England have gone all in on spin for their first Test in India, handing Tom Hartley a debut alongside Jack Leach and Rehan Ahmed in a major selection gamble.

Clearly expecting more of the lavish turn that saw them blown away on their previous visit in 2021, the tourists have picked all three of their specialist slow bowlers in Hyderabad and will also utilise Joe Root’s off-breaks as an additional option.

With captain Ben Stokes unable to bowl after knee surgery, they have settled on Mark Wood as the solitary pace bowler, meaning record wicket-taker James Anderson sits out.

England are placing a lot of trust in Wood’s fitness, with their fastest bowler bullish about his fitness despite a history of injury problems.

England last named a trio of frontline spinners in their 3-0 whitewash of Sri Lanka in 2018, when Leach was the junior man to the more established pair of Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid, but Stokes was on hand then as an all-rounder.

They have not restricted themselves to just one seamer in recent memory, but their commitment to doing things differently in the ‘Bazball’ era remains unchecked.

Within the camp they do not see this as a rogue move, instead viewing it as a willingness to react to conditions.

“I don’t necessarily think it’s bold or brave, it’s just me and Baz (head coach Brendon McCullum) looking at the wicket and picking the XI that we think will give us the best chance,” Stokes said.

“You have always got to think that the ball is going to turn in India, but you don’t want to go in with any pre-conceived ideas. We have to adapt to whatever we have presented in front of us, with bat and ball.

“It’s just being true to yourself, making selections and decisions. It comes easier as I’ve done more of this… If I think the decision is best for the team, then it’s probably the right one.

“India are an absolute beast in their home conditions, there’s no doubt about that. But that presents us with an opportunity. This team loves opportunities. We take opportunity head on and we run towards it – we don’t back away from from anything.”

Hartley comes into the reckoning despite a slim red-ball record with Lancashire. He has played 82 T20s compared to just 20 first-class games but was identified several months ago for his height, lively speed through the air and skiddy trajectory.

All of those are factors England feel are better suited to a Test match in India than a regulation county championship pitch, but the 24-year-old remains an unknown quantity.

“It’s very exciting for Tom to make his Test debut,” said Stokes.

“I’m looking forward to seeing him out there and captaining him. He’s been very impressive in the build-up in Abu Dhabi. He bowls at a very difficult pace to be able to handle out here and he’s someone who gets a lot of natural variation. In India, that is sometimes the hardest thing to face.”

Ahmed wins his second cap 13 months after becoming England’s youngest ever men’s Test cricketer in Karachi – an occasion that saw him claim a five-wicket haul in the second innings.

Despite going it alone, Wood has been told not to expect to carry a huge workload. Instead, he has been asked to use his express speed to make big contributions in brief cameos.

“What Woody brings with his high pace makes him a real impact bowler,” said Stokes.

“He’s a weapon we can use in short, sharp spells. We’ve already said that to him – bowl as fast as you can in short periods. There’s no worries about thinking about long spells. That’s how I envision using Woody before we’ve bowled a ball.”

Frank Warren believes Francis Ngannou can cause an upset by defeating Anthony Joshua ahead of their heavyweight showdown in Saudi Arabia on March 8.

Briton Joshua returns to action following December’s impressive stoppage over Sweden’s Otto Wallin as he continues his bid on becoming a three-time world champion against mixed martial arts star Ngannou in a 10-round bout.

Queensbury promoter Warren, whose prize fighter Tyson Fury came back from an early knockdown to beat Ngannou in controversial fashion in October, believes Joshua should be wary of his opponent’s punch power.

Speaking to the PA news agency at the launch of Queensbury’s ‘Magnificent Seven’ boxing card, Warren said: “Joshua’s come into this after his last fight against Wallin. He’ll be a big favourite going in, but I know that if he gets caught on the whiskers then this fella (Ngannou) could cause a massive upset because he can whack.

“It’s going to be interesting to see how he takes the fight and to see if he fights on the outside or the inside. Ngannou’s game is getting on the inside, he’s a big man, he’s strong.

“I’m intrigued to see what Ngannou’s learnt from his last fight.”

Joshua showed signs of being back to his best with last month’s ruthless victory over Wallin, which marked his third victory of 2023 following wins against Jermaine Franklin and Robert Helenius.

But Warren believes Ngannou has the tools to exploit AJ’s “wealth” of weaknesses in Riyadh.

“If I’m fighting AJ, what am I looking to do? I’d look to exploit his weaknesses and there’s a wealth of that which we’ve seen,” Warren added. “We’ve seen his weaknesses in that first fight against Tubby the Tuba (defeat to Andy Ruiz Jr in 2019).

“Also the two fights to Oleksandr Usyk, we can see what they are. People have seen him wobble a few times in fights, that happens with him. I’m not saying there’s a confidence issue, but there wasn’t that where he was such an emphatic fighter.

“I think he’s changed. He’s changed his style a bit, which he should do. His new trainer (Ben Davison) has brought some momentum to him, but he’s going to have a fight on his hand.”

Nathan Heaney and Joe Joyce are among the fighters on the ‘Magnficent Seven’ card in Birmingham on March 16, and Warren is expecting a competitive night of action.

He said: “The last one we did I think was British promotion of the year. They were great fights, competitive fights and it’s a similar situation here. We have young and established fighters who are all in competitive fights.

“This is something we will now do on a regular basis. They will all be looking these guys to outdo each other because someone wants to come through as the eye catching fight.”

In-form Harry Derham is targeting the Betfair Hurdle with former smart Flat performer Brentford Hope.

Third in the Gerry Feilden to Hansard last time out, Derham has kept his powder dry, resisting the temptation to run the seven-year-old at Christmas.

Brentford Hope is one of 33 left in contention for the valuable contest, for which the sponsors make Nicky Henderson’s Luccia their 7-1 favourite with Brentford Hope a 10-1 chance.

“The Betfair Hurdle is very much the plan for Brentford Hope, we’ve had it in the back of our minds all season,” said Derham.

“Obviously, he has run very well around Newbury previously, we were thinking about running him at Christmas, but we decided to keep him fresh.

“These big handicaps take a lot of winning, we wanted to have him as fresh and well and in as good a form as possible going into a race like this.

“He’s training well, he’s got a few strong pieces of work to go between now and then, but we are very much planning to go and very much looking forward to it.”

Kerry Lee’s Nemean Lion is at the head of the weights, while Willie Mullins has left in Ocastle des Mottes, Alvaniy and Onlyamatteroftime.

UEFA’s investigators were “right” to ban Manchester City from European competition after finding they had breached financial regulations, its president Aleksander Ceferin has said.

City were handed a two-year suspension in February 2020 by UEFA’s Club Financial Control Body (CFCB), but the penalty was overturned at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in July of that year.

CAS found some of the alleged breaches were “not established”, while others were time-barred. The club’s fine for failing to co-operate with CFCB investigators was reduced by CAS to 10 million euros (£8.6m).

Ceferin, however, has backed his organisation’s process.

“We know we were right. We wouldn’t decide if we didn’t think we were right,” Ceferin told the Daily Telegraph.

“As a trial lawyer for 25 years, I know that, sometimes, you win a case that you are sure you will lose,” he added.

“And, sometimes, you lose a case when you’re sure… You have to respect the decision of the court. I don’t want to speak about the case in England. But I trust that the decision of our independent body was correct.”

The case in England Ceferin mentioned was the decision of the Premier League in February last year to refer City to an independent commission, charged with more than 100 breaches of the competition’s financial rules.

City said they looked forward to presenting “irrefutable evidence” to the commission against the charges brought.

Premier League chief executive Richard Masters told the Culture, Media and Sport select committee last week that a date has been set for the commission hearing, but declined to say what that date was.

Defending the length of the City process when compared to other cases such as Everton’s brought under the league’s profitability and sustainability rules (PSR), Masters said the City case was different “in volume and character” to Everton’s case, or that involving Nottingham Forest.

Mauricio Pochettino is looking to “build a team that can match the mentality” of Chelsea after his side reached the Carabao Cup final with a 6-1 semi-final second-leg victory over Middlesbrough.

Jonny Howson’s own goal settled the Blues’ early nerves as further strikes from Enzo Fernandez, Axel Disasi, Noni Madueke and a Cole Palmer brace booked their place at Wembley on February 25 against either Liverpool or Fulham.

Boss Pochettino said: “The most important thing is keeping the focus, seeing reality in the way we need to see the reality and see the difference between what is Chelsea and what is the team we are building.

“They are two different things. Our challenge is the history of Chelsea, the capacity to win titles and build a team that can match the mentality of this club.”

Ben Chilwell started for the first time since recovering from a hamstring injury and impressed at left-back.

Pochettino felt Chilwell and goalscorer Disasi set a standard with their performances and now wants to see such displays consistently.

“They were important today but we need to be consistent,” Pochettino added.

“Players like Chilly could do 65 minutes but the objective is to arrive at 80 minutes, hopefully do the 90 minutes, and then be consistent playing every two or three days. That is the most important thing.

“Now we need to help players like him to get their best form, but at the same time we are competing. We can think we are going to play with Chilly or Reece (James), but we know then after 10 or 15 minutes of the second half we have players that we need to change.

“They were important but with Chilly it is after five months we couldn’t use him. We were using different players like Levi Colwill or Marc Cucurella, who is also injured. We have two right-backs that today we couldn’t count on in Reece James and Malo Gusto, so we are using Axel.”

Chelsea’s recent upturn in form has seen them pick up three successive Premier League wins and they now have a cup final to look forward to.

Pochettino has seen a marked improvement in his side since the beginning of the season and said reaching Wembley was an objective from the start.

“The results are good, we are improving since the beginning of the season,” Pochettino added. “In all the circumstances we need to be happy because we are competing with a lot of things going on again and to reach the final was the first objective from the beginning.”

England captain Ben Stokes floated the idea of not flying to India until Shoaib Bashir’s visa problems were resolved but admitted there was “never a chance” of putting the first Test at risk.

Bashir, a British Muslim with Pakistani heritage, was ruled out of contention for a Test debut in Hyderabad on Thursday due to delays with his application.

The 20-year-old was ultimately forced to fly home from Abu Dhabi, where England held a pre-series training camp, after his team-mates travelled on to India.

Stokes’ instant reaction when he found out the Somerset spinner had become the latest player of Pakistani descent to experience hold-ups entering India was for the squad to remain with him in a show of solidarity.

The notion did not last long, with the tight turn around effectively meaning the game would have to be postponed, but reflected Stokes’ clear disgruntlement at the treatment of a young colleague.

“When I first found the news out in Abu Dhabi, I did say we shouldn’t fly until Bash gets his visa but that was a little bit tongue in cheek,” he said at his pre-match press conference.

“I know it’s a way bigger thing, doing that. That was probably just (my) emotions around the whole thing. There was never a chance that we were not going to travel around this but Bash knows he’s had our full support.

“I’m pretty devastated that Bash has had to go through this. As a leader, as a captain, when one of your team-mates is affected by something like that you do get a bit emotional.

“I know he’s back in London and a lot of people are jumping through hoops to try and get this through quicker. Hopefully we’re going to see him here over the weekend.”

India captain Rohit Sharma expressed sympathy for Bashir, who has been thrust into the spotlight and compelled to fly almost 10,000 additional miles to secure the paperwork other players received as a matter of course.

“I feel for him honestly,” said Sharma.

“Unfortunately I don’t sit in the visa office to give you more details on that but hopefully he can make it quickly, enjoy our country and plays some cricket as well.

“It’s not easy for anyone, it could be one of our guys wanting to come to England and being denied.”

Lancashire’s Saqib Mahmood, whose parents hail from Pakistan, had to be withdrawn from an England Lions tour of India in 2019 after similar delays, while Australia opener Usman Khawaja was a late arrival on his country’s Test trip in 2023.

Moreover, the Pakistan Cricket Board wrote to the International Cricket Council late last year due to express concerns over waiting times for World Cup visas.

England had called for assistance from counterparts at the Board of Control for Cricket in India, with new operations manager Stuart Hooper leading negotiations in the United Arab Emirates, but were informed that Bashir needed to present his passport in person at the Indian high commission in London.

Tom Hartley will make his Test debut as one of three spinners as England took a major selection gamble for their series opener against India in Hyderabad.

Hartley, the Lancashire left-armer, joins the established Jack Leach and teenage leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed in an attack that suggests the tourists expect lavish turn.

Mark Wood has been picked as the only seam bowler in the side, meaning England’s record wicket-taker James Anderson sits out.

With Wood operating best in short, rapid bursts, England are ready to embrace an entirely different rhythm of cricket. Joe Root’s off-breaks are also likely to feature heavily and Stokes has even suggested he could open the bowling with the part-timer.

Ben Foakes returns as wicketkeeper, with Jonny Bairstow reverting to a specialist batting role at number five.

India captain Rohit Sharma has expressed sympathy for England’s Shoaib Bashir after visa complications delayed his arrival in the country.

Bashir, a British Muslim with Pakistani heritage, has experienced difficulty having his application approved and was forced to fly back to London from Abu Dhabi to resolve the issue, ruling him out of Thursday’s first Test.

It is not the first time players with links to Pakistan have experienced hold-ups in India, with Lancashire’s Saqib Mahmood and Australia opener Usman Khawaja among that number. The Pakistan Cricket Board wrote to the International Cricket Council late last year due to delays over visas for their World Cup squad.

England skipper Ben Stokes said on Tuesday he was “devastated” for the uncapped 20-year-old and his opposite number offered solidarity.

“I feel for him honestly,” said Sharma.

“Unfortunately I don’t sit in the visa office to give you more details on that but hopefully he can make it quickly, enjoy our country and plays some cricket as well.

“It’s not easy for anyone, it could be one of our guys wanting to come to England and being denied.”

A drained Daniil Medvedev scrapped his way into a third Australian Open semi-final with a five-set victory over Hubert Hurkacz.

Ninth seed Hurkacz, who was looking to make the last four at a grand slam for only the second time, twice fought back from a set down but Medvedev came out on top 7-6 (4) 2-6 6-3 5-7 6-4 after three hours and 59 minutes.

The Russian finished it off with a drop shot before blowing kisses towards his box.

Medvedev will now try to reach the final for the third time in four years, and he said: “I’m so destroyed right now. I was feeling very tired physically at the end of the second set already.

“In the fourth set, he played good, I wasn’t beating myself up. I had no more concentration, I thought, ‘I just have to try my best to do whatever I can. If I lose, I lose and I go home. It’s OK’. I’m happy that like this I managed to win and I really liked the match point.”

It was a back-and-forth contest throughout between the two big servers, who both move tremendously well for such tall men.

Medvedev edged the first set on a tie-break and looked to be in full control when, having dropped the second, he took the third and moved a break ahead in the fourth.

But Hurkacz, who had won his last two matches against the Russian and their only previous grand slam meeting at Wimbledon in 2021, did not allow his head to drop and levelled at 4-4.

It was now Medvedev under real pressure on serve, and Hurkacz clinched his opportunity to force a decider when his opponent sent a forehand long.

Medvedev had survived a five-setter in the second round, coming from two sets down to defeat Emil Ruusuvuori at nearly 4am.

And the third seed was not to be denied, a break in the seventh game proving the difference.

What the papers say

Al-Nassr are planning to offer Manchester United a pair of “audacious” bids for midfielder Casemiro and defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka, the Daily Mail reports, in the wake of the Tottenham’s refusal to offload Emerson Royal to the Saudi league outfit.

Also from the Mail, Lyon are said to be targeting winger Arnaut Danjuma in the transfer window, as apparently the 26-year-old’s parent club Villarreal have become frustrated at his lack of game time while on loan at Everton.

According to the Sun, Manchester Untied are leading the race to sign Bologna’s Dutch forward Joshua Zirkzee despite interest from Arsenal.

Social media round-upPlayers to watch

Victor Osimhen: The 25-year-old has hinted that he is ready to leave Napoli, with Chelsea, Manchester United, and Real Madrid keen on the Nigerian, 90 Min reports.

Antonio Nusa: Newcastle are considering hijacking Tottenham’s proposed move for Club Bruges’ teenage forward, with Football Insider claiming he is seen as a direct replacement for Miguel Almiron who may leave Tyneside for Saudi side Al-Shabab.

Karim Benzema: Chelsea are interested in signing the 36-year-old French forward from Al-Ittihad, claims the Guardian.

Mauricio Pochettino said he is desperate to win the Carabao Cup in his first season at Chelsea after watching his team sweep aside Middlesbrough 6-1 to reach next month’s final at Wembley.

Stamford Bridge has suffered from a quiet atmosphere in recent months, often exacerbated by Chelsea failing to break teams down early, but a repeat here never looked like being a risk as they booked a meeting with either Liverpool or Fulham on February 25.

“I’m desperate to win a trophy here,” said Pochettino. “We won in three trophies in one and a half years at Paris (St Germain) and we want to win here.

“I’m desperate to win. That is the headline.

“It’s really important for us, we’re going to have Fulham or Liverpool, two amazing teams, it will be difficult. But now is the moment to believe we can win.”

Trailing 1-0 from the first leg at the Riverside Stadium, the hosts tore into their Championship opponents and banished memories of a chastening loss on Teesside.

Boro’s captain Jonny Howson inadvertently got the ball rolling by diverting past his own goalkeeper after 15 minutes, though Armando Broja was poised to tap home had the defender not intervened.

From there on, Chelsea steamrollered Michael Carrick’s side. Enzo Fernandez scored after being set up by good link-up play from Axel Disasi and the excellent Raheem Sterling, then Sterling feeding the surging Disasi to sweep home the third.

Boro caused problems for themselves trying to play out from the back, the match-winner from the first leg Hayden Hackney losing possession and gifting Cole Palmer Chelsea’s fourth before half-time.

Palmer, the top scorer for Pochettino’s side since his move from Manchester City, made it five late on before substitute Noni Madueke curled home via a deflection.

Morgan Rogers’ goal was greeted with a roar from travelling fans who had long since their Wembley dream slip away.

Pochettino added: “Now we need to prepare for Friday against Aston Villa (in the FA Cup), but this is an important step for us. The confidence and the belief in ourselves is so important.

“That is going to help because of the motivation. Players who are so close to coming back (from injury) – tomorrow, maybe a few injured players will want to come for training, seeing that the final is close.”

Boro manager Carrick reflected on a tie that ultimately proved too great a hurdle for his side despite heroics on Teesside two weeks ago.

“(The players) will learn from that after they have gotten over the disappointment,” he said.

“We had a big night at the Riverside where we managed to beat a really good Chelsea team. We just couldn’t get it done here unfortunately.”

Manchester United announced they had agreed a club-record fee to sign Spain midfielder Juan Mata from Chelsea on this day in 2014.

The World Cup and European Championship winner, 25, arrived by helicopter at United’s training complex the following day for his medical ahead of completing a £37.1million transfer.

That smashed the £30.75m fee United paid Tottenham for striker Dimitar Berbatov in 2008, with Mata signing a deal until 2018.

The former Valencia player, who had won the Champions League, Europa League and FA Cup in his three seasons with Chelsea and was the club’s player of the year in 2012 and 2013, made his United debut on January 28 in a 2-0 Premier League win over Cardiff at Old Trafford.

He joined a Red Devils side managed by David Moyes but the former Everton boss was sacked in April.

It was a mixed time for Mata in Manchester, with the Spaniard winning the FA Cup – scoring in their 2016 final win over Crystal Palace – League Cup and Europa League but unable to help United reclaim the Premier League title.

Mata made 285 appearances, scoring 51 goals, for the club before leaving when his contract expired in 2022 to join Galatasaray.