MANCHESTER, England -- Don't mention VAR at Manchester City.

Not only has it led to the Premier League champions being on the wrong end of a series of big decisions in recent months, usually against Tottenham, but it has also left us wondering whether Pep Guardiola and Sergio Aguero are back "on" again after their very public spat during Saturday's 2-2 draw against Spurs at the Etihad.

- Report: VAR denies late goal in 2-2 draw
- Man City ratings: Sterling, De Bruyne superb
- Spurs ratings: Lamela 8/10 in dramatic draw

More about Pep and Sergio later, because even their touchline row on 65 minutes became a thread in the VAR furore at the end of the game. But for the second time in four months, City saw a decisive stoppage-time goal against Spurs snatched away by VAR, leaving them with a 2-2 draw rather than a 3-2 victory.

They also had a claim for a penalty overlooked in the first half after Erik Lamela wrestled Rodri to the ground when, according to Guardiola, "the VAR was in a moment where they were taking a coffee."

Back in April, Raheem Sterling and everyone else inside the stadium thought he had made it 5-3 on the night in the Champions League quarterfinal, second-leg -- a goal which would have taken City into the semifinals -- only for VAR to rule it out after a lengthy, confusing wait for offside. Earlier in that game, VAR allowed Fernando Llorente's goal for Spurs to stand, despite it being bundled in off the Spaniard's arm.

Take note of that goal because it had a significant repercussion for City in this game, when VAR disallowed Gabriel Jesus's goal two minutes into stoppage time after a hand-ball earlier in the move by Aymeric Laporte.

The handball rule was changed in the summer, partly because of the impact of Llorente's goal in the Champions League, so that any handball, intentional or otherwise, in the build-up to a goal would lead to the goal being disallowed. (Leander Dendoncker had a goal ruled out for Wolves last week because of a handball earlier in the move by Willy Boly.)

So City have now suffered twice at the hands of VAR when it comes to handball but have been on both sides the coin, with one being allowed to stand when it ended up in the back of their net, but the other, scored by themselves, being chalked off.

"I thought we left that situation in Tottenham in the Champions League last season," Guardiola said. "But it is the same. The referee and VAR disallow it. It's the second time [it's happened] -- it's tough. It's honestly tough, but it's the way it is.

"The whistle inside matches now isn't quite clear, but they believe it's hands with [Fernando] Llorente in the Champions League and sometimes they don't."

In the crazy, confusing new world of VAR, all three crucial decisions that have gone against City have actually been correct under the rules of the game at the time. That didn't stop the home fans booing the officials off the pitch and chanting "VAR out!" as they trudged out of the ground.

One key issue is the time it takes to the reach the decisions and inform the players and fans: just like Sterling last season, Jesus was left to celebrate for a lengthy period before the big screens announced that the goal had been disallowed.

Another problem is the supposedly strict interpretation of the new handball rule, which allows for no contact with the arm whatsoever. Yet there have already been instances this season when similar incidents have gone unpunished, most notably one involving Andreas Christensen during Chelsea's Super Cup clash with Liverpool on Wednesday.

"There was no penalty when the ball hit Christensen's hand against Liverpool," Guardiola said. "It happened last week with Wolves and we also saw for Chelsea on Wednesday -- the keeper wasn't on his line -- Adrian in the penalty shoot-out, when he saved the penalty.

"They [VAR] have to fix it."

Mauricio Pochettino, having benefited once again from VAR at the Etihad, insisted that teams will have to brace themselves for being on both sides of the argument this season.

"It's unbelievable this stadium, with VAR," said Pochettino. "Especially for Tottenham, but we need to accept it. I was a little bit critical of VAR, but now we have to accept the rules. Now it benefits us, but no doubt it won't benefit us at other times. It's a rule we need to accept."

Yet Guardiola and City are finding VAR a tough innovation to love right now.

Before Jesus's goal was disallowed, the City manager and Aguero celebrated by hugging in the technical area, with both seeming to suggest that they overreacted in the 65th minute by arguing and finger-pointing after the forward had been substituted in favour of Jesus.

It was a heated disagreement and a clear display of dissent by Aguero towards Guardiola, but with Jesus appearing to score the winner, all was apparently forgiven. Yet with the goal ruled out, how does that leave Guardiola and his star forward?

"He [Aguero] believed that I was upset with him for the goal we conceded, from a corner," Guardiola said.

"It's just a fact that I wanted movement in that moment; he thought I was upset with him.

"I have been a player, I have been there. We talked after, we talked during the game. I like him a lot, he is a player who has feelings on the pitch, and that is what I want."

Guardiola and Aguero have patched it up, at least, but it will take a while longer for City to kiss and make up with VAR.

Test cricket is a shambles, and it is utterly compelling.

There is no way on earth that a match that has lost five sessions to rain and hadn't even reached the third innings until tea on the fourth day should be hurtling towards a position in which a positive result is now more likely than a draw.

But we've known all along that the sport moves to an alternative rhythm these days, and as a pulsating Saturday at Lord's concluded with England's most potent duo, Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler, overcoming their team's anxieties to keep their powder dry for a final push, it was clear that the pace of the format is now more thrash metal than the Green Sleeves of old.

"This is why we love Test cricket so much," said Justin Langer, Australia's head coach, at the close. "Who would have thought it? We're playing at Lord's, we've lost a couple of days to rain, and it's absolutely game on tomorrow."

ALSO READ: 'I can't get on the honour board unless I'm batting'

Where's your money now? Until Jofra Archer's extraordinary exploits, you'd have assumed that any fourth-innings target would have favoured the Aussies, simply because in Steven Smith they possess a batsman who can operate in a different dimension to his peers.

But now, all of a sudden, the parameters have shifted. Nobody in their right minds will expect England to still be batting by the end of this contest, which means Australia - with a battered and bruised Smith liable to be physically fit, if not quite in his pre-Archer mental zone - could be left with a tough dilemma in the denouement.

More early success from their battery of quicks, and better luck (particularly with lbws) from the ever-probing Nathan Lyon, and they could give themselves a couple of sessions in which to close out an Ashes-crushing 2-0 lead. But if England's middle order find anything resembling their gung-ho former selves (let's face it, dying wondering is hardly going to be their chosen tactic…) the door could yet be ajar to sneak an improbable series-squaring win.

"We probably went searching a little bit after getting off to a great start today," said Langer. "It's a tough wicket to bat on, which I don't mind, and it's going to be a great day's Test cricket tomorrow. I guess the only issue is that there's only one day left in it, so there's lots of scenarios that can play out here. But it's game on, I reckon."

Either way, it promises to be one of the most absorbing final days of Ashes cricket since the 2005 Ashes - that year's second Test also came down to a faintly memorable Sunday shoot-out - and then as now, there's an 18-year itch that is asking to be scratched, for incredibly it's been that long since Australia last won the Ashes on English soil, and no Ashes team since Don Bradman's in 1936-37 has ever come back from being 2-0 down.

"When I envisaged Test and Ashes cricket as a child, this is what I envisaged it being like today," said Chris Woakes, who finished the job that Archer had started by pinning Smith lbw for 92 shortly after the brave resumption of his innings.

"An intense game of Ashes cricket is quite draining but it's been an amazing game to be part of, and it's pretty much in the balance now. Of course I think we can win the game, but I think all three results are still possible to be honest."

But one thing is for sure. Australia's pack of quicks responded to Archer's usurping of their mantle with a furious, if subtly different, mode of attack, and reconfirmed the fact that they've still got the weapons to defend their hitherto dominant position.

Pat Cummins was supreme from the outset - just as he had been with the bat in the midst of the Archer onslaught - skilfully exposing everything we already knew about England's batting frailties to ensure that another fretful innings panned out in a near-identical fashion to the first: two early wickets in Jason Roy and the hapless Joe Root, two half-formed repair jobs from Joe Denly and Rory Burns, and two more against-type survival grinds from Stokes and Buttler, albeit with their places in the order rightfully switched this time round.

The fact that the damage was not more absolute by the close came down to a combination of Australia's fallibility in the field, with David Warner dropping two clear-cut chances, and their ongoing failure to gauge Lyon's angle into the left-handers, with Burns and Stokes both surviving leg-stump lbw appeals that would have been overturned on review.

"We missed a few in the first Test as well," said Langer. "Obviously the whole world's aware whenever it happens, so it's frustrating, there's no doubt about that. It can change the game, it can change a session, it can change a Test match, it can change a series, so we need to get better at it."

It promises, too, to be a vital day for Root's Test captaincy. A statistic doing the rounds before the match noted that, among men to have led England in 30 or more Tests, Root has the second-highest win percentage behind Mike Brearley. Unfortunately, he also has the second-lowest lose percentage behind David Gower - which is a testament to the ominous fact that his teams have managed just two draws out of 30.

And another stat that cannot be ignored is his flatlining career average. Never mind the subplot about his promotion to No.3, Root's returns have been nosediving since the end of the 2017-18 Ashes, to the extent that he is now averaging 32.82 from his last 18 Tests, having not strayed from a 50-plus average in the preceding four-year period.

On a day when Smith required the fast-bowling spell of the series to remind onlookers of his mortality, the stark reality of Root's first Test golden duck confirmed how far from those Fab Four standards he is now straying. Like Alastair Cook before him, he needs his team to rally round and ensure that the series doesn't end before he can make a telling impact.

Langer, however, believes his team is ready and waiting to take their chances on the final day, for he's under no illusion that plenty will be flying around.

"There's always going to be tension in Test cricket, and with tension comes mistakes. I'm sure there'll be six more opportunities tomorrow, and if that does happen, and we've got a chance to have a run-chase, we'll stay nice and calm, on a very fast outfield, with great value for your shots. And it's hopefully going to be a great run-chase if we can take those six wickets."

So, Justin Langer, about that tactic of getting bowlers into their fourth spells, then… On the eve of his Test debut, in what had otherwise been another horizontally laidback press appearance, Jofra Archer had suddenly fired in a verbal bouncer that was every bit as out of the blue as the languidly launched missiles that exploded on the Lord's Test.

Responding to Langer's pre-match "curiosity" about how his body and mind would hold up in a format notorious for grinding down quick bowlers, Archer's answer dripped with red-ball nous and Test-match readiness, not to mention a confidence that no ordinary Test debutant could have summoned at such will.

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"I've played a lot more red-ball than I have white-ball. I do think it's my preferred format," he said. "I've bowled 50 overs in one game already for Sussex and I'm usually the one bowling the most overs anyway. I think Justin Langer has another thing coming."

And sure enough, Archer could hardly have predicted more accurately the day's astonishing scenes had his thoughts been recycled from one of his four-year-old Tweets.

Archer was already 25 overs into his work for the innings, and armed with a ragged old ball that was four overs from completing its 80-over lifespan, when we finally discovered what a silken, effortless, natural-born quick bowler can achieve when he decides the time is ripe to bend that back, and go from effortless to effort-full.

Comparisons are odious when the action is as raw and visceral as Archer made it. The historian David Frith, who witnessed Frank Tyson in his pomp in 1954-55 as well as every great West Indian fast bowler from Wes Hall to Ian Bishop, rightly pointed out that Archer is his own man, with his own methods, and moreover he was bowling within his own context.

The pitch, the conditions, the emotions, the opponents - all of these differ from one great spell to the next, meaning that Harold Larwood at Adelaide in 1932-33, or Jeff Thomson at Brisbane in 1974-75, or Allan Donald at Trent Bridge, or Michael Holding at The Oval, can only really stand as testament to their own brilliance, bullet-points in Test cricket's extraordinary history, or bullet-holes if you prefer.

But what we witnessed, in the context of the recent Ashes rivalry, was a passage of play as savage, compelling and potentially series-turning as that moment when Mitchell Johnson first slipped his handbrake at Brisbane in 2013-14. In a searing eight-over spell at the end of a 29-over innings, Archer reminded us that there's a world of difference between run-of-the-mill quick bowling and furious, rip-snortingly rapid head-hunting.

"I've got massive admiration for Jofra," said a mildly chastened Langer, who insisted that his point about Archer's stamina had been misconstrued. "He's an unbelievable athlete, an incredibly skillful bowler.

"To bowl 30 overs, it doesn't matter if you're Jofra Archer, or Pat Cummins, or Josh Hazlewood, or James Anderson, or [Kagiso] Rabada. It's hard work. And that was my point before the game. His endurance was outstanding today, his skill and his pace. What an athlete, what a great player to have to promote Test cricket."

"The catalyst for Archer's onslaught was his return to the Pavilion End, the traditional hunting ground of the senior strike bowler"

All throughout his maiden Test innings, Archer had been lurking in Australia's peripheral vision. Pacing, probing, sizing up the pitch, his opponents, and perhaps most of all, his command of a red Dukes ball, the like of which he has barely used in 11 months.

"I don't think Jofra bowled as quick as he can out there," said Stuart Broad at the close of day three.

I think it's fair to say we have seen him do so now...

The catalyst for his onslaught was his return to the Pavilion End, the traditional hunting ground of the senior strike bowler, with its slope back down into the right-hander designed to create doubt in that channel outside off, the very channel in which Steven Smith has been so imperious throughout this series.

Within six balls, Archer had breached Australia's first line of defence, as Tim Paine - watchful throughout his second-fiddle innings - was caught in two minds (and then at short leg) by the one that nipped back off the seam. And like every fast bowler that's ever been born, the thrill of a wicket was all that Archer needed to tip his game into overdrive.

In Archer's next full over with Smith in his sights, he began to purr through his gears - 93mph, 94mph, 94mph - as smooth through his acceleration as a Porsche on the Autobahn. And suddenly Smith found that his extra split-second was no longer there, that his peerless ability to sight the ball on the back foot and point to it mockingly as he left it on the front was redundant.

And then, the first morale-denting strike. A vicious lifter into the forearm, as Smith curled into a defensive ball straight from the hand, unsettled by the line and no longer able to compute the length as the ball chased him like a rogue bludger before leaving him shaking his left arm in agony.

For a time it seemed he might have to retire there and then, his grip compromised, his invincible aura torn, but to his immense credit he popped a couple of pills, accepted some tight binding and took his guard once more. But it was clear that the passive aggression with which he had dominated England for three innings was not coming back - at least not here, not now. This was fight-or-flight mode, and again to his credit, Smith chose the former.

Consecutive bouncers, consecutive hooks - like KP against Lee at The Oval in 2005, but without the soaring upshot, as the first skimmed out of Jonny Bairstow's reach for four before the second plugged behind square for the single. And then, a scorcher, sizzling into the gloves at a scarcely believable 96.1mph … handbrake not so much slipped as torn clean out of its socket.

But the coup de grace was still to come. Another bouncer, another less-than-confident hook for four … and then the sucker punch. An exquisitely awful moment of pure sporting theatre, as Smith was slammed on the side of the neck by another ugly, incredible, spiteful snorter, and felled in the same instant.

The reaction around Lord's was stunned bewilderment … much like Archer's as well, who initially turned on his heel, his objective for the delivery achieved, before realising he needed to join the loose melee that had formed around the stricken Smith, who did at least - in removing his own helmet while spread-eagled on the deck - telegraph the fact that he had not been laid out cold.

An uncomfortable hush descended as the physios of both teams rushed out to attend to Smith, punctuated by a few boos from the witless few who still believe he deserves to be judged for his actions in Cape Town rather than his incredible feats both here and at Edgbaston.

And though he left the field without assistance, it was still a surprise to see him returning to the middle, to yawn into a succession of devil-may-care fours that inched him within touching distance of his third century in as many innings.

It wasn't the same batsman who had left the crease some 45 minutes earlier, however. For starters he ended up being pinned lbw, offering no shot as Chris Woakes curled one back into off stump - the holy grail dismissal that England had begun to believe was a myth in this series.

"It took a serious spell of fast bowling from Jofra to get Steve out of his bubble, because so far in the series he has been incredible," Woakes said. "I'm sure it was incredible to watch because it was incredible to be a part of it on the field and thankfully, having seen Steve on the balcony, it looks like he's okay which is obviously good news."

Smith's return to the middle, Langer joked, had come about because he had protested he wouldn't be able to get himself onto the honours board if he stayed sitting in the dressing-room. And though he failed in that objective, the drama had been so absolute that, for once in this series, his extraction from the crease counted for less than the fact that he had returned to it at all.

Indians 297 for 5 (Pujara 100 retired, Rohit 68, Carter 3-39) v West Indies A

The nearly eight-month-long break between India's previous Test in Sydney and now seemed to matter little to Cheteshwar Pujara as he struck a hundred for India in the tour match against West Indies A, ahead of their first World Test Championship game.

Pujara retired after completing his century, which came off 187 balls and included eight fours and a six. India finished the day on 297 for 5 with Rohit Sharma finding red-ball form. He contributed 68 in a 132-run fourth-wicket stand with Pujara, before falling to the offspin of Akim Frazer.

The pair steered the Indians out of choppy waters after they had been reduced to 53 for 3. Captain Ajinkya Rahane and opener Mayank Agarwal endured failures, falling to the medium pace of Jonathan Carter for scores of 1 and 12 respectively. Carter was the pick of the West Indies A bowlers, as he also accounted for the wicket of Rishabh Pant, who scored a 53-ball 33.

KL Rahul, meanwhile, squandered a start, falling for a 46-ball 36, which included five fours and a six. At stumps, Hanuma Vihari was unbeaten on a patient 101-ball 37, in the company of Ravindra Jadeja.

Since the start of the Professional Cricket League Regional 4 Day Tournament, West Indies' first-class competition that was revamped in 2014, Rahkeem Cornwall has been one of the tournament's most consistent wicket-takers. The Leeward Islands offspinner is fourth on the list of the leading wicket-takers since the 2014-15 season, having taken 197 wickets over the years. On three occasions, he has been among the top three bowlers in an edition, including in 2018-19, when he finished as the leading wicket-taker with 54 wickets in nine matches with an average of 17.68.

This consistency is one of the reasons Cornwall believes he is well-suited to the Test format, especially with the possibility of a debut during the upcoming fixtures against India, the first of which starts on August 22 as part of the World Test Championship.

"I believe the Test format suits my game because of the consistency a player needs over a long period of time to be successful, and I've enjoyed that challenge so far in my career playing first-class cricket," Cornwall told the Cricket West Indies website. "The feeling [on getting called up] is great - it's something I've been pushing to achieve for a long time."

His tally of 54 wickets in the first-class tournament followed a haul of 23 wickets in List A and first-class games against England Lions earlier in 2018, and in the recent series against the touring India A, Cornwall took nine wickets in six matches. Playing against two quality oppositions was good preparation for Cornwall, who said that his on-field results were signs of the progress he had made.

"The A-team preparation has been very good," he said. "England Lions and India A were two quality opposition teams featuring guys that played Test cricket. Overall it has been very challenging and it was a good place to test skills that I've been trying to perfect every year in our domestic competition.

"I've been putting in a lot of work over the last couple of months. I've always pushed myself. I feel I can go on and I think the on field results I've achieved have shown the progress I'm making."

Cornwall's cricketing hero is former South Africa allrounder Jacques Kallis and one of his earliest inspirations to play for West Indies came from watching Brian Lara's 400 not out against England in Antigua in 2004.

"My cricket hero is definitely Jacques Kallis," he said. "The way he carried himself as an allrounder on and off the field, I've tried to visualise and work to match certain things I saw Kallis to do my game.

"The Test match I remember most watching was Brian Lara's 400 in Antigua 2004. It was early inspiration for sure to become a professional cricketer and to play for the West Indies."

Sri Lanka 249 (Dickwella 61, Mendis 53, Patel 5-89, Somerville 3-83) and 268 for 4 (Karunaratne 122, Thirimanne 64, Mathews 28*) beat New Zealand 249 (Taylor 86, Nicholls 42, Akila 5-80, Lakmal 4-29) and 285 (Watling 77, Latham 45, Embuldeniya 4-99, De Silva 3-25) by six wickets

Dimuth Karunaratne played a big part in preserving his perfect record as Test captain as Sri Lanka brought up their third consecutive win since he took over, brushing New Zealand aside with a six-wicket win on the fifth day and picking up the full 60 points in their first World Test Championship match. In the process, Karunaratne also brought up his first century in 23 innings and his ninth overall as the hosts bested the previous record chase in Galle - 99 - by some distance.

Karunaratne came out just as positively as he had in the last session of the fourth day, adopting a simple strategy of working the spinners square on either side, off both front and back foot. In scoring 122, Karunaratne hit only six fours and a six, which belied his overall approach to prioritise a brisk scoring rate. To that end, he stepped out early in the day for a delightful flick off Ajaz Patel for a boundary, and then launched the left-arm spinner over the midwicket boundary four overs later to bring up the 150 stand for the opening wicket with Lahiru Thirimanne.

Between those two shots, though, were glimpses of the occasionally turbulent theme of his innings. Karunaratne had survived a stumping chance, and at least two legitimate catching chances on the fourth day. Shortly after that flick off Patel, he got a thick outside edge on the cut - a shot that he couldn't quite control all innings long - that snuck through for a four, and was then dropped by Tom Latham at short leg. It was Latham's third drop of the innings in that position.

That set the tone early in the day, and with every over of nudging and manipulating the field for singles, New Zealand's resolve was visibly diminishing. Any hope came through Sri Lanka's misadventures.

Thirimanne, ever under scrutiny as a Test player, batted with composure and control throughout the innings in one of Sri Lanka's most prolific fourth-innings opening stands of all time. If he showed any shakiness during the innings, it was when he swept, and that was the shot that led to his dismissal, Will Somerville getting his man on the review. The opening stand was worth 161.

In keeping with the pattern of his short career, Kusal Mendis managed to fit in both exquisite strokeplay and a frustrating surrender in an innings of six balls. With a solid platform laid and the opponents on the mat, his plan seemed to be to attack relentlessly, and this resulted in two pristine shots off Somerville - down the track quickly, using the spin to lift one over midwicket and the other over the long-on boundary. But the daring was short-lived when he swept Patel to midwicket next over, offering New Zealand some optimism with 94 runs to still get.

But the arrival of Angelo Mathews brought the calm it always has, and the veteran settled immediately into the role Thirimanne played for Karunaratne. New Zealand were switching bowlers fast, with Kane Williamson even trying himself for the first time in the Test, but the 44-run stand between the senior-most batsmen put Sri Lanka on the doorstep of victory.

Karunaratne did eventually nick behind trying to chop outside off stump, in a rare Tim Southee over. But coming in next was Kusal Perera, the architect of Sri Lanka's miracle chase against South Africa earlier this year. He had no issues slashing deliveries off that line - or dragging them to the leg side - and came out with what looked like the sole intention to finish the chase before lunch.

With his boundaries, he forced a four-over extension with 22 runs to get, but fell shortly after for 19-ball 23. Mathews and Dhananjaya de Silva didn't manage to get the runs in that period, but with only six runs to get, the umpires deemed it fit to give Sri Lanka another extension and the chase was sealed with a Mathews flick to fine, seven balls later.

NEW YORK -- Manager Aaron Boone, Brett Gardner and the New York Yankees again hammered away at the umpires Saturday, this time in prolonged rants that brought several members of the team spilling onto the field, while beating the Cleveland Indians 6-5.

For the third time in a month -- each time with a minor league call-up umpire behind the plate -- the team with the best record in the American League lost its temper in a big way. This episode led to Boone and Gardner as well as pitcher CC Sabathia, who is on the injured list, all being ejected.

The trouble began in the sixth inning after Triple-A ump Ben May called out Cameron Maybin on strikes. The final pitch to Maybin was, according to strike zone charts, a bit outside. He calmly stood and discussed it with May and went back to the bench.

Moments later, things heated up in a hurry.

Boone came rushing from the dugout to confront May, and engaged in an animated argument. When Boone returned to the bench, all seemed calm -- for a moment, anyway.

That's when Boone came back for another go at May, with crew chief Tom Hallion coming in from second base, trying to quell the beef. But at the same time, several Yankees were hollering from the dugout, engaging in a close-up argument with first-base ump Phil Cuzzi.

"Just in that couple innings, obviously we objected to a few calls," Boone explained after the game. "I start in there not wanting to get one of our guys if I can out of that game, but you know I had some issues where I felt like something might have affected another, might affect [James] Paxton being in that game, so just voiced it."

Gardner was then ejected after banging his bat against the dugout roof -- it's become his habit when he gets upset -- and then he climbed over the railing to continue to the dispute with Cuzzi. Coaches Phil Nevin, Marcus Thames and Josh Paul also were on the field, holding back Gardner, who was also arguing with third-base umpire Todd Tichenor.

"Kinda crazy to be honest," Gardner said. "Got ejected for hitting the top of the dugout with my bat, making too much noise I guess. I wasn't happy about it, I didn't feel like what I did warranted an ejection."

Boone said he thought the umpires were looking for Gardner to repeat his previous assaults on dugout roofs.

"I think in this case, in kind of talking with Gardy and watching it back, I think it's clearly something they were probably looking for with us," the manager said. "I haven't received any memos or anything saying that's illegal. Gardy was saying nothing again other than, 'Hey, this is a spot in the game, we're fired up, we're playing for a lot,' and we get a little passionate in that dugout in spots, and Gardy I don't think was doing anything more than that."

Boone added that on the topic of hitting the roof, the Yankees would "work closely with the commissioner's office and find out what's acceptable and not and try and certainly be respectful of that, and try and do a better job of staying in the game."

Gardner said he believes any potential rule limiting players' expression from the dugout would not be good for the sport.

"I guess if we're trying to make the game fun again, like a lot of guys say the last few years -- I don't think you want all the guys sitting in the dugout not being able to say anything or make any noise or anything like that," Gardner said. "That wouldn't be too much fun. I'm not saying what I did was right...But I probably wouldn't do it again tomorrow."

It was Gardner's sixth ejection of his career and second in little more than a week.

Last Friday, Gardner was tossed after an incident in Toronto in which plate umpire Chris Segal heard some words from the dugout and singled out the outfielder. Gardner had been silent at the time but earlier had been slamming his bat into the roof of the dugout.

On July 18, Boone screamed and hollered at another rookie umpire, Brennan Miller, leading to the expletive-filled rant that prompted the manager to call his hitters "savages" in the batter's box. That netted him a one-game suspension.

These frustrations have come as the Yankees are running away with the American League East, with an 11-game lead over their nearest rival.

"I think it got taken too far with sending Gardy out of that game again, but look we're playing for a lot right now," Boone said. "You can feel that with all our guys right now, we're in this thing -- we're playing for keeps."

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

In his highly anticipated return to the Octagon, Nate Diaz was brilliant in a unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) win over Anthony Pettis in the co-main event of UFC 241 on Saturday at Honda Center.

Diaz had not fought since a loss to Conor McGregor at UFC 202 on Aug. 20, 2016. He imposed his will on Pettis early and often. Diaz was able to press Pettis against the cage in every round and land punch combinations, elbows and knees. He closed the first and third rounds in good positions on the ground, an area he also controlled when the fight went there.

Afterward, Diaz said he is interested in fighting Jorge Masvidal next, adding that he was impressed by Masvidal's five-second knockout of Ben Askren last month.

"All respect to the man, but there ain't no gangsters in this game anymore. There ain't nobody who does it right but me and him," said Diaz, who hails from Stockton, California, and enjoyed a huge partisan crowd on Saturday. "So I know my man's a gangster, but he ain't no West Coast gangster."

At his postfight news conference, UFC president Dana White said he wouldn't be opposed to making Diaz-Masvidal fight if that's what both fighters wanted next.

Diaz's best round was the third. As had happened multiple times, Diaz pushed Pettis against the cage and landed a lengthy combination with punches. Pettis dropped but survived until the end of the round.

Pettis had his moments in every round. When striking at distance, he was more effective than Diaz. By the end, Diaz was cut near his right eye. But whenever Pettis started gaining momentum from the outside, Diaz closed the distance and made it a clinch fight, which he dominated.

Pettis posted a photo of his foot looking severely swollen and bruised on Instagram after the fight, saying in the caption that Diaz had a hard head.

The bout was contested at welterweight, though both men have spent the majority of their careers at lightweight. Diaz is the fifth fighter in UFC history to land more than 2,000 total strikes.

Diaz (20-11) went 1-1 against McGregor in 2016. They were two of the biggest pay-per-view events in UFC history. Diaz, 34, has a huge cult following among fans for his irreverence, exciting fighting style and propensity to flip a double bird. He had not fought since that star-making year because he wasn't able to come to terms with the UFC.

Pettis (22-9), the former UFC lightweight champion, was coming off a knockout win over Stephen Thompson. "Showtime" has alternated wins and losses going back to 2016. Pettis, 32, has been one of the UFC's most marketable stars over the years, once getting his likeness emblazoned on Wheaties boxes.

Stipe Miocic avenged his 2018 loss to Daniel Cormier and regained the UFC heavyweight championship. Paulo Costa and Yoel Romero had a middleweight exchange on the feet for the ages. Three years removed from his last fight, against Conor McGregor, Nate Diaz made an instant splash.

Our panel is here to break down the biggest moments of UFC 241.

Is Stipe Miocic the greatest heavyweight in the history of the UFC?

Ariel Helwani: These questions are always hard to answer on fight night. However, I lean toward yes for two reasons: He has the most title defenses in UFC history, and he just beat who I considered to be the best heavyweight ever. Also, in case you didn't know, Cormier was a perfect 15-0 as a heavyweight going into Saturday. In other words, that win was really big for Miocic. It was, in my opinion, his biggest to date.

Brett Okamoto: Yes, Stipe is the greatest heavyweight of all time, as of Saturday night. His goal was always to be the greatest of his era, and there would have been no coming back had he lost to Daniel Cormier. That goal would have been dead. But he delivered a performance for the ages against one of the greatest fighters of all time. Unless there is a trilogy -- a scenario that seems very unclear to me right now -- I would say Stipe is the greatest heavyweight.

Jeff Wagenheim: If you had asked me this question early in the evening of July 7, 2018, I would have said yes. Miocic had defended the belt more times than anyone else, most recently dominating Francis Ngannou, the scariest KO artist this side of prime Mike Tyson. Prior to that, he had KO'd a former champion (Andrei Arlovski), the reigning champ (Fabricio Werdum) and his first two challengers (ex-belt holders Alistair Overeem and Junior Dos Santos) -- all in the first round. But then, on that ill-fated night last summer, Miocic went out and got KO'd in the first round, and we had to slow our roll on GOAT talk.

On Saturday, though, he righted that wrong, and he did it in a way seldom seen from heavyweights. When the big guys are being beaten to the punch in the early going, it usually turns into an early night. But Stipe persevered through the best that Daniel Cormier could dish out, turned the tide in Round 3 and came out for the fourth with a whole new plan of attack, which he implemented with poise and precision. That's high-level stuff, the kind of fighting you see from only the greats.

Or, in this case, the greatest.

Marc Raimondi: I don't think there's any way around that now. Miocic came in already holding the UFC record for consecutive heavyweight title defenses at three. Now, he's a two-time champion with a TKO win over Daniel Cormier, one of the best fighters ever, on his résumé. If Miocic isn't the greatest heavyweight in UFC history, then who is? Cormier? Cain Velasquez? Miocic has the edge over both, especially now. At 36 years old, Miocic is still going strong too.

If this was it for Daniel Cormier, what is his legacy in the UFC?

Helwani: One of the greatest ever. Top five. A living legend. A fighting champion. A man who got knocked down repeatedly and found a way to overcome it all toward the end of his career. I have the utmost respect for Cormier. He never took a shortcut and represented the sport with dignity and class. He has nothing left to prove to anyone. The Hall of Fame awaits.

Okamoto: Cormier's legacy is as one of the greatest fighters of all time. There should always be a footnote attached to his career that he got in late. Had Cormier started training in MMA and transitioned into MMA earlier than he did, I think there is a very strong chance that we would call him the best of all time. And he still had a tremendous career. Fifty years from now, we'll still be talking about the greatness of Daniel Cormier. This loss has no effect on that.

Wagenheim: Cormier is one of the greatest figures in the sport. As a fighter, he has beaten everyone he has faced other than Jon Jones, and there's shame in that only if you can find shame in beating everyone in one-on-one hoops except Michael Jordan. Speaking of greats, among Cormier's conquests is the finest heavyweight ever to walk the earth (even though Miocic evened the score on Saturday).

Beyond fighting, DC's legacy is still building. He's the most fun among the cageside analysts ("Thug Rose! Thug Rose!"), and consider this: The three figures who break down athletes on the Detail show are Kobe Bryant, Peyton Manning and Cormier. DC is no interloper in that elite company.

Raimondi: He's one of the top three MMA fighters who has ever lived. As it stands now, I put Jon Jones and Georges St-Pierre above him, but that's all. Cormier is a former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion. He has lost to only two men, Jones and Miocic. There is no doubting his résumé. Just as important is how great of an ambassador he is for the sport. Cormier is an exceptional analyst on ESPN and is a credit to MMA in every position the UFC puts him in outside the cage. The best part is the latter doesn't have to end even if he does hang up the gloves.

After three years away, was that the Nate Diaz you expected to see?

Raimondi: Honestly? Absolutely not. In my mind, Diaz was a huge question after three years away. The last time he had fought was 2016. Ronda Rousey had fought more recently than Diaz. Of course, we know what Diaz has always brought to the table, but it was impossible to see a dominating win over Pettis in the cards. Pettis is such a talented striker and did have success at distance, to be fair. Diaz was able to grind him out against the cage, though, and showed off some diversified techniques in that position. If you told me we would see one of Diaz's best career performances here, I probably would not have believed it.

Okamoto: I think Nate's proper weight is welterweight. I thought it was always going to be very, very difficult for him to return to lightweight. I think in this fight you saw Nate as a real comfortable welterweight. He added strength, but it looked like he was still lean. I thought he fought smart. He neutralized a very dangerous fighter in Anthony Pettis.

Nate's offense is always the first thing to come to mind because that's what steals the show -- the "Stockton Slaps," the strikes and all of that. But he forced the type of fight that just smothered a guy such as Pettis, who has about a billion ways to knock you out. He just smothered him. It was extremely impressive. I don't know where Nate will go. I don't know how high his ceiling is at welterweight, but he legitimized himself as at least a threat in that division right now.

Helwani: For the most part, yes. I thought Pettis was a good matchup for Diaz, and I expected him to be in shape and motivated for this fight. I was a tad surprised he got tired toward the end of the fight, but that fight was fought at an incredible pace, and both guys got tired. I thought, overall, he fought an amazing fight and looked really good. The fight game is always more exciting and interesting when the Diaz brothers are thriving in it, so on behalf of pretty much everyone: Welcome back, Nathan Diaz.

Wagenheim: To (partially) quote a famous orator, I'm not surprised. The Diaz game is not a slave to timing as much as it is to toughness and cardio and smarts -- and he didn't lose any of those things during his layoff. Early on, Nate was getting clipped repeatedly by Anthony Pettis as the fight was contested at distance, so he showed his fight IQ by closing the distance and making it his kind of fight. That sounds simple, but it takes toughness. You're going to be hit coming in, and it takes energy to keep up the relentlessness necessary to drain your opponent of a fighting chance.

The best move of the night came after the fight, when Diaz called out Jorge Masvidal. What better way to prevent another three-year absence than to book Nate in a fight that interests him (and interests Masvidal, the fans and the UFC bean-counters)?

Costa vs. Romero: Discuss.

Okamoto: It was a great fight, of course, and I scored it 29-28 for Paulo Costa. It was one of those fights that could have gone either way. I've always wondered what would happen if Costa were unable to just march forward, taking shots while delivering bigger ones. I wondered what would happen when somebody ruined that game plan for him.

Even a fighter as tremendous as Yoel Romero couldn't do it. Costa put him up against the fence and hurt him with shots, and while Romero was successfully able to throw back and back Costa off occasionally, this was still Costa 101. This was his game plan that he succeeded with against inferior fighters. This time he did it against one of the best middleweights we've seen in years, and it still worked. Costa is a legitimate No. 1 title contender.

Wagenheim: Suddenly, I'm a huge fan of fouls. Who would have guessed? Costa's groin shot on Romero necessitated a pause in the first round, giving each man a short break right in the middle of a high-energy five minutes. Romero's eye poke on Costa in the third gave the sagging fighters another breather. It was good for the athletes and especially good for us, the fans. When the action resumed, the two middleweights sculpted out of granite went at it like the masterpieces they are.

Costa needed a test like this. Sure, he came in at 12-0 with the scary distinction of having scored stoppages in every one of his fights. But a hard-fought decision victory over Romero, No. 2 in ESPN's 185-pound rankings, is way more impressive than putting out the lights on Uriah Hall or a faded Johny Hendricks. This win vaults the 28-year-old Brazilian toward the top of the mountain.

Helwani: Great fight. The wait was worth it. It was a hard fight to score. I thought Romero won 29-28, but it was darn close. Both guys took some really hard shots and kept on coming. That was probably the result the UFC brass wanted deep down because now it sets up Costa versus the winner of Whittaker vs. Adesanya. A fresh contender is waiting in the wings.

Raimondi: Wow. I mean, what can you say about this fight? If Jim Ross had been calling it, he would have described it as a slobberknocker. What's crazy about it is that we've seen Costa and Romero fight others and put them to sleep with some of the shots they were landing Saturday. Costa had never been to a decision before in his career. He had finished everyone, but he couldn't finish Romero. I actually had Romero winning 29-28, but I can't be too torn up over a close fight that was incredibly memorable. What a show these men put on, trading shots, trading taunts. It was everything you want to see in an MMA scrap.

Besides the top three fights, who do you think took the biggest step forward at UFC 241?

Wagenheim: Cory Sandhagen might have generated more buzz if he had scored a spectacular finish. But what he did was even better than buzz: He showed that he belongs among the bantamweight contenders. For 15 minutes, he calmly picked apart Raphael Assuncao, who is No. 5 in ESPN's bantamweight rankings. Sandhagen looked like he was the veteran in the Octagon when, in fact, he has been in the UFC only since last year. It was telling when, in the middle of a fight he was controlling, his coach was asked on the broadcast whether Cory was looking for the finish. The answer? "He's never looking for the finish. He's looking for what the fight brings."

That is the type of coaching, and fighting, that will make Sandhangen's run sustainable. He's 12-1 and a winner of seven straight, but his biggest moments are still ahead.

Honorable mention for big splash of the night has to go to the winner of the fight right after Sandhagen-Assuncao. Lightweight Khama Worthy made his UFC debut on four days' notice, as a +650 underdog, and TKO'd former training partner Devonte Smith for the biggest UFC upset this year. Love those kind of moments.

Helwani: Sodiq Yusuff. He was put in a big spot on the main card for a reason. He has won five fights in a row, including three in a row in the UFC. He's a rising star and another fighter from Nigeria doing well these days. I continue to be impressed by "Super" Sodiq.

Raimondi: Cory Sandhagen is a real problem at bantamweight. Raphael Assuncao is rarely dominated the way he was Saturday. Sandhagen is a supremely talented striker with the innate ability to switch stances, move in and out and land precisely. He's almost an updated version of Dominick Cruz. The Colorado native doesn't have a ton of power, but Sandhagen is difficult to hit and is solid in every other area, including wrestling and grappling.

There are big fights ahead for him at 135 pounds. And if you don't believe my assessment, go look at what his UFC peers were saying about him on Twitter during the Assuncao. He was extremely impressive at UFC 241.

Okamoto: The two options come down to Sandhagen and Yusuff. I thought both were outstanding. I'm going with Sandhagen as well because of whom he fought. Raphael Assuncao is always criminally underrated. He never gets the credit he deserves. It's extremely difficult to look good against him, which Sandhagen said before the fight.

It was a concern of his that Assuncao is damn near impossible to look good against. And especially in that first round, he looked good. He's a fun fighter to watch, but more importantly, his approach and style are so different that he's going to be a hard matchup for anyone in that division. I think he should be facing someone who is highly ranked after this fight. I believe we will see Cory Sandhagen fight for a UFC championship in 2020.

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Stipe Miocic waited more than a year for his rematch. Then he waited four rounds to execute the best possible game plan against Daniel Cormier.

In the end, Miocic's patience paid off in a huge way, as he regained his UFC heavyweight title by TKO in Round 4 on Saturday in the main event of UFC 241 at Honda Center.

Miocic started landing body shots in the fourth, and though Cormier shrugged off the first two or three, they started to add up. It was a left hook to the body that began the sequence that led to Miocic's stoppage of Cormier at 4 minutes, 9 seconds.

With the finish, Miocic regains the crown he lost to Cormier by first-round knockout at UFC 226 in July 2018.

"I felt like that hook to the body was hurting him," Miocic said. "His hands were dropping, so I came over the top more. My coach told me to use that right hand. I knew I was hurting him. I just had to keep working, keep working until something opened up."

Before the fourth, it was Cormier's fight. Two judges had him ahead 29-28 going into the fourth round, and the other judge had Cormier winning all three rounds.

Cormier landed hard on the feet and took Miocic down in the first round. In the second, Cormier landed a series of nice jabs and right hands, and though Miocic started wearing damage, he was never hurt or rocked in the round.

Cormier fed Miocic a series of jabs in the third, but Miocic landed some power shots, including one that opened a cut either in or near Cormier's mouth.

With both men standing toe to toe, landing hard punches and showing off their incredible chins, Miocic mixed it up in the fourth round. He started landing left hooks and straight right hands to the body every chance he got. While Cormier was defending power rights to the head, Miocic was sneaking in hooks to the gut and side.

"I think he made a great adjustment," Cormier said.

Miocic landed a left hook to the body late in the round, followed by a one-two combination that rocked Cormier and sent him back against the cage. Miocic followed with a flurry, and referee Herb Dean stepped in for the clean stoppage.

"DC is a tough guy, I've got to give it to him," Miocic said. "I saw some weakness in that third round, and then in that fourth round, I caught him with that right hand, thank God, because he's tough."

Cormier landed a UFC heavyweight-record 181 significant strikes in the loss. Cormier and Miocic combined for 304 significant strikes, a new UFC heavyweight record.

Miocic (19-3), 36, held the record for consecutive UFC heavyweight title defenses before he fell to Cormier, and now he'll start a new reign. He has won seven of his past eight fights and has cemented himself as one of the best heavyweight MMA fighters of all time.

Miocic is now tied with Tim Sylvia for second in UFC history with five title fight victories. Randy Couture has the most, with six.

Cormier's (22-2, 1 NC) only previous loss came at light heavyweight to Jon Jones. The 40-year-old California resident has held titles at UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight. He is regarded as one of the best pound-for-pound MMA fighters ever.

Afterward, regarding retirement, Cormier said he'll have a discussion with his family and "make an educated decision as to what we're going to do."

UFC 241 drew a sellout crowd of 17,304 to Honda Center, setting a new California gate record for MMA at $3,237,032.