With the IPL in full swing along with the return of the Premier League and a busy weekend of Horse Racing, there’s lots to keep up with through our Live Sport on TV guide.
All eyes will be on the Etihad Stadium on Sunday as Manchester City face Arsenal in a crucial title clash, but we take a closer look at all the sport across the Easter weekend.
READ MORE: IPL 2024: Where to watch Indian Premier League, live stream, schedule, teams
Friday
Cricket
IPL
Royal Challengers Bangalore v Kolkata Knight Riders – Sky Sports Cricket – 14.00
RCB are among the favourites to win it this year but they’ve made an indifferent start with one win and one loss so far in this campaign, albeit the loss did come against the Chennai Super Kings, who will be gunning for glory again this time around.
As expected, Virat Kohli has wasted little time to get going having put 98 runs on the board from his two innings, and he’ll be looking to produce another important knock on Friday to lead his side to a win and continue his pursuit of the Orange Cap.
As for KKR, it’s one win in one thus far as they narrowly saw off Sunrisers Hyderabad, and so they’ll be looking to build some momentum and climb the standings with a big win in this one. That said, although they’ve got talent on their roster, it’s hard to look past the quality that RCB have got with both bat and ball, and so back them to come out on top.
Rugby Union
Premiership
Northampton v Saracens – TNT Sports 1 – 19.45
Top of the table Northampton got a nasty shock last Friday when they lost heavily at Bristol. They were missing their English internationals, full-back George Furbank, injured in England’s last game against France, scrum-half Alex Mitchell and winger
Tommy Freeman. They hope to have them all back for the game against Saracens and they will certainly need them. Saracens steamrolled Quins last Saturday at White Hart Lane and looked imperious. It’s hard to see beyond them as this year’s champions with their returning England stars, Ben Earl, Elliot Daly, Theo Dan, Maro Itoje plus Owen Farrell, all outstanding. Saracens to win and go to the top of the table.
Horse Racing
All-Weather Championship – Newcastle & Lingfield – ITV 1 – 13.30
This year’s All-Weather finale is now at Newcastle after it was previously hosted by Lingfield. Lingfield still has some less prestigious races and both meetings are on ITV 1. The most valuable race of the afternoon is the Easter Classic Middle Distance Handicap at 16.10. Amo Racing will look to follow up their win in last weekend’s Lincoln Handicap with Elegant Man ridden by winning jockey David Egan. The Gosdens’s have Cover Up in the Sprint (15.35), who was won twice at Newcastle this year, and Orne in the first race (13.18) The other fancy is Andrew Balding’s Fire Demon in the 3 Year Old Handicap (14:25).
Saturday
Football
Premier League
Newcastle v West Ham – TNT Sports 2 – 12.30
Newcastle’s last win in the league was at the beginning of the month against Wolves. Since then they’ve lost to Chelsea and Man City in the FA Cup. So mid table mediocrity beckons this season after a Champions League spot last. I’m sure of their returning internationals Bruno Guimares of Brazil might have something to say to England debutant Anthony Gordon. West Ham sit just above Newcastle and after a slow start which inexplicably seem to threaten David Moyes’s tenure as manager, they’ve been playing well in the league and Europe. Key player for them is Lucas Paqueta who was another Brazilian who had a good game against England and scored a penalty against Spain. An even game between two well matched teams with Newcastle’s home advantage helping them to prevail.
Aston Villa v Wolves – Sky Sports Premier League/Main Event – 17.30
With their ongoing pursuit of Champions League qualification, Aston Villa host Wolves this weekend looking for three crucial points to try and extend the gap over rivals Tottenham and Manchester United.
Unai Emery’s side recovered from their heavy defeat to Spurs with a point away at West Ham prior to the international break, and with time to regroup, recharge and get injured players back, they’ll hope to get the better of their Midlands rivals. That said, the absence of John McGinn [suspension] will be key again, as they’re dealing with several key absentees currently.
It certainly won’t be easy with Gary O’Neil’s side continuing to impress as they currently sit in ninth spot, and with two wins and two draws in the last four meetings between these two sides, Wolves have had the edge in this fixture more recently.
With Villa knowing the importance of three points here though, backed by a home crowd and after a mini break to prepare a winning game plan, back the home side to get the win in a scrappy, evenly-contested encounter.
Brentford v Man Utd – Sky Sports Premier League/Main Event – 20.00
Brentford, who haven’t won since the start of February and have even lost to Burnley, need to be careful that they’re not dragged down into the relegation zone. Ivan Toney will be confident after his first England goal against Belgium and he is the key to keep Brentford in the Premiership. Man Utd will be buoyed by their dramatic win in the FA Cup against Liverpool. Is this a new dawn or just another false one? To prove it is, then they need to win in west London and win well. New England international Kobbie Mainoo earned his international debut on the back of his performances at Man Utd and they will need him and Marcus Rashford to be at their best. They must have a good end to the season to give them a chance of Champions League place and a likely away win at Brentford should help.
Cricket
IPL
Lucknow Super Giants v Punjab Kings – Sky Sports Cricket – 14.00
Things started well for the Punjab Kings after their win over the Delhi Capitals, but they were unable to follow that up after falling to a defeat to RCB last time out.
They’ll take the positives from both games though with Sam Curran getting runs while both Harpreet Brar and Kagiso Rabada have picked up wickets as they now look for consistency in their performances in both phases.
The Super Giants have lost their only game thus far against the Rajasthan Royals, falling to a 20-run loss. With the likes of Rahul, De Kock and Pooran in their ranks though, they’ll hope to get their batting line-up firing and bounce back. However, we’re backing the more rounded Kings side to get the win and start showing real signs of progress and competitiveness.
Horse Racing
Dubai World Cup – Meydan – Racing TV – 12.05
The last four races on the card are Group 1 races with full international fields with horses from the US, the UK, Japan, Ireland, France and Dubai. American Wesley Ward has the favourite, Nakatami, in the sprint ridden by Jamie Spencer. In both the two big races, the Sheema Classic on turf (16.00) and Dubai World Cup on dirt, the favourites are Japanese, Liberty Island in the former and Ushba Tesoro in the latter. If Aidan O’Brien’s Auguste Rodin can replicate his form from the end of last season, it’s difficult to oppose him in the Classic with Junko for a place. In the World Cup I would go for Frankie Dettori’s mount Newgate, trained by Bob Baffert, on which he won well at Santa Anita earlier this year.
Rugby Union
Premiership
Harlequins v Bath – TNT Sports 1 – 15.05
Quins got trashed last week by Saracens so they will be looking for some redemption. Bath had a fine win last weekend against Sale when they drew away in the final quarter. Finn Russell was in imperious form along with Ollie Lawrence and Joe Cokanasiga. It will great to see the match up of Marcus Smith against Russell after they didn’t face each other in the 6 Nations Scotland v England game when Smith was injured. Quins can’t play as badly two weeks running and with home advantage I expect them to bounce back and win.
SUNDAY
Football
Premier League
Liverpool v Brighton – Sky Sports Premier League/Main Event – 14.00
After the disappointment of their quarter final loss to Man Utd, Liverpool will look to get back on the winning track. Brighton would seem to the ideal opponent for them to do that. Liverpool are invincible at home and Brighton are not a team to sit deep and defend, so that will suit the Reds. With Trent Alexander-Arnold, Alisson and Diego Jota still missing, Liverpool have their other stars back with Mo Salah and Darwin Nunez in great form. Liverpool to go back to the top of the table, at least for a few hours.
Man City v Arsenal – Sky Sports Premier League/Main Event – 16.30
The big one of the weekend and the game that could determine who wins the Premier League this season. Man City scuppered Arsenal’s chances last year when they beat the Gunners 3-1 at the Emirates in February. Arsenal beat Man City 1-0 earlier in the season when Gabriel Martinelli scored the winner in the 86th minute. There is no doubt that Arsenal are much stronger in midfield this year with the addition of Declan Rice and Jorginho, but both will have to be at their best to resist an in-form City. With Kevin de Bruyne and Erling Haaland back together with their almost telepathic understanding, City to win and move above Arsenal in the table.
Cricket
IPL
Gujarat Titans v Sunrisers Hyderabad – Sky Sports Cricket – 10.00
Both sides have won one and lost one in their opening two games, and so they’ll both be eager to find some consistency and move towards the top of the standings even at this early stage.
SRH’s Heinrich Klaasen is the top run-scorer so far, and by some distance, with 143 from his two innings, while Abhishek Sharma is in third sport with 95 runs to his name. Having smashed 277 from their 20 overs against the Mumbai Indians last time out, it’s no surprise to see the team represented at the top of the individual rankings.
With that form in mind, we’re going with the Sunrisers to get another win on the board as they look to post a third consecutive score of over 200, and that should be too much for the Titans, as although they have talent in their ranks, it looks a worrying task to try and slow their rivals down right now.
Delhi Capitals v Chennai Super Kings – Sky Sports Cricket – 14.00
It’s two in two for the reigning champions so far, with wins over RCB and the Titans. In contrast, the Capitals slumped to defeat in both their outings so far and will be eager to upset the odds and get their first win on the board.
Unfortunately for them though, it’s unlikely to come in this one as it’s hard to look past the Super Kings. Both Dube and Ravindra have made positive starts with the bat, while Rahman has stormed out the gates with six wickets in two games to the lead the race for the Purple Cap.
With the quality and experience in their side, Chennai are going to be a difficult side to beat as they have a really balanced side capable of making the difference with either bat or ball. In turn, we expect to see the champs move further clear at the top of the table.
Rugby Union
Premiership
Sale v Exeter – TNT Sports 1 – 15.00
Sale will be licking their wounds after holding Bath for much of the match last Sunday only to fall apart in the last quarter. Exeter beat Newcastle on the Saturday, but will find Sale at home a much harder proposition. With George Ford and Manu Tuilagi now having a better understanding, they form a powerful midfield. Sale to win and dent Exeter’s top 4 hopes.
