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Cássio voltou a ser criticado por falhar na derrota do Corinthians para o Argentinos Juniors, nesta terça-feira (23), pela Sul-Americana, e desabafou sobre sua situação no clube. O goleiro, inclusive, falou em deixar o Timão.

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Ele deixou claro que está cansado de ser considerado um dos principais culpados pelo momento ruim da equipe treinada por António Oliveira. Cássio não se eximiu das falhas, mas afirmou que a cobrança passou dos limites.

– A cobrança faz parte. Mas passam dos limites das coisas, da falta de respeito. Esse ano saíram um monte de jogadores, mais velhos. Eu fiquei, um dos mais velhos, sabia que a cobrança seria grande. Errei em alguns gols? Errei sim. Mas é isso, tudo de errado do Corinthians parece que é minha culpa. Eu sou o culpado de tudo. Se eu sou o culpado, de repente é melhor eu sair e seguir meu caminho – disse, em entrevista à Espn.

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Cássio quer que o início de temporada ruim do Corinthians sirva de aprendizado para a temporada e explicou que, para ele, também está difícil a situação atual. O goleiro também reforçou o cansaço de ser considerado o culpado pelo momento delicado do Timão.

➡️ Raul Gustavo é expulso por agressão a bandeirinha; VEJA

– Eu vou estar aí, sou o capitão do time. Não me eximo de erros. O treinador e o presidente decidem, se eu tiver atrapalhando o Corinthians, se não estiver agradando… Para mim está muito difícil também. Na verdade, tudo de mal que acontece com o Corinthians sempre sobra para mim. Time não faz gol, é culpa do Cássio. Time não joga bem, é culpa do Cássio. Tenho humildade em saber quando eu erro. É um momento difícil. Tem muita coisa pela frente, esse começo de temporada tem que servir de aprendizado. Estamos nessa situação e temos que tentar sair – concluiu.

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O Corinthians, de Cássio, perdeu a liderança do grupo na Sul-Americana, após a derrota por 1 a 0 para os reservas do Argentinos Juniors. Agora, o Timão jogará no domingo (28), contra o Fluminense.

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Cássio Roberto RamosCorinthians

The Boston Red Sox are heading to the postseason.

After trailing 3-1 heading into the seventh inning in the first contest of the regular season's final three-game set at Fenway Park against the Tigers, Boston scored a run in the seventh, eighth, and finally in the bottom of the ninth, when centerfielder Ceddanne Rafaela drove a Tommy Kahnle fastball off the top of the centerfield wall, scoring Romy Gonzalez from first base and sending the Red Sox to the playoffs.

Boston's magic number has been one since Wednesday, when the Red Sox beat the Blue Jays and the Astros lost to the Athletics. But it took until Friday for Boston to officially punch its ticket to the postseason after the Red Sox lost to the Blue Jays on Thursday and the Astros beat the A's.

The Tigers, Astros and Guardians are now battling for the final two playoff spots in the American League playoff picture with two games to go.

India have selection dilemmas in all departments as they look to firm up their side for the ODI World Cup

Shashank Kishore15-Jul-2025With a home ODI World Cup looming in September, India have just six matches left to fine-tune their combinations. The upcoming three-match series in England, beginning Wednesday in Southampton, offers a glimpse into the team’s evolving plans.Captain Harmanpreet Kaur believes the growing competition for spots is a “healthy headache” to have, which she attributes to improved depth and balance. Here are some of the tricky decisions the team management may have to make.Rawal vs Deol?
Pratika Rawal may have racked up 638 runs in 11 ODIs at an average of 63.80, including five fifties and a century, but this series holds deeper significance for her with the World Cup looming. The reason? Shafali Verma.Related

'One more ball, please' – The quiet rise of N Shree Charani

India lift their fielding to the next level in bid to 'dominate no matter what'

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Harmanpreet embraces 'happy headache' with India's depth on the rise

Shafali’s ability to dismantle attacks in the powerplay makes her an irresistible asset, even if her high-risk approach can come with bouts of inconsistency. Rawal, by contrast, builds her innings, and accelerates as she settles in. She is also a handy spin option, while Shafali is strictly just part-time.As impressive as Rawal’s initiation has been, the runs have mostly come against Ireland, West Indies, Sri Lanka and a depleted South Africa. This, in a way, will be her first big test in international cricket.A good series for Rawal will make it harder for the selectors to displace her from the opening spot alongside Smriti Mandhana, but her style of play and method of run accumulation could also make her a useful proposition at No. 3 if Shafali’s resurgence in the England T20Is convinces the team management to back her to reclaim her opening spot in ODIs, a format she last played in October 2024.The only problem with that reshuffle could be that Harleen Deol, who has transformed her game and has been in excellent form across formats lately, may have to be benched. Since her comeback from injury in December 2024, Deol has hit 230 runs in six innings, including a maiden ODI century. She also played a sparkling knock in the T20I series opener in England.Deol’s form, Rawal’s run glut and Shafali’s X-factor leaves India with a tough choice to make. The next three games could indicate which way the team management will be inclined towards ahead of the Australia series, their final audition before the World Cup opener on September 30 against Sri Lanka.Who partners Amanjot in the seam department?
Pooja Vastrakar hasn’t played since the T20 World Cup last October. She missed the WPL as well, and there has been no official update from the BCCI or selectors, on her rehab or possible return. In her absence, Amanjot Kaur has emerged as a capable replacement, even if not like-for-like.Arundhati Reddy played in all five T20Is against England•SLCWhile Amanjot lacks Vastrakar’s pace and ability to hustle batters, she brings her own strengths to the table: gentle swing, accuracy, and an ability to stem the flow of runs, as seen in the recent T20I series. She picked up six wickets in two matches in the tri-series against Sri Lanka and South Africa this April.Her batting, too, has come into its own. A prime example was her unbeaten 63 under pressure, rescuing India from 31 for 3 in the second T20I against England in Bristol. This means the tussle for the one remaining seam-bowler’s slot is likely to be between Arundhati Reddy, Kranti Goud and Sayali Satghare. The selectors will also have an opportunity to look at Titas Sadhu, who will be on the A tour to Australia having recovered from injury. There is no update yet on Renuka Singh.Among the contenders, Reddy looks the frontrunner currently, having featured in three games in the tri-series and each of the five T20Is after being dropped for the home series against Ireland and West Indies earlier in the year. Goud brings with her pace, but is largely untested, while Satghare is a swing bowler.The make-up of the spin attack
Deepti Sharma appears to be a lock-in. So the tussle will be between Sneh Rana, N Shree Charani and Radha Yadav for two spots.Rana announced herself in the WPL for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, after initially going unsold at the auction. Then, after having not been in the scheme of things for nearly a year-and-a-half, she received a lifeline when she was picked for the ODI tri-series in Sri Lanka.N Shree Charani was the leading wicket-taker in the T20Is against England•Andy Kearns/Getty ImagesThere, she was named Player of the series for her 15 wickets in five games, including a career-best 5 for 43 in a match-winning spell against South Africa. The T20I series in England was her comeback to the shortest format after over two years.Charani, who was also on that tour in Sri Lanka, has been named Player of the series in the England T20Is for her chart-topping 10 wickets. The team management is impressed by her ability to bowl across phases. She also performed exceedingly well in the tri-series, picking up six wickets in five games at an economy of 5.39, and was the perfect spin twin to Rana.The allure of playing two genuine spinners and Deepti could make it tough for the team management to include Radha Yadav, arguably one of the best fielders in the women’s game today. Her improved left-arm spin and ability to wield the willow lower down the order makes her hard to ignore. But such is the competition that there’s only space for two, unless the toss-up boils down to one between Deepti and Rana.India’s likely ODI combination
1 Smriti Mandhana, 2 Pratika Rawal, 3 Harleen Deol, 4 Harmanpreet Kaur (capt), 5 Jemimah Rodrigues, 6 Richa Ghosh (wk), 7 Amanjot Kaur, 8 Deepti Sharma, 9 Arundhati Reddy, 10 Sneh Rana/Radha Yadav, 11 N Shree Charani

The best teams in football have always been built on at least a few brilliant partnerships, and this Arsenal side are no different.

Mikel Arteta’s side is full of duos who complement and perfectly understand one another, with the most obvious example being the partnership of William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhães.

The two centre-backs have played a massive part in making the Gunners the best defensive side in the Premier League, if not Europe, and have appeared in 129 competitive matches together, averaging 2.16 points per game.

However, as exceptional a pairing as they are, Arsenal’s Champions League win over Bayern Munich on Wednesday night made it clear that Arteta might have already created an even better one.

Arsenal's standout performers vs Bayern

It wouldn’t be an overreaction to say that, given the opponent and competition, Wednesday night was one of Arsenal’s most impressive performances under Arteta’s reign.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

In other words, there were sensational displays from practically everyone donning the red and white, but someone who really stood out was Jurrien Timber.

The former Ajax gem was the one who opened the scoring, heading home from a corner, but he did far more than that.

Minutes

81′

Expected Goals

0.52

Goals

1

Tackles (Won)

2 (2)

Interceptions

1

Recoveries

4

Ground Duels (Won)

5 (4)

Aerial Duels (Won)

3 (3)

Long Balls

1/1

Dribbles

1/1

For example, in addition to providing a constant threat down the right-hand side and linking up nicely with Bukayo Saka, the Dutch international was almost perfect from a defensive point of view.

In his 81 minutes of action, he won 100% of his tackles and aerial duels, made one interception, recovered the ball four times, and more than justified The Athletic’s Aaron Catterson-Reid claim that he’s “the best right-back in the world at the minute.”

Another starter who deserves praise is Eberechi Eze, as while he was quieter than on the weekend, he still provided the assist for Gabriel Martinelli.

Moreover, he had some real moments of quality in and around the Germans’ penalty area.

Finally, Riccardo Calafiori and Noni Madueke made quite the impact coming off the bench, with the former setting up the latter to score his first goal for the club.

With all that said, one of the reasons these players were able to shine is the efforts of a partnership within the side that might just be better than Gabriel and Saliba’s.

Arsenal's new best partnership

While Saliba and Cristhian Mosquera looked great on Wednesday, as did Eze and Mikel Merino, neither of those pairings is shaping up to be Arsenal’s best new duo.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

Instead, that title goes to the brewing partnership between Martin Zubimendi and Declan Rice.

Yes, while the Englishman was already performing at a world-class level for the Gunners over the last two years, the arrival of the Spaniard has helped him to further improve.

The former West Ham United captain has even said as much after Wednesday’s game, telling TNT Sports that the side “all trust him with the ball.”

The addition of the former Real Sociedad star has allowed the 26-year-old to maraud forward more freely, which is precisely what he did on multiple occasions against the Baverians.

However, he also still drops deeper on occasion and continues to do plenty of the dirty work, which is one of the reasons they’re such an incredible pairing, and why content creator Jamie Kent has dubbed the Englishman “the best midfielder in Europe.”

The watching press were unsurprisingly impressed with the two midfielders on Wednesday, with the Express’ Tom Parsons awarding both 9/10 match ratings.

That might sound slightly over the top, but it’s really not, and their statistics prove as much.

For example, in his 94 minutes, the Spaniard took 50 touches, completed 40 passes, was accurate with 100% of his long balls, recovered the ball three times, blocked one shot, and didn’t get dribbled past once.

In his 94 minutes, the £105m man produced a combined expected goal and assists figure of 0.61, played three key passes, took one shot on target, won 100% of his tackles, made one interception, took 66 touches, completed 39 passes, blocked one shot and recovered the ball five times.

Ultimately, while it was just the 16th competitive game Rice and Zubimendi have played together, Arsenal’s win over Bayern Munich was just more evidence that they could well be the Gunners’ new most important duo.

A dream for Eze: Arsenal enter race to sign "one of the best STs in Europe"

The incredible goalscorer would make Arsenal far more dangerous and be a dream teammate for Eberechi Eze.

ByJack Salveson Holmes Nov 26, 2025

His batting suffered after he became the all-format captain. But now he once again has the freedom to express himself as a batter

Mohammad Isam29-Jun-2025Najmul Hossain Shanto was asked to steer the Bangladesh team away from a high-profile feud. He ended up leading the cricket team amid a political upheaval, where he saw both sides of the coin. He tried to quit the captaincy once, but was talked out of it. Eight months later, when he finally stepped down as Test captain following the Sri Lanka series, Bangladesh lost out on a good leader on and off the field. Still, one can’t help but say that Shanto’s exit as captain is a blessing for him and the team. After a 19-month tumult, he can now focus solely on his batting and try to reprise his 2023 form.Bangladesh need arguably their best batter of this generation to get them runs regularly. Shanto spent much of his captaincy dealing with a lot of things out of his control. He is much better off playing drives down the ground and through covers.As captain, Shanto was caught up in an intriguing world, one that was thankless. The last straw was the BCB sacking him as the ODI captain when he had big plans about leading the team for the next few years. Shanto’s captaincy was a breath of fresh air but it is he who now needs to breathe freely as a batter.Related

• Asalanka expects seam and batter-friendly pitch at Khettarama

• Settled SL meet a Bangladesh in transition for ODI series opener

• Shanto steps down as Test captain after series loss against SL

• Shanto wants to step down as captain after South Africa Tests

• Shakib absence 'unfortunate', but Shanto wants Bangladesh to focus on cricket

****

Although the BCB bosses said Shanto’s decision caught them off guard, Shanto had followed the correct procedure. He informed the necessary personnel about his decision some time ago, before announcing at the end of the Test series. It was the natural endpoint for such an announcement.Shanto didn’t want to wait too long to tell the public after making up his mind about the captaincy. This was a rational decision with an ODI series, under new captain Mehidy Hasan Miraz, less than a week away. Shanto also could have waited till the end of the Sri Lanka tour but things change fast in Bangladesh cricket.Mehidy Hasan Miraz has replaced Shanto has ODI captain•BCBHad Shanto waited till then, his resignation could have had many more interpretations. Had he resigned after the first Test in Galle, his twin centuries could have been seen as a fitting reply to the BCB, given the way the board’s treatment regarding his ODI captaincy. But he waited till the end of the series.Shanto, like every Bangladeshi cricketer, is aware of the climate in which he operates. The BCB has a long history of sacking captains. On most occasions, it is done without informing the captain. It is preceded or followed by a media trial. It takes a mental toll on the cricketer, as many would vouch.Shanto experienced the sacking just a couple of weeks ago. The following day, when Mehidy was at his first press conference as the new ODI captain, there was a question about the BCB’s treatment of Shanto, and whether he is also prepared for such a fate.”We always work with that sort of thing at the back of our mind,” Mehidy said.

****

Shanto, though, showed that BCB’s mismanagement wasn’t going to be a distraction, with his twin centuries. Rain prevented Bangladesh’s push for victory on the final day, but Shanto walked away with his head held high. It was a display of his wide-ranging ability and overall quality.Mushfiqur Rahim and Najmul Hossain Shanto has a long partnership in the first innings in Galle•Getty ImagesShanto dominated the 264-run fourth-wicket stand with Mushfiqur Rahim in the first innings. It was a counterattack after Bangladesh had lost three early wickets. He drove the ball, at times uppishly early on, before switching to horizontal bat shots, particularly the sweep, against the Sri Lanka spinners.Shanto’s strike rotation was just as impressive as his ability to find boundaries, something he has done in many innings during the last 18 months. His partnership with Mushfiqur was an example for the dressing room of how senior batters should stand up in the hour of need. With his unbeaten 125 in the second innings, he became the second fastest from Bangladesh to reach seven Test hundreds, in 68 innings.

****

Shortly before the 2023 ODI World Cup, with then-incumbent captain Shakib Al Hasan rested, Shanto captained Bangladesh in a one-off match against New Zealand. It was a volatile time in the Bangladesh team with Shakib and Tamim Iqbal at loggerheads. There was so much bitterness that the BCB decided it was time to start with a clean break in the leadership group.Coach Chandika Hathurusinghe had backed Shanto for full-time captaincy•BCBShakib’s finger injury in the World Cup made it easier for the board to pivot towards Shanto as the Test captain for the New Zealand series in November 2023. Shanto started with a century and led Bangladesh to their first home Test win against New Zealand. He also impressed in the following white-ball series in New Zealand, where Chandika Hathurusingha said he would back Shanto as the full-time captain.Bangladesh, though, had a bit of a nightmare when the USA beat them 2-1 in a T20I series before the 2024 T20 World Cup. They managed to reach the Super Eights, but performances were unconvincing. Their exit, when they dithered in a shortened chase against Afghanistan, left fans irate. Shanto scored 112 runs in seven games at a strike rate of 95.72, with many calling for his sacking.Bangladesh, however, bounced back in August last year when they beat Pakistan 2-0 in the Test series. Shanto made only 58 runs but was widely praised for the way he handled the team on and off the field, particularly in the immediate aftermath of a regime change back home. Shanto strived to keep the team’s focus on cricket.The prevailing volatility, though, caught up with the cricket team. Shanto was found himself in the middle of the Shakib selection dilemma shortly before the home Tests against South Africa in October. Shakib ultimately couldn’t reach Bangladesh to play the series, which left Shanto disappointed.Shanto led Bangladesh to a 2-0 Test series win in Pakistan•Associated PressShanto’s frustration reached a point when he mulled leaving the Bangladesh captaincy during the South Africa series. The BCB president Faruque Ahmed talked him out of it after a long meeting.When Shanto had a hamstring injury a couple of weeks later, there was a first glimpse of the new leaders in Mehidy (Tests and ODIs) and Litton Das (T20Is). Bangladesh won a Test in the West Indies under Mehidy, and Litton led them to a 3-0 win in the T20Is. The BCB duly noted the two captaincy candidates.

****

Shanto didn’t bat particularly badly as the Bangladesh captain, but not having to think about the captaincy henceforth should allow him to fulfil his batting potential. His main reference point will be the 12 months prior to his first match as Bangladesh captain.He was averaging 40-plus in Tests and ODIs and had played several match-winning knocks in T20Is. It began with the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia, where he was Bangladesh’s top run-getter. It was followed by four match-winning knocks against England at home. Then came centuries against Ireland and Afghanistan, followed by a superb ton against Afghanistan in the 2023 Asia Cup.Neither Shanto nor Bangladesh had a great time at the 2024 T20 World Cup•ICC/Getty ImagesAfter he took over the captaincy in all three formats by early 2024, his batting also suffered. But now he once again has the freedom to express himself fully as a batter.Apart from looking at his own performances in the 2022-23 period, Shanto can also take advice from Mushfiqur, who has had a productive post-captaincy career. Since his Test captaincy, Mushfiqur has averaged 42.60 in 40 Tests, with five of his seven 150-plus scores coming in this period. He had similar success in ODIs as well after his captaincy period was over.This is Shanto’s chance to step up his game and join the likes of Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant and Ben Duckett, who are all from the same Under-19 batch as Shanto. More importantly, an unburdened Shanto will be hugely beneficial to the Bangladesh team. They have lost some big names in the last 12 months, and don’t have any other young batter who has been consistent.Shanto could be the lynchpin of Bangladesh’s batting for the next ten years. Hope the BCB realises that and lets him do his job.

“I want to play all the formats and succeed in all the formats… if I want to do that, then this is the challenge I have to go through,” Shubman Gill says about being an all-format player and leader

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Oct-20253:13

Gill outlines the challenges of being an all-format player

Test captain, T20I vice-captain, and now ODI captain as well. Shubman Gill isn’t just one of a vanishing breed of all-format international players but also one holding leadership roles in each of them. He is aware of the toll this can take on him, especially mentally, but he is prepared to take on that challenge in order to achieve his own goals in all three formats.”Physically, most of the time, I feel fine, but sometimes, yes, there is mental fatigue, because when you are constantly playing, there is obviously a certain expectation that I have from myself, and to be able to keep up with my own expectations sometimes becomes the challenge,” Gill said on the eve of the second Test against West Indies in Delhi, in his first press conference since being appointed India’s ODI captain.”But I think that’s the challenge, to be able to play all the formats for India, and I want to play all the formats and succeed in all the formats for the country, and win ICC titles. So, if I want to do that, then this is the challenge I have to go through.”Related

India trying to ready Reddy for greater challenges

Can Rahul close gap between his stats and his ceiling?

Gill inherits the wealth of India's Rohit-Kohli era

Gill replaced Rohit Sharma as ODI captain, and will captain two former full-time captains in Rohit and Virat Kohli when India play three ODIs in Australia later this month. With both Rohit and Kohli in their mid-30s and retired from both the other formats, a certain amount of doubt surrounds their future as ODI players with the next World Cup in that format two years away.”Absolutely,” Gill said, when asked if he saw Rohit and Kohli playing an important role in ODIs leading into that World Cup. “The experience the two of them have [is immense], and there are very few players who can match the number of matches they have won for India.”There are very few players in the world with such skill and quality along with that experience, and we look at it from that perspective.”Gill becoming ODI captain capped a five-month period over which he has become the face of Indian cricket, with his appointment as Test captain in May followed by a Test tour of England in which he scored 754 runs – the second-most by any India batter in a bilateral series – at an average of 75.40. While Gill acknowledged how “exciting” these months had been, he said he wanted to put past achievements behind him and keep looking ahead.”[The ODI captaincy] is obviously is a big responsibility and an even bigger honour, so I’m very excited to lead my country in that format, and yes, the last few months have been very exciting for me, but I’m really looking forward to what the future has,” he said. “I want to stay [in the] present as [much as] possible and don’t really want to look back on what I’ve been able to achieve or what we, as a team, have been able to achieve. Just want to look forward and win everything that we have in the upcoming months.””The challenge is to stay on top for five days in a Test match, and that is more difficult than captaining in a T20 game”•Associated PressWhen asked what qualities he had inherited, or would like to inherit from his predecessor Rohit, Gill picked two. “So many qualities that I have inherited from Rohit – the calmness that he possesses, and the kind of friendship that he has among the group is something that I aspire to, these are the qualities that I want to take from him.Asked to compare the task of leading teams in red- and white-ball cricket, Gill felt Test cricket presents captains the stiffest challenge. He was perhaps reflecting on missed opportunities in his first series in charge, in England, where India drew 2-2 when they could have potentially won the five-Test series had they not let momentum slip away from them in a handful of sessions.”I feel in Test matches, the better team [in that match] does come on top at the end of the day because you’ve got more chances and more opportunities to make a comeback,” Gill said. “Whereas in T20, if you have three-four overs of bad period, there might be a case that you are completely taken away from the game. So, it is different in that sense.”When you are playing a Test match, whenever a team wins a Test match, for that particular match, that team deserves to win the Test match because they played better cricket not for two-three hours or not for one day, but consistently over a period of three, four or five days.”So the challenge is to stay on top for five days in a Test match, and that is more difficult than captaining in a T20 game. Whereas, in a T20 game, you get off to a really good start and then you maintain that, then you are sort of able to be on top of the game for the entirety of the game, but in a Test match, you can be on top for two days, but if you don’t turn up on day three, the other team can make a comeback.”0:49

Chopra: ‘Sai Sudharsan needs runs or the pressure will mount’

Gill on Sai Sudharsan: ‘We think he’s the man for us’Leading into the Delhi Test, there has been a lot of media scrutiny on B Sai Sudharsan, Gill’s opening partner at Gujarat Titans in the IPL, who is under a certain amount of external pressure with an average in the early 20s across his first four Tests, and with a number of other middle-order batters knocking on the door. Gill suggested Sai Sudharsan’s numbers were a little misleading, and said he continues to enjoy the full backing of the team management.”I don’t really think he’s had a lean run,” Gill said. “He got one innings in the first match [in Ahmedabad]. At The Oval, he played a crucial innings of 40 runs [38] on that wicket where the ball was seaming. The match before that, he scored a fifty [61] in Manchester. Not every match everyone is going to score a hundred.”You have to give young players more opportunities. They are still trying to figure out their game. And we believe that you have to first see someone’s potential and then see their game in the entirety, not just judge someone from one, two, three, four matches. Once you have given someone enough matches – six, seven, eight matches – then you can sit back and have a think over it, where he needs to learn, or if he needs to play some more domestic matches or play some more India A games.”But as of now, we think he’s the man for us and he’s someone that can play for India at No. 3 for a very long time.”

Antony has publicly apologised to Real Betis fans after being sent off towards the end of the weekend's La Liga draw against Girona. The former Manchester United winger accidentally struck an opponent in the face with his boot while trying to keep the ball alive with an overhead kick in the Girona penalty area. It’s one of the rare blots on his record since moving to the Andalucian club, initially on loan, last January.

Antony sees red after VAR check

At first, Antony was only shown a yellow card for the incident that saw his foot catch Girona defender Joel Roca. The Brazilian was guilty of a perhaps unnecessarily audacious attempt to put a bouncing ball back into the danger area as Real Betis pushed for a stoppage-time winner. But instead of recycling the chance for his team, Antony was too late to the ball after Roca headed it away first. The momentum of his swinging boot then struck the defender flush in the face and left him writhing on the floor in agony.

The incident was flagged by VAR and, having consulted the pitch-side monitor, on-field referee Iosu Galech Apezteguia decided to upgrade the original yellow card to a straight red.

Advertisement(C)Getty ImagesAntony 'sorry' over dismissal

Taking to social media in the wake of the game, Antony offered his sincere apology to Betis fans.

"Very sad about the red card. All I wanted was to help my team win," he said, hoping to justify what was clearly careless mistake, rather than a deliberate attempt to injure an opponent. "A completely unintentional move … sorry to all the fans that have always supported me."

Antony has 'matured significantly'

Real Betis coach Manuel Pellegrini has seen considerable growth in Antony – who rebuffed Bayern Munich in the summer in order to return to Los Verdiblancos – since he first rocked up on loan from Manchester United last January. His form in the second half of last season was enough for Betis to rejig their finances to facilitate a permanent transfer and Pellegrini remarked in September how pleased he is with the results.

"He's matured significantly, he's working really hard in games, with and without the ball, with 40-metre runs, changes up front, getting into the box, working on recovering," the ex-Manchester City and West Ham boss said at the time. "And that's what has helped him to make up for some of that lack of precision.

"I spoke with him before he came to Betis. He told me that he was not playing because he was not happy, but he had a lot of complaints about what he has done also. He wanted revenge, and here in Betis, I think he had it, and he did it in the way we know he can do, because it's not easy for you to play as a 100 million player. And Antony is a very good player. I am absolutely sure that this is a huge time for him here in Betis to help improve his career."

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Getty Images SportAntony suspension a blow for Real Betis

The Girona result was a missed opportunity for fifth-place Real Betis, with two dropped points against a team in the relegation zone to see the gap between them and La Liga's top four grow. In pursuit of Champions League qualification for the first time since competing in the 2005-06 group stage, the distance to Atletico Madrid in fourth is now a sizeable seven points.

But while the red card won't affect Antony's availability for this week's Europa League encounter with Dutch side Utrecht, which is a must-win game for ninth-place Betis against one of the competition's weaker teams to boost chances of a top-eight finish and automatic passage into the round of 16, he will have to serve a domestic ban.

The standard suspension for a straight red card in La Liga starts at just one game, but can be extended to three depending on the severity of the incident. It rules Antony out of at least the huge city derby on Sunday against Sevilla, who are struggling in mid-table but are expected to throw the form book out of the window.

India had slumped to 203 for 7 while batting before Richa Ghosh’s unbeaten cameo lifted them to 247

Shashank Kishore05-Oct-2025

Deepti Sharma picked 3 for 45 to derail Pakistan’s chase•Getty Images

Harmanpreet Kaur was “very happy” with India notching up their second straight win at the 2025 ODI women’s World Cup. But Sunday’s 88-run win over Pakistan in Colombo, one that she described as an “important game for all of us”, wasn’t without its fair share of flutters.Like in their opening game against Sri Lanka, India’s lower-order rescued them to set up a total they managed to defend courtesy of their spinners. For much of their batting innings, India struggled for momentum. They slumped to 203 for 7 at one point, and were in danger of being bowled out until Richa Ghosh’s unbeaten 35 off 20 lifted them to 247.”To be honest, it wasn’t an easy pitch to bat,” Harmanpreet said. “We just wanted to bat longer and see how many runs we can get. When we played here in the tri-series [in May], the pitches were different. But with the rain over the last two days, there was a bit of a hold on the pitch. The key was to keep wickets in the end so that we could execute.”Related

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That’s exactly what Ghosh did to give India the end-overs momentum. The other key contributor was fast bowler Kranti Goud, who made the early breakthroughs before Deepti Sharma and Sneh Rana got among the wickets with Pakistan batters miscuing big hits in succession with the asking rate mounting.Goud, 22, was named Player of the Match for her 3 for 20, which included the wickets of Sadaf Shamas and Aliya Riyaz inside the first ten overs to set Pakistan back.For Goud, it was a return to where it all began for her in May this year when she was handed her ODI debut during the tri-series, on the back of a sensational showing in last year’s domestic one-day final, where she picked up four wickets in four balls, including that of Ghosh to help MP clinch the title.Goud bowled with pace, got the new ball to dart around and in general troubled batters with her zip off the pitch. “Kranti bowled really well,” Harmanpreet acknowledged. “Renuka [Singh] was helping her from the other end, to get breakthroughs for us.”Kranti Goud was named player of the match for her 3 for 20•Associated Press

India let themselves down on the field, dropping four catches, including three off Sidra Amin, the top-scorer of Pakistan’s innings. Their ground fielding, too, was patchy, a concern that is slowly beginning to creep up on them.”We let ourselves down on the field, we got so many chances which we unfortunately dropped, but in the end, when you win, you feel happy.”India now play their next two games – against South Africa (October 9) and Australia (October 12) – in Visakhapatnam. For now, Harmanpreet wants the team to soak in the winning feeling and reflect on a job well done before they refocus.”There are a lot of areas to work on but right now I’m happy that we won this game,” Harmanpreet said. “We just want to go with that momentum. We go back to India now, where we know how the pitches will play. Let’s see what is the best combination that we can come up with and how we can improve day by day.”

Head coach admits team remains a work in progress as attention turns to T20 World Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Oct-2025

Charlotte Edwards speaks to the media after England’s semi-final exit•ICC via Getty Images

Charlotte Edwards, England’s head coach, says that her team’s flawed World Cup campaign has made her all the more hungry to instigate the necessary changes, after stating it is “time to look to the future” following a crushing semi-final defeat to South Africa in Guwahati.Speaking to Sky Sports, just moments after England’s 125-run defeat, Edwards acknowledged the brilliance of South Africa’s matchwinners – Laura Wolvaardt, who was Player of the Match for her 169 from 143 balls, and Marizanne Kapp, whose five-wicket haul included a first-over double-wicket maiden to wreck England’s hopes of achieving a 320 target.However, having stated before the tournament that a semi-final berth was the bare minimum that should be expected of her squad, Edwards did not shy away from the underlying fragility of England’s campaign. Despite qualifying in second place with five wins out of seven in the group stages, their performances against Bangladesh and Pakistan had already exposed the weaknesses in their batting, before the tournament favourites Australia maintained the stranglehold of last winter’s Ashes whitewash with an emphatic six-wicket win in Indore.Edwards took over from her predecessor Jon Lewis back in April, but held back from wholesale changes to her squad for this winter, instead focusing on improvements within the existing set-up. These were arguably on display at times during the campaign just gone, not least in a gritty performance to beat the tournament hosts, and fellow semi-finalists, India by four runs in their group-stage clash in Indore.However, with the World Cup marking the end of this four-year ODI cycle, and with a home T20 World Cup looming next summer, Edwards accepts that it’s time to step up the squad’s overhaul, starting with a series of training camps from December to March, at which the next generation will be given a chance to prove its readiness.”I’m a winner,” Edwards said. “I don’t like losing. When I came into this role, I knew it wasn’t going to change overnight. I’ve seen some really positive things to come out of this trip. I think we’ve performed a little bit better under pressure, but certain moments we haven’t seized, and that’s going to be an ongoing thing.”Overall, we are making progress, and that’s the most important thing. But ultimately, you’re defined on your results. And today we’re going out of a World Cup in the semi-final stage, where we were all hopeful we could really make that final.””I knew it wasn’t going to be a quick fix. We’ve got some areas we need to work on, but that probably makes me more hungry now to go back home and work with these players over over the winter period.”A number of England’s players are due to head to Australia for next month’s WBBL. Thereafter, however, Edwards has earmarked a series of training camps, in Oman and South Africa, at which the players will be pitted against one another in an arrangement similar to the North versus South fixtures that Andrew Strauss, England’s former men’s director of cricket, began in 2018.Nat Sciver-Brunt after the defeat in the semi-final•ICC via Getty Images

“We’ve got a new cycle now of ODI cricket, haven’t we, but first and foremost it’s the T20 World Cup,” Edwards said. “There’ll be a group of players that will be training from December through til March. We’re going to spend time with these players and hopefully upskill them, and hopefully they can deal with these occasions better.”That’s exciting for me. As an international coach, it’s rare to get time with players to actually advance their games. We’ve got an opportunity this winter to hopefully do that with some of our younger players. and I’m looking forward to getting that underway in December.”Edwards namechecked the likes of Freya Kemp and Dani Gibson, who missed this tournament through injury, while other names who will come into consideration for future campaigns include the likes of Tilly Corteen-Coleman and Davina Perrin, the breakout star of this year’s Women’s Hundred.”We’ve targeted 13 to 15 players who we’re going to work really, really hard with,” she said. “[This tournament] was too early. The players that had got this far, we wanted to stick with them, but it’s exciting now. We’ve got a new group of players coming through. We’ll go home and reassess. We won’t make too many rash decisions, but we’ve got to look at the future now. And we’ve got some unbelievable talent coming through.”England’s defeat to South Africa was especially painful given that they had beaten the same opponents at the same venue in their tournament opener, after bowling them out for 69. This time, however, the match was played on a bouncier red-soil surface that was more conducive to the seamers, most notably Kapp with her match-sealing figures of 5 for 20.Asked whether there had been any temptation to tinker with the spin-heavy line-up that had brought them this far, Edwards replied: “Hindsight is a wonderful thing. We’ve stuck with that combination. It’s done us really well throughout the [competition].”England had seemed competitive, having reduced South Africa to 202 for 6 going into the final ten overs of their innings. But then Wolvaardt cut loose, adding 119 runs in partnership with Chloe Tryon, before Nadine de Klerk helped add the finishing touches.”At times, we just didn’t hit our straps today, certainly that back 10 really cost us,” Edwards said. “If we’d have kept them to 280, which probably was a par score, we may have been able to chase that down, but, yeah, it wasn’t to be.”It’s going to be a sad dressing-room,” she added. “I don’t think I’ll say too much tonight. I don’t think there’s anything you can say tonight that’s going to make things better. As we all know, life moves on very quickly. These girls will be off to Australia soon. But yeah, I’m hurting too.”

Neymar has revealed why he was "sad and very upset" despite his goalscoring display in Santos' crucial 3-1 win over Sport Recife. The build-up to the game had been dominated by whether or not the 33-year-old would play amid an issue with his knee. The former Barcelona star bagged a goal and an assist but after the match, he took a swipe at the media.

• Neymar to the rescue for Santos

  Despite a knee issue keeping him out of Santos' 1-1 draw with Internacional earlier this week, Neymar played through the pain in his side's vital victory on Friday night. The former Paris Saint-Germain ace, who has reportedly been advised to undergo an arthroscopy in order to repair a tear in the meniscus region of his left knee, received a standing ovation from his home fans as the Brazilian giants earned an important three points. The result took them up to 15th in the table, giving them a two-point cushion above the relegation zone, although 17th-placed Vitoria and 18th-positioned Fortaleza have a game in hand. While many celebrated the victory, Neymar was not best pleased.

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  'It was a joint decision'

  The former Al-Hilal man appeared to take aim at how his injury has been reported in the press. The forward made it clear that he made the decision to play for Santos after being advised by the club's doctors, rather than defying them. 

  "To be honest, it's not okay! People need to know that doctors and I know. These are the people who have to know what happened to make the right decisions. We will never harm my career, we will try to do the best for me. That's what I have to say. People invent many things. I'm sad! Very upset," he said in an interview with Sportv. "I am a human being and no being deserves to listen to the nonsense I heard. You, who report things, have to be very careful. It is very harmful to the mind of a player, who is a human being. I'm happy for today's game. For the goal, for Santos' victory. Seek the three points. About these decisions (to play or not), they are internal. I didn't go over the doctors, it was a joint decision. I was the one who had to take it."

• Neymar optimistic about his injury

  Neymar, who has had an injury-hit second stint at boyhood team Santos, was optimistic about his conditioning going into the final games of the season. It did not seem like he would sit out the rest of the campaign, with the veteran very much determined to keep Santos in the Brazilian top-flight. 

  He added: "Physically I've been doing well, I'm feeling better and better, obviously with this injury now it's sad, it's annoying, but it's nothing that will stop me from doing something, that's why I keep playing. Now it's time to think about Santos and where Santos deserves to be, which is Serie A, and then we'll see what they do. We have been facing a very big difficulty in the fight against relegation, obviously we didn't want that, but now we depend on us. Obviously we know that goal difference is important, that's why I was always demanding the team to try to score goals, respecting the Sport team, but we really wanted this victory, we wanted a bigger balance, because we know that in the end it will be important. Now we have to keep going from here for the better."

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  What comes next for Neymar's Santos?

  Santos' final two games of the Brasileiro Serie A season involve a trip to 19th-placed Juventude, who are set to be relegated, on Wednesday, before hosting third-placed Cruzeiro four days later. 

  When asked if he would be on the field in Santos' next match, Neymar replied: "Absolutely."

  Indeed, Santos manager Juan Pablo previously said on the Brazilian icon: "He's a player we need for all three rounds, and he'll help us. He's our leader on the field. He'll be there."