All posts by h716a5.icu

Damien Fleming explains a few of the concepts he cooked up, his fondness for hard-rock and dishes on who hid a Britney Spears CD in their bag

Sidharth Monga13-Jan-2015What is the whole bowlologist concept?
You say as though it is a negative, with that bit of frown over there.I know the serious side of it, but I mean stuff like Avenue of Apprehension…
We played this beach cricket series. Australia, New Zealand, England, West Indies. Really good fun. Great way to play with legends like Viv Richards and Thommo [Jeff Thomson] and Dennis Lillee and Richard Hadlee. I remember talking to Sir Richard one night. About Geoff Boycott’s Corridor of Uncertainty. I can’t remember what exactly, but Sir Richard wanted to ban that. Next day on he said, “I am going to ban it, let’s come up with some options.” And so we came up with Avenue of Apprehension, Snick Street, and Hallway of Hesitation. But what I did was, I used other people’s ideas and used them as mine. Mixture of me and people coming up with stuff on Twitter and stuff.Were you always wacky?
We are in the entertainment business. Even Test cricket is entertainment. I want to make sure I am insightful and take the game seriously, but if there is a chance to have fun, do that. I was someone who could provide a bit of humour, I suppose. Sometimes intentional, sometimes unintentional. Just by being pretty sloppy. Boys reckoned I used to talk a lot of rubbish when I was playing, but guess who is in the media now. Bad luck, lads.How did you turn out like this?
I roomed with Merv Hughes for six years. I left school and got picked two weeks later at the age of 18 years. Nothing prepares you for that. No wonder my personality is slightly off the kilt, because to room with Merv for six years and survive, one, I deserve a medal, and two, I am not going to come out normal. I blame it on Mervyn Hughes.How was your first night with him?
It was in Queensland. Tony Dodemaide and Michael di Venuto wished me luck going up in the lift. I went, “What am I in for here?” Going in there, [Hughes asked], “What bed do you want? Double or single?” I said single. And he went, “Aww gee, you are good to room with.” And then he ended up putting his arm around me and said, “Mate, you will be all right.”We didn’t room together only one time in those six years, and we lost, so went back together. He taught me a lot about cricket. For all the fun and games, he is a very mentally tough cricketer. I learned the level that I needed to be at. You need those role models when starting out, and you need to be a role model.Tell us more about rooming with him
We have got our own clubs. I have got a Test-hat-trick-for-Australia-on-debut club. Table for one each year. Merv and I form the club with Test hat-tricks and Test 70s club. So obviously Merv was the first. Me. We inducted Shane Warne last year. He never turns up, Warnie. Merv wanted to get Dennis Lillee, but he has got a 70 but no hat-trick. I threw in Glenn Mcgrath’s name, but Merv mentioned he doesn’t have a 70. It is a small club, but we catch up.What’s with Australian fast bowlers and scores in the 70s?
Well Rhino joined us. I rang Merv. No, Merv texts me saying, “hope Rhino gets a hat-trick. Hoping to induct him.”So just a club of two?
We are waiting. Warnie never bloody turns up, does he?Was it difficult to be yourself while being in and out of the side?
I never got dropped a lot. I helped the selectors by getting injured. I am sure if I was uninjured I would have been dropped a lot more.What did you tell Warnie and what did Warnie tell you after that drop?
I still haven’t spoken to him after that. I am not happy with it.Did you see the skit we did on Cricket Australia’s website. Make sure you plug that in the article.When I speak at corporate gigs, I build up the story a fair bit. I like to say I was on a second hat-trick, and I wasn’t that nervous because I had taken test hat-tricks before. I had got bored, really. In all seriousness, when I released the ball, and you don’t have enough time to think this, “Oh no it’s wide, oh beauty Srinath has nicked it, you beauty it’s going straight for Warnie, oh no Warnie has dropped it.” I wasn’t disappointed. We had beaten India to go one-up in the series, I took 5 for 30 so I am on the honours board, but the only thing I am disappointed about is, 5 for 30 is up there but how good would 6 for 29, including a hat-trick look? Just the 6 for 29 including the hat-trick on honours board. That’s my regret. In a statistical way, it would have been nice. But I have a story to tell.You could have started another club…
Two Test hat-tricks. Just for one. I could merge it with Australians-with-hat-tricks-on-Test-debut club.The one that slipped from Shane Warne at slip left Damien Fleming with hands on hips•Getty ImagesYou fast bowlers seem to have a strong bond…
We call ourselves the fast-bowling cartel. Obviously Glenn McGrath is the president. But the rest of us, we didn’t have a bowling coach when we were there. But the fast bowlers, we would talk about the opposition, we’d talk about what we were going to do and even to this day, you can just see we are talking over cricket. James Sutherland, an ex-fast bowler is the CEO of Cricket Australia, Tony Dodemaide [for] Cricket Victoria, Glenn McGrath’s doing a lot of things, Kasper [Michael Kasprowicz] is on the board. I am in the media. Dizzy [Jason Gillespie] is Yorkshire coach. We have an Indian brand ambassador as well. Srinath is an ICC match referee.But there is N Srinivasan there who has never bowled…
He’s not part of the cartel.But he controls everything…
At the moment, yes. But the fast-bowling cartel is sitting here, boys.Did you share Dizzy’s love of wrestling?
We actually – not that it should be allowed to be shown in public – but we got a bit bored on the 2001 series in India. In Delhi, I think. We mixed mini-golf with WWF. We called it Slam Punk Mania 2001. So we dressed up and we filmed it all. Just for the boys. But as you’d imagine, with the Indian people that were staying at the hotel, we ended up with a massive crowd thinking, ‘what the hell is going on?’What names did you have?
All I can say is, I was FFF. I’ll say that, but I don’t want to say the rest. Dizzy was Goofball Gillespie. And what was Kasper? He was the Hooded Avenger. He had a bit of a sock as an ally.Have you read any wrestling books?
I’ve read Hulk Hogan. I borrowed it off Dizzy. He used to love him, Mankind and all those guys.Were there cracks in the cartel when it came to music?
Dizzy and Kasper are very close because we are big hard-rock fans as well. That’s one thing I liked about India. India liked their rock. So you knew you can always buy rock CDs in India.Heavy metal?
I can go pretty heavy. Metallica, Megadeth, Anthrax. I go as heavy as that. That would be the limit for probably Kasper and Dizzy. But you know AC/DC, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Alice In Chains. I am more a big rock fan.The only disagreement we had in the Australian dressing room was what went on the rockbox. We had the hard-rock guys like Kasper, Dizzy and me. And the big little head-banger David Boon. Loved his Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin. Cause he is a legend, I gave him a Motley Crew CD, and we get a few plays out of it. Because no one wanted to take Boony on. But when he retired, I had no one. So they chucked them out.Then we had the pretty-boy bands. Like Warnie, he likes ABBA and Aqua, and Ricky Martin. Ricky Martin? Warnie. Binga Brett Lee and Blewy [Greg Blewett]. The worst thing is they all knew the dance moves to Backstreet Boys and all that. And we are going, “Jeez.” It was the near the end of Michael Slater’s career that I found a Britney Spears CD in his bag, and I am not lying. And I was like, ‘Mickey, you’re out, mate. You can’t open the batting for Australia.’But they weren’t the worst. The worst were the country and western fans. Guys who liked Kenny Rogers and Johnny Denver, and an Australian guy called John Williamson. Like Steve Waugh, the captain.And that’s where you saw the guys who wanted to please their captain. Like Justin Langer and Hayden and Gilchrist. They would act like they actually liked that music just to get the captain handy. So that was the only dissension in there. I think that shortened my career. I had serious arguments with Steve Waugh, which we still have. There’s still a bit of friction. We play a little bit of golf together, me and Steve. And we’ve been partners, and we haven’t been winning. I reckon that our music dissension doesn’t help us gel as a team.Did you ever play Megadeth in the dressing room?
Yeah, yeah yeah. We’d get set periods where we would get to put it on. Particularly, Warnie hates my music. His brother Jason loves my music. So he would be like, “You’re like my brother.” And he hates it. For every Megadeth song or Metallica song from , you hear . And you’re like, “Are you serious?” Ricky Martin, , what you doing? And you’re dancing to it? Seriously how about you get a few more runs? Then we would get Holy Wars on. Then we’d get Metallica on.Did bad music bring around bad results?
I had bowled pretty well in this ODI series in 2001. I had got a few 2 or 3 for 30s. We got slogged a bit. And I don’t even know where it was. We are about to go out and bowl. Warnie has on. Phil Collins. That’s the atheist of rock ‘n’ roll. I said to John Buchanan. “John, you expect me to go out and be a fiery fast bowler, bounce Tendulkar and Ganguly, and rip into them with in my ear?” Go out there, of course I get 0 for 60 off 10 [0 for 53 off eight]. Walk in, see John Buchanan, and all I say, “Are you happy?” And walk away. That was my last ODI in India.What did Buchanan like?
Buey was pretty happy if the team was happy. He would float everywhere. He didn’t mind a bit of banter. He didn’t mind a little bit of friction within the dressing rooms .He thrived on them a bit. He would have meetings and pose questions. Mark Waugh would be asleep. The rest of us would listen. I reckon he was pretty easy.Who knows, he might have been writing his own tunes?
He might have been. He was a bit loopy, Buey. Pink Floyd might have been up his alley. He was a little out there, John.What does bowlology recommend?
This is in the bowlology handbook, fast bowlers have got to listen to hard rock. If you are going to bowl fast, you have just got to rock. I used to have a pump-up tape and a mellow tape. Just if I was getting a little bit over. But mellow for me was AC/DC or Pearl Jam.What about the mullets?
I did have one early. I had one halfway down the back. Kasper never. He didn’t have the head-cut for a mullet. Glenn didn’t either. Glenn had that Dumb Dumber Christmas look for a while there.You would have heard Parables Of Glenn McGrath’s Haircut?
No, but Glenn was, like Merv, a pest in the dressing room. He is always throwing forks and knives. He is a real wildlife person. Whereas I was more witty comments. I was always there as a bit of wingman if someone wants to go out for a bit of a beer. I liked the social side of things. And not getting famous enough so you can’t go out and enjoy things.It’s all part of being in a team, the camaraderie. Something I really enjoyed. The fun we had away from the game. But also we were very fortunate that there was still the fun side to it in the mid-’90s. Where we still celebrate pretty hard. Because we won quite often. Only towards the end that we started to get more professional and paid more. That era from ’93-ish to early 2000s we started to get paid well, but we could still have a real life outside the game.

As well as looking to give Ola Aina a new contract, Nottingham Forest are also keen on tying down another key player, with Nuno Espirito Santo pushing for it to happen, according to a new report.

It has been an excellent start to the Premier League season for the Reds, as they have lost just one of their seven games and already have a comfortable cushion above the relegation places.

Nottingham Forest plot Ola Aina contract talks amid £10m Roma transfer plan

Nottingham Forest face a battle to retain one of Nuno’s key players.

ByBrett Worthington Oct 9, 2024 Nottingham Forest news

Forest secured a 1-1 draw with Chelsea over the weekend, but it was bitter sweat as their talisman Morgan Gibbs-White suffered an injury. There was concern he may be missing for a few weeks, but Forest are hoping to have Gibbs-White back available for their game against Crystal Palace after the international break.

As stated before, one player that Forest are already looking to tie down to a new contract is Aina, as he’s entered the final year of his deal at the City Ground. The Reds are set to open contract talks with the defender soon, as they now face a battle to retain his services.

Italian side AS Roma are keen on signing Aina, and they believe they can sign him for around £10-12 million, given the fact he is in the final year of his deal. Aina has played in Italy before, and Roma believe this works to their advantage, as he will fit well into their team and knows their manager, Ivan Juric, as he played under him at Torino.

While Forest and Evangelos Marinakis aim to tie Aina down to a new contract, they are also keen to give a new contract to another player who has become important under Nuno.

Nuno wants Nottingham Forest to open contract talks with Chris Wood

According to talkSPORT reporter Alex Crook, Nottingham Forest are keen to tie Chris Wood down to a new contract. The New Zealand international is now in the final year of his contract at the City Ground, and the club are keen to extend his stay beyond this campaign.

Wood joined Forest first on loan from Newcastle United in January 2023, and then that deal was made into a permanent switch that summer after he helped play a role in the club staying in the top flight.

The 32-year-old, who earns £4.1 million a year at the City Ground, has become a key player under manager Nuno, and it is him who is pushing the club to give the striker a new contract. The forward has made an impressive start to this season, and he has already come in for high praise, as Match of the Day 2 pundit Stephen Warnock labelled Wood as an “outstanding” player who offers so much to the team as well as his goals.

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Warnock said on Wood: “They’ve got Morgan Gibbs-White, Anthony Elanga, and Callum Hudson-Odoi; it’s pace in attack.

“But I’ve got to say Chris Wood is outstanding. Not only his goals, but as a focal point, he takes the pressure off the rest of the team.”

After a torrid season so far, which has seen them Everton to 19th in the Premier League table, their fans might finally have some good news to celebrate.

Indeed, the Toffees are believed to be close to getting new owners at the club, after months of unhappy protesting against their current majority owner Farhad Moshiri.

The BBC, along with other major news outlets in England, have recently reported that The Friedkin Group has reached an agreement to buy Farhad Moshiri’s majority 94% stake in Everton for a whopping fee of £400m.

It is a deal that will lead to great change for Everton, which could even include a new manager.

Everton target former England manager

According to reports, the Toffees’ new owners could replace current boss Sean Dyche with the recently departed England manager Gareth Southgate.

After failing at the final hurdle of the European Championships for the second consecutive time, the former Three Lions boss parted ways with the FA and is yet to take up a new role.

Southgate’s only club job to date is that of Middlesbrough between June 2006 and October 2009 but according to GIVEMESPORT, the new prospective Toffees owner Friedkin has ‘spoken about Southgate as an ambitious option to potentially succeed Dyche’ at Goodison Park.

Sacking the former Burnley boss seems like the easy decision for the Toffees’ potential new owners to make. They are languishing in 19th, with just one point on the board and the joint most goals conceded in the top flight, 14.

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Why Southgate would be a good appointment

The former England manager is someone who split opinion during his time at the helm of the Three Lions. Whatever your view on Southgate, who was described as “phenomenal” by journalist Mark Douglas, there is no doubt that his more pragmatic approach could be just what the Toffees could do with at the minute.

He is a great defensive coach, and that has even been pointed out by opponents in the past, as recently as Cody Gakpo ahead of the Euro 2024 semi-final.

The Netherlands winger said Southgate’s England “have a lot of quality, but they play defensively”. Given the Merseyside outfit are so leaky at the back, that defensive approach could be what they need. It got his England side results, including two Euros finals, 2020 and 2024, and a World Cup semi-final in 2018.

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His overall record as England boss also reflects such an approach. In 102 matches at the helm for the 1966 World Cup winners, the former Middlesbrough boss conceded just 82 goals, a superb record.

However, it is not just defensive and pragmatic football that the 54-year-old would bring to the table if he took over at Goodison Park. His side has been known to form dangerous patterns of play which do have results.

Look at Luke Shaw’s goal in the Euro 2020 final, one of the high points during Southgate’s Three Lions tenure, which can be seen below. Note the maximum width on offer from the wing-backs, the way Harry Kane drops deep to drag defenders with him and create space, and the way they attack the box with crosses. They are all features of Southgate’s England.

Above all, what the former England boss was known for during his time with the national team was the superb atmosphere.

He is a superb motivator and created a positive environment designed to make players feel comfortable and keen to play for their country. The Guardian journalist Jonathan Wilson suggested during Euro 2024 that Southgate is “perhaps rather better at the management side of football management than the football”.

This sort of environment could work in the favour of Everton, and get the best out of their stars such as Dominic Calvert-Lewin. The Everton centre-forward has already thrived under the 54-year-old for the Three Lions. He has 11 caps and four goals to his name and was a member of the Euro 2020 squad.

If Southgate can get the striker firing in a short space of time with England, imagine what he can do for a longer amount of time at Goodison Park. It feels like he has untapped potential at the Toffees, with a superb skillset but just 70 goals in 252 games; the 54-year-old could get him, and his teammates, playing at their absolute best, in an optimal environment.

This appointment could be a stroke of genius from Freidkin, and the Toffees could keep survival hopes well and truly alive of they appoint the former England boss; a pragmatic results-getter and a genius motivator.

Friedkin could sack Dyche by hiring "genius" Moyes alternative at Everton

Sean Dyche faces a critical few weeks at Everton

ByRoss Kilvington Sep 23, 2024

Santos have reportedly initiated transfer talks with Juventus for Arthur Melo after securing the services of Neymar from Al-Hilal.

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Neymar set to return to his boyhood clubBrazilian outfit looking for more quality reinforcementsHave already approached the Bianconeri for MeloFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

According to Brazilian outletSantos have put forward a proposal to bring in Arthur on loan until the end of the current season, with an option to make the move permanent. He shares a strong bond with Neymar, having played alongside him in the Brazilian national team. However, at just 28 years old, Arthur finds himself on the fringes at Juventus, with the Italian club actively looking for ways to offload him.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Although Juventus included Arthur in their Champions League squad list, he has not been selected for a single match this season. During the last transfer window, the midfielder was hoping for either another loan spell or a permanent move, but no concrete offers materialised. In fact, Arthur’s last official appearance came on May 29, 2023, when he played 74 minutes for Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final. However, his team suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat to Greek side Olympiacos.

DID YOU KNOW?

Arthur began his professional career at Gremio, where he rose to prominence, winning the Copa do Brasil in 2016 and the Copa Libertadores in 2017. His impressive performances in Brazil attracted the attention of Barcelona, who secured his signature in 2018. During his time at Barca, Arthur played a key role in midfield, helping the club secure the 2018-19 La Liga title and the Spanish Super Cup.

Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT?

With Juventus looking to part ways with the midfielder, a move to Santos could present Arthur with a much-needed opportunity to revive his career. In his first two seasons in Turin, Arthur made more than 30 appearances each year. However, his role in the team diminished in the 2022-23 campaign, leading to a loan move to Liverpool. Unfortunately, his time in England was marred by injury, as he played just two matches before undergoing surgery for a thigh issue.

Zimbabwe have endured win-less tours before, but wouldn’t have expected to slip to that level against the team they are to be competitive against

Firdose Moonda02-Dec-2014Cricket tours are often long enough to reach the point where a visiting side wants nothing more than to return home. For Zimbabwe, that day probably came sooner than it should have in Bangladesh, where they lost all eight internationals they played.As far as returns go, this is among Zimbabwe’s more embarrassing. It is the second three-Test series they have been blanked in, after last playing in a rubber of that length a decade ago. Although they have been on the receiving end of more ODI series whitewashes before – 3-0 to South Africa this year and 5-0 to India last year are the most recent examples – and have also been guilty of losing every match on a tour – West Indies in 2013, New Zealand in 2012 – to have slipped to that level against the team they are to be competitive against has taken Zimbabwe to a new low.It has laid bare issues of inconsistency and instability and, with the World Cup looming, has left them more insecure than they usually are. To sum it up in a sentence, what Zimbabwe demonstrated in Bangladesh was that they are unable to stay in a game – any game – long enough to challenge for victory.Like many teams in the lower tier of cricket’s rankings, Zimbabwe’s troubles begin at the top, where they have unable to find an opening combination that works. They tried four different combinations in the eight matches but could not manage anything more substantial than a first-wicket stand of 19 in the Tests and 48 in the ODIs. A glaring common denominator is Vusi Sibanda, whose future must now be examined. .Sibanda is a stalwart of the Zimbabwe game whose career has stretched for more than a decade but he has yet to score a Test century. He has not managed a fifty in 17 innings and more than three years, and has gone 10 matches and 15 months without reaching the milestone in an ODI. He was put on notice earlier in the year when he was dropped against both Afghanistan and South Africa and the 104 runs he managed in six innings on this tour may have been the end of his rope.Zimbabwe might be better served at the World Cup with Sikandar Raza and Hamilton Masakadza opening but will need a leap of faith to invest in someone else at No.3. They will also need more from Raza, who showed promise with three fifties in the Test series but could not transfer that form to the ODIs.Masakadza did not have that problem. After a career-best 158 in the second Test, he was the second-highest run-scorer for Zimbabwe in the ODIs. He prefers to bat at one-drop but would likely be so keen to play in a World Cup after missing out on the last two that he would gladly open.The temptation would be to persist with Sibanda at No.3, if only for the reassurance he provides as a regular, but Zimbabwe should have learnt the dangers of over-reliance from this trip. Their usual run-getter Brendan Taylor had a torrid Test series, with 135 runs in six innings, and Zimbabwe desperately needed more from him. They got that in the ODIs, where he scored two fifties and was their most successful batsman, but by then they should have had others contributing as well.Between Taylor and Elton Chigumbura, Zimbabwe remain shaky. They have rotated through the likes of Craig Ervine, Richmond Mutumbami, Solomon Mire, Regis Chakabva and Malcolm Waller, but none of them have done enough or been given long enough to make a spot their own. Effectively, that means Zimbabwe always find themselves doing similar things when they bat. They have to recover from shaky starts and just as they find steady ground, they stumble again. For evidence, there is this tour. In six Test innings, they scored over 300 just twice and they could not get to 250 in any of the ODIs.Then there are other problems like their techniques, which need sharpening against spin, particularly left-arm spin, and their temperaments, which falter because of a lack of regular game time. In the second Test, 16 of their 20 wickets went to the left-arm spinners. Zimbabwe have only played four Tests in the last 13 months, not nearly enough to learn how to bat for long periods.The result is that Zimbabwe’s attack seldom has anything substantial to work with but Tinashe Panyangara tries. He was their standout bowler of the tour, with 14 scalps at 20.28 in the Tests and nine wickets at 24.44 in the ODIs, but he lacks support. Natsai M’shangwe, the legspinner, was the next most incisive Test bowler but his seven wickets cost 435 runs, at 62.14 apiece. Malcolm Waller took six wickets but their other seamers struggled.Tendai Chatara would have been a particular concern, with just three wickets in two Tests. He had a better ODI series with six wickets at 31.50 and will still be an important part of the long-term plans but Zimbabwe still need more. Chigumbura will provide will be one of the seamers who will carry a greater load at the World Cup. Zimbabwe’s spin cupboard remains their best-stocked resource. Even without Prosper Utseya, they have choices that range from John Nyumbu to Tafadzwa Kamungozi and even when they are not taking wickers, they do a decent containing job.That is one of the few positives Zimbabwe can pull out of a trip otherwise steeped in disappointment. Masakadza’s maturity, Chakabva’s coming of age with his maiden century and Taylor’s return to form are other highlights. But on the whole, the Bangladesh visit would have dented Zimbabwe’s already fragile confidence and left them with more questions than answers. They won’t have much opportunity to confront all of them because they play no international cricket until next year’s World Cup but what they will know is that when they get there, they not want to feel like they should have one foot in the boarding tunnel midway through the trip.

Debutant Bishnoi’s 2 for 17 as well as Suryakumar and Venkatesh Iyer’s unbroken stand help construct India’s win

Deivarayan Muthu16-Feb-20221:59

Jaffer: A very positive approach by India to play two wristspinners

Ravi Bishnoi overcame a nervy start on debut and then let rip his wrong’uns to give India a 1-0 lead in the three-match T20I series. He bowled four overs full of wrong’uns, according to ESPNcricinfo’s logs, to help India restrict West Indies to 157 for 7, despite Nicholas Pooran’s half-century.What could’ve been a challenging chase was initially made to look like small fry by Rohit Sharma who hit 40 of the 63 runs India had scored in the powerplay. However, the target looked a whole lot bigger once Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant all fell in quick succession. India were 114 for 4 in the 15th over at that point; they were also sweating over the fitness of Deepak Chahar, who had suffered a blow on his bowling hand while fielding. He didn’t return to bowl his final over.As it turned out, India didn’t need his batting either in the slog overs, with Suryakumar Yadav and Venkatesh Iyer absorbing the pressure and sealing victory.Spotlight on Bishnoi
Bhuvneshwar Kumar found swing in the early exchanges and had Brandon King spooning a catch to backward point for 4. Kyle Mayers, the other opener, however, regularly jumped out of his crease or across his stumps to give West Indies some early impetus. He backed away and laced Bhuvneshwar through the covers before swatting Harshal Patel over backward square leg.Yuzvendra Chahal cut short Mayers’ innings at 31 when he trapped him lbw in the seventh over. Chahal could have struck first ball had Bishnoi not misjudged a skier at the long-off boundary. Bishnoi stepped back on the skirting and ended up conceding a six.Bishnoi was introduced into the attack in the very next over and missed his lines, darting three wides. He hit his rhythm soon after, dismissing both Roston Chase and Rovman Powell in the next over.Chase missed a fizzing wrong’un and was pinned lbw while Powell holed out to long-on. Bishnoi, too, troubled Pooran, keeping him to eight off nine balls against his legbreaks googlies.Ravi Bishnoi earned the Player-of-the-match award on international debut•BCCIPooran revives West Indies
Like Bishnoi, Pooran, too, had a scrappy start and was on 17 off 19 balls at one stage. He finally broke free when he clattered a pull over the square-leg boundary off Chahal. Pooran was particularly severe on the legspinner, taking him for 26 off a mere 12 balls, including three sixes. He reached his fifty off 38 balls when he carved Chahal through backward point for four.Kieron Pollard, who had recovered sufficiently from the knee niggle that had forced him out of the last two ODIs, also did his bit, scoring an unbeaten 24 off 19 balls. He had slid down the order to deny India’s wristspinners a favourable match-up. Instead, Akeal Hosein was bumped up to No.6, but he could manage just 10 off 12 balls. Nevertheless, Pooran and Pollard hauled West Indies closer to 160.The storm and the calm
Rohit went on a boundary-hitting spree in the powerplay, using the hardness of the new ball and quickness of the outfield to his advantage. After whipping Romario Shepherd for six and pulling Sheldon Cottrell for four, he cranked up the tempo against Odean Smith, going 4,6,4,6.It was Chase’s offspin that delivered West Indies the breakthrough and slowed down India. He first had Rohit caught at the midwicket boundary before getting Kishan too. Kishan had been the tortoise to Rohit’s hare, labouring to 35 off 42 balls.Kishan’s wicket triggered a mini-collapse as India lost 3 for 21. Chase bowled into the pitch and despite the onset of dew later in the evening, he extracted some turn and bounce to unsettle India. However, the left-arm spinners Hosein and Fabian Allen released all the pressure at the other end.Suryakumar and Venkatesh cashed in, putting on an unbroken 48 off 26 balls and leaving West Indies still searching for their first win on this tour.

The booing of Moeen Ali at Edgbaston revealed the ugly side of sporting rivalry and suggested intolerance remains in the UK. It should not be ignored

George Dobell at Edgbaston07-Sep-2014It should have been the perfect end to an absorbing summer of international cricket. We had beautiful weather. We had a sell-out crowd. We had a run-soaked T20 that contained outrageous skills and an exciting finish.We should have gone home talking about MS Dhoni’s decision to turn down singles in the final over. His self-confidence and his preparedness to take responsibility for the team. Or, perhaps, his lack of confidence in his team-mates.We should have gone home talking about Virat Kohli’s only half-century of the tour in international cricket – the same number as James Anderson – or Eoin Morgan’s brilliant innings. The England captain, so short of runs in international cricket this summer, helped England thrash 81 from the final five overs of their innings and scored 56 in the 15 balls before his dismissal. We might even have witnessed the birth of a new-look England side for both forms of the limited-overs game.Either way, this should have been a brilliant advert for cricket. But instead there was a sour end to the summer. An unsettling end. An end that suggested, for all the progress we think we have made in creating a multicultural society in the UK, we have a long way to go.Moeen Ali’s contributions were not universally appreciated at Edgbaston, the ground where he began his career•AFPBecause, in the middle of Birmingham on a bright afternoon in 2014, we saw at least one player subjected to abuse from a far from insubstantial section of the crowd on the basis of either his religion or his national or ethnic origin.Moeen Ali was booed when he came out to bat. He was booed when he came on to bowl. He was booed most times he touched the ball. And he was booed either because he is a player of Asian origin playing for England – Ravi Bopara also attracted some boos, though far fewer – because he is Muslim or, perhaps most pertinently, because he is of Pakistani origin and the vast majority of the crowd were India supporters.On the back of every ticket and inside every match programme it states: “Spectators shall not engage in any conduct, act towards or speak to any player, umpire, referee or other official or other spectators in a manner which offends, insults, humiliates, intimidates, threatens, disparages or vilifies that other person on the basis of that other person’s race, religion, colour, national or ethnic origin.”By such a definition, it is impossible to justify these boos. It is inappropriate to dismiss them as “banter” – an invidious description used to excuse sexism, homophobia, bullying and racism in many walks of life – and it is inappropriate to dismiss them as a symptom of any rivalry that exists between Pakistan and India.Nor should we link this with the booing experienced by Stuart Broad in Australia and James Anderson and Ravi Jadeja this summer. Those jeers, unappealing though they were, do not stem from a dislike of origin or religion. They reflected specific issues.Nor should we fool ourselves that these are pantomime boos. Just as the monkey chants that used to shame football grounds in the UK were unacceptable, so it must be unacceptable to hear a player derided for their religion or origin. It is not funny.And let us not mistake this issue with any pretence that this is simply a manifestation of support for India. Spectators are free to support whichever side they like and the passion for cricket from spectators of Asian origin in the UK is of huge benefit to the game. But there is a chasm between supporting one side and denigrating the players of the opposition. It would be irresponsible to link the two.What, it might be asked, would be the reaction if an all-white crowd booed a player of Asian origin? What would be the implications if a black player was booed each time he touched the ball? If such behaviours are deemed unacceptable – and, thankfully, in this day and age, they are – why should the booing of a man on the basis of his religion or origin be any different?Moeen was born in Birmingham and he graduated through Warwickshire’s youth system. He has a mixed-heritage family with a white grandmother from the Birmingham area. His religion or ethnicity should not be issues and he has previously said that such behaviour does not affect him.But there is an irony that Moeen has spoken of being a role model. He has spoken of showing that it is possible to be British, Muslim and proud of both. He has spoken of encouraging other Asian cricketers into mainstream league and club cricket in the UK. He has, despite his relative youth and inexperience, spoken only of inclusivity and unity. He makes an unlikely villain.The episode proved difficult for the ground authorities to handle. Had the stewards started to eject those involved, the situation could have deteriorated. Had Morgan, who denied any knowledge of the booing, led his team from the pitch, the situation could have deteriorated.But just because a situation is difficult, it does not mean it should be avoided. This sort of episode should not happen. It must not happen. And if we find it unacceptable – and we really should – we must not ignore it. Whatever the many mistakes of the past, 21st century Britain cannot be accepting of intolerance based around race, religion, colour, national or ethnic origin, sexual orientation or any other such issue.Cricket can unite. In Afghanistan and the Caribbean and LA and Ireland, it has been shown to bring people from differing backgrounds together. It does it in league teams around the country every week. Here it provided a peek behind the façade of multicultural Britain. It was an ugly, depressing sight. And it should not be ignored.

After becoming most expensive Indian bowler at an IPL auction, he says: ‘In 2018, I had met Srinivasan sir, and he said, ‘you will play in yellow always”

Sreshth Shah13-Feb-2022One day after Deepak Chahar was bought by Chennai Super Kings for INR 14 crore (USD 1.8m approx.), making him the highest-paid Indian bowler at an IPL auction, he has said that he always knew he would return to the four-time champions under MS Dhoni.He told Star Sports on Sunday that in 2018, franchise owner N Srinivasan had told him that he would have a long association with the franchise, and since then, Chahar said, he had never broached the topic of retention or auction plans with the team.He also said that he “could not imagine” playing for any other franchise. “I’ve never spoken about all this to Mahi [captain MS Dhoni] or CSK management,” Chahar said. “In 2018, I had met Srinivasan sir, and he has said, ‘you will play in yellow always’. So I took his word that day and since then I have never spoken about retention. I knew CSK would bid [for me].”We [India’s T20I squad] were travelling from Ahmedabad to Kolkata, and the whole team was watching the auction. Everyone was saying (what’s the bid price?) and all that.”I wanted to play for CSK because I haven’t imagined myself playing in other colour than yellow. At one point, I thought it [the bid price] was too much. As a CSK player, I also want to build a good team. So after they spent 13 crore, I actually wanted the bidding to stop so I can go to CSK quickly and then we can buy some other players [with the money saved].Chahar will represent the Super Kings for a fifth season in a row, having been bought by the franchise before IPL 2018 for INR 80 lakh. Before that, he had worked with some of the Super Kings personnel at the Rising Pune Supergiant franchise, where he played between 2016 and 2017 alongside Dhoni and current Super Kings coach Stephen Fleming as the Super Kings sat out their suspension in the aftermath of the spot-fixing scandal of 2013.Chahar also said that despite batting rather low in the Super Kings line-up in previous seasons, he hopes to score more runs in the upcoming IPL edition. Over the last 12 months, he has shown his usefulness with the bat for the Indian ODI side, with his unbeaten 69 in Colombo taking India over the line, a 54 against South Africa last month to almost rescue the team, and an important 38 against West Indies in Ahmedabad last week.However, Chahar does have one regret, and that is not having his cousin Rahul Chahar in the same franchise as him. The duo did share the dressing room at Pune, but never played together.”In Pune, I played first game, he played second, I played third, and he played fourth, but we never played together. I was thinking this auction we might play together, but may be some other time. I’ll ask Rahul to come from Punjab for next year (laughs).”

Famous Hollywood film director Joe Russo has joined the board of Championship side Sheffield United.

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Joe Russo joins Sheffield United's boardHad visited Wrexham in 2023Sheffield United second in the ChampionshipFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

The famous American film director, who led the production of four films in the Marvel cinematic universe alongside his brother Anthony, has joined Sheffield United's board of directors. Russo has officially started at the club one month after America-based consortium SOH Sports took over as the new owners of the Blades.

AdvertisementWHAT HAS BEEN SAID

Speaking on Russo's arrival, Sheffield United's co-chairmen Steven Rosen and Helmy Eltoukhy told the club's website: "We are delighted to welcome Joe, Len and Terry to the board of directors of Sheffield United Football Club. We want to see the Blades competing in the top-flight of English football consistently, not just on a one-off basis.

"An important element of this is ensuring we have the highest quality team not just on the pitch but in the boardroom as well. Each of Joe, Len and Terry bring outstanding capabilities and decades of experience to the table as we plan for the long term, develop the brand and ensure we have the best infrastructure in place."

Getty Images EntertainmentTHE BIGGER PICTURE

This is not the first time that Russo has had a taste of English football. In April 2023, the director was spotted at a Wrexham game alongside Hollywood actors Paul Rudd and Ryan Reynolds, the latter of whom is also the Welsh club's co-owner. In that match, Wrexham beat Boreham Wood 3-1 to return to the English football league after an absence of 15 years.

Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR SHEFFIELD UNITED?

The Championship side, who are second behind Leeds United in the table at the moment and on course for promotion back into the Premier League, will next face Swansea City on Tuesday in an away fixture.

Liverpool and Arne Slot are keeping tabs on a new defender ahead of a potential summer move, it has been revealed, with the Reds’ backline in need of reinforcements.

Liverpool's defensive concerns

Though they have conceded just two goals in five games so far this season, there are longer-term concerns over the Liverpool defence. Of the Premier League winning back four, all of Andy Robertson, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold remain, but the Scot and Van Dijk are now over 30 years old (33 in Van Dijk’s case) and there are concerns over Alexander-Arnold’s future amid interest from Real Madrid and an unclear contract stance.

Liverpool star looked "like Coutinho" when he joined, then Slot sold him

Will the Reds come to rue this decision?

ByAngus Sinclair Sep 19, 2024

A centre-back is on their shopping list as they look to rejuvenate their backline, but there are also concerns at left-back. Kostas Tsimikas has been a valuable understudy but is unlikely to be able to take the first-choice mantle from Robertson, meaning that a new left-back may be required.

With that in mind, the Reds are keeping tabs on one Premier League star, and will have a chance to see him up close and personal this weekend.

Liverpool join queue for Premier League defender

That comes as Liverpool have been named as one of the sides keeping a close eye on Bournemouth defender Milos Kerkez, who can also play higher up in midfield or as a wing-back. The defender has also been on the radar of Manchester United in recent months, but is just 12 months into his £30,000 a week “long term” contract at the Vitality Stadium, and is unlikely to be available on the cheap.

That has not stopped interest from mounting though, and Liverpool are the latest side reportedly keeping tabs on the Hungarian international, who shares a dressing room with Dominik Szoboszlai on international duty.

As per TEAMtalk, the Reds are “continuing to watch” the young defender as they plan for a future beyond their current options, and that his name “continues to come up again and again” in scouting reports compiled at Anfield.

Milos Kerkez vs Andy Robertson 23/24 Premier League

Milos Kerkez

Andy Robertson

Appearances

28

23

Goals and assists

1

5

Shot creating actions per 90

1.46

5.16

Tackle % won

71.4%

60.5%

Fouls committed per 90

1.14

0.48

It is added that given his age and relative experience, the defender is “a prime candidate”, but that they will have to fight off several other clubs around Europe to secure him. Manchester United are named as the most obvious of those, and it is claimed that it would have set any interested party back “over £40 million” to secure his signature over the most recent transfer window, a fee which is unlikely to drop as he continues to impress in the Premier League.

Former teammate Mat Ryan revealed what Bournemouth should expect from their new defender when he made the move, hailing his “unique skill set” and backing him for success in the Premier League.

“He is aggressive, powerful and has so many qualities. A unique skill set. Bournemouth is going to get stronger because of him. Milos still has a great career ahead of him.”

Now, it appears that the Hungarian is living up to that prediction, and could be set to provoke a scrap for his signature next summer, one which Liverpool will be hoping to win.