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Emily Windsor fifty, Lindsey Smith three-for help strengthen bid for knockout spot

ECB Reporters Network09-Sep-2023Georgia Adams went past 400 runs and 15 wickets in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy as Southern Vipers continued their march for a knockout spot with victory over Thunder.Adams scored a classy 71, during a pivotal 114-run stand with Emily Windsor – who scored a boisterous 59 to help shore up Vipers before another collapse saw them post 237. Linsey Smith ripped out the Thunder top order as they slipped to 33 for 5, with Adams getting two wickets, before eventually losing by 64 runs – despite Fi Morris’ 52.Vipers moved up to second in the table, having played a game more than those around them, while Thunder’s hopes of progression took a massive hit with two games to go.Ella McCaughan and Abi Norgrove set a platform after Vipers had won the toss and chosen to bat first. But after reaching 45, Vipers lost three wickets in eight overs as Hannah Jones’ introduction swung the momentum towards the visitors.The left-arm spinner struck with her first delivery to bowl McCaughan for a spritely 29 off 33 balls before the more sluggish Norgrove was lbw for 16 off 44. Jones also got her fingertips to an Adams straight drive to run out Georgia Elwiss while backing up.But Adams and Windsor righted the ship with a counter attack to lay the foundations for a score which had the potential to get close to 300, especially after Jones quickly completed her 10 overs.Adams was particularly strong running between the wickets in the Arundel heat, while Windsor showed uncharacteristic power – having worked on her hitting at Welsh Fire during the Hundred.Adams brought up her fifth half-century of the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy in 53 balls, while Windsor followed with her second of the competition in 63 deliveries. The duo put on 114 to boost Vipers to 193 for 4 with 14 overs to go, but after Adams clipped Ireland international Laura Delany to midwicket they collapsed.Windsor skipped past Morris in the following over before Smith, Alice Monaghan, Rhianna Southby and Ava Lee all fell as the hosts lost seven wickets for 44 runs in 60 balls – Morris and Olivia Bell both taking three wickets. Vipers ending up on 237 in 47.5 overs.Thunder’s slump was even more severe as their top order disintegrated. Smith was the main instigator as she had Liberty Heap lbw in the second over, Naomi Dattani caught at backward point and Ellie Threlkeld sweeping to backward point. The spinner’s first six-over spell result in in 3 for 17.Mary Taylor picked up Southern Brave team-mate Seren Smale with an in-ducker while Delany was bowled by Adams.Morris and Daisy Mullan dug their side out of the hole, while still staying in touch with the required run rate in a 57-run stand. Morris struck a run-a-ball 50 but both fell in quick succession as Morris was bowled by talented young offspinner Lee and Mullan was caught and bowled by Adams.Phoebe Graham and Tara Norris slowed up Vipers’ hunt for victory, they saw off Smith – who ended with 3 for 29 – but Graham was cleaned up by Taylor.Taylor’s slower ball accounted for Norris, who picked out long-on, and Bell lobbed to midwicket to give Taylor best figures of 4 for 39.

Wyatt half-century, Bell and Moore three-fors as Superchargers fall well short

Matt Roller27-Aug-2023Anya Shrubsole signed off from professional cricket by lifting the Hundred trophy at Lord’s, captaining Southern Brave to their first title in their third final. After successive defeats to Oval Invincibles, they comprehensively outplayed Northern Superchargers in front of a record 21,636 crowd at Lord’s.Brave’s batting let them down in their first two finals and they were 8 for 2 after nine balls on Sunday, Smriti Mandhana and Maia Bouchier falling cheaply after Superchargers opted to bowl first. But they recovered to set a target of 140, Danni Wyatt making 59 off 38 and Freya Kemp contributing an invaluable 31 off 17 from No. 5.Lauren Bell struck twice in her first eight balls in Brave’s defence, including removing Superchargers’ leading run-scorer Phoebe Litchfield who was well caught by Kemp at deep cover-point, and Superchargers were always behind the game.Rhianna Southby, Brave’s 22-year-old wicketkeeper, has played a crucial role for them despite not facing a ball this season: she effected three stumpings in the chase, and finished the Hundred with a tournament-high 11 dismissals.Jemimah Rodrigues opened the batting for Superchargers and was starved of the strike: when she was caught at extra cover for 24, she had faced just 14 of the first 73 balls bowled. Bell and Kalea Moore took three wickets each, and the winning moment came when Bell whipped off the bails to run No. 11 Grace Ballinger out after a mix-up.Shrubsole had been due to bowl the final five balls but Superchargers were bowled out with six to spare. Having left international cricket after last year’s World Cup, she opted to play on as Brave captain this year and her impending retirement has been a source of motivation for the squad throughout the season, who were determined to send her off with a trophy.Shrubsole looked uncharacteristically emotional in the aftermath of the final wicket, and admitted her overwhelming emotion was one of relief. “We feel like we’ve played some brilliant cricket,” she said, “coming into this we’d won 20 out of 25 games which is an unbelievable record. Not to have won the trophy was tough to take so it felt like this was just deserts.”For Charlotte Edwards, their coach, this was a third short-form trophy this year, after success in the Women’s Premier League with Mumbai Indians and with Southern Vipers in the Charlotte Edwards Cup. Brave have been the best team across the three seasons of the Hundred, and lifted an overdue trophy as the fireworks were set off at Lord’s.Danni Wyatt notched the first half-century in a Women’s Hundred final•ECB via Getty Images

After walking around the boundary from the stage in the Compton Stand, Shrubsole was given a guard of honour by both teams as she walked back towards the pavilion, holding the H-shaped trophy aloft as she did so. It was a fitting send-off for a great of England women’s cricket.Mandhana hit the first ball of the final for four through point but slashed the second to gully, and when Bouchier skied Kate Cross to extra cover, they were forced to rebuild through Wyatt and Georgia Adams.They had 45 off the first 43 balls of the final before Wyatt cut loose with back-to-back boundaries off Lucy Higham, at which point Superchargers became ragged in the field. Wyatt, who finished the tournament as leading run-scorer, swept Higham for four to bring up a 35-ball 50 and lofted Georgia Wareham for the first six of the game.She was primed to accelerate at the death when she was on the wrong end of a freak dismissal: Adams drove the ball straight back at her at the non-striker’s end as she started to take a run, and Cross executed a simple run-out as it popped up into her hands. When Adams holed out to midwicket after a chancy 27 off 28, Superchargers had an opening.But Kemp added 31 with a streaky cameo, hitting five boundaries to keep Brave on track. She eventually chopped Cross’ cutter onto her stumps; while Cross fumbled both a catch and a run-out chance off the penultimate ball, she was the pick of Superchargers’ attack with 3 for 21 off her 20.Bell thought she had struck with the first ball of the chase, trapping Marie Kelly on the pad only for her to successfully review the on-field decision. It hardly mattered: Kelly was dismissed by the next delivery she faced, with the ball ricocheting off her pad and onto the base of the stumps.When Litchfield lofted into the deep, Brave had two early wickets and were in control of the game. Southby’s sharp work gave Moore a wicket with her first ball, stumping Hollie Armitage, and her fast hands accounted for Bess Heath soon after, Chloe Tryon making amends for a drop on the square-leg boundary by beating her on the outside edge.Shrubsole had Alice Davidson-Richards lbw to leave Superchargers five down, and a brilliant catch by Bouchier – running in off the long-on boundary, then diving forwards at full stretch – meant Rodrigues was their last hope. Having tried and failed to build partnerships by knocking singles, she looked to loft Moore over extra cover but picked Adams out.Southby pulled off her third stumping as Leah Dobson charged Moore and missed, and Bell administered the last rites, having Higham caught at short fine leg then completing a straightforward run-out at the bowler’s end to cue the celebrations.

“These guys are still hungry, and still have the passion to play for the country and deliver for the country”

PTI01-Feb-2025

India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir believes Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma will both have “massive roles” to play for the team in the upcoming Champions Trophy. Gambhir said that both players still have “so much value” to offer, despite their recent poor run of form.”I think both Rohit and Virat, they add so much value to the dressing room. They add so much value to Indian cricket as well. They’ve got to play a massive role (in the Champions Trophy),” Gambhir said in Mumbai on Saturday, at the BCCI annual awards.”And I’ve said it before as well, those guys are so hungry, they want to play for the country. They have the passion to play for the country and deliver for the country.”Gambhir said India cannot afford to relax even for a moment in the Champions Trophy because they have just three league matches, unlike the 2023 50-over World Cup where there were nine each.Related

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“Champions Trophy is a completely different challenge as compared to the 50-over World Cup because literally every game is a make-or-break, so you can’t stop anywhere in this tournament.”So hopefully we’re going to start off really well, because ultimately, if you want to go on and win the competition, you have to win five games.”Gambhir played down the hype surrounding the India vs Pakistan match, which is scheduled to be played in Dubai on February 23.”Look, we don’t go to the Champions Trophy thinking that the 23rd is the most important game for us. I think five games, all the games are important. The mission to go to Dubai is to win the Champions Trophy, not only win one particular game. But yes, if that is one game in the middle of winning the Champions Trophy, we’re going to try and take it as seriously as possible.”And more importantly, I think when two countries, India and Pakistan, play against each other, obviously the emotions are really high, but ultimately the contest remains the same.”Gambhir also hailed Suryakumar Yadav, India’s T20I captain, for infusing fresh ideas into the squad following the retirements of Kohli and Rohit from the shortest format after the T20 World Cup last year.”Me and Surya have been on the same page when we talk about selflessness and fearlessness. But yes, we want to be more smart going forward, because that is how we’re going to grow as a T20 team, and hopefully in all the other formats as well.”But I think the guys have been absolutely phenomenal. They’ve got the skills, they’ve got the temperament, they’ve got all the ability. And what they’ve done in the last six months, I think that’s been incredible.”I think the foundation of this T20 team was based on two principles. That is selflessness and fearlessness. I think that is something which we want to create in that dressing room, and these young boys have responded really, really well.”

كشف الاتحاد الأوروبي لكرة القدم والمعروف باسم يويفا، عن حكم مباراة نادي برشلونة مع نظيره كلوب بروج، والتي سوف تلعب يوم الأربعاء المقبل ضمن بطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا.

برشلونة سوف يحل ضيفًا على كلوب بروج يوم الأربعاء المقبل، وذلك ضمن منافسات الجولة الرابعة من مرحلة الدوري في بطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا.

ويسعى برشلونة إلى تحقيق الانتصار على كلوب بروج، بعد التراجع الذي شهده مستوى الفريق الكتالوني على مدار الأسابيع الماضية بالفعل.

اقرأ أيضًا .. سبورت: مانشستر يونايتد يدرس التعاقد مع لاعب برشلونة السابق

ويتواجد برشلونة في المركز الثاني في ترتيب الدوري الإسباني خلف ريال مدريد المتصدر بفارق خمس نقاط كاملة، في حين حقق البرسا انتصارين في مرحلة الدوري من أصل ثلاثة في بطولة دوري الأبطال حتى الآن.

وأفاد يويفا، أن مباراة برشلونة وكلوب بروج سيديرها طاقم تحكيم إنجليزي بقيادة المخضرم أنتوني تايلور، والذي يعتبر من بين أفضل الحكام في الدوري الإنجليزي خلال السنوات الأخيرة.

وسوف يعاون تايلور كلًا من آدم نان، وكذلك جاري بيسويك كحكام مساعدين في لقاء برشلونة وكلوب بروج، بينما يتواجد كريس كافاناج كحكم رابع.

ويتواجد ستيف أتويل في لقاء برشلونة وكلوب بروج كالحكم المسؤول عن تقنية الفار، ويعاونه الأسكتلندي أندرو دالاس.

برشلونة استعاد توازنه بعض الشيء يوم أمس الأحد، بعدما حقق انتصارًا ثمينًا على حساب إلتشي بثلاثة أهداف مقابل هدف واحد، ضمن بطولة الدوري الإسباني ليستعيد البلوجرانا الثقة بالفعل.

The 32-year-old joins to boost promotion push following relegation to Division Two

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Jan-2025Australia batter Marcus Harris has joined Lancashire for the 2025 season.The left-handed opener will be available for the club’s County Championship and Metro Bank One-Day Cup campaigns through to September. He is due to arrive in the UK ahead of Lancashire’s opening Championship fixture against Middlesex at Lord’s, which begins on April 4.Acquiring someone of Harris’ standing brings vital experience to Emirates Old Trafford, which head coach Dale Benkenstein cited as vital for an immediate return to Division One after the county were relegated in 2024. Lancashire were keen to bring back New Zealand star Daryl Mitchell, who impressed with bat and ball during a stint in 2023, only for the allrounder to secure a lucrative Platinum deal with PSL franchise Lahore Qalandars.Harris has 12 Test caps for Australia, three of which came in the 2019 Ashes when the tourists secured the urn in Manchester. He came close to a recall for the home Test series against Australia, only for selectors to opt for Nathan McSweeney and then Sam Konstas.The 32-year-old has been a consistent performer domestically, and currently boasts 445 runs at an average of 49.44 for Victoria in this season’s Sheffield Shield. He is also well-versed in county cricket following spells at Leicestershire (2021 and 2024) and Gloucestershire (2022 and 2023), averaging 48.39 from 29 first-class appearances across both teams, with nine centuries.”I am really excited by the opportunity to join Lancashire for the English summer and will give my all to help this great Club win promotion back to Division One of the County Championship,” Harris said, via a statement from Lancashire on Thursday.”Emirates Old Trafford holds some special memories for me after we retained the Ashes there back in 2019 and I know that Nathan Lyon and Chris Green have both spoken so highly about their time at the club.”I have really enjoyed my time playing county cricket in England over the last few years and to start a new challenge with Lancashire is something which I am really looking forward to getting stuck into.”Director of Cricket Performance Mark Chilton said: “Marcus is an experienced operator with international pedigree and has a proven track record of scoring runs at the top of the order in domestic cricket in Australia and England.”He has a strong record in England, following a number of games with both Leicestershire and Gloucestershire in recent years. We are looking forward to working with Marcus and believe that he will play a key role as we look to earn promotion back into Division One at the first time of asking.”It was important to us that we got somebody on board who was going to be available for the majority of the County Championship this summer with the appropriate pedigree, and Marcus ticks that box, while he will also add valuable experience to our side in the One-Day Cup during August.”Harris will play alongside James Anderson, who earlier this month signed on for the upcoming season with Lancashire having not played since last July, when he bowed out of Test cricket against West Indies at Lord’s.West Indies quick Anderson Phillip is the club’s other overseas signing, and is available through to July for the first 11 Championship matches.

Head coach believes that the swing-friendly conditions at the Hagley Oval will assist his seam attack in the final

Deivarayan Muthu09-Feb-2023Since taking charge of the Canterbury men’s team in 2020, Peter Fulton has coached them to Plunket Shield and Ford Trophy title victories, but the Super Smash trophy is the one that keeps getting away from him. Canterbury last won the 20-over competition in 2006, the inaugural edition of the tournament, when Fulton, Brendon McCullum, Chris Cairns and Craig McMillian were still active players.Fulton has since lost two 20-over finals as a player [in 2009 and 2012] and two more finals as Canterbury’s coach [in 2021 and 2022].Despite the absence of a number of senior players who were on tour with the New Zealand side in Pakistan and India, Canterbury have made it to their third successive Super Smash final. They will also be without the likes of Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Ish Sodhi, and Matt Henry for their home final on Saturday, but Fulton is hopeful that they can break the jinx this time.”I’ve played in a couple of losing finals since we won that first one back in 2005-06, I think it was,” Fulton recalls, speaking to ESPNcricinfo. “So, I’ve lost a couple as a player and I’ve lost two now as a coach. So, let’s hope the third time’s the charm.”I think it probably starts with the players, as it does with most cricket teams. You have to have good cricket players [to have such sustained success] and we’re lucky in Canterbury…on the last Black Caps tour of Pakistan and India, I think we had six Canterbury players. That’s a good start, but our T20 success this season has been while all those Black Caps have been away. So, we obviously have some good depth in Canterbury and some good young players coming through.”With Henry Shipley being called up to New Zealand’s tours of Pakistan and India, Matt Henry on the sidelines, and Will Williams ending his Canterbury career to join Lancashire in 2022, Canterbury’s pace stocks appeared particularly thin at the start of the season. But Zakary Foulkes, William O’Rourke and Angus McKenzie have emerged as unlikely match-winners, picking up 12 wickets each. Among seamers, only Otago’s pair of Michael Rae (16) and Matthew Bacon (13) has got more wickets than them in this Super Smash. Even Fulton is surprised by the rapid progress of his raw, inexperienced seam attack.”I think probably at the start of this T20 campaign, if I’d have been completely honest, I’d have said that we would struggle in the bowling department by virtue of those guys being very young and inexperienced,” Fulton says. “Zak Foulkes is only 20, Will O’Rourke only 21 and Angus McKenzie 23. A lot of inexperience there, but they’ve really progressed quickly. They’re fast learners and they’ve embraced the challenge of T20 cricket, which is not quite easy as a bowler. Sometimes, the ball disappears to all parts of the ground, but they’ve shown a lot of maturity and they’ve probably progressed a little bit quicker than I thought they might.Peter Fulton hopes to produce more players for New Zealand from Canterbury’s talent pool•Getty Images”I guess, as a coach, we knew that those [senior] guys would be away [in Pakistan and India] or very likely to be away. In our planning, we sort of identified guys who might be playing at this time of the season. But, as I said, you can plan for what might happen, but the players still have to take the opportunity themselves and they have to, I guess, step up and take some responsibility. The fact that Zak and Will O’Rourke have opened the bowling as young players… and they have also bowled at the death. And they’ve been outstanding, so that’s quite uncommon for young guys to do that. Like I said, you can have all the planning in the world, but the players have to go out and do the job themselves.”Fulton also believes that the swing-friendly conditions and the bigger boundaries at the Hagley Oval will work in the favour of his seam attack in the final.”Really looking to the home final,” Fulton says. “The last two times we played the final we lost and that was away. So, I hope the home advantage will be good for us. The boundaries are bigger, and the wicket generally has good pace and bounce, which will hopefully assist our bowlers. And the ball generally swings at Hagley. On the day, we got to play some good cricket.”Fulton: ‘Having a short memory is important in T20 cricket’
Canterbury’s progress to the final didn’t look as likely, especially when they started their home leg with three successive defeats. However, they overcame the early setbacks and pressed on to win five of their next six matches to storm into the final. Their thumping eight-wicket victory against Otago in Dunedin on Monday saw them leap from third to the top spot in the league phase.”I think having a short memory is really important in T20 cricket – whether you have success or maybe struggling a little bit as individuals or as a team,” Fulton says. “The game can change pretty quickly and we had three games in a row, where we lost, and we didn’t necessarily play great cricket. But in two of those games, we came up against an opposition that performed really well on the day. So, that can happen in T20 cricket and I guess it’s [about] encouraging the guys to go out and play each game like a new game and not to carry the baggage from potentially previous failures or previous losses.”Chad Bowes was part of the New Zealand A team that toured India in 2022•Manoj Bookanakere/KSCA Chad Bowes – a future New Zealand player? Opening batter Chad Bowes, 30, has been central to Canterbury’s success this season, rattling up 342 runs in ten innings at an average of 42.75 and strike rate of 156.88. A former South Africa Under-19 captain, Bowes has done his time at Canterbury and recently in 2022, he was even part of the New Zealand A team that had toured India.Fulton reckons that Bowes has the tools to be part of the senior team later this year for the home series against Sri Lanka in March-April, when a number of New Zealand’s first-choice players will be in India for IPL 2023.”Look, he’s been outstanding this season,” Fulton says of Bowes. “When you watch domestic cricket, you try to identify players who can play at the next level. Watching them play here, you look for that extra little bit of class or the extra little bit of time [to play shots]. He’s certainly got that and to be fair, he has always had that ability.”I think he’s been a bit more consistent this season, in terms of the scores he has been putting on the board. He’s really standing out amongst the other players at this level. So, the Black Caps have been away, but he has really stood out this season and at times shown that he’s a class above the other guys on display.”

It’s not only his performances but also his data-driven approach that has played a part in Pakistan getting to the final

Osman Samiuddin12-Nov-20222:03

What makes Shadab so successful in Australia?

Before the start of this tournament, Shadab Khan was asked to rate Pakistan’s reliance on data analytics in T20 on a scale of 1 to 10. He answered with words, not numbers, but if ever words represented a solid five, this was it. Difficult to say. Franchises are different. International cricket is different. Hmmm. Haww. Not reliant on it. Not disregarding it.Shadab is a poster boy of the Islamabad United data dynasty. He gets it. He applies it. He believes in it. He is also the vice-captain of a Pakistan team where the captain is not a great believer in match-ups, where a religious philosopher doubles as a coach and a mentor who is a man of words that don’t always make sense. At the last T20 World Cup, almost the same Pakistan side were mostly ignoring – politely – data-based tactical advice they were getting from analysts, and they reached the semi-finals unbeaten. Shadab gets this too. He believes in this too.Related

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But this happy accommodation – Shadab of the Pakistan ethos, Pakistan of Shadab – captures something intrinsic about this latest Pakistan ride, of which Shadab has been the absolute beating heart. A ride fuelled by a little bit of data, a little bit of (prayer) and a whole lot of Pakistan.

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History repeats itself, the saying should go, first as Pakistan cricket, then as a meme. The 1992 parallels have long gone viral, but there’s a more compelling one from an individual performance from Pakistan’s second world title. Trent Bridge, 2009 and you know where this is headed: the coronation of Shahid Afridi, 13 years into his career. A fifty first, the blown kiss for Jacques Kallis and then the iconic castling of Herschelle Gibbs and AB de Villiers in four balls to set up Pakistan for the final.In Sydney, a little over a week ago, against South Africa, in another must-win game, Shadab dismissed Temba Bavuma and Aiden Markram in the space of three balls to unhinge the chase. Earlier he had rescued Pakistan with a 22-ball 52, like Afridi in 2009, his first fifty in an ICC event. No kisses were blown.Memory says the Shadab ball to dismiss Markram might have resembled Afridi’s to de Villiers but Youtube proves otherwise. Afridi was getting so much drift in those days, each ball was like a fully formed character out of a Kerouac novel. But the Markram delivery was almost identical to Shadab’s own dismissal of Markram from the only other time he’s bowled to him, in a World Cup game three years ago. A flipper maybe, or a toppie, a goodie definitely: across nine balls, it’s bowled Markram twice.Shadab Khan is a big draw in this Pakistan team•ICC via Getty ImagesThis isn’t a coronation, not yet anyway, more an arrival. Shadab’s been a gun for a while, but he’s now stamped his presence all over a global event. He’s a genuine shot for player of the tournament though if it’s just a fan vote, only one guy is winning that (You don’t even have to scroll down. He’s right there).Shadab still considers himself a legspinner first, though his batting has come on so sharply in recent years soon it might not be so easy to agree. But it’s perhaps the highest compliment to his bowling in this tournament that it has made the central issue of his batting – to be higher up the order more often – redundant.He’s offered Pakistan essential control in those middle overs, foremost with 10 wickets – the most by any bowler in that phase at the tournament (to have bowled at least 30 balls). That’s one wicket less than Rashid Khan, Adil Rashid and Adam Zampa combined. Among spinners, his economy rate of 6.59 is the fifth best, and he’s basically as good as the most economical spinners because only 0.22 per over separates him from top spot.That fifty against South Africa was no fluke though. Since 2020, he’s one of just three players in all T20s to have scored over 1000 runs and taken 100 wickets (Samit Patel and Jason Holder are the other two). Dig a bit more into that period* and he’s the only player alongside Mohammad Nabi to have at least 10 scores of 30+ at a strike rate above 150 as well as at least 10 innings where he’s bowled his full quota of four overs and conceded less than six per over. Most teams would love to have a player tick one of those boxes: Shadab ticks both. No surprise either that ESPNcricinfo’s Smart Stats has him as the fifth-most impactful T20 player in the world since 2020.So he might call himself a legspinner, but he’s as all-round as they come, not least when his fielding is factored in. He’s the best fielder in the best fielding side Pakistan has ever put out at a global event. The run-out of Devon Conway in the semi-final was an electric and pivotal moment, but in the canon of Shadab run-outs, hardly spectacular. All three stumps, nice and easy bounce for the pick-up – if he’d missed it, it would’ve been surprising.

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Shadab Khan might call himself a legspinner, but he’s as all-round as they come•Getty ImagesIn his first season as captain, Shadab’s Islamabad were chasing 183 against Lahore Qalandars at Gaddafi Stadium. They were 5-2 at the end of the second, both openers gone. Until that point Shadab had mostly batted lower down, usually at seven.The story goes that he reasoned to coach Misbah-ul-Haq that he should go in at four. The chase was a tall one and going in himself was a way of maximising resources. He would go hard from ball one and if he failed, it would hardly be a dent on batting resources with Colin Ingram, Asif Ali and Hussain Talat to come.As it turns out, his 29-ball 52 helped Islamabad win a raucous game, but more than the potential of his batting, the story reflects his grasp of the format’s demands. The phrase low-value wicket wasn’t as in vogue then, but that is exactly what he was.That game awareness, built off some homespun instinct and enabled by the environment at Islamabad, is something that few in the Pakistan side can match. That is what filters through to the national side. It’s been said, for instance, that it was his input that led to the recent tactical flexibility in Pakistan’s batting order. There’s a suggestion Shadab had a fingerprint on the early introduction of Mohammad Nawaz against Glenn Phillips in the semi-final. High pace is usually a good way to go against Phillips but Shadab was aware that Phillips’ can struggle early against left-arm spin. Nawaz took his wicket sixth ball, bowled one more economical over and was done.None of this is to exaggerate Shadab’s role, merely to highlight that Pakistan have come upon, in him and Babar Azam, a valuable complementariness in on-field leadership. Babar’s a more orthodox captain, albeit with sound instincts. Shadab’s approach bounces nicely off this and they get on far too well for it to be any more complicated than that.Not that the last bit matters at this moment. The last Pakistan captain and vice-captain to feature in a world final at the MCG had, you might recall, an infamously complicated relationship. You might also recall where that got them that day.

The ICC’s trophy tour of the Champions Trophy will begin on Saturday from Islamabad in Pakistan but will not go to Muzaffarabad in the first leg of its journey. The BCCI had objected to the trophy’s original route, which included Muzaffarabad, capital of Pakistan administered Kashmir, a territory disputed by the two countries.The objection caused the delay in finalising a new route, raising the prospects of the tour being delayed altogether. The PCB had announced the launch and route of the tour on its social media channels on Thursday, catching the ICC by surprise; as it is an ICC event, the protocol is that the global body announces those details.But an alternative route was finalised late on Friday, allowing the tour to begin, as originally planned and announced by the PCB, from Saturday. Former fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar will accompany the trophy on the first day as it is displayed at well-known landmarks in the capital, including Daman-e-Koh, Faisal Mosque and the Pakistan Monument.From Islamabad the trophy will go to schools, colleges and landmarks in Abbottabad, Murree and Karachi in the opening leg before heading off on an international tour, taking in the seven other countries who are part of the Champions Trophy.The trophy then returns to Pakistan on January 27, three weeks before the scheduled start of the tournament, with another tour of venues around Pakistan.Less than a 100 days before the start of the tournament, however, there remains no clarity about how much of the event will be played in Pakistan. The BCCI has told the ICC its government will not allow the team to play in Pakistan, raising the possibility of a hybrid model tournament that sees India playing its games outside of Pakistan. The PCB has stood firm against that possibility, however, and insists the entire tournament is played in Pakistan.The PCB has written to the ICC asking the BCCI to put down in writing the exact reasons for its inability to visit, as well as asking the ICC when they were informed of the BCCI’s decision.

After reaching an agreement to sign Fer Lopez to get their summer business underway, Wolverhampton Wanderers are now reportedly showing “intent” in the race to sign a veteran defender.

Premier League fixtures confirmed as Wolves plot signings

Whilst the chaos continues in the transfer window, the Premier League fixtures have now officially been announced. Discovering their fate, Wolves will have an interesting reunion on the opening day of the 2025/26 season, with the visit of Rayan Ait-Nouri and Manchester City kicking things off in difficult fashion for Vitor Pereira’s side.

Of course, the last thing that Wolves will want is to get sucked into another relegation scrap – especially after Pereira’s instant progress after taking the job last season. But if they do find themselves in trouble, then relegation six-pointers against Leeds United in April and then Sunderland and Burnley in May stand out as crucial fixtures.

Burnley away on the final game of the season could be particularly decisive and already looks like one to watch in the relegation battle. As much as Wolves are keen to avoid another season in and amongst the dropzone, there’s no denying that they could face a tough transition into life without Matheus Cunha and Ait-Nouri.

On that front, however, those at Molineux are already working on replacements. The big question will be whether the likes of Lopez and Evann Guessand are capable of replicating Cunha’s crucial output in the Premier League, which singlehandedly carried Wolves’ frontline at times.

It’s not just attacking additions that the Midlands club need either. Pereira and Wolves have also reportedly set their sights on some key defensive reinforcements and could even reunite with a familiar face as a result this summer and one that Molinuex would need no introduction to.

Wolves show "intent" in Conor Coady race

Just two years on from his departure, Molineux could have one of their favourites back this summer. According to Sky Sports (17:10pm), Wolves are now showing “intent” in the race to sign Conor Coady in a transfer battle against Scottish giants Rangers. The veteran defender has been shown the door at Leicester City, handing Wolves the chance to secure an important reunion with their former captain.

By rejoining Wolves, Coady would instantly become the most experienced Premier League player in the current squad and could even go on to break the record for appearances in the club’s Premier League history, jumping ahead of Ruben Neves in the process.

The veteran defender experienced it all at Molineux, from Championship failure and then Championship promotion all the way to a European tour. Now, at 32 years old, he could return to ensure that Wolves steer clear of the dropzone and so much more once again.

Molineux chiefs scrambling as Club World Cup side Benfica set to raid Wolves

A major European side have their eyes on an important member of Wolves’ team.

By
Brett Worthington

Jun 16, 2025

Whilst it remains to be seen how much Leicester demand to sell their defender, reports that they have opened the door for the £75,000-a-week defender to leave suggest that they’d be willing to accept a relatively cheap price this summer.

A “world-class” player is “waiting” for Manchester United to sign him in the summer transfer window, according to an exciting new claim.

Man Utd still pursuing new striker

The Red Devils struggled all over the pitch last season, but they lacked a top-quality striker throughout the campaign, playing a part in them finishing 15th in the Premier League table.

With serious doubts over the long-term worth of Rasmus Hojlund, United continue to be linked with elite-level strikers, with Sporting CP superstar Viktor Gyokeres mentioned as a leading option to come in. In fact, the club have even reportedly spoken to his agents about a move to Old Trafford.

The Swede has enjoyed a stunning few years for the Portuguese giants, scoring an incredible 68 goals in the past two Primeira Liga seasons combined, as well as netting 11 times in Europe during that period.

Eintracht Frankfurt star Hugo Ekitike and Crystal Palace marksman Jean-Philippe Mateta have also been mentioned as alternative options to Gyokeres, as United look to nail their new striker choice ahead of next season. Now, a new transfer rumour has dropped at the other end of the pitch.

World Cup winner "waiting" for Man Utd

According to an update from TyC Sports [via Sport Witness], Emiliano Martinez is “waiting” for Manchester United to make their move and sign him this summer.

The 32-year-old World Cup winner has lots of interest, including from Galatasaray, but he likes the idea of moving to the Red Devils most, even though they can’t offer him Champions League football next season.

The £150,000-a-week Martinez could be a perfect signing for United this summer, at a time when there are genuine doubts over Andre Onana’s worth between the sticks.

The Argentine has proven to be one of the best goalkeepers in the Premier League for Aston Villa in recent years, if not in Europe for that matter, having won the Best Fifa Men’s Goalkeeper award in 2024, beating Gianluigi Donnarumma, Ederson, Andriy Lunin, Mike Maignan, David Raya and Unai Simon to the prize.

Martinez possesses huge character, as shown during his heroics performances for Argentina at the 2022 World Cup, not least during the penalty shootout in the final, and he has been called “world-class” by Gary Neville, as well as being lauded by Nuno Espirito Santo for one stunning save against his Nottingham Forest side last season.

He's better than Cunha: Man Utd in talks to sign £40m Ekitike alternative

Manchester United appear to be making moves to land a star who could sign ahead of Viktor Gyokeres.

ByEthan Lamb Jun 13, 2025

Martinez would immediately give United more presence between the sticks, and still has plenty of years left in him at the top. His personality would also make him a popular figure at a time where the club need characters, not least his ability to get under the skin of opposition players and fans.