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He was banned for two breaches of the PCB’s Anti-Corruption Code

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Feb-2023Asif Afridi has been banned for two years for two separate breaches of the PCB’s Anti-Corruption Code. The ban will come into effect on the date the left-arm spinner was provisionally suspended – September 12, 2022, meaning his period of ineligibility ends two years after that date. The offences are understood to have occurred in the 2022 Pakistan Cup, where Afridi, 36, played for eventual runners-up Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.The more serious breach of the code comes in the violation of Article 2.4.10, which involves “directly or indirectly soliciting, inducing, enticing, persuading, encouraging or intentionally facilitating any Participant to breach any of the foregoing provisions of this Article 2.4.”While the precise nature of this offence has not been made public, it has seen him banned for two years. His other offence concerns the breach of Article 2.4.4, which concerns the non-reporting of corrupt approaches. For that, he has received a six-month suspension, to run concurrently alongside the two-year suspension.The offences can carry up to a lifetime ban, but the PCB said they had taken into account his admission of guilt, level of remorse and past track record.”It gives the PCB no joy to suspend an international cricketer for two years, but we have a zero-tolerance approach towards such offences,” PCB chairman Najam Sethi said. “As the game’s governing body, we need to make examples, handle such matters robustly and send out strong messages to all cricketers.”It is bitter fact that corruption poses a threat to our sport as selfish corrupters lure cricketers in different ways and methods. That’s precisely why the PCB has been investing heavily on player education so that they remain vigilant and can help the PCB eradicate this menace by reporting approaches. If, despite all our best efforts to create awareness, a player falls victim to his greed, then the PCB has no sympathy.”While Afridi hasn’t played international cricket for Pakistan, he was named in Pakistan’s T20I and ODI squads for Australia’s visit to Pakistan last year. He has also played for Multan Sultans in the PSL. He last played any form of cricket in the National T20 Cup in August 2022.

So yet another franchise T20 league…
Yes, the BPL returns for its ninth edition from January 6. It has seven franchise teams that will play 46 games across three cities – Dhaka, Chattogram and Sylhet. The final will be played on February 16 in Dhaka. Yes, it is franchise league, but one of the older ones.Really?
Indeed, the BPL’s inaugural season was in 2012, predating the SPL and the PSL. Barring the Indian players, almost every major T20 superstar has played in this tournament at one time or the other.Like who?
Chris Gayle, Andre Russell, Rashid Khan, Dwayne Bravo, Alex Hales and David Warner have all played the BPL. The likes of Jofra Archer, Nicholas Pooran and Mohammad Nabi too played the BPL early in their careers.So who are the big stars coming to BPL this year?
That’s the thing. The BPL moved quite late in acquiring players for this season. It’s quite packed with the UAE’s ILT20 and South Africa’s SA20 the new tournaments on the calendar, both clashing with the BPL, and Australia’s BBL running concurrently too. Many of the biggest stars were already snapped up elsewhere by the time the BPL draft came around on November 23.So nobody’s coming?
BPL 2023 will have a smattering of Pakistan stars like Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan. Shaheen Shah Afridi is also expected to turn up if and when he regains match fitness, while Dawid Malan and Sikandar Raza, who are both expected to be in the ILT20 too, are understood to have committed to a few games at least for their BPL teams.Need to win a BPL title? Call Mashrafe Mortaza – he’s captained three different teams to victory•Asif Hassan

If the biggest T20 stars are playing elsewhere at the same time, then why should I watch the BPL?
Bangladesh’s biggest T20 stars are all available for the BPL, including Shakib Al Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman. Tamim Iqbal, Mashrafe Mortaza and Mushfiqur Rahim, who have all retired from T20Is, will also be on show this tournament.This tournament will offer players looking to become household names in cricket a stage to strut their stuff – the likes of Curtis Campher, Max O’Dowd, Brandon King, Chamika Karunaratne and Paul van Meekeren.This tournament is also important to Bangladesh’s T20 development, right?
Bangladesh struggle more often than not in T20I cricket, so it feels contradictory that they host a big-money T20 franchise league where so many local players appear every year. But then the BPL franchises rely heavily on overseas players. Domestic cricketers hardly face up to the crunch moments, being mostly kept to bit-part roles. Still, the rare T20 talent is unearthed, like last season when Munim Shahriar showed a glimpse of his big-hitting talent. He was quickly drafted into the T20I side, but is yet to make the step up.The BPL also often has off-the-field problems?
So many of them. From the huge match-fixing scandal of 2013 to teams being unable to pay players on time, to a mix-up on the points table resulting in confusion over who’d made the semis, to teams trying to field players without the required paperwork, it has all happened at the BPL.Last season, Mehidy Hasan Miraz nearly left the competition mid-way after a row with a team official – a saga that involved him being removed as captain and allegations of interference in naming XIs. There was also a last-minute change of team ownership last season, but this especially is par for the course.In total, there have been 27 BPL team owners in nine seasons. Sylhet has had six different owners, while Dhaka has had five, and both will have new ownership this year. Comilla has been around since 2015 although they dropped out for one season in between. The Rajshahi franchise stopped existing since the 2019 season. The constant churn adds to a general feeling of chaos surrounding the tournament.Trying to recall memorable BPL moments… Can you jog my memory?
Gayle and Tamim have hit superb centuries in BPL finals, in 2019 and 2017 respectively.Mortaza won the BPL with an underdog Comilla Victorians in their debut season in 2015, one of different teams he’s led to the title, Dhaka Gladiators and Rangpur Riders being the others.

Which teams are taking part, who are the favourites, when’s the final and a whole lot of other vital information in ESPNcricinfo’s FAQs

Valkerie Baynes02-Feb-2023

Meg Lanning and Harmanpreet Kaur pose with the Women’s T20 World Cup trophy back in 2020•AFP

So, it’s time for the 2023 Women’s T20 World Cup?Yes, and it’s been quite a ride between editions. The Women’s T20 World Cup, the global short-format showcase, was last played in early 2020 and a record MCG crowd of 86,174 watched hosts Australia thrash India by 85 runs in the final on March 8, 2020. That was just days before the world changed dramatically in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic. With life now back to normal, for want of a better term, and with women’s cricket making the huge strides that were hoped for off the back of that historic match – also watched by 53 million viewers at home – we are here, in spite of stumbling through lockdowns, travel restrictions and bio-secure bubbles at various stages along the way.Related

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All-woman panel of match officials for 2023 Women's T20 WC

Since then, we have seen global stars descend on the Hundred, which also appears to be fast-tracking the next generation, the first edition of the Women’s CPL and the establishment of the Women’s Premier League, which is set to begin shortly after this tournament. For the first time at a global ICC event, an all-female panel of umpires and match referees will officiate.Where is this Women’s T20 World Cup being played?The tournament will be played in South Africa, which has just staged the inaugural Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup, won by India. The majority of matches, including both semi-finals and the final, will be played at Newlands, the jewel of the country’s stadia in Cape Town with Table Mountain as a breath-taking backdrop. A clutch of games will be staged at the picturesque Boland Park in Paarl, less than an hour’s drive north-east, and five fixtures will be held in the space of seven days at St George’s Park in Gqeberha.Who’s playing, and what are the key dates?There will be 10 teams taking part, split into two groups. Group A consists of Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Group B will feature England, India, Pakistan, West Indies and Ireland. Each team plays the other four in their group once. The top two teams from each group advance to the semi-finals on February 23 and 24. The final is scheduled for February 26, with a reserve day available on February 27.South Africa directly qualified as hosts and were joined automatically by the top seven teams in the ICC’s world rankings as of November 30, 2021. That left 37 nations to battle for the remaining two places through a series of qualifiers from which Bangladesh and Ireland emerged triumphant. Thailand, who featured in 2020, missed out.Australia are the favourites, right?As much as things may have changed, the more they’ve stayed the same, with Australia favourites to defend their crown and become dual holders of the 50-over and T20 world titles. They have lost just one of their past 17 completed T20Is, when the home side clinched the Super Over in the second of their five-match series in India in December, and went undefeated through their victorious Commonwealth Games campaign.What about India, England and the others? Any challengers?India pushed Australia in the contest for Commonwealth gold with Australia prevailing by nine runs. India’s Under-19s have just delivered the country’s first World Cup in women’s cricket with a side captained by Shafali Verma and including wicketkeeper Richa Ghosh, both of whom will now join the senior squad hoping to ride their wave of their success.England, who played second-fiddle at last year’s ODI World Cup, have the quality to contend and have welcomed back captain Heather Knight from a hip injury. They hope promising young allrounder Alice Capsey will have recovered well enough from a broken collarbone to be a factor.New Zealand captain Sophie Devine is battling a foot stress fracture and, while South Africa’s management have targeted a berth in the final, they must get there without Dane van Niekerk, who failed to meet their fitness criteria and was controversially left out.Despite the progress being made, this event is likely to keep a spotlight trained on the gulf between the haves and have-nots, with the best-funded nations still a long way ahead. West Indies’ form has dropped off dramatically since winning the 2016 title, Pakistan offered little competition for Australia in their recent series and Sri Lanka haven’t played a T20I since the Asia Cup final loss to India in October.

With Jason Holder in the side, there is hope that West Indies could return to a time when success was measured not by bling or bank balance, not by strutting or swagger, but by deeds on the pitch.

George Dobell at North Sound18-Apr-2015This is why Jason Holder was appointed West Indies’ ODI captain. He may only be 23, he may only have been playing his fourth Test, but here, in Antigua, he produced a display of leadership that many of his more experienced team-mates would do well to emulate.It wasn’t so much the class of Holder’s shots that stood out; impressive though the back-foot drives, the lofted straight drives and the tight defence were.It was more the composure. On a fifth day pitch, against a pair of seamers with well over 600 Test wickets between them, with a Test to save and his top-order colleagues gone, he seemed to revel in the pressure. This was his first Test century; there will surely be more.There have been signs of such willingness to embrace responsibility before. Not only did he accept the captaincy of a weakened team ahead of the World Cup – an almost impossible challenge – but he also accepted the burden of bowling at the death.He knew his own figures would be tarnished by the role. And he knew he could, as other captains have done before him, have hidden himself from the worst of the fray and protected his own analysis.But that is not Holder’s way. So, against South Africa, after conceding only nine runs from his first five overs, he brought himself back at the end of the innings with arguably the world’s most destructive ODI batsman – AB de Villiers – at the crease.Holder’s final two overs cost an eye-watering 64 runs and left him with an ugly and unwanted record: no one has conceded more than the 104 runs he was plundered for in a World Cup match.The episode showed he had a little to learn about death bowling, perhaps, but it also showed a selflessness, a bravery, a willingness to lead that was admirable.Those in Barbados who know Holder best – and Ezra Moseley, the former West Indies seamer, has been a pivotal figure in his development – will not be surprised by this innings. He was always seen as a batting allrounder growing up and his leadership qualities were recognised when he was appointed captain first of Barbados U19 and then, briefly, West Indies U19.His batting ability may, in time, allow West Indies to go into a Test with a stronger, five-man bowling attack. If he could have batted at No. 6 or No. 7 in this game, West Indies could have played another seamer, or perhaps spinner, and used their strike bowlers in shorter bursts.But Holder’s excellence with the bat will mask – to some extent – the recklessness of some of his colleagues.For while Holder batted as if his life depended on saving the game, Marlon Samuels batted as if he had something better to do in edging a wide delivery to slip. While Holder batted with a composure that belied his tender years, Devon Smith – a decade his senior – batted with the naivety of a schoolboy in driving to mid-on. And while Holder batted with the discipline and denial of a high-quality Test batsman, Jermaine Blackwood batted with the disregard for conventional technique of a man in the last over of a T20 run chase in charging down the pitch and trying to slog through midwicket.Allowances can be made for Blackwood, in particular. He is a couple of weeks younger than Holder and, as a natural strokemaker learning his trade, it is inevitable that mistakes will occur. As his captain, Denesh Ramdin said, “he’ll learn from the experience”.But Samuels’ failure is more troubling. He had already survived a missed stumping opportunity after attempting a repeat of a lofted drive that carried for six off James Tredwell. So to continue to bat in such loose style was something of a dereliction of duty from a team perspective.To Samuels’ credit, he apologised to the team in the dressing room. But it remains infuriating that a man so obviously blessed averages just 35.55 in Test cricket. Not only was his batting inappropriate in the circumstances, it was against team orders. West Indies were not pursuing a victory target.”There were some shots there that were really disappointing,” Ramdin admitted afterwards. “They weren’t called for at the time.”Devon could have gone on to get a hundred and the game could have been different. We need those batsmen who get in to go on and make big scores. It’s very important, to create the belief, that we can win games”It was important we set up the game in the first hour. We needed not to lose early wickets. But it didn’t go as well as we planned. The guys apologised to the team for it.”There were other positives for West Indies. Antigua had to bid $US500,000 to host this match but the game generated the highest attendance figure for a Test on the island; the old ground may have seemed busier, but it had a smaller capacity. Meanwhile Jerome Taylor out-bowled his England counterparts with the new ball, Smith made his highest score for almost a decade (November 2005) and Blackwood showed he is a talent worth perseverance. Kemar Roach also enjoyed a good game and, by accompanying Holder for more than 50 deliveries, showed admirable character. Around such men, West Indies can build with some guarded optimism.Furthermore, West Indies have seen many of their proud records slip away in recent years, but at least they can say they have still never lost to England in Antigua. And, for the first time since 2009 – and the last time they held out for a draw against England in Antigua – they had batted for more than 100 overs in the fourth innings of a Test.From a negative point of view, the bowling of Sulieman Benn was disappointing and there were times in the field on the fourth day when the bowling and, in particular, the fielding became quite ragged.But Ramdin, whose own batting was also impressive, was in buoyant mood at the end.”This is a fantastic boost,” he said. “The draw feels good. Our confidence is up and we’ve continued that tradition of not losing a Test in Antigua.It was an understandable reaction. If nothing else, the continued development of Holder suggested that Phil Simmons’ pre-match cry for the team to play with “discipline and pride” did not fall on completely deaf ears.West Indies may have a long way to go before they reclaim a place in the top three of the Test rankings – which is Simmons’ aim – but with Holder in the side, there is hope that they are returning to a time when success was measured not by bling or bank balance, not by strutting or swagger, but by deeds on the pitch.

He believes he has the experience to take over the leadership and become a voice for smaller members and Associates

Nagraj Gollapudi and Tristan Lavalette04-Nov-2022Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) chairman Tavengwa Mukuhlani is potentially set to go head to head with the incumbent Greg Barclay in the ICC chairman election scheduled for next weekend. ESPNcricinfo has learned that Mukuhlani, who has been on the ICC board for a long time as the ZC representative, has declared his intention to enter the contest – subject to his getting enough support from the smaller Full Member countries as well as the Associates.ESPNcricinfo recently reported that Imran Khwaja, the ICC deputy chair, was going to stand, but he is believed to have withdrawn. Khwaja suffered a fractious defeat in the 2020 elections against Barclay. Back then, Barclay secured influential support from the BCCI which paved the way for the New Zealander to win by 11 votes to five, in what turned out to be a two-round contest.In July this year, after the ICC annual general meeting, Barclay declared he was ready to contest for a second two-year term. Barclay is believed to be bullish about his prospects, especially as election rules have been tweaked with the winner to be decided on the basis of a simple majority. In 2020 the winning candidate needed a two-third majority from the 16-strong ballot. The 16 votes are from the ICC board of 12 Full Members, one independent director (Indra Nooyi) and three Associate directors which includes Khwaja.Khwaja had received six votes in the first round two years ago, but Cricket South Africa’s vote in the second round tipped the contest in Barclay’s direction. Once beaten, twice shy, Khwaja, one of the most experienced directors on the board, weighed his options and eventually decided not to contest this time, despite having got the mandatory one vote to get nominated.While it could not be confirmed on October 20, the nomination deadline day, Mukuhlani, too, had been proposed by one of the ICC directors. And now he has the second vote, enough to support a nomination. While he is keen to fight the elections, Mukuhlani will likely take a final call in the next week once he senses the kind of support he could expect.Greg Barclay is the current ICC chairman and is looking for another term•Kai Schwoerer/ICC/Getty Images

Mukuhlani is part of the ICC’s Audit Committee and chair of the Membership Committee. He is also part of the global body’s Olympics working group, which is tasked with pushing for cricket’s entry in the Summer Games. Popularly known as ‘Doc’ in ICC circles, Mukuhlani believes he has the experience to take over the leadership and become a voice for smaller members and Associates. He is hedging his chances mainly on getting support from a majority of Asian countries except for the BCCI. At the moment, it is believed that the BCCI vote is leaning towards Barclay, but options remain open till election date. The election is planned to take place during the ICC meetings, scheduled on November 12-13 in Melbourne.Mukuhlani’s manifesto revolves around striving for equity among members and advocating for governance changes. It aligns with the vision Khwaja has had for several years and was to an extent able to put into effect during the four years Shashank Manohar was ICC chairman (2016-20). Both men worked closely to dismantle the Big Three power structure and put in place a fresh financial model where smaller countries received an enhanced share from the ICC revenue pool.That pot has now grown much bigger after Disney Star* bought ICC broadcast rights for men’s and women’s events between 2024-27. The deal, to broadcast in the India market only, is reportedly worth over US$3 billion, considerably more than what the ICC got in the previous rights cycle (which was for eight years, and globally). Barclay, too, is drumming up support and is believed to have put a re-look at the financial distribution model as well as modifying the governance model at the forefront of his strategic plan for a second term. Other than looking at enhancing individual countries’ share of the pie, Barclay wants to invest money in strategic funds as well has promotion of women’s cricket.

A scene from Amazon Prime's new Liverpool documentary shows Jurgen Klopp's ex-assistant Pep Lijnders telling Darwin Nunez he is "the best in Europe".

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Uruguayan forward struggled for consistencyReds trying to unlock full potentialSouth American focused on helping the teamFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

The four-part series, which is entitled , offers fans a behind-the-scenes look at the final season of an epic reign at Anfield. It is said to give supporters an "intimate glimpse into one of world football’s greatest institutions".

AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

German tactician Klopp, who is now working with the Red Bull group, brought his tenure at Liverpool to a close in the summer of 2024. He added another Carabao Cup triumph to his CV before bidding farewell to Merseyside, but the biggest of prizes fell agonisingly out of reach.

WHAT PEP LIJNDERS SAID

That was partly due to the fact that some big-money signings struggled for consistency. Uruguayan forward Nunez falls into that category, but he was told by Lijnders during a review of his contribution to the collective cause: "So, you are the best in Europe in terms of goals and assists combined – you have got 23 from 36 games played. The thing is you have got both aspects. Some players are just about scoring, you are becoming more and more an assist provider. But I think you have got so much more to offer."

GettyDID YOU KNOW?

Nunez acknowledged that a "striker always lives by goals" before going on to say that "the most important thing for me is to help the team". Lijnders, in a bid to unlock full potential in the mercurial frontman, added: "You have got to train your hardest and not get frustrated, remember you are helping the team and that is why you are in the team. To press and counter-pressing. You are doing great, mate. Let’s go."

Our correspondent walks and buses the streets of the English capital, and then heads for the coast

Sidharth Monga29-Jul-2014July 15
Like (other side of the River Yamuna) in Delhi, there is north of river and south of river in London. Makes for entertaining debates as to which is better. Stopping in the north right now, sitting in a café near Lord’s, thinking of Dire Straits singing “Way on down south, way on down south, London town.”Some songs by non-London artists* that mention London, or parts thereof:
“Sultans of Swing”, Dire Straits
“Every F***ing City”, Paul Kelly
“London “, Amit Trivedi
“London by Night”, Frank Sinatra
“Leaving London”, Tom Paxton
“Night in London”, Laxmikant PyarelalIndia and England are back in the nets after a day’s break. Ishant Sharma, who was bowled leaving one alone at Trent Bridge, is seen taking tips from Virat Kohli, who tells him to move across before shouldering arms. Chris Martin would disapprove.Time to start walking and tubing around London. Stumble upon, walking between Charing Cross and Embankment stations, a narrow lane. House where Rudyard Kipling lived for two years, between 1889 and 1891. Looks like an apartment building now; is called Kipling House, and has a blue plaque telling of Kipling’s residence here.July 16
Wandering cut short by news overnight that India have complained officially against James Anderson, who allegedly pushed Ravindra Jadeja while walking back for lunch on day two at Trent Bridge. India seem incensed that England consider this a tactical move designed to eliminate Anderson from series, losing Jadeja in the worst-case scenario. Pawn for knight. Can vouch MS Dhoni doesn’t play his cricket this way. Spend afternoon trying to piece together information regarding incident. Players cagey. Legal matter now. Don’t even get to experience famous slope of Lord’s before Test.Overheard in London: “Every video needs fat guys.”July 17
England win toss. Insert India. Bowl poorly, yet have them down at 145 for 7. Ajinkya Rahane plays a gem, scoring his second century, doubling score with last three wickets. On-driven six off Anderson stands out. As does patience early on in innings. India 290 for 9.Walk into Waterstones bookstore near Piccadilly Circus to kill time. Cricket tours half about killing time. Realise later Waterstones used to be Simpsons, famous clothes store. The Beatles once stopped here, having arrived early for a radio show. Store let them sit in a private room, bringing them clothes for inspection. The Beatles later learned that was treatment reserved only for royalty. They spent hundreds of pounds that day, and made many visits later.Busked song of the day: in Green Park tube station, a super-slow and lovely acoustic version of U2’s “Stuck In A Moment You Can’t Get Out Of”. About half of the busking in tube stations seems original material, though, with artists’ CDs available for purchase.

Overhead in London: “I have accomplished my objective today.” “What? To wake up?” In London, you wander and overhear.

July 18
Dhoni has been exceptional this series with his aggressive moves, but can’t help not going for a catch between him and first slip. Beneficiary Gary Ballance goes on to score a century, but towards stumps India claw back with two leg-side half-volleys: Mooen Ali is lbw off one, Ballance edges other to Dhoni. England 219 for 6 against India 295.Continue umpiring-stance inquest with David Lloyd, also once a professional umpire apart from former Test cricketer and lovable commentator – although not loved by Indian fans on Twitter. He umpired in the Dickie Bird era too. Is a bit more understanding of modern upright stances than Bird is. Tells of how umpires in that era used to watch no-balls at only one end closely. The only end that had cameras. Real reason for umpires going low in stance back then and its giving way to an upright one yet to be found.July 19
Bhuvneshwar Kumar ends up with six wickets to restrict England’s lead to just 24. M Vijay sets India’s innings up with yet another exhibition of leaving balls outside off. Kohli, though, falls first ball, shouldering arms, not moving back foot across, exposing off stump, which Liam Plunkett hits. Did Ishant choose the right person to take tips on leaving from? India 169 for 4, lead by 145.Back to Beatles town, in the general area of Soho. Walk through Carnaby Street, capital of ’60s swinging London. Not the same once it became famous. So says a book.
Broadwick Street toilets. Site of John Lennon’s comedy sketch for the BBC in which the “Ad Lav” nightclub is a play on the name of the Ad Lib club. “Members only” quintessential toilet humour. Also apparently first time Lennon wore his now world-famous round glasses.July 20
Ohh Ravi Jadeja. Crowd goes wild as Jadeja laces England attack for a 57-ball 68 to take India’s lead past 300. Upon reaching 50 he unleashes a sword dance with his bat. Learn through colleague Andrew Fernando that the “Ohh Ravi Jadeja chant” is sung loosely to the tune of the guitar solo in The White Stripes’ Seven-Nation Army. Not for nothing did Shane Warne say Jadeja was a rock star. England 105 for 4, chasing 319.Overhead in London: “I have accomplished my objective today.” “What? To wake up?”In London, you wander and overhear.July 21
Tense final day. Joe Root and Moeen work hard for almost entire first session before Ishant and Dhoni come up with a plan to bowl bouncers and run through England. Only India’s second win at Lord’s. Much joy for them. Not for Alastair Cook. Sky’s Michael Atherton grills him at the post-match presentation, asking almost every question the public wants to ask. Indian commentators would be sacked if they asked similar questions of an India captain.All England players wear sponsor Waitrose’s caps during press conferences. Cook is wearing an England cap. Says he is not going anywhere until he feels tap on shoulder.Stay back at Lord’s until evening. Match finished soon after lunch but England players sit in balcony until 7pm. Cook and Stuart Broad first. Peter Moores and Anderson later. Then Moores and Broad. Soul searching? Wondering what’s next? Asking if they are all in this together? Poignant moments.Barely half an hour later, Matt Prior makes announcement he is sitting out rest of season. Has dropped catches, conceded byes, and his usual positivity with bat has only resulted in a fall. Cruel game. Best wicketkeeper-batsman last year. Liability an hour ago. Now a much cherished former servant of cricket. Think of Roy Harper’s lyrics: “When an old cricketer leaves the crease / You never know when he is done.”Heard near Nursery Ground at Lord’s: “Entertainer”, played by what seems like a symphony band. Prior was one.Malcolm Marshall: wasn’t one for practical jokes•Ben Radford/Getty ImagesJuly 22
Have lo leave lovely London for Southampton. One last bit of overhearing in heavy traffic, while waiting at a bus stop: “They’re like London buses.” Guess what, they London buses. Except you can’t buy tickets for cash any more.July 23
Southampton. University town. Harbour town. The sailed from here. Malcolm Marshall played here. Shane Warne did too. One should love this county. Except, the Ageas Bowl is in the middle of nowhere, and about a 40-minute drive from the city. Would do anything for London buses here. Instead, pay huge taxi fares.The stadium in itself is wonderful, though. On a hill, yet flat, unlike Lord’s. Reputed to be one of quickest pitches in England. Holding only its second Test. Hotel coming up along perimeter, which will let out rooms with a prime view of cricket once ready. Right now, though, its foyer seems to be the press box.July 24
Michael Pain. Owns the cricket shop at the Ageas Bowl. Also new equipment brand called Funky. Has followed Hampshire cricket for over 30 years. Remembers many an evening drinking rum with Marshall, who played at the old ground, Northland Road. Plum housing complex now, in plum location. Marshall Square remains in the middle of it.Pain got into the merchandise and equipment business along with John Crawley, former England and Hampshire batsman. His business partner now is Jim Laker’s grandson, Jamie Harvey. Borrow a Funky bat from Michael to knock some in the evening. Promises he will rummage through his stocks to find as many 1992 World Cup jerseys as he can. Promises a discount too. Little joys.July 25
Being a university town, Southampton has handed out honorary degrees to its legendary cricketers. David Gower is a Master of the Arts. Suits him. Warne a Doctor of Business Administration. Doesn’t suit him. Will they get another Test if they gave a degree to Kevin Pietersen, who played here?Run into Rahul Dravid. He says, “Ledge.” Give incredulous look. Have never been called that. He points to Bob Dylan t-shirt, and says, “Mr Dylan. Legend.” New side of Dravid. Not just love of Dylan, but use of what might be considered “cool lingo”. Wonder how Dylan would react to being called “ledge”.July 26

More Marshall musings. This time with Tim Tremlett. Former Hampshire bowler. Now director here. Father of Chris. Says Marshall hardly ever got annoyed. Often it would be little things. Wasn’t much of a one for practical jokes. Everybody knew how fastidious he was. One day a team-mate nicked his comb. At the start of the day’s play, the whole team was outside but Marshall. Couple of minutes later, captain sends a player up to check. Furious, looking for his comb. Wasn’t fun batting against him on days his team-mates played pranks on him.* July 29, 05:17GMT: The mention of the band Dire Straits as a non-UK artist has been fixed

أعلنت شركة المتحدة للرياضة رسميًا، عن موعد مباراة الأهلي وباتشوكا المكسيكي الودية المقرر إقامتها في إطار الاستعداد للمشاركة في بطولة كأس العالم للأندية.

ويشارك الأهلي في بطولة كأس العالم للأندية، بشكلها الجديد، وسيلعب في المجموعة الأولى مع إنتر ميامي الأمريكي وبالميراس البرازيلي وبورتو البرتغالي.

وكشفت شركة المتحدة للرياضة عبر صفحتها الرسمية بموقع التواصل الاجتماعي “فيس بوك”: “كن جزءًا من الحدث واحجز تذكرتك، الأهلي وباتشوكا في مباراة ودية استعدادًا لكأس العالم للأندية”.

طالع أيضاً.. ظرف طارئ.. مسؤول رابطة الأندية يبرر قرار التظلمات بعدم خصم 3 نقاط من الأهلي

ومن المنتظر أن يلعب الأهلي المباراة الافتتاحية لبطولة كأس العالم للأندية أمام إنتر ميامي، يوم 15 يونيو 2025. موعد مباراة الأهلي وباتشوكا الودية

تقام المباراة يوم الأحد الموافق 8 يونيو 2025 على ملعب “تشيس ستاديوم”، في تمام الساعة 12:00 منتصف الليل بتوقيت القاهرة، الخامسة مساءً بتوقيت شرق الولايات المتحدة.

MatériaMais Notícias

da betsul： Em um jogo com muita participação do VAR, o Santos empatou em 1 a 1 com o Internacional na noite desta quarta-feira, na Vila Belmiro, pela 10ª rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro. O Peixe teve um pênalti e um gol anulados após interferência do VAR e um gol confirmado após revisão do árbitro de vídeo. Lucas Braga e Bruno Mendez marcaram os gols do confronto.

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da winzada777： + ATUAÇÕES: João Paulo salva o Santos de derrota, mais uma vez, contra o Internacional

Com o resultado, o Santos cai para a 10ª colocação, com 13 pontos ganhos. Na próxima rodada, o Peixe enfrenta o Atlético-MG, no sábado, fora de casa.

O jogo

O Internacional surpreendeu o Santos e começou marcando a saída de bola e controlando as principais ações do jogo. Logo aos oito minutos, após cruzamento da esquerda, Pedro Henrique apareceu livre na segunda trave e bateu de primeira, mas o goleiro João Paulo fez grande defesa e salvou o Peixe.

Após os 15 minutos, o Santos cresceu, equilibrou as ações passou a ter mais oportunidades. Aos 25 minutos, Léo Baptistão fez boa jogada individual e foi derrubado praticamente em cima da linha da área. O árbitro Ramon Abatti Abel marcou pênalti, mas o árbitro de vídeo, Pablo Ramon Gonçalvez Pinheiro, recomendou a marcação de falta fora da área.

Na cobrança da falta, Lucas Pires cruzou no segundo pau e Eduardo Bauermann cabeceou para marcar. O árbitro deu o gol, mas novamente o árbitro de vídeo entrou em ação e recomendou a anulação do gol por impedimento totalmente discutível do zagueiro do Peixe.

Depois dos dois lances, o Inter voltou a levar perigo. Aos 33 minutos, Açan Patrick recebeu na esquerda, driblou o zagueiro Maicon e chutou forte, mas o goleiro João Paulo fez boa defesa. Aos 40 minutos, De Pena soltou uma pancada da esquerda, mas João Paulo mandou para escanteio.

Nos minutos finais, o Santos ainda teve duas chances, uma em cabeçada de Léo Baptistão defendida por Daniel e outra em que a bola bateu no peito de ângulo e passou por cima do gol.

O segundo tempo começou aberto. Aos seis minutos, após cobrança de escanteio da direito, Zanocelo cabeceou no primeiro pau e Léo Baptistão, sozinho no segundo, cabeceou por cima do gol. Aos sete minutos, o Inter respondeu e Pedro Henrique recebeu dentro da área, mas chutou na rede pelo lado de fora.

O Santos abriu o placar em mais um lance em que foi preciso a intervenção do VAR. Aos 17 minutos, Bruno Oliveira recebeu de Rwan Seco e deu um lindo passe para Lucas Braga, que driblou o goleiro Daniel e tocou para o gol. O bandeira marcou impedimento, mas o árbitro de vídeo deu condição legal e confirmou o gol.

O Internacional chegou aos empate oito minutos depois. Após boa jogada de Pedro Henrique pela esquerda e bate-rebate na área, a bola sobrou para Bruno Mendez chutar e acertar o ângulo do goleiro João Paulo.

O Santos perdeu uma grande oportunidade de ampliar aos 34 minutos. Após tabela entre Gabriel Pirani e Bruninho, a bola sobrou dentro da área para o lateral Lucas Pires, que bateu de primeira, mas a bola bateu no peito de Vitão, na trave e saiu.

O Internacional teve uma grande chance com Taison aos 40 minutos, mas João Paulo saiu bem do gol e salvou o Peixe mais uma vez.

FICHA TÉCNICA
SANTOS 1 X 1 INTERNACIONAL

Data e hora: 08 de junho de 2022, às 21h30 (horário de Brasília)
Local: Vila Belmiro, em Santos (SP)
Árbitro: Ramon Abatti Abel (SC)
Assistentes: Kleber Lucio Gil (SC) e Henrique Neu Ribeiro (SC)
Árbitro de vídeo: Pablo Ramon Goncalves Pinheiro (RN)

Gols: Lucas Braga, 17’/2ºT (1-0), Bruno Mendez, 25’/2ºT (1-1)
Cartões amarelos: Madson e Rodrigo Fernández (SAN) e Edenílson (INT)
Público: 8.845
Renda: R$ 260.880,00

SANTOS: João Paulo; Madson, Maicon, Eduardo Bauermann e Lucas Pires; Rodrigo Fernández, Vinícius Zanocelo (Sandry, aos 34’/2ºT) e Ricardo Goulart (Lucas Barbosa, aos 13’/2ºT); Léo Baptistão (Bruno Oliveira, aos 16’/2ºT), Bryan Angulo (Rwan Seco, aos 13’/2ºT) e Lucas Braga (Gabriel Pirani, aos 34’/2ºT). Técnico:Fabián Bustos

INTERNACIONAL: Daniel; Fabricio Bustos (Bruno Mendez, aos 11’/2ºT), Gabriel Mercado, Vitão e Renê; Gabriel, Carlos de Pena, Alan Patrick (Taison, aos 23’/2ºT) e Edenilson (Maurício, aos 23’/2ºT); Pedro Henrique (Rodrigo Dourado, aos 27’/2ºT) e David (Alemão, aos 11’/2ºT). Técnico: Mano Menezes

Sky Sports pundit Alan Smith heaped high praise on a Nottingham Forest player during their 1-0 win over Crystal Palace on Monday night, even comparing him to the great Lionel Messi. The Reds had to wait all weekend to get back underway after the international break, but it was worth the wait as they claimed all three points at home to Palace.

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ByTom Cunningham Oct 20, 2024 Nottingham Forest back to winning ways

Forest have made an excellent start to the Premier League season, and that continued as Chris Wood’s goal was enough to see the Reds climb to eighth place and just two points adrift of fifth-place Brighton. Wood has been Forest’s standout performer so far this season, and manager Nuno Espirito Santo was full of praise for his striker, not for his goals but for his all-round play: “Amazing, we are delighted with not only his goals.

“All his actions in the game, how he leads the team, his set pieces, and more than all that is the impact he has in the dressing room. His leadership, he is a very experienced player for the young lads. We cannot thank him enough.”

On the result, Nuno was “delighted” that his side secured the win in front of their home supporters: “I saw it was difficult, but so I’m happy we can finally give this moment to our fans, who are always helping and supporting us, so I’m especially delighted for them.”

Wood will obviously take a lot of the plaudits, as he scored the only goal of the game, but there was another Forest player that came in for high praise as well.

Alan Smith compares Elliot Anderson to Lionel Messi

Sky Sports pundit Alan Smith was left impressed by the dribbling of Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson and compared him to the great Lionel Messi. The midfielder went past three or four players in the first 20 minutes of the match, and it left Smith impressed by what he had just seen.

Anderson, who was labelled “excellent” by Eddie Howe last season, joined the Reds during the summer transfer window and has already become a key player, starting seven of their eight Premier League games and recording one assist, which came against Wolves back in August.

The 21-year-old, who is on a weekly wage of £40,000 at the City Ground, received high praise from Smith during Monday’s commentary: “It was like Lionel Messi there in the box. Not once but twice, happy feet. Wonderful play from Elliot Anderson.”

Minutes played

78

Expected goals

0.27

Expected assists

0.58

Touches

67

Passes

36/38 (95%)

Key passes

5

Big chances created

2

Shots on target

2

Dribbles attempted (Succ.)

6 (6)

Ground duels (won)

14 (8)

Aerial duels (won)

4 (3)

Anderson is obviously a long way from being a player like Messi, but the midfielder will be pleased with his performance on Monday night, as he arguably put in one of his most impressive displays since joining the club.