John Stones was the surprise starter at the heart of England’s defence in the 4-2 win over Croatia, with the man who has effectively replaced him at Manchester City, Marc Guehi, only a substitute in the World Cup opener

John Stones was not the only England player to “suffer” in their World Cup opener, as the outgoing Manchester City centre-half got the nod to kick off the tournament in the starting lineup.

But Three Lions defender Stones struggled against Croatia in the 4-2 win in Dallas, and looked like his lack of game time at club level had caught up with him.

It felt like England were given a timely reminder of Marc Guehi’s quality even though City’s January signing was only used as a late substitute. Stones and his defensive partner, Aston Villa’s Ezri Konsa, were exposed at times and Guehi is surely a strong candidate to start England’s next game against Ghana on Tuesday.

Click here to find out the latest Manchester City news in our daily newsletter

But England boss Thomas Tuchel insists it was not just Stones who struggled but other players too because of the energy-sapping conditions in Dallas and demands of a high-pressure game in a tournament.

Tuchel said: “Some players suffered because it was quite hot and humid and the game was very intense. That would be no surprise. I think he had cramps in both legs in the end because it was intense. We saw the numbers already. They really put a shift in.

“The players said it was quite humid and difficult to digest it so I think John was just like everyone else … Everyone was very tired in the dressing-room, which I like because then know that you did something. And we need this.

“Overcoming the tough moments. Stick together, then you get punished. But you have a reaction, twice. And yeah, it was a difficult moment to concede for 2-2 but again we came, we got the third lead and then finally we could finish the game because we created a lot.”

Declan Rice finished the game with a sore back but is expected to be fit to face Ghana while Harry Kane also had a strapping on one leg but insisted afterwards he felt in good shape.

Whether those pair are joined in the starting lineup in Boston by Stones again, or whether Guehi gets the nod, remains to be seen.

With Tuchel’s penchant for keeping his cards close to his chest and not telling his players his starting lineup until the morning of a match, both must simply wait and see.

Upgrade your World Cup TV setup with the Sky Glass ‘designed for football’

This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more

from £4.50

Sky

Get the deal here

Sky is knocking 20% off its entire range of Glass TVs to mark the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Until June 17, shoppers can upgrade to the Sky smart TV that’s ‘designed for football’ from £4.50 per month when taken alongside a Sky TV and Netflix package.

Advertisement

The bipartisan Protect College Sports Act cleared the Senate Commerce Committee 19-9 on Thursday, marking the first time a college sports reform bill has advanced this far in the Senate and setting up a potential floor vote before the August recess.

Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), who co-wrote the legislation with Sens. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) and Chris Coons (D-Del.), have been pushing to get the bill to President Trump’s desk this summer. Trump urged Congress in early June to pass it “this summer,” and Cruz has said he wants it done before the fall season kicks off.

After Thursday’s vote, Cruz told reporters that Senate Majority Leader John Thune “intends” to bring the Protect College Sports Act to the Senate floor, and Cruz believes that will happen in July, according to Yahoo Sports. The Senate’s scheduled summer recess runs from Aug. 10 through Sept. 11, leaving a narrow window to reach the 60 votes needed for passage.

SEC warns Protect College Sports Act will trigger more lawsuits, not fewer

Brandon Marcello

Advertisement

The bill would establish the first comprehensive federal framework for college athletics, codifying NIL rights into law, replacing the current state-by-state patchwork with a single national standard. It sets a five-year eligibility window beginning at age 19 or high school graduation, guarantees athletes one transfer without losing eligibility and requires a second transfer to sit out a year with limited exceptions, caps agent fees at 5% and gives athletes a private right of action to sue schools over NIL rights, health and safety standards and scholarship protections.

The biggest revenue play: an amendment to the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 that would allow schools to voluntarily pool and jointly negotiate their media rights, similar to the NFL’s model. Proponents say that could generate an additional $4 to $8 billion for college athletics, money backers want directed toward women’s and Olympic sports. The bill also bans the formation of a super conference, effectively blocking any potential SEC-Big Ten breakaway league.

More than 20 conferences, including the ACC and the Big 12, representing 228 colleges across 46 states, have publicly backed the legislation, along with the NFL, NFLPA, NBPA and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee.

“Today’s vote is a powerful statement to the growing bipartisan support for targeted intervention from Congress to stabilize college sports’ transfer, eligibility and agent rules,” NCAA president Charlie Baker said in a statement. “The NCAA looks forward to building on this important development to pass the most effective bill for all 550,000 student-athletes.”

Big Ten, SEC still not on board

The two most powerful conferences in college football remain opposed. In a joint statement released Thursday morning, the Big Ten and SEC said that despite “sustained engagement and good faith efforts,” their critical revisions to the bill had not been accepted. 

“From the outset, we identified a set of essential revisions to the PCSA necessary for the long-term sustainability of college athletics,” the statement read. “We have worked with both majority and minority staff to advance those revisions, which focus on better supporting student-athletes and stabilizing the college sports environment. We continue to believe revisions are needed to secure our support for the bill.”

The conferences said they are “encouraged that several Commerce Committee members share our concerns” and pledged to keep pushing for changes.

Their core objections center on the media-pooling provision, which SEC commissioner Greg Sankey has warned could expose the SEC to lawsuits and effectively force the conference out of the College Football Playoff if non-pooling schools are excluded from postseason play. The Big Ten holds a major deal with CBS and FOX; the SEC is locked into an exclusive agreement with ESPN. The private right of action provision — which both conferences called too broad — also remained intact in the final markup version.

On a teleconference with reporters, New York Yankees president Randy Levine, a leader on President Trump’s college sports committee, urged opponents of the bill to “come back into the tent with us and the Senate to work through all of the problems you have because this is the last, best effort. If this does not go forward, there will be nothing that goes forward …”

Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), a former college football coach who spent 14 seasons in the SEC at Ole Miss and Auburn, went to the Senate floor Tuesday to announce his opposition.

“Two weeks ago, my colleagues here rolled out a bipartisan bill that aims to fix some of these problems,” Tuberville said. “I respect the work that they put into it. I know it all too well. I know they’re trying to solve a serious and very, very hard problem. It’s almost impossible. But I think their bill goes too far.

“Trust me, if I thought it’d work, I’d support it. Unfortunately, it gets too deep into the businesses of universities, conferences and athletics departments while doing far too little to give the student-athlete the stability and clarity that, actually, they need.”

What the amendments changed

The most significant revision ahead of Thursday’s markup strengthened protections for non-revenue and Olympic sports. Under the amended bill, any Division I school reporting at least $80 million in annual athletic revenue must maintain current scholarship and roster levels for women’s and Olympic sports at or above the 2024-25 levels. The earlier version applied that requirement only to schools that opted into media rights pooling; the amendment extends it to all large-revenue programs regardless of whether they opted in.

Senators also pushed for language restricting mid-season coaching changes, a debate sparked in part by Lane Kiffin’s move from Ole Miss to LSU while the Rebels were still alive in last season’s College Football Playoff.

The bill now faces its biggest test. A Senate floor vote requires 60 votes in a chamber with 53 Republicans, making bipartisan support essential.

India’s 1983 World Cup winner Kris Srikkanth criticised the team management over KL Rahul’s batting position amid the ODI series against Afghanistan. The Men in Blue have already pocketed the series 2-0 with a game to go.

In the first ODI, KL Rahul batted at five and scored an unbeaten 39 off just 19 balls to help India win the game. However, in the second game, he was demoted to number six, where he failed to score, being dismissed for a duck. Srikkanth reckoned that Rahul batting at six was not good for him or the team either.

Further, talking about the World Cup squad and the experimentation in testing out players, Srikkanth suggested going by a rotation policy.

“It is not good for KL Rahul and the team if he is batting at six. In my opinion, he must bat at four or five max. I think they can go by rotation policy. Rest the certainties in some games, give chances, and then pick the side,” he said on his YouTube channel.

The final ODI of the three-match series will be played on Saturday, June 20, in Chennai. India will aim for a clean sweep and could look to further test their bench strength.

Kris Srikkanth believes the men’s cricket team should have had a break rather than playing the Afghanistan ODIs

Following the second ODI in Lucknow, which was played under extreme heat, Kris Srikkanth reckoned that the Indian men’s cricket team must have a break in June rather than playing a side like Afghanistan.

Advocating the importance of family time, time off, and mental breaks, he added that there should be no cricket for the men’s team for at least a month post the IPL.

“Afghanistan is not a great team really. It is sad. Now they are going to play in Chennai where it will be very hot. I don’t know how they will play there. It is not fair. I don’t think they should be playing in June. The T20 World Cup and IPL just got over. Give them a break and the Women’s T20 World Cup is going on, why don’t we focus on that? There should be a one month break after the IPL to be honest. There is no family time, no holiday, and most importantly no mental break,” he stated.

Post the Afghanistan series, the Men in Blue will travel to England for a multi-format white-ball series in July, which involves five T20Is and three ODIs.