All posts by h716a5.icu

Zimbabwe Board XI delayed the inevitable for a while before the Pakistan Academy sealed a 202-run win with 30 minutes to go before tea on Monday

Cricinfo staff26-Aug-2008
ScorecardZimbabwe Board XI delayed the inevitable for a while before the Pakistan Academy sealed a 202-run win with 30 minutes to go before tea on the final day.Resuming on 34 for 2 in their second innings with a deficit of 362 runs, none of the Zimbabwe batsmen were able to mount meaningful resistance to a potent Pakistan spin attack. Tafadzwa Kamungozi stood his ground with a defiant 37 at No.9 before he was bowled by the left-arm spinner, Ahmed Shehzad.The chief destroyer was the Yasir Shah, the legspinner, who varied his flight to the discomfort of the Zimbabwean batsmen. He claimed the wickets of Bonaparte Mujuru (14), Erick Chauluka (22), Timycen Maruma (18), Sam Mwakayeni (18), and Regis Chakabva (19).Junaid Khan picked up two of the eight wickets, drawing a reflex catch from wicketkeeper Naeem Anjum to remove Patient Charumbira for 22, and bowling last man Prosper Tsvanhu for one. Trevor Garwe, the No.10, was left stranded on 28.Pakistan dominated this match in all departments, and it is now expected that the Zimbabwe selectors will infuse the team with some national first-teamers for the second four-day match which begins on Friday.

Michael Ball has called for Manchester City to spend their money wisely and not pay over the odds for Harry Kane.

Kane has been among City boss Pep Guardiola’s top summer targets since the England captain publicly confirmed he was eager to leave Tottenham Hotspur in a bid to challenge for more silverware.

The Sun reported Kane was set to get his wish and join the current Premier League champions in a £160million deal after Spurs chairman Daniel Levy sanctioned the move. However, City dismissed claims of the transfer, which would break the British transfer record, being agreed.

Kane finished last season as the Premier League’s Golden Boot winner and also registered the most assists, resulting in him snapping up the Playmaker award.

Guardiola is looking to strengthen his attacking options after seeing club legend Sergio Aguero depart following the expiry of his contract and join Spanish giants Barcelona.

While he believes Kane is the ideal replacement for Aguero, former City left-back Ball does not feel the 28-year-old is worth £160million.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, he said: “I hope they don’t pay £160million but I hope Harry Kane still goes to Manchester City.

“They need that type of player to push for that Champions League, which is what they’re craving.

“If they feel £160million is worth it to make that happen, so be it.”

The verbal battle between Digicel and Stanford 20/20 continued yesterday with Digicel reacting to a Stanford’s rejection of its compromise offer with a statement accusing the tournament organisers of “inaccuracies” in its press release

Cricinfo staff22-Sep-2008
Allen Stanford: caught in a row with West Indies’ sponsors, Digicel © Getty Images
The possibility of November’s Stanford 20/20 for 20 match being scrapped increased over the weekend after attempts to broker a compromise in a row between the Stanford organisers and Digicel, the multi-million dollar sponsors of the West Indies Cricket Board, failed.Digicel maintains that its existing five-year deal with the WICB includes the Stanford match as it is officially sanctioned by the board and the team is, in effect, a fully representative side. Stanford counters that it is not an official side and, as such, is outside any existing sponsorship deal.The matter has already reached the High Court in London where Digicel were granted an injunction against Stanford proceeding with the event, and arbitration is due to begin on October 3. Last week, Digicel issued a three-point offer, but this was rejected on Saturday by Stanford.Yesterday, Digicel issued a terse statement in which it accused the tournament organisers of “inaccuracies” in its press release and questioning the willingness of the Stanford set-up to resolve the matter.Digicel also claimed that Stanford officials have refused to meet to discuss the stand-off, adding that they had also declined to engage in any negotiations involving the West Indies board. “Digicel’s response to Stanford’s weak proposal urged the parties to continue negotiating and to focus efforts on finding an acceptable compromise solution,” a spokesman said. “Regrettably, Stanford flatly refused to meet with all parties and stated categorically that it refused to engage in any negotiation process involving the WICB.”A media release issued on Sunday by Digicel said it had sought to hold meetings with Stanford and the WICB in the light of the rejection of its compromise offer, but instead Stanford had themselves issued a media release blaming Digicel for the stalemate.”Whilst Digicel would not argue with Stanford’s entitlement to communicate with the media as it sees fits, it would point out that Stanford declined to properly explain in its release that the proposal put forward by it was expressly limited to one year as distinct from mirroring the duration of Digicel’s exclusive sponsorship agreement with the WICB,” Digicel said. “Further, the press release declined to explain the various restrictions which Stanford sought to impose on Digicel.”The WICB has remained almost silent in recent days as Digicel, its premier sponsor, and Stanford, a source of tremendous revenue and exposure for Caribbean cricket, slug it out in the media.But there is a growing concern that the row could threaten the Stanford 20/20 for 20 match. Neither side has shown any willingness to back down, and a sponsorship insider told Cricinfo that “Digicel has been pushed as far as it is prepared to go”. He continued: “The company is very confident about its legal ground on this one.”If arbitration fails to produce a settlement then the high court would have less than a fortnight to hear the case and make a decision. The Stanford warm-up matches start on October 25.

The Australians are trying to extract as much as they can from the match against Board President’s XI in preparation for the first Test in Bangalore

The Preview by Sriram Veera in Hyderabad01-Oct-2008
Matthew Hayden pads up for a long net session © AFP
The mood in the two camps couldn’t have presented a starker contrast. The Australians were looking to absorb as much as possible from a net session in preparation for the Test series. The India hopefuls in the Board President’s XI, on the other hand, endured a nail-biting wait for news of the Test squad that ended in disappointment for everyone except S Badrinath.Yuvraj Singh, the captain, tried to say the right things in the pre-match press conference in Hyderabad. “There can be changes any time in the team,” he said. “I am sure if anybody performs in this game it won’t go unnoticed. Everyone is aware of that. Even if you’re not selected, you still have to go there and give 100%.”No such ambiguity for the Australian machine, which rolled on in Hyderabad with another intense session to keep the momentum going from Jaipur. Their coach Tim Nielsen considered it perfect fine-tuning for the series ahead. “It’s winter in Australia. It’s cold and we don’t have turf wickets of the same quality and soil as we have here,” he said. “Jaipur was perfect. We have this game in Hyderabad and then another couple of days of training before the first Test. We should be as ready as we can be for the Indian spinners come the first Test.”Strategic planning Practising under a harsh sun, two Australian batsmen stood out for their perseverance: Matthew Hayden and Ricky Ponting, who occupied adjacent nets after their team-mates left. Ponting’s batting – he repeatedly came out to the spinners, trying to reach the pitch of the ball – was revealing. He took an off-stump guard against offspinner Jason Krejza, placing his back foot in line with middle. Ponting had succeeded against Muttiah Muralitharan by getting outside the line of off stump and playing with the turn on the leg side. However, against Harbhajan Singh, he has repeatedly lunged forward and perished. Perhaps today’s method is an indication of the tactics he is likely to employ against Harbhajan. Hayden had Nielsen throw balls at him from various angles with constant instructions. “Mate, round the wickets please, now pitch it on this length, a touch fuller, more bounce.” Once, missing three sweeps in a row, he uttered an expletive and was audibly cross with himself: “What sort of practice are you doing?” He took guard again and allowed himself a smile after connecting. Ponting and Nielsen left after 30 minutes but Hayden faced the bowling machine. He simulated deliveries bowled from different angles by right-arm and left-arm bowlers and left after 20 minutes. Australia do have a couple of worries, though. Bryce McGain, their frontline spinner, has already been ruled out of the first Test with a shoulder injury and might be on the flight back home soon. Allrounder Shane Watson has been laid up for the past 24 hours with viral fever.”At the moment we are making sure he [Watson] gets fit. We also wanted to keep him away from the rest of the group so that no one else is affected,” Nielsen said. “We will know tomorrow morning whether he is fit to play.”However, they don’t have any concerns about the pitch. “It should be a good batting wicket for the first two days before it starts spinning,” Nielsen said. “That’s the whole point; to expose our players to more of the Indian conditions over the next four days.”Nielsen said the selection for the Bangalore Test is still wide open. “We will get a better idea of who has best adjusted to the conditions once this game is over and also see what mix of left-handers and right-handers the Indian team will have. That will also affect the selection of our bowling attack.”Mitchell Johnson is under the most pressure. He had a poor series in the Caribbean that accentuated an inability to bring the ball back into the right-hander. His competition is Doug Bollinger, the left-arm swing bowler, and Peter Siddle, the right-arm fast man.Bollinger is currently the frontrunner to challenge Johnson and appeared bullish on his chances. “I bowled well for Australia A in the last series,” Bollinger told Cricinfo. “I am getting the ball to swing in and I’m confident of pushing my case for selection with another good performance here.”The circumstances have made the game a mouth-watering prospect. The Australians are gathering steam ahead of Bangalore while several in the Board President’s line-up, like Yuvraj Singh, have a point to prove to themselves, and to the selectors.

When thinking of those to turn out for both Everton and Manchester United, who comes to mind?

The most famous example is undeniably Wayne Rooney. A teenage whizzkid at the time of his transfer, Rooney left Goodison Park behind in a mega deal.

Marouane Fellaini was another Toffees player to make a similar leap but more often than not, it’s Everton signing players from Old Trafford.

Whether it’s Tim Howard, Phil Neville or even Peter Beardsley, Everton have had some fantastic servants who have also played in the famous red jersey.

However, the man we want to focus on is a certain Louis Saha. That’s because Everton could sign his fellow Frenchman, Anthony Martial, this summer.

The Toffees have been put off by Martial’s salary demands but with United looking to shunt him from their wage bill, a move could be on the cards.

Kevin Campbell certainly seems to think so as well, urging the Merseyside outfit to sign him on a potential loan deal.

Acquired for £36m from Monaco, Martial made an instant splash in Manchester but his career has gone downhill in recent years. He’s not been a regular starter but he still found the net on seven occasions last term.

Described as “unstoppable” by Stephen Elliot, the attacker has plenty of attributes that stood out in Saha’s game too. Not only have they played for the same club and hail from the same nation but they’re both incredibly quick.

Talking about the retired striker in a feature on These Football Times, Kieran Stewart wrote: “His fantastic first touch, pace and power were allowing him to adjust well to the Premier League.”

Funnily enough, that’s an area of Martial’s game that Saha has praised in the past: “He’s got that speed, that power, he’s got that youth in him so he’ll surprise a lot of defenders because they don’t know him,” the former Everton star once said.

Saha found the net on 34 occasions in 115 outings for the Toffees while his fellow countryman has scored 78 in 258 matches for the Red Devils.

That means that for their respective clubs, they have both scored a goal every 3.3 matches. The comparisons between the duo are clear to see.

AND in other news, Fabrizio Romano delivers exciting Everton transfer update, fans surely buzzing…

An update has emerged regarding Leeds’ reported interest in Torino midfielder Sasa Lukic.

What’s the talk?

According to Tutto Mercato Web, the Whites are interested in a deal to sign the 24-year-old this summer. Leeds are keen on the Serbian, as are Russian giants Spartak Moscow, and could make a move for him before the end of the transfer window.

The midfielder recently commented on speculation over his future, saying: “I don’t read the newspapers much. It’s normal for a player to be the subject of rumors (about his future) but I don’t think about that.

“I am a Toro player and I plan to do well this season. It’s my fifth year (at the club) and I feel like home.

“Every year I try to do the best I can: last year I got off to a good start, then Covid stopped me for a few weeks and I couldn’t go back like before. But I am working hard. I hope to have a good season, myself and the whole team.”

Fans would be fuming

Leeds chief Victor Orta has to avoid making a costly blunder with Lukic this month. He must avoid lashing out a big fee on the Serbian as it could represent a blunder in the transfer market given his form throughout his career in Serie A.

There are a couple of reasons why this could work for Leeds. For starters, his versatility has seen him play as a holding, central and attacking midfield player for Torino in Italy. This shows that he is capable of adapting to several different roles, which could come in handy for Marcelo Bielsa should injuries or suspensions arise.

Lukic also has room to improve at the age of 24. This means that he is not the finished article and could have more development left in him, which Bielsa could potentially unlock through his coaching. These two reasons are why he could be a decent addition if the price is minimal.

However, there has been nothing to suggest that this will be a loan deal or one where Torino are happy to let him go on the cheap, especially when there is interest from multiple clubs, which could spark a bidding war. If Leeds do need to shell out a sizeable fee for him, then they must avoid it completely.

Fans would be frustrated to see the club take a gamble on Lukic given his performances for Torino in recent years. Last season, he averaged a lowly WhoScored rating of 6.48 in Serie A across 32 appearances, which was still an improvement from the 6.31 he managed in 30 games the previous campaign.

This shows that his performances have been statistically poor in Italy, which is why Leeds fans might not be happy to see him join unless it’s a loan or on a very cheap deal. If he has been unable to perform consistently in Serie A, that might well also be the case in the Premier League, so  Orta must avoid a costly howler with Lukic in this transfer window.

AND in other news, Leeds handed boost over maestro who has “something special”, Bielsa will be delighted…

Daniel Vettori, the New Zealand captain, has praised his team for fighting back to win the first Test against Bangladesh in Chittagong

Cricinfo staff21-Oct-2008
Daniel Vettori: “I still think we are a long way off from playing to our potential but we got the job done here and that has been pleasing” © AFP
Daniel Vettori, the New Zealand captain, has praised his team for fighting back to win the first Test against Bangladesh in Chittagong. New Zealand were dismissed for 171 in the first innings, conceded a lead of 74, were set a target of 317 and completed the victory with three wickets in hand.”We didn’t play all that well in our first batting innings,” Vettori said. “We were pretty disappointed and the guys knew that it was not really acceptable putting on only 171. But I was pleased with the fightback to restrict Bangladesh to 240-odd in both innings because the pitch got better as the game went on. I still think we are a long way off from playing to our potential but we got the job done here and that has been pleasing.”New Zealand scraped through by three wickets largely due to a Man-of-the-Match performance from Vettori with both bat and ball. He took nine wickets and scored two half-centuries: his 76 in the second innings played a crucial part in New Zealand’s victory.”I was there as a nightwatchman,” Vettori said for he had come in at No. 4 late on the fourth day. “Obviously I played well in the first innings and thought that it was easier for a left-hander to play the spinners so I wanted to put myself up the order. I had some pretty good form and gave myself a chance before the next new ball and it worked out pretty well. I think it is always important for the captain to set standards so it was pleasing for me to have made a contribution with bat and ball.”Vettori underlined the concerns over the New Zealand batting, which has struggled throughout the tour, but lauded the efforts of the youngsters in the team. “We just asked our batsmen to put in a bit more commitment. Our batting hasn’t always stood up to the test but over the last day and a half it was very pleasing, particularly the performances of Aaron Redmond, who was playing his first Test in the subcontinent, and Daniel Flynn. The conditions weren’t easy but for those two young guys to stand up and show us that they want to perform has been very exciting for us as a team.”He gave credit to Bangladesh and believed they were “good enough to stay in Test cricket”, especially with the talent present in the squad. While Shakib Al Hasan stood out for the hosts with his first-innings figures of 7-36 and a gritty 71 in the second, Abdur Razzak was equally impressive with the ball and did most of the damage during the chase.”I was particularly impressed with Shakib. He maintained his line and length, bowled a lot and obviously batted well,” Vettori said. “For a young guy coming into his seventh or eighth Test match to bowl that well consistently must be very encouraging for the Bangladesh side. Shakib and Razzak bowled exceptionally well throughout the Test so it was not an easy challenge. If you look at the Bangladesh players from an individual level there are some really talented guys and now they have got to try and put it together as a team.”Having taken in a 1-0 lead, New Zealand will look to wrap up the two-Test series. The second Test begins on Saturday in Dhaka.

The 320-run drubbing for Australia at the hands of India in Mohali means the hosts have all the momentum and confidence going into the third Test

The Preview by S Rajesh28-Oct-2008
Amit Mishra might be reduced to doing the waterboy’s job again despite his outstanding debut in Mohali © Getty Images
Match factsOct 29-Nov 2, 2008
Start time 9.30am (0400 GMT)Big Picture The 320-run drubbing for Australia at the hands of India in Mohali means the hosts have all the momentum and confidence going into the third Test, in Delhi. The leadership might have changed hands – Anil Kumble takes over from the inspired Mahendra Singh Dhoni – but that is unlikely to affect the buoyant Indians, especially given the track record of team and captain at this venue: India have won the last seven Tests here, and Kumble has a rich haul of 55 wickets from six Tests at an average of 15.41. Almost all the Indian batsmen have been among the runs in this series, the fast bowlers have asked plenty of questions of the opposition batsmen with their reverse-swing and accuracy, and the spinners – including a debutant – have helped themselves to a bagful of wickets as well. Things couldn’t be any rosier for India.For Ricky Ponting, though, the tour has been full of thorns. His own form has come undone after a splendid start in Bangalore, but even worse, he could only watch helplessly as his team was completely outclassed in Mohali. The one-week break could not have come at a better time for Australia, and while Ponting has said the team’s work ethic has been outstanding during this period – “Steve Waugh was at training yesterday [Monday] and he said he’d never seen a team train as well as we did” – what matters is how the players translate that into performance in the middle. Australia have so far been badly let down by the senior players – Ponting, Matthew Hayden, Michael Clarke and Brett Lee have all been below par – and they need at least a couple of them to turn in match-winning performances to claw back in the series.Form guide (last 5 Tests)India WDLWL
Australia LDWDWWatch out forMatthew Hayden hasn’t been among the runs so far, but he is too good a player to go four Tests without making a significant contribution. He was unlucky with a couple of marginal decisions in Bangalore, and if the rub of the green goes his way Hayden could well stamp his authority on the Delhi Test.Michael Clarke has had a lean run so far, twice falling in the last over of the day, but his 69 in Mohali showed he is coming to terms with the conditions in India. His ability to use his feet against spin makes him a key member of Australia’s batting line-up.Anil Kumble: You can’t argue with his record in Delhi: 55 wickets in six Tests at an average of 15.41. Even if he isn’t at his deadliest, Kumble could be a major threat here.Sehwag and Gambhir: The Feroz Shah Kotla is the home ground for both Indian openers, and given their form in the series so far, expect more fireworks from them at the start of India’s innings.Team newsKumble is certain to return to the team, which means Amit Mishra, who made an outstanding debut in Mohali, or Harbhajan Singh will make way. Mishra would have sat out in normal circumstances, but a toe injury that Harbhajan sustained towards the end of the Mohali Test makes matters more uncertain, with a final decision expected only on the morning of the match.India 1 Gautam Gambhir, 2 Virender Sehwag, 3 Rahul Dravid, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 Sourav Ganguly, 6 VVS Laxman, 7 Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), 8 Anil Kumble (capt), 9 Harbhajan Singh/ Amit Mishra, 10 Zaheer Khan, 11 Ishant Sharma.Stuart Clark is back in the reckoning after missing the previous match due an elbow injury. He will replace Peter Siddle, while Jason Krejza has been named in the 12-man shortlist as well. Krejza had a terrible time in the tour game, and it’s unlikely Australia will take a chance with him even in conditions expected to favour spin.Australia (likely) 1 Matthew Hayden, 2 Simon Katich, 3 Ricky Ponting (capt), 4 Michael Clarke, 5 Michael Hussey, 6 Shane Watson, 7 Brad Haddin (wk), 8 Cameron White, 9 Brett Lee, 10 Mitchell Johnson, 11 Stuart Clark.Pitch & conditionsRadhey Shyam, the curator, has a track record of making pitches which suit Kumble, and there is every likelihood of another spin-friendly surface over the next five days. If that’s the case the toss could be crucial yet again. Though the weather is expected to remain clear, the morning smog and the early sunset could both eat into playing time.Stats & Trivia India have won the last seven Tests in Delhi, but in the 20-year period from 1972 to 1992, they hadn’t won a single match out of 11, losing five and drawing six. Kumble has won the Man-of-the-Match award in the last two Tests in Delhi. Overall, three of his ten match awards have come in Delhi. In all 29 Tests here, the captain winning the toss has chosen to bat. However, out of 16 decisive results, the team winning the toss has won the game only five times. England are the only overseas team to win the toss and the match. Even though India have won the last seven Tests here, they’ve struggled with their opening partnerships: the average stand during this period is 17.23, with only one half-century stand in 13 innings. Opposition teams have fared only slightly better, averaging 24.71 in 14 innings. The overall opening stand of 21.11 in the last seven Tests suggests there’s something in the track for the new-ball bowlers. Spinners have taken nearly two-thirds of the wickets here in the last seven Tests – their 141 wickets have come at an average of 27.52. Fast and medium-fast bowlers have taken 76 wickets at 39.08. Quotes”I’ve tried to completely dismiss last week. It was one of those games where we were totally outplayed and what you’ve got to do is look at reasons why. You learn your lessons and push on.”
“Going by the record we have at the Kotla and the kind of cricket we played in Mohali, it certainly gives us a lot of confidence going into the game. We are fully confident that we will be able to win the series here.”

West Bromwich Albion journalist Luke Hatfield has urged Arsenal to swoop for Sam Johnstone instead of Aaron Ramsdale this summer.

The Gunners have been linked with a bid for Sheffield United goalkeeper Ramsdale after the club were relegated from the Premier League.

Sky Sports reports that they have already seen two bids rejected for the Blades stopper and have been considering a third that could see the value of a move increase to £25m in total.

However, Hatfield believes that a deal to sign Johnstone from West Bromwich Albion would make more financial sense for the Gunners.

The England international has been linked with West Ham United but the Hammers have signed Alphonse Areola on loan from PSG instead, seemingly ending any hope of a deal.

As a result, Hatfield thinks that the Baggies would be willing to let Johnstone go for a fee of around £12m as they look to raise funds after their own relegation.

He said: “The Arsenal stuff is interesting because Ramsdale is a good goalkeeper, don’t get me wrong, but if I were to pick a goalkeeper out of the two, I’d probably go for Johnstone at the moment.

“I know Ramsdale is younger but the fee Arsenal are looking to pay, you see reports of £30 million, I have no idea why they’re not even considering Sam Johnstone for less than half of that.

“You’d imagine Albion will probably sell for between £10m or £15m. If you go in with £12 million, I think West Brom will probably consider that and say ‘this is probably a deal that’s worth going for’.”

Southampton will be looking to add a centre-back to their squad following Jannik Vestergaard’s departure, but it seems as if Nat Phillips isn’t an option for Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side this summer.

The Liverpool defender, who enjoyed a run in Jurgen Klopp’s side last season due to the injuries suffered by Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomes and Joel Matip, has been touted as a potential option for the Saints this summer.

However, in a recent article for Hampshire Live, journalist Tom Leach has seemingly rubbished any chance of Southampton bringing the 24-year-old to St Mary’s, writing:

“Liverpool defender Nat Phillips is a reported transfer target but is not thought to be an option Saints are considering at this present time.”

Hasenhuttl has just Jan Bednarek, Mohammed Salisu and Jack Stephens as senior centre-back options in his squad following Vestergaard’s move to Leicester City earlier this week, and if their opening day defeat against Everton is anything to go by, the Austrian desperately needs another option at the back before the transfer window shuts.

Considering the aerial prowess that Vestergaard offered Southampton last season, signing Phillips as his replacement would have made a lot of sense, given that the 24-year-old averaged a superb 5.6 aerials won per game last season for Liverpool, with Klopp labelling him a “monster in the air” after his Premier League debut against West Ham.

At just 24-year-old, the £7.2m-rated Englishman has plenty of time to improve and would fit Hasenhuttl’s mantra of signing younger players, whilst he also offers Champions League experience having featured heavily at the back for Klopp in last season’s campaign.

Therefore, it seems strange that Southampton seemingly aren’t considering the Liverpool man, as he looks unlikely to feature regularly this season unless the Reds suffer another injury crisis, given that they have also added Ibrahima Konate to their squad, which suggests that he could be available at a cut-price.

[freshpress-quiz id=“594431”]

Therefore, Southampton fans may well be disappointed to hear Leach’s latest update on the powerful centre-back, as he could’ve been an excellent addition the squad.

And, in other news… Lost possession 23x: Saints ace disappointed vs Everton at Goodison Park