England and Sussex bowler Ollie Robinson has been suspended from all international cricket pending the outcome of a disciplinary investigation following “historic” tweets he posted in 2012 and 2013, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said on Sunday (local time).Announcing his suspension, the ECB said he will not be available for selection for the second Test against New Zealand starting at Edgbaston on Thursday 10 June. Robinson will leave the England camp immediately and return to his county, the ECB said in a statement.Earlier, England debutant Ollie Robinson has “unreservedly apologise” for the “racist and sexist” tweets he posted over eight years ago as a teenager. Robinson admitted that he is “ashamed” of making the racist remarks as his tweets from 2012-2013 resurfaced on social media.“On the biggest day of my career so far, I am embarrassed by the racist and sexist tweets that I posted over eight years ago, which have today become public. I want to make it clear that I’m not racist and I’m not sexist,” the 27-year-old had said in a statement released by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).“I deeply regret my actions, and I am ashamed of making such remarks. I was thoughtless and irresponsible, and regardless of my state of mind at the time, my actions were inexcusable. Since that period, I have matured as a person and fully regret the tweets,” he added.ECB chief executive officer Tom Harrison had earlier reiterated that the board has a “zero-tolerance” stance to any form of discrimination and said they will initiate a full investigation as part of their disciplinary process.“I do not have the words to express how disappointed I am that an England Men’s player has chosen to write tweets of this nature, however long ago that might have been,” said Harrison.“Any person reading those words, particularly a woman or person of colour, would take away an image of cricket and cricketers that is completely unacceptable. We are better than this. We have a zero-tolerance stance to any form of discrimination and there are rules in place that handle conduct of this nature. We will initiate a full investigation as part of our disciplinary process,” he added.

New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson is “excited” to lock horns with “top-ranked” Team India at a neutral venue in the upcoming World Test Championship (WTC) final.India and New Zealand will face each other in the finals of the WTC at the Ageas Bowl, Southampton, beginning June 18. Williamson said the concept of WTC has pushed teams to go for a win rather than a draw in the past couple of years.“They have looked to bring about more context to the Test format and I think we saw it at the end of the competition, teams trying to push their case for qualifying which made way for a lot of exciting results,” Williamson said in an ICC release.“We saw in Australia, in New Zealand, a lot of teams had a chance to get through thought it proved to be great adding that context and for us to see ourselves in the position we are in the finals now. It is exciting.“We are looking forward to that when we are taking on the top-rank side in the world. We know how strong they are and the depth they have. So exciting to be playing against each other at a neutral venue,” he added.New Zealand and England are currently locking horns in a two-match Test series of which the first game ended in a draw on Sunday. The Kiwis are looking at the WTC final as the third Test match of the mini-series.“There is a carrot at the end that has taken a long time to, I suppose, to accumulate points and have the opportunity to be involved in it,” said Williamson.“To get that chance is exciting and the guys know it. You know it’s sort of the third Test match of the mini-series I suppose, and they are really excited to be involved,” he added.The New Zealand skipper feels WTC has helped ensure the longevity of Test cricket as it helps in keeping the relevance of the longest format alive.“Yeah, that is obviously the idea behind the tournament structure of Test championship and added points and these sorts of things to entice and improve the brand of the game and I think when it came to the crunch time, you could see the equation of what they had to do to be involved in the final,” said Williamson.“You saw sides play that way which is what they are after. Hopefully, that has generated a lot of interest from the public and enjoyment of the Test game, which is obviously what cricketers are involved in. It is the pinnacle and I certainly enjoy playing it. It has added a good element to the Test format,” he added.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has zeroed in on the date for the resumption of the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League to be held in UAE. The first game on resumption will be played on September 19 while the final will be hosted on October 15 — the day India will be celebrating Dussehra this year. Speaking to ANI, a BCCI official in the know of developments of the recent meetings between the BCCI and the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) said the discussions went well and the Indian board is confident that the remaining IPL games will be held successfully in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi.“The discussions went really well and with ECB already giving us the oral nod to host the event ahead of the BCCI SGM, it was about closing the deal over the last week. The first game after the season resumes will be held on September 19 while we will have the final on October 15. The BCCI was always keen on a 25-day window to finish the remaining matches,” the official said.Asked about the situation with regards to availability of the foreign players, the official said talks are on and the Indian board expects positive outcomes.“The discussions have started and we are keeping fingers crossed that the foreign players will be mostly available. If a couple of them do not manage to turn up, we shall then decide on the future course of action. But keeping fingers crossed for now and hoping to have an action-packed end to the 14th edition in UAE,” the official said.In fact, franchises are also confident that the BCCI will engage in positive discussions with the foreign boards and make players available for the remaining games.“What we were made aware after the BCCI SGM is that the board will be speaking to the foreign boards and check on the availability of the foreign cricketers. We are confident that the BCCI will find the best possible solution and honestly it is a matter of the BCCI officials speaking to the respective board officials, so we should wait to hear from the board on this.“Yes, if we do end up missing some of the foreign stars, that is an area which would need some attention when it comes to picking replacements as the foreign players are also integral to the teams. Team balance can go for a toss, so keeping fingers crossed on that one,” the franchise official said.

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Saturday spoke to Milkha Singh’s son Jeev Milkha Singh to enquire about the condition of the legendary athlete.

Amarinder Singh also wished Milkha Singh a speedy recovery and said that everyone is praying for the track legend’s well-being. “Spoke to @JeevMilkhaSingh son of ‘Flying Sikh’ & national icon Milkha Singh Ji to enquire about the condition of his father who is admitted in ICU due to #Covid19. Conveyed my best wishes to him for his speedy recovery. All of us in Punjab are praying for his well-being,” Capt. Amarinder Singh tweeted.

Meanwhile, Milkha Singh is doing better as he battles COVID-19 in the ICU of the NHE block of the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) hospital.

“On the basis of all the medical parameters today i.e 5th June 2021, his condition has been observed better than yesterday,” Prof. Ashok Kumar, Spokesperson, PGIMER, Chandigarh confirmed on Saturday.

The former Indian sprinter had tested positive for coronavirus two weeks ago and was in isolation at his home in Chandigarh before he was admitted to the ICU on Thursday. He is currently being monitored by a team of three doctors at PGIMER.

Earlier on Friday, PM Narendra Modi spoke to Milkha Singh and expressed hope that the iconic former athlete will be back soon to “bless and inspire athletes, who will be participating in the Tokyo Olympics.”

The legendary athlete is a four-time Asian Games gold-medallist and 1958 Commonwealth Games champion. He still is the only Indian athlete to win Gold in the Asian and Commonwealth Championship.

He was awarded the Padma Shri, India’s fourth-highest civilian honor, in recognition of his sporting achievements.

Former Australia skipper Ian Chappell has said that Joe Root’s captaincy lacks imagination which might haunt England during the Ashes slated to be played later this year.

The first Men’s Ashes Test will begin at Brisbane’s Gabba from December 8-12 ahead of a day-night Test at the Adelaide Oval from December 16-20. Chappell said in Australia there are situations when a skipper has to be imaginative which isn’t the strength of the England skipper.

“Root’s captaincy often lacks imagination and reason. His tendency to have long discussions with senior players is reminiscent of Alastair Cook at his worst,” Chappell wrote in his column for ESPNcricinfo. “There’s a difference between a captain who consults and one who is uncertain; dithering is a bad look for a captain. There are times in Australia when a captain has to be imaginative in order to force the issue and this is not one of Root’s strengths,” he added.

Chappell said England has a group of fast bowlers who can win a series but the team lacks strength in the batting lineup.

“England possesses a potential series-winning group of fast bowlers. It is the top-order batting and Joe Root’s captaincy that should be cause for concern,” said Chappell.

The former Australia skipper highlighted how pacers Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, and Josh Hazlewood can easily tear apart English batting.

“The opening combination of Dominic Sibley and Rory Burns is both ungainly and unconvincing. Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood should rejoice if both names appear in the top slots on the team sheet at the Gabba,” said Chappell.

“Given the skill of Australia’s pace trio, poor starts could be a death sentence for England,” he added. For the first time in 26 years, the final Ashes Test will not be staged in Sydney.

The traditional Boxing Day and New Year’s Tests will be played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (December 26-30) and Sydney Cricket Ground (January 5-9) respectively, with the final Test scheduled for Perth’s Optus Stadium (January 14-18).

The fifth and final match of the 2019 Ashes was won by England by 135 runs to level the series 2-2. However, Australia retained the urn as they had previously won the Ashes in the 2017/18 season.

This was the first time in 47 years that the Ashes ended as a draw. The last series which ended as a draw between England and Australia was in 1972.

Boxer Simranjeet and shooter Saurabh Chaudhary are among the five Olympic-bound athletes who are yet to be given their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Around 120 athletes and 27 para-athletes have received their first dose of the vaccine while 58 athletes and four para-athletes have got their second dose. Moreover, 114 coaches and support staff have got their first dose while 37 members have received their second dose as well.

“Of the actual Olympic bound Athletes only 5 are left for their 1st dose. All five were Covid positive and have since recovered,” sources in the known developments told ANI.

“Boxer Simranjeet, Four Shooters Saurabh Chaudhary, Rahi Sarnobat, Deepak Kumar and

Mairaj Ahmed Khan are ones who have been left. Request Boxing and Shooting to get needful done urgently and revert,” the source informed.

Earlier this week, Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president Narinder Batra said that the upcoming Tokyo Games will be a level playing field for everyone involved and opined that there is no country that has a significant advantage heading into the Games.

“Athletes have been preparing well, they are as fit as any other in the world. They are raring to go, preparation is going on. Some athletes are here in India, some are abroad, some will reach Tokyo directly. It would be a level playing field for all. The entire contingent is preparing well. When every stakeholder (NSFs, SAI) is on the same page, the work is streamlined,” Batra had told ANI.

When asked about the vaccination of Olympic-bound athletes, Batra said: “From IOC’s side, there is nothing mandatory, they have some guidelines in Tokyo, if you reach the finals and then you test positive for COVID-19, so nobody knows what will happen. But why wait for such a situation, the best solution is that we get every party associated vaccinated. It is our duty to get our athletes vaccinated.”

Tokyo Olympics will begin on July 23 and the Games will run up to August 8 this year. The event was slated to be held last year, but it was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.