LeBron James says watching his son Bronny make his college debut just five months after he suffered a cardiac arrest meant "everything" to him and his family.
Bronny James was found to have a congenital heart defect after suffering a cardiac arrest during a workout at the University of Southern California in July.
Having recently been cleared for full-contact practice, the 19-year-old made his debut for the Trojans on Sunday, collecting four points, three rebounds and two assists in an 84-79 overtime loss to Long Beach State.
After helping the Los Angeles Lakers win the inaugural NBA in-season tournament on Saturday, LeBron James returned home to take in his son's debut, later describing it as a special moment.
"It was everything for my family," the NBA's all-time leading scorer said. "It was just an emotional, draining day, from the time we all woke up to the time the buzzer hit zeros.
"That moment was everything for us. To be there, to see the first person out of our family, out of the James gang, grace a college campus and a college floor… that was pretty cool.
"I think the most important thing, who cares about the win or the loss, the kid was standing tall and standing strong at the end of the game.
"That is a blessing in its own right, and that is a win. He's won at life, and everything else at this point is extra credit."
James senior was back on the court himself on Tuesday, with his 33-point haul not enough for the Lakers as they returned to regular-season action with a 127-125 road loss against the Dallas Mavericks.
The Lakers have two more road games this week, facing the struggling San Antonio Spurs in a double header before returning home to take on the New York Knicks next Monday.
The number of NFL games held outside the United States will double in 2025 after owners voted to increase the league’s international offering at the December League Meeting in Dallas.
A first regular-season game to be held in South America was also approved and is set to be played in Brazil in 2024 at the home of Corinthians, taking the NFL to its fifth continent for a pre- or regular-season contest.
Wednesday’s vote ensures the NFL will have the right to schedule up to eight regular-season games per season internationally in 2025, up from four currently, with London once again set to host three next season with a third trip to Munich rounding out the global fixtures.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said: “Becoming a global sport is a major strategic priority for the league and 32 teams.
“Increasing international game inventory allows us to grow our global presence and share our game with exciting new markets to connect with more fans around the world.”
Manchester United executive co-chairman Joel Glazer, who also owns the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and chairs the NFL’s International Committee, added: “International games have been a huge success, and we are excited for the opportunity to share the sport of American football with more fans from around the world in the future.”
As part of the updated resolution approved by NFL ownership, no club would be required to play more than one regular-season game outside of North America in the same season unless they specifically choose to.
Each team designated to play in an international regular-season game will be permitted to select two of their regular-season opponents that will not be eligible to be scheduled as their opponent in an international game, and international games may not be scheduled after Week 14 of the NFL season.
An NFL release stated that “new markets and host cities/stadiums for future seasons will be announced at later dates.”
Nikola Jokic accepted he "crossed the line" after being ejected from the Denver Nuggets' road win over the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday, a decision which prompted boos from the opposing fans.
Jokic was ejected with just over a minute remaining in the second quarter, but Reggie Jackson stepped up with a team-high 25 points as Denver rallied in his absence for a 114-106 win.
The two-time NBA MVP was tossed after yelling at official Mousa Dagher while asking for a foul call, with ESPN reporting that he told Dagher: "Call the foul, mother******".
The pool report said Jokic was thrown out for "profane language that warranted an ejection", and while Jokic accepted he was in the wrong, he said other officials would not have called a technical for that offence.
"Sometimes it's not even a technical," Jokic said after the game. "I crossed the line, I understand, but sometimes that word doesn't cross the line. It is what it is."
Jokic's ejection led to boos from the Chicago crowd, and the Bulls were expecting a large contingent of Serbian fans to be in attendance on Jokic's only visit to United Center this regular season.
"It's the second-biggest Serbian population here," Jokic pointed out. "Belgrade is the first, and Chicago is the second. So, maybe they came to see me!"
While Denver coach Michael Malone was pleased to see Jokic's team-mates step up, he said the team must ensure that he stays in games for the duration.
"I think everybody was surprised it was a one-tech toss," Malone said. "Maybe I have to do a better job because if he's getting fouled or he thinks he's getting fouled, let me take the tech.
"That's my job as a head coach because I don't want him being put in that position where he is getting thrown out. It's not good for him and more importantly it's not good for the team.
"We can talk about how great our bench was tonight, but in the big picture, we need Nikola available. He knows that, and we just have to work on how we engage and how we communicate with the referees."
Jokic was not the subject of the only high-profile ejection across the NBA on Tuesday, with Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green tossed for the third time this season in a 119-116 loss to the Phoenix Suns.
Green was ejected in the third quarter after receiving a Flagrant 2 foul for hitting Jusuf Nurkic in the face, with the incident coming less than a month after he was banned for five games for putting the Minnesota Timberwolves' Rudy Gobert in a headlock.
Green must now wait on a league review to discover whether he will face another suspension, and he apologised for catching Nurkic in the aftermath of Golden State's loss.
"I am not one to apologise for things I do, but I do apologise to Jusuf because I didn't intend to hit him," Green said. "I sell calls with my arms. I was selling the call, I swung and unfortunately I hit him."
While Suns coach Frank Vogel called Green's behaviour "reckless" and "dangerous", the 33-year-old insisted he didn't intend to strike Nurkic.
"If I intended to do that, then I would feel awful about not being there," Green added. "But my intentions were just to sell the foul.
"You guys have known me long enough, if I intended to do something, I am not apologising. But I did make contact with him, so I do apologise. It's a hard hit."
Aberdeen top goalscorer Bojan Miovski remains at the centre of a fitness concern ahead of the Viaplay Cup final on Sunday.
Manager Barry Robson has not ruled the striker out of Thursday’s Europa Conference League game against Eintracht Frankfurt at Pittodrie. He played 77 minutes of Saturday’s 2-1 win over Hearts, scoring his 12th goal of the season.
But with no chance of qualifying for the knockout stages and silverware at stake against Rangers on Sunday, it appears inconceivable that the North Macedonia international would be risked against the German outfit.
Robson said: “We are still waiting on Bojan. We will see how he is in the morning when he gets up. Hopefully nothing too serious but we will make a decision on him on Thursday.
“It’s a hamstring issue. We will try to give him every opportunity. It’s not a serious injury. It’s not going to hold him back long term. It’s hours and days rather than weeks so we will see how he is in the morning.”
Robson made eight changes for the recent draw with HJK Helsinki and he looks set to shuffle his pack for the final European tie.
“We have a group of players who I believe in,” he said. “We need to make sure we use as many players as we can in a squad.
“In Helsinki, we took some players in and they performed really well. We just have to make sure as a squad we perform well over the next two games.
“As staff and manager that’s what we are trying to do, to make everyone as fresh as we can for the two games.”
While Robson is planning ahead for Sunday, he is keen to ensure his players are not thinking of Hampden.
“Listen, it’s not in my mind,” he said. “You are playing against Eintracht Frankfurt, one of the great sides in European football. So me and the players have to fully focus on that.
“We are not naive enough to think we don’t have to perform, because this is a big game, against some top players, so we have to be at our best.”
Midfielder Dante Polvara is eager to make the most of the chance to face the 2021 Europa League winners.
“It’s a chance to play for the club and for a lot of people to show what they can do,” he said.
“I will be just as excited for Thursday as I will be for Sunday. Of course Sunday holds other weight with us not being able to advance on Thursday but it’s going to be a privelege to play here and play against Frankfurt.
“You always want to impress no matter the occasion and even more so playing in a European game. It is a huge privilege and going toe to toe with the really big boys is an honour and something I am really excited for.
“And I am sure individually a lot of boys will be looking forward to showing what they can bring to the table.”
Anthony Joshua says British rival Tyson Fury looked like a “flat slob” in his recent fight with former mixed martial arts champion Francis Ngannou.
Fury, who will fight to become undisputed world heavyweight champion early next year, narrowly avoided an upset when he beat the Cameroonian in a split decision in October.
Joshua, who has given up hope of ever getting the chance to fight for all four heavyweight titles himself, was unimpressed by Fury’s performance.
The 34-year-old told TNT Sports Boxing YouTube Channel: “He just looked like a flat slob that just can’t fight. He says that bodybuilders can’t fight, but he got smacked up by one.
“I’ve always wanted to get in the ring with him. He does a lot of talking, calls me a bodybuilder and stuff, but I want to marvel at the African power – he’s a bodybuilder, steps in and smacks him up for me.”
Joshua, a former holder of the IBF, WBC and WBO titles, previously targeted unification fights against Fury and Deontay Wilder when he was champion, but neither came to fruition.
Fury, the current WBC champion, will get the opportunity to fight for all four major belts when he takes on Oleksandr Usyk in February.
Joshua returns to the ring against Sweden’s Otto Wallin in Saudi Arabia later this month and fears the belts will be separated again before he has the get the chance to fight the victor.
He said: “It won’t happen anymore. I think it’s just the reality.
“What will happen is that Usyk and Fury are now in position to compete for the undisputed, and once they compete for the undisputed, the belts will get split up again.
“And I feel probably it would take me about five to six years to go through and get all the belts, beat all the independent champions. That will probably take me on to being 40-41, so it’s probably not in my timeframe.”
:: Watch the full interview on the TNT Sports Boxing YouTube Channel. ‘Day of Reckoning’, Saturday December 23, as part of Riyadh season, will be available live on TNT Sports Box Office and DAZN. For info on how to watch visit www.dayofreckoning.co.uk.
Liverpool have travelled to Belgium with just 12 recognised first-team senior players for their Europa League dead rubber against Union Saint-Gilloise.
With Manchester United visiting Anfield on Sunday manager Jurgen Klopp has left behind Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah from the team which beat Crystal Palace last weekend.
However, he has retained the likes of Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz, Cody Gakpo, Dominik Szoboszlai and Ryan Gravenberch, while 20-year-old Jarell Quansah, who has already made 12 appearances this season, and winger Ben Doak, who has also featured in the Europa League and Premier League, are likely to get starts – as will second-choice goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher.
It means there are 10 youngsters, all aged between 18 and 21, who have travelled with a chance of action in Brussels as all of them bar Lewis Koumas, son of former West Brom, Tranmere and Wigan midfielder Jason, have made at least one first-team appearance.
Included in that number is 19-year-old Kaide Gordon, who played four times in 2020-21 but has missed most of the last 18 months through injury.
Grade One-winning hurdler Apple Away got off the mark over fences with a foot-perfect display in the opening race at Leicester on Wednesday.
The six-year-old won four of her seven starts over the smaller obstacles for trainer Lucinda Russell and owners Old Gold Racing, including a surprise top-level victory over the likes of Iroko and Stay Away Fay at Aintree in the spring.
Having been set a stiff task on her chasing debut when third behind Grey Dawning and Cheltenham Festival winner Gaillard Du Mesnil at Haydock last month, Apple Away was an even-money shot to dispatch of two rivals in the @leicesterraces Christmas Meeting 28th December Book Now Beginners’ Chase, and ultimately did so in some style.
Ridden by Derek Fox, the Scottish raider fenced fluently throughout the two-and-three-quarter-mile contest and pulled 31 lengths of a decent yardstick in Makin’yourmindup in the home straight.
The sponsors cut Apple Away to 14-1 from 20-1 for the Mrs Paddy Power Mares’ Chase at Cheltenham in March, while she is 20-1 from 25-1 to beat the boys in the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase.
Michael Scudamore, assistant trainer to Russell, told Racing TV: “We’re thrilled to bits, the further she went the better she looked. It’s great to get her chasing career off and going.
“She ran a nice race at Haydock, it probably wasn’t ideal to run her in a graduation chase first time over fences but such is the weather and the options at the moment you just have to go where you can.
“She learned plenty that day, she jumped well, she was careful and then today she was better again.
“She’s proven before what a good mare she is, but you could see her being really intelligent and enjoying it today.
“She’s got plenty of options and being a mare that opens up other options so we’ll have to see what the future holds for her.”
Trainer Noel George described Ile Est Francais as “the best horse I’ve had anything to do with” ahead of his planned British debut in the Ladbrokes Kauto Star Novices’ Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day.
A Grade One-winning hurdler last year when officially trained by George’s British-based father, Tom, the five-year-old has made a fine start to his career over fences with successive victories at Auteuil.
As Ile Est Francais carries the familiar colours of part-owner Richard Kelvin-Hughes, George and his training partner Amanda Zetterholm are keen to test his powers on UK soil, and he is now being readied for a festive trip across the Channel.
“Because he’s owned by Richard Kelvin-Hughes, who has half of him, we are obviously going to want to compete in the UK at some stage,” said George.
“I thought it would be best for him to run over English-style fences early on his career so he’s learnt before he has too much of a tendency to jump like a real French chaser.
“I think the track at Kempton will suit him very well and he’s obviously still a novice, so hopefully it should be a nice opportunity.”
With Ile Est Francais having been campaigned almost exclusively at Auteuil so far, he will have a number different questions answer at Kempton, where James Reveley will ride.
George, though, is unconcerned about a step up to three miles, the possibility of better ground or travelling abroad, while he will also have the opportunity to school over English-style fences before the big day.
He added: “The ground was very soft last time and Kempton never gets very, very soft. He’s got a very high cruising speed and a slick jumping style, which I think will definitely suit the track and I don’t think the trip should be an issue at all.
“France Galop built us three made to measure English fences on the grass and he’s going to school over them next week. There’s two plain fences and a ditch, so he’ll have seen them all. I would have been happy going without doing it, but he’ll be going there having seen it.
“He’s very straightforward and he’s travelled a lot to go away for grass gallops. There’s always a little bit of a question mark about the travelling, but he’s very professional and has got got a companion going with him, so he should be very settled and I don’t think it should be an issue.
“I think we’ve chosen the closest track to the Channel tunnel, so he doesn’t have to go too far!”
Having seen his father saddle numerous big-race winners over the years, George admits it would be a special achievement if he can secure Grade One success of his own on home turf.
“It would be a complete dream. His main target this year is the French Gold Cup in May, but this is very much a prestigious race on Boxing Day at Kempton – one of the biggest days of the year,” said George, speaking on a Jockey Club press call on Wednesday.
“We had to discuss it between us because you have to bear in mind there are two different owners’ opinions. We want him to win on the big stage for both of the owners and I think, hopefully, he’s capable of doing it.
“I talk to dad every day and he gives me lots of advice. He worked for Francois Doumen when The Fellow and horses like that were coming over, so he was saying how he thought we should approach coming over to the UK. I think we’re doing it at the right time for the horse.”
The George-Zetterholm partnership has already saddled a couple of runners in Britain this season without success, but it is clear expectations are significantly higher for their latest challenger.
George said: “He’s the best horse I’ve had anything to do with – he’s unbelievable.
“He’s very much going there with a French flag. Even though we’re not French, he’s trained in France and he’s a French horse.
“When we’ve got the level of horse that we think can compete on the big stage we’ll definitely bring them over to the UK.
“We’ve had a couple of runners already, but this is our first proper big gun coming over, flying the flag. He’s our best horse, so fingers crossed he can show us what he’s made of.”
An updated Safeguarding and Human Welfare Strategy has been published by the British Horseracing Authority in what it described as a “watershed moment” for the sport.
Covering an initial four-year period, the BHA said the strategy “sets out immediate and longer-term objectives to ensure a safe, respectful, and enjoyable working environment for all, with the highest standards of behaviour and free from any kind of abuse”.
Since 2018, the BHA said it has received and investigated over 350 safeguarding and human welfare concerns – a high proportion of which relate to sexual misconduct, bullying and abusive conduct. Recent data shows a rise in the number of referrals concerning complex abuse cases, including serious sexual offences.
In 2021, Dr Eleanor Boden gave a talk at the Racing Foundation conference talk entitled ‘Where did all the girls go?’, detailing what were said to be incidences of unacceptable behaviour towards women in the sport.
BHA chair Joe Saumarez Smith said he “apologised unreservedly” on behalf of British racing to those who have experienced harm or unacceptable behaviour.
“We have long stated that ‘racing is everyone’s sport’, but the findings from Dr Boden’s report and the data and evidence underpinning the wider strategy demonstrate that this has not always been the case. Horseracing has at times fallen short and let people down,” he said.
“On behalf of British racing, I apologise unreservedly to anyone who has experienced harm and behaviour that is unacceptable. I also want to thank those who have shared their stories and provided powerful personal testimony. We are sorry and we will work determinedly to put this right.”
While the BHA acknowledged on a media call that the number of complaints is on the rise, it was stressed this could also be viewed as an increase in the levels of confidence participants have in the complaints procedure.
It was also pointed out that racing as a whole offered up more situations which leant itself to complaints with employees often traveling together, working overnight and with the workforce being comprised of a large proportion of young adults.
Rather than a reflection on racing, the rise in incidents is viewed more as a general societal issue. However, the BHA knows that the industry is not “immune”.
BHA chief executive Julie Harrington said: “Racing is not immune to problems like bullying and sexual misconduct, and I know that for women in particular, it has often been easier to keep your head down and suffer in silence. I am truly sorry to hear the stories of bullying, sexual misconduct and, in some cases, serious sexual abuse. This has no place in British racing or wider society.
“The onus is on everyone in our sport to put it right. I’m convinced that we have already started to see a cultural shift, where people feel more confident to speak up. This is difficult and takes immense courage, and we must create the environment where unacceptable conduct is called out and those who experience harm are empowered to come forward.”
She added: “Our updated Safeguarding and Human Welfare Strategy can build on and accelerate this work. It can be a watershed moment for our sport, where we collectively commit to the highest standards and take action when our shared values of tolerance and respect are abused.
“This is not only the right thing to do; it is critical if we are to recruit, retain and develop a happy, valued and high-performing workforce – and secure British racing’s sustainable, long-term future.”
:: Anyone who needs help, support or witnesses or experiences any unacceptable behaviour should report it to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or call the BHA’s confidential reporting service, RaceWISE on 08000 852 580.
West Ham are still being affected by the sickness bug that contributed to their 5-0 rout by Fulham on Sunday.
David Moyes has revealed that some players are struggling with illness as the Hammers look to finish top of Group A of the Europa League by securing at least a draw against SC Freiburg on Thursday night.
The London Stadium clash is the first of four matches in three competitions over 10 days for West Ham, who have already qualified for the knockout phase but are hoping to progress as top seeds and thereby avoid the burden of a play-off over two legs.
“We’ve had a few people with a bit of illness. We’ve still got a few lingering with it in the last day or two, but we think we’re OK,” Moyes said.
“I don’t think it’s anything that will keep people out for weeks or anything like that, there has just been a bit of sickness and all sorts going on. It’s just been keeping us under the weather a little bit.”
West Ham leaked five goals at Craven Cottage, ending a six-match unbeaten run which had lifted them to ninth in the Premier League as well as offering sight of direct entry into the Europa League’s round of 16.
“I obviously didn’t enjoy the weekend’s game. Whatever happened before that doesn’t make it any easier,” said Moyes, who gave his players two days off at the start of the week in anticipation of the hectic period coming up.
“We’ve had a really gruelling schedule and the trips we’ve had caught up with us a little bit.
“Hopefully we can correct that and get back to our normal way which is winning and playing better than we did do.
“We had a little bit of illness that didn’t help with the chopping and changing. Hopefully we can get back to normality.”
West Ham are the current Europa Conference League champions after toppling Fiorentina 2-1 in the final in June and Moyes sees the competition as an important stage for his team.
“The last few years we’ve had some really good nights at London Stadium. I think back to Seville and Alkmaar,” he said.
“Some of the games have been special, special nights for us. But we’re not quite at that stage yet, it’s still the group.
“We’ve won the group for the last two years and winning it three years in a row would be really tough because Freiburg are a good team.
“We’re in Europe after Christmas and that’s the most important thing, whether we’re first or second. We’ll try to be first, but that’s the big thing for us.
“The Premier League will always be first and foremost for me, but the cup competitions are something that we take as seriously as we can.”
Supreme Novices’ Hurdle winner Marine Nationale will finally get his chasing career under way at Leopardstown over Christmas.
Barry Connell hosted the media at his County Kildare yard on Tuesday ahead of the big meeting over the festive period, and reported his stable star to be firmly on target for his seasonal return, having been delayed by soft ground.
Connell had hoped Marine Nationale would be contesting the Grade One Racing Post Novice Chase, but having yet to run over the bigger obstacles, he will take in a more modest event first.
When asked if all was in place for Leopardstown, Connell said: “Absolutely. His schooling has been 100 per cent. We schooled him twice on the grass at the Curragh and he’s a natural.
“His preparation has been good. He will do his last piece of work at the weekend and then, all systems should be go for Christmas.
“The original plan was to go to Navan, win a beginners chase there, then go for the Grade One at Christmas and then the Irish Arkle but we didn’t want to run him on heavy ground, so we had to forfeit the Grade One at Christmas and go for the beginners instead. But sure, look you have to adapt as circumstances change.
“Last year he won his maiden hurdle then went straight to a Grade One, so I don’t think that’s going to be an issue going to the Irish Arkle after his beginners.”
Connell has always had full faith in Marine Nationale – which was fully vindicated at Cheltenham – and says he knew from the first day the gelding entered the yard he was different.
“He is a one-off really, he is just an incredible athlete. From the first day we had him here, everything came easy to him,” said Connell.
“He is so relaxed as well which is a massive help. If you aren’t keen in a race you aren’t burning up excess diesel and you’ll have a horse for the finish.
“We didn’t want to start the season on heavy ground (at Navan). He can go to Leopardstown for his beginners and come back for the Dublin Racing Festival and then go on to Cheltenham hopefully.
“He is a light-framed horse. He has a preference for good ground, although he does go on soft.”
O’Connell used to ride his own horses and had them trained in various yards before setting out on his own.
“I’ve been a racegoer since I was one or two, my dad brought me racing since I was in the pram. And I’ve been to every meeting, went to Cheltenham, went to all the festivals when I was in school and college with friends and so forth. Then I bought a few horses and had them in training when I was in my late twenties, when I started working.
“I then took out an amateur licence and rode when I was 40 until I was 50. That allowed me to go around and have horses in training in a lot of different places and see how things are done. I always had it in the back of my head that I might like to try to do something like this. Really it was gathering the good staff together and putting the facilities in place, then buying the horses.
“I made loads of mistakes along the way, in terms of buying the wrong type of horse, having to deal with all the injuries and wear and tear that they have.
“We have a nice bunch of young horses there that we are getting going – probably 10 or 15 to run in bumpers and maiden hurdles. You know hopefully they will be the future.”
West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell says he might sign off from international cricket at the end of next year’s Twenty20 World Cup, as he believes the region possesses enough young talent to fill the gap after his departure.
The explosive player's declaration followed his much-anticipated return to action for the West Indies on Tuesday, when he produced an inspiring performance with both bat and ball to lead the Caribbean side to a four-wicket win over England in the first of five T20s.
Russell took a format-best three for 19 in his first international since the 2021 T20 World Cup, which induced an England collapse from 117 for two in the 11th over to 171 all out, with three balls unused.
He later smashed a 14-ball 29, in an unbroken 49-run partnership with captain Rovman Powell, who made a 15-ball 31, to see West Indies to their highest successful run chase at Kensington Oval in Barbados.
The 35-year-old Jamaican, who expressed delight at being back in the fold, pointed out that the World Cup, to be hosted in the West Indies and United States, will be his last, but in the same breath, said he would be happy to return, if needed.
"It all depends on how the World Cup goes for me for me. To be honest, I still have a lot in the tank but based on discussion with the coach [Darren Sammy], I told him that after World Cup I would walk away from international cricket, but if they need me, I will come out of retirement," Russell said with sweat still trickling down his face after his player of the match performance.
"So that's the plan that I have; there are so many young talents here, all-rounders that are similar to myself, so sometimes you realize you're going into 36, so just give the youngsters the opportunity and if West Indies still need me, I would be willing to put in the hard yards for them to be honest," he added.
With questions surrounding his decision to comeback after a two-year absence, Russell explained that it was always on the cards, provided he performed well in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) a few months back.
"Sammy mentioned that once I did what I had to in CPL he would definitely enter my name for selection, and I had my fingers crossed because I always want to play for West Indies. Sometimes people might think otherwise and think we just want to play leagues, but I try to make sure that I look after my body to ensure that when I am called up, I am ready. So, I was ready and excited for this call up," he shared.
For Russell, the performance in which he removed dangerous opener Phil Salt, Liam Livingstone and Rehan Ahmed in his four overs, was almost as if scripted, as he revealed that he had dreamed of the outcome.
“Since I got the call up, I have been dreaming that my first match back, I would be player of the match. I loved the start that I got, picking up an important wicket, and then start to pull it back in the middle,” Russell said.
“I was excited to see all the guys there, trying to make sure that the plan that we discussed in the huddle came out and you know it was good to pull it back from a high scoring game to 170. We know how good of a quality spinners England have, so it was good to actually restrict them, and we could have some push and comfort to get the score,” he noted.
Finally, Russell, like the professional he is, dodged a bouncer when asked about the pending departure of Jason Holder, Nicholas Pooran and Kyle Mayers, who all rejected the Cricket West Indies central contract.
“I was just scrolling on Google, and I saw that, I don't know what's going on really, but I won't get into that to be honest. I'm here to play cricket and I'm just happy that I can wear this crest on my chest. So, with off the field stuff like that, they must know why they turned down the retainer,” Russell said.
The second contest is scheduled for Grenada on Thursday.
Andrew Flintoff told Adil Rashid he “epitomises everything that England cricket is about” after presenting the leg-spinner with a cap to mark his 100th T20 international match.
Flintoff is continuing his ad hoc role as a team mentor for England in their five T20s against the West Indies and, ahead of the series opener, he spoke glowingly of Rashid before his landmark appearance.
In the team huddle before England’s four-wicket loss in Barbados, Flintoff recalled his first memories of a then 20-year-old Rashid when they were at opposite ends of their playing careers in late 2008.
Rashid, now 35, has since gone on to establish himself as one of the finest white-ball bowlers of his era, helping England win both ODI and T20 World Cup trophies.
But Flintoff also shone a light on the work Rashid does away from the field, including mentoring the next generation at his academy in Yorkshire and the advice he doles out to spinners of all ages.
“I remember you coming into the side as this young lad, full of mystery, full of wonder, full of mischief and loads and loads of ability,” Flintoff said in a video released by www.ecb.co.uk.
“Over the years, everyone in this group: myself and anybody who’s played with you has been so proud at how you’ve gone about your business – a multiple World Cup winner, the best in the business at what you do around the world but more importantly, Rash, you as a person.
“You’re such an integral part of this squad and the other thing is you give back, whether it’s in Bradford with your academies (or) the other day I saw you spending all this time with a leg-spinner, a young kid, and just coaching him. To me that is just as important as everything else you do.
“To me, you epitomise everything that England cricket is about. It’s a privilege for me to tour with you, it’s a privilege for me to give you this cap.
“So Rash, come and get this cap, (it is) 100 but you’ve not stopped yet, there’s plenty more in you. Well done, son.”
During the English summer, Flintoff presented Tom Hartley with his maiden England cap, telling his fellow Lancastrian: “This will change your life forever.”
The ex-England captain also touched upon “the hardest time” of his life in his message to Hartley after a crash on the BBC show Top Gear in December last year that left him with facial and rib injuries.
Champion apprentice Billy Loughnane has vowed to learn from the lengthy ban he is currently serving.
Loughnane was given 17 days under the ‘totting-up’ procedure for a series of careless riding offences over a six-month period, with four of them deferred.
His ban was reduced by two days due to the number of rides he had taken during the six months – almost 500.
He will miss December 13-16, 18-23 and 26-28 inclusive.
“It’s not ideal, but I’ve got to take it on the chin. It’s a bump in the road, but I’ll have to build on it,” he told Sky Sports Racing.
“It’s totally my own fault, it’s totted up across the six-month period but we’ll build on it and move on.
“I’ve had a lot of rides and that helped my in all fairness because it meant I could get a couple of days knocked off, but it’s my own fault for probably trying to win too much.
“It’s a kick in the teeth, but I’ll have a couple of weeks off and come back fitter and stronger.
“In all fairness one of them was a bit more than a little knock, I came across from my draw too quickly, shortened them up on my inside and someone clipped heels.
“It’s a learning curve, I’ve had a lot of rides but it’s small margins where I’ve pushed the margin a little too much and it has cost me.”
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