Heat, who beat Sixers in last season’s final, moved up to fifth with their point
AAP03-Jan-2025
Rain in Coffs Harbour forced an abandonment•Getty Images
Rain was the only winner as the BBL game in Coffs Harbour between top-of-the-table Sydney Sixers and defending champions Brisbane Heat was washed out without any play.The game was abandoned just over an hour after it was scheduled to start.The point apiece for the no result put Sixers three points ahead of second-placed Perth Scorchers, who were scheduled to play Sydney Thunder later on Friday.Heat, who beat Sixers in last season’s final but lost to them in Brisbane last week, moved up to fifth with their point.Rain had fallen over the north coast venue for several hours.At one stage, it appeared to have almost ceased, but it intensified and forced the abandonment of the game to the disappointment of the several thousand fans who arrived at the ground.Michael Neser had been scheduled to make his comeback from an hamstring injury suffered almost two months ago while playing for Australia A. Heat had also named wicketkeeper Tom Alsop in their squad, with the England Lions representative poised to make his season debut.Heat, who had lost three games straight before Friday’s washout, will next play Thunder in Brisbane on Monday. Sixers, who suffered their first loss in their last start after winning their first four, face Melbourne Stars at the MCG next Thursday.
da bet7： Aston Villa are now willing to meet the price tag to sign an “explosive” new attacking talent this summer, according to a new report.
Several ins and outs expected at Villa with PSR deadline looming
da poker： The Villans have until the end of this month to balance their books with PSR’s hammer looming, so before any incomings can happen, there needs to be some movement in the exit department. That may not be far away now, as it appears there are already two players on their way out of Villa Park, as Emiliano Martínez and Lucas Digne look to seal permanent moves away.
Upgrade on Mings: Aston Villa could land bargain for £17m "cheat code"
Unai Emery has his sights set on bringing a Barcelona defender to the Premier League
1 ByRoss Kilvington Jun 21, 2025
Martinez has attracted strong interest from Manchester United in the last week or so, as the Argentine is said to favour a move to Old Trafford over joining FC Barcelona, who are also interested in a transfer.
Meanwhile, it has been reported that Digne is in talks with Spanish giants Atletico Madrid over a move to Spain, as they look to bolster their options in that area of the team. The Frenchman is in the final 12 months of his contract at Villa, and it now seems he is free to leave the Premier League side, after being in and out of the team last season.
Aston Villa defender Lucas Digne
These potential exits could allow Villa to enter the market and bring in players who they believe can improve Unai Emery’s options. According to ex-Villa chief scout Mick Brown, Aston Villa could look to make a move for Manchester United’s Mason Mount, with Emery a fan of the midfielder.
Aston Villa willing to pay £27m+ transfer demand for Paixao
The Villans don’t just have their eyes on Mount as a new attacking option; according to Dutch outlet Algemeen Dagblad, relayed by Sport Witness, Aston Villa are now keen on signing Igor Paixão from Feyenoord.
Feyenoord have already received record sales from the departures of Santiago Giménez and Mats Wieffer in recent times, but the Dutch side are now open to selling Paixao, as long as they receive a larger transfer fee. The report states that Feyenoord are looking to get more than €32 million for the winger, which is roughly £27 million.
This fee has done nothing to put Villa off, as the report adds that the Premier League side are willing to pay this transfer fee, although as things stand a transfer is still a “long way off at the moment”.
The 24-year-old, who can operate on both flanks, has emerged on Villa’s radar after scoring 16 goals in 34 Eredivisie games last season, and a further two in the Champions League.
Igor Paixão’s Feyenoord stats
Apps
129
Goals
39
Assists
29
Paixao, who has been dubbed “explosive” by scout Jacek Kulig, recently spoke in an interview with Globo Esporte and revealed he “dreams of playing for a big club”.
Paixao said, as quoted by Sport Witness: “Showing my football, being recognised by the big clubs, is gratifying. I dream of getting to a big team; it is the fruit of my work. If it is meant to happen, it will happen.”
da realsbet： Manchester United have now made a bid worth £30 million to sign a “monster” striker in this transfer window, according to a recent report.
Man Utd chasing multiple targets as they search for a new striker
da betano casino： The Red Devils are continuing to work on a deal to sign Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford, a transfer saga that has lasted all summer so far. United return to pre-season training next week, and the hope is that they can have a deal wrapped up for the Cameroon international by then, but he may not be the only attacking signing either.
Worth £40m less than Gyokeres: Man Utd to offer huge salary to unexpected striker
The Red Devils are beginning to motor in the market…
BySean Markus Clifford Jun 30, 2025
Given the struggles in front of goal last season, it is no surprise that United are in the market for a new striker to replace Rasmus Hojlund. It was reported over the weekend that United have placed Genk striker Tolu Arokodare on their list of targets after he scored 23 goals in 45 matches last season. The forward is not as well known as the likes of Victor Gyokeres and Dušan Vlahović, and for that, he could cost the Red Devils just £20 million this summer.
As well as keeping an eye on Arokodare, United have held talks with the representatives of Moise Kean and have now been offered the chance to sign the striker from Fiorentina.
Fiorentina'sMoiseKeancelebrates after the match
A report states that he could be available for £44 million after finding his form once again back in Italy, but any deal rests on Ruben Amorim, as he has yet to decide whether he wants the Italy international.
Man Utd table £30m bid to sign Ivan Toney
The list of potential new strikers arriving at Old Trafford this summer doesn’t stop with Kean, as according to a report from Spain, Man United have now made an opening bid of €35m (£30m) to sign Ivan Toney from Al-Ahli.
The report states that United have decided to act quickly and make a move for Toney, as they believe his experience in English football and his physical strength could make him a success at Old Trafford.
It goes on to add that contacts between both clubs and the player’s entourage have already taken place, and now United chiefs are confident they can complete a deal for the English international in the coming days, as Toney would welcome a move back to England and the Premier League.
Since moving to Saudi Arabia last summer, Toney, who has been dubbed a “monster” by former Brentford boss Thomas Frank, has scored 23 goals in 30 Saudi Pro League appearances. The 29-year-old also scored a further six in the AFC Champions League Elite campaign.
Ivan Toney’s Premier League record compared to Rasmus Hojlund
Toney
Hojlund
Apps
85
62
Goals
36
14
Assists
11
3
While Toney, who earns a staggering £400,000 a week, may be older than United’s current first-choice striker Hojlund, the 29-year-old has proven in the Premier League and in Saudi Arabia that he has a better killing instinct than the Denmark international.
During the 2023/24 season, Toney netted 20 league goals in the Premier League, which is far greater than what Hojlund has managed in the last two campaigns combined.
Paralysed by their history at World Cups, South Africa put in a performance so timid it was scarcely believable
Danyal Rasool06-Nov-2022It’s not the most famous ABBA song by any stretch, but as South Africa stumbled to another premature World Cup exit, they were at the stage where that question must have felt real.Temba Bavuma looked close to tears as he spoke to media after the match. While there was a lot of tiptoeing around the “c” word when Mark Boucher spoke at the press conference, Bavuma was far more direct at what Netherlands’ 13-run victory – and South Africa’s elimination – meant for his side. “It [the chokers’ tag] will always be there until we find ourselves in a situation when we get to a final and we come up on the right side of a result,” he said.Related
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The despondency is only exacerbated by the knowledge that theirs is a very powerful side, especially in the conditions on offer. Bavuma’s own form with the bat was certainly an Achilles’ heel, but one more than covered by the explosiveness of Quinton de Kock, the consistency of David Miller’s fire and fury, the century-hitting wrecking ball that is Rilee Rossouw, and the dependable Aiden Markram. Keshav Maharaj as a nail through the middle overs? Of course. Kagiso Rabada – even an off-colour one – and Anrich Nortje and Lungi Ngidi in Australian conditions? Yes, please.They scored 51 in three overs against Zimbabwe in Hobart. They mauled Bangladesh by 104 runs in Sydney. They held their nerve to beat India in a low-scoring thriller in Perth and go top of the group. That it came down to a sleepy Sunday morning in Adelaide was because Pakistan found the sublime best they sometimes do when on life support, with a World Cup on the line.But on a triple-header day – the last of the Super 12s – at the World Cup, South Africa’s equation was the simplest: beat Netherlands, play the semi-final. Yes, it was a knockout game, but going by the team rankings, this should have been straightforward.But, paralysed by a history South African cricket increasingly looks like it has no idea how to break free of, a side that bore little resemblance to the title contenders who had strutted about Australia this last fortnight turned in a performance scarcely credible in its timidity. Kagiso Rabada found himself carved through the offside first-ball by Stephan Myburgh, and spent the entire over, guessing and second-guessing a man who simply backed himself against one of the fastest bowlers in the world. Myburgh knew this was his last international match, and he felt the freedom to score. South Africa, fearing it was their last match this tournament, flew themselves into a cage that slammed shut on them.As the World Cup door slams shut on them once more, it’s difficult to say when it will open again•Getty ImagesWhen Netherlands posted 158, and it became clear the easy win South Africa so craved wouldn’t be handed to them, the magnitude of the moment seemed to weigh South Africa down.De Kock averages just 11.4 in T20I cricket against left-arm pace this year, and he ended up pushing that average down further when he managed just six off eight balls – out of 13 off 13 – and lost his wicket to Fred Klaassen.As the game pushed its way into the middle overs, and it became apparent that it might become a battle of nerves at the death, Netherlands grew into the contest, occupying the space a retreating South Africa were handing them. Forty-eight runs off five overs isn’t the most intimidating equation, but Netherlands had Brandon Glover to turn to for three overs – no one has a better T20I bowling average for them – and with South Africa needing to preserve wickets, that bred uncertainty.Uncertainty that translated into Miller snatching at a pull, and Roelof van der Merwe – who else, really? – snaffling a glorious catch to all but eliminate his old side.2:21
How did Netherlands pull off the unimaginable?
One of the tragedies of South Africa’s fate at World Cup competitions over the years is the power of the narrative to cloud all sensible judgements of the actual merits of the team. South Africa have taken fairly ordinary teams to world events at times. Their T20I side of the last 12 months, however, is not one of those. They were a side with a the pefect mix of youth and experience, of power-hitting and quality batting, of fast bowling and spin bowling. You might almost contend it was something of a T20 golden generation, with two cracks at breaking the hoodoo in the space of a year.But every ICC white-ball event is now something of a parole hearing for this South African side. There’s anticipation, character development, rehabilitation, and that most cruel of things: hope.But on this sun-washed Sunday morning in Adelaide, the darkness of evenings past – Sydney 1992, Birmingham 1999, Dhaka 2011, Auckland 2015 – seemed to envelop them. That amount of heartache might have made South Africa immune to such pain, but as they turned in a performance more limp than on any of those wretched days, it became clear that those wounds have never quite healed.The sun continued to burn bright in Adelaide all game, but it was just about after dawn back home in South Africa that their fate was sealed. Some might laugh, some might cry, some might just go about their day, swearing they will never place their faith in this team again. But they will be back, of course, because they can’t help believing one of these parole hearings will finally result in liberation. But as the door slams shut on them once more, it’s increasingly difficult to say when.
England’s under-fire seamer adapts to livelier pitch and reaps rewards
Alan Gardner25-Mar-2022How do you solve a problem like Chris Woakes? Not that you’d think there’s much wrong with a fine, multipurpose cricketer and all-round good guy, a man capable of scoring a Test hundred and opening the bowling in a World Cup final. If he were a vehicle, Woakes would be a high-spec, low-emission five-door saloon that comes with automatic parking assist and plenty of room in the trunk.Yet there is one element of his game where the reviews turn consistently negative: an overseas bowling average in the 50s. Contrast that with Woakes’ heroics in home conditions, where he takes his wickets at a cost of 22.63 – better than the two classic roadsters left behind for this trip, James Anderson (24.20) and Stuart Broad (25.78) – and you have the central conundrum that England’s hierarchy were hoping to address over the course of a three-Test series in the Caribbean.Come the second day in Grenada, it’s fair to assume that conclusions were already being drawn. Woakes had misfired badly with the spotlight on him in Antigua and things had not improved perceptibly since that ropey first spell. He might not have played here, had Ollie Robinson been fit, and had chipped out two wickets – Jermaine Blackwood and Kemar Roach – from two-and-a-bit Tests, that clunking away record continuing to hang around his neck like an albatross.England may have thought that entrusting Woakes with opening the bowling would increase his cutting edge, but another tepid start set the tone in the wrong way. Kraigg Braithwaite and John Campbell calmly compiled their third 50-plus stand of the series, aided by a new-ball spell from Woakes and Craig Overton that carried all the menace of an offer of flowers and a foot massage. Half of the 30 deliveries Woakes bowled were left alone, and figures of 5-2-11-0 took his combined returns from initial spells across five innings in Antigua, Barbados and Grenada to 21-6-70-0.Related
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All this on the spiciest pitch of the tour, one which had enabled West Indies’ seamers to fill their boots in reducing England to 114 for 9 on day one. Perhaps conditions had eased – as they clearly did while Jack Leach and Saqib Mahmood were putting on their last-wicket salvage operation – but the comparison was not flattering. Jayden Seales, Roach and Co. had required a bit of time to get things right, England’s openers surviving into the 13th over before wickets began to tumble – but up to that point, according to ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball logs, the West Indies fast bowlers had induced 21 not-in-control responses; across the same number of deliveries, England managed just nine.”I think in the first hour we probably could have bowled a little bit fuller,” Woakes told BT Sport after play. “We were probably a little bit short, could have made the batsmen play a little bit more. But at the same time, I actually thought when we got the ball in the right areas, the ball didn’t seem to offer a lot of what we saw yesterday. Maybe the roller wore off after an hour and then once we got the ball in those areas more consistently, we saw it was more difficult to bat.”Reasonably put but once again there was a sense that, no matter how many admirable skills he does possess, Woakes was lacking for something. Nasser Hussain wrote in his autobiography about how Duncan Fletcher, England’s coach during his captaincy, rated Darren Gough for a quality he referred to as the “dogf*ck” – translated by Hussain as “the ability not to get fazed and to know what to do”. Woakes, to put it mildly, doesn’t come across as a prime “dogf*ck” candidate.But one player in the England XI does undoubtedly have those Gough-like qualities of indefatigability and resourcefulness. If Woakes has been the de facto attack leader, in the absence of Anderson and Broad, then Ben Stokes was once again the ring leader as the tourists set about turning things around after a fruitless first hour.Stokes crowbarred an opening by hitting the pitch hard, getting one to scuttle through and pin Brathwaite lbw; Saqib Mahmood found similar success against Shamarh Brooks, and when Overton dug one in short to produce a glove down the leg side from Campbell, England had their template for success on a surface that remained tricky to bat on if no longer the green mamba of Thursday morning.None of which seemed to bode well for Woakes and his prim, orthodox approach when he was called back into the fray after lunch. But then you don’t survive for more than a decade in international cricket, claiming almost 300 wickets as well as a World Cup winner’s medal, if you don’t have a bit about you. Maybe the “dogf*ck” was there after all, or perhaps it was simply a change of fortune, but Woakes had suddenly gone from school prefect to bearded brawler in the thick of the action.Chris Woakes struck twice in one over•Getty ImagesImmediately he began to bowl a more attacking line, England reviewing unsuccessfully for an edge down the leg side off Blackwood, then seeing a similar decision given against Nkrumah Bonner only for the DRS to intervene again. But Woakes kept bashing away until he finally hit pay dirt.His first wicket came via a skidding bouncer that left Bonner on his backside as it kissed the glove through to Ben Foakes. Three balls later, he again tested out the middle of the pitch to good effect, Jason Holder miscuing a pull to deep square leg. Blackwood was then pinned just above the knee roll and this time the umpire – and the technology – sided with the bowler. West Indies were 95 for 6 and, while not quite in the same stew that England had extricated themselves from 24 hours previously, the game was evenly poised.”To pick up three today was really nice,” Woakes said. “I always try to do a job for the team. That was quite an important spell after lunch, getting their middle order out. It’s the sort of wicket, with the ball getting softer that they could have cashed in. As long as I’m doing a job for team I’m happy.”Obviously I would have loved to have taken more wickets, but it hasn’t happened. The most important thing is trying to do a job for the team and whilst I’m still selected I will continue to do that.”At the end of the day things were still in the balance, as another lower-order fightback edged West Indies in front on first innings. Woakes had bared his canines and claimed three or more wickets in an innings of an away Test for only the fourth time in 36 attempts – whether his efforts are to be remembered as a vital contribution to a gutsy Test win or a footnote in England’s latest failure in the Caribbean is as yet unwritten.It wasn’t quite a case of Woakes saying “No more Mr Nice Guy” and tearing up all our pre-conceptions. But it might help prevent England from deciding “No more Mr Nice Guy” the next time an overseas tour comes around.
da marjack bet： Liverpool are marching their way through the summer transfer window, picking up any number of talented recruits to add to Arne Slot’s Premier League-winning squad.
da cassino： With Milos Kerkez’s £40m move from Bournemouth to Anfield now sealed, sporting director Richard Hughes may well take a breather and ponder whether to target any final brush-ups so Liverpool can remain competitive at the very highest level once again.
With Florian Wirtz and Jeremie Frimpong brought over from Bayer Leverkusen, goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili arriving to replace Caoimhin Kelleher, you’d think that this might be the case.
Let’s not forget, though, the Reds have had to swallow some degree of setback, with Trent Alexander-Arnold opting against renewing his contract and instead signing for Real Madrid at the end of his contract.
Moreover, interest in Luis Diaz’s signature is rife, and FSG may have to consider signing a replacement this summer.
The latest on Luis Diaz's future
While The Athletic’s David Ornstein has stressed that Liverpool are willing to keep onto Diaz, 28, even if it means running down his contract, Barcelona and further suitors in Saudi Arabia are keen, and the latter might be willing to pay a handsome figure.
Coming off the back of his best season in a Liverpool shirt, the versatile Diaz has proved invaluable for Slot’s side, scoring 17 goals and supplying eight assists across the past campaign.
But he’s not without his flaws, and the Anfield side has lined up long-term target Anthony Gordon as a potential replacement, although he has been priced in the £75m ballpark.
Anthony Gordon for Newcastle
Gordon, to be sure, is a good winger, but Newcastle would want silly money for his sale and an exciting alternative may well have been earmarked by Hughes and co.
Liverpool enquire for Gordon alternative
As per BBC Sport’s Sami Mokbel, Liverpool are one of the clubs to have lodged an official enquiry for West Ham United winger Mohammed Kudus, who is anticipated to be leaving East London this summer.
Transfer Focus
Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.
Speaking on the Latte Firm Arsenal podcast, he said: “My information is that all of the top six in the Premier League have checked in on the conditions of that deal. He’s got an £85m release clause for Premier League clubs but I think West Ham would be willing to go below that.
“They wouldn’t take masses below that but they would be open to a negotiation. There is a long-term interest there [from Arsenal] and as I understand that, there has been an enquiry from the Premier League’s top six.”
Mohammed Kudus celebrates for West Ham
The Ghanaian star struggled to find his finest form throughout a turbulent season for the Hammers, and, as such, it would not be a huge surprise to see West Ham accept a reduced fee, although the exact figure is undetermined.
While Arsenal have been reported to have had a long-standing interest in the 24-year-old, if Diaz does go, Kudus could be a great fit.
What Mohammed Kudus would bring to Liverpool
West Ham signed Kudus from Ajax for around £38m in August 2023, and he has since posted 19 goals and 13 assists from 80 matches. Despite his incredible quality, however, Kudus has suffered from second-season syndrome.
Five goals and three assists in the Premier League last season hardly denote elite-level output, but then Kudus’ skill set is an incredible thing, boasting power and movement that most wingers can only dream of.
West Ham's Mohammed Kudus
He would need to make prolific improvements next year, but then he surely would in Liverpool’s team, playing alongside Wirtz, Mohamed Salah and the rest.
Given that Gordon only scored six top-flight goals, laying on five more assists, there’s certainly no guarantee that the England international would prove the tonic for which the hole left by Diaz’s absence could be healed.
Curiously, both Kudus and Gordon dipped somewhat in 2024/25 after previously thriving in the Premier League. Both are talented and proven wingers, dynamic and versatile, explosive and electric.
Let’s have a look at their statistics across 2023/24 and how they compare when both are firing on all cylinders.
Anthony Gordon vs Mohammed Kudus in the Prem (23/24)
Stats (* per game)
Gordon
Kudus
Matches (starts)
35 (34)
33 (27)
Goals
11
8
Assists
10
6
Touches*
2.3 (0.9)
2.0 (0.5)
Pass completion
82%
84%
Key passes*
1.6
0.8
Big chances created
16
5
Dribbles*
1.5
3.8
Ball recoveries*
3.6
6.4
Tackles + interceptions*
1.8
2.3
Duels
5.3
8.5
All data via Sofascore
Gordon certainly has the advantage in terms of output, and he’s more refined in his underlying playmaking too.
However, Kudus’ fleet-footedness and strength have turned him into something of a duel monster, outfoxing his opponents with blistering speed and sharp shimmies to drive the ball into the danger area.
Is it any wonder journalist Gary Al-Smith has hailed him a “generational talent”? Indeed, even though he flattered to deceive at times in 2024/25, Kudus still recorded the second-highest dribble count across the Premier League term, behind only Manchester City’s Jeremy Doku.
Just imagine this kind of explosiveness in Slot’s system. Diaz, while blessed with such suitable properties, ranked only among the top 39% of positional peers across Europe’s top five leagues last season for progressive carries and the top 19% for successful take-ons per 90, as per FBref.
Gordon, meanwhile, ranked among the top 22% and 46% for the same metrics. What about the Irons speedster? He ranked among the top 3% for successful take-ons, and a glance up at his dribble average across his first Premier League term tells you all you need to know about his capacity as a ball carrier.
If any coach across Europe is capable of getting a tune out of the African sensation’s clinical potential, it’s Slot. Moreover, the Dutch tactician will know exactly how to best utilise Kudus’ talents on the athletic front, using them in conjunction with the creative artistry of the aforementioned Liverpool stars.
It’s a different kind of profile, more unrelenting and chaotic than Diaz’s and indeed Gordon’s.
Given the finances involved in pulling Gordon away from St. James’ Park, Liverpool might want to invest their energy into signing Kudus, especially as he is set to be available for a reduced fee.
He'd be Wirtz 2.0: Liverpool stand a "chance" of signing the "next Mbappe"
Liverpool believe they have a good chance to sign a star who would be a Florian Wirtz repeat.
The Test will start on September 18, with the rest day slotted for September 21 because of the presidential elections
Madushka Balasuriya23-Aug-2024The first Sri Lanka vs New Zealand Test, starting September 18 in Galle, has six days allocated to it, with a rest day thrown in to accommodate the country’s presidential elections on September 21. The series is of two Tests, which are part of the 2023-2025 World Test Championship (WTC) cycle.This will be the first instance of a rest day in a Test match since the Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka Test in Dhaka in 2008, which accommodated a rest day because of the parliamentary elections.The last rest day to occur in Sri Lanka, meanwhile, was back in December 2001, in a Test against Zimbabwe. This was down to the occurrence of a full moon, a day being a public holiday in the largely Buddhist nation. Before gradually fading into oblivion, for all practical purposes, Sundays were rest days in Tests in England, well into the 1990s.New Zealand and Sri Lanka last faced each other in a Test series at the start of 2023, which New Zealand won 2-0 at home. New Zealand last toured Sri Lanka in 2019, drawing the Test series 1-1 and winning 2-1 in the T20Is.New Zealand will tour Sri Lanka after playing a one-off Test against Afghanistan in Greater Noida in what is busy summer of cricket for them. Before the end of the year, New Zealand will also have Test series against India and England, before Sri Lanka make a return tour to New Zealand towards the end of December for three T20Is and three ODIs.
The third day ended with England only 64 behind Pakistan’s 556 with seven first-innings wickets in hand
Vithushan Ehantharajah09-Oct-2024
Joe Root and Harry Brook have so far combined for 243 runs•Getty Images
Stumps Responding to Pakistan’s mammoth first-innings score of 556 after the best part of two days in the dirt was always going to require something special from England. Not only did they respond emphatically to end day three of this first Test on 492 for 3, trailing by just 64, but they did so in historic fashion.Joe Root became England’s leading Test run-scorer, passing Sir Alastair Cook’s record of 12,473 runs on his way to a 35th Test hundred. It was typical Root, unassuming and busy with just 12 fours, set against Harry Brook’s boisterous 141* from 173 deliveries, picking up where he left off from a Player-of-the-Series performance on the 2022 tour of Pakistan, with his fourth century against them in as many matches.As it happens, this is Root’s first on these shores. And it has come after spending all day at the crease – he was the last England batter to achieve that feat, against Sri Lanka in Galle three years ago – meaning he has been absent for just eight deliveries of the 250 overs of this match so far.Related
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No wonder he struggled with cramps for the last half of the day. Having come to the crease on Tuesday following the dismissal of stand-in skipper Ollie Pope with just four on the board, resuming on Wednesday with England 96 for 1, he will mark his guard with 176 against his name on Thursday morning with his side holding all the aces.The Yorkshire duo of Root and Brook combined for 243 (and counting), a third successive century stand in the innings after Zak Crawley’s 78 and Ben Duckett’s 84 provided the guts for 109- and 136-run stands for the second and third wickets, respectively.As it has been for most of the last 12 years in English cricket, Root was the glue throughout. Starting day three with 32 to his name, he made the final ascent to the top of the England run-scorers’ pile 15 minutes before lunch when, on 67, he leaned into another compact drive for four to march along to 12,473 career runs, overtaking Cook as England’s most prolific Test batter, and the fifth overall, behind only Sachin Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting, Jacques Kallis and Rahul Dravid.Root was always going to mark the occasion with three figures, especially on a pitch that remains interminably dull, with just two wickets falling all day, and none in the final session. He moved to a crisp 100 with a reverse sweep off his 167th ball for a fifth century in 2024. It was the third time he has struck as many in a calendar year, after 2021 and 2022. Only Ricky Ponting (four) and Matthew Hayden (four) scored five or more Test centuries in more calendar years.Aamer Jamal was by far the most impressive of Pakistan’s bowlers on the day•Getty Images
Root was finding matters so easy that he even took to batting left-handed against legspinner Abrar Ahmed, who was hiding the ball outside leg stump as much to slow the game down as to protect himself. Two years after marking his Test debut with 11 wickets against England at this very ground, he currently nurses grim figures of 0 for 174 from 35 overs. That Root only struck one of his fours off Abrar – a full toss dispatched through midwicket off the opening ball of the 92nd over of the innings – spoke to the punishment meted out by Crawley, Duckett and, latterly, Brook.Indeed Crawley and Duckett should have got three figures themselves. But within the first hour of play, Crawley flicked uppishly across a full-length delivery from Shaheen Shah Afridi and picked out Aamer Jamal at midwicket. Jamal’s second catch of the innings wasn’t a patch on the screamer with which he had dismissed Pope on the second evening, however. The ball looped straight to him, and he all but dropped it before scooping it up at the second attempt.Either way, Crawley was gone for his sixth score between 60 and 80 this year. Duckett strode in at No. 4 and motored on, showing no ill-effects from a thumb injury that prevented him from opening the batting. He had one life on 37, when Naseem Shah found his outside edge only for the ball to bisect keeper and a wide first slip. But with the ball reversing enough for Jamal to trap the left-hand batter on the crease from around the wicket, Duckett was dismissed for the fourth time between 70 and 90 since his third Test hundred back in February, against India in Rajkot.Brook, however, naturally assumed the mantle of aggressor immediately upon his arrival with the score 249 for 3. It was on the previous Pakistan tour that Brook announced himself to the world with 468 runs at 93.60, with centuries in all three Tests. A guided four to third from his second delivery showed he was back to inflict more upon the hosts two years on.Harry Brook continued his love affair with the Pakistan bowlers•Getty Images
Despite a hint of reverse swing on offer – first with Jamal, then Afridi – Brook’s speed out of the blocks could not be tempered. Afridi felt the full force of that when a short delivery was smashed back down the ground like a tennis forehand for the first of consecutive boundaries. Brook made it to his half-century in 49 deliveries, his fifth 50-plus score in six innings against Pakistan.Brook’s next fifty took a little longer – 69 balls – in part because the field was spread, the bowling lines negative, and his own battles with cramp, which meant neither he nor Root could push for singles or fully commit to attacking strokes that required extra stretching. But having consumed plenty of gels and isotonic drinks, he struck Abrar down the ground in the 83rd over for the first six of the innings, which took him to 98. A misfield for two cut to point brought up his sixth career century.He could have been on his way back on 75 when a block off the impressive Jamal – comfortably the pick of the bowlers – ricocheted off his grille and rolled on to his stumps without dislodging the bails. Root, similarly, could have been seen off on 168 had umpire Kumar Dharmasena raised the finger following a strong lbw shout from Naseem, after rare seam movement pinned the batter in front with the second new ball. Shan Masood opted to use Pakistan’s last review to double-check, which was retained after DRS came back with an umpire’s call on the impact into leg stump.It summed up a torturous time for Pakistan, who conceded 4.83 an over across today’s 82 overs, watching on powerlessly as their opening effort was made to feel under par. With a night’s rest for Root and Brook, and Jamie Smith waiting in the wings, a first innings lead of note feels inevitable.
Former Bangladesh coach says the allegations against him are premeditated
Mohammad Isam18-Oct-2024
Chandika Hathurusinghe was sacked for alleged misconduct•AFP/Getty Images
Sacked Bangladesh coach Chandika Hathurusinghe has accused BCB president Faruque Ahmed of making “premeditated” allegations against him – of assaulting a player and breaching his terms of employment. The BCB had on Thursday removed Hathurusinghe as coach of the national men’s team citing those reasons, and appointed Phil Simmons until the Champions Trophy in 2025.”These allegations appear to me to be premeditated,” Hathurusinghe said in a statement sent to ESPNcricinfo. “On the first day of the new president’s term, he made a public statement expressing his desire to remove the head coach, which he acknowledged might involve financial repercussions for the BCB.”Additionally, I was shocked to receive a ‘show cause notice’ just four hours before the appointment of another head coach, despite the notice stating that I had 48 hours to prove my innocence. This sequence of events raises serious questions about the motives behind these actions.”Related
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The BCB had suspended Hathurusinghe on October 15 for allegedly assaulting a player during the 2023 ODI World Cup and for taking more time off than was permitted in his contract. The board formally terminated his contract on October 17.Hathurusinghe said the player in question had not reported the incident to the Bangladesh team manager at the time, and that the alleged incident came to light only when a YouTuber “orchestrated the narrative”.”I cannot allow this presumption [to go] unchallenged without responding,” Hathurusinghe wrote. “I believe it is essential to clarify the facts as I see them surrounding these accusations and present my side of the story. Firstly, the alleged incident purportedly occurred in the players’ dugout or dressing room, a location that is under constant surveillance during World Cup matches…”Furthermore, if the incident was as serious as claimed, it is perplexing that the player involved did not report the incident to the team manager or any authority immediately following the alleged event. If a complaint was made, I wonder why I was not questioned or approached for my side of the story at that time. It raises the question as to why the narrative was orchestrated months later by an individual on YouTube?”The BCB’s second allegation against Hathurusinghe was taking excessive time off. ESPNcricinfo has learned that he reportedly took 112 days off in 2023 and 59 in 2024, when his contract allowed him only 45 days of leave in a year. Hathurusinghe said he had been granted leave by BCB chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury and the cricket operations committee chairman Jalal Yunus.”I have consistently sought and received approval from both the CEO and the chairman of cricket operations whenever I have taken personal leave,” he said. “At no time did the BCB tell me that they were unhappy with my leave situation, but conversely, every time I asked for leave, it was granted by BCB. At no time did I go on leave without their authorisation.”When the new board members alleged that I had taken excessive leave, they did not account for public holidays, such as Eid, nor the Fridays which may have occurred during my leave. Nor did they give credit for when I did not take allowed time off during public holidays. As I understand it, according to Bangladesh labour law, I am entitled to ‘time in lieu’ for work done on Fridays. Additionally, as a BCB employee, I am entitled to leave on Fridays and a half-day off on Thursdays.”Hathurusinghe: I was advised to leave Bangladesh on security groundsHathurusinghe said he had left Bangladesh for reasons of security, and questioned the BCB’s treatment of its employees and the motivation of the new board administration, which was put in place following the overthrow of the Bangladesh government in August.”Given the circumstances, I was advised to leave Bangladesh on security grounds,” Hathurusinghe said. “The combination of these allegations, the swift appointment of a new head coach, and the apparent lack of due process raises significant concerns about the motivation of the new management and the treatment of employees within the BCB.”I am committed to defending my reputation and will cooperate fully with any investigation into these matters. In the end truth will prevail, and I can continue to contribute positively to the sport I love.”This was Hathurusinghe’s second stint as Bangladesh coach. He was appointed in 2014 and stayed for three years before resigning in October 2017. He returned in February 2023 and was sacked with five months left in his two-year term.
With Dominic Calvert-Lewin heading for the exit door, Everton have turned their attention towards a La Liga star and are now reportedly ready to match his release clause worth over £30m.
Everton set to lose Calvert-Lewin
Calvert-Lewin’s contract situation is one that has been rumbling on for some time. In truth, however, a new deal has never really seemed likely for the academy graduate, who now looks destined to depart as a free agent at the end of this month.
It puts the Toffees in an interesting position. Whilst they wouldn’t have been desperate to lose an academy graduate, Calvert-Lewin’s form and injury history across recent years have hardly made him the main man in Merseyside, especially with Beto finding his feet under David Moyes in the second half of last season.
2024/25
3
2023/24
7
2022/23
2
2021/22
16
Circumstances have been tough at times, but Calvert-Lewin’s drop-off is undeniable. From scoring 16 goals in one season to finally bursting into life and finding his best form, the forward has managed a combined total of 12 in the last three seasons. For all parties, an exit makes perfect sense.
That said, Everton must still replace the 28-year-old and they seem well aware of that. The Friedkin Group already attempted to make a statement by winning the race to sign Ipswich Town’s Liam Delap, only for Chelsea to come calling with an offer that the forward could not and did not refuse.
Now, they’re back to the drawing board. Ahead of a new era, a marquee signing to lead the line certainly wouldn’t go amiss. After missing out on Delap, the big question is just who Everton will turn to in the coming months.
The rumours are coming thick and fast regarding a La Liga star, however, who has a similar release clause to the aforementioned Delap.
Everton ready to match Thierno Barry's release clause
According to TEAMtalk, Everton are now ready to meet Thierno Barry’s release clause this summer which is worth €40m (£34m) this summer. Having initially shown interest in the Villarreal forward, those in Merseyside are reportedly ready to step up their move to commence their transfer business with the La Liga star also keen on a move.
It’s clear to see why Everton are so eager to push on with their move for Barry too. The 22-year-old got off to a rapid start at Villarreal last season, earning the praise of scout Jacek Kulig who dubbed him an “exciting CF investment”, and has since stolen even more headlines.
Everton now gifted chance to sign "excellent" £300,000-p/w PL star on loan
The Toffees could sign a vastly experienced star…
BySean Markus Clifford Jun 8, 2025
By the time that last season reached a conclusion, Barry had found the back of the net 19 times in all competitions. If Everton are to welcome a marquee signing to commence their summer business, he should be at the top of their wishlist.