Questions over Champ playoffs with only two clubs applying for promotion

Arguments behind the scenes about the proposed transformation of the top tier of English club rugby into a franchise-based league are intensi­fying with just two Champ clubs seemingly now eligible for promotion this season. Only Ealing Trailfinders and ­Doncaster Knights have applied formally to be promoted to the Prem, with Worcester Warriors understood to have missed the deadline.A Rugby Football Union spokesperson suggested on Tuesday that the absence of Worcester’s name reflects the reality that the club is still “getting back on its feet” after its financial collapse in September 2022 with debts of more than £25m. But with Ealing unable to satisfy the Prem minimum ­standards for the past two seasons, and with ­Doncaster off the pace in 10th place, it raises fresh questions about the ­­raison d’être of the ­scheduled new end‑of‑season Champ playoffs, unveiled this year amid much fanfare.Originally it had been intended that the playoff winner should qualify for a merit-based, two-leg showdown with the Prem’s bottom side, but other scenarios have since emerged

England’s Ashes approach is scrambling the brains of the next cricketing generation | Mark Ramprakash

The cracks are starting to show with this England team and with the narrative we’ve been fed for three years after another defeat. Their identity of always taking the aggressive option, of relentlessly putting pressure on their opponents, isn’t holding up to scrutiny. So far in this series they haven’t had the strength needed to achieve it, and they haven’t had the skills either.I was confident that they could win the Ashes this time, mainly because I thought there was quality in the squad and that they had adapted their game to add intelligence and adaptability to their armoury. It’s becoming clear that neither of those beliefs were completely true

Claressa Shields to open $8m deal with Detroit rematch against Crews-Dezurn

Claressa Shields will defend her undisputed heavyweight championship in Detroit on 22 February, returning home for a rematch with Franchon Crews-Dezurn in her first fight since signing a landmark $8m promotional deal. The bout will headline a Dazn card at Little Caesars Arena, the home of the NBA’s Pistons and NHL’s Red Wings where Shields attracted a near-sellout crowd for her most recent fight last July.Shields (17-0, 3 KO) and Crews-Dezurn (10-2, 2 KO) first met nearly a decade ago when they made their professional debuts against each other on the undercard of Andre Ward’s victory over Sergey Kovalev in 2016. Shields won a four-round unanimous decision that night in Las Vegas, a moment she still sees as formative. “I had just come off winning two Olympic gold medals, fresh out of the amateurs, and finding an opponent was tough,” she said in a press release announcing the fight

Peter Nichols obituary

My friend and former sports-writing colleague at the Observer Peter Nichols, who has died from Parkinson’s-related dementia aged 79, was a man of many talents: drama teacher, Time Out cabaret correspondent, athletics correspondent, London Marathon international race organiser, publisher and award-winning radio scriptwriter.Pete was a sporting Google long before Google was invented. He was a sharer, the go-to source at the seven Olympiads he covered. “Pete was utterly invaluable,” recalls the former Guardian head of sport Ben Clissitt. “His input was the Guardian playbook for our Olympic coverage

Phillies near $150m deal for Schwarber while Dodgers reel in top closer Díaz

Kyle Schwarber and the Philadelphia Phillies are finalizing a five-year, $150m contract, sources told ESPN on Tuesday. The deal would keep the National League home run leader in Philadelphia after a prolific 2025 season.Schwarber, 32, drew interest from several clubs, including the Mets, Red Sox, Orioles and Pirates, ESPN reported. Philadelphia moved late to retain him after falling in the division series to the Los Angeles Dodgers.The designated hitter hit 56 home runs and drove in 132 runs last season, finishing second in MVP voting

Alex de Minaur on his grand slam dream: ‘Some things may happen, some things may not’

The Australian is pragmatic about his chances of winning a major in the Alcaraz-Sinner era but knows he plays his best tennis when he doesn’t put pressure on himselfIt’s hard to think of anyone in tennis who works harder than Alex de Minaur, the Australian who next month will again carry the hopes of a nation as he tries to become the first home winner of the men’s title at the Australian Open for 50 years. No one is faster around the court, no one more diligent off it than the 26-year-old. It’s a work ethic that has helped him to 10 titles so far in his career and he ends 2025 as the world No 7, his highest year-end ranking, and having won the prestigious Newcombe medal for a fourth time.But in a sport where success at the very top level is ultimately judged by performances at grand slams, De Minaur has so far fallen short. He has made the quarter-finals of a major six times – including five of the past eight – but with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner having split the last eight majors, opportunities are scarce