Joe Root has called an end to his England Test captaincy.
Root was appointed as the successor to Alastair Cook in 2017 and holds the record for most wins as an England captain in the longest format of the game (27).
But disappointing returns in recent outings, with England winless in five Test series, brought Root's tenure into question.
Head coach Chris Silverwood was sacked in the wake of a 4-0 Ashes thrashing by Australia before a series loss to West Indies under interim coach Paul Collingwood.
The ECB are expected to soon announce a new managing director to shape the future of English cricket, and Root confirmed on Friday that he would not take up the captaincy for any longer.
He said: "After returning from the Caribbean tour and having time to reflect, I have decided to step down as England Men's Test captain. It has been the most challenging decision I have had to make in my career but having discussed this with my family and those closest to me; I know the timing is right.
"I am immensely proud to have captained my country and will look back on the past five years with enormous pride. It has been an honour to have done the job and to have been a custodian of what is the pinnacle of English cricket.
"I have loved leading my country, but recently it's hit home how much of a toll it has taken on me and the impact it has had on me away from the game.
"I want to take this opportunity to thank my family, Carrie, Alfred and Bella, who have lived it all with me and been incredible pillars of love and support throughout. All of the players, coaches and support staff that have helped me during my tenure. It has been a great privilege to have been with them on this journey.
"I would also like to thank all the England supporters for their unwavering support. We are lucky to have the best fans in the world, and wherever we play, that positivity is something we always cherish and admire, which is a huge drive for all of us out there.
"I am excited to continue representing the Three Lions and producing performances that will enable the team to succeed. I look forward to helping the next captain, my teammates and coaches in whatever way I can."
England have won only one of their last 17 Test matches, while Root also suffered more defeats than any other captain of his country in red-ball cricket (26).
Ben Stokes, Root's vice-captain, Rory Burns, Stuart Broad and Jos Buttler are among the favourites to lead a new-look England against New Zealand in a Test series that starts in June.
Tom Harrison, the ECB's chief executive who will be tasked with finding a new managing director, head coach, selector and Test captain before New Zealand visit, hailed the efforts of Root.
"Joe has been an exceptional role model during his tenure, balancing the demands of Test captaincy whilst continuing to shine brilliantly through his own personal performances," he said.
"He has led by example, and that has resulted in more Test wins than any other England captain, alongside a number of famous series home and away victories.
"Joe's leadership qualities were exemplified by how he led the team through some of the most difficult and uncertain times we have known, playing during the pandemic all over the world, which speaks volumes for him as a leader and as a person.
"I know that every single person who has played or worked under Joe's captaincy will speak of his integrity and humility as a person, as much as his determination and example as a leader.
"Off the field, Joe has been no different. It has been a privilege and a huge pleasure to have worked with him in his capacity as our men's Test captain, and I know he'll continue to drive English cricket forward as a senior player, offering his wealth of experience and advice to support his successor."
Thanks to the FA Cup semi-finals, matchday 33 in the Premier League is a bit more spread out, with just six games taking place at the weekend.
A further six games are scheduled for midweek, so there is a chance to get some of those pulling double duty in your fantasy team.
Whether your interests lie in the title race, the top-four scuffle or the relegation battle, there promises to be entertainment for everyone.
Therefore, it is time for Stats Perform to give you some suggested picks for your team using stats from the wonderful people at Opta.
HUGO LLORIS (Tottenham v Brighton and Hove Albion)
As odd as it sounds after a 4-0 win, had it not been for Lloris' heroics between the sticks last time out, Spurs could very well have lost against Aston Villa.
The Spurs captain made seven saves in the first half at Villa Park to keep Steven Gerrard's team out, with the visitors scoring four from their five on target in an afternoon of ruthless efficiency that had Antonio Conte smiling.
Only Alisson and Ederson (both 17) have kept more clean sheets in the Premier League this season than Lloris (12), while the Frenchman last recorded more shutouts in a single campaign in 2017-18 (15).
JOAO CANCELO (Manchester City v Brighton and Hove Albion)
This feels like we're picking on Brighton, but the fixture computer has not been kind to them, pitting them against two of the league's most in-form teams this week.
Only Gabriel Jesus (seven) has more assists for City in the Premier League this season than Joao Cancelo (six), as many as in his previous three league seasons combined.
As well as that, Cancelo is part of a staunch City defence that has conceded the fewest goals in the league this season (20), and against a Brighton side that has scored fewer goals (28) than all except Burnley (25) and Norwich (20), will be confident of a clean sheet on Wednesday.
JAMES MADDISON (Newcastle United v Leicester City, Everton v Leicester City)
Maddison is somewhat of an enigmatic player and, not that long ago, was struggling to start in Brendan Rodgers' strongest line-up.
However, he has already equalled his goal involvements tally for the entirety of last season in the Premier League (13), with the former Norwich man only bettering that in 2018-19 (14).
Indeed, he has either scored or assisted in each of his last three league appearances (one goal, two assists), last doing so in four such games in January 2021 (three goals, one assist).
CHRIS WOOD (Newcastle United v Leicester City, Newcastle United v Crystal Palace)
It has hardly been an electric start for life on Tyneside for Wood since his January move, though goals drying up for his former club and relegation rivals Burnley has been a positive added factor for the Magpies.
The New Zealander scored a crucial penalty in the 1-0 win against Wolves last time out, though, and he is looking to bag in consecutive league games for the first time since May 2021 (run of three).
Also, only against West Ham (seven) and Wolves (six) does Wood have more Premier League goals than he has previously managed against Leicester (four).
Police want to speak with Dallas Cowboys cornerback Kelvin Joseph regarding a shooting murder that took place in the Dallas area in March, according to reports.
Joseph, a 2020 second-round pick by the Cowboys, allegedly appeared to be part of a group that was involved in an altercation with another group containing 20-year-old victim Cameron Ray.
Footage shows gunshots being fired out of an SUV at Ray and his friends as they walked back to their car after the initial scuffle.
One of the people seen in the video was allegedly wearing a chain with the initials YKDV. Joseph goes by the name YKDV Bossman Fat in his aspiring rap career.
The Cowboys did not have an official comment, however ESPN is reporting that the team have spoken with Joseph and are encouraging him to cooperate with police and disclose what he knows about the case.
Detective Tonya McDaniel told KDFW that Ray's group was not responsible for the initial incident, which led to the shooting.
The $518,000 sale of Tom Brady's 'last' touchdown pass football has been mutually voided after the greatest quarterback in NFL history reneged on retirement.
In what seemed like an unbelievable stroke of misfortune for the buyer, Brady spectacularly announced his return to the game less than 24 hours after the purchase was finalised, although money was yet to exchange hands.
Brady's decision not to retire came 40 days after initially announcing his playing career was over in late-January, causing chaos in the sports collectible world.
But the anonymous buyer has been spared the devastating blow as Lelands Auctions – who facilitated the sale – announced on Thursday that the purchase had been voided by a mutual agreement.
"We wanted to do the right thing here," Mike Heffner, president and partner at Lelands, said.
"It's the most unique situation that we'll probably ever encounter in our lifetimes – at least when it comes to sports memorabilia. We're still not to the end of the book yet; we've written a chapter."
While the ball may not be Brady's last ever touchdown pass, it is for the time being, and Heffner said the owner still plans on selling it privately through Lelands.
"All parties were waiting to see how it played out," he said.
"Tom Brady, let's face it, is kind of unpredictable these days. Until he throws that first touchdown pass in September, this ball is still the record."
Cameron Young shot a career-best eight-under 63, with a bogey-free first round to take the lead at the RBC Heritage on Thursday.
The 24-year-old flew out of the gate in his debut at Harbour Town, with five birdies on the front nine, and capped the stunning round off with another on the iconic par-three 18th hole.
Young leads Chile's Joaquin Niemann by two strokes and is three ahead of seven others, including reigning FedEx Cup champion Patrick Cantlay and Shane Lowry, coming off his third-place finish at the Masters last weekend.
Former RBC Heritage winner Graeme McDowell, Mito Pereira, Adam Svenson, Corey Connors and Sepp Straka also put up scores of 66, with another ten a further stroke back, making light work of Harbour Town's famous tight fairways in the opening round.
Morgan Hoffman also played his first round on the PGA Tour since being diagnosed with muscular dystrophy in 2019, remarkably shooting an even-par 71.
After taking out The Masters, world number one Scottie Scheffler will miss the RBC Heritage this year. In what is still a packed field at Harbour Town this weekend, five of the world's top-ten players are taking part.
Meanwhile, Collin Morikawa closed with a bogey in front of the lighthouse on the 18th to finish the opening round on a one-under 70.
Coming off his calamitous final day at The Masters, where his triple-bogey on the 12th at Augusta National dashed his hopes of catching Scheffler, Cameron Smith shot a two-over 73.
Young, a rookie on the PGA Tour, has had second-placed finishes at the Rivera CC and Jackson CC, and qualified for The Masters – where he missed the cut with consecutive scores of 77.
"Honestly, I wanted to play last weekend," Young said. "But in terms of the end of the week, [missing the cut] is not the end of the world.
"I know it would be really nice, but you have good days and bad days and rarely do you have four good ones in a row. I'm glad it came early and I'm happy I kept myself around for the whole tournament."
The Milwaukee Brewers rode a quality start from Brandon Woodruff to a 5-1 home win against the St Louis Cardinals.
After a horrible first showing where he conceded seven runs in less than four innings, Woodruff was terrific in a bounce-back performance on Thursday, pitching five scoreless frames and allowing only four baserunners.
Milwaukee was always in control of the contest, leading 4-0 after three innings thanks to a big home run from Omar Narvaez and RBI hits to Andrew McCutchen and Hunter Renfroe.
However, the best hit of the game belonged to the Cardinals, as Tommy Edman blasted a big 423-foot consolation home run in the eighth inning for the visiting side's only score.
After going one-for-four with a double, Brewers star Christian Yelich now has hits in five of his past six games as he looks to return to form following two down seasons by his standards.
Ohtani gets grand-slammed
Reigning AL MVP Shohei Ohtani was on the receiving end of a Jonah Heim grand slam as the Los Angeles Angels lost to the Texas Rangers 10-5.
Ohtani, who was the Angels' starting pitcher and lead-off hitter, was disappointing on the mound on Thursday, giving up six runs in less than four innings, and finished the game one-for-four in the batter's box after a ninth-inning double.
It was a frustrating game for the Angels after it started so well, as Mike Trout hit one of the biggest home runs of his career in the first inning, travelling 472 feet.
Yankees get out of a jam
Leading 3-0 heading into the ninth inning, the New York Yankees found themselves in a sticky situation when closer Aroldis Chapman walked three consecutive Toronto Blue Jays batters to load the bases with no outs.
Chapman was pulled from the game and replaced with Michael King, who struck out George Springer.
King then got Bo Bichette to line out to second base for a game-ending double play as Matt Chapman got caught too far away from first base when the catch was made.
Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry said he does not need to be at 100 per cent to return from injury in Game 1 of his side's opening round series against the Denver Nuggets.
Curry has been out of action with a sprained foot since mid-March, and the Warriors have sputtered in his absence, going 8-10 in the 18 games the two-time MVP has missed this season.
While they did finish with a five-game winning streak to end the regular season, the Dubs will need a fit and in-rhythm Curry to go deep into the post-season.
It is being reported that the Warriors feel Curry's injury is simply going to be a matter of pain tolerance, with no fear that playing may exacerbate the problem.
Speaking with media after the Warriors' scrimmage on Thursday, Curry said if he is allowed to play, he will be there in Game 1.
"You get cleared to play, at that point there's no time to really worry about that," he said.
"Are you going to help the team win? Are you going to make an impact and do what you do? If I feel like the answer is yes, I'm going to play.
"I'm not worried about it being a limiting factor in terms of how I will approach the game – hopefully there's a little wiggle room to see how I feel out there."
When discussing his chances, Curry said he has "high confidence".
"Everything has been positive in terms of getting back out there and understanding I'll be ready to play whenever that time is," he said "I'm hoping it's Saturday.
"I'll try to be the best version I can be, having missed a little bit of time... I have high confidence I can go out there and help our team win."
Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini blasted the "absolute confusion" of the refereeing performance in his side's Europa League quarter-final exit to RB Leipzig on Thursday.
La Dea had high hopes following their draw in the first leg, but a Christopher Nkunku brace handed Leipzig a 2-0 win instead, with the German side going through 3-1 on aggregate.
With Atlanta down 1-0 on Thursday, however, Antonio Mateu Lahoz waved away what appeared to be a handball from Leipzig's Dani Olmo and also waved away the consequent call for a VAR review.
Nkunku then punished Atalanta for a second time in transition, while Gasperini was left to bemoan the lack of consistency in refereeing interpretation and decision-making with the tie in the balance.
"The strange thing is that he [Mateu Lahoz] gave a punishment that for me was a less obvious foul than it was a penalty. There is absolute confusion on handballs," he said. "The referee himself, in 30 seconds, evaluates the first instance more serious than the second which is much clearer.
"Well, it's not like you can cancel it [from context]. We had a good match, we conceded something, as is normal in these matches. There are goal situations on both sides in Europe. Everyone has an important attacking quality. It wasn't the defence that penalised us."
According to the 64-year-old, the penalty reinforced Atalanta's need to chase the result, which played into the fast, dynamic and ultimately reactive RB Leipzig's hands.
"It is always like this," he said. "They have pace and speed, they play very tightly and then go on the counter-attack.
"Sometimes they do them very well, we attacked for a very long time and unfortunately in recent weeks we have had difficulty in finding the final pass, the decisive shot. Even if for long stretches it was an excellent match for Atalanta."
Champions League qualification is likely unattainable now for La Dea, who sit 12 points off fourth-placed Juventus in Serie A, but are also four points behind Lazio in the Conference League playoff spot. They face Hellas Verona on Monday.
Jarrett Allen could be a possible inclusion for the Cleveland Cavaliers when they face the Atlanta Hawks on Friday.
The Athletic's Shams Charania reported Allen, who has been out since March due to a fractured finger, has not been ruled out for Friday despite being listed by Cleveland as questionable.
Following their 115-108 loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday in their opening play-in game, the Cavaliers now face a must-win situation to keep their season alive.
The 23-year-old All-Star averaged 16.3 points, 10.9 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game and held a career-best net rating of +26 before the injury, sustained in March against the Toronto Raptors, with the Cavs ending the regular season with a 7-11 record from that point.
Allen's inclusion would give Cleveland renewed flexibility with their rotation, using Lauri Markkanen and Evan Mobley in different defensive matchups on the back of Allen's rim protection.
With a win on Friday, JB Bickerstaff's side would secure a first-round playoff matchup against the Miami Heat, the Eastern Conference's first seed.
It is looking increasingly likely that Ben Simmons will play for the Brooklyn Nets this season after reports that he is targeting a return during his side's first-round series against the Boston Celtics.
Shams Charania from The Athletic – who is also represented by Simmons' agency, Klutch Sports Group – said the Nets are hoping the return comes around April 25-29, which coincides with Game 4, Game 5 and Game 6 of the series.
Simmons is yet to play at all this season after sitting out of the early portion of the season with the Philadelphia 76ers due to mental health reasons, and has been sidelined with a back injury since arriving with the Nets via trade.
While everything is trending positively for Simmons' Nets debut to come in this year's playoffs, superstar teammate Kevin Durant said he would believe it when he sees it.
"I'm not expecting him to play," he said after practice on Thursday.
"That's easier for me. I'm not putting any pressure on Ben to come out there and hoop.
"So I'm not expecting him to do anything but just to get his body right and get healthy as fast as he can – in my mind, I'm preparing as if we're playing with the team we have."
Head coach Steve Nash was non-committal when asked about Simmons' chances.
"It's up to Ben's back," he said.
"It's not up to me, any of us, other than his back… there's a chance Ben comes back, there's a chance he doesn't come back.
"So I think for us, we got to focus on the group; support Ben and his journey to get back on the floor, but at the same time we don't have time to lose focus on the group that's playing.
"Ben's a franchise cornerstone – but right now it's about supporting him physically and mentally to get back on the floor, and coaching the group to put its best foot forward in the first few games of the series at least.
"Internally, we're not sitting here saying 'Ben's returning in this series' – we'll see what happens."
Barcelona president Joan Laporta has assured the club's supporters there will be an explanation for the massive presence of Eintracht Frankfurt fans, as the home side was knocked out of the Europa League on Thursday.
A massive contingent of Eintracht fans witnessed and celebrated their club winning 3-2 in the quarter-final second leg at the Camp Nou, rubbing salt in the wound for the Blaugrana.
Barcelona gave 5,000 tickets to Eintracht as per UEFA regulations, but reports from the ground suggested figures of Eintracht fans nearing five times that initial ticket release.
Alluding to the sale of tickets on the secondary market, Laporta – who started his second term as the embattled club's president in 2021 – apologised for the situation and vowed there will not be a repeat.
"What has happened in the stands is a shame that cannot be repeated, we must process information and we have to take action, but it is unfortunate," Laporta told Mundo Deportivo.
"We will have to be stricter and not allow certain things, I feel ashamed as a Barcelona fan. I feel embarrassed with what I saw in the stands, I apologise.
"It was very serious. We are processing all the information, and we will give explanations. What happened today is not usual and should not have happened."
Enric Masip, Laporta's advisor at Barcelona, voiced his anger at the situation, which reportedly caused fans at the stadium to protest.
"Everyone has the right to sell their tickets but the reality is that seeing a Camp Nou with so many opposition fans is very, very bad," he posted on Twitter.
Following their eliminations from the Champions League and Copa Del Rey, and with a 12-point deficit to Real Madrid in the league, Barcelona's exit from the Europa League will likely leave them without a trophy this season.
Laporta believes the club needs to reinforce its identity as a result.
"If it is a failure then we will learn from our mistakes, this defeat should make us believe more in our ideas," he said.
"We haven't been able to win, we've lost the tie and we have to accept it, we're all sad and angry but we have to keep going and fight for the league."
Miles Bridges has been fined $50,000 for aggressively throwing his mouthguard into the crowd, hitting a teenage girl.
The incident took place when Bridges was ejected from the Charlotte Hornets' play-in game loss against the Atlanta Hawks after receiving two quick technical fouls in the fourth quarter.
While being escorted back to the locker room, Bridges appeared to react to a fan taunting him over the barricade, turning and throwing his mouthguard in that direction, but it missed and hit a 16-year-old girl.
He apologised for his actions when speaking with post-game media, calling it "unacceptable" and asked to be put in touch with the teenage girl to make amends.
The $50,000 fine matches the largest league-issued fine this season, equalling the figure Markieff Morris was slugged with after his flagrant foul on Nikola Jokic sparked a mini-skirmish.
Other big fines this season include $40,000 for Jusuf Nurkic for grabbing a fan's cell phone and throwing it into the stands, and $35,000 for Malik Beasley for striking Portland Trail Blazer Drew Eubanks.
Barcelona boss Xavi says Eintracht Frankfurt fully deserved their stunning 3-2 victory in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final tie at Camp Nou on Thursday.
Filip Kostic scored twice, the first of which came from the penalty spot, and Rafael Borre slammed in from long range as the Bundesliga side sealed a memorable 4-3 aggregate win over the Catalan giants, who scored twice in stoppage time through Sergio Busquets' fine strike and a Memphis Depay penalty.
The result ended Barca's 15-game unbeaten run, which was the longest in the top five European leagues, while it was only the second time in their last seven knockout ties in Europe when they have avoided defeat in the first leg that they have been eliminated.
Xavi had no complaints about the result and admitted his side were well off the pace they have set in recent months.
"We scored two goals but we weren't able to attack in the best way," he told a media conference.
"We didn't play as well as in other games and they came out very well on the counter-attack. They had that first penalty that went very well for them and then with a great goal with a silly loss from us on the right.
"We have had control but we haven't generated enough to hurt them, and they have done it with little [of the game]. With a penalty, with a counter from a loss from us and the third comes from a play after we had been pressing.
"They are mistakes that we have paid for. This is what happens in Europe and we leave disappointed.
"It's not a failure. We've tried. It's a disappointment because we had high hopes and we've put everything on the pitch, and in the end Frankfurt won. It's a competition and if there is failure we are going to learn.
"We can only congratulate them because they deserved it."
A significant number of Frankfurt supporters roared their side on, with far more than their allocation of 5,000 present in the stadium.
Xavi says that had an impact on his side and confirmed the club is looking into why there were so many opposition fans.
"The atmosphere hasn't helped us," he added. "We expected some 70,000 or 80,000 people from Catalonia and that hasn't happened. It looked like a final with divided support. I think the club is checking what happened."
Barca are next in action on Monday when they host Cadiz in LaLiga.
Patrick Beverley has been hit with a $30,000 fine for "inappropriate statements" and "egregious use of profanity" after the Minnesota Timberwolves guard aimed salty shots at the Clippers.
The comments from Beverley came after Tuesday's 109-104 win for the T-Wolves in the seven-eight play-in game in the West.
Anthony Edwards played a starring role with 30 points for Minnesota and was interviewed alongside Beverley after the game.
Beverley was excitable after beating his former team. He spent four years on the Clippers before joining Minnesota last August.
"I wanted this so bad," Beverley said. "I wanted this one so bad."
He said his message to the Clippers was: "Take their a** home. Long flight to LA, take y'all a** home.
"It's deeper than that for me. I gave my blood and sweat and tears to that organisation. You guys know the story. Blood, sweat and tears, to just be written off like that, 'oh, he's injury prone, he's old', this, this, that, that.
"To be able to come here, play them in a play-in, beat their a**, there's no other feeling, man, no other feeling."
Beverley also used social media to express similar emotion, with added profanities. NBA chiefs considered he overstepped the line of acceptability.
A league statement on Thursday read: "Minnesota Timberwolves guard Patrick Beverley has been fined $30,000 for inappropriate statements during a media interview and on social media, including the egregious use of profanity, it was announced today by Byron Spruell, president, league operations."
It was a second fine inside a week for Beverley, who had a $25,000 punishment imposed for improper conduct to a game official after being ejected from the Timberwolves' April 10 loss to the Chicago Bulls.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
