MEN’S CRICKET: Brendon McCullum has referred to "Bazball", the playful term coined in homage to England’s new Test head coach, as “silly”.

McCullum and captain Ben Stokes took charge of a misfiring Test side and have transformed their fortunes, with a bolder approach steering England to three wins against New Zealand and one over India.

While positivity has been a central theme in the embryonic stages of the era of McCullum, nicknamed Baz, the former New Zealand skipper insisted there are deeper levels of pragmatism involved.

MEN’S FOOTBALL: Phil Jones and Brandon Williams will join Cristiano Ronaldo in missing Manchester United’s pre-season tour to Thailand and Australia.

All three players were missing from the official squad list for the trip published by the Premier League club yesterday, ahead of their departure.

United had already confirmed that Ronaldo, who it emerged last weekend has asked to leave the club if an acceptable offer is received, would not be travelling.

MEN’S TENNIS: Nick Kyrgios admitted he could not sleep after hearing the news that he is a Wimbledon finalist.

Rafael Nadal, Kyrgios’s semi-final opponent, stunned the Championships on Thursday evening when he revealed he would have to withdraw from the match due to injury.

Instead controversial Australian Kyrgios was handed a walkover and will take on either Novak Djokovic or Cameron Norrie on Sunday for the Wimbledon title.

MEN’S FOOTBALL: Former Arsenal and England midfielder Jack Wilshere announced his retirement yesterday.

Wilshere, 30, became the Gunners’ youngest league debutant when aged 16 and 256 days during 2008 after coming through the club’s academy.

The midfielder, who was hampered by a series of injuries, won the FA Cup twice in successive seasons with Arsenal in 2014 and 2015.

He later joined Bournemouth on a season-long loan and then made a permanent switch to West Ham in 2018.