Root’s golden arm leads Yorkshire past Somerset, Kent thrash Derbyshire: county cricket, day four

Joe Root has often won games for Yorkshire with the bat, not so often with his golden arm. But it was spin twins Root (four for 49) and Dom Bess (four for 60) who did for Somerset, chasing 260 in front of a good bank holiday Monday crowd. George Hill, charging in with zip, bowled Archie Vaughan and Tom Lammonby cheaply, then Bess removed danger men James Rew, who had a rare bad match, and his great friend Tom Abell.Root impishly polished off most of the tail. Thomas Rew got off the mark, and a pair, with a sweet cover driver for four and played nicely for his 30 before being removed caught Bairstow, bowled Root – surely a badge of honour in his first Championship game

Champions Cup final will have independent TV director in charge

An independent broadcast director is set to be in position for this month’s Champions Cup final in Bilbao after disquiet about the lack of crucial replays available to match officials during Bath’s 38-26 semi-final defeat against Bordeaux-Bègles on Sunday.Johann van Graan, Bath’s head of rugby, suggested three high tackles on his No 8, Alfie Barbeary, were missed because the referee and television match official (TMO) had not been supplied with all the requisite angles by the French host broadcaster. Members of the commentary team on Premier Sports also highlighted the absence of replay footage.Different protocols are in place in the Champions Cup compared with the United Rugby Championship and the Six Nations, when an independent operator sits with the TMO to ensure the best pictures are readily available. On Sunday, under EPCR regulations relating to host country arrangements, a French director was in place

‘Get rid of the battery’: F1 under increasing pressure to make more changes to engine rules

Formula One is under increasing pressure to consider immediate changes and the long-term future of its new engines, with the world champion, Lando Norris, reiterating after the Miami Grand Prix that the only answer to address the sport-wide dissatisfaction was to “get rid of the battery”.At the race in Florida, which was won by Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli, with Norris second, F1 and the FIA had brought in fresh regulations to address unhappiness and safety concerns prompted by the pivotal role energy management plays under the new 2026 formula.There has been widespread criticism of the formula – which employs almost a 50-50 split between the internal combustion engine (ICE) and electrical energy. And while the adjustments to mitigate the issues which came in this weekend were considered successful, the long-term distaste remains, as Norris noted.“It’s a small step in the right direction but it’s not to the level that Formula One should still be at yet,” he said

John Sterling, beloved voice of Yankees for 36 seasons, dies at 87

John Sterling, whose voice became synonymous with the New York Yankees, has died at the age of 87.Sterling, a native New Yorker, started broadcasting Yankees games on radio in 1989 and continued until he retired in 2024. During that span, he called 5,420 regular-season games and 211 in the postseason. He rarely missed a game and worked 5,060 consecutive games between 1989 and 2019. During one memorable game in 2023, he was hit by a foul ball during a broadcast and returned to work the next day

Steph Gilmore sparks bedlam on Gold Coast as surf great rolls back years with WSL win

When Australian Stephanie Gilmore decided to return to competitive surfing this year following a two year hiatus from the World Surf League, more than a few eyebrows were raised. Gilmore, 38, is the greatest female surfer of all-time, with eight WSL titles to her name. But in recent years women’s elite surfing has made transformational progress, in big barrels and in the air. Did Gilmore still have what it takes?The first two events of the season only added fuel to that question. At Bells Beach, Gilmore was downed by rising Brazilian star Luana Silva, just 21, in their opening heat

‘A missing generation’: why are there are no female head coaches in Women’s Six Nations?

A 10-point plan will be introduced by Premiership Women’s Rugby next season that aims to increase the number of female coaches at international level, with only one top-10 nation currently being led by a woman.The scheme aims to create a springboard for more women at the elite tier of the sport, where there is a glaring lack of diversity among top coaches. Whitney Hansen is in charge of New Zealand, but, Jo Yapp and Gaëlle Mignot stood down from their positions after last year’s Rugby World Cup, with the Wallaroos and France respectively.At the groundbreaking 2025 tournament there were three female head coaches, but there are none in the 2026 Women’s Six Nations. At PWR clubs all the head coaches are men, and of the 22 women coaching in the league, just six hold senior roles