Joe Root has predicted the upcoming Ashes series against Australia will "define" his reign as England captain.
Root will go up against new Australia skipper Pat Cummins in the five-Test series, and he acknowledges results against the old enemy have been the yardstick for judging England captains in the past.
The 30-year-old's only other series in the role in Australia resulted in a 4-0 defeat four years ago, but Root sees this as an opportunity for himself and his team-mates to make an impact.
Speaking ahead of the first Test which starts on Wednesday in Brisbane, Root told reporters: "Of course it will define my captaincy – I'm not naive enough to think that it won't – but what a great opportunity.
"If you look how hard it's been for English captains and English teams [to win in Australia] over the years, it has been something which doesn't happen very often.
"I'm very excited about it and can't wait for the series to get going."
Root is the top-ranked Test batsman in world cricket, ahead of Australia's Steve Smith and New Zealand captain Kane Williamson.
In 2021, Root has scored 1,455 Test runs in 12 matches at an average of 66.13, over 500 runs more than India's Rohit Sharma in second place.
He is also set to overtake Alastair Cook as the player to have won the most caps while captain of England during the series.
"You look at some of the players, some of the individuals, some of the performances guys have put in," Root added. "The senior guys have done it time and time again and the junior guys have shown glimpses of what they can do and their potential.
"What better stage to really grab a series and make an announcement on the international stage. I'm an Ashes player and I want to live in the history of this great rivalry. That carrot is there for everyone."
Australia have already named their side for the first Test at the Gabba, including Travis Head and Mitchell Starc.
The Australians have won seven of their last eight men's Test series against England on home soil, not losing a single match in three of their last four series hosting the Ashes.
Root said England were not yet in a position to name their team but did suggest that spin would be important, hinting that Jack Leach could feature.
"We've got all the options on the table right now. We're not going to name a team just yet. We'll have to see a closer forecast and how that pitch changes over the next couple of days," Root said.
"But I do think it is a good place to bowl spin. If you speak to some of the great spin bowlers from Australia, they've always enjoyed bowling here.
"It's something we'll weigh up, but we're not in a position to make a call on that right now."
West Indies trump Pakistan in thrilling final-over finish to take unassailable 3-0 lead
A stunning death-overs implosion from Pakistan amidst more all-round heroics from Hayley Matthews helped West Indies take an unassailable 3-0 series lead over Pakistan in the T20I series at the Karachi National Stadium on Tuesday.
Another commanding half-century from Matthews - 68 off 49 balls - guided West Indies to the series' highest total of 132 - but Pakistan were cruising at 115 for 2, spearheaded by Sidra Ameen's 63 off 58, needing 18 off the last 23 balls.
Matthews then took two wickets in as many deliveries to kickstart a stunning collapse and Pakistan lost six wickets for 10 runs in 20 deliveries. The hosts fell apart spectacularly, with West Indies sneaking home by two runs.
Pakistan won the toss and put West Indies in to bat. Fatima Sana struck early to remove Rashada Williams, but the hosts ran into the familiar brilliance of Matthews and couldn't find a way to stem the dazzling stroke making that followed. The best they could do was work around her, and although taking wickets was a problem, Pakistan's success in keeping one end relatively quiet ensured West Indies did not get up to the 150 mark, something Matthews said the side had been aiming for.
Once Tuba Hassan managed the wicket of Matthews in the 16th over, the hosts wrested momentum back. Shemaine Campbelle edged one off Nida Dar to the keeper in the following over, and Pakistan ground the visitors down. The last six overs saw just 30 runs scored on a wicket that looked good enough to offer more, and at the halfway mark, Pakistan had the momentum.
They rode on that momentum in the second innings with a blistering opening partnership dominated by Ameen. Five boundaries in the first four overs, all struck by Ameen, saw Pakistan gallop to 39, instantly reducing the target to below a run a ball. West Indies found ways to stop the bleeding, but Pakistan never really fell behind the asking rate, ensuring they had wickets in hand and never got bogged down for too long.
A pair of tight overs from Afy Fletcher saw Ayesha Zafar hole out trying to go over long-on, but Ameen once more eased the pressure with a big 13th over, taking 11 off it and bringing up a 42-ball half-century. Pakistan appeared to have timed their push perfectly when Ameen and Dar targeted Karishma Ramharack's 16th over, plundering 13 and bringing the equation down to 20 needed in four remaining overs, with eight wickets still in hand.
But having not won a game all series and fallen short by narrow margins a couple of times, the psychological scarring was palpable, and it made its presence felt in a frenzied final half hour. Aaliyah Alleyne cleaned up Nida Dar in the 17th over to keep West Indies alive, but Pakistani panic properly set in when Ameen missed an expansive inside out drive and Matthews knocked back the top of off. The next ball saw Fatima Sana spoon one to short cover-point, and two more wickets fell in the following over, including a needless run out that revealed the nerves that had clouded the hosts' thoughts.
The three overs before the final one saw just eight runs scored, meaning another 12 were required in the final one. The hosts never looked like getting there, and by the time the final ball was helped away for a boundary, the game, and the series, was already beyond Pakistan.
West Indies women 132 for 5 (Matthews 68, Campbelle 31, Sana 2-22) beat Pakistan women 130 for 8 (Ameen 63, Fletcher 2-20, Matthews 2-22) by two runs
PSG boss Luis Enrique expects entertainment in Champions League semi-final with Dortmund
Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund served up plenty of entertainment in the Champions League quarter-finals, and their last-eight meeting promises more of the same, says Luis Enrique.
Both sides came back from first-leg defeats to reach the semi-finals, PSG winning 4-1 in Barcelona after a 3-2 loss in the French capital and Dortmund downing Atletico Madrid 4-2 to recover from their loss in Spain.
"I think that is the way it went in the quarter-finals based on the playing style of Dortmund and the way that we play," PSG head coach Luis Enrique told a press conference.
"I think it could be a wonderful spectacle, not just for the two fan bases, but for everybody who loves football. I think there will be goals, given the quality and the ability to reach the opposition goal on both teams."
PSG had never before overturned a first-leg defeat at home in the Champions League, and while the Spaniard believes it can help his players, he also knows that history counts for little at this stage.
"I do hope it liberates us because this is something that we haven't done before after losing the first leg. I also have experience that shows how important it is to be competitive tomorrow," Luis Enrique said.
"What we achieved previously doesn't matter. History is great, but our goal is to win tomorrow. We don't want to leave it to chance and think about the second leg at the Parc des Princes."
History may weigh on the minds of PSG, too, given they have lost all four games of their previous two-legged Champions League semi-final ties – against Milan in 1994-95 and Manchester City in 2020-21.
The Parisians did win their one-legged last-four meeting with RB Leipzig in the disrupted 2019-20 season, though, while Dortmund have reached the final on two of their three semi-final appearances.
Dortmund and PSG have already met in this season's competition as well, with the German side topping their group, but PSG beat them at Parc des Princes and managed a 1-1 draw in the away meeting.
Luis Enrique thinks his team, who secured their third consecutive Ligue 1 title on Sunday, have improved since then – and suggested there is even more to come.
"We have improved in all areas. We are better defensively, better going forward," the former Barcelona boss continued.
"We can keep improving for sure. And that is one of the characteristics of our way of managing the club and the team, by trying to be demanding, not thinking that everything is done."
PSG appear favourites to go through given Dortmund have only won one of their six meetings with the French side in all competitions (D3 L2).
Dortmund overcame PSG 2-1 in the first leg of the 2019-20 Champions League round of 16 before being eliminated 3-2 on aggregate, and Luis Enrique expects another difficult task on Wednesday.
"That shows that the press doesn't know much about football," he joked ahead of the first meeting at Signal Iduna Park.
"I have said that for a long time. What is great about being here is enjoying a really special game at a unique stadium in Europe and having the chance to make our fans really happy by reaching the final."
A tough challenge awaits for PSG, however, considering Dortmund are unbeaten in their last 10 Champions League home games (W6 D4), their longest-ever such run in the competition.
Pant selected for India's T20 World Cup squad after car-crash recovery
Rishabh Pant will hope to lead India to T20 World Cup glory after being selected in their squad, just over a year after undergoing surgery following a concerning car crash.
Wicketkeeper-batter Pant was involved in a near-fatal car collision in northern India in December 2022 but comes back into the international fold just 16 months after the incident.
The 26-year-old's performances in this season's Indian Premier League have secured his place in the 15-man squad, having scored 398 runs in 11 innings at a strike rate of 158.6 for the Delhi Capitals.
Pant is one of two wicketkeepers named in the squad for the tournament starting on June 1 in the United States and West Indies, alongside Sanju Samson.
Despite not previously featuring in a World Cup squad, Samson has impressed in the IPL after accumulating 385 runs in nine innings, striking at a rate of 161.1 for the league-leading Rajasthan Royals.
India captain Rohit Sharma and vice-captain Hardik Pandya will lead the side in the United States and West Indies, though Pant and Samson's inclusion leaves no place for KL Rahul or Jitesh Sharma.
Yuzvendra Chahal did not feature in either T20I squad in the recent series against South Africa and Afghanistan but was another India star included based on their IPL showings this year.
Leg-spinner Chahal, who will be joined by Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel in the spin-bowling department, has 13 wickets at an average of 23.5 for the Royals this term.
Jasprit Bumrah heads the pace-bowling lineup with Mohammed Siraj and Arshdeep Singh, while Hardik and Shivam Dube present all-rounder options with the ball.
Dube offers a decisive alternative with the bat, too, having top-scored with 124 runs across three innings in the home series against Afghanistan in January.
At the top of the order, Yashasvi Jaiswal will likely open alongside captain Rohit, with Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav providing some high-class backup lower down.
India face Ireland in New York on June 5 to start their World Cup campaign before meeting rivals Pakistan, USA and Canada.
India's provisional squad:
Rohit Sharma (captain), Hardik Pandya, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj.
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