Benjamin Manenti has fallen short of a maiden first-class century, but the spinner’s boundary-laden innings lifted South Australia back from the brink on day one of their Sheffield Shield match against Queensland in Brisbane.Manenti cracked 88 as South Australia were bowled out for 272 just before stumps on day one at the Gabba.Easily the Shield’s fastest scoring side, South Australia scored their runs off 80 overs after a rain-hit afternoon.New captain Jake Lehmann was the other main contributor with his quickfire 65 coming off just 58 balls.But Manenti was the star with 15 boundaries in his 101-ball knock.It was a third half-century in four innings for the No. 8 who is fast making a case to be considered an allrounder.South Australia looked in deep trouble with Lehmann’s dismissal leaving the visitors at 6 for 111 after being sent in to bat by Queensland.Wicketkeeper Harry Nielsen also made an important contribution down the order before being dismissed late in the day for 47.Michael Neser (3 for 60) and Xavier Bartlett (3 for 54) were the chief wicket-takers for Queensland.The latter dismissed Manenti after a flashing drive was caught in the gully.South Australia lined up without Wes Agar, the Shield’s leading wicket-taker before this round of games – he is being rested ahead of next Wednesday’s One-Day Cup final against Western Australia.The second-placed Queensland went into the penultimate round fixture sharing the No. 2 spot on the table with the in-form Victoria.

Chivas will face Atlas this Saturday in a must-win match for a spot in the Clausura 2025 Play-In.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

currently sits in 11th place with 20 points, just outside the top 10, which is the cutoff for qualificationChivas have lost their last two matches against Atlas are already eliminated from contentionFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱AFPWHAT HAPPENED?

Chivas icon Ramón Morales has voiced his worries regarding the performance and direction of Guadalajara – a team he once captained and helped lead to glory.

Morales, known for his leadership and deep connection with the club, hopes to see – currently managed by Gerardo Espinoza, though it's unlikely he'll remain in charge next season – return to the top tier of Mexican football.

“Because of its history and everything it represents, Chivas should always be competing, fighting for the top spots,” Morales told TUDN. “Being in the Liguilla. The fact that the team is now fighting just to get into a Play-In – that’s not what the fans want. It leaves them sad, angry, or disappointed.”

Chivas sit just outside the top 10 with one match left to play in the Clausura 2025 regular season – a high-stakes showdown against Atlas, a team that has beaten them in their last two encounters. The outcome will decide whether Chivas sneaks into the postseason or faces another year of questions and frustration.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Matchday 17 of the Clausura 2025 still carries major implications. While Toluca has already secured the top seed, several clubs are aiming to either solidify their place in the Final Phase or improve their seeding.

Nine of the 10 postseason spots have been secured. The final one will be decided this weekend between Chivas and Pumas.

Chivas will face Atlas at Estadio Jalisco, but their fate isn’t in their control – they’ll need Pumas to drop points when they visit Tigres.

Both matches will be played simultaneously on Saturday, with the final playoff spot hanging in the balance.

Getty Images SportDID YOU KNOW?

The longest-standing rivalry in Mexican football features two proud institutions from Jalisco: Chivas and Atlas.

, which began in 1916, has built over a century of rich history. In the overall head-to-head, Club Deportivo Guadalajara has set the pace in this fierce rivalry.

Across 293 official matches, Chivas has recorded 110 victories, while Atlas has won 95 times, with 88 draws between them.

In 172 league matches, Chivas holds the advantage with 63 wins, compared to 52 for Atlas, and 57 draws. During the regular season alone, Guadalajara has won 60 times, and in the Liguilla (playoffs), they’ve celebrated three wins in 12 encounters.

The only previous Play-In clash between these two rivals was won by Atlas, giving a rare edge in that particular stage.

Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR CHIVAS?

Gerardo Espinoza’s squad will fight for their play-in ticket this Saturday when they visit Atlas at Estadio Jalisco. The last two editions of the have both ended in victories for the

After beating Brentford on New Year’s Day, Arsenal have failed to win any of their subsequent three games.

Mikel Arteta’s side drew with Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League and then lost to Newcastle United and Manchester United in the League Cup and FA Cup, respectively.

Despite conceding in each of those matches, the biggest issue is proving to be the Gunners’ attack, and while club captain Martin Odegaard looked better against the Red Devils – bar his dreadful penalty, that is – he has looked someway off his sensational best this year.

His poor form is undoubtedly in part down to the ankle injury he suffered earlier in the season, but it could also be down to the chopping and changing of the midfield around him, so recent reports linking the club to someone who could be a mainstay in the team next season and a dream teammate to boot, should excite fans.

Arsenal transfer news

According to a recent report from talkSPORT’s Chief Football Correspondent Alex Crook, Arsenal are seriously interested in signing Real Sociedad star Martin Zubimendi this summer.

In fact, Crook goes one step further, claiming that personal terms are “already in place” with the player and that Liverpool are now “not expected to revisit their interest.”

Crook does not mention how much the transfer may cost, but in another report from earlier today, journalist Sami Mokbel revealed that the Gunners will activate the £51m release clause in the Spaniard’s contract in the summer.

It’s undoubtedly a lot of money, but given Zubimendi’s ability, it could prove more than worth it, especially as he could be a dream teammate for Odegaard.

Why Zubimendi would be an ideal teammate

So, there are several reasons why Zubimendi would be an excellent teammate for Odegaard in this Arsenal team, and the first is that they have already played together.

Before he joined the Gunners in 2021, the Norwegian maestro spent the 19/20 season on loan with Real Sociedad, where he played with Mikel Merino in a midfield which the 25-year-old Spaniard then joined towards the end of the campaign.

The second reason he’d be a great teammate is that he’s rarely out injured, having missed just ten games since the start of the 20/21 campaign.

This is incredibly important, as his ability to start games week-in-week-out should help him build footballing relationships with his new teammates, keep a sense of continuity within the team and help build momentum.

As they say, availability is the best ability.

Lastly, as his underlying numbers show, the “world-class” international, as dubbed by Spanish football writer Alexandra Jonson, is capable of fulfilling both the defensive and offensive responsibilities of playing at the base of midfield, thus allowing Odegaard to focus his attention on what’s happening at the sharp end of the pitch.

For example, according to FBref, the 25-year-old sits in the top 5% of midfielders in Europe’s top five leagues, the Champions League and Europa League for successful take-on percentage and percentage of aerial duels won, the top 10% for percentage of dribblers tackled, the top 11% for clearances, the top 12% for passes blocked, the top 15% for shots blocked and more, all per 90.

Successful Take-On %

70.6%

Top 5%

% of Aerials Won

66.3%

Top 5%

Average Shot Distance

14.30

Top 7%

Penalty Kicks Won

0.03

Top 9%

% of Dribblers Tackled

61.5%

Top 10%

Touches (Def Pen)

3.72

Top 10%

Clearances

2.20

Top 11%

Passes Blocked

0.51

Top 12%

Aerials Won

1.70

Top 13%

Shots Blocked

0.48

Top 15%

Ultimately, it might not make a difference this season, but the news that Arsenal are primed to sign Zubimendi in the summer should seriously excite the fans, as with him in the team, Odegaard could have more licence to get forward and play to his full potential.

Alongside Zubimendi: Arsenal want to sign £50m PL star who's like Isak

The incredible attacker could solve Arsenal’s biggest problem this season.

ByJack Salveson Holmes Jan 14, 2025

Exhibiting the indomitable Sri Lankan spirit, overcoming a poor situation, and battling injury, Kaushal Silva showed how he fit right into the template of a Sri Lankan fight

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Colombo16-Aug-20161:33

The injury helped me in a way – Silva

“The Sri Lankan fight” is a catchphrase increasingly fetishised by members and coaching staff of the national team. It is uttered so freely, and so rhapsodically, “fight” can seem better-regarded in this side than technique, or tactical aptitude, or runs, or wickets, or indeed victory.Even in matches in which oppositions have amassed a total of roughly seven million, and Sri Lanka’s top order has then been dismissed for a cumulative 0.5, coaches, captains and managers will still glowingly cite the 25-run tail-end partnership consisting largely of leg byes that come off quivering helmets, as evidence of a proud, age-old, indomitable Sri Lankan spirit.The talk is often not of how well a cricketer performed, but of how poor the situation was that he performed in. “It was excellent that our No. 7 really showed us how to bat in conditions where the ball was teleporting around the pitch and phasing through solid objects,” goes one fairly typical post-match comment. “It was wonderful to see our seamer get three inconsequential wickets given his team-mates fielded like they were being tasered, all through the innings,” is the rough paraphrasing of another.Small wonder that in the last eight Tests, including this present game, Sri Lanka have given up a first-innings deficit on six occasions. There is a growing admiration for “characterful performances”, usually when team-mates’ ineptitude has made things more difficult for you. There is admiration for gutsy innings when battling demons – either personal, or in the pitch, or James Anderson. And it is into this narrative that Kaushal Silva’s excellent hundred fits.Consider the numbers 0, 5, 2, 4 and 7. These are not, as would be fair to suspect at first glance, Kardashian IQs. They are Silva’s previous scores in the series. Silva says the selectors “didn’t put any pressure on him” through this trot. But the thing with selectors is that since they have invested in a set of players, it is in their interest that each of those players has the confidence to play well. Their expression of belief in a cricketer is roughly on par with a mother telling her son he is handsome, or a wife assuring a husband that his now-enormous belly is not sapping her will to live.On social media at least, Silva’s failures had attracted ridicule. One guy removed the lid from a coke bottle with his teeth, and proclaimed them to be “a better opener than Kaushal or Dimuth”. Others suggested sending tail-enders in to face the new ball. If they cannot be spared, maybe plywood cutouts of the tail-enders would do.His back thus up against an advancing bulldozer, Silva summoned a second-innings, dusty-pitch 115. Going into battle for his place for the second time in 10 months, he mustered what was probably the performance of his career.In addition to the pressure of keeping his place, Silva also had to contend with a wound in his top hand, after getting six stitches on the webbing he had split while fielding. The injury clearly hampered his strokeplay, but he said it may have been a blessing in disguise.”Normally, when you have an injury you tend to concentrate more,” he said after play. “The split webbing also helped me as I couldn’t go for my drives, and in the first few innings I had got out chasing deliveries outside off stump. The injury gave me the guts to go out there and show how capable I am – what I can do when chips were down.”If what Silva says is true, then this innings also fits another Sri Lanka narrative – one that has developed this tour – in which every injury sustained leads to better performance. Ahead of the Pallekele Test, Suranga Lakmal’s injury forced the team to pick Lakshan Sandakan, who took seven wickets. In Galle, Nuwan Pradeep’s absence meant fewer overs of seam bowling, while Australian batsmen raced each other to be humiliated by spin. At the SSC, Rangana Herath achieved his best figures of the series only after being struck in the box the previous day, and now it has taken a nasty tear to unlock Silva’s runs.If this trend of producing “fighting” performances despite injury continues much longer, coaches might consider shooting air rifles at batsmen who are headed to the crease. Maybe the long-standing fielding issues can be solved if they set fire to the 12th man before play.Either way, on Tuesday, another player overcame yet another set of difficult circumstances to push Sri Lanka forward in the game. They are already well placed to push for victory, but Angelo Mathews’ innate conservatism took hold again, and the evening session went on and on, and Sri Lanka continued to bat.SLC’s Thilanga Sumathipala had said on Monday that Mathews would remain captain until 2019. Selecting is not, strictly speaking, Sumathipala’s job. But at least it was nice of him to let fans know when a declaration can be expected.

أعلن نادي ليفربول الإنجليزي، قائمة الفريق المستدعاة للمعسكر التحضيري للموسم الجديد، والتي تضمنت 29 لاعبًا مع استبعاد أحد اللاعبين.

وغادر فريق ليفربول بقيادة المدرب آرني سلوت، إلى آسيا مساء الأحد استعدادًا لمباراتين ضد ميلان ويوكوهاما إف مارينوس.

وحقق ليفربول فوزًا على ستوك سيتي بنتيجة 5-0 في مباراة ودية اليوم خلف أبواب مغلقة في مركز أكسا للتدريب.

وشهدت القائمة المستدعاة للمعسكر التدريبي، استبعاد فيديريكو كييزا والمتوقع رحيله خلال سوق الانتقالات الصيفي الحالي، فيما تواجد لويس دياز وداروين نونيز وإبراهيما كوناتي في ظل التكهنات حول مستقبلهم. قائمة ليفربول في معسكر آسيا قبل الموسم الجديد

حراسة المرمى: أليسون، وودمان، مامارداشفيلي، ميسكيور، بيتشي.

خط الدفاع: فيرجيل فان دايك، إبراهيما كوناتي، جو جوميز، كوستاس تسيميكاس، آندي روبرتسون، كونور برادلي، ميلوس كيركيز، جيريمي فريمبونج، ستيفنسون.

خط الوسط: واتارو إندو، دومينيك سوبوسلاي، أليكسيس ماك أليستر، كورتيس جونز، هارفي إليوت، ريان جرافنبرخ، مورتون، نيووني.

خط الهجوم: محمد صلاح، لويس دياز، داروين نونيز، كودي جاكبو، بن دوك، فلوريان فيرتز، نجوموها.

The pitch in Ahmedabad is expected to be a belter and the expectation is that there won’t be a lot of dew

Sreshth Shah25-May-20237:57

Moody: Suryakumar vs Rashid and Noor will be fascinating to watch

Big picture: Defending champions vs Serial winnersFor probably the first time in the franchise’s young history, Gujarat Titans will be feeling the pressure in a knockout game. Freshly jolted by a defeat in Qualifier 1, this is the first time they’re ever playing an IPL game to stay alive. The best team from the league stage didn’t really play like it against Chennai Super Kings to the point that it suddenly seems like they aren’t entirely sure of their best XI. Getting that wrong in the playoff stages usually proves expensive.On the other hand, Mumbai Indians are peaking at the right time. They produced one of their most complete performances in the Eliminator to go with four wins in their last five games in the group stages. From the batting point of view, everyone has unlocked the most dangerous version of themselves, and among bowlers, Piyush Chawla and Jason Behrendorff are doing enough for Akash Madhwal to shine at the death.Related

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Mumbai beat Titans the last time the two sides met in IPL 2023, and purely based on recent results and recent vibes, Mumbai would appear to have the edge. Their bowling unit has been red-hot of late but that wasn’t quite the case early on in the tournament. Titans on the other hand have proven performers with the ball, including the season’s top two wicket-takers. How Madhwal and co can match up to Mohammed Shami and Rashid Khan may well decide the outcome of this game.Titans’ batting though, at least in the present moment, lacks the clarity their bowling has. They need to figure out if Dasun Shanaka is offering enough. And also do more to ensure Vijay Shankar bats when he can have the most impact. Most of all, they have to find a way for Hardik Pandya – the batter – to make the best use of his skills. If that clarity is there, Titans will feel that the Qualifier defeat was a mere blip on their journey towards defending their IPL title. It won’t come easy against a side that just knows how to win crunch games.Form guideGujarat Titans: LWWLW
Mumbai Indians: WWLWWTeam news: Worry for Titans seamers?Titans played Darshan Nalkande against Super Kings for Yash Dayal, but Nalkande was hobbling after his bowling spell. If Nalkande is unfit, one could see Dayal coming back in. Titans could also bring in Josh Little as a replacement, but that would see Shanaka dropped. Little is a frontrunner for his experience and better bowling numbers compared to the uncapped Indians, more so in a knockout game.With Tilak Varma returning to their side against Lucknow Super Giants, Mumbai have no injury concerns.Nehal Wadhera scored quick runs coming in as an Impact sub•AFP/Getty Images

Impact Player strategy: What will Mumbai do?Mumbai could use an extra batter – like in the Eliminator with Nehal Wadhera – and sacrifice an extra bowling option to give their first-innings total a push if they bat first. Otherwise, the default route is Suryakumar Yadav being used as an Impact sub for an Indian bowler.Mumbai Indians (probable XII): 1 Ishan Kishan (wk), 2 Rohit Sharma (capt), 3 Cameron Green, , 5 Tilak Varma, 6 Tim David, , 8 Chris Jordan, 9 Piyush Chawla, 10 Jason Behrendorff, 11 Akash Madhwal, 12 Kumar KartikeyaTitans are likely to go with Vijay as the Impact Player in a chase or bring in a fast bowler if they are defending.Gujarat Titans (probable XII): 1 Shubman Gill, 2 Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 3 Hardik Pandya (capt), , 5 David Miller, 6 Sai Sudharsan/Abhinav Manohar, 7 Rahul Tewatia, 8 Rashid Khan, 9 Noor Ahmad, , 11 Mohit Sharma, 12 Mohammed Shami.Stats that matter: Watch out for Rohit vs Rashid Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav have contrasting numbers against Rashid Khan. Rohit has been dismissed four times in six innings, but Suryakumar has scored 67 runs in 47 balls without ever being dismissed in the IPL. Titans and Mumbai are the two best chasing sides in IPL 2023, having won six of their nine chases. In IPL 2023, Hardik averages 40 at the No. 3 position in eight innings, but at No. 4, he struggles, averaging 11.4 in five innings. Mumbai’s powerplay bowling has steadily improved. In their first ten games, their powerplay economy of 9.2 came with an average of 54.9. In their last five games, their powerplay economy has dropped to 8.2, with an average of 27.3. Pitch and conditionsIt has touched 43 degrees in Ahmedabad. Curators have covered the pitch to ensure it doesn’t break down abnormally. The pitch for the game is among the least used strips – the centre has nine surfaces – and is being brought in to seemingly provide a run fest.It has been watered adequately to ensure some amount of moisture helps bind it underneath. The curator expects good pace and bounce like all season. Dew isn’t expected to be a major factor, helped by the chemical they use to prevent its formation.

da bet vitoria： Liverpool were a day late and a dollar short in the Premier League last season, and in hindsight, the great Jurgen Klopp’s decision to stand down looks to have been the correct decision.

da fazobetai： Arne Slot is thriving at the helm, lifting a gifted group of players and pushing them toward a top-flight title challenge and perhaps a shot at the Champions League trophy too.

FSG are stuck with a bit of a reputation for being overly wary in the transfer market, something that was reflected through Federico Chiesa being the only addition to Slot’s project thus far (he’s suffered with injuries and has only started one match).

But January. Ah, January. It’s a month for action, as far as the Anfield bosses are concerned.

Liverpool's best January signings

In recent years, Liverpool have pounced on multiple winter opportunities to strengthen their frontline, bringing in Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo in successive January windows. Both have been staples for Slot’s team this season.

Way further back, though, you’ll find the £23m deal to sign Ajax’s Luis Suarez was pulled off on deadline day in January 2011. The Uruguayan might not have lifted any silver but he’s an iconic Redman, one of the very best.

Of course, no January acquisition can confidently claim that they have been better, more transformational, than Virgil van Dijk. Liverpool’s all-powerful captain left Southampton for Merseyside in a £75m deal at the 2017/18 campaign’s midpoint, proving the catalyst for illustrious success.

One of the greatest defenders of his generation, the Netherlands titan is still starring for title-chasing Liverpool and is undoubtedly one of their most iconic players.

Now, Liverpool are eyeing up another exciting winter recruit in Napoli’s Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.

Liverpool's perfect Kvaratskhelia alternative

Paris Saint-Germain are looking to complete a deal for the Serie A leaders’ wantaway winger this month, but numerous sources – including The Athletic – report that Liverpool are attentive to the situation and could seek to hijack the deal.

Not to be pragmatic, but PSG are in control of the race as things stand, and anyway, Liverpool might be better off launching a bid for a Premier League star instead.

Indeed, as per Sky Sports this month, Liverpool have been monitoring Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo and might be tempted into completing a deal, though the Bees would look to claim at least £50m for their prized forward.

Sky Germany have recently revealed that Arsenal have shortlisted the French forward and Newcastle United are known admirers too. If Liverpool have the funds to spend on such a player, why not act now?

Why Liverpool should sign Bryan Mbeumo

Mbeumo has gone from strength to strength under Thomas Frank this season, scoring 13 Premier League goals – a haul bettered only by Mohamed Salah and Manchester City’s Erling Haaland.

Premier League – Top Scorers 2024/25

Rank

Player

Goals

1.

Mohamed Salah

18

2.

Erling Haaland

16

3.

Alexander Isak

13

3=

Bryan Mbeumo

13

3=

Cole Palmer

13

Stats via Premier League

Kvaratskhelia is the bigger name, to be sure, but Liverpool’s shrewdness might just pay off, should they move for Mbeumo. Analyst Ben Mattinson has actually hailed the French ace for emitting “Mane at Southampton vibes,” practically begging for a high-profile suitor to come along and place him in a more prominent position.

The 25-year-old has his prime years ahead of him, as did Mane when Liverpool snapped him up from the Saints for a £34m fee in June 2016, when he was 24.

Mane scored 120 goals and added 42 further assists across 269 appearances for the Anfield side, winning the whole gamut and being described as a “machine” in the final third by Jurgen Klopp.

Principally playing off the left, the Senegal superstar’s positional flexibility has been one of his main strengths throughout a storied and successful career, something that Mbeumo could emulate as his belated natural successor.

Mbeumo could further mimic the now Al Nassr player by arriving from a ‘lesser’ Premier League club and becoming one of Europe’s superstars, very much in line with the way in which FSG like to conduct themselves in the transfer market.

Moreover, Slot has shown that he’s partial to shuffling his forwards about, with Luis Diaz in particular playing regularly and with great success at number nine. This is something that Jurgen Klopp did with Mane, and Slot could now follow suit.

Mbeumo has properties that are well-suited to the striker’s department and boasts an impressive record when Frank has shifted into the number nine spot. Let’s not forget that Ivan Toney left last summer and took all his potency with him, but it’s scarcely been felt with Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa combining emphatically.

Bryan Mbeumo – Brentford Stats by Position (PL)

Position

Apps

Goals

Assists

Right winger

60

22

17

Centre-forward

28

10

3

Attacking midfield

29

2

1

Stats via Transfermarkt

As per FBref, the £45k-per-week ace ranks among the top 5% of Premier League positional peers this season for goals scored (0.65) and the top 13% for crosses made (4.92) per 90.

He’s athletic and balanced in the execution of his attacking qualities, with the positional flexibility and, of course, innate goalscoring ability perhaps giving the claim that he’s got Mane-esque talents some substance.

Liverpool are looking for a new forward, with Kvaratskhelia as the name in circulation right now. However, Mbeumo might be the better pick, with the skills and style to make him Slot’s very own version of Mane.

Related PL club want him: Liverpool face their own Palmer disaster with "magic" ace

This Liverpool player has been linked with an exit and it would be a disaster for Slot’s project.

Posts ByAngus Sinclair Jan 10, 2025

Earlier this week, Lahore Qalandars coach Aqib Javed told ESPNcricinfo about how other teams in the PSL prioritised power hitters, while Qalandars wanted to go for the best bowlers. Here, Multan Sultans demonstrated to them the value of power hitters lower down the order, as Kieron Pollard and Tim David dug deep against an imperious Qalandars bowling showing to post 160. Sultans then went about taking apart the defending champions’ batting line-up in astonishing fashion, with Sheldon Cottrell blowing away the top order as Qalandars folded for 76, the third-lowest total in PSL history. It sealed Sultans’ place in the PSL final for the third successive season – the first team to do that – while Qalandars drop down into Friday’s eliminator to keep their title defence intact.Chasing a total down against Qalandars’ bowling line-up has become the most daunting challenge in the PSL, and Sultans were sensible enough to be flexible. They won the toss and batted first for the first time this season, and just the fifth time in their history. But they tend to pick these moments well; they won three of the previous four.Related

• Aqib Javed: 'We wanted the best bowling unit, everyone else is after the best hitters'

• Miller: 'I've really enjoyed challenging myself against the PSL death bowlers'

That victory seemed anything but assured for much of the first innings, with Qalandars at their imperious best with the ball, stifling Sultans in the first 15 overs. The average first innings score this season here was 193, but it became obvious fairly soon the Sultans wouldn’t get anywhere near that. They managed just 46 in the powerplay, and while Qalandars hadn’t picked up any wickets, it didn’t seem as if they needed to.Haris Rauf, at his fearsome fastest, struck the first blow, though the ball he cleaned Usman Khan up with was a slower one. Zaman Khan got rid of a scratchy Rilee Rossouw cheaply, a huge wicket, particularly given Rossouw’s imperious record against Qalandars. Rashid Khan prised Mohammad Rizwan out with a wrong’un to reduce the Sultans to 90 for three, and Qalandars only tightened their grip on the game.Sheldon Cottrell celebrates with his signature salute after a top-order wicket•PCB

It was a sensational lower order counterattack from Pollard that dug his side out of a hole, though it wasn’t without its chances. Sam Billings dropped a skier fairly early on in the onslaught, with Shaheen Afridi and Hussain Talat missing chances to get rid of him. In the meantime, he was grinding through the gears, pushing up Sultans total to a defensible level, never more so than when he powered three sixes off Shaheen in the penultimate over; the 20 the Qalandars captain conceded made it his most costly PSL over. It also brought up a 33-ball 50 for Pollard, winning him the Player-of-the-Match award.Haris hit back with a scintillating final six balls, hitting speeds in excess of 150 regularly and cleaning up both Pollard and Khushdil Shah. It saw just six runs scored and clawed a bit of momentum Qalandars’ way, turning the task over to the batters.But Cottrell, newly arrived at the PSL, wrenched the game out of Qalandars’ hands before they’d even had the opportunity to get the chase off the ground. A double-strike in his second over, making prodigious use of inswing to the right-handers, put paid to both Mirza Baig and Abdullah Shafique, while Anwar Ali from the other end seamed one beautifully to knock back the top of Fakhar Zaman’s off stump. Cottrell wasn’t done with the ambush yet, returning to dispatch Shaheen with a wild swing off the second ball he faced finding Usman Khan at cover.There was more trauma about to be inflicted on a shell-shocked Qalandars. Pollard, their tormentor in chief with the bat, saw two wickets fall in his first over, sloppy running catching Talat out before a sensational running catch from Abbas Afridi brought the curtains down on Sikandar Raza.Qalandars’ thoughts were already turning to Friday’s eliminator. Billings and Rashid fell in quick succession, before a few lusty blows from David Wiese and Rauf gave a packed, partisan home crowd something to cheer for. It was to be ephemeral, however, with Abbas Afridi delivering the knockout blow as Haris feathered one through to the keeper.Sultans were thrashed in last year’s PSL final by this very opposition. But this was a step towards ensuring they might not even need to meet them at that stage one more time.

The top-ranked Test bowler says he is a lot more “chilled” and “relaxed” at this stage of his life

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Jun-20231:56

Should India have picked Ashwin?

Having been left out of India’s XI for the WTC final against Australia despite being the No. 1 Test bowler in the world, R Ashwin looks at it as a “stumbling block” in his career and not a “setback”. Ashwin’s omission by India, who chose to play four quick bowlers and a spinner in Ravindra Jadeja, triggered a debate especially after they lost by 209 runs at The Oval, which is one of the more spin-friendly pitches in England.”For me, it’s not a setback,” Ashwin told the and . “It’s just a stumbling block, I’ll move on because I have gone through that. When somebody knocks you down for the first time, you have a knee-jerk reaction. I think you should be knocked down once in a while along your life so that you are used to it and will know how to bounce back. That’s what life is. Whether you are at your peak or not, it is still a setback. The fact that you need to learn how to deal with it is very important.”I would have loved to play because I have played a part in us getting there. Even in the last final I got four wickets and bowled really well. Ever since 2018-19, my bowling overseas has been fantastic and I have managed to win games for the team. I am looking at it as a captain or coach and I’m just talking in hindsight, in their defence. So the last time when we were in England, it was 2-2 with a drawn Test and they would have felt four pacers and one spinner is the combination in England. That is what they might have thought going into the final. The problem is for a spinner to come into play, it must be the fourth innings. The fourth innings is a very crucial facet and for us to be able to put that amount of runs so the spinner can come into play, it’s completely a mindset thing.”To look inwards and say ‘okay, somebody is judging me’ is foolishness. I think I’m not at the stage of my career to think what others are thinking of me. I know what I am capable of. If I’m not good at something, I’ll be my first best critic. And I will work on it and I’m not someone who will sit on my laurels. I’ve never been made that way. So to think of who’s judging me is immaterial.”