james anderson speaks out for the first time since being dropped by england for their tour of the west indies coming up in the programme... we hearfrom a pioneer of para—climbing who's blazing a trail in leeds to make the sport more accessible. and going loco in acupulco — just what made alexander zverev do this? hello and welcome to sportsday. f1 testing in barcelona and tennis in dubai on the way too but we will start with st petersburg. currently the host of this season's champions league final. but tensions surrounding a potential invasion of ukraine. political sanctions have already been imposed but could sporting ones follow? joe lynskey reports. st petersburg is vladimir putin is home town, it's also the venue for this years champions league final. this is the gas probab arena where as it stands, two teams come out on may 28. but now those who run the game are under diplomatic pressure. i think it inconceivable that major international football tournaments can take place in russia after as i say, the invasion of a sovereign country. i say, the invasion of a sovereign count . ., �* say,

england have named their squad for next month's test series in the west indies.s in the all—time list, have been left out. let's speak to our sports correspondentjoe wilson. is this the end for them? what have they ever done for the english cricket team apart from the 1177 test make it wickets. not the end according to andrew strauss who is an interim charge of cricket and made this election. he said that he wants to look at some exciting new bowling potential. it is not the end for it stuart broad james anderson but also that he wants to give added responsibility to some of the others which is an interesting statement. is there a difference there that the sheer presence of stuart broad and james anderson who both been part of english testing it for almost 15 years, is that somehow overshadowing an injury development of others? we can say is this is more than just another selection for a three match test series in the caribbean. in the words of andrew strauss, and his mind this is the start of a whole new journey to get mind this is the start of a whole newjourne

he will have a chance to improve in the west indies next month.ming up in the programme — fairytale of new york. danny tiller tossed us with making boxing history next month. i'v e i've wanted this fight for a long time, and just so excited about it. evening, it's been a really interesting day at the winter olympics, some great stories. after three days of full of competiton, there are still no british medals. bruce mouat and jenn dodds could have guaranteed one in the curling today, but were pipped by norway in their semifinal. the mixed doubles world champions will now face sweden for bronze. from beijing, here's our sports correspondent andy swiss. it was a case of so near yet so far for bruce mouat and jenn dodds. the real champions lead for having too at one point with the errors began to creep in them of the time they reached the final end, it was locked at 5-5 reached the final end, it was locked at 5—5 but crucially it was nor what he had the final stone. when there chance came to clinch the match, they held their nerve to win 6—5. so they

sir andrew strauss, who giles replaced in 2018, will take temporary charge for england's tests in west indies stand alone ashes test against australia. they're preparing for three odis, the first of which is tomorrow. a draw in the test means england will have to win all three, if they're to regain the ashes. we've just got to focus on the first game, and it bodes well for what we've got coming up. the world cup is all about winning and winning consistently, so it's going to get us huge confidence, hopefully, if we do well here. so, yeah, i think it makes things simple. it's been a quick turnaround. but it's the same for both teams, and hopefully, we can continue to put the pressure on them. the action is under way at the winter olympics, despite the opening ceremony not taking place until friday. with three events to get through, the curling has already begun — gb opening with a win in the mixed event. bruce mouat and jen dodds, who'll also compete in the men and women's event, beating sweden 9—5. these two are world champions, so high hopes of a medal. gb have a target of between three and

and left his family for the west indies. when robert was only six years old. the shadow that light horse harry cast over the lee name. was one that robert struggled to redeem. hence that broad streak of perfectionism and his behavior. but robert also yearned to breathe free of his father's reputation in other ways. he wanted independence. he wanted to be his own man. and in one sense his marriage to married costas was an attempt to stake out a realm for himself. but he also yearned for security. the security his father had denied him. so while most of lee's contemporaries at west point left the army as soon as they had received their taxpayer provided college degree and could decently resign and go into private engineering practice or some other profession. lee stays with the army as the one certain profession and paycheck that he could count on. the hinge factor in this pursuit of independence security and perfection was arlington it was as much to protect arlington for his family. as it was for virginia. that he chose to resign his commission and refuse the

role on an interim basis, and he will choose a temporary coach for next month's test series in west indies ambitions will— this is not to make up the numbers. 0ur ambitions will to— this is not to make up the numbers. 0ur ambitions will to be _ this is not to make up the numbers. 0ur ambitions will to be the - this is not to make up the numbers. 0ur ambitions will to be the numberj 0ur ambitions will to be the number one teams — 0ur ambitions will to be the number one teams for— 0ur ambitions will to be the number one teams. for the _ 0ur ambitions will to be the number one teams. for the last _ 0ur ambitions will to be the number one teams. for the last 12— 0ur ambitions will to be the number one teams. for the last 12 months. 0ur ambitions will to be the numberl one teams. for the last 12 months or toe, the _ one teams. for the last 12 months or toe, the england _ one teams. for the last 12 months or toe, the england team, _ one teams. for the last 12 months or toe, the england team, it's- one teams. for the last 12 months or toe, the england team, it's hard - one teams. for the last 12

strauss has temporarily taken overfrom giles, and is set to appoint an interim coach for the tour of west indiesreally compete that strong. you can put some on the players, and some players will lose theirjobs and were deselected. but also, the book does rest with the coach and the captain as well, and in this case, joe root is almost blameless because he's such a fantastic player and he tried his absolute best. there were little strategic decisions that they got wrong, but i think the selection, the planning and the execution of a lot of the performances were really poor. it's not much better for england's women. they won't be bringing the ashes home, after australia won the opening one—dayer in canberra by 27 runs. england put in a good performance in the field — beth mooney rescuing the hosts here with 73 — but they scraped to 205 for nine from their 50 overs. england lost captain heather knight lbw for a first—ball duck which saw them ten for two. nat sciver top scored with a5, but they were ultimately all gone for 178. with two odis remaining, england can now only draw the series, which mea

next to cricket — england have named their squad for next month's test series in the west indies andleading wicket—taker in test cricket with 640 dismissals whilst broad is second on that list with 537. what does it mean for both of them in the future? here's our sports news correspondentjoe wilson. it's not the end according to andrew strauss using interim charge of english cricket and basically made the selection. he said that he wants to look at some exciting new bowling potentials, it's not the end for broad and interesting but also the wants to give added responsibility to some of the others. an interesting statement. there's an inference there that the sheer presence of broad and anderson who'd been basically part of english does cricket for 15 years, is that somehow overshadowing and hindering the development of others was that this is more thanjust the development of others was that this is more than just another selection for three test series in the lands pulling upwards of andrew in his mind this is a start of whole news journey to get england back to where they need to be

praying his international career isn't over after being dropped for their forthcoming tour to the west indieslers, with widespread surprise when both he and stuart broad were omitted. captain joe root was asked about this decision today. you think we come away from this tour and we you think we come away from this tourand we are you think we come away from this tour and we are victors and we have also gained a lot of knowledge on a number of other players and then we can add them back into things we are in a really strong position. i also think i don't this to sound like it's a development tort. it's not. it's about going there and winning absolutely but we have a great opportunity for those guys to step into that space and better everyone for it commit of this team for it. and finally, there were mixed fortunes for british riders on stage four of the uae tour. mark cavendish crashed early on, but managed to complete the ii2—mile stage. it finished with a battle between adam yates and tour de france champion tadej pogacar. the slovenian had enough energy left to take the victory and the overa

he'll take charge for the three—match test series against west indies next month after chris silverwoodd led the team in their t20 series in the caribbean last month, which they also lost. the test squad will be announced tomorrow. team gb�*s mixed doubles curlers will have to settle for a bronze at best after losing their semi final at the winter olympics. bruce mouat and jen dodds started well in their match against norway, but the lead they established was wiped out on end 6 with norway scoring a crucial three points. they held on and won with the hammer on the eighth and final end claiming a 6—5 victory, with gb now heading to a bronze medal playoff against sweden tomorrow morning. i'm just really disappointed in my last three ends. i think that's going to be the toughest thing to get over. jen played amazing all day and i'm just disappointed more for what i've done to the team than myself. it's tough. and that's all the sport for now. from me and the rest of the team, bye—bye. hello there. it's a north—south divide of weather across the country on tuesday, w�*ve got a weather front

more than 100000 russian troops or mass near ukraine's border, sparking concerned from the west indies, european allies that russia will mount some sort of invasion within weeks. and we continue to engage in non stop diplomacy and to de escalate tensions. an attempt to devil to improve security or for allies and partners for, for all of you, for that matter. but with russia's continuing to build up its forces around ukraine. we are ready no matter what happens in the us and russian foreign ministers are due to have a phone call in the coming hours with more high level diplomacy expected. later this week here, whichever was our moscow corresponded. yuri, is there a diplomatic way of solving this crisis? i think everybody hope so, ben and there are plenty of negotiations going on at different levels at the moment . as for the security council meeting yesterday, russia has criticized the decision to hold it accusing. first of all, the white house of unacceptable interference in russia's internal affairs and calling the media at the meeting. a p. r, stand for the u. s. government. at the s

sir andrew strauss, who giles replaced, will take temporary charge for england's tests in west indiesd team have announced they will now be known as the commanders. the nfl franchise retired its former name, the redskins 18 months ago. the team's name and logo, which was introduced in 1933, had long been criticised as racist by its sponsors and fans. they had faced years of pressure over the name, seen as offensive to native americans. it isa it is a name and a franchise under which people who have trouble talking to each other on other topics can come together and hug and high—5 and be one while chairing this team on and we believe that the washington command will allow us to continue to preserve that unity at a time when i would argue we need it more than ever as a nation. you can get all the latest sports news at our website, that's bbc.com/sport. but from me gavin ramjaun, and the rest of the sport team, we'll see you soon. the nominations for this year's british academy of film and television arts awards are out later, and one film predicted to lead the way is belfast. john magui

an interim coach will be appointed to oversee next month's tour of the west indies. western starring benedict cumberbatch, is also in the running for eight awards. and belfast — sir kenneth branagh's semi—autobiographical coming—of—age film — is up there too. is up there too with six nods. our culture editor katie razzall is in belfast where she has been talking to one of the film's youngest stars. belfast is bafta's most garlanded british film, with six nominations, including for best film. we all have a story to tell. this story is kenneth branagh's, set in the city he grew up in. when i grow up i want to marry her. jude hill plays nine—year—old buddy who is a fictionalised version of the young ken, which could have been a challenge but clearly worked out. i don't think a lot of other 11—year—olds can say that kenneth branagh and judi bench and ciaran hinds are my best friends. some will see a snub in kenneth branagh missing out in the best director category. ciaran hinds wins a best supporting nomination, as does caitriona balfe, in a film set against the backdrop

paul collingwood gets the nod to lead england in next month's test series against the west indies.unning to become the head coach full—time? good evening. in england, wales and northern ireland gcse and a—level exams will return this summer after two years of relying on teacher assessments which gave students record high grades. the return to exams is to be managed carefully according to ministers to avoid sudden changes as exam standards are reimposed. today england followed the rest of the uk in giving pupils more details of the likely topics in this year's exams. our education correspondent elaine dunkley has more details. at wells high school in sheffield pupils and teachers are desperate for any details to offer some certainty about what will be on the exam papers this year. henge certainty about what will be on the exam papers this year.— certainty about what will be on the exam papers this year. have you any idea of the mitigations? _ exam papers this year. have you any idea of the mitigations? no. - idea of the mitigations? no. eventually — idea of the mitigations? no. even

he'll take charge for the three—match test series against west indies next month.owing england's 4—0 ashes defeat in australia. collingwood also took charge of england's t20 series defeat in the caribbean last month. the test squad will be announced later this week. just to let you know there are four stones are still to come in the semifinal of the mixed double carolling at the winter olympics in beijing. it is tied, with the stone is still to go, it will be decided who wins the gold medal match. you can keep up—to—date on the bbc sports website. it is currently on bbc television as well for you to enjoy. we will be back with the result, and more, later. thank you. let's get more now on that delay in a wide—ranging plan from nhs england to tackle the long backlog of routine surgery. an announcement had been expected today. the prime minister has been speaking about this during a visit to a hospital in kent. we have got a situation now, the uk is coming out of the covid very fast, and as a result of the booster jab programme we put in, the fastest economic growth i

collingwood has been appointed as england's interim men's head coach for the upcoming series with the west indiesod evening. the prime minister has condemned the harassment suffered this evening by the labour leader sir keir starmer who had to be escorted to safety by police. two people were arrested after clashes between protesters and police officers on the streets of westminster. there were shouts of "traitor" and someone can be heard shouting "jimmy savile", taken to be a reference to the false accusation made by borisjohnson that sir keir, a former director of public prosecutions, had failed to prosecute savile for child sex offences. had failed to prosecute savile for sex offences. in his statement tonight mrjohnson made no reference to his false accusation despite calls from senior aides and party colleagues for him to do so. and withdraw it in full. our political editor laura kuenssberg reports. this is not normal rough—and—tumble, but abuse and untrue accusations being hurled at the leader of the accusation. one false claim that he protected the paedophilejimmy savile. keir starmer bundl

first time since he and stuart broad was surprisingly left out of england's forthcoming tour to the west indiesat allow people to interact using virtual reality headsets. the nspcc charity says it's shocked and angry by the revelations, which have sparked concerns about children's safety in the so—called "metaverse". this report by angus crawford and a warning that it does contain some disturbing content of a sexual nature. meetjess. she's 25, a bbcjournalist. but in virtual reality, she's pretending to be a child. going in. into vrchat — one of the most popular apps. the age limit�*s 13. some rooms look innocent enough. but there's pole dancing and strip clubs, too. 0h, hello, miss. isn't it school time right now? men chase a child, demanding she strip. come on, bleep strip! oh, my god. there are rooms with condomss and sex toys. there are two people to the side of me now, who are trying to get on top of each other. ok, so there's like a group of people that are, like, simulating sex. bleep. someone threatens to rape her. oh, my god! and thenjess' avatar is assaulted. shoving a beer bottle of

andrew strauss, who giles replaced in 2018, will take temporary charge for england�*s tests in west indiesabout winning and winning consistently, so it�*s going to get us huge confidence, hopefully, if we do well here. so, yeah, i think it makes things simple. it�*s been a quick turnaround. but it�*s the same for both teams, and hopefully, we can continue to put the pressure on them. the action is under way at the winter olympics, despite the opening ceremony not taking place until friday. with three events to get through, the curling has already begun — gb opening with a win in the mixed event. bruce mouat and jen dodds, who�*ll also compete in the men and women�*s event, beating sweden 9—5. these two are world champions, so high hopes of a medal. gb have a target of between three and seven, topping the tally of five from the last games. earlier, china started its olympic torch relay as part of the countdown to the games. the flame will be carried on a three—dayjourney by more than a thousand torch—bearers — that�*s a much shorterjourney than usual — because of china�*s covid restrictions

need to keep a local media and the websites so they know whether that particular part of north and west indies in northern england. and forecasters have just announced another storm on the way tonight — storm franklin — that's expected to bring more rain and gale force winds across the uk with an amber warning for northern ireland. sweeping away in the sussex, chopping through trees in the capital, and picking up the pieces in somerset. all part of the clean—up operation following one of the worst storms to hit the uk in decades. it was just absolutely brutal, nonstop. just devastation everywhere, as you can see, really. hopefully we'll never get it again, ever. many communities are still without power, including this holiday park in brean. we have made the decision to close the park until monday. _ having to turn families away during half—term. we've all had a rough couple of years and it's the first opportunity for people to come down and stay in their caravan or come on holiday for the year. so it couldn't have been a worse situation or a worse start off to the season. in newport, these hou

strauss has temporarily taken overfrom giles, and is set to appoint an interim coach for the tour of west indiescase, joe root is almost blameless because he's such a fantastic player and he tried his absolute best. there were little strategic decisions that they got wrong, but i think the selection, the planning and the execution of a lot of the performances were really poor. it's not much better for england's women. they won't be bringing the ashes home, after australia won the opening one—dayer in canberra by 27 runs. england put in a good performance in the field — beth mooney rescuing the hosts here with 73 — but they scraped to 205 for nine from their 50 overs. england lost captain heather knight lbw for a first—ball duck which saw them ten for two. nat sciver top scored with 45, but they were ultimately all gone for 178. with two odis remaining, england can now only draw the series, which means australia keep hold of the ashes. manchester city are through to the women's league cup final after winning beating spurs in their semi 3—0. gareth taylor's side haven't lost since november last ye

praying his international career isn't over after being dropped for their forthcoming tour to the west indiesictors and we have also gained a lot of knowledge on a number of other players, and then we can add them back into the team and we're in a really strong position. i also think... i don't want this to sound like it's a development tour. it's not. it's about going there and winning absolutely, but we have a great opportunity for those guys to step into that space and better everyone for it, better this team for it. and finally, there were mixed fortunes for british riders on stage four of the uae tour. mark cavendish crashed early on, but managed to complete the 112—mile stage. it finished with a battle between adam yates and tour de france champion tadej pogacar. the slovenian had enough energy left to take the victory and the overall lead. yates is now 15 seconds behind him with three stages to go. and that's all the sport for now. hello there. high pressure's expected to build in across the country to end this week and into the weekend to settle things down, bring us some sunshine and

and left his family for the west indies. when robert was only six years old. the shadow that light horse harry cast over the lee name. was one that robert struggled to redeem. hence that broad streak of perfectionism and his behavior. but robert also yearned to breathe free of his father's reputation in other ways. he wanted independence. he wanted to be his own man. and in one sense his marriage to married costas was an attempt to stake out a realm for himself. but he also yearned for security. the security his father had denied him. so while most of lee's contemporaries at west point left the army as soon as they had received their taxpayer provided college degree and could decently resign and go into private engineering practice or some other profession. lee stays with the army as the one certain profession and paycheck that he could count on. the hinge factor in this pursuit of independence security and perfection was arlington it was as much to protect arlington for his family. as it was for virginia. that he chose to resign his commission and refuse the

next to cricket — england have named their squad for next month�*s test series in the west indies and. he said that he wants to look at some exciting new bowling and anderson but also the wants to give added responsibility to some of the others. an interesting statement. there�*s an inference there that the sheer presence of broad and anderson who�*d been basically part of english does cricket for 15 years, is that somehow overshadowing and hindering the development of others? this is more than just another selection for three test series in the lands pulling upwards of andrew in his mind this is a start of whole news journey to get england back to where they need to be. it�*s a start of the radical reset. i can read off eight names, guys who were part of the series in australia who are now not part of it. broad, andreson, best, butler, david, milan, all gone. great britain are yet to win a medal at the winter olympics, but one of team gb�*s biggest medal propsects at the games competes in the women�*s snowboard cross tomorrow. charlotte bankes is the world champion — and is this seas

yesterday, the test squad for next months series in west indies was announced — with notable absenteesoles, england captain, outstanding battery, father and fundraiser. —— here at lord's. by now on an interim basis he is making decisions about english cricket. he dropped james anderson and stuart broad for the forthcoming series in the caribbean. and when we spoke today he reflected on that. just their status, who they are and what they stand for, is not intimidating for younger players are indeed a captain? i intimidating for younger players are indeed a captain?— intimidating for younger players are indeed a captain? i don't know about that. i indeed a captain? i don't know about that- i mean. — indeed a captain? i don't know about that. i mean, i've— indeed a captain? i don't know about that. i mean, i've struggled - indeed a captain? i don't know about that. i mean, i've struggled to - that. i mean, i've struggled to criticise stuart broad and james anderson in many ways, they've been servants of the game, utterly professional, performances have been outstanding and of course they

fight and when it then turned into a world war between 1778 and 1780, it had to be fought in the west indies, east indies, gebraltur in mediterranean, subject to grueling thousand day siege, so suddenly not just a war on two fronts but on five or six fronts including africa and so on. so you have this series of harder and harder struggles to fight and the king was not responsible for either the germaine plan or the subsequent plans of the north administration to try to win that war. he can't be blamed, as i argue in this book very strongly, either for the causes of the war or indeed the cause of it, which of course was disastrous. but once it had been lost, he was the person who met john adams, the first american ambassador to the court of st. james at st. james' in the audience of june 1785 and said this. i will be very frank with you, i was the last to consent to the separation, but the separation, having been made and having been inevitable, i always have said and will say now i will be the first to meet the friendship of the united states as an independent power. he then, 15 years later,

he'll take charge for the three—match test series against west indies next month after chris silverwood semi final at the winter olympics. bruce mouat and jen dodds started well in their match against norway, but the lead they established was wiped out on end 6 with norway scoring a crucial three points. they held on and won with the hammer on the eighth and final end claiming a 6—5 victory, with gb now heading to a bronze medal playoff against sweden tomorrow morning. i'm just really disappointed in my last three ends. i think that's going to be the toughest thing to get over. jen played amazing all day and i'm just disappointed more for what i've done to the team than myself. it's tough. and that's all the sport for now. from me and the rest of the team, bye—bye. hello there. we've got the battle of the air masses taking place this week, certainly for the next few days, we will have a north—south divide, much colder air across northern areas with some wintry showers. further south, it'll be very mild indeed for the time of year, and there will be some sunshine around. so, the dividing

fight and when it then turned into a world war between 1778 and 1780 it had to be fought in the west indies in the east indies gibraltar in the mediterranean was subjected to a grueling a thousand a siege and and so it suddenly turned into not just the war on two fronts, but a war on 506 fronts including africa and so on so you have this this series of harder and harder struggles to fight and the king was not responsible for either the jermaine plan or the subsequent plans of the north administration to to try and win that war. he can't be blamed as i argue in this book very strongly either for the causes of the war or indeed the course of it. which of course was was i mentioned disastrous, but once it had been lost he was the person who? john adams the first american ambassador to the court of st. james atson. james is and in the audience of june 1785 and he said this i will be very frank with you. i was the last to consent to the separation but the separation having been made and having become inevitable. i've always said and i say now that i would be the first to meet the friendship of t

and resistance from countries like australia, greenland, iceland, china and great britain and the west indies that frequently advised the war department to send gi's to their countries. also, which was really quite humorous today, but was also part of the reality they faced, these army authorities also eluded to erroneous myths of extreme temperatures to block troops from being able to serve abroad, and they talked about the climate being too cold for them to fight, or being in places where they felt that the climate was inhospitable for them to train and it was a way to keep them from even entering their countries altogether, but many of these units once they were deployed served a great distinction. for the sake of time i will remember one. the 761th tank battalion was among the 22 black combat units that saw heavy action in the european theater of operations, and they were attached to general george patton's army, and the unit landed in normandy and took part in many battles throughout france and well into germany, and they were among the first troops to see the deadly results of hitler's

if you go to west indies dot org slash volunteer, you can sign up and volunteers across the country can make those reminder calls. we don't need to persuade a hard-core trumpist to but for pretty much as he candidates. if we just remind people who voted for joe biden in wisconsin in 2020 that there are local elections coming up in the next few weeks, that can make all the difference. and if they vote this spring, they are definitely voting this fall, so you're helping throw out ron johnson and reelecting governor evers. it's such a powerful act, and it's so powerful because so few people on either side to it. when talk radio right now in wisconsin is pushing the slates of candidates, like melinda green bay, who are opposed to our democracy. and we need to organize harder than they. are we have to care about more. whoever works harder in these elections winds. they are not millions of dollars of tv ads, it's just person after person making phone calls when it gets a little warmer, knocking on doors. that work will determine what happens in our democracy at the local level with skills tha

and resistance from countries like australia, greenland, iceland, china, great britain, and the west indieso frequently advised the war department against sending black g.i.s to the countries, citing the antagonistic attitudes of their local populations towards their presence. and, also, which was quite humorous today, but really was part of the reality they faced, these army authorities also alluded to erroneous myths of extreme temperatures to block troops from being able to serve abroad. whether they talked about the climate being too cold for them to fight, or being in places where they felt the climate was inhospitable for them to even train, it was a way to keep them from even entering their countries altogether. many of these, units once they were deployed, served a great distinction. for the second time, i will mention one. the 761st tank battalion was among the 22 black combat units that saw heavy combat, heavy action in the european theater of operations. the 761st elements battalion were attached to general george biden's third army. the unit landed in normandy and took part in m

tracks of land canada half billion fertile acres west of the appalachians sugar islands in the west indies parts of india, and he believes that if those fractious rebellious americans slip away, it's going to encourage rebellions in ireland canada the sugar islands. he's quite wrong about that, but he is willing to go to war against his own people for eight years and watching the wheels turn in his head is was a fascinating experience now clausewitz says who i've mentioned a few times at this conference already. you can never it's a drinking game. you can never you should never deceive yourself as a commander by what kind of warrior fighting is this sort of the first decision. you have to figure out what it is. then kind of move from there so, you know, the british are coming takes us from lexington to princeton. so april 1775 the big outbreak too just into the new year 70 1777. in terms of world war ii, where would that be for the united states? how far are we through the saga or is it i don't know catherine pass or something. um, i think it's probably closer to tunis in may of 1943 where

he'll take charge for the three—match test series against west indies next month. announced later this week. that's all the sport for now. the chinese tennis star, peng shuai, has given her first western media interview since she accused a former a senior communist party official of sexual assault. there's been global concern for her safety since november, when she made the allegation and disappeared from the public eye for three weeks. she's now told a french newspaper she didn't accuse anyone of sexual assault and that it was all a "huge misunderstanding". courtney bembridge has more. the story started on the second of november with a post on the chinese social media site, weibo, which was very quickly deleted. in it, peng shuai accused a former vice premier of the communist party of sexual assault. she then disappeared from the public eye and by the middle of november several high—profile tennis players, including naomi 0saka and serena williams, were tweeting about the situation using the hashtag #whereispengshuai. chinese state—run media then then posted an em

criucket role on an interim basis, and he will choose a temporary coach for next months test series in west indies process happen to improve the team forward to get some fresh voices in there, to get some fresh thinking, to challenge the players in different ways and to move the whole environment forward. it's a huge fa cup weekend, we're at the fourth round stage and the first tie is actually tonight, it's an 8 o'clock kick—off at old trafford manchester united are at home to championship side middlesbrough, the boro manager is optimistic about what his players can do, but also realistic. the result is decided in manchester united and they play as they can play and the deck is stacked against us. it's not a short time to swapping situation and i want them to play well. i want the players to play well and i want to give a good account of ourselves and they could with a competitive, make it a dangerous night for manchester united. it's a great weekend for sports fans, it's also the start of rugby union's six nations championship. wales will begin their title defence tomorrow in dublin against irela

, from the bbc sport centre, england have named their squad for next month's test series in the west indieset—taker in test cricket with 640 dismissals in 169 matches while broad is second on that list, with 537 wickets in 152 matches. andrew strauss, the england interim managing director, says it does "not mean the end for them as england players". is not the end, according to andrew who was interim charge of english cricket and he said that he wants to look at some exciting new pooling potential. it's not the end for anderson but he also wants to give added responsibility to some of the others, which is an interesting statement. if there an inference with the sheer presence of anderson who has been part of english test cricket from his 15 years, is that somehow overshadowing and hindering the development of others? west ham have named kurt zouma in their starting line— up for their match against watford tonight. video's emerged of the defender kicking his cat across the floor and slapping it in the face. he's apologised. west ham say they "unreservedly condemn" zouma's behaviour. essex po