Ben Stokes plays down talk of McCullum disagreement but plans ‘different’ path to success

Ben Stokes has moved to play down suggestions of a disagreement between himself and ­Brendon McCullum, insisting he and the England head coach remain aligned despite an Ashes defeat that, at times, suggested otherwise.In a video released by the England and Wales Cricket Board on Tuesday, the England Test captain stressed that he and McCullum agreeing with each other all the time would be “unhealthy”.They continue to share the same overall vision for the team, he added, but things will look “different” this summer.Stokes said: “As similar as me and Brendon are, we’re also dissimilar in other areas as well. But the thing we both want is to be as successful as we possibly can

Boss of the Bronx: the turbulent reign of George Steinbrenner, baseball’s ultimate showman

A new book looks at how an eccentric shipping magnate ushered in a long run of success for the New York YankeesGeorge Steinbrenner could be quite the pitchman – whether selling New York to free agents or starring in Pepto-Bismol TV ads alongside Billy Martin. And now a new book remembers the late Yankees owner and the dynasty he founded.The Bosses of the Bronx: The Endless Drama of the Yankees Under the House of Steinbrenner flows from the pen of sports journalist and author Mike Vaccaro. As the New York Post’s lead sports columnist for more than two decades, Vaccaro has witnessed the Steinbrenner dynasty from a rarefied perspective – the journalistic equivalent of a seat along the third-base line.Vaccaro remembers the first one-on-one phone call he got from Steinbrenner

The Masters, the Premier League run-in, the National: is there a better sporting month than April? | Sean Ingle

The thought struck me on the last rattler back from the Grand National, as Avanti’s wifi faltered somewhere outside Crewe and the Masters stream on my phone froze yet again. I was watching the world’s best golf tournament, on a train journey back from the world’s greatest steeplechase, having seen the best football match of the season – Real Madrid against Bayern Munich – earlier in the week. Is there a better month in the sporting calendar than April?Augusta always delivers. Club football hits peak levels of drama and jeopardy. Then there is Aintree, Paris-Roubaix, the start of the County Championship cricket season and the World Snooker Championship

Azzi Fudd taken first in WNBA draft by Dallas Wings in UConn reunion with Paige Bueckers

Azzi Fudd was selected by the Dallas Wings with the first pick of the WNBA draft on Monday night, capping a 12-month ascent from NCAA champion to the top overall choice and setting up a reunion with former University of Connecticut teammate Paige Bueckers.The 5ft 11in guard, who led UConn to last year’s national title and was named the Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player, is the seventh player from the program to go No 1. Bueckers, the top selection by Dallas in the 2025 draft and the reigning WNBA rookie of the year, watched Fudd’s name called from a sold-out crowd at the Shed, the $500m cultural center at Hudson Yards on Manhattan’s west side.“I’m not really sure I have words to describe the feeling, what that meant,” Fudd said. “I don’t think it’s fully sunk in

WNBA draft: Azzi Fudd goes No 1, UCLA smash record and Flau’jae Johnson traded – as it happened

And with that, the draft is complete. Thanks for joining me. A big night for No 1 pick Azzi Fudd, the record-setting UCLA Bruins, the Washington Mystics and their six (!) picks, fashion and the future of women’s basketball.With that, all eyes turn to 8 May, the first day of the season. We’ll have an opening-night triple-header: Connecticut Sun v New York Liberty, Washington Mystics v Toronto Tempo, Golden State Valkyries v Seattle Storm

‘Carelessly squandered’: Wisden scolds England’s tumultuous Ashes tour

The latest edition of Wisden is ­unsparing in its criticism of England’s Test team, describing their Ashes defeat in Australia as a “wing-and-a-prayer” campaign that ended up “feckless, reckless and legless”.Published this Thursday, the sport’s longstanding bible has a strong Indian flavour to its awards. Haseeb Hameed, captain of title-winning Nottinghamshire, is the sole Englishman among the five ­players of the year, with Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja and ­Mohammed Siraj recognised for their roles in last year’s memorable 2-2 Test series draw in England.But the nature of England’s 4-1 defeat in Australia – a tour derailed by a poor buildup, lurching tactics, and accusations of an unprofessional approach off the field – leads this year’s notes, with the editor, Lawrence Booth, saying it is “hard to think of a privilege so carelessly squandered, a chance so blithely spurned”.Booth writes: “Much of the misery was self-inflicted: from the paper-thin preparation, via a string of ­schoolboy dismissals, to the revelation of Harry Brook’s scrape with a nightclub bouncer in New Zealand