Sports

Ashes 2013-14: England collapse to heavy defeat in first Test

England slumped to a humiliating 381-run defeat in the first Test as Mitchell Johnson once again blew their fragile batting away.

Facing a target of 561 to win, or two days to bat through for the draw, England disintegrated from 142-4 to 151-8 and then 179 all out late on the fourth day to go behind in an Ashes series for the first time in seven years.

Only captain Alastair Cook with 65 offered any prolonged resistance as his side lost four wickets for nine runs in 18 frantic mid-afternoon minutes at the Gabba.

Poor shots cost Kevin Pietersen and Matt Prior but Johnson was rampant as he finished with 5-42 to go with his 4-61 in the first innings.

This was sweet revenge indeed for the left-arm fast bowler, a figure of fun when he recorded figures of 0-170 here three years ago but man of the match this time around.

It was England's second biggest defeat in Ashes cricket in Australia, in terms of runs, and leaves them with several critical issues to address before the second Test begins in 11 days.

Australia had lost seven of their last nine Tests coming into this game, and had not won in the five-day format since last January.

But they have dominated the last three days at a ground that has not seen an Australian Test defeat in 25 years, and appear a side transformed from the unsettled, insecure unit that has struggled badly for so much of the past 12 months.

With only a two-day game against a weak opposition in Alice Springs to come before the second Test in Adelaide, it is England - 3-0 victors in the corresponding series three months ago - with all the headaches.

Cook and Pietersen had begun the day looking comparatively comfortable, the pitch still doing little to assist the bowlers despite the emergence of a few cracks.

They had taken the overnight score of 24-2 up to 72 when Pietersen tossed all that diligence away by taking the short-ball bait from Johnson and pulling straight to substitute fielder Chris Sabburg at long leg.

It was a dismal way to get out in the circumstances, even if England's task was already near impossible.

Pietersen had fallen for the same obvious trap in the Sydney Test on England's last tour down under, and can expect more of the same as this series continues.

Cook was contrastingly cautious. His half century - the third slowest of his Test career - came off 158 balls and was greeted with the most muted of acknowledgments.

He and Ian Bell then dealt extremely well with a nasty spell of fast bowling from Johnson and Ryan Harris, swaying from the path of the short stuff and keeping hands low.

It took some surprise extra bounce from Peter Siddle to have Bell caught behind by Haddin for 32 with the score on 130, and although a spectacular sub-tropical storm then saw the outfield covered in hail and puddles, it delayed play for just an hour and a half - an inconvenience to Australia rather than a lifeline for England.

If anything it interrupted Cook's previously excellent concentration.

In the second over after the restart he tried to cut Nathan Lyon but was caught behind for 65, and in that moment any crazy hopes of a rescue act to match that of three years ago finally disappeared.

In the off-spinner's next over, Matt Prior played needlessly at a ball outside leg stump and deflected it straight to leg slip for a paltry four, leaving his side 146-6.

That became 151-7 when Stuart Broad gloved the rampant Johnson down the leg-side, and when Swann went for a second-ball duck - chasing a wide one and edging it to Steve Smith at third slip - England had lost four wickets for nine runs.

Another rain shower briefly delayed the inevitable, but when play resumed in the late afternoon sun, Ryan Harris had Chris Tremlett caught by George Bailey at short leg for seven.

And although Joe Root hung around for 86 balls for a 26 not out, Johnson caught and bowled James Anderson for two to trigger wild celebrations among his team-mates.

Manny Pacquiao beats Brandon Rios on points in comeback fight

Manny Pacquiao put on a dazzling boxing display to beat American Brandon Rios and win his first fight in two years.

The man from the Philippines said he would win to bring "pride and hope" back to his beleaguered nation, which is struggling to come to terms withthe loss of life and devastation caused by Typhoon Haiyan.

In front of a crowd unanimously in his favour, he dominated former world lightweight champion Rios to win on points, landing at will and never looking in trouble.

In truth, Rios was not in the class of previous Pacquiao opponents. His ponderous style of walking forward without using a consistent jab was tailor-made for the 34-year-old, who showed no rustiness, even though he had not fought since he was knocked out in losing to Juan Manuel Marquez last December.

His victory - at the Cotai Arena, inside Macau's Venetian Hotel - was watched by a near-capacity crowd of 13,200 fans, who cheered as pictures of Pacquiao meeting former England footballer David Beckham in his dressing room before the fight were beamed into the arena.

Aside from Beckham, a host of stars had made the trip to this quirky casino resort in East Asia, some from Hollywood and others from China.

Pacquiao was smiling as he entered the ring, in contrast to the earlier arrival of his 27-year-old opponent, who scowled.

After a cagey opening 60 seconds, Pacquiao controlled the first round, landing jabs and hooks at will.

He drew roars in the second when he hit Rios flush with a left hand and several follow-up blows, but the Texan took them all and stayed on his feet.

The pattern continued in the third - Pacquiao beating the oncoming Rios to the punch, his speed the dominant factor in the bout.

By the end of round six, Rios's right eye was closed after absorbing numerous straight punches. There were moments in the seventh round when a stoppage seemed possible, with Rios on the back foot and not offering much in return.

Now cut above his left eye, his most notable achievement was the repeated warnings from the referee for holding and hitting when in clinches.

It was a surprise to see Rios come out for the 12th and final round, so comprehensive had the beating been. When it finished, the two boxers stood and eyed each other, before embracing.

The judges scored the fight 120-108, 119-109 and 118-110 in Pacquaio's favour, as Rios suffered only his second defeat in 34 fights. Pacquiao, who fell to successive defeats against Marquez and Timothy Bradleybefore this victory, has a record of 55 wins, five defeats and two draws.

On the undercard, there was disappointment for the American-based Liverpudlian Liam Vaughan, who was pulled out of his light middleweight contest with Dan Nazareno after two rounds.

The 23-year-old took a beating from his Filipino opponent on his way to a second defeat in 10 fights.

Bradley Wiggins' bike or a family car? A prize dilemma

All Chris Green really wanted was faster broadband.

What he got instead was a dilemma: he could have enough money to do something nice for his young family, or he could own a bike worth more than his car.

A new kitchen, or a carbon racing machine? It is a dilemma for many middle-aged men in Lycra, but Green's choice was even harder: this is not just any bike.

Two months ago, having absent-mindedly ticked a couple of boxes on a letter about his internet service from Sky, Green received a large box in the post. He had won a competition.

Inside the box was a Pinarello  Dogma 2. There was also a Team Sky shirt covered in autographs and a certificate of authenticity signed by Sir Dave Brailsford.

You see, this isn't just any Pinarello; it's one of three Pinarellos that made Bradley Wiggins a Sir, gave Britain its first Tour de France championin 2012 and inspired thousands of would-be Wiggos to take to the lanes every weekend.

Green's first thought was to give it a try. Having recently bought a reasonable bike of his own, the father-of-two hopped on for a quick loop around the streets of his Surrey home.

"It was like going from an Escort to a Ferrari," says Green. "It felt so light that when I got out of the saddle it was like there was nothing beneath me."

Sadly, the gears were set up for an Olympic champion, not a 37-year-old amateur with dodgy knees. And there was also the worry about how much it would cost to fix those electronic gears, not to mention the prototype wheels.

No, this was clearly too much bike for Green to actually ride. Could he hang it on the wall?

"It's very nice, darling, but it's not going in the living room," was his wife's reply.

So this was too much ornament for Green to keep, too. He was going to have to sell it.

But who would buy it? And is it worth more than the sum of its £8,000 parts, or less because it is now third-hand?

The traditional way to answer these questions is to ask an auctioneer, but cycling memorabilia is a new phenomenon in this country.

"We have never sold a bike," says sports memorabilia expert Chris Hayes of Bonhams auction house in Chester.

"We did once sell a Lance Armstrong jersey, though. I think it got nearly £600."

The phrase caveat emptor springs to mind.

In the global sports memorabilia market it is all about baseball - sporting legend Babe Ruth-related items account for eight of the top 20 prices ever paid at auction. But in the UK, football rules.

Earlier this month, Hayes auctioned off 69 lots of Nat Lofthouse memorabilia,including the Bolton and England legend's 1958 FA Cup winner's medal for £16,500, and his 1953 Football Writers' Footballer of the Year trophy for £10,000.

The typical buyer is a dedicated supporter, somebody for whom it is not enough just to go to the games. They want a physical connection with their clubs, something that sets them apart. They might start with a programme or a ticket stub, before moving to the framed shirt.

Then there are the investors, Lovejoy-types having a punt in an uncertain market. They are looking for cups and medals, items that will not fade or tear.

And finally, you have institutional buyers: clubs, countries and national governing bodies trying to fill their halls of fame and trophy cabinets. There are not many cycling museums in the UK, though.

"There hasn't really been a market for cycling collectibles in this country, but we are just beginning to see one emerge," says Graham Budd, who runs his own sports memorabilia business in London.

Budd actually sold his first bike at auction last week, and, like Green's Wiggo machine, it was a pioneer.

"We sold the bike that (Estonian cyclist) Erika Salumae won the sprint on at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona," he explains.

"It was a significant moment because the Berlin Wall had just come down and it was Estonia's first Olympic medal as an independent country.

"The auction was front-page news  there, and all over the TV as well. She's a big star. It went for £8,000 to an Estonian buyer in the end."

Eight grand for an ugly bike with no brakes or gears? Surely, that has got to be good news for Green and his hi-tech combination of Italian and Japanese engineering.

"All collectors crave owning something that nobody else has," warns Budd, who also soldCyril Knowles'  1967 FA Cup winner's medal for £14,000 last week.

"The problem (Green) might have is we are not sure how unique this bike is, and wherever you have the risk of multiples, value is diluted.

"It happens quite a lot with football shirts - players get given long-sleeve ones and short-sleeve ones, and some like to change into a fresh shirt at half-time. It can be difficult to prove that your shirt is THE shirt."

Anybody with even a passing knowledge of cycling will know that riders have more than one bike - you can see them on the roof racks of the team cars - but most will also understand that bikes are usually very personal pieces of kit. The handlebar tape might get changed every fortnight, but the frames stay the same.

Team Sky have already confirmed that the bike Green won in the competition is one of three Dogma 2s Wiggins rode during 2012, a stunning campaign that saw him win three big stage races before claiming an unprecedented Tour/Olympic double. But there were also time-trial bikes and a garish yellow number that he used for the final Tour stage in Paris.

We also know that one of those other two regular Dogma 2s was won in a competition in The Times and promptly sold on eBay.  Team Sky were not very happy about that, says Green, who wants "his" bike to go to a worthy home.

This is why he has chosen not to sell it in an auction, or dip his toe in the uncharted waters of eBay. Green is selling Wiggo's wheels via the London Cycle Exchange, a "pre-owned performance bicycle club" that gives buyers a guarantee that the top-end, second-hand bike they are buying works and is not wanted by the police.

The bike will be listed on the website  for the rest of November, and potential buyers can drool over 18 photos, noting the Team Sky water bottles, Wiggins sticker on the side of the top tube and certificate of provenance from Brad's boss Brailsford.

Bar a change of pedals and the absence of Wiggins' power meter, a device used to measure a rider's pedalling power, this is definitely one of THE bikes that won THE biggest, hardest and most famous bike race in the world, and there are not many of those.

"I'd love to keep hold of it," admits Green. "But we're a single income family with two kids. It's a no-brainer, really."

He knows not everybody will understand - and some posters on cycling message boards  have referred to him as "one uncareful owner", or "money-grabbing" - but how many of us would keep a bike we are not really good enough to ride, or allowed to put on the wall?

If you feel differently, you could always make Green an offer.

Anti-doping: Jamaican resignations address some Wada worries

"A step in the right direction" is how the United States anti-doping chief Travis Tygart described it.

And there is no question that the resignation of all 11 members of the Jamaican Anti-Doping Commission (Jadco) board late on Friday will go a long way to dealing with the concerns of the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) about efforts to tackle doping in the country.

That's because many of the board members were also senior figures in Jamaican sports administration.

The controversial and outspoken chairman of Jadco, Herb Elliot, was the team doctor for the Jamaican team at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, Molly Rhone is president of Jamaican Netball, Professor Rainford Wilks is heavily involved in track and field, and Mike Fennell doubled up as head of the Caribbean island's Olympic Association.

When I met Fennell in Jamaica a fortnight ago, he told me that those members of Jadco who were also closely involved in running sport in Jamaica were of the highest integrity.

He also said that in a country of just under three million people there wasn't a vast pool of candidates with the right level of experience to choose from.

These are no doubt fair points. But no credible anti-doping agency can operate in this way.

In Britain, the authorities long ago realised that it was simply inappropriate to have an anti-doping organisation under the same roof as UK Sport - the agency ultimately responsible for funding and developing our top Olympians. Regardless of how the two organisations operated in reality, the perception was what counted and in the end a new independent agency was established.

No matter the integrity of the individuals involved in Jamaica, it just doesn't look good at a time when the country's athletes have put them firmly in the spotlight with their extraordinary achievements.

And so Jamaica's government deserves credit for responding to the anxiety of Wada - the global doping watchdog - on this question.

But we have been here before.

Back in 2010 the board of Jadco was dissolved after Wada's general secretary David Howman made the point that several directors were also leading figures from the sporting world. A few months later, when it was reconstituted, the same thing happened again.

Much now depends on how the Jamaican sports minister Natalie Neita Headley handles the appointment of new board members in the coming weeks.

But even if Jamaica gets it right this time, there are still many more issues for the country to tackle. And the new Wada president Sir Craig Reedie made it very clear following the World Anti-Doping Conference in South Africa last week that the pressure is still on.

After last summer's rash of positive drug tests for Jamaican athletes, the world is questioning how Jamaica became such a global force in track and field.

No matter who sits on the Jadco board, this is a question of how extensive Jamaica's testing regime now becomes. As senior tester Dr Paul Wright pointed out in his interview with the BBC earlier this month, there is still no blood testing, EPO testing or unannounced out-of-competition testing being carried out in Jamaica.

Public confidence in Jamaica's outstanding athletes won't be truly restored until that happens.

Fernando Alonso on frustration at Ferrari, Vettel and the future

The question touches a raw nerve, but Fernando Alonso does not flinch. Does it hurt to be regarded as a great racing driver but not to be able to convert that standing into more than his two titles?

"A little bit, yes," the Ferrari team leader says. "I still believe that I have many years in front of me to recover some of the championships that I could have won probably, like 2010 and 2012. They are clearly examples.

"Inside, I am still thinking that when I retire I will have more than two. I don't know how many, but I will have more than two.

"If I cannot achieve that it will be a shame, it will be sad, because I had so many opportunities - but at the moment I am thinking we will have more opportunities and the next ones we will not lose any more."

Alonso looks tired and a little pale as he talks in the Ferrari building in the paddock at the United States Grand Prix for a BBC interview that will be broadcast before Sunday's Brazilian race.

The 32-year-old Spaniard is famous for being Formula 1's most relentless and determined competitor, but in the circumstances his careworn appearance is understandable.

For one thing, Alonso is still recovering from a nasty incident in the previous race in Abu Dhabi, when a 150mph trip over the kerbs avoiding Toro Rosso's Jean-Eric Vergne jarred his back and left him with a week of bad headaches and, as he puts it, "difficult nights".

For another, a long F1 season is inching to its conclusion, a year that promised so much for Ferrari only for their challenge to collapse again, swept aside by the juggernaut of Red Bull and Sebastian Vettel.

Appropriately for a man who is fascinated by Far Eastern philosophy, Alonso is almost Zen-like in his stillness throughout the 15-minute interview with Lee McKenzie.

Sitting back in a plastic chair behind a table, only his right hand moves - occasionally to touch his face, at other times to gently stroke the table with a thumb.

Alonso has long been one of F1's better interviewees, but today he is in a particularly frank mood, and the tranquillity of his presence emphasises the power of his words.

He knows full well that, but for a couple of agonising twists of fate, it would be him with four world titles and Vettel on 'only' two, rather than the other way around.

Instead, it is Vettel who has this year entered an exclusive club of four-time champions, alongside only Juan Manuel Fangio, Michael Schumacher and Alain Prost. Does Alonso himself consider the Red Bull driver as a great driver to rank alongside such names?

"Time will tell us," he says. "There are many years [to go in his career].

"He is 26 years old, so when he will have a car like the others, if he wins, he will have a great recognition and be one of the legends in F1. When one day he has a car like the others and he is fourth, fifth, seventh, these four titles will be bad news for him because people will take these four titles even in a worse manner than they are doing now.

"So there are interesting times for Sebastian coming."

The barb - that Vettel has been able to dominate only because his car is on another level from the rest - is implied, but unmistakable.

Alonso is regarded by many - including several rivals - as the greatest active driver in F1. Yet he won the second of his world titles way back in 2006, and this is the third time in four years he has been Vettel's closest challenger only to lose out in the end. He has not troubled to hide that it has been difficult for him to go through it again.

"There has," he admits, "been a lot of frustration in the [Ferrari] team, no doubt. We were hoping every year to do well and to fight for the World Championship.

"When Red Bull dominate the sport one year it is OK. They have great aerodynamics; they have a great team.

"When it happens two years, frustration grows a little bit, [but] it can be because of the blowing exhaust or the double diffuser or something like that. When it is happening constantly every year there are more frustrations and the atmosphere in all the other teams is getting a little worse and a little more in a sad mood, let's say.

"So it is up to us; we cannot let things go down for us. It is time to deliver even more. It is time to work even harder. And we try to motivate each other.

"But from outside it is normal that we receive only bad news and bad questions. Because we are Ferrari, we should deliver, win races, compete with the best. We are not doing so, so the bad questions or sad feeling from the outside and from our fans are understandable."

The frustration peaked in the summer, when the reality of Red Bull's performance and Ferrari's own inability to progress was first dawning.

Red Bull sources told this and other media organisations that Alonso's management had approached them offering his services for 2014.The information sent the F1 rumour mill into overdrive and led to problems at Ferrari.

When a TV crew asked Alonso after the Hungarian Grand Prix what he would like for his birthday, he replied: "Someone else's car." The next day Ferrari revealed on their website that their president Luca Di Montezemolo had phoned Alonso to wish him happy birthday, but also to "tweak his ear"and remind him of his responsibilities.

Now - as then - Alonso insists there was no approach to Red Bull.

"No, no, nothing at all, it was only rumours," he says, adding: "This year there have been more rumours than any other year, not only for me, but about [Nico] Hulkenberg, about Kimi [Raikkonen]. At the beginning of the year with Multi 21 [when Vettel ignored team orders not to overtake Mark Webber in Malaysia], there were a lot of things going on for two or three races even inside Red Bull.

"It has been a strange season, but from my side, zero, zero talks with anyone."

Why not, he is asked, given Ferrari's struggles to prepare a car worthy of his talent?

"Well," he says, "first of all because I have a contract [until 2016], which I need to respect and am happy to respect. Second because I trust Ferrari can do a good job and I trust that every year.

"It is true that for four years we did not have that possibility but for next year there are big changes in the rules. No-one in the paddock can point at one team and say they can dominate next year, so it is a random choice you could make if you move teams.

"I think I am in the best team to win next year and we will try to do so."

He is less sanguine when discussing tyres.

Alonso has been highly critical of Pirelli this season. That's not only because the fragility of the original 2013 tyres forced a reversion to last year's design, which favoured Red Bull, but also because the tyres are still not durable enough to allow drivers to race hard throughout a grand prix, one of Alonso's biggest strengths.

"The tyres were not good enough this year and this is the truth," he says. "It is strange to see Pirelli sometimes blaming me or Mark [Webber] or something. It is just because they were too nervous.

"The situation was out of control probably and they tried to mask a little bit the problem but, you know, we saw so many tyre failures that are not good for the sport and the fans, and are dangerous for drivers.

"We want one tyre that can last a race and can make a good show and this should not be too difficult when all the tyres are the same for everyone."

Now, with second in the drivers' championship secured and just Sunday's Brazilian Grand Prix to go, Alonso admits he is "counting the days" to the end of the season.

Although many predict fireworks when another former world champion Raikkonen joins Ferrari from Lotus next year, Alonso dismisses that notion, saying "we have the experience to deal with the problems if they come" and adding that he expects there to be a "performance advantage" for both as they "push each other to the limit".

More important for Alonso is the chance to recharge his batteries and start again, hoping it will be eighth time lucky for him to win that elusive third title.

"We [already] want [it] to be Sunday night in Brazil, packing everything, go back to Maranello, put this in one side of the factory, close off for a little while and completely focus all the efforts and motivations on 2014.

"We have new engineers, new designers coming from other teams, big names like [new technical director] James Allison and other key people from Formula 1, and we need to deliver. It is time to deliver and next year everyone in the factory feels it is time to do it."

How much it will hurt if Ferrari fall short again is left unsaid.

UK Championship 2013: Mark Selby faces 15-year-old amateur

Defending champion Mark Selby will face 15-year-old Shane Castle when the UK Championship gets under way in York.

In a revamped format, the tournament is one of eight where all 128 players enter at the first-round stage.

World champion Ronnie O'Sullivan plays amateur Rhys Clark while China's Ding Junhui is up against Antony Parsons.

"I believe Ding is the best player on the circuit after Ronnie O'Sullivan in terms of ability and break-building," Stephen Hendry told BBC Sport.

Ding became the first player since Hendry in 1993 to win three successive ranking event titles following triumphs at the Shanghai Masters, Indian Open and International Championship.

Hendry added: "I am hoping that we are seeing the true Ding coming through now and there is an opportunity for him to try to dominate the sport."

World Snooker chairman Barry Hearn has overhauled the sport since taking over the sport's commercial arm in 2009 and changes to the structure of tournaments has meant the top-16 players have lost their protection in ranking events.

Previously, they had automatically gone through to the last-32 stage but now go in at the first round - effectively having to play two extra matches.

Seven amateur players have been given a place in the UK Championship after a corresponding number of players from the professional tour chose not to enter.

All matches up to and including the quarter-finals are best of 11 frames, played in one session. The semi-final is the best of 17, and the final is best of 19.

Seven-time world champion Hendry feels there could be an imbalance to the results of matches in the early rounds of the tournament, which starts at the Barbican Centre on Tuesday.

"There will be a lot of one-sided matches as the players are competing in the first season where all 128 players go into the first round of ranking events," he said.

"You would expect the top players to still beat whoever they play in the first round because they will face the lower-ranked players so it shouldn't pose a problem for them."

Three-time UK champion John Higgins faces Malta's 44-year-old Alex Borg and the 'Wizard of Wishaw' is pleased with the format.

"The UK Championship is a huge tournament and I would love to do well in York this year," Higgins, 38, told World Snooker. 

"It's good to have a new format with everyone starting in the same round. You face new opponents and it gives a chance for more players to compete at the venue and get experience playing on TV."

Selected first-round matches:

Mark Selby v Shane Castle

Barry Hawkins v Alexander Ursenbacher

Shaun Murphy v Lee Spick

Judd Trump v Gareth Green

Mark Allen v Jak Jones

Ding Junhui v Antony Parsons

Neil Robertson v Dylan Mitchell

Stephen Maguire v Sanderson Lam

John Higgins v Alex Borg

Ronnie O'Sullivan v Rhys Clark