'm going to make a decision over the next few days."War a liability for TrumpThe war has become a liability for Trump as it drags on towards key U.S. midterm elections in November.China has dismissed reports it had plans to supply weapons to Iran as "groundless smears", but analysts doubt Xi will be willing to push Iran hard ​or end support for its military, given its value ⁠as a strategic counterweight to the United States."I'm not ⁠asking for any favours, because when you ask for favors, you have to do favors in return," Trump said, when asked if he had requested help. "We've wiped out their (Iran's) armed forces, essentially. We may have to do a little cleanup work."Talks on ending the war, mediated by Pakistan, have been on hold since last week when Iran and the U.S. each rejected the other's most ⁠recent proposals.Foreign Minister Araqchi said on Friday Iran would welcome any Chinese input, adding that Tehran was trying to give diplomacy a chance but did not trust the U.S.Iran is prepared to return to fighting as well as for diplomatic solutions, Araqchi said, reiterating that vessels not linked to states attacking his country could traverse the Strait of Hormuz.Before the war, about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas as well as fertilizer and other vital supplies passed through the waterway. Attacks on shipping have prevented almost all traffic although a huge Chinese tanker and another linked to Japan crossed the strait on Wednesday.LEBANON TALKS AIM TO EXTEND CEASEFIREThousands of Iranians were killed during the U.S. and Israeli air strikes, and thousands have ​been killed in renewed fighting in Lebanon between Israel and the Iran-backed group Hezbollah.With a fragile ceasefire in Lebanon due to expire on Sunday, discussions between Lebanese and Israeli officials were set to continue on Friday after what a senior State Department official said were productive talks on Thursday. Hezbollah opposes the talks, in which Israel is insisting on the group's disarmament.Trump has said his aims in starting the war were to destroy Iran's nuclear program, end its ability to attack neighbors and make it easier for Iranians to overthrow their government.Iran is seeking the lifting ​of sanctions, reparations for war damage and acknowledgment of its control over the ‌strait.