Category: 6. Sports

NEW DELHI: Rishabh Pant’s ultra-aggressive style has often drawn both admiration and criticism, and on Day 1 of the second Test at Edgbaston, it backfired spectacularly. India were beginning to settle into a strong position, but Pant, who had just started looking comfortable, threw away his wicket in a moment of misjudged bravado.The dismissal came in the 48th over of India’s innings, a moment that swung momentum England’s way. Shoaib Bashir, the young off-spinner, was in the middle of a tidy spell when he floated one up invitingly at 74kph.

Pant, sensing an opportunity to put pressure back on the bowler, went for a big hit over long-on. But the delivery was a touch fuller and slower than expected. Pant didn’t get under it properly, and the ball went flat and hard straight to Zak Crawley at long-on. The dismissal left Shubman Gill visibly frustrated at the non-striker’s end as India lost their fourth wicket against the run of play.Pant’s shot selection suggested he was lured into a trap meticulously set up by Ben Stokes and Bashir — a flighted bait that the flamboyant left-hander couldn’t resist. Given the rhythm Pant was in and his recent form, the shot was all the more disappointing.Pant had been in exceptional touch leading into the second Test. He was the standout performer in the series opener at Headingley, becoming only the second wicketkeeper in Test history to score centuries in both innings of a match. That performance not only solidified his role as India’s most dangerous counter-attacker but also propelled him to sixth in the ICC Test batting rankings — a new personal high with 801 rating points.Pant now sits just behind the likes of Joe Root and Harry Brook, trailing the top spot by only 88 points. It’s a return to familiar heights for the 26-year-old, who had previously reached the fifth spot in 2022.Elsewhere in the rankings, Yashasvi Jaiswal retained his No. 4 position, while Shubman Gill dropped to 21st. Among bowlers, Jasprit Bumrah continued to dominate the charts with 907 points, ahead of Rabada and Cummins. Ravindra Jadeja remained the No.1 all-rounder despite a quiet match.Pant’s dismissal at Edgbaston, however, was a reminder that brilliance needs balance — something he’ll look to restore in the remaining matches of the series.

The McLaren Formula 1 Team and Official Primary Partner Google Chrome today revealed a special livery enhancement to run on both McLaren Formula 1 Team race cars at the 2025 British GP. 

Unveiled in front of a live audience of fans at the team’s McLaren Racing Live: London event, held at Trafalgar Square and aimed at bringing the team in papaya closer to its fans ahead of its home race, the livery is inspired by Legacy at Speed, connecting fans to the team at pace.

The livery celebrates McLaren’s history of speed on the track and Google Chrome’s speed on the web. With Chrome, fans can get instant access to the team’s racing story, culture and iconic moments, through a new take on the team’s iconic and fan-favourite chrome design from recent seasons. 

As well as the live reveal moment, the launch of the livery was supported across social and digital channels, showcasing the team’s storied history through the lens of Google Chrome.

How to watch Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone at the Prefontaine Classic 2025

McLaughlin-Levrone is scheduled to run in the women’s 400m at 1:51 pm (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-7) on Saturday, 5 July at Hayward Field.

The race will notably be a non-Diamond League event.

The main action will be streamed in a number of territories on the Wanda Diamond League YouTube page.

BBC iPlayer and Red Button have the rights in the UK, while for viewers in the U.S., it will be on USATF.tv (first three hours) and NBC and Peacock (last two hours).

SuperSport is the rights holder for the 2025 Diamond League in most of Africa. Find your local broadcaster here.

Find a complete schedule of the event here.

Elliot Daly will have an X-ray after injuring his forearm in the second half of the British and Irish Lions’ win over the Queensland Reds.

The versatile 32-year-old made his first Test start at full-back in four years in England’s win over Italy in March, but had stolen a march on rivals for the 15 shirt – Hugo Keenan, Blair Kinghorn and Marcus Smith – with his good form on tour.

Daly was brought into the starting XV to face the Reds at short notice after Keenan, who was initially named as a starter after overcoming a calf strain, suffered a bout of illness.

“We’ll see,” said Lions head coach Andy Farrell of the outlook for Daly with the first Test three and a half weeks away.

“He has a bang on the forearm and is going for an X-ray this evening, so we all have our fingers crossed for him.”

Daly has started both tour games in Australia at full-back and filled the role off the bench just before the hour in their defeat by Argentina in Dublin.

Keenan and Kinghorn, who played for his French side Toulouse in last weekend’s Top 14 final, are still to take the field for the Lions.

However, Farrell says he is not concerned despite only having three more warm-up matches before the Lions return to Brisbane to face the Wallabies in their 19 July series opener.

“We have loads of full-backs,” he said.

“Hugo will be OK tomorrow, or the next day, and Blair is ready to go.”

Smith, more usually a fly-half, has also been deployed at full-back this season for England, with his versatility flagged by Farrell as a key to his selection for the squad.