I Dig Sports
The mixed-gender SDAT Squash World Cup will return to Chennai, India, this year with the event set for Dec 9-14.
The SDAT Squash World Cup is an international tournament overseen by World Squash in which National Federation squads of two men and two women play ties of four matches against each other, with each match being best-of-five games.
A number of innovative changes that were brought in for 2023, including scoring games to seven and sudden death tiebreaks when scores are at 6-6, will remain in place for this years World Cup, with fans praising the fast-paced nature of the scoring and the equal balance between male and female players.
At the last edition, Egypt claimed the title in an exciting come-from-behind victory against Malaysia in front of a sell-out crowd at Express Avenue Mall.
This years Squash World Cup will once again be sponsored by the Tamil Nadu Government and supported by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sport in India. The tournament will be will be played in Chennai between 9-14 December on the spectacular all glass show court inside Express Avenue.
World Squash President Zena Wooldridge said: Im so pleased to be able to announce the return of the Squash World Cup and my thanks to the Tamil Nadu government, the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu (SDAT) and everyone at SRFI for making the return of the World Cup possible.
The 2023 event was such an incredible success for fans and players alike, with those five dramatic days of squash capturing the imagination of the thousands of spectators inside Express Avenue and many more watching on WORLDSQUASH.TV, the Olympic Channel and JioCinema.
Squash is an innovative, forward thinking and ever-evolving sport and Im particularly delighted to see the continued and growing support for mixed gender events such as these as we continue to strive for gender parity in squash.
Mr N. Ramachandran, Patron of SRFI, expressed gratitude to the World Squash Board for their confidence in SRFIs capacity to host another world event. He also acknowledged the support of the Tamil Nadu Government, the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu, and the Deputy Chief Minister and the Minister of Youth Welfare and Sports Development of the Government of Tamil Nadu, Mr Udhayanidhi Stalin, for his unwavering support in underwriting this event.
Tompkins apologises to Wales fans after loss to Italy
Defending champions Ireland are next up, followed by Scotland at Murrayfield before a Cardiff finale against England on March 15.
If Wales win any of those games it will rank as a major surprise, with Warren Gatland's tenure as head coach looking more precarious than ever.
Gatland has overseen just six victories in 26 Tests since returning for a second stint in charge.
"You can't hide from the outcomes of what is going on," said Tompkins.
"When we say the preparation is going well, we're working really hard in training. I promise you it's not going undone.
"We have to keep going and keep trying, and hopefully something comes our way.
"I get there is frustration, but it's not as easy as saying it's one thing or the other. It's everyone together.
"All I can do as a player is keep trying and be better. That's what we can do. It's not as easy as saying this needs to change or that."
Sevilla chief: Madrid ref protests 'destroy football'
Sevilla president José María del Nido Carrasco hit out at Real Madrid on Sunday, accusing them of "trying to destroy Spanish football" with their complaints over refereeing decisions.
Madrid filed a formal complaint over the referee's handling of their 1-0 LaLiga defeat at Espanyol on Feb. 1, asking the Spanish football federation to release audio recordings of conversations between the on-field referee and VAR around two key incidents, including the decision not to send off defender Carlos Romero -- who later scored the winner -- for a foul on Kylian Mbappé.
Madrid's open letter called Spain's refereeing system "totally discredited," saying decisions against them represented "manipulation and adulteration of the competition," in language which was rejected by their fellow clubs in a meeting with LaLiga and the federation on Thursday.
"We have to differentiate two things: being able to modify the refereeing system and some aspects of refereeing, and Real Madrid's statement," Del Nido Carrasco said, speaking to broadcaster DAZN ahead of Sevilla's 4-1 defeat to Barcelona on Sunday.
"It's intolerable and unacceptable. It brings into question the honour of referees and the competition. The world of football should denounce, publicly and in the courts, a statement which goes against football's integrity."
Real Madrid have frequently criticised refereeing decisions using their club TV channel, including in Saturday's derby draw with Atlético Madrid at the Bernabéu, when the visitors were awarded a first-half penalty -- after a VAR check -- for Aurélien Tchouaméni's challenge on Samuel Lino.
"The worst of all is that Real Madrid are trying to destroy Spanish football, with Real Madrid TV, and in various other ways," Del Nido Carrasco said. "We can't tolerate that a club like Real Madrid try to destroy us ... First of all, we give our unconditional support to referees. We won't tolerate that their honour is being questioned. [Madrid] want to put pressure on them, so that they don't make decisions freely."
Madrid's 1-1 draw with Atlético, coupled with Barcelona's win, means that just two points separate the three teams at the top of the LaLiga table, with Madrid top, Atlético second, and Barça third.
Turkish club chief quits over 30-min team walk-off
Adana Demirspor chairman Bedirhan Durak announced his resignation on Monday morning, a day after the Turkish side walked off the pitch in protest during their Super Lig clash against Galatasaray.
"I now sadly see that we have reached a deadlock. For the sake of my club, my family, my loved ones, and my health, I hereby announce my resignation from the presidency," Durak said in a statement.
The resignation follows Adana Demirspor's decision to walk off the pitch 30 minutes into their Super Lig match at Galatasaray on Saturday night as they trailed 1-0 to a penalty. The game was later abandoned.
The decision to walk off was taken to protest against Turkey's referees committee and football federation, several club officials said.
Bottom side Adana Demirspor were losing to a 12th-minute spot kick by Galatasaray's Spanish striker Álvaro Morata.
Galatasaray coach Okan Buruk said in an interview after the visitors had walked off the field that the penalty could have been an incorrect decision.
In the aftermath of the incident, Fenerbahce vice-president Acun Ilıcalı has called for the "most famous and best referees in the world" to officiate the league derby at Galatasaray scheduled for Feb. 23.
"We definitely hope that there will be a foreign referee in the derby, but the federation will decide ... Our federation has such power," Ilıcalı said.
"They can bring one of the best referees in the world here. I am calling out to Galatasaray Club on behalf of Fenerbahçe Club: We followed your statements on the foreign referee issue. Let them apply on this issue, let us apply as well. And we want this derby to be managed by the most famous and best referees in the world."
Humphreys spins Ireland to a hat-trick of Test wins
Ireland 260 (McBrine 90*, Adair 78, Muzarabani 7-58, Ngarava 2-65) and 298 (Balbirnie 66 Tucker 58, Ngarava 4-55, Gwandu 2-28, Madhevere 2-48) beat Zimbabwe 267 (Welch 90, Muzarabani 47, McCarthy 4-75, McBrine 3-59) and 228 (Madhevere 84, Bennett 45, Humphreys 6-57, McCarthy 2-22) by 63 runs
Eyes on Konstas after Renshaw's ton leaves NSW big chase
New South Wales 259 (Edwards 108, Gilkes 66, Bartlett 4-54) and 11 for 1 need 407 more runs to beat Queensland 387 and 289 for 3 dec (Renshaw 125*, Clayton 76 ret hurt)
The opener cruised to 125 before the hosts declared at 289 for 3 and left NSW a target of 418 for an unlikely victory in Brisbane.
Clayton, fresh off 134 in the first innings, seemed destined for twin hundreds in the match before he pulled up with a hamstring complaint and retired hurt.
Renshaw pushed on, accelerating into triple figures and finding a friend in Jimmy Peirson. Former Test opener Renshaw began the Shield season slowly and was overlooked for a berth against India. But he found form later in the year and now has two red-ball centuries either side of some dominant one-day and BBL innings.
"I had a really good bit of momentum in the last two, three Shield games after that first hundred," Renshaw said. "I wanted to keep that momentum going ... and today kept it nice and simple.I back our bowlers to do the job. It might be at 5pm, might be at 3pm."
NSW made 259 thanks to Edwards, but still conceded a 128-run lead after winning the toss and opting to bowl first.
Sent home ahead of Australia's second Test in Sri Lanka, Konstas will have his chance under pressure in what is his first match at the venue.
Queensland have just one win and three draws from six matches this season, but could jump fourth-placed NSW with a victory and remain in the hunt for a top-two finish with three games remaining.
Australia emerge from Test season with flying colours and new options
Following the crushing first Test loss to India in Perth in November, there was a moment when Australia's Test team looked as though they may have reached a cliff much sooner than predicted.
Ten weeks, five Test wins and two significant series victories later, that seismic defeat in Perth feels like nothing but a bump in the road, with the horizon looking even better than expected.
Last summer they used just 12 players across seven Tests home and away, playing three of them without a single player under the age of 29, and produced less than convincing series wins over Pakistan and New Zealand whilst drawing with West Indies at home in between.
It was a summer where Australia showed versatility and adaptability in both decision-making and execution across a vast spectrum of conditions and opponents.
Reports of Smith's decline as a Test batter were greatly exaggerated, as were fears of Australia's batting depth overall.
The performance of Inglis and Webster, although he didn't make a century, and the looming return of Green means Australia is now flush with options ahead of the World Test Championship final which will create a selection squeeze.
The treatment of the two youngsters in Konstas and Nathan McSweeney rankled many, with the latter felt to be set up for failure as an opener after earning his place through middle-order Shield form, while the former captured the nation's hearts only to be cast aside based on the conditions in Sri Lanka.
A quick glance, however, at the top 10 Australian Test run-scorers shows a litany of examples of players given a taste of Test cricket at a young age, losing their place and then returning to dominate at the highest level.
Smith himself was dropped after making 77 in his second Test as a 21-year-old, recalled five Tests later, then dropped again for two full years before becoming Australia's best since Bradman.
Australia will still experience some pain whenever Smith and Khawaja finish, but the future looks brighter than it did 10 weeks ago.
That next rung of Sean Abbott, Brendan Doggett and Nathan McAndrew are all performing well at first-class level but all are over the age of 30. Replacing two ageing generational batters out of six in the short to medium term looks far easier than replacing three generational quicks out of three.
For now, Australia march to a second consecutive WTC final with enough depth and confidence that any of whatever 15 they choose in their squad could play a role in the final. Thereafter they play three Tests in the West Indies, where the performance in Sri Lanka might have more bearing on how they set up than how they play at Lord's, before a date with England for a home Ashes. Perth feels a long time ago.
From BPL to Champions Trophy - Simmons wants 'that 50-over mentality' quickly
The BPL ended on February 7, and the following day, some of the players turned up at a training camp at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka. These were mainly cricketers whose BPL teams had been knocked out before the final. The team will train in Dhaka till February 12, after which they leave for the Champions Trophy - their first match is against India in Dubai on February 20.
"I agree that it is not the best preparation, but they were playing white-ball cricket, which means that they are sharp skills-wise," Simmons said. "We have to get their minds up to 50-over cricket in the next six or seven days. They have the skills. They are performing. It is about getting to that 50-over mentality now. We will have double practice sessions in the next couple of days. We bat and bowl in the morning, and then do the same under the lights.
"We are getting ourselves prepared to bat for 50 overs. The first part of the preparation is about Dubai. Once we can get ourselves in the right frame of mind, and work on the right things for Dubai, I think we can start [preparations for] the rest the competition as well. We will get familiar conditions in Pakistan after that."
"He was working very hard all of those days when he wasn't playing," Simmons said. "We are going to need a strong mental attitude from everyone in the team. I think he possesses that, so I look forward to him continuing his work."
"I think you prepare as best as you could when you go into a tournament. On that day, you play your best games. That's what I look to do, on every occasion"
Phil Simmons
"He has looked slower than normal in the last couple of games. The run-up was less than normal approaching the wicket," Simmons said. "They [Rangpur Riders] got knocked out early so he had a bit of rest. He looked sharp in training yesterday. The pace was coming back. The run-up was as quick as it was in the Caribbean."
This is Simmons' last assignment in his current contract, and there are questions about the future. But Simmons wasn't giving any clues.
"I won't be here if I didn't believe [that we can win]," he said. "I think you prepare as best as you could when you go into a tournament. On that day, you play your best games. That's what I look to do, on every occasion. I think we have made a lot of strides in the Caribbean. I think we have a good chance once we play to the best of our ability."
Final decision on Bumrah's availability for Champions Trophy on February 11
Chiefs' three-peat talk 'definitely' fired up Eagles
NEW ORLEANS -- Multiple Eagles defensive players said they used the Kansas City Chiefs' talk of a three-peat as incentive in Philadelphia's dominant Super Bowl LIX performance on Sunday night.
"That was motivation because it was kind of a slap to us," Eagles veteran defensive end Brandon Graham said. "It was like, they ain't seen us yet. So, we heard that all week. And when the game came, execution was on point and together."
The Chiefs were trying to become the first team to win three consecutive Super Bowls. News came out last week that the Chiefs and Miami Heat president Pat Riley came to an agreement allowing the Chiefs to use the trademarked "Three-Peat" phrase without issue if they did win.
"Definitely," said Philadelphia defensive tackle Milton Williams, when asked if he was fueled by that chatter. "They were talking about getting the copyright and all that B.S. Throw that s--- in the trash."
The Eagles' defensive front dominated the game, sacking Patrick Mahomes six times while registering 11 quarterback hits in a 40-22 win.
Philadelphia did not send a single blitz against Mahomes yet still managed to get pressure on 16 of his 42 dropbacks (38%).
Mahomes appeared to feel the effects. He threw a pair of interceptions -- including a pick-six to rookie cornerback Cooper DeJean -- and finished with a QBR of 11.4, the second lowest in a Super Bowl since the rating began being used in 2006.
Josh Sweat (2.5) and Williams (2) had multiple sacks in the game, becoming just the third Super Bowl tandem to post two-plus sacks.
"We didn't change the game plan or anything," said Sweat, who was among those Eagles players who said they shut out the three-peat talk and other distractions to stay focused. "We just rush and cover together, and whoever made the play made it.
"[Defensive coordinator] Vic [Fangio] just made the calls, and we executed. He always puts us in the right position to make the plays, and it worked out."
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