The New York Times: Ο Ζόχραν Μαμντάνι και οι εκλογές για την πόλη της Νέας Υόρκης-Ένας φονικός σεισμός στο Αφγανιστάν-Ντυμένοι μαύρα στην Μπανγκόκ-Ινδές γυναίκες και «το παιχνίδι των κυρίων»-Οι Νεοϋορκέζοι επιλέγουν τον επόμενο δήμαρχό τους-Ο Εμανουέλ Καρέρ, ένας από τους πιο αναγνωρισμένους συγγραφείς μη μυθοπλασίας της Γαλλίας, είναι φιναλίστ για το βραβείο Γκονκούρ, το οποίο θα απονεμηθεί σήμερα, για το μπεστ σέλερ βιβλίο του «Κολχόζ»-Τι φορούν στην… Μπανγκόκ

The Indian women’s team victory in the World Cup semifinal against Australia on Thursday. Punit Paranjpe/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Indian women and ‘the gentlemen’s game’

It has been the highest, hardest glass ceiling in Indian sports.

Cricket is watched or played in almost every household in this country of 1.4 billion people. The sport generates hundreds of millions of dollars in business every year. But up until recently, the spotlight, and the accompanying wealth, was mostly reserved for men.

Then, on Sunday, India’s national women’s cricket team won the World Cup. The Mumbai stadium, packed with 40,000 fans, erupted in cheers. People poured onto the streets across the country in celebration.

A World Cup victory four decades ago helped transform the men’s game, turning it from a casual pastime into a national obsession. If this weekend’s win is similarly transformative for the women’s game, it could have real impact on the lives of women and girls across the country.

Higher pay and endorsement deals

Today, male cricketers are among India’s most revered celebrities. They’re faces on billboards and permanent fixtures in TV ads. Some are even more popular than Bollywood stars.

The Indian Premier League is now valued at over $8 billion. The top player makes about $3 million for a season that lasts about two months.

Up until only a few years ago, the women’s game was effectively semiprofessional. Early in her career, India’s captain, Harmanpreet Kaur, juggled a day job as a railway clerk with practices for the national team.

But things began to change with $500 million in private investment to set up a women’s premier league three years ago. Suddenly women’s cricket was on television, and teams were scouring the country for talent.

Today, the pay on the national team has improved, though the highest female player’s salary is still less than one-tenth of the highest male player’s. The private franchises are where the pay is really life-changing: Smriti Mandhana, one of cricket’s most recognizable faces, now makes just short of half a million dollars for a month’s play.

Women are also seeing endorsement deals. The players, many of whom have large online followings, are the faces of products in sectors as varied as banking, sports apparel and house paint. On the day of the team’s World Cup victory, brands like Nike and Puma were already pushing out ads featuring the team’s stars.

A special sport

Despite India’s many female deities and longstanding matriarchal traditions, women still remain largely confined to traditional gender roles here. Their participation rate in the formal labor force is among the lowest in the world.

Cricket can only do so much about this, of course. But this sudden change in fortunes for a sport with so much prominence, that’s so embedded in daily life here, has the capacity to chip away at restrictive expectations of women’s roles in a new way.

Much of the talent in women’s cricket comes from small towns. Kaur, for instance, grew up in a small city in the country’s Punjab region.

Kaur had to play with boys while growing up because there were few female youth teams. Today, in places like her home state, there are training academies and girls’ leagues for a variety of ages. If cricket money actually starts reaching girls in far-flung places, it could have big effects for those communities. But the bigger impact might be psychological — seeing female hometown heroes on billboards and celebrated on TV could start to influence families’ conceptions of who girls could grow up to be.

I watched a few of the World Cup matches. In the stands were entire families, fathers and daughters and grandmothers. Some had flown halfway across the country. There was a father and son who came to watch the India vs. England match and knew every player in the arena. One father had technical pointers. “Watch the footwork,” he said as Mandhana was batting.

Social media has been abuzz with passionate debate on India’s performance. Much of it wasn’t exactly feminist. “Stick to kitchen, Harman and team ,” one troll, with 16,000 followers, said on X when India lost close matches.

Then India beat seven-time champions Australia to widespread jubilation in the semifinal, and the troll found himself eating his words: “Sorry Harman and team,” he wrote. “I belong in the kitchen.”

Zohran Mamdani at a basketball game in New York City on Sunday.  Jonah Markowitz for The New York Times

New Yorkers pick their next mayor

The city that gave the world Donald Trump appears poised today to elect a democratic socialist and political newcomer as its next leader: Zohran Mamdani. He would be the first Muslim and millennial to lead the city.

The 34-year-old, who has spoken about his faith, his Indian-Ugandan roots and his pro-Palestinian activism during his campaign, is the clear front-runner. He has a double-digit polling lead over Andrew Cuomo, the former New York governor who is running as an independent after Mamdani handily defeated him in the Democratic primary, and Curtis Sliwa, the Republican nominee.

Mamdani has made affordability a central issue in his campaign: He wants to make city buses free and enact universal child care. Critics point to his limited experience in government. President Trump, who has referred to him as a “liddle’ communist,” endorsed Cuomo on Monday and has threatened to withhold federal funding for the city, “other than the very minimum as required,” if Mamdani wins.

Football: Explore the dizzying and chaotic world of Barcelona’s finances.

Tennis: The contest between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz to become the No. 1 men’s player in the world will come down to the ATP Tour Finals.

Bird Theory

— A viral TikTok test intended to measure a couple’s connectedness. One partner points out a bird to the other, or recalls a bird encounter. A partner who responds with curiosity passes the test. A partner who doesn’t fails.

Emmanuel Carrère in Paris in September.  Dmitry Kostyukov for The New York Times

Emmanuel Carrère, one of France’s most acclaimed nonfiction writers, is a finalist for the prestigious Goncourt Prize, which will be awarded today, for his best seller “Kolkhoze.” The book explores Carrère’s Russian roots and his relationship with his mother, who was France’s leading historian of Russia.

He spoke to my colleague Constant Méheut about how the war in Ukraine has forced him to rethink his affection for Russia. “Something inside me was shattered,” he said.

Chanakarn Laosarakham/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

What they’re wearing in … Bangkok

Thailand is in mourning garb after the death of former Queen Sirikit, the mother of the current king, last month at 93.

To honor her, Thais are trading tropical-themed clothes for more somber attire during the 90-day official mourning period. Seemingly overnight, shops outfitted mannequins in black, black and more black. Government officials, civil servants and employees of state companies will most likely need wardrobe updates. For them, mourning lasts a full year.

In Bangkok, vacationers in bright clothes now stand out more than ever. Flashy festivities have been canceled or toned down.

The death of Sirikit signified the end of an era linked, at least through the gauze of nostalgia, with grace, glamour and economic expansion. She married King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who ascended to the throne in 1946 and ruled until his death in 2016. A patron of the arts, she once dreamed of becoming a concert pianist. Her sartorial style is the subject of a museum exhibition in Bangkok. There, at least, there’s very little black on display. — Hannah Beech, our senior Asia correspondent, who is based in Bangkok.

Watch: Nia DaCosta’s intelligence as a writer and director makes “Hedda” a standout film, our critic writes.

Guess: Can you match the first lines of these novels to their titles?

Travel: Here’s how to get your trip back on track if you miss your flight.

Energize: Reverse the afternoon slump with this short, refreshing yoga routine.

Adding flaked tuna to pasta aglio e olio (pasta with garlic and oil) turns the ultimate Italian pantry meal into something even more satisfying.