Australia captain Pat Cummins insists he plans to play all five games in this summer’s Ashes, despite this week’s World Test Championship guaranteeing a gruelling workload.
Cummins will lead his side out at the Kia Oval on Wednesday looking to defeat India in the second edition of the ICC’s showpiece finale, but despite being a prestigious event in its own right that is just the start of the story.
The most hotly anticipated Ashes series in a generation follows close behind, with all five matches compressed into just over six weeks in a schedule that is sure to challenge minds and bodies, not least among fast bowlers.
England have already made it clear they plan to rotate their attack, with captain Ben Stokes appealing for eight fit seamers to share the load and record wicket-taker James Anderson declaring three games out of five a realistic target.
Resting is a trickier proposition for Cummins in his role as leader, not only of the attack but the team itself, and he is not making plans to stand down.
“I’ll be aiming to play all six,” he told reporters on the eve of the WTC final.
“There’s some good breaks in between every batch of two Test matches, so I think it’s manageable. I mean, it’s a balance. I’ve been exhausted and depleted before but still got up and felt like I did a really good job, but if that comes up at any stage, of course, it’s a conversation.”
Cummins is preparing to win his 50th cap, a landmark that looked a dim and distant prospect during his earlier, injury-ravaged years. At one point his persistent back problems looked like ruining his red-ball career, but he now stands at the very pinnacle of the sport on a tour that could define his legacy in the Test arena.
“I thought getting back into Test cricket was so far away for a lot of that (time),” he said.
“(After) 10 overs a day I would wake up and felt like I had a car crash. When you’re in your fifth cycle of stress fractures, 50 Tests feels like a long way away. Test cricket is tough, you play all around the world, different conditions and physically it is demanding.
“So as a fast bowler to play 50, it is something to be pretty proud of. Particularly because for five or six years it felt like one [more] Test match was a long way away.”
Cummins will be joined by Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland against India, with Josh Hazlewood sidelined by a side strain and Michael Neser just missing out on the final spot.
Boland, 34, made a stunning introduction to international cricket during the 2021-22 Ashes, taking six for seven in the Boxing Day Test the MCG to seal the series. He has already taken 28 wickets in seven Tests and averages a remarkable 13.42.
“Someone like Scotty, it’s just a really simple game-plan – you hit your good areas and you stay there all day and hopefully the ball will do the work for you,” Cummins said.
“He’s had a few bowls over here now and has looked good. But he looks good whenever he bowls. In the past here in England, because the ball does talk a little more, I’ve seen players get too caught up in trying to take wickets every ball because you’ve suddenly got the ball swinging and seaming.”
India are leaving it late to make a decision on the final balance of the side, with the role of spinner Ravichandran Ashwin once again up for debate. He may have to cede his place to an extra seamer, but a late call will be made.
Captain Rohit Sharma, who ended his pre-match net session early after taking a blow to the thumb, is under pressure to deliver India’s first global title since the 2011 World Cup.
“Whether it’s me or someone else, even the guys before me, their role was to take Indian cricket forward and win as many games, as many championships as possible,” he said.
“Every captain wants to win championships. That is what you play for, that’s what sport is all about. Having said that, I genuinely feel that we don’t want to put too much pressure on ourselves by overthinking this stuff.
“It will be nice if I can win one or two championships as and when I decide to move on from this job. The next five days will be quite challenging for us and gives us the opportunity to win the championship, but we do understand that winning the championship is not easy. You got to do a lot of things right to win.”
The PGA Tour, DP World Tour and LIV Golf have agreed to merge commercial operations under common ownership, the PGA Tour has announced.
The shock announcement comes after a year of unprecedented disruption in the men’s professional game following the launch of the Saudi-backed LIV Golf circuit.
“After two years of disruption and distraction, this is a historic day for the game we all know and love,” PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said.
“This transformational partnership recognizes the immeasurable strength of the PGA Tour’s history, legacy and pro-competitive model and combines with it the DP World Tour and LIV – including the team golf concept – to create an organization that will benefit golf’s players, commercial and charitable partners and fans.”
Brian Meehan’s French 2,000 Guineas runner-up Isaac Shelby is on course for the St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot on June 20.
Winner of the Group Two Superlative Stakes at Newmarket last July, the Night Of Thunder colt began his three-year-old campaign with a three-length success in the Greenham at Newbury, before being short-headed by Marhaba Ya Sanafi in France.
The St James’s Palace is shaping up into one of the races of the meeting with English and Irish Guineas winners Chaldean and Paddington as well as Charlie Hills’ unbeaten Cicero’s Gift lying in wait.
Though Isaac Shelby initially held an entry in the 10-furlong Coral-Eclipse at Sandown, the Manton handler is keen to keep him at a mile for now.
Meehan said: “He is heading to Ascot and he’s in great form. We have been very happy with him. He goes to the St James’s Palace, but he won’t go to the Eclipse.
“We’ll see how he comes out of Ascot before making any plans. He is in everything, but we’ll play it by ear.
“He’s in good form, we couldn’t be happier with him really.”
Double Olympic 100 metres breaststroke champion Adam Peaty is recovering after undergoing surgery to remove his tonsils.
The 28-year-old revealed he had had the procedure in a post on his Twitter account on Tuesday.
Peaty said: “Tonsillectomy went well and on the road to recovery. Something that was affecting me for quite a long time with a lot of antibiotics to keep under control.
“Thank you to all the great doctors and nurses at Nuffield Leicester Hospital, you were all exceptional.”
Peaty, who won goal in Rio in 2016 and then defended his title in Tokyo five years later, also has six individual world titles to his name.
He has revealed in the past his struggles with depression and alcohol and recently admitted he had been in a “self-destructive spiral”.
Peaty pulled out of the British Championships in April citing mental health issues.
Jose Mourinho's behaviour and the subsequent abuse of Anthony Taylor by Roma fans has led to former Premier League referee Mark Halsey calling for stricter punishments.
Taylor and his family were verbally and physically targeted at Budapest airport in the wake of Roma's Europa League final defeat to Sevilla.
Both teams felt aggrieved by some of Taylor's decisions in the game, but Mourinho was particularly vehement, and was filmed shouting abuse at the official long after the final whistle had blown.
Halsey was infuriated by what he saw.
"Everybody that's seen the footage or watched the game, I thought both teams' conduct with their players and the coaching staff was appalling," Halsey told Stats Perform.
"On the night I thought Anthony [Taylor] and his team had a superb game under the most difficult of circumstances. When players don't want to listen, it makes it so very difficult for the referee.
"The referee can only referee what's in front of him. If I was being ultra critical, perhaps they should have removed team officials from the bench. But having said that, I thought they were outstanding on the night.
"Obviously, the criticism of him in the car park when [Mourinho] volleyed abuse again, I think it's appalling, and Roma fans having seen that, I think that's what led to the scenes that we saw at the airport. As much as everybody loves Jose Mourinho, you cannot do that. You cannot condone these actions.
"I think in the cold light of day, when he sits back down and looks at himself and his family looks at the way he behaves, I think they will think that he deserve everything that's coming his way regarding punishments."
Now, Halsey wants governing bodies such as UEFA to crack down on the abuse by enforcing points deductions.
He continued: "That was a showcase. The Premier League, the Champions League, Europa League are watched around the world by millions and millions of people, including children.
"In England, we have a problem at a grassroots level, we have a problem with youth football, we have a problem with parents. They watch that, and think they can get away with it.
"This season we've seen over £1.5million worth of fines dished out for player and team officials' behaviour on the field of play. Out of the 92 clubs, 52 have been charged £1.5m in fines. What does that tell you? That tells you that the fines are not working.
"So we've got to start with the points deduction right at the very top. In fact, that goes for if you're playing the Champions League.
"If Roma are in the Europa League next season, and Sevilla are in the Champions League, they've got to start with a points deduction. [They've] got to hit the clubs in the pocket, and take the points away.
"Those points could stop them qualifying for the knockout stages. They've really got to come down hard on them."
As for Mourinho, Halsey hopes the Roma boss faces a significant punishment.
He said: "I just think it was absolutely appalling. I've never seen a game like that and a referee treated like that anywhere.
"Even in my time as an official, I never ever got treatment like that, and I refereed all over the world. That's why I think that UEFA has got to come down extremely hard on Roma and José as well as Sevilla for their behaviour on the field of play."
Kyle Walker was not involved as Manchester City held an open training session on Tuesday ahead of the Champions League final.
The England full-back was substituted in the latter stages of City’s FA Cup final victory over Manchester United at Wembley on Saturday.
All other players were present as City continued preparations for the encounter with Inter Milan in Istanbul this weekend.
Pep Guardiola said at a press conference later in the afternoon that Walker had sat out the session to avoid aggravating a back problem.
The City boss said: “He has had a little bit of a disturbance in his back.
“Yesterday he was not good, today he was a little bit better but we didn’t want to take any risks. We will see in the next days.”
Jockeys Callum Shepherd and Joanna Mason are facing more time on the sidelines, having both recently just returned from injury.
Shepherd, who broke a wrist in November, aggravated his old injury when the Charlie Fellowes-trained Trois Vallees fell in a five-furlong handicap at Nottingham on Sunday.
He said: “I’ll be on the sofa for a little while. The horse sadly had a heart attack and the wrist started swelling up in one place, the same wrist I broke in November.
“It is fractured, but not too bad. The concern was it had opened up the old fracture again, but it hasn’t. I have a radial styloid fracture.
“It is hard to say when I will be back. I spoke to Dr Jerry Hill (the British Horseracing Authority’s chief medical officer), having sent him the X-ray. It is a case of getting a CAT scan to see the full extent of it, but I think it will be a case of weeks, rather than months. That seems to be the expectation at the moment. Hopefully, that will be the case.
“It’s a tough one, but at the same time it could be a lot worse – it’s not your spine or your head.”
Mason, who was sidelined for 10 days last month when kicked in the knee by Jazz Samba following his win at Beverley on May 1, faces a lengthy absence.
She suffered a leg fracture on Monday when three pigeons flew out of bushes adjacent to the gallops at her grandfather Mick and his son David Easterby’s , spooking a filly she was riding and unseating her.
Mason said: “I was riding a filly down the gallop and three pigeons flew out and she was just gone from underneath me.
“I just landed a bit funny on my ankle. I got up, hobbled down the gallop until my granddad picked me up. I put ice on it, went to Jack Berry House and they looked at it.
“I thought it was ligaments or a strain, I wasn’t really in much pain, so I thought I had stretched or whatever, but they said to go to Malton Hospital for an X-ray to rule everything out.
“It is a spiral fracture on my lower (distal) fibula. They say I’ll be off between four to six weeks, but I’m aiming for four.”
Adding insult to injury, Mason missed a winning ride on Menelaus, who took the mile-and-a-half handicap at Thirsk on Monday.
She added: “I was 10 days off after my knee was kicked at Beverley. I was getting on a roll and the horses are going well.
“But I feel like I’ve probably been quite lucky, because I’ve not had many injuries. Maybe it is just my time.
“My knee is still niggling me a little bit – there’s still quite a bit of swelling in it, but that’s the least of my worries now.”
Elina Svitolina was booed again by the French Open crowd after her memorable Paris run was ended by Aryna Sabalenka in the quarter-finals.
In her first grand slam since the birth of daughter Skai last October, the Ukrainian has enjoyed one of her best grand slams but Australian Open champion Sabalenka was too strong in a 6-4 6-4 victory.
Having hit away the winning forehand, Belarusian Sabalenka stood at the net waiting for a handshake she must have known would not come, and there were loud boos as Svitolina walked straight past her without acknowledging her.
The 28-year-old had received loud support during the match but she left Philippe Chatrier to a mixture of jeers and cheers.
Svitolina had beaten two consecutive Russian opponents, both times offering a thumbs up at the end, but this was probably the highest-profile sporting clash between competitors from opposing sides of the war since it began.
Svitolina has been more measured in her criticism of Russian and Belarusian players than compatriots like Marta Kostyuk, who Sabalenka beat in the first round.
The Belarusian again declined to speak to the press ahead of the contest following tense exchanges with a Ukrainian journalist but said before the Kostyuk match that the surrounding circumstances had added to her nerves.
She need not have worried about the reaction walking out on to Philippe Chatrier as, although a few Ukraine flags were evident, the crowd was sparse and both players received warm welcomes.
The pair matched each other game for game until Sabalenka forced a first break point at 4-4 and crunched away a return off a weak second serve.
Svitolina made a fast start to the second set, moving 2-0 ahead, but could not convert a game point in the next game and Sabalenka began to really make her extra power count, moving into a 4-2 lead.
With the patrons now having finished their lunch and fully engaged, they tried to will Svitolina – who was watched by husband Gael Monfils – into a comeback, but Sabalenka held her nerve.
In the last four Sabalenka will meet unseeded Karolina Muchova, who earlier defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to reach her second grand slam semi-final.
The Czech, who also made the last four at the Australian Open in 2021, matched her best slam result with a 7-5 6-2 victory on Philippe Chatrier.
Muchova, 26, suffered an abdominal injury during her Australian run that kept her out for seven months and she was ranked outside the top 200 as recently as September.
With her run here, Muchova is set to return to the top 20, and she said: “I don’t know what to say. It’s been an incredible two weeks and I’m just glad I’m still in the competition.”
Pavlyuchenkova has also found form here after knee surgery kept her out for most of last season but the 2021 runner-up is now set to miss the grass-court season because her ranking was not high enough to get her into Wimbledon.
Tom Lockyer has reflected on his day of “mixed emotions” after being given the all clear following his heart scare during Luton’s Sky Bet Championship play-off final win over Coventry last month.
The 28-year-old defender fell to the floor early in the game and was subsequently taken to the Cleveland Clinic in London where he underwent an operation.
Lockyer is now planning a holiday before preparing for the Hatters’ new Premier League campaign having been assured by medical staff that there is no reason why he should suffer a repeat of the problem.
“I had an atrial fibrillation, which is basically the top part of my heart was beating four times faster than it should have been,” Lockyer told his club’s official website.
“There’s not really any reason to say why that happened, but I’ve had the operation to fix it and it shouldn’t happen again.
“I’ve been given the all clear, it is what it is and I just want to draw a line under it now and move on.”
Lockyer said he had few recollections of the incident, other than an over-riding emotion of sadness when he realised he would be unable to play any further part in the Wembley clash.
“It was a day of mixed emotions,” added Lockyer.
“It was crazy. All week I’d been visualising walking up those steps to that trophy and to end it in a hospital bed is not quite what I had in mind.
“I remember running backwards, and then I went really light-headed and my legs went really weak straight away. I remember stumbling back and then all I remember was (physio) Chris Phillips over the top of me, and he was saying, ‘Locks, you’re coming off’.
“I’m just really thankful that the lads were able to get the job done and we were able to complete our goal of getting promoted.
“It made those five days in hospital after a lot easier. I think if we had lost, those five days would have been horrendous, but they made it a lot smoother for me.”
Andrew Balding has no concerns about the prospect of Chaldean tackling quicker ground at Royal Ascot.
The Dewhurst and 2000 Guineas winner remains on target for what looks a stellar renewal of the St James’s Palace Stakes on the first day of the meeting, June 20.
For Balding, with the Guineas already in the bag, he can approach the meeting with the pressure slightly lifted.
“The Classics are a big deal, particularly the Guineas. To get it early in the season is a huge effort,” he said.
“Having won the Dewhurst, you spend the whole winter with high expectations. You then get there and it was more of a relief than a feeling of ecstasy. It was a great one to get on the board and everyone was rightfully very happy with themselves.
“The St James’s Palace is the intended target. Chances are he is going to have to encounter some faster ground at some stage. I haven’t got a concern myself; it was quite fast when he won at York and I think at Ascot, the round track there should really play to his strengths, we’re looking forward to it.”
Chaldean is one of two major chances for the trainer in two of the feature races as he will also saddle Coltrane, the Sagaro Stakes winner, in the Gold Cup on the Thursday.
Balding told Tattersalls: “He’s a bit of a star, he wasn’t an expensive yearling (50,000 guineas). He has been a pleasant surprise from day one in everything he’s done. He looked stone cold useless as a two-year-old to be honest. He could hardly get up to the top of the gallop and just improved and improved.
“He had improved with racing but had a setback at the beginning of his four-year-old career. He missed a lot and the way he’s come back is an absolute tribute to his steel. He’s just a fabulous horse to train and I thought he was very impressive in the Sagaro Stakes.
“If he can produce that sort of a performance at Ascot on Gold Cup day, then he’s got to be a player.
“I think the last run suggests he is better than ever. I thought he was very impressive. He put in a similar performance at Sandown last year where he looked very good, and we were just thrilled with the way he won at Ascot.
“It was obvious that we didn’t need to be running again before the Gold Cup because there’s a busy time after that as well so hopefully, if we can get him there in the same form, he should have a great chance.”
Brighton midfielder Alexis Mac Allister is to undergo a medical with Liverpool.
The PA news agency understands the Seagulls have given permission for the 24-year-old World Cup winner to begin the process of finalising his transfer to Anfield.
Mac Allister’s father, Carlos, who acts as his representative, arrived at the weekend for talks regarding the Argentina international’s future.
It is understood the Argentina international has a release clause, believed to be between £45million and £55m, in a contract he only signed in October, and Brighton allowing him to have a medical means Liverpool are edging closer to securing a player who emerged as their top transfer target after pulling out of the race for Borussia Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham.
Seagulls boss Roberto De Zerbi admitted last month he is already resigned to losing Mac Allister, who was key in securing their first European participation with a sixth-placed finish in the Premier League, just five points behind Liverpool.
Jurgen Klopp is looking to rebuild a midfield which misfired this season and Mac Allister has been a long-term target, with James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain departing at the end of their contracts.
Liverpool were also interested in Mason Mount, entering the final 12 months of his contract at Chelsea, but Manchester United appear to be the front-runners and Klopp does not want to get into a protracted – and often expensive – process so has moved on to other players.
The Reds have been linked with Bayern Munich’s Ryan Gravenberch, Nice’s Khephren Thuram and Borussia Monchengladbach’s Manu Kone and will be looking to get their business done early in time for the start of pre-season on July 8.
Kyle Walker was not involved as Manchester City held an open training session on Tuesday ahead of the Champions League final.
The England full-back was substituted in the latter stages of City’s FA Cup final victory over Manchester United at Wembley on Saturday.
All other players were present as City continued preparations for the encounter with Inter Milan in Istanbul this weekend.
Manager Pep Guardiola was due to give an update on the fitness of his squad at a press conference later in the afternoon.
Passenger, who disappointed in finishing 12th of the 14 runners in the Betfred Derby on Saturday, will be given a break by Sir Michael Stoute.
Supplemented at a cost of £85,000 just days before the Classic on the strength of a luckless run when a close-up third in the Dante at York, Richard Kingscote was never at ease aboard the 8-1 shot.
Bidding to give the trainer and jockey a second success in the blue riband in as many years after Desert Crown’s victory last June, the son of Ulysses was keen early and did not see out the mile-and-a-half trip, which he was trying for the first time.
A late developer, he saw the racecourse for the first time in April, scampering to a three-length victory in the Wood Ditton, a maiden over mile at Newmarket.
Passenger, owned by the Niarchos family, made a taking debut when scoring in a mile maiden at Newmarket on April 20.
He was withdrawn from the Dee Stakes at Chester due to heavy ground so connections paid £14,000 to supplement the colt into the Group Two Dante, where he was keen early on and had his path blocked when attempting to mount a challenge approaching two furlongs out.
Now with three runs in the space of 45 days, connections are keen to give him more time to develop before bringing him back, starting over a shorter trip.
The Niarchos family’s racing manager, Alan Cooper, said: “It was unfortunate he used up a lot of energy going up the hill and he was a bit free, so emptied out coming down and that was that, unfortunately. We don’t know why he did, but he did.
“It is hard to know why. One goes forward and we can’t re-do the race. He’ll have a nice break and see what Sir Michael would like to do.
“The horse has had a very quick career with three races since mid-April, so we will give him a nice break and freshen him up, then look at a suitable 10-furlong race and take it from there.
“He is a late-maturing horse and we hope he will develop as he matures.
“A lot of people will be re-grouping after Saturday. I think there were a lot of good horses in the race. Every Derby is a good Derby in terms of winners.”
Passenger, who disappointed in finishing 12th of the 14 runners in the Betfred Derby on Saturday, will be given a break by Sir Michael Stoute.
Supplemented at a cost of £85,000 just days before the Classic on the strength of a luckless run when a close-up third in the Dante at York, Richard Kingscote was never at ease aboard the 8-1 shot.
Bidding to give the trainer and jockey a second success in the blue riband in as many years after Desert Crown’s victory last June, the son of Ulysses was keen early and did not see out the mile-and-a-half trip, which he was trying for the first time.
A late developer, he saw the racecourse for the first time in April, scampering to a three-length victory in the Wood Ditton, a maiden over mile at Newmarket.
Passenger, owned by the Niarchos family, made a taking debut when scoring in a mile maiden at Newmarket on April 20.
He was withdrawn from the Dee Stakes at Chester due to heavy ground so connections paid £14,000 to supplement the colt into the Group Two Dante, where he was keen early on and had his path blocked when attempting to mount a challenge approaching two furlongs out.
Now with three runs in the space of 45 days, connections are keen to give him more time to develop before bringing him back, starting over a shorter trip.
The Niarchos family’s racing manager, Alan Cooper, said: “It was unfortunate he used up a lot of energy going up the hill and he was a bit free, so emptied out coming down and that was that, unfortunately. We don’t know why he did, but he did.
“It is hard to know why. One goes forward and we can’t re-do the race. He’ll have a nice break and see what Sir Michael would like to do.
“The horse has had a very quick career with three races since mid-April, so we will give him a nice break and freshen him up, then look at a suitable 10-furlong race and take it from there.
“He is a late-maturing horse and we hope he will develop as he matures.
“A lot of people will be re-grouping after Saturday. I think there were a lot of good horses in the race. Every Derby is a good Derby in terms of winners.”
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