this is bbc news. the headlines: the inquiry into the grenfell tower fire has opened in london. its head, sir martin moore—bick, says his investigation will answer ‘pressing questions‘ about the disaster. a man who's spent 11 years in prison, despite only being sentenced to ten months, is set to be released. james ward had been told he wouldn't be released until a parole board decided he wasn't a danger to the public. the bank of england has said that higher inflation and a pick up in growth could lead to a rise in interest rates in ‘the coming months‘. the bank‘s voted to keep rates on hold at a quarter of one per cent for now. borisjohnson has met the us secretary of state in london for discussions about libya, iran and north korea. rex tillerson also promised american help for the uk after brexit. president trump has landed in florida to see the damage caused by hurricane irma. millions are still without power, and more than 20 people in the us lost their lives. ina

in a moment, it will be time for sportsday, but first, a quick look at what else is coming up this evening on bbc news. at 7pm: as donald trump arrives in florida to meet people affected by hurricane irma, the programme examines how close years to reaching an agreement about american citizens who have arrived in the country illegally. at 8pm, more on the grenfell tower public enquiry. we will be talking to the housing charity shelter about what their actions might be. and one of the world‘s most elusive creatures, the beautiful snow leopard, is no longer considered endangered. i will speak to a big cat specialist about how successful conservation efforts have been. do

stay with us. now, it‘s time for sportsday. hello and welcome to sportsday. i‘m hugh ferris. our headlines this evening. essex set up a first county championship title in 25 years, but will have to wait until tomorrow at least to seal the trophy. everton are in action in the europa league — they‘re at italian side atalanta, later arsenal play cologne, with 20,000 german fans heading to the emirates via a central london diversion. and in an interview with the bbc, maria sharapova hits back at those who‘ve labelled her a drugs cheat. hello again, thanks forjoining us.

tonight, essex stand on the verge of their first county championship title in 25 years. it‘s likely to be confirmed tomorrow after they beat warwickshire by an innings and 56 runs at edgbaston earlier today. it‘s an astonishing performance from a side that was only promoted to division one last year, and will be achieved on a fraction of the budget of the bigger teams. james burridge is live for us at edgbaston. james, after a quarter of a century they won‘t mind waiting an extra few hours. no, i‘m sure they won‘t. they have been nursing a few cold beers in the last hour or so in the changing room. now, all attention turns to taunton, where lancashire, the only tea m taunton, where lancashire, the only team who can fit in essex now, are playing somerset. and they are in real trouble, forced the follow—on. they have a lead of 45 with to make wickets remaining. you would think thatis wickets remaining. you would think that is an achievable total for

somerset tomorrow, and then the party ca n somerset tomorrow, and then the party can really start for essex. it has been a long time coming for chris silverwood‘s team. the final warwickshire wicket and a defining one in essex‘s history. victory number eight ofan one in essex‘s history. victory number eight of an unbeaten and unforgettable season. credit to the guys we have got and the amount of tale nt we guys we have got and the amount of talent we have in the dressing room. the guys have worked exceptionally hard. last year and the guys have worked exceptionally hard. last yearand into the guys have worked exceptionally hard. last year and into this year. every time i have asked them for a big shift, one of them has put their hand up. that is the beauty of it — everybody in that dressing room has put their hand up. what is the reason behind their amazing success? when it comes to batting, alastair cook led the way. he is one of six batsmen to have scored over 500 runs this season. then there was the bowling. they have the two leading wicket taker is in the division, proof that it is not necessarily the big names which get you the results.

jamie porter gave up the game a few yea rs jamie porter gave up the game a few years ago. now, with 64 wickets to his name, he is being tipped as a surprise call—up for the ashes. his name, he is being tipped as a surprise call—up for the ashesm has been pretty surreal, to be honest. i could not have scripted it any better myself. what do you put it down to? i think determination. i say determination, i did pretty much give the game up, but thankfully, i took my chance and come back. a lot of people have helped me along the way. pretty much everyone in that dressing room has played a part. this was the last time essex were the toast of english county cricket. they can make while there them, and they are here now, 25 years on. they can make while there them, and they are here now, 25 years onm isa they are here now, 25 years onm is a long time. it is fantastic the way he has brought young players through from the academy. it shows how from an early age players are brought throughout essex. the how will you celebrate ? brought throughout essex. the how will you celebrate? as normal, a few drinks ina will you celebrate? as normal, a few drinks in a changeable, back at the

hotel, and then maybe go for a bite to eat. then we will have a fitness session toitioi’i'ow. to eat. then we will have a fitness session tomorrow. you won't really. no! it is proof that teamwork can go a long way. just to confirm what is going to be happening tomorrow, somerset are in the box seat against lancashire at the moment. if lancashire at the moment. if lancashire lose against somerset, essex can finally celebrate. they will have to wait to lift the trophy until the last time a game against yorkshire on the 25th of september, but as we were saying earlier, i think it will be worth the wait. it has taken 25 years, and there will bea has taken 25 years, and there will be a big crowd in chelmsford tomorrow to celebrate. james, thank you. everton have kicked off at atalanta in italy. it has been 26 years since

the last time the italian side played european football. they are making the most of it, going 1—0 ahead. about ten minutes to go till half—time. jack wilshere could make his first appearance for arsenal in over a year when what‘s expected to be a much changed side take on cologne in their opening europa league match at the emirates tonight. manager arsene wenger says he‘s aiming to win the competition, but he doesn‘t see it as the best way of returning to the champions league next season. it is one of the opportunities. i have said it many times, i don‘t think the best way to do it is through permission. this is a different competition, and you want to win every competition you play m, to win every competition you play in, but we don‘t calculated calculate. we have done that for 20 yea rs, calculate. we have done that for 20 years, and for 20 years we have done it by doing it in the premiership. arsenal‘s game is an 8pm kick off against cologne, who are bringing 20 thousand fans to london — only 3,000 fans have tickets though. and quite a few of them have spent the day in the capital,

parading in the city centre accompanied by police, stopping traffic too, en route to the stadium. there have been reports of bottles being thrown. the investigation into england ladies coach mark sampson could be reopened. the fa say they intend to pass new information from drew spence to the barrister. the manager denied the specific claims when he spoke to our sports editor two days ago. did you make any comment regarding the number of times being arrested to drew spence at that meeting in 2015? as i said before, i have never accused an england player being arrested. all i have tried to do is make sure i communicate in the best possible way to help the players, make them feel relaxed and give them the best possible chance to perform on the field, because it

isa to perform on the field, because it is a difficultjob playing for england, lots of pressure and scrutiny. we have incredibly talented than professional players, andl talented than professional players, and i try my best with the staff to oui’ pooi' and i try my best with the staff to oui’ pooi’ “— and i try my best with the staff to our poor —— support them to help them be their best. hull play wakefield in the supereights tonight. it‘s fourth v fifth and and both need a win to keep their hopes of getting into the play—offs alive. 0ur reporter matt dean is at the kcom stadium in hull. well, with just two games left of the super eights, this is a fascinating game between two teams striving to make the play—offs. just one point separates them as they aim to finish in the top four this weekend. at this stage, five teams are contesting those two final play—off places. castleford and leeds have already confirmed there is. as for the form coming into this game, c‘s is poor. they have lost the last three games. —— hull‘s are

poon the last three games. —— hull‘s are poor. wakefield‘s form has been up and down. they lost the saint helens last time out very narrowly. if they make the top format, it will be seen asa make the top format, it will be seen as a remarkable achievement against the odds. nothing will be settled here this evening, but whoever wins the night, they will be in possession of one of those coveted top four positions going into the final round of matches next week. some of the other sports stories making the news tonight, seventeen national anti—doping organisations have demanded that russia is banned from next year‘s winter olympics. the group, which includes the uk and united states, say the ioc‘s failure to hold russia to account for their doping scandal, endangered the future of the olympic movement. meanwhile, british bobsleigh head coach dominik scherrer has resigned. injune, the bbc revealed athletes had written to british bobsleigh to complain of "bullying, racism, sexism and discrimination". there‘s no suggestion of any wrong—doing by scherrer. british time trial champion steve cummings has withdrawn from the squad for next week‘s world championships.

he says he was only told eight days ago he was in the squad, and that didn‘t give him enough time to prepare. the fa has sent a video to football‘s world governing body fifa, hoping to prove that dele alli‘s middle—finger gesture was towards england team—mate kyle walker and not an official or opponent. tv pictures showed the incident during england‘s 2—i world cup qualifying win over slovakia last week. and there were birdies, but the wrong sort, on what was supposed to be day one of the final women‘s golf major of the year. play was abandoned for the day at the evian championship in france because of the heavy rain. the first group had completed just eight holes at the time, so the event is now a 54—hole tournament starting tomorrow. the cars are yet to come out for first practice, but the singapore grand prix week has already produced plenty of intrigue. with engine and driver changes expected to be announced over the coming days, next season has been on the agenda almost as much as this season‘s exciting drivers‘ championship.

0ur reporter tom clarkson is there. come sunday, the focus here in singapore will be on whether lewis hamilton can increase his lead in the world championship over sebastian vettel. until then, however, as a so often the case in formula i, the talk is largely off the track. we are expecting a series of announcements about this weekend. first, mclaren are expected to officially announce their divorce from honda, a partnership that began in 2015 and has been woefully u nsuccessful. in 2015 and has been woefully unsuccessful. a 2018, the team will switch to renault engines, and a positive knock—on effect of that is that it positive knock—on effect of that is thatitis positive knock—on effect of that is that it is expected to re—sign fernando alonso as a result.|j that it is expected to re—sign fernando alonso as a result. i want to give time to my team after the last three years, with so much trouble that we went through together, to have time for them to

make decisions, to see the future, next year‘s car. and after they take decisions, i will take mine. next year‘s car. and after they take decisions, iwill take mine. i next year‘s car. and after they take decisions, i will take mine. i want to stay loyal to that and not make any decisions without them making first their decision. relaxed, happy, and we‘ll see what‘s going on in the next weeks. the honda engine supply is going to is briton changed to toro rosso next year. carlos sainz, currently with toro rosso, will be moving to renault for 2018. where does that leavejolyon palmer? is we are expecting perhaps a switch to williams, but that won‘t be announced for some weeks yet. it is all happening here in singapore. and there‘ll be a preview show ahead of the singapore grand prix weekend on five live at nine o‘clock tonight. now let‘s pay another visit to las vegas, which is once again under seige from a host of fight

fans, and plenty of others besides as we countdown to another saturday night super fight. and with every big event like the meeting of two of the world‘s best pound for pound fighters canelo alvarez and gennady golovkin, the undercard can sometimes be almost as impressive. let‘s get more on this from our reporter ade adedoyin, ade, for two time olympic champion nicola adams it‘s a vegas debut. yes, that‘s right. welcome to vegas. the main event fighters have a rest day from media activity, so the undercard fighters take centre stage. first up will be nicola adams, making her professional debut in the us. she has boxed all over the globe in the amateur ranks, when she won world titles, 0lympic

the globe in the amateur ranks, when she won world titles, olympic and european titles, but this is a big step in her progression in the paid ranks. she works under virgil hunter, who also trains amir khan. she says it has been a great learning experience, culturally and in terms of boxing. adams is a national treasure but lies under the radar here, which she enjoys, she says. i saw her walking through the lobby of the mgm with her partner yesterday, and she looked untroubled and relax. she said the opportunity to fight in such a high—profile bill was one she couldn‘t turn down. to fight in such a high—profile bill was one she couldn't turn downlj don't know if we have ever had women on an undercard of such a big event before in vegas, so we are definitely changing the game for the better. i just hope definitely changing the game for the better. ijust hope women's boxing starts to really grow and expand, and we get to see a lot more girls on the cards. i would love to be able to see women's boxing it to the point where it is at the standards

of the us. a main event on a vegas car, having a day off from the media, do you have a sense that the two main fighters will deliver on saturday night what the media and everybody else expects?” saturday night what the media and everybody else expects? i think it has all the ingredients to go down as one of the great middleweight fight of all time. bernard hopkins, who holds the most successful defences, 20, in the middleweight division, is part of the promotional output. if gennady golovkin wins and moves on to 19, it is an opportunity for him to move into the history books. he has likened it to some of the great fights between marvin hagler and sugar ray robinson. this match is between two of the best pound for pound fighters in the world. floyd mayweatherjr has retired, manny pacquiao is... it is

a great occasion, because the fight is taking place on the weekend of mexico‘s independence day celebrations, and lots of people have travelled and for that. there will be a concert on friday night and people will stay for the fight on saturday. huge pressure on the mexican. he believes he can cause an upset. the bookmakers have gennady golovkin is the five brett. —— as the favourite. maria sharapova has turned on the fellow professionals who‘ve labelled her a drugs cheat. having featured in her first grand slam since serving a 15 month suspension for testing positive for a banned substance, she claims her critics don‘t know the facts. the russian has been speaking to the bbc‘s laura trevelyan. what was it like playing here in the

us openjust a what was it like playing here in the us open just a few weeks after being in the limelight after coming back from your suspension? to be able to walk into a court like that with thousands of people, the emotions, the noise, and the feeling that i had walking into it was a feeling of warmth and welcome. it felt like that‘s a place that i really miss, where i belonged, it has been my stage for so long, and i haven‘t felt that experience. so, to be in a grand slam after such a long period was very special. let's talk about the suspension, which you talk about a lot in your book. why did you start taking meldonium, which was not a banned substance?” start taking meldonium, which was not a banned substance? i had been u nwell not a banned substance? i had been unwell for a long period. i went to see a doctor in russia. he ran some tests a nd see a doctor in russia. he ran some tests and said i had abnormalities

in my heart, and that was one of the supplements he recommended i take. it was commonly used in russia. we received certificates that it was com pletely received certificates that it was completely legal to take for many yea rs. completely legal to take for many years. it became illegalfor the completely legal to take for many years. it became illegal for the few first weeks of last year. so you got an e—mail injanuary 2016 ahead of the australian open, and you say in the australian open, and you say in the book is that it was an e—mail from the international tennis federation telling you that meldonium was banned, but you did not click on all the attachments — why not? they were buried and heading, and they were not the types of attachments that any of the players open up, if you really ask them. it was not noticeable at all. they didn‘t make an effort to show us they didn‘t make an effort to show us that that was a very commonly used supplement in eastern europe, and that should have been flagged and that should have been flagged and was. a canadian player said you we re and was. a canadian player said you were a cheater and you should not be allowed back in the sport. what do you say to that? i think those are

comments not based on fact, so i don‘t take them into consideration. what is the fact, that you‘re not a cheater? exactly. you have won five different grand slams. you came here aged six and a half, brought by your father from russia, speaking aged six and a half, brought by your fatherfrom russia, speaking no english and turning up at a tennis academy in florida — what was that likely you? difficult. much more difficult for my father. i was very young and took up the language very fast. i was around kids that spoke english. little children, they speak all the time. can you win another grand slam? i would love to, and that‘s my goal. it is up there with a lot of other things i would like to accomplish. you know, i have been fortu nate to to accomplish. you know, i have been fortunate to win five majors, but in my mind, i like to