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Stage is set for women’s Test between England and India at Lord’s. Lord’s will finally host a women’s Test, 142 years since staging its first such men’s match, when England face India in a four-day game at the ‘Home of Cricket’ starting Friday.”It just boggles my mind that it is just the first (women’s) Test match here at Lord’s,” said India coach Amol Muzumdar, who added: “It is a great occasion and we are looking forward to it.”The match takes place just over 50 years since the first women’s match of any kind at the renowned London venue, with England beating Australia by eight wickets in a one-day international on August 4, 1976.England’s captain at Lord’s that day was the late Rachael Heyhoe Flint, a pioneering figure in a women’s game where players were still wearing skirts rather than, as they do no now, white or coloured trousers.Heyhoe Flint, who died in 2017, now has a gate named after her at Lord’s.But in 1976, Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), the owners of Lord’s, were still decades away from admitting women as members, with the thought of females walking directly through the Long Room of the pavilion before taking the field a distant dream.England’s No. 5 that day, Megan Lear, compared the experience to the moon landing, telling the Guardian: “On that day in 1976, to walk on to the hallowed turf at Lord’s, it was like one small step for us women cricketers, but one giant leap towards the future of women’s cricket.”It is a sign of how things have changed from those amateur days that a Test between two professional sides will also be England’s second fixture at Lord’s in under a week following Sunday’s defeat by Australia in the women’s T20 World Cup final — a match that attracted a capacity crowd.Nine of England’s World Cup squad are included for the Test, including captain Nat Sciver-Brunt, who is “hoping to play” despite a nagging calf injury. ‘HISTORY IN THE MAKING'”We’ve always known this has been on the calendar,” said England coach Charlotte Edwards.”A lot of our players have been doing Test match prep throughout the T20s so we’re really looking forward to it,” added Edwards, England’s captain when they won the 2009 Women’s T20 World Cup final at Lord’s.”It’s a historic Test match for us as a group and for the Indian team, and we can’t wait to play in front of a lot of people again over the next four days”Teenage England spinner Tilly Corteen-Colman is well aware of the importance of the occasion.”I remember speaking to Lottie (Edwards) about when she used to play here and they weren’t allowed in the Long Room,” said the 18-year-old.”The first women’s Test at Lord’s is history in the making, so to be involved would be incredible. It would mean the absolute world.”As well as a breakthrough, the game will also mark England batter Tammy Beaumont’s farewell to international cricket.Beaumont has made 260 appearances for England since her debut 17 years ago and she was the first English woman to score a double century in a Test — 208 against Australia at Trent Bridge in 2023.”When I fell in love with playing cricket as a young girl, I barely knew that playing cricket for England was an option,” said Beaumont.Th 35-year-old, who will continue to play domestic cricket, added: “Our first ever women’s Test at Lord’s feels like the perfect occasion to sign off on a career that I could never have dreamt would be as special as it has been.” Related Story Source link
The lights have dimmed on one of the most electric displays of mental athletics this year as the World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships reached a thrilling conclusion in Qatar. While the final standings saw a familiar face atop the podium, the road to victory was anything but predictable for the reigning king of the board. In a tournament defined by high-stakes drama and organizational precision, Norwegian superstar Magnus Carlsen cemented his legacy once again. At 35 years old, Carlsen navigated a treacherous field of competitors to secure both the rapid and blitz titles, though he admitted the feat was far from a “sure thing.” Reflecting on his victory, Carlsen acknowledged the immense pressure of facing the world’s elite, noting that he felt fortunate to emerge on top against a field that pushed him to his absolute limits.Mohammed Al-Mudahka, President of the Qatar Chess Association (QCA), described the closing atmosphere as nothing short of distinguished. He highlighted the “excitement and volatility” of the five-day marathon, pointing out that several top-ranked favorites were knocked out of contention during a ruthless final round. Al-Mudahka was particularly pleased with the resilience shown by the men’s semi-finalists, who survived a gauntlet of draws and point-drags to fight for the crown until the very last second. Beyond the elite competition, the tournament served as a vital proving ground for local talent. Al-Mudahka praised the Qatari national team members for their gutsy performances, noting that the experience gained by competing against world-class masters would be a cornerstone for the country’s future development. Dvorkovich echoed this sentiment, concluding that “chess has a home in Qatar,” and famously referred to the host nation as “the pearl of the chess world.” The event, which drew a massive turnout of over 400 players representing 70 different nations, was hailed as a monumental success by FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich. Speaking on the significance of the venue, Dvorkovich remarked: “We are very pleased to be here in Doha, Qatar. This is a beautiful place with a rich and successful chess history, and players really love this place, which is why they have all come here to show their best qualities.” Dvorkovich further emphasized the unique position the tournament holds in the international sporting landscape. “The World Rapid and Blitz Championships traditionally mark an exciting end to the year,” he stated, adding that he viewed the 2025 edition as a “true chess festival.” Looking toward the horizon of the sport, the FIDE President said: “From the FIDE side, I can only say that we expect a real fight and a lot of fun for spectators. Moving forward, we will see more and more faster formats in chess, which is going to be great excitement for all players and fans.” Source link
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FIFA President Gianni Infantino yesterday defended controversial ticket prices for the 2026 World Cup, revealing that organisers had received a record 150mn requests for tickets in the past two weeks.Speaking at the World Sports Summit in Dubai, Infantino stressed that all revenues from next year’s tournament in the United States, Mexico and Canada would be pumped back into football around the world.Infantino’s comments were his first public remarks since the ticketing furore erupted earlier this month, with fan groups branding ticket prices as “extortionate” and “astronomical”.FIFA later responded to the criticism by announcing that a sliver of tickets on sale would be priced at $60.”In the last few days, you’ve probably seen there is a lot of debate about ticketing and ticket prices,” Infantino told the Dubai conference.”We have six, seven million tickets on sale and we started two weeks ago. I can tell you in two weeks, 15 days, we received 150mn ticket requests. This shows how powerful the World Cup is.”Infantino said the majority of ticket requests had come from the United States, followed by requests from Germany and Britain.”If you think that in 100 years of history of the World Cup, FIFA has sold 44 million tickets in total, so in two weeks for the next World Cup, we could have filled 300 years of World Cups,” Infantino said. “This is absolutely crazy.””And what is important, what is crucial is that the revenues that are generated from this are going back to the game all over the world and FIFA is the only organisation in the world…that finances football in the entire world.”Without FIFA there will be no football in 150 countries in the world. There is football thanks to these revenues that we generate from the World Cup which we reinvest all over the world.”Fan group Football Supporters Europe (FSE) had been among the most prominent critics of FIFA’s pricing strategy for 2026.The group said earlier this month tickets would cost almost five times more than tickets for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Source link
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