• Curator was in a ‘state of shock’ watching match unfold

• ‘We’re very, very disappointed it’s only gone two days’

The MCG’s head curator has conceded staff went “too far” in preparing a pitch that favoured the bowlers too heavily in the Boxing Day Test, saying he was in a “state of shock” while watching the match unfold.

But the stadium’s chief executive is standing by the under-fire curator after the Test match between Australia and England finished within two days.

Two countries pledge in joint statement to halt all forms of attacks and further troop deployments in long-running dispute over contested territory

Thailand and Cambodia have agreed to an “immediate” ceasefire, pledging to end weeks of deadly border clashes that have killed more than 100 people and displaced more than half a million on both sides.

In a joint statement, the two south-east Asian neighbours said the ceasefire would take effect on Saturday at noon local time and involve “all types of weapons, including attacks on civilians, civilian objects and infrastructures, and military objectives of either side, in all cases and all areas”.

North Korea leader speaks of ‘really meaningful year’ for alliance with Moscow; Zelenskyy accuses Russia of using Belarus apartments to attack Ukraine. What we know on day 1,403

Parts of the US right have for years been amplifying claims that Christians face violence in Nigeria, a notion the US president has helped to encourage

After spending weeks accusing Nigeria’s government of failing to tackle the persecution of Christians, Donald Trump announced a series of strikes on the west African country on Christmas Day.

The strikes, targeting Islamic State militants in the country’s north, mark the latest overseas military intervention from Trump, who campaigned on a promise to extricate the US from decades of “endless wars” during his 2024 run for president.