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How to watch: Live streams for KPMG Women's PGA, Travelers Champ., and more
Here's how you can access live streams to Golf Channel's coverage this week. Click on the link for direct access to that event (all times ET). The times represent the live streams and the televised coverage. For events that are tape-delayed, the coverage times are also noted.
All events listed below will be broadcast on Golf Channel, unless otherwise noted. Those airing on NBC and simulcast on Peacock are highlighted. For this weekend's KPMG Women's PGA Championship coverage, you can stay on Peacock throughout the telecast or switch to NBC at the designated time.
You will also notice QR codes during Golf Channel and NBC Sports’ digital and TV coverage. If you see one pop up on your screen, open the camera app on your mobile device and hover over the code. The camera app will automatically read the code and take you to this page for the weekly rundown or directly to the stream being promoted on coverage.
Stream links will be updated as made available.
Thursday
6:30-Noon (GC): BMW International Open, Round 1 (DP World Tour)
- 10 a.m. - noon ET exclusively on live stream
11AM-3PM (GC/Peacock): KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, Round 1 (PGAA/LPGA Tour)
3-6PM (GC/Peacock): Travelers Championship, Round 1 (PGA Tour)
5-7PM (Peacock): KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, Round 1 (PGAA/LPGA Tour)
Friday
6:30-Noon (GC): BMW International Open, Round 2 (DP World Tour)
- 10 a.m. - noon ET exclusively on live stream
11AM-3PM (GC/Peacock): KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, Round 2 (PGAA/LPGA Tour)
1-3PM (GC/Peacock): Dick’s Sporting Goods Open, Round 1 (PGA Tour Champions)
- Tape-delayed; will air 7-9 p.m. ET on Golf Channel
3-6PM (GC/Peacock): Travelers Championship, Round 2 (PGA Tour)
5-7PM (Peacock): KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, Round 2 (PGAA/LPGA Tour)
Saturday
7:30-Noon (GC): BMW International Open, Round 3 (DP World Tour)
11AM-3PM (Peacock): KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, Round 3 (PGAA/LPGA Tour)
1-3PM (GC/Peacock): Travelers Championship, Round 3 (PGA Tour)
3-6PM (CBS): Travelers Championship, Round 3 (PGA Tour)
3-6PM (GC/Peacock): Dick’s Sporting Goods Open, Round 2 (PGA Tour Champions)
3-6PM (NBC/Peacock): KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, Round 3 (PGAA/LPGA Tour)
Sunday
7:30-Noon (GC): BMW International Open, Round 4 (DP World Tour)
11AM-2PM (Peacock): KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, Round 4 (PGAA/LPGA Tour)
1-3PM (GC/Peacock): Travelers Championship, Round 4 (PGA Tour)
2-6PM (NBC/Peacock): KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, Round 4 (PGAA/LPGA Tour)
3-6PM (CBS): Travelers Championship, Round 4 (PGA Tour)
3-6PM (GC/Peacock): Dick’s Sporting Goods Open, Round 3 (PGA Tour Champions)
A fan was banned from attending matches for four years Monday for wearing a shirt to this month's FA Cup final that made an offensive reference to the Hillsborough Stadium disaster where 97 Liverpool fans died.
James White smiled and chuckled after receiving his punishment, which also included a fine of 1,000 pounds ($1,280).
White, 33, pleaded guilty at Willesden Magistrates' Court in London to displaying threatening or abusive writing likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress.
White wore a Manchester United jersey with the number "97" and the words "Not Enough" on the back to the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium on June 3.
Manchester City won the match 2-1 against United, which is also a big rival of Liverpool.
The Football Association said that it spotted the offensive shirt on social media and security tracked down the man wearing it, leading to his arrest.
"It is hard to imagine a more ... offensive reference to the 1989 Hillsborough disaster," district judge Mark Jabbitt said.
The judge added that the shirt worn by White bore a "hateful expression,″"calling it an "abhorrent message," and that the impact of his actions are "profound and distressing."
According to testimony, White told police after he was arrested: "You haven't even asked me what the T-shirt means. My grandad died aged 97 and didn't have enough kids."
The prosecution said White had "many" previous convictions, dating most recently to 2021, but none were football-related.
The tragedy at Hillsborough in Sheffield, a city in northern England, occurred during an FA Cup semifinal match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest when thousands of Liverpool fans flooded a standing-room section behind a goal in the overcrowded arena.
Victims were crushed against metal fences, trampled or suffocated in Britain's worst sports disaster.
Fans were blamed for years for the disaster, but after an initial inquest concluded that it was an accident, a subsequent inquiry in 2016 blamed failures on police, the ambulance service, and the Sheffield Wednesday team that plays at the stadium.
The Hillsborough tragedy and other disasters in the sport continue to echo in football stadiums for the wrong reasons in what the Premier League has condemned as "tragedy chanting."
Two months ago, Chelsea apologised for their fans who taunted Liverpool visitors in chants that referred to Hillsborough. A few days earlier, City had apologised to Liverpool for similar choruses of cheers. In March, Liverpool and United jointly appealed to fans to end hateful chants before their match in Liverpool.
Diane Lynn, vice chair of Hillsborough Survivor Supporters Alliance, said it was "very personal" for people who were at Hillsborough that day and that survivors suffered with "guilt."
"How dare he make us feel like this," she said of White.
Columbus, Portland Thorns, Palmeiras: Fifteen teams to keep you entertained this summer
The Champions League final is over, and all of Europe's major leagues have finally finished their seasons. After a nearly 10-month campaign, the offseason is finally here.
Psych! There is no soccer offseason!
Soccer's best (and sometimes worst) quality is that it never, ever, ever stops. Once you're hooked, there's always something to track, and that's true even when the major European competitions have ended. For starters, we've had a number of international competitions going on (UEFA Nations League, Concacaf Nations League, Euro qualification, etc.), and somehow qualification for next year's UEFA Champions League begins in just a couple of weeks. But even beyond that, leagues in North and South America, Asia and Northern Europe are just hitting their respective strides.
- Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)
With that in mind, consider this a hipster's guide to summer club soccer. The stakes may be lower -- if you're a Europe-first fan, anyway -- but there is still a lot of fun to be had. Here are 15 teams, from 10 different leagues, that you should check out on various streaming services if you're in the mood to continue enjoying the beautiful game.
USA
Columbus Crew and Atlanta United
Primary streaming option: AppleTV+
I'm writing this with an American soccer fan in mind, and I'm going to assume (or hope) that an American fan is already pretty familiar with the MLS landscape. You might already know how the season has thus far taken shape -- FC Cincinnati has burst out to a huge lead in the race for the Supporters Shield (despite merely solid stats), newcomer St. Louis City is slowly wafting back down to earth but still leads the West, LAFC and the Seattle Sounders seem to be the most statistically sound teams and Lionel Messi's future team, Inter Miami, absolutely stinks.
If you've got a geographic allegiance to a team, that's great, but if you don't and you're just looking for a team to entertain you on a Saturday evening, check out Columbus and/or Atlanta.
Columbus is your prototypical pressure-and-possession team. Their 58% possession rate is the highest in the league and they generate 34.0 high turnovers per game in open play, fifth in the league. They are also scoring two goals per game, thanks both to the style of play and some recent torrid finishing from veterans Lucas Zelarayan (eight goals from shots worth 5.0 xG) and Christian Ramirez (six goals from shots worth 3.4).
Even better from an entertainment perspective, Columbus has also been vulnerable to the type of counterattacks this style can allow, and they're giving up 1.4 goals per match. You're going to see transition opportunities in both directions.
The same goes for Atlanta, which plays a similar style with similar results. The primary differences: (1) The United aren't quite as good at it (they're scoring fewer goals, despite the best efforts of Georgios Giakoumakis, and they're allowing even more) and (2) their home games are absolute events. Their average attendance this season is 45,702, more than 13 Premier League teams averaged this past season, and the crowd noise and artificial turf make Atlanta games unique experiences.
Portland Thorns
Primary streaming option: Paramount+
The NWSL only has 12 teams, but you've got quite a bit of stylistic variety to take in. The league-leading San Diego Wave don't press much and build slowly in attack but create high-quality chances through the forward duo of 18-year old Jaedyn Shaw (16 chances created) and 33-year old Alex Morgan (five goals). The other leaders, the Washington Spirit, press a lot more, play well in transition and create even better shots, on average, than the Wave.
I'm partial to Portland, however. The Thorns, three-time NWSL champions, have the best underlying stats in the league (their +1.1 xG differential per match is nearly double that of anyone else), and they do it with absolute aggression. They create the second-most high turnovers and generate by far the most shots from it; in fact, they just take a lot of shots, period, and the duo of Sophia Smith (six goals) and Crystal Dunn (five) puts a lot of them in the net, too.
I mean, Smith and Dunn! And Morgan Weaver! And Christine Sinclair! You're watching that!
Pittsburgh Riverhounds
Primary streaming option: ESPN+
The USL Championship occupies the second division of the U.S. soccer pyramid. It offers similar styles to what you see in MLS, with the added bonus of particularly unique venues. There are lots of minor league baseball stadiums, and some of them are pretty full. New Mexico United plays at Isotopes Park (home of the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes), and they draw over 10,000 per game for a mid-table team. The ambiance is charming.
As tends to be common with lower-division leagues, however, the best teams tend to be the ones that make the fewest mistakes. Reigning champion San Antonio FC, for instance, defends the length of the pitch, prevents any and all shots and hopes to capture opponents out of position for strong transition attacks a couple of times per match. There aren't a ton of high turnovers overall, and, frankly, there aren't a ton of shots -- teams average just 11.4 shots per match. Pittsburgh personifies this league style well, averaging a paltry 9.3 shots.
Thanks primarily to the work of Cameroonian Albert Dikwa (27 shots, nine goals) and 35-year old Jamaican Kenardo Forbes (22 chances created, five assists), however, nearly every shot the Riverhounds take is of high quality, and a lot of them find the net. They have the fourth-most points in the league right now with this style, and combined with the general Pittsburgh aesthetic -- black and gold kits, a gorgeous and quaint home stadium that overlooks a river -- this is a pleasant team to take in on a Saturday evening.
Hercules Gomez suggests Lionel Messi could make MLS a top-10 league in the world.
Brazil
Atletico Mineiro
Primary streaming option: Paramount+
Brazil's Serie A has plenty of issues. Finances often oscillate between murky and dire, a lot of the league's best players are scooped up by European teams the moment they emerge, and of the last three Brazilian teams to reach the FIFA Club World Cup, two lost immediately -- Flamengo fell to Al-Hilal this past February, and Palmeiras lost to both Tigres and Al Ahly in 2021.
Still, I have found myself slowly falling in love with Brazil's Serie A all the same. First, the crowds are great. Eight of the league's 20 teams average at least 30,000 in attendance, and each stadium has a unique personality and layout. You get sucked into the atmosphere. Second, this is still the best club soccer South America has to offer. Brazilian teams have occupied both spots in the Copa Libertadores final for three years running and have produced three semifinalists and five quarterfinalists in each of the last two. These teams take lots of shots (not all of them good) and press with their forwards. There is plenty of drama in the fouls-and-cards department, too, if that's your thing.
To me, Atletico Mineiro personifies everything fun about Brazilian soccer, right down to their brilliantly frantic in-game tweets.
⚽GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL DOOOOOOOO GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
PAAAAAAAAAULIIIIIIIIINHOOOOOOOOOO MARCA PARA O GAAAALOOOO ABRIR O PLACAR!!!?#VamoGalo #CAMxRBB??️ pic.twitter.com/aSAn4nBSsq
— Atlético (@Atletico) June 10, 2023
The 2021 league champs draw over 30,000 per game and boast a recognizable squad featuring players like goal-scorer Hulk (who's approaching 400 career goals), on-loan Bayer Leverkusen forward Paulinho, one-time LA Galaxy winger Cristian Pavon and up-and-coming left back Rubens. They are both good and delightful, even if manager Eduardo Coudet just resigned.
Fluminense and Gremio
It can sometimes feel like almost every big, European soccer team plays in a similar way. You have to press. You have to dominate the ball. You need to space the field accordingly. Every team has its own unique variations, of course, and occasional exceptions apply, but positional play, as brought most to life by Manchester City and their coach Pep Guardiola, is certainly regarded as the style of the day.
Positional play assures that players fill certain zones of the pitch to assure proper spacing, passing options and, if established properly, passing options. But from the moment a dominant style is accepted, some teams and managers attempt to find ways to counter it. And some coaches -- Fluminense's Fernando Diniz and Gremio's Renato Gaucho, to name two, are tinkering with the idea of countering full-pitch spacing by overloading smaller areas. And if the positional system is based around concepts and roles first, a potential counter could be building systems around individuals and their relationship.
You can read plenty about this concept of relationism (this Medium piece is a good starting point), and if you want to see its nascent form, search out Fluminense and Gremio matches.
This isn't an anti-possession style by any means -- Fluminense leads Serie A with a 62% possession rate, though recently promoted Gremio is at only 44% (they were at 51% in Serie B last season). Instead, it's simply a different attempt at both possessing the ball and positioning yourself well to counter-press when you lose possession.
It is a work in progress. Fluminense and Gremio are currently fifth and sixth in Serie A, respectively, but they've been a bit fortunate -- they rank 20th and 19th in shots allowed per possession and 19th and 18th in xG allowed per match. When they can't establish control, they allow their opponents to do so comfortably. Still, if you're on the hunt for innovation, these two clubs are fun starting points.
Sometimes you don't need to overthink things: Palmeiras is good, their crowds are big, and they've got Real Madrid-bound Endrick -- the 16-year old has scored six goals in his last 13 matches and twice in the last week. That's reason enough to check them out.
?⚽️ ¡Histórico, Endrick! Con 16 años y 322 días, se convirtió en el jugador más joven en marcar con @Palmeiras en la CONMEBOL #Libertadores.#GloriaEterna pic.twitter.com/AEEz6GlSVS
— CONMEBOL Libertadores (@Libertadores) June 8, 2023
Elsewhere in South America
Talleres de Cordoba
Primary streaming option: Paramount+
I'm going to be honest: Argentina's Primera Division is a bit of an acquired taste. Compared to Brazil's Serie A, there have been 13% fewer shots and 20% fewer goals this year; teams are barely averaging over one goal per match at the moment. Defensive pressure is constant, and nearly every team in the league plays a ridiculously direct style compared to what you're used to seeing in Europe's major leagues. Somehow, it's even more intense without the scoring (and as with LaLiga this past season, rarity means every goal is incredibly meaningful).
Thus far in 2023, however, Talleres has cracked the code, scoring 1.8 goals per match. While only 7.1% of the league's shots have been worth 0.3 xG or more (that number tends to be closer to 8-9% in Europe's major leagues), Talleres is at 13.2% this season. Their average of 0.14 xG per shot is easily the league's best, and they've achieved it without an inordinate number of penalties. Veteran forward Michael Santos has been a cheat code of sorts, averaging 0.23 xG per shot and scoring 12 times in 20 matches.
This is not historically one of Argentina's most successful clubs, but Talleres are currently second in the table behind only heavyweight River Plate. They're generating offense in an unfriendly climate, and they're not overextending themselves to do it.
Club Bolivar
Primary streaming option: Options are minimal, though the Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana are prominent on the beIN family of networks
Okay, you're probably not going to be able to regularly settle in to (legally) watch the Bolivian Primera Division on your streaming device of choice. But Club Bolivar has been an absolute delight to follow in the Copa Libertadores this season. They drew a pretty tough group -- Palmeiras, Ecuadorian heavyweight Barcelona SC and Paraguayan heavyweight Cerro Porteno -- but they've pulled 12 points from five matches to clinch advancement to the knockout rounds.
Their secret weapon: home field advantage. As in, their home field has an elevation of nearly 12,000 feet! They have jumped on opponents as they have tried to find their lungs, scoring in the fifth minute against Cerro Porteno and in the 20th in a 3-1 win over mighty Palmeiras. Their colors (sky blue on darker blue) are gorgeous, their style is fun and their opponents are sucking wind from the first minute of the match. What's not to like?
Christopher Hylland's "Tears at La Bombonera" is one of the most delightful soccer books I've read in recent memory. The approximate premise: He lived in South America for six years and watched a lot of matches in a lot of places. That's it. And it works.
Throughout the book, Hylland shines light on clubs formed long ago by groups of immigrants, many from throughout Europe. Palestino, however, was formed by -- you guessed it -- members of Chile's Palestinian community, and its red, green and white colors remind you of that. Success has been marginal through the years (they've won two league titles, the last coming in 1978), but they're currently faring pretty well in the Copa Sudamericana, well positioned to make the knockout rounds.
Asia
Consadole Sapporo and Yokohama F. Marinos
Primary streaming option: YouTube
Within the U.S., the J. League broadcasts many weekly matches for free on its YouTube channel. This has been one of my favorite discoveries of the spring. I'm a Bundesliga admirer and J. League novice, and let's just say that it makes sense that so many Japanese players -- Ritsu Doan (Freiburg), Ko Itakura (Borussia Monchengladbach), Takuma Asano (Bochum), Daichi Kamada (Frankfurt, on his way to AC Milan) -- have thrived in Germany.
The styles of play overlap considerably.
High-pressing? Yes. Transition goals? Absolutely. Pedal-to-the-metal activity levels? Hell yeah. Solid crowds that sing and/or play music nonstop in the background? Yep. The J. League is an absolute blast. Immerse yourself early on some Saturday or Sunday morning, and watch your mood brighten immediately.
I'm listing two Japanese teams here: the best team at the moment and the most extreme team.
Yokohama FM is the former. The seven-time league champs are owned by the City Group, and they boast plenty of Manchester City-esque qualities -- heavy possession (58%), among the longest possessions in the league, etc. -- albeit without the extreme money advantages. The duo of Brazilian veterans Anderson Lopes and Elber has combined for 18 goals and nine assists in 17 matches. They're worth your time.
Consadole Sapporo, on the other hand, demands your time. They take aggressive soccer to its extreme. They've scored the most goals in the J. League and allowed the thirdmost. They rank third in average xG per shot and a distant last in xG allowed per shot. They are among the best teams in the league in transition attack and easily the worst in transition defense. They make things happen, for better and frequently worse. No lead is safe in either direction. No one should play like this, and I love that they do.
Ulsan Hyundai
Primary streaming option: KLeague.com
A constant presence in the K League's top three, the Tigers won the league last year and the Asian Champions League in 2020, and they're running away with the title this season -- they're up 13 points just past the midway point -- thanks in part to the ultimate late bloomer. Joo Min-kyu, 33, played for various second-division and low-rung first-division teams for years but led the K League in scoring for two years at Jeju United and has thrived since joining the league's big dogs in 2023. It's a couple of extra steps to watch the K League as opposed to the J League above, but the product is similarly entertaining.
Northern Europe
Bodo/Glimt
Primary streaming option: ElevenSports and One Football
There is still European action going on, but you have to head north to find it. And once you reach Norway, keep going north for a while longer to reach Bodo. It's pretty far up there, and man oh man, what a hipster find this club has become. Not a historical heavyweight in Norway, Glimt have surged in recent years, winning the Eliteserien in 2020 and 2021 and finishing second in 2019 and 2022.
Their success has come from a combination of strong continuity, chemistry and a relentless attack. They beat Roma twice and stomped Celtic on their way to the Conference League quarterfinals in 2022, and they narrowly missed out on their first Champions League bid last summer, falling in extra time to Dinamo Zagreb in the final playoff round.
Bigger clubs have taken away some of their better players in recent years -- Jens Petter Hauge went to AC Milan in 2020, Victor Boniface to Union St. Gilloise in 2022 -- but they keep plugging that money into scouting and acquisition and producing stronger rosters. They're 10 points ahead of the field after just 11 matches this season, and star scorer Amahl Pellegrino has outscored five league teams by himself. This might be the best version of what is quickly becoming Norway's best club.
Thilak Naidu appointed India's junior selection committee chairperson
The rest of the panel, comprising Ranadeb Bose (East Zone), Harvinder Singh Sodhi (North), Pathik Patel (West) and Krishen Mohan (Central) remains the same. The first task for Naidu's panel will be to identify a pool of players and prepare them in the run-up to the Under-19 World Cup to be held in Sri Lanka early next year.
ESPNcricinfo has learnt that the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) comprising Sulakhana Naik, Ashok Malhotra and Jatin Paranjape, formerly a national selector himself, lent weightage to Naidu's candidature owing to his experience and body of work since his retirement in 2012.
Naidu's first-class career saw 93 matches in which he took 220 catches and effected 18 stumpings. He was also an aggressive lower-order batter, making 4386 run at 34.80, including eight centuries. Naidu chaired Karnataka's junior selection panel from 2013-16 and was also part of the senior selection committee in 2015-16.
Shaw joins the panel chaired by former India left-arm spinner Neetu David. Also in the committee are Arati Vaidya, Kalpana Venkatachar and Renu Margarate. Their immediate task will be to pick the India ODI and T20I squads for the limited-overs tour of Bangladesh in July, the team's first international assignment since the T20 World Cup in South Africa in February.
ESPNcricinfo has learnt the board was keen on appointing Gary Kirsten for the top job but wasn't able to get him onboard due to his commitments in the IPL and other leagues. Among those in contention are Amol Muzumdar, the former Mumbai captain, and Hrishikesh Kanitkar, the former India allrounder and current interim head coach. The search for a "big international name" is believed to be one of the reasons for the delay in appointment.
It's understood Charlotte Edwards hadn't thrown her hat into the ring until recently; it couldn't be confirmed if that stand has changed. The World Cup-winning former England captain is currently head coach of Mumbai Indians in the Women's Premier League.
The new coach is likely to be given a two-year term to begin with, especially because there are two ICC events - the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in 2024 and the 50-over World Cup in India in 2025 - within this period.
Hasaranga, Mendis, Samarawickrama lead SL's win in campaign opener
Sri Lanka 355 for 6 (Mendis 78, Samarawickrama 73, Naseer 2-44) beat UAE180 (Waseem 39, Aravind 39, Hasaranga 6-24)
On Monday, Sri Lanka's top four saw him off and lined up the other bowlers. Mendis treated wristspinner Karthik Meiyappan with contempt, taking him for 36 off 18 balls. Having sussed out that Meiyappan was repeatedly dipping into his wrong'un and not threatening the stumps enough, Mendis attacked him with a variety of sweeps. Contrastingly, Hasaranga and Theekshana didn't give up the stumps and didn't give UAE's batters as many chances to employ the sweep.
Samarawickrama also played a number of inventive strokes during his 64-ball 73, the pick of them being a ramped four off Naseer in the 44th over. Samarawickrama had initially shaped to scoop the ball over short fine leg, but Naseer shifted his line even wider of off. Samarawickrama was so switched on that he changed his shot at the last instant and ramped it over wicketkeeper Vriitya Aravind. He had forged a 105-run partnership for the third wicket with Mendis off 77 balls, which formed the cornerstone of Sri Lanka's innings.
Before they had got together, Nissanka and Kartunaratne had also done their bit by countering the early-morning swing and seam movement. Karunaratne was the more fluent of the two openers and was responsible for six of the nine fours Sri Lanka had scored in the powerplay.
But Sri Lanka had to wait until the 48th over for their first six. Charith Asalanka injected greater urgency into the innings when he shanked Muhammad Jawadullah over wide long-on for six. Then in the next over, he launched Rohan Mustafa for another imposing six. Hasaranga joined the hitting spree in the final over, thumping Zahoor Khan for three fours off four balls.
Hasaranga then ran rings around UAE in their chase, though some of their players have played with - or against - Hasaranga during the inaugural ILT20. They struggled to pick his wrong'un in particular as the wristspinner went on to record his maiden five-wicket haul in ODI cricket.
Naseer aside, UAE captain Muhammad Waseem (39) and vice-captain Aravind (39) were the only batters to pass 30 in the chase.
On Monday, it was Hasaranga, the master, who bossed his protégé and UAE.
Prajapati leads Oman's batting charge to stun Ireland
Oman 285 for 5 (Prajapati 72, Maqsood 59, Ilyas 52, Adair 2-47, Little 2-47) beat Ireland 281 for 7 (Dockrell 91*, Tector 52, Bilal 2-64, Butt 2-65) by five wickets
On just the second day of the World Cup Qualifier, Oman brought about the first upset of the tournament by chasing down 282 against much-fancied Ireland with five wickets in hand and 11 balls to spare in Bulawayo.
Sent in to bat, the new opening pair of Andy McBrine and Paul Stirling hit their straps immediately, adding 51 runs in nine overs. With the 9am start, there was a lot of movement on offer for the fast bowlers, but the Oman quicks Fayyaz Butt and Bilal Khan failed to capitalise and gave away too many freebies.
However, almost against the run of play, Ireland lost both openers off consecutive balls. Having just nailed a pull the previous ball off Bilal, Stirling went for the same shot to a similar ball. The difference being a fielder had just moved to deep backward square leg and Stirling toe-ended his pull straight down his throat. The very next ball, McBrine picked out mid-off to an innocuous short ball outside off.
Things got worse for Ireland, with captain Andrew Balbirnie falling for a 19-ball 7 as they lost 3 for 18 in seven overs. It was a trial by spin for Ireland, with the trio of Maqsood, Ayaan Khan and Jay Odedra tying them up.
Lorcan Tucker was cleaned up by Ayaan, but Dockrell and Harry Tector added 79 runs for the fifth wicket. Tector fell after his fifty, but Dockrell took the innings deep. He helped Ireland slam 86 runs off the final ten overs. But the fact that they faced 157 dot balls in their innings was always going to haunt them.
At no stage did Oman look out of depth in the chase. The bright sunshine did make things easier for batters, but the nervelessness with which Oman got about the chase was a sight to behold.
Mark Adair got the ball to hoop around up top, and had Jatinder Singh edging to second slip. Prajapati and Ilyas, however, made sure the required run rate never got out of hand. They kept the good balls out and capitalised on the loose ones. Ilyas targeted Graham Hume by slamming him for three successive fours in the seventh over. The duo added 94 runs off 88 balls for the second wicket before Ilyas top-edged Dockrell to short fine leg.
Maqsood came in at No. 4 and added a 63-run stand with Prajapati and then a 56-run partnership with Mohammad Nadeem. At no point did the required rate go above six an over as the Oman batters got the boundaries regularly and rotated the strike brilliantly.
Maqsood reached his fifty off 58 balls and while he fell soon after, there were no flutters in the Oman camp. Nadeem (46 not out), Ayaan (21) and Shoaib Khan (19) all played their part as Oman cantered home.
Ashish Pant is a sub-editor with ESPNcricinfo
Matt Parkinson to leave Lancashire for Kent at season's end
The 26-year-old leg-spinner has found his opportunities limited at his boyhood county, despite starting the season with a five-wicket haul in the first round of this season's County Championship against Surrey. He then played one match on loan at Durham before returning for Lancashire's Vitality Blast campaign.
Nevertheless, Parkinson still boasts exceptional first-class and Twenty20 records, with 151 dismissals at an average of 25.92 and 139 at 18.96 respectively.
"The time is right for me to embrace a new challenge and environment," said Parkinson in a Kent statement. "I'm so excited that this will be at Kent.
"I'm proud of my record in the game so far & I believe my best years as a leg-spin bowler are ahead of me. I've heard very positive things about the squad and I'm looking forward to working with Matt Walker and the other coaches.
"I promise my new teammates and the Kent supporters that I will throw myself into this new challenge and I can't wait to get down to Canterbury to get started.
"I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank the Lancs members for the support they have given to me during my time at Old Trafford. I thank my teammates for their friendship and wish them the best."
Kent's Director of Cricket, Paul Downton, said: "Everyone at Kent is really excited that Matt has decided to join the club on a long-term contract.
"To have a proven match-winning leg-spinner in our ranks will be a major boost to the squad. Matt is also a feisty competitor who will bring a lot to our dressing room. We look forward to welcoming him to Canterbury."
Mark Chilton, Lancashire's Director of Cricket Performance, said: "On behalf of everybody connected with Lancashire Cricket, I would like to thank Matt for all of his commitment and efforts since making his first-class debut in 2016, having progressed through our academy.
"Matt has found first-team opportunities limited this season and we respect the decision that he has made to move on at the end of his contract, in order to seek a new challenge elsewhere. We would all like to wish Matt well for the next stage of his career at Canterbury."
It seems unlikely Parkinson will move on loan for the remainder of the season, as is usually the way with these sorts of deals. The fact Lancashire (seventh) and Kent (ninth) are separated by 20 points at the foot of Division One makes that an awkward proposition.
Ex-Dutch striker sentenced for stabbing cousin
A Dutch court has sentenced Spartak Moscow striker Quincy Promes in absentia to 18 months in jail for assault in connection with a fight in 2020 in which he stabbed his cousin in the knee.
Dutch broadcaster RTL reported Promes will appeal, citing his lawyer.
Promes, 31, is living in Moscow, and it is not certain he will return to the Netherlands.
Promes was charged in May with importing several hundred kilos of cocaine through the Belgian port of Antwerp in 2020 after he was wiretapped in a drug investigation. His lawyer is arguing against the use of those conversations in this investigation.
He has previously had spells at FC Twente, Go Ahead Eagles and Ajax. He also has 50 international caps for the Netherlands.
Clark moves up to No. 13 after U.S. Open victory
Wyndham Clark climbed to 13th in the Official World Golf Ranking and stands a fraction of a point behind Brooks Koepka on the heels of a breakthrough victory at the U.S. Open.
Clark was 241st in the world the day after the 2022 U.S. Open but has a pair of victories -- and more than $8 million in earnings -- the past six weeks.
Clark held off Rory McIlroy at Los Angeles Country Club. With a final total of 10-under 270, Clark won by a single shot. At the 72nd hole, Clark lag-putted from 60 feet to set up a tap-in par, unleashing a fountain of emotion amid his celebration Sunday.
McIlroy came up short in his bid to end a nine-year major drought and is third in the latest rankings behind Scottie Scheffler and Jon Rahm. Scheffler has 608.43 total points, Spain's Rahm has 473.78 and Northern Ireland's McIlroy is at 425.27.
Patrick Cantlay is No. 4 followed by Viktor Hovland (Norway), Xander Schauffele and Australia's Cameron Smith.
Hovland, 25, won the Memorial Tournament last week and finished second at the PGA Championship.
Rickie Fowler is up to No. 35 -- a jump of 10 spots -- with a points gain of 86.88. He tied for fifth at the U.S. Open and has a run of three consecutive top-10 finishes (Charles Schwab Challenge, Memorial).
LOS ANGELES -- Eight-time major champion Tom Watson wants answers on the PGA Tour's new business partnership with Saudi backers of LIV Golf, asking in a letter Monday to commissioner Jay Monahan whether the deal was the only way to solve the tour's financial hardship.
That was one of several questions posed by Watson in the letter, which was obtained by The Associated Press and was sent to Monahan, the PGA Tour board and "my fellow players."
He said the questions were "compounded by the hypocrisy in disregarding the moral issue."
On the day after Wyndham Clark became the latest major champion by winning the U.S. Open, focus shifted back to an issue that has consumed golf for the past few years. It took a stunning turn June 6 when the PGA Tour announced it had joined with Saudi Arabia's national wealth fund and the European tour to put the commercial businesses under one roof.
Monahan has referred to it as a "framework agreement," and he had few answers for players in a meeting two weeks ago at the Canadian Open. A Player Advisory Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday ahead of the Travelers Championship in Connecticut.
Monahan, who stepped away for a "medical situation" Wednesday, is not expected to attend. Two of his top executives are in charge of the tour's day-to-day operations.
The tour said in the June 6 announcement that Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the governor of the Public Investment Fund, would be chairman of the new company and Monahan would be the CEO. Two PGA Tour board members, Ed Herlihy and Jimmy Dunne, would join them on the executive committee.
The deal contains assurances the tour would keep a controlling voting interest in the new commercial entity regardless of how much the PIF contributes, according to a person who has seen the agreement.
The person, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal has not been made public, said the agreement allows for a financial investment from PIF and pooling the three parties' current and future golf-related investments. That would include LIV Golf.
The agreement said the new company's board would have majority representation appointed by the PGA Tour, the person said. The PGA Tour would still have full authority on how it runs its competition.
Still missing are key details such as the future of LIV Golf. Dustin Johnson and Bryson DeChambeau have said they are planning for a 2024 season.
Meanwhile, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., suggested Sunday that congressional hearings could be held within weeks.
Blumenthal is chair of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. He said on CBS' "Face the Nation" that the subcommittee wants facts on what went into the deal and who was behind it and details on the structure and governance of the new company.
"There are very, very few details," Blumenthal said. "But remember, what we have here is essentially a repressive, autocratic foreign government taking control over an iconic, cherished American institution for the clear purpose of cleansing its public image," he said.
One key to the agreement was ending all litigation. The PGA Tour and Saudi-backed LIV Golf filed a motion Friday to dismiss with prejudice the antitrust lawsuit LIV players filed in August, the countersuit the tour filed in September and even a PIF appeal to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to avoid having to give depositions in the lawsuits. They cannot be refiled.
Monahan has said the lawsuits -- a trial date was not expected until at least the middle of 2024 with plenty of filings in between -- had contributed to a "significant" hit to the tour.
Watson said in his letter: "Is the PIF the only viable rescue from the Tour's financial problems? Was/is there a plan B? And again, what exactly is the exchange?"
He mentioned hypocrisy twice, especially as it relates to criticism from groups such as 9/11 Families United on the tour's reversal.
"My loyalty to golf and this country live in the same place and have held equal and significant weight with me over my lifetime," Watson said. "Please educate me and others in a way that allows loyalty to both, and in a way that makes it easy to look 9/11 families in the eye and ourselves in the mirror."
Watson isn't alone in having questions. The Justice Department's antitrust division has been reviewing the golf landscape since last summer and now is starting to look at the tour's agreement with the Saudis and whether it violates federal antitrust laws. The inquiry is in its early stages, as the agreement is barely 2 weeks old and still is being finalized.
Monahan has said everything in the framework agreement would be subject to board approval.
Blumenthal told CBS he thought a hearing would be possible "within weeks."
"The American people deserve a clear look at the facts here," he said. "Again, not prejudging what the conclusions will be. But what the Saudis are doing here is not taking control of a single team or hiring one player. They are, in effect, taking charge of the entire sport, and it's not just a Saudi individual. It is the regime."