Sports

Kerley leads American sweep of men’s 100m in Oregon

Published

3 years ago

2022/07/18

Chants of “USA! USA! USA!” rang out across Hayward Field on Saturday night (16) after Fred Kerley led a US sweep of the men’s 100m at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22.Kerley’s decision last year to drop down from the 400m to the 100m paid off in spectacular fashion as he powered past Marvin Bracy-Williams and Trayvon Bromell in the final strides to win the gold in 9.86 and claim the title of the world’s fastest man.Bracy-Williams and Bromell, who were both timed in 9.88, took silver and bronze respectively.

It marked the third US sweep of the 100m medals and the first since 1991, when Carl Lewis, Leroy Burrell and Dennis Mitchell went 1-2-3 at the World Championships in Tokyo.This time, the sweep came on home soil in front of a full crowd at the first World Championships held in the United States.

“We said we were going to do it and we did it,” the 27-year-old Kerley said after winning his first individual global title. “USA baby!”

“All three of us wanted the gold,” Bromell said. “I’m just happy we could get the sweep at home.”

The build-up to the final featured a flypast by two military jets, which proved to be a symbolic precursor to a super-fast race in which four of the eight athletes finished inside 10 seconds.Half of the finalists were from the host nation; the fourth US athlete was the defending world champion Christian Coleman, who finished sixth in 10.01.Kerley was in lane four, with Bracy-Williams next to him in lane three, and Coleman and Bromell on the outside in lanes seven and eight.

Coleman got off to the quickest start, but it was Bracy-Williams who quickly moved to the front and paced the field through 70m and 80m, with Bromell charging hard from the outside.But the tall, powerful Kerley built up momentum at the halfway mark, accelerated towards the line and edged in front in the final five metres, out-leaning the others at the line.Kerley waited for the result to be posted on the scoreboard, and when his name finally went up as the winner, he threw up his arms in triumph, pounded his chest and took off on a victory lap.

“The gold medal means more than anything,” he said. “It’s amazing to do it on home soil with the home crowd behind us. It’s a wonderful blessing to get a clean sweep.”

Fourth place went to 21-year-old Jamaican Oblique Seville, who ran 9.97 after clocking the fastest time in the semifinals (9.90). South Africa’s Akani Simbini was fifth in 10.01 – his fifth consecutive top-five finish at a global championships. Rounding out the field were Coleman, Japan’s Hakim Sani Brown (10.06) and Canada’s Aaron Brown (10.07).

After Kerley switched to the short sprints at the start of 2021, many experts scoffed at the decision. But he justified the move by earning the silver medal in the 100m at the Tokyo Olympics. And he has been dominant this year, clocking a world-leading 9.76 in the semifinals and 9.77 in the final of the US Championships in Eugene last month.

Kerley ran 9.79 in Friday’s heats but ran only 10.02 in winning his semifinal on Saturday – the first time in nine 100m races this year that he did not break 10 seconds.But, in the final, Kerley showed the power and determination needed to finally get an individual gold on the world stage. He earned bronze in the 400m at the 2019 World Championships in Doha and holds gold and silver from the 4x400m relay.Kerley will now focus on adding to his tally. He will be getting ready for the heats of the 200m on Monday and for the relay.

“This win means I can do 100m, 200m and 400m,” he said. “I’ve got a medal in 400m and 100m. There’s only one next.”

Winning a medal represented redemption for Bromell, who has battled injuries throughout his career and failed to make the final at the Tokyo Olympics last year after being considered the title favourite.Bromell broke down in tears on Saturday while being interviewed on the track after the US sweep.

“It’s been seven years since I got a medal through my injuries and everything I dealt with,” he said. I know so many people counted me out.”

And for Bracy-Williams, he was celebrating his first world outdoor medal on the global stage.

“It feels great to get my first medal at home and with an American sweep,” he said. “What else could I ask for? All the hard work has paid off with the injuries, the critics. This shows me I’ve got what it takes to get it done.”

Some big names failed to make the final.

Italy’s Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs pulled out before the semifinals after failing to fully recover from the hamstring injury that had sidelined him for most of the outdoor season.

“A painful choice, I am forced to stop,” Jacobs tweeted. “I am a fighter and this is why I decided to be in Eugene. Now, in order not to compromise the rest of the season by risking a more serious injury, I have to postpone the challenge. I promise I will do my best to make you dream!”

Jamaica’s Yohan Blake, the 2011 world champion and five-time national champion, missed out after finishing fourth in his semifinal in 10.12. Canada’s Andre De Grasse, the Olympic 200m champion who has struggled with injury and illness this season, was fifth in his semi in 10.21. And African champion Ferdinand Omayala of Kenya, who had made it just in time for Friday’s heats after delays in getting his US visa, was fifth in his semifinal in 10.14.But this day was about those who came through when it counted, and it was Kerley, Bracy-Williams and Bromell who showed the world that US athletes are the king of the sprints once again.

(worldathletics.org)

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Neser five-for trumps England’s belated resistance as Australia take 2-0 lead

Published

11 hours ago

2025/12/7

Priyan

Michael Neser walks off with the ball raised [Cricinfo]

England batted against type and belatedly produced a rearguard, but it was in vain as seamer Michael Neser justified his contentious selection with a five-wicket haul to lead Australia to a crushing second Test victory.

Just six days in, Australia have a stranglehold of an Ashes series that is quickly becoming decidedly one-sided. But they were made to work on day four with England skipper Ben Stokesand Will Jacks stonewalling for almost half a day in a 96-run seventh-wicket partnership lasting almost 37 overs.

But Neser, surprisingly selected ahead of offspinner Nathan Lyon, dismissed both batters as England quickly fell away much like they have done numerous times in this series. Neser was sensational on the back of a deadly spell with the pink ball under lights on day three.

He was aided by outstanding fielding, a notable contrast between the teams after England dropped five catches in Australia’s first innings.

Skipper Steven Smith snatched a stunning one-hander low to his left to end Jacks’ 92-ball grind, while wicketkeeper Alex Carey completed a stellar effort with the gloves by holding on to a nick up at the stumps to dismiss Stokes.

Any hope of a miracle ended with the sight of a forlorn Stokes trudging off the Gabba having given his all with 50 off 152 balls.

Needing just 65 runs for victory, Travis Head came out blazing as Australia raced to 33 for 0 after five overs but dinner was still taken despite fears of stormy weather closing in on the Brisbane area.

Head could not carry over the momentum on resumption, chopping on to Gus Atkinson who also nicked off Marnus Labuschagne. There were unexpected late fireworks when Smith and Jofra Archer had a war of words.

But Smith, fittingly, came out on top with a hooked six off a 150 kph Archer bumper before sealing the victory in style with a huge blow over deep square off Atkinson. Smith finished 23 not out off just nine balls to ensure England left the field in need of plenty of soul searching ahead of the third Test in Adelaide.

England will rue several passages of brainless play earlier in the match as their hopes of regaining the Ashes appear shot. Had they batted with the application and grit that Stokes and Jacks exhibited earlier than the match might have taken a different course.

But Australia thoroughly deserved their victory after such an even team performance. They outclassed and outsmarted England in another impressive effort without quicks Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.

Smith continues to provide an excellent stand-in for Cummins as Australia’s mastery and experience of day-night cricket overwhelmed a ragged England.

The main question at the start of the day was how long would play last with the result basically a formality. England resumed their second innings in dire trouble at 134 for 6 and still 43 runs from making Australia bat again. With the knives out, a beleaguered England’s only hope seemingly rested on Stokes replicating his Headingley-esque heroics.

Going against type, a backs-to-the-wall approach was needed. Unlike a slew of his team-mates, Stokes had been very watchful late on day three to survive Australia’s onslaught and finish unbeaten on 4 from 24 balls. Under the baking sun, Stokes encountered far easier conditions with minimal swing on offer in a sedate start to the day’s play.

He crawled to 12 off 50 balls before cracking a superb cover drive off Brendan Doggett in the highlight of a dour 28-run opening hour. There wasn’t much out of the ordinary apart from when Stokes backed away anticipating a bouncer and proceeded to forehand smash the ball, forcing Doggett to do his own fielding to the boundary at long-off.

Australia’s quicks bowled excellently without reward and they tried different tactics in search of a breakthrough. In what had seemed unlikely at the start of the day, England hauled in the deficit prompting a standing ovation from the Barmy Army.

The 50-run partnership between Stokes and Jacks was brought up a run later to a ripple of mostly ironic cheers from the terraces. They scored at 2.45 – the slowest scoring rate of the 164 partnerships of 50-plus in the Bazball era.

Stokes had a nervous moment just before the elongated tea break when a short delivery from Scott Boland hit the shoulder of his bat and flew over a leaping Cameron Green in the gully.

With a wicket proving elusive for the quicks, Smith might have wished he could throw the ball to Lyon but, instead, he gave Head’s part-time spin a go. Labuschagne also unfurled his seam bowling in the last over before tea as Stokes and Jacks defied the odds in the first wicketless session of the series.

It was much the same early in the second session with Stokes digging in while Jacks, playing just his third Test, looked composed and balanced at the crease. Jacks brought up his first boundary of the day when he clipped beautifully through midwicket as he passed his previous Test high score of 31.

Smith had started to look frustrated in the field, but his mood brightened considerably when he took it upon himself to produce a moment of magic to end Jacks’ resistance.

Stokes had barely acknowledged his hard-fought half-century, knowing there was so much work still to do. But he soon walked off disappointed after falling to Neser, throwing his head back in agony with the bitter realisation that the match was effectively over.

England lost their last 4 for 17 in their latest collapse as Neser claimed his first five-wicket innings haul of his brief Test career when he dismissed Brydon Carse.

Smith equalled Rahul Dravid to sit second all time in outfield catches and he celebrated with gusto knowing Australia were on the brink of another big win over their hapless opponent.

Brief scores:
Australia 511 (Mitchell Starc 77, Jake Weatherald 72, Marnus Labuschagne 65, Steven Smith 61, Alex Carey 63; Brydon Carse 4-152, Ben Stokes 3-113) and 69 for 2 beat England 334 (Joe Root 138*, Zak Crawley 76 Mitchell Starc 6-75) and 241 (Ben Stokes 50, Michael Neser 5-42) by eight wickets

[Cricinfo]

Sports

Why are we avoiding Test matches like the plague

Published

23 hours ago

2025/12/7

Thilina Walpola

After a decade in Test cricket, Dhananjaya de Silva has featured in only 65 Tests, which is less than seven Tests a year.

There’s a glut of riveting Test cricket going on around the world, the kind that warms most fans hearts. Joe Root has finally bagged his maiden hundred in Australia after a 12-year vigil – meaning Matthew Hayden no longer has to stroll around the MCG in nothing but his cowboy hat. The big man had vowed to walk naked in Melbourne if Root didn’t reach three figures this Ashes. Elsewhere, the West Indies are digging in to save a game against New Zealand, while Temba Bavuma’s South Africans have just handed India a 2-0 hiding in their own backyard.

Ordinarily, December is when cricket reporters hop from Wellington to Brisbane to Cape Town, chasing Tests like fielders patrolling the rope. Instead, this year we’re stuck at home, glued to the television, wondering why Sri Lanka are treating the longest format like a bouncer to the helmet — duck first, ask questions later.

The numbers make for grim reading. Sri Lanka have played just four Tests this year — one fewer than England and Australia will cram into seven frenetic weeks between November and December. And the plot thickens: the next Sri Lanka Test isn’t until June 2026. For specialists like Dhananjaya de Silva and Dinesh Chandimal, that’s not a gap between series — that’s an ice age. What motivation can you muster when your next red-ball assignment is two monsoons away?

Consider this: Joe Root debuted a year after Chandimal. Root has strutted out 160 times in Test cricket; Chandimal, just 90. Same era, different calendars — and Sri Lanka’s one looks very disappointing.

The World Test Championship was supposed to be a level playing field, but smaller nations often get the short end of the stick. Unless Sri Lanka are up against England, three-match series have become as rare as hat-tricks in Test cricket. With two-match rubbers becoming the norm, it’s almost impossible for teams like Sri Lanka to rack up ten Tests a year. A conscious push is needed to keep the red-ball flame alive.

To their credit, Sri Lanka Cricket have tried to plug the gaps by scheduling Tests outside the WTC — Afghanistan last year, Ireland the year before. Useful, yes, but still not nearly enough to prevent the longer format from slipping through to oblivion.

Let’s be blunt: there’s not much money in Test cricket. Unless the opposition is India or England, hosting a Test barely breaks even. But sport isn’t merely a cash register with stumps — not every moment of entertainment needs to pay for itself.

There are solutions. Each WTC cycle gives nine teams six series — three home, three away. Add just one series against a non-WTC Test nation and the tally improves. Make it mandatory that at least two of those six series must feature a minimum of three Tests, and suddenly the calendar looks healthier.

We often hear about shifting player priorities, how franchise leagues offer life-changing fortunes. Fair enough — but administrators can’t simply shrug and hope loyalty will magically return. If the suits don’t stage regular Test cricket, the players can hardly be blamed for choosing the shortest queue to a payday.

Test cricket is the game’s heartbeat. Ignore it long enough and the sport risks flatlining.

by Rex Clementine ✍️

Sports

Wolvaardt 115*, all-round Luus set up South Africa’s thumping win over Ireland

Published

1 day ago

2025/12/6

Priyan

Laura Wolvaardt scored her second T20I hundred at Newlands against Ireland [Cricket South Africa]

Laura Wolvaardt’s 56-ball 115 and an all-round show from Sune Luus helped South Africa beat Ireland in thefirst Women’s T20I by 105 runs, their joint third biggest win by runs, at Newlands.

Batting at No. 3, Wolvaardt scored a 52-ball century, the fastest for South Africa and the joint sixth quickest in T20Is, and was involved in a 176-run second-wicket partnership with Luus as the hosts posted their highest T20I total of 220 for 2. Having opened the batting, Luus also took the new ball and struck twice in the first over to dismiss Amy Hunter and allrounder Orla Prendergast. That effectively derailed Ireland early from what would have been an unlikely chase..

Luus and Wolvaardt got together after South Africa opted to bat and lost Faye Tunnicliffe in the second over. They started steadily before stepping on the pedal in the last two overs of the powerplay, taking 32 including a 20-run over from Lara McBride. Wolvaardt was the aggressor and she romped past fifty in just 24 balls, beating Lizelle Lee’s mark of 26 balls for the fastest T20I half century for South Africa.

Aided by plenty of misfields from Ireland, South Africa raced past 100 in the tenth over, thanks to another 20-run over, this time from Louise Little in which Wolvaardt went 6, 4, 4, 4. South Africa’s best second-wicket stand ended when Luus, on her career-best 81, tried an ungainly reverse hit against seamer Ava Canning, Ireland’s best bowler on the day, and was bowled.

That brought Dane van Niekerk, playing her first international since September 2021, to the middle. She saw Wolvaardt complete her second T20I hundred before unleashing an array of strokes to finish 21 not out of just eight balls, a strike rate of 262.50.

Only captain Gaby Lewis and Leah Paul offered a semblance of resistance for the tourists with a 42-run partnership off 39 balls. Once both of them fell in the space of 22 balls, Ireland folded quickly, losing nine wickets to spin. Luus returned as the pick of the bowlers with 4 for 22 while both left-arm spinners Nonkululeko Mlaba and Chloe Tryon took two apiece.

Brief scores:
South Africa Women 220 for 2 in 20 overs (Laura Wolvaardt 115*, Sune Luus 81, Dane van Niekerk 21*; Jane Maguire 1-52, Ava Canning 1-33) beat Ireland Women 115 in 18 overs (Leah Paul 34, Gaby Lewis 30, Laura Delany 13, Louis Little 13; Sune Luus 4-22, Nonkululeko Mlaba 2-09, Nadine de Klerk 1-13, Chloe Tryon 2-14, Nondumiso Shangase 1-13 ) by 105 runs

[Cricinfo]