The Ciaron Maher stable recently achieved a top four finish in a maiden race at Sandown.

Two of those contenders are now advancing to a Stakes race at Sandown, aiming to build on the good form exhibited by the Maher stable.

Saintly Dancer and Ghana’s Akan, who finished first and second respectively in the August 19 maiden event, are slated to compete in the Listed Atlantic Jewel Stakes over 1300 metres this Saturday.

Jack Turnbull, the National Assistant Trainer for Ciaron Maher Racing, remarked that the prevailing track conditions could play a significant role in the outcome for the stable’s two fillies on Saturday.

Saintly Dancer benefited from the Soft 7 conditions during her Sandown victory, whereas Ghana’s Akan handled the ground but was not as effective.

“Saintly Dancer is up-and-coming and we don’t know her ceiling, a bit like with Ghana’s Akan,” Turnbull shared.

“Saintly Dancer profiles like a horse that will get seven or eight (furlongs – 1400m to 1600m) in time.

“She’s more your middle distance, scopey type whereas Ghana’s I think will be restricted to 1100m to 1400m this prep.

“She’s quite speedy and I don’t think either filly will have too many excuses on Saturday, provided the track is OK.

“Ghana’s probably doesn’t want a boggy track.”

The track was rated a Good 4 on Friday morning, although rain is forecast to begin on Friday evening.

Turnbull highlighted that Ghana’s Akan’s draw of barrier four is advantageous for Saturday’s race, in contrast to Saintly Dancer, who is in gate 10.

Ghana’s Akan has raced six times, securing three second placings, and has amassed close to $500,000 in prize money without a victory.

“Ghana’s has always had improvement this campaign,” Turnbull noted.

“She’s looked rough in the coat coming off the back of winter, but both fillies are very exciting.”

Apprentice Jabez Johnstone, who rides exclusively for Maher, will be making his third ‘Black Type’ Victorian appearance when he rides Saintly Dancer, a horse on whom he won at Sandown.

“It’s good reward for Jabez to retain the ride in a Black Type race,” Turnbull concluded.

Ethan Brown is booked to ride Ghana’s Akan.

Consider the racing betting markets for this upcoming event.

It was another frustrating afternoon for Nigeria internationals Calvin Bassey and Alex Iwobi as Fulham suffered their third consecutive Premier League defeat after losing 3-2 to Crystal Palace at Craven Cottage.

Fulham started brightly and took the lead in the 11th minute when Josh King’s shot took a deflection and looped over Dean Henderson.

Palace briefly thought they had found an equaliser through Daichi Kamada, but the effort was ruled out for offside.

The visitors eventually got their goal in the 35th minute, with Tyrick Mitchell beating Bernd Leno with a powerful finish.

Fulham responded before the break. Henderson saved Gonzalo García’s effort, but César Palacios was in the right place to fire in the rebound and restore the hosts’ lead.

Palace came out strongly after the interval and levelled nine minutes into the second half when another deflection saw Mitchell’s effort roll over the line.

Both teams then pushed for the winner, with Fulham coming close through Oscar Bobb, only for Henderson to produce an important save.

The decisive moment arrived in the 75th minute when former Chelsea defender Ben Chilwell reacted quickest to a loose ball and volleyed home to put Palace in front.

Fulham threw players forward in search of another equaliser, with Rodrigo Muniz and Ryan Sessegnon both going close, but Palace defended their advantage to claim their first win of the season.

For Fulham, the defeat leaves them without a point from their opening three league games — a difficult start for Marco Silva’s side.

Bassey and Iwobi will now be hoping Fulham can quickly turn their fortunes around before the pressure grows further.

Former India batter Suresh Raina has backed Abhishek Sharma for a place in India’s Test setup while insisting that Rishabh Pant remains an X-factor in white-ball cricket despite establishing himself as one of the country’s key red-ball players.

Raina made the remarks while speaking on former India opener Aakash Chopra’s YouTube channel, where he also discussed the development of young players and the importance of encouraging them to consider Test cricket.

Raina wants Abhishek to make the Test leap

Raina believes Abhishek, who has emerged as one of India’s most explosive white-ball batters, has the ability to make the transition to the longest format.

“I feel Abhishek Sharma should play Test cricket. Vaibhav is very young. Does he want to play? What do his coaches think? These are questions. I feel he should play. Are the IPL owners and associations also thinking of this and putting Test cricket in players’ minds? Coaches also have a role here,” Raina said.

Abhishek has already featured regularly for India in white-ball cricket and previously held the No.1 position in the ICC T20I batting rankings. While his red-ball numbers are not yet outstanding, he has shown enough promise to suggest that he could develop into a useful Test option.

The left-hander has scored 1,071 runs in 24 first-class matches and 37 innings at an average of 30.60, with one century and five half-centuries. He has also contributed with the ball, taking 20 wickets in the format.

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Raina sees Pant as an X-factor in white-ball cricket

Raina was equally effusive in his praise for Pant, who has become an established part of India’s Test setup but has been away from the limited-overs teams since 2024. Pant has amassed 3,725 runs in 52 Tests at an average of 43.82, including eight centuries and 21 half-centuries. His aggressive approach and ability to change the course of a match have made him one of India’s most influential Test batters.

“He has worked hard. I am very happy. Everyone does well, but he is one of the best. He is my favourite player. He is scoring a lot in Tests. He has that X factor. I think he will mature in white-ball and IPL as well. He has done really well,” Raina said.

Pant last played a T20I for India against Sri Lanka in Pallekele on July 28, 2024, while his most recent ODI appearance came against the same opposition in Colombo on August 7, 2024.

Alas Pilipinas’ Khy Progella and Sofia Pagara during a match against Australia in the AVC Beach Volleyball Continental in Shanglou, China.–AVC PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—The Philippines’ campaign in the 2026 AVC Asian Beach Volleyball Championships came to an end on Saturday following the loss of Khy Progella and Sofia Pagara.

Alas Pilipinas’ duo of Progella and Pagara bowed out of the quarterfinals after absorbing a 21-11, 21-14 loss at the hands of Australia’s Stefanie Fejes and Taliqua Clancy.

Progella and Pagara were the last Philippine representatives heading into Sunday’s games.

READ: Alas women pair stays unbeaten in AVC Asian Beach Volleyball

Just 24 hours before their elimination, the decorated pair of Sisi Rondina and Bernadeth Pons was shown the door by Japan’s Asami Shiba and Reika Murakami, 21-11, 21-16.

In men’s action, James Buytrago and Ronniel Rosales were also unable to rack up wins, faltering to Japan and Australia in the preliminaries.

The Philippine beach volleyball contingent may have bowed early in the AVC tournament–an Olympic qualifier for Los Angeles 2028–but they still have a shot at bringing glory to the country in the upcoming Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games later this month.

Also seeing action for the Philippines in the Asiad beach volleyball event are Alnakran Abdilla and Lerry Francisco.

Manchester United will head to Merseyside to take on Everton in the Premier League and Michael Carrick has given an injury update on his players for the game

Manchester United are still contending with several injuries ahead of Sunday’s trip to Everton at Hill Dickinson Stadium (2pm kick‑off). Michael Carrick’s side will be aiming to make it back‑to‑back wins following their emphatic 5–2 victory over Ipswich Town.

The Reds have three points on the board and will be pushing for another result, but Carrick will have to make do with the options currently available to him. Summer signing Carlos Baleba must wait for his debut as he continues to recover from the ankle injury he picked up in pre‑season.

“He’s got a little ankle issue,” Carrick said last month. “Maybe a couple of weeks, maybe three – we’ll see. It’s no major issue, and it’ll be great to have him back.”

Manuel Ugarte remains a long‑term absentee after suffering a knee ligament injury at the World Cup. He missed pre‑season following surgery, and no return date has been set.

Matthijs de Ligt is also still sidelined with the back problem that has kept him out since last November. Although Carrick has confirmed the defender is back in training, United are in no rush to accelerate his comeback.

Goalkeeper Tom Heaton remains out with the hamstring injury sustained in pre‑season, with no clear timeline for his return. There is further uncertainty over Amad, who suffered a muscle injury in training and has no confirmed timeframe for recovery.

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Two players who could return, however, are Luke Shaw and Mason Mount. Mount picked up a minor knock against PSG in pre‑season on August 8 and hasn’t featured in a single matchday squad since.

Shaw, meanwhile, was withdrawn with a fitness issue during the win over Ipswich but is expected to be available to face Everton.

Mount has now returned to training after recovering from a foot injury, with Carrick saying: “Mase is back around the group, which is great. He trained this week, so that’s a big positive for us.”

Ahead of Sunday match against David Moyes’ side, Carrick warned: “However long I have been going to Everton, every game is as tough as it comes.

“Whatever position they are in, historically it has been tough. David is a terrific manager. They’ve got some talent, some very good attacking players as well. We’re expecting as tough a game as it gets.”

The Asian Games-bound Indian shooters will undergo preparatory camps at facilities in Delhi and Bhopal this month as they look to fine-tune their skills for peak performance at the quadrennial showpiece beginning September 19 in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.

The camps have been divided between the MP State Shooting Academy in Bhopal and the Karni Singh Range in the national capital.

As per the schedule, the selected Asian Games pistol and rifle shooters will train in Bhopal from September 5 to 14.

The skeet camp commenced at the Karni Singh Range on Friday, while the camp for trap shooters will be held from September 10 to 18 at the same venue.

National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) High Performance Director Pierre Beauchamp said the focus of the camps would be on mental conditioning and technical refinement.

“At this stage, our focus shifts from volume to precision, mental conditioning, and technical refinement.

“The structure of these final camps allows our sports science and coaching teams to closely monitor each athlete’s performance metrics and ensure they peak exactly when they step onto the range at the Asian Games,” said Beauchamp.

The shooting events at the Asian Games are scheduled to take place from September 17 to October 3 at the Aichi Prefectural General Shooting Range.

The squad: Rifle and Pistol: 10m Air Rifle Men: Parth Rakesh Mane, Himanshu Dhillon, and Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil; 10m Air Rifle Women: Elavenil Valarivan, Sonam Uttam Maskar, and Vidarsa K Vinod; 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men: Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Niraj Kumar, and Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil; 50m Rifle 3 Positions Women: Ashi Chouksey, Vidarsa K Vinod, and Tilottama Sen; 10m Air Pistol Men: Kedarling B. Uchaganve, Kamaljeet, and Aakash Bharadwaj; 10m Air Pistol Women: Suruchi, Esha Singh, and Manu Bhaker. 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Men: Anish; 25m Sports Pistol Women: Esha Singh, Manu Bhaker, and Rahi Sarnobat; 10m Air Rifle Mixed Team: Parth Rakesh Mane and Elavenil Valarivan; 10m Air Pistol Mixed Team: Kedarling B. Uchaganve and Suruchi.

Shotgun: Trap Men: Kynan Chenai, Ahvar Rizvi, and Shapath Bharadwaj; Skeet Men: Anantjeet Singh Naruka, Bhavtegh Singh Gill, and Mairaj Ahmad Khan; Trap Women: Neeru, Manisha Keer, and Aashima Ahlawat; Skeet Women: Parinaaz Dhaliwal, Raiza Dhillon, and Maheshwari Chauhan; Trap Mixed Team: Kynan Chenai and Neeru; Skeet Mixed Team: Anantjeet Singh Naruka and Parinaaz Dhaliwal.

Christian Mbilli has revealed the extent to which a month-and-a-half delay has affected his preparation for Canelo Alvarez.

The pair were originally scheduled to square off on September 12, only for Canelo to cite family problems as the reason for postponing their showdown to October 31.

As a result, both combatants will have incurred over a year of inactivity by the time they collide for Mbilli’s WBC world super-middleweight title in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The Frenchman was upgraded from ‘interim’ to full champion last December, just a few months after boxing to a 10-round draw against Lester Martinez.

This was because Terence Crawford announced his retirement and vacated all four major 168lb belts that same month, having become a three-division undisputed king.

The American did so by unanimously outpointing and dethroning Canelo, who was handily defeated by ‘Bud’ but arguably produced one of his better performances in recent times.

Clearly feeling as though he has more left to offer, the 36-year-old is now focused on reclaiming one of his old belts against Mbilli.

The defending champion, meanwhile, has told FIGHTMAG during a public workout that, having chased the Mexican for years, he does not believe a month-or-so delay will make any difference to his performance.

“I really wasn’t stressed [about the delay]. I was pretty calm about it.

“We’ve been waiting for this fight for so many years that one month, two months, three months, four months [or] more doesn’t change much.

“We’re going to go and get that victory.”

From a stylistic perspective, Canelo is considered the more skilful fighter while Mbilli could cause the challenger problems with his relentless aggression and punch output.

Opinion in the boxing world is split, with the likes of Shawn Porter and Robert Garcia backing Canelo, but Paulie Malignaggi believing Mbilli’s pressure will be too much for the Mexican.

Magnolia Hotshots’ Zavier Lucero during a game against Rain or Shine Elasto Painters in the 2026 PBA Governors’ Cup.-Lucero is expected to play a crucial role for Gilas Pilipinas in the Asian Games. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines–Zavier Lucero is looking to carry his role as one of the best defenders in the PBA into Gilas Pilipinas when it tries to retain the gold in the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

The Magnolia forward will be among those coach Tim Cone and his staff are going to bank on to make Gilas efficient at making stops during the course of the continental meet.

READ: Gilas Pilipinas at Asian Games 2026: What you need to know

“It’s going to be super important,” Lucero said during a recent virtual press conference arranged by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP).

“I think everyone on this team has the capacity to be a good defender. If we just defend as a team, I think that’s the most important thing. No one can stop the team by himself,” he added.

Lucero is one of the tallest players on the team at 6-foot-6, though he’ll likely play the role of guarding not just the shaded lane, but multiple positions.

“I’m taking my role as I take my role on any team [which is] first to defend,” he said. “So I think everyone’s taken that approach and if we can work together as a team, play team defense, and rebound, that should help our offense.

READ: Shorter Gilas crew to run foes to the ground in defense of gold

“And that’ll help us to be able to outrun these teams and play to our advantage,” added Lucero.

Gilas’ defense will have plenty of work that needs to be done after being handed an 81-55 loss by South Korea in the first of two tune-up games in Suwon.

More than its offensive woes was Gilas allowing South Korea to knock down nine triples, seven coming from Hyungjun Lee.

That game also saw Lucero appearing for 30 minutes and finishing with three points, two rebounds, two assists and two steals.