Sport

LONDON – Ben Stokes has ended Virat Kohli’s three-year reign as Wisden’s leading cricketer in the world after playing a starring role in England’s World Cup win last year.The 2020 Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack, published on Thursday, crowns the swashbuckling all-rounder as the sport’s pre-eminent player.He is the first England player to receive the honour since […]

NEW DELHI – Australian cricket star Steve Smith is hoping the Indian Premier League will be held “at some stage” as sports events around the world remain on hold because of the coronavirus.The cricket calendar has been hit hard by the deadly pandemic, including India’s lucrative and star-studded IPL Twenty20 tournament, which was due to […]

JOHANNESBURG – Proteas coach Mark Boucher on Wednesday said he was “disappointed” at the summer that the team had.South Africa lost the four-match test series against England 3-1 before drawing the ODI series and losing the T20’s.Australia were then in town for three T20s and three ODIs.Boucher’s chargers lost the T20 series 3-0 before ending […]

LONDON – Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is looking at transfer targets during the lockdown and believes Manchester United are well-placed to exploit any knock-on effects of the coronavirus suspension.With training and matches halted in a bid to curb the spread of COVID-19, the Norwegian has used some of this unexpected free time to pinpoint how best […]

MELBOURNE – When Olympic swimming champion Kyle Chalmers completed what he knew would be his final training session before the coronavirus shutdown, his overwhelming feelings were of sadness and the fear of what was to come.Fear does not come easily to the strapping 21-year-old Australian, who has endured two heart operations since winning the 100 […]

LONDON – England wicketkeeper Jos Buttler has raised more than £65,000 ($80,000) to help fight the coronavirus by auctioning off his World Cup final shirt.Buttler’s shirt, which he wore when completing the last-ball run-out that saw England beat New Zealand at Lord’s last year, was sold to raise money for specialist heart and lung centres […]

ASUNCION – A judge in Paraguay on Tuesday ordered the release of Brazilian football great Ronaldinho and his brother into house arrest at a hotel in downtown Asuncion.Judge Gustavo Amarilla told reporters that he had ordered the “continuation of house arrest in a hotel for Ronaldinho and his brother.”They were jailed almost exactly a month […]

THE HAGUE – The Dutch football federation (KNVB) said on Tuesday it was hoping the top two divisions would restart on June 19 following their suspension due to the coronavirus pandemic.The decision would keep the Dutch league in line with UEFA, which has warned teams risk exclusion from the next Champions League if their domestic […]

TORONTO – Trevor Immelman may not be putting the finishing touches on his Masters preparations this week but the former champion already has a good understanding of what to expect should the postponed tournament be contested in November.Augusta National Golf Club said on Monday that it had identified 9-15 November as possible dates for this […]

BENGALURU – Tottenham Hotspur have told their players to respect the government’s social distancing guidelines after several squad members were pictured training in a London park, the Premier League club have said.Manager Jose Mourinho was photographed at an outdoor training session at Hadley Common with midfielder Tanguy Ndombele despite government guidelines for people to stay […]