Sports
Australia captain Cummins optimistic about playing in Ashes – SUCH TV
Australia skipper Pat Cummins said on Friday that he is hopeful of playing in all five Ashes Tests against England, but acknowledged that much will depend on how his back injury responds, according to local media reports.
The pace spearhead has already been ruled out of the October white-ball series against New Zealand and India due to “lumbar bone stress.”
Cummins, 32, has not bowled since the Test tour of the West Indies in June-July, and no definite return date has been set.
While he remains optimistic about featuring in the Ashes, Cummins emphasized a cautious approach. “There are no hard and fast plans yet,” he told reporters.
“I’m still doing some gym work and keeping things moving, but with this type of injury, it’s about rest first, then gradually building back towards the Ashes,” he said.
The Australian captain added that although his goal is to play in all five Tests, the final decision will be made closer to the series.
“It’s honestly too far out to say, but the aim is to try and be ready for all of it,” Cummins noted.
Cummins has faced recurring back problems over the years, including a significant flare-up in 2018 that sidelined him for an entire off-season.
Australia coach Andrew McDonald said this week he was confident Cummings would play a key part in the Ashes.
But he acknowledged to SEN radio that the uncertainty around Cummins “is not ideal”, but it was an “overreaction” to say the skipper would not play.
“It’s not ideal. I’m not going to sit here and say that it’s ideal,” McDonald told the radio station.
The first Ashes Test against England in Perth starts on November 21.
Australia retained the Ashes in England in 2023 after the series ended in a 2-2 draw.
They enjoyed a 4-0 sweep of England at home in 2021-22. Cummins was the leading wicket-taker with 21 scalps at an average of 18.
Sports
Transfer rumors, news: Real Madrid plot Vinícius Júnior exit
Vinícius Júnior‘s days at Real Madrid could be numbered, while Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic is attracting interest from Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Tottenham Hotspur. Join us for the latest transfer news and rumors from around the globe.
Transfers home page | Men’s grades | Women’s grades
TOP STORIES
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TRENDING RUMORS
– Real Madrid plan to offload Vinícius Júnior in summer 2026, Sport Bild reports. The decision was reportedly made after Los Blancos‘ 2-1 Clásico win over Barcelona 10 days ago. The 25-year-old protested against being substituted by coach Xabi Alonso and had to make a public apology. Club president Florentino Pérez reportedly feels that transferring the Brazil international; will show that no player is bigger than the club. Los Blancos are trying to renew Vini Jr.’s contract despite that stance, as they want to avoid the Brazil international driving down his €150 million valuation through his conduct.
– Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Tottenham Hotspur are continuing to look at the potential opportunity to sign Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic as a free agent in the summer, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport. The report adds that those three clubs would offer more than what the Bianconeri are offering the Serbia international in a new contract. This comes with Juve and Vlahovic potentially being open to continuing together, but finances could be an issue with Vlahovic currently earning €12m per year and Juventus wanting his salary to be around half of that figure.
– Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank could be reunited with former Brentford striker Ivan Toney as Spurs lead the race to sign him on loan from Al Ahli, according to TEAMtalk. A permanent move is off the table as clubs don’t want to pay £30m in January, while the 29-year-old would receive a large tax bill if his contract is terminated early. West Ham United and Everton are also interested in Toney, who wants to cement his place in Thomas Tuchel’s England squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
– Sporting CP‘s Morten Hjulmand is on Juventus’ list of options as they look to sign a midfielder in January, reports Calciomercato. The 26-year-old’s contract includes a €60m release clause, which Sporting don’t generally want to stray far away from and will insist is met for a move to happen in the winter window. Other midfielders being considered by the Bianconeri are Newcastle United‘s Sandro Tonali and Al Hilal‘s Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, although the former would be difficult to sign and there has been no contact for the latter about a January move.
– Bayern Munich are willing to go against their approach to contracts for players over 30 to see off Barcelona’s interest in Harry Kane, according to talkSPORT. The Blaugrana having been linked with the England international as a possible Robert Lewandowski replacement. The 32-year-old already has 22 goals across all competitions, and that has persuaded them to offer him a multi-year contract where they would usually only offer one year to a player of his age.
EXPERT TAKE
1:33
Moreno: Vinicius’ behaviour is harming his career
Ale Moreno talks about Vinicius Jr attitude in El Clasico when Xabi Alonso subbed him off and at the players’ scuffle after full time.
OTHER RUMORS
– Real Madrid forward Endrick has agreed to join Lyon on loan in the winter transfer window, subject to both clubs reaching a deal. (Diario AS)
– Liverpool are planning to extend Dominik Szoboszlai‘s contract and are readying a deal that will run until 2030 or 2031. (Nicolò Schira)
– Manchester United are resigned to letting winger Jadon Sancho leave for free in the summer, even though they have an option to extend the Aston Villa loanee’s contract by a year. (talkSPORT)
– Newcastle United are monitoring the progress of Porto striker Samu Aghehowa, while Tottenham Hotspur view him as a replacement for Dominic Solanke. (Football Insider)
– Everton insist that Jarrad Branthwaite won’t leave in January despite Manchester United holding an interest in the centre-back. (TEAMtalk)
– Inter Milan are looking at Sassuolo’s Tarik Muharemovic, Lecce’s Tiago Gabriel and Parma’s Alessandro Circati with centre-back Yann Bisseck‘s interest being piqued by attention from Tottenham Hotspur. (La Gazzetta dello Sport)
– Sevilla are closely monitoring Boca Juniors midfielder Milton Delgado, 20, who impressed with Argentina as they finished runners-up at the Under-20 World Cup. (Estadio Deportivo)
– Niklas Füllkrug and his agents have informed West Ham United that the striker wants to leave in January. (Florian Plettenberg)
– Several Bundesliga clubs are interested in Sporting CP forward Rodrigo Ribeiro, who could leave on a January loan with an option to make the deal permanent. (Florian Plettenberg)
Sports
How the NFL is using AI to predict injuries
From a Virginia lab to NFL training rooms, data and “digital twins” are helping NFL franchises keep players on the field.
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Wrexham CEO: Eriksen wanted no part of TV doc
Wrexham chief executive Michael Williamson has said that Christian Eriksen initially rejected their summer approach because the former Manchester United star did not want to appear in the club’s award-winning documentary series.
Eriksen, whose heart stopped beating after he suffered cardiac arrest playing for Denmark at Euro 2020, was a free agent following his departure from Old Trafford when Wrexham, newly promoted to the Championship, made their bold move.
The club’s rise from the National League under Hollywood owners Rob Mac and Ryan Reynolds has has been told in the Welcome to Wrexham series, which has won multiple Emmy awards and other industry honours.
Speaking to That Wrexham Podcast, Williamson, who was on the Inter Milan board when Eriksen played for the Serie A club from 2020-21, said: “I reached out to the agent and what was really interesting in the first call is the reaction was, ‘We don’t want his story to be in a documentary, because we’ve had plenty of opportunities for a documentary for his story.’
“He thought we were calling not because of his footballing capabilities, but because we wanted a documentary story.
“I’m like, ‘Wait a minute. I didn’t even think about that’. Obviously, I’m aware of it, but that wasn’t the reason we were calling.
“We were calling because he could potentially be an interesting footballer, we’re looking for players that could play for us in the Championship. Difference makers that could help us be competitive on the pitch.
“After I explained what our actual objectives were, trying to build a competitive squad and that I wasn’t even thinking about it from a documentary perspective, we had a great conversation.”
Williamson said the idea of signing Eriksen was “kicked around,” but the midfielder wanted to continue playing for a “first-tier club.”
– Wrexham hail ‘statement win’ over Coventry with Moore hat trick
– From Liverpool to Wrexham, are U.S. owners taking over English football?
– Ex-Man United player pundits don’t help club – Eriksen
The 33-year-old eventually joined Bundesliga side VfL Wolfsburg in September, but Williamson said Wrexham’s transfer business benefited from their interest in Eriksen being made public.
“I wasn’t expecting the agent to come out and say what he said because I typically expect those conversations to be confidential,” Williamson said.
“But what it did was it sent a signal around the players’ market, if you will. That we were serious about being competitive.
“I think that was important because a lot of people were just saying, ‘OK, what’s Wrexham doing? You know, they’ve been a little bit quiet at the start of the market, but now they want to be competitive.’
“It opened up doors and conversations to bring in players like Kieffer [Moore], Josh [Windass], [Liberato] Cacace, Lewis O’Brien, Conor Coady.”
Wrexham subsequently broke their transfer record three times, spending a reported £10 million ($13m) on Wales striker Nathan Broadhead and £33m in total.
The Welsh club are 16th in a congested Championship table, five points from the playoffs.
“It’s going to take a few windows to really build a squad that is pushing for promotion. But it’s only going to get better and that’s what I’m excited about,” Williamson said.
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