Former Pakistan batter Basit Ali has launched a strong criticism of Babar Azam after the Pakistan captain endured another disappointing outing in the second Test against England at Lord’s.Pakistan suffered a 194-run defeat on Sunday to concede the three-match series 2-0, with their batting once again failing to withstand pressure. Chasing 389 in the fourth innings, Pakistan were bowled out for 194, while Babar managed only six after scoring eight in the first innings.For Basit, Babar’s latest failure raised a much bigger question about his contribution when Pakistan need him most.Speaking on The Game Plan show, Basit compared Babar with several legendary Pakistan batters, arguing that the country’s greatest players established their reputations by delivering in difficult situations.“They didn’t become great players just like that. I’m not even talking about Sachin Tendulkar. I’m talking about my own countrymen”.Basit then questioned whether Babar has done enough when Pakistan have been under pressure.“When you don’t do anything in difficult times, what’s the point? You’re a great player in your fan following. You’re a great player in front of social media.”

Basit questions Babar’s Test record

The former batter then directly turned his attention to Babar and highlighted his long wait for a Test century.Babar’s last Test hundred came in December 2022, when he scored 161 against New Zealand in Karachi. Since then, he has been unable to reach three figures in the format.“When will you do it? I’m talking about Babar [Azam]. I’ll take his name. He hasn’t scored a [Test] hundred in four years. When will you do it?” Basit said.He also expressed his frustration at Babar’s dismissal at Lord’s, particularly because Pakistan’s batting heavily relied on their captain to provide a substantial contribution.“It’s a matter of pain. When the entire country’s batting depends on you. At least don’t get out by hitting such a shot,” Basit lamented.Babar’s dismissal came early in the chase when he got into trouble against Jofra Archer. The Pakistan captain attempted to leave a short delivery but ended up offering a simple catch to Jordan Cox in the slip cordon.

Saud Shakeel also comes under fire

Basit did not spare the other Pakistan batters either. Saud Shakeel provided the strongest resistance during the chase, scoring 97 off 132 balls and helping Pakistan recover after they slipped to 14/3. However, his attempt to accelerate towards a century ultimately cost him his wicket.After smashing two sixes in an over from Josh Tongue, Shakeel fell three runs short of his hundred while attempting another aggressive shot.“I’m not even satisfied with Saud [Shakeel]’s shot. You’ve taken on five fielders and you’re hitting such a shot,” Basit complained.Mohammad Rizwan was another target of Basit’s criticism after the wicketkeeper-batter scored only one before being dismissed lbw by Ollie Robinson.“What shot did [Mohammad] Rizwan hit? Doesn’t he have any sense? Is he playing a Test match or street cricket?” Basit said.

Pakistan’s batting collapses again

Pakistan’s problems with the bat were evident almost immediately in their chase.Robinson dismissed Azan Awais lbw before producing a delivery that breached Abdullah Shafique’s defence and hit the off stump, leaving Pakistan in serious trouble.Archer then removed Babar, and Pakistan went into lunch with Saud Shakeel and Shan Masood attempting to rebuild.Shakeel eventually reached his fifty from 54 balls and formed a useful partnership with Masood. But Robinson returned after the rain interruption to dismiss Masood, before removing Rizwan soon afterwards.With Imam-ul-Haq unavailable to bat because of his calf injury, Pakistan’s hopes were effectively over. Shakeel continued fighting but fell on 97, with Tongue then wrapping up the tail.England’s bowlers dominated the final innings, with Robinson finishing with eight wickets in the match, as Pakistan were dismissed for 194.The defeat leaves Pakistan 2-0 down in the series, with the third and final Test to be played at Edgbaston in Birmingham from September 9.

Lakshya Sen will look to bounce back from the disappointment of his early exit at the World Championships but a tough opener awaits him when he spearheads the Indian challenge at the USD 1,250,000 China Masters Super 750, beginning in Shenzhen on Tuesday. Sen, who became the first Indian male shuttler to reach an Olympic semifinal in Paris two years ago before finishing fourth, will face France’s newly-crowned world champion Alex Lanier in his opening match. The Indian has enjoyed some notable results this season, including a runner-up finish at the All England Championships, and will be keen to regain consistency against a strong field after a shock second-round loss to world number 92 Garret Tan at the Worlds.

Former World No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth, meanwhile, faces Chinese Taipei’s Chi Yu-jen after reaching the US Open Super 300 final in June, where he finished runner-up.

His campaign on the Tour after that has been patchy. It was interrupted by an injury-forced retirement due to injury at the Canada Open before he suffered a first-round exit at the Korea Masters.

In men’s doubles, fourth seeds Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will be among India’s biggest hopes.

The former world No. 1 pair ended a two-year wait for an international title by winning the Singapore Open earlier this year. They will open against China’s Hu Ke Yuan and Lin Xiang Yi, who won the Orleans Masters title this season.

Satwik has been dealing with a recurring shoulder issue.

The duo returned to action after missing a few events only to make a third-round exit from the Worlds at home. The Indian pair will hope for a deeper run as it builds up to the Asian Games title defence in Japan.

India’s young women’s singles contingent will also be under the spotlight, with young prospects Unnati Hooda, Tanvi Sharma and Devika Sihag carrying the national flag.

Unnati, the 18-year-old from Rohtak, faces fifth seed Han Yue of China.

She became the youngest Indian to win a BWF World Tour title when she claimed the Odisha Open Super 100 crown in 2022 as an unseeded 14-year-old.

She has since added the Abu Dhabi Masters and Odisha Masters titles to her cabinet.

Tanvi takes on Denmark’s Amalie Schulz.

The 17-year-old from Hoshiarpur climbed to the junior world No. 1 ranking last year, a run that included a silver medal in singles and a bronze in the mixed team event at the 2025 World Junior Championships — making her the first Indian to win more than one medal at a single edition of that event.

She underlined her rapid rise this year by becoming the youngest-ever winner of the Taipei Open Super 300.

Devika, meanwhile, will square off against Bulgaria’s Kaloyana Nalbantova.

The 21-year-old from Haryana, currently ranked inside the world’s top 45, arrives on the back of a title-winning run at the Thailand Masters Super 300.

Among others, the men’s pair of Hariharan Amsakarunan and M R Arjun faces eighth-seeded Japanese combination of Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi, the 2021 world champions.

In mixed doubles, Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto will take on Thai pairing of Tonkid and Tonrug Saeheng, while Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Shivani Gadde will face Chinese Taipei’s Wu Guan Xun and Lee Chia Hsin. PTI ATK PM ATK PM PM

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

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Cameron Norrie will have to console himself with a win at a padel tournament after his miserable summer at the grand slams ended in another first-round defeat.

Norrie, who did not make it past the opening round at the French Open or Wimbledon, was dumped out of the US Open by unheralded Frenchman Luca Van Assche.

It was a sorry Sunday for the 31-year-old, who woke up to find he had been overtaken as British number one by Arthur Fery following his run to the Winston-Salem final.

Norrie revealed beforehand that he won a padel competition among his friends while on his stag do in Ibiza last month. It turns out that was the only victory he could savour after slipping to a 6-7 (6) 6-2 6-2 6-3 defeat.

Norrie pointedly shouted ‘allez’ on his way to securing a grind of a first set on a tie-break.

Whether that wound up Van Assche is unclear but the 22-year-old made no such mistake in the second to haul himself level.

Norrie, the 29th seed, then found himself in a New York nightmare as the match quickly got away from him.

“It was really tough,” he said. “I was pretty nervous and it showed in the beginning of the first set, and I did well to steal that first set.

“But I could never really maintain a good level of energy and momentum, and I’d play well for a little bit and then drop off a couple of games here and there.

“So that was super frustrating and pretty surprising. I felt like I lost to myself today.”

There was better news for Britain elsewhere as Toby Samuel, who came through qualifying having been a set down in each of those three matches, recorded his first ever grand slam main-draw win.

The 23-year-old beat the out-of-form Czech Tomas Mahac 6-2 6-3 6-2 in a little over 90 minutes.

He told BBC Radio 5 Live: “It means everything to me. It’s what I dreamt of as a kid watching these big tournaments. Being able to win my first Grand Slam match is unbelievable.”

in the women’s draw Katie Boulter came through a tough match against American wild card Carol Young Suh Lee.

British number one Boulter, 30, looked to be cruising through at a set and a break ahead, only for some costly double-faults to let Lee back in.

However, Boulter, cheered on by new husband Alex De Minaur, gathered herself on a noisy, partisan Court Five to win 6-4 3-6 6-0.

“You know, I expected a battle in the first round,” said Boulter. “I don’t think that there’s any match out here that’s straightforward, really.

“I think I did well to get over the line in the first set, and then I think I changed a couple of things that actually made a huge difference in the third. So I was really pleased with that in the third set.”

A tricky assignment could await in round two with a potential tie against this year’s Wimbledon runner-up Karolina Muchova.

British number four Jacob Fearnley was a break down in the first set against Spain’s Martin Landaluce when play was suspended for rain.

Match Details

Fixture: (2) Carlos Alcaraz vs Roman Safiullin

Date: August 31, 2026

Tournament: US Open Tennis Championships

Round: First Round (Round of 128)

Category: Grand Slam

Surface: Outdoor hard

Venue: USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Queens, New York City

Prize Money: $108,000,000

Live Telecast: USA – Tennis Channel | UK – Sky Sports | Canada – TSN

Carlos Alcaraz vs Roman Safiullin preview

Second seed Carlos Alcaraz will face off against unseeded Roman Safiullin in the first round of the 2026 US Open on Monday.

Alcaraz enters this one having not played a singles match since April, sidelined for four months by a right wrist injury sustained in Barcelona. He tested things out in mixed doubles with Serena Williams earlier this week, reaching the quarterfinals before falling to Belinda Bencic and Flavio Cobolli, and he arrives as the No. 2 seed and defending champion, looking rusty but dangerous. It’s uncharted territory for him at a Major, having never entered a Grand Slam with this little match play behind him in his career so far.

Meanwhile, Safiullin enters off a 6-7(6), 6-4, 3-6 first-round loss to Hugo Grenier in Winston-Salem, though it followed a genuinely strong summer that included a run to the Wimbledon fourth round, upsetting Andrey Rublev and Joao Fonseca along the way before falling to Novak Djokovic in four sets. He’s shown he’s not afraid of the occasion against elite names, a trait that could serve him well walking into Arthur Ashe Stadium against the defending champion.

Carlos Alcaraz vs Roman Safiullin head-to-head

Their head-to-head is level at 1-1, with Safiullin’s win coming at the 2023 Paris Masters, and Alcaraz avenging that loss the following year at the Paris Olympics.

Carlos Alcaraz vs Roman Safiullin odds

(Odds via BetMGM)

Carlos Alcaraz vs Roman Safiullin prediction

Alcaraz’s talent ceiling remains far above Safiullin’s on paper, the defending champion here whose game, when sharp, has few real weaknesses. But four months away from competitive singles is a genuine unknown, and Grand Slam matches, especially best-of-five, tend to punish any lingering timing or footwork issues in the early sets more than shorter formats would.

Safiullin’s recent numbers back up just how real his summer form has been, not just the results. His Wimbledon run included winning 83% of first-serve points against Rublev and outpointing Fonseca 105 to 81 in a clean straight-sets win, both matches built on tight, disciplined serving paired with disruptive return games. That combination, minimizing free points on serve while creating real pressure on return, is exactly the kind of profile that can trouble a player still finding his footing after a long layoff.

Their head-to-head is split evenly too, and it’s worth noting Safiullin’s win came when Alcaraz was fully fit and ranked No. 2 in the world, so this isn’t a case of him needing an off-night from the Spaniard to have a chance. Still, even a rusty Alcaraz carries more raw shot-making upside than almost anyone in the draw, and the extra two sets of a Slam format give him more room to adjust if the start is shaky.

Pick: Alcaraz to win in four sets.

Carlos Alcaraz vs Roman Safiullin betting tips

Tip 1: The match will have at least 35 games.

Tip 2: Safiullin to win a set with a score of 6-4 or better.