Tim Paine hinted that Australia wouldn’t hold back on the bouncer with his view that it was underused against India, but with their top six shuffled again, Sri Lanka may be in with a chance

Andrew McGlashan23-Jan-2019No one has been able to breach the Gabba fortress since West Indies in 1988, and Sri Lanka’s winless record in Australia does not suggest they can be the team. The visiting captain Dinesh Chandimal, however, hopes for a “miracle” as he chases his dream of securing a Test victory in the country.Sri Lanka have lost 11 of their 13 Tests in Australia but the vibe around the team is that they will never have a better chance of breaking their duck against a vulnerable home side who have again shuffled their top six.”It will definitely be a challenge for us,” Chandimal said. “If we can take this challenge as a batter or bowler, if you can give your best shot…we can do some miracle here. That’s what we want to do as a team.”If Sri Lanka are to make history, they will have combat a pitch which has proved too much for most touring sides over the last 30 years. There was a good tinge of green the day before the match, and allied with the day-night factor, there could be some testing periods for batsmen, although the previous floodlit Test at the Gabba, against Pakistan in 2016, included totals of over 400 for each side.”I hope it’s nice and fast, the usual sort of Gabba wicket,” Tim Paine said. “Hopefully there’s plenty of bounce and it’s good to watch.”There was also a strong hint from Paine that Australia wouldn’t hold back on the short stuff, with his view that it was underused in the series against India. Australia’s bowling tactics often came under scrutiny, especially in the Melbourne and Sydney Tests, with them unable to gain a single lbw for the quicks in the four matches but Paine believed that smart use of the bouncer could also bring the stumps into play.”Clearly we need to be hitting the stumps a little bit more than we were and it’s been spoken about, but I also didn’t think we used our bouncer as much as we would like,” he said. “When you are using your bouncer a couple of times an over and then when you pitch up it’s a bit more effective. We know the majority of the time we want to be hitting the top of the stumps a bit more, but there’s also a way to set that up.While Chandimal expected his batsmen to have their techniques challenged by the Australia quick bowlers, he was confident he had the firepower to respond in kind. “When you look at the pitch you can see a lot of grass on the wicket, but we have got really good fast bowlers who can bowl over 140.”He also wanted his batsman to take a leaf out of Cheteshwar Pujara’s book and force Australia’s pacemen back for multiple spells. Whatever balance of side Australia select, they won’t have more than three pace-bowling options, although Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins were rested from the India ODIs with this series in mind.”Pujara made a difference, especially these days the weather is really hot here. They brought the Australian bowlers back for more spells. That’s what I think Pujara did, and after that it helped the other batters enjoy their batting in the middle. That’s one area I think we learned in the India-Australia series.”Chandimal drew on the memories of his Test debut against South Africa in 2011, when Sri Lanka secured their first victory in the country, in Durban. He scored two half-centuries in the match to play a key part in a 208-run win.”That was a really good memory. I made my Test debut against SA and we won that game and that was the first time we won a game in SA in their soil,” he said. “One of my dreams as a captain and player is to win a Test match here. But that’s not an easy thing coming here. You have to do a lot of hard work…that has to come from all 11 players for all five days. That’s what we are looking at as a team. It is a really good opportunity to make history and we just want to do that as a team.”

Lionel Messi bagged his eighth and ninth goals of the MLS season Saturday, leading the way in a win over the New England Revolution.

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• Miami thump Revs 4-1
• Messi bags goals No. 8 and 9
• Argentine in stunning form

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  WHAT HAPPENED?

  A brilliant first touch set the first goal up, with Finnish international Robert Taylor playing a delightful through ball to Messi, who finished in a calm and composed fashion. The second brought more of the same, with Mesi this time on the end of a Sergio Busquets to make it 2-1 on the day. He then chipped in a late assist, teeing up Luis Suarez to seal the 4-1 win.

  With his goals Saturday, he's now had a goal contribution in every match he's played this season.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  After conceding just 40 seconds into the match. Miami responded well with a calm and composed half. Without Luis Suarez in the XI, Miami opted to roll out with Leonardo Campana and Robert Taylor in their XI up top alongside their Argentine goalscorer.

  Messi, though, made the difference, making MLS history with his fifth consecutive match with at least two goal contributions.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR INTER MIAMI

  The Herons will take on the New York Red Bulls next weekend. It will be a clash between two of MLS' elite sides in the East, as both look to continue their hot form.

The Catalan coach has tortured Los Merengues and been left traumatised by them in a fascinating odyssey of matches spanning 16 years

“It’s Madrid, it’s special," remarked Pep Guardiola after Manchester City's pulsating 3-3 draw with Los Merengues last week. And he would know. The Catalan has faced Real Madrid 22 times as a coach, with City, Bayern Munich and Barcelona, and many more as a player. He knows what it's like to win against Madrid and to lose to them. His sides have produced scintillating displays against the most glamorous club in European football, and his teams have also been thrashed and humiliated by them.

If it hadn't been for Guardiola, Madrid would have at least three more La Liga titles to their name. and potentially two extra Champion Leagues. And if it hadn't been for Madrid, the Catalan would be the undisputed best coach in the competition's history.

Guardiola grew up despising Madrid as an ardent Barcelona fan and then player, but there is also a deep sense of mutual respect between the coach and the 14-time European champions. "The king of the competition" is how Guardiola referred to Madrid when he learned City would be playing them for the third consecutive season after being drawn together in the quarter-finals. But is his side who currently wear the crown.

Madrid will be looking to dethrone City in Wednesday's second leg at the Etihad Stadium, which will be the latest chapter in an enthralling saga which has thrown up agonising eliminations, era-defining performances, breath-taking goals and someone getting poked in the eye. GOAL relives Guardiola's best ever matches against Real Madrid…

Getty Real Madrid 2-6 Barcelona, May 2009

This was the game when everyone stood up and took notice of Guardiola's powers as a coach. His Barca were already stunning onlookers in his debut season in charge and he had won his first Clasico at the Camp Nou. But Madrid were beginning to reel his side in under Juande Ramos, and a victory for Los Blancos at the Bernabeu would have put them right back in the title race.

Gonzalo Higuain gave Madrid the lead, but Barca came flying back at them, producing an utterly formidable performance. And it was all down to Guardiola's secret plan for Lionel Messi, who he fielded as a 'false nine' for the first time, with devastating consequences.

AdvertisementGetty Barcelona 5-0 Real Madrid, November 2010

Jose Mourinho was seen as the one man who could re-establish Madrid as the dominant force in Spain, especially after his Inter had knocked Barca out of the Champions League the previous season. But in his first Clasico as Blancos boss, the Portuguese's side were annihilated.

Xavi and Pedro got the ball rolling with early goals before David Villa struck twice and Jeffren completed the rout, leading to a gleeful Gerard Pique holding up his five fingers in celebration, one for every goal.

Getty Real Madrid 0-2 Barcelona, April 2011

It was one of the great press conference displays of all-time, followed by one of the greatest goals of all-time. Guardiola had been mocked by Mourinho earlier in the day in the aftermath of a bitter Copa del Rey final defeat just four days previously, and he marched into the press room at Santiago Bernabeu meaning business. He called Mourinho "the f*cking chief, the f*cking boss" when it came to dealing with the media, but said his side would do their talking on the pitch in the Champions League semi-final first leg.

They did exactly that. Mourinho devised an ultra-defensive tactical scheme with Pepe in midfield, which backfired when the Portuguese was sent off. Barca exploited the extra space and Messi broke the deadlock before scoring an extraordinary second, slaloming his way through the Madrid defence from the halfway line before scoring.

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Getty Barcelona 3-2 Real Madrid, August 2011

Even considering the long-running history of rivalry between Barcelona and Real Madrid, tensions between the two clubs were at an all-time high when they met in the Spanish Super Cup just three months after their unforgettable series of four matches within a two-week period.

The first leg at the Bernabeu had ended 2-2, and the return match at Camp Nou was another epic. Cristiano Ronaldo cancelled out Andres Iniesta's opener and then Karim Benzema levelled after Messi had restored Barca's lead. But Messi, typically, had the final say, at least on the pitch.

The Argentine genius scored in the 88th minute to clinch the trophy for Barca, but the game is remembered far more for Mourinho poking Guardiola's assistant Tito Vilanova in the eye in a furious clash between the two benches.

India A clinch two-match series after bowling the visitors out for 144 and 180

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Feb-2019After Navdeep Saini and Shahbaz Nadeem had led the demolition job in England Lions’ first innings, Mayank Markande took charge in the second, picking up five wickets to help India A stroll to an innings-and-68-run win inside three days in the second and final unofficial Test, in Mysore.The Lions, who had folded for 144 the first time out in reply to the Indians’ 392, did marginally better with Ben Duckett scoring quickly at the top, but once the opening batsman was dismissed for 50, they rolled over tamely enough.The day began with the Lions at 24 for no loss, still 224 runs in arrears, with Duckett and Max Holden in the middle. Holden fell soon after start of play, lbw to Jalaj Saxena, as the scoreboard read 40 for 1.ALSO READ: ‘People have opinions on me, and I understand why’ – Ben DuckettDuckett played aggressively, hitting four fours and two sixes, but didn’t last long enough to make a real difference. He became the second man to be dismissed, Saxena trapping him in front too, having faced 61 balls, and there was no resistance of note after that till late in the script, when No. 7 Lewis Gregory swung his bat around for a 49-ball 44.Markande got into the act with Ollie Pope’s wicket in the 26th over, and it was a freefall after that as all the Indian bowlers picked up at least one wicket. Markande was the star, sending back Steven Mullaney, Dom Bess and Zak Chappell before Gregory delayed the only result that seemed likely.Markande finished off the game with Gregory’s wicket, for excellent returns of 5 for 31 – his third five-for in a short first-class career.The win gave the Indians the series 1-0 after the first match, in Wayanad, had ended in a stalemate. India A had earlier won the five-match one-day series 4-1.

Mahmudullah admitted the batsman lacked a clarity of plan to counter Neil Wagner’s “bouncer theory”

Mohammad Isam in Wellington12-Mar-2019Neil Wagner’s sustained short-ball attack has dominated Bangladesh over the first two Tests of the series, with the tactic fetching the New Zealand quick 15 out of his 16 wickets so far. Batsman after batsman fell to Wagner’s short-ball persistence: Mahmudullah and Mohammad Mithun were dismissed by the bowler three times, while Liton Das, Mominul Haque and Mehidy Hasan each fell twice. Wagner’s short ball also claimed the wickets of Shadman Islam and Tamim Iqbal.Mahmudullah said that many of the Bangladesh batsmen, including himself, were caught in two minds against Wagner’s lines of attack. Often, their proclivity for attacking to counter Wagner landed them in more trouble. Tamim, Mahmudullah and Soumya Sarkar played Wagner well but apart from Soumya, the other two failed in their attempts to pull off the short length on four occasions.Mahmudullah conceded that the batsmen need to carry much of the blame for the Wellington defeat, where they were effectively bowled out in 117 overs in a match that was already restricted to a maximum of 315 overs, after two days were lost to rain.”In the first innings, Tamim and Shadman gave us a good start and even after Wagner started with his bouncer theory, we were handling him well but then we gave it away,” Mahmudullah said. “We have to bat with more guts for longer periods. A number of our batsmen are playing half-hearted shots, or we are not committed. We are in two minds whether to play a shot or not. You need to back yourself. If you want to attack, you should know how you want to cope with their bouncer theory.”They will probably have a fast wicket in Christchurch, so our batsmen have to be more responsible, particularly with three new bowlers in the side. I think it is the batsmen who should take more of the blame. We were bowled out twice inside two-and-a-half days.”Mahmudullah said that Wagner had had to pitch the ball very short in Hamilton where Mahmudullah and Soumya Sarkar staged a fightback on the fourth day. But in Wellington where the pitch had more bounce on offer, he could pitch the bouncer slightly further up.”We knew about him from the last time we were here. Now we are talking a lot about the Wagner factor,” Mahmudullah said. “There was certainly help in the pitches for both sets of pace bowlers but we couldn’t utilise it as well as they did. I believe that our batsmen have the skill level to handle their short-ball tactics.”Wagner had to pitch it really short in Hamilton while here he got bounce from a length slightly further up. It was easier to play or leave in Hamilton. Here there was a bit more in the pitch. He made use of it. He was successful to his credit.”Mahmudullah also regretted the reprieves to Ross Taylow, after he Shadman put down chances off Abu Jayed’s bowling when the New Zealand batsman was on 20. Ross was on 20 at the time and he went on to score 200 in quick time to take the game away from Bangladesh.But Mahmudullah also urged the bowlers to find ways to control the flow of boundaries. This was the first time that Bangladesh conceded 400-plus runs in an innings at more than five an over.”If we had captured those chances, we could have given better momentum to the bowlers. It may have brought us few more wickets. They were playing with seven batters and with the kind of help that this pitch produced for the bowlers, it would have helped our guys.”Jayed, Mustafizur and Taijul bowled quite well but we ended up conceding five runs an over. We have to find ways to bowl better in the next match,” he said.

Bayer Leverkusen defeated Roma at the Stadio Olimpico to make it 47-games unbeaten as they moved one step closer to the Europa League final.

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• Leverkusen beat Roma 2-0
• Alonso's side now unbeaten in 47 games
• Sit in pole position to reach Europa League final

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  Xabi Alonso's men would normally have arrived as outright favourites to win the clash, however, with the atmosphere of Roma fans at Stadio Olimpico and their new-found vigour under Daniele De Rossi, it seemed that the game was evenly matched. This proved to be the case until the 28th minute when Rick Karsdorp's mistake allowed Florian Wirtz to open the scoring for Die Werkself.

  After taking the lead, the Bundesliga champions cruised and barely allowed the Giallorossi chances to equalize. However, it wasn't until Robert Andrich's long-range shot stunned Mile Svilar that Alonso's side managed to double their lead on the night and give them a major boost in their hunt for a treble this season.

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  THE MVP

  Alejandro Grimaldo was impeccable once again for Alonso in all aspects of the match as he managed to keep Paulo Dybala quiet throughout the game and also kept Romelu Lukaku's wide runs under control as the Belgian tried to disrupt Die Werkself's defence. He also latched onto Karsdorp's loose ball and found Wirtz's late run with a well-thought cutback to claim an assist for the opener.

• THE BIG LOSER

  Karsdorp's mistake could looked upon as the major point in the semi-final tie with the match having been evenly poised up to that point. After Chris Smalling lost an aerial duel with Grimaldo the ball bounced to the Dutchman. Under pressure, the right-back mishit a pass to Svilar straight into the Spanish full-back's path. He passed it to Florian Wirtz, who managed to be in the right place at the right time to put Bayer 1-0 up.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  In the other Europa League semi-final between Marseille and Atalanta, the match ended 1-1 at the Orange Velodrome with Gianluca Scamacca's opener having been cancelled out by Chancel Mbemba's 20th-minute goal.

Sean Abbott claimed 5 for 31 and Moises Henriques nipped out three top-six batsmen as New South Wales secured a convincing 174-run win at the Gabba by skittling Queensland for 89.Set 264 in conditions which had been challenging for batsmen throughout, Queensland never threatened to get close to the target after Abbott ripped out the top order with an impressive new-ball spell. With the light fading, New South Wales were told they could only use spin as the overs ticked down, but they were able to avoid having to return on the final day when Jason Sangha had Billy Stanlake caught at slip.Abbott had reduced the the Bulls to 3 for 14 inside six overs. Joe Burns shouldered arms to a delivery that ducked in and took off stump and then two ball later Marnus Labuschagne was given lbw to complete a pair. Charlie Hemphrey became the second batsman dismissed not offering a shot when his pad was clipped by Abbott.New South Wales’ charge was momentarily halted by Matt Renshaw and Sam Heazlett but Henriques’ introduction quickly put Queensland back in the mire when his second ball climbed and nipped away to take Renshaw’s edge. Heazlett was then caught in two minds whether to play or leave a short delivery, lobbing a simple catch to gully, and Nathan McSweeney was caught behind.It was now only a matter of whether the Blues could win in three days. Trent Copeland hastened the end by having Jimmy Peirson caught at third slip and then Abbott returned to complete his haul.New South Wales had fought hard through their second innings in conditions that continued to favour the quicks. Daniel Hughes and Henriques took their overnight stand to 119 with Henriques producing the most dominant batting of the match with his 78 off 116 balls.After resisting the pacemen, it was spin which broke through when Henrqiues edged Labuschagne to slip in his first over.Sangha edged a lifting delivery from Stanlake and Michael Neser ended Hughes’ gritty 218-ball stay when, after beating him repeatedly outside off, he had the batsman caught behind. Hughes had reached 40 off 83 balls on the second day, and his next 28 runs took 135 deliveries.Neser was impressive with old and new ball, later having Peter Nevill caught in the gully. However, Jack Edwards produced a valuable hand of 40 as the lower order pushed the lead over 200. It proved more than enough.

Emma Hayes isn't optimistic about Chelsea's WSL title chances in their battle with current leaders Manchester City.

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Hayes rates WSL title chancesChelsea battling with Man CityGoal difference could be decisiveWHAT HAPPENED?

Hayes suggested there is now only a "small chance" that the Blues will finish 2023-24 as WSL champions, having gone into the campaign chasing a fifth successive league crown.

AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Chelsea trail Manchester City by six points but have two games in hand – against Liverpool this week and later Tottenham in the final week of the season – that could eradicate the gap. But City's superior goal difference, seven better than Chelsea's as it stands, still gives them the advantage. The Blues must also ensure there is no hangover from the disappointment of their Champions League semi-final defeat to Barcelona on Saturday.

WHAT HAYES SAID

Speaking at a press conference ahead of Wednesday's clash with Liverpool, Hayes said: "We are not in the driving seat, we don't have the goal difference, we have to catch up. We've always known we were going to be playing catch-up. It's not anything we haven't prepared for."

DID YOU KNOW?

Manchester City are hoping to win their first WSL title since 2016 and only their second overall since joining the league a decade ago. Gareth Taylor's team have bounced back in a big way since finishing fourth last season and have put themselves into position by winning 14 successive league games since November.

Pundit and ex-pro Chris Sutton has predicted that Premier League games will be played in the United States in the future, as NBC pushes for a deal.

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NBC pushing for EPL games in U.S.Sutton predicts it will happenSays the potential move 'stinks'Getty Images WHAT HAPPENED?

The American broadcasting giants are reportedly keen for the opening matches of the Premier League season to be played in the U.S., where EPL broadcasting is more lucrative than in any other overseas nation. Former Chelsea and Blackburn star Sutton is one of many pundits that are highly suspicious of the move, but on the latest edition of the It's All Kicking Off podcast, he predicted that it's inevitable "because money dictates everything".

AdvertisementWHAT SUTTON SAID

Sutton said: 'I do I think it will happen eventually, probably because money dictates everything. But just think back to the start of the season. Do you think the U.S. audience would have enjoyed an opening game of Sheffield United against Burnley? It's about just looking after the big boys, isn't it, commercially? Looking after the elite. And that's why it stinks a bit. It will not stink if it's the same across the board. If everybody is involved and every team in the Premier League gets a shot at it."

THE BIGGER PICTURE

The Premier League recently confirmed that it has no plans to stage matches in the U.S. right now, but NBC Sports are continuing to push for games to be played across the pond. An increasing number of friendly matches between English teams are taking place in the U.S., encapsulated by the Premier League Summer Series, but the vast majority of fans in the UK believe that playing EPL matches abroad is a step too far.

Getty/GOALWHAT NEXT FOR THE PREMIER LEAGUE?

While debates about matches in America rumble along in the background, the Premier League is still hurtling towards its end-of-season climax. Most teams only have two matches yet and the league title is still up for grabs, with Arsenal hoping to topple Manchester City in the closest title race for years.

Big picture

Whose home is Feroz Shah Kotla anyway? As with the most cosmopolitan city of India, you can’t say for sure for Delhi’s international cricket ground either. Delhi Capitals, who call it home, have struggled not just for home support but also for a pitch conducive to their style of play. As a result, they have won just one of their four home games, the worst success ratio at home this year. It is their four wins in five away games that have kept them in playoffs contention, but they know they need to find a way at home too.

Form guide

Delhi Capitals: Lost to Mumbai Indians by 40 runs, beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by 39 runs, beat Kolkata Knight Riders by seven wickets, beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by four wickets
Kings XI Punjab: Beat Rajasthan Royals by 12 runs, lost to Royal Challengers Bangalore by eight wickets, lost to Mumbai Indians by three wickets, beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by six wickets

It doesn’t help that the ground staff have only a day’s break to work on a pitch that, in the words of home captain Shreyas Iyer, keeps getting worse. It is a slow and low surface that is aiding spinners, something Capitals’ next opponents should dearly love. Kings XI Punjab have the two Ashwins and Mujeeb Ur Rahman in their ranks to exploit exactly those conditions. They also have a batting line-up that hasn’t been over-shooting, the virtues of which were displayed by Mumbai Indians in their win on Thursday night when they went for 140 and ended up getting 168 because they had played themselves into a good situation.At 10 points each from nine games, both sides have done well enough to dream of the playoffs, but not yet enough to feel confident of making the cut. Matches where they can’t afford to make mistakes await.

In the news

Chris Morris, left out of the South Africa World Cup squad, will be under pressure to keep his place in the Capitals’ side after he went for 39 in three overs on what was widely acknowledged as a difficult pitch. If Capitals do drop him for legspinner Sandeep Lamichhane, they might need a bit of a rejig somewhere to bolster their batting.Kings XI are waiting on Mujeeb’s fitness, who has made good progress since injuring his shoulder in their last game. A decision on his availability was to be made after the training session on the night before the match. Moises Henriques is out “for a period of time” after injuring himself in the warm-ups ahead of the last game.

Previous meeting

Members of the Capitals squad could be forgiven if they still get nightmares about their last match against Kings XI, when they lost seven wickets for eight runs to mess up what looked like a straightforward chase in Mohali.

Likely XIs

Delhi Capitals: 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 Prithvi Shaw, 3 Colin Munro, 4 Shreyas Iyer (capt.), 5 Rishabh Pant (wk), 6 Chris Morris, 7 Keemo Paul, 8 Axar Patel, 9 Kagiso Rabada, 10 Amit Mishra, 11 Ishant SharmaKings XI Punjab 1 KL Rahul, 2 Chris Gayle, 3 Mayank Agarwal, 4 Sarfaraz Khan, 5 Mandeep Singh, 6 Nicholas Pooran (wk), 7 Sam Curran, 8 Hardus Viljoen/Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 9 R Ashwin (capt.), 10 Mohammed Shami, 11 M Ashwin

Strategy punt

• The Powerplay and death overs become all the more important on a tired pitch such as Delhi’s. Mumbai attacked Capitals in the first six and in the last five, getting 121 of their 168 runs in those 11 overs.
• Expect Kings XI to try to ensure there is one left-hand batsman in the middle at all times. That played havoc with Capitals’ plans of using Amit Mishra, who ended up bowling only three overs against Mumbai.
• Capitals have extra reasons to bat first in this game because if they do so, Kings XI can’t take as many liberties with substituting Chris Gayle and Sarfaraz Khan as they do when they have already batted first.

Stats that matter

• Kings XI Punjab have won the last four games between these two teams. They lead the head to head 14 games to nine.
• Mayank Agarwal, who might be batting in the middle overs for Kings XI, doesn’t have a great record against Chris Morris, Amit Mishra and Axar Patel.
• Ishant Sharma is two short of 100 Twenty20 wickets.