The trick to being a successful fast bowler in the subcontinent is not just express pace and good intent, but also to work with straighter angles. That's what Anrich Nortje, who made his debut in India and took his first five-for away from home in Rawalpindi in his 10th Test match, has learned.

"At home, if you run in hard, bowl fast and get the ball in the right areas, you've already sort of taken a wicket a lot of the time. But, particularly in the last while, I try to keep my angles - even where I start running from - as straight as possible. That's helped me a lot, particularly in the subcontinent," Nortje said after the second day's play of the second Test against Pakistan. "Sometimes, when I go a bit wider, because there's not a lot of bounce here, it's an easy cut shot most of the time. In South Africa you're trying to get into that channel. Here you're trying to hit the stumps most of the time, and you also don't want to be bowling on leg stump. It's one thing I've focused on a lot."

Nortje has become known for consistently bowling in the upper 140s and for using the bouncer to good effect, but in this innings he also showed his ability not to veer wide outside off or down leg. It helped that he could operate in short spells - he bowled six in total of which only two consisted of five overs each - and could give each delivery his all.

"We had a chat about the energy of the fast bowlers and trying to create something in our spells - to not bowl too long and when we do come on try and create something," Nortje said. "That's what happened in this game. We didn't bowl long spells and we tried to dig it in as much as possible and hit the wicket as much as possible. That was the plan, to bowl short spells and try to have as much energy as you can."

"In South Africa you're trying to get into that channel. Here you're trying to hit the stumps most of the time, and you also don't want to be bowling on leg stump. It's one thing I've focused on a lot."

ANRICH NORTJE

That may make it sound like all was nothing but hard work, but Nortje confirmed there is some assistance for the seamers in Rawalpindi, and definitely more than there was in the first Test in Karachi. "With the hard ball there is some bounce," he said. "I don't think the fast bowlers will be completely out of it, I think there might be different opportunities and different ways of taking wickets like we saw the ball keeping low, so that might come into it."

Still, to prosper on the subcontinent for a South African quick is something special. For previous bowlers, like Dale Steyn, who took two of his first three five-fors in Sri Lanka and Pakistan respectively, it signalled a coming-of-age and an ability to adjust to unfamiliar terrain and still have a decisive say. "Getting a performance in the subcontinent definitely means a lot," Nortje said. Hopefully I can just grow as a fast bowler."

At 27, Nortje is older than the then-24-year-old Steyn was when he took 5 for 56 to bowl South Africa to victory in Lahore in 2007, and he also occupies a more senior role in the transitioning Test side. After Kagiso Rabada, Nortje is the second-most capped Test bowler in the squad and he has become a go-to for Quinton de Kock when matters are meandering and he needs to make something happen.

In Karachi, it didn't work and Pakistan's last four-wickets put on 202. In Rawalpindi, it did, and Nortje plucked the last two wickets in three balls to keep Pakistan to under 275, although the last five wickets added 123 between them. Does he think the South African attack lets tails, and the Pakistan one in particular, get too far ahead? "I don't think it's become a problem," he said.

"In the previous game they had a lot of partnerships. It's not something we can really control. Our energy, line and lengths are the controllables and are doing our best when we do get a sniff to try and make an impact. We bowled well and even if we didn't get the wickets, to control the rate was really good. We've restricted them to a good total. It's manageable for us to exceed their score. By no means do I think they got too much."

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Longtime New England Patriots safety and captain Devin McCourty said Friday that it is both "awesome" and a "little bittersweet" to see former teammates Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski playing in Super Bowl LV.

"To watch those two guys leave our team and bring everything they've learned to Tampa, a team that didn't make the playoffs last year and now is having an opportunity to win a world championship, it's been awesome to watch," McCourty said on ESPN's Get Up on Friday. "And obviously, a little bittersweet because you would rather those two guys suiting up with you on Sundays."

"But it's still awesome to see those guys going out there and doing it again. Obviously, for Tom and his legacy and what he's done in this league, he doesn't have to do any more. But to continue to watch him and his greatness, and continue to get better and better each year, it's just unbelievable."

Brady won six Super Bowl championships in New England, while Gronkowski -- who was part of the team's 2010 draft class with McCourty -- is a three-time Super Bowl champ.

The Patriots went 7-9 without Brady in 2020, missing the playoffs for the first time since 2008, and McCourty was asked to what degree Brady's departure was a factor among players and coaches.

"I think as a team, organization, we moved on. But you lost Tom Brady. You lost the best quarterback in the NFL. You don't just replace that. You don't just make up for that. We definitely felt that. We lose Tom, we don't have an offseason to even begin to try to process that, and prepare and get ready. The guy's been the best quarterback in the NFL for the last two decades," McCourty said.

McCourty's remarks echoed others from the Patriots over the last week, as veteran defensive tackle Lawrence Guy told SiriusXM NFL Radio that he is rooting for Brady. Owner Robert Kraft said something similar to CBS in an interview that will air Sunday leading up to Super Bowl between the Buccaneers and Kansas City Chiefs.

"We were privileged to have him here for two decades, and he's one of the finest human beings I've ever met. He knows how to lead and I wish him well," Kraft said in the CBS interview.

ATLANTA -- A fellowship in the name of Henry Aaron has been established by the Atlanta Braves to help increase diversity in baseball and build on Aaron's legacy.

The Henry Aaron Fellowship is a yearlong executive leadership program to provide an opportunity to work in the Braves' front office and directly with Braves president and CEO Derek Schiller. The person will gain experience in all parts of the Braves' business operations as well as the Atlanta Braves Foundation.

With the All-Star Game slated for Atlanta's Truist Park in July, the fellow will also get to work on planning and executing the game and surrounding activities.

"Hank's life-long passion was to increase diversity across every aspect of baseball," Schiller said in a statement. "This fellowship is special because it allows us to build upon his legacy by creating a stronger organization today while continuing to develop the talent pipeline to secure the game's next generation of diverse leadership."

Aaron played with the Braves for 21 of his 23 major league seasons. He joined the team in 1976 as a vice president and director of player development, and was a senior vice president for the team from 1989 until his death on Jan. 22.

Join British supermiler Steve Cram and other experts for world-class training tips and advice to help you unlock your running in lockdown

Join Steve Cram and his team of experts as the hugely popular Steve Cram Training Camp goes virtual!

Receive top-class training tips and advice from the comfort of your own home, wherever you are in the world, during a special webinar session where you will virtually meet with former world record-holder and Olympic medallist Cram and experts in coaching, nutrition, strength and conditioning and more. Unlock your running in lockdown!

What? Steve Cram Virtual Training Camp
When? Saturday February 27, 14:00-16:30 GMT
Where? From the comfort of your own home
Cost: £25

Use the below form to register:

Ticket holders will be emailed ahead of the event with a link to join the Zoom webinar and details for submitting advance questions to the speakers.

Whether you’re a beginner, club runner or just seeking some tips on how to keep fit, look after your body or improve your 10km or marathon time, the Steve Cram Training Camps cater for you.

This virtual session will cover training during and after lockdown, maintaining motivation, strength and conditioning without the gym, nutrition advice and home body maintenance, while special guests – including multiple European and Commonwealth medallist Laura Weightman – will share insight into their own journey.

Sign up as an individual and join a virtual group of like-minded people or make it an event for the whole household to tune in together and access a wealth of experience and advice.

Expert speakers

Steve Cram
Steve Cram Training Camps head coach

Who will share his expertise and act as event host

Lewis Moses
New Levels Coaching founder

On how to reset your goals and maintain motivation

Gemma Hillier-Moses
International athlete and coach with New Levels Coaching

On how to reset your goals and maintain motivation

Dane Mitchell
Head of strength & conditioning, Leeds Beckett University

On training with limited equipment and the lessons we can learn from elite athletes

Louise Sutton
Head of sport and exercise nutrition, Leeds Beckett University

On how lockdown has affected eating and drinking habits

Paul Hobrough
AW’s resident physio and owner of ichatPhysio

On home body maintenance and online tools

Ben Smith
Founder of The 401 Foundation

On the importance of mental health, coping mechanisms and communication

Louise Minchin
Journalist and triathlete

Q&A

Laura Weightman
International athlete

Q&A

Laura Weightman photo credit Getty Images for British Athletics

The US 800m star is on the comeback trail, writes Elliott Denman, and about to hit the track for her first competition in 12 months

“It’s been crazy,” Ajee’ Wilson tells you, by way of telephone interview.

Which isn’t exactly late-breaking news.

Then again, when you are the No.1-ranked athlete in the world in a prime event on the programme of the “flagship sport of the Olympic Games,” a very good guess is that the last year has been a whole lot crazier for you than it’s been for so many of your contemporaries.

At 26 – she’ll be 27 on May 8 – the stellar speedster from Neptune, New Jersey, a Temple University graduate who now lives and trains in Philadelphia, is already the owner of 11 USA Track and Field national championship gold medals, holds both versions of the American record for 800m (1:55.61 outdoors, 1:58.29 indoors) and is a young veteran of both the 2016 Olympics and multiple editions of the world championships, And, too, she ran off with the top spot in the most recent complete edition of the Diamond League circuit in 2019.

That’s already a career dossier that puts her right up there with the best of the best in American track annals.

Nevertheless, she hasn’t competed in nearly a year and can’t really tell you “where I am” heading into the New Balance Grand Prix at Staten Island’s Ocean Breeze complex, on Saturday February 13. Her 2021 debut will thus be more than interesting as the track and field world catch up on her exploits and she catches up with her own sport.

Her most recent competitive outing was at the USATF Indoor Nationals in February last year in Albuquerque. Of course, she won it, in 2:01.98 and at altitude. It came a week after she’d won at New York’s Millrose Games, in an American record of 1:58.29, which held up as No.2 world time of the indoor season behind Jemma Reekie’s 1:57.9.

She’d opened her 2020 season with a 2:02.37 win in January at the New York Armory’s Dr Sander Invitational. But before that, her last prior major outing was third place at the World Championships in Doha in September 2019.

So that adds up to just three major competitions in a year and just four in nearly 16 months. What can the track and field world expect?

Wilson can’t really tell you – other than saying: “I’m pretty healthy, I’ve been training well, not bad at all (with her training group partners and coach Derek Thompson, almost always outdoors in Philadelphia, no matter the weather).

“I don’t have any issues, no nicks, no nacks.”

Yes, there were “some nicks, some nacks” for a brief stretch last summer but they’re long gone now and she’s more than anxious to get back into real racing.

She’s grateful, too, that, even through this brutal stretch of overlapping universal economic slowdown, and the devastations of the pandemic, her sponsor adidas has stayed with her and lent the ongoing support appropriate to a world-class athlete.

After the Staten Island start, she hopes to run The Texas Qualifer, a brand new outdoor meet in the Austin area on February 26-27 designed to help Tokyo Olympic hopefuls post qualifying marks. Focusing on events from the 800m up to 10,000m for men and women, the meet will be USATF-sanctioned, spectator-free and fully observant of Covid protocols.

“Hopefully” – a word almost all the global elite uses regularly these challenging days – the meet will evolve into a major stepping stone on the way to Japan in July.

Like every global Games candidate, she has no firm idea if the Tokyo Olympics will actually transpire as scheduled. And if so, in what form? As a strictly-for-TV extravaganza? As a spectator-free production? In a who-knows-what format?

“I’m just hopeful,” said Wilson. “Whatever they decide, that’s fine with me.”

She adds: “It’s obviously a bigger call than any of us can make.”

With emphasis on that single word – “obviously.”

Rio 2016 wasn’t what she’d hoped it would be. After running a sterling second place in that March’s World Indoor Championships, that wasn’t “the real Ajee” her fans saw bowing out in the semi-finals of the Games of the XXXI Olympiad six months later in Brazil.

But the 2019 outdoor campaign saw Wilson rising to the top of the world elite – with firsts in Kingston, Jamaica (1:59.22) and USA Nationals in Des Moines (1:57.72), the Herculis Monaco meet (1:57.73) as well as the Diamond League finale in Brussels (a strategic 2:00.24).

All this as 2012-16 Olympic 800m champion Caster Semenya was seeing her own hopes of a “three-peat” at the two-lap distance ruled out by a Swiss court, which determined that the South African athlete had naturally elevated testosterone levels which created unfair physical advantages.

The World Championships 800m final in Doha 2019 didn’t go to plan. As the official IAAF report told it: “From the gun, Wilson ran with purpose to take the lead at the break and control the race…

“Through the final turn, (Uganda’s Halimah) Nakaayi worked her way up to Wilson’s shoulder, shadowed by (Uganda team-mate Winnie) Nanyondo.

“The diminutive Nakaayi executed the classic pass off the turn. Wilson had no answer.

“(US team-mate Raevyn) Rogers was sprinting down lane four, passing Nanyondo, passing Wilson, and getting to within a meter of Nakaayi before the finish.”

“Very disappointing,” third-placer Wilson admitted afterward. “But a lesson learned, too.”

Yes, there’s always somebody coming up on you in this sport. There are never givens. Press clippings get you nowhere.

But always to be remembered, every starting gun answered represents a whole new chapter. It’s no wonder Ajee’ Wilson’s can’t wait for February 13 to roll around.

Scrum-half Ben Youngs says a lack of recent match practice could cause England some "teething problems" in their Six Nations opener with Scotland.

Youngs says England are not expecting it to be "all plain sailing" at Twickenham.

"A lot of us have not played for the best part of a month to five weeks," Youngs told BBC Radio 5 Live.

In a disrupted Premiership season, five matches have been cancelled following coronavirus outbreaks, while most of the England players were last involved in their club's top flight campaign on 9 January.

Youngs added: "So often as English players, we go into these tournaments having played a huge amount of European or domestic club games.

"This tournament we're going in unbelievably fresh because you haven't had that load, although you do miss that match sharpness.

"You can do all the fitness in the world, but as people say, there's nothing like actually playing the game."

England are defending Six Nations champions and Scotland have not won at Twickenham since 1983, but the latest instalment of the Calcutta Cup will be played without spectators because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The fixture will mark the 150th anniversary of the sides' first meeting, and Youngs says the empty home of English rugby will "feel like a neutral venue".

"It does have a different feel to it," he added. "We haven't got 80,000 supporters right behind us.

"It's a shame the stadium can't be full. It will feel like a neutral venue at times, but I think it makes for a very exciting game. Both nations have got an opportunity to hopefully lift their country."

GIBSONTON, Fla. — Justin Webster bested a full field of 360 sprint cars to win Thursday night’s Top Gun Sprint Car Series feature at East Bay Raceway Park.

Webster started third and rolled to the lead early and drove to victory, beating Danny Martin Jr. to the checkered flag.

Robby Hoffman, A.J. Maddox and Tyler Clem rounded out the top five.

The finish:

Justin Webster, Danny Martin Jr., Robby Hoffman, A.J. Maddox, Tyler Clem, Larry McVay, Ethan Barrow, Brandon Grubaugh, Will Hull, Luke Hill, Kristina Pratt, Tim George, Tyler Orzechowski, Shane Butler, Dylan Colding, Scott Baldwin, Andy Cobb, Steve Diamond Jr., Billy Bridges, John Kahl, Nathan Barouch, Garret Green, Rick Dietz, Andrew Griffin.

Honda will continue to add to their illustrious history in international motorcycle racing after signing a five-year agreement with Dorna Sports to continue competing in MotoGP through the 2026 season.

A journey which began in 1954 when Honda’s founder, Soichiro Honda, declared entry into the Isle of Man TT, the premier motorcycle racing event of the era, with the aim of becoming the best in the world, has seen 100 different riders win on Hondas with more than 800 victories across all classes.

In the premier class alone, Honda has claimed 850 podiums and 25 rider championships, more than any other brand in history.

“First, I would like to express my respect and gratitude to Carmelo Ezpeleta and everyone at Dorna Sports for their hard work in organizing races during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Honda managing officer Noriaki Abe. “I am very pleased that we have renewed our contract to compete in MotoGP from 2022 to 2026. Honda has been competing in the FIM Grand Prix World Championship since 1959, and won its 800th grand prix last year.

“Honda believes MotoGP racing is vital to our motorsports activities. MotoGP is the pinnacle of motorcycle racing – it allows us to develop various technologies, and through fierce competition, teach our engineers and nurture their skills. With these engineers working on the development of production vehicles, Honda can create better products for its customers. Honda will continue to bring dreams and joy to its customers worldwide through its motorsports activities, including MotoGP.”

Dorna officials are pleased to keep Honda in competition.

“This important announcement brings great pride to MotoGP because Honda is one of the first names that comes to our mind when we think about motorcycling racing,” said Dorna’s Carmelo Ezpeleta. “The Japanese manufacturer has been such an important part of the past, present and future of the FIM MotoGP World Championship and this renewal reinforces, even more, the commitment between both parties.”

The Spanish Football Federation's Competition Committee has opened disciplinary proceedings after Brazilian striker Vinicius Tanque suffered racist abuse during a third division league game at Atletico Madrid's B team last weekend.

While fans are not allowed at first and second division games in Spain due to COVID-19 restrictions, supporters can attend matches in the lower leagues with strict guidelines enforced.

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Monkey chants were directed at the Atletico Baleares player during his team's 1-0 defeat in Madrid on Sunday.

A section of spectators also shouted "monkey" when Vinicius played the ball.

Atletico Baleares reported the abuse to the Spanish FA after the referee failed to mention it in his game report.

The Spanish FA said there is enough evidence for disciplinary action to be taken and has called on every football club at every level to "demand zero tolerance behaviour towards racism in football and in our society."

Atletico Madrid issued a statement expressing their "zero tolerance against racism and xenophobia" but added that "if such a reprehensible event occurred, it was isolated."

Moreover, it stated that the club is working with authorities to bring to light what happened and identify those responsible even though neither the game officials, the police or Atletico Baleares had mentioned the incident during or after the encounter.

Atletico Baleares expressed its dismay following Atletico Madrid's statement.

The Palma-based club, that had reported and condemned the racist abuse suffered by Vinicius after the game, said in a statement: "Atletico Baleares wants to express its profound disappointment at the position made public on its website by Atletico de Madrid on the clear case of racism suffered by our player Vinicius, as reflected in the live television broadcast of the match last Sunday and that all those present at Cerro del Espino could hear.

"We consider that this type of situation is intolerable both in sport and in society and therefore, we are going to bring the case to the attention of the competent federal and governmental authorities."

Mitchell Starc will not be part of IPL 2021, as the left-arm fast bowler has not registered for the auctions that are slated for February 18 in Chennai.

A total of 1097 players - 814 from India and 283 from overseas - registered for the auction by the deadline of February 4, and Starc's is the most prominent name missing. He last featured in the IPL in 2015, for the Royal Challengers Bangalore, after his inaugural season the year before. A combination of injuries and the decision to manage his workload has meant he hasn't been part of the IPL since. With the T20 World Cup set to take place in India later in 2021, it was expected Starc would register for the auctions, but he opted out.

Shakib Al Hasan and Sreesanth are both part of the auctions this year, having served out suspensions or bans earlier. While Shakib is one of 11 players to be listed at the highest base price of INR 2 crore (US$ 274,000 approx.) , Sreesanth has set his base price at INR 75 lakh ($103,000 approx.).

The others who have listed their base price at INR 2 crore are Kedar Jadhav, Harbhajan Singh, Glenn Maxwell, Steven Smith, Moeen Ali, Sam Billings, Liam Plunkett, Jason Roy, Mark Wood and Colin Ingram.

Joe Root, who scored a century in his 100th Test on the first day of the series against India, did not register for the second IPL in a row, and among England players who previously featured in the competition, Harry Gurney and Tom Banton also did not register. Gurney has had a year out with injury - which included missing IPL 2020 - while Banton had previously indicated he would play the County Championship for Somerset during the IPL window.

James Pattinson, part of the Mumbai Indians' title-winning squad in 2020, also opted out. ESPNcricinfo understands he is taking a break after a long summer spent in lockdown bubbles.

Dawid Malan, the world's top-ranked T20I batsman but who is yet to feature in the IPL, set his base price at INR 1.5 crore ($206,000 approx.), as have Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Alex Carey, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Jhye Richardson, Mitchell Swepson, Tom Curran, Lewis Gregory, Alex Hales, Adam Lyth, Adil Rashid and David Willey.

Among others, Aaron Finch, Umesh Yadav, Hanuma Vihari, Marnus Labuschagne, and Sheldon Cottrell have all listed their base prices at INR 1 crore ($137,000 approx.).

The long list of 1097 players will be pruned before the auctions to those players in whom franchises indicate an interest.

More to follow...