Rory McIlroy became the fifth back-to-back winner of the Masters, winning his sixth major after holding off the challenge of world No 1 Scottie Scheffler and Ryder Cup teammate Justin Rose on a scintillating Sunday at Augusta.

The Ulsterman joined the exclusive club of grand slam winners in emotional fashion last year after overcoming Rose in a playoff, but had to fight his way back to the top of the leaderboard on Sunday after trailing Rose, overnight co-leader Cameron Young and even Russell Henley at different points during a rollercoaster final round.

After two days this tournament had seemed as good as over, with McIlroy six shots clear – the greatest margin in Masters history after 36 holes – and playing with a peace and tranquility that comes with being the defending champion.

But a one-over 73 on Saturday gave hope to those in pursuit and rocked McIlroy’s confidence, forcing him to seek answers at the practice range deep into Saturday evening.

If there was one thing that stood out about the chasing pack on Sunday morning, it was the quality of those golfers willing and able to chase.

Sam Burns and Cam Young are the young bucks of the PGA Tour, both seeking a first major after success on tour and Ryder Cup appearances. Justin Rose, Jason Day and Shane Lowry are all major winners with the experience and temperament to mount a Sunday pursuit while Scottie Scheffler is Scottie Scheffler. If you need to know more than that then welcome to your first Masters – have you tried the pimento cheese?

With the most bunched leaderboard for a Sunday morning since 2017, it was still only the final four pairings really in contention, and even then needing to play the best golf of their life to have a chance. The first hour or two posed a question of who could make gains or even just stay in the hunt.

Burns was the first to fall out of it. Louisiana born-and-bred, Burns had managed to play some highly competitive golf all weekend and shot under-par all weekend – which was more than could be said of McIlroy, Scheffler and others – but a bogey on the first and a double-bogey second sunk him simply too far back to recover.

As Burns retreated from the battle, the overnight co-leaders continued to jostle for position in the final pairing. Elsewhere, Rose became only the second golfer to birdie the fifth on Sunday to put him level with Scheffler in a tie for third. The race was showing signs of being down to just five.

Shane Lowry was the next to drop, finding sand from his tee shot on five but, significantly, catching the front wall of the bunker on his second shot with an iron that ended up further from the hole than where he had started. By the time the ball was eventually in the hole, he had carded a double-bogey six and plunged down the leaderboard to further narrow the hunt. Day followed soon after.

There was always likely to be one interloper, and Henley turned out to be that guy. The 37-year-old is something of a local favourite, hailing from down the road in Macon, Georgia, and had four birdies through the first eight holes to be tied for second. Somewhat understated, Henley had four top-10 finishes in his last eight majors and has figured out how to compete at the highest level.

At different times we had almost all possible combinations of leaders. McIlroy and Young began the day joint, then Young had sole custody before Rose joined him, Young took a step back and then Rose had it all to himself for a while. While Henley appeared from nowhere to hold the joint-lead, a bogey on 12 set him back into the chasing pack, where he would remain for the rest of the day after missing too many key putts.

By just after 5pm, five golfers were separated by just one shot; McIlroy the sole leader and four on his tail. His par putt on the 11th prevented him falling back to a five-way tie for the lead that essentially would have started the tournament again – a mini-Masters for the select few.

When it mattered, though, Young continued to err and McIlroy surged.

On 12, he went closer to the pin than anyone else had on Sunday to pick up another shot. He then birdied the 13th to open up a two-shot lead on his familiar foes, Rose and Scheffler.

In the end, Scheffler’s undoubted class was not enough to overcome the mistakes of Thursday and Friday. A two-over 74 in his second round had stranded him down the leaderboard and while he threatened a memorable Sunday charge he never led the Masters and 11 straight pars on Sunday featured a number of missed opportunities to press the defending champ.

Rose kept himself in the battle all day but went bogey, bogey and then three-putted for par through Amen Corner. Those holes, in the end, were the difference between him and his Ryder Cup teammate who picked up shots on the most (in)famous three-hole stretch in golf and used that momentum to carry him over the finish line.

A winner had not come from outside the final pairing since Englishman Danny Willett stunned the golfing world a decade ago this week, and McIlroy’s scramble to save par on 15 averted the final true threat to this remarkable achievement, becoming only the fourth person ever to defend a Masters championship.

Ultimately, though, this win figures to be a milestone for much greater achievements for McIlroy, a man who must now look at major wins as a counting stat rather than singular peaks of a career.

By entering the grand slam club last year, McIlroy confirmed his place among the all-time greats. How many more he can add to his six major triumphs will decide exactly where he sits in the golfing pantheon.

Jasprit Bumrah has gone wicketless in five straight IPL matches. Unthinkable as it may sound, Bumrah’s barren run now stretches across two seasons. He did not take a wicket in the last match Mumbai Indians played in IPL 2025 and has now gone wicketless in four matches in IPL 2026. India spin great Ravichandran Ashwin, however, defended Bumrah. He stressed that Bumrah’s ability to nail tight yorkers and restrict the flow of runs is more important than his wicket tally, especially at high-scoring venues like Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium.

According to CricViz, Bumrah has bowled 122 balls without taking a wicket – the longest wicketless streak of his IPL career.

Jasprit Bumrah’s last five IPL innings:

0/40 (4) vs PBKS, Ahmedabad

0/35 (4) vs KKR, Wankhede

0/21 (4) vs DC, Delhi

0/32 (3) vs RR, Guwahati

0/35 (4) vs RCB, Wankhede

In Mumbai Indians’ match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on Sunday at the Wankhede Stadium, the ace Indian pacer again went wicketless, returning figures of 0/35 in four overs. However, he stood out as MI’s most economical bowler as RCB posted a mammoth 240/4 in 20 overs.

In a post on X, Ashwin said that focusing solely on Bumrah’s lack of wickets is misleading and could hurt MI’s cause. He reiterated that Bumrah’s true value lies in bowling pinpoint yorkers and choking runs, particularly at venues like the Wankhede.

“The lack-of-wickets narrative for Bumrah can hamper the team’s cause. Him nailing yorkers and choking the opposition for every single run is even more important than him looking to get wickets, especially at venues like the Wankhede,” Ashwin said.

“When you can’t bowl overs on the trot, your wicket-taking ability depends on your partners who hand the over to you. We have had so many years of T20 cricket now, and bowling in partnerships as a defensive group is still a seed in the minds of bowling units,” Ashwin added.

The lack of wickets narrative for Bumrah can hamper the teams cause!

Him nailing yorkers and choking the opposition for every single run is even more important than him looking to get wickets, especially in venues like the Wankhede.

When you can’t bowl overs on the trot, your…

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— Ashwin 🇮🇳 (@ashwinravi99) April 12, 2026

Despite going wicketless in his last five IPL innings, Bumrah has registered an economy rate above 10 in just two matches – against Punjab Kings in the IPL 2025 Qualifier and Rajasthan Royals in the ongoing season.

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IPL 2026 News | Shami’s Sensation Leads Lucknow to First Win of Season

The NASCAR O’Reilly Series competed at Bristol Motor Speedway and it was a sensational event. Kyle Larson won the first two stages; however, Connor Zilisch and Brent Crews stayed out while he pitted during a late caution. So, which one of the three NASCAR drivers found victory lane at Bristol on Saturday night?

Zilisch and the No. 1 team for JR Motorsports won the O’Reilly Series race at Bristol on Saturday night, earning their first victory of the season. Crews took the lead on the final restart with old tires, but wasn’t able to hold on after running the top. Then, Zilisch was able to hold off Larson in the closing laps following the No. 88 car’s mistake.

Bankers Choice is in pursuit of a landmark achievement this Saturday in the Mornington Cup, striving to emulate just one prior horse by notching successive wins in the 2400m Listed spectacle.

Last year, the eight-year-old surged late to defeat challengers in a dramatic showdown, prepared then by Glen Thompson in the wake of Mike Moroney’s passing.

Now with Ben, Will and JD Hayes at Lindsay Park, Mongolian Khan’s progeny reappears in good nick, notching a podium finish in the Group 2 Peter Young Stakes (1800m) first time out then a solid eighth in the Group 3 Easter Cup (2000m).

Due to clash again with select Easter Cup adversaries including Ambassadorial, his connections trust the added stamina demand will enhance his prospects.

“Bankers Choice is the one that will head to the Mornington Cup,” Will Hayes said.

“He’s going to go for a course proper gallop on Monday to have a look around and hopefully defend his title.

“He ran terrifically in the Peter Young first-up, he was only three lengths off them in the Easter Cup and he looks really good.”

Despite the likelihood of substantial ballast again, Hayes prioritises the gelding’s validated long-distance credentials over that burden.

“Hopefully someone can throw an out-of-form import with a high rating into the noms that can get us down,” Hayes said.

“But he deserves the rating that he has, he does carry weight well.”

“He’ll eat up 2400 metres. He’s as fit as a mallee bull, and a seasoned old gelding like him, it’s right up his alley.”

With top preparation and his pet distance ahead, Bankers Choice stands ready to challenge strongly for crown retention.

For the Mornington Cup, compare racing betting markets across the best sites.

Mumbai Indians vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Virat Kohli vs Rohit Sharma – Sunday could not have gotten better for cricket fans. At the Wankhede Stadium, the two giants clashed in the biggest match of IPL 2026 so far. Virat Kohli played a patient knock while Phil Salt and Rajat Patidar rained fury. Kohli, though, also achieved a few major firsts. The former RCB captain is now the first batter to score 1,000-plus runs against MI. KL Rahul (977) and Shikhar Dhawan (901) are next in the list. 

Kohli also surpassed Chris Gayle and Babar Azam for being involved in the most century partnerships in T20s. The 120-run stand between Phil Salt and Kohli is the second-highest opening partnership for RCB against MI in the IPL. The highest remains the 148-run stand added by Faf du Plessis and Kohli in Bengaluru in 2023.

Most century partnerships in T20 cricket

47 – Virat Kohli*

46 – Chris Gayle

46 – Babar Azam

45 – David Warner

40 – Faf du Plessis

Talking about the match, Mumbai Indians (MI) won the toss and decided to field against defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Match No. 20 of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 on Sunday.

The high-voltage clash between five-time champions MI and defending champions RCB is being played at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

After winning the toss, MI skipper Hardik Pandya confirmed that Mayank Markande and Mitchell Santner came in for Rahul Chahar and Ghazanfar in their playing XI.

“We’re going to bowl first. It looks like a good track. We played the first game on the other pitch; this looks similar. It’s always good to bat second here. I think it’s a big game. Just want to come out and play our best cricket, do the things we’ve spoken about in the meetings, and enjoy the sport. We requested good wickets, and we’ve been getting them,” Pandya said.

“As long as you land the ball right as a bowler and play the right shots as a batter, you’re in the game. Over the years at Wankhede, chasing has worked for a lot of teams. Being our home ground, dew comes in later as well. So it’s good to know what you’re chasing and plan your innings accordingly. Mayank Markande and Mitchell Santner come in for Chahar and Ghazanfar,” the MI skipper added.

After losing the toss, RCB captain Rajat Patidar said that Jacob Duffy replaced Josh Hazlewood in the playing XI.

“Obviously, we would have bowled first. But as you all know, it’s a good batting track. The ball comes nicely onto the bat with good bounce, so it won’t make too much difference. We’ll try to put a good total on the board and keep them under pressure. This is our fourth game,” Patidar said.

“The way we’ve played in the last few matches, there are a lot of positives. In the last match, we were 97 for 6 and still managed to score over 200. That’s a positive sign for us. We enjoy playing here a lot. Whenever we come, we see great crowds. It’s challenging but also fun and exciting. Just one change – Duffy comes in place of Hazlewood,” the RCB skipper added

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Delhi vs Mumbai IPL 2026: Fans Flood Arun Jaitley Stadium for High-Voltage Clash

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are the main protagonists in any Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Mumbai Indians clash in IPL. Fans assembled at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday were treated to a Kohli half-century – his 65th in the IPL – which came off 37 balls. Yet, he appeared unhappy. In fact, he did not even celebrate the milestone after reaching it on the second ball of the 15th over bowled by Hardik Pandya. He departed two balls later while trying to break the shackles and looked frustrated. A strike rate of 131.58 may have been the reason. While Kohli was attempting to play the sheet-anchor role, the innings of Rajat Patidar (53 off 20 balls) and Phil Salt (78 off 36 balls) were in complete contrast.

kohli throwing his off his gloves and helmet, man he’s so pissed off by himself pic.twitter.com/8gbtBwX9tA

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— satyam (@noontonightt) April 12, 2026

Virat Kohli looks disappointed after getting out , Still he has scored a half century for not like Virat Kohli’s Level.#MIvsRCB pic.twitter.com/tpDeIZvyJV

— flicksX18 (@flicks_X18) April 12, 2026

RCB BATTERS STRIKE RATE IN TODAY MATCH VS MI –

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Phil Salt – 216.67

Virat Kohli – 131.58

Rajat Patidar – 265.00

Tim David – 212.50

Jitesh Sharma – 111.11

RCB top 4 batters cooked Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult, Hardik Pandya, Mayank Markande , Shardul and Santner. pic.twitter.com/WIVVfaGX6d

— Nafees (@Nafees_22) April 12, 2026

A rare Kohli failure and yess even this 50 is a failure as per Kohli Standards, even he was unhappy with his innings.

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A rare failure from Virat Kohli #MIvRCB pic.twitter.com/1LqIrq30RR

— Rex⚡️ (@RexUTD7) April 12, 2026

Royal Challengers Bengaluru skipper Rajat Patidar, Phil Salt and Virat Kohli all registered half-centuries as the defending champions put up an imposing 240 for 4 – the second-highest total this season – against Mumbai Indians in their Indian Premier League match here on Sunday.

Salt smashed a 36-ball 78, studded with six boundaries and as many maximums, while stalwart Kohli made a composed 50 off 38 balls, as the duo put on a polished 120-run opening-wicket stand.

Salt was dismissed by Shardul Thakur in his very first over – the team’s 11th – providing a huge sigh of relief to MI.

Skipper Rajat Patidar then took over from where Salt left off, scoring a rapid 53 off just 20 balls, laced with four boundaries and five sixes, as RCB made quite a statement.

Earlier, Mumbai Indians skipper Hardik Pandya won the toss and opted to field.

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Tushar Deshpande’s Brilliant Final Act Ensures Thrilling Win For RR Over Gujarat Titans

Justin Rose was left to rue mistakes around Amen Corner as another Masters slipped through his fingers.

A year after losing a play-off to Rory McIlroy he was leading by a shot as he approached Augusta National’s troublesome trio of holes.

But he bogeyed 11 and 12 and then could only par the 13th despite being on the green in two and with that the opportunity was taken away from him by his Ryder Cup team-mate.

“Just a chance that got away obviously. I was by no means kind of free and clear and was nowhere kind of close to having the job done but I was right in position,” said the Englishman, whose final-round 70 left him 10 under and two behind McIlroy, who made a successful defence of the green jacket.

“I was really in control, the first 10 holes I felt like I was and the mentality was to run through the finish line not just try and get it done.

“I was playing great but just momentum shifted for me around the Amen Corner. That three-putt (on 13) was untimely for sure.

“I feel like with a sudden-death loss (last year) you kind of know you got to the house. You’ve done everything it took to win, then it comes down to flick of a coin at times.

“Whereas today I felt there was an opportunity to do better, so obviously that is frustrating for sure.”

PA