Manchester City forward Raheem Sterling has said he hopes to play in the United States at some stage of his career.

Sterling, the Football Writers' Player of the Year, told a conference in New York he was surprised by the level of enthusiasm for football in the U.S. and expected the sport to continue to grow.

MLS franchise New York City FC is owned by the City Football Group, which runs City and five other clubs around the world.

"English football has grown massively over here. It wasn't like that in the past, and it'll continue to get bigger," Sterling told the Wall Street Journal conference.

"I was surprised even just popping out to the shops and being recognised by one or two people. I didn't expect that over here.

"This is a country I would, one day, love to be able to come to. Your weather is a lot better than ours. Hopefully one day I can have my family over here."

Sterling, who has four years remaining on his City deal, said he and teammates watched MLS matches as well as Australian A-League games at the club's Etihad Campus training facility.

"There's always games on our television at the training ground," the England international said.

"For sure, it [MLS] is growing in the UK, and people are really taking it in and want to come over. Hopefully I will have a career here as well."

NYCFC are coached by Domenec Torrent, Pep Guardiola's former assistant at City, while a number of players have been loaned to the U.S. club in previous seasons.

India offspinner R Ashwin will join Nottinghamshire for the second half of the county season. Ashwin will replace Australia's James Pattinson as Nottinghamshire's overseas player at the end of June and is expected to feature in six of their final seven red-ball matches.

His stint will start at home against Essex on June 30, followed by matches against Somerset and Surrey. He will miss the away fixture against Yorkshire but will return to play against Kent, Warwickshire and Surrey.

"I'm really looking forward to joining up with Nottinghamshire, to playing cricket at an iconic venue like Trent Bridge and hopefully contributing to some County Championship victories," Ashwin said. "I enjoyed my previous stint in England with Worcestershire. It's a good, competitive standard of cricket over there and I can't wait to get started."

ALSO READ: Ajinkya Rahane scores hundred on debut for Hampshire

This will be Ashwin's second stint in the county circuit. In 2017, he had played four matches for Worcestershire to take 20 wickets at an average of 29.15, and scored 214 runs at an average of 42.80.

"We knew what we wanted to sign and that was a world-class bowler," Nottinghamshire director of cricket, Mick Newell said. "Whether that was a fast or a slow bowler, we were prepared to look at all options.

"As it happens, we've signed a very good spinner, a very experienced spinner and one we hope can contribute with the bat as well. We've seen world-class slow bowlers have a huge match-winning effect in county cricket over many years. Ravi certainly has that potential - and we're very much looking forward to welcoming him to the squad and letting him loose on our opposition."

Ashwin will be the second Indian to play county cricket this season. Ajinkya Rahane had signed for Hampshire earlier and started his season with a century on Wednesday, against the team Ashwin has signed for.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.

0.1 starts over the wicket, ambles in and pitches it up outside off... and Roy carves it to backward point first ball! … well, England's plan was to be more attacking...

And that was how ESPNcricinfo's ball-by-ball commentary recorded the dawn of England's brave new world, in June 2015: their first completed ODI since the traumas of that year's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

As if to prove that blips and setbacks are as much as part of the road to triumph as the moments of glory, the newest batsman in their set-up got off to, literally, the worst possible start to his international career.

"I actually debuted in Ireland but it was a rained-off game," said Jason Roy. "But, for my first actual innings, I walked out there all prepped, all ready, done all my research. First ball, Trent Boult swings it in, nice straight, juicy half volley, fourth stump, I was like 'decent' … straight to point.

"I was like, 'no way, this can not be happening'. I felt like a bus had hit me. But we've come a long way since then."

England came a long way on that day alone, as it happens. With Joe Root and Jos Buttler making centuries in the first flourishing of the team's belligerent new approach, New Zealand's bowlers were carted for 408 for 9, the first 400-plus total in the team's history, but a score that they have since surpassed on three occasions.

And perhaps as a consequence of that mildly traumatic beginning, no player better epitomises the journey from zeroes to potential heroes that England's ODI team has been making in the course of the past four years.

Most importantly, Roy was given a licence to fail by the team management, in a bid to free him up to succeed, and the dividends are plain for all to see on the eve of the 2019 World Cup.

"It's about finding a way in international cricket.," he said. "And [Eoin] Morgan gave me the opportunity to do so, to find a way in international cricket to score big runs.

"He just said, 'You're going to play. We love what you are about, we love the way you play your cricket. And good luck.'

"It was very simple. Very simple from him. And I was like 'cool, focus on my second game'. I actually did not do very well that series. I can't remember what my top score was [39 from 37 balls, three days later at The Oval], but they stuck by me. I trained my arse off and worked hard."

Roy was named Player of the Series in the recent 4-0 victory over Pakistan, after racking up scores of 87, 76 and 114 in his three appearances - the latter coming after a sleepless and worrisome night, when his two-month-old daughter Everly had to be taken to hospital.

It would have been fully understandable for Roy to pull out of the contest in such circumstances, but amid the concern (now, thankfully, abated) he recognised the value of playing on through the anxiety, to prepare his mind for the prospect of a similar setback in the course of the coming seven weeks.

"Things get thrown your way," he said. "That's why I played the other day when my little one was ill. Because I wanted to make sure that if there was a World Cup game on, I would be able to replicate it.

"If that happened before a World Cup game there wouldn't be any [excuse] ... I'd 100% play and I'd have to deal with it. That's all part of professional sport and being who we are we have got to overcome little speed bumps.

"Not everything is going to be perfect, we are not going to have the perfect games but we have to find ways when we do have those imperfect games to come out on top, definitely."

That's been as true for the squad as a whole as for Roy individually. Despite completing, in Roy's words, "probably the best prep we could have had", there have nevertheless been issues to overcome in the final build-up - not least the disruption caused by Alex Hales' expulsion from the squad for recreational drug use - while Roy himself had to overcome back and hamstring issues early in the season that interrupted his Royal London campaign with Surrey.

"We've definitely had a lot of blips in the last year," he said. "But the way that we have overcome them and the way that we have bounced back from them all has always been outstanding. I think that that is going to stand us in great stead for the World Cup."

On the subject of his own injury, which first flared up in the Caribbean, Roy admitted he had been nervous coming back into the team after just three brief innings for Surrey in April. But he trusted his training to get him back up to speed as quickly as possible.

"I think the main case [for me] was mentally being switched on. Going through an injury is never nice … but I knew that my batting was going to be okay, just because I had been training a lot in the nets and I felt good.

"Injuries can reoccur but I've got all my training in place to make sure that there is less of a chance of that happening. But they are well and truly in the back of my mind and I'm not too worried about them at all."

Roy was speaking at the New Balance launch of England's team kit, an event that brought home the fact that the World Cup is just around the corner - not least given that it took place on the same day as the final 15-man squad was unveiled by the selectors at Lord's. And while he had sympathy for David Willey and Joe Denly, the two notable omissions from the party, he was happy to be able to fix his eyes firmly on what is to come.

"I think it's good just to get the squad together, to get the WhatsApp group set up and stuff like that." said Roy. "It's obviously heartbreaking for a couple of the players who have missed out but that just shows you how strong and how deep our squad is.

"We've been playing very, very good cricket for the last four years. Since the last World Cup, we've come together extremely well. And just because we have become No.1, we haven't got too big for our boots or we haven't got giddy, or we haven't stopped working as hard. We haven't stalled."

THE MILWAUKEE BUCKS are on the clock.

While things seem great in Milwaukee at the moment, greatness is fragile. Yes, the Bucks posted the best record in the NBA this season, are set to play a pivotal Game 5 in the Eastern Conference finals tonight, and have a young team that looks like it can be a contender for years to come.

But all of that remains contingent on one thing: convincing Giannis Antetokounmpo, arguably the best player in the world, to remain in Milwaukee.

This is precisely the situation that spurred the NBA and the players' union to create the designated veteran contract extension -- colloquially known as the "supermax" -- two years ago. The new option allows front offices to reward their superstars earlier in their careers, while helping teams avoid the fate of the Oklahoma City Thunder (Kevin Durant) or Portland Trail Blazers (LaMarcus Aldridge), who lost superstars for nothing in free agency.

When 2020 free agency begins, Antetokounmpo will still have one year remaining on his current contract. While no other team will be able to sign him, the Bucks can present Antetokounmpo with a five-year contract extension that is expected to be worth a league-record $247 million, according to projections by Bobby Marks, ESPN's front office insider. Whether he takes it or not will represent the biggest test to the new system.

To date, four players have signed supermax contract extensions: Stephen Curry, James Harden, Russell Westbrook and John Wall. The Curry and Harden deals have worked out splendidly for both sides. Oklahoma City's ability to build around Westbrook remains unclear, while Wall's contract has become regarded as the worst in the league even before it goes into effect.

Meanwhile, Anthony Davis is currently the only player eligible to sign a supermax extension this summer. But, later today, several other players - notably Damian Lillard, Bradley Beal, Klay Thompson and Kemba Walker - could join him when this season's All-NBA teams are announced.

How they, and their teams, react will be the last test of the supermax extension. Two years after its creation, something designed to be an answer has instead created more questions.

"I mean, when you've got guys that know their talent, know their skillset, and know what they're capable of from a money standpoint, you can't really entice somebody with a bag," Paul George told ESPN earlier this season, two years removed from bypassing his own chance to chase a supermax deal. "You know what I mean?"

VERY FEW PLAYERS actually have the opportunity to sign one of these massive five-year deals. To qualify for a supermax extension, a player has to be with the team he was on at the end of his rookie contract and entering his eighth, ninth or 10th year in the NBA. He also needs to have proven he's one of the most elite players in the league, in one of three ways:

• Winning MVP in any of the three most recent seasons;

• Winning Defensive Player of the Year in the most recent season or in the prior two seasons;

• Being named to an All-NBA team in the most recent season or in the prior two seasons.

Still, there is one other factor that isn't officially listed among the rules for supermax qualification, but might be the most important of all: the player has to want to re-sign with his current team, and the team has to want to give out the contract. Because, while the supermax extension was designed to help stem the tide of superstar player movement, it quickly became clear that wouldn't be the case.

"Everybody has their own agenda, and their own motive," George told ESPN. "For me, I just wanted to play and have a chance to win a championship. I didn't care about the money. For me, it was about where can I get a good opportunity to win, and I just felt that window was closing in Indiana, and I moved on."

The biggest benefit to the rule for players is that it gives them yet another bargaining chip. The NBA has always been a star-driven league. Having one of the handful of top players in the league in a given year often is the difference between winning and losing.

It stands to reason, then, that those players will be demanding in exacting any and all answers they want about how an organization is going about its business before deciding to commit long-term -- no matter how much extra money is on the table.

After all, if the difference is between making $191 million over four years on a supermax extension or getting traded and inking a four-year deal worth $157.1 million two years from now. The total dollars are both unfathomable amounts of money.

Those could be two possible options for Beal, who is already is in the middle of a five-year, $125 million deal, if he makes an All-NBA team today.

"Money's not the problem," the Washington Wizards guard told ESPN before the end of the regular season. "It's what are we going to do here moving forward. And it starts with getting a new GM and building up our team this summer. I'll definitely give it a lot of thought. It's not an easy decision. It's not a simple one."

When Wall was deciding whether or not to sign the supermax deal Washington offered in the summer of 2017, he said he wanted to see what the team did in the offseason first. In mid-July, Wall made up his mind and signed the extension. George and Kawhi Leonard decided they didn't want to commit to the supermax deals and instead forced their way out.

Both options are still, at least technically, in play for Davis. The New Orleans Pelicans star is eligible to sign a five-year extension worth $235.5 million on July 1 -- an extension that, if he's still on the Pelicans by then, he will assuredly be offered by them. Davis has already issued a trade demand back in January -- one that his camp insists still stands.

David Griffin, the Pelicans' newly installed executive vice president of basketball operations, has insisted he is going to do everything in his power to convince Davis that he should reconsider his position on New Orleans. Griffin's argument got a boost when the Pelicans jumped to the top of the NBA draft order after winning last week's NBA draft lottery, landing the chance to select Zion Williamson next month.

Still, the power is in Davis' hands. If he continues to say that he has no interest in signing the supermax extension, New Orleans could call his bluff. But that would be an incredibly risky hand to play -- especially considering there will be any number of teams lining up to secure Davis' services if he is put on the trade block this summer.

It is that power, despite the immense dollars at stake, that still allows the players to dictate, in many cases, how these negotiations go.

"I mean, the players that are eligible, frankly, are players that are going to get paid, and they're going to have any number of alternatives," Michele Roberts, executive director of the National Basketball Players Association, told ESPN. "It hasn't hurt them. It was something that they were able to secure and they were interested in getting it and it was going to be a tremendous advantage in terms of just the amount of money.

"But I still don't see a downside. The only downside is to the extent that people absolutely believed that it was a slam dunk way to keep their guys. And it just isn't. And if they doubted it they can now take a look at Anthony [Davis] and see, 'Oh, wow, there is no way.'"

WHEN THE LATEST collective bargaining agreement was finalized in December 2016, DeMarcus Cousins and Jimmy Butler were well on their way to qualifying for the supermax extensions, which would've kept them with their current teams into the next decade. At the time, both players were amenable to signing such a deal, per sources, and locking in a massive amount of money for years to come.

Instead, the Sacramento Kings and Chicago Bulls opted to trade their cornerstones well before they hit free agency, opting for young players and draft picks over signing a current star to a massive contract as they move into their early-to-mid 30s.

This is the calculus teams have to make. It's exactly what the league wanted franchises to have the power to do.

"Part of the goal in 'early-ing' up the discussion was that those players then wouldn't reach the end of their contracts and, frankly, surprise teams by then announcing they were leaving," NBA commissioner Adam Silver said at his annual news conference last month. "The fact that a player left the market doesn't mean it was a failure, because at least in those cases the teams got value."

How much value they truly got is still up for debate. The eventual hauls for Cousins (Buddy Hield, Justin Jackson and Harry Giles) and Butler (Lauri Markkanen, Zach LaVine and Kris Dunn) were mixed, with none of the players acquired likely to be as good as the ones they were dealt for. After being widely criticized at the time of the deal, the Pacers turned out to have done well in dealing George for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis. Even then -- especially after Oladipo suffered a torn quad tendon this season -- it's hard to see that as equal value back for an MVP candidate.

For the San Antonio Spurs, trading Leonard last summer was complicated by his own injury history, forcing them to move both Leonard and Danny Green -- who have become key members of the Toronto Raptors' deep playoff run -- for DeMar DeRozan, Jakob Poeltl and what became the No. 29 pick in this year's draft. Anyone who has watched these playoffs and seen how Leonard has performed will know the Spurs would much rather have just kept him in the fold. While the Pelicans will have far less difficulty getting value for Davis this summer, the prospect of trading him -- if it comes to pass -- would be equally painful for them.

Conversely, committing to a player early can go just as wrong as moving on from him. The supermax extension Wall signed in 2017 hasn't even kicked in yet. Now the Wizards, already a lottery team, are committed to a player coming off a torn Achilles tendon for another four years at a total of $170 million, drastically limiting their flexibility to improve their roster.

That turn of events is why Washington is in the midst of a search for a new president of basketball operations to replace the since-dismissed Ernie Grunfeld -- and why teams have grown wary of handing out these contracts even in the two years since the rule was implemented.

It is hard enough to build a championship contender as it is. Building one while having a contract on the books for up to six years in the future -- and at a gigantic annual figure -- comes with plenty of additional complications. It has to be truly worth doing. Deciding which players are, in fact, worth it can be a near-impossible task for NBA front offices.

THIS WEEK, MORE teams could be faced with that decision.

And while it's a difficult decision, at least when this season's All-NBA teams are announced today, Beal, Lillard, Thompson, Walker and their teams will know where they stand.

Lillard is a lock to make an All-NBA team, and sources say, he's also likely to sign the four-year, $191 million extension if he's offered it. However, the outlook remains murky for Beal, Thompson and Walker, all of whom are on the All-NBA bubble, and might not be locks to sign a supermax deal even if they make it.

Beal will evaluate the situation in Washington, which appears headed for a full rebuild in part because of what happened with Wall. Does Beal want to sign on for that? And whoever takes over as Washington's new president of basketball operations has to decide if Beal is better as a building block making 35 percent of the cap or a trade asset.

"At the end of the day, it's not an easy decision to make," Beal said. "It's only 15 guys that make [All-NBA teams] and it's so many people who deserve it. It is what it is when it comes down to it. I try not to, like I told you before, kill myself trying to figure out if I'm going to make the team and the money and all that. Just play it out."

Walker has been the lone bright light for the Charlotte Hornets, who are arguably in the most depressing situation in the league today. Walker could make far more money if he qualifies for a supermax deal and re-signs, but will he want to?

"I have no idea," Walker told ESPN during the regular season. "I have no idea. Like I've been telling everybody, I've never been a free agent. I've never been in this situation, so I don't even know what to expect. So, yeah, I'm not sure."

Thompson, on the other hand, is widely expected to return to the Warriors on a max contract. If he becomes eligible for the supermax, though, would Golden State be willing to pay? And, if not, could that be enough to convince him to look elsewhere? Meanwhile, given only two players on a team can be on supermax contracts at a time, Draymond Green -- who is hopeful of getting an extension done himself this summer -- will be watching to see if he'd even have the opportunity to get it from the Warriors in the future.

"Ultimately, you want a system, as I've said many times, where 30 teams can compete for championships, and that relates to all aspects of the system," Silver said. "You want a system that appropriately distributes the great talent throughout the league and that teams, regardless of where they're located or regardless if they're low-revenue or high-revenue teams, can all compete on equal footing."

Some have floated the possibility of adding an extra year to what teams can offer as a further enticement for players to stay. But consider how onerous Washington's commitment to Wall already is. How much worse would it look with another $50 million tacked onto it?

Meanwhile, some on the team side have advocated solving arguably the biggest issue created by the supermax for teams -- having to decide what to do with "fringe candidates" like Wall, Beal, Walker or Thompson, who qualify by making third-team All-NBA -- by only restricting eligible players to those who win MVP, Defensive Player of the Year or make first team All-NBA. That way, the only players who could earn it would be the handful of the best players in the NBA. And yet, it's hard to see why the players association would agree to take away the chance for players to earn a significantly higher amount of money that they have already won in collective bargaining.

All of these potential solutions, and the issues they present to one side or the other, show how the dance between both sides will continue -- with the moves to come over the next year adding further clarity to a situation that still bears watching.

"I think it's pretty clear that the system, while I believe it's gotten better over the years," Silver said, "there's still room for improvement."

Additional reporting by Ian Begley and Nick Friedell.

Nour saves two match balls before winning 13-11 in the fifth
By SEAN REUTHE in Hull

Egypt’s World No.3 Nour El Tayeb overturned two match balls to come through a gripping five-game battle with Hong Kong’s Annie Au at Hull’s Allam Sport Centre as she booked her place in the quarter-finals of the 2019 Allam British Open, PSA Platinum event.

Au hadn’t beaten El Tayeb since the 2010 PSA World Championships, but the World No.11 outplayed the Egyptian in the opening two games, winning the opener 13-11 on the tie-break, before following that up with an 11-7 triumph in the second.

A fired-up El Tayeb – who yesterday defeated Malaysian legend Nicol David in the final match of the eight-time World Champion’s career – finally got her game going in the third and fourth games as she came back to level, but she lost her focus to allow Au back into the encounter in the fifth.

Au moved ahead to hold two match balls, but El Tayeb dug in to come back and complete the win, and the tenacious 26-year-old will line up against World No.5 Joelle King in the next round.

“Ali [husband and men’s World No.1, Farag] and Raneem [women’s World No.1, El Welily] kept pushing me on,” said El Tayeb afterwards.

“They gave me the motivation to try harder after the second game. I don’t know if I wasn’t trying hard enough. When you get stuck in her game, it’s suffocating to get out of, so Raneem and Ali were trying to push me on.

“I told Ali that I could do it on my own, but apparently not yet. I thought I didn’t need him, but apparently I’m not over that. He gave me a big push, and just knowing someone is there and believes in you makes a lot of difference.”

King overcame England’s World No.12 Alison Waters in straight games to earn her spot in the quarter-finals, while World No.1 Raneem El Welily (pictured) dispatched United States No.1 Amanda Sobhy by the same scoreline.

El Welily, the 2018 British Open runner-up, has won her last three PSA tournaments – beating Sobhy in two of them – and she extended her unbeaten run to 15 matches with a 12-10, 11-6, 11-6 win in just 26 minutes.

“It was very important to take the first,” said 30-year-old El Welily. “I’m happy to be trying my best in every match and that is something that I have been working on with my coach, who is here with me, and was giving me the right tactics at the right time. Doing my best is the thing that I’ve been doing. I’m enjoying myself and just trying to do my best in every match, and wherever that takes me, I will be pleased with it.”

El Welily will play Egypt’s Nouran Gohar in the next round in what will be a repeat of last month’s El Gouna International final, in which the World No.1 triumphed. Gohar will now look to end a six-match losing streak to her fellow Egyptian after downing Hong Kong’s Joey Chan 3-0.

In the men’s draw, World No.34 Mazen Hesham advanced to his first major PSA quarter-final since November 2015 after he got the better of France’s Lucas Serme by a 3-1 scoreline.

Hesham (pictured) rose to a career-high ranking of World No.13 off the back a run to the semi-finals of the Qatar Classic that month, but a hip problem has seen him tumble down the rankings in recent years.

The 25-year-old looked to be back towards his best as he scalped World No.8 Diego Elias in the previous round, and he followed that up with victory over Serme to set up a quarter-final meeting with New Zealand’s Paul Coll, who beat World No.18 Fares Dessouky.

Hesham said: “I’ve been struggling badly, and I’m still struggling slightly, but there is hope at the end of the tunnel.

“I need to thank Omar Abdel Aziz, my coach, who persuaded me to come to Hull. I had such a bad season, I hadn’t had a good win against a top 10 player for three or four years. Omar is not just my coach, he cares, and really wants me to do well, so I kept pushing.”

Elsewhere, men’s World No.1 Ali Farag ended a three-match losing streak to World No.21 Marwan ElShorbagy to earn his place in the last eight for a fourth year in succession.

Farag, 27, has struggled to get the better of ElShorbagy over the past 18 months and lost to his compatriot in the final of the El Gouna International last year. However, after a nervy start to the match, Farag soon took control to win 11-8, 11-1, 11-2 in 31 minutes.

“It’s a very big win,” said Cairo-born Farag. “To play Marwan in the last 16 is a lot of pressure. I’m really happy with the way I dealt with it, the first game could have gone either way, I think that made a psychological difference, and I’m really happy with the way I pushed on after that.”

Farag will line up against the only person to beat him so far in 2019 – World No.9 Mohamed Abouelghar – in the next round, with Abouelghar beating France’s Gregoire Marche in straight games.

Third round action at the Allam Sport Centre continues tomorrow (Thursday May 23rd) with play getting under way at 12:00 (GMT+1). Play will be shown on SQUASHTV (rest of world), Eurosport Player (Europe only) and the official Facebook page of the PSA World Tour. 

Allam British Open 2019, University of Hull Sports and Fitness Centre, Hull, England.

Men’s Third Round (Top Half): 
[1] Ali Farag (EGY) bt Marwan ElShorbagy (EGY) 3-0: 11-8, 11-1, 11-2 (31m)
[7] Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY) bt Gregoire Marche (FRA) 3-0: 12-10, 11-2, 11-2 (40m)
Mazen Hesham (EGY) bt Lucas Serme (FRA) 3-1: 11-4, 11-6, 4-11, 11-7 (48m)
[4] Paul Coll (NZL) bt Fares Dessouky (EGY) 3-1: 11-5, 11-7, 9-11, 11-5 (66m)

Women’s Third Round (Top Half): 
[1] Raneem El Welily (EGY) bt [12] Amanda Sobhy (USA) 3-0: 12-10, 11-6, 11-6 (26m)
[7] Nouran Gohar (EGY) bt Joey Chan (HKG) 3-0: 11-5, 11-8, 11-3 (23m)
[5] Joelle King (NZL) bt [10] Alison Waters (ENG) 3-0: 11-4, 11-8, 11-6 (32m)
[3] Nour El Tayeb (EGY) bt [11] Annie Au (HKG) 3-2: 11-13, 7-11, 11-9, 11-4, 13-11 (50m)

Men’s Third Round (Bottom Half, May 23):
[3] Simon Rösner (GER) v Omar Mosaad (EGY)
Zahed Salem (EGY) v [5] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
[6] Miguel Rodriguez (COL) v Cesar Salazar (MEX)
Daryl Selby (ENG) v [2] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY)

Men’s Quarter-Finals (Top Half, May 24):
[1] Ali Farag (EGY) v [7] Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY)
Mazen Hesham (EGY) v [4] Paul Coll (NZL)

Women’s Third Round (Bottom Half, May 23):
[4] Camille Serme (FRA) v [9] Tesni Evans (WAL)
Nele Gilis (BEL) v Tinne Gilis (BEL)
[6] Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG) v [15] Joshna Chinappa (IND)
[13] Victoria Lust (ENG) v [2] Nour El Sherbini (EGY)

Women’s Quarter-Finals (Top Half, May 24):
[1] Raneem El Welily (EGY) v [7] Nouran Gohar (EGY)
[4] Joelle King (NZL) v [3] Nour El Tayeb (EGY)
 

Report by SEAN REUTHE (PSA PR and Media Director). Edited by ALAN THATCHER.

Pictures courtesy of PSA

Exeter's England and British and Irish Lions winger Jack Nowell says the pain of losing last year's Premiership final has spurred them on this season.

The Chiefs topped the league for a second successive season and will host Northampton in Saturday's semi-final.

Having been champions in 2017, Exeter lost to Saracens in last year's final.

"The boys were extremely upset from it and coming through this year, it's been important for us to remember that," Nowell, 26, told BBC Sport.

"We've worked so hard to get ourselves in this position, another home semi-final, we've done that and worked so hard to get there it'd be a shame to let ourselves down in one game.

"We felt that we let our side down and the fans down as well and it's one pain that none of us ever want to have again."

'Last year the boys genuinely hurt'

Nowell has been key to Exeter's recent rise - he has started all three of the club's Premiership finals - scoring a try in Exeter's first loss to Saracens at Twickenham in the 2016 showpiece and also dotting down as the Chiefs beat Wasps 12 months later for their first title.

"In the first year we lost it, there wasn't the same level of pain because it was a remarkable year for us," explained Exeter's director of rugby Rob Baxter.

"It was the first time in the top four, a home semi-final, getting to a final and the first time in a final. The season ended with it having been a fantastic season for us, our best ever, more than we could have dreamed of.

"The following year winning it was a great experience, but last year the boys genuinely hurt.

"I looked around the changing room and it was silent. It was upset and it was a little angry and I would like to think those same players that probably felt they let themselves down a little bit last year will be some of the guys who start driving us over the next two weeks."

World Cup dreams

With a World Cup on the horizon, Saturday's semi-final and a potential final at Twickenham seven days later, are also a chance for players such as Nowell to stake their claim for a place on the plane to Japan.

Eddie Jones names his initial squad in June before whittling it down to the final party a month later.

Nowell, who was a fringe member of the 2015 World Cup squad, faces stiff competition for a place on the wing as he looks to add to his 35 England caps.

Chris Ashton, Joe Cokanasiga, Elliot Daly and Jonny May featured alongside him in the Six Nations this year while Bath's Anthony Watson is returning to fitness and Gloucester youngster Ollie Thorley has earned rave reviews.

"You're getting a chance to play more for your club in front of Eddie, other teams aren't getting a chance to do that," explained Nowell.

"Eddie always says that Heineken Cup games are closest to what a Six Nations or international would be, and I think semi-finals and finals are going to be very close to that as well.

"They're extremely difficult, so any chance to play for your club in front of the coaches is obviously a big one.

"If we're doing well and we play well in the semi-final and hopefully get through and win the final, that's only going to help you put your hand up."