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Journalism of Courage
Australian swashbuckling batter and T20 skipper Aaron Finch has announced retirement from all international cricket after leading the side in a record 76 matches as T20 captain.
The right-hand batter guided his team to its first T20 world championship in 2021 and was captain again last year in its unsuccessful title defense on home soil.“Realizing that I won’t be playing on until the next T20 World Cup in 2024, now is the right moment to step down and give the team time to plan and build towards that event,” Finch said on Tuesday at a press conference at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
The 36-year-old also won a Cricket World Cup title with Australia in the 50-over format at home in 2015 and played five test matches across an international career spanning 12 years. [Read More]
Former Chelsea forward Atsu missing after Turkey earthquake
Former Chelsea and Newcastle forward Christian Atsu is missing and believed to be trapped under rubble following the powerful earthquake that struck Turkey on Monday and left more than 2,500 people dead.
The Ghana international, who plays for Turkish club Hatayspor, is thought to be in a building that was destroyed, Hatayspor spokesman Mustafa Özat said, according to Turkish media.
Özat said club director Taner Savut was also believed to be in a building that collapsed and club officials couldn’t contact both men. They were likely trapped, Özat said. At least two other Hatayspor players had to be pulled out of rubble but were now safe, Özat said. Atsu and Savut were the only two Hatayspor players or officials still unaccounted for, he added.
The 31-year-old Atsu joined Hatayspor, which is based in the southern city of Antakya, last year after a spell playing in Saudi Arabia. The 7.8 magnitude earthquake rocked large parts of Turkey and neighboring Syria in the pre-dawn hours of Monday.
Qatar hires coach Carlos Queiroz through the 2026 WC
Former Portugal and Iran coach Carlos Queiroz has worked at the last four World Cups and was hired on Monday by Qatar to aim for a fifth straight at the next edition hosted in North America.
The Qatar Football Association hired former Real Madrid coach Queiroz until 2026 to take charge of his seventh different national team.
As host of the 2022 World Cup, Qatar lost all three group-stage games on its tournament debut in November. This time it will try to advance through the qualifying program for the first time.
The 2026 edition in the United States, Canada and Mexico is the first 48-team finals tournament and Asia will have eight guaranteed qualifying places instead of the previous four.
With AP inputs
