Tag Futebol

Ollie Pope in the spotlight as England choose not to bowl final 22 overs of third day

Matt Roller31-Aug-2024Eoin Morgan criticised England and Ollie Pope for a lack of killer instinct with “everything in their favour”, as their refusal to continue bowling spin from both ends brought the third day of their second Test against Sri Lanka to a premature close at Lord’s.Pope brought on Shoaib Bashir and Joe Root to bowl in tandem for three overs with Sri Lanka 24 for 1, after umpires Paul Reiffel and Joel Wilson determined that the light was too poor for seamers to bowl. It briefly improved enough for Matthew Potts and Olly Stone to return – with Stone dismissing Pathum Nissanka – before Bashir and Root returned for five further overs.With 22 overs left in the day, the players then left the field – with Pope seemingly keen to avoid further wear on the new ball – and did not return for the rest of the day. It was a notable contrast to his decision to stay on the field in similar bad light in the first Test at Emirates Old Trafford, where Root and Bashir bowled 12 consecutive overs of spin as Sri Lanka’s No.9 Milan Rathnayake made 72 in his debut innings.”I think it’s a questionable decision,” Morgan, who spent seven years as England’s white-ball captain, said on Sky Sports’ coverage. “The reason behind that is just the whole context of the last hour or so: it is dark. There’s a reason the seamers can’t bowl: it is dangerous for everybody concerned.”If you’re sitting in Sri Lanka’s changing room, you’re thinking, ‘Jeez the last place I want to be is out there with the bat in hand – facing anybody.’ It’s a lose-lose situation. I totally understand the concern for the condition of the ball, but you’re talking about England’s premium fingerspinner in Shoaib Bashir, who needs to bowl. The ball is turning and bouncing.”Sri Lanka had promoted Prabath Jayasuriya, who batted at No. 9 in the first innings, to No. 4 in a bid to reach the close of play unscathed. “They’re bowling at a No. 9 at one end. Everything is in England’s favour,” Morgan said. “I question the decision… you have runs to play with, you have two or three new balls, everything in your favour. And yet you’re sitting in the changing room.”Related

More bad-light farce at The Oval as Chris Woakes is forced to bowl spin mid-over

Alastair Cook hails 'genius' Root after England-record 34th Test hundred

Joe Root notches record 34th Test hundred as England close in

Root breaks records with twin tons at Lord's

Clenched fist in a velvet glove as Joe Root comes good when it matters again

England’s decision to come off meant a near-capacity crowd at Lord’s headed home early – in the face of the team’s stated desire to entertain. “We pride ourselves on wanting people to come into the ground and feel like they’ve had a really enjoyable day of cricket, and can walk away wanting to come back for more Test cricket,” Joe Root said, after the early close.Pope, who is deputising for Ben Stokes against Sri Lanka, has already come in for heavy criticism as captain, with Michael Vaughan suggesting that he is “not the kind of personality” for the role. After he was caught in the deep for 17 on Saturday when attempting to upper-cut Asitha Fernando over point, he has now scored 30 runs in four innings across the first two Tests.Jayasuriya successfully saw out 23 balls as Sri Lanka’s ‘lightwatchman’, with Dimuth Karunaratne 23 not out overnight. Sri Lanka still require a further 430 runs across the final two days for an improbable series-squaring win, but their batting coach Ian Bell suggested they still have some hope of saving the game.”The more we can spend time in the middle and that ball gets a bit softer…” Bell said. “This wicket has been quite a new-ball wicket, if you can get through that. There’s still plenty of batting, and that’s probably been the strength so far this tour: that middle-lower order have got some good runs. Tomorrow, the first hour is important and we’ll go from there.”Bell said he was pleased with the “character” that Sri Lanka showed on the third day: “What we asked the guys last night was to come in with the attitude that we saw in Manchester… A bit unfortunate to lose a second wicket in that little period of an over or two in between the bad light, but more of the same tomorrow.”It’s more the character we want to see, that we’ve seen so far in this tour. Obviously, you want to win games, but also want to see the guys fight for everything they’ve got in these conditions, which are a bit more tricky than what they play in in Sri Lanka.”

يظل الفرنسي زين الدين زيدان غائبًا عن مقاعد التدريب منذ ترك منصبه كمدير فني لفريق ريال مدريد، وكشفت تقارير عن وجهة غير متوقعه له.

زيدان سبق وتولى تدريب ريال مدريد على فترتين، وحقق خلالهما الفوز بثلاثة ألقاب لدوري أبطال أوروبا، وغادر منصبه في عام 2021.

ومنذ ذلك الحين، لم يتول زيدان تدريب أي نادٍ رغم ارتباطه بالكثير منها مثل مانشستر يونايتد ويوفنتوس، بالإضافة لارتباطه بتدريب منتخب فرنسا.

وبحسب ما أفادت صحيفة “بيلد” الألمانية نقلاً عن تقارير تركية، نادي فناربخشة التركي توصل إلى اتفاق مبدئي مع زين الدين زيدان لتدريب الفريق وخلافة المدرب البرتغالي جوزيه مورينيو.

وتركزت المحادثات بين الطرفين على الراتب وتفاصيل العقد، وبمجرد انتهاء هذه المحادثات، قد يتوجه زيدان إلى تركيا استعدادًا لتدريب الفريق.

وكان فناربخشة قد انفصل عن جوزيه مورينيو بنهاية شهر أغسطس عقب فشله في تصفيات دوري أبطال أوروبا ضد بنفيكا وانتقاداته للاعبين ومجلس إدارة النادي.

وارتبط فناربخشة بعدة مدربين بما في ذلك الإيطالي لوتشيانو سباليتي المدرب السابق لمنتخب إيطاليا، والذي رفض العرض لرغبته في البقاء مع عائلته.

كانت هناك أسماء أخرى أيضًا على طاولة فناربخشة، مثل أنجي بوستيكوجلو، مدرب توتنهام السابق، ودومينيكو تيديسكو، والمدرب التركي إسماعيل كارتال.

West Brom are showing an interest in completing the loan signing of a “sublime” Premier League player this summer, according to a new update.

West Brom eye signings ahead of Mason's first season

The Baggies will once again be among the favourites to seal a top six finish in the Championship next season, as is so often the case, with new manager Ryan Mason admitting he is excited about getting started at The Hawthorns.

“I’m absolutely thrilled to have been appointed Head Coach of West Bromwich Albion. This is a huge club with a fantastic infrastructure and an incredible fan base and I am excited about what we can achieve together. Having spoken at length to the board and those at the club I am convinced that Albion is the perfect place for me to be and I can’t wait to get started. I will bring with me a huge amount of enthusiasm, dedication and ambition and look forward to a positive future together at such a fantastic club.”

Mason will know that some new signings will be needed this summer, though, in order to aid West Brom’s promotion push, with Rangers forward Tom Lawrence mentioned as an experienced option who has proven himself in the past in the Championship.

Nottingham Forest left-back Harry Toffolo has also emerged as a rumoured option for West Brom, following his departure from the City Ground, with the Englishman set to be a free agent. Now, another name has been thrown into the hat for the Baggies.

West Brom want to sign "sublime" Premier League ace

According to a new update from The Express & Star, West Brom are considering the loan signing of Bournemouth midfielder David Brooks in the summer window, having joined them for £11.5m seven years ago.

The report states that a lack of regular starts for the Cherries last season means that “a departure from the Vitality Stadium, if only on a short-term basis, is considered a possibility this summer.”

Brooks, who scored for Southampton at The Hawthorns in a 2-0 win last year, could be a brilliant addition for West Brom, even if it’s just on loan, with the 27-year-old a gifted footballer who has been highly-rated for years, being lauded by Eddie Howe back in 2018:

“He has played ever so well for us, he has got a creative flair, non-stop energy and he took his goals really well today. He is a player that can do a little bit of everything, he is very good offensively, is creative, turns well with the ball and is very intelligent. His first goal was sublime and his second was very clever because he was running at an angle and just directed it backwards behind him which was really impressive.”

Appearances

29

Starts

9

Minutes played

952

Goals

2

Assists

0

Shots per game

0.9

Key passes per game

0.7

Pass completion rate

82.2%

The fact that Brooks is struggling to be a key starter for Bournemouth means that a temporary move away could appeal to him, and he has the technical quality to be an influential performer for West Brom, helping inspire them to a return to the Premier League.

Leeds United left it late on the final day of the Championship season but Manor Solomon’s dramatic strike right at the death would secure Daniel Farke’s men the title.

Amazingly, both the Whites and their nearest competitors in Burnley would end their mightily impressive campaigns on 100 points each, but Leeds’ sturdy goal difference would hand the esteemed honours over to Farke and Co, instead of more party celebrations taking place at Turf Moor.

But, as much as the West Yorkshire titans have been able to blow teams away with ease in the second tier, the Premier League is a different kettle of fish altogether.

Therefore, some potential attacking recruits are now being linked with a switch to Elland Road to help navigate the tricky step-up in quality.

Leeds' list of attacking targets

Already, Leeds have been linked with a whole host of new faces up top, with reports suggesting that the newly crowned champions might look to snap up Omari Hutchinson from recently relegated Ipswich Town.

Moreover, other rumours indicate that Leeds are intrigued by the prospect of bringing AZ Alkmaar goal machine Troy Parrott back to England, meaning the striker department would also be given a potential facelift.

Yet, there’s one name that sticks out as a top buy away from both Hutchinson and Parrott, with TBR Football revealing that Farke and Co are looking at a number of targets from Celtic, including Hoops attacking hotshot Nicolas Kuhn.

The Whites have had success when shopping from the Glasgow giants in the past, with Whites legend Mark Viduka once plying for his trade for the Scottish titans before becoming a fan’s favourite at Leeds. So, there’s clearly a proven recipe for success right here.

How Kuhn could be even better than James

If Kuhn can lift his game to be on the same level as Viduka’s – who would score a colossal 72 strikes for Leeds – he would further go down as a more impressive winger than Dan James over time, even with the Welshman fresh off just winning the Whites’ Player of the Year accolade.

James should be commended for how he’s managed to turn around his up-and-down stay at Elland Road, with the ex-Manchester United attacker undoubtedly a top-drawer talent in the EFL having previously struggled in the top-flight.

Indeed, the blistering number seven has tallied up a sizeable 41 goal contributions in league action over the last two seasons, but there will be a concern in the air lingering that the 56-time Wales international isn’t cut out for the bright lights of the Premier League.

Indeed, his best tally for a campaign up a division currently sits at a mere four goals and five assists.

On the flip side, Kuhn has proven again and again for Brendan Rodgers’ men – albeit in a far less strenuous top division in the Scottish Premiership – that he can dazzle defences under immense pressure. He’s even scored in the Champions League.

Staggeringly, across all competitions this campaign, including on Europe’s grandest stage, the German forward has amassed a bumper 34 goals and assists from 47 clashes, with a chance in the Premier League to come a deserved next step for the former RB Leipzig winger.

Kuhn’s numbers this season by competition (24/25)

Competition

Games

Goals

Assists

SPL

29

12

8

Champions League

10

3

1

SFA Cup

4

0

1

League Cup

4

5

4

Sourced by Transfermarkt

In contrast, James accumulated a lesser 21 from ten fewer clashes, meaning he could take a back-seat now down the right flank for the “breathtaking” winger, as he’s been lauded in the past by pundit Marvin Bartley, to take over.

Obviously, it isn’t set in stone that Kuhn will be able to instantly acclimatise to the pressures of the Premier League, but history might well repeat itself here, especially if the Hoops number 10 can prove he belongs at the daunting level like Viduka before him.

Related Rio Ferdinand 2.0: Leeds want to sign "extraordinary" £20m defender

Leeds United are keen on signing a £20m star who could be the next Rio Ferdinand at Elland Road.

Posts ByDan Emery May 5, 2025

In 15 games this season, RCB have had nine different Player-of-the-Match winners. Here’s how each of them has helped the team’s cause

Shashank Kishore02-Jun-20252:24

Aaron: Different players have stepped up for RCB

Krunal Pandya

Before joining RCB, Krunal’s best haul in a season was 12 (both in 2018 and 2019). This season, he has picked up 11 alone in RCB’s flawless away run of seven wins, and 15 overall. Krunal has largely held his own against left-hand batters by making the most of his different lengths, trajectory, and a mean bouncer, the last most notably against MI, when he outsmarted Mitchell Santner and sealed victory with a triple-wicket final over in which he had to defend 18. Krunal’s first IPL fifty since 2016 came in a crucial away win against Delhi Capitals (DC).

Rajat Patidar

Patidar’s twin half-centuries early in his maiden season as captain powered RCB to landmark wins: their first over Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at Chepauk since 2008 and over MI at Wankhede since 2015. In both matches, he forced opposing captains to hold back spin. Against MI, he also targeted Hardik Pandya to avoid the pressure of having to take down Jasprit Bumrah at the death, finishing with 64 off 32 in RCB’s 221 for 5 – his season’s best yet.2:10

Cricinformed: Virat Kohli – RCB’s backbone

Virat Kohli

His eight half-centuries, all in wins this season, is a record. His strike rate this season isn’t far off the 152.03 he recorded during his iconic, chart-topping 973-run campaign in 2016. Kohli has been less an anchor and more a storm at the top, in many ways a continuation of his avatar from the second half of 2024, where RCB recorded six wins on the bounce to make a dash into the playoffs. He averages an impressive 88.50 in chases this season.

Tim David

RCB’s plan for David has been clear: minimum time, maximum impact. His only fifty came in a shortened match against Punjab Kings (PBKS), where a 26-ball 50 not out helped lift RCB out of trouble. While it wasn’t enough for a win, it showcased RCB’s batting depth and made it a rare instance of the Player-of-the-Match award going to a player from a losing team. Heading into the final, only Shreyas Iyer has hit more sixes than David in the death overs this season.1:39

How Josh Hazlewood has become a death overs expert

Josh Hazlewood

His shoulder niggle had fans anxiously researching rotator cuffs, but in his first game back after over three weeks, Hazlewood dismantled PBKS in the powerplay with the key wickets of Josh Inglis and Shreyas Iyer, to set RCB on the road to the final. His mastery at the death has been just as vital, never more so than against Rajasthan Royals (RR). Tasked with defending 17 off 12, he gave away just one run and took two wickets, including that of the in-form Dhruv Jurel, who had just smashed Bhuvneshwar Kumar for 21 in the 18th over. That spell helped overturn RCB’s three-match losing streak at home.

Phil Salt

Salt has stepped into Faf du Plessis’ shoes seamlessly to play a high-impact role in the powerplay. His early salvo, like when he took Mitchell Starc for 24 runs in a 30-run over, has taken a lot of the pressure off Kohli. The pair is within touching distance of being the second-most prolific opening pair this season, behind B Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill. Among those playing in the final, Salt is joint-second with Priyansh Arya (14) for most sixes in the powerplay this IPL. His four half-centuries are second-most behind Kohli’s eight for RCB this season.2:04

Moody: ‘Jitesh’s innings was wow!’

Jitesh Sharma

Jitesh’s lone half-century of the season may have been his most important one yet – it came in a must-win game to secure a top-two finish. His unbeaten 85 off just 33 balls against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) is the third-highest IPL score from No. 6 or lower and it powered RCB to their highest successful chase. Earlier in the season, his impactful 40* off 19 against MI stood out for the assault on Bumrah and Trent Boult at the death. He also briefly stepped in as captain when Patidar was sidelined with a finger injury.

Suyash Sharma

After nearly two years playing through a hernia problem, Suyash wasn’t a starter this season as he recovered from surgery in London that was sponsored by RCB. He returned lighter, fitter, and has delivered key performances despite a modest tally of eight wickets. He turned games with spells like his six-run 18th over against CSK while defending 34 off 18, and his season-best 3 for 17 in Qualifier 1, where a flurry of wrong’uns ripped through PBKS’ lower order. His spin combine with Krunal isn’t the most formidable on paper, but they have punched above their weight this season.

Romario Shepherd

Initially overlooked in favour of Liam Livingstone, Shepherd seized his chance in a crucial home game against CSK. Coming in during the 18th over, he smashed 10 of his 14 balls to the boundary to record the second-fastest IPL fifty. His knock gave RCB vital momentum in a tight win that took them closer to the playoffs spot. RCB’s 54 runs – Shepherd made 53 of those – in the last two overs remain their most in the final 12 balls, with 32 of those coming in a single over off Khaleel Ahmed.

While they have plenty of fast-bowling options, their spin stocks are thin in comparison

Abhimanyu Bose25-Mar-2023

Where Sunrisers Hyderabad finished last season

Eighth. They won six games and lost eight, finishing below Kolkata Knight Riders on net run rate.

SRH squad for IPL 2023

Abhishek Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, Rahul Tripathi, Aiden Markram (capt), Harry Brook, Abdul Samad, Anmolpreet Singh, Glenn Phillips, Heinrich Klaasen, Upendra Yadav, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Vivrant Sharma, Sanvir Singh, Samarth Vyas, Mayank Dagar, Adil Rashid, Mayank Markande, Akeal Hosein, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Marco Jansen, Kartik Tyagi, Umran Malik, T Natarajan, Fazalhaq Farooqi

Player availability – Only five overseas players available for first game

The three South African players in the squad – Aiden Markram, Marco Jansen and Heinrich Klaasen – are likely to join the team on April 3, after their ODI series against Netherlands. That means Sunrisers will have only five overseas players to pick from for their tournament opener against Rajasthan Royals on April 2.Related

• Players can review wides and no-balls using DRS

• Impact Player – all you need to know about the new rule

• IPL 2023: teams to name playing XIs after toss

What’s new with SRH this year

Sunrisers have new leadership this year, having released last season’s captain Kane Williamson ahead of the auction. Aiden Markram, who led Sunrisers Eastern Cape to the title in the inaugural SA20, will lead the Hyderabad franchise this year.Sunrisers bought Mayank Agarwal to boost their top order, and in Harry Brook they signed one of the most exciting young players in the game. The 24-year-old has been earmarked for success across formats by his Test captain Ben Stokes and is expected to play a huge role in the middle order. He comes into his maiden IPL season with 2432 runs from 99 T20s at a strike rate of 148.32.Will England’s Harry Brook make a splash in his maiden IPL season?•Matthew Lewis/Getty ImagesBrian Lara, who was the team’s strategic advisor and batting coach in 2022, has replaced Tom Moody as head coach. While Dale Steyn (fast-bowling coach), Muthiah Muralidaran (spin-bowling coach) and Simon Helmot (assistant coach) retain their roles, Netherlands head coach Ryan Cook has been appointed the fielding coach. He replaces Hemang Badani, who has become the batting coach after performing the same role for the franchise at the SA20.

The good – SRH bat deep

A top order of Mayank, Abhishek Sharma and Rahul Tripathi and a middle order that could feature Markram, Harry Brook and Glenn Phillips or Heinrich Klaasen gives Sunrisers great batting depth, especially when you add Washington Sundar and Jansen to the mix.Sunrisers also have a strong Indian fast-bowling attack. Apart from the experienced Bhuvneshwar Kumar, they have Umran Malik, T Natarajan and Kartik Tyagi. Add Jansen to the mix with Fazalhaq Farooqi in the reserves, and they have plenty of depth.

The not-so-good – The spin stocks?

If Adil Rashid struggles to get a game, Washington, Markram and Abhishek become the main spin options in the team. They do have Mayank Markande in the wings, though.

Schedule insights

Sunrisers’ schedule is packed at the back end of the league stage. Their last four matches take place in the space of nine days – from May 13 to May 21.

The big question