Panaji: Mumbai City FC have informed the All India Football Federation (AIFF) that its parent company has entered into a sale and purchase agreement with the City Football Group (CFG) where the group will sell its shareholding of the club to Mumbai City Football India Pvt Ltd.CFG, the world’s leading private owner and operator of football clubs with 13 football clubs across five continents, including Manchester City FC — had entered into a partnership with Mumbai City in November 2019. The group became majority shareholder with 65% shares while actor Ranbir Kapoor and businessman Bimal Parekh combined to hold the remaining 35% of shares.CFG’s exit from Mumbai City comes at a time when Indian football has come to a standstill. Mumbai started their preparations late this season and hesitatingly took part in the Super Cup where they were knocked out in the semifinals by eventual champions FC Goa. The club has not made an official statement.The agreement between All India Football Federation (AIFF) and its commercial partner, Reliance-subsidiary FSDL ended early this month. The absence of a new commercial partner and a failed tender has left a huge question mark over the future of the top-tier league.“CFG’s 65% shares have been purchased by Mumbai City’s parent company,” a source told TOI on Wednesday. “The AIFF was informed about this sale as part of the club licensing requirements. The regulations state that the federation must provide its written consent.”Since CFG’s partnership with Mumbai City, the club has won the ISL Shield and Trophy twice. All three Mumbai coaches under the group — Sergio Lobera, Des Buckingham and Petr Kratky — have had success during their time in India, winning trophies and playing an attractive brand of football.The club has several national players like captain Lallianzuala Chhangte, Akash Mishra, Brandon Fernandes, Valpuia and Vikram Partap Singh, while foreign players like Tiri, Jorge Ortiz, Jorge Pereyra Diaz and Jon Toral are all established names.

The 2025/26 Ashes have been retained by Australia in record-breaking fashion, but the Boxing Day Test at the MCG remains the crown jewel of the cricket calendar. While the urn is staying in Australia after a dominant 3-0 start, pride, World Test Championship points, and individual careers are very much on the line as 90,000+ fans descend on Melbourne.

Australia enter the MCG on a high after clinical victories in Perth, Brisbane, and Adelaide. The series was sealed in just 11 days of play—the fastest since 2002/03. England, meanwhile, are in damage-control mode. After failing to pass 300 consistently and struggling to contain a rampant Australian middle order, Ben Stokes‘ side faces the daunting task of avoiding a 5-0 whitewash.

Team combinations

Steve Smith returns to lead the side as Pat Cummins has been ruled out of the remainder of the series to manage a back issue. Legendary spinner Nathan Lyon is out with a hamstring injury, opening the door for Todd Murphy. When it comes to England, 21-year-old Jacob Bethell has been called up to debut at No. 3, replacing Ollie Pope, who was dropped after a string of low scores. Their best performer of the tour, Jofra Archer, is out with a side strain. Gus Atkinson returns to the side to provide the pace threat. Stokes and Joe Root remain the heart of the team, but they need support from the likes of Zak Crawley and Harry Brook to post a competitive total.

Boxing Day Test Pitch Report

The MCG pitch for the 2025 Boxing Day Test is expected to be a high-quality, balanced surface that continues the venue’s recent trend of being one of Australia’s most improved cricket wickets. Expect a “green tinge” and moisture on Day 1. With an unseasonably cool forecast (topping at 17°C), the ball is expected to swing and seam significantly in the first two sessions. Traditionally, the MCG pitch flattens out during Days 2 and 3. Once the initial moisture evaporates, it becomes an excellent surface for stroke play, favoring set batters.

Also WATCH: Ben Duckett’s drunk video goes viral amid Ashes 2025–26 setback

Test stats and records at Melbourne Cricket Ground

• Total Matches: 119
• Matches won batting first: 58
• Matches won bowling first: 43
• Average 1st innings Score: 307
• Average 2nd innings Score: 314
• Average 3rd innings Score: 251
• Average 4th innings Score: 171
• Highest total recorded: 624/8 (142 Ovs) By Australia vs Pakistan
• Lowest total recorded: 36/10 (23.2 Ovs) By South Africa vs Australia
• Highest score chased: 332/7 (159.5 Ovs) By England vs Australia
• Lowest score defended: 83/10 (48.4 Ovs) By Australia vs India

Also READ: Ashes 2025-26: England unveils their playing XI for the Boxing Day Test; no place for Ollie Pope and Jofra Archer

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Government has begun discussions with WhatsApp after the messaging app banned a high number of Indian accounts, raising concerns over the continued misuse of Indian mobile numbers for online fraud.According to people familiar with the matter, WhatsApp has been blocking an average of 9.8 million Indian accounts every month until October this year for violations of its policies. While the Meta-owned platform publishes monthly figures on such actions, authorities said that the absence of details about the mobile numbers linked to these accounts is making it harder to track spam, scams and cyber fraud, ET reported citing officials.Accounts banned by WhatsApp this year

Source: WhatsApp monthly reports, cited by ET

India is WhatsApp’s largest market, and officials said the platform’s refusal to share even basic information about banned numbers is limiting the government’s ability to verify whether those numbers are genuine or fraudulently obtained. WhatsApp categorises Indian accounts using the +91 country code and said that its bans are triggered by behavioural signals that indicate policy breaches, including suspected involvement in scams.Government officials noted that banned numbers frequently reappear on other over-the-top (OTT) platforms, particularly Telegram, where they continue to be used for fraudulent activities. The wider misuse of Indian mobile numbers, by actors both within the country and abroad, remains a serious challenge, despite multiple enforcement measures.In most cases, fraudsters operate through OTT messaging apps such as WhatsApp and Telegram. Once an account is created using a mobile number, these apps can function without a SIM card, making it extremely difficult for enforcement agencies to trace offenders, officials said. They added that about 95% of digital arrest and impersonation cases are carried out on WhatsApp.“There are concerns around how Indian numbers are being used (by fraudsters) and we are addressing those issues,” one official was quoted by ET as saying. “We have to balance convenience against security implications.”Officials said tracing when a SIM card was issued and verifying whether the know-your-customer (KYC) details linked to it are genuine or fake is central to curbing such fraud. “We are talking to WhatsApp and other OTTs as to how to deal with this problem,” the official added.Separately, the government routinely asks WhatsApp and other digital platforms to block accounts found to be involved in scams or illegal activities. Data from the Department of Telecommunications shows that nearly 2.9 million WhatsApp profiles and groups were disengaged following government directions until November this year.While authorities are informed about accounts removed on official instructions, they say there is little visibility when WhatsApp independently bans accounts. The platform discloses only aggregate numbers in its reports, without specifying which mobile numbers have been disabled.“As WhatsApp does not coordinate with respective authorities concerning the banned accounts, there is no clarity as to what numbers have been banned,” another official said. “We don’t want any private details of the person, just the numbers which have been banned, so that it can be checked if the number is genuine or not.”Rakesh Maheshwari, former senior director at the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), said the purpose of monthly compliance reports was to improve platform accountability. “The whole intent of initiating this monthly compliance report and sharing it with the public was meant to bring in transparency and accountability of the platforms,” he said. “Now, if there are certain revelations which require deeper introspection, the government has further right to seek more information.”WhatsApp has said that because its service is protected by end-to-end encryption, account enforcement relies on platform-specific behavioural indicators. It has also cited technical, legal and cross-border challenges in sharing detailed account information.“There are a number of aspects concerning banning of accounts and not all are security aspects. Some of them are based on complaints. However, sometimes they refuse to share details, which is a security concern,” a third official said.

Australia‘s vice-captain Steve Smith has been cleared to play in the iconic Boxing Day Test against England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in Melbourne, starting on December 26. Steve Smith also opened up about a “weird” episode of vestibular dysfunction that threatened his return and worsened during training in Adelaide.

Australia’s batting mainstay was troubled by vestibular issues that worsened over four days of training at the Adelaide Oval. Unlike previous bouts of vertigo, this time the problem was more severe, and eventually, he decided to withdraw from the third Ashes 2025-26 Test.

Steve Smith Reveals ‘Weird’ Health Scare, As He Cleared for Boxing Day Test Return

Australian vice-captain struggled to pick up the ball early, felt heavy in the head, was unable to focus properly, and became unusually exhausted after even short training sessions. Each time he lifted his head to face a delivery, his vision felt out of sync.

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Read Also: Huge blow for Australia! Pat Cummins doubtful for T20 World Cup 2026

The symptoms intensified despite repeated attempts to train. Batting sessions, light activity, and even a game of golf left him feeling worse. Later, Smith underwent medical checkups that required him to wear vestibular goggles to help doctors better identify the source of his problems.

The right-handed batter was given a strict recovery plan involving eye-tracking drills, laser-guided exercises, balance control, and neck-strengthening exercises. The seasoned batter has a history of head knocks and balance-related issues, but this episode was different and stunned him.

I Was a Bit Worried”: Steve Smith’s Vestibular Battle

Now, Smith has been cleared to play at the MCG, and he has also shut down rumors of a net-session concussion and confirmed the issue was purely vestibular. The Australian vice-captain was quoted as saying by The Age: “I’ve had a few different things with my head in the past—head knocks, some vestibular stuff, some vertigo stuff. It was more the vestibular stuff this time.”

Smith further explained, “I’m still talking to people about it. I’ve got some training exercises I need to do, tracking things, wearing goggles with a laser on them, drawing different shapes, and things like that. So, it’ll be a bit of that, strengthening my neck. Fingers crossed it’s gone and never comes back. That would be nice.”

Read Also: Ben Stokes issues official statement on Ben Duckett drunk video as ECB disciplinary action looms

The Aussie star also revealed that the eye black he used in the day-night Test in Brisbane will now be something he keeps using regularly in his kit. He shared, “The black things I was wearing under my eyes, I’m 100 percent certain they worked, and I think I’ll be bringing them out in normal night games against the white ball as well.”

Steve Smith also defended England head coach Brendon McCullum’s “overpreparing” remark that he made after losing the first two Tests Down Under. The veteran batter explained that he has reduced the amount of training he does to keep his body fresh.

He signed off by saying, “I think sometimes, particularly when you lose, you almost try too much and too hard, and you lose sight of the fact that you want to be mentally fresh when you go in the middle. Sometimes you just try too hard to get yourself into that frame of mind, and you’re actually cooked when you go out to the middle to try to perform under pressure. I’ve learned that over time.”