Japan have announced their squad for their historic men’s T20I against reigning T20 World Cup champions and world No.1 India, with Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming set to lead the side in the landmark clash at the Sano International Cricket Ground on September 22. The squad features the same group selected for Japan’s home Asian Games campaign, which begins in Nagoya two days after the India fixture, reported ICC. Kadowaki-Fleming, Japan’s all-time leading T20I run-scorer, will captain the side and will be joined by Ibrahim Takahashi and Declan Suzuki-McComb, the other two members of the squad with more than 50 T20I appearances.

Japan have selected their squad with their Asian Games campaign in mind and have therefore left out players who meet ICC eligibility requirements for T20Is but are not eligible under Asian Games regulations.

That has opened the door for emerging spin-bowling all-rounder Jake Kusuda-Nairn, who earned his place after impressing in domestic cricket. Veteran Tsuyoshi Takada also returns to the squad, having first represented Japan at the ICC East Asia-Pacific Twenty20 Championship in 2013.

The squad includes Wataru Miyauchi and Makoto Taniyama, both products of Japanese schools that have cricket Bukatsu programmes. Taniyama, a leg-spinner who developed his bowling action after watching videos of Australia great Shane Warne, wears jersey number 23 in honour of his idol and is Japan’s leading wicket-taker across pathway and international cricket.

Charlie Hara-Hinze, who was part of Japan’s Under-19 World Cup side that defeated Tanzania, has also been included, while spinner Benjamin Ito-Davis returns after a hand injury ended his participation in Japan’s East Asia-Pacific T20 World Cup 2028 Sub-Regional Qualifier campaign.

Japan finished second in that tournament and remain in contention for qualification for the 2028 T20 World Cup, level on points with Papua New Guinea but behind them on net run rate despite beating the Barramundis in their final match.

The India game will be the first event under “Sport 75”, an initiative arising from an agreement reached during a summit between Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The initiative aims to strengthen people-to-people exchanges and cooperation between the two countries through sport.

Japan will also face Hong Kong in two T20Is on September 19 and 20 before beginning their Asian Games campaign against Afghanistan on September 24 and Nepal on September 26. They will need to finish in the top two to advance to the quarter-finals.

India’s squad for the historic encounter will be led by Shreyas Iyer and includes Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.

Japan squad: Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming (c), Charlie Hara-Hinze, Benjamin Ito-Davis, Alester Kadowaki-Fleming, Kohei Kubota, Jake Kusuda-Nairn, Wataru Miyauchi (wk), Reo Sakurano-Thomas, Alex Shirai-Patmore (wk), Shoma Sugaya-Slater, Declan Suzuki-McComb, Tsuyoshi Takada, Ibrahim Takahashi, Makoto Taniyama, Lachlan Yamamoto-Lake.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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First Published: Sep 08 2026 | 10:07 AM IST

Chantelle Cameron is eager to secure a mega fight with Claressa Shields, but equally recognises that Mikaela Mayer could throw a spanner in the works.

The 35-year-old unanimously outpointed Mayer last Saturday, becoming a unified super-welterweight champion on what she views as the greatest night of her illustrious career.

But while there happens to be a rematch clause in their contract, Cameron has nonetheless turned her attention to pound-for-pound star Shields, who called out the Brit immediately after her triumph in Birmingham.

Since then, their respective teams have engaged in negotiations, yet Cameron has told Boxing News that Mayer could scupper their potential showdown.

“There is that risk [of Mayer demanding an immediate rematch] because it’s obviously boxing, isn’t it? If the shoe was on the other foot, I would’ve had to potentially wait for her to box Claressa Shields.

“But Mikaela Mayer didn’t win – I won, so it’s winner stays on. And Claressa Shields has said she wants to fight me. [Mayer will] have the rematch, but she can wait.”

As far as a clash with middleweight queen Shields goes, only time will tell, but Cameron insists that, if she is to rematch Mayer, it simply must be over a scheduled 10 three-minute rounds.

Even during the typical two-minute rounds, though, Cameron almost surprised herself at how convincingly she was able to defeat her American foe.

“I thought it was going to be a harder fight, if I’m honest. I do think some of the rounds were close but, physically, I felt like the stronger woman. I was catching her with some big shots and I think she felt my power.”

It was, indeed, a clear victory in favour of the Northampton woman, who ranks this triumph even higher than her majority decision win over Katie Taylor in 2023.

“I feel like it was definitely better than the Katie Taylor fight. I always knew I’d beat Katie Taylor – the only thing I was questioning was beating Katie Taylor in Ireland.

“So, for me to turn up and beat Katie in her country – on her show – was a huge ask. And I did it. But I feel like Mikaela Mayer was a bigger challenge.”

While she felt that Mayer was, on paper, a tougher challenge – given her height and reach advantages – Cameron ultimately rose to the occasion and produced one of her finest performances.

This, she explains, is partly because Mayer’s attitude at their weigh-in – where they exchanged unpleasantries – lit a fire that made her approach their contest with an added degree of tenacity.

At the same time, though, the WBC, WBO and WBA champion admits that she slightly regrets her behaviour during the fight itself.

“I am a bit gutted, because I generally did like Mikaela Mayer. I thought she was cool and I had a lot of respect for her.

“[The confrontation] definitely [elevated my performance] but I think it turned me into a bit of a dick, to be honest.

“Before the fight, she was sticking her tongue out at me. Then I did the same and was saying stuff to her during the fight. It was just stupid. It was entertaining for everyone else but was that sort of behaviour a good demonstration of women’s boxing? I’m not sure.”

Antics aside, Cameron remains a class act and role model, having become a two-division world champion and British boxing legend.

And, indeed, she will look to further enhance her legacy soon enough, whether it be in a rematch with Mayer or a dare-to-be-great encounter with Shields.

SMU did everything it could to give Florida State a chance to win Monday night. Instead, the Mustangs got out of Tallahassee with a 27-24 win after a 20-yard field goal from Nick Reed with 21 seconds to go.

Once the game finally started after a 100-minute delay because of a power outage at Doak Campbell Stadium, it was clear that SMU was the better team.

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Yet the Mustangs were also the team that kept making more mistakes. SMU turned the ball over four times, missed a field goal and committed a penalty on an FSU field goal attempt that led to a game-tying touchdown in the third quarter. It was an incredibly sloppy effort from SMU, yet Florida State could not capitalize.

The Mustangs’ fourth turnover came with 6:33 to go and the game tied at 24-24. Safety Ashlynd Barker read QB Kevin Jennings’ eyes for an interception and gave Florida State a chance to take its first lead of the night.

Instead, the Seminoles’ offense lost seven yards on three plays after Ashton Daniels was sacked on third down. That down was FSU’s nemesis all night. Florida State punted the ball back to SMU, and the Mustangs got into position for an easy field goal thanks to a 29-yard completion to Dramekco Green on third down with less than three minutes to go.

Michael ‘Venom’ Page posted an inspirational message after his win over Nursulton Ruziboev at UFC Paris.

The British star won via unanimous decision, and it was the last fight of his current UFC deal. Reports later confirmed that Page had been removed from the UFC rankings, suggesting that the promotion was not going to offer him a new deal.

The former Bellator star thanked his fans for the support and added that bigger things were on the way for him:

“Thank you Paris for having me. I’m grateful for the support you gave me. Stepping in the cage is a privilege I do not take for granted and I look forward to bigger challenges.”

Check out Michael Page’s comments on his UFC Paris win below:

Page was one of the hottest signings the UFC had made from Bellator, but his performances in the octagon weren’t all that impressive.

He won five of his six UFC fights, but didn’t have a single finish in those wins. The British star’s only loss came at the hands of Ian Machado Garry, with that fight also going the distance.

Page currently holds a 26-3 record in his MMA career, and the UFC hasn’t shared an official statement regarding his release.

Michael Page willing to change style after Paris win

While speaking backstage to the UFC after his win in Paris, Michael ‘Venom’ Page was keen on working on his game to become more exciting.

“The results show that I haven’t done enough. Probably, I need to push myself a little more, take a few more risks.”

The former Bellator star added that he believed there was more to give in the octagon, and that was frustrating for him. However, he believed he could beat everyone, but finishing opponents might not be for him:

“There’s not one person in the world that can stand with me. But there’s too many people that can survive with me. That’s the problem. That’s what I need to change.”

The 39-year-old added that he needed to work on his output and take more risks, and was keen on discussing his future with the UFC too:

“I gotta sit down with the UFC and have an honest conversation, and say I know I can do better, I’m aspiring to do better.”