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‘Home of cricket’ faces new challenges

‘Home of cricket’ faces new challenges
Above, Australia play against South Africa on day four of their ICC World Test Championship cricket final match at Lord’s cricket ground, in London, on June 14, 2025. (AFP)
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Updated 26 June 2025

‘Home of cricket’ faces new challenges

‘Home of cricket’ faces new challenges
  • Lord’s symbolizes the sport’s rich heritage, but has also moved with the times

During the World Test Championship final at Lord’s, a previously unthinkable discussion opened up among friends from a variety of backgrounds: Does Lord’s still justify its cachet as the home of cricket? The very question will be regarded as heresy in many quarters, but the heavy thought hung in the air.

At a meeting of the International Cricket Council’s executives committee in April 2025, the Board of Control for Cricket in India expressed its desire to host future WTC finals.

India’s motivations are clear. Hosting the event would cement its position as the powerhouse of international cricket. The BCCI argues that viewership and commercial revenue would be boosted, along with tourism. However, these would be jeopardized if India failed to reach the final. Attendances for matches in India which do not involve the Indian team are notably low. If the final continues to be scheduled for June, there is also the issue of the monsoon season. In order to hold it in another month, the existing crowded international and domestic schedules would have to be disrupted. It is probably too late to change the dates of the current two-year cycle and maybe for the two which follow.

In response to this challenge, the England and Wales Cricket Board and the Marylebone Cricket Club launched a charm offensive before and during the WTC final.

In January, the MCC invited the ICC’s Chair Jay Shah to join a new advisory board of its World Cricket Connects initiative. Launched in 2024 at Lord’s, the initiative gathers together over 100 people, including administrators, former and current players, coaches, players’ association leaders, media and broadcasting personnel.

The advisory board, comprising 13 members, has replaced the MCC’s World Cricket Committee. After its inaugural meeting at Lord’s, it will meet virtually throughout the year. How much Mr. Shah’s busy schedule allows him to participate remains to be seen.

He was very much in evidence at Lord’s, where he was feted by the ECB’s leaders. Together with the MCC, they ensured that the full pomp and circumstance associated with a Lord’s Test match was brought to bear. This included an invitation to ring the bell prior to the start of the match. As mentioned last week, rumors now abound that Shah was sufficiently impressed to the point where he will recommend to the ICC’s Annual Conference in July that Lord’s should host the next three WTC finals. If this motion passes, it will burnish the claim of Lord’s to be the home of cricket. It will also be a test of Shah’s omnipotence since the BCCI is likely to be disappointed.

His power and presence were encapsulated in the ICC’s 45-second video of the match highlights released after the final. This has not gone down well on social media. Fans expressed their disappointment by trolling both the ICC and Shah, who features in 11 of the 23 frames. A common reaction is that the video is a PR piece for Shah, to the exclusion of key players and moments. Other reactions have been even more uncomplimentary. There has also been adverse reaction to reports that he did not attend the World Cricket Connects forum, an event he also missed last year.

Topics for discussion this year included fan engagement, franchise cricket, growth in women’s cricket, sustainability issues, social impact and shortage of willow. All of these are topical issues for the game. Gathering together “the most influential voices in the sport” alongside a major match is perhaps something that only the MCC and Lord’s can achieve. An interesting aspect of this was that the heads of the main franchise leagues met together in person for the first time. One hopes that they talked about scheduling clashes.

This is a matter which should vex Shah and the ICC. His voice is indisputably influential. The World Cricket Connects forum and its advisory board have no power. Its purpose is to make recommendations to the ICC, which is under no obligation to address them. Inviting Shah to join the advisory board — and his acceptance of the invitation — looks a little odd. Should he be part of a board which will present recommendations to the governing body of which he is the chair? Perhaps his non-attendance reflects an acceptance of this duality and potential conflict of interests. Either way, neither party appears to have made a public statement.

If Lord’s does retain the honor of hosting the WTC final, the ECB and MCC’s overtures will have been successful. It is relevant to wonder what quid pro quo may be in the offing. Perhaps the imminent influx of Indian shareholding of The Hundred franchises, including the one held by the MCC at Lord’s, is playing a part in the decision-making.

The MCC retains a privileged position within cricket. It has been the maker of the laws of cricket since its formation in 1787. Although it maintains this position, law changes will only be made after discussion with the ICC. Until 2005, Lord’s was the home of the ICC, when it moved to Dubai. Both of these pillars underpinned Lord’s as the home of cricket.

Despite the partial removal of the pillars, players say that it remains an ambition to score 100 or take five wickets at Lord’s, for which the reward is to have their name etched on the honors board. There are famous players who have not achieved this feat. Sachin Tendulkar is one of them, along with Sunil Gavaskar, Ricky Ponting and Jacques Kallis. On their way to the field of play, each player walks through the Long Room, lined with MCC members, oil paintings and other cricketing artifacts, representing over 200 years of ritual, legacy, shaping and preservation of the game.

The ground symbolizes cricket’s rich heritage and tradition. It has moved with the times, choosing more modern structures to sit alongside the pavilion of late 19th-century vintage. These may not be to everyone’s liking, but spectator viewing has improved along with ground capacity. Unique among Test match venues in England, spectators are allowed to bring alcohol into the ground, but no fancy dressing-up is allowed, or musical instruments.

There is no other cricket ground quite like it. Sydney has a number of similar characteristics and a rich history; the Melbourne Cricket Ground has three times the capacity of Lord’s; the newly built stadium in Ahmedabad has four times more; Eden Gardens, Kolkata, is much noisier; and Newlands at Cape Town sits iconically in the shadow of Table Mountain. Cricket’s governing body now resides in Dubai, UAE, which has become the place to go for countries that require a neutral venue or an emergency outlet.

Compared with these and other venues, Lord’s continues to hold sway over them. MCC membership and ethos is idiosyncratic. The ground and its architecture reek of history and tradition. There are no crumbling facades, and plans for redevelopment of stands are constantly under consideration. The sloping playing area provides another unique characteristic and an additional test of a player’s skill set.

London’s multicultural population means that big matches that do not involve England are able to attract sizable crowds, unlike arenas in other countries.

Lord’s has evolved and endured, while maintaining its essence, grace, dignity, prestige and tradition. These characteristics and its place in shaping the game combine to support its accolade as the home of cricket.

In concluding the discussion with my friends, they were of the view that Lord’s still holds its status. They, along with many others, hope that the uniqueness of Lord’s is strong enough to ward off the competition from India for future WTC finals.


Ten Hag’s Leverkusen collapse to draw at 10-man Bremen

Ten Hag’s Leverkusen collapse to draw at 10-man Bremen
Updated 6 sec ago

Ten Hag’s Leverkusen collapse to draw at 10-man Bremen

Ten Hag’s Leverkusen collapse to draw at 10-man Bremen
Leverkusen let Bremen back into the match when goalkeeper Mark Flekken advanced out of his area and misjudged a long ball
Coulibaly, 18, is Bremen’s youngest ever goalscorer in the Bundesliga

BERLIN: Bayer Leverkusen let a two-goal lead slip to draw 3-3 at 10-man Werder Bremen on Saturday, denying new coach Erik ten Hag his first league win in charge.

Leverkusen were 3-1 ahead and a man up after Patrik Schick’s Panenka penalty midway through the second-half, with Bremen’s Niklas Stark shown a second yellow card for the foul which led to the spot-kick.

But Leverkusen let Bremen back into the match when goalkeeper Mark Flekken advanced out of his area and misjudged a long ball, allowing Isaac Schmidt the easiest of finishes.

Bremen continued to attack and snatched a point in the fourth minute of stoppage time, Karim Coulibaly volleying in after the ball bounced off the crossbar.

Coulibaly, 18, is Bremen’s youngest ever goalscorer in the Bundesliga.

Leverkusen were also 2-0 up in the first half after Schick scored a fifth-minute opener and debutant Malik Tillman added another on the 35th-minute mark.

Bremen won a controversial penalty, converted by Romano Schmidt on the stroke of half-time, before the second-half drama.

The result puts some early pressure on Ten Hag who is trying to weave together a team full of new recruits, while reviving his own reputation after a poor end to his Manchester United stint.

“There were too many simple mistakes from us... we did dumb things and gave the game away,” Tillman told DAZN.

Despite the disappointment, the draw kept Leverkusen’s remarkable away run alive, with the club unbeaten on the road in the league since May 2023.

“(It is) hard to accept. We have to improve very quickly. Obviously, this is not a good situation,” Schick said.

Elsewhere, new Eintracht Frankfurt winger Ritsu Doan scored a brace and added an assist as his side cruised to a 3-1 win at Hoffenheim.

Japan winger Doan, who arrived from Freiburg in the summer, netted Frankfurt’s opener on 17 minutes with a superb curling effort from well outside the box.

Doan doubled up 10 minutes later, tapping in a Jean-Matteo Bahoya pass on the break, before laying on an excellent pass for Can Uzun to score Frankfurt’s third.

Stuttgart beat Borussia Moenchengladbach 1-0 at home thanks to a late header from Chema Andres, just hours after striker Nick Woltemade’s departure to Newcastle was made official.

The German Cup holders were sluggish but grabbed the three points when Andres headed in with 79 minutes played after some poor marking by the Gladbach defense.

RB Leipzig bounced back from last week’s 6-0 drubbing at the hands of Bayern Munich, winning 2-0 at home against Heidenheim thanks to goals from Christoph Baumgartner and new striker Romulo Cardoso.

In Saturday’s late game, defending champions Bayern play at Bavarian neighbors Augsburg.

Paraguay’s World Rally Championship debut heralds ‘exciting era’ for rallying, says FIA president

Paraguay’s World Rally Championship debut heralds ‘exciting era’ for rallying, says FIA president
Updated 30 August 2025

Paraguay’s World Rally Championship debut heralds ‘exciting era’ for rallying, says FIA president

Paraguay’s World Rally Championship debut heralds ‘exciting era’ for rallying, says FIA president
  • Mohammed Ben Sulayem hails historic moment for host country, South America, and global motorsport, with ֱ next to enter world championship stage

DUBAI: Mohammed Ben Sulayem, president of the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile, said Paraguay’s debut in the FIA World Rally Championship this weekend and the season finale in ֱ point the way toward an exciting new era for rallying at the highest level.

Ben Sulayem was present at the FIA’s ceremonial opening of the inaugural FIA WRC Rally del Paraguay 2025 on Friday, along with the President of Paraguay, Santiago Pena.

Taking place in Encarnacion, in the Itapua region, the country’s maiden appearance on the WRC calendar marks a historic moment for Paraguayan motorsport, building on a united passion for racing and rich rally heritage.

With the new WRC Rally ֱ rounding off the 2025 season in November, and the process to secure a new WRC commercial rights holder under way, Ben Sulayem believes the championship will continue to grow and reach new heights. 

Speaking at the opening ceremony, the FIA president said: “This is a historic moment for Paraguay, for South America, and for global motorsport. Over the coming days the eyes of the world will be on Encarnacion, and on Paraguay. That is the power of motorsport, of collaboration, and of the FIA.

“There is no doubt Paraguay has a profound love for motorsport. Here, rallying is more than a sport. It is part of the national identity. It is a passion built on resilience, courage, and dedication.

“The FIA WRC is entering an exciting new era. With another new event to follow in ֱ, millions of fans worldwide following the action, and younger audiences driving global growth, the championship is ready to rise to the next level.

“Thank you, President Pena for your warm welcome, your generous hospitality, and your true friendship. Your leadership and support for this sport we love has made this moment possible,” he added.

“Thank you to the Touring y Automovil Club Paraguayo. Your work reflects the very values of the FIA. Thank you to the drivers, the teams, the organizer — Comite Olimpico Paraguayo, the officials, the volunteers, and to all the rally fans. Without you none of this would be possible.”

With the ceremonial opening completed, the FIA WRC Rally del Paraguay moved onto its multi-stage competition, with drivers facing a mix of smooth red-earth stages and trickier technical sections through dense vegetation.

Earlier this month the FIA, the governing body for world motorsport and the federation for mobility organizations worldwide, announced that a tender process will be run for a new commercial rights holder of the FIA WRC.

It followed an extensive period of discussions by the FIA with Red Bull and KW25, the current commercial rights holders, who have taken the decision to commence the process.

The FIA World Rally Championship has seen a surge in popularity in recent years, attracting a cumulative television audience of 1.3 billion and more than 4 million on-site visitors in 2024.


Chelsea’s Delap may be out for weeks after injury during Fulham win, Maresca says

Chelsea’s Delap may be out for weeks after injury during Fulham win, Maresca says
Updated 30 August 2025

Chelsea’s Delap may be out for weeks after injury during Fulham win, Maresca says

Chelsea’s Delap may be out for weeks after injury during Fulham win, Maresca says
  • Delap went down clutching his thigh 13 minutes into the home game
  • Three key Chelsea players have now suffered injuries this month

LONDON: Chelsea striker Liam Delap may be out for weeks after suffering a hamstring injury during Saturday’s 2-0 Premier League win over Fulham, manager Enzo Maresca said.

Delap went down clutching his thigh 13 minutes into the home game and walked straight into the tunnel after the medics had looked at it.

Three key Chelsea players have now suffered injuries this month, with attacker Cole Palmer also absent due to a groin injury and center back Levi Colwill ruled out for most of the season with a cruciate ligament tear.

“Injury doesn’t look good. He was full speed, hamstring, so that requires weeks,” Maresca told a press conference.

Maresca, who said Chelsea would look to sign another defender after Colwill’s injury, did not rule out going into the market for another striker.

“When you have two strikers, it is enough. When one of them is injured for weeks, it is probably not enough,” he said.

The manager said he could not tell if this summer’s Club World Cup campaign, which Chelsea won, played any role in the injuries.

Maresca, however, was happy to have two league wins in a row after being held to a goalless draw by Crystal Palace in their opening league game.

“I’m very happy. We have seven points, it’s important. I wasn’t happy after the first half because we didn’t play on the ball in the way we prepared. Second half, we were very good on the ball and good with second balls. We dominated the second half,” he added.


Oscar Piastri beats McLaren teammate Lando Norris to end his wait for pole at F1’s Dutch GP

Oscar Piastri beats McLaren teammate Lando Norris to end his wait for pole at F1’s Dutch GP
Updated 30 August 2025

Oscar Piastri beats McLaren teammate Lando Norris to end his wait for pole at F1’s Dutch GP

Oscar Piastri beats McLaren teammate Lando Norris to end his wait for pole at F1’s Dutch GP
  • Piastri set the pace at the start of the final part of qualifying for Sunday’s race and Norris couldn’t quite match it
  • “That was the definition of peaking at the right time,” Piastri said

ZANDVOORT, Netherlands: Oscar Piastri found new pace to beat his teammate Lando Norris by just over one-hundredth of a second and take Formula 1 pole position for the first time in three months at the Dutch Grand Prix in qualifying on Saturday.

Piastri set the pace at the start of the final part of qualifying for Sunday’s race and Norris couldn’t quite match it, ending up .012 of a second off the pace as the title battle between the two McLaren teammates intensifies.

“That was the definition of peaking at the right time,” Piastri said. “It was looking like a little bit of a tricky weekend so far.”

It was the Australian’s fifth pole position of the year but his first since the Spanish Grand Prix, six races ago.

Norris, who won last year’s Dutch Grand Prix and was fastest in all three practice sessions this week, said it was “not the end of the world” to start second, and suggested small changes in the wind could have decided the result.

Piastri leads Norris by nine points in the standings with 10 races left of the season. Norris has closed the gap in recent months with wins in three of the last four races.

Verstappen improves

Defending champion Max Verstappen is set to start third for his home race. He’s third in the standings but a 97-point gap to Piastri means his title chances are remote.

Verstappen said it was “always very special” to compete in front of his home crowd and he was pleased with the improvement after a “tricky” time in practice.

“This is a really good step forward,” he said. “I hope that we can keep that up also going into the race tomorrow.”

Hadjar’s surprising fourth

Isack Hadjar was a surprise fourth for Racing Bulls in a career-best qualifying result for the French rookie, who is considered a contender for promotion to Red Bull next season as Verstappen’s teammate.

George Russell is fifth for Mercedes, while Charles Leclerc in sixth again outqualified his Ferrari teammate Lewis Hamilton, who was seventh.

It’s going to be another difficult race for Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli after he qualified 11th. The Italian started his debut season strongly but has only been in the points in two of his last eight races.

Yuki Tsunoda was 12th in a result that doesn’t help his efforts to show he can stay on for next season at Red Bull.

Lance Stroll spun and crashed heavily into the barriers after getting two wheels on the grass. The Canadian was able to return his damaged Aston Martin to the pits but couldn’t continue and qualified last.


Besiktas reappoint former player Yalcin as manager

Besiktas reappoint former player Yalcin as manager
Updated 30 August 2025

Besiktas reappoint former player Yalcin as manager

Besiktas reappoint former player Yalcin as manager
  • The 52-year-old Turk has agreed a deal until the end of the 2026-2027 season
  • The club sacked Solskjaer on Thursday following their exit from the Conference League

ISTANBUL: Turkish Super Lig club Besiktas have appointed former leading player and manager Sergen Yalcin at their new boss, the club announced on Saturday.

The 52-year-old Turk, who will be making his second stint as the club’s manager, has agreed a deal until the end of the 2026-2027 season.

Besiktas, who have won the Turkish Super Lig title 16 times, finished fourth in the league last season.

The club sacked Norwegian Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the former Manchester United manager, on Thursday following their exit from the Conference League.

Besiktas had already been knocked out of the Europa League by Shakhtar Donetsk in the qualifying rounds and defeat by Swiss side Lausanne-Sport in the Conference League playoffs brought an end to Solskjaer’s time at the club after seven months.

During Yalcin’s first term as manager, Besiktas won a domestic double in the 2020-2021 season.