(Photo: Wiki Commons)

Boxing

Amir Khan has performed a U-turn and is ready to fight Kell Brook. Khan had been in talks to fight world welterweight champion Terence Crawford in March – and snub his countryman. But after Brook struggled to beat Michael Zerafa last month, Khan has had a re-think. A fight between Khan and Brook has been mooted for five years but an agreement has never been reached.

The pair shook hands on a fight last month but Khan, a two-weight world champion, was then offered £4million to fight Crawford in New York and was close to accepting. But he appears to have had a change of heart after Brook’s laboured points win in Sheffield.

Khan has insisted throughout that the fight must take place at the welterweight limit of 147lb – and that Brook must not weigh more than 10lb more on the morning of the clash.

Cricket

Leicestershire chief executive Wasim Khan will leave the county in February to become managing director of the Pakistan Cricket Board. The 47-year-old has been in the role at Grace Road for four years, with the club saying it has made “significant progress” during his time in charge. He oversaw three consecutive years of net profit from 2015 to 2018 as well as the installation of floodlights.

Squash

2018 Everbright Sun Hung Kai Hong Kong Squash Open champion: Egypt’s Mohamed Elshorbagy has claimed his fourth Hong Kong title in five years after beating his countryman Ali Farag 3-0 on November 25. World number one Elshorbagy needed 39 minutes to beat world number two Farag 3-0 (11-6, 11-6, 11-7).

Meanwhile in the women’s title was won by New Zealand’s Joelle King who defeated Egyptian star and world number two Raneem El-Welily 3-0 (11-4, 12-10, 19-17) in 48 minutes.

Mixed Martial Arts

Nevada fight regulators have postponed hearings on the suspensions of Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov for a brawl after UFC 229 in Las Vegas on October 6. State Athletic Commission Chairman Anthony Marnell III cited continuing negotiations with Nurmagomedov’s attorneys toward a settlement that could avoid a public hearing January 29.

Commission executive Bob Bennett says McGregor’s attorneys also received a continuance. Marnell has said fines and punishment up to a lifetime ban could be considered for the Irishman and the Russian from Dagestan. He says the suspensions will continue until an investigation is complete.

Both fighters were suspended and the board withheld $1m (£795,000) of Nurmagomedov’s purse after the brawl at T-Mobile Arena. Nurmagomedov (27-0) defeated McGregor (21-4) in the fourth round.

Football

Transfers: Eden Hazard revealed contract talks with Chelsea have stalled – opening the door for his dream move to Real Madrid once again. The winger, 27, has just 18 months left on his current deal at Stamford Bridge and admitted he still has not decided on his future.

Arsenal are considering selling Mesut Özil for a cut-price £25 million in the January transfer window, according to the Sun. The German has struggled to make Unai Emery’s first team in recent weeks and the Gunners have been on sensational form. Arsenal would weigh up letting Özil go for a reduced transfer fee in order to shed his massive £350,000-per-week wage from the books.

Liverpool and Senegal forward Sadio Mane has agreed to terms on a new long-term deal at Anfield. The 26-year-old joined the club from Southampton on a five-year contract in June 2016 for a fee of £34 million. Since then he has gone on to make 89 appearances in all competitions for Jurgen Klopp’s side, scoring 40 goals. Talks over the new deal, which is believed to run until 2023, were opened at the end of last season but have only been finalised now.

UEFA 50-man team of the year shortlist: Paul Pogba is the only Manchester United player to make Uefa’s 50-man shortlist for the team of the year published on December 10 and is made up of five goalkeepers, 15 defenders, 15 midfielders and 15 forwards.  It means Marseille, Roma and Tottenham all have more nominees than the Old Trafford club. Six Liverpool players have made the shortlist including Egypt’s Mohamed Salah and Mane, Seven Serie A (Italy) based players also secured a spot including Bosnia’s Miralem Pjanić of Juventus  and Edin Džeko of Roma.

Goalkeepers: Alisson (Liverpool), Hugo Lloris  (Spurs), Keylor Navas (Real), Jan Oblak (Atlético), Marc-André Ter Stegen (Barcelona).

Defenders: Virgil Van Dijk (Liverpool), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli), Kostas Manolas (Roma), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern), John Stones (Man City), Gerard Piqué, Jordi Alba, Samuel Umtiti (Barcelona), José Giménez, Diego Godin, Lucas Hernández (Atlético), Raphael Varane, Sergio Ramos, Marcelo (Real).

Midfielders: James Milner (Liverpool), Paul Pogba (Man United), Ivan Rakitic (Barcelona), Miralem Pjanić (Juventus), Saul Niguez (Atlético), Eden Hazard, N’golo Kante (Chelsea), Luka Modrić, Casemiro, Isco, Toni Kroos (Real), Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva (Man City), Dimitri Payet, Florian Thauvin (Marseille).

Forwards: Antoine Griezmann (Atlético), Harry Kane  (Spurs), Edin Dzeko (Roma), Robert Lewandowski (Bayern), Gareth Bale (Real), Cristiano Ronaldo, Paulo Dybala (Juventus), Kylian Mbappé, Neymar, Edinson Cavani (PSG), Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino (Liverpool), Luis Suárez, Lionel Messi (Barcelona).

Weightlifting

World Championships (November 1-10): Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

Men
55 kg Snatch: Silver* Arli Chontey | Kazakhstan
55 kg Total: Silver* Arli Chontey | Kazakhstan
61 kg Snatch: Gold* Eko Yuli Irawan | Indonesia
61 kg Clean & Jerk: Gold* Eko Yuli Irawan | Indonesia (World Record)
61 kg Total: Gold* Eko Yuli Irawan | Indonesia (World Record)
67 kg Clean & Jerk: Silver* Doston Yokubov | Uzbekistan
73 kg Clean & Jerk: Bronze* Nijat Rahimov Kazakhstan
81 kg Snatch: Gold* Mohamed Ihab | Egypt (World Record)
81 kg Clean & Jerk: Bronze* Mohamed Ihab | Egypt
81 kg Total: Silver* Mohamed Ihab | Egypt
89 kg Clean & Jerk: Gold* Artem Okulov | Russia
89 kg Total: Gold* Artem Okulov | Russia
96 kg Snatch: Gold* Sohrab Moradi | Iran (World Record)
96 kg Clean & Jerk: Gold* Sohrab Moradi | Iran (World Record)
96 kg Clean & Jerk: Bronze* Faris Ibrahim | Qatar
96 kg Total: Gold* Sohrab Moradi | Iran (World Record)
102 kg Snatch: Gold* Akbar Djuraev | Uzbekistan
102 kg Snatch: Silver* Ali Hashemi | Iran
102 kg Clean & Jerk: Gold* Reza Beiralvand | Iran
102 kg Clean & Jerk: Bronze* Ali Hashemi | Iran
102 kg Total: Gold* Ali Hashemi | Iran
102 kg Total: Bronze* Reza Beiralvand | Iran
109 kg Clean & Jerk: Bronze* Ruslan Nurudinov | Uzbekistan
+109 kg Clean & Jerk: Bronze* Rustam Djangabaev | Uzbekistan
+109 kg Total:3 Rustam Djangabaev | Uzbekistan

Women
45 kg Snatch: Bronze* Ýulduz Jumabaýewa | Turkmenistan
45 kg Clean & Jerk: Silver* Ýulduz Jumabaýewa | Turkmenistan
45 kg Total: Silver* Ýulduz Jumabaýewa | Turkmenistan
64 kg Snatch: Bronze* Karina Goricheva Kazakhstan
71 kg Snatch: Silver* Nadezda Likhacheva Kazakhstan
71 kg Snatch: Bronze* Sara Ahmed | Egypt
71 kg Clean & Jerk: Silver* Sara Ahmed | Egypt
71 kg Total: Silver* Sara Ahmed | Egypt
71 kg Total: Bronze* Nadezda Likhacheva | Kazakhstan
81 kg Snatch: Silver* Raushan Meshitkhanova | Kazakhstan

Wrestling

World U23 Championships (November 12–18): Bucharest, Romania

Team ranking:  (Men’s freestyle) 1 – Russia; 2 – Georgia; 3 – Iran;  4 – Japan; 5 – US; 6 – Ukraine; 7 – Azerbaijan; 8 – Romania; 9 – Turkey; 10 – India. (Men’s Greco-Roman) 1 – Georgia; 2 – Russia; 3 – Turkey; 4 – Japan; 5 –  Azerbaijan; 6 – Iran; 7 – Egypt; 8 – Hungary;  9 – Ukraine; 10 – Moldova. (Women’s freestyle) 1 – Japan; 2 – Russia; 3 – China; 4 – Ukraine; 5 – US; 6 – Mongolia; 7 – Romania; 8 – Kazakhstan; 9 – Canada; 10 – Germany;

Men’s freestyle
61 kg: Gold* Magomedrasul Idrisov | Russia
65 kg: Silver* Ali Rahimzade | Azerbaijan
65 kg: Bronze* Islam Dudaev | Russia
70 kg: Bronze* Enes Uslu | Turkey
74 kg: Bronze* Navid Zanganeh | Iran
74 kg: Bronze* Timur Bizhoev | Russia
79 kg: Silver* Gadzhi Nabiev | Russia
79 kg: Bronze* Omaraskhab Nazhmudinov | Romania
79 kg: Bronze* Döwletmyrat Orazgylyjow | Turkmenistan
86 kg: Gold* Kamran Ghasempour | Iran
86 kg: Silver* Artur Naifonov | Russia
86 kg: Bronze* Murad Suleymanov | Azerbaijan
92 kg: Gold* Shamil Zubairov | Azerbaijan
92 kg: Silver* Aslanbek Sotiev | Russia
92 kg: Bronze* Hossein Shahbaz | Iran
97 kg: Bronze* Ali Shabani | Iran
125 kg: Gold* Said Gamidov | Russia
125 kg: Silver* Youssif Hemida United States
125 kg: Bronze* Amin Taheri | Iran
Men’s Greco-Roman
55 kg: Bronze* Balbai Dordokov | Kyrgyzstan
55 kg: Bronze* Amangali Bekbolatov Kazakhstan
60 kg: Silver* Murad Mammadov | Azerbaijan
60 kg: Bronze* Mehdi Mohsennejad | Iran
60 kg: Bronze* Kerem Kamal | Turkey
67 kg: Gold* Mohamed Ibrahim El-Sayed | Egypt
67 kg: Silver* Karim Jafarov | Azerbaijan
72 kg: Gold* Cengiz Arslan | Turkey
72 kg: Bronze* Kaharman Kissymetov Kazakhstan
77 kg: Bronze* Ismail Saidkhasanov | Russia
77 kg: Bronze* Fatih Cengiz | Turkey
82 kg: Bronze* Mehdi Ebrahimi | Iran
87 kg: Bronze* Islam Abbasov | Azerbaijan
97 kg: Bronze* Ali Akbar Heidari | Iran
130 kg: Silver* Osman Yıldırım | Turkey
130 kg: Bronze* Ali Akbar Yousefi | Iran
130 kg: Bronze* Abdellatif Mohamed | Egypt
Women’s freestyle
55 kg: Bronze* Marina Sedneva | Kazakhstan
65 kg: Silver* Elis Manolova | Azerbaijan
72 kg: Bronze* Zhamila Bakbergenova | Kazakhstan
76 kg: Silver* Ayşegül Özbege | Turkey
76 kg: Bronze* Gulmaral Yerkebayeva | Kazakhstan