Jumby showed his love of seven furlongs once again in claiming the Sky Bet John of Gaunt Stakes at Haydock on Saturday.
Eve Johnson Houghton’s son of New Bay won the Group Two Hungerford Stakes over the distance last summer and avoiding a penalty for that success here, the 9-4 favourite made full use of that advantage to get the better of Australian raider The Astrologist in the closing stages.
Dropping back in both trip and grade having beaten on horse home in the Lockinge Stakes last time, Jumby was positioned towards the rear by jockey Charlie Bishop as The Astrologist was out of the gates and quickly into stride in the hands of Ryan Moore.
However, the long Haydock straight provided Bishop with all the time he needed to set about catching the strapping Australian speedster and with Karl Burke’s El Caballo suffering interference at a crucial moment, Jumby was given plenty of daylight to make his challenge, cruising to a cosy one-and-a-half-length success in the closing stages.
Johnson Houghton said: “Seven furlongs is the right trip, but seven furlongs is also the hardest trip to find and he also doesn’t want soft ground, so we have to just pick our way through.
“He’s a brilliant horse who is very good in Group Threes, he’s won a Group Two and there’s no reason why he couldn’t win another one.
“He’d have to carry a lot of weight in the Wokingham at Royal Ascot (over six furlongs), but when you see the size of him I don’t think weight bothers him very much, so we’ll see.
“We’ll take him home, scratch our heads and have a think about it, but today is a great day and he did it like we expected him to. It was like a bit of work for him and he did it with a smile on his face.”
Johnson Houghton felt Jumby simply did not stay a mile at Newbury, but is not ruling out a crack at that distance in the Breeders’ Cup later this year.
She added: “We tried to go to the Lockinge and the times guys tell me he did the fastest six furlongs between the one to the seven, but he didn’t get the mile.
“Maybe if we really smuggled him into it he might get it, but we’ll obviously look at the Lennox at Goodwood over seven, the Hungerford at Newbury which he won last year, the Foret in France and we might have to travel further with him.
“We could have a little look at the Breeders’ Cup Mile, why not? I think he might get a mile round a bend and if they pay us to go why not give it a crack?”
The Astrologist, who is trained by Leon and Troy Corstens, posted an improved effort on his British bow, when he finished seventh in the Duke of York Stakes and is on course for Royal Ascot.
Assistant trainer Dom Sutton said: “It was definitely a step in the right direction. Ryan said he thought he was on the winner three furlongs out. He was probably just found wanting in the last 50 yards stepping up to seven furlongs on his second start (in Britain).
“It will put him cherry ripe for Ascot, so he should be at peak fitness. We’ll freshen him up going into Ascot.”
2133 – Huge City scare just moments after going in front as a looping header from Federico Dimarco hits the bar. He then heads against team-mate Lukaku on the rebound.
2127 – GOAL! Man City 1 Inter Milan 0
City break the deadlock in the 68th minute with a fine strike from Rodri.
Akanji plays Bernardo Silva into the area and his cut-back is deflected into the path of Rodri, who passes the ball into the net from just inside the area.
2117 – Big left-off for City. A mix-up between Manuel Akanji and Ederson allows Martinez in down the left, but the Brazilian goalkeeper stands tall and denies the Inter man.
Ruben Dias then heads over as City threaten at the other end.
The game is starting to open up.
2116 – Dzeko off, Lukaku on for Inter.
2110 – Opening for City as Inter give the ball away at the back, but they are unable to take advantage as the Italians shut the door. More frustration for the Premier League champions.
2104 – The second half is under way.
2048 – Half-time: Man City 0 Inter Milan 0
Inter will be the happier side after that opening half. Work to do for Guardiola during the break.
2036 – De Bruyne is forced off injured!
The City talisman tries to run off what looks like a hamstring problem but, after over-hitting a cross, signals to the bench he can’t continue. Phil Foden is on.
It means further Champions League final woe for De Bruyne after he left the field with a facial injury during City’s loss to Chelsea two years ago.
2029 – Not a good sight for City. De Bruyne down receiving treatment, but is back on the pitch.
2027 – Chance!
Haaland so close to giving City the lead. The striker is sent clear by De Bruyne and his left-footed finish is well kept out by Onana.
2025 – Inter are giving the City players no time at all on the ball and Guardiola’s men are struggling to get their creative players into the contest. Food for thought for the manager.
2016 – The City owner is here.
2016 – A cagey opening 15 minutes. City are having the majority of possession as expected, but Inter are ultra aggressive and look like they have the potential to be a threat on the counter.
2011 – The fans’ view.
2006 – Chance!
City go close. Bernardo Silva cuts into the area from the right and whips a left-footed shot narrowly wide of the far top corner.
2000 – Kick off!
Inter get us under way in the Champions League final.
1945 – 15 minutes to kick off in Istanbul.
1942 – Walker “will be absolutely fuming” at being left on the bench, according to Rio Ferdinand.
“Inside the blood will be boiling,” he said on BT Sport.
1930 – Haaland getting his eye in.
1920 – City fans back home are also braced for the big match.
1910 – The City players are out on the pitch.
1907 – Guardiola revealed Walker’s omission was tactical rather than injured-related.
“He could be there, it was really tough because Kyle is so important,” he told BT Sport.
1905 – Black smoke billowed over the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in the hours prior to kick-off due to a fire at a nearby factory, but there was no suggestion it would affect the game.
1900 – The City squad are in the building.
Their team bus had to navigate the traffic congestion and perhaps arrived later than ideal, but was still at the stadium by 8.40pm local time, with the game due to start at 10pm.
1835 – The team news is in!
Kyle Walker is on the bench for City. The England full-back suffered an injury scare late in the closing minutes of the FA Cup final last weekend.
Walker did not feature in an open training session earlier in the week and, although the suggestion at the time was his absence was precautionary, his expected place in the side went to Nathan Ake.
Ake was likely to start at left-back, with Manuel Akanji switching to right-back.
Ederson returned in goal for Stefan Ortega, but the side was otherwise the same one that started both semi-final legs against Real Madrid and against Manchester United at Wembley last Saturday.
Dzeko starts ahead of Lukaku for Inter.
1820 – The stadium is filling up, despite reports of heavy traffic on the way to the ground.
1810 – Mario Balotelli won the treble with Inter in 2010 and was a Premier League and FA Cup winner in his three years at City. But the Italian is remaining strictly neutral tonight.
“I’m not going to put myself in one of the two sides,” he said on BT Sport.
1805 – As well as the players, the pundits are also gearing up for a big night.
1755 – Another English side has rather fond Champions League memories of the Ataturk Olympic Stadium. Hard to believe this was 18 years ago.
1740 – How Inter would love to have this man in his prime back in their midfield.
1735 – City owner Sheikh Mansour will be at tonight’s game, only the second game he has attended since his investment vehicle, the Abu Dhabi United Group, purchased City in 2008.
1725 – City are aiming to match the feat previously only achieved in English football by their cross-city rivals Manchester United in 1999, but how do their two seasons match up?
United lost only three games in their treble-winning season, but a remarkable 21 draws in 57 games across the three competitions in question sees City overshadow them in most other statistical categories.
Excluding the League Cup from both teams’ records and with their 57th and final game still to play, Pep Guardiola’s side have 41 wins (73.2 per cent) to United’s 33 (57.9 per cent), 144 goals to 121 and 25 clean sheets to 20.
They have conceded only 39 goals to their predecessors’ 56, scoring an average of 2.57 per game and conceding 0.70, compared to 2.12 against 0.98 for United.
1710 – Unlike City, Inter know what it takes to win this competition, though. Remember this?
1705 – We know all about City, but how about tonight’s opponents Inter? Let’s take a closer look at the side standing between City and the treble.
Their success is built on their mean defence. Simone Inzaghi’s combative team have kept a tournament-high eight clean sheets in their 12 matches, including five from six in the knockout stages, with goalkeeper Andre Onana a star performer.
They also boast Argentinian World Cup winner Lautaro Martinez up front, alongside two familiar faces in former City striker Edin Dzeko and Romelu Lukaku.
They had a mediocre Serie A campaign, though, finishing 18 points behind champions Napoli to sit third and losing 12 of their 38 games.
City know this is their final to lose.
1703 – The trophy is here.
1650 – Another taste of the atmosphere out in Istanbul:
1640 – Let’s have a look at how both teams got here:
1625 – 52-goal striker Erling Haaland looked in relaxed mood at training yesterday, but says he is not immune to pressure.
“Of course I feel pressure, I would lie if I said I didn’t,” he said.
In fact the Norwegian has only one goal in his last seven outings, but Guardiola for one is not concerned – “I don’t have doubts. If you have doubts about Erling scoring you are a very lonely person.”
1615 – City go into the match as red-hot favourites and Pep Guardiola and Kevin De Bruyne both admitted on the eve of the game that winning the competition had become both a dream and an obsession.
“To achieve things you always have to have the correct proportion of obsession and desire. It’s a positive word for the desire and will to win it. It is of course a dream for us,” said Guardiola.
1610 – Our man in Istanbul is inside the Ataturk and has the very precise timings for tonight.
1605 – Less than four hours to kick-off and the atmosphere is building. Both sets of fans certainly seem to be in good spirits.
1600 – Good afternoon and welcome to the PA news agency’s Champions League final blog. Stay here for all the build-up, key match action and post-game reaction as Manchester City and Inter Milan slog it out in Istanbul.
2155 – Full-time: Man City 1 Inter Milan 0. City have won the Champions League – and the treble!
2148 – Incredible point-blank save from Ederson to keep out a Lukaku header.
Robin Gosens heads a Marcelo Brozovic cross back across goal to Lukaku, who has to score just a couple of yards out, but his header is straight at the keeper, who saves right on the line with his knee.
2145 – Five minutes plus stoppage time between City and the treble. Is this going to be the goal that clinches it?
2141 – Walker is on for John Stones.
2137 – Almost a fine individual goal from Foden as he bursts through from midfield, but Onana is equal to his low shot.
2133 – Huge City scare just moments after going in front as a looping header from Federico Dimarco hits the bar. He then heads against team-mate Lukaku on the rebound.
2127 – GOAL! Man City 1 Inter Milan 0
City break the deadlock in the 68th minute with a fine strike from Rodri.
Akanji plays Bernardo Silva into the area and his cut-back is deflected into the path of Rodri, who passes the ball into the net from just inside the area.
2117 – Big left-off for City. A mix-up between Manuel Akanji and Ederson allows Martinez in down the left, but the Brazilian goalkeeper stands tall and denies the Inter man.
Ruben Dias then heads over as City threaten at the other end.
The game is starting to open up.
2116 – Dzeko off, Lukaku on for Inter.
2110 – Opening for City as Inter give the ball away at the back, but they are unable to take advantage as the Italians shut the door. More frustration for the Premier League champions.
2104 – The second half is under way.
2048 – Half-time: Man City 0 Inter Milan 0
Inter will be the happier side after that opening half. Work to do for Guardiola during the break.
2036 – De Bruyne is forced off injured!
The City talisman tries to run off what looks like a hamstring problem but, after over-hitting a cross, signals to the bench he can’t continue. Phil Foden is on.
It means further Champions League final woe for De Bruyne after he left the field with a facial injury during City’s loss to Chelsea two years ago.
2029 – Not a good sight for City. De Bruyne down receiving treatment, but is back on the pitch.
2027 – Chance!
Haaland so close to giving City the lead. The striker is sent clear by De Bruyne and his left-footed finish is well kept out by Onana.
2025 – Inter are giving the City players no time at all on the ball and Guardiola’s men are struggling to get their creative players into the contest. Food for thought for the manager.
2016 – The City owner is here.
2016 – A cagey opening 15 minutes. City are having the majority of possession as expected, but Inter are ultra aggressive and look like they have the potential to be a threat on the counter.
2011 – The fans’ view.
2006 – Chance!
City go close. Bernardo Silva cuts into the area from the right and whips a left-footed shot narrowly wide of the far top corner.
2000 – Kick off!
Inter get us under way in the Champions League final.
1945 – 15 minutes to kick off in Istanbul.
1942 – Walker “will be absolutely fuming” at being left on the bench, according to Rio Ferdinand.
“Inside the blood will be boiling,” he said on BT Sport.
1930 – Haaland getting his eye in.
1920 – City fans back home are also braced for the big match.
1910 – The City players are out on the pitch.
1907 – Guardiola revealed Walker’s omission was tactical rather than injured-related.
“He could be there, it was really tough because Kyle is so important,” he told BT Sport.
1905 – Black smoke billowed over the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in the hours prior to kick-off due to a fire at a nearby factory, but there was no suggestion it would affect the game.
1900 – The City squad are in the building.
Their team bus had to navigate the traffic congestion and perhaps arrived later than ideal, but was still at the stadium by 8.40pm local time, with the game due to start at 10pm.
1835 – The team news is in!
Kyle Walker is on the bench for City. The England full-back suffered an injury scare late in the closing minutes of the FA Cup final last weekend.
Walker did not feature in an open training session earlier in the week and, although the suggestion at the time was his absence was precautionary, his expected place in the side went to Nathan Ake.
Ake was likely to start at left-back, with Manuel Akanji switching to right-back.
Ederson returned in goal for Stefan Ortega, but the side was otherwise the same one that started both semi-final legs against Real Madrid and against Manchester United at Wembley last Saturday.
Dzeko starts ahead of Lukaku for Inter.
1820 – The stadium is filling up, despite reports of heavy traffic on the way to the ground.
1810 – Mario Balotelli won the treble with Inter in 2010 and was a Premier League and FA Cup winner in his three years at City. But the Italian is remaining strictly neutral tonight.
“I’m not going to put myself in one of the two sides,” he said on BT Sport.
1805 – As well as the players, the pundits are also gearing up for a big night.
1755 – Another English side has rather fond Champions League memories of the Ataturk Olympic Stadium. Hard to believe this was 18 years ago.
1740 – How Inter would love to have this man in his prime back in their midfield.
1735 – City owner Sheikh Mansour will be at tonight’s game, only the second game he has attended since his investment vehicle, the Abu Dhabi United Group, purchased City in 2008.
1725 – City are aiming to match the feat previously only achieved in English football by their cross-city rivals Manchester United in 1999, but how do their two seasons match up?
United lost only three games in their treble-winning season, but a remarkable 21 draws in 57 games across the three competitions in question sees City overshadow them in most other statistical categories.
Excluding the League Cup from both teams’ records and with their 57th and final game still to play, Pep Guardiola’s side have 41 wins (73.2 per cent) to United’s 33 (57.9 per cent), 144 goals to 121 and 25 clean sheets to 20.
They have conceded only 39 goals to their predecessors’ 56, scoring an average of 2.57 per game and conceding 0.70, compared to 2.12 against 0.98 for United.
1710 – Unlike City, Inter know what it takes to win this competition, though. Remember this?
1705 – We know all about City, but how about tonight’s opponents Inter? Let’s take a closer look at the side standing between City and the treble.
Their success is built on their mean defence. Simone Inzaghi’s combative team have kept a tournament-high eight clean sheets in their 12 matches, including five from six in the knockout stages, with goalkeeper Andre Onana a star performer.
They also boast Argentinian World Cup winner Lautaro Martinez up front, alongside two familiar faces in former City striker Edin Dzeko and Romelu Lukaku.
They had a mediocre Serie A campaign, though, finishing 18 points behind champions Napoli to sit third and losing 12 of their 38 games.
City know this is their final to lose.
1703 – The trophy is here.
1650 – Another taste of the atmosphere out in Istanbul:
1640 – Let’s have a look at how both teams got here:
1625 – 52-goal striker Erling Haaland looked in relaxed mood at training yesterday, but says he is not immune to pressure.
“Of course I feel pressure, I would lie if I said I didn’t,” he said.
In fact the Norwegian has only one goal in his last seven outings, but Guardiola for one is not concerned – “I don’t have doubts. If you have doubts about Erling scoring you are a very lonely person.”
1615 – City go into the match as red-hot favourites and Pep Guardiola and Kevin De Bruyne both admitted on the eve of the game that winning the competition had become both a dream and an obsession.
“To achieve things you always have to have the correct proportion of obsession and desire. It’s a positive word for the desire and will to win it. It is of course a dream for us,” said Guardiola.
1610 – Our man in Istanbul is inside the Ataturk and has the very precise timings for tonight.
1605 – Less than four hours to kick-off and the atmosphere is building. Both sets of fans certainly seem to be in good spirits.
1600 – Good afternoon and welcome to the PA news agency’s Champions League final blog. Stay here for all the build-up, key match action and post-game reaction as Manchester City and Inter Milan slog it out in Istanbul.
1600 – Good afternoon and welcome to the PA news agency’s Champions League final blog. Stay here for all the build-up, key match action and post-game reaction as Manchester City and Inter Milan slog it out in Istanbul.
2036 – De Bruyne is being forced off injured!
The City talisman tries to continue but after over-hitting a cross signals to the bench he can’t continue. Phil Foden is on.
2029 – Not a good sight for City. De Bruyne down receiving treatment, but is back on the pitch.
2027 – Chance!
Haaland so close to giving City the lead. The striker is sent clear by De Bruyne and his left-footed finish is well kept out by Onana.
2025 – Inter are giving the City players no time at all on the ball and Guardiola’s men are struggling to get their creative players into the contest. Food for thought for the manager.
2016 – The City owner is here.
2016 – A cagey opening 15 minutes. City are having the majority of possession as expected, but Inter are ultra aggressive and look like they have the potential to be a threat on the counter.
2011 – The fans’ view.
2006 – Chance!
City go close. Bernardo Silva cuts into the area from the right and whips a left-footed shot narrowly wide of the far top corner.
2000 – Kick off!
Inter get us under way in the Champions League final.
1945 – 15 minutes to kick off in Istanbul.
1942 – Walker “will be absolutely fuming” at being left on the bench, according to Rio Ferdinand.
“Inside the blood will be boiling,” he said on BT Sport.
1930 – Haaland getting his eye in.
1920 – City fans back home are also braced for the big match.
1910 – The City players are out on the pitch.
1907 – Guardiola revealed Walker’s omission was tactical rather than injured-related.
“He could be there, it was really tough because Kyle is so important,” he told BT Sport.
1905 – Black smoke billowed over the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in the hours prior to kick-off due to a fire at a nearby factory, but there was no suggestion it would affect the game.
1900 – The City squad are in the building.
Their team bus had to navigate the traffic congestion and perhaps arrived later than ideal, but was still at the stadium by 8.40pm local time, with the game due to start at 10pm.
1835 – The team news is in!
Kyle Walker is on the bench for City. The England full-back suffered an injury scare late in the closing minutes of the FA Cup final last weekend.
Walker did not feature in an open training session earlier in the week and, although the suggestion at the time was his absence was precautionary, his expected place in the side went to Nathan Ake.
Ake was likely to start at left-back, with Manuel Akanji switching to right-back.
Ederson returned in goal for Stefan Ortega, but the side was otherwise the same one that started both semi-final legs against Real Madrid and against Manchester United at Wembley last Saturday.
Dzeko starts ahead of Lukaku for Inter.
1820 – The stadium is filling up, despite reports of heavy traffic on the way to the ground.
1810 – Mario Balotelli won the treble with Inter in 2010 and was a Premier League and FA Cup winner in his three years at City. But the Italian is remaining strictly neutral tonight.
“I’m not going to put myself in one of the two sides,” he said on BT Sport.
1805 – As well as the players, the pundits are also gearing up for a big night.
1755 – Another English side has rather fond Champions League memories of the Ataturk Olympic Stadium. Hard to believe this was 18 years ago.
1740 – How Inter would love to have this man in his prime back in their midfield.
1735 – City owner Sheikh Mansour will be at tonight’s game, only the second game he has attended since his investment vehicle, the Abu Dhabi United Group, purchased City in 2008.
1725 – City are aiming to match the feat previously only achieved in English football by their cross-city rivals Manchester United in 1999, but how do their two seasons match up?
United lost only three games in their treble-winning season, but a remarkable 21 draws in 57 games across the three competitions in question sees City overshadow them in most other statistical categories.
Excluding the League Cup from both teams’ records and with their 57th and final game still to play, Pep Guardiola’s side have 41 wins (73.2 per cent) to United’s 33 (57.9 per cent), 144 goals to 121 and 25 clean sheets to 20.
They have conceded only 39 goals to their predecessors’ 56, scoring an average of 2.57 per game and conceding 0.70, compared to 2.12 against 0.98 for United.
1710 – Unlike City, Inter know what it takes to win this competition, though. Remember this?
1705 – We know all about City, but how about tonight’s opponents Inter? Let’s take a closer look at the side standing between City and the treble.
Their success is built on their mean defence. Simone Inzaghi’s combative team have kept a tournament-high eight clean sheets in their 12 matches, including five from six in the knockout stages, with goalkeeper Andre Onana a star performer.
They also boast Argentinian World Cup winner Lautaro Martinez up front, alongside two familiar faces in former City striker Edin Dzeko and Romelu Lukaku.
They had a mediocre Serie A campaign, though, finishing 18 points behind champions Napoli to sit third and losing 12 of their 38 games.
City know this is their final to lose.
1703 – The trophy is here.
1650 – Another taste of the atmosphere out in Istanbul:
1640 – Let’s have a look at how both teams got here:
1625 – 52-goal striker Erling Haaland looked in relaxed mood at training yesterday, but says he is not immune to pressure.
“Of course I feel pressure, I would lie if I said I didn’t,” he said.
In fact the Norwegian has only one goal in his last seven outings, but Guardiola for one is not concerned – “I don’t have doubts. If you have doubts about Erling scoring you are a very lonely person.”
1615 – City go into the match as red-hot favourites and Pep Guardiola and Kevin De Bruyne both admitted on the eve of the game that winning the competition had become both a dream and an obsession.
“To achieve things you always have to have the correct proportion of obsession and desire. It’s a positive word for the desire and will to win it. It is of course a dream for us,” said Guardiola.
1610 – Our man in Istanbul is inside the Ataturk and has the very precise timings for tonight.
1605 – Less than four hours to kick-off and the atmosphere is building. Both sets of fans certainly seem to be in good spirits.
1600 – Good afternoon and welcome to the PA news agency’s Champions League final blog. Stay here for all the build-up, key match action and post-game reaction as Manchester City and Inter Milan slog it out in Istanbul.
Bombay Bazaar continued a good afternoon at Beverley for Richard Fahey when taking the bet365 Two Year Old Trophy Conditions Stakes.
The Kodiac colt was a winner on the Westwood last time out when landing a course-and-distance event by four and a quarter lengths.
Prior to that he was third in a good quality contest on his debut when ridden by Oisin Orr, the same jockey who took the ride for the Two Year Old Trophy.
Sent off a 4-1 chance, the bay was ridden patiently and found his path blocked ahead of the two-furlong pole, but upon finding a gap he was able to accelerate away from his rivals to win by three quarters of a length.
The success followed Midnight Affair’s victory in the Hilary Needler earlier on the card, with both horses now bound for Royal Ascot having earned their place in these Beverley trials.
“They’re two great two-year-old races that I’d always like to win, but to win them both on the same afternoon is fantastic,” said Fahey.
“That was quite impressive there, he came home well. It didn’t look a bad race, looking at the individuals, so it was a good, solid performance.
“He is definitely getting better, he is a homebred and he just missed out on going to the sales – he has improved drastically.
“I would think the owner (Hussain Alabbas Lootah) would be very keen to go to the Windsor Castle. I will speak to him but I know they are keen to go. There’s no reason for him not to go, so we’ll see.”
Australia’s Cameron Green produced a sensational catch on the fourth afternoon of the World Test Championship final as India’s pursuit of a record fourth-innings chase suffered its first blow.
Pat Cummins declared midway through the fourth afternoon at the Oval on 270 for eight, leaving more India needing an unprecedented 444 to win in just over four sessions.
Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill made a fearless start as they began chipping away at their target but in the final over before tea, Scott Boland took the latter’s outside edge. Green flung his 6ft 6in frame low to his left to pull off a stunning one-handed take.
The heavily partisan India-supporting crowd made it clear they felt the ball had been grounded and Gill should be reprieved, but there was little of substance to overturn the wicket and the TV umpire, Englishman Richard Kettleborough, took a long and deliberate look in slow motion before upholding the dismissal.
There were loud jeers and boos, as well as some chants of “cheat”, from the stands, but there was no doubt that Green – who also claimed a stunner to dismiss Ajinkya Rahane on day three – had taken his country one step closer to the global crown.
India will resume on 41 for one, knowing no team has ever scored more than 418 to win a Test in the fourth innings and no Indian side has ever bettered 406.
Sharma appeared well in the mood to make a dent on those statistics, reaching 22 not out from 25 balls with three fours and one lavishly hooked six off Mitchell Starc.
Australia had earlier progressed with relative serenity towards their declaration.
Marnus Labuschagne failed to add to his overnight score of 41 before nicking Umesh Yadav to slip, and Green ground out a sedate 25 before diverting spinner Ravindra Jadeja into his own stumps as he ploughed away on a leg-stump line, but the runs kept flowing.
Alex Carey banked some vital time in the middle ahead of the Ashes as he made an undefeated 66, while Starc swung the bat with freedom to make a lively 41.
All eyes were on Cummins from the moment the advantage snaked past 400 and he finally obliged when he was eighth man out, thrashing Mohammed Shami into the on-side.
Tom Marquand delivered Sea Silk Road to perfection to give William Haggas a fitting success in the Sky Bet Lester Piggott Stakes at Haydock.
Haggas and Marquand combined to win the contest – which is registered as the Pinnacle Stakes – with Sea La Rosa 12 months ago, but this year’s victory had added meaning with the Group Three contest renamed in honour of Piggott, who was not only a weighing room legend, but also Haggas’ father-in-law.
Although the race lost a little spice when John and Thady Gosden’s Mimikyu was declared a non-runner prior to the runners heading to post, there was nevertheless a small but select cast at the Lancashire track and it was German raider Nachtrose who led them along in the early stages from Roger Varian’s Modaara as the quintet raced in single file.
Marquand had the eventual winner anchored in rear sitting on the tail of Ryan Moore and the evens favourite Time Lock and although Moore was soon nudging away as the runners swung the turn for home, Marquand was yet to panic aboard the eventual winner as he began to hunt down those at the head of affairs.
Modaara laid down a challenge two furlongs from home, but the eye was always drawn to Sea Silk Road who would prove to be Nachtrose’s biggest danger in the closing stages and having hit top gear with a furlong to run, the Somerville Lodge inmate was well in control as she swooped past the raider late on to score by three-quarters of a length at 9-2.
Raatea may have earned himself a place on Julie Camacho’s small but select squad for Royal Ascot with victory in the Sky Bet Reverence Handicap at Haydock.
The six-year-old carries the colours of Martin Hughes, a part-owner of the yard’s stable star Shaquille, who is a major contender for Group One honours in Ascot’s Commonwealth Cup.
Raatea is not of that standard, but is undoubtedly a talented sprinter in his own right and following a fifth-placed finish on his reappearance at Newmarket, he stepped up on Merseyside to land odds of 13-2 in the hands of James Doyle.
Camacho’s husband and assistant, Steve Brown, said: “In fairness to Jason Hart, who rode him at Newmarket where he finished fifth in a really competitive race, he said he thought he’d really benefit from cheek pieces and you could see the difference today with how he travelled.
“James said he’d have kicked himself had he got beat as he actually got there too soon and the horse thought he’d done enough.
“There’s no doubt he’s a horse with plenty of ability and he’s done well for us, but we’ve always had it at the back of our minds that he could have done a touch better.
“We’ll have a chat with Martin and see what he’d like to do, but the ability is there to be taking part in good races. He has his own ideas, but when he’s good, he’s good.
“He’s in the Wokingham at Royal Ascot. He’s obviously got a penalty now, whether that’s enough to get in I don’t know, but I’m sure Martin would be delighted if he could run.
“In fairness, the stiff six at Ascot is his gig as he’s a six-and-a-half-furlong horse really.”
The Charlie Fellowes-trained Cumulonimbus (6-1) led from pillar to post in the Better Betting With Sky Bet Handicap under a well-judged ride from Harry Davies.
The four-year-old made every yard of the running when scoring at Newmarket last month and repeated the tactics on Merseyside, dominating from the front and keeping enough up his sleeve to repel the challenge of the long-absent Live Your Dream by half a length.
“The ground is rattling out there today, it was actually a concern for me but it was no problem for him,” said Davies.
“I managed to get a very easy lead on the front end. I hacked round really until we got to the four-furlong marker and I just sprinted away.
“He’s very gutsy and he’s improving, so it’s great.”
Midnight Affair is Royal Ascot bound after a neat performance in the Hilary Needler Trophy Fillies’ Conditions Stakes at Beverley.
The Richard Fahey-trained bay was denied a clear passage on her debut at Newmarket in May, but still ran with promise and was highly fancied on the Westwood as a result.
Starting as the 5-6 favourite under Danny Tudhope, she made light work of the five-furlong event and was not stretched in crossing the line a length and a quarter ahead of Andrew Balding’s Flora Of Bermuda.
Royal Ascot is next on the agenda, with owner Steve Parkin of Clipper Logistics aiming for the Queen Mary Stakes to retain the trophy Dramatised landed for him 12 months ago.
He said: “Richard has been saying he likes her a lot and she’s done that really well there. He says that he can’t get her off the bridle at home and she gets all the others off the bridle.
“She must be quite good and it’s lovely to see her do that on the track.
“We’ll go for a crack at the Queen Mary now as it’s a race we haven’t done too badly in!
“I won that with Dramatised last year and we hope she can develop into another really nice filly like her.”
Fahey echoed his words, adding: “We do like an her an awful lot at home, she always works really well.
“We feel she’s still learning. The better ones don’t always come off the bridle, but she’s learning and that was a good performance. She’s very uncomplicated, we’re very happy with her.
“Steve’s very keen to go for the Queen Mary and that’s where we’ll aim with her. He won it last year, it’s his race now!”
Paddy Power make Midnight Affair an 8-1 chance from 11s for the Queen Mary.
Novak Djokovic can complete his ascent to the top of tennis history by claiming a 23rd grand slam title at the French Open on Sunday.
Since inserting himself into the Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal duopoly, Djokovic has been playing catch-up, but victory over Casper Ruud would see him out on his own as the most successful men’s singles player ever.
And, with Federer retired and Nadal heading in the same direction, it would appear a decisive move.
Djokovic would also become the first man in history to win at least three titles at each slam and would be within one of Margaret Court’s all-time record.
The Serbian arrived in Paris after a less-than-stellar clay-court season but has made no secret of the fact it is the slams that keep him out there and he has once again risen to the occasion when it matters.
After outlasting a cramping Carlos Alcaraz in the semi-finals to win a 20th consecutive grand slam match, Djokovic said: “I have said it many times this year during the clay season that Roland Garros is where I want to peak on clay, where I want to play my best tennis.
“So I put myself in another really ideal position to win a grand slam. That’s basically what still drives me when I wake up in the morning and think about the season and think about things I want to achieve.
“I won the first grand slam this year and now I’m in the finals of a second one, so I couldn’t ask for more than that.
“As far as all the records that are on the line, it’s flattering, it’s great, but I need to win in order to make sure to be on that list. So I know what I need to do.
“I’ve been very fortunate that most of the matches in tournaments I’ve played in the last few years, there is history on the line. I like the feeling. It’s an incredible privilege to be able to make history of the sport that I truly love and that has given me so much.
“The motivation is very high, as you can imagine. There is one more to go, and hopefully I’ll get my hands on the trophy.”
Djokovic and Ruud have played four times before, with the Norwegian yet to win a set, and there is no doubt he is a huge underdog.
The fourth seed has played himself nicely into form on the Parisian clay, though, to make it back-to-back finals and will be the fresher having defeated Alexander Zverev for the loss of only seven games on Friday.
Zverev believes Ruud can take confidence from Djokovic’s only previous attempt to surpass his great rivals at the US Open in 2021, when nerves got the better of him and he was beaten by Daniil Medvedev.
“Novak is one of the best players in the world, that’s for sure, but, when you’re on the brink of history, I think that adds a little bit of pressure,” said Zverev.
“You remember the US Open final he had with Medvedev after beating me in the semis. The pressure – we are all human. Novak is human. We all feel it. So I think, for Casper, that’s the best scenario, to be honest.”
Ruud is playing in his third slam final in a year having reached the title decider here 12 months ago and at the US Open.
He was given a lesson by idol Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros before losing out in four sets to Alcaraz in New York and hopes he can write a different ending this time.
“It’s going to be tough, for sure,” said the 24-year-old. “He’s playing for his 23rd, I’m playing for my first. So I’m going to just try to play without pressure and just try to enjoy the moment.
“I think that was my mentality last year as well and it didn’t go my way. Obviously I would like to try to do better than last year. Let’s see if I have learned something from the two previous ones that I played.
“It just feels great to be back. I didn’t think or necessarily believe in the beginning of the tournament that I was going to be in the final.”
Katie Swan secured her place in the final of the Lexus Surbiton Trophy, but Katie Boulter’s hopes of an all-British showdown were ended by defeat to veteran Belgian Yanina Wickmayer.
For the first time in the tournament’s history, Great Britain had three women’s players through to the semi-finals.
Swan was in determined mood for Saturday’s opening match on Centre Court as she completed an impressive 6-1 6-0 victory over British number seven Lily Miyazaki in just over an hour.
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The 24-year-old, who had knocked out first seed Tatjana Maria in the last round, built on an early break to swiftly open up a 5-0 lead before closing out the opening set.
It remained one-way traffic in the second as Swan kept the pressure on Miyazaki’s serve with three straight breaks.
Miyazaki looked like she would break back in the sixth game, but Swan – who can secure the British number one spot by going on to win the title – twice recovered to level at deuce before clinching the match when a return went into the net.
“Today was probably one of the best matches I’ve played in my career – it was near perfect,” Swan said in her court-side interview broadcast by the LTA.
“I am really happy that I was able to produce that and I can’t wait to play in the final tomorrow.”
Boulter was in pole position to go on and cement her place as British number one, but Wickmayer proved too strong as the 33-year-old closed out a 6-3 6-2 win.
The opening set remained on serve with no break opportunities until the eighth game when Wickmayer capitalised on some wayward returns from Boulter to take a decisive lead and then close things out 6-3.
Boulter made an important hold in the first game of the second set, but the Belgian kept the pressure on to break in the fifth game for a 3-2 lead as another return from the Briton flew wide.
Wickmayer – who won the doubles title with Sophie Chang on Friday – held and then battled back from 15-40 down to break Boulter again in the seventh game.
Although Boulter saved one match point, it was only delaying the inevitable as a return into the net saw Wickmayer progress to Sunday’s final against Swan.
“I am really enjoying my time on the grass, so am really happy to have gotten a lot of matches this week,” Wickmayer said following her win.
“I am really happy to be in another final here and just going to enjoy one more.”
A tilt at Group One glory in the Nunthorpe at York is on the agenda for Regional following a clear-cut victory in the Sky Bet Achilles Stakes at Haydock.
Placed on multiple occasions last season, including a runner-up finish in a valuable race in Qatar before finishing third in the Stewards’ Cup at Goodwood, Ed Bethell’s speedster made a successful start to his five-year-old campaign in handicap company at York last month.
He faced a rise in class in this five-furlong Listed event, but proved more than up to the task in the hands of Callum Rodriguez.
The 5-1 shot blazed a trail down the centre of the track and while Frankie Dettori did his best to get 3-1 favourite Equilateral on terms against the stands’ rail, Regional was ultimately well on top as he passed the post with a length and a quarter in hand.
“He’s a really fun horse and fast ground and flat tracks are his thing, so we’ll just try to keep him at that now,” said Bethell.
“We took him to Qatar last winter and finished second and he never really came back the same horse after that. I appreciate he came second at Doncaster and third in the Stewards’ Cup, but he wasn’t the same horse he is this year.
“We gave him a winter out and he’s just thrived. He’s enjoying his racing and Callum is riding out of his skin for me.”
With Regional not entered at Royal Ascot later this month, the North Yorkshire handler plans to give his stable star another run elsewhere before sending him back to York in August.
The trainer’s father James saddled Moss Gill to finish third in the Nunthorpe three years ago and Bethell junior is keen for Regional to head down the same path.
He added: “I’d imagine we’ll look at the Nunthorpe, that looks like a logical target. What we do in the meantime is between me and the guys (owners). We’ll sit down and have a chat, but I’m just delighted for everyone at home.
“They’re very different types of horses. Moss Gill had the most economical stride I’ve ever seen in our yard, whereas this fellow doesn’t have an economical stride at all, he’s just quick!
“It’s very exciting for everyone to be involved in a horse like this. He’s not entered at Ascot. He was in the Wokingham, but is probably too quick for that so I took him out.
“I could tell the owners they could supplement (for the King’s Stand), but it’s probably quite a lot of money, it’s a deep race this year and I think the Nunthorpe is more his race.
“In the interim I might go to York for the City Walls with a penalty and I might enter him in the King George sprint at Goodwood, those are two options.
“What I want to do is make sure there is a good gap between his next race and the Nunthorpe, that’s the imperative thing.”
Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour will attend the Champions League final on Saturday evening.
Club sources have confirmed to the PA news agency that the sheikh will be present in Istanbul as City face Inter Milan bidding to win Europe’s top club prize for the first time.
It will only be the second game he has attended since his investment vehicle, the Abu Dhabi United Group, purchased City in 2008.
Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak was also due to be at the showpiece match at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium.
City have risen to become the dominant force in the English game under Mansour’s stewardship with the club having won seven Premier League titles in the past 12 years and five of the last six.
Victory in Turkey on Saturday would also see them become only the second English side to win the treble having already retained their domestic title and won the FA Cup.
City also now sit at the heart of a global network of 13 clubs known as the City Football Group.
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