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Simon Smale
Simon Smale is an online reporter who specialises in covering a huge range of different sports.
He has been with the ABC since 2018 and, as well as reporting and blogging major events, is a regular contributor to ABC Radio and covered the 2022 Winter Olympics from Beijing.
He also commentates and hosts coverage of football and rugby union matches.
Prior to becoming a sports journalist, he worked on three different continents as a geologist.
Latest by Simon Smale
Analysis
analysis:Australia says the Cricket World Cup is still 'the pinnacle' — but 'greed and overkill' sees them play T20 cricket again almost immediately
By Simon Smale
The relentless churn of limited-over cricket will see India meet Australia again just days after the Cricket World Cup final, giving neither players, nor fans, time to reflect on and enjoy a thrilling tournament.
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Five quick hits: Cummins's big call and Travis Head's 'phenomenal' catch
By Simon Smale
Pat Cummins's canny captaincy and Travis Head's miraculous catch — here's the five quick hits that explain how Australia stunned India to win the Cricket World Cup final
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Australia stuns previously undefeated India to claim World Cup
By Simon Smale and Paul Johnson
Australia earns an astonishing Cricket World Cup final upset thanks to Travis Head's match-winning century, to claim a record sixth title and stun hosts India.
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Five quick hits — South Africa rues dropped chances and Aussie quicks strike early in World Cup blitz
By Simon Smale and Paul Johnson
Mitch Starc and Josh Hazlewood laid the platform with the ball, before Travis Head and David Warner did the job with the bat. Five quick hits as Australia ends South Africa's Cricket World Cup hopes in a low-scoring thriller at Eden Gardens.
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South Africa choke again in World Cup semifinals as Travis Head inspires Australia with bat and ball in Kolkata
By Simon Smale and Paul Johnson
Australia will face India in Sunday's Cricket World Cup final after Travis Head's brilliance secured a thrilling three-wicket victory over South Africa in a memorable semifinal.
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Five quick hits — Pitch switch leaves 'sour taste' as King Kohli helps India put end to New Zealand World Cup campaign
By Simon Smale
Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer both hit centuries to help India beat New Zealand and progress into the Cricket World Cup final, but a controversial late pitch switch left a "sour taste" for one former skipper.
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Australia to face South Africa in a repeat of 1999 semi but what hope do they have of winning the Cricket World Cup?
By Simon Smale
India are unbeaten and seemingly in control of their home Cricket World Cup, but semifinals often throw up surprises with New Zealand hoping to spring another in Mumbai, before Australia and South Africa meet in Kolkata.
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Aussie breaks world record by paddling in to surf 13-metre wave
By Simon Smale
Laura Enever used to compete on the World Surf League Championship Tour before quitting to try big wave surfing. Now she's a world record holder.
Analysis
analysis:Why Australia's greatest captain acknowledges her greatest disappointment as the key moment of her career
By Simon Smale
Meg Lanning's record as an unflappable Australian skipper will stand the test of time, but the legacy she leaves for women's sport will make meaningful change now.
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Glenn Maxwell's innings is 'without a doubt' the best of all time — these are the performances it beats
By Simon Smale
Glenn Maxwell's stunning match-winning double century at the Cricket World Cup has been hailed as the greatest ODI innings of all time. Here are the performances he's up against for that title.
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'It makes no sense': Ange-ball slammed as 'naive' nine-man Spurs collapse to 4-1 defeat
By Simon Smale
Ange Postecoglou suffers the first defeat of his Premier League career, after Tottenham finished its clash against Chelsea with just nine men.
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Analysis
analysis:Can a makeshift hill recapture the hearts and minds of WA cricket fans?
By Simon Smale
With Tests in Perth failing to attract big crowds, Cricket Australia is turning to an old favourite, the hill, to reignite passions in the west.
'The Curse of the Colonel': Why these Japanese baseball fans tossed a man dressed as Colonel Sanders into a fetid river
By Simon Smale
Sport is legendary for its curses — but Japanese baseball ended its most famous one on Sunday when Hanshin Tigers ended its KFC curse after 38 years.
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Analysis
analysis:From the best in the world to walking calamity: Where England's Cricket World Cup defence went wrong
By Simon Smale
England's Cricket World Cup defence started poorly — and the data shows that it got worse. On Saturday, Australia has the chance to put the final nail in the coffin and end England's most successful white ball era in ignominy.
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Five quick hits — All Blacks fume over TMO after losing their skipper to a red card, while Springboks do not
By Simon Smale
The All Blacks were left a man short as Sam Cane was sent off for a high shot in the Rugby World Cup final, but they were left fuming with Springbok captain Siya Kolisi escaped the same fate. Five quick hits as South Africa won the Rugby World Cup.
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South Africa wins thrilling Rugby World Cup final by a single one point, both teams finish with 14 men
By Simon Smale
South Africa completes a successful defence of its crown with a tense 12-11 victory over the All Blacks, who played most of the final without captain Sam Cane after he was sent off in Paris. Follow all the action in our live blog.
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'Madness and insanity': What it was like being David Beckham's right-hand man
By Simon Smale
Former Socceroos-turned-agent Andy Bernal was David Beckham's "right-hand man" when the star played for Real Madrid. It was a time of parties with Ronaldo, high-speed car chases, phone hacking, and a paparazzi that would stop at nothing to get a killer shot.
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Open water swimmer named as Australia's first 2024 Olympian as River Seine remains a concern over pollution levels
By Simon Smale
Australia's first confirmed athlete for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games has been named, with open water swimmer Chelsea Gubecka thrilled to be heading to her second Olympics, even as questions remain over the event's River Seine location.
'I'm in shock': Nice Tour de France finish masks 'very hard' route
By Simon Smale
The Tour de France will miss Paris for the first time in over a century due to the Olympic Games, as organisers set the stage for a repeat of the race's most heartbreaking finish in history.
Analysis
analysis:Two of the most iconic teams in rugby are set to meet in another historic final
By Simon Smale
When the Springboks and All Blacks meet in the Rugby World Cup final, the sport's biggest rivals will write another chapter in rugby's most storied grudge match.
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are a phenomenon that is not going away — here's what it means for the NFL
By Simon Smale with wires
Taylor Swift continues to dominate coverage as she supports Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs — here's what the melding of two of America's biggest pop culture phenomena mean for both Swifties and the NFL.
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Five quick hits — England had the perfect game plan, but South Africa nailed their response
By Simon Smale
Owen Farrell's boot and a perfectly executed wet-weather game plan has England on top for long periods, but a clutch kick from a clutch player sends the Springboks to a Rugby World Cup final
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'It is what we stand for as a team and as a nation': Springboks win extraordinary Rugby World Cup semifinal against England
By Simon Smale
South Africa is through to the Rugby World Cup final, edging England in a thrilling contest at the Stade de France 16-15 to earn the right to take on New Zealand in next week's final.
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Kaylee McKeown smashes world record, becoming undisputed backstroke queen
By Simon Smale
Australian swimmer Kaylee McKeown now holds all three backstroke world records after smashing the 50 metre mark in the Swimming World Cup event in Budapest.
Five quick hits — Jonah Lomu's record remains intact as All Blacks thrash Argentina in Rugby World Cup semifinal
By Simon Smale
An All Blacks winger comes within a pass of matching one of the Rugby World Cup's all-time greatest performances from Jonah Lomu, and still might stand alone in any case after New Zealand's dominant victory over Argentina. Here are five quick hits from Saturday's first semifinal.
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