Australia thrash England to move into semis

The umpire who awarded England six runs from a freak overthrow in the last over of the World Cup final has admitted he made an "error" and should have given one run fewer, a report said Sunday.

A throw to the stumps deflected off the bat of a diving Ben Stokes as he tried to complete a second run and raced to the boundary, with Sri Lankan umpire Kumar Dharmasena awarding six. Three balls later the scores at 50 overs were tied as England reached 241 all out replying to New Zealand's 241-8. It took the nail-biting final to a Super Over which again was tied but England lifted the trophy by virtue of having scored more boundaries. 

Critics, including former leading umpire Simon Taufel, said England should have been awarded five runs, not six, as the batsmen had not crossed for the second run at the moment the ball was thrown.

Former Sri Lankan Test player Dharmasena told the Sunday Times he did not have the benefit of television replays which showed the batsmen had not crossed.

"I agree that there was an error of judgement when I see it on TV replays now," Dharmasena, who was umpiring the final with South Africa's Marais Erasmus, told the local Sunday Times. "But we did not have the luxury of TV replays at the ground and I do not regret the decision I made."

Dharmasena said he signalled six after consulting the other match officials. "So, I did consult the leg umpire (Erasmus) through the communication system which is heard by all other umpires and the match referee," he told the newspaper.

"While they cannot check TV replays, they all confirmed that the batsmen have completed the second run. This is when I made my decision."

Taufel had told Fox Sports Australia the umpires made a "clear mistake" as the batsmen had not crossed for their second run.

But the Australian also defended the match umpires, who he said had to make a complicated judgement, and said it would be "unfair" to say the decision altered the outcome of the tournament as it was impossible to now what would have happened in the final balls had five been awarded.

Australia's Olympic team, including gold medallists Jessica Fox, Kaylee McKeown and Ariarne Titmus, arrived back in Sydney on Wednesday to a rapturous welcome from friends, family and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Australia finished fourth on the Paris medals table ahead of long-time sporting rival Britain and hosts France after winning 18 golds, including four in one day last week.

Australia's previous best came at the last Olympics in Tokyo and in Athens 2004 when the team won 17 gold medals.

Australian athletes also claimed 19 silver and 16 bronze medals to deliver their best performance at an overseas Games.

Hundreds gathered at the hangar in Sydney airport to cheer as the athletes, medals hanging about their necks, came down the steps of the Qantas jet which had brought them home.

"You know it's pretty cool being welcomed home," said swimmer McKeown, who won two golds in Paris.

"It's better than just getting off a plane and going straight to your car. It's so nice to see all the support for us Aussies and the success that we have had."

Gold medal-winning sailor Matt Wearn, who successfully defended his men's dinghy title in Paris, was first off the plane and was greeted at the bottom of the steps by Albanese.

"We want you to know that what you have done is inspire us, is give us joy, give us excitement, and lifted up our whole nation due to your performance," Albanese said.

When Australia broke its gold medal record last week the news was splashed across the front pages of the papers and trumpeted across TV networks in the sports-mad nation.

Australians will be hoping for even greater success in 2032 when Brisbane hosts the Olympics. Australia won 16 golds in Sydney and 13 in Melbourne when the country previously hosted the Summer Games in 2000 and 1956.

England manager Gareth Southgate said the Three Lions are sensing their shot at history in Wednesday's Euro 2024 semi-final against a Netherlands side hitting their stride in Dortmund.

Southgate's men are aiming to reach the final of a major tournament on foreign soil for the first time and take a step closer to ending a 58-year wait to win a major tournament.

The winners will face Spain in Berlin on Sunday after they came from behind to beat France 2-1 on Tuesday.

England missed out in heartbreaking fashion in the final of Euro 2020, losing on penalties at Wembley to Italy.

Captain Harry Kane said reaching back-to-back finals would be an "amazing achievement" as he aims to win a first major trophy of his career.

But Kane has been singled out for criticism back home for his sluggish displays in Germany, where he now plays his club football for Bayern Munich.

The 30-year-old has scored two of England's five goals at the tournament but has looked physically restricted after missing the end of the club season with a back injury.

Kane's lacklustre performances have been symptomatic of England's struggles as a team.

Twice they have stared down a humiliating early exit only to fight back against Slovakia and Switzerland thanks to individual moments of magic from Jude Bellingham and Bukayo Saka.

England arrived in Germany as one of the favourites thanks to a richly-talented squad and an upturn in their fortunes under Southgate.

And he believes his players struggled to cope with that expectation early in the tournament.

"One of our strengths over the last eight years has been less fear, less inhibition but at the beginning the expectation weighed heavily," said Southgate at his pre-match press conference on Tuesday.

"Now we are into that moment in the tournament where it is what is possible? What is achievable? Rather than, what could go wrong?

"That is different for a player. This is now the chance to make history, first time to make a final not held in England."

The selection of referee Felix Zwayer has raised eyebrows after Bellingham was fined during his time at Borussia Dortmund for bringing up a historic charge of match fixing against the German.

Zwayer was handed a six-month ban in 2006 after he was investigated for taking a bribe from another official.

Bellingham was fined 40,000 euros ($43,000) for his outburst after Bayern Munich beat Dortmund in December 2021.

- Dutch face travel chaos -

The Netherlands also had their troubles in the group stages as a 3-2 defeat to Austria saw them sneak through as one of the best third-placed sides.

Ronald Koeman's men have since found their groove in a 3-0 win over Romania in the last 16 before battling back to beat Turkey 2-1 in the last eight.

The Dutch boast one of the form attacking players in the tournament in Cody Gakpo, who is looking to move out in front in the race for the Golden Boot by adding to his three goals so far.

They have had to wait 36 years since their own sole major tournament triumph -- which came the last time the Euros were held in Germany.

But their preparations for the game were disrupted by issues with the German train system, which has caused chaos for fans throughout the tournament.

The Netherlands had planned to go from their base in Wolfsburg by rail to Dortmund.

However, a blockage on the line meant a last-minute change of plans as they instead had to fly and missed their pre-match media duties as a result.

"We don't play until 9 pm (1900GMT) tomorrow. I'm sure they will still get dinner when they arrive," added Southgate.

"They've got plenty of time. I don't see it having any impact on the game."

Australia on Wednesday approved plans for a massive solar and battery farm that would export energy to Singapore, a project dubbed the "largest solar precinct in the world".

Authorities announced environmental approvals for the US$24 billion SunCable project in Australia's remote north that is slated to power three million homes.

The project, which will include an array of panels, batteries and, eventually, a cable linking Australia with Singapore, is backed by tech billionaire and green activist Mike Cannon-Brookes.

"It will be the largest solar precinct in the world –- and heralds Australia as the world leader in green energy," said Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek.

It is hoped that energy production will begin in 2030.

The 12,000-hectare (29,650 acre) project will provide four gigawatts of energy per hour for domestic use. Two more gigawatts sent to Singapore via undersea cable will supply about 15 percent of the city-state's needs.

Batteries would be able to store about 40 gigawatts

SunCable Australia's managing director Cameron Garnsworthy said the approval was "a landmark moment in the project's journey".

Despite Wednesday's green light, numerous approval processes remain -- including working with Singapore's energy market authority, Indonesia's government and Australian Indigenous communities.

"SunCable will now focus its efforts on the next stage of planning to advance the project towards a final investment decision targeted by 2027," said Cannon-Brookes.

'Clean energy powerhouse'

Australia is currently one of the world's leading exporters of coal and gas, but has also been ravaged by the effects of climate change -- from intense heat to floods and bushfires.

Although Australians are among the world's most enthusiastic adopters of household solar panels, a string of governments have been slow to fully embrace renewables.

In 2022, renewables made up 32 percent of Australia's total electricity generation -- compared to coal, which contributed 47 percent, according to the latest government data.

Climate Council chief executive officer Amanda McKenzie said the new solar hub was a bold step in making Australia a "clean energy powerhouse" and that such projects were essential in "delivering affordable energy and slashing climate pollution".

"With the closure of coal-fired power stations on the horizon, Australia needs to accelerate the roll-out of solar and storage at every level—rooftops, large-scale projects, and everything in between," she said.

The project would also be a significant step for Cannon-Brookes', who has expanded his portfolio from software company Atlassian -- which he co-founded -- to the renewable energy space, including being the latest shareholder in AGL Energy.