Sports
England face daunting task to break Ashes drought in Australia | The Express Tribune
PERTH:
Arch-rivals Australia and England resume Ashes hostilities on Friday in Perth with the hosts weakened by injuries but favourites to inflict more pain on a side with a dire record Down Under.
The highly anticipated five-Test series gets under way on a fast, bouncy track at a sold-out Perth Stadium and with Ben Stokes’s visitors insisting they are not scarred by past failures.
It has been 15 years since England last clinched an away Ashes series and since then they have failed to win a Test on Australian soil, losing 13 and drawing two.
This time they touched down on the back of a thumping 3-0 one-day defeat in New Zealand and criticism over scheduling — just a single three-day red-ball warm-up on a docile pitch.
Skipper Stokes said they were starting with a clean slate, despite their miserable record in Australia.
“They’re a phenomenal team, especially in their home, so we know the next two-and-a-half months is going to be tough for us,” he said.
“All the series that have gone past, whether that be in Australia or England, I don’t think count for much.”
There may never be a better chance to snap the long winless streak with the hosts’ pace spearheads Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood injured and out of at least the first Test.
Former Australia fast bowler Mitchell Johnson said their absence “starts to rewrite the whole script for the Ashes”.
“It narrows Australia’s margin for error and it forces selectors into decisions they’d hoped they wouldn’t have to make this early,” he added.
At least England have been spared an opening match in Brisbane, where they have won just twice since World War II.
The Gabba will instead host the day-night second Test before the series moves to Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney.
Speed over swing
England are relying heavily on their own cartel of express pacemen led by Jofra Archer, Mark Wood, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Matthew Potts and Josh Tongue, with Shoaib Bashir the only recognised spinner.
But it is a gamble, with Wood the only one to have experienced Test cricket in Australian conditions and he has barely played since knee surgery earlier this year.
Alongside Scott Boland, wily campaigner Mitchell Starc will shoulder the hosts’ attack with Cummins and Hazlewood out, with Nathan Lyon the spin option and seamer Brendan Doggett tipped to make his debut.
Former Australia captain Greg Chappell said in a newspaper column that the Ashes would be decided by the superior fast bowling unit.
“History is unequivocal — to win in these vast, sun-baked arenas, you need express pace bowlers who can intimidate, extract bounce, and shatter partnerships on pitches that reward raw speed over subtle swing,” he said.
“If England’s attack fires and dismantles Australia’s batting order, the McCullum-Stokes masterplan will have them join the list of successful English leaders in Australia.”
But he cautioned against England employing the ultra-aggressive “Bazball” cricket favoured by the captain and coach Brendon McCullum.
“Their incendiary style might work on the small grounds in England on pitches prepared to be as flat as one-day pitches,” he said.
“But it won’t be as easy to throw caution to the wind on the bigger grounds and more bowler-friendly pitches here.”
Top-order worries
A lot of England’s hopes rest on the shoulders of Joe Root and Harry Brook, ranked as the world’s top two Test batsmen.
Brook has never played a Test in Australia while Root has failed to score a century in his 27 innings Down Under where he averages 35.68, well below his career average of 51.29.
Australia will similarly be relying on Steve Smith to be in the runs.
The 36-year-old, who will be captain in Perth, has plundered 18 of his 36 Test tons on home soil, averaging a formidable 59.70.
“If Smith gets on a roll and he starts scoring runs, it’s going to be a challenge for England,” his long-time former team-mate David Warner warned.
Australia’s batting vulnerability is at the top, with an ageing Usman Khawaja potentially padding up with a sixth opening partner since Warner retired early last year.
The latest candidate is left-hander Jake Weatherald, the leading run-scorer in the Sheffield Shield last season but with no experience of the Test cauldron.
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The girlfriend of a college track and field athlete was arrested for allegedly stabbing her boyfriend to death.
Kevaughn Goldson, a senior sprinter from Jamaica, was killed in a stabbing off Lincoln University’s campus in Jefferson City, Missouri.
Goldson, 23, was found after police were called to a house on Monday morning with stab wounds in his back and chest. He died from his injuries after being taken to the hospital.
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Denita Jackson, 27, has been charged with the murder of her boyfriend, Kevaughn Goldson, 23, after an incident at Lincoln University. (Lincoln University/Cole County Sheriff’s Office)
“Our thoughts are with family, friends, faculty, staff and all who have been impacted by this tragic situation,” Lincoln University told KRCG in a press release regarding Goldson’s death.
“The well-being of our University community is our greatest priority. Students and employees are reminded of counseling and other support services for those who need them.”
Goldson’s girlfriend, Denita Jackson, was charged by Cole County prosecutors with second-degree murder and armed criminal action.
While in a romantic relationship, KMIZ in Missouri reported that there were past issues of domestic violence between the two. Jackson, 27, also ran track and field at Lincoln University.
Investigators questioned Jackson, who allegedly told them she believed Goldson was having an affair with one of her roommates, saying she found him in bed with her, both individuals being clothed, after returning home.
General view of starting blocks and baton at the 120th Penn Relays at Franklin Field. (Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)
Jackson opened her roommate’s locked door with a hairclip after hearing her roommate talking with someone in her room, according to court documents. The docs said that Jackson jumped on her roommate’s bed and grabbed Goldson by the shirt, as well as a bottle of cologne that had allegedly been missing, leading to a fight.
Goldson, then, allegedly started to choke Jackson while on top of her, leading to the latter grabbing a knife from under the bed and stabbing the former.
Jackson was allegedly the one to call police regarding the incident, while authorities initially took Goldson to Capital Regional Emergency Room. He was, then, airlifted to University Hospital, where he eventually died during surgery.
General view of hurdles at a Track & Field event. (C. Morgan Engel/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
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Goldson, who stood six-foot, 160 pounds, was a middle distance runner with the Blue Tigers earlier in his college career before moving into a sprinter role with the program.
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Inter Miami superstar Lionel Messi has spoken of his regret over not applying himself in his studies when he was young, particularly when learning English.
The Argentina captain and 2022 World Cup winner admitted that he felt “half ignorant” when meeting famous personalities throughout his impressive career and not being able to communicate.
“I regret many things,” Messi, 38, told Mexican podcast “Miro de Atras.”
“To not have learned English as a boy. I had the time to have at least studied English and I didn’t do it. I deeply regret it.
“I experienced situations where I was with incredible and spectacular personalities to be able to talk and have a chat and you feel half ignorant.
“I always thought: ‘What an idiot, how I wasted my time.’
“When you’re young, you don’t realise it. Today that’s what I tell my children, [the importance of] having a good education, to study and be prepared.
“I always tell my children to take advantage of it. They have a different situation to the one I had although I never lacked anything…”
Messi arrived at Barcelona from his native city Rosario when he was 13.
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“It [my last year of school in Argentina] was a disaster,” he admitted.
“I knew that I was leaving [for Barcelona]. At Barcelona, I finished my high school with the other children that went to [Barcelona’s youth academy] La Masia.”
Meanwhile, Messi, who joined Inter Miami in the summer of 2023 after two years at Paris Saint-Germain, says football has offered him other valuable lessons.
“I was able to do everything and reach the top [in football], but along the way there are many experiences and lessons learned,” the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner said.
“It’s true that football is a way of life. It teaches you a lot, it gives you a lot of values. It creates lifelong bonds. You get to know places.”
South Africa have secured a 16-run victory over Pakistan in a thrilling One Day International encounter of the ICC Women’s Championship series at SuperSport Park, clinching the series 2-1 with a match to spare.
The hosts were made to struggle hard for their unassailable 2-0 lead, enduring a few nervous moments as the visitors launched a spirited pursuit of a daunting target.
Electing to bat first, the Proteas showed confidence from the very beginning of the match with openers Laura Wolvaardt (20) and Tasmin Brits (77) laying a solid foundation.
However, it was Brits who truly shifted the momentum. Her innings of 77 from just 62 balls set the tone for what was to follow.
Following the departure of Wolvaardt and a brief stint at the crease for Faye Tunnicliffe (7), the stage was set for a remarkable middle-order display.
Sune Luus played tactfully, compiling a measured 57, but the day belonged to Annerie Dercksen. In a breathtaking exhibition of power-hitting, Dercksen fell just ten runs short of a century, blasting 90 off 68 deliveries, with the help of six boundaries and and four sixes.
Her partnership with Luus gave the home side a commanding position. Nadine de Klerk’s late flurry, featuring a colossal 90-metre six, compounded Pakistan’s misery, with the tourists’ bowling discipline deserting them at crucial junctures.
Chasing a record target of 361, Pakistan found themselves in early trouble at 24 for two, as Dercksen sent Muneeba back. However, the tourists refused to capitulate.
A resolute third-wicket stand of 97 between Sadaf Shamas and Ayesha Zafar breathed new life into the contest. Zafar’s composed 75 and Shamas’s gritty 61 kept the required rate within reach.
The hosts’ sloppiness in the field, included 30 extras plus 24 wides. When Fatima Sana arrived at the crease, the equation began to look increasingly precarious for the home side. The Pakistan captain struck a defiant 52 from a mere 36 balls, shifting the balance in her side’s favour.
Pakistan’s valiant effort ended at 345 all out in the penultimate over, handing South Africa a hard-fought victory.
The teams will now head to Durban for the final ODI on Sunday.
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