CRICKET
Australia thump England
A battling 94 from Steve Smith yesterday handed Australia a series win against England with a game to spare after a 72-run victory in the second one-day international in Sydney. Josh Hazelwood won the toss and elected to bat, but two early wickets brought Smith and Marnus Labuschagne (58) to the crease. The pair put on 101 before Labuschagne departed. Smith increased the pace soon after and was assisted by Mitchell Marsh (50). A six off Sam Curran over square-leg took Smith into the 90s, but he fell metres short of his century, holing out at long-off to Adil Rashid, who took 3-57. England lost two wickets without scoring a run in the first over by Mitchell Starc, but Josh Vince (60) and Sam Billings (71) steadied the tourists, However, their demise led to a collapse, with the visitors bowled out for 208.
CRICKET
Indian selectors sacked
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Friday sacked its entire selection committee, led by former fast bowler Chetan Sharma, and put out the call for replacements after the team’s T20 World Cup exit. Rohit Sharma’s men were thrashed by 10 wickets by England in their semi-final at the Adelaide Oval last week, prompting fresh soul-searching by a team who last won a global title at the 2013 Champions Trophy. Their exit prompted calls from commentators and the public for heads to roll. The BCCI issued a statement inviting fresh applications to fill all five positions on its selection panel.
BASKETBALL
Spain displace the US
Spain replaced the US men’s basketball team at the top of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) world rankings, a spot the US have held for more than 12 years. Spain have enjoyed success in the past few years, including winning the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 and this year’s FIBA EuroBasket. “It’s not exactly a new title and it probably can’t be maintained for too long, but it’s something so unique, prestigious and historic that I feel tremendously proud of everyone who ... has contributed to it,” Spain coach Sergio Scariolo wrote on Twitter. Spain top the rankings with 758.6 points followed by the US with 757.5 and Australia in third on 740.3.
HORSE RACING
US court says rules invalid
The US Congress unconstitutionally gave too much power to a nonprofit authority it created in 2020 to develop and enforce horseracing rules, a federal appeals court ruled on Friday. The 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals said that the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act is “facially unconstitutional.” The authority created by the act was meant to bring uniform policies and enforcement to horseracing amid doping scandals and racetrack horse deaths, but the 5th Circuit in two rulings ruled in favor of opponents of the act in lawsuits brought by horseracing associations and state officials in Texas, Louisiana and West Virginia. Three judges agreed with opponents of the act that the setup gave too much power to the nongovernmental authority and too little to the US Federal Trade Commission. “A cardinal constitutional principle is that federal power can be wielded only by the federal government,” Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan wrote. “Private entities may do so only if they are subordinate to an agency.”
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
The famously raucous Hong Kong Sevens are to start today in a big test for a shiny new stadium at the heart of a major US$3.85 billion sports park in the territory. Officials are keeping their fingers crossed that the premier event in Hong Kong’s sporting and social calendar goes off without a hitch at the 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium. They hope to entice major European soccer teams to visit in the next few months, with reports in December last year saying that Liverpool were in talks about a pre-season tour. Coldplay are to perform there next month, all part of Hong Kong’s
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to
Marcus Rashford’s first goals for Aston Villa on Sunday inspired a 3-0 win against Preston North End that sent his side into the FA Cup semi-finals for the first time in 10 years. Rashford struck twice in the second half at Deepdale to end Preston’s stubborn resistance before Jacob Ramsey wrapped up Villa’s long-awaited return to the last four. Villa are to face Crystal Palace — 3-0 winners at Fulham on Saturday — in the semi-finals at Wembley Stadium in London. Revitalized since joining Villa on loan from Manchester United during the January transfer window, Rashford is beginning to show the form that
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