Could Liam Lawson be headed back to the Formula 1 grid for the 2025 season?
According to recent comments from Red Bull Senior Advisor Dr. Helmut Marko, that could indeed be the case, leaving veteran driver Daniel Ricciardo on the outside looking in.
Speaking with Austrian outlet Kleine Zeitungahead of this weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix, Marko indicated that a move in a younger direction at Visa Cash App RB F1 Team may be coming down from on high. “The shareholders have made it clear that [VCARB] is a junior team and we have to act accordingly,” said the Red Bull advisor.
That could very well mean that Ricciardo is out, and Lawson is in, for 2025.
“The aim was for Ricciardo to qualify for a return to Red Bull Racing with exceptional performances. That seat now belongs to Sergio Perez, so that plan is off the table. We will have to put in a young driver soon,” continued Marko. “That would be Liam Lawson.”
The comments come not only days ahead of the F1 Austrian Grand Prix, but a week after Ricciardo himself indicated that he wanted to “earn” his spot at VCARB for next season. Speaking at the FIA Press Conference in Barcelona ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix, Ricciardo said that “I also said, I think, before the weekend in Canada that, you know, I obviously want to earn it … I obviously want to be here because I know that I still belong here and can do can do performances like I did last week. So it’s also up to me just to make sure that I can keep pulling it out. And in that case, then I’ll be very happy to stay.”
However, the orders form shareholders referred to by Marko, as well as a clause in Lawson’s contract that allows him to seek a seat elsewhere and leave Red Bull if he does not have a ride with the team, could force the organization’s hand. With the 2025 driver lineup remaining unsettled and a number of open seats available on the grid, Lawson could find more than a few potential suitors for next year should VCARB decide to retain Ricciardo.
What might that mean for Ricciardo if this is indeed the path Red Bull and VCARB take? As noted above there are still available seats for 2025, and Ricciardo remains a marketable driver with a resume that includes Grand Prix victories and recent strong performances at both VCARB and AlphaTauri a season ago. If that is not enough to keep him at VCARB, could it be enough for another team to give him a shot for next year?
Update: And now there is even more fuel to the “Lawson to VCARB” fire, with longtime and respected F1 journalist Joe Saward indicating that Lawson could be in Ricciardo’s seat before the end of the season.
Before the end of the summer, in fact:
So, Lawson will be in for Ricciardo at some point. I’d guess the end of July…
On Feb. 1, 2024, the two-time Masters champion ruptured his Achilles while playing pickleball and miraculously returned to the PGA Tour Champions three months later. This injury typically takes 12 months to recover, but the 66-year-old German has insisted on returning to competition.
Since his three-month hiatus, Langer has played in five events, recording a pair of top 10s at the Regions Tradition and the Principal Charity Classic, where he finished third. He most recently tied for 21st at the Dick’s Open, but if not for a second-round 3-over 75, he would have fared better.
Yet, Langer, who uses a golf cart to get around, still has lingering issues stemming from the injury. He admitted as such ahead of this week’s U.S. Senior Open at Newport Country Club, where he will defend his title.
“My leg and my ankle are swollen. It’s fatigue. I don’t have the range of motion in my foot,” Langer said.
Bernhard Langer during the 2024 KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship.Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images
“There are various things that aren’t there yet. My balance is not where I want it to be, and my strength. My calf muscle is probably one or two inches smaller than the other leg. I can’t get on my tiptoes. Right foot, I can do that. Just my right foot. I tried it on my left and nothing. I’ve got a ways to go, but I’m happy to be playing golf. The good thing is I can get carts in tournaments because right now, I can’t walk four or five days, 18 holes. It’s impossible. I tried to walk nine holes, and that was a stretch. That’s where we are at the moment—hopefully improving every week.”
No doubt that Langer has seen improvement since his Achilles injury, but he can still compete because of his health, which he takes great pride in.
“You have to be reasonably healthy because if not, you can’t do what you want to do and can’t swing the way you want to swing,” Langer added.
“I was born with a competitive nature, so I have a healthy drive and live a disciplined life, which probably helps. And the willingness to put in the work. I’m 66, and many people say, ‘Why don’t you retire?’ I guess I could, but I love the game of golf, and I love to compete. I’m still good enough to compete and be up there where I can win tournaments. When that changes, when I feel like I’m going to finish in the bottom third of the field every week I compete, then it’s probably time to quit. Hopefully, I will know when that is.”
Langer continues to finish in the upper tier of PGA Tour Champions events, despite many of his competitors being 10-to-15 years younger than him. But he has no plans to slow down, which can be attributed to his healthy lifestyle.
He does not drink alcohol. He does not smoke.
Instead, Langer, like Gary Player has done for years, continues to exercise and stretch every day. He has done so for as long as he can remember.
“The body functions better when we move the body,” Langer explained.
Bernhard Langer hits a chip-shot during the Dick’s Open.Photo by Drew Hallowell/Getty Images
“If we become too sedentary, you’ll pay the price for it sooner or later. I talked to my physical therapist, and he said, ‘If you lay two weeks in the hospital, just two weeks, don’t do anything, guess how much strength you lose? 50 percent.’ I was shocked. That only encourages me to do more, do something every day instead of just lying around for a few days in a row.”
Despite his impressive health regimens, did Langer have concerns about how his body would function after his injury?
Of course, he did.
But two months after his operation, Langer’s surgeon and physical therapist approached him and said, “I think you can try and putt a little bit and chip.”
He then progressed to hitting 50-yard and 100-yard shots. A week or two later, his medical team gave him the green light to try full swings with his driver and irons.
“I hit some wedges, no problem. If I can hit a full wedge, I can hit a full 7-iron. Hit a full 7-iron, no problem. Grabbed the 3-iron, no problem. The next day I grabbed the driver and had no problem swinging the club,” Langer said.
Bernhard Langer at the Principal Charity Classic.Photo by David Berding/Getty Images
“But I was very concerned at the beginning that I would change my swing because of my injury, and I didn’t want to do that. I didn’t want to come back sooner and create a new swing that probably wouldn’t be as good, and then I’d have to spend weeks and months redoing later when I’m better at what I taught myself.”
Langer then brought in his swing coach and went to the driving range.
“I don’t want to change my swing,” Langer said to his coach.
“I want to swing the way I did before, and if my body doesn’t allow me, I’m not going to play.”
Well, Langer and his coach looked at his swing, and it looked perfectly fine.
“That was very encouraging because that meant now I can practice and compete if I can get a golf cart because I couldn’t walk,” Langer added.
“As long as they give me a golf cart, I can actually play in tournaments.”
Not only can he play, but Langer continues to compete with some of the best senior players on the planet—almost as if he did not sustain this injury in the first place.
Yet, he believes he can win the U.S. Senior Open, which would mark an incredible feat given the circumstances. It would likely go down as the most improbable win in U.S. Senior Open history should Langer go on to win.
But would you be surprised?
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThroughfor more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.
Sean Stellato the larger-than-life agent for Giants quarterback Tommy DeVito was at The Vatican today to meet with Pope Francis. Why did he get an audience with the pope? Honestly, nobody really knows — but there’s photographic evidence to prove these two met.
What these two men have to discuss is beyond comprehension, but we did our best to come up with some ideas.
Let’s caption this …
“You represent DeVito? I love him in the Always Sunny in Philadelphia”
“I loved you in Jury Duty, Mr. Pauly Shore”
“They say ‘Your Holiness, someone from the NFL is here to see you,’ and I think ‘Ooh, it’s Travis Kelce. I love that guy,’ or ‘maybe it’s Tom Brady?’ But no, Tommy DeVito’s agent is much better. This is good. This is fine.”
“So if I’m hearing right Tommy got beat out by a gawky doofus who went to a methodist university?”
“No. No. Is not ‘cutlets,’ it’s ‘pollo alla parmigiana’ you peasant.”
“It’s nice of you to see me, my son. But Jamie Taco: You shouldn’t steal people’s lines.”
“I remember you! You sold me used Fiat in Buenos Aires in 1977. Good to see you again!”
“Tommy needs to get a better job of working to his third read. And there are times his footwork does not synch up with the route concepts so it throws the timing off.” — Yes there is a world in my head where Pope Francis is a huge Xs and Os guru and has taken note of where Tommy DeVito needs to improve his game.
“No I cannot do anything about a Daniel Jones trade.”
“Explain to me, my son. If you call it ‘football’ then why no kicking?”
“I’m actually a Saints fan. HAHAHAHA just kidding. I would never support those losers”
“Sorry, but we’ll need a little more than 1,101 passing yards and eight touchdowns to consider Tommy for sainthood.”
“I watched Tommy making cutlets and I was disappointed to see that he does not double bread his cutlets. You need to tell him to double bread the cutlets. He’s a nice young man but I need to see some double breading.”
Alex Morgan will not represent the United States in a major international competition for the first time in nearly 20 years.
When the U.S. women’s national team heads to France later this month, Morgan, one of the best to wear the uniform, will not be on the plane as the team looks to chase gold at the upcoming Summer Games, after being left off women’s coach Emma Hayes’ 18-person roster.
Morgan who earned her first entry for the senior women’s roster in 2010, has been in 224 appearances for her country with 123 goals — and most notably would’ve been the only player on Hayes’ current roster with an Olympic gold medal.
On Wednesday, Morgan took to X, formerly known as Twitter to express her dismay but noted that she’s more than prepared to cheer on the squad from abroad.
“Today, I’m disappointed about not having the opportunity to represent our country on the Olympic stage,” Morgan wrote. “This will always be a tournament that is close to my heart and I take immense pride anytime I put on the crest. In less than a month, I look forward to supporting this team alongside the rest of our country.”
Today, I’m disappointed about not having the opportunity to represent our country on the Olympic stage. This will always be a tournament that is close to my heart and I take immense pride any time I put on the crest.
Morgan is one of the most prolific goalscorers in U.S. Soccer history — men or women — and was a part of the squad that captured a fourth gold medal at the 2012 Summer Games in London.
As for Hayes, she was matter-of-fact in her decision to leave Morgan off the Olympic roster, citing the number of players allowed on an Olympic roster (teams can carry just 16 field players and two goalkeepers) and her desire to “go in another direction.
“Her record speaks for itself,” Hayes said of Morgan during a virtual press conference on Wednesday. “But I wanted to go in another direction and select other players.”
The U.S. attacking corps features an all-NWSL collective who have found success this year for club and country. Trinity Rodman (Washington Spirit), Crystal Dunn (Gotham FC), Mallory Swanson (Chicago Red Stars), Jaedyn Shaw, Morgan’s teammate on the San Diego Wave and most notably Sophia Smith, the latter who many consider next up in a long line of star USWNT forwards over the years.
There’s excitement around what Sophia Smith will bring in to the Olympics, the latest in a line of standout U.S. women’s forwards. Photo by Erin Chang/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images for USSF
“I think the biggest factor is there are 16 outfield players to play a lot of games … over a 17-day period,” said Hayes. “But I also think, you know, there are players on the roster in the forward areas that are performing well, and, you know, the decision to take those players was one that we certainly deliberated over.”
Hayes who made her coaching debut on June 1, has had just two games — both against the same competition in South Korea to prepare for the Games and evaluate a roster she feels “is balanced.”
Fans will get a first look at the Olympic roster later this month in a pair of tune-up games against Mexico on July 13 (3:30 p.m. ET, TNT), and Costa Rica on June 16 (7:30 p.m. ET, TNT) before opening group play in the Olympics on July 25 against Zambia in Nice, France (3 p.m. ET, USA Network).
“Having a roster that could adapt is essential [as] you have a tight turnaround between games,” said Hayes. “Having players on the roster that could play more than one position mattered with squad depth. I’ve considered all the factors that we’re going to need throughout the Olympics and I think it’s a balanced roster; one that I’m really happy with.”
The WNBA announced the early leaders of WNBA All-Star fan voting last Friday, with A’ja Wilson leading all players with 217,773 votes. But while the Aces star is one of the top players in the league, and a fan favorite, she doesn’t need the votes to appear in the All-Star game.
In a unique WNBA rules quirk related to their season taking place in the summer, during Olympic years, players like Wilson who have already been selected to represent the United States automatically earn spots in the All-Star game. All 12 Team USA Players will be All-Stars.
For the remaining spots, fans account for 50% of the voting, while players and media each account for 25% of voting. Voting for fans closes on June 29. The top 5 Team USA players and the top five non-USA vote-getters earn starting spots. Then, WNBA coaches select seven more players from a pool of the next 36 highest vote-getters, and “Team USA” squares off against “Team WNBA.” Those seven players will come off the bench, while the seven players remaining from the Olympic roster will come off the bench for Team USA.
For context, Caitlin Clark is the highest vote-getter among non-Team USA players in first returns, with 216,427 votes.
Here are seven players who aren’t playing for the United States that deserve one of those 12 All-Star spots.
Dearica Hamby
Photo by Catalina Fragoso/NBAE via Getty Images
Hamby has two All-Star appearances to her name, in 2021 and 2022, but neither of those seasons compare to what she’s doing for the Sparks this year. Hamby spent her career as a sixth player for Las Vegas, but has become a star for Los Angeles.
In Hamby’s best season with the Aces in 2020, she averaged 13 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.7 steals. This summer, Hamby is averaging a double-double with 17.8 points, 10.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game. Hamby is one of four WNBA players to average a double-double, is third in the league in rebounds, and 10th in points per game.
Jonquel Jones
Photo by Evan Yu/NBAE via Getty Images
New York’s Jones is often overshadowed by her Liberty co-stars Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu — both USA team members — but her impact can’t be overlooked.
This is Jones’ best season since she was named MVP for Connecticut in 2021. The 6-6 forward is averaging 16.8 points, 8.8 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.2 blocks per game. She impacts every aspect of the game for the Liberty, and has helped them to a 15-3 record, which is the best mark in the WNBA. Jones is an elite defender, and on offense she is able to stretch the floor by shooting 43.6% from beyond the arc. Her overall shooting percentage is additionally the best in the WNBA at 59%.
Arike Ogunbowale
Photo by Stephen Gosling/NBAE via Getty Images
The Wings are struggling this season, largely due to injuries to players like Satou Sabally and Maddy Siegrist, but Ogunbowale has been the bright spot for the 3-13 Dallas squad. She’s having the kind of season that would put her in contention for MVP, if she was playing for a winning team.
Ogunbowale is second in the league in points per game – behind Wilson, who is playing for Team USA – and is having the best statistical season of her six-year career. The guard is averaging 23.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 2.7 careers – all career-highs.
Kayla McBride
Photo by Catalina Fragoso/NBAE via Getty Images
McBride has been an All-Star three times, with her last appearance coming in 2019. It’s time for the Minnesota guard to make her return, thanks to a historic shooting performance so far this season.
McBride is leading the WNBA in 3-pointers made, with 3.3 per game, and is shooting 46.4% from beyond the arc – the best mark of her career. In a win over the Storm on June 10, McBride made seven 3-pointers for a season-high 32 points. McBride is also 17th in the league in scoring, and is the second-highest point-getter on the Lynx, after Napheesa Collier. She’s certainly earned the nickname “Kayla McBuckets,” and an All-Star bid.
Dijonai Carrington
Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images
Connecticut’s Carrington has proved herself as an elite on-ball defender, starting with an impressive display against Caitlin Clark in the season-opener, where she forced 10 turnovers. Carrington is always called on to guard the best player on the opposing team, and she almost always delivers. She’s also having a solid offensive season, averaging 12.3 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game.
Carrington’s offensive numbers aren’t as strong as other potential All-Stars, but she’s one of the most complete players in the league. Her intense defense should give the fourth-year player an edge.
Ezi Magbegor
Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Magbegor won’t play for Team USA, but she will be in the Olympics, playing for Australia. She should play against the United States in the All-Star game as well, after starting the season as the WNBA’s leader in blocks. She’s averaging 2.5 per game, which is more than Wilson, who was named Defensive Player of the Year last season.
Magbegor has always been a solid defender — her play earned the Storm star her first All-Star bid last season — but she’s made offensive strides as well. The center is averaging 13.3 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game, to go with her 2.5 blocks.
Angel Reese
Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images
Four players in the WNBA are averaging a double-double: Wilson, Collier (both Team USA members), Hamby, and Reese. The rookie is also leading the WNBA in offensive rebounds, by a wide margin. She’s averaging 4.7 offensive boards per contest, which is 1.5 more than Magbegor, who ranks second.
On top of it all, Reese is still getting better every game, and her last performance of 25 points and 16 rebounds in a win against Indiana put the LSU grad in elite company. Reese is only the second rookie after Wilson to record 25 points and 15 rebounds in a game. On the season Reese is averaging 13.2 points, 2.1 assists and 1.7 steals per game.
Even with 12 players earning automatic All-Star bids, the talent pool in the WNBA is deep. And Team USA will have its hands full with whoever earns a spot on Team WNBA. Last time the two squared off – in 2021 – it was Team WNBA that secured the win, 93-85 thanks to 26 points from Ogunbowale. Make sure to cast your vote before June 29, and your favorite player could play spoilsport this time around.
There has been a lot of change at the quarterback position for the Denver Broncos in 2024. In came rookie first-round pick Bo Nix and beleaguered former first-round pick Zach Wilson; out went former Super Bowl champion Russell Wilson. The lone holdover, Jarrett Stidham, was the Broncos’ starting quarterback in their final two games last season.
As with any situation involving a rookie quarterback, there will likely be talk of a competition and all that heading into training camp. However, given the Broncos long run of bad seasons, we may be safe to assume Bo Nix will be starting sooner rather than later.
Will Bo Nix land at the top of the Broncos depth chart?
Here is where I predict the Broncos depth chart lands on Week 1 and why I think each player is poised to secure their respective spots on the positional depth chart.
QB1. Bo Nix
A perennial losing team over the last eight season isn’t going to draft a quarterback 12th overall and have him sit for a year. This is Bo Nix’s time to shine… or flop.
All the rumors and reports ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft seemed to center around the Broncos being the perfect fit for Nix, but most analysts had him as the fifth or sixth best quarterback in the draft. That would suggest he would be a late first or early second-round pick at best. However, the run on quarterbacks in the top 10 forced Denver’s hand. Many called it a horrible reach, but imagine the Broncos quarterback situation right now had they risked losing out on Nix by playing the value game? It would not be good to say the least.
Despite being the sixth quarterback taken in the draft, Nix was the No. 3 guy on the Broncos’ board all along and they absolutely love the kid.
“I would say, you can feel his 61 games played in college,” offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi said of Nix after mandatory minicamp in mid-June. “With experience, a calmness comes along with it. So he certainly doesn’t feel like a rookie. He’s learning a brand-new system, so whether you’re a veteran or a rookie coming in, that’s common to all these people. He has seen a lot and doesn’t make the same mistake twice very often. There is a maturity level. I think when you draft a guy who is a little bit older, you hope that that comes with it, but he’s certainly shown that.”
Given the amount of games Nix has played and his age, it is unlikely Denver drafted him to sit for a year. They need a starting quarterback now.
Zach Wilson has been in the league for three seasons already and is just six months older than rookie Bo Nix. It just wouldn’t make sense for Bo Nix not to start Week 1. If he doesn’t, then the Broncos’ draft class is in serious doubt right out of the gate considering how little draft capital they had in the first two days of this year’s draft.
QB2. Zach Wilson
When Denver traded for Zach Wilson, I loved the idea of bringing in a project like him to potentially salvage his career. As a top draft picks, the pedigree is there and coaches will just need to work on bringing back the confidence.
The former No. 2 overall pick by the New York Jets has struggled to live up to his draft status with just a 57% completion rate and 6,293 yards with 23 touchdowns against 25 interceptions in his three-year career. It didn’t help that he was drafted by the Jets, who have struggled — like the Broncos — to field a competitive football team in recent years.
If he could get a few years under a coaching staff led by Sean Payton, I could see his later career being revitalized for a guy like Wilson.
QB3. Jarrett Stidham
At the end of the day, I do think Jarrett Stidham will likely be the better option as the Week 1 backup to Bo Nix. However, due to his contract and Wilson’s draft pedigree, I think he ends up the odd man out.
The main reason I think Wilson ends up beating out Stidham is on the money side of things. Both he and Wilson are under contract just for this year, but Wilson’s cap number is just $2.7 million compared to Stidham’s $7 million. From a pure numbers standpoint, it would seem like if they are somewhat close for that backup spot that Wilson will get the nod due to his contract and his draft pedigree.
I like Stidham as a backup a lot, and if he ends up beating out Wilson then I will not be sad about that.
What to expect from a Bo Nix-led Broncos team in 2024
There was a reason why many draft analysts had Bo Nix pegged as a top prospect for Sean Payton and his offensive system. The two seemed to be a perfect match for what Nix excels at and what Payton wants to do in his offense. We should also remember that Payton had a broken Russell Wilson in prime position to challenge for a playoff run late last season before those wheels finally came off, so perhaps the ceiling should even be raised a bit with a rookie quarterback at the helm.
As someone who watched a lot of film on the Broncos last year, Wilson left a lot of big plays out there. If Nix can begin seeing just a fraction of those wide-open receivers, then this offense is poised to make a respectable leap forward.
Obviously as a fan, I’ll be hoping for that outcome, but there will be growing pains — the kind that always come with a first-year starting quarterback. Denver will need to maintain a good defense and a strong rushing attack for Nix to excel and lead this team to the playoffs this season.
Poll
What do you think the Week 1 depth chart will be on Week 1?
Every professional wrestler has phases to their career, but nobody could have predicted a turn for Stone Cold Steve Austin into cat dad. The Texas Rattlesnake has Instagram enraptured with daily posts about the two main felines of his life: Pancho and Macho, chronicling their lives on Broken Skull Ranch in a way only Stone Cold can do it.
Austin is showing off Pancho’s summer trim with commentary only he could pull off.
“What a handsome f****** cat. I’ll tell you what man: That’s a solid-ass cat”
As much as Stone Cold loves Pancho, the cat really knows how to push Steve’s buttons by not listening to him when it’s time for bed.
It’s simply magical to hear Austin scream “PANCHO!” like an action movie star who just dropped his best friend from a helicopter while a cat strolls away, pretending not to hear him.
There’s also details of the cat room he’s built on the ranch, complete with a full A/C system to keep them cool in the Texas summer heat.
Pancho is clearly the main character when it comes to Austin’s cat content, but don’t sleep on his ginger kitten Macho — who is fast becoming a star on his own.
And if you’ve ever said to yourself “What I really need in life is video of Stone Cold Steve Austin petting a cat while “Stranglehold” by Ted Nugent plays,” don’t worry, because he’s got you.
The channel is almost exclusively cat videos, and people are going wild for it. With every post people are more and more in love with Austin for being the most lovable, bad-ass cat dad on the planet. He’s not afraid to call a cat a “motherf*****” when they’ve earned it, and he doesn’t give a damn what people think about it.
And that’s the bottom meow, because Cat Dad Steve Austin said so.
The semi-finals of the T20 Cricket World Cup begin on Wednesday, and at least on paper it looks like 2024 is India’s tournament to lose.
Unpredictability was the story of the USA/West Indies World Cup with some of the sport’s most dominant teams falling by the wayside in the group stages to set up a rather unlikely final four. Naturally the most attention is on India, who have gone a perfect 6-0 in the tournament with an astronomical +2.01 net run rate in the second group stage — but that doesn’t mean they’ll win by default.
So let’s take a look at each of the final four in this tournament and see if anyone has the firepower to stop the favorites.
This might seem like a surprise for the uninitiated, but Afghanistan is a legitimate powerhouse in T20. While they lack the staying power to be in the test match elite, the national thrives in short-format cricket where their prolific batting can shine.
The biggest difference in this World Cup to those past is Rahmanullah Gurbaz. The 22-year-old phenom can be inconsistent, but when his bat is hot it’s very difficult to stop him. This game to the fore against Australia in the second group stage when he finished with a ludicrously efficient 60 runs off 49 balls, despite facing the best of the Aussie bowling attack. Gurbaz leads the World Cup in batting average at over 40 runs per game, and that makes him the ultimate x-factor.
That said, Afghanistan really struggle to stop their opponents from putting up big scores. This team allowed the West Indies to score 218, India put up 181 — and against the top teams in this tournament that just doesn’t lead to a recipe for success.
This team has the potential to beat South Africa in their semi-final, but after that it’s difficult to see them getting past either England or India.
England
Key strength: Batting depth Key weakness: Bowling
England feels like a team that’s almost there, but still has a little ways to go before they can truly take the step needed to be world champions. When it comes to scoring the teams has ample depth with Harry Brook, Jos Butler and Phil Salt all being top-tier T20 batsmen, but the big issue is a lack of bowling economy.
In this tournament the England bowlers have failed to place in the Top 15 in any statistical area. Their economy has been average, there’s been no signature performance against an elite team, and the best performances from the attack have come at the expense of b-tier cricket teams like Australia and Oman.
The best way to characterize the British bowling is that it’s good enough to reach the semi-finals. However, even with their battling depth they drew a short straw by landing India in the draw. It takes a complete game that can win in every phase to best India, and right now the bowling just isn’t up to par.
There’s no doubt that India had a few scares on their way to the semi finals. A narrow win over Pakistan and a near-loss to the United States showed some notable holes in their armor — but it was much more about struggling to adapt to a questionable pitch in Nassau County.
India has all the batting needed to handle any team in the world, but up to this point they haven’t really needed any run-scoring heroics. The bowling attack has been so good that it’s been easy to get trapped in a vortex against them, struggling to mount any kind of run total.
Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh in particular have been phenomenal in this tournament, and represent the best 1-2 bowling attack in this tournament. When paired with the scoring potential of Hardik Pandya and Rohit Sharma it makes for a team poised to win it all.
So long as the next two pitches are easy for India to read they should be able to coast to the finals, where they’ll almost assuredly meet their biggest competition …
South Africa
Key strength: Quinton de Kock Key weakness: Lack of competition
On paper South Africa have a lot of the traits needed to hang with India and win the World Cup, but the issue is that despite being so deep in this tournament their potential is semi-unknown.
It’s not their fault, but South Africa have strolled through this tournament thanks to an unbelievably easy schedule that has seen them only play one top-tier team (England) in seven games. Outside of that match they’ve been able to feast on the likes of Sri Lanka, Netherlands, Bangladesh, Nepal, and USA. Playing the West Indies was a push, but even then we really don’t know what this team is capable of because of who they’ve dodged.
We do know, however, that Quinton de Kock is an elite T20 batter with a knack for knowing when to score in a hurry, and when he needs to play conservative cricket. A big innings from de Kock could mean South African can win against anyone, but there’s no a lot to hang your hat on here.
Predictions
South Africa defeats Afghanistan
India defeats England
India defeats South Africa to win the 2024 T20 World Cup
Welcome to Playing Through’s new morning ritual: Golf Talk Today.
Each morning will feature a Golf Talk Today, in which the crew will discuss various elements of the PGA Tour, LIV Golf and other professional golf tournaments.
Today begins a way too early discussion about the 2024 Presidents Cup. Team USA will travel to the Royal Montreal Golf Club from Sept. 24 to 29 to take on Team International.
Professional golf will get another trip to Canada in 2024 after a widely successful RBC Canadian Open. The golf fans in the Great White North do not disappoint, but will it be too much of a home event for the Americans?
In 2022, Team USA won its ninth consecutive Presidents Cup 17.5-12.5, improving to 12-1-1 all-time in this competition. While the Presidents Cup does not have as long a history as its fellow biennial Ryder Cup event, it still draws in crowds.
This year’s Team USA captain is Jim Furyk, and the International captain is Mike Weir.
There are six American PGA Tour players that qualify through points, per the Presidents Cup website. It did not mention LIV golf players because they were denied qualification last year. Various events receive points in the qualifying standings. Furyk will also get six captain picks.
7: Tony Finau: 3,780 8: Max Homa: 3,772 9: Brian Harman: 3,669 10: Chris Kirk: 3,265 11: Russell Henley: 3,235 12: Sam Burns: 3,160 13: Akshay Bhatia: 3,102 14: Justin Thomas: 2,918
Scottie Scheffler holds a commanding lead in the standings. After six PGA Tour victories this season, he has all but officially secured his spot.
Many of the Ryder Cup team members from Rome could see themselves in Canada.
However, will Furyk take a similar approach to Ryder Cup captain Zach Johnson?
A later Golf Talk Today will feature a more detailed discussion about who Furyk should have on his team.
Team USA Presidents Cup hot take
This take will be short and sweet.
Bryson DeChambeau should easily be on Team USA for the Presidents Cup.
Despite playing for LIV Golf, DeChambeau finished inside the top 10 in two majors and won the U.S. Open at Pinehurst. He is playing phenomenally right now, and the former SMU golfer will be a great addition.
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Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. For more golf coverage, follow us @_PlayingThrough on all major social platforms. You can also follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.
Haas last added to their account in the F1 Sprint Race at the Miami Grand Prix, when Nico Hülkenberg parlayed a tenth-place finish in qualifying for the F1 Sprint Race into a seventh-place result in the F1 Sprint Race itself, earning two critical points for the team.
With Formula 1 returning to the F1 Sprint format this weekend at the Austrian Grand Prix, can Haas return to the points?
It has been a difficult stretch for the team since Miami, with their best chance for points coming in the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola. That weekend saw Hülkenberg qualify tenth, but he finished in P11, one spot out of the points. Since then they have been left on the outside looking in, including a double DNF in Monaco due to an opening-lap collision involving Sergio Pérez.
Their recent struggles opened the door for Alpine, whose own success the past few weeks — with six points over two race weekends — has seen the French outfit climb above them in the Constructors’ Championship standings. Alpine now sits seventh in the table with eight points, one point — and place — ahead of Haas with seven points.
As Haas heads to Red Bull Ring along with the rest of the grid for this weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix, they are hopeful that recent success at that circuit will aid their quest for points.
“It’s a short track that packs in a lot of fun,” said Hülkenberg in the team’s media preview. “The length of the circuit means it bunches us all up over qualifying, which is a challenge, but we have two opportunities as it’s a Sprint. Last year I scored points around the Red Bull Ring, so I know it can be done, and we want to be back scoring points, so that’s the mission in Spielberg.”
On the other side of the garage Kevin Magnussen — who is hoping to have his F1 future resolved “soon” — is wary that the many high-speed corners in Austria could pose a problem for the team’s VF-24.
“It’s a fun track; I’ve got some good memories from the Red Bull Ring, that’s where we’ve had our best team result so I’m looking forward to going there again,” described Magnussen. “We have quite an efficient car so hopefully with our good straight-line speed we can be good there. There’s still a fair number of high-speed corners, which is perhaps not our strength, but we seem to be pretty consistently good at most tracks. I’m just looking forward to a fun Sprint weekend.”
Haas Race Engineer Mark Slade walked through the variety of corners Red Bull Ring offers, and how each may, or may not, suit the team’s challenger.
“One of the main things about the Red Bull Ring is that it’s a very short lap so it gets busy, particularly in practice and qualifying. It’s a nice mixture of low-, medium-, and high-speed corners, and obviously in a spectacular setting so it looks amazing, and it does provide quite a significant challenge for us when setting the car up,” described Slade. “We’ve had some issues with medium-speed corners, so we’re expecting to have to manage that, it’s going to be a challenge for us, but on the other hand in low-speed corners, we’ve generally been very good at them and we think we’ve taken a step forward in high-speed corners recently. We’ll see how we get on, but we’ve got a plan of course.”
While many teams have addressed the challenges a compressed F1 Sprint week puts in front of them, Slade outlined how for a team like Haas, there are added benefits to the condensed schedule.
“There is a lot of extra work for a Sprint, especially in amongst a triple-header, but it also makes it very interesting, it’s all a part of Formula 1,” said Slade. “You have to be realistic that you’re not going to be able to do everything you’d like to do with one practice session, so you have to pick the most important points that you think are relevant to getting the best out of the car in both the Sprint and the race and work to achieve those objectives – it’s a very compressed, highly edited run plan.
“The format of a Sprint is different from previous years, so you can afford to be a little bit more experimental in the Sprint race because points only go to eighth place, and realistically we’re chasing that last points-paying position so it means we can try things that we wouldn’t necessarily have tried, knowing we can change things for the race.”
Slade and the rest of the team get their first crack at Red Bull Ring this Friday.
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