Victoria’s Sheffield Shield dominance is continuing, taking a stranglehold of their clash with Western Australia at the MCG.Holding a 61-run first-innings lead after making 255 in reply to WA’s 194, Victoria delivered another blow just before stumps on day two on Friday.Mitchell Perry trapped former Australia opener Cameron Bancroft on the final ball of the third over to leave WA reeling at 4 for 1. Instead of Australia’s white-ball star Mitch Marsh arriving at the crease, spinner Corey Rocchiccioli was sent in as a nightwatcher.Rocchiccioli survived five overs with captain Sam Whiteman to get WA to stumps at 5 for 1, still trailing Victoria by 56 runs. Whiteman made just two from 24 balls, but did his job by getting to the end of the day without falling to the charging Victorian attack.On a tricky wicket, opener Blake Macdonald thrived for Victoria with 79, while Matthew Short compiled 62.Victoria took their time building a lead, going at a run-rate of just 2.68 and batting for 96 overs. WA veteran Cameron Gannon bowled tirelessly, sending down 23 overs for figures of 5 for 47.Rocchiccioli ended Victoria’s innings with his second wicket, finishing with 2 for 61.Despite struggling in the One-Day Cup and suffering a heavy loss to WA on Tuesday, Victoria have been dominating the Shield this season. Another win here would take them into the Big Bash League break with five wins from six matches, putting them in the box seat to host this season’s final. WA are on the bottom of the Shield table, having secured just one win this campaign.

India have a training session in Kolkata on Tuesday morning but Gill is not expected to take part in that

Sreshth Shah16-Nov-20253:39

Bangar: Sai Sudharsan should have played instead of a fourth spinner

India Test captain Shubman Gill has been discharged from the hospital where he was receiving treatment for neck spasm sustained during the first Test against South Africa in Kolkata. He, however, remains in doubt for the second Test in Guwahati starting Saturday.India have a training session in Kolkata on Tuesday morning but Gill is not expected to take part in that. The team is expected to fly to Guwahati on Wednesday, but with commercial air travel not advised for people recovering from neck issues, Gill is unlikely to fly with the team that day.Head coach Gautam Gambhir said at the post-match press conference that Gill was “still being assessed”, with another assessment to be carried out by the physio and team soon. Gill’s absence in the fourth innings left India a batter short in their 30-run loss in a low-scoring game.Related

Gill set to miss Guwahati Test against South Africa; Pant to stand in as captain

Stats – South Africa's first win in India since 2010

India face reality check for their bull-headed belief in pitch preparation

'Job's far from done' – Conrad eyes series win

“It was tough because we always knew we were one down,” Gambhir said after India were bowled out for 93 in their chase of 124. “Obviously, Shubman wasn’t there, and then losing two before lunch, we were literally three down. But we always felt that if we got those partnerships, a 50-run partnership or two 40-run partnerships, we would’ve been in the game.”If Gill is unavailable for the next Test, potential replacements are left-hand batters B Sai Sudharsan and Devdutt Padikkal. Sudharsan made 87 and 39 against West Indies in Delhi but had a top score of 32 in four innings for India A against South Africa A earlier this month. Padikkal, who played one Test each in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and the home series against England, returned three single-digit scores and a 24 against South Africa A.If that’s the only change India make for the Guwahati Test, it would leave them with seven left-hand batters in their XI. In Kolkata, India fielded six left-hand batters for the first time. Of the eight wickets offspinner Simon Harmer took in the Kolkata Test, six were of left-hand batters, while part-time offspinner Aiden Markram also dismissed one left-hand batter.Gill was admitted to the hospital after the second day of the Kolkata Test, following the decision to retire hurt after facing only three balls in India’s first innings. On the morning of the third day, the BCCI said Gill would take no further part in the Test.Gill missed a Test against New Zealand in October 2024 due to a neck spasm too. His injury scare comes at a time when his workload has been under constant monitoring. He has played cricket non-stop across formats since IPL 2025 and was among four Test players who flew to Kolkata straight from Australia after the T20I series.

Barcelona forward Raphinha has publicly dismissed recent speculation linking him with a move away from the Catalan club, particularly to the Saudi Pro League, labelling the reports "nonsense". Despite the Brazilian international's consistent denials and his stated desire to retire at Barcelona, the transfer rumours persist.

• Raph refutes transfer speculation

  This ongoing saga surrounding Raphinha is largely driven by the club's well-documented financial constraints and the lucrative offers from Saudi Arabia, which the attacker has admitted were tempting. Reports earlier this week suggested a verbal pact existed with sporting director Deco to facilitate a move after the 2026 World Cup if a substantial offer materialised. However, Raphinha quickly took to social media to refute these claims, underscoring his commitment to the Barca project. 

Advertisement

• AFP
  

  Raphinha: 'Fake news'

  As reported in , speaking to a Spanish TikToker, Raphinha said: "I don't know where they get so much nonsense, really. Well, this one, where fake news always comes out, very nice."

• Flying form under German boss

  Under Hansi Flick, Raphinha has flourished this season, becoming a key player and even a team captain. His strong performances, which include a high volume of goals and assists, have solidified his importance to the squad and led to an agreement on a contract extension until June 2028. For now, Raphinha's focus remains on succeeding at Barcelona, with the transfer noise an unwelcome, though constant, distraction. 

  Raphinha reflected on his current situation and his vocal persona in the Barca dressing room, saying: "I often feel like I'm being a bit pushy, too much. There are many times my team-mates think I talk too much, that I'm annoying, and that I demand too much from them, but that's just who I am. I demand more from people who I know can give much more. Someone has to, and I accept this responsibility, then in the dressing room we hug and celebrate the victory."

  And following the recent 3-1 victory over Atletico Madrid, Los Rojiblancos boss Diego Simeone heaped praise on the Brazil star, saying: "Raphinha is an incredible player. He can play everywhere. As a winger, as a midfielder, as a striker, or even as a wing back. He can score, can create, he presses and runs. I don’t know how he didn’t win the Ballon d’Or. For me, I would choose him always."

  Reflecting on finishing fifth in the Ballon d’Or race, the 28-year-old forward said: "When you give so much, work hard every day, and feel you’ve had an incredible season, you naturally expect to be among the best,' he said. 'Finishing fifth was an honour, of course, but my expectations were higher."

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

• Getty Images Sport
  

  Title race tipped to go to the wire

  The battle between Barcelona and Real Madrid for La Liga crown has been a breathless, thrilling affair which has shifted dramatically in momentum in recent weeks. Just weeks ago, Real Madrid held a seemingly comfortable lead, but a stunning surge from Barcelona and dropped points from Los Blancos has completely flipped the script. The season has been defined by clutch performances and high-scoring drama, including a recent 5-3 Barcelona win over Real Betis and a decisive 3-0 Real Madrid victory at Bilbao. Key players like Kylian Mbappe for Madrid and Ferran Torres for Barcelona are lighting up the scoring charts. But injuries and form fluctuations are playing a significant role.

Former Liverpool defender Glen Johnson has named a key area that the Reds "got wrong" during their massive summer transfer window outlay. The Premier League champions spent more than any club in world football during the 2025 window with an unprecedented outlay of £446 million ($598m) on seven new signings. Yet, almost halfway through the season, the squad appears disjointed, the performances inconsistent and some new signings are already under the scanner.

Big money, big expectations, but inconsistent returns

The headline additions included German playmaker Florian Wirtz arriving from Bayer Leverkusen for £100 million, a fee that could rise to £116m ($155m) with performance-related bonuses, and Swedish striker Alexander Isak, whose British-record £125m ($168m) move was celebrated as the final piece of Liverpool’s evolving attack. Isak, who scored prolifically at Newcastle, has managed only two goals in 14 Liverpool appearances. Wirtz, meanwhile, has shown glimpses of class, registering a handful of assists in the Champions League, but remains goalless in all competitions. The 22-year-old has struggled to impose himself in a Liverpool side that has lacked rhythm and intensity, and his own performances have been a far cry from the assertive machine he orchestrated at Leverkusen. Elsewhere, Hugo Ekitike began brightly but has faced injury setbacks. And with Mohamed Salah looking noticeably off the pace after a remarkable 2024-25 season, the entire attacking unit has looked short of inspiration.

AdvertisementGettyJohnson hits out at two summer signings

It was not the high-profile forwards, however, that drew Glen Johnson’s sharpest criticism. Speaking to the former right-back singled out defensive recruits Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong as deals that Liverpool "got wrong".

"Liverpool very rarely get it wrong with transfers, but for me, they got it wrong with the signing of Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez in the summer," he said. 

He cautioned against writing players off too early but admitted both have fallen well short of expectations.

He added: "I don’t want to be too harsh on new players or write them off, because it does take time for some to settle down at a big club like Liverpool, especially when coming from teams where there’s less pressure. But at the moment, they don’t look up to it."

Johnson expressed surprise that Liverpool, a club renowned for data-driven recruitment, had misfired on these two particular signings.

"It’s strange, because Liverpool usually hit the nail on the head with these types of deals – so many statistics and data goes into their recruitment– but, for now, it looks as if they’ve got those deals wrong," he claimed.

Summer outlay has backfired so far

Liverpool’s summer spending spree was intended to accelerate a squad rebuild following the departures of Trent Alexander-Arnold and Luis Díaz. The club pursued a strategy of aggressive investment, hoping to refresh all key areas at once. Instead, the volume of changes appears to have destabilised the team’s core structure. Arne Slot’s side has struggled to find fluency, and established stars have not always meshed easily with newcomers. However, they did churn out a result at San Siro against Inter in the Champions League, which should boost their morale. 

Slot said after the win: "I think it was mainly for us very important that we got a result today, because with an away game to Marseille also still to play and one home game, we needed points. And we know how difficult that would be over here, because they have been so, so, so strong in this stadium, in the league but definitely also in the Champions League. So it's a great result, like it was against Real Madrid. It's not funny but it's the weird thing that we've had a few special results this season; so, beating Arsenal, beating Real Madrid, beating Newcastle away, beating Aston Villa where they won 10 in a row and only lost against us. So that's why it's so surprising to see that we drop points in so many other games, although there are multiple reasons, but one of them I just said."

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

Getty Images SportBrighton visit Anfield as Reds seek stability

Liverpool will hope to carry Champions League momentum back into the Premier League when they host Brighton on Saturday. The Seagulls are capable of troubling any side, and Slot knows a win is essential if Liverpool are to climb back toward the European places.

Seattle Mariners slugger Cal Raleigh is quite literally striking fear into opposing managers.

On Friday, Mariners shortstop J.P. Crawford led off the top of the third inning with a single and Julio Rodriguez followed it up with a double to give Seattle runners on second and third with Raleigh and his MLB-leading 32 home runs stepping up to the plate. Texas Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux emerged from the dugout to have a discussion with starter Nathan Eovaldi, and Texas then opted to intentionally walk Raleigh to load the bases with no one out.

While Texas's decision also set the club up for the double play, it was still the ultimate sign of respect towards baseball's home run leader.

The Mariners scored a run when second baseman Jorge Polanco grounded into a fielder's choice, then another when outfielder Randy Arozarena hit a sacrifice fly to left field. One could certainly argue that the damage had been limited.

But it wasn't the last time that Raleigh's power would force the Rangers into a tough decision. Just an inning later, Texas skipper Bruce Bochy faced a similar predicament, though this time there were two outs in the inning and the Mariners had two base runners with Raleigh again walking up to the batter's box.

And again, the Rangers intentionally walked the Mariners' backstop. Polanco grounded out to short and the Rangers emerged out of the top of the fourth having only surrendered a run.

It's hard to argue with the strategy, especially given how well Raleigh has been swinging the bat. He has belted 10 home runs in June, giving him a league-leading 32 for the season. Not only did Raleigh break Cincinnati Reds legend Johnny Bench's record for the most home runs by a catcher before the All-Star break (28), but he is also on pace to break Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez's record for the most home runs by a catcher in a season (48).

Oh, and Raleigh is pacing to break the American League single-season home run record of 62 home runs, set by New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge in 2022.

Can you blame the Rangers for not wanting to pitch to him with runners in scoring position?

By no means was Friday a banner day for the Detroit Tigers, who emerged from their series opener against the Seattle Mariners on the wrong side of a blowout 12–3 loss.

However, it was a banner day on a smaller scale for one man: Tigers catcher—or should one say —Jake Rogers.

With his team in a nine-run hole in the ninth inning, Rogers took the mound for the third pitching outing of his career. After inducing a groundout from first baseman Donovan Solano and hitting right fielder Luke Raley with a 73 mph fastball, Rogers coaxed third baseman Ben Williamson into a lineout to end the inning.

Fired up, Rogers inquisitively gestured toward an umpire with his glove, implying that he wanted to be checked for foreign substances after his mound success.

Rogers, in addition to his pitching heroics, owns eight RBIs this year. Can you say two-way player?

With Brevis taking Markram’s regular spot at No. 4 and Pretorius setting in at No. 3, South Africa’s T20I captain has made the move up top

Firdose Moonda15-Aug-2025

Aiden Markram got starts in each of the two games•AFP/Getty Images

With a fairly young playing group, it’s safe to say South Africa are still experimenting with roles in the T20I side, including that of the captain Aiden Markram. Though he will play his 200th T20 against Australia in Cairns, he is newly installed as an opening batter and juggling that with leadership and the occasional bowling role as South Africa build towards the next T20 World Cup.The decision to move Markram to the top of the order was made by all-format coach Shukri Conrad, taking into account the rest of the line-up which is (almost certainly) going to be without Quinton de Kock again. With Reeza Hendricks dropped for this tour and Ryan Rickelton as the other opener, Markram explained that Conrad saw him as the “best fit” for the spot, despite the presence of 19-year-old Lhuan-dre Pretorius.”Going through our squads and the players that we’ve got around, we think probably that (opening) is the best fit,” Markram said in Cairns ahead of the third T20I against Australia. “We’ve got some guys in the middle order that are a lot more destructive than myself and we feel probably it’s better off for myself and Ricks to be up top. I did it a bit at the IPL and am starting to do it now again at international cricket. It’s an exciting role. It’s always nice to bat in the powerplay and the focus is to get the team off to good starts.”Related

• Brevis makes a statement as the 'original Dewald'

• Australia in unfamiliar territory in T20I series-decider vs SA

In IPL 2025, Markram had good returns in the opening spot for Lucknow Super Giants, where he scored five fifties in 13 innings and maintained a strike-rate of 148.82. He also has three half-centuries from nine innings opening for South Africa, albeit that they came in a series against Pakistan in 2021, and strikes at 170.28. Those T20I numbers are less likely to have influenced Conrad than the presence of Dewald Brevis at No. 4, which would be Markram’s regular spot. As Markram himself said, Brevis is among those who are “a lot more destructive” than he is and with David Miller also likely to slot back in from the England series onwards, there is no other spot for Markram unless Pretorius (currently at No. 3) does not play.Aiden Markram is back at the top of the order for South Africa in T20Is•Getty ImagesIt doesn’t help Markram that he continues to struggle for form at this level. He has not scored a half-century in T20Is in 30 innings dating back to October 2022 and has only crossed 20 once in his last seven knocks. He will know that pressure is on him to deliver, especially after former captain Temba Bavuma was dropped from the format for similarly low numbers. Bavuma only scored one T20I fifty (Markram has nine) but got into double figures only four times in his last 13 T20I innings and was generally considered to be too slow a run-scorer to stay in the side.What Markram offers that Bavuma didn’t is the additional skill of offspin and under a coach who values allrounders, how often Markram chooses to bowl could also underline his value to the team. In the second T20I, he shared the new ball and picked up the early wicket of Travis Head but only bowled one over. As captain, he has bowled 35 overs in 28 matches, and a full quota of four overs twice. Asked if he would consider using himself more, Markram wavered but suggested it could happen if the situation called for it.”It’s very much a feel thing. It’s quite a daunting task. You just see the ball flying nowadays and I’m not so sure I really want to be a bowler,” he said. “But there’ll be occasions where you feel like the wicket might be on the slower side or might offer something and you sort of take that punt. The way I try to operate is just go on my gut feel, whatever my gut’s telling me in the moment, run with that and back that and reflect on what could have been and what should have been possibly after the game.”

“We’ve got some guys in the middle order that are a lot more destructive than myself and we feel probably it’s better off for myself and Ricks [Rickelton] to be up top.”Aiden Markram explains why he went back to opening in T20Is

South Africa have several spin options available to them in this squad – left-armers George Linde and Senuran Muthusamy, offspinner Prenelan Subrayen and legspinners Nqabayomzi Peter and Dewald Brevis – as well as two big names who are not in the touring party. Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi have been left out of this series with the push towards allrounders, which should only make Markram even more eager to show what he can do with ball in hand.For now, Markram’s focus will be on winning the series and getting South Africa’s T20I bilateral record back on track. They have won only one of their last nine bilateral engagements and, recently, also lost the T20I tri-series final to New Zealand in Zimbabwe. Though that record was largely the cause of playing with experimental squads, it weighed on former coach Rob Walter. The expectation is that with more of the first-choice players available to him, Conrad will produce more consistent results.The same can be said of Markram. His reputation as an inspirational captain was confirmed when he led Sunrisers Eastern Cape to back-to-back SA20 titles and then South Africa to the T20 World Cup final. Now, he will want to back that up with his own form and has already hinted that he has set himself the goal of stepping up.”The series so far has been good. The bowlers have been pretty good for us. The previous game made our batters look good, but it was very much an individual performance [Brevis hit an unbeaten 125]. So a nice challenge for our batters tomorrow to hopefully click and for them to put on a good score.”

تغلب فريق آرسنال على خصمه برينتفورد، بهدفين دون مقابل، خلال منافسات الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز، مساء اليوم الأربعاء.

واستقبل آرسنال نظيره برينتفورد على ملعب “الإمارات” ضمن مباريات الجولة الرابعة عشر للدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز “البريميرليج” لموسم 2025-2026.

وتقدم آرسنال بهدف عن طريق ميكيل ميرينو في الدقيقة 11 من ضربة رأسية، بعد عرضية وصلت له من بن وايت. هدف آرسنال الأول أمام برينتفورد

GOAL!

The Gunners’ strong start is rewarded 🔴

Mikel Merino’s thumping header opens the scoring just after the ten-minute mark 💥#beINPL #ARSBRE #Arsenal pic.twitter.com/S6t1cdVhG9 — beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS_EN) December 3, 2025

وتصدى ديفيد رايا لفرصة خطيرة من برينتفورد في الدقيقة 21 كادت أن تكون هدف التعادل للضيوف.

وأصيب موسكيرا لاعب آرسنال وتوقفت المباراة وتدخل الجهاز الطبي لعلاجه، ومن ثم قرر أرتيتا استبداله في الدقيقة 42 وشارك تيمبر بديلاً له.

في الشوط الثاني أهدر ميرينو فرصة هدف لآرسنال في الدقيقة 69 لكن مرت بجوار المرمى إلى خارج الملعب.

كما أهدر ديكلان رايس فرصة لآرسنال بعد تسديدة من على حدود منطقة الجزاء، تصدى لها حارس برينتفورد.

وعزز بوكايو ساكا تقدم آرسنال بهدف ثانٍ في شباك برينتفورد، بالدقيقة الأولى من الوقت المحتسب بدلاً من الضائع. هدف آرسنال الثاني أمام برينتفورد

GOAL!@BukayoSaka87 surely seals the victory for the Gunners 🔴#beINPL #ARSBRE #Arsenal pic.twitter.com/XMa70zAvwQ — beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS_EN) December 3, 2025

انتهت المباراة بفوز آرسنال بهدفين دون رد، ليرفع رصيده للنقطة 33 في صدارة ترتيب الدوري الإنجليزي، وتجمد رصيد برينتفورد عند 19 نقطة في المركز 13.

The Colorado Rockies are trading right-handed reliever Tyler Kinley to the Atlanta Braves, according to a report from Mark Feinsand of MLB.com.

The trade will send a prospect back to the Rockies.

The 34-year-old Kinley has accumulated a 5.66 ERA this season, but advanced analytics suggest he's been a better pitcher than his ERA shows. The Braves are hoping that he can be a reliable righty out of the bullpen for the second half of the season, while also giving the franchise the option to add another year of team control. Kinley is earning $3 million this year in the final year of his contract, but has a $5 million club option that Atlanta could exercise for 2026.

The Braves are a disappointing 45–61 this season, and sit in fourth-place in the NL East.

Sometimes, you just don't have a good day at work. We've all been there. Such a day unfortunately came for future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw on Sunday during the Los Angeles Dodgers' game against the Milwauke Brewers. Kershaw cruised through three innings and looked to be on track towards earning a victory after the Dodgers spotted him a 3-0 lead.

But the wheels fell off in the top of the fourth inning.

The Dodgers defense let Kershaw down, committing a pair of errors that led to to the Brewers plating three runs. In the top of the fifth, Kershaw exited the game after hitting a batter, then allowing a single, after which the Dodgers committed another error.

The southpaw kept his cool on the mound in the midst of the errors but let his frustrations out when he got back to the dugout.

These have to be among the most frustrating days for a starting pitcher. The win is seemingly within the team's grasp, and then, because of circumstances out of the pitcher's hands, the lead disappears.

We feel your pain, Kershaw, we feel your pain.