Category Uncategorized

Joins owners of Mumbai Indians and Manchester United FC in owning teams in the upcoming tournament

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Feb-2022

GMR Group, part-owners of the Delhi Capitals franchise in the IPL, have become the third group to acquire a team at the upcoming UAE T20 League, expected to start later this year, after Lancer Capital, the owners of Manchester United Football Club, and Reliance Strategic Business Ventures Limited, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries Limited, the owners of Mumbai Indians.”Our team has 14-seasons’ experience in managing the franchise process, through our Delhi Capital team’s involvement in the Indian Premier League (IPL), and we will integrate the same elements of these processes into UAE T20 League and help establish it as a premier and an integral part of the global cricket ecosystem,” GM Rao, group chairman of the GMR Group, said in a statement on Wednesday.Kiran Kumar Grandhi, the corporate chairman of the group, said, “UAE has a world-class niche of cross-cultural individuals with a big cricket fan following and excellent cricket infrastructure. We, at GMR Group, based on our years of experience in the IPL will harness to create a thriving cricket environment to budding players which will infinitely excite cricket aficionados.Related

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“From our solid supportive management, we will bring best practices, processes, top-notch coaches, players, and support staff to have an unparalleled professional team.”The six-team league has been sanctioned by the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB), and the plan originally was to host the first edition by the end of March this year. Though that isn’t likely at this stage, the ECB said in the statement that it “remains well on track to be played in 2022 where senior committee members are encouraged by the enormous interest shown from a number of high-profile individuals and well-established corporates from across the world”.Khalid Al Zarooni, the ECB vice-chairman, said, “The standing of this League, across the cricketing world, is vitally important to us, and we have aligned ourselves with partners that share the same values toward the game; holding its spirit, integrity and longevity to the highest regard.”The ECB is also hoping that the league, once it takes flight, helps improve the playing standards within the UAE as well. “At its heart, the UAE T20 League will provide this opportunity for players within the Associate structure to play alongside world-class internationals and be provided with a much-needed opportunity to showcase their skills to a wider audience,” ECB general secretary Mubashshir Usmani said.While the owners of Manchester United FC and Mumbai Indians are already team owners in the league, the owners of the Knight Riders franchise (Kolkata and Trinbago teams) are also understood to be interested in taking over one of the teams. The statement said that the “remaining franchise partnerships” would be announced shortly.

Melbourne Renegades’ hopes of topping the WBBL ladder and earning direct entry into the final copped a huge blow after they suffered a crushing 52-run loss to Hobart HurricanesHurricanes posted an impressive 5 for 161 on the back of a 120-run partnership between Ruth Johnston and Mignon du Preez. Ellie Falconer returned figures of 0 for 29 off 2.3 overs before being taken out of the attack for bowling too many beamers.The shock upset means the second-placed Perth Scorchers (16 points) now have their destiny in their own hands. Scorchers take on the Melbourne Stars in Adelaide on Saturday before finishing their home-and-away campaign against the Sydney Sixers on Sunday. Perth’s superior net run-rate means they are guaranteed to finish first if they can win against both the Stars and Sixers.Under the new WBBL finals format, the team who finish first earn direct entry into the decider. Third plays off against fourth in an elimination final, with the winner of that match taking on the second-placed team in what is effectively a preliminary final.Hurricanes entered Friday’s game on bottom of the ladder, but their impressive display with both bat and ball saw them rise to sixth. Johnston backed up her impressive batting display with figures of 2 for 17 with the ball, while Sasha Moloney (3-17) cleaned up the tail.Sydney Thunder 5 for 162 (Johnson 52) beat Brisbane Heat 9 for 153 (Redmayne 54, Harris 50) by nine runsBrisbane Heat saw then chances of finishing top, and therefore heading straight into a home final, dashed with a batting collapse against Sydney Thunder.Georgia Redmayne and Grace Harris opened with a stand of 99 in 11 overs as Heat chased 163, but they then crashed to 9 for 153 with only Mikayla Hinkley joining them on double figures. Harris had made 50 off 34 balls before falling to Sam Bates who remove Laura Kimmince, who had been promoted to No. 3, two balls later.Thunder were excellent in the field with Phoebe Litchfield and Anika Learoyd producing run outs while Redmayne was well caught by Deepti Sharma. When Jess Jonassen cleared the fence it briefly looked like the captain could mount a late charge but she and Hinkley fell in consecutive balls to Hannah Darlington before Deepti capped off a fine bowling display with a brace of final-over wickets.Sammy-Jo Johnson’s half-century had been the centerpiece of Thunder’s innings as she again opened with Smriti Mandhana. The pair added a rapid 58 in 6.3 overs before Litchfield joined in another solid partnership for the second wicket. Three wickets then fell for six runs, but Deepti and latterly Darlington provided useful runs.The highest Heat can now finish in the table is second with one game remaining.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers will surely be hoping to go through the summer transfer window without having to sell one of his key players.

The Northern Irish boss lost Jota to Al Ittihad and Carl Starfelt to Celta Vigo ahead of the 2023/24 campaign, and is currently at risk of losing Matt O'Riley this time around.

After an impressive year in the Scottish Premiership, the Denmark international is now attracting interest from elsewhere ahead of a potential exit from Parkhead.

How much Matt O'Riley is worth

Sky Sports reported earlier this month that Celtic believe that the midfielder is worth a club-record transfer fee of at least £25m, which was the same fee that was paid for Kieran Tierney and Jota by Arsenal and Al Ittihad respectively.

The outlet claimed that Atalanta and Juventus are both interested in a potential swoop to sign the former MK Dons central midfielder this summer.

Interest from Europe in O'Riley should not come as a surprise to anyone after his terrific exploits in the Premiership for Rodgers and Celtic last season.

As you can see in the table above, the 23-year-old magician produced consistent quality at the top end of the pitch with a staggering 31 direct goal contributions in 37 games.

Celtic, though, could have had another player worth as much as O'Riley if they had not had a howler with academy talent many, many, years ago.

Celtic's Andy Robertson howler

Current Liverpool star Andy Robertson revealed back in 2013 that the Hoops let him go at U15 level as they deemed him to be too small to make it as a professional footballer for them.

He then enjoyed spells with Queen's Park and Dundee United in Scotland before making a move to England to try his luck with Hull, which then earned him a big switch to Liverpool in the summer of 2017.

Since his move to Anfield, Robertson has racked up 11 goals and 65 assists in 297 appearances for the club in all competitions, with his 300th Liverpool outing seemingly to come this season.

The Scotland international has won the Champions League and the Premier League during his time in Merseyside, alongside two League Cup successes and an FA Cup.

At the time of writing, Transfermarkt currently has his market value at €30m (£25m) and this means that he is worth as much as Celtic believe O'Riley to be worth at this moment in time.

This illustrates the howler the Scottish giants had when they decided to send him on his way at U15 level for being too small. Instead of waiting to see how he physically developed across the next few age groups, they parted ways with the talented youngster.

4/10 Celtic man should fear for his future after pre-season howler

The Hoops dud failed to put in a strong performance in the 4-3 win over Manchester City.

By
Dan Emery

Jul 24, 2024

Their loss ended up by the gain for multiple clubs and he has gone on to become a "world class" – per Jurgen Klopp – player in England, as he has won trophies and become an influential player for a huge club in the Premier League.

Hopefully, the Bhoys have learned from that mistake and will not dismiss potential talents due to their height at such a young age in the future.

Leicestershire win by innings and five runs as visitors’ callow batting collapses in final overs

ECB Reporters' Network15-Sep-2021Leicestershire pulled off an extraordinary victory over Sussex in an LV=Insurance County Championship match that had looked set to bring the curtain down on the season at Grace Road with a tame draw.After Hassan Azad (152) and Lewis Hill (145) had turned their hundreds into career-best scores and there was a maiden half-century for Louis Kimber, a declaration at 492 for 4 gave Leicestershire a lead of 133, but with their leading wicket-taker Chris Wright absent through injury, bowling Sussex out in the 48 overs that remained looked a long shot, even with Fynn Hudson-Prentice unable to bat after breaking a hand in the first innings.Yet after reaching 117 for 3 – just 16 runs away from wiping out their arrears – an inexperienced Sussex side containing five teenagers lost their last six wickets for 11 runs, losing by an innings and five runs with 16 balls left.Callum Parkinson took 4 for 18 with his left-arm spin and seamer Ben Mike 4 for 34 as Leicestershire won by five runs.Wright, who was awarded his county cap along with Hill during the lunch interval, was not risked after feeling a hamstring after the first innings, when his 6 for 94 took his wickets tally for the season to 46.Sussex remain without a win since beating Glamorgan in the second match of the season and are bottom of Division Three, with only a final fixture against next-to-bottom Derbyshire at Hove next week to come as they seek to avoid a first Championship wooden spoon since 2000.Resuming at 291 for 2 following Tuesday’s washout after another hour of the game was lost because of a wet outfield, Leicestershire achieved their objective of securing maximum batting points.Related

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Two more came as Hill overtook his previous career best of 121, scored against Gloucestershire in April of this year, and Azad passed his of 144 not out against Surrey, also in April, as the pair extended their partnership to 248, a new mark for Leicestershire’s third wicket against Sussex. Hill’s runs took his tally for the season to 902.Both fell in consecutive Henry Crocombe overs, both caught on the boundary by substitute fielder, 17-year-old Bertie Foreman, whose grandfather was Denis Foreman, who played cricket for Sussex and football for Brighton and Hove Albion in the 1950s and 60s.Kimber (69 not out) and Harry Swindells (59 not out) claimed the fifth, adding 130 in just less than 19 overs before skipper Parkinson called them in.Leicestershire’s bowlers chipped away. Ali Orr was caught behind off Parkinson’s left-arm spin, first-innings centurion Ben Brown hit Mike straight to point, Tom Haines played across one from Ed Barnes and having closed to within 16 of clearing the arrears, Sussex unravelled.Rawlins edged behind, Parkinson bowled Tom Hinley, Oli Carter, who had faced 77 balls for his nine, pulled to leg gulley and Crocombe was leg before as Mike took two in two. Parkinson then trapped Jack Carson in front.Last wicket pair Sean Hunt and Joseph Sarro – both 19-year-olds – survived 30 balls to prolong the agony, but then Parkinson had the latter caught behind to spark wild celebrations.

They aren't a perfect team, but as they masterfully demonstrated last season, there are not many weaknesses in this Arsenal side.

For example, despite ultimately finishing second in the Premier League, Mikel Arteta's talented team produced the best defence in the league, conceding just 29 goals in 38 games.

Unfortunately, though, they scored five fewer than the Sky Blues, which brings us to the one position on the pitch that most fans will tell you could do with an improvement: striker.

Fortunately, recent reports have linked the Gunners with one of the most exciting centre-forwards in Europe, and a player who could be incredible at the Emirates and help players like Leandro Trossard reach another level entirely.

Arsenal transfer news

According to a recent report from Spain, Arsenal have maintained their strong interest in Sporting CP star Viktor Gyokeres.

In fact, the report goes a step further and claims that the Gunners have now agreed personal terms with the Swedish international, who has also caught the eye of fellow Premier League side Liverpool.

The only barrier to the North Londoners completing the deal remains to agree on a fee with the Lisbon outfit themselves, and according to the report, they are after around €80m, which converts to about £67m.

That's undoubtedly a lot of money, but it's considerably less than the £84m fee that was previously reported, and due to Gyokeres' incredible form last season, it's possibly value for money, especially as he'd help make Trossard unplayable.

Why Gyokeres would be an incredible signing

So, when it comes down to the main reason why Gyokeres would be an exceptional signing and an equally brilliant teammate for Trossard, it's very straightforward: his output.

The Swedish international is a goalscoring machine, and he proved as much last season, finding the back of the net on 43 occasions in just 50 appearances and chipping in 15 assists on top of that, for good measure.

This means he produced a goal involvement on average every 0.86 games, or in other words, he averaged 1.16 per match, which unsurprisingly, would have made him the most productive Arsenal player last season, and by quite some way.

Appearances

50

Goals

43

Assists

15

Goal Involvements per Match

1.16

Now, imagine if the already effective Trossard was playing alongside a number nine as devastatingly effective as Sporting's "big game player," as data analyst Ben Mattinson dubbed him; he'd have far more goals and assists to his name.

This line of thinking is backed up by Understat's data on the Belgian. They concluded that in the league last season, he underperformed his expected assists by 2.25, which is unsurprising when the Gunners' two primary strikers, Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz, both underperformed their expected goals, the former by 3.29 and the latter by 0.47.

Ultimately, Arsenal are a talented team, but they should have scored more goals last season, and like many of his teammates, Trossard should've had more assists to his name.

This suggests that a clinical number nine would be the perfect signing this summer, and there aren't many better than Gyokeres.

Arsenal struck gold on "wizard" who's worth way more than Reiss Nelson

The impressive winger has been a massive success in red and white.

ByJack Salveson Holmes Aug 1, 2024

The problem with climbing the Premier League table is that other teams come in and try to nab your best players.

Crystal Palace are the latest side to try and deal with this depressing inevitability.

Oliver Glasner is set to lose one of his star players, Michael Olise, as his £55m move to Bayern Munich looks all but certain now.

However, while losing the Frenchman is far from ideal, the money the club are set to receive should help them bring in the right players for Glasner, and based on recent reports, their attention is firmly on a brilliant youngster who could be the perfect teammate for Eberechi Eze.

Crystal Palace transfer news

According to a recent report from transfers expert Fabrizio Romano, Palace have already drawn up a shortlist of potential Olise replacements, with Antonio Nusa being one of the most prominent names.

The Italian claims that the South Londoner's interest in the young Norwegian is "concrete" but does not mention a potential price they may have to pay to secure his services.

However, The Palace Way claimed earlier this month that the Club Brugge ace could cost Steve Parish and Co around £32m.

It might be a tough deal to get over the line, and it's certainly not cheap, but given how Nusa is spoken about and the promise he has shown at such a young age, this could be an ideal way to spend the Olise money and future-proof the side.

Why Nusa would be a great teammate for Eze

So, if the Eagles are able to get their hands on Nusa this summer, fans probably shouldn't expect him to come in and immediately replicate the sort of performances they have gotten used to from Olise.

That's not to say he couldn't come in and light up Selhurst Park, but at 19 years old and having never played in a top-five league, he would likely need some time to adapt.

However, he has the raw ability and skill set to develop into a player of the Frenchman's calibre and become a dream teammate for Eze in time. While he is a natural winger, Glasner masterfully used the former Reading star as one of his two attacking midfielders last season, so there is no reason to think he couldn't do the same with the youngster.

For example, last season, "the future of Norwegian football", as dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig, scored four goals and provided four assists in 46 appearances, or 2213 minutes, which works out to a goal involvement every 276 minutes, which is pretty handy for a young prospect.

Moreover, according to FBref, which compares players in similar positions in the next best 14 competitions, the Langhus-born gem is in the top 1% of attacking midfielders and wingers for progressive carries and successful take-ons, the top 3% for progressive passes received, the top 6% for touches in the opposition's box, the top 11% for total shots and the top 17% for non-penalty expected goals and assists, all per 90.

Described as a "1v1 specialist" and possessing "electric pace" by data analyst Ben Mattinson, the rapid youngster could be the slightly more adventurous and attack-minded attacking midfielder in Glasner's system at Selhurst Park.

At the same time, Eze could use his fantastic creative ability to craft chances for him or get on the end of opportunities brought about by the youngster's chaos-causing take-ons.

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The talented defender could be just as good for the South Londoners.

By
Jack Salveson Holmes

Jun 23, 2024

Ultimately, while it's a sizable sum to spend on a young player outside the traditional top-five leagues, Nusa looks to be an incredible prospect, and in signing him, Palace can improve the first team and plan for the future.

Manchester United will be hoping that their 2024/25 season can start in the same vein of form that they finished the previous campaign. The Red Devils won their final three games last term, overcoming Newcastle United 3-2 at Old Trafford and Brighton 2-0 away from home in the Premier League, before triumphing in the FA Cup final against Manchester City.

If United want to make it six wins in a row in all competitions, they will have to win all three of their games in August. That begins with a fixture against Fulham, with the Cottagers travelling to Old Trafford for the first game of the 2024/25 season.

Next up for the Red Devils will once again be a trip to the AMEX to face Brighton, hoping to repeat their heroics of last season. Finally, to end August, United will host their oldest of foes, Liverpool, as they look to beat them at Old Trafford for the third time under Erik ten Hag.

To help on their quest for early-season points, the 13-time Premier League champions will need to dip into the transfer market to strengthen their squad. One area they need to add to is out wide, and they have been linked with one exciting player recently.

Man Utd target Championship winger

The player in question is Hull City’s English winger Jaden Philogene. The 22-year-old had a phenomenal first season in the Championship during the 2023/24 campaign for Hull, and could be in line for a big move this summer,

According to a report from TEAMtalk, Philogene is “a name that has been discussed at Old Trafford”. With Jadon Sancho seemingly set to leave and after missing out on a deal to sign Michael Olise this summer, he could prove to be the perfect alternative.

However, the English giants will not be the only club looking to acquire the services of Philogene this summer. The electric winger is also wanted by Premier League rivals Tottenham, with Everton and Crystal Palace, who need to replace Olise, also interested in the 22-year-old.

In terms of a price, it is reported that Hull hope to recoup anything between £18m and £20m for the winger this summer, with the idea of reinvesting that money into their squad. This seems like a fair value, given Philogene has two years left on his contract with the option of an extra season.

How Philogene would fit in at Man Utd

Last season for Hull, Philogene lit up the Championship. In 32 games, he scored 12 times and registered 6 assists, and his 18 goal contributions were the most amongst Hull players, according to Sofascore.

The 22-year-old, who has represented England Under-21s four times, scoring three goals, has received a similar footballing education to United’s primary wing target, Olise. Like the Hull winger, Olise honed his craft in the Championship, playing 67 times in the second tier for Reading. Philogene has featured slightly more in the Championship and has played for three different clubs; Stoke City, Cardiff City and Hull.

Stat

Philogene

Olise

Games

80

67

Minutes

5,587

4,570

Goals

17

7

Assists

7

13

Essentially, Philogene would come into United as a replacement for Sancho – who has been linked with Juventus – and an alternative signing to Olise. In fact, comparisons can be drawn amongst the trio, with all three being tricky wingers who display flair on the ball.

According to FBref, Sancho is the most progressive dribbler of the three, with 6.23 progressive carries per 90 minutes, compared to 4.94 for Philogene and 4.79 for Olise. Not only that, but the former Borussia Dortmund player completes the most take-ons per game, with 3.42 compared to the 22-year-old’s 2.79 and the French winger’s 2.82. Sancho also averages the most carries into the penalty box each game, coming in at 2.98. In contrast, the Hull winger averages 2.82 and Olise ranks last, with 1.9.

Where Olise excels is the creative passing numbers. This is one of his biggest strengths, with the Palace man averaging the most key passes with 2.54, and the most passes into the final third with 3.03. In comparison, Philogene averages just 1.67 key passes per game and 1.38 passes into the final third, with Sancho playing 2.28 key passes and 2.37 final-third passes.

Philogene performs best in his goal numbers. Firstly, it is important to bear in mind that the Hull winger played 33 games last season, compared to 19 for Olise and 17 for Sancho, meaning his numbers are based on a slightly larger sample size, while also being in the second tier.

However, his tally of 12 goals exceeds that of the other two, with Olise notching 10 and Sancho just three. The winger also has the highest expected goals total. Philogene averages 8.2xG, with the United number 25 generating just 0.7. The soon-to-be Bayern winger had 5.5 expected goals last term.

With that in mind, United are surely going to be adding plenty of goals to their side. As per Sofascore, the Red Devils were the joint-ninth-highest scorers in the Premier League last season with just 57 goals. Philogene would hopefully help Ten Hag’s side find the back of the net more often.

In singing the Hull attacker, the Red Devils would be adding a tricky, two-way winger who can score goals with reasonable creative numbers to their options out wide. Football analyst HC described the 22-year-old on X as “special”, and given his numbers, it is clear to see why.

Should the Red Devils sign the tricky winger this summer, it would be an enterprising addition to the squad to replace Sancho, who can look to rebuild his career elsewhere. It is no doubt a signing that the Old Trafford faithful can get excited about; perhaps Philogene will go on to become the next great winger to wear that famous red shirt.

His comments come in response to testimony given by ex-selector Hussein Manack on the lead-up to the Wanderers Test against England in 2015-16

Firdose Moonda05-Aug-2021AB de Villiers has denied asking for Kagiso Rabada to be dropped from the Test team at the start of Rabada’s career and said he only made inputs into selection in “the best interests of the team”. Responding to testimony given by former national selector Hussein Manack at Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) Social Justice and Nation-Building (SJN) hearings, de Villiers distanced himself from decisions that Manack alleged were made along racial lines.Manack spent the bulk of his testimony discussing the well-known case of Khaya Zondo on the 2015 tour of India, where Zondo didn’t play a single game, and the role de Villiers’ played in that episode. But the Rabada case, centred around the Wanderers Test against England in 2015-16, has not been publicly aired before.”I had been to the practice the day before and a decision had to be made between playing Kyle Abbott and Hardus Viljoen,” said Manack, who was selector then. “A discussion at practice took place and they [the team management] said we must drop KG [Rabada].”I asked on what basis. Rabada was 20 years old and he hadn’t established himself as a great player but having seen him at the Lions, where he was coming through, I had seen a lot of him. He had a good enough reputation. There was a cricketing explanation that maybe the ball wasn’t coming out of his hand right. I took it back to [bowling coach] Charl Langeveldt and … Charl’s view was that he was comfortable and everybody on the selection panel was unanimous that Rabada had to play. I said our decision is that Rabada has to play. There was one more spot that had to be filled. We said between Abbott and Viljoen, you decide who you want. We don’t have a strong view either way. In the end, they went for Viljoen and they weren’t happy with the fact that we had stood our ground.”Rabada claimed his first five-for in that match, and a career-best 13 for 144 in the next Test. Viljoen did not play for South Africa again.de Villiers told ESPNcricinfo that he had not wanted Rabada dropped. “I have never wanted KG dropped from any team at any time,” he said. “The idea is ridiculous. He is one of the finest bowlers in world cricket.”Related

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Manack spoke at length about the Zondo story, which led to black players raising selection concerns in a letter to CSA at the time. “On the 2015 tour of India, David Miller was battling for form. Throughout the second and third ODI we had discussions that maybe we need to get Khaya in and do a swap. At one stage, David even opened the batting and I was surprised at that move. Maybe it was tactical but in my mind, I was suspicious of that move. In my mind, they were trying to protect David,” Manack said. “David was struggling with spin. So what they did, instead of dropping him and bringing Khaya in, moved him to the top of the order, where he would play the new ball.”Miller was short of runs in the first two ODIs and ended up with only 74 runs in five games, struggling against spinners, but he was averaging 54 and striking at 113 in ODIs for the year until that series. Zondo had scored 288 runs in 10 matches in the previous season’s domestic one-day cup, where he averaged 41.14 and was taken on tour as the back-up batter.In the final ODI of the series, tied 2-2, Manack said he was unhappy that Miller was in the XI. “I felt David Miller needed to be dropped and if Khaya was the back-up batter, we needed to play him. The coach and captain were not happy with me. We had a discussion and I got back to the selectors and said do we play Khaya or not? There was some disagreement but the majority of the decision was that we said Khaya should play.The well-known case of Khaya Zondo came up extensively in Hussein Manack’s testimony•PTI

“The captain [de Villiers] was not happy. An hour or two later I got a call from the CEO and he said he just received a call from the captain who said he is not happy with the team. I went to the CEOs room and I got the distinct impression that the captain was very unhappy to the extent that, reading between the lines, I thought there was going to be some sort of fall out if he didn’t get his team. Before that there was the incident with Vernon Philander and Abbott at the World Cup and that time the captain didn’t get his team. I got the distinct impression that the captain wanted his team. I thought he was going to pull out of the team and threaten not to play. The words were not said but that’s the impression I got.”Asked by the ombudsman, Dumisa Ntsebeza, if he thought Zondo’s exclusion was racially motivated, Manack was equivocal. “I sat with AB in the evening and I gave in. He did have some cricketing reasons, which did make sense. Some of the reasons were that we were effectively playing in a final. Do we want to play a young cricketer in a final against one of the noisiest crowds in the world?”But maybe it was racially motivated. It’s difficult to escape that view. If one were to give the captain the benefit of the doubt, maybe he has a fair argument. If I look back at the last 15 or 20 years, very often captains protect their friends and buddies. They look after one another. That does happen.”de Villiers did not deny that leaving Zondo out was his call but said he felt it was for the benefit of the team. “It is obviously difficult to pick apart selection discussions many years later, and recollections will vary. However, I can unequivocally state that my input to such discussions was always motivated only by what I considered to be best for the team, and nothing else.”CSA did conduct an inquiry into Zondo’s exclusion and found that it was “unfair because it did not conform to the CSA policy”, Norman Arendse, a former board president, told the SJN. But CSA did not go as far as to say that Zondo was excluded on the basis of race.”There were the allegations of racial discrimination but from the information that was provided to the task team, we found that there were cricketing reasons given for his inclusion and cricketing reasons given for his exclusion. It reflects on CSA too that we didn’t go the step further to find his exclusion was race-based. The task team didn’t find it necessary to make such a finding because we did find that it was unfair. As a lawyer, I was confined to the four corners of my brief, and on that we couldn’t make a finding that he was excluded because of the colour of his skin. We had a reasonable suspicion that that may well have been the case but a clear finding would not have been justified on the evidence placed before us.”In hindsight, Manack said he felt responsible for Zondo’s exclusion. “I should have stood firm. I feel I let Khaya down. If you look at it, it was the same captain who was involved in the Rabada incident. There is a bit of a pattern that has developed over the years and you will find some names have come up over and over again. In this instance, I should have stood my ground. I want to acknowledge my part in what happened to Khaya. I take responsibility for it. I regret it.Zondo went on to debut against India at Centurion three years later, and to date has played five ODIs for South Africa.

WA’s tilt at a historic Shield four-peat ended suddenly with the squad now facing a transition phase

Tristan Lavalette20-Mar-2025For the smattering of rusted on fans in the terraces, it was an unfamiliar end to the Sheffield Shield season at the WACA.Three years ago, euphoria erupted around the iconic ground when Western Australia ended a 23-year title drought and then 12 months later it was similar jubilation when Cameron Bancroft hit the winning runs to once again thwart Victoria in the final.The loudest roars actually might have been heard last year when Joel Paris took a blinder of a one-handed catch in the gully to secure WA’s hat-trick of titles after a comprehensive victory against Tasmania.Related

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763 balls, 66 all out, 7 for 11: McAndrew recounts wild WACA

Mahli Beardman: 'Think I can hit the magical 150 mark'

But this time around, as their hopes of a historic four-peat faded away in front of just a sprinkling of fans, the reverberation around the WACA came from the triumphant Victorians mobbing retiring Peter Siddle after he snuffed out WA’s unlikely chase of 382 runs off 84 overs.Underlining how incredibly tight the competition was beneath league leaders South Australia, the 34-run defeat meant WA not only missed the final but they had the ignominy of finishing the season in last place in what will make a strange sight in the record books for years to come.There was a hollow vibe among players and officials, a frustrating case of what could have been in a season that never came together for a WA team hampered by inconsistency, injuries and international unavailability.”It’s just been a bit of a frustrating year for the group,” WA captain Sam Whiteman said. “No doubt we will reflect over the next few months and get back to work in June.”WA started the season hoping to become the first state to win four in a row since the competition expanded to six teams in 1977-78. It loomed as a very difficult task, almost impossible as gleaned from Shield history and other sporting leagues, and there had been signs of slippage last season before they regrouped late.WA did start well with back-to-back wins over Tasmania after a drawn home opener against Queensland to sit on top after three rounds. But they fell away badly after that with only a vintage performance against Queensland at the Gabba keeping their season alive.WA had entered the final round in fourth position, but other results remarkably went their way and they had the chance to leapfrog second-placed Queensland.

“Losing a few games out here has been a bit disappointing because it’s been such a fortress the last three years. No doubt we’ll get back to the drawing board and look to keep getting better. I’m sure it’s not the end of the successful period for WA.”WA captain Sam Whiteman

Reflective of their season, WA’s inconsistent batting just couldn’t put it together against Victoria when they needed to the most with Hilton Cartwright and Cooper Connolly scoring half-centuries but it wasn’t enough.No.4 Cartwright was WA’s only consistent batter through the season, finishing second overall in runs with 861 at 57.40. Out of the other batters who played more than three matches, No.3 Jayden Goodwin had the next best average at 32.50.With Connolly limited to just three matches, where he scored four half-centuries from five innings, due to international call-ups, WA’s batting was fragile and exacerbated by injuries and struggles from openers Whiteman and Bancroft, normally such a prolific pair at the top of the order.It feels like a million years ago now, well before the Sam Konstas phenomenon, but Bancroft started the season in the frame to open for Australia in the first Test against India after being the best batter across the previous couple of Shield seasons.However, Bancroft fell on the first ball he faced this Shield season to trigger a wretched run that left his Test aspirations in tatters. He finally found form with a century against South Australia in round five, but a nasty collision in the field during a BBL match at Optus Stadium sidelined him for two months.Bancroft returned for the last two Shield matches and did make a determined 86 in the second innings against NSW. But he never quite regained his heft of old, where he looks immovable at the crease, and nicked off on 35 in the run chase against Victoria in a dismissal reminiscent of his early season rut. He made 344 runs at 26.46 compared to an average of 48.37 across WA’s title-winning seasons.Whiteman started with a century against Queensland, but his season was derailed by numerous injuries and he finished with a pair against Victoria. He made 285 runs at 25.9 compared to 41 across the three-peat.As their season hung in the balance against Victoria, WA had considerable batting firepower on the sidelines with Josh Inglis, Aaron Hardie and Mitchell Marsh sighted at various stages having a hit in the WACA nets as they prepared for the IPL.Inglis only played three matches this season, while Marsh and Hardie combined for three games. Cameron Green was also an unmistakable figure at the nets as he makes his way back to the field after missing the entire season due to back surgery.Inglis, like Green, looms as a three-format player for Australia and will likely only play sparingly in the Shield in the future. Marsh, Hardie and Connolly also may miss significant time next season due to white-ball commitments for Australia.Veteran Ashton Turner’s Shield future could be under the microscope after averaging just 27.60 from 12 innings, with just one half-century. He was unable to consistently reproduce the type of counterattack in the middle-order that had revived his red-ball career in recent seasons.A fully-fledged transition is probably not required just yet, but the development of Goodwin, Sam Fanning and Teague Wyllie – heralded as the ‘rat pack’ by local media as coined by coach Adam Voges – will be key and the “nucleus of the WA batting for the future,” according to Whiteman.Jayden Goodwin showed glimpses this season•Getty ImagesThey had opportunities through the season with varied results. Left-handed Goodwin, 23, had the most success and his gritty batting has impressed the national hierarchy leading to Australia A, CA XI and Prime Minister’s XI selections this season.But he did tail off at the back end of the season and was fortunate to hang on to his position for the Victoria match ahead of 24-year-old Fanning, who hit two half-centuries from his previous three Shield innings. A cavalier left-handed batter who has floated around the batting order, Fanning though for now seems stuck in either two modes – aggression or defence. He hasn’t quite found the right tempo at Shield level.For a wider audience, Wyllie might be the best known of the trio having in October 2022 become the youngest player since Ricky Ponting to post a Sheffield Shield ton. His reasoning over his muted century celebration went viral.But it’s been tough going ever since for Wyllie, who has noticeably been anchored to the crease with minimal foot work. He played just two matches this season, scoring only 30 runs at 10.If he does not find himself consistently playing at the next level, Connolly, still only 21, looms as WA’s talisman having struck five half-centuries in his first seven Shield innings. “He’s probably going to be in-and-out of Australian squads for a fair chunk of time,” Whiteman said of Connolly. “But no doubt long-term he can be a No.4. Some of the impact that he’s had in four or five first-class games has been amazing.”WA’s bowling was their strength through the season although there are several unknowns moving forward. Quick Matt Kelly’s future could be in doubt due to a slew of injuries, while veteran Cameron Gannon justified his one-year extension with a solid season but may struggle to stay in the XI next season if Lance Morris and Jhye Richardson are fit and firing.Morris, currently a Cricket Australia contracted player, was limited to four matches due to restrictions over his workload coming off a stress fracture last winter in what has been a source of frustration for him.Brody Couch did prove a decent like-for-like replacement for Morris in his debut WA season after crossing over from Victoria, finishing with 23 wickets at 25.65.Brody Couch is mobbed by his team-mates after claiming a hat-trick•Getty ImagesThere will be intrigue over whether exciting quick Mahli Beardman, who turns 20 in August, will be ready to handle the rigours of red-ball cricket having shown flashes of his considerable talent in the BBL and One-Day Cup.Beardman, who believes he’ll eventually clock 150 kph, was a reserve player in Australia’s squad on their white-ball tour of the UK last year to underline his standing among the national hierarchy as a future prospect. During the Victoria match, Beardman at intervals showcased his athleticism with sprints on the ground as national selector Tony Dodemaide watched intently from close range.Offspinner Corey Rocchiccioli bounced back from a sluggish first half of the season to finish as the Shield’s equal leading wicket-taker with 38 at 27.71. His mentor Ashton Agar, however, only played two matches although did bowl well in favourable conditions on east coast surfaces. The left-arm spinner’s Test career appears all but over although he is believed to be still committed to playing Shield cricket for WA.Perhaps WA’s first priority for next season will be to re-establish their WACA fortress having only won the solitary home match. They suffered losses to South Australia – in the shortest outright result in Shield history in a match lasting less than five sessions – and Victoria. In their previous 15 home matches before this season, WA had won 11 games and lost just twice.”Losing a few games out here has been a bit disappointing because it’s been such a fortress the last three years,” Whiteman said. “No doubt we’ll get back to the drawing board and look to keep getting better.”I’m sure it’s not the end of the successful period for WA.”

Shane Bond expects a fascinating battle between Rohit Sharma and Trent Boult

Vishal Dikshit15-Jun-20210:52

Five batters and two spinners? Aakash Chopra’s India XI for WTC final

VVS Laxman has offered two tips to Rohit Sharma ahead of the World Test Championship final against New Zealand starting Friday: know where your off stump is to leave the ball outside off and don’t take the left leg across too much while facing Trent Boult, who is likely to swing the ball into the batter. Laxman was speaking at a virtual press conference organised by broadcaster , with Ian Bishop and Shane Bond as his co-panelists.”I think not only for Rohit but for every opener, it’s very important to know where your off stump is,” Laxman said. “And Rohit, since the time he has opened for the Indian team even in Indian conditions against South Africa, the way he knew where his off stump was, he was very disciplined at the start of the innings. And if Rohit can replicate that in England, I’m sure he will perform well.”We all know what an unbelievable and talented batsman he is. He is a match-winner for the Indian team. But knowing where your off stump is and letting go of the balls outside the off stump in the channel of uncertainty is something which Rohit requires to focus on.Watch cricket on ESPN+

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“Another challenge is in the form of Trent Boult who can get the ball in. So I think he also knows that against Trent Boult, he cannot take his left leg across, he has to play as much as possible with the full face of the bat back towards the bowler and the umpire. These are the two things Rohit definitely requires to address at the start of the innings.”Bond, meanwhile, believes Sharma has the ability impose himself on bowling attacks like Matthew Hayden did during his time. The former New Zealand quick is part of the Mumbai Indians, of which both Sharma and Boult are part of. The trio were part of the IPL-winning Mumbai Indians team in the UAE last September.Bond chuckled that banter for the WTC final between Sharma and Boult had started well in advance, during the 2021 IPL season.”What I do know is that even during the IPL season, Trent Boult was running in, swinging the ball and hitting him (Sharma) on the pads and telling him, ‘that’s what is going to happen in the World Test Championship final’,” Bond said with a hearty laugh. “So he was talking about it four months in advance, there was banter going on, which was just brilliant. Those two were very aware that they were going to come up against each other.”I love Rohit Sharma as a player, I see him almost in a Matt Hayden kind of role where he goes out, as he did against England in the series in India on very difficult wickets, and he imposes himself. He could come out and score very quickly, he’s that sort of player, very dynamic in difficult conditions, like a Rishabh Pant, can take the game away from a team in a very good hour even when New Zealand are bowling with the new ball. So with the field up and he’s such a stroke-maker, it sort of suits him being at the top of the order when the ball is hard.”There’s obviously some areas in his game which New Zealand will look to exploit but what he does do is he scores fast and if he can score fast and put runs on the board, that instantly puts pressure on the bowling attack and there’s nothing worse as a bowler than going for runs, especially if you’re trying to pitch the ball up. I can’t wait for the Boult-Sharma battle, with all the banter that’s been going on and I’m expecting a few smiles between the boys as well.”For the rest of the Indian batting line-up as well, Laxman emphasised on how playing the ball late would help them in covering the late swing of the Dukes ball.”What the batsmen require to remember if they want to succeed in England is to know where there off stump is, and also always look for the full ball and a good, long, big stride,” Laxman said. “What that enables them to do is to play the ball late, allow the ball to come close to them and they can then cover the late swing which the bowlers will extract with the Dukes ball and also the lateral movement which probably they can extract because of the conditions there.”Boult further said it was New Zealand ‘s “best chance” to take home an ICC trophy after finishing runners-up in the 2015 and 2019 ODI World Cups, and expected them to play five quick bowlers by picking Colin de Grandhomme ahead of spinner Ajaz Patel, who was named in the final 15 ahead of Mitchell Santner on Tuesday.Laxman and Bishop both predicted India to pick five batters, Pant as the wicketkeeper at No. 6, R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja as the spin-bowling allrounders, and three fast bowlers.