Today's sports news: What you need to know

Pakistan are on the brink of the semi-finals of the Men's T20 World Cup after a thrilling five-wicket win against Afghanistan in Dubai.

In an enthralling match, Pakistan were cruising in a chase of 148 until captain Babar Azam was bowled by Rashid Khan for 51.

Shoaib Malik was caught behind in the next over but, with 24 needed from the last 12 balls, Asif Ali smashed four sixes in the 19th to seal success with six balls to spare.

Afghanistan made 147-6.

Pakistan, undoubtedly one of the tournament favourites, are top of Group 2 with three wins from three games.

Andre Russell bowled an immaculate final over to help West Indies pip Bangladesh in a low-scoring thriller by three runs for their first Super 12 win that kept their Twenty20 World Cup title defence alive.

Both sides came into the contest with two defeats from as many matches and Bangladesh needed 13 in Russell's final over to chase down West Indies' 142-7 - built on Nicholas Pooran's 40 off 22 balls - on a low and slow wicket at Sharjah.

Russell did not find much support from his fielders, who were guilty of dropped catches and poor ground fielding even in the last over, but still gave away only nine runs and restricted Bangladesh to 139-5.

The defeat all but ended the South Asian side's hopes of advancing to the semi-finals.

-Reuters

Waikato eye semi-final berth after win

Waikato have leapfrogged up the NPC premiership ladder with a 37-33 bonus-point win over Bay of Plenty in Tauranga on Saturday.

Waikato led 20-14 at halftime, courtesy of tries to Cortez Ratima and Mosese Dawai, with two D'Angelo Leuila penalties giving them the lead.

Bay of Plenty scored five tries all up - Joe Webber, Leroy Carter and Emoni Narawa crossing in the second half - but

Leuila's accuracy from the kicking tee for Waikato proved crucial

Earlier, Southland recorded their first win of the season when they held off a strong finish from Northland in Invercargill for a win - also by 37-33.

Ahead 23-18 at halftime, the home team extended that quickly to 37-21 with tries to Greg Pleasants-Tate and Matt James then turned on a solid defensive effort to hold on for the win.

Martin ton sparks Otago win

The Otago Sparks have completed a landslide victory to open their Hallyburton Johnstone Shield campaign with a record winning margin, beating the Central Hinds by 213 runs.

Hinds stand-in captain Jess Watkin had sent in the Sparks on a fast outfield, but after recovering quickly from the early loss of Suzie Bates, the Otago side dominated the majority of the match.

Katey Martin's unbeaten 111 set up their total of 291-2 - the fifth highest total by the Otago women in their one-day history - came off 74 balls and included 14 fours and a six.

She received solid support from Kate Ebrahim, who contributed an unbeaten 96 off 130 balls.

Opening bowler Emma Black put the finishing touches on a superb start to the season with a bag of 5-28 off seven overs, her maiden five-wicket bag for Otago as they bowled CD out for 78.

Coach Craig Cumming was happy with his team's positive start to the season.

"I was really pleased with the way we batted - there were good partnerships, and the intent was great."

Black Ferns to wear special mouthguards

The Black Ferns and the England women's rugby team will wear instrumented mouthguards that record data in training and in two upcoming matches between the two sides as part of a head impact study.

The devices contain an impact monitor data acquisition system that collects and transmits data every time there is a collision between players or players and the ground.

Every impact, including those that are not directly involving the head, will be recorded by the mouthguards and be matched to time-coded video for analysis.

The initiative is part of World Rugby's six-point player welfare plan with a focus on head impact prevention, which was launched in July.

"It's great for the Black Ferns to be involved, especially because it will help improve the knowledge around female rugby players. We're also proud to be playing a role in improving the game and making it safer for everyone," said New Zealand captain Les Elder.

The devices are developed by U.S.-based Prevent Biometrics, who have already been working with World Rugby and more than 700 grassroots players in New Zealand.

England and New Zealand face each other at Exeter's Sandy Park on Monday before a second meeting a week later.

-Reuters

Ashley Mallett dies

Ashley Mallett, one of Australia's greatest spin bowlers, has died at the age of 76 in Adelaide after fighting cancer.

Mallett took 132 test wickets at an average of 29.84 in 38 matches between 1968 and 1980. He also played in nine one-day internationals.

Known for his teasing finger spin, Mallett extracted a lot of bounce from his high arm action, coupled with his height.

The quiet and gangling bowler, who also earned praise for excellent gully fielding, was ironically nicknamed 'Rowdy' by his team mates.

After his playing career, Mallett worked as a journalist, commentator, author and spin-bowling coach.

-Reuters

Milne says he can help

Black Caps bowler Adam Milne is hoping to make a difference in Monday morning's must-win clash against India at the Twenty20 World Cup after being left frustrated on the sidelines for the opening loss to Pakistan.

The reserve paceman had travelled to Sharjah for the Pakistan match but upon arriving was told he would have to sit out because the International Cricket Council had not approved him as an injury replacement for Lockie Ferguson.

New Zealand went with legspinner Ish Sodhi instead, and the ICC's approval arrived shortly before Pakistan completed a five-wicket win.

Milne's late clearance left a sour taste in coach Gary Stead's mouth, and the bowler said he might have helped New Zealand do better against Pakistan.

"I think if you'd looked at the way the pitch played throughout the course of the IPL, the faster guys that had been able to hit the wicket hard and create some uneven bounce had caused some problems for the batters," the 29-year-old told reporters.

"I think I would have been able to add something to the team, but it wasn't meant to be, and I thought our guys bowled really well and unfortunately for us, they came out and batted really well towards that end part of the game."

Milne has struggled with injury in recent years but his omission from the 15-man World Cup squad named in August raised eyebrows at home given his form in Australia's Big Bash League, the Indian Premier League and The Hundred in England.

"I'm excited to hopefully make a difference with the ball in these games here and really prove that this period has been influential for me."

-Reuters

Greg Norman to head Saudi-backed golf series

Greg Norman will lead a newly-formed company, backed by Saudi Arabian money, which wants to revolutionise professional golf across the world.

The former world number one has been named as the CEO of LIV Golf Enterprises, which is committing more than $280 million to 10 new Asian Tour events that will be staged annually over the next decade.

Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), which helped bankroll the recent takeover of Newcastle United, is the majority shareholder in the new firm.

The link-up with the Asian Tour is thought to be a first step towards a lucrative golf super league which will try to attract the game's biggest names.

The company has yet to reveal any star signatories for the rumoured 'super league' project.

It has been reported that world number three Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka and Justin Rose are among those who have been approached.

In the early 1990s, when two-time Open champion Norman was at the height of his powers, he first put forward the idea of a world tour.

-BBC

Eriksen can't play in Italy

Christian Eriksen is not permitted to play in Italy this season as a result of the cardiac arrest he suffered at Euro 2020, his club Inter Milan said in a statement, with the Serie A champions open to letting the Danish midfielder leave.

Eriksen suffered the on-field cardiac arrest during his country's opening game of the tournament in June against Finland and received life-saving treatment on the pitch.

He later had an implantable cardioverter defibrillator device implanted, a type of pacemaker which can prevent fatal cardiac arrests by discharging a jolt to restore a regular heart rhythm.

Francesco Braconaro, a member of the Italian Football Federation's technical scientific committee, said in August that Eriksen will not be allowed to play in Italy unless the ICD device is removed.

It is unclear as to whether other countries would allow Eriksen to participate in their respective leagues with the ICD device fitted.

Inter sit third in Serie A after 10 games this season, seven points behind leaders Napoli.

-Reuters

Goodell gets whopper pay packet

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was paid nearly $179 million in salary, bonuses and benefits over the past two years, the New York Times reported.

The Times, citing four unnamed sources who attended the owners meetings in New York this week, reported that Goodell's compensation during the 2019-20 and 2020-21 fiscal years was about 90 percent based on bonuses, with his pay tied to helping negotiate a new labor deal and lucrative media rights contracts.

Last year, according to ESPN, he voluntarily requested to the league's compensation committee that his base salary be reduced to zero due to the pandemic.

NFL players and owners reached a new collective bargaining agreement to keep the peace with players through at least 2030, in March 2020. This March, the NFL reached agreements reportedly worth more than $140 billion with CBS, ESPN/ABC, Fox, NBC, Amazon and NFL Network that will run through the 2033 season.

Goodell, 62, was elected to replace Paul Tagliabue as NFL commissioner in 2006.

-Reuters