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The International Cricket Council (ICC) has appointed Sanjog Gupta, a senior figure in Indian sports broadcasting, as its new Chief Executive Officer. Gupta steps into the role vacated by Geoff Allardice, who stepped down in January after a four-year tenure.

Previously serving as CEO of Sports and Live Experiences at JioStar – one of India’s primary cricket broadcasters – Gupta brings with him a wealth of experience in media strategy and sports commercialisation.

ICC Chairman Jay Shah welcomed the appointment, noting: “Sanjog brings a deep understanding of sports strategy and commercial growth, which will prove vital to the ICC’s ambitions.”

The global search for the position reportedly attracted over 2,500 applications from across 25 countries, underlining the growing prestige of the role.

In a statement, Gupta highlighted the sport’s evolving landscape and the momentum it is currently enjoying. He also referenced the sport’s upcoming Olympic debut. “Cricket’s inclusion in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, alongside rapid advances in technology and its adoption, presents powerful opportunities to amplify the global cricket movement.”

Gupta becomes the ICC’s seventh chief executive and takes over at a pivotal moment as the governing body looks to capitalise on the game’s increasing international reach and commercial potential.

The Liverpool player is believed to have been driving at high speed when he and his brother Andre Silva died last week, according to Spanish police.

Liverpool and Portugal star Diogo Jota was likely speeding when his car veered off a motorway in Spain last week, killing him and his brother, Spanish police said.

The shock deaths of Jota, 28, and Andre Silva, 25, on July 3 plunged the football world into mourning, less than two weeks after the striker had gotten married.

An ongoing investigation is examining “the marks left by one of the vehicle’s wheels … everything points to a possible excessive speed beyond the road’s speed limit”, the Civil Guard said on Tuesday.

“All the tests conducted so far indicate that the driver of the vehicle was Diogo Jota,” it added.

The force had previously said a tyre had probably blown out while the vehicle was overtaking, causing it to crash and burst into flames in the northwestern province of Zamora.

Just hours before the accident, Jota had posted a video of his June 22 wedding to partner Rute Cardoso, with whom he had three children.

The deaths sparked an outpouring of grief, particularly in the brothers’ native Portugal and at Jota’s Premier League club Liverpool.

Political leaders as well as star players from Portugal and Liverpool joined family and friends at the funeral on Saturday in the Porto suburb of Gondomar.

Following spells at Atletico Madrid, Porto and Wolverhampton Wanderers, Jota became a fan favourite at Liverpool after joining the Premier League giants in 2020.

He netted 65 times for the Reds in five seasons, lifting the League Cup and FA Cup in 2021-22 and helping them win a record-equalling 20th English league title last season.

The striker also earned 49 caps for Portugal and was part of the team that won this year’s UEFA Nations League.

Younger brother Andre played in midfield for FC Penafiel in Portugal’s second tier.

The second day of the tournament served up a series of engaging contests, with 39 tries scored over the course of the four matches – and 14 of those coming in the Western Cape derby.

Valke wing Dihan Crause scored a brace in the first fixture of the day, as the East Randers fought back from an early deficit to go to half-time with a 19-12 lead. The Leopards had the final say, though, with No 8 Tiaan Koen crashing over the tryline in the 69^th minute to secure a valuable 29-29 draw for his side.

The game between Border and Suzuki Griquas was in the balance, before the boys from the Eastern Cape raced clear after the break. Griquas’ discipline cost them in the second stanza, and Border took full advantage, scoring six tries in all.

Eastern Province went toe to toe with the Sharks in a fiercely contested first half, but struggled to live with the KwaZulu-Natalians in the latter stages of the game.

Sharks fullback Zekhethelo Siyaya – who represented SA Schools in 2024 – scored a long-range try after half-time, and finished with a tally of 10 points, while replacement back Nathan Aneke grabbed a brace to boost his side to an emphatic 41-10 win.

In the final match of the day, WP – who finished last year’s tournament unbeaten – got their campaign off to an explosive start when they thrashed Boland 80-18 in the Western Cape derby.

No 8 Quintin Potgieter scored a hat-trick for Province, while flyhalf Ethan van Biljon contributed 15 points to the cause.

The FNB U18 Craven Week will continue at Hoërskool Middelburg on Wednesday, with the Limpopo Blue Bulls taking on the Griffons in the first fixture. The Obaro Golden Lions and South Western Districts, who claimed impressive wins against the Blue Bulls and Free State respectively on day one, will meet in the final clash of the day.

FNB U18 Craven Week day two results (Tuesday, 8 July):
Leopards 29 (12) v Valke 29 (19)
Border 36 (17) v Suzuki Griquas 17 (10)
Sharks High Schools 41 (13) Eastern Province 10 (3)
DHL Western Province 80 (40) Sanlam Boland 18 (6)

FNB U18 Craven Week day three fixtures results (Wednesday, 9 July):
10h00: Limpopo Blue Bulls v Griffons
11h30: DHL Western Province XV v Hollywood Foundation Pumas
13h00: Free State v Blue Bulls
14h30: Obaro Golden Lions v SWD

The Leopards and Valke drew in the opening game on day two.

Border were too strong for Griquas.

The Sharks ran riot against EP.