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Watching him put aside ego and get down with the grind in poker provided a reaffirmation that he was for real

Andrew Miller05-Mar-2022When you think of Las Vegas, you probably think of the desert heat, the neon lights, the replica landmarks and the revolting glitziness of the endless, tinkling casinos. You almost certainly don’t think of the world’s greatest legspinner, standing by some piss-infused bins, sucking on a “smoko” and ruing the one that got away.If there’d been an alley cat or two in the vicinity, Shane Warne might well have kicked them into the Nevada night too. For it was the dinner break on the first evening of the 2012 World Series of Poker main event, and Warne had just snuck out through the hotel kitchens after overplaying his final hand of the session to damaging effect.It wasn’t a tournament-ending setback – that would come some days later, after the initial 6598-strong field had been whittled down to the hundreds – but in cricketing parlance, it was quite literally that loss of concentration before an interval, all that hard graft squandered in a moment of avoidable rashness.Related

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“The flop came eight, jack, deuce, rainbow…” Warne would later tell me, in eye-glazing detail, as we shared a cab back across Vegas at the close of that day’s play. Every time he lost a hand, it was due to someone else’s good fortune, of course, rather than his own dumb miscalculation, but the sheer nerdery in Warne’s love of poker was never less than joyous to behold.For I genuinely believe that, in those otherwise awkward years between Warne’s retirement from cricket and his discovery of a true life after sport, his love of cards gave him a purpose and belonging that he simply could not have replicated elsewhere in his extraordinarily A-listed life.In a world where Warne could speed-dial personalities as polarised as Ed Sheeran or David Hasselhoff, and where – as Nick Hoult, his ghostwriter at the Telegraph, has memorably related – he was obliged to use code words and pseudonyms at hotel receptions to keep the paparazzi at arm’s length, there was something reassuringly wholesome about sitting anonymously at a poker table, for sometimes days at a time, re-channelling that extraordinary blend of bluff, grind and raw skill that had marked Warne out as one of the greatest sporting champions of any sport and any era.Personally speaking, however – having marvelled as a teenager at his seemingly fully formed arrival on cricket’s world stage – Warne’s all-consuming new passion offered an entry level insight into his remarkable psyche, as he attempted to translate his proven genius in one field to another, entirely different, mindgame.”[Poker]’s about skill, it’s about patience, it’s about not getting tired in the course of a 12-hour day,” Warne told me during that Vegas trip, for which – in an impressive bluff of my own – I managed to persuade the bean-counters at the Cricketer that an all-expenses-paid week of gambling was exactly what the magazine needed for its reboot.”You need serious powers of concentration and an understanding of when to push and when to sit tight,” Warne added, conferring the game with all the glamour of a day in the dirt in Rawalpindi. “You have to manage your frustration when you’re being dealt crap cards, or being forced to play safe because other guys are going mad. And sometimes you have to create something that’s not there…”Ah yes. The bluff. Was there any player in cricket’s history better at sowing doubt in his opponents than Warne? The knowledge of the moments in which he genuinely had the best hand and played it to perfection – and most things in that regard stemmed from the Ball of the Century at Old Trafford in 1993 – made his years of grift and bluster possible; those times in the late 1990s and early 2000s when his shoulder appeared to be held together by stringy pizza cheese, and only his multi-layered connivances were able to hoodwink a succession of opponents into tame and match-sealing surrenders.Mindgames R Us: Warne gets stuck in in Perth, 2006•Tom Shaw/Getty ImagesFor Warne was playing poker on the cricket field long before he turned to his cards for that post-career adrenaline shot. Unlike the quick bowlers who had ruled the roost before his arrival, there were rarely any route-one options when it came to outwitting the batters in his sights. He often needed to get his fish on the hook before he could reel them in – perhaps with a diet of ripping legbreaks, followed by the slider, as Ian Bell discovered to his cost at Lord’s in 2005, or perhaps with some expertly detonated verbals, the likes of which lured both Mark Ramprakash and Nasser Hussain to their doom in the 1998-99 and 2001 series.He seemed to find a personalised strategy for all calibres of rival. In a one-day final in Melbourne in 2000-01, Warne even greeted Brian Lara with a first-ball bouncer, a tactic that hit instant pay dirt when a riled Lara slapped a wild drive to cover in the same over. And then there was his long and storied rivalry with South Africa’s Daryll Cullinan, a batter who was so fazed over the course of so many setbacks that he turned for help to a psychiatrist – some two decades before they were accepted as a recognised part of a sportsperson’s preparation.That innate willingness to graft may have been at odds with Warne’s showman persona, but it was a key part of the deceptive image that he was able to present throughout an astonishing 15-year career. And when it came to poker, his new rivals may have known little of cricket, but most of them were better than average people-readers, and could see and respect the efforts that he was willing to put in to cut it on the tables.”He’s a guy I can introduce at events and say, ‘Hey, Ben Affleck, here’s a guy who’s more famous than you!” Phil Hellmuth, one of poker’s greats, told me during that trip.”Some of these sportsmen are really good at poker because they are competitive by nature,” Hellmuth added. “If you’re good enough to channel that and become great in your first career, it figures that some of these guys know how to relearn that and get good at something that will make them a new career.”As things turned out, Warne fell short of the money “bubble” on that 2012 trip – “I always overplay my jacks,” he admitted in a moment of post-elimination candour, while watching Hashim Amla rack up a triple-century at The Oval later that summer. And overall, he rarely got closer to a payout than in 2009, when his deep run in the tournament caused him to turn up a week late for his hugely hyped Sky Sports debut in that summer’s Ashes.But his love of the game was absolute. He kept putting himself through the glamour-free yakka of these vast deep-stack tournaments because there was nowhere he’d rather be – even if those games tended to be in vast aircraft-hangar-style conference centres, light-years removed from the penthouse glamour that poker projects on late-night TV, and where the all-pervading vibe was the fierce concentration and mild terror of a school exam-hall.2:03

In 2018, ESPNcricinfo’s Andrew Miller faced an over from Shane Warne

And in watching Warne put aside the ego and just get down with the grind, it was a reaffirmation of that sense we all had had beamed into our living rooms throughout the course of his matchless career – that in spite of the artifice of his art, and the apparent superficiality of his bleach-blond image, Shane Warne was entirely for real.In 2018, I was privileged enough to witness the truth of Warne in its full majesty. A chance, at the Kia Oval, to face a full over in the nets from the greatest bowler of my lifetime, and – at the behest of his old Ashes rival, Michael Vaughan – to “smash him out of the park”.Inevitably we talked poker while I was strapping on my pads – it’s how we always communicated in our intermittent meetings, with Warnie always keen to unload about some lucky sucker who’d cleaned him out the previous week – but two moments in particular stand out now, as I look back on a career highlight that is laced with more poignancy than I could ever have envisaged at the time.Firstly, there was his generosity of spirit, as he played along with my inept efforts to take him to the cleaners while imploring me not to hold back because I “probably [wouldn’t] get this chance again”. How devastatingly final that now sounds.But then, right at the end of the session, while signing off for the cameras, there appeared on Warne’s features a flicker of apparently genuine hurt, as I joked about how he had “ruined my childhood” with his routine dismemberment of my England heroes.The moment passed as quickly as it appeared, but it’s strangely haunting nonetheless, for it spoke to Warne’s most basic desire to be a people-pleaser – which, when you think about it, ought to be a given for one of sport’s great entertainers.It’s not always quite as linear as that, however. Not many megastars are quite so devoid of pretension as Warne remained to the end – even allowing for a hectic, jet-set lifestyle that only a man who burned at his wattage could have kept up with.But that glimmer of a tell does perhaps explain why Warne never quite raked in the poker millions that he always believed were his for the winning.

Baseball has a funny way of bringing things full circle.

Cubs legend Anthony Rizzo was in attendance Saturday as he was honored in a ceremony at Wrigley Field Saturday and retired a Cub as he's set to become an ambassador for the team. He decided to take in some of the game against the Rays from the Wrigley Field bleachers. Unbeknownst to him, he picked the perfect spot.

Moisés Ballesteros, the 21-year-old Cubs designated hitter, smacked the first home run of his young MLB career on Rizzo's special day. In incredibly miraculous fashion, he hit the ball directly to the heart and soul of Chicago's 2016 World Series championship team.

Ballesteros took an inside fastball to the opposite field up and over the left-field wall. Rizzo saw the ball coming his way and stepped on top of the bleacher where he was sitting to try and make the play. The home-run ball hit him directly in the right hand and bounced two rows above where Rizzo was sitting.

He celebrated with the fan who ended up with the ball after the play as he appeared unable to believe what just happened, similar to the rest of us. Check out one of the most improbable baseball moments you'll ever see below:

"That's why I'm retired," he hilariously mouthed in the crowd after the play.

Maybe Rizzo can make an easy trade with the fan for Ballesteros to get the ball back.

Morkel also said it was good to have Kohli and Rohit in the ODI team as India look to move on from the Test series loss against South Africa

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Nov-2025Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer are well on the road to recovery, with India bowling coach Morne Morkel looking forward to both players rejoining the team soon.Gill suffered a neck injury two weeks ago during the Kolkata Test, and Iyer has been missing since he lacerated his spleen on the tour to Australia last month.”I think the best is for the medical [team] to give that [update],” Morkel said in Ranchi on Friday. “I spoke to Shubman two days ago just to check in with him and he is recovering well. So, that is pleasing to hear.Related

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“Shreyas has also started his rehab, which is great. So, we are looking forward to welcoming them back into the squad. The good thing is that they are healthy and they are starting their preparation on their way back into the team.”Gill’s place in the ODI side will likely go to Yashasvi Jaiswal, but the identity of who might replace Iyer at No. 4 remains unclear, with Rishabh Pant and Tilak Varma in contention.India are under severe pressure, having relinquished their air of invincibility at home. They come into this ODI series having lost five of the last seven Tests. Morkel said the team has had time to reflect on what went wrong and insisted that a switch to the white-ball format will help the team refocus.”Look, it’s a change of colour by clothing and it’s a change of ball which always brings a different energy,” Morkel said. “But I feel you know the South African team, they have that momentum with them and a confident Protea team is a dangerous team. It will be important to start well, for us to play good cricket over the next week or two, because they’re here to win.”Luckily, we have got some good experience ahead now in the team. For us, it is now focus for the next two days. Give ourselves the best opportunity to prepare well and go out there and put the last couple of weeks behind us and really focus on playing solid cricket.”Virat Kohli gets ready for a net session•PTI The good experience that Morkel mentioned comes from Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, who will play international cricket in India for the first time since they retired from Tests earlier this year. Their goal now appears to be making the 2027 ODI World Cup”I feel that their bodies can do that. It is still a long way away. The World Cup, by all means,” Morkel said. “I have played many games against them. I have had sleepless nights bowling to them. So, I know as a bowler what goes through your preparation playing against them. So, for me, definitely on board with that.”India’s training on Friday took place either side of two covered pitches at the centre of the ground. One of them will be used on match day. The practice wickets offered good pace and bounce, with the ball coming on nicely to the bat. So there may be a toss-up between fast bowling allrounder Nitish Kumar Reddy and spin-bowling allrounder Washington Sundar.”I think we will have to look at the wicket,” Morkel said. “Honestly, I just walked past it now and it looked like a very good surface. Almost South African-like. So, I think the discussions will happen tonight in terms of what combination they look to start off with. So, we will have to wait and see after training.”

Tasmania chased down their target with 10 balls to spare after the home side had suffered a 7 for 70 collapse following Labuschagne’s dismissal

AAP09-Oct-2025Marnus Labuschagne’s case for an Ashes call-up continues to grow after scoring his second century in the space of a week in Queensland’s five-wicket One-Day Cup loss to Tasmania.Labuschagne cracked 105 off 91 balls to lead Queensland to 311 of 45.3 overs at Allan Border Field on Thursday.Related

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In reply, Tasmania reached the victory target with 10 balls to spare courtesy of big knocks from Tim Ward, who made his first one-day century from 88 balls, Jordan Silk and Caleb Jewell.Tasmania (3-0) remain unbeaten on top of the table, while Queensland slipped to a 2-1 record.Labuschagne’s hundred came just days after he scored 160 off 206 balls in Queensland’s Sheffield Shield draw with Tasmania, following on from his 130 off 118 balls in the Bulls’ One-Day Cup opener against Victoria last month.The hot run of form comes at the perfect time for Labuschagne, who is in the midst of a huge bat-off for an Ashes spot at the top of the order.Tim Ward drives during his maiden one-day century•Getty ImagesLabuschagne is competing with the likes of Sam Konstas, Cameron Bancroft, Marcus Harris, Nathan McSweeney, Jake Weatherald and Matt Renshaw to partner Usman Khawaja as opener for the five-Test series against England.There is also the option of Labuschagne returning to his preferred No. 3 position if selectors opt not to pick allrounder Beau Webster, who is battling an ankle injury.Labuschagne cracked eight fours and two sixes in his sparkling knock on Thursday. He was dropped on 91 when spinner Nikhil Chaudhary couldn’t hold on to a sizzling return chance.Labuschagne punched Chaudhary for four behind point to bring up his ton off 89 balls, but he was out a short time later when he edged the spinner behind.The exit of Labuschagne sparked a collapse of 7 for 70 as Queensland failed to capitalise on a strong start. Renshaw, who was called up ahead of Labuschagne for the upcoming ODI series against India, scored 38 off 35 balls.Labuschagne’s most recent Test century came against England in 2023, with his lean run of form since then resulting in his axing for the 3-0 series win over the West Indies.His ODI snub this week added further salt to the wound, but Labuschagne replied in perfect style with his ton on Thursday.

Boland removed Konstas for a duck after Victoria posted 240 on a difficult batting pitch where Handscomb and Perry had stood tall

Alex Malcolm15-Oct-2025Sam Konstas’ hopes of playing in the first Ashes Test are fading fast after he fell for a duck to Scott Boland at the Junction Oval on a day when Sean Abbott became the first player to be subbed out of a Sheffield Shield game through injury under Cricket Australia’s new trial rule.Konstas’ tough start to the Shield season continued as he was trapped lbw for a fourth-ball duck by Boland in the first over of New South Wales’ reply after Victoria had been bowled out for 240 on a very seam-friendly surface.Related

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Konstas left the first three length balls wide of off stump but then missed a full, straight delivery that would have crashed into middle and leg. It was the fifth time that Boland has dismissed Konstas in Shield cricket and the third time in the last three innings he has faced him.”It’s amazing just watching Scotty doing his thing and just going about his process each time he bowls, he’s better and better and better,” Victoria batter Peter Handscomb said after play. “He just peaks nicely come summer time for the Australian summer. So I’ve got no doubt in my mind that if selected [for the Ashes] which hopefully he is, he’ll do a great job.”It leaves Konstas with scores of 4, 14 and 0 to start the Shield season, although he has batted on some very difficult surfaces, and he has potentially three innings remaining before the Test squad his named.Victoria’s top three had also crumbled in the morning while NSW’s did likewise in the final hour on a day when 13 wickets fell overall for just 279. The home side’s new ball pairing of Boland and Fergus O’Neill relished the friendly conditions in the evening sunlight, just as NSW’s seamers had earlier in the day.Following Boland’s breakthrough, O’Neill had Kurtis Patterson caught behind for 5. Blake Nikitaras fought his way to 20 before O’Neill breached his defence from around the wicket to disturb his off stump. Matthew Gilkes and nightwatcher Ryan Hadley fought hard to get to stumps at 39 for 3 without further loss.Earlier, Handscomb continued his sparkling form making a superb 85 while Mitchell Perry made his fifth first-class half-century to rescue Victoria from a perilous position while Liam Hatcher taking his first five-wicket haul in Shield cricket.Handscomb and Perry came together at 66 for 5 after Abbott and Jack Edwards torn through the top-order following NSW’s decision to bowl on a lively Junction Oval pitch that was firm underneath with a thick coverage of green grass.Peter Handscomb continued his excellent form•Getty ImagesHandscomb looked a class above, navigating some hostile bowling from Abbott and Hatcher in particular. He had some luck, playing and missing several times, while a gloved ball cleared the keeper and two other top edges yielded boundaries.But his calmness shone as he sat deep in the crease and used the pace with some deft cut shots and controlled drives down the ground. Perry also batted impressively having been elevated above skipper Will Sutherland to No. 7. He played some outstanding drives through the off side to several over-pitched deliveries.Both played the ball much later than others in Victoria’s top order. Campbell Kellaway dragged on for 3 trying to drive a full ball wide of off stump. Another Test aspirant Marcus Harris also fell playing an expansive cover drive, edging Edwards behind. In between those dismissals, Abbott nicked off Harry Dixon with a beauty that nipped across the left-hander from back of a length.Victoria were 13 for 3 and then 38 for 4 when Edwards scratched the outside edge of Ollie Peake with another delivery that angled across the 19-year-old left-hander. Sam Harper was Hatcher’s first victim, edging a good length delivery to gully for a brisk 20 that included four boundaries.Handscomb and Perry then combined for a 130-run stand which was a complete outlier among the flurry of wickets that fell at either end of the day. Nathan Lyon bowled 13 overs but did not get any purchase on a surface where the seamers dominated.Abbott’s injury changed the course of Victoria’s innings. With the first ball of the 43rd over, Abbott’s ninth, Handscomb struck a firm drive back at him and the ball split the webbing between the second and third fingers on his right hand. Abbott walked straight off for treatment and never returned.Shortly after it was announced that he had been subbed out of the game under CA’s new injury replacement rule given he could not bowl again due to the injury. Charlie Stobo replaced him and bowled his first over of the match straight after the tea break. He struck in his third, luring Handscomb to drive a delivery that shaped away late with Edwards pouching the catch at a floating slip.Hatcher then cleaned up the tail with pace. Edwards took another sharp chance at first slip to remove Perry after dropping a tough one-hander moments before.Todd Murphy provided some excellent late hitting against a barrage of short balls. He clubbed 31 off 25 deliveries, including five boundaries before holing out to cover to end the innings.

خاض فريق ريال مدريد، بقيادة المدرب تشابي ألونسو، مباراته في إطار منافسات بطولة الدوري الإسباني لكرة القدم موسم 2025/26، ضد نظيره فريق إلتشي.

وحل ريال مدريد ضيفًا على إلتشي، في إطار منافسات الجولة الثالثة عشر من الدوري الإسباني لذلك الموسم، حيث تعادلا بهدفين لمثليهما.

وكاد ريال مدريد أن يسجل الهدف الأول في الدقيقة الرابعة من عمر الشوط الأول، بعدما سدد رودريجو كرة قوية من داخل منطقة الجزاء، ومرت أعلى المرمى.

وفي الدقيقة 11، تلقى كيليان مبابي الكرة بعد تمريرة عرضية وسددها بطريقة قوية من على حدود منطقة الجزاء، ومرت بجوار القائم، في حين تصدى الحارس تيبو كورتوا لتسديدة من لاعب إلتشي في الدقيقة 18، في دقائق سجال بين الطرفين.

ونفذ ترينت ألكسندر أرنولد ركلة ركنية في الدقيقة 21، ووصلت الكرة إلى راؤول أسينسيو الذي سددها برأسه تجاه المرمى، ولكنها مرت بجوار القائم.

وأهدر إلتشي فرصة مثالية للتسجيل في الدقيقة 28، بعدما انفرد لاعب الفريق بالحارس تيبو كورتوا، وبدلًا من التسديد، فضّل تمريرها إلى زميله ولكنها لم تكن متقنة واقتطعها دفاع الملكي، لتضيع الفرصة على أصحاب الأرض.

وفي الدقيقة 30، تصدى حارس مرمى إلتشي، إيناكي بينيا، لفرصة هدف من كيليان مبابي بعدما سدد الأخير الكرة، ولكن بينيا تصدى لها ببراعة.

وتمكن إلتشي من تسجيل هدف أول في شباك ريال مدريد، في الدقيقة 53، حيث جاء الهدف عن طريق اللاعب أليكس فيباس، بعد تمريرة بالكعب من زميله فاليرا، ووصلت الكرة إلى فيباس الذي سددها لتمر من تحت يد تيبو كورتوا، بطريقة رائعة.

وفي الدقيقة 78، أحرز ريال مدريد هدف التعادل بعد ركلة ركنية حيث وصلت الكرة إلى جود بيلينجهام، الذي سددها برأسه ووصلت إلى دين هويسن، وسددها الأخير في الشباك.

ونجح إلتشي في تسجيل هدف التقدم من جديد بعدما سدد ألفارو رودريجيز الكرة بطريقة رائعة من خارج المنطقة، وهزت شباك تيبو كورتوا.

واشتعلت المباراة بعدما سجل جود بيلينجهام هدف التعادل في الدقيقة 88، حيث مرر دين هويسن الكرة ناحية بيلينجهام الذي سددها ناحية المرمى، وتصدى لها الحارس، ووصلت إلى مبابي، الذي مررها من جديد ووصلت إلى الإنجليزي الذي سددها في الشباك.

واعترض لاعبو إلتشي على احتساب هدف بيلينجهام، وجود تدخل ضد حارس إلتشي، بينيا، من قِبل فينيسيوس جونيور قبل اهتزاز شباكه، ولكن تم احتسابه في النهاية.

وطُرد لاعب إلتشي، فيكتور تشوست في الدقيقة السابعة من الوقت المحتسب بدلًا من الضائع للشوط الثاني، لحصوله على بطاقة صفراء ثانية. 

بتلك النتيجة، حصل كل فريق على نقطة، حيث أصبح رصيد ريال مدريد 32 نقطة في المركز الأول، بينما أصبح رصيد إلتشي 16 نقطة في المركز الحادي عشر.