Already on the plane or left at home? How England’s Rugby World Cup squad is shaping up

Steve Borthwick started the Six Nations with a settled group but the journey to Australia 2027 has suddenly become a lot more complicatedNot so long ago, Steve Borthwick’s squad for the 2027 World Cup was taking shape nicely. He picked a largely predictable 36-man group for the Six Nations and the same can be said of his matchday 23 to face Wales in England’s championship opener. Borthwick is a loyal coach who relies heavily on depth charts and the exodus of so many players to France after the last World Cup made a number of difficult decisions for him much easier. Just how tailored his squad is to the 2027 tournament is demonstrated by his refusal to pick the Bordeaux-bound Tom Willis on the basis he will not be available despite being awarded an enhanced contract last summer.Suddenly, on the back of two heavy defeats and shocking performances, things are not nearly as settled

‘I know I can do it again – 100%’: Lando Norris on proving himself against the best in F1

Briton overcame crippling self-doubt to become F1 world champion and is determined not to relinquish his crownLando Norris recalls being rendered speechless with joy when he was given his first contract with McLaren. Sitting in the cramped office of a paddock truck, the confirmation that he had made it to Formula One left him “very smiley for a long time”. Seven years on, he enters the new season having achieved his lifelong ambition of becoming world champion and is wearing an equally irrepressible grin as he sets about defending his title.Claiming the championship after a monumental season-long tussle that went to a thrilling three-way fight at the finale in Abu Dhabi was the defining moment of the 26-year-old’s career and perhaps something of a turning point.“I’m always very much in my own head and very thoughtful about myself,” he says

Winter Paralympics walks tightrope as Russia’s inclusion risks ceremony boycott

The Paralympic torch left its home in Stoke Mandeville this week and has arrived at the gateway to the Dolomites. The towns of Bolzano and Trento will host “flame festivals” over the weekend to welcome the Paralympic movement and commemorate its progress on the 50th anniversary of the first Winter Games. It will be a joyous, poignant start to what could be a fractious fortnight.While the flame is being passed between torch bearers, the leaders of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) will be scrambling to contain what increasingly resembles a diplomatic incident. A decision last week to invite 10 Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete at the Winter Paralympics at Milano Cortina has been met with full-throated criticism from across Europe and beyond

Jacks and Ahmed find dramatic late blitz to earn England unlikely win over New Zealand

A game played on a turning wicket and dominated by spin was decided, appropriately, after a decisive, savage twist. Just as it looked as if England’s unconvincing progress through the World Cup was the one thing destined to remain on its predictable path Rehan Ahmed and Will Jacks spun the game, and the group, in their team’s favour.England’s pursuit of a target of 160 was appearing increasingly forlorn until its 18th over, bowled by Glenn Phillips, which started with them needing 43 off 18 and ended, two sixes and a couple of fours later, with a manageable 21 required off 12. Ahmed started the next with another boundary to keep the momentum going and before the penultimate delivery the batters conferred. “I said: ‘I’ll get a single and you just have a free hit,’” Jacks said; he got his single and Ahmed deposited the final delivery into the stands

England beat New Zealand by four wickets: T20 Cricket World Cup Super 8s – as it happened

Henry goes short, it hits Jacks on the helmet or glove and that’s it! It runs away for four and England win! A 44 run partnership from 16 balls between Will Jacks and Rehan Ahmed has pulled the rug from New Zealand!Righto, that’s us done here. A fantastic game, England are hitting their straps at just the right time. New Zealand now have a nervy wait, they need Sri Lanka to do them a favour by beating Pakistan.We’ll be bringing you the semi-finals and final next week but that’s all from me today, goodbye!England Captain Harry Brook:Are England peaking at right time?double quotation markI think so. We still haven’t played that perfect game

Perfect pitches for historic matches | Letters

Alex Preston, in his travel feature on Corfu (21 February), writes about playing with the Lord’s Taverners on “the only cricket pitch in the world I know that’s set within a Unesco world heritage site”. Wonderful though the cricket ground in Corfu undoubtedly is, I am surprised that Preston’s fellow Taverner, Andy Caddick of Somerset and England, didn’t let him know that Bath also enjoys a cricket pitch within a Unesco world heritage site (and possibly two if you include the Rec), while the ground at Galle, Sri Lanka, where Caddick played a Test in 2001, adjacent to the Fort, is mighty close.David DuddingLondon Greenwich Park is also a Unesco world heritage site and has a cricket field in the south-west corner.Alan Burkitt-Gray London Have an opinion on anything you’ve read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.