Your browser window currently does not have enough height, or is zoomed in too far to view our website content correctly. Once the window reaches the minimum required height or zoom percentage, the content will display automatically.
Alternatively, you can learn more via the links below.
It took less than six days for England’s cricketers to lose the first two tests of the five-match Ashes series against Australia. In that time, they proved that they have only three problems: batting, bowling and fielding. Perhaps a fourth is captaincy.
Cricket tests are scheduled to be played over five days. The first test, in Perth, was completed in two days. The second match, in Brisbane, lasted less than four days. Australia won both matches by eight wickets.
Before the series began, recently retired England fast bowler Stuart Broad labelled the Australian team the worst since 2010. He then had to watch and commentate as his ex-teammates fell in a heap when the pressure was applied by an Australian team missing key players including captain Pat Cummins.
The Aussie heroes were Travis Head, who hit a whirlwind 123 (from 83 balls) in Perth, and paceman Mitch Starc, who has taken 18 wickets so far and top-scored with 77 in Australia’s first innings in Brisbane.
Of course, it’s not too late for the Englishmen to fight back and win the series 3-2 (as predicted by yours truly). But history is certainly against them.
Australian Oscar Piastri, who was favourite for the Formula 1 world drivers’ title mid-season, dipped out, finishing third.
Piastri’s McLaren teammate, Englishman Lando Norris won the championship, but the top driver was undoubtedly Dutchman Max Verstappen.
Despite perceptions that McLaren favoured Norris over the 24-year-old Piastri, ‘our boy’ paid the price for inconsistent form in the second half of the season.
Verstappen came within two points of a fifth consecutive title after a stunning comeback in his Red Bull car, ultimately winning eight grands prix, one more than Norris and Piastri. Norris finished 13 points clear of Piastri.
The 2026 F1 championship begins in Melbourne on 6-8 March.
In Supercars, Chaz Mostert starred in the new finals series format, becoming the first champion in a Ford since 2020, despite Chevrolet-mounted Broc Feeney dominating the year with 14 race wins (to Mostert’s three) and 19 pole positions. Feeney’s Triple Eight team will revert to Fords in 2026, while Mostert’s Walkinshaw team will run new entrant Toyota.
Australia’s Alex De Minaur has won the John Newcombe Medal for the fourth time as Australia’s top tennis player. Only Ash Barty (five) has won more of the medals.
In 2025, De Minaur won 56 matches, earning more than $5 million in prizemoney. He is ranked seventh in the world but has not won a grand slam or even made a semi-final. He has been a quarter-finalist six times.
The nation awaits his next challenge: the Australian Open at Melbourne Park from 12 January.
As widely expected, North Melbourne took out its second consecutive premiership, steamrolling Brisbane by 40 points in a lopsided grand final at Princes Park in Melbourne. It was the record-breaking Roos’ 27th win in a row before a sold-out crowd of almost 13,000.
The AFL’s support of the women’s competition has been questioned recently and the timing of the grand final was a real head-scratcher. The game began at 7.45pm and young girls – who are the game’s future – would have been in bed by halftime. The match could have started a few hours earlier to allow youngsters to enjoy the whole telecast, including the after-match celebrations. What were you thinking, AFL?
Meanwhile, the AFL would be happy with Tasmanian parliamentarians who gave the green light for construction of the 23,000-seat roofed Macquarie Point stadium in Hobart. The $1.13 billion stadium will be home for the new Tasmanian AFL/AFLW team, the Devils, from 2028.
India will host the 2030 Commonwealth Games. The host city will be Ahmedabad, with the opening and closing ceremonies to be held at Narendra Modi Stadium, which has a capacity of 132,000. India last staged the Games in Delhi in 2010.
The Games have had a difficult time recently with Durban (2022) and Victoria (2026) dropping out controversially. British cities Birmingham and Glasgow took the baton as hosts for those two events.
Next year’s Glasgow Games will have only 10 sports compared with Ahmedabad’s 15 to 17 sports.
The 2026 World Cup starting in June will feature more countries than ever, with 48 teams competing for the trophy in the US, Canada and Mexico.
The organisers announced three-minute ‘hydration breaks’ in each half of every match of the summer tournament, regardless of the venue or whether the stadium has a roof. The decision effectively means that each game will be played in quarters, and opens up more opportunities for advertisers.
Another controversy that has emerged is Iran and Egypt’s objections to Seattle’s ‘Pride Match’ scheduled to take place within days of their fixture.
In the draw, Australia avoids some of the tournament’s heavy hitters, sitting in Group D with co-hosts USA, Paraguay and the winner of a playoff, probably between Slovakia and Türkiye. The Socceroos’ first game is on 14 June in Vancouver.
World Cup holder Argentina will fancy its chances, facing Austria, Algeria and Jordan in Group J, although superstar Lionel Messi is not a confirmed starter.
It took less than six days for England’s cricketers to lose the first two tests of the five-match Ashes series against Australia. In that time, they proved that they have only three problems: batting, bowling and fielding. Perhaps a fourth is captaincy.
Cricket tests are scheduled to be played over five days. The first test, in Perth, was completed in two days. The second match, in Brisbane, lasted less than four days. Australia won both matches by eight wickets.
Before the series began, recently retired England fast bowler Stuart Broad labelled the Australian team the worst since 2010. He then had to watch and commentate as his ex-teammates fell in a heap when the pressure was applied by an Australian team missing key players including captain Pat Cummins.
The Aussie heroes were Travis Head, who hit a whirlwind 123 (from 83 balls) in Perth, and paceman Mitch Starc, who has taken 18 wickets so far and top-scored with 77 in Australia’s first innings in Brisbane.
Of course, it’s not too late for the Englishmen to fight back and win the series 3-2 (as predicted by yours truly). But history is certainly against them.
Australian Oscar Piastri, who was favourite for the Formula 1 world drivers’ title mid-season, dipped out, finishing third.
Piastri’s McLaren teammate, Englishman Lando Norris won the championship, but the top driver was undoubtedly Dutchman Max Verstappen.
Despite perceptions that McLaren favoured Norris over the 24-year-old Piastri, ‘our boy’ paid the price for inconsistent form in the second half of the season.
Verstappen came within two points of a fifth consecutive title after a stunning comeback in his Red Bull car, ultimately winning eight grands prix, one more than Norris and Piastri. Norris finished 13 points clear of Piastri.
The 2026 F1 championship begins in Melbourne on 6-8 March.
In Supercars, Chaz Mostert starred in the new finals series format, becoming the first champion in a Ford since 2020, despite Chevrolet-mounted Broc Feeney dominating the year with 14 race wins (to Mostert’s three) and 19 pole positions. Feeney’s Triple Eight team will revert to Fords in 2026, while Mostert’s Walkinshaw team will run new entrant Toyota.
Australia’s Alex De Minaur has won the John Newcombe Medal for the fourth time as Australia’s top tennis player. Only Ash Barty (five) has won more of the medals.
In 2025, De Minaur won 56 matches, earning more than $5 million in prizemoney. He is ranked seventh in the world but has not won a grand slam or even made a semi-final. He has been a quarter-finalist six times.
The nation awaits his next challenge: the Australian Open at Melbourne Park from 12 January.
As widely expected, North Melbourne took out its second consecutive premiership, steamrolling Brisbane by 40 points in a lopsided grand final at Princes Park in Melbourne. It was the record-breaking Roos’ 27th win in a row before a sold-out crowd of almost 13,000.
The AFL’s support of the women’s competition has been questioned recently and the timing of the grand final was a real head-scratcher. The game began at 7.45pm and young girls – who are the game’s future – would have been in bed by halftime. The match could have started a few hours earlier to allow youngsters to enjoy the whole telecast, including the after-match celebrations. What were you thinking, AFL?
Meanwhile, the AFL would be happy with Tasmanian parliamentarians who gave the green light for construction of the 23,000-seat roofed Macquarie Point stadium in Hobart. The $1.13 billion stadium will be home for the new Tasmanian AFL/AFLW team, the Devils, from 2028.
India will host the 2030 Commonwealth Games. The host city will be Ahmedabad, with the opening and closing ceremonies to be held at Narendra Modi Stadium, which has a capacity of 132,000. India last staged the Games in Delhi in 2010.
The Games have had a difficult time recently with Durban (2022) and Victoria (2026) dropping out controversially. British cities Birmingham and Glasgow took the baton as hosts for those two events.
Next year’s Glasgow Games will have only 10 sports compared with Ahmedabad’s 15 to 17 sports.
The 2026 World Cup starting in June will feature more countries than ever, with 48 teams competing for the trophy in the US, Canada and Mexico.
The organisers announced three-minute ‘hydration breaks’ in each half of every match of the summer tournament, regardless of the venue or whether the stadium has a roof. The decision effectively means that each game will be played in quarters, and opens up more opportunities for advertisers.
Another controversy that has emerged is Iran and Egypt’s objections to Seattle’s ‘Pride Match’ scheduled to take place within days of their fixture.
In the draw, Australia avoids some of the tournament’s heavy hitters, sitting in Group D with co-hosts USA, Paraguay and the winner of a playoff, probably between Slovakia and Türkiye. The Socceroos’ first game is on 14 June in Vancouver.
World Cup holder Argentina will fancy its chances, facing Austria, Algeria and Jordan in Group J, although superstar Lionel Messi is not a confirmed starter.
Welcome to the planet where the apes are rulers and the humans – as far as we know – are reduced to a subspecies.
A selection of classics!
‘Back to Black’ charts Amy's life from her teen years through to her success as a world famous musician and singer.
In Sydney in May 2024, Damien Linnane (editor of the prison magazine Paper Chained) held an exhibition of art by people in prison around the world. Linnane managed to obtain over 100 artworks from currently and formerly incarcerated people in eight different countries.
It takes real courage to grab the mic and share your story, especially in front of fellow inmates and complete strangers. Bars Behind Bars is more than a music program at Risdon Prison; it’s a creative outlet that’s uncovering raw talent and powerful voices.
An overview of recent sporting events, including horse racing, motor racing, AFLW and cricket.
Knowing what an incredibly powerful story he had – not to mention unique artworks – after the interview I asked Mohannad if he would be interested in having art exhibited in Australia.
A collection of sports news from the past month, including Brisbane possibly being our new sporting capital, Aussie women finding lots of wins in Cricket and loutish crowd behaviour marring the Ryder Cup.
Help keep the momentum going. All donations will be vital in providing an essential resource for people in prison and their loved ones.
All donations of $2 or more are tax deductible. If you would like to pay directly into our bank account to avoid the processing fee, please contact donate@abouttime.org.au. ABN 67 667 331 106.
Help us get About Time off the ground. All donations are tax deductible and will be vital in providing an essential resource for people in prison and their loved ones.
Leave a Comment
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere. uis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.