Published: 23 July, 2015
by RICHARD OSLEY

• Chris Froome says he supposes the gossiping that he is somehow doping his way to another Tour De France victory will be “never-ending”. He had to endure the unthinkable indignity of urine being thrown in his face during a stage earlier this week. Imagine if that happened in any other sport, say a rogue supporter collected a sample in a bottle to throw over a footballer, a 100m sprinter, or tennis player. Other sporting authorities would find that so shocking that they would launch investigations into behaviour and safety. In cycling, there’s almost a shrug of the shoulders. It’s almost accepted that you have to take whatever showers down on you, whether it’s pee, or chitter-chatter about what is really driving your success. If it ever wants to have a champion like the days of old, the sport – and that wide term means everyone from the rule-makers to the cyclists and coaches on the other teams – need to reach a conclusion on what’s going on here. It’s time to end the innuendo and be clear about how to get to a stage where a guy can win this unique sporting event without cheating or being accused of cheating.

• Chelsea fans who refused to let the black guy onto the tube in Paris have been banned from going to football for five years. The lazy reaction has been “typical Chelsea”, as if we should expect fans of that club to have been born racist. You know what? They’re not. To twist a phrase on its head, some of my best friends are Chelsea fans. I’m an Arsenal supporter and I’d hate it if everybody beyond Ashburton Grove immediately wrote us all off as bigots just because some of the idiots who say they are Gooners sing anti-semitic songs about Spurs fans. In the past Arsenal “fans” have made hissing gas chamber noises. I’m glad that such hideous behaviour is rarely seen now, but such prejudice will only be beaten if supporters of rival clubs stand shoulder to shoulder, rather than using court cases like this for cheap point-scoring.

• Australia are wicked cads. It turns out they had lulled us into a false sense of security all along, bumming us a freebie in the first Ashes test, soaking up our unwarranted crowing and then whacking us for a zillion runs in the second match. It is going to be unbearable if the lads from Shepherd’s Bush take this series. What was so disappointing this time, however, was the way England surrendered wicket after wicket on Sunday afternoon. The white flag went up and one batsman went to the crease after another looking like he wanted to be home in time for the Antiques Roadshow. More effort, more resolve, please. The fans at Lord’s deserved better.

• If we can’t be Australia at cricket, we’ll get the chance to level the scores on a tennis court in the Davis Cup semi-finals later this year. What an amazing feat for Great Britain, who not so long ago were playing their international matches in a shopping centre in Scotland with the rank amateurs in the tournament’s lower echelons. It’s a team contest but let’s be honest, Andy Murray his driven us there. To beat the Lleyton Hewitt and Aussies, and progress to the final is almost too tantalising a treat to contemplate.