Australia captain Pat Cummins is eyeing up a “legacy-defining” Ashes summer after leading his side to glory in the World Test Championship final.
Cummins’ side succeeded New Zealand as the top red-ball team on the planet as they stormed to a 209-run victory over India at the Oval, but with just five days to go before the first Test against old rivals England, he was already casting his mind towards the next big challenge.
The 30-year-old boasts a glittering CV and has now become a three-format world champion, having previously won the ODI and T20 World Cups in 2015 and 2021, but skippering his country to their first series win over England in over two decades is a prize that potentially awaits over the next six weeks.
“Whether we like it or not, Ashes series tend to define eras and teams,” he said after leading his side’s celebrations the Oval – the same ground where either he or Ben Stokes will be lifting the urn at the end of July.
“An Ashes (in England) is bloody hard to win. It’s been 20-odd years so it’s not going to be easy. If we win, that is legacy-defining stuff.
“But we’ll savour this win too. We played some awesome cricket for two years and being there at the end holding the trophy feels well deserved. Our preparation has been for six matches over here, it’s one big tour with two huge titles to play for so it’s good to tick the first one off.”
England have been spending the last few days on a team-bonding trip in Scotland, mixing the occasional practice session at St Andrews University with plenty of golf, and after five hard days in the field now is the time for Australia to let their hair down too.
They may not have long to bask in their achievement, but with temperatures hitting 30 degrees in London on Sunday, Cummins has an idea of how to make the most of it.
“I think we’ll sit around in the changing rooms for a while and then we’ll find a nice sunny English beer garden somewhere this afternoon to sit back and celebrate,” he said.
“It’s been an amazing two years and we’ve had this final in the diary for a while. It’s been something that we’ve been building up for so it’s something we’re going to savour.
“I know we’ve got a big series but we can worry about that in a couple days’ time. You only get a few of these moments in your career where you can sit back, acknowledge a pretty special achievement and this is one of these times.”
When the dust settles, Cummins will need to confront a tricky selection conundrum. He all but confirmed that Scott Boland had made himself undroppable for Edgbaston, with the seamer outstanding against India and responsible for the decisive double strike that accounted for Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja on day five.
With Josh Hazlewood now passed fit for the Ashes opener, it appears a straight shootout between him and Mitchell Starc.
“Scotty was fantastic, he’s now my favourite player,” Cummins said.
“He keeps finding another level, doesn’t he? He was just our best bowler all game. He held it together, he didn’t go for many runs and to get two big wickets in an over is just reward for how well he bowled.
“For sure, Scotty has a huge role to play in the Ashes.”
For India skipper Rohit Sharma, there was disappointment. He had set his sights on going one better after India’s defeat to New Zealand in the inaugural final two years ago, and leading his country to their first global title since 2013.
He suggested a full series rather than a one-off match should be considered to crown the next champions, though the international fixture calendar is unlikely to allow for that in its present form.
“I would love that, but is there time?” he asked.
“In a big event like this, you need to have fair opportunities for both teams. A three-match series would be nice but it’s about finding a window.
“You work hard for two years and have only one shot at it. Test cricket is all about finding a rhythm and momentum.”
Iga Swiatek could end her French Open career with a record to rival Rafael Nadal’s, tournament director Amelie Mauresmo believes.
The Pole cemented her status as one of the best women’s players on clay in recent decades by winning her third title in four years just after her 22nd birthday.
That matches the career progression of Nadal almost to the day, although Swiatek has one US Open title while the Spaniard won on his first four visits to Roland Garros.
“Her record is very impressive, just like Rafa’s record was when he started,” said former world number one Mauresmo.
“Three titles in four editions is huge, it’s very impressive. I think we’re still a little bit far away from the 14 titles but, when Rafa started, no-one also thought he would get to 14 so anything can happen.”
Swiatek found herself really tested for the first time in a grand slam final, twice coming from a break down in the deciding set to beat Karolina Muchova 6-2 5-7 6-4.
She is not looking too far ahead, saying: “I’m just happy with what happened during these past few weeks. I don’t know what I’m capable of.
“So I will work day by day to play the best game possible and to develop as a player. I’m not setting any crazy records or goals for myself. I know that keeping it cool is the best way to do it for me. I’m trying more to do that.”
Swiatek has not had things all her own way this season, with a couple of injuries disrupting her schedule, while Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina have raised their game to create what has been described as a big three of women’s tennis.
Sabalenka could have overtaken Swiatek in the rankings in Paris, and the Belarusian will have high hopes of doing so on the grass, where she has been much stronger than her rival in the past.
Swiatek did not shy away from talking herself up in comparison to Sabalenka and Rybakina, saying: “I look at my clay-court season and I see on every tournament I really played consistently.
“I reached quarter-finals, semi-finals, finals, I won Stuttgart, I won this tournament. I’m just focused on myself and I don’t care about the other two players.”
For Muchova, it was a bitter-sweet experience, with the Czech handling herself extremely well in her first grand slam final but falling short when the match looked like it was almost in her grasp.
What will give a lot of confidence to the 26-year-old, who will be ranked at a career-high 16 on Monday, is that clay is her least favourite surface.
“I wouldn’t expect it that much on the clay, honestly,” she said. “I look forward to playing on the grass, on the fast surfaces. It’s just nice to know that I can play on the clay great as well.
“This was my last clay tournament. It could have ended up a little bit better, but it was still pretty great.”
It was one of the best endings to a women’s grand slam in recent years, with both semi-finals bringing high quality and drama before a very good final.
There has been a lot of focus again in Paris on the scheduling, with the one-match night session featuring women only once for the second year in a row.
Mauresmo defended the decision-making, insisting other slots considered prime time featured more women’s matches this year.
Organisers do not want matches finishing in the early hours of the morning like they routinely do at the Australian Open and US Open, and Mauresmo admitted the possibility of a quick two-set women’s contest is a key factor in favouring men.
Swiatek, meanwhile, revealed she prefers playing in the day and had requested not to play at night.
“This doesn’t make also our life easier,” said Mauresmo. “I’m comfortable with the scheduling in the day but, yes, we can do better on the night matches.”
Pearls And Rubies will head to Royal Ascot as an exciting proposition for Aidan O’Brien following a very promising debut success at Navan.
An imposing daughter of No Nay Never, Ryan Moore let her find her feet in the five-furlong Lynn Lodge Stud Irish EBF Maiden, as up front Lightening Army took them along.
Keeping close tabs on the leaders was 6-5 favourite I Am Invictus, who looked like getting his head in front when leading over a furlong out, having filled the runner-up spot behind O’Brien’s Coventry Stakes-bound River Tiber first time out.
But Pearls And Rubies (3-1) started to find top gear late in the day, coming home really well to get the verdict by a neck from Michael O’Callaghan’s charge.
O’Brien said: “We thought she was very smart, we had it in our head could she be an Ascot filly.
“Obviously, she needed experience badly. We came here to see if she would be forward enough for Ascot. Ryan rode her accordingly and left her alone and educated her. She could be an Albany filly.
“She has won there and doesn’t even realise she has raced yet. She just kept coming and finished off very strong.
“She’s obviously a filly with plenty of class.”
Yanina Wickmayer came out on top after a three-set battle with Katie Swan to win the Lexus Surbiton Trophy.
Wickmayer prevented Swan from securing the British number one spot after coming back from a set down to win 2-6 6-4 7-6 (1) weeks before both players head to Wimbledon.
The pair were not deterred by the Surbiton heat as they battled at a high intensity with lengthy exchanges which resulted in Swan taking a 4-2 lead in the first set.
And Swan’s serve proved to be a decisive weapon early on as Wickmayer struggled to deal with the 24-year-old’s precision which allowed her to be on the front foot in exchanges before she closed out the first set 6-2.
But Wickmayer began to find her feet in the second set as she jostled into a 5-4 lead, with Swan finally beginning to falter at the hands of the 33-year-old.
And the Belgian made no mistake in drawing level after she forced errors out of eighth seed Swan to close out the second set 6-4.
Wickmayer really began to show her class in the final set with some moments of excellence which left her opponent with no answers.
This came in the form of her returns, with her decision to choose placement over power proving to be a masterstroke as she firmed her grip on the tie late on.
Swan managed to take the deciding set to a tie-break but came up short after Wickmayer stormed into a 6-1 lead before she rounded off the set to be crowned champion.
In a court-side interview broadcast by the LTA, Swan said: “I feel like it was a high-level match all the way through.
“It was tough because as soon as I dropped my levels slightly she was all over me and I had to maintain that for as long as I could. It was so tough but it was really high level overall.
“She is in unbelievable shape, I don’t know how she can be that good after having a baby. I think it’s incredible what she’s doing.”
Former England international Anya Shrubsole announced she will retire from playing at the end of the season after helping Southern Vipers beat The Blaze by seven wickets to lift the Charlotte Edwards Cup for the second year in a row.
The Vipers player-coach, a World Cup winner in 2017, was named player of the match after taking two for 24, having removed both of the The Blaze’s openers before bad weather stopped play on Saturday night.
A half-century from Danni Wyatt helped wrap up a comprehensive victory on Sunday, and it marked a turning point for Shrubsole, who said afterwards it was her last game for the Vipers as she will retire from playing after The Hundred.
“It’s hard to put an exact date on when I made the decision,” the 31-year-old said. “Through the course of this tournament it just became clear to me that my time was up.
“I carried on playing because I really enjoy playing, but I guess the pain element of it – if I’m being totally honest – made it not particularly enjoyable at times, so in lots of ways it was a pretty easy decision to call it a day at the end of this year.
“I told my team-mates on Friday night. I didn’t see it playing out like this, I told the girls because I wanted them to know but I didn’t think they’d make it really obvious.
“I feel very lucky to have played the last few seasons with this group, because they’re an exceptional team and an exceptional bunch of people.”
Shrubsole retired from international cricket last year, but has continued to play for Berkshire, the Vipers and Southern Brave.
She came through the ranks at Somerset and earned her first England call up as a teenager in 2008, going on to eight Tests, 86 ODIs and 79 T20 matches.
Desert Crown will miss the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot, Sir Michael Stoute has confirmed.
Last year’s Derby winner was on course for a clash with Adayar, Luxembourg and stablemate Bay Bridge in the 10-furlong Group One contest on June 21, having produced a scintillating piece of work under Ryan Moore on Wednesday.
However, after a routine canter under Ted Durcan on Saturday morning, he was found to be lame.
A market drifter on the exchanges on Sunday morning, asked if all was well with the colt, Stoute told the PA news agency: “No. He’s not running, no. He’s a non-runner.”
Desert Crown cruised to success in the premier Classic, but picked up an ankle injury and was not seen again until reappearing in the Brigadier Gerard Stakes at Sandown last month.
Though he looked better than ever beforehand, he was defeated in the dying strides by last season’s Coronation Cup winner Hukum, who was similarly coming back after a year on the sidelines.
Frankie Dettori was booked to ride the son of Nathaniel at Royal Ascot, replacing Richard Kingscote, but Bruce Raymond, racing manager to owner Saeed Suhail, added: “I knew they weren’t happy with him yesterday morning.
“He worked well on Wednesday. He doesn’t usually work like a rocket. His general work practice is to go steady early and to quicken.
“I didn’t see him yesterday. He worked nicely and I believe it was on his own. His final gallop was going to be next Tuesday or Wednesday with Dettori on him.
“I thought he won’t be doing too much. That was at 10 o’clock in the morning. At 12 o’clock, I heard he was a bit lame.
“They were having a good look at him. Injuries so close this time to the race mean you don’t take chances.”
Manuel Akanji claimed John Stones played like Diego Maradona after Manchester City won the Champions League and completed the treble.
Stones was a key figure as City capped a memorable season with a hard-fought but glorious 1-0 victory over Inter Milan in Saturday’s European showcase final in Istanbul.
The England international has enjoyed a fine end to the season having been deployed in a new roving role by manager Pep Guardiola.
The centre-back retains his usual defensive duties when City are on the back foot but, given their tendency to dominate possession, he now has licence to step into midfield and dictate play more.
Defender Akanji said: “The way he dribbled, he played like Maradona. He just took the ball, went past three people, passed it somewhere else.
“He created a lot of opportunities for us. He is an unbelievable player.”
After retaining the Premier League and winning the FA Cup, along with some stunning Champions League wins over Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, City had been strong favourites at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium.
Yet with Inter proving dogged opposition, City were unable to produce their sparkling best and it took a 68th-minute strike from Rodri for them to break through.
They also had to survive a couple of scares as Inter chased an equaliser and Akjani was just pleased to complete the job.
The Switzerland player said: “It wasn’t easy for us. It was a final and it’s been such a long season.
“You’re feeling tired but you try one last time to give it your all.
“It didn’t really work the way we planned it in the first half. I think we came out better in the second half and we scored a goal.
“Inter obviously had to do something and they had a couple of chances but we defended well as a team together and I’m just really happy that we won.”
Akanji admitted it could take some time for the magnitude of the achievement to sink in.
The 27-year-old, who has proved a shrewd signing since his deadline day arrival from Borussia Dortmund last summer, said: “We won the treble this year and that’s all that matters, but I am still trying to realise it. Day by day it will get better.”
Kevin Philippart De Foy is happy to roll the dice with El Habeeb in the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot.
The four-year-old ran with credit in both the Derby – when only once-raced at the time with Stan Moore – and the St Leger last season, and proved his class when beating subsequent Yorkshire Cup winner Giavellotto in the Listed Noel Murless Stakes.
De Foy has stepped his charge up to two miles this term, a move which saw him finish fifth in the Dubai Gold Cup before placing third in Ascot’s Sagaro Stakes.
The Sagaro winner, Andrew Balding’s Coltrane, is the 3-1 favourite for the Gold Cup, with El Habeeb a best-priced 25-1 shot despite having only five lengths to find.
Philippart De Foy feels his colt merits his place in the field for the two-and-a-half-mile showpiece.
He said: “At the moment that (Gold Cup) is the plan. He ran well in the Sagaro. He’s fairly well one paced and doesn’t have that change of gear he needed at Ascot to go and pick up the second.
“The winner was quite impressive and he deserves to be the favourite, but I thought we were a little bit unlucky on the inside and I think we deserve to be there.
“He settles very well at any pace and he always stays on in his races. He wouldn’t have the biggest stride, but he keeps galloping all day, so I don’t think the distance will be an issue.
“The form of his last few races stacks up well. He’s got plenty to find to be competitive, but I think he will be competitive for a place.”
Robert MacIntyre could be forgiven for having mixed feelings on several fronts when he sits down to watch the US Open on TV.
First and foremost is the fact that it will be just the fourth major championship which MacIntyre has missed since he made his debut in the game’s biggest events with a tie for sixth in the 2019 Open.
Secondly, this year’s US Open is being staged at Los Angeles Country Club, venue for the 2017 Walker Cup in which MacIntyre represented Great Britain and Ireland and won 1.5 points from his three matches.
But while MacIntyre enjoyed a “great experience” six years ago, the visitors were beaten 19-7 by a United States team featuring current world number one Scottie Scheffler, two-time major champion Collin Morikawa and PGA Tour winners Will Zalatoris and Cameron Champ.
“I knew they were good but you never know how good they’re actually going to become,” MacIntyre told the PA news agency.
“They’ve probably exceeded their own expectations at times but that team is going to go down as one of the best Walker Cup teams in history so it wasn’t too bad getting absolutely hammered by them!”
In fairness, MacIntyre did thrash Champ 6&4 in the opening day’s singles and, after suffering a foursomes defeat alongside Matthew Jordan on day two, also halved a rematch with Champ to emerge with great credit from a testing week.
“It was brilliant. The Walker Cup was a great experience,” the left-hander from Oban said.
“The set-up of the golf course was incredible. The place was playing firm and fast, it was the first time I’d putted on greens with that kind of speed and slope.
“And the whole place, the setting of it right in the middle of LA is absolutely spectacular from the minute you drive in through the gates to the minute you drive out.
“It’s completely different to where I come from and for me it was a cool experience to be there to see. The golf course is brilliant but it’s super, super long, as everyone’s going to find out.
“It was reasonably thick rough, there were certain holes you didn’t want to miss the fairways because you couldn’t get it there, but I just remember it being so fast.
“If you hit the fairway it would run 70-80 yards with the driver and the greens were probably running at 13 (on the stimpmeter).”
MacIntyre described Oak Hill as an “absolute monster” as he suffered his first missed cut in a major in last month’s US PGA Championship and Los Angeles Country Club could prove equally tough.
The 7,423-yard, par-70 layout includes a 623-yard par five and two of its five par threes measure 284 and 290 yards, although the shortest hole on the course will not exactly be a walk in the park either.
“It could be absolutely anything depending on what they’ve done to the place,” MacIntyre added. “They will grow the rough and narrow the fairways. It could be crazy.
“In one round in the Walker Cup all the par threes were played off the back tees except the 15th.
“They were playing it at 101 yards to a front-right pin and guys were missing the green because of the firmness. If you hit a certain point on the green it was kicking into the back bunker.
“It’s the best players in the world so length doesn’t really cause them problems, but it will depend on how firm and fast it is. It will be entertaining to watch that’s for sure.”
Former Scotland striker Kenny Miller believes the national team have strong options up front as they approach their latest qualifiers amid the absence of Che Adams.
Adams has been a key player in recent times but Lyndon Dykes started up front in Scotland’s 2-0 win over Spain after the Southampton forward suffered an injury in the opening Euro 2024 qualifying win against Cyprus.
Dykes has scored eight goals for Scotland and Miller feels there are other serious alternatives for Steve Clarke ahead of Saturday’s clash with Norway in Oslo and the visit of Georgia three days later.
Miller told the PA news agency: “Lyndon was crucial to the team making it to the last Euros, sometimes on his own and sometimes with Che.
“I think Lyndon had it nailed, Lyndon had the jersey to himself but Che came in and did very well when he was injured.
“It’s good Steve has the options up front.
“Jacob Brown has been a support act but we have Kevin Nisbet and Lawrence Shankland who have had good seasons, particularly Lawrence at Hearts. So there’s a lot of options.”
Miller, who scored 18 goals for his country, added about the Hearts forward: “I think he’s a really well-rounded striker with a really good level of goals.
“He’s had a wonderful season – 28 goals is a wonderful return for a striker outwith the Old Firm.
“But not just that, I think his all-round game is pretty good.
“He seems to have accepted the responsibility of the captain’s armband in Craig Gordon’s absence really, really well. “It’s a big responsibility, one that’s not affected him in a negative way. If anything it has affected him in a positive way.”
Scotland have a guaranteed play-off place as a fall-back option but Miller is confident they can finish in the top two of Group A following their flying start.
Clarke took the squad on a training camp to Spain last week to prepare for the double-header and further foment the spirit among the players.
Miller, who was speaking after taking part in a McDonald’s Fun Football session with children in Glasgow, said: “People talk about this club atmosphere but what it means is that the team has been doing well and everyone wants to be part of it and everyone is looking forward to going away.
“The group do look like they have got this spirit and togetherness but it comes from what they have created on the pitch.
“It’s been really good performances and really good results, none more so than the last game against Spain where the lads were excellent and really deserved the win.
“And what it has done is put us in a really strong position going into these qualifiers.
“That means we can potentially forget about this play-off position and get there automatically, which I do believe we can.
“I don’t want to put too much pressure on but I do believe we will.”
Australia will head into next week’s Ashes as Test world champions after they stamped out Indian resistance in ruthless fashion to claim a 209-run win at the Oval.
With just five days to go before they renew their biggest rivalry against England at Edgbaston, Australia soared to victory, dismissing India for 234 on the final morning of the ICC’s second World Test Championship final.
Scott Boland provided the key breakthrough, removing star batter Virat Kohli in the seventh over of the day and making it a double strike by dismissing Ravindra Jadeja two balls later.
Boland was unlikely to play until injury ruled Josh Hazlewood out, but the bustling 34-year-old seamer must now be well fancied to take on Ben Stokes’ side in Friday’s first Test.
Everything was on the line on the fifth day of the red-ball showpiece, with 280 runs needed and seven wickets up for grabs. Ordinarily, such an equation would have made Australia overwhelming favourites, but Kolhi’s presence as a master chaser left Indian fans with real belief that their side could make a record 444 to win the match.
He was in fluent touch on the previous evening, reeling off a punchy 44, but he added just five more to his score as Boland landed the key wicket.
Immediately after beating the outside by a whisker he tossed one wider and drew a lavish drive from Kohli, who sprayed a rapid chance between second and third slip. Steve Smith did the rest, throwing himself into action to take a brilliant catch.
Unlike an equally outstanding take from Cameron Green on day four, there was no debate whatsoever about the legality of this one, nor of its relevance to the final outcome. With Kohli gone for 49, India’s hopes were all but over.
Their fans, who have dominated the stands all week and who poured in on Sunday in the hope of witnessing a famous victory, were dumbstuck.
If anybody doubted it, then Boland wasted no time in hammering home the point. Two balls later he was celebrating again, Jadeja caught behind for a duck as Boland found a hint of movement around off stump.
When Srikar Bharat saw a thick edge squirt off the toe of the bat it looked like three wickets in four deliveries for Boland, but this time the ball kept rising and narrowly beat a leaping David Warner at first slip.
Ajinkya Rahane did his best to reinvigorate the battle, stroking a couple of regal drives down the ground, but Australia held all the cards. He departed for 46, struck clean in front of the stumps attempting a sweep.
Mitchell Starc, who could be vulnerable if Hazlewood comes back in against England, added the wicket of Umesh Yadav, but the rest of the tail was mopped up in efficient style by Nathan Lyon.
He finished with figures of four for 41, nailing Shardul Thakur lbw, collecting a skier of a return catch from Bharat and finishing things up when Mohammed Siraj steered a reverse sweep straight to point.
Australia’s celebrations began in earnest as the formed a circle in the middle of the pitch, while India were once again runners-up, having lost the inaugural final to New Zealand two years ago.
Josh Taylor spoke about moving up to welterweight imminently after suffering the first defeat of his career to Teofimo Lopez in New York on Saturday night.
The 32-year-old Scot started the defence of his WBO and Ring Magazine super-lightweight titles at The Theater at Madison Square Garden looking like he had the measure of his Brooklyn opponent.
However Lopez, 25, soon grew in confidence and by the end of 12 gruelling rounds there was no doubt about the result.
Two judges called it 115-113 for the home fighter, with the other scoring it 117-111, confirming Lopez a two-weight world champion by unanimous decision.
Following a first loss in 20 fights, Taylor stressed his desire for a rematch but admitted that he would be “more comfortable” stepping up to the next weight division.
He told Sky Sports Boxing: “I would love to do it again and fight him again. Back home, why not?
“But the ball is in his court, he is the champion.
“I would love to do it again but most likely I will probably be moving up to welter now.
“As I have been saying for ages the move up to welter is imminent.
“I could do 140 again but I would be more comfortable at 147.”
It was Taylor’s first bout since his contentious win over Englishman Jack Catterall in February 2022 and it was another difficult night as he struggled to find solutions to the problems posed by Lopez, who was slick and powerful with his punches and evasive in defence.
The Scot refused to blame the long lay-off for his performance as he accepted defeat with humility.
He said: “The last two rounds, the championship rounds I didn’t do enough. The better man won on the night.
“I just wasn’t (at my) best, far from it. It is what it is.
“I am absolutely devastated but I will come again. He’s the champion. I would love to do it again. I know I can win.
“I know I can beat him but last night he was the better man so I have no excuses.”
Lopez said after the fight: “Josh Taylor is a tough dude. I can see why he beat so many fighters but you have to counter the counter-puncher, you have to outsmart the man and get in there and I did that. I think I did enough.”
Kevin De Bruyne revealed he was carrying an injury throughout the closing stages of Manchester City’s glorious treble triumph.
De Bruyne was not on the field as City capped a stunning season by winning the Champions League on Saturday, having finally succumbed to a long-standing hamstring problem.
The inspirational Belgian playmaker was forced off after 35 minutes of a hard-fought final against Inter Milan in Istanbul, which City went on to win 1-0 with a 68th-minute strike from Rodri.
De Bruyne said: “I give everything for my team and the people in the club know that. I feel proud that I’ve been able to do what I did.
“It’s a shame that it went the way it did for me here, but we go away winning the Champions League so there’s nothing bad towards it.
“I felt all right this week, but I’ve been told for two months it was a risk – but, you know, you take it.
“I did what I had to do. Obviously I missed some games, but the games like Arsenal, Bayern (Munich) and (Real) Madrid I managed to do it.
“I had some personal things happen with my family on top of that and I managed that, but, here, the hamstring just snapped.”
It was the second time De Bruyne had been forced off in a Champions League final after he suffered a bad facial injury in the loss to Chelsea two years ago.
Yet, after City came through, he did not want to dwell on his personal misfortune.
“I don’t look at football that way,” he said. “It is what it is.
“I felt the team was able to manage it and do their job. OK, the injury is never nice, but I was there for my team and did what I needed to do.
“I felt OK in the 35 minutes I played and I can’t expect more from myself.”
Victory fulfilled a long-held ambition for De Bruyne after enjoying considerable domestic success in his eight years at City.
He said: “I’ve basically been fighting all my career with my team to win this medal.
“I still don’t think it defines my career – I know who I am as a football player and person and I am happy and proud of the person I am – but obviously you want to win.”
Much has been made of what the victory could mean for City, both as a platform for the current team and for the status of the club as whole, but De Bruyne feels that is a matter for another day.
He said: “That’s not something I’m really thinking about right now. The season is so long we should just enjoy this moment.
“We’ve had subdued parties up until now, but now we can really enjoy it for a couple of days, as we should.
“We’ve not lost one game in the Champions League this season so I think we deserve it.”
Light Infantry is on course for the Queen Anne at Royal Ascot following his cracking run in defeat in the Prix d’Ispahan at ParisLongchamp.
Though beaten a short neck by the Owen Burrows-trained Anmaat, his third runner-up effort in Group One company in France, the four-year-old son of Fast Company will bid to gain a measure of compensation on the first day of the Royal meeting.
Trainer David Simcock was delighted he showed his best after a disappointing seventh, when beaten three and three-quarter lengths by Modern Games in the Lockinge at Newbury.
Stepped up to nine furlongs for the first time in France, he was headed with over a furlong to race, but battled back to regain second place in the hands of Jamie Spencer.
Simcock said: “I’m delighted with him, especially backing up so quick after Newbury.
“Things really didn’t pan out for him in the Lockinge, but it was a good run (in the d’Ispahan) and it was a very competitive field.
“I would imagine he will go to the Queen Anne – I’m pretty sure of that. He’s very well and in good form.”
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