Dec 22: Germany, Brazil and Portugal retained the top three places in the latest FIFA rankings released Thursday.
There was little movement in the FIFA charts with Argentina and Belgium completing the top five and 2018 World Cup hosts Russia placed 64th.
FIFA rankings as of December 22:
1. Germany
2. Brazil
3. Portugal
4. Argentina
5. Belgium
6. Spain
7. Poland
8. Switzerland
9. France
10. Chile
Hampshire, Jul 31: David Willey's maiden five-wicket haul guided England to a six-wicket victory over Ireland in the first ODI here on Friday.
With this win, the hosts have taken a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series.
Chasing a small target of 173 runs, England got off to a bad start as opener Jonny Bairstow was given LBW in the third over, bowled by Andy McBrine. Jason Roy was then joined by James Vince and the duo added 22 runs on the board before the former was dismissed.
Craig Young then got hold of Vince, who was caught behind after scoring 25 runs. Sam Billings and Tom Banton then took the charge of the chase but the latter too was caught behind which ended his 11-run innings.
Banton's dismissal brought skipper Eoin Morgan on the field. Billings and Morgan played stunning innings and kept scoring boundaries. Morgan struck a scintillating six on the last bowl of the 28th over to take England over the line. Morgan scored 36 runs while Billings played a knock of 67 runs.
Earlier, after being asked to bat first, Ireland witnessed a poor start as Paul Stirling was dismissed in the very first over of the innings, bowled by Willey. Andy Balbirnie then joined Gareth Delany but Willey struck again in his next over, removing Balbirnie.
Delany then played furiously and smashed three consecutive boundaries to Saqib Mahmood in the fourth over. However, the fall of wickets did not stop as England took three wickets in quick succession. Mahmood bowled Harry Tector while Delany and Lorcan Tucker were sent back to the pavilion by Willey.
Kevin O'Brien and Curtis Campher then took the charge and played cautiously, taking their struggling side over the 50-run mark. Adil Rashid got hold of O'Brien (22) in the 22nd over before Simranjit Singh was run out in the same over.
Andy McBrine was the next batsman and he played brilliantly along with Campher, who went on to complete his half-century. Both formed a 66-run partnership before McBrine (40) was dismissed by Tom Curran.
Campher remained unbeaten on 59 but failed to find a partner as England bundled out Ireland on 172 runs.
The second ODI between both teams will be played on Saturday.
New Delhi, April 5: England batsman James Vince lashed out at people for not taking proper measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic and said people are going out as if "everything is normal".
"Just seen the pictures of people out and about today as if everything is normal. What selfish people, surely by now they've realised this is serious. Well done to everyone who's doing their bit and staying in," Vince tweeted.
On March 13, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said that Europe was now the 'epicentre' of the disease.
The death toll due to the novel coronavirus in the UK has exceeded 4,313 with at least 708 new deaths in the last 24 hours, the largest one-day rise since the start of the outbreak as confirmed by the Department of Health and Social Care.
The total number of cases in the UK as on Saturday is 41,903, a rise of 3,735 cases in the last 24 hours.
May 13: With the Olympics postponed due to the coronavirus, top Japanese fencer Ryo Miyake has swapped his metal mask and foil for a bike and backpack as a Tokyo UberEats deliveryman.
The 29-year-old, who won silver in the team foil at the 2012 London Olympics and was itching to compete in a home Games, says the job keeps him in shape physically and mentally -- and brings in much-needed cash.
"I started this for two reasons -- to save money for travelling (to future competitions) and to keep myself in physical shape," he told AFP.
"I see how much I am earning on the phone, but the number is not just money for me. It's a score to keep me going."
Japanese media have depicted Miyake as a poor amateur struggling to make ends meet but he himself asked for his three corporate sponsorships to be put on hold -- even if that means living off savings.
Like most of the world's top athletes, he is in limbo as the virus forces competitions to be cancelled and plays havoc with training schedules.
"I don't know when I can resume training or when the next tournament will take place. I don't even know if I can keep up my mental condition or motivation for another year," he said.
"No one knows how the qualification process will go. Pretending everything is OK for the competition is simply irresponsible."
In the meantime, he is happy criss-crossing the vast Japanese capital with bike and smartphone, joining a growing legion of Uber delivery staff in demand during the pandemic.
"When I get orders in the hilly Akasaka, Roppongi (downtown) district, it becomes good training," he smiles.
The unprecedented postponement of the Olympics hit Miyake hard, as he was enjoying a purple patch in his career.
After missing out on the Rio 2016 Olympics, Miyake came 13th in last year's World Fencing Championships -- the highest-ranked Japanese fencer at the competition.
The International Olympics Committee has set the new date for the Olympics on July 23, 2021.
But with no vaccine available for the coronavirus that has killed nearly 300,000 worldwide, even that hangs in the balance.
Miyake said the Japanese fencing team heard about the postponement the day after arriving in the United States for one of the final Olympic qualifying events.
With his diary suddenly free of training and competition, he said he spent the month of April agonising over what to do before hitting on the Uber idea.
"Sports and culture inevitably come second when people have to survive a crisis," he said.
"Is the Olympics really needed in the first place? Then what do I live for if not for the sport? That is what I kept thinking."
However, the new and temporary career delivering food in Tokyo has given the fencer a new drive to succeed.
"The most immediate objective for me is to be able to start training smoothly" once the emergency is lifted, he said.
"I need to be ready physically and financially for the moment. That is my biggest mission now."
But not all athletes may cope mentally with surviving another "nerve-wracking" pre-Olympic year, he said.
"It's like finally getting to the end of a 42-kilometre marathon and then being told you have to keep going."
As a child, Miyake practised his attacks on every wall of his house -- and he said his passion for the sport was what was driving him now.
"I love fencing. I want to be able to travel for matches and compete in the Olympics. That is the only reason I am doing this."
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