UK News
County cricket season begins: Warwickshire v Surrey, Somerset v Notts and more – live | County Championship
Key events
And mostly a batsman’s morning in Division Two:
Derbyshire 54-0 against Worcestershire; Middlesex 32-0 against Gloucestershire; Lancs 60-1 against Northants – Harry Singh a wicket to Sanderson for 18. Durham have lost both openers at Chester le Street, 68-2, a wicket each for Keith Dudgeon and Glenton Stuurman, and a catch for Zak Crawley
Scores on the doors after an hour:
Division One
Sussex scream past a hundred: 105-1 off 16 overs. Leicestershire plod on.
Somerset are wobbling, 34 for two, Tom Lammonby following Tom Kohler-Cadmore back into the pavilion. Many eyes on James Rew, currently 9 not out against the Champions.
Surrey are making slow progress against Warwickshire, Sibley 11 from 43 balls, Pope 10 from 35. Surrey 34-2.
And there’s play at the Rose Bowl at last, where Abbott has winkled out Dean Elgar or 2. Essex 11-1.
While going to get a tissue, I miss Jake Weatherall dropping Clark at third slip off Holland. A sitter, apparently. Leicestershire’s first morning in Div one is a trying one.
Tom Haines is still in here at Grace Road, short and street fighter-ready next to the willowy Tom Clark. 28 of his 32 runs have come in boundaries. A couple of big appeals from Green, but no joy.
With half an hour gone, let’s skip around the grounds:
Early wickets at: Chester le Street, Durham 28-1, England prospect Ben McKinney lbw for eight; Taunton, Somerset 11-1, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, opening, done by a pearler from Olly Stone; and Edgbaston where Jamie Smith, looking to build confidence after the Ashes, has followed Burns back into the pavilion, caught off Bamber for 9. Surrey 19-2.
And hello Tim Maitland (still in Hong Kong)!
“Hi Tanya and a belated Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and everything else we missed during the dull void that isn’t the cricket season.
”And if that sounds a bit dark and depressing, wait til I get started.
”I couldn’t help but notice an air of optimism permeating through the county championship preview material I scoured, as if the policy wonks at Lord’s have magically healed the rift between the county game and the England set-up by hauling Brendon McCullum in front of the headmaster to rake through the ashes of the calamitous Ashes series.
”Then I clicked on the 56 second clip of Ben Stokes that sits in a prominent position on the ECB homepage. It’s cobbled together from a series of answers and basically says that the County Championship is a great opportunity for players. Repeatedly.
”To those who are naturally suspicious of leopards who show up sporting stripes, it might ring a few alarm bells. Stokes’ response offers no details and, to a cynic, might suggest that while England’s MAGAesque approach to international cricket needed to sound contrite to survive the review process, no further thought has been given to how repairing the ties with the county circuit will work or what success will look like.
“After all, this is the same England leadership that, to paraphrase the great philosopher Nigel Molesworth (and to show my age by referencing St. Custards), had long given the impression that county cricket, as any fule knos, is, like preparation, detailed planning and spending the eve of an elite international sports event stone-cold sober, for weeds and gurls.
”Isn’t it great to be back?”
As the sun briefly shows its face, Haines and Hughes are really getting stuck in. Yadvinder is taken off after two torrid overs … replacement Ben Green is hit for another four but, just as things were starting to look desperate for Leicestershire, a wicket, Hughes caught just out of my eyeline at third man for 19. Sussex 57 for one.
As Sussex flay Yadvinder Singh around, good morning Mike Daniels, back in the Grace Road scorebox.
“Well, back in the Grace Road box to see whether a creaking, well-worn anachronism in need of investment can see the season through. Anyway, enough about the County Championship.
“Leicestershire will be hoping that the late withdrawal of Peter Handscomb and the earlier one of Keshav Maharaj don’t threaten the excitement and enthusiasm engendered last season. The head says that the Foxes will need all of their cunning to survive what is likely to be a tough season. A seam attack which looks a bit military medium will look to youngsters Josh Hull and Alex Green to add some pace and a point of difference, whilst the signing of Ajaz Patel could go either way between inspired and desperate.
“The batters will need to dig deep and bat long to make the team competitive and everyone is hoping that Rehan Ahmed can continue his progress after a stellar season in 2025.
“Let’s thank our lucky stars that we can take such frivolous matters (semi)seriously in these turbulent times.
“Happy New Season to one and all.”
Ali Martin
We’ve had the first wicket of the season here at Edgbaston and the replay needs the Benny Hill music over the top of it. Complete mix-up, with Burns plinking a drive past mid-off … or so he thought … and Ed Barnard sweeping up with a tumble. Burns was halfway down the pitch at this point, the throw to Kai Smith behind the stumps was not the best. But the young keeper recovered well to whip off the bails. A bit of a bonus for the Bears, Burns gone for four and Surrey 8-1.
Ali wins the first wicket of the year competition, as Rory Burns charges up the pitch for a quick single only to meet an unmoveable object in Dom Sibley. He is run out, and Surrey are 8 for 1.
Ali Martin
Greetings from Edgbaston and season’s tidings. Grey overhead but we’ve started on time, with Ed Barnard winning his first toss as Warwickshire captain, looking at his phallanx of seamers, and deciding to have a bowl. Sets the day up nicely, Chris Woakes to take the new ball against a Test-capped Surrey top six: Dom Sibley, Rory Burns, Jamie Smith (hello…), Ollie Pope, Dan Lawrence and Ben Foakes. In other news, the ground this summer looks like a ring doughnut after the first bite: a big chunk missing and a crane towering where it was, as work continues on the new hotel.
..the ball was dabbed away by Hughes and we’re off. Round the grounds, no wickets have yet fallen.
A smattering/ripple/slurp of applause as the players take the field. Tom Haines and Daniel Hughes in the middle. A windswept Ian Holland with the ball, the umpire in gloves. Here we go…
Ali Martin spoke to Shoaib Bashir. I really hope he finds the pastures welcoming at Derby – must have been a topsy-turvy few years.
and pre-season bits and bobs:
Starts delayed
At Sophia Gardens and Southampton.
Elsewhere, everyone who has won the toss is having a bowl – apart from Lancashire
Leicestershire won the toss and will field.
Notts won the toss and will field.
Warwicks won the toss and will field
Worcs won the toss and will field
Kent won the toss and will field
Gloucs won the toss and will field
Lancs won the toss and will bat
Made it to Grace Road. It isn’t raining and they’re expecting around 700 through the turnstiles. One of the groundstaff is hurriedly running around with the mower on the far side, while the players warm up. Bobble hats all round.
Leicestershire have won the toss and will field. They are without the injured Ben Mike, Josh Davey and Alex Green and Josh Hull, who made the squad but isn’t yet fit enough to play.
Weather watch
The calm before Storm Dave. The Met office says:
Cloudy and breezy with rain and drizzle slowly clearing, but lingering in the south. Some brighter spells developing in the north with sunshine and scattered showers, some heavy and wintry over higher ground. Feeling warm in the south.
An early one for the hive mind – sitting with David and Val on the train who were once given a premium bond for their daughter by a tall Nottinghamshire and England fast bowler in the late 60s. Might be called Alan. Any ideas?
“He’s made a bit of an error in hindsight”
Worcestershire’s South African signing Beyers Swanepoel, whose desperation to get to New Road was such that he left for the airport with seven overs of a domestic one-day final to go (his team lost off the penultimate ball, fielding only ten men), has now caused problems for his new team as well.
Cricket South Africa have withheld his No-objection certificate, and he has been charged him with bringing the game into disprepute and breaching his contract. Worcestershire have signed Warwickshire’s Olly Hannon-Dalby on a two-week loan to fill the hole. “Beyers would probably say he’s made a bit of an error in hindsight,” said Worcs chief exec Ashley Giles.
Surrey to win it…Lancs and Durham to be promoted
Or is there another way?
Fixtures – round one
DIVISION ONE
Sophia Gardens: Glamorgan v Yorkshire
Southampton: Hampshire v Essex
Grace Road: Leicestershire v Sussex
Taunton: Somerset v Nottinghamshire
Edgbaston: Warwickshire v Surrey
DIVISION TWO
The County Ground: Derbyshire v Worcestershire
Chester le Street: Durham v Kent
Lord’s: Middlesex v Gloucestershire
Wantage Road: Northamptonshire v Lancashire
Preamble
Good morning! The sky is slate, the grass is lush, there’s a spot of rain on my cheek – welcome back!
And hello to readers new and old, it’s lovely to have you with us.
Fifteen Championship rounds lie ahead (16, if you count Surrey’s one off game against Hampshire). And the first seven before England start their Test summer in June – though there are a scattering of interspersed white-ball matches against New Zealand. So many runs to score, wickets to take, careers to make. Hearts to break. England say the door is open, who will push hardest?
I’m at Grace Road (at least I will be soon, only I forgot to change trains at Nuneaton) to watch injury-plagued Leicestershire and points-deducted Sussex, while big chief Ali Martin is at Edgbaston to keep an eye on his tip for the top, Warwicks, and fancied Surrey. And we’ll be here every day until the end of the season, on Sunday September 27. The kettle’s on, grab a mug. It’s going to be fun.
UK News
European football: Real Madrid held at home by Girona to extend winless run | European club football
Real Madrid had to settle for a 1-1 draw against mid-table Girona in La Liga on Friday, extending the hosts’ winless run to three games in all competitions and giving leaders Barcelona the chance to stretch their advantage at the top.
Federico Valverde put Madrid ahead six minutes after half-time but Girona levelled in the 62nd minute through Thomas Lemar. Álvaro Arbeloa’s side are six points behind with league leaders Barça, who have a game in hand against Espanyol on Saturday and could move nine clear with seven games to play.
Madrid began the night under pressure, having lost 2-1 at Mallorca last weekend and then losing by the same scoreline at home to Bayern Munich in the Champions League. Arbeloa still opted for a full-strength side for Friday’s game, despite the second leg of their quarter-final coming up next Wednesday.
Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior led the line at the Bernabéu, with Jude Bellingham in midfield as Real monopolised possession. Yet for all their territorial dominance, clear chances proved scarce in a poor first half short on tempo and inspiration.
Girona, who have climbed away from relegation danger to sit 12th in the league, were content to sit deep and spring forward when possible. They came closest before the break when Azzedine Ounahi unleashed a fierce effort from inside the box, forcing goalkeeper Andriy Lunin to produce a sharp reflex save.
The contest finally flickered into life after half-time and Valverde broke the deadlock in the 51st minute with a low strike from the edge of the area. It should have posed little threat to Paulo Gazzaniga, but the Girona keeper allowed the ball to squirm through his arms as he tried to smother it.
The hosts’ relief was short-lived, though. In the 62nd minute, Lemar surged in from the right and rifled a superb shot from the edge of the box. The winger, who is loan from Atlético Madrid – sent his effort just inside the right post beyond Lunin’s despairing dive to level the score.
Madrid pushed for a winner but lacked composure going forward as Girona held their shape with discipline to frustrate the crowd. Home fans again jeered their own players, with the sense that their team’s title hopes are quickly disappearing.
Marseille and Roma boost Champions League hopes
Marseille reclaimed third place in Ligue 1 with a 3-1 win over bottom side Metz, while Monaco suffered a shock 4-1 defeat away to Paris FC.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang gave Marseille a first-half lead at the Vélodrome, and Igor Paixão latched onto Mason Greenwood’s pass to make it 2-0 early in the second half. Giorgi Tsitaishvili pulled one back for Metz, before substitute Hamed Junior Traorè wrapped up victory for the hosts in stoppage time.
Monaco’s 10-game unbeaten league run came to an abrupt end in the French capital, with Paris FC going 3-0 up after just 21 minutes. Jonathan Ikoné struck twice for the hosts, either side of a goal from veteran Italy striker Ciro Immobile.
The USA forward Folarin Balogun pulled one back before the break for Monaco, keeping up his record of scoring in each of his team’s last seven league games. Luca Koleosho put the result beyond doubt in the 71st minute, just after Paul Pogba had come on to a rapturous reception.
“It was heartwarming,” Pogba said of the crowd’s reaction as he made his first Monaco appearance since December. “I am just trying to get some minutes under my belt and get back to full fitness. It will come with time.”
Donyell Malen hit a hat-trick as Roma revived their fading Champions League hopes by cruising past Serie A’s bottom club Pisa 3-0 at home.
The Dutchman’s treble takes his total to 10 goals in 12 Serie A appearances since joining on loan from Aston Villa in January. Malen punished a defensive error to put Roma ahead inside three minutes, then tucked the ball home from close range for his second just before half time.
Malen completed his hat-trick after 51 minutes, finishing well from Matías Soulé’s through ball. Roma stay in sixth place but are level on points with Juventus in fifth, and a point behind Como in fourth, albeit with a game in hand.
In Germany, Augsburg took an early two-goal lead at home to Champions League hopefuls Hoffenheim. The visitors struck back to level before half-time through Robin Hranac and Bazoumana Toure, but could not find a winner as it ended 2-2.
The disintegration of the pair’s friendship has benefits – and the PM is getting steadily more comfortable at taking advantage.
Source link
UK News
Artemis II splashdown: Orion capsule scheduled to land off California coast at just after 5pm local time – live updates | Nasa
What to expect as Artemis II comes home
The splashdown of the Orion capsule will follow a precise timeline through the afternoon and evening on Friday.
Nasa says the scheduled splashdown time of 5.07pm PT (8.07pm ET; 1.07am Saturday BST) is approximate, and will harden as the capsule passes certain milestones during its descent.
Here’s what the day looks like right now (all times Pacific):
-
8.35am Crew wakes up
-
10.50am Crew completes cabin configuration preparation
-
11.53am Final return trajectory correction burn
-
4.33pm Orion separates from service module
-
4.37pm Crew module raise burn to place spacecraft at correct angle for reentry
-
4.53pm Entry interface to Earth’s atmosphere at 400,000ft
-
5.07pm Splashdown
Orion will be exposed to heat up to 5,000F (2,760C) during its 25,000mph reentry. A set of 11 parachutes will deploy in sequence at set altitudes following reentry that will slow the spacecraft to 17mph at splashdown.
It could take up to two hours after splashdown for crews from Nasa and the US navy to reach the capsule, open the hatch and release the astronauts. Nasa plans to take them by helicopter to a military base in San Diego for medical checks, then they will fly back to Houston’s Johnson Space Center.
Nasa plans a post-landing press conference about two and a half hours after splashdown.
Key events
Mission highlights
From its spectacular 1 April launch into a clear blue Florida sky, Artemis II has provided the world with a succession of captivating moments, deep-space records, and stunning, never-before-seen imagery from the far side of the moon.
Here are a few of the 10-day mission’s highlights:
Flight day 1 (launch day)
Hundreds of thousands of people packed the beaches and causeways of Florida’s space coast, and millions more watched on TV or online, as the mighty Space Launch System (SLS) rocket of Artemis II lifted off at 6.35pm ET on humanity’s first journey to the moon in almost 54 years.
“It foundational for what we do here at Nasa to inspire,” Jared Isaacman, the space agency’s new administrator, said at the post-launch press conference.
“It should be a component of every one of our missions. We want to inspire and create interest in the next generation to grow up and contribute to this endeavor.”
Flight day 2
After orbiting Earth while the astronauts and flight controllers in Houston established that the spacecraft, now known by its mission handle of Integrity, was functioning properly, a translunar injection burn committed it to the 250,000-mile journey to moon.
Flight day 5
Artemis II entered the moon’s gravitational sphere of influence at 12.37am ET, the first crewed spacecraft to do so since Apollo 17 in December 1972.
Flight day 6
After setting a record for the farthest humans have ever traveled from Earth – 252,756 miles – and experiencing a 40-minute communications blackout during which they ate maple cookies supplied by Canadian crewmember Jeremy Hansen, Artemis II’s astronauts embarked on a six-hour observation of the lunar surface.
“It is blowing my mind what you can see with the naked eye from the moon right now. It’s just unbelievable,” Hansen said as Orion began the flyby and made its closest approach at a height of 4,067 miles.
The crew also witnessed an “absolutely stunning” solar eclipse.
Flight day 10 (splashdown)
Other than launch day, the riskiest part of the mission. The crew donned reentry spacesuits and completed final mission closeout tasks, including configuring the capsule’s seats for their 25,000mph descent to the Pacific Ocean.
Perspectives from the moon
All four of the Artemis II astronauts spoke passionately during the mission about what they were seeing, and how they felt, as they passed over the surface of the moon at 4,067 miles away, their closest approach on Monday.
Reid Wiseman, mission commander:
We saw sights that no human has ever seen before, not even in Apollo, and that was amazing for us. The surprise of the day, we just came out of an eclipse where the sun, moon – the entire dark moon about that big right out the window that we were watching – we could see the corona of the sun, and then we could see the planet train line up, and Mars
And all of us commented how excited we are to watch this nation, and this planet, become a two-planet species
Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist:
We have seen just some extraordinary things. Things I thought we might see looked similar to what I thought they might look like, and other things I just had never even imagined
The perspective I launched with was that we live on a fragile planet in the vacuum and the void of space. We’re very fortunate to live on planet Earth. Our purpose as humans is to find joy in lifting each other up by creating solutions together instead of destroying, and when you see it from out here it doesn’t change it, it just absolutely reaffirms that
Christina Koch, mission specialist:
I just had an overwhelming sense of being moved by looking at the moon. It lasted just a second or two and I actually couldn’t even make it happen again, but something just threw me in suddenly to the lunar landscape and it became real
The moon really is its own unique body in the universe. When we have that perspective and we compare it to our home of Earth, it just reminds us how much we have in common. Everything we need, Earth provides, and that, in and of itself, is somewhat of a miracle, and one that you can’t truly know until you’ve had the perspective of the other
Victor Glover, pilot:
It was very moving to look out the window. It was hard to speak looking through the zoom [lens], I went straight where Christina went and I was walking around down there on the surface, climbing and off-roading on that amazing terrain
Boy, I am loving the terminator [the dividing line between sunlight and darkness]. There’s just so much magic in the terminator, the islands of light, the valleys that look like black holes. You’d fall straight to the center of the moon if you stepped in some of those. It’s just so visually captivating
Artemis II record breakers
The crew of Artemis II traveled farther from Earth than any humans before them, reaching 252,756 miles, more than 4,000 beyond the previous record set by the Apollo 13 crew in April 1970.
“We do so in honoring the extraordinary efforts and feats of our predecessors in human space exploration” mission specialist Jeremy Hansen said from space.
“We most importantly choose this moment to challenge this generation and the next to make sure this record is not long-lived.”
It wasn’t the only record set during their 10-day lunar flyby. Christina Koch became the only woman to have traveled to the moon and back. Hansen, of the Canadian Space Agency, became the first non-American. Victor Glover, the Artemis II pilot, became the first person of color to do so.
Before the four Artemis II astronauts, only 24 humans made the journey and returned safely. All were white American men during nine manned Apollo missions between December 1968 and December 1972.
On the eve of splashdown day, the Artemis II crew spoke about inspiring the next generation and “working on something big for the good of everyone”.
You can catch up on their comments here:
What to expect as Artemis II comes home
The splashdown of the Orion capsule will follow a precise timeline through the afternoon and evening on Friday.
Nasa says the scheduled splashdown time of 5.07pm PT (8.07pm ET; 1.07am Saturday BST) is approximate, and will harden as the capsule passes certain milestones during its descent.
Here’s what the day looks like right now (all times Pacific):
-
8.35am Crew wakes up
-
10.50am Crew completes cabin configuration preparation
-
11.53am Final return trajectory correction burn
-
4.33pm Orion separates from service module
-
4.37pm Crew module raise burn to place spacecraft at correct angle for reentry
-
4.53pm Entry interface to Earth’s atmosphere at 400,000ft
-
5.07pm Splashdown
Orion will be exposed to heat up to 5,000F (2,760C) during its 25,000mph reentry. A set of 11 parachutes will deploy in sequence at set altitudes following reentry that will slow the spacecraft to 17mph at splashdown.
It could take up to two hours after splashdown for crews from Nasa and the US navy to reach the capsule, open the hatch and release the astronauts. Nasa plans to take them by helicopter to a military base in San Diego for medical checks, then they will fly back to Houston’s Johnson Space Center.
Nasa plans a post-landing press conference about two and a half hours after splashdown.
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the splashdown of the Artemis II crew off the coast of California after their mesmerizing 10-day mission to fly around the moon.
The Orion capsule that carried four astronauts, three Americans and one Canadian, on their 695,000-mile lunar adventure is scheduled to land at 5.07pm PT (8.07pm ET, 1.07am Saturday BST).
I’m Richard Luscombe, and I’ll be bringing you the developments as they happen, from the preparations for Orion’s fiery reentry into Earth’s atmosphere, to its Pacific Ocean splashdown and hatch opening that will give the crew their first breaths of fresh air since before their launch from Florida on 1 April.
-
Crime & Safety3 weeks agoPolice race to crash on Oxfordshire A34 with severe traffic building
-
Oxford News4 weeks agoSchwarzman Centre to open doors to public with major celebration
-
Oxford News4 weeks agoGary Lineker’s nephew-in-law death inquest to be next week
-
Oxford Events4 weeks agoMichelin Guide Oxfordshire Restaurants – The Oxford Magazine
-
Jobs & Careers4 weeks agoExplore our Careers
-
Crime & Safety3 weeks agoWiltshire 12-year-old girl with Oxfordshire links missing
-
Crime & Safety3 weeks agoOxford: ‘Next generation’ LimeBikes in city from today
-
Crime & Safety7 days agoAmerican Akita and a French Bulldog seized after dog killed