Melbourne Renegades duo Georgia Wareham and Courtney Webb have produced a match-winning partnership to sink Sydney Sixers and keep the defending WBBL champions in finals contention.The win had significant ramifications ahead of next week’s finals, ending Sixers’ three-game winning streak and meaning Hobart Hurricanes will finish top of the ladder.That means Hurricanes will host the final on Saturday week. Adelaide will host Hurricanes tonight at Karen Rolton Oval, with Strikers needing an upset win to stay in the top-four hunt.By winning their last regular-season game Renegades also improved to fourth, while Sixers are third. But Renegades must sweat on other results to find out whether they play in the finals.Chasing 131 for victory, Wareham (49 not out) and Webb (33 not out) took Renegades to 134 for 4 from 16.2 overs on Friday in Melbourne.The pair put on a whirlwind unbroken 85-run stand, rescuing Renegades from a wobbly 49 for 4 in the tenth over.Wareham, who earlier took three wickets, finished with a furious flourish, cracking five fours and two sixes from her 29 deliveries. And Webb also found the boundary four times as Renegades (five wins, five losses) climbed from sixth to fourth on the table.Sixers (five wins, three losses) remain third after failing to capitalise on an Ellyse Perryspecial with the bat.Perry top-scored with 65 from 47 balls but Sixers struggled to 130 for 9. The allrounder dominated Sixers’ innings, hitting nine fours and a six, despite frequently losing partners.Only one other team-mate – Ash Gardner (16) – reached double figures amid some excellent legspin bowling from Wareham (3 for 21 from four overs).Alyssa Healy made a six-ball duck and the middle order failed to fire around Perry, who was dismissed in the 18th over when caught at long-on from the bowling of Alice Capsey (2 for 27).Ellyse Perry put on a one-woman show with the bat for Sixers•Getty Images

Renegades hit early trouble in their chase when Maitlan Brown snared two wickets in the second over.Opener Davina Perrin (28 from 27) and Capsey (10 from 15) briefly steadied before both fell in a three-over patch, leaving Renegades in serious strife four down.But Wareham and Webb launched a power-packed counter-punch with Brown (2 for 45) the only multiple wicket-taker for Sixers.All three games over the weekend will affect the top-four finishing order. The Melbourne Stars are second and on Saturday cannot afford a slip-up when they host the Sydney Thunder, who are out of finals contention.The late Saturday game will feature fifth-placed Perth Scorchers at home against bottom side Heat, while Sixers host Adelaide Strikers on Sunday in a massive end to the regular season.Only three points separates Stars from the sixth-placed Strikers.Tuesday’s knockout final will feature the third-placed team at home against fourth.The winner of that game travels to the second-placed team on Thursday for the challenger final and that will decide who faces Hurricanes for the title.

As the only Omani national in their Asia Cup squad, he faced different challenges on his way to the top

Shashank Kishore14-Sep-2025For Sufyan Mehmood, 33, playing in the Asia Cup carries an extra layer of pride. He is the only Omani national in the current squad, a distinction that fills him with great honour.A seam-bowling allrounder known for his accuracy and lower-order hitting, Mehmood would have been in the UK studying – perhaps he might have even had a corporate career – if his father had his wishes. But Mehmood chose to decline an admission to Loughborough University to pursue business administration because he wanted to play cricket.”Unlike others who come to Oman to make a career, I didn’t have those challenges,” Mehmood told ESPNcricinfo. “I had all the comforts, and didn’t have to worry about building a life. But my challenges were different.Related

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“Everyone in my family were academically inclined. My older brother is a dentist at the health ministry, my younger brother is a petroleum engineer, [and] my younger sister is also a dentist who runs a private practice. My father grew up the ranks from being a salesman to now being CEO of a company he joined nearly 30 years ago.”Now, I guess you can understand what my challenges were: how to convince my family I wanted to play cricket in a country that didn’t have a culture. But ever since I started, I saw kids in school taking up this new sport, and wanted to play it.”Mehmood first made the Oman Under-15s, he said, in “2005 or 2006 – I can’t remember”. What he does recall, though, is that on his first tour, to Thailand, he was the Player of the Match in just his second outing. “It was against Iran, I was 14 years old.”From there, he made the Under-17s, and was finally part of the national squad in 2009. “The depth wasn’t as much, so if you did well in one or two games, you could progress,” he said. “Straight off that Under-19 tour, I played for the senior team.”Sufyan Mehmood: “Domestic cricket in Oman is basically corporate cricket”•Sufyan MehmoodThat must have been a massive moment in his young career, but because games were far and few, the significance of that moment dissipated very quickly.”When I started playing cricket, I didn’t know that we would play a World Cup one day,” he said. My parents wanted me to study. So after rejecting my offer from Loughborough University, I enrolled in an Omani university that was affiliated to another UK university – at least temporarily my dad was pacified,” he said with a laugh. “I would manage my classes, speak to my professors, tell them I had matches, and cover it up later. They supported me well.”But staying back in Oman meant figuring out an alternate career too, outside of cricket.”Domestic cricket here is basically corporate cricket,” he said. “Companies will have their teams in the premier division, they will hire you and give you a job.”In my first year, I couldn’t find any job, so I just found one job outside cricket, in an event management company. I played after working [for] hours. After that year, I got an offer from Enhance, who had a cricket team. I worked for them for four-five years in the HR department before moving to Renaissance Services, where I lead the cricket side. We’ve won two trophies in the last two years under me.””Against India in the Emerging Asia Cup [in October 2024], I took Nehal Wadhera’s wicket and got him bowled”•Sufyan MehmoodIn 2015, Mehmood had his first big taste of top-flight cricket when he was part of the Oman squad that qualified for the 2016 T20 World Cup in India. In 2021, too, he was part of the squad when Oman hosted the first leg of the tournament. In last year’s T20 World Cup, Mehmood was part of the reserves. That he was in the reserves is because much of his 2023 went in recovering from a meniscus tear, which meant he didn’t have much game time.”And I didn’t have enough form to carry with me in the limited games,” he said. “In Oman, most doctors told me to get operated. But I went to Mumbai to meet Dinshaw Pardiwala, the same doctor who had treated Rishabh Pant after his accident. He told me I didn’t need surgery. I just had to do strengthening, and be meticulous with my physiotherapy and rehab for two-three months. I followed his advice, and I was fine.”Through all this, Mehmood held on to one belief: never give up. “It would have been easy for anyone to give up at any stage I went through, both career-wise, [and] cricket-wise – especially in a country where cricket is not a national sport,” he said.

“After the World Cups, they saw cricket was growing in Oman. Now they ask me how much I scored, [and] how many wickets I took. They might even come [to] watch me in the Asia Cup. They are excited.”Sufyan Mehmood on his family getting interested in cricket

Even now, the Asia Cup feels like a new chapter. “The last year has been really good. In the ODI series in the USA [in the Cricket World Cup League 2], I scored 72 against them and took three wickets. Against India in the Emerging Asia Cup [in October 2024], I took Nehal Wadhera’s wicket and got him bowled.”Against Pakistan, I dismissed Umair Bin Yusuf, and hit a six off Imran Khan Jr. I even spoke to players like Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma. Just sharing thoughts on cricket felt special.”His family, once hesitant, is now firmly behind him. “After the World Cups, they saw cricket was growing in Oman,” he said with a smile. “Now they ask me how much I scored, [and] how many wickets I took. They might even come [to] watch me in the Asia Cup. They are excited.”For Mehmood, being a cricketer is no longer about proving anyone wrong. As the only Omani-born player in the team, he knows what his presence means.”See, it feels great because I know how much struggle I went through to reach this stage, not the typical struggle to settle and be financially independent, but the struggle to prove myself and get an identity. I never had a proper coach, [and] no real facilities. I learned by watching YouTube videos. That is why I am proud of this journey.”

Australia coach Andrew McDonald said he expected Hazlewood to be able to play a part during the series

Andrew McGlashan24-Nov-2025Josh Hazlewood is set to miss the second Test against England in Brisbane but there is confidence he will be able to play a role later in the Ashes series while Pat Cummins is closing in on a return which could come next week at the Gabba.Hazlewood was ruled out of the opening Test in Perth after picking up a hamstring problem in the Sheffield Shield with an initial scan not showing the injury. It’s understood he will join the squad in Brisbane to continue his rehab with coach Andrew McDonald expecting him to be available later in the series.”He’s working through the first week of his rehab,” McDonald said. “I’m not sure that we need to give an update on that. Once he gets further down the track and [we] have some rough timelines, then we’ll be in a position to communicate that.Related

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“I know that he’ll be available at some point during the series. We’ve got a little bit of that early rehab to go through to formulate where he may plug into the series, but we expect him to take some part in the series.”The rapid two-day finish to the opening Test has forced a minor change in plans to Cummins’ bowling schedule after he had trained impressively in the lead-up to the first Test. He had been due to bowl on the fourth day of the Test on Monday, but after traveling home to Sydney that has been pushed back a day.However, the signs continue to be encouraging for Australia’s captain although McDonald said it could be a late call whether he plays the day-night Test in Brisbane. If Cummins was to return and the second Test went all five days – and unlikely proposition if Perth is any guide – there would be an eight-day gap to the third in Adelaide.Cummins has previously said that playing back-to-back Tests in the series may be a challenge for him, although short games could work in his favour.”Once we see him again we’ll be able to then join the dots as to what that potentially looks like,” McDonald said. “But for those who saw him in Perth, I did say this a while back that he’ll be up and bowling…and people will be sitting there questioning why he’s not playing.”It looked like a player that was nearing the completion of his rehabilitation. The intensity was there, the ball speed was there. There’s a lot of positives, but now it’s just really building that resilience within the soft tissue and making sure that we’re not putting him in harm’s way in terms of accelerating it too much.Brendon Doggett took five wickets on debut•Getty Images”But it will be a genuine discussion leading into this Test match. That may be one that eventuates late for us. A little bit to work through but it’s nearing completion, which is really, really positive.”In the absence of Cummins and Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc led the attack magnificently with a 10-wicket match haul including a career-best 7 for 58 in the first innings. Scott Boland bounced back from a poor opening-day display where England took him at a run-a-ball with a game changing burst in the second innings while debutant Brendan Doggett picked up five for the match. McDonald took the blame for Boland’s opening day performance saying there had been a directive for him to bowl very full before returning to his natural lengths in the second.In Australia’s high-octane run chase, Jake Weatherald put together a valuable hand alongside Travis Head after a first-innings duck to ensure both debutants had played a role in the match”It’s always that unknown when you jump up from Shield level into the Test match arena and they looked right at home, the skill level, the composure, it was a fit,” McDonald said. “It’s always nice to see that in a Test when you’ve got those unknowns.”I thought Brendan Doggett, his ability to execute the bouncer plan when we needed him to and [then] to pitch the ball up get in the right areas. And Jake in the second innings, I thought the way he was able to put pressure back on, we want to be that type of batting unit that has that intent and looks to score, and he most certainly did that.”Australia have retained the option of adding a 15th player to the squad for Brisbane. When Hazlewood and Sean Abbott were ruled out of Perth they only called up Michael Neser as cover.

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk showed off his supreme FIFPro World XI knowledge as he successfully named the defenders of the World XI for the past five seasons. The Dutch international defender himself has featured in three of those five line-ups, while Manchester City's star centre-back Ruben Dias has featured in two of those teams.

Van Dijk showed off supreme FIFPro World XI knowledge

Van Dijk, over the years, has grown into one of the best defenders in the Premier League and across the world and is a key pillar in the Liverpool side, which has won two Premier Leagues, a Champions League and a couple of domestic cups in recent years. His impressive performances for the Reds have earned him a place in three out of the last five FIFA FIFPro World XI sides. He featured in the teams of 2020, 2022 and 2024. Van Dijk is followed by City's Dias, who made it into the line-ups in 2021 and 2023.

In a chat with GOAL, Van Dijk was asked to name the defenders from the last five FIFPro World XIs and, quite surprisingly, the Dutchman named each backline accurately for all five seasons.

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Van Dijk frustrated with Liverpool's poor defensive show this season

On the pitch, the Reds' title defence campaign has turned out to be a nightmare. They started 2025-26 with five Premier League wins in a row but thereafter their form took a major dip as they have managed to win only two out of their next eight league games. Liverpool are currently eighth in the Premier League table and have conceded 20 goals already – the joint-most along with Manchester United among the top 10 teams in the league.

After the club's disastrous 3-0 loss against Nottingham Forest last month, Van Dijk lashed out at his colleagues as he told reporters: "We concede too many easy goals. They scored obviously from a set piece again. You can ask if he was in front of Alisson, but it counted, so we're 1-0 down. We were not good in terms of battles, challenges, the fight, too rushed. It's a very difficult situation at the moment. There was nervousness after we conceded, but not before. We tried to rush things and that's human when you're in a difficult moment. We cleared the ones before and in the end, we'te in a very difficult moment. We don't get out of it by just speaking about it. It will take a lot of hard work. 

"It's a problem. Everyone in the team has to take responsibility as well. Football is a team and everyone has to take responsibility. We have to digest this and take it on the chin. We need to work harder. We have to keep going. Everyone is disappointed, like they should be, because losing at home to Nottingham Forest is, in my eyes, very bad. That's the least I can say about it. Those goals we conceded are far too easy and we all have to look in the mirror. I've been at this club so long now and we've been through adversity. We will bounce back but it doesn't happen overnight. I'm not a quitter and we will keep going. I can't decide what the supporters are doing if they leave early. I know the fans have been through thick and thin with us. They will be there with us when we come out of this because we will come out of this."

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Getty Images SportLiverpool eyeing comeback after win over West Ham

Arne Slot's side finally ended their three-game losing streak last weekend as they beat West Ham on Sunday, courtesy of Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo's strikes. They now have a very hectic December as they are set to play eight matches before New Year's Day. The busy schedule starts with a Premier League match against Sunderland on Wednesday.

Bangladesh beat Ireland 2-1 to win their fifth T20I series this year

Mohammad Isam02-Dec-2025

Bangladesh came back from 1-0 down to beat Ireland 2-1•BCB

Bangladesh captain Litton Das has said the current crop of players were “almost ready” for the 2026 T20 World Cup after an improved fielding performance in the 2-1 series win against Ireland.Bangladesh have played 30 T20Is in 2025, the most for them in a year. The victory against Ireland was their fifth in T20I series this year after consecutive wins against Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Netherlands and Afghanistan. They had lost to Pakistan and UAE before that streak, and West Indies after.Against Ireland, Bangladesh bounced back from 0-1 down to win the second and third T20Is. On Tuesday, they won by eight wickets and 38 balls to spare after an emphatic all-round display.Related

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“I wanted the team to win from pressure situations,” Litton said after the third T20I. “We couldn’t overcome the pressure in the first game but we fought back to win the series. There are many positive sides. We are not a good fielding unit, but we took some brilliant catches in this series. At least in the fielding department, we have shown improvement. After playing the most number of T20Is in a year, I think our players have become more mature.”The credit goes to all the players and coaching staff. Our team was ready since the Asia Cup. We have only used a certain number of players since then. I think we want these players to play their best cricket in the BPL, which we then expect them to replicate for the national team. I am not concerned about anyone’s performance, but about injuries. We will all pray that we remain safe in the next two months.”Litton said Bangladesh had experimented this year, to find their best combination for the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka in February. For instance, Bangladesh used all their opener options in the top four in the third T20I against Ireland, while also mixing up their spinners and fast bowlers.”We have conducted a lot of experiments. We made certain changes that were risky – like Fizz [Mustafizur Rahman] didn’t bowl the last over today,” Litton said. “[Mohammad] Saifuddin bowled the last over. I wanted to see what a player will do after not playing two matches. I think we tried almost everything in every aspect of the team. This bunch of players are almost ready for the next World Cup.”Bangladesh, however, do not have a settled middle order, with at least one position still up for grabs. They tried Jaker Ali, Nurul Hasan and Shamim Hossain in each of the three matches, though Shamim didn’t get to bat in the third game.”I am not too concerned about it [the No. 6 position],” Litton said. “Not everyone will get runs in every series. You saw [Towhid] Hridoy doing well in this series. I want them to score runs in the BPL, and then bring that to the World Cup.”Litton also said he had to rotate between three spinners in the XI, which means one of his “match-winners” ends up on the bench.”Mahedi [Hasan], Rishad [Hossain] and Nasum [Ahmed] are my match-winners, so I have to take a tough call when I have to pick [only] two spinners in the XI,” he said. “Sometimes, my performer has to sit out. They have accepted my decisions. They are good team-mates. It will keep happening in the future, but of course we explain to them [why we didn’t pick any of them].”

تقدم فريق ليفربول بهدف في شباك خصمه فريق إنتر ميلان، في مباراتهما الجارية حاليًا في بطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا، على صعيد مرحل الدوري لموسم 2025/26، ولكن تم إلغائه.

ويستضيف ملعب “سان سيرو” مباراة فريقي ليفربول وإنتر ميلان، في الجولة السادسة من دوري أبطال أوروبا، مرحلة الدوري.

وتمكن ليفربول من تسجيل هدف أول أمام خصمه فريق إنتر ميلان، في الدقيقة 32 من عمر الشوط الأول من المباراة الجارية في الوقت الحالي.

جاء الهدف عن طريق إبراهيما كوناتي، بعد ركلة ركنية حيث وصلت الكرة إلى منطقة الجزاء، وسددها الفرنسي برأسه في الشباك، وتدخلت تقنية الفيديو للتأكد من صحته لوجود شك حول خطأ من جانب إيكتيكي.

وتم استدعاء حكم المباراة لرؤية الموقف بدقة عبر شاشة تقنية الفيديو، قبل اتخاذ قرار نهائي بإلغاء الهدف، لتعود المباراة إلى التعادل السلبي.

MatériaMais Notícias

Os familiares de Artur Jorge, técnico do Botafogo, desembarcaram no Rio de Janeiro pela primeira vez para aproveitar as férias. O treinador português tem três filhos (Artur Jorge, Maria e Bárbara) e três netos.

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Artur Jorge se reencontrou com a família pela primeira vez desde que chegou ao Brasil. Vale lembrar que o técnico do Botafogo está no Rio de Janeiro, com a esposa, há dois meses.

Os europeus tiraram fotos na orla da praia da Barra da Tijuca. Além disso, experimentaram açaí. A visita foi em meio a uma período mais leve do calendário do Botafogo.

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CONFIRA OS REGISTROS DE ARTUR JORGE COM A FAMÍLIA:

O Botafogo vai viajar neste domingo (26) para Barranquilla, na Colômbia. O Alvinegro fará a última partida da fase de grupos da Libertadores, justamente contra o Junior Barranquilla. Mas antes, a equipe fará um treino aberto, às 10h, para arrecadar doações para o Rio Grande do Sul.

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Artur JorgeBotafogoFutebol Nacional

TORONTO — The fingers of Dodgers catcher Will Smith played upon the keys of the PitchCom device on his right knee like those of a virtuoso pianist playing Johan Sebastian Bach. In and out, up and down, fast and slow, as if weaving multiple melodies within one work, Smith called one of the most beautiful World Series games ever composed because of how well the master on the mound followed his lead. Dodgers righthander Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitched the Brandenburg Concertos of the World Series oeuvre.

It was classical music on a ball field. Yamamoto threw 104 pitches at 19 different speeds with six different pitch types spaced apart as far as 24 mph. He didn’t just beat the hottest lineup of October; he also made the Toronto Blue Jays hitters appear overmatched in a 5–1 victory Saturday that evened the World Series at one throwback win apiece: an old-school contact-heavy win by Toronto in Game 1 and this magnum opus by Yamamoto in Game 2.

The World Series, now in its 121st iteration, has seen only eight other games pitched with this level of craftsmanship: a complete game win with no walks and as many as eight strikeouts. The only other Dodger to spin such a gem was Sandy Koufax in 1963 World Series Game 4. The other master composers were Madison Bumgarner in 2014, Cliff Lee in 2009, Phil Douglas in 1921 and dead ball era aces Rube Foster in 1915, Smoky Joe Wood in 1912, Eddie Plank in 1911 and Deacon Phillippe in 1903 in the first World Series game ever played.

Yamamoto has thrown back-to-back complete games (the first pitcher to do so since Curt Schilling 24 years ago) and this postseason is 3–1 with a 1.57 ERA with four walks contrasted against 26 strikeouts. He has been so good he now influences this series the way Bumgarner did in 2014, Orel Hershiser in 1988, Bob Gibson in 1967 and other aces of bygone eras whose next start loomed like the Sword of Damocles for the opponent. If there is a Game 6 back here, Yamamoto will get the ball. Toronto had better hope it is not an elimination game, which adds pressure to the next three games starting Monday in Los Angeles.

“He’s in a very good spot right now and he feels very good with everything that he is doing,” Dodgers pitching coach Mark Prior said. “That [process] has evolved over the year. It’s in a really good spot right now and hopefully we’re going to need it one more … maybe one more time.”

The Blue Jays cooled off in a hurry because they could not possibly cover everything Yamamoto threw at them: six pitches, all with impeccable command, between 74 and 98 mph. They could not rule out any pitch at any time. Yamamoto used all six pitches to get his 27 outs: 10 of them via his curveball, six with splitters, five with four-seamers, four with cutters, one with a slider and, as if showing off, one with a sinker not until his 26th out.

His game began double-single, putting runners on the corners with no outs and Rogers Centre quaking with anticipation of another fast-break, Showtime Lakers kind of night. Not so fast. Yamamoto leaned on his curveball and splitter for 14 of his next 17 pitches to get two strikeouts sandwiched around a pop-up to leave the runners right where they stood.

 “You know, it’s funny,” said Galen Carr, Dodgers vice president of player personnel who made many a trip to Japan to scout Yamamoto before they signed him to the richest contract in pitcher-only history, $325 million over 12 years. “Because in Japan I think we would watch him and he’d get himself into a situation like that early on and then he’d just make pitches. He's a pitchmaker. His ability to mix and match, pitch to both sides of the plate, change speeds, planes and angles … it’s really unique.”

Said Prior, “And from then on, he was in pretty much control the whole time.  It’s really his emotional heartbeat, you know, however you want to say. It just doesn’t seem phased, given the situation, given the magnitude of these games, given what we were coming off of last night …”

Dodgers Game 1 starter Blake Snell did not have his A stuff, giving up a career-high five hits on his changeup, spraying his fastball and working too hard to finish off hitters. The Blue Jays (who did not bat in the ninth in their home win) fouled off 39 pitches, the most over eight innings in a World Series game since pitch tracking began in 2008. Yamamoto had no such trouble. He had more whiffs (17) than foul balls allowed (16) while writing a prescription for the Dodgers for the rest of the series.

Yamamoto threw just 28% fastballs (sinkers and four-seamers), the lowest percentage by the Dodgers all year. The previous low was 32.4%, which happened in NLCS Game 2—another complete game win by Yamamoto. You are likely to see below-average fastball use from Los Angeles’ next two starters, Tyler Glasnow (56%) and Shohei Ohtani (46%).

“My pitching style is to just keep attacking the zone,” Yamamoto said. “So, every pitch I throw, I focus on getting to the strike zone. So, there’s not much adjustment in the game.”

He threw an astounding 70% strikes (73 of 105), another marker of his exquisite craftsmanship.

“If anyone else has any questions,” Carr said, “about why we gave this guy a contract that we did before he was pitching in the big leagues, I think he’s probably answered those questions.”

This is the series that put “world” into “World Series.” With the series back in Canada for the first time in 32 years, Game 2 featured players in the starting lineup from Japan, Canada, Mexico, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic and Cuba. The 5' 10" righthander from Japan proved on the biggest stage he is one of the best pitchers in the world.

“I think by the third [inning],” Prior said, “he just felt really good to where he had them caught in between. He could do what he wanted.”

It is an extraordinary admission by a pitching coach that his pitcher was so good he could choose pitches fairly at his whim. Only one other of the 175 starters who faced the Blue Jays this year rang up at least eight strikeouts with no walks against them: Zack Wheeler, who lasted only six innings in that start, not finishing his own start the way Yamamoto did. 

After each half inning, Prior would sit down with Yamamoto and his interpreter on the dugout bench to review the next three or four hitters coming up the next inning for Toronto. Yamamoto also would crack open his black journal notebook, in which he has scribbled his own scouting report and assorted pitching notes. Not once in those discussions did Prior—or manager Dave Roberts, for that matter—inquire of Yamamoto of his energy level or remaining stamina, which is in today’s bullpen-heavy game, when “third time around” is treated as frighteningly as the third rail of a subway line. No, it was plainly obvious that Yamamoto was plenty strong, even a whopping 202 1/3 innings into his year.

The pitching coach and manager had an easy call to keep running him back to the mound. The game belonged to Yamamoto and now to history. Meanwhile, the Sword of Damocles has been hung by its thin thread, for Yamamoto earned not only a place in World Series lore, but also until they may meet again inside the heads of Blue Jays hitters.

When Freddie Freeman takes the field on Friday night for Game 1 of the World Series, it will feel like he's playing in one of his homes away from home at the Rogers Centre in Toronto. While Freeman's job with the Dodgers in their quest to capture back-to-back championships will be front and center on his mind, playing baseball in Canada, in which he holds dual citizenship along with the United States, will be special for both he and his family.

"Yeah my dad is obviously going to head out there tomorrow as well," Freeman said Tuesday. "So it's going to be pretty special. And I'm not so sure the Canadian fans, Blue Jays fans, will be cheering for me this time around like it was in the World Baseball Classic the last couple of times. But it is special."

Freeman played for Canada in both the 2017 and 2023 World Baseball Classics, changing his representation to Canada through his citizenship from his parents. Freeman's return to Toronto will also be an emotional one, given that he'll be returning to the city where his mother grew up. She died after being diagnosed with melanoma when he was just 10 years old.

"Both my parents are born and raised in Canada, especially in the providence of Ontario—my mom from the Toronto area. My dad from Windsor," Freeman continued. "So, it is special. Everytime I go there, you just have this feeling inside that you feel just a little bit closer to my mom. So I'm looking forward to it."

And even though Freeman will be playing against the Blue Jays, he's still excited about what the team has accomplished thus far, given his Canadian roots.

"I mean, that’s special,’" Freeman said. "When you have a whole country that you know is behind one team, that’s pretty amazing. And then, obviously, what they’ve done. They’ve invested in their team, into that stadium, the visiting clubhouse, they’ve put a lot into the Toronto Blue Jays.

"So to just see the city come together, and get to experience so much jubilation that they had going to the World Series for the first time in 30-plus years, you know it’s an exciting time. And being from Canada, it’s pretty cool."

Martin O’Neill signed off his second spell with Celtic in style with a 1-0 win over Dundee at Parkhead in the Scottish Premiership on Wednesday night.

The experienced interim won seven of his eight matches in charge of the club after Brendan Rodgers resigned at the end of October, and Wilfried Nancy will take on the role from Thursday.

Daizen Maeda scored the only goal of the game for O’Neill’s side as he bravely competed to head into the back of the net after Hyun-jun Yang’s effort was saved, which led to him wearing a bandage for the remainder of the night.

Ranking Celtic's best performers against Dundee

The Japan international was, of course, one of the top performers on the night for the Hoops because it was his goal that ultimately sealed all three points to send Celtic level on points with Hearts at the top of the table.

He was not the top performer on the night for the Scottish giants, though, as a couple of other players were ahead of him in that respect, because the striker also missed a ‘big chance’ and lost five of his six duels, per Sofascore.

Reo Hatate was one of those two players. The Japanese whiz created two ‘big chances’, including Yang’s initial shot before the goal, and won four of his seven duels, per Sofascore, in what was a masterful showing in the middle of the park.

1

Colby Donovan

2

Reo Hatate

3

Daizen Maeda

4

Hyun-jun Yang

5

Kasper Schmeichel

As you can see in the table above, Yang and goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, who pulled off three saves and three run-outs to keep his clean sheet intact, were also among the top performers on the pitch.

However, we have ranked Colby Donovan as the best performer on the night for the Scottish giants, as he provided a reminder of his quality after a shaky game against Hibernian.

Why Colby Donovan is undroppable for Wilfried Nancy

On Sunday, the Scottish full-back lost two of his three ground duels, per Sofascore, and was subbed off at half-time after being booked for a late challenge on Jordan Obita.

After that disappointing showing at the weekend, Donovan may have known that he needed to respond with a big performance against Dundee to ensure that the new manager does not drop him for the game against Hearts on Sunday.

Now, the Scotland U21 international is surely the first completely undroppable player for Nancy at Parkhead, because he was the best performer in the last game before his first match in charge.

Donovan won three of his four ground duels and three of his three aerial duels, winning 87% of his total battles, per Sofascore, whilst Maeda, for example, lost five of his six duels and struggled on that side of the game after scoring his goal.

Sofascore rating

8.3

1st

Duels won

6

1st

Aerial duels won

3

1st

Aerial duel success rate

100%

1st

Tackles won

2

1st

Touches

91

4th

Successful crosses

3

1st

Key passes

2

2nd

As you can see in the table above, the academy graduate also added creativity in possession to go along with his outstanding defensive work, as only Reo Hatate (five) made more key passes on the night, whilst no one completed more crosses.

Donovan showed Nancy, who was unveiled before the game kicked off, that he is capable of delivering a quality performance at both ends of the pitch from the right-back position, which is why he should already be undroppable.

With Alistair Johnston still sidelined with a hamstring injury, the Scottish youngster should be the first name on the teamsheet ahead of the clash with Hearts on Sunday.

That is also influenced by Anthony Ralston’s disappointing form. Pundit Chris Sutton described his play as “really shaky” when he came off the bench against Hibernian, whilst he was also caught out twice by Mikel Gogorza in the Europa League clash with Midtjylland.

Given Ralston’s lack of form and Donovan’s impressive showing on Wednesday night, the 19-year-old defender will surely already be undroppable for Nancy in the short term.