England captain Ben Stokes has confirmed Jamie Overton will make his Test debut against New Zealand on Thursday, replacing the injured James Anderson.

Having ensured a series victory with a five-wicket win over the tourists at Trent Bridge last week, England go in search of a 3-0 triumph when they head to Headingley for the third and final Test.

They will be without Anderson - who claimed 11 wickets across the first two Tests - for that contest after the paceman suffered an ankle injury.

But Stokes, who was originally a doubt himself after feeling unwell, hopes the addition of Overton to the XI will provide a boost for Brendon McCullum's men.

"Unfortunately Jimmy has not pulled up as well as we would have liked," the skipper told Sky Sports. "So Jamie Overton is going to make his debut this week.

"It's unfortunate for Jimmy but we've obviously got a massive Test match against India next week to look to as well. He didn't pull up as well, so it's great Jamie gets the opportunity to represent England."

Asked about Overton's potential, Stokes added: "He's been very impressive.

"The way that he's bowled, we always want a point of difference in our side, and Jamie's been bowling with some serious pace and been changing games as well.

"So to have someone come in, in obviously a different role to what Jimmy normally plays, and in the back pocket having someone who can bowl 90 miles an hour and bowl aggressively, is exciting to have in the team."

Overton has taken 21 wickets for County Championship Division One leaders Surrey at an average of 21.61 this season.

His twin brother Craig was also called up to the England squad for the final Test but has narrowly missed out on selection.

Serena Williams doubted whether she would return to elite tennis as she stepped up her Wimbledon preparations by playing doubles with Ons Jabeur at the Eastbourne International.

Williams teamed up with Jabeur on Tuesday to record a thrilling win over Marie Bouzkova and Sara Sorribes Tormo in her first competitive outing since last June, when she was forced to retire from her first-round Wimbledon clash with Aliaksandra Sasnovich through injury.

Having been granted a wildcard entry to the year's third grand slam, which begins next week, Williams is bidding for her first major title since winning 2017's Australian Open.

But speaking after her successful return to the court, Williams admitted her comeback had been far from certain.

"Did I ever doubt I would return? Absolutely, for sure. I would be dishonest if I said it wasn't and now my body feels great," she said.

"I definitely felt good out there and I was talking with Ons in the first set saying 'we're not playing bad' because they were just playing really good in that first set.

"But obviously winning, getting more balls and playing a little bit more made us feel a lot better. It definitely felt reassuring. It has been clicking in practice and now it seems like it is clicking. It is doubles but it still means a lot to both of us to be in it."

Williams and Jabeur will face Shuko Aoyama and Chan Hao-Ching in Eastbourne's doubles quarter-finals after posting an impressive 2-6 6-3 13-11 victory in their first outing.

With Williams now ranked 1,204th in the world and aged 40, speculation has abounded as to whether her SW19 appearance will mark the beginning of a farewell tour for the seven-time Wimbledon champion.

However, Williams is not rushing to make any further decisions about her future in the game.

"You know what, I am literally taking it one day at a time. I really took my time with my hamstring injury so I am not making a ton of decisions after this," she added.

"I did a lot of non-training in the beginning obviously and after I couldn't play New York [2021's US Open] I went cold turkey of not working out.

"It felt good, but I always try to stay semi-fit because you never know when you are going to play Wimbledon.

"I love tennis and I love playing otherwise I wouldn't be here, but I also love what I do off the court."

Ivan Perisic's move to Tottenham from Inter came as a surprise to Ivica Olic, his former Croatia team-mate who is now assistant manager of the national team.

The 33-year-old winger left Italy following the expiration of his contract to join Spurs on a free transfer, where he will reunite with former Inter boss Antonio Conte.

He stands among a number of early additions made by Conte ahead of the new season such as Fraser Forster and Yves Bissouma, as Spurs look to consolidate their top-four position in the 2022-23 season.

Perisic's move to Spurs brings an end to a seven-year association with Inter, with whom he won the Serie A in 2020-21 and the Coppa Italia in 2021-22, and Olic thought the Nerazzurri would find a way to keep him.

"To be honest I was a little surprised he went to England - he had a very good season at Inter and I expected him to stay," Olic told Stats Perform.

"I didn't think Inter would just let go of him like that.

"Ivan has played in Germany, France and now Italy for the past few years. But we had talked about the fact that England had always been a sore point for him. 

"I'm not saying it was a life aspiration for him but definitely sees it as a challenge to play in the Premier League."

Olic believes the fact that Perisic has experience working with Conte will be beneficial for him and does not foresee any issues with the experienced winger settling into English football.

"This opportunity presented itself and he accepted it," said Olic. "Some clubs were interested in him, but he chose Tottenham. 

"He knows the coach, his coaching staff and his game system. In terms of getting used to the English system, I don't think he will have any problems. 

"I'm sure, since I've played with him myself and now, I'm coaching him, that he'll settle in quickly and become one of the most important players."

Spurs begin the new Premier League season on August 6 against Southampton and will be in the Champions League group stage draw on Thursday, August 25.

Former Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone has issued a blunt verdict on Charles Leclerc's title hopes and has declared those backing Ferrari this season will "get nothing".

Red Bull's defending champion Max Verstappen has won six of the nine races so far this season to establish a dominant 49-point advantage over Leclerc – who is also three points adrift of Sergio Perez – in the drivers' championship.

That deficit has come amid a huge swing in the standings, with Leclerc previously holding a 46-point advantage over Verstappen following the opening three rounds of the season as the Dutch driver was forced to retire from two of those races.

However, Leclerc's most recent victory came in Australia in April and Verstappen has won five of the six races since, with Ecclestone stating he now has it "easy".

"Errors are creeping in again. The reliability we are seeing is often reminiscent of the old days and the drivers themselves are not always confident on the track," he told Blick.

"It means Max is having an easy time in the Red Bull with six wins already."

Ecclestone added that he had wanted to see Ferrari perform better in the 2022 season but early showings have ultimately led him to write off the team's chances.

"Like many people, I had hoped that Ferrari would succeed again after more than 14 years," he said.

"Unfortunately, I have to say that anyone who continues to put their money on Ferrari or Leclerc will get nothing."

Ferrari have not won the constructors' championship since 2008 and, from 1999 to 2008, had clinched the title in eight of the ten seasons.

Kimi Raikkonen was the last Ferrari driver to win the drivers' championship with his triumph in 2007, and is the only driver to win with Ferrari since Michael Schumacher's last success in 2004.

England captain Eoin Morgan has been ruled out of Wednesday's third ODI with the Netherlands due to a groin injury.

Morgan has struggled for form during the three-match series, which England lead 2-0 after dominant displays in the first two outings.

While the likes of Phil Salt, Jos Buttler and Dawid Malan have delivered in Amstelveen, Morgan has not scored a run across the two games.

He went for a golden duck in the first ODI – the first time that has happened in the format since September 2017 – and scored another zero last time out.

Indeed, Morgan has passed 50 just once in his last eight ODI innings since scoring 106 against Ireland in February 2020, raising questions over his future as ODI skipper.

The 35-year-old has been nursing a groin issue, having previously struggled with back and knee problems, and missed a training session at the VRA Cricket Ground on Tuesday.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) confirmed ahead of the third ODI that Morgan would play no part for "precautionary" reasons.

Jos Buttler will therefore captain England on his 101st ODI appearance as they look to complete a clean sweep.

England have won their last seven ODIs – not since between January and May 2017 have they enjoyed a longer run (eight) – while the Netherlands have lost 11 in a row.

Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia will be leaving the club as part of the new overhaul of management staff by the incoming ownership group headed by Todd Boehly, who will take over as interim sporting director and chairman of the board.

Granovskaia, who is central to all of Chelsea's transfer dealings, has been a decision-maker at Stamford Bridge for the past 12 years and had close ties to former team owner Roman Abramovich, having worked for him as far back as 1997 at an oil company owned by the Russian businessman.

Last year she was named 'Best Club Director in European football' at the Golden Boy awards, but she will be part of a boardroom clean-out that includes the departure of chairman Bruce Buck.

Boehly, who completed a £4.25billion takeover of Chelsea at the end of May, has been placed in temporary charge of overseeing incoming and outgoing transfers.

Chelsea confirmed the news on their official website on Wednesday and added that Granovskaia will remain available to Boehly for the duration of the current transfer window to help with the transitional period.

"We thank Marina for her many years of excellent service to the club and wish her all the best in her future ventures," Boehly added in the statement.

Patrick Cantley has expressed his concerns for the future of golf after more breakaways to join the controversial Saudi-backed LIV Golf Invitational Series.

Brooks Koepka is widely reported to be set to leave the PGA Tour and, while there's yet to be official confirmation, it was announced he had withdrawn from the Travelers Championship.

Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter are among those to have signed up to the series, with further additions expected in the near future.

This has resulted in a lot of uncertainty around the future of golf and Cantley has admitted he is concerned.

"Everyone wants to play against the best players in the world and a lot of us are hyper-competitive. That's maybe what drove us to be as good as we are," he told a news conference.

"Anytime there's a potential fracture in the sport, I don't think that's good. You don't see it in any other major sports, where all the talent is in one tour or league. It's definitely a real concern. 

"Right now, there's a competition for talent that is going on, you've seen it in lots of businesses, you've seen it in other professional sports from time to time and part of the concern is not knowing what the future will be like.

"It's an uncertain time for golf. If you think about it in the larger business landscape, it's a competition for talent.

"If the PGA Tour wants to remain as the pre-eminent tour for professional golfers, it has to be the best place to play for the best players in the world."

Patrick Cantlay has expressed his concerns for the future of golf after more breakaways to join the controversial Saudi-backed LIV Golf Invitational Series.

Brooks Koepka is widely reported to be set to leave the PGA Tour and, while there's yet to be official confirmation, it was announced he had withdrawn from the Travelers Championship.

Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter are among those to have signed up to the series, with further additions expected in the near future.

This has resulted in a lot of uncertainty around the future of golf and Cantlay has admitted he is concerned.

"Everyone wants to play against the best players in the world and a lot of us are hyper-competitive. That's maybe what drove us to be as good as we are," he told a news conference.

"Anytime there's a potential fracture in the sport, I don't think that's good. You don't see it in any other major sports, where all the talent is in one tour or league. It's definitely a real concern. 

"Right now, there's a competition for talent that is going on, you've seen it in lots of businesses, you've seen it in other professional sports from time to time and part of the concern is not knowing what the future will be like.

"It's an uncertain time for golf. If you think about it in the larger business landscape, it's a competition for talent.

"If the PGA Tour wants to remain as the pre-eminent tour for professional golfers, it has to be the best place to play for the best players in the world."

Shohei Ohtani struck two home runs and hit eight RBI's for the Angels in a stellar individual performance but his side suffered a 12-11 defeat to the Royals in extra innings.

The Angels rallied from deficits of 5-0, 6-1 and 10-7 to send the game to the 11th inning, with Ohtani's career-high of eight runs in a performance that also saw him set a single-game record for a Japanese-born player in the MLB.

A 423-foot homer in the sixth was followed by a game-tying, 438-foot homer in the ninth, with his record-setting RBI coming in the 11th with a sacrifice that pulled the score back to 12-11.

However, it wouldn't be enough after Whit Merrifield and Kyle Isbel drove in runs off Jose Quijada earlier in the final innings.

For Ohtani, it was a 10th multi-HR game in MLB and his fourth of the season, and earned him praise from his opponents after the game.

Royals catcher Salvador Perez said: "Ohtani is unbelievable. He’s the best there is right now. It’s impressive what he’s doing. Thank god I have the opportunity to watch him."

Other records came close to tumbling for Ohtani, who's eight RBIs were the most by an Angels player since Garret Anderson had a franchise-record 10 RBIs against the Yankees in August 2007.

He will be starting pitcher for the final game of the series against the Royals, with the Angels looking to avoid a whitewash after back-to-back defeats.

The St Louis Cardinals are hopeful that the back issue that forced Paul Goldschmidt to miss Tuesday's 6-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers is nothing serious.

Six-time All-Star Goldschmidt has been a key part of the Cardinals' 39-31 start to the season, with Tuesday's win moving them top of the National League Central ahead of the Brewers.

The in-form Cardinals second baseman has the second-best batting average and OPS in the major leagues this season (.339 and 1.031), behind Luis Arraez (.362) and Yordan Alvarez (1.038) respectively.

Goldschmidt, who was awarded the National League Player of the Week on Tuesday, has an equal-second-best 86 hits this season, with 48 runs and 16 home runs.

The 34-year-old missed the Brewers game due to back tightness, which he had tried to play through as a designated hitter in Monday's 2-0 loss to Milwaukee.

"He'll experience it from time to time," Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. "Usually he takes a day, it loosens up, he'll get treatment and be back at it. That's our hope."

"He tried to play through it yesterday. It made sense to give him a day today."

The Cardinals and Brewers meet again on Wednesday, the third of their four-game series.

Yordan Alvarez hit a two-run home run and Kyle Tucker had three RBIs to give the Houston Astros an 8-2 win over the New York Mets in Tuesday's high-profile interleague matchup.

Jose Altuve and Jose Siri contributed solo home runs for Houston, who have only gone 6-4 over their past 10 games.

Altuve and Alvarez, who missed Sunday's win over the Chicago White Sox with injury, set up a 3-0 lead in the third inning, connecting off Trevor Williams. Tucker's three-run double extended the lead to 7-0, effectively securing the victory.

With the win, the Astros moved to 42-25 and only trail the New York Yankees in the American League, while the Mets lead the National League with a record of 45-25.

It was the first of nine straight games against the Mets and Yankees, with a trip to New York following this two-game stand at home.

Yaz stands up in Giants win

Mike Yastrzemski returned to form with an important two-run double, propelling the San Francisco Giants to an 8-7 victory over the Atlanta Braves.

Claiming only one hit from his previous 16 at-bats, the 31-year-old drove Collin McHugh deep into right-field, putting the Giants up 8-7.

The Giants moved ahead of the reigning World Series champions in the Nationa League standings with the win, claiming their eighth win in the past 11 games.

Gimenez gets Guardians up over Twins

The Cleveland Guardians moved to the top of the AL Central standings, beating the Minnesota Twins 6-5 in 11 innings.

Leading the major leagues with a .362 batting average, Guardians' lead-off hitter Luis Arraez hit a three-run home run in the seventh, sending Eli Morgan over right-center field.

Andres Gimenez hit the important RBI single in the 11th, as Emmanuel Clase earned his 16th save in 18 attempts. The Guardians' 35-28 record (.556) now inches them ahead of the Twins on 38-31 (.551).

Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper expects All-Star Nikita Kucherov to play in Game 4 of the NHL Stanley Cup Finals on Wednesday despite an injury concern.

Kucherov exited Game 3 on Monday, as the Lightning won 6-2 over the Colorado Avalanche, with 6:05 remaining in the third period after a push from Devon Toews.

The Russian tangled with Toews after being slammed into the ice and boards and was involved in the ensuing power play but left hobbling for the trainers' room soon after.

"As I sit right now, I think he can play tomorrow," Cooper told reporters on Tuesday.

"But I'm not Kuch. If I know Kuch, he's sitting there saying the same thing. But we'll see what the doctors and everybody says."

Kucherov has been the Lightning's leading points scorer over this season's Stanley Cup playoffs, adding seven goals to his 19 assists.

The 29-year-old has been a creative force for the reigning Stanley Cup champions in important moments this post-season, namely his extraordinary game-winning backhand assist for Ross Colton in Game 2 against the Florida Panthers to set up a 2-0 series lead.

Cooper added: "I think so. I hope so. It's always difficult when the game is 12 hours ago or whatever it was. A lot can happen over the next two days.

"Am I glad there's a day off between games? Yes. We'll see how he is tomorrow."

Cooper said that Kucherov has played through pain before, including in the 2021 playoffs when he had a cracked rib.

The Lightning, who are chasing a rare Stanley Cup three-peat, trail 2-1 in the series after losing both games in Colorado.