A Leeds fans’ group has accused chairman Andrea Radrizzani of “appalling” behaviour and demanded he immediately sells the club and Elland Road.

Leeds United Supporters Club (LUSC) has responded to The Athletic’s report that majority shareholder Radrizzani had offered to use the Elland Road stadium as collateral when securing a £26million bank loan to buy Sampdoria.

Radrizzani’s company Aser Group, in partnership with finance company Gestio Capital, concluded a takeover of the debt-ridden Italian club on Tuesday night.

The 48-year-old signed off an agreement in principle to use Elland Road as collateral in order to borrow the funds needed from Italian bank Banca Sistema to complete the deal, it was reported.

The Athletic said it was not known whether Elland Road was included in the final deal, or if Radrizzani’s company and partner Gestio Capital were able to secure the loan via a different method.

LUSC chairman Lord Mann said in a statement: “Andrea Radrizzani is no longer an appropriate person to own Leeds United.

“His behaviour is appalling and he risks never being welcome at our club again.”

It had been expected that Radrizzani’s buy-out at Sampdoria would expedite the sale of his 56 per cent stake in Leeds to American co-owners 49ers Enterprises.

The financial arm of NFL franchise the San Francisco 49ers increased its stake in Leeds to 44 per cent at the end of 2021 with a deal in place to buy Radrizzani’s stake and take full control before January 2024.

But in a personal statement posted on Twitter on Wednesday night, Radrizzani made no mention of a possible change of ownership at Leeds when apologising to fans for their relegation from the Premier League.

Lord Mann added: “The sooner he goes the better and we look forward to the 49ers Enterprises’ offer being accepted.

“The only way he can begin to salvage his reputation is through an immediate sale of the club and the stadium.

“There will be a major question mark about whether he is a fit and proper person to own a football club if he attempts to stay on as owner.”

It was also reported that co-owners 49ers Enterprises and Leeds chief executive Angus Kinnear were unaware of Radrizzani’s proposal to use Elland Road as security on his loan.

Leeds have not owned their stadium since 2004. After Radrizzani completed his full takeover of the club in 2017, he bought it back and it is currently owned by Elland Road Ltd, of which the Italian is a director.

Leeds refused to comment when approached by the PA news agency, while others fans’ groups, including Leeds United Supporters Trust, said they were seeking clarification from the club.

National fans group, the Football Supporters Association, said on Twitter that “these are concerning times” for Leeds supporters and added it was further evidence that the Premier League “needed independent regulation”.

Stuart Broad toasted the near-perfect start to a big summer after his five-wicket haul helped England dismiss Ireland for 172 before the hosts finished only 20 runs behind on the opening day of the one-off Test at Lord’s.

Broad ripped through the Irish top order during the first hour on his way to figures of five for 51 from 17 overs to get himself on the Lord’s honours board for the first time since 2013.

James McCollum (36), Paul Stirling (30) and Curtis Campher (33) all made starts but could not kick on with Jack Leach helping himself to three wickets and Matthew Potts securing a brace of scalps.

It was then over to Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley, who wasted little time getting back into the groove and played true to the aggressive ‘Bazball’ style that has taken the nation by storm with fifties in a century opening stand to help England close on 152 for one.

“When you win the toss and bowl, your aim is to bowl the team out in a day so to have done that was a big tick,” Broad reflected a day before the one-year anniversary of the Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum era.

“Then I thought the way the three guys played this evening was exactly the mindset that Baz and Stokesy want. It was positive, aggressive, put the bowlers under pressure and we’ll hopefully see a bit more of that tomorrow.

“It is obviously always nice when you get on the honours board at Lords but no major difference between four wickets and five wickets really.

“It feels good for me leading the attack this week to have taken a few poles and got us on the front foot as a team, but I thought we did really well as a whole group. It is almost the perfect start to a big summer.”

With James Anderson and Ollie Robinson rested ahead of the Ashes opener on June 16, Broad relished the chance to lead an England attack that contained debutant Josh Tongue and Potts playing his first Test since August.

The Nottinghamshire seamer claimed the 20th five-wicket haul of his Test career to move within 19 of the 600-wicket mark which could be achieved during the upcoming series with Australia.

Broad is not nailed on to start the first Test at Edgbaston with Mark Wood and Chris Woakes for competition but did his case no harm and accepts he will sit out some Ashes fixtures during the next two months.

He added: “I love Ashes cricket but I can honestly say to you whether I play the first, the second or the fifth (Test), my mindset is the same, just have an impact on the game, change the momentum and look to put in a performance that will win the Test.

“I feel like I have done that. I bowled beautifully in my first Test match at Mount Maunganui after last summer, bowled nicely at Wellington, bowled nicely here today.

“I think we all know, not that there has been any talk of the Ashes in our group, that we need an armoury of bowlers over the next six weeks.

“The games come round thick and fast and it is unrealistic to think any bowler will play six Tests in a row, so we’ll need a few of us to be ripe and ready.

“It is great when you look around the changing room, obviously there are a few injuries about with Jof (Jofra Archer) and (Olly) Stoney, then niggles with Robbo and Jimmy, but you only have to look at the bowlers that aren’t playing this week like Woakesy, Jimmy, Robbo and Woody to know we have a lot of strength in depth.”

England captain Ben Stokes was not required to bowl with Ireland all out in the 57th over and after debutant Tongue impressed in an enforcer role that saw him clock 91mph.

Ireland head coach Heinrich Malan was left disappointed with their showing after a poor batting display was followed by Crawley crunching 56 off 45 balls while Duckett finished on 60 not out alongside Ollie Pope, unbeaten on 29, after they tucked into some wayward bowling by the tourists.

“Obviously not our best day, to be honest, I think it’s a little bit more disappointment around the way we went about our business,” Malan said.

“I didn’t necessarily think that they played, you know, Bazball, if you want to term it that way, because I just think we didn’t bowl that well.

“They batted pretty well, with us bowling pretty averagely. So look, I hope we can bowl a little bit better tomorrow.”

Sixteen-year-old Mirra Andreeva said she dreams of winning 25 grand slam titles after reaching the third round of the French Open.

The prodigious Russian talent came through qualifying and has lost just six games in her first two main-draw matches, beating France’s Diane Parry 6-1 6-2 on Thursday.

Andreeva only turned 16 at the end of April and is setting her sights sky high for her tennis career.

“The dream: I know that (Novak) Djokovic, he did 22 grand slams, so I want to go until 25, if it will be possible,” said the confident teenager.

Andreeva will try to keep her feet on the ground, though, adding: “As my coach says, to not be like a diva, to stay humble all the time. I don’t think that I have a lot of success now. I didn’t win any tournaments. I just play. It’s the third round of Roland Garros. I will play.”

Defending champion Iga Swiatek again had a tough first set, this time against American Claire Liu, before pulling away to win 6-4 6-0.

The world number one, who celebrated her 22nd birthday on Wednesday, had difficulty finding her rhythm in windy conditions.

Swiatek would rather play on Philippe Chatrier in the day than at night, though, and revealed she has been requesting not to feature in the late prime-time session.

Every night session so far has consisted of a men’s match despite organisers facing criticism last year for not giving equal billing to the women.

“I felt like I played already night sessions in this clay court swing,” said Swiatek. “Obviously it would be nice if we had women’s matches as well. But I’m not helping.”

Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina fought off a Czech teenager for the second straight round, following up her success against 16-year-old Brenda Fruhvirtova by defeating 18-year-old Linda Noskova 6-3 6-3.

Seventh seed Ons Jabeur has looked strong so far, the Tunisian seeing off Oceane Dodin 6-2 6-3, while Kayla Day upset American compatriot Madison Keys 6-2 4-6 6-4.

Cardiff prop Rhys Carre has been released from Wales’ preliminary Rugby World Cup training squad after failing to meet individual performance targets.

The Welsh Rugby Union said in a statement: “Rhys Carre has been released from the Wales senior men’s preliminary training squad for Rugby World Cup 2023.

“Following ongoing discussions between the player and the Wales coaching team, Carre has failed to meet individual performance targets set at the end of the 2023 Guinness Six Nations.”

Carre was one of 10 props selected in the training squad alongside Nicky Smith, Corey Domachowski, Gareth Thomas, Kemsley Mathias, Tomas Francis, Dillon Lewis, Keiron Assiratti, Henry Thomas and Will Davies-King.

Domachowski, Mathias, Assiratti, Thomas and Davies-King are all uncapped, while Carre has made 20 Test match appearances.

His Wales debut came in 2019, and he was also part of the World Cup squad in Japan later that year.

Carre, 25, has become the fourth player to depart head coach Warren Gatland’s 54-man group that he announced last month.

Ospreys trio Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric and Rhys Webb all announced their international retirements ahead of the World Cup in France later this year after being named in the squad.

Wales play three World Cup warm-up games in August, with their tournament opener being against Fiji in Bordeaux on September 10.

Eighth seed Jannik Sinner was toppled by German Daniel Altmaier in a five-hour epic at the French Open.

In a tremendous atmosphere on Suzanne Lenglen, Altmaier clinched a 6-7 (0) 7-6 (7) 1-6 7-6 (4) 7-5 second-round victory after five hours and 26 minutes – the fifth longest match in the tournament’s history – having saved two match points when Sinner served for the win in the fourth set.

A tense finale saw Altmaier broken when he served for the match for the first time at 5-4 in the decider and then pegged back from 40-0 at 6-5.

Italian Sinner had three chances to force a deciding tie-break, and chucked his racket to the clay in anger after missing the final one, before Altmaier, ranked 79, took his fifth chance with an ace.

The German, who lost to Sinner in five sets at the US Open, sat in his chair sobbing afterwards, saying: “I love clay and I love the crowd and everything. The emotions were crazy.”

Altmaier, who reached the fourth round on his Roland Garros debut in 2020, next faces Grigor Dimitrov after the Bulgarian’s more straightforward 7-6 (4) 6-3 6-4 victory over Emil Ruusuvuori.

An open bottom half is now even more so, with fourth seed Casper Ruud the highest-ranked player remaining.

The Norwegian appears to be playing himself into form at the right time after a difficult season so far, and said after a 6-3 6-2 4-6 7-5 victory over Giulio Zeppieri: “It was tough to try to finish the match, and it was a two tough sets, but I’m happy to win one of them and be through to the third round.”

Twelfth seed Frances Tiafoe fought back from a set down to defeat Aslan Karatsev 3-6 6-3 7-5 6-2 but 18th seed Alex De Minaur fell in straight sets to Argentina’s Tomas Etcheverry.

Etcheverry next meets 15th seed Borna Coric, who won another five setter against Pedro Cachin, and Thiago Seyboth Wild followed up his upset of second seed Daniil Medvedev by beating Guido Pella 6-3 3-6 6-4 6-3.

Celtic defender Alistair Johnston is confident they will not be blown off course by speculation over their manager ahead of the Scottish Cup final.

Johnston admits hearing talk of Tottenham’s reported interest in Ange Postecoglou is unavoidable, but the manager and skipper Callum McGregor especially will not allow it to become a distraction.

The right-back, who has been passed fit for Saturday’s Hampden clash with Inverness, said: “Trust me, we all hear the noise. We have got Sky Sports on and it seems like every other story that’s running is that one.

“But it comes from the top down for us; Cal doesn’t let any noise in and the gaffer definitely doesn’t let any noise in. It’s just been the gaffer as I know him and I don’t think anyone was expecting anything different.

“This ship is steering straight where it needs to go right to that cup final.

“We just don’t let that kind of stuff creep into the building in terms of letting guys’ heads turn.

“That’s super important and I think that goes to show why this club has been so successful, we don’t let that kind of stuff affect players.

“You can always tell when someone’s head is turned or something is going on, they just play a little bit off, or they don’t truly feel all the way there.

“But that’s never been the case at all in my time here. Even when guys were leaving, and guys did leave in that January window, everyone was still training as hard as possible up until the day they left.

“I found that very impressive but, again, that comes from the top down. You are not allowed to have a wandering eye, because if you do you are going to get found out and this squad is so deep that you will be out of the squad as quick as that. That’s what we have here and I think that’s really special.

“I know there’s a lot of talk but we are not bothered, we are not worrying about that, we are just focused on this cup final.”

The Canada international has not felt the need for anyone inside Celtic Park to give the players any reassurances over Postecoglou’s future.

“None of it’s really needed,” he said. “We are all professionals, we understand it’s going to come with the job. When you are super successful, you are going to be linked with other things.

“We don’t feel that’s something that needs to be brought up because it’s just a distraction.

“No words need to be spoken about that. It’s simple: head down, work hard, and hope you are going to be in the squad for the cup final and have a chance to lift the trophy.”

Celtic fans are searching for clues that might mean their popular manager decides to stay in Glasgow despite the lure of the Premier League, and Johnston feels there is a real determination from Postecoglou and his players to improve in the Champions League next season.

Another title win ensured they will be in the group stage again and they are looking to improve on their two-point tally from last season.

Johnston said: “I have just gotten here. He was a big reason, just talking to him and seeing how he plays and his goals for the club, not only domestically but in the Champions League as well.

“Obviously I wasn’t here for the run this year but the guys felt they left a little on the table, the performances were strong but the results maybe weren’t. So I think everybody is excited to have another crack at it.

“We have a lot of really determined and hungry individuals who want to prove that, just because we are in Scotland, doesn’t mean we can’t compete with those massive European clubs.

“That’s really important to us and important to the manager as well.

“That’s something we are all building towards. The gaffer has been signing players with that intention. In my talk with him, it was that we want to be dominant domestically but we also want to take that next step at the international level, and that’s something we are going to be looking for next season especially.”

Sports stars and clubs across the world continue to provide an insight into their lives on social media.

Here, the PA news agency looks at some of the best examples from June 1.

Things escalated for Peter Crouch.

Declan Rice was getting ready.

Phil Jones thanked Manchester United.

Georginio Wijnaldum reflects on a disappointing night for Roma.

Arsenal kept hold of Frida Maanum.

Gary Lineker suggested a rebrand after Sevilla’s domination of the Europa League continued.

Liverpool recalled a big day in their history.

There were birthday wishes for Javier Hernandez.

Stuart Broad claims five.

England handed a debut to Josh Tongue.

The Barmy Army mocked David Warner.

Emma Raducanu split from her coach.

Aidan O’Brien will stick to a tried and tested method and let his riders plot their way around Epsom in the Betfred Derby on Saturday.

The Ballydoyle trainer’s trio of runners is headed by Auguste Rodin, who will start his race in stall 10, with San Antonio in stall 12 and Adelaide River in stall 14.

Auguste Rodin’s draw has produced plenty of Derby winners – but O’Brien does not put a great deal of emphasis on the berths assigned to his runners in the premier Classic, a position he can take from experience having enjoyed eight triumphs as the most successful trainer in Derby history.

“The lads will make up their minds what they want to do out of each of the stalls and the draws are what they are. That is the way we always look at the draws,” he said.

“We don’t ever think too much about the draws to tell you the truth because it is all about where the pace is going to be and how it is going to work out and if your horse comes out well or if it doesn’t come out. It is all split-second stuff. You could end up thinking you have a bad draw but end up with a very good position.

“We are like everybody else as we don’t know what will happen as it is their first time on the track and that ground and over that trip. Epsom is the ultimate test of a three year old, both mentally and physically.

“Epsom is straight up the hill at the start and it gives every horse the chance to get in a position really.

“They seem to be in good form and we think they all have chances and everything has gone well since their last runs. We are happy with how all three are going into the race.”

Auguste Rodin has long been at the head of the market, a position that has not changed even with his defeat in the 2000 Guineas.

O’Brien added: “I don’t really (feel any extra pressure with Auguste Rodin). We are like everybody else as we don’t know what will happen as it is their first time on the track and that ground and over that trip. Epsom is the ultimate test of a three-year-old, both mentally and physically.”

Barry Robson is delighted to have added “a proven leader” to his squad after Aberdeen confirmed the arrival of former Livingston captain Nicky Devlin on a two-year deal.

The 29-year-old’s switch to Pittodrie was already common knowledge after a photo emerged a fortnight ago of the player and his agent signing his pre-contract with the Dons.

Devlin even spoke briefly about his impending move to Aberdeen last week at a pre-match media conference ahead of his penultimate outing for Livingston against Motherwell.

The Dons were finally able to officially announce the signing on Thursday.

“Nicky is a proven leader and is exactly the type of character I want within my squad here,” manager Robson told the Reds’ website.

“He is an experienced professional who has been captain at two previous clubs, he knows the league well and is equipped for the demands we are going to face next season.”

Devlin has also played for Dumbarton, Stenhousemuir, Ayr United – where he was also skipper – and Walsall.

The 29-year-old is looking forward to his first taste of European football, with the Dons set for guaranteed group-stage involvement until Christmas if Celtic defeat Inverness in Saturday’s Scottish Cup final.

“It’s great to be an Aberdeen player and I am really looking forward to the season ahead,” he said.

“Aberdeen really impressed me when the conversations first started about a potential move.

“The way the manager wants to take the club forward and the personal touches from all the staff contributed to my decision. Aberdeen was definitely the best fit for me.

“The opportunity to play in Europe was clearly an added attraction.

“I’ve had to work hard in my career to get where I am and so I want to do my very best at Aberdeen and grasp the fantastic opportunity I’ve been given.”

Stuart Broad claimed his first five-wicket haul at Lord’s for 10 years to help England dismiss Ireland for 172 on the first day of this eagerly-anticipated summer.

Broad ripped through the Irish top order during the first hour of this one-off Test with three wickets to reduce the tourists to 64 for four despite Paul Stirling’s entertaining knock of 30.

When opener James McCollum edged behind soon after lunch to depart for 36 to give Broad a fourth scalp, Ireland were wobbling on 98 for five but Curtis Campher held firm to ensure Ireland made it through a second session.

Broad would not have to wait long after tea to add his name to the Lord’s honours board though with Mark Adair bowled to give the Nottinghamshire seamer figures of five for 51 off 17 overs.

Jack Leach chipped in with three scalps, including the dismissal of Ireland all-rounder Campher for a dogged 33, and Matthew Potts also claimed his first Test wickets since August to ensure Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum’s team started their Ashes preparations strongly.

England’s journey to Lord’s from their Kensington hotel had been delayed by five minutes due to Just Stop Oil protesters and enhanced security measures were put in place by the MCC to thwart any potential disruptions during the four-day Test.

With overcast conditions and a green wicket at the Home of Cricket, it was no surprise when Stokes put Ireland into bat after he won the toss and Broad quickly set about trying to get his name on the honours board again.

In the absence of rested duo James Anderson and Ollie Robinson, the Nottinghamshire seamer produced a fine opening spell of three for 14 from five overs.

It did take Broad until the third over to make the breakthrough but Peter Moor, fresh from a century in the warm-up fixture at Essex last weekend, was pinned in front lbw for 10.

Broad’s next over produced even more drama with Ireland captain Andrew Balbirnie out for a five-ball duck after he edged to second slip where Zak Crawley took an excellent low catch diving to his left.

Harry Tector followed his skipper back to the pavilion two balls later when he inexplicably flicked straight to Potts at leg slip but Broad was denied a hat-trick opportunity when an lbw decision against Stirling was overturned on review after ball-tracker showed it was missing leg stump.

It enabled Stirling to lead a mini-recovery for Ireland but his enterprising 30 was ended when his attempted sweep flicked off his glove and gave Jonny Bairstow a simple catch behind the stumps to help Leach get off the mark this summer.

Stirling had put on 45 for the fourth wicket with opener McCollum, who made it to lunch unbeaten on 29 but his pursuit of a maiden Test fifty ended early into the afternoon session.

Again it was the third over of Broad’s spell that did the trick, with McCollum squared up and only able to edge to Joe Root at first slip to depart for a hard-fought 36 off 108 deliveries.

Warm applause greeted Ireland’s hundred via a single from Lorcan Tucker, but the wicketkeeper became Leach’s second victim when he was hit on his front pad and a review adjudged the delivery to be clipping off-stump.

Campher and Andy McBrine tried to shift the momentum and take the attack to England, but Potts had the last laugh when the latter edged behind an 88.9mph delivery to Bairstow.

Broad needed only 11 balls after tea to write his name on the Lord’s honours board when his inswinger fooled Adair and hit the top of off-stump to give him a first five-wicket haul at the London venue since his seven for 44 against New Zealand here in 2013.

The end was nigh for Ireland now with Campher’s 79-ball innings over when he was bowled charging at Leach, who finished with three for 35, and Potts wrapped up proceedings when Test debutant Fionn Hand edged behind to Bairstow.

Lewis Hamilton has admitted that Mercedes’ upgrade is “definitely not the step forward” he was hoping for ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix.

The seven-time world champion said after May’s Miami Grand Prix he was “counting down the days” for the upgrade he hoped would propel him back to the front, and he was given his first taste of Mercedes’ revamped machine at last weekend’s Monaco Grand Prix.

Hamilton qualified sixth in Monte Carlo before making up two places in the rain-hit race. Team-mate George Russell finished one spot behind Hamilton in fifth, while Max Verstappen raced to his fourth win of the season.

The Monte Carlo layout has been among Mercedes’ worst tracks and Sunday’s race here at the Circuit de Catalunya on the outskirts of Barcelona is set to represent a truer reflection of the team’s outright speed.

But addressing Mercedes’ upgrade on the eve of the seventh round, Hamilton said: “It is definitely not the step forward that we were hoping for.

“The true step forward we were hoping for was to [overturn] a one-second delta [to Red Bull] in race trim, and we have not covered that with this step.

“When you bring upgrades, naturally you should be progressing forwards, and the fact is that it is an improvement, but it just not the improvement we had dreamed of.

“It is one step at a time. I don’t feel negative towards it, I am grateful we have it, and I understand how much work has gone into making these parts, the rush that has gone on, and the amount of flat-out work by the team.

“We are hugely hungry to move in the right direction so I would say that I am just hopeful that it puts us on a better track.

“We have taken account of where we are, where we have gone wrong, and now we are slowly chipping away and navigating our way back to the front but unfortunately it is just a long process.”

Hamilton finished 39 seconds behind Verstappen on Sunday as the Dutchman extended his championship lead over team-mate Sergio Perez to 39 points.

Red Bull have won 16 of the last 17 grands prix, with Verstappen firmly on course to secure his third world title in as many years.

And Verstappen said his team – which has dominated the sport since a major overhaul of the regulations at the beginning of last season – has the speed to win all 22 races.

“I would say at the moment, that we can,” said Verstappen. “But that’s very unlikely to happen.

“There are always things that go wrong, a retirement or whatever. But purely on pace at the moment we can.

“We have always seen dominant periods in Formula One and this is nothing new. If we look back at the 80s, the 90s, the 2000s, early 2010s to all the way until 2020, it’s pure dominance of certain teams.

“The longer you leave the regulations the same, the closer people will get. So maybe this is something we need to look at.”

Richard Gould, the chief executive of the England and Wales Cricket Board, has insisted making changes to the format of The Hundred is “not something that’s on my agenda”.

The peak summer month of August has been controversially ring-fenced for the third season of The Hundred, which still polarises opinion among cricket fans and is exclusively played in the UK.

Reports last month suggested its structure was being considered and the theory gained traction with the news Sanjay Patel, mastermind and managing director of The Hundred, would leave the ECB in September.

But Gould argued the distinction between the 100-ball competition and its T20 rivals abroad is a selling point and admitted Sky and the BBC, the ECB’s broadcast partners, are champions of The Hundred.

“In a crowded market, it is a point of difference,” Gould said on the Final Word podcast. “The format is not something that’s on my agenda, in this regard.

“Sky have been really supportive in driving it forward, it’s given us that point of difference and everyone in the cricketing world has heard of The Hundred, that’s a good thing.

“As long as people are talking about the game, I’m happy.

“There is always going to be arguments with competition, as to what we do and where we go next but we will be utterly pragmatic and more focused on progressive improvement and we will do it in a collaborative manner where everybody can feel involved.”

According to a report from Worcestershire chair Fanos Hira, the competition made a £9million loss in its first two seasons, a figure disputed by the ECB which says a profit of £11.8m was achieved.

Gould and ECB chair Richard Thompson were once prominent critics when The Hundred was first broached during their stints in identical roles at Surrey but the pair’s stance has softened appreciably.

But while Gould sees substantial upsides to The Hundred, he believes there is room for improvement amid a proliferation of domestic white-ball competitions from all over the world fighting for attention.

“You see the competition we’re in globally now and every country needs to have a super primetime white-ball domestic competition,” Gould said.

“We have invested very heavily in The Hundred over a number of years, both emotionally and financially.

“We are not going to take The Hundred out, we are going to make it bigger and better. We’re going to make the whole of cricket bigger and better, that is our aim.

“I think the level of investment that has gone into The Hundred has delivered really good returns in terms of a new audience. The broadcasters really enjoy it, the BBC have put it on free-to-air.”

Gould, who has already opened the door for multi-year central contracts and increased match fees for England players, accepted salaries in The Hundred may need to go up to compete with its market rivals.

Currently, the highest bracket for the men in The Hundred is £125,000 while for women it is £31,250.

“Salaries will need to go up, not just for The Hundred but also for international cricket because we can see there is a global market for players,” Gould added.

“The difficulty for the ECB and our revenues is we have so many mouths to feed whereas the franchise tournaments can just take the cream off the top, they don’t get charged for the players, they’re very efficient models at getting money back into the players’ pockets but they’re not funding the pathway.

“We’re always going to fund the pathway but having a really strong and healthy pathway is the secret to long-term success, you’ve got to have the players.”

Not many Flat races are won by 22 lengths, and even fewer when they are Classic trials. So Aidan O’Brien can be forgiven for saying Betfred Oaks favourite Savethelastdance’s performance at Chester was a little unusual.

Well beaten on her only outing at two, the Galileo filly arrived on the Roodee on the back of a Leopardstown maiden win at odds of 20-1.

But she will never be close to resembling that price again. Sent off odds-on in an admittedly below-standard renewal, there was nothing below-standard about her display as despite being niggled along early, she took off just after halfway and pulled further and further clear.

“I’m not sure you can ever be confident, you’re always hopeful,” said O’Brien, who is bidding for a fourth straight win in the Classic and 11th overall.

“It’s a different track, it will be different ground, so for everyone it will be interesting and we’ll learn a lot. That is why we all go racing and we’ll be watching like everyone else.

“I think it’s going to be very exciting to see what does happen when she has all those different things to contend with, but what she has done so far looks a little bit different.

“When you go up in distance lots of different things can happen. We’ve won the Oaks with fillies who have never run over anything near the Oaks trip before, so lots of different stuff can happen, there’s a lot of quality fillies in there so it will be exciting for everyone to see who comes out on top on the day.

“We started her this year in a very good maiden at Leopardstown that usually good fillies come out of and she won and I suppose everything has gone very well since.”

Reacting to her wide-margin win in the Cheshire Oaks, O’Brien said: “Her Chester run was very unusual. Usually when you see those things it can be an optical illusion as it can be a case of the rest stopping rather than one quickening up, but the times said she was quickening, which is unusual in a strongly-run race.”

While some have questioned Savethelastdance’s ability to handle good ground as well as she goes through soft, her trainer feels she should even improve for it.

“Most by Galileo we’ve had want better ground, they wouldn’t want it soft at all, and with Scat Daddy on the dam’s side you’d say absolutely she should want better ground, so it will be interesting to see. If you looked at her pedigree you’d say she wouldn’t want it soft, but she does bend her knee a little,” said O’Brien.

“She hasn’t done an awful lot of work since, she doesn’t need much as she’s a very clear-winded filly, so she’s just been cantering away and seems very happy.”

O’Brien also runs Red Riding Hood and Be Happy, both outsiders.

The only other trainer since 2014 to have won the Oaks is John Gosden and, now sharing the licence with son Thady, he looks the main threat again with Pretty Polly winner Running Lion and Musidora scorer Soul Sister.

“The fillies won their trials with authority – a Listed and a Group Three – and they very much belong in the race. Both fillies have a lot of speed, and stamina wise you never really know until you go the mile and a half,” said Gosden senior.

“They are both really bred to be mile-and-a-quarter fillies and the last bit you just don’t know, but you can’t practise it at home.”

Soul Sister’s jockey Frankie Dettori, riding in his last Oaks, which is part of the Qipco British Champions Series, said: “John kept on believing in Soul Sister.

“When she ran at Newbury the ground was heavy and John’s horses weren’t running well at the time, but she took me by surprise at York. She travelled, she quickened twice, and she clocked a very good time.

“I was impressed. She has to go an extra two furlongs but all the signs are good.”

Charlie Appleby and Godolphin took the decision to supplement Lingfield Oaks Trial winner Eternal Hope.

“Eternal Hope has done well since Lingfield. We have a nice draw down in stall five, which will hopefully help William (Buick) get into a decent position and allow the filly to run her best,” Appleby told the Godolphin website.

“She’s a filly who started her career in a Wolverhampton novice in February and all she has done is improve ever since. She’s stepped up and improved week on week. Physically, she’s got better all the time.

“She’s a trial winner, at a track that tests a horse’s ability to handle sharp bends, and she acquitted herself very well. It is seen as a test for Epsom, which shouldn’t pose any problem for her.

“As can sometimes be the case, the Oaks field will contain several who are unexposed and Eternal Hope comes into that category, even though she won a trial.

“She travelled very well at Lingfield and finished off her race strongly. She put herself into the Oaks picture as a strong contender with that performance.”

Jack Channon’s Caernarfon finished fourth in the Guineas and the trainer hopes the extra distance will bring about improvement.

“Every time we have stepped her up in grade, she has risen to it,” he said.

“We will be taking on well-touted fillies who have done very well in their Oaks trials, but they have got to step up in class and we’ve already been and proven that we can sort of mix it at that sort of level. We just hope that the extra distance will elevate her a couple of places.”

Heartache Tonight is trained in the UK but has run only in France to date for David Menuisier, shaping well in a Group One last time out.

“I think the step up in trip will definitely suit, she’s pretty much guaranteed to stay,” he said.

“Whether she will handle the track or not, we don’t know, but the same applies to all and let’s hope the ground is not too quick. She’s quite lanky and unfurnished still, so I would rather her not to run on too quick ground as we speak.

“Until we try we don’t really know, but the ground in the Cleopatre was near enough good that day and Cristian (Demuro) has always felt she wouldn’t be ground dependent, as long as it is not rattling. I’m happy to try.”