Charlotte Edwards to make England players ‘accountable for their fitness’

Charlotte Edwards has promised to make England’s players “more accountable for their fitness” as she seeks to improve the team’s fortunes after her appointment as women’s head coach.The 45-year-old insisted that despite England women’s recent troubles against Australia they were capable of winning this year’s 50-over World Cup in India, saying she was “really confident we can turn things around very quickly”. Jon Lewis was sacked as coach last month after a miserable winter in which group-stage elimination at the T20 World Cup was followed by a 16-0 rout in the Ashes.Clare Connor, the England and Wales Cricket Board’s managing director of England women, led a “very thorough, comprehensive and honest” review of that series which “told us that we did need a significant reset in terms of leadership and the environment”.The ECB chose to abandon its normal open recruitment process once it became clear that Edwards, who since retiring as a player had enjoyed success as a coach with Hampshire, Mumbai Indians and Sydney Sixers, would accept the job

Lions set to face Japan-based All Blacks in Anzac clash but Folau’s hopes over

The British & Irish Lions are set to face a number of former All Blacks with Rugby Australia’s chief executive, Phil Waugh, confident players based in Japan can be recruited for the Anzac fixture in July. Waugh also confirmed that players who have represented Australia and New Zealand but subsequently switched nationality will not be considered, ending Israel Folau’s hopes of appearing in another Lions series and ruling out Charles Piutau.The Lions will lock horns with an invitational Australia and New Zealand side for the first time since 1989. When the fixture was announced in 2023, the then Australia head coach, Eddie Jones, turned his nose up, saying: “I don’t want to be involved with the Kiwis.” With the former All Blacks head coach Ian Foster leading the combined side, Waugh believes the fixture in Adelaide will have star appeal

Grand National gets taps turned on to ensure safe ground after long dry spell

Jon Pullin, the acting clerk of the course at Aintree, said on Wednesday that he will do whatever it takes to ensure the Grand National meeting opens ton Thursday on good-to-soft groundThis will be despite unusually low levels of rainfall in the weeks running up to one of jump racing’s showpiece events.March was one of the sunniest on record for much of the UK and watering of the track is likely to continue overnight once racing is under way to ensure the going is as safe as possible for horses that will be taking off and landing at least eight times in every race.“We’ve been watering since the week beginning 17th March and we’re now up to an average of 60-65mm across the track, with some areas having had more and some a little less,” Pullin said.“We’re watering again today and it’s a warm and breezy afternoon with a similar forecast, if not a degree or two warmer, for tomorrow. So we’re hoping to certainly start with good-to-soft as the lead description and then we’ll reassess after racing as to what we may or may not need to do

Pérez in talks with teams about F1 return as Lawson reflects on demotion

The former Red Bull driver Sergio Pérez says he is in talks with Formula One teams about a return to the grid after having his contract ended two years early. The 35-year-old Mexican, who won six races during his 14 years in F1, was replaced at Red Bull this season by Liam Lawson, who also struggled and was quickly demoted after two races. “Especially last year, I didn’t get to show what I’m able to do as a driver,” Pérez told the F1 website. “Now, all of a sudden, people realise how difficult the car is to drive.”Pérez said he had been “approached by a few teams since Abu Dhabi”, a reference to his final race last December as teammate to the eventual champion, Max Verstappen

After devastating BMX injury, Kai Sakakibara makes winning return as para cyclist | Kieran Pender

Five years after a crash that left him with a life-changing brain injury the former Olympic hopeful has a national title to his name – and his sights set on the ParalympicsFive years ago, Kai Sakakibara’s life nearly came to an end doing what he loved – bike racing. At a BMX world cup event in Bathurst, the Olympic hopeful was heading downhill into a turn when his front wheel seemed to buckle. The momentum saw Sakakibara slam headfirst into the dirt, causing carnage as a rider behind him tried to avoid the inevitable collision. In a split second, Sakakibara suffered a devastating brain injury.It was unclear whether Sakakibara, who was 23 at the time, would survive

The Spin | Intriguing and deep list of overseas stars head for County Championship

Those of us lucky enough to watch county cricket in the 1980s, with a packet of Salt’n’Shake in one hand and an autograph book in the other, could tick off Viv Richards at Somerset, Malcolm Marshall at Hampshire, Michael Holding at Derbyshire (imagine!) and Courtney Walsh at Gloucestershire in only a couple of games. And that was just for starters.The growth of franchise cricket means that players at the peak of their powers will rarely now sign on the dotted line to spend their entire summer in northern climes perfecting their red-ball skills. But the appeal remains, like a sudden blast of Madonna’s Into the Groove from a passing car as you wait for the lights to change. The 2025 County Championship overseas roster is an intriguing one