Archive September 1, 2025

Sonny Baker will start for England on Tuesday against South Africa in Headingley, starting with a fast bowling match.

In seven games for Manchester Originals, the 22-year-old regularly bowled around 90 mph while threatening with the new ball in particular.

Baker, who made his first-class debut for England Lions against Australia A in Sydney at the beginning of this year, has just made his latest rapid rise.

England captain Harry Brook attributed the attention to his previous appearances in the Welsh Fire and England Spirit, respectively, and to Kane Williamson and David Warner.

Brook told BBC Sport, “He was all over them and they were all world-class batters.”

He bowled skillfully and with a high level of pace. Everyone was talking about him when he was amazing to watch this year.

Baker attended a light training session in Leeds on Monday morning and again with England on Sunday.

Although the five English squad members who did not attend the Sunday Hundred final travelled from London on Monday morning and were absent, Joe Root and Will Jacks both made the lineup.

Nobody is without cricket, according to Brook, “but in an ideal world we would have liked to meet up yesterday, train yesterday, train today, and play together.”

Everyone is eager to leave and adores playing for England.

After missing the final Test against India in July, Jofra Archer and Brydon Carse are both included. It will be Archer’s first one-day international since the Champions Trophy in March.

Baker has taken two five-wicket hauls in six County Championship games this season and left Somerset at the end of last summer.

However, his breakout event was The Hundred. In addition to his hat-trick against Spirit and Fire, he also performed a hat-trick against Brook’s Northern Superchargers.

After being called into the England white-ball team, Baker revealed to BBC Sport that he drinks “bone broth” every day to help prevent further problems after being previously injured in his career.

He’s previously appeared in The Hundred, Brook continued.

“He can swing it both ways with exceptional death skills, so it’s awesome to have him on the team and great to have him open up tomorrow.”

Brook’s second appearance in a white-ball series since taking over as head coach earlier this year.

Under Brook earlier in the summer, England won all six of their matches against West Indies, including three ODIs and three T20s.

England are just getting started on the preparations for the 2027 50-over World Cup, after three disappointing international competitions in a row. The Ashes are set to be the focus this winter.

In February of next year, India and Sri Lanka will host a T20 World Cup.

“We’re trying to create a climate where we’re working toward something, like Eoin Morgan Morgs did when he took over years ago,” Brook said.

“South Africa’s cricket is a little different from that of West Indies.

We must evaluate situations more quickly when working with a team like this. They have a more traditional side.

Eight days prior to the Proteas’ 2-1 victory in an ODI series against Australia, they have arrived in the UK. At the Champions Trophy in March, they defeated England by seven wickets, which Jos Buttler’s final capitulation.

Kagiso Rabada, who has a workload of his own, is included in their squad, but he won’t play the first ODI.

Only the T20 squad includes Donovan Ferreira and David Miller, who both had a positive impact with The Hundred.

Dilane Bakwa, a Strasbourg winger, is close to agreeing a deal worth more than £30 million.

The 23-year-old is expected to move to the City Ground, which would increase Forest’s spending this summer by about £180 million.

Since joining Strasbourg from Bordeaux two years ago, the France Under-21 international has made 66 appearances.

Forest will sign left-back Cuiabano for Botafogo for his 10th summer signing, and Bakwa will also complete that deal.

Omari Hutchinson from Ipswich for £37.5 million, James McAtee from Manchester City for around $ 30 million, and Rennes striker Arnaud Kalimuendo for $ 26 million are the new signings for Forest.

Before the club’s 19:00 BST transfer deadline on Monday, Jota Silva and Taiwo Awoniyi could leave.

After his public criticism of Forest’s transfer business, manager Nuno Espirito Santo is scheduled to meet with owner Evangelos Marinakis over the international holiday.

The Portuguese acknowledged that Marinakis’ relationship had changed while the Portuguese believed the club had moved too slowly for their goals.

Nuno, the former manager of Wolves and Tottenham, is being told that despite the information, is expected to be in charge when Forest travel to Arsenal on September 13th.

Victor Lindelof, a former defender for Manchester United, and Harvey Elliott and Jadon Sancho are both closing in on loan deals with Aston Villa.

At the end of last season, Sweden’s captain, 31-year-old Lindelof, had left his United contract.

Sancho, a 25-year-old United winger, turned down a move to Roma earlier in the window, and fellow Italian side Juventus has also shown an interest.

Meanwhile, Elliott, a 22-year-old midfielder for Liverpool, is about to make a move that includes a $35 million purchase.

Sancho and Elliott are currently at Villa to finish their loan applications and paperwork.

According to United sources, Aston Villa will pay 80% of Sancho’s wages, with respect to bonuses that are reasonably possible that will bring the total to 100%.

Sancho has spent the last 18 months on loan at Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund, but neither club has made a permanent commitment.

United were fined £5 million by Chelsea for breaking their contract to sign the England international.

In their Premier League game against Newcastle, Elliott made just one appearance for Liverpool this season.

He stated in June that he would take his Liverpool future into account and that he did not want to be “wasting years” in his career.

As Liverpool won the title last year, he was only allowed to make 18 Premier League appearances, 16 of which came as a substitute.

Aston Villa needed reinforcements, not whether they arrived on deadline day or before.

The squad’s frailties were exposed by Sunday’s 3-0 home loss to Crystal Palace, their first Premier League defeat at Villa Park in a year.

In their first three Premier League games, Villa have only earned a point and lack the energy that has been hallmark of Unai Emery’s side.

A worrying decline has resulted in the need for reinforcements in the wake of Villa’s commitment to profit and sustainability regulations.

This summer, pushing back moves were always going to happen, as were the Under-21 European Championship and the Club World Cup. Therefore, it needs to be seen as good business rather than late business when Harvey Elliott and Jadon Sancho arrive, in addition to Victor Lindelof.

Elliott won the player of the tournament award after scoring twice in the quarter-final, a double in the semi-final, and the opener against Germany in the final.

He has won the Premier League, the EFL Cup twice, the Super Cup, and two Under-21 European Championships and is a mature and respectful 22-year-old with a lot of experience.

The lack of game time at Anfield was Elliott’s only gripe. He lacks any evidence, but he will give a Villa team that looked lifeless at the start of the season class and guile.

Sancho, in contrast, appears to be moving up a gear in his quest to establish his ability to perform best in the Premier League.

When Marcus Rashford was on a loan from Manchester United last year, Emery successfully utilized his ability to make a comeback in the England squad.

Is it still unclear whether Sancho’s association with United will end.

Sancho’s contract expires at the end of the season, but the Red Devils have the option to extend it to 2027.

After England made it to the Euro 2020 final, what seemed like such a promising arrival from Dortmund has turned out to be a complete disappointment. Since August 2023, he has made 83 United appearances, with the exception of one in the 2024 Community Shield.

Prior to that, he missed three months after Erik ten Hag sent him away from Sancho to train in the Netherlands because he thought Sancho’s mental and physical state was unacceptable. The pair had a public disagreement after Ten Hag criticized Sancho’s training results.

Sancho spent four months of independent training before returning to Dortmund on loan, where he had a significant role in their 2024 Champions League triumph over Real Madrid.

Sancho was able to travel to the USA for seven minutes on the previous summer’s tour and make a seven-minute Community Shield appearance after United’s then sporting director Dan Ashworth brokered an uneasy agreement between the player and manager.

However, that was nothing more than applying a large amount of sticking plaster.

Steve Tandy, the head coach of Wales, officially begins his new position today, at the height of the most turbulent eras in Welsh rugby.

More than five months after Warren Gatland’s departure, Tandy was appointed as the new permanent men’s boss.

Tandy was required to sign a three-year deal with the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU), which required him to leave his Scottish contract as a defence coach.

As he begins a job that WRU CEO Abi Tierney claims he felt “destined,” he is taking on a huge task.

Tandy is experiencing yet another Welsh crisis before considering his first game against Argentina in more than two months.

Tandy’s understanding of the Welsh game was one of the factors in choosing him over a seasoned national head coach with previous experience. He will require it.

Before leaving Welsh rugby in 2018, Tandy joined the Waratahs, Scotland, and the British and Irish Lions, where he spent six years with the Ospreys.

He is familiar with the business environment, and Gatland is expected to follow a more uniform approach.

Director of rugby and top performance Dave Reddin praised Steve for his ability to work together.

Because it should be a fundamental competitive advantage for Wales, we want to incorporate that throughout the entire system.

Tandy will understand that since he left, the domestic situation has deteriorated rapidly.

The WRU announced last month that its preferred method for changing the club game would be to reduce the number of men’s professional teams in Wales from four to two after admitting the current funding model is unsustainable.

The radical changes are being driven by chair Richard Collier-Keywood and recently appointed Reddin, with chief executive Abi Tierney taking a temporary leave of absence as she goes through cancer treatment.

By the end of the 2027-28 season or sooner, the union will begin formal consultation with Wales’ four regional clubs and other important players, with a decision expected in October.

With fewer teams and job losses in store, Tandy will have to deal with the uncertainty his players will encounter when they are brought together.

Players begin their pre-season training camp the following weekend without knowing whether the organization they represent will be around the entire year.

Tandy must first put together his backroom staff.

Reddin claims that Tandy will handle that task differently and that it will be more of a team effort.

Matt Sherratt, the interim head coach between Gatland and Tandy, served as Cardiff’s interim coach.

After Gatland’s former backroom staff of Jonathan Humphreys, Mike Forshaw, Rob Howley, Alex King, and Neil Jenkins were removed, Danny Wilson, Adam Jones, Gethin Jenkins, Rhys Thomas, and Leigh Halfpenny were Sherratt’s lieutenants in Japan.

Since then, Howley has left rugby and Forshaw has moved to Leicester.

Although the majority of the coaches are contracted to clubs, Sherratt has been identified as a potential attack expert for Tandy’s setup. The WRU was impressed with the other coaches as well.

Gethin Jenkins plays in the Cardiff set-up, and Thomas plays for Gloucester, where Wilson and Jones serve as head coaches and scrum coaches, respectively.

As the WRU bargains for the people it wants, Reddin acknowledged that there might need to be some interim appointments for the autumn series.

However, he emphasized that being a part-timer in the long run was not a part-time position.

Working for the Wales national team is a full-time position, according to Reddin.

Wales have turned to Tandy to stop a downward trend that has seen them finish last at the bottom of the last two Six Nations Championships and drop to 12th overall.

Tandy’s opening game will be a baptism of fire, with his first game against Argentina on November 9 and subsequent games against Japan, New Zealand, and South Africa, who are already world champions.

Before the 2027 World Cup draw is held in December, these will be the final games.

To ensure a more favorable draw, Tandy and Wales will know they will at least need to remain in that top 12.

Although I don’t want to be enthralled by the results in the fall, Steve’s new administration will use them as a fantastic benchmark, Reddin said.

As we begin making plans for the 2027 World Cup and beyond, that will give us a clear indication of where we stand.

Tandy’s appointment has caused a stir on social media, with Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend disappointed about his loss.

Views range from underwhelming to asserting that he is the right choice at the right time.

Tandy, 45, is aware that Welsh rugby frequently generates debate, and the former no-nonsense flanker will need thick skin to play the part.

Reddin disagrees with some who have made the claim that this is impossible to do.

He said, “From my point of view, I don’t believe it’s at all possible.”

For the next ten years, will Wales consistently be ranked as the world’s number one team? No, I don’t believe so.

However, are we a top-five nation capable of bringing together the best of the world in a real fight for the title of Six Nations? 100%. Without that, I wouldn’t be here.

Tandy will need to win over the doubters, and delivering results will be the only way to do that in the long run.

The ultimate test will be in Tandy’s case given the dire situation he will inherit. Reddin claims he wants to give Tandy the tools to succeed.

A team that says, “Well, we’re going to rock up and do our best,” said Reddin, “I don’t think anyone gets inspired by that,” said Reddin.

We have to be more ambitious than that, especially a rugby-fanatical nation like Wales. It is pointless because passion on its own is insufficient.

You must also get the other details right as well. If those things are done correctly, passion can take you somewhere special.

Reiss Nelson will join fellow Premier League team Brentford on a season-long loan.

Fulham and Villarreal, among other domestic and international options, were interested in the 25-year-old, but the Bees have now won the race for the Arsenal academy graduate.

Before a hamstring injury cut his campaign short, Nelson made 12 appearances on loan at Fulham last season. He made 12 of those appearances while under manager Marco Silva.

He was formerly a member of the England Under-21s and previously spent time on loan with the Dutch clubs Feyenoord and Hoffenheim.

In addition to his 61 Premier League appearances with Arsenal and Fulham, Nelson also recorded 46 substitute appearances, including 46 with the club, and added three assists.