‘Carelessly squandered’: Wisden scolds England’s tumultuous Ashes tour
The latest edition of Wisden is unsparing in its criticism of England’s Test team, describing their Ashes defeat in Australia as a “wing-and-a-prayer” campaign that ended up “feckless, reckless and legless”,Published this Thursday, the sport’s longstanding bible has a strong Indian flavour to its awards,Haseeb Hameed, captain of title-winning Nottinghamshire, is the sole Englishman among the five players of the year, with Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Siraj recognised for their roles in last year’s memorable 2-2 Test series draw in England,But the nature of England’s 4-1 defeat in Australia – a tour derailed by a poor buildup, lurching tactics, and accusations of an unprofessional approach off the field – leads this year’s notes, with the editor, Lawrence Booth, saying it is “hard to think of a privilege so carelessly squandered, a chance so blithely spurned”,Booth writes: “Much of the misery was self-inflicted: from the paper-thin preparation, via a string of schoolboy dismissals, to the revelation of Harry Brook’s scrape with a nightclub bouncer in New Zealand.
England were feckless, reckless and legless,”A trip supposed to define an era, described by Brendon McCullum as “the biggest series of all our lives”, descended into dilettantism,“Without a fielding coach, England dropped catches,Without a wicketkeeping coach, Jamie Smith looked lost,Without a long-term bowling coach, the attack were rudderless.
Without a batting coach preaching smarter strokeplay, only three players averaged over 28.“ These were the wing-and-a-prayer Ashes, and England got what they deserved.”England’s decision to bury the news of Brook’s altercation with a nightclub bouncer in New Zealand during the tour that preceded the Ashes – something that came to light after the defeat in Sydney – is described as “another level of stupidity”.“No one could accuse England of operating in a high-performance environment.” Booth says.
In contrast to that incident, and England’s headline-generating mid-series break in Noosa, was Mitchell Starc choosing to abstain from alcohol for the duration of the campaign.It helped the 36-year-old claim 31 wickets at 19.9 – 55 at 17 in 2025 – and be named as Wisden’s leading men’s cricketer in the world.The equivalent award in the women’s game goes to Deepti Sharma, having helped power India to glory in the Women’s Cricket World Cup with 215 runs at 30 and 22 wickets at 20 – an unprecedented double by a man or woman.Abhishek Sharma is named the leading T20 cricketer in the world after scoring more than 1,000 runs in 2025 at faster than two a ball.
Gill also picks up the Wisden Trophy – the best performance of the year – for scoring 430 runs in two innings during India’s Test win at Edgbaston,
The Masters, the Premier League run-in, the National: is there a better sporting month than April? | Sean Ingle
The thought struck me on the last rattler back from the Grand National, as Avanti’s wifi faltered somewhere outside Crewe and the Masters stream on my phone froze yet again. I was watching the world’s best golf tournament, on a train journey back from the world’s greatest steeplechase, having seen the best football match of the season – Real Madrid against Bayern Munich – earlier in the week. Is there a better month in the sporting calendar than April?Augusta always delivers. Club football hits peak levels of drama and jeopardy. Then there is Aintree, Paris-Roubaix, the start of the County Championship cricket season and the World Snooker Championship
Azzi Fudd taken first in WNBA draft by Dallas Wings in UConn reunion with Paige Bueckers
Azzi Fudd was selected by the Dallas Wings with the first pick of the WNBA draft on Monday night, capping a 12-month ascent from NCAA champion to the top overall choice and setting up a reunion with former University of Connecticut teammate Paige Bueckers.The 5ft 11in guard, who led UConn to last year’s national title and was named the Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player, is the seventh player from the program to go No 1. Bueckers, the top selection by Dallas in the 2025 draft and the reigning WNBA rookie of the year, watched Fudd’s name called from a sold-out crowd at the Shed, the $500m cultural center at Hudson Yards on Manhattan’s west side.“I’m not really sure I have words to describe the feeling, what that meant,” Fudd said. “I don’t think it’s fully sunk in
WNBA draft: Azzi Fudd goes No 1, UCLA smash record and Flau’jae Johnson traded – as it happened
And with that, the draft is complete. Thanks for joining me. A big night for No 1 pick Azzi Fudd, the record-setting UCLA Bruins, the Washington Mystics and their six (!) picks, fashion and the future of women’s basketball.With that, all eyes turn to 8 May, the first day of the season. We’ll have an opening-night triple-header: Connecticut Sun v New York Liberty, Washington Mystics v Toronto Tempo, Golden State Valkyries v Seattle Storm
‘Carelessly squandered’: Wisden scolds England’s tumultuous Ashes tour
The latest edition of Wisden is unsparing in its criticism of England’s Test team, describing their Ashes defeat in Australia as a “wing-and-a-prayer” campaign that ended up “feckless, reckless and legless”.Published this Thursday, the sport’s longstanding bible has a strong Indian flavour to its awards. Haseeb Hameed, captain of title-winning Nottinghamshire, is the sole Englishman among the five players of the year, with Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Siraj recognised for their roles in last year’s memorable 2-2 Test series draw in England.But the nature of England’s 4-1 defeat in Australia – a tour derailed by a poor buildup, lurching tactics, and accusations of an unprofessional approach off the field – leads this year’s notes, with the editor, Lawrence Booth, saying it is “hard to think of a privilege so carelessly squandered, a chance so blithely spurned”.Booth writes: “Much of the misery was self-inflicted: from the paper-thin preparation, via a string of schoolboy dismissals, to the revelation of Harry Brook’s scrape with a nightclub bouncer in New Zealand
Rory McIlroy says preparation at ‘home course’ Augusta aided Masters defence
Rory McIlroy has explained how weeks of preparation at “home course” Augusta National after advice from Jack Nicklaus played a substantial role in his successful Masters defence.Rather than play in PGA Tour events in the lead up to the Masters and despite a back injury causing him competitive disruption, McIlroy spent considerable time at Augusta in the lead-up to the Masters. On one occasion, it is understood he played the front nine in 29 when playing with a single ball.After seeing off Scottie Scheffler by a stroke, the Northern Irishman and now six-time major winner pointed towards his deliberate buildup. “I joked last week that this place feels like my home course,” said McIlroy before leaving Augusta
County cricket: Anderson stars as Lancashire win thriller against Derbyshire – as it happened
Jimmy Anderson peeled back the years with every neat and tidy stride from the James Anderson End, poetically butterflying Derbyshire at Old Trafford.It was a day of high drama from start to finish, with Ben Aitchison grabbing two wickets in the first over of the day, much to the surprise of the Lancashire No 10, Mitchell Stanley, who was still doing himself up and dropping gloves on his way to the middle.Derbyshire were finally set 138 to win, which felt possible, though Caleb Jewell, who has a blind spot against Lancashire, was out in the second over. From then on, it was nip and tuck, until Anderson started his second spell. Just 4
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