Jack Leach felt like a Bazball ‘fraud’ but has found his England mojo again

At the start of the summer Jack Leach found himself out of the Test side and not sure how much fun he was having. The previous year had been ruined by a stress fracture of his back, the start of this one by a knee injury, and just as he returned to first-team cricket he fielded a call from Brendon McCullum telling him he was not going to be in England’s next Test squad. “After a long time out with injury,” he said, “I felt that might be it.”Now he is back in the team and back in Rawalpindi, where on his last visit he took what he considers “probably my favourite wicket” to win the first Test of the 2022 series against Pakistan, and where in the buildup to Thursday’s series decider, ground staff are busy cooking up a pitch they hope will suit their own spinners but might just help their opponents’ too.In between he had one of his best English summers, taking 45 wickets at 22

The Browns’ sad and seedy Deshaun Watson era nears its predictable endpoint

The QB’s injury confirmed what most of us already knew: the Browns’ decision to give him $230m was the worst in NFL historyCleveland’s fanbase came into Sunday’s home Browns-Bengals showdown steeped in feelings. Some of them greeted their own quarterback, Deshaun Watson, with deafening boos as he ran on to the field. If there was any doubt about how many fans feel about Watson, the same crowd showered running back Nick Chubb with cheers at an even higher decibel as he made his return from a lengthy injury layoff.Watson looks like he is headed for a lengthy period on the sidelines himself: in the second quarter, he went down with what ESPN reported is a ruptured achilles. His season is over

LeBron James rips WNBA referees over controversial call in Liberty’s finals win

Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve said the WNBA championship was “stolen” from the Lynx during her complaints about the officiating Sunday night.The New York Liberty beat the Lynx 67-62 in Game 5 in overtime, getting there after a disputed foul gave Breanna Stewart two free throws that tied the game with 5.2 seconds remaining in regulation.“We know we could have done some things, right, but you shouldn’t have to overcome to that extent,” Reeve said. “This shit ain’t that hard

WNBA finals Game 5: New York Liberty beat Minnesota Lynx in OT to win first title – as it happened

And so a culture-changing season in the WNBA comes to a close. Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese dominated the headlines during the season, but we’re ending with a dramatic finale that showcased the depth of talent in the league.Bryan Armen Graham was on the scene:That’s a wrap. Next up in women’s sports: the NWSL playoffs, coming up soon.What was the betting line on her winning instead of Stewart or Ionescu?Thoroughly deserved

New York Liberty hold off Minnesota Lynx in overtime to win first WNBA title

The New York Liberty are WNBA champions for the first time in their 28-year history after coming from behind to defeat the Minnesota Lynx 67-62 in overtime on Sunday night in a heart-stopping winner-take-all Game 5 of the finals.Jonquel Jones scored 17 points to lead New York on a night when her teammates Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu struggled mightily on the offensive end, combining for 5-of-34 shooting from the floor. The Liberty became the first men’s or women’s basketball team from New York to raise a banner since the ABA’s Nets back in 1976, sending a sellout crowd of 18,090 fans into a state of bedlam at the buzzer.“I could never dream of this,” said the Bahamian-born Jones, a first-time WNBA champion who was named Most Valuable Player of the finals after averaging 17.8 points and 7

Lando Norris hits out at ‘rushed decision’ on penalty after passing Verstappen

Lando Norris and the McLaren team principal, Andrea Stella, have condemned the FIA stewards, claiming they incorrectly interfered in the US Grand Prix, costing Norris third place and vital points in his world championship battle with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who took the place after Norris was given a penalty.The two drivers had engaged in a gripping fight for the final ten laps of the race , which was won by Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. Norris and Verstappen had vied with one another with great skill when Norris went round the outside of turn 12 to pass but in so doing both drivers went off track. Norris was then given a five-second penalty by the stewards for making the overtake off track, and their positions in third and fourth were reversed after they had crossed the line.Norris believed the stewards had been too hasty in their decision