England will hope some fresh faces can help revitalise their series hopes as they look to avoid suffering back-to-back Test defeats against India on home soil for just the second time.
After rain wiped out the prospect of a dramatic finish in the opener at Trent Bridge, India made sure there was final-day drama at Lord's last time out, taking 10 wickets in the final two sessions to go 1-0 up.
The teams have had a brief period of respite before battle resumes in Leeds on Wednesday, with England certain to make changes to their XI.
Dom Sibley was dropped after averaging just 14.25 in the series, meaning Haseeb Hameed seems set to slide up to open and the recalled Dawid Malan will bat at three, a position he has never previously occupied during any of his 15 Test appearances.
However, captain Joe Root is confident Malan – who averages 27.84 in the format, including hitting an Ashes century in Perth – can fill a problem position.
"He's played a lot of red-ball cricket over the course of his career and he's also had great success," Root told the media.
"He's played in a massive series in Australia away and been our leading run-scorer out there, so we know that he's capable of big things in Test match cricket."
England will also have to select a replacement for Mark Wood; the pace bowler is ruled out with the shoulder injury suffered at Lord's. Either Craig Overton or the uncapped Saqib Mahmood will get a chance in the bowling attack.
As for India, they are sitting in a position of strength, not just in terms of the series score but also the options they have available to them.
A pace-heavy bowling unit was the key to their impressive success last time out but the move north could prompt a change in approach, should the Headingley surface look to aid spin. Ravichandran Ashwin - who has just the 413 Test wickets to his name - is waiting in the wings for an opportunity.
The only occasion India have ever recorded successive Test triumphs in England came back in June 1986, when they followed up a victory at Lord's by beating their hosts in Leeds a fortnight later. Could history be set to repeat itself?
Siraj shines as bowlers prosper
Opener KL Rahul was named man of the match at Lord's following a first-innings century, yet it was Mohammed Siraj and his fellow pace bowlers who overwhelmed England on the fifth and final day, skittling them for 120 in 51.5 overs.
India boast a bowling average of 22.4 in Tests since the beginning of 2019, the best by any team in that time. England, in contrast, are ranked sixth in this category with an average of 28.1.
Root still waits for record
Root has been the one England batsman to prosper against India so far, scoring two hundreds and a half-century. His series average of 128.66 is outstanding yet his runs have not provided the foundation for his team to be successful.
This outing at his home venue in Yorkshire will be his 55th as Test captain, the second most by any England player. He has won 26 of those games in charge, leaving him level with Michael Vaughan at the top of the list.
Key match facts
- India have lost only one of their last six Tests (W4, D1), an eight-wicket defeat to New Zealand in the ICC World Test Championship Final (June 2021).
- England are winless in their last seven Tests (D2, L5). The last time they recorded a longer winless run in the format was an eight-match span from November 2017 to May 2018 (D2, L6).
- India (126) and England (110) have hit more sixes than any other teams in Test cricket since the beginning of 2019.
- Rishabh Pant has a batting strike rate of 68.8 in Tests since the beginning of 2019, the second best by any player to face at least 1,000 balls in that time (Quinton de Kock – 71.4).
- James Anderson has an economy rate of 2.4 in the format since the beginning of 2019, the best by any bowler in that time (minimum 500 overs bowled).
Julian Nagelsmann confirmed Bayern Munich will be without Robert Lewandowski and Manuel Neuer for their DFB-Pokal clash with Bremer on Wednesday.
The head coach is set to rotate as Bayern launch their campaign against the fifth-tier side at Werder Bremen's Weserstadion.
Bayern are aiming to reclaim the trophy after suffering a surprise defeat against Holstein Kiel in the second round of last season's competition.
Nagelsmann has overseen an unbeaten start to the new season; Bayern taking four points from their opening two games while also retaining the Supercup after a 3-1 win over Borussia Dortmund.
And the head coach revealed he will rest some of his senior players ahead of their trip to Bremen.
"Manuel [Neuer] will be rested, as his foot has flared up again, as we expected," he said. "He won't travel to the game.
"Neither will Robert [Lewandowski], he will stay behind and do some intensive training here. The same goes for Leon [Goretzka].
"For them [Bremer], this is a once-in-a-lifetime game. In the end, the fact is that we need to and want to win, which means that we need to remain focused on the task at hand."
Nagelsmann will soon be able to call upon the services of Lucas Hernandez, who returned to team training on Tuesday.
The France international underwent surgery on a meniscus injury at the beginning of July and missed Bayern’s first three games of the season.
Wales caretaker boss Rob Page insists Gareth Bale still has the hunger and desire to play for his country after including the player in his squad for the upcoming international break.
Page's side face Finland in a friendly on September 1, before resuming their 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign with a double-header against Belarus and Estonia.
Speculation surrounded Bale's international future following the Dragons' exit from Euro 2020 at the hands of Denmark.
However, the Real Madrid forward, who has 96 caps to his name, could edge closer to becoming Wales' second centurion after being selected by Page.
Bale, who spent last season on loan at Tottenham, has started twice this season under new Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti, scoring in Sunday's 3-3 draw at Levante.
And Page is confident his talisman has "got the bug back" for football.
"It's great news. You want all your players playing competitive football when they come to the camp," Page told Sky Sports News.
"To get any of your players playing week in, week out is a bonus.
"But when you've got Gareth playing now and finding he's got the bug back again, which I saw in some of his performances for Tottenham at the back end of last season, is great news for us.
"He's got a hunger to play week in, week out for his club and he's got an absolute hunger and desire to play for Wales.
"As long as I can see that in his performances then there's going to be no issues whatsoever."
Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde has agreed a contract extension that will keep him at the Santiago Bernabeu until June 2027.
The 23-year-old Uruguay international's original agreement ran until 2025 but he signed a deal for a further two years, and it reportedly includes a €1billion release clause.
A statement on Madrid's website on Tuesday said: "Federico Valverde signed a contract renewal at Real Madrid. The Uruguayan midfielder remains linked to our club until June 30, 2027."
Valverde joined Madrid from Uruguayan club Penarol in July 2016, initially playing for Real Madrid Castilla, the club's reserve team.
He joined Deportivo La Coruna on loan for the 2017-18 season before establishing himself in the Madrid first-team setup under Santi Solari.
Valverde won LaLiga in 2019-20 under Zinedine Zidane, making 21 starts. Last season he featured 24 times for Madrid in the league and scored three goals.
The midfielder becomes the latest player to agree new terms at Madrid since Carlo Ancelotti took charge of Los Blancos in June.
Luka Modric, Nacho Fernandez, Karim Benzema, Dani Carvajal and Thibaut Courtois have all recently signed new deals.
Barcelona forward Ansu Fati has returned to training with the LaLiga club's first-team squad following a lengthy lay-off through injury.
The 18-year-old missed the second half of last season after tearing the meniscus in his left knee in November 2020.
Fati sustained the injury during Barcelona’s 5-2 victory over Real Betis at Camp Nou, and has subsequently undergone three operations.
However, the Spain international is closing in on a return to action after he was photographed back on the training pitches at Barcelona's Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper training ground on Tuesday.
Although he will not be available for this weekend’s LaLiga showdown with Getafe, Fati could be in contention for Barcelona's trip to Sevilla on September 11.
The forward became the youngest goalscorer in Barca's history when he scored against Osasuna in August 2019 aged 16 years and 304 days.
Fati has since added a further 12 goals in 42 appearances across all competitions for the Blaugrana, who he joined at the age of 10.
The Guinea-Bissau-born youngster has been capped four times by Spain, and scored his first international goal against Ukraine in September 2020.
Granit Xhaka is happy to be staying at 'home' after confirming he has signed a new contract with Arsenal.
Xhaka's previous deal was due to expire in 2023 but he has reportedly agreed to remain at the Premier League club for an extra year, with the option of a further extension until 2025.
The Gunners captain, who was heavily linked with a move to Roma during the offseason, admitted his delight in a post on Instagram.
"Home is where the heart is - really proud to extend my stay at Arsenal," Xhaka wrote to accompany a picture of him signing the contract.
Mikel Arteta's side are yet to announce the news officially, though the club's website has referenced the extension and Arsenal owners Stan and Josh Kroenke also revealed the news in the programme notes before the home game against Chelsea on Sunday.
Xhaka was a regular last term, with only Bukayo Saka (46) appearing more times among Arsenal midfielders.
The 28-year-old started 42 times, provided two assists and created 20 chances in total, while also adding a goal of his own with a free-kick against Chelsea.
Xhaka recorded a passing accuracy of 89.89 per cent, with only Mohamed Elneny (92.08) and Martin Odegaard (90.38) bettering his success rate.
The Switzerland international led the way in terms of recoveries, regaining possession 281 times and making 74 tackles – ranking him first for both aspects among midfield team-mates.
Harvey Elliott has been inspired by working alongside Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, but now he sees the duo as part of the competition for first-team opportunities at Liverpool.
Elliott was handed his full Premier League debut by Jurgen Klopp in Saturday's 2-0 win over Burnley, becoming the 10th youngest player start a top-flight game for Liverpool and the youngest since Ben Woodburn in April 2017.
The 18-year-old previously appeared for Fulham aged just 16 years and 30 days, making him the youngest player to appear in Premier League history.
However, after a positive loan spell with Blackburn in the Championship last term, Elliott is back at Anfield and proving he can fit right in to Klopp's team.
"The first few training sessions after I first arrived at Liverpool was like, woah, I am actually training with these guys," Elliott responded to The Athletic and BT Sport about Salah and Mane.
"Going from watching them live on TV to seeing them in person and training alongside them, you really realise what a presence they bring. They are world-class players but we're all here to fight for a place in the team.
"We're all competing for the same thing. Now I look upon them as my competition. I learn a lot from them.
"They are great inspirations to kids around the world — and to me too — with what they have been through and what they've achieved. I want to achieve big things like they have."
Used in a midfield role against Burnley, Elliott produced three key passes – the third-most of any Liverpool player – and completed 90 per cent of his attempted passes in the opposing team's half. Only Trent Alexander-Arnold, who set up Mane to make it 2-0, attempted more (42).
Teenager Elliott knows he must keep on improving to challenge Salah and Mane, who became the fifth player to hit 50 home goals for Liverpool with his second-half strike at Anfield.
"Even to this day I'm not as quick as I’d like to be," he admitted.
"You can never be happy with what you are, you always need to push yourself. I still need to improve my speed, especially when you look at players like Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane."
Asked about being versatile, he explained: "It’s what players need in their game, being able to adapt to different positions.
"It gives me more of a chance of getting into the team. It’s been a challenge to adapt.
"It's a case of getting your head around knowing where you need to be, how and when you need to press, knowing who you are needing to deal with on their team. I'm enjoying playing somewhere else."
The New York Yankees stayed hot in MLB on Monday, extending their winning streak to 10 games by seeing off the Atlanta Braves 5-1.
Giancarlo Stanton fuelled the streaking Yankees with a homer and three runs in Atlanta.
Yankees slugger Stanton homered in the second inning as the Braves had their nine-game winning run snapped.
Cubs snap skid
Rafael Ortega's walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning inspired the Chicago Cubs to a 6-4 victory over the Colorado Rockies. It ended the team's home losing streak at 13 games, the longest in franchise history.
According to Stats Perform, the Cubs are the first team in MLB history to hit a walk-off homer to end a 13-plus game home losing streak. The previous long home losing streak snapped by a game-ending home run was 12 in a row by the St Louis Browns in 1949.
The Toronto Blue Jays edged the Chicago White Sox 2-1 as Alek Manoah impressed on the mound. The Blue Jays starter allowed five hits and just one run while striking out five batters in six innings. His 78 strikeouts to date are the most ever by a Blue Jay in his first 13 career games.
With two outs in the ninth inning, Jake Bauers broke a tie via his two-run single to help the Seattle Mariners rally past the Oakland Athletics 5-3. In 25 of Seattle's 126 games this season, the Mariners earned the lead in their final at-bat to win the game (19.8 per cent). According to Stats Perform, only one team in American League (AL) history has had a higher percentage of their games end in a last at-bat victory – the Washington Senators in 1918 (20.0 per cent).
Royals pounce on Maton
It was a rough outing for the Houston Astros and reliever Phil Maton as the Kansas City Royals cruised to a 7-1 win. In just 0.2 innings of work, Astros pitcher Maton gave up three hits and three runs, one earned.
Shaw slam!
Travis Shaw was the hero as the Boston Red Sox outlasted the Texas Rangers 8-4 after 11 innings. A defensive replacement in the eighth inning, Shaw hit a walk-off grand slam to lift the Red Sox.
Monday's results
Boston Red Sox 8-4 Texas Rangers
Pittsburgh Pirates 6-5 Arizona Diamondbacks
Toronto Blue Jays 2-1 Chicago White Sox
New York Yankees 5-1 Atlanta Braves
Chicago Cubs 6-4 Colorado Rockies
Kansas City Royals 7-1 Houston Astros
Seattle Mariners 5-3 Oakland Athletics
Dodgers at Padres
Tuesday will see a battle between World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers and National League (NL) West rivals the San Diego Padres, who are both coming off defeats.
Lucas Pouille continues to build momentum at the Winston-Salem Open after overcoming veteran Feliciano Lopez in straight sets.
Pouille was on the brink of elimination in qualifying after facing match point before booking his spot in the main draw.
Now, the Frenchman is preparing for the second round following his 6-1 6-4 victory over Lopez on Monday.
Pouille saved all four break points he faced as the former world number 10 claimed his first ATP Tour-level victory since April's Monte Carlo Masters.
Awaiting Pouille in the second round is third seed Daniel Evans, who received a bye in the opening round.
As for 14th seed Richard Gasquet, he prevailed 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (8-6) against Egor Gerasimov at the ATP 250 event.
Elsewhere, Federico Coria and Jordan Thompson were among the players to progress.
All Blacks head coach Ian Foster has signed a contract extension through to the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
New Zealand Rugby (NZR) made the announcement on Tuesday after Foster replaced Steve Hansen on a two-year deal beginning in 2020.
The All Blacks – who retained the Bledisloe Cup and claimed the Tri-Nations last year – won just three of their 2020 Tests, with a draw and loss to rivals Australia, and an historic defeat to Argentina in Sydney.
Foster's New Zealand are flawless in 2021, including a 102-0 demolition of Tonga, having defended the Bledisloe Cup again versus the Wallabies.
"Firstly, I want to acknowledge the board and NZR for the faith they have shown in reappointing me," Foster said. "It's a privilege to be part of the All Blacks and I don't take that for granted.
"It's clearly been a challenging couple of years with Covid-19, but I've been hugely proud of the resilience shown by the team. I'm personally driven to have our team continue to succeed as we build to Rugby World Cup 2023.
"What is equally important to me is the fact that I'm just one part of an outstanding coaching and management team and to continue working with them is a privilege and inspires me to be the best head coach I can be.
"We have the immediate challenge of this year's Fortinet Rugby Championship and then the tour North, but 2022 and 2023 will bring their own challenges. I'm really excited to be leading the team into the future and can't wait to get stuck into our work."
NZR CEO Mark Robinson added: "Ian has faced extraordinary times since he was first appointed, with the uncertainty of Covid-19 and the numerous challenges it has thrown up, and he's shown remarkable composure and resolve to lead incredibly well through it all.
"Foz has built an outstanding culture and environment in the team with an inclusive and collaborative approach and maintained a steady, clear focus on our goal of being Number one in the world again.
"There is no doubt Foz and his team are performing extremely well in trying conditions and we are pleased to send a strong signal of support to create certainty in our environment and allow the management team and player group to plan for the future.
"On behalf of NZR and the board, I want to congratulate Foz and his team and wish them all the best for the rest of this season and beyond."
The Wallabies and All Blacks will clash in the Bledisloe Cup in Perth before Queensland hosts the remainder of the Rugby Championship.
New Zealand pulled out of next weekend's third and final Bledisloe Test due to concerns over coronavirus, with the showdown initially set for August 28 at Optus Stadium.
The fixture will go ahead in Perth, with a date for the game set to be confirmed in the coming days following SANZAAR's announcement on Tuesday.
Afterwards, the Rugby Championship will head to Queensland for doubleheaders across four consecutive weekends in Brisbane, Gold Coast and Townsville, where the centenary Test between the All Blacks and Springboks will be played.
The Wallabies play South Africa on September 12 at Cbus Super Stadium on the Gold Coast, where the All Blacks then going head-to-head against Argentina.
September 18 will see the teams travel to Brisbane for Argentina-New Zealand and Australia-South Africa contests at Suncorp Stadium.
Australia and Argentina face-off at Queensland Country Bank Stadium in Townsville the following weekend on September 25, before the New Zealand-Argentina centenary encounter.
The Rugby Championship concludes on the Gold Coast on October 2, with the Pumas facing the Wallabies and Springboks taking on the All Blacks.
"We thought last year was tough when we had to implement a Tri-Nations tournament in Australia with South Africa absent due to the pandemic, but the current disruption caused by the 'delta variant' of COVID-19 has seen government authorities tighten up border bio-security measures substantially," said SANZAAR CEO Brendan Morris.
"This is understandable and therefore, we had no option but to basically move the remainder of The Rugby Championship to Queensland.
"On behalf of SANZAAR and the national unions, I would like to sincerely thank the Queensland Government for working with us around the clock to provide a travel, accommodation, training and playing environment that will safely allow us to complete the tournament.
"SANZAAR and the national unions are incredibly grateful and will work closely with the states' health authorities to ensure all bio-security measures are adhered to."
Rugby Australia (RA) CEO Andy Marinos added: "This is a world Rugby first and a truly special celebration of the game, in what I see as a once-in-a-lifetime event."
Stefano Pioli insisted Milan are well-equipped to challenge for the Serie A title after they made a winning start to the season.
Milan launched their campaign with a 1-0 victory over Sampdoria at the Luigi Ferraris Stadium, where Brahim Diaz netted the decisive goal after just nine minutes on Monday.
Pioli handed a debut to new signing and goalkeeper Mike Maignan, while Olivier Giroud also made his bow in the absence of injured talisman Zlatan Ibrahimovic up front.
Despite injury ruling out Franck Kessie, Rade Krunic produced an assured performance in midfield and there was no change allowed from the central defensive pairing of Simon Kjaer and Fikayo Tomori – the pair helping the Rossoneri keep a sixth consecutive clean sheet, their longest run without conceding in the league since February 1994.
Having finished 12 points behind rivals and champions Inter last season, Milan – who have won 11 away Serie A fixtures since the start of 2021, the joint-most in the top-five European leagues, alongside Manchester City and Barcelona – are aiming to go one step better this term and claim a first Scudetto in 11 years.
Milan head coach Pioli is encouraged by the competitive nature and depth within his squad following matchday one.
"I'm happy to have won and to have chased the second goal," he told Sky Sport Italia.
"I like how the team interpreted the game. We have always looked for the goal and this is the right mentality.
"Aside from [Franck] Kessie's injury, I knew we had prepared well.
"We are becoming a strong team with a lot of competitiveness in the group. We know so many ways to play.
"There's a lot of balance now. I don't like limitations. I know I coach a strong team. Just think of the players who were out tonight.
"Maybe the right word is ready; this is the most ready Milan."
Michail Antonio became West Ham's all-time top goalscorer in the Premier League as David Moyes' side crushed Leicester City on Monday.
The 31-year-old scored twice in four minutes in the closing stages of the Hammers' 4-1 victory at London Stadium.
Antonio had earlier teed up Said Benrahma to make it 2-0 after Pablo Fornals broke the deadlock prior to Ayoze Perez's red card. Youri Tielemans netted what proved to be a consolation for Leicester.
Antonio now has 49 Premier League goals for West Ham, two more than previous leading scorer Paolo Di Canio.
The former Sheffield Wednesday player has scored four times in nine appearances against Leicester and already has three in England's top flight this season. No player has scored more.
Antonio celebrated his historic double by holding up a cardboard cut-out to a rapturous home crowd.
The Hammers are now on a four-game winning streak, their best Premier League run since winning five consecutive matches from January 14 to February 13, 2006.
Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers has lost five times against Moyes in England's top flight, more than he has against any other manager in the competition.
Brahim Diaz scored the only goal as Milan launched their Serie A season with a 1-0 victory over Sampdoria.
The Real Madrid loanee netted what proved to be the winner after just nine minutes at the Luigi Ferraris Stadium; Emil Audero unable to keep out his first-time strike from Davide Calabria’s cutback.
Runners-up to rivals Inter last term, it was the ideal start for the Rossoneri, who recorded maximum points in a season-opening away game for only the second time in six attempts.
As for the hosts, who began life under new head coach Roberto D’Aversa, they have now opened each of their last four campaigns with defeat – doing so for the first time in their history.
Signed from Ligue 1 champions Lille as a replacement for Gianluigi Donnarumma, Mike Maignan made his competitive debut between the sticks for the Rossoneri and he played a key part as they opened the scoring in the ninth minute.
Calabria latched onto his long kick before cutting the ball back for Diaz, whose first-time shot squirmed under the body of Audero.
Both sides went close before half-time. Maignan tipped Manolo Gabbiadini’s free-kick onto the crossbar, while Rade Krunic hit the side netting from eight yards out.
Opportunities did not fall too freely after the break.
Gabbiadini drew a save out of Maignan at his near post, but that was as close as Sampdoria came to denying Milan a sixth straight clean sheet in Serie A.
The visitors almost grabbed a second deep into stoppage time as substitute Ante Rebic shot narrowly wide from the edge of the area.
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