Happy Memorial Day one and all! Wherever you are in the world, let’s hope this Monday is a relaxing one, especially for those of you in the football world because we do not have long before the stakes ratchet up again. It’s Champions League final very soon but before that the small matter of the USMNT naming their squad for a home World Cup! I’m James Benge.

📺 Footy fix

All times U.S./Eastern

Monday, May 25
🇩🇪 Relegation playoffs: Wolfsburg vs. Paderborn, 2:30 p.m. ➡️ ESPN Select
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Playoffs: St. Mirren vs. Partick Thistle, 3 p.m. ➡️ Paramount+, CBS Sports Golazo Network

Tuesday, May 26
🇺🇸 USMNT: Roster reveal, 3 p.m. ➡️ FOX Sport

What’s on CBS Sports Golazo Network

☀️ Morning Footy (Weekdays 8-10 a.m.): Join Golazo Network as it helps fans get their day started on the right foot on the network’s flagship morning show with highlights, interviews and the biggest soccer storylines. Morning Footy is also available in podcast form, so you’ll never have to miss an episode.

3️⃣ Attacking Third (Monday, Wednesday, Thursday): The leading women’s soccer podcast and social brand is now a live studio show. The NWSL season is back, and our coverage of the women’s game is stronger than ever. Our analysts will be breaking down the USWNT, NWSL and European domestic season all year long. And don’t miss Sunday live streams on YouTube as soon as the last NWSL game of the weekend ends.

⚽  Call it What You Want (Tuesday and Thursday): Jimmy Conrad, Charlie Davies, and Tony Meola cover all things USMNT and the state of the game in the United States as the country prepares to co-host the 2026 World Cup. Catch new episodes live on the Golazo America YouTube channel every Tuesday and Thursday at 10 a.m. ET.

🥅 Scoreline (Daily): Scoreline is the newest place for fans to catch up on all the biggest news and results impacting global football, match highlights from the top soccer competitions and all the can’t-miss goals from the day’s action, starting Thursday and airing seven days a week.

📺 How to watch: CBS Sports Golazo Network is a free 24/7 channel exclusively dedicated to offering unparalleled coverage of all the top soccer competitions worldwide. You can stream for free on the CBS Sports app, Pluto TV and Paramount+.

In today’s fast-scoring T20 cricket, batters are happy to get runs in any manner possible. While cleanly-timed drives and big sixes remain the most pleasing shots for batters, the aggressive nature of the format often forces players into false shots. Yet, some batters have managed to combine attacking cricket with remarkable control.KL Rahul has been one such batter for Delhi Capitals in IPL 2026. The opener scored 593 runs in 14 matches at an average of 45.61 and a career-best strike rate of 174.41. His season included a century, a record 152 not out against Punjab Kings — the first 150-plus score by an Indian in IPL history — and five fifties.Rahul has also hit 31 sixes this season, the second-highest by a DC batter after Rishabh Pant, who struck 37 sixes in the 2018 season.Despite batting at a high strike rate, Rahul has the lowest false shot percentage this season at 12.1, according to CricViz, as cited by news agency ANI. That means nearly 88 per cent of his shots were properly connected.Among the players closest to him are Dhruv Jurel of Rajasthan Royals and Heinrich Klaasen of Sunrisers Hyderabad, both with a false shot percentage of 12.6.Jurel scored 458 runs in 14 matches at a strike rate of more than 149, including five fifties, while Klaasen made 606 runs in 14 matches at a strike rate above 159 with six fifties.Rajasthan Royals batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has also shown impressive control despite his attacking style. The 15-year-old has scored 583 runs in 14 matches at an average of 41.64 and a strike rate of more than 232, including a century, three fifties and 53 sixes. His false shot percentage stands at 17.8, the same as Virat Kohli of Royal Challengers Bengaluru.On the other hand, some batters have managed strong numbers despite making more errors. Cooper Connolly of Punjab Kings has the highest false shot percentage this season at 25.6. He has still scored 491 runs in 13 innings at an average of 44.63 and a strike rate of 163.12, including a century and two fifties.Orange Cap holder Sai Sudharsan of Gujarat Titans has a false shot percentage of 18.1. He has scored 638 runs in 14 innings at a strike rate of 157.92, with a century and seven fifties, managing to make the most of his scoring opportunities despite a higher error rate.

Former New Zealand cricketer Simon Doull said he would continue with Venkatesh Iyer as opener alongside Virat Kohli for Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) IPL 2026 Qualifier 1 against Gujarat Titans (GT) on Tuesday, saying it would not be easy for England batter Phil Salt to return immediately after a long injury break.

Qualifier 1 between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Gujarat Titans will decide the first finalist of IPL 2026. RCB are currently facing a selection debate over their opening pair, with the management needing to decide whether to bring back Salt after injury or continue with Venkatesh following his strong performances against Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Jacob Bethell, who crossed the 20-run mark only twice during Salt’s absence, has been ruled out of the tournament because of injury and has returned to England.

Speaking on Star Sports’ Cricket Live, Doull said, “I would stick with Venkatesh Iyer as the opener alongside Virat Kohli. Phil Salt has been out for three and a half weeks. Coming back from a long layoff, especially with a finger injury, is never easy. He is a quality player and has done well for RCB and England in T20s, but match fitness and shot-timing take time to return. The playoffs are not the place to test that,” he said.

Doull also referred to Venkatesh’s 19-ball 44 against SRH and his half-century against Punjab Kings, saying the batter had built a good rhythm with Kohli.

“Yes, Salt has a stronger partnership record with Virat, but in cricket, you always go with the player in form. Form matters more than reputation, especially in knockout games. The biggest risk is bringing in someone who hasn’t played competitive cricket for weeks. I would continue with Venkatesh at the top. Phil Salt is too good an option to have on the bench, but right now, Venkatesh deserves to keep his place,” he signed off.

In five IPL matches and four innings across opening and middle-order roles, Venkatesh has scored 158 runs at an average of 79.00 and a strike rate of 177.52, including one half-century and a best score of 73 not out.

Salt, meanwhile, has made 202 runs in six innings at the top of the order at an average of 33.66 and a strike rate above 168, with two fifties and a highest score of 78.

Zheng Qinwen suffered a shocking early exit at the 2026 French Open after losing to Maja Chwalinska in the opening round. The defeat left Zheng visibly emotional, with the Chinese star later breaking down in tears during her post-match press conference.

Zheng has struggled to find consistency this season and is still searching for a major breakthrough campaign in 2026. Her best results so far have been Round of 16 appearances at the Qatar Open and the Miami Open. The Chinese star arrived in Paris following a Round of 32 exit at the Italian Open and was drawn against Chwalinska in the opening round.

World No. 114 Chwalinska, who battled through three rounds of qualifying to enter the main draw, produced a dominant display and even handed Zheng a bagel during the 6-4, 6-0 loss. The Pole showed little mercy throughout the contest and sealed a stunning victory to book a second-round clash against 23rd seed Elise Mertens.

After the defeat, Zheng attended her mandatory press conference, where she was repeatedly questioned by reporters about the disappointing result. While responding, the Chinese star became emotional, suddenly breaking down in tears before saying:

“This is definitely a heavy loss. Maybe it can give me a different perspective and help me come back stronger next time.”

Watch the video below: