All posts by h716a5.icu

A stomach ailment has forced Dermot Reeve, the former England allrounder, to be replaced as Maharashtra’s senior coach for the rest of the season

Amol Karhadkar21-Dec-2012A stomach ailment has forced Dermot Reeve, the former England allrounder, to be replaced as Maharashtra’s senior coach for the rest of the season. Reeve, who was unable to make it to New Delhi for Maharashtra’s Ranji Trophy Group B tie against Delhi that ended on Tuesday, has been replaced by the former Maharashtra captain Surendra Bhave.The team has slumped since Reeve took over from the Australian Shaun Williams ahead of the season. With two rounds to go in the league stage, Maharashtra are at the bottom of Group B. With eight points from six games, Maharashtra are in danger of being relegated to Group C. As a result, Reeve’s tactics were being questioned not just by a section of the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA), but also those on the Ranji circuit. Suresh Raina, the Uttar Pradesh captain, criticised Reeve’s defensive tactics during UP’s tie in Pune.However, MCA president Ajay Shirke put the sacking theory to rest. “Dermot is unwell for a while. Since it has been clear that he will not be able to be with the squad all the time, we had to make a decision since it puts a lot of pressure on the captain,” Shirke told ESPNcricinfo. “As a result, we have appointed Surendra Bhave as the coach. He will take us through the rest of the season.”Bhave, the former Maharashtra opening batsman, served as a national selector for four years till last September. He had been appointed chairman of Maharashtra’s senior selection panel ahead of the 2011-12 season, thereby acquainting him with the players.”It is unfortunate to lose Dermot’s services but we are determined to make the most of the remaining two games. We will do everything we can to avoid relegation,” Bhave said after a long practice session at the Subrata Roy Sahara Stadium on Friday, on the eve of Maharashtra’s match against an in-form Baroda.

As per an update in the paper edition of Corriere dello Sport, as shared by Sport Witness, there has been an exit development out of Tottenham Hotspur involving Tanguy Ndombele.

The Lowdown: Conte seeking sales…

The January transfer window has just 11 days remaining with Spurs still yet to confirm an incoming despite heavy links to Wolves star Adama Traore.

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Tottenham transfer chief Fabio Paratici and club chairman Daniel Levy, however, have managed to shift one face with promising youngster Dilan Markanday completing a permanent move to Blackburn Rovers.

Other names have been linked to a north London exit, including the likes of Matt Doherty and Dele Alli, with news from Italy now sharing a development involving club record signing Ndombele.

The Latest: Levy personally green-lights exit…

As explained in the report, Tottenham’s Levy has now personally given the go-ahead for him to leave this window as he transfer lists Ndombele.

According to CDS (via Sport Witness), the Spurs honcho has even offered him specifically to former boss Jose Mourinho at Roma – but Ndombele’s €10m-per-year (£8.3m) salary has proven a major stumbling block despite their interest.

The Verdict: Time to go?

Mourinho himself lauded the 25-year-old’s ‘amazing ability’ during his tenure at N17 and it’s little secret Ndombele possesses real talent when applying it correctly.

He finished last campaign as Spurs’ best dribbler in the Premier League, averaging more successful take-ons per 90 (2.2) than any Lilywhites man over 2020/2021 (WhoScored).

However, the real point of contention is Ndombele’s attitude and application, especially considering this isn’t the first time he has been linked to unceremoniously leaving Tottenham.

Now may be the best time to cut ties as Conte seeks a major rebuild and new dawn at the club.

In other news: Spurs edge closer to first January signing as Conte personally eyes ‘massive’ £15m man, find out more here.

Tyron Henderson, the South African allrounder, has rejoined Middlesex for the remainder of the Friends Provident t20 campaign

Cricinfo staff25-Jun-2010Tyron Henderson, the South African allrounder, has rejoined Middlesex for the remainder of the Friends Provident t20 campaign. Henderson, who had a previous spell with the club in 2008 and 2009, will help cover for an injury-hit bowling attack.Having arrived in London earlier this week, Henderson proved his fitness we two outings for the Middlesex second team which included hitting 80 off 31 balls against Surrey at Beckenham. Henderson was the final-over hero for Middlesex when they won the 2008 Twenty20 Cup against Kent at The Rose Bowl, although he had a limited impact for Rajasthan Royals at IPL3 having been brought for $650,000.”Injury to Iain O’Brien and Shaun Udal, and the ECB’s decision to withdraw Steven Finn from all cricket has given Middlesex’s bowling an inexperienced look,” said Angus Fraser, the managing director of cricket. “The predicament also places a heavy workload on a couple of bowlers who have already bowled a lot of overs this summer.”With this in mind it seemed sensible to bolster our bowling resources, and there are few more experienced and skilful t20 bowlers than Tyron. In 2009 it was reassuring to watch Tyron bowl at crucial stages of matches and we all know how hard and far he can hit a cricket ball. On his day he is a high quality limited over cricketer.”Meanwhile Neil Dexter, the recently appointed captain, and allrounder Gareth Berg have been given new three-year deals by the club. Dexter will take over the leadership following Shaun Udal’s resignation now that Adam Gilchrist’s spell with the county has come to an end.Berg, meanwhile, has been rewarded for some impressive all-round results after averaging 51.18 with the bat in the first half of the Championship season and taking 24 wickets at 34.75 to go with a batting average of 44.66 in the CB40.”That Neil has been appointed captain for the second half of the season highlights how highly he is regarded by everyone at Middlesex,” said Fraser. “He has been in excellent form with the bat and is one of the most elegant and classy players in the country. His bowling in one-day cricket is becoming highly effective too.”When I returned to Middlesex in many people’s eyes the jury was out on Gareth. But over the past season and a half he has become one of the country’s leading all-rounders. He holds a pivotal role in our side and when Gareth plays well we tend to. The most encouraging thing is that Gareth is getting better all the time and there is still plenty more to come.”

So far in the January transfer window, Wolves have made just one new addition, bringing in Japanese midfielder Hayao Kawabe from Swiss Super League side Grasshopper Club Zurich.

However, with Wolves’ official website stating that the player is expected to return to Switzerland on loan to complete the season with Grasshoppers after spending January in England, it could be worth signing another player who will actually spend the remainder of the current campaign in Bruno Lage’s squad.

With that in mind, one player that Wolves could sign who would not only be unlikely to be loaned back out upon arrival at Molineux but also have a great chance of playing regularly in the team is Renato Sanches.

Having been linked with a move for the Lille midfielder during last summer’s transfer window, this month could give Wolves a great chance of finally securing the 24-year-old.

Since joining Lille back in 2019 from Bayern Munich, the Portuguese maestro has made 76 appearances for the French club across all competitions, scoring six goals and providing six assists in the process.

Imagine him and Neves

Described as a player who has “got a lot of character” by BBC pundit Jermaine Jenas, Sanches has shown what a quality midfield player he can be, averaging 1.4 key passes per game in Ligue 1 this season. That is higher than any other Lille player and also exceeds every Wolves player in 2021/22 except Raul Jimenez, who is tied with him on 1.4 but with a much lower passing completion rate according to WhoScored.

This shows that the £27m-rated Portugal gem could provide a big boost for Wolves, particularly in an attacking regard, with only rock-bottom Norwich City having scored fewer goals than Lage’s side in the Premier League this season. Imagine him alongside compatriot Ruben Neves, who is the only Wolves player other than Jimenez to have both scored a goal and provided an assist in the league this season, and how that could greatly bolster the Old Gold’s attacking threat.

Moving forward, Wolves should definitely make another approach to Lille before the end of the month to see if they would be willing to negotiate a deal for Sanches this month or even in next summer’s transfer window.

In other news: Shi could secure the next Jimenez at Wolves with swoop for “quality” £49k-p/w beast – opinion

A day ahead of the India-New Zealand Test, Ahmedabad is more concerned about Diwali than the cricket

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Nov-2010Match FactsThursday, November 4
Start time 09.30 (04.00 GMT)
India will look to consistency from Sreesanth and Ishant Sharma•Associated PressThe Big PictureThe only buzz in Ahmedabad is about the Diwali, the festival of light and sound. The odd cracker goes off at night, the shopping malls are packed, as are the ‘soda shops’ with thirsty people waiting for their spouses to finish shopping. In this atmosphere of joy, temptation, greed, commerce and bonhomie, cricket seems a trivial affair but here we are with an India v New Zealand contest.The knee-jerk prediction for this series would have evoked memories of former BCCI secretary Jaywant Lele’s 0-3 prediction ahead of an Indian tour Down Under, obviously in reverse. Yet Indians have rarely bossed their opposition like that, even at home. The last time was in 1992-93, when a poor English side was tormented by Anil Kumble & Co. The image of that series was of Richard Blakey being harassed and hustled by Kumble.India have rarely been that dominant since. The designer dustbowl pitches have been replaced by largely batting-friendly surfaces, the visiting batsmen have grown more adept at playing spin and the playing field has become relatively level. Even Zimbabwe were no pushovers when Andy Flower was in full bloom. So the general feeling that New Zealand will surrender tamely might be an erroneous assumption – and dangerous for India.It’s difficult to see New Zealand take 20 Indian wickets; it’s difficult to see them bat well in the second innings on turning tracks, and it’s difficult to see them consistently maintain pressure with bat or ball over sessions but it’s not difficult to see them bat well in the first innings in good batting conditions.Mark Richardson, that masterfully dour former New Zealand opener, recently wrote that the line-up per se – Watling, McCullum, Guptill, Taylor, Ryder, Williamson, Vettori – gives him confidence but not its achievements; barring Vettori and the untested Williamson, the players have failed to deliver on their potential. They could do worse than acquiring some of Richardson’s patience.India are in a unique stage in their cricketing history in that their fans are looking ahead to the overseas series against South Africa rather than what’s playing now. It almost feels like the Australians and English, who obsess about the Ashes and treat anything in between as practice. Nevertheless, India have some issues to deal with. A couple of things stand out: Gautam Gambhir and Rahul Dravid getting some big runs, and Ishant Sharma and Sreesanth showing some consistency.Form guide(most recent first)
India :WWWDL
New Zealand: LLWDLWatch out for…Jesse Ryder and Brendon McCullum need to up their game•AFPJesse Ryder was New Zealand’s best batsman when they last played India. For a man who is waging an inner battle to keep his head in control off the field, he showed a remarkably cool head in the middle. He batted almost as if in a trance and what especially stood out was how little he deviated from his game plan. The footwork was minimal but very precise, the shot-selections were awesome and his patience supreme. Can he perform an encore?Pragyan Ojha is not a headliner but he might be the one who troubles New Zealand most. Harbhajan Singh has been afflicted with injuries since his fine performance against South Africa in Calcutta in February this year and hasn’t turned in match-winning spells since. Considering how New Zealand struggled against the Bangladeshi left-arm spinners – Ojha is of course no equal to the vastly accomplished Shakib Al Hasan – Ojha might strangle them with his accurate spin.Pitch and conditionsNo one can predict this Motera track. The last two Tests have been chalk and cheese: South Africa crushed India for 76 in April 2008 while Sri Lanka amassed 760 in the next Test in 2009. Ten Indian wickets fell in 20 overs in the first Test while 21 fell over five days in the next. And there could be more strange behaviour in store for us this time around: an unprecedented cloudburst early in August flooded the stadium and it took three days to drain out the water. This will be the first big game after that. The curator reckoned that there would be help for seamers on the first day.TeamsNew Zealand (probable): 1 Tim McIntosh, 2 Brendon McCullum, 3 BJ Watling, 4 Ross Taylor,5 Jesse Ryder, 6 Kane Williamson, 7 Daniel Vettori (capt), 8 Gareth Hopkins (wk), 9 Tim Southee, 10 Hamish/Bennett/Andy McKay, 11 Chris MartinIndia (probable): 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Gautam Gambhir, 3 Rahul Dravid, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 VVS Laxman, 6 Suresh Raina, 7 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 Ishant Sharma, 10 Zaheer Khan, 11 Pragyan OjhaStats and trivia Vettori needs 38 runs to become the third allrounder after Kapil Dev and Ian Botham to have 4000 runs and 300 wickets If Dravid takes a catch of Harbhajan’s bowling, it would be the 50th time the pair have been involved in a dismissal. They would become the fourth pair in Tests to do so: Muralitharan-Jayawardene (77), Kumble-Dravid (55) and Warne-Taylor (51). Dravid needs two more catches to become the first player to hold 200 catches in Tests. Sachin Tendulkar needs one more hundred to make it 50. If he hits two fifties in this series it will be his 13th against New Zealand and with it, he will join Javed Miandad who has scored the most 50s against New Zealand. Vettori is set to become the second player after Stephen Fleming to play 100 Tests for New Zealand.Quotes”More than fast bowling support to Zaheer, I am concerned about injuries. Not one series we have been able to play our full strength team.”

“I think we are trying to improve our Test match ranking, trying to get better as a team and if you start off with a mindset of draws being acceptable, then it gets difficult. I want to go out there wanting to win and we will take it from there.”

Glasgow Rangers are reportedly now following Brazilian youngster Antony as Giovanni van Bronckhorst targets his first signing of the summer transfer window.

The Lowdown: Busy summer?

In his first summer transfer window at Ibrox, van Bronckhorst will want to put his own stamp on the squad, and so there should be expected to be plenty of incomings and outgoings before the new season starts.

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The Teddy Bears have recently been linked with a loan move for Billy Gilmour, but the likes of Alex Lowry, Joe Aribo and Filip Helander are reportedly attracting interest from the Premier League.

The Latest: Rangers following

As per A Bola, the Light Blues, as well as Basel, are now following young forward Antony ahead of a potential move in the summer.

Described as an ‘offensive weapon’, the Gers have ‘collected some notes’ on the versatile talent as they look to start their business straight away.

The Verdict: Exciting

It certainly is exciting for the supporters that the club seem to be looking at summer recruitment already, despite the season not being over.

A Brazilian who is just 20 years of age, Antony is an interesting albeit relatively unknown prospect, having scored two goals while on loan at Arouca in the Portuguese top flight from Corinthians.

Capable of playing virtually anywhere in the attack, from second striker to both wings, RFC will be hoping to add more depth to the squad once the window officially opens, and perhaps the young South American could be a good start.

In other news, find out what ‘disappointing’ Rangers update has now emerged here!

Zimbabwe have taken major steps towards regaining their position in the cricketing hierarchy

Cricinfo staff09-Jun-2010Zimbabwe have taken major steps towards regaining their position in the cricketing hierarchy, of challengers capable of toppling the best sides on their day, and Brendan Taylor who has been at the forefront of the turnaround, has reaffirmed his loyalty to the Zimbabwean cause.”Zimbabwe is my home and it is good place to be in right now,” Taylor told . “I want to support Zimbabwe cricket as much as I can. We’re training hard and trying to give our best to play against Australia, India and Sri Lanka. Hopefully by next year, we will get our Test status back and things here will be normal soon.”We feel the first class structure in Zimbabwe is heading in the right direction. It’s run professionally and we just hope it continues the same way. We have got five teams at the moment and we’re trying to give exposure to the youngsters,” he said.Zimbabwe’s trough in world cricket coincided with the political upheaval in the country which drove several of their leading players away. Taylor was one of the few white cricketers who stuck with the team through the tough phase and spearheaded a few upsets during his time.”Beating Australia (in the first World Twenty20) was a very special moment. They were the world champions at that stage. The last-ball six against Bangladesh in 2006 which gave us series win. It was the closest game I’ve ever played in,” he said.Taylor top-scored in each of Zimbabwe’s three victories in the ongoing tri-series, getting a century and two fifties in the process. He almost single-handedly derailed India’s campaign – an outcome even he is surprised by. “I love Indian cricketers and follow them closely. The present side is slightly out of form. We’re surprised that they have left their main players out. But the current side has some quality cricketers. I’m really surprised that they are out of the tournament.”India and Sri Lanka may have sent depleted sides for the series, and while Taylor admits it made his side compete better, it would have been a good learning experience for Zimbabwe to face full-strength opposition. “That’s [strength of the other teams] not in our hands but I feel a lot happy that India have not fielded their best team. They would have made our task much harder.”At the same time, I would have liked them to be here. It would have been a good experience for us. I have immense respect for players like Yuvraj, Dhoni and Sachin. But we enjoyed playing against the current team. We learnt a lot,” he said.With his recent exploits, Taylor has his sights set on impressing the IPL talent scouts, and if things go his way, he may follow Tatenda Taibu to the lucrative Twenty20 league. “Certainly, every cricketer’s dream is to be a part of the IPL. I know there are two new teams from this year and I have my aspirations to play in the IPL. A few more good performances and I know I can get an IPL contract. It’s my aim to be part of such a well-established tournament,” Taylor said.

Alastair Cook’s run of poor form continued when he was dismissed for a first ball duck as Essex replied to a Kent total of 474 in their County Championship clash at Chelmsford

11-May-2010Kent 474 v Essex 172 for 4
Scorecard
Alastair Cook’s run of poor form continued when he was dismissed for a first ball duck as Essex replied to a Kent total of 474 in their County Championship clash at Chelmsford.The England opener pushed forward against Makhaya Ntini and edged an easy catch to wicketkeeper James Hockley, who was deputising behind the stumps for Geraint Jones, who was off the field complaining of feeling unwell.Cook has only once reached 50 in his seven championship innings this season and has gathered just 155 runs for an average of just over 22. While Cook was left reflecting on another failure, 21-year-old Tom Westley confirmed his promise by reaching the close within sight of his century with Essex on 172 for 4.The youngster will resume the third day on 84, an innings that has so far brought him a dozen boundaries against bowling far more testing than that of Essex. The most substantial partnership to date involved Westley and opener Billy Godleman who gathered 76 in 26 overs for the third wicket.Godleman survived an amazing escape from the final delivery before tea when he played a ball from Simon Cook into his stumps without dislodging a bail. But he failed to make the most of his good fortune because he was bowled by Azhar Mahmood immediately afterwards without adding to his 45.Mahmood had earlier removed Jaik Mickleburgh while Cook had Mark Pettini neatly taken at second slip by Martin van Jaarsveld to leave Essex on 114 for 4. But that was to be the last of Kent’s successes as James Foster curbed his attacking instincts to stay with Westley until the close with Essex still requiring a further 153 to avoid the follow on.Foster has so far batted for just over an hour and faced 73 deliveries in making 17. Earlier, Darren Stevens recorded his second championship century of the season after Kent had resumed on 355 for 6.Keeping him company for most of that time was Mahmood, the pair adding 134 for the seventh wicket. It was brought to an end when he was bowled by Ryan ten Doeschate for 64, containing eight boundaries.Stevens completed his century from 147 deliveries but departed next ball when he swung widely at leg spinner Danish Kaneria and skied a simple catch to Tim Phillips in the gulley. His effort contained 11 fours and 2 sixes.Ten Doeschate was by far Essex’s more successful bowler. The batsman finished with 4 for 77 while Kaneria’s two wickets came at a cost of 124 from 33 overs in his first appearance of the season.

Pakistan’s kit suppliers, BoomBoom, have suspended their relationship with Mohammad Amir and could also choose to sever ties with the team entirely

Cricinfo staff01-Sep-2010Pakistan’s kit suppliers, BoomBoom, have suspended their relationship with Mohammad Amir and could also choose to sever ties with the team entirely in the wake of the matchfixing allegations that surfaced in the News of the World last week.BoomBoom are less than halfway through a two-year deal as the official kit supplier to Pakistan cricket, while Amir is one of the highest-profile members of the squad to hold an individual deal. However, a statement from the managing director of the company put the relationship in jeopardy.”Like everyone else in the cricket world, we are truly saddened and shocked by these allegations,” said the managing director, Ali Ehsan. “I sincerely hope they are not true. However, we are huge cricket lovers: pure and simple. We believe in, and encourage players to have, the freedom to play, fairly.”The company were keen to stress that their decision was not intended as a prejudicial judgment on the guilt, or otherwise, of Amir, whose image has yet to be removed from the company website, where he appears alongside one-day captain Shahid Afridi, Fawad Alam and Abdul Razzaq.”We cannot allow our brand to be associated with any whiff of corruption or suspicion of foul play. While the suspension of our commercial involvement with Mohammad Amir is not a step we take lightly, we nevertheless feel that it is the right thing to do while a judicial process unfolds and innocence or guilt is established.”BoomBoom is also reviewing its position as official kit supplier to the Pakistan Cricket Board.”

Steven Finn believes he is ready to step up the intensity as England build towards the first Test in Brisbane later this month

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Nov-2010Steven Finn believes he is ready to step up the intensity as England build towards the first Test in Brisbane later this month, and expects the crowd at Adelaide for Thursday’s second warm-up match against South Australia to play their part in trying to unsettle an unusually issue-free England squad.England’s victory in their opening first-class warm-up match in Perth last week was the first time in 45 years that they had launched an Ashes tour with a win, and Finn played an important part in that effort, having overcome a tricky first spell to return decent match figures of 3 for 115 in 34 overs.”We copped a bit of abuse at the WACA last week in that last innings,” Finn told reporters in Adelaide. “It’s something we’re prepared for, we’ll embrace and we’re going to try to enjoy. Friendly banter is good – to make sure we’re accessible as people, we’re human beings as well, and everyone’s got a sense of humour.”You can see the funny side when people are chirping you. It’s part of what we have to expect as international cricketers, and to be able to deal with that is important.”While he couldn’t claim to be entirely happy with his efforts, Finn was nevertheless pleased that he was able to adjust his length to suit the WACA wicket, having started the game with a length that was far too full for the conditions. By the final day, however, he had settled into a decent rhythm that boded well for future challenges.”I slid around in the footholds in the first innings a little bit – but I don’t want to make excuses,” said Finn. “I’m not the sort of person who is going to sit there and say it was because of the footholds I was bowling full.”It might have contributed. But I didn’t bowl well in my first spell and went for three or four an over – which is something I don’t want to do in Australia. I adapted and managed to bowl better lengths. It’s important that process happens quicker in future.”With 32 wickets in his eight Tests to date, and with an imposing 6’8″ frame that ought to be well-suited to Australia conditions, Finn has been earmarked as a vital part of England’s attack, even though he has never before set foot in the country. With that in mind, he is trying not to worry about getting everything right at once.”I was happy with how I bowled towards the end of the first innings,” he said. “It was that first spell that I wasn’t happy with at all. But I’m 21 years old, and understand that I’m going to be inconsistent every now and again. But it’s important that I don’t settle for that and I try to make myself better each time I go out and bowl – and learn every time too.”England are expected to name an unchanged side for the South Australia match, with Alastair Cook the only major concern form-wise, following his scores of 5 and 9 at the WACA. However, England’s coach, Andy Flower, dismissed any doubts, saying: “It’s one game, two innings. I think he’s going to do well.”