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There was evidence when the India-Australia schedule was announced that there would be doubts over the venue

Karthik Krishnaswamy14-Feb-2023Siddhartha Nanda, a cricket fan who works in a consulting firm in Bengaluru, holidayed in Dharamsala last winter. On the morning of December 22, he visited the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) Stadium, and took the photograph you see below.

Work in progresspic.twitter.com/G1esYXGAxZ

— Sid (@sid_2893) December 22, 2022

At the time, the HPCA was relaying the stadium’s outfield as part of its plans to revamp the ground’s drainage.On December 8, the BCCI announced that the HPCA Stadium would host the third Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, from March 1 to 5. Looking at the state of the outfield on December 22, Nanda wondered if it would be ready in time.And he wasn’t alone.Luke ‘Sparrow’ Gillian made two trips to Dharamsala, in October and January, to scope out the logistics of bringing a large group of travelling fans to watch the Test match in March. Gillian is an Australian cricket superfan who has travelled to more than 200 Test matches since 1995, and organises tours for large groups of fans under the banner of Australian Cricket Tours (ACT).Related

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“I’ve been to Dharamsala twice now,” Gillian says. “Went in October last year for two weeks, and I came out again three weeks ago when I did another lap of every venue [hosting the Test series].”I thought we would be lucky to play in Dharamsala, because there just wasn’t enough grass, and that had been growing for about two months to that point, and I thought, ‘if that’s all they’ve got after two months, they’re not going to have enough in the next three weeks, no way’.”Nanda and Gillian were right to have their doubts. On Monday, the BCCI announced it was shifting the Test match from Dharamsala to Indore.Like all BCCI press releases, the one that made this announcement, signed by secretary Jay Shah, was a masterclass in brevity and carefully curated detail. It summed up the reason for the venue swap in one line: “Owing to harsh winter conditions in the region, the outfield lacks sufficient grass density and will need some time to develop fully.””Lacks sufficient grass density” was certainly one way of saying that the outfield, as ESPNcricinfo has reported, still had bare patches where grass cover had not yet taken hold, when the BCCI inspected the ground on February 3 and 11.The release did not mention the relaying of the outfield either. The BCCI must have known what stage this process was at when it announced the venues for the series, a full 14 days before Nanda took his photograph.Perhaps the BCCI expected the HPCA to have the ground ready in time for the match. Perhaps the winter in Dharamsala – a town situated in the upper reaches of the Kangra Valley in the Western Himalayas – was harsher than usual.But the BCCI must have known this was a possibility, and that there was some risk to choosing Dharamsala to host the Test match. The board went ahead and made that choice regardless.It may have done this knowing its capacity to shift venues swiftly, if needed. The BCCI has twice moved the IPL overseas when it has coincided with the Indian general elections, and once, midway through the tournament, during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. During the 2016 men’s T20 World Cup, the BCCI, as hosts of the tournament, helped the ICC shift the India-Pakistan match from Dharamsala to Kolkata at short notice, over security concerns.When that happened, then ICC chief executive David Richardson said this, among other things, while addressing the media: “The decision was not taken lightly. The ICC and the BCCI understand the disappointment that is likely to be felt by many over the decision to move the match.”There was no mention of fans’ concerns in the BCCI’s statement on Monday. This wasn’t unexpected, considering the experience the board puts spectators through at any given day in any of its stadiums, but the absence of any recognition that fans exist, never mind an apology to them, felt particularly galling in this instance.This was a Test match in March for which the board had announced the dates and venue back in December. This was a venue where the board knew – you would hope – that the state of the outfield could be an issue. And the venue was Dharamsala, which is almost unique in Indian cricket for the number of travelling fans it attracts.Luke Gillian is leading an Australian tour group in India•Getty ImagesThe HPCA Stadium is easily India’s most picturesque ground, backdropped by the snow-capped Dhauladhar range. Dharamsala, and nearby McLeodganj, are major tourist centres. Matches at the HPCA Stadium often coincide with visits from hundreds if not thousands of travelling fans, some driving there from Delhi or other nearby North Indian cities, some travelling from more distant parts of India, and others visiting from overseas, all there to experience the joys of cricket and hill-station tourism.The draw of Dharamsala becomes clear when you speak to Gillian. He says 12 Australian fans travelled with ACT to watch the Nagpur Test, and around 60 will be at the second Test in Delhi, while “55 at the moment” are set to travel to Ahmedabad for the fourth Test.A total of 152 fans signed up for Dharamsala.”People would come to Dharamsala for it being Dharamsala, before the cricket,” Gillian says. “Cricket is a byproduct and a time-filling entertainment.”Gillian is on his seventh tour of India, and is used to the changes in tour schedules, but he says he’s never had to deal with one happening so close to the match.

“If there was a 1% probability that you couldn’t host the match there, you could have picked another venue. You could have given the match to Eden Gardens – Eden Gardens has not hosted an Australia match for 20 years, for heaven’s sake”Mahesh Sethuraman, who was due to travel for the third Test

“I’ve been watching cricket in India since 1996,” he says. “I was celebrating that this was the first Indian cricket tour in all these years [where the schedule] has not changed before the first ball. But even worse, it’s changed after the first ball.”For now, he says there have been no cancellations. “They’re all heading down [to Indore]. They’ve realised that they’ve paid to come this far, and I’m doing my best to limit the damage.”The damage has been extensive.”Flights, hotels, match tickets have all gone. I’ve paid deposits to the hotels, because I said [to them], ‘you will need 1000 bottles of beer. We’ll have parties on day zero, day one and day five – there’s 150 of us and we’ll drink you dry’. So I had to pay a deposit, which is fair enough. That is gone, unfortunately. If we get something back from the hotels, it’s only up to my agent in Delhi to argue on our behalf.”Other fans, travelling individually or in smaller groups, have had to pay heavy prices too. What irks a lot of them is the feeling that the situation was avoidable.”They could have at least said it’s tentative when they announced it,” says Bishen Jeswant, a fan from Bengaluru who had made flight and Airbnb bookings along with a group of friends from within and outside India. “They could have said it was subject to the ground being ready. Then we wouldn’t have made our bookings.”Murali Satagopan, a product-marketing manager based in Lisbon, had travelled to Chennai to meet his family, and pushed back his date of departure by a month – from February 10 to March 10 – to attend the Dharamsala Test. It would have been his first match at an Indian stadium since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.”The financial loss is not the biggest loss for me,” he says. “But this was about the excitement of seeing five days of a Test, and it’s also a key third Test – where we could see India win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and qualify for the WTC final.Australia featured in the ground’s one previous Test in 2017•Associated Press”There are many emotional things attached to it too. Virat Kohli and I are pretty much the same age, and all these guys, guys like [R] Ashwin and [Ravindra] Jadeja, seeing their careers coming towards the end, we don’t know if this kind of team will come together again. A new crop may come, but I want to tick this off and say I saw an iconic Test in Dharamsala when India sealed the WTC [final spot] and went on to win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.”Mahesh Sethuraman, a Singapore-based banker and one of the hosts of the podcast, was due to fly out to Dharamsala too. He asks why it was so essential to schedule the match in Dharamsala when India has so many other venues to choose from.”I’m not offended by the fact that they didn’t apologise to the fans,” he says. “I’m offended by the fact that they finalised the schedule two months back, and if you were remotely in doubt [about Dharamsala], even if there was a 1% probability that you couldn’t host the match there, you could have picked another venue. You could have given the match to Eden Gardens – Eden Gardens has not hosted an Australia match for 20 years, for heaven’s sake. You could have given it to Chepauk, or Chinnaswamy. The scale of how much the BCCI takes the fans for granted is mindboggling.”At a time when what it earns from ticket sales is a fraction of a fraction compared to its revenues from selling broadcast rights, the BCCI probably doesn’t have much of an incentive to prioritise spectators at its grounds.1:48

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But by not prioritising them, it could be missing a trick. Gillian says the BCCI could be doing a lot more to use cricket as a means to bring more foreign tourists to India.”The fact that the BCCI never confirm a schedule more than four weeks before [a series] makes it impossible to get the inbound tourism that cricket deserves in India,” he says. “Cricket deserves it, and that is cricket across the country. Indore deserves to have 500 Australians or more come to visit. So too does Ranchi or Rajkot or Visakhapatnam, wherever they do it, but without the time [for fans] to prepare to visit, it’s a lot of foreign investment that’s not coming.”The BCCI are so invested in money and earning money, yet they ignore this element.”It would take a seismic shift for the BCCI to embrace this sort of thinking. It gets by perfectly well, financially, without having to. And its relationship with the paying spectator remains what it is. The situation is perhaps best summed up by Sameer Mohan, a product manager from Bengaluru who is one of a group of fans who host the podcast, whose planned and fully-booked Dharamsala plans came to nothing.”The best way to enjoy cricket in India as a cricket fan is on your own couch,” he says. “Take a holiday, order takeout, get your poison of choice, huddle with your loved ones, and then just watch.”

Don’t forget, the pair does not comprise the totality of concerns raised by the hearings; to benefit from the process, South African cricket must delve into a lot more

Firdose Moonda12-May-2022South African cricket’s relationship with race does not start or end with Graeme Smith and Mark Boucher. The pair has been in the eye of the storm generated by the Social Justice and Nation-Building (SJN) report, but Smith was cleared last week and charges against Boucher were dropped less than a week before his disciplinary hearing was to begin. The word “finality” is doing the rounds. Except that the SJN hearings were never about individuals or drawing a line in the sand. And Cricket South Africa (CSA) now has the opportunity to move the discussion away from two, influential figures and onto the game as a whole.It’s easy to see why Smith and Boucher became the epicentre. As director of cricket and national men’s coach, the pair held the two most powerful positions in South African cricket and the manner in which they came to occupy them – in a matter of a few frenzied days in December 2019 – sparked questions of favouritism and fears of a “white takeover”.Related

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But how they came to illustrate the totality of concerns raised by the SJN is another matter. Their names were mentioned on the very first day of testimony, when former board member Dr Eugenia Kula-Ameyaw, who conceptualised the SJN, questioned the process of their appointments. Though CSA has acknowledged the flaws which led to positions being filled without advertising or interviews, it also pointed out that those processes were ratified by the previous board and no further action can be taken.Subsequently, Smith and Boucher were named by several people who testified at the hearings. Occasionally, the ombudsman’s assistants asked witnesses whether Smith and Boucher, in particular, were involved in incidents of racial discrimination. But the pair’s prominence only become part of the dominant narrative with the filing of the SJN report, in which ombudsman Dumisa Ntsebeza said he felt they could have engaged in racially discriminatory behaviour. He encouraged CSA to investigate further.Though titled “Interim Report”, it is the only document CSA has received from the ombudsman and because it was unable to make definitive findings it left CSA in an impossible position. The board could not responsibly act on “tentative findings”, but it also could not ignore the report, having thrown its weight behind the process. The only solution was to follow the ombudsman’s advice and embark on a formal process against those named within; and the only processes the board could embark on was against people who worked with CSA. Which is how we come to Smith and Boucher.

The SJN was a flawed report because it was not definitive. It left the door open for only two figures to become the main characters and while their levels of seniority means they may always have been part of the story, they are not the entirety of it

We must remember that Smith and Boucher were not the only people named in the report. AB de Villiers, for example, was one of the most prominent persons to be named, along with a string of former and current players, some of whom supplied written affidavits to the SJN (such as de Villiers) and others who did not. Naming (and shaming, as it were) cannot be the point of an exercise like the SJN because it then loses any chance at real meaning, which involves addressing the macro-issues.The testimony shared at the SJN covered a period from pre-readmission (Omar Henry’s memories of being ostracised by both communities of colour and white is one example) to the present day. But the focus was largely on the national men’s team, from readmission to the mid-2010s. That is a period in which Boucher (in his affidavit) said players were unprepared because CSA did not do enough to equip them with how to deal with “the legacy of Apartheid… the additional pressures placed on them by the country and the media, how we ensure that there is equality, respect, empathy and inclusiveness in the team”.There’s some naivety in Boucher’s statement – which may extend to other players at the time – which suggests they did not assume responsibility for being part of a changing world, and perhaps did not see the need to change with that world. At a professional level, cricket remained a white-dominated sport, even as it began to operate at the intersection of old South Africa and new. In fact, it had more of a foot in the old, simply because more of the people involved were from that side of history and could establish their way of doing things as the norm.For a better understanding, we need to look a little deeper into the dominant sporting culture at the time, which came from the elite schoolboy system of hierarchy. To this day, the top schools in the country operate in this way, where there is bullying, unpleasant rites of initiation and unspoken rules of who can do what and when. Coming through it is a rite of passage for many young people, who are taught to be tough and have to learn that the hard way.The current crop of South Africa players have been through several culture camps•AFP/Getty ImagesThat’s why we get statements like “this is a man’s environment” and “harden up” from current Test captain Dean Elgar. It’s why it was acceptable for South African fans to taunt David Warner with his wife’s intimate history. This is a place where overt displays of masculinity are celebrated and any form of vulnerability is not, and it was even more stark in that immediate post-readmission period.As a young player, and especially a young player of colour, coming into that space was difficult. Challenging it was unthinkable. Neither Paul Adams, nor Boucher would have been able to say if they found the songs at fines meetings inappropriate. No one would have. Interestingly, no one else who played with Adams or Boucher has said anything about their experience. Adams has subsequently realised he was the target of a racial slur; Boucher has since said he understands the seriousness of the offence caused.So the actual question we should we ask is whether anything has changed?Boucher, in his statement on Tuesday, maintains that the team environment is “inclusive”, something which players including white-ball captain Temba Bavuma have confirmed. The current crop of players have been through several culture camps and have established three pillars which they consider the core of their approach: respect, empathy and belonging. In terms of buzz-speak that sounds good.They still hold fines meetings, they still sing songs, and they still use stereotypes in a half-jest, half-mocking way. Is that just part of the bonding exercise all teams go through? Or is it something that needs deeper consideration and more thought, especially in a society like South Africa’s? Those are the questions this current group of players needs to answer as it seeks to move forward, from the old days where Boucher and his ilk were unsure how to deal with each other, to a time when it can embody the idea of unity.The SJN has made us think and talk about this, beyond just cricket’s circles. It gave a voice to the likes of Adams, who said that he had never before had the opportunity to talk about his experience, while providing a platform for those accused to reply. Smith and Boucher chose not to do that in person, instead providing written submissions. That was their right, but it may have robbed the process of a necessary level of humanity, or the opportunity to allow people to understand each other better.At the same time, the SJN was a flawed report because it was not definitive. It left the door open for only two figures to become the main characters and while their levels of seniority means they may always have been part of the story, they are not the entirety of it. Only once we start to confront the offshoots – the issues around development, the women’s game, school structures, support staff concerns and everything in between – will see the full benefit of a process such as the SJN. That was the firestarter; now the flames must catch.

The team is in flux and the SLC in chaos, but the captain has hung around to try and rescue them from no-win situations

Andrew Fidel Fernando23-Apr-2021Being men’s Sri Lanka captain can occasionally feel like a no-win situation. To begin with, you’re in charge of a side that has failed to seriously arrest a six-year decline. (It’s been said for ages that Sri Lanka are “in transition”, but as they are seventh on the Test rankings six years after their last great batter retired, maybe the transition is complete, and they are now just a much worse team).Such has been the turnover of the captaincy across formats, you’ve also got to watch your back at all times. The previous Test captain, Dinesh Chandimal, was dumped – not just from leadership, but from the team altogether – following a bad tour of Australia. Not long before that, Angelo Mathews was sacked from the limited-overs job for (and this is honestly the official reason) being too chonky and running out too many partners he was chonky.And then, there is elite cricket’s premiere manufacturer of industrial-strength buffoonery to deal with, aka SLC. Maybe you’re a new captain and you want to build a productive relationship with the coach? Look, this board is big on their hiring-and-firing. The coach will be out of here soon enough. Or maybe you want some consistency in selection? Hard luck, friend. Try again. Or perhaps you’re hoping that whenever a player gets injured, there’s a decent Test-ready substitute waiting to take his place? Lol. Have you seen the first-class system? Disciplinary hearings, embarrassing media releases, player names spelled wrong on jerseys, shouty press conferences, greasy politicians, money being skimmed on broadcast deals – this is life.Into this infuriating set of circumstances, drop a man who seems almost impossible to infuriate. Affable. That’s Dimuth Karunaratne. When his keeper insists on a terrible review, he smirks. When catches go down; no wild gesticulations. Wry smiles, pats on the back, a quiet word – these are the signature Karunaratne moves. When you’re operating in the upper reaches of a system as maddening as this, to be this inoffensive is not far from being an achievement.Related

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Perhaps most importantly, the man has just stuck around. He’s kind of made it his thing. Years before he led the team, he was constantly on the verge of being dropped, but dusted off a 64 here, a 77 there, and made himself difficult to be parted with. This has gone on for so long that when he has lean spells now, it almost seems inevitable that a score is coming. In South Africa, in December and January, he began with 22, 6 and 2, before signing off with 103 – at The Wanderers no less. Similarly, in the West Indies, he’d hit 12, 3 and 1, then an important 75 as Sri Lanka strove to draw the second Test.In this innings on Friday, he made the least convincing start out of the five Sri Lanka batter to come to the crease, scratching around, playing and missing, failing to pierce the field, making only 16 from his first 65 deliveries (in the same period, opening partner Lahiru Thirimanne had made 43). There was almost a return catch, big lbw shouts (one of which was given out and overturned), running stutters, and periods under which bowlers put him under substantial pressure. But oh, look, end of day, there’s an 85 not out on the scoreboard, and, well, who should it belong to but this guy? That it was made at the relatively sedate strike rate of 40 should surprise no one.As with his batting, his tactical nous as captain has never been spectacular, but neither has it been terrible. He attacks with the field, but has the misfortune of captaining a profoundly fragile bowling attack (Lahiru Kumara seems to have tweaked a hamstring and may be out of the series). When it became clear that the pitch was offering his bowlers less than nothing in this match, Karunaratne changed tack and got them bowling dry – attempting to frustrate the opposition since they could not be blown away. Captaincy that is far from inspired, and yet, not completely unfruitful.He’s no one’s idea of perfection (as opener or captain), but right now, he’s what they’ve got, and like a good stepfather, or a substitute teacher trying to get the class through the syllabus, the guy is making a fist of it. When Bangladesh made 541 in the first innings, Sri Lanka were essentially in a no-win situation. And bless him, Karunaratne hung around.

Cricketers around the world congratulated James Anderson on becoming the first fast bowler to 600 Test wickets

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Aug-2020Pacers sang praise.

Champion bowler James Anderson! Congrats on reaching the first-ever 600 wickets for a fast bowler.. hard work, passion and never-day-die approach have been the hallmark of your career.. doyen of fast bowlers, best wishes for the rest of your career @jimmy9

— Wasim Akram (@wasimakramlive) August 25, 2020

Just take a moment to appreciate how good Jimmy is
600! You’re amazing bro! @jimmy9 #600

— Dale Steyn (@DaleSteyn62) August 25, 2020

Congratulations for your remarkable achievement @jimmy9! Your passion, fortitude and drive are exceptional, cheers and best wishes for the future. #600TestWickets

— Jasprit Bumrah (@Jaspritbumrah93) August 25, 2020

Slow and steady gets the milestone?

Incredible 600 by @jimmy9 . What an amazing achievement. Playing 156 Test Matches for a medium fast bowler is no less achievement. Cheers mate. #JamesAnderson #600TestWickets #England pic.twitter.com/dVFMqPvuwA

— Shoaib Akhtar (@shoaib100mph) August 25, 2020

Anil Kumble welcomes Anderson to the 600 club.

Congratulations @jimmy9 on your 600 wickets! Massive effort from a great fast bowler. Welcome to the club

— Anil Kumble (@anilkumble1074) August 25, 2020

Former batsmen spoke of Anderson’s longevity and perseverance. He’s bowled the most among pace bowlers in Test cricket.

Remarkable achievement to play 156 Tests as a Batsman .. To do it as a quick bowler & then achieve 600 wickets is nothing short of extraordinary .. Well done @jimmy9 .. England’s greatest ever bowler .. #TestCricket

— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) August 25, 2020

What an incredible achievement @jimmy9! Many congratulations on your feat.

wickets in Test Cricket over a span of 17 years for a fast bowler is a testament to your grit, perseverance and accurate bowling. pic.twitter.com/nQok5bgbOG

— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) August 25, 2020

Never thought I’d see in my lifetime a fast bowler take 600 test wickets! It’s not just the quantity but the quality with which he has bowled – be it slow or fast wickets, bounce or no bounce, seam or no seam, for him conditions never mattered! Sir @jimmy9 you are the #GOAT pic.twitter.com/ADrrW7m3zp

— Yuvraj Singh (@YUVSTRONG12) August 25, 2020

Well done james Anderson @jimmy9 .. this milestone is just greatness ..156 test matches as fast bowler is just unthinkable..u will make every young fast bowler believe that greatness is achievable .@bcci @ECB_cricket

— Sourav Ganguly (@SGanguly99) August 25, 2020

For a fast-bowler to play 156 test matches is an incredible achievement, a testament of his endurance. And becoming the first fast bowler to 600 test wickets is a just reward for the hard-work & the passion with which @jimmy9 has played his cricket. Many congratulations #ENGvPAK pic.twitter.com/RGOdReZXuL

— VVS Laxman (@VVSLaxman281) August 25, 2020

Words of appreciation from current opposition batsmen followed.

Congratulations @jimmy9 for this outstanding achievement of 600 wickets. Definitely one of the best bowlers I've faced.

— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) August 25, 2020

Congrats James Anderson @jimmy9
First fast bowler in history to take 600 Test wickets.
You are a nightmare for any openers in world cricket….. #ENGvPAK

— (@IamDimuth) August 25, 2020

A true ambassador of the game.

Congratulations @jimmy9 600 Test wickets1st Fast bowler to achieve this Milestone U r a Great Ambassador of this beautiful game of cricket Stay Blessed

— Mohammad Hafeez (@MHafeez22) August 25, 2020

#600JA Couldn’t be a greater ambassador for Test Cricket than James Anderson! He’s an excellent example to young kids that to win a Cricket Oscar be great in Test Cricket!

— Ramiz Raja (@iramizraja) August 25, 2020

Congratulations @jimmy9. What a splendid record to have. More power to you https://t.co/EmpxuBzdrL

— Sir Vivian Richards (@ivivianrichards) August 25, 2020

West Ham United find themselves in the hunt for new attacking options and could look to steal a march on Everton to land a striking target, according to a report.

West Ham look to bring attacking flair to the London Stadium

The Hammers struggled for goals last term and weren’t helped by Michail Antonio’s unfortunate injury struggles, while Niclas Fullkrug and Evan Ferguson weren’t able to deliver often enough in his absence. Danny Ings has also left under freedom of contract.

Addressing potential targets, former manager Martin Allen believes Aleksandar Mitrovic would be an upgrade on West Ham’s current striking options if they are to push forward in a bid to sign the Serbia international from Al-Hilal.

He explained: “West Ham certainly need somebody up front. Mitrovic was at Fulham and did so well there. Can West Ham afford £40m for him? I’m not sure they can. Would he fit into their team and do well? I personally think he would, he’d be an improvement on what they’ve got.”

West Ham are reportedly keen on adding Mitrovic to their forward line, even if his former club Fulham and the might of Manchester United stand in the way, though he is far from the only name linked with a move to the London Stadium.

Approach made: West Ham now in contact to sign "incredible" £20m defender

The Hammers have come forward for a centre-back, who they are now seriously interested in signing.

By
Dominic Lund

May 25, 2025

Tammy Abraham could move to the Hammers after a frustrating loan spell at AC Milan, albeit that would depend on whether parent club AS Roma feel now is the right time to let the England international return to more familiar surroundings.

Speculation is beginning to mount with the window now open and West Ham are looking to brush Everton aside in the race for a talented young forward, per recent developments.

West Ham hold talks to beat Everton to Adama Bojang signature

According to The Express, West Ham are eyeing a move for Gambian striker Adama Bojang, who spent the entirety of last campaign on loan at Grasshoppers Zurich from Stade de Reims.

Coming in with a return of six goals and two assists in 27 appearances across all competitions, he has previously attracted interest from the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City before settling on a £3m move to France.

Labelled “The Gambian Hurricane” as his rise to prominence continues, Everton and Brentford are also interested in his services, but the Hammers hold a key advantage after initiating talks over a potential deal.

Reims are hesitant to let him depart. Nevertheless, their relegation to the second-tier could mean they have to sell players to balance the books.

Bojang is unlikely to be a first-team starter straight away, though any notion of an agreement could see West Ham bring down the age of their strikeforce further after they brought in Daniel Cummings from Celtic to kickstart their summer business.

Newcastle United’s qualification for the Champions League next season will give Eddie Howe hope that he can lure some high-profile players to Stamford Bridge.

One player they are showing interest in is Jadon Sancho. The Manchester United winger looks set to depart Old Trafford this summer.

The Englishman could cost the club around £25m, and he would certainly bolster their wide options, given his return of five goals and eight assists for Chelsea this season.

It would be a massive statement of intent if Howe could secure a deal for the former Borussia Dortmund starlet. While adding wingers will help the club next season, perhaps it is other positions that require strengthening first.

Newcastle enter the race to sign Barcelona star

One position that Howe must improve is his goalkeeping department. The club conceded 47 Premier League goals last term, the worst defensive record out of any side in the top five.

Thus, bringing in a top-class goalkeeper ahead of another Champions League campaign makes perfect sense.

According to reports in Spain, Barcelona’s keeper Marc-André ter Stegen could be set to leave the club following the arrival of Joan Garcia.

PSG, AC Milan, Manchester City, and Juventus have all expressed interest in the German international, but Newcastle are also entering the race.

Beating these clubs to the signature of Ter Stegen would be a major coup for Howe; that much is certain. Indeed, he would be an even better signing than Sancho.

Why Newcastle must sign Marc-André ter Stegen

Signing Sancho could prove to be a massive gamble. For Man United, the winger scored just 12 goals across 83 matches for the club. His loan spell at Chelsea didn’t exactly see him sparkle either.

His 41 matches for the Blues saw only five goals netted, and it was no surprise that they declined to sign him permanently. Given the fact that Newcastle can call upon players such as Harvey Barnes, Anthony Gordon, and Jacob Murphy on the wing, do they need to splash out to sign Sancho? Especially with the risks involved with his lacklustre form.

In this instance, making a move for Ter Stegen would be seen as the smarter approach. That’s for sure.

Last season, Nick Pope kept just eight clean sheets from 35 appearances, while Martin Dubravka kept five clean sheets across ten domestic matches for the Magpies.

If Howe is serious about progressing far in the Champions League next season, making a move to bring Ter Stegen to England would be a very shrewd move indeed.

Metric

Pope

Dubravka

Clean sheets

8

5

Saves per game

3.1

2.9

Touches per game

34.8

38

Goals conceded

35

12

Goals conceded per game

1.3

1.2

Pass success rate

65%

76%

He played just nine games last season for Barcelona, keeping a solitary clean sheet. The German has been with the La Liga giants since the summer of 2014, playing over 400 competitive matches in the process.

A total of 175 clean sheets have been kept throughout that period. While he may not have featured much this term, in La Liga during 2023/24, he was excellent.

Across his 28 matches, Ter Stegen made 2.7 saves per game – a success rate of 74% – while he was also successful with 100% of his runs out per game.

He was comfortable on the ball, as evidenced by his average of 40 touches per game, while a 94% pass accuracy in his own half suggests the German moves the ball on effectively.

The player was lauded as “ice cool” by popular X page Goalkeeper.com for the way he snuffed out an opponent’s attack in the Champions League in September 2023.

Given the fact that he has a contract until 2028 with the Catalan giants, a move would cost the club, although it hasn’t been determined just how much Hansi Flick will demand for his player.

Sancho would be a fine signing, no doubt, but bringing Ter Stegen to the north-east would certainly turn heads.

Newcastle accelerate pursuit of £60m striker who now wants move to Tyneside

Eddie Howe could bring a clinical forward to Tyneside.

BySean Markus Clifford Jun 13, 2025

At 30, he is poised to become India’s latest T20I debutant, and the call-up will be every bit deserved

Shashank Kishore10-Mar-2021The Indian team management seldom refers to selection calls on social media. But in November, after the team was picked for the Australia T20Is and Suryakumar Yadav, widely touted to earn a maiden call-up, missed out, head coach Ravi Shastri tweeted: ‘Surya Namaskar. Stay strong and patient’. An aching Yadav, not for the first time, had to patiently read tons of consolatory messages. Among those, Sachin Tendulkar’s stood out. He is said to have told him: ‘This is your final hurdle. Surrender yourself to the game.’Related

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How Suryakumar Yadav outshone Mumbai Indians' big names

The next day, Yadav squared off for Mumbai Indians against Royal Challengers Bangalore in Dubai. Virat Kohli tried to unsettle him, constantly chirping to his in-fielders about Yadav’s apparent discomfort against Yuzvendra Chahal. Yadav remained poker-faced, almost as if he couldn’t hear what was being said. Yadav batted through to make an unbeaten, match-winning 43-ball 79*, and gestured to the dressing room afterwards, as if to say: ‘Keep calm. Why worry when I’m here’, even as a fuming Kohli stormed off. It soon became a meme that spread like wildfire on social media.It’s this calmness that has also defined the second coming of Yadav, who at 30 could become India’s latest T20I debutant. Some teams have no hang ups in picking players at this age. But in India, it’s particularly rare. Among specialist batsmen, you’ll have to go as far back as 1981 to TE Srinivasan for a 30-plus debutant in international cricket. In T20Is, the last such instance was in 2011, when S Badrinath played his first – and only – game in the format. But Yadav’s won’t be an unlikely cap when he gets it. He has been an IPL regular since 2012, has an un-ignorable domestic record: a T20 strike rate of 140 across 150 innings; a List A average of 37.55 and a strike rate of 103 in 87 innings, 5326 first-class runs with 14 centuries and 26 half-centuries.”He’s mentally very tough now, but a few years earlier, I did feel he could have had someone to guide him along the right path,” Chandrakant Pandit, for whose team Yadav turned up as 21-year-old and scored 182 in a club game a day after he was supposedly ruled out for Mumbai with a finger injury in the 2011 Champions League T20, says. Yadav’s career began with this brush of controversy – fit one day, unfit another.Then there were complaints about his “hot headed” avatar when he got involved in an on-field altercation with team-mate Shardul Thakur in 2014. Then there were reports of infighting and indiscipline, and Yadav was stripped of the Mumbai captaincy across formats. It was the lowest ebb to a promising career that appeared to be hitting a dead end.

“He was distracted, demoralised. It was a phase, but you define someone by how they bounce back”Chandrakant Pandit on Yadav’s earlier temperament

But somewhere in 2016, Yadav decided to break the rut, transform his attitude, fitness and batting and mental discipline. That discipline even stopped him from playing certain shots in matches until he knocked off targets set by Pandit. He changed his eating habits, started to develop muscle-strength to hit big, apart from spending hours at the nets. All these changes over the years have contributed in an India call-up. His selection isn’t a punt, but a reward for churning big runs consistently season after season, both in the IPL and for Mumbai. A bit like what Mayank Agarwal did four seasons ago in the Ranji Trophy – breaking the door down and barging his way in.”He was distracted, demoralised,” Pandit says of the bad times. “It was a phase, but you define someone by how they bounce back. He acknowledged there were issues and he worked on it. That is the first step. To know there’s a problem. Hats off to him.”Since the transformation, Yadav made his first big push towards the India cap in 2018-19, when he made 392 runs at a strike rate of 168 in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20s. In the Vijay Hazare Trophy, he batted only four times in eight games, but no one had a better average or strike rate (minimum 100 runs) than him.His average (113.00) was higher than that of Yashasvi Jaiswal, who made three centuries, including a double-ton in six innings. It was higher than that of one of his middle-order competitors Manish Pandey, who kept piling on runs for fun. Yadav’s strike rate (154.79) was better than anyone else. It made him genuinely believe he was going to “push the door open”.”Keep calm. Why worry when I’m here?”•BCCIIn the IPL too, Yadav has been a key player for the Mumbai Indians since 2018, now having made 400 plus runs for the last three seasons and counting. However, while his role at Mumbai Indians has been that of an anchor who steadily builds, allowing Pollard, Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya to don the finisher’s hat, it’s hard to envisage a similar setting for Yadav in the Indian team – given their potentially power-packed top-three in KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma and Kohli.Then there’s Shikhar Dhawan, who has had a phenomenal IPL, and Shreyas Iyer, an IPL franchise captain, for competition. Rishabh Pant’s recent exploits in Tests – he wasn’t part of the T20Is in Australia – may have virtually sealed his middle-order spot. So Yadav could well be in a situation where he may not get regular opportunities to build an innings. He could find himself having to go from ball one, with Pant and Pandya to follow. It’s not ideal, but it’s the reality for anyone looking to break into India’s middle order. There’s just too much competition.But while some of the other middle-order contenders may still get picked ahead of him, Yadav has the advantage of having gotten used to multiple roles. He opened at Mumbai Indians in 2018 until Sharma made that spot his own, played as a finisher for Kolkata Knight Riders for much of his five seasons there, and then adapted to anchor the innings on his return to Mumbai. What works for Yadav is also he’s an excellent player of spin. He hardly ever gets out to them – a variety we could see a lot of at the T20 World Cup – and scores quickly. His numbers since IPL 2018 are only behind David Warner and Kane Williamson, as he averages 54.54 while striking at 130.At IPL 2020, he added another dimension to his batting: that of a finisher. He not just averaged 40.22 but struck them at 155.36. He counterattacked in the powerplay and showed the ability to accelerate in the death overs. He struck at 235 between overs 17 and 20 last season, faster than Pandya and just a shade off Pollard, who has struck at 210.25 at the death. Yadav has all the textbook shots and scores a lot of runs with drives through the offside, but he has also used the lap and ramp shots effectively – ask Jofra Archer who was reverse-ramped for six – scoring nearly half his runs behind the wicket this season. The change in gears is significant in Yadav’s push to be an India regular.History hasn’t been too kind to India’s most-recent 30-plus debutants. Three of them – Faiz Fazal, Naman Ojha and S Aravind played all of one game. Stuart Binny left the scene within two years of his debut. But for Yadav, it’s a take-off point. Potentially a good series against England followed by a productive IPL could strengthen his hold of a middle order berth for the T20 World Cup. And with two more World Cups in the pipeline, he could well become a trendsetter for other 30-something players for whom the fire still burns.

يشهد اليوم الإثنين 13 أكتوبر 2025 أجواء كروية مثيرة لعشّاق كرة القدم حول العالم، حيث تتواصل منافسات تصفيات كأس العالم 2026 في قارّتي إفريقيا وأوروبا، وسط صراع محتدم بين المنتخبات لحجز بطاقات التأهل إلى الحدث الأهم في تاريخ اللعبة.

في القارة الإفريقية، تتجه الأنظار إلى عدة مباريات قوية أبرزها لقاء تونس ضد ناميبيا، حيث يسعى “نسور قرطاج” لتأكيد صدارتهم بعد حسم التأهل، بينما يطمح المنتخب الليبي لتحقيق نتيجة إيجابية أمام موريشيوس في مواجهة متوازنة، كما تشهد الجولة العاشرة لقاءات مصيرية لمنتخبات الكاميرون، كاب فيردي، وزيمبابوي، في صراع متقارب على النقاط والمراكز المؤهلة.

أما في القارة الأوروبية، فتتواصل المنافسة المشتعلة في الجولة الثامنة من التصفيات، حيث يخوض منتخب فرنسا مواجهة مهمة أمام آيسلندا سعيًا لتأمين موقعه بين الكبار، بينما يحل المنتخب الألماني ضيفًا على إيرلندا الشمالية في لقاء قوي يهدف فيه “المانشافت” لاستعادة نغمة الانتصارات. كما تشهد السهرة مواجهات مثيرة تجمع بلجيكا وويلز وسويسرا وسلوفينيا، ما يزيد من سخونة الصراع على المراكز الأولى في المجموعات.

طالع أيضًا | حسام حسن: البعض شعر بالحزن لتأهلنا لكأس العالم مواعيد مباريات اليوم الإثنين 13-10-2025 والقنوات الناقلةمواعيد مباريات تصفيات إفريقيا المؤهلة لكأس العالم اليوم

جنوب السودان ضد توغو، الساعة 4:00 عصرًا بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر Shahid

غينيا الاستوائية ضد ليبيريا، الساعة 4:00 عصرًا بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر Shahid

ساو تومي وبرينسيبي ضد مالاوي، الساعة 4:00 عصرًا بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر Shahid

تونس ضد ناميبيا، الساعة 4:00 عصرًا بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر الوطنية التونسية 1

ليسوتو ضد زيمبابوي، الساعة 7:00 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر Shahid

كاب فيردي ضد إيسواتيني، الساعة 7:00 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر Shahid

الكاميرون ضد أنغولا، الساعة 7:00 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر Shahid

موريشيوس ضد ليبيا، الساعة 7:00 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر Shahid مواعيد مباريات تصفيات أوروبا المؤهلة لكأس العالم اليوم

سلوفينيا ضد سويسرا، الساعة 9:45 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر بي إن سبورت HD 6

السويد ضد كوسوفو، الساعة 9:45 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر بي إن سبورت HD 8

سلوفاكيا ضد لوكسمبورغ، الساعة 9:45 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر بي إن سبورت HD 5

آيسلندا ضد فرنسا، الساعة 9:45 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر بي إن سبورت HD 2

أوكرانيا ضد أذربيجان، الساعة 9:45 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر بي إن سبورت HD 4

إيرلندا الشمالية ضد ألمانيا، الساعة 9:45 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر بي إن سبورت HD 1

ويلز ضد بلجيكا، الساعة 9:45 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر بي إن سبورت HD 3

مقدونيا ضد كازاخستان، الساعة 9:45 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر بي إن سبورت HD 7

ويُمكنكم متابعة أحداث مباريات اليوم لحظة بلحظة من مركز المباريات من هنــــا

Liverpool are Premier League champions. Champions of England again for a record-equalling 20th time. Nothing should overshadow that remarkable achievement amid a stunning debut campaign for manager, Arne Slot.

And yet, an unwanted distraction or sub-plot has emerged following the circus surrounding Trent Alexander-Arnold’s future, with the England international confirming the news last week that he is set to end his lengthy association with the Anfield side at the climax of the campaign.

A boyhood hero and academy graduate, the 26-year-old – now set to enter his prime years – has decided to take on the next chapter of his career at Real Madrid, amid the expectation that he will join the LaLiga giants on a free transfer this summer.

That seemingly inevitable news was met with an understandably mixed reaction from the home crowd during the Reds’ 2-2 draw with Arsenal on Sunday afternoon, with Alexander-Arnold the subject of a fair few boos and jeers as he entered the fray late on.

On the evidence of that cameo, it looks as if the right-back’s stunning Merseyside journey is set to end on a sour note. Perhaps, the time may have come to take him out of the firing line for the remaining games of the season.

Trent's cameo in numbers vs Arsenal

There was life after the likes of Philippe Coutinho and Sadio Mane – there will be life after Trent at Anfield.

With Conor Bradley lying in wait to take on that right-back berth, the succession plan is in place for Slot and co, with the runaway champions deserving to end 2024/25 on a high, rather than being overshadowed by talk over their departing star.

The defender with the most assists to his name in Premier League history, the rampaging full-back is an undoubtedly “world-class player”, as per former boss Jurgen Klopp, but – as Sunday showcased – he isn’t irreplaceable.

Indeed, despite a largely positive cameo, in which he enjoyed an 86% pass accuracy rate and won 100% of his total duels, Alexander-Arnold was perhaps culpable for the away side’s equaliser, having failed to track goalscorer Mikel Merino.

That may appear a harsh assessment, although the Liverpool man was level with the Spaniard as Martin Odegaard struck from range, although it was the Euro 2024 winner who reacted far quicker to pounce on the rebound and head home.

Minutes played

23

Touches

20

Pass accuracy

86%

Key passes

0

Long balls completed

1/3

Total duels won

1/1

Interceptions

1

Tackles

1

Possession lost

3

Such a moment perhaps epitomised the ongoing debate surrounding Alexander-Arnold’s defensive prowess, with now the time to hand the reins to young Bradley permanently for the remaining two games.

Trent has been a centre-piece of success on Merseyside in recent times, but now he belongs to the past. The same could also be said of club-record signing, Darwin Nunez.

The Liverpool star who Slot now needs to replace

Despite the lack of a recognised centre-forward alternative to Nunez, it would appear that Slot has gone out of his way to find an alternative solution this season, rather than deploying the £85m man through the middle.

Indeed, the Uruguayan “madman” – as described by club legend Jamie Carragher – has started just eight league games all season under the new regime, with rumours rife that he will be on his way this summer.

Signed by Klopp in the summer of 2022, Nunez looked set to be Liverpool’s equivalent to Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, not least after getting the better of the Norwegian after scoring in the Community Shield at the start of that first campaign.

Unfortunately for the now-25-year-old, he has since scored just 40 goals in 141 games in all competitions. In that same time frame, Haaland has netted 120 times from 139 outings for the Citizens.

The forgotten figure is now looking more like Rasmus Hojlund than Haaland, in truth, having actually been outscored by Manchester United’s struggling striker in 2024/25. Hojlund boasts ten goals across all fronts, while Nunez, by contrast, has netted just seven times under Slot’s watch.

For a player with his hefty price tag, that return simply isn’t good enough, with Sunday’s brief cameo having again laid bare his woes, after losing the ball on six occasions from just 11 touches.

Again described as ‘peripheral’ following his arrival from the bench, as per the Liverpool Echo’s Ian Doyle, the misfiring marksman isn’t even providing the chaos these days, with time having come for a permanent upgrade and replacement to be acquired this summer.

And so, while the case of Trent may point to a player whom Liverpool are begrudgingly being forced to lose, for Nunez, this is a man for whom Slot surely can’t wait to be rid of.

With his future looking set to lie elsewhere this summer, perhaps we have now seen the list of the former Benfica man in the red jersey.

Fewer touches than Alisson: Slot must axe 5/10 Liverpool dud after Arsenal

Arne Slot must drop this Liverpool dud who was worse than Conor Bradley against Arsenal.

3 ByDan Emery May 11, 2025

“Before we came, we were looking to win here. Everyone did their job and we’re very happy,” says captain Shanto after historic 2-0 sweep in Pakistan

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Sep-2024There were useful contributions from across the XI, but Bangladesh’s win in the second Test against Pakistan was orchestrated by their youngsters. Especially Hasan Mahmud and Nahid Rana, 24 and 21 respectively, who picked up nine wickets between them in the second innings to set up the 185-run chase. “They wanted to win, that was very important,” Najmul Hossain Shanto, the Bangladesh captain, said after the win when asked about his young pace duo.”As a fast bowler, I was looking for wickets, and the boys, our effort [with the ball], we really deserved it,” Mahmud said. “You have to take advantage [of conditions] as fast bowlers, and you’ve got to keep working hard together, and especially in red-ball cricket, it’s important to get the benefit from your fast bowlers as well as spinners, all together. It was a valiant effort.”Mahmud and Rana set the pulse racing, as fast bowlers do when they get the better of batters, repeatedly, but the match and series awards went to two more experienced men. Litton Das got the match award for his 138 in the first innings. Mehidy Hasan Miraz got the series award for his tally of 155 runs and ten wickets. In this Test, the two of them came to the middle in the first innings when Bangladesh were 26 for 6 in reply to Pakistan’s 274. Litton scored 138 from No. 7 and Mehidy 78 from No. 8 to take Bangladesh to 262, keeping the match on an even footing.Related

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“It’s a big achievement by the Bangladesh cricket team. I am part of this, so I am very happy,” Litton said. “When me and Miraz [were] batting, the credit actually goes to Miraz, because the way he faced 20 balls, and [if he] hits five or six fours, the game will be easier. We just had conversations like this. They had good momentum. We had to kill that momentum. And let’s see what happens next. And after lunch, we just felt free and just went and batted.”After that stand with Mehidy, Litton had another partnership with Mahmud, of 69 runs, in which Mahmud contributed 13 but faced 51 balls.”When Hasan came, I didn’t have any scoring opportunities, because all the fielders were out,” Litton said. “So I took my time and thought I had to play the over, not the ramp or anything; I just was thinking how many overs I can play.”Mahmud and Rana took over after that. The Bangladesh fast-bowling duo put on perhaps their finest display, as the two young men, with Taskin Ahmed for company, put their team on course for victory, and history.”Very proud. Very young group, in terms of the number of games they have played. Probably not the kind of wickets we were expecting when we were talking about scouting for Pakistan. But this group has improved every Test and showed some good control second innings particularly, so very proud,” Andre Adams, the bowling coach, said.Shanto summed it up when collecting the trophy, and remembered to mention the two opening batters, Shadman Islam, who starred in the first Test, and Zakir Hasan, who gave them a fast start in the chase.”It means a lot, can’t express with words. Really happy. Before we came, we were looking to win here. Everyone did their job. Very happy,” Shanto said. [Mahmud and Rana] were very impressive. Most important was their work ethic. The way they did their work in the recent past. That’s why they got the results. They wanted to win. That was very important for our team.”The way Shadman batted, the 93 innings, and this innings, the way Zakir approached the innings, the momentum came to us.”Litton Das’s century was his second in an away Test•AFP/Getty Images

Mehidy dedicates Player-of-the-Series award to student protestors

This series took place not long after the student protests in Bangladesh, which led to the ouster of the Sheikh Hasina government and widespread violence subsequently, leading to many deaths. The Bangladesh cricket team travelled to Pakistan earlier than scheduled to get in some practice, which they were unable to back home.The shadow of the events back home stayed with the team, with Shakib Al Hasan, their star player and also a member of parliament of Hasina’s Awami League party, being named with 146 others in a political murder case.”You know there have been problems in Bangladesh – I dedicate this award to the student protestors who were martyred,” Mehidy said when accepting his Player-of-the-Series award. “A rickshaw-puller was hurt in the violence, and eventually died. I want to gift this award to his family.”Adams took charge only in February this year, and when asked what the win meant to the people back in Bangladesh, said, “I don’t know what it means to all of Bangladesh, but I know Bangladesh is a very proud nation, so we are incredibly happy with these results given the turmoil over the last couple of months.”We were there at the time, and it was pretty scary. But we’re happy that things are returning to normal.”