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De Grandhomme says New Zealand will back themselves to chase down such a score

Firdose Moonda27-Feb-2022South Africa will be looking for at least 60 more runs, but would be more comfortable with 90 more from their last five batting pairs as they seek to set New Zealand a target in excess of 300 to win the second Test.On a pitch that remains good for batting, Rassie van der Dussen, South Africa’s top-scorer in the second innings so far, said the visitors are “reasonably happy” with their progress, but want to continue to put pressure on New Zealand’s attack.”We’re looking at anything around 270 or 280 plus,” he said. “If we can emulate what we did in the first innings with our tailenders and get to the 300 mark, mentally that would be a good mark for us. Hopefully we can start well tomorrow (Monday) and get through their first spells. Their bodies will be sore. To bowl 40 overs in three days is a lot.”New Zealand’s frontline attack of Tim Southee, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson and Neil Wagner have sent down 46, 48, 38 and 43 overs respectively, but have not shown any signs of fatigue yet. In fact, it’s been quite the opposite. Wagner sent down a nine-over spell late on the third day laced with short balls and removed both van der Dussen and Temba Bavuma to leave South Africa at 114 for 5 at one stage.”When I made my first-class debut 14 years ago, we were in the same team,” van der Dussen said of Wagner. “I knew what his plans were, it’s quite straightforward. We know him, we know what he does. He has a big tank, he keeps running in. Sometimes you have to say to a guy well done.”Despite having a clear idea of the threat Wagner posed, van der Dussen explained of their plan to take him and the rest of the attack on to extend the lead quickly.”We went out looking to play on the front foot. We looked to put pressure on them,” he said. “But they’ve got world class bowlers in terms of discipline. They don’t give you much. I went out a bit more streaky than I usually play. I knew I had to try and put some pressure on them to build the lead and I ran out of luck.”Colin de Grandhomme made a career-best 120 not out•AFP/Getty Images

Van der Dussen was eventually caught on the pull and Bavuma was out driving. B both dismissals looked avoidable, but South Africa saw a positive in the way the pair got out.”What we saw in this last session is that the ball sat up a bit on the short length,” van der Dussen said. “If the wicket gets two paced, it becomes really tricky. Temba also went out in a way that he doesn’t often go out and the ball just stuck a bit in the wicket. That will be a good signs for us. If it goes sideways and then stops a little, it does get tricky to score runs. Not always that tricky to survive but tricky to score runs.”South Africa’s run-rate has remained below three an over throughout the match but New Zealand have not had the same issue. They batted at close to four runs an over, thanks largely to Colin de Grandhomme’s carefree career-best 120, which came off 158 balls.De Grandhomme’s approach is as obvious as they come – “see the ball, hit the ball,” he said – and he was confident about New Zealand’s ability to chase something in the upper 200s. “I think if they get 270 we will be back ourselves to get it,” de Grandhomme said. “It might get slower and lower but it’s still a good pitch.”South Africa are hoping for exactly that: a surface that will deteriorate enough to bring the only spinner across both teams, Keshav Maharaj, into the game. Maharaj was a surprise pick at a venue where specialist spinners are often benched and took 1 for 46 in the first innings but van der Dussen hopes he will have a bigger role to play on the final day.”The wicket is a lot drier than it was in the first Test. That’s why we need to get to that 300 mark and then hope it deteriorates late tomorrow and going into day five,” he said. “We’ve got to give Keshav a chance to get into the game, our seamers to run in with short bursts of energy and hopefully the wicket will deteriorate a little bit for us.”While van der Dussen’s focus was on the role Maharaj could play, South Africa will also lean heavily on their new-ball pair of Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen, who are the joint-leading wicket-takers in Tests this year. Rabada took his 11th career five-for in the first innings and van der Dussen believes if he has more success, South Africa can level the series.”He plays a huge role. He is a guy that doesn’t miss his lines and lengths a lot and he asks a lot of questions.” He said. “He knows what he can do and what he can’t do, and as a bowler there aren’t many things he can’t do. He swings the ball both ways, he has a good bouncer, a good yorker. The bowlers, the team look up to him.”I know it’s sometimes a big weight for him to carry on his shoulders, but he takes that responsibility. That’s what makes him so good. He knows when he bowls well, we play well; when he takes wickets, we win. It’s not nice to face him in the nets, so I can’t imagine it’s nice to face him in the middle. He’s going to be very important in the fourth innings. If he get’s it right, it will go a long way for us to win the Test.”

New Manchester United sporting director Dan Ashworth has reportedly opened talks over another high-profile signing after Manuel Ugarte.

Romano teases “last-minute” Man Utd signing after Ugarte

The Red Devils are set to make Ugarte their fifth signing of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s first window as co-owner, with INEOS backing manager Erik ten Hag with a number of big-money deals.

A deal between Man Utd and Paris Saint-Germain was agreed on Tuesday, with Ugarte set to cost just over £50m – a €50m initial fee followed by €10m in fixed add-ons.

However, the Uruguay international might not be the final player through the Old Trafford door, with Fabrizio Romano telling GiveMeSport there could still be time for a “last minute” incoming.

"In terms of other business, it will depend. Maybe some player leaves, there could still be space for something last-minute for Manchester United. Nothing 100% confirmed yet, so Man United will decide [this] week based on opportunities, but I would keep the door always open for last-minute opportunities."

Now, it looks as if that last-minute signing could be Raheem Sterling from Chelsea, with a new development emerging.

Ashworth opens talks to sign Sterling for Man Utd

According to The Telegraph, Man Utd have opened talks to sign Sterling in a deal that could see Jadon Sancho head to Stamford Bridge, although the latter could also move to Juventus. The report claims that Ashworth opened dialogue with Chelsea on Tuesday but the Red Devils will only progress on a deal on their own terms.

Both Sancho and Sterling appear to be surplus to requirements at their own clubs, with Blues head coach Enzo Maresca saying on Sterling after leaving him out of their Premier League opener with Manchester City:

"I spoke with Raheem one-on-one the day before City and I explained him exactly the situation. I didn't see Raheem after the game. He is training apart, as I said, but in case I sit with Raheem, I will tell him exactly the same things that I already told him. I don't have anything new to tell him because I was quite clear."

The 29-year-old, on £325,000-a-week which works out at £16.9m-a-year, has made 379 Premier League appearances in total, scoring 123 goals and providing 62 assists, turning out for Liverpool, Man City and Chelsea.

They must get rid: Man Utd ace who earns more than Maguire set to be sold

Erik ten Hag won’t be too gutted to see the back of this Manchester United man.

By
Kelan Sarson

Aug 26, 2024

He’d therefore provide Ten Hag with plenty of experience at the highest level and is also able to turn out on either wing or through the middle if required. Man Utd could potentially be his next destination after talks were held, making this one to keep an eye on in the final days of the market.

Liverpool are reportedly close to reaching an agreement with Mohamed Salah over an extension with his contract set to expire in the summer of 2025.

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• Salah close to Liverpool contract extension
• Offered two-year deal
• Money 'never been problem' in talks

• AFP
  

  WHAT HAPPENED?

  Salah has been the best forward to grace Liverpool's attacking line since the departure of Luis Suarez in 2014, and could be considered their best player in the Premier League era. However, the Egyptian's contract is set to end in the summer of 2025 and there has been much speculation over his future.

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• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  As per , Liverpool are now 'on the brink' of tying Salah down to an extension. The club's top brass were initially only willing to extend Salah's contract by one year, but his representative, Rammy Abbas, informed Liverpool he wanted his client to have a three-year deal. A compromise has seemingly been reached over a two-year contract, with money never thought to be the sticking point in negotiations.

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  DID YOU KNOW?

  Salah remains as a important player for Liverpool as ever, best evidenced by his 13 goals and eight assists in 14 Premier League games this season. In 370 games for the Reds, he has scored 226 goals and won two League Cups, the FA Cup, the Premier League, and the Champions League.

• WHAT NEXT FOR SALAH?

  Salah is expected to be in action next when the Reds take on Girona in the Champions League on Tuesday, December 10 as Arne Slot's men look to keep up their winning run in Europe.

Manchester City star Alex Greenwood has posted a message from her hospital bed after successfully undergoing knee surgery.

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• Lionesses star Greenwood stretched off
• Man City ace has knee surgery
• Posts message from hospital bed

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The England international was stretchered off against St Polten in the Champions League last week, with the 31-year-old subsequently having surgery on the medial collateral ligament (MCL) in her left knee. Now, she has vowed to come back stronger in a post on social media.

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• WHAT ALEX GREENWOOD SAID

  Alongside a photo of her in a hospital bed, she wrote on X: "Not the ending to 2024 that I had planned. I will work so hard to be back on the pitch as soon as I can, for now I’m going to take some time to myself & family who always give their time to me. Thankyou for all the support this year, see you all soon."

• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  In most cases, a MCL tear is less serious than an anterior cruciate ligament one but Greenwood could still face a long spell on the sidelines. The defender may be in a race against time to play again this season and will have an eye on the 2025 European Championship swhich begin in Switzerland next July.

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  WHAT NEXT?

  City captain Greenwood will rest for a certain amount of time before working her way back to fitness in the coming months.

“One of my goals and dreams the last year was to break into England’s top four”

Valkerie Baynes14-Jul-2022No sooner had Sophia Dunkley established herself in England’s middle order, she set her sights on making a place in the top-four her own. No sooner had England switched focus to the next Women’s World Cup cycle, she is doing just that.In her first international outing at No. 3, Dunkley scored 22 from 24 balls as England convincingly beat South Africa in their first of three ODIs at Northampton. The knock was in keeping with her proactive batting style, which Dunkley said she was reluctant to give up heading into the second match at Bristol on Friday. It was also a key part of England’s bid to shake up their batting line-up, with the successful addition of new opener Emma Lamb and Danni Wyatt shuffling back down into the middle order.”One of my goals and dreams the last year was to break into England’s top four,” Dunkley said. “So the fact that I have an opportunity now to bat at three, it’s an amazing feeling. It’s something I’ve done in regional cricket for the last two years, so not completely new, but obviously a different level in internationals.”Naturally the bowling’s a little bit tighter, you don’t get as many bad balls, and you get a lot of pressure built on you in the powerplay, so it’s about learning how to deal with that and how I want to go about it. It’s probably not going to come overnight, and the next two games might not go as well as I’d like, but it’s about building for the future, how I see myself doing that role in the long term.”Dunkley’s first knock as England’s No. 3 included three powerful fours, driven through cover and twice hammered past long-on before she fell lbw to Nadine de Klerk.”I don’t want to take away too much of my natural aggression and intent because I think that’s still really important to push us on as a team,” she added. “So it’s finding the balance really and just doing the low-risk things for longer. I’ve had some good practice in the nets so I’m feeling good.”Related

• Sophia Dunkley sets sights on top-four batting spot for England

• Danni Wyatt set for return to middle-order despite World Cup semi-final century

• Lamb's maiden ton, all-round Sciver, fiery Brunt help England go 1-0 up

• Emma Lamb seizes England's opening vacancy on 'amazing' day in Northampton

• Nadine de Klerk: Ismail available, South Africa must up intensity

When opener Tammy Beaumont fell in just the third over of the match, Dunkley had the best view in the house as Lamb carved out a maiden century in just her fourth international appearance.Lamb had opened alongside Beaumont in the drawn Test which kicked of the multi-format series between the sides in Taunton last month and took a massive step towards establishing herself at the very top of the order in the ODI format with her knock.”Emma batted outstanding in the last game,” Dunkley said. “I’m so pleased for her. I’ve played a lot of cricket with her growing up, and grown up with her in the academy, so when we were batting together we were joking about how it was like the old times and it was nice that we could do that in an England shirt together.”It was amazing to watch her do her thing and show the world that she deserves to be an England opener, so I’m sure it’s the first of many for Emma.”It will be one day shy of 13 months since Dunkley made her Test debut against India – also in Bristol – where she notched up an unbeaten 74 in a keenly contested draw.She went on to play an important part in the white-ball part of India’s tour before finishing the English summer playing in all five ODIs against New Zealand. A trip to Australia as part of England’s ill-fated Ashes tour was followed by the World Cup, where she made a couple of half-centuries, including in England’s semi-final defeat of South Africa.”Personally it’s been a pretty crazy year and there’s been a lot of different cricket, playing in an Ashes and a World Cup was a surreal experience,” she said. “Now coming in batting at three is something different so yeah, it’s been lots of experiences, ups and downs, but a great year of cricket all round.”And she was expecting South Africa to come back fighting after a muted display in the first ODI, when their batting failed to fire. Katherine Brunt returned to international action with an imposing first spell and figures of 3 for 18 from nine overs before Chloe Tryon’s 88 gave the tourists some hope. Then their bowlers struggled against Lamb’s accomplished display and a brutal 55 off just 36 balls from Nat Sciver, who had also taken four wickets.South Africa’s bowling could be boosted by the return of Shabnim Ismail, who is available for selection in what would be her first appearance of the tour after recovering from a calf strain, with England leading four points to two.”We bowled really well in the first innings last game and it made it really hard for them to get a big score on the board,” Dunkley said. “Credit to our bowlers and Katherine up front bowling in that amazing spell, five overs for five runs.”We’re just really clear as a batting unit that we want to go out and be positive, so it was a great to be able to put that into practice and we definitely put pressure on their bowlers so I’m sure they’re going to come back hard at us in the next game.”

Celtic have less than a month to go before the summer transfer window slams shut and they must move quickly to complete the rest of the business that they want to do.

Brendan Rodgers has added three new players to his group so far and two of those – Kasper Schmeichel and Viljami Sinisalo – have come in to compete for the number one position, after Joe Hart's retirement at the end of last season.

The only outfield addition has been central midfielder Paulo Bernardo. He joined on a permanent transfer from Benfica earlier this month, after spending the 2023/24 campaign on loan at Parkhead from the Portuguese side.

Another former Hoops loanee now looks set to put pen to paper on a long-term contract with the club, as Adam Idah is closing in on a return to Glasgow.

Sky Sports claim that the Scottish Premiership champions have agreed a deal worth up to £9.5m with Norwich City for the centre-forward, which includes a guaranteed £8.5m fee, a further £1m in add-ons, and a 15% sell-on clause for the Canaries.

The club's current record transfer fee stands at the £9m paid to Paris Saint-Germain for Odsonne Edouard in 2018, which means that Idah could end up being a club-record signing if all of those add-ons are activated.

Celtic now eyeing left-back target

With a deal for Idah seemingly on the verge of completion, Celtic have now set their sights on a swoop for a left-back to bolster their defensive options.

According to DaveOCKOP, Rodgers is keen to complete a permanent deal to sign Owen Beck from Liverpool before the end of the summer window.

The report claims that the Hoops are one of three teams in the race to land the Welsh full-back in the last few weeks before the deadline passes at the end of this month.

It states that English Championship sides Queens Park Rangers and Leeds United are also interested in signing the 22-year-old starlet, which means that Celtic face plenty of competition for his signature.

DaveOCKOP adds that a fee of around £3m would be enough to tempt the Premier League giants into cashing in on him, but the Bhoys are not near that figure as of yet.

It also reveals that Liverpool's preference would be for him to put pen to paper on a new contract at Anfield before going back out on loan, with Leeds and QPR both willing to snap him up on a temporary basis to improve their respective squads.

Who Owen Beck would be competing with at Celtic

If Rodgers does win the race to land the young talent from his former club then he would be competing with Greg Taylor for a starting berth at left-back.

The Scotland international is currently the only senior left-sided full-back in the Celtic squad as it stands, with Alexandro Bernabei out on loan, and this means that he does not have any competition for his position.

Taylor has had a solid start to the current campaign, with one assist and two clean sheets in two starts in the Premiership, and was a reliable performer for the Scottish giants in the division last term.

The 26-year-old ace provided a creative threat down the left flank whilst also being relatively solid defensively for Celtic, as they won the league title.

As you can see in the table above, Taylor almost created two chances per game for Rodgers' side and won the majority of his duels on the deck, although he struggled slightly when dealing with aerial challenges.

The Scottish dynamo did struggle, however, in Europe as his performances across six starts in the Champions League left a lot to be desired.

He did not create a single 'big chance' for his teammates and made just 0.7 key passes per game. In fact, Taylor was dribbled past as many times per game (0.7) as he created chances, whilst he also gave away one penalty.

This suggests that the defender failed to make the step up to Europe's premier competition, which may be why Rodgers wants another left-back to compete with him.

Why Celtic should sign Owen Beck

Celtic should now work hard to secure a £3m permanent deal for Beck from Liverpool before the end of the window because he could come in as an upgrade on Taylor.

The Welsh whiz, who was hailed as "spectacular" by talent scout Jacek Kulig, spent the majority of the 2023/24 campaign on loan with Dundee in the Premiership.

This means that the Reds youngster is already a proven performer in Scotland and would not need time to adapt to the country and division, as he has already showcased his quality at that level.

Beck caught the eye in Liverpool's academy, with a return of two goals and 11 assists in 54 U21 matches at left-back, and carried that form over to senior level with Dundee last term.

As you can see in the table above, the £3m-rated star created more chances per game on average and stood out defensively with a higher duel success rate and far more tackles and interceptions combined per match in comparison to Taylor.

This suggests that Beck outperformed the Celtic left-back in and out of possession throughout the Premiership season, with more creativity, more quality in transition with his dribbling skills, and more solidity defensively.

This was backed up by Beck's inclusion in the PFA Scotland Team of the Year ahead of Taylor, which shows that their peers deemed the Dundee sensation to be the best player in his position in the league.

Rodgers must ruthlessly replace Celtic man who left Kyogo "frustrated"

The Hoops have been linked with new signings in his position during the summer window.

1

By
Dan Emery

Aug 11, 2024

Therefore, Celtic could improve their team by swooping to sign Beck, who also has plenty of years left to develop and improve at the age of 22, and that could also help their chances in the Champions League if he can offer more than the Scottish defender did.

The former Brondby manager is reportedly set to join the MLS side after Vanni Sartini's sacking at the end of the 2024 season

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• VWFC reportedly set to name Jesper Sorensen new manager
• Left Brondby in December
• Gio Savarese was a finalist
• Get the MLS Season Pass today!Stream games now

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The Vancouver Whitecaps are reportedly set to name former Brondby manager Jesper Sorensen as their new head coach.

  A former professional across Denmark himself, Sorensen has also been in charge of the Denmark U-21 national team, as well as two other clubs. Sorensen left Brondby in December, and is now set to replace Vanni Sartini, who was fired at the end of 2024, as their new manager.

  Glass City and GiveMeSport were first to report the deal.

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  also added that former Portland Timbers manager and currently Apple TV Studio Host Gio Savarese was a finalist for the job and that the Venezuelan was also a finalist for the Toronto FC and San Jose Earthquakes jobs, as well as Nashville SC in the summer.

  Former Atlanta United interim manager Rob Valentino interviewed for the position as well.

  Vancouver finished eighth in the Western Conference in 2024, taking LAFC to game three in their Round 1 Best-of-Three series playoff matchup, where they fell just short.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  The Whitecaps have never won an MLS competition, but are four-time winners of the Canadian Championship. They have won it three consecutive times since 2022, heading into the 2025 season.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR VANCOUVER?

  The Whitecaps begin preseason preparation this week. The club takes on Rakow Czestochowa in a friendly on Jan. 24 in their first appearance of the calendar year.

Chelsea are also believed to be in deadline day talks over a £250,000-per-week forward, amid their intense race with Al-Ahli to sign Victor Osimhen.

Chelsea could still sign Osimhen despite Al-Ahli agreement

Even though the Saudi Pro League side have reached an agreement to sign Osimhen, with both the player himself and Napoli, there is still hope for Chelsea to make a dramatic late counter-offer and thwart this blockbuster deal.

Fabrizio Romano: Chelsea submit bid to sign £60m star in deadline day move

The Blues have lodged an offer.

By
Emilio Galantini

Aug 30, 2024

Indeed, even though Osimhen has agreed personal terms with Al-Ahli on a lucrative £25 million salary over a four year contract, and Napoli have accepted a bid worth up to £57 million plus add-ons, it is believed that the 25-year-old is still waiting to see if Chelsea launch a tempting proposal of their own.

"The Al-Ahli offer to Osimhen is a €30m salary on a four-year deal," wrote reliable journalist Ben Jacobs on X.

"There are €40m in bonuses on top taking the total package to €160m. Al-Ahli also prepared to sanction a release clause. Osimhen has agreed to terms but is waiting to see whether Chelsea counter. Al-Ahli offer to Napoli has been accepted. It is €68m plus add-ons taking the total package close to €80m."

However, Jacobs also writes that the west Londoners do not have much time to hijack this move, so they'll have to act fast.

"Al-Ahli have booked a medical for Victor Osimhen having told him yesterday they want a final answer before lunch today," wrote Jacobs on X again.

"A €68m plus add-ons offer has been accepted by Napoli. Total could be worth close to €80m. Osimhen has agreed on financials worth €160m over four years. Michael Emenalo has led negotiations. Al-Ahli optimistic since yesterday. Now on Osimhen to say yes to the project with club-to-club and player-to-club financials agreed. #CFC will need to move fast with a counter if they wish to proceed."

There is still hope for Chelsea to sign Osimhen, or Brentford striker Ivan Toney, as it is unlikely Al-Ahli will sign both men – despite the Saudi's also reaching a full agreement for the latter (Sky Sports).

Amidst this serious deadline day drama revolving around Chelsea's chase for a striker, a move for Man United outcast Jadon Sancho remains a possibility.

Chelsea in deadline day talks to sign Jadon Sancho

There has been talk of a Chelsea swap deal involving Sancho and Raheem Sterling over this last week, but while that has gone quiet, it is believed that the former is being chased by Enzo Maresca and co today.

Sky Sports relay on x that Chelsea are said to be in deadline day talks to sign Sancho, who is on a reported £250,000-per-week. Juventus have withdrawn from the race for the 24-year-old as well, so perhaps this could benefit the west Londoners and play into their favour, as United search for a late buyer.

"Jadon was making players dance, he was a joke. We haven’t seen that since he was at Dortmund before," said pundit Rio Ferdinand during Sancho's loan spell at Borussia Dortmund last season.

"What I say today more than anything, that was cage football Sancho. This is the kid who grew up in cage football with that bit of swagger.

"He is in the groove now. He will come off the pitch on a high. But I want to know what happened at Man Utd, why didn’t it go well there. The plus point for Man Utd is a lot of teams will want him now."

Stats preview of the first Test between India and West Indies in Kolkata

S Rajesh05-Nov-2013Given that India are the third-ranked team according to the ICC rankings, and are playing at home against the sixth-ranked West Indies, it’s clear who the favourites are going into this series. Almost everything in this series revolves around Sachin Tendulkar, but there are other incentives for both teams: a series win will lift India to No.2 from their current third position, while West Indies will improve from sixth to fourth if they win the series.India lost a home series against England last year – and one of the Test defeats was at the Eden Gardens – but since then they’ve thrashed Australia 4-0, and they’ll also remember that they notched up a comfortable 2-0 series win the last time West Indies toured, in a three-Test series a couple of years ago. The fact that they’re touring again so quickly is also unusual, given that their four previous tours had come at intervals of at least seven years each – they toured in 1987, 1994, 2002 and then 2011.West Indies have lost their last two series in India by 2-0 margins. The last time they didn’t lose a series in India was in 1994, when the three-Test series was drawn 1-1. However, they are on a bit of a roll at the moment, having won their last six Tests on the trot, beating New Zealand, Bangladesh and Zimbabwe by identical 2-0 margins. Admittedly, the opposition weren’t the best around, but six wins in six Tests should still give the team some confidence: the last time they’d won six or more on the trot was between June and December 1988, when they won four Tests in England and three in Australia.The last time West Indies toured India was in November 2011, and the batsmen who shone then were Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Darren Bravo. Both are around this time as well. Chanderpaul’s form is as strong as ever: since the beginning of 2007 he averages 70.58, the highest among any batsman who’s scored at least 1000 runs during this period. The Mumbai Test will be his 150th, though that’s unlikely to be the most celebrated landmark of that Test. Chanderpaul’s also generally a quick starter on tours: he averages 52.04 in the first Test of an away series, and scored 118 and 47 in the first Test when he toured India in 2011.Bravo was the most successful batsman on that tour, scoring 404 at an average of 67.33, with two hundreds in six innings. This will be Bravo’s fourth Test in India, which is more than the Tests Brian Lara played in India over his entire career.West Indies will also be bolstered this time by the presence of Chris Gayle, who’d missed the 2011 tour. With Marlon Samuels around as well, the West Indies middle order is a fairly experienced one.

India’s spinners did the job against Australia, with R Ashwin taking 29 wickets at 20.10, but India will probably miss Ravindra Jadeja, who took 24 wickets at 17.45. Pragyan Ojha is likely to be India’s second spinner, but West Indies’ left-handers will fancy him, given that he averages more than 53 runs per wicket against left-hand batsmen in his Test career so far.

While there are other aspects of interest during the series, the centrepiece is clearly Sachin Tendulkar. He has played 12 Tests in Kolkata and averages 47.88, with his highest score – 176 – also coming against West Indies, in 2002. That century came in the second innings, and saved India the blushes: after trailing by 139 in the first innings, India had slumped to 87 for 4 in their second innings, when Tendulkar and VVS Laxman put together a double-century partnership to lift India to 471 for 8. Since then, Tendulkar has gone past 50 five times in Tests in Kolkata, but converted only one of those into a hundred, when he scored 106 against South Africa in 2010.In all, Tendulkar has scored 862 Test runs at the Eden Gardens, which puts him in third place in the all-time list, behind Laxman (1217 runs at 110.63), and Rahul Dravid (962 runs at 68.71).

If Tendulkar scores 138 runs in this Test, he’ll become only the third Indian batsman, after Laxman and Sunil Gavaskar, to score 1000 Test runs at a venue. Gavaskar scored more than 1000 at two grounds – the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai and the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Tendulkar’s best is 970 in Chennai, followed by 869 in Bangalore. If he doesn’t get 138 here, the task will get slightly tougher at the Wankhede: he’ll need 153 to get to 1000 Test runs there.

How can you not be irked by the outbreak of dawdling on day three in Kolkata?

Andy Zaltzman25-Feb-2013Yesterday’s play was not the most riveting. India were improved but still, for the first half of the day in particular, mostly passive, unthreatening and devoid of expectation. England had no need or inclination to take the initiative until Pietersen came in, as Cook, batting with none of the fluency he showed on day two, and Trott, forcing himself back into form in a turgid but valuable innings, consolidated English dominance. Neither side took a single risk, and with no sense of contest, intensity, drama or jeopardy, the cricket was tedious. The game livened up later in the day with a few wickets, some belated Indian enterprise, and some enterprising batting by England’s fast-scoring middle order, but the sense remained that India were content to minimise damage and wait for either declaration or for ten wickets to materialise out of the ether.All in all it was largely an unremarkable and predictable day, enlivened by a comically fluffed caught-and-bowled chance batted to the turf by the weird run-out of Cook, and good, brisk innings by Pietersen, Patel and Prior that snuffed out any hope India had of restricting the English lead to vaguely manageable proportions on a pitch showing increasingly inconsistent bounce and progressively sharper turn.Ishant’s drop was truly spectacular. Was it a moment of heroic incompetence, or the first sign of the Indian fightback, a renewed determination to avoid defeat and battle for the draw? Cook mistimed a defensive push, and the ball looped slowly back towards the bowler. Ishant had enough time whilst the ball was somnolently parabolising towards him to have a nightmarish vision of being carted to all corners of Eden Gardens by a rampant Pietersen, and England’s total cavorting to 600 by close of play. He swiftly, and understandably, decided that he would rather be more controllably dinked to all corners by a remorseless Cook, and duly spannered the catch. Strategic brilliance, or rank fielding ineptitude? You decide.Play overran by only five minutes yesterday, but given that there were 18 overs bowled in the first hour, not many wickets fell, and 63 of the 90 overs were bowled by spinners ‒ including 31 by Ojha, who has almost no run-up ‒ it took a frankly superhuman effort by all concerned to slow the pace of play down sufficiently to avoid giving the spectators any bonus overs that they had not paid for.Manfully leading the time-wasting charge, as so often, were the umpires, moving at such a sub-funereal pace that it seemed they were trying not to disturb any pregnant worms that might be resting in the Eden Gardens soil, walking in from square leg in between overs with the demeanour and pace of a 95-year-old shuffling to his medicine cabinet in the middle of the night. They stood idly by, wondering about the origins of the universe whilst action-unpacked minutes were taken slightly resetting the field, or 40 seconds of everyone just standing around doing nothing for no reason at the start of an over, apparently waiting for the blue sky above the stand behind the bowler’s arm to move away, or some kind of divine intervention to help the persevering but thoroughly conquered Ashwin take a wicket.Midway through the afternoon session, the cricket almost reached a point of suspended animation. The Indian 12th, 13th and 14th men sauntered onto the field with drinks for the team. Twelve minutes before the scheduled drinks break. Everyone stood around having a nice chat. The umpires watched this happen, thinking, “Oh, look at that. They’re having a drinks break they shouldn’t be having. That looks nice. They seem to be having a lovely time.” Then, just as the Indians were finishing their subsidiary drinks break, England’s 12th and 13th men, concerned about missing out on the fun, also trotted into the arena with drinks for Trott and Cook. The umpires eventually seemed to suggest to the players that they should perhaps maybe, at some point in the not-too-distant future, consider getting on with the cricket. No one took any notice. Played eventually restarted.Two balls later, Trott was out – a tactical masterstroke by Dhoni, clearly, applying the age-old if scientifically unproven adage “Drinks break always takes a wicket”, by calling an unscheduled extra drinks break.A few minutes later, the scheduled drinks break was taken. It took precisely six minutes and five seconds, the last 40 seconds of which appeared to involved the umpires waiting for TV clearance to restart. Shortly after this, Zaheer came on to bowl. He and Dhoni spent two minutes setting the field at the start of the over. Then, between balls three and four, they reconvened for 90-second conference to reset the field. Ball five brought the Cook run-out. Perhaps he was discombobulated by the action having slowed to a crawl and assumed that Kohli’s throw would also be in slow motion. Perhaps he was the victim of an intricately planned and perfectly executed Indian masterplan over eight hours of low-octane out-cricket, an ambush strategy that lulled Cook into ruling out a brilliant piece of fielding from his mental calculations, leaving him fatally vulnerable to this isolated moment of vigour and accuracy by an Indian fielder.That single Zaheer over, with all the fiddling around, then the assorted earnest discussions about the run-out, took 11 minutes. Including a bit of time for Umpire Tucker to forget that it should only have six balls in it, rather than allowing it to go on for ever, as it seemed destined to, and almost allow a seventh ball, then spend another half a minute or so having a natter with the third umpire to clarify the situation.All in all, cricket has greater issues to address than slow play. What makes it so frustrating as a spectator, however, is that it is so unnecessary, so easily resolved, and is becoming progressively worse with the infinite range for needless microbreaks in 21st-century play. The endemic dawdling in top-level cricket could easily be resolved, and, if it were, the spectacle of the game would be improved for spectators both in the grounds and on television. The authorities evidently care little for this. The umpires even less. Players, in all sports, generally do what they are allowed to do.