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Some of Australia’s players have made a statement in the IPL in the week the selectors are picking the provisional 15-man T20 World Cup squad

Alex Malcolm28-Apr-20242:32

Rapid Fire Review: Fraser-McGurk to open for Australia at the T20 World Cup?

Fraser-McGurk’s mindblowing form is hard to ignoreJake Fraser-McGurk is causing the selectors a massive headache this week. He has become the first player in IPL history to post two 15-ball half-centuries. Even more impressively, he posted them a week apart, inside his first five IPL matches, and he destroyed the IPL’s best bowler Jasprit Bumrah on Saturday afternoon in Delhi in his jaw-dropping 27-ball 84. He is taking T20 powerplay batting to another level and Delhi Capitals have not missed David Warner at all while he has been recovering from a finger injury.Fraser-McGurk has not played a T20I yet, although he has played two ODIs. Australia had long settled their top three for the upcoming World Cup with Warner, Travis Head and Mitchell Marsh set to reprise the ODI World Cup-winning combination. At the same time, the middle-order is also settled with Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Tim David and Matthew Wade having worked well in combination over the last two years. Josh Inglis is the back-up wicketkeeper and arguably the most flexible back-up batter in Australia having made a T20I century in India late last year.Related

Takeaways: Why Fraser-McGurk and Smith missed out on T20 World Cup selection

Fraser-McGurk and Smith left out of Australia's T20 World Cup squad, Marsh to captain

The good man Pattie and the scoundrel Cummins

Jake Fraser-McGurk, the ideal T20 batter

Starc ruled out of Punjab Kings match with finger injury

Australia will likely need a second spinner, a spare fast bowler, and a spare allrounder in their 15. That leaves no room for a spare specialist top-three batter. But Fraser-McGurk’s form is incredible. The thought of pairing him with Head at the top is salivating. Putting that combination together would mean either moving Warner down the order or dropping him from the XI or the 15 entirely, which is extremely unlikely given he is Australia’s most experienced and successful tournament player.The World Cup matches are also going to be played without an impact sub, which has emboldened players like Fraser-McGurk to play fearlessly with the insurance of an extended batting line-up behind him. Australia will also play exclusively on pitches in the Caribbean where the scoring rates are lower and spin has been far tougher to score against than pace. If the selectors are to find a spot for Fraser-McGurk in the 15, they will need to risk going without a spare wicketkeeper as they did in 2022 at home, or without a spare spinner in the 15 as they did at the 2023 ODI World Cup. But flying a replacement for one of those two needs, halfway around the world promptly in case of injury is not as simple as it was for the previous two tournaments.Warner’s finger adds to the worry, Starc also injuredDavid Warner has bone bruising on his finger•BCCIWarner’s injury absence is set to extend for another week as the bone bruising on his finger has not subsided, which is a slight concern for Australia. What Fraser-McGurk is doing in his absence, plus recency bias, has led to some external noise about his place in Australia’s best XI for the World Cup. It is unlikely the same queries have been tabled internally by the Australian selectors given how much credit he has built over a 15-year career. There has been a tendency for critics to conflate the lean end to his Test career with his white-ball form for Australia, which has remained strong despite the age on his birth certificate. It had been a lean IPL by his standards prior to his injury but his form had not been alarming. Warner’s experience will be invaluable in the Caribbean if the pitches play the way they are expected to. But if Australia get some good pitches in the Caribbean and Warner is selected over Fraser-McGurk, he will need to re-find his fearless former self. No doubt, he will be spurred to prove that he is still one of Australia’s best T20 openers.Meanwhile, Mitchell Starc suffered a bizarre finger injury and missed Kolkata Knight Riders’ most recent match against Punjab Kings. It’s also not the first time he’s lacerated his bowling finger with his spikes. Starc’s form before the injury had been very up and down and the rest may well have come at a decent time in the middle of the tournament. KKR’s attack fared poorly in his absence as they failed to defend 261. KKR were confident he would return in one of their next two games. Australia’s selectors would love him to find some consistency ahead of the World Cup.Green finds touch at the right timeCameron Green exults after dismissing Pat Cummins•BCCICameron Green has found some form with bat and ball playing in an unfamiliar role for Royal Challengers Bengaluru and it has come at the right time ahead of the World Cup squad being selected. He made 37 not out off 20 in a finishing role against Sunrisers Hyderabad, nailing his Test captain Pat Cummins for four boundaries in the death overs. He has also bowled well in two of his last three games picking up 2 for 35 against KKR and 2 for 12 against SRH including claiming Cummins, with his execution and unpredictability as a T20 bowler improving. Although he was clattered for 42 from just three overs in RCB’s win over Gujarat Titans on Sunday.Part of the complication of finding a place for Fraser-McGurk is Australia’s absolute need for a spare fast-bowling allrounder in the 15 due to the injury concerns over Marsh and Stoinis. Marsh is currently at home recovering from a hamstring injury that ended his IPL. He is expected to be fully fit for the tournament and is set to be captain. But his ability to bowl in every game is an unknown. Stoinis is in fine form with bat and ball. But he missed Australia’s last four T20Is during the summer with a back issue and missed three of the nine pool games in the ODI World Cup due to niggles after an injury-riddled lead-in. He was then squeezed out of the XI for the semi and the final. Green played a crucial role in one of those ODI World Cup pool games against England making 47 when he replaced Marsh who was absent for family reasons.Sublime Stoinis sends a reminder of his qualityInjury worries aside, Stoinis sent a reminder of his ceiling as a T20 cricketer with a stunning unbeaten 124 to guide Lucknow Super Giants home against Chennai Super Kings. It was a masterclass in T20 batting having been promoted to No.3. He also showed that he can be more durable than he has been in the past by bowling four overs, including the 20th, before batting almost 20 and guiding his team home. He strangely only bowled one over in LSG’s next match against Rajasthan despite picking up the vital wicket of Yashasvi Jaiswal and conceding just three runs after missing out with the bat. But a fit, versatile, in-form Stoinis heading to the World Cup bodes very well for Australia.

Worcestershire batters enjoy productive return to business on first day of season in Oxford

Paul Edwards24-Mar-2022
“Take thermals to The Parks,” said Scyld Berry when told of my plans. It was, of course, shrewd advice, the sort one might expect from a former editor of . I anticipated a cutting wind and reckoned that my thickest flannel shirt would be only one of four layers I’d need. Round the boundary, fanatics would be declaring that they hadn’t missed the first day’s cricket on this ground since Vic Marks was up and they were damned if a bit of frost was going to stop them now. Fielders would be wearing bobble hats and praying the ball wouldn’t come to them. Jokes would feature the prospect of double pneumonia. The whole shebang was first cousin to inevitable. For what manner of loon plans to cover a cricket match before the clocks have gone forward?But the only foolishness is my assumption. As Worcestershire’s players and coaches watch Gareth Roderick tuck Hugo Whitlock’s first ball of the match backward of square for a single none is wearing anything more protective than a sweater or a tracksuit top; hardly any are hypnotised by their mobile phones. “One out of one!” Brett D’Oliveira exclaimed having won the toss and the visitors’ new skipper then scurries across to move the sightscreen. The temperature must be in the low sixties. Already some of the daffodils in Balliol’s back quad are going over and the magnolias in The Parks are in riot. The Crêpes O Mania van is doing good business, although nothing like the killing it will make in the afternoon session. No one has known a March like this in Oxford. My binoculars fall apart inside the first hour’s play; perhaps they can’t believe their lenses.Roderick and Taylor Cornall, Worcestershire’s almost new recruit from Lancashire, put on 114 in 27.3 overs for the first wicket before Roderick chips Toby Greatwood to Karan Parmar at midwicket. Lunch is taken nine balls later. The morning’s play has been watched by around a hundred spectators. The more conservatively dressed are occupying the benches, one of which is named after Martin Donnelly, the New Zealand left-hander whose batting used to empty the lecture halls here just after the war. The more unconventional groups are on the east side of The Parks. Among them have been Japanese visitors, some looking bemused, others entranced. Perhaps they thought cricket is England’s answer to the tea ceremony. They may be right.Oxford University’s players are on a pre-season tour to Barbados, so this UCCE team is composed entirely of Oxford Brookes students. Their fielding in the first two sessions is particularly keen but their errors are expensive. On 38 Cornall’s edged drive flies more or less unhindered between the wicketkeeper Joe Millard and first slip Whitlock. The Worcestershire opener will go on to make 84 before Millard redeems himself off the home skipper, Chris McBride.Jack Haynes made a hundred in Worcestershire’s university warm-up•PA Images via Getty ImagesRather more seriously, when he has made 23 Jack Haynes nicks the slow left-armer, Connor Haddow, to first slip, where Joe Gordon just fails to pouch the chance. A few balls later Haynes drives the spinner just over a leaping McBride at mid-off. They will be more or less his last errors before Haddow bowls him off the inside edge just before the close. By then Worcestershire’s finest current young batter will have offered us drives through the covers and mid-on, although he will stroke only six fours in his hundred, and ten in his final tally of 127.Cornall is dismissed just after 2.30pm and we hear our first “Let’s go bang-bang” of the season. It is like spring’s first cuckoo and similarly misleading. For Haynes and D’Oliveira will put on 120 either side of tea, and in the evening session Worcestershire’s expected dominance is plain on a pitch that is an absolute credit to groundsman John Buddington, a Sunderland lad who arrived at The Parks via Tunbridge Wells and Horsham. Buddington is clearly a good egg and his work exemplifies the important point that although the universities’ matches may have lost first-class status, they still offer valuable preparation and are taken seriously. The counties would not play them otherwise.And yet none of this would be quite so memorable or strangely blessed had not our afternoon been enriched by the 200 or so good-natured students, presumably from Brookes, who gathered on that sunlit eastern boundary and cheered more or less everything their friends did. Every appeal was supported by a chorus; every decent stop was applauded. There was a chorus of “Jerusalem” and for once it did not sound like brain-dead nationalism. There were other songs, too: there is, should you be in any doubt about the matter, only one Joe Gordon. To do a circuit or three was to be revived after a bleak close-season by the bugger-it exuberance of youth. Yes, there were many beer cans and plenty of wine bottles. Indeed, chuck in a few tents and a lot of mud and you had cricket’s answer to the Glastonbury Festival. Even Worcestershire’s players savoured the show. One wonders if any of them have had such an enjoyable first day of the season.By seven o’clock, though, Oxford was in near darkness. The cranes that currently compete with cupolas in this enchanted city were obscured, as were the Ukrainian flags that fly from college towers, residents’ windows and Blackwell’s bookshop. Even in this place, where one can so easily be seduced by memories of say, snowy Decembers, present concerns cannot be avoided. But as it happens, the clocks’ going forward was of little consequence. The one on the front of the famous pavilion in The Parks had not been put back in October, presumably on the sound basis that very few people would look at it outside the cricket season. And the suggestion that Oxford has its own way of reckoning time might not have surprised the spectators on the ground this balmy March. For at least one of them, Jack Haynes will always be driving the ball through the covers and there will always be a low door in the wall.

Here’s what each team must do to seal a spot in the final four from Group B

S Rajesh28-Feb-2020With four matches left in group B, four teams are still in the hunt to take the two semi-final spots. Here is what each team needs to do to qualify.England
England’s comprehensive win against Pakistan has not only lifted their points tally to four, but also improved their net run rate – which is the first tie-breaker if teams are level on points – to 2.287. That means they could have a chance to qualify even if they lose their last game, against West Indies on Sunday.However, if they lose that game, things will become quite complicated for England, for they will depend on other results going their way. Assuming that Pakistan beat Thailand, the only way England could qualify despite losing to West Indies is if South Africa win both their remaining matches, against Pakistan and West Indies. In that case, South Africa will be on eight points, with England, Pakistan and West Indies all on four, and fighting for one spot. England’s superior NRR will then come in handy.However, England can avoid the need for all these calculations if they beat West Indies, in which case they will surely qualify.South Africa
South Africa are the only team not to lose a match in the group so far, with wins against England and Thailand. A win against Pakistan on Sunday will surely put them in the semi-finals, as only one of England or West Indies can then move up to six points.If they lose to Pakistan and beat West Indies, then there is a possibility of three teams – South Africa, England and Pakistan – being tied on 6 points, fighting for two slots. South Africa’s NRR is currently the best in the group, but Pakistan will be eyeing a big win against Thailand to lift their rate.If South Africa lose both remaining matches, they will have a chance of qualification only if Thailand upset Pakistan. Otherwise, Pakistan will move to six points, as will the winner of the England-West Indies match.West Indies
If West Indies win their two remaining matches they will surely qualify, as only one other team among South Africa, England and Pakistan can make it to six points.However, if they lose to England on Sunday, then their hopes will be hanging by a very slim thread: they will have a chance only if they beat South Africa, and if Pakistan beat South Africa and lose to Thailand. Then, England will finish on six, with South Africa, Pakistan and West Indies on four each.Pakistan
Pakistan will finish on six points if they win their last two matches, but they might still not be assured of qualification, as South Africa and England could also finish on six each. In that case, the two teams with the best NRRs will qualify.A defeat against South Africa on Sunday will leave them on the brink of elimination. Their only hope then will be if South Africa beat West Indies, who in turn beat England. Then South Africa will be on eight points, with England, West Indies and Pakistan on four each (if they beat Thailand). However, given Pakistan’s poor NRR, they will struggle to pip the other two teams on this aspect.

On Thursday, Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Dennis Santana made headlines by briefly swinging at a fan in Detroit before being quickly removed from the bullpen by his teammates.

Now, the veteran pitcher is facing the consequences. Major League Baseball is suspending Santana four games "for his aggressive conduct," it announced in a Friday evening release. Santana is appealing the suspension.

The 29-year-old is in his eighth different season with his fifth different team. In 31 1/3 innings pitched for the Pirates this year, Santana has a 2-1 record with a 1.72 ERA and 25 strikeouts. His 1.4 bWAR is already a career high, and he's shaved more than a third of an earned run off his career ERA in 2025.

The incident came during a doubleheader between Pittsburgh and the Detroit Tigers, split between the two teams. The Tigers won one game 9–2, while the Pirates won the other (in which Santana pitched) 8–4.

The calendar has moved forward a week from the Lahore Test, but you’d be forgiven for thinking the clock has stopped. In an almost exact replica of day one at Gaddafi Stadium, Pakistan established a position of control in Pindi, moving to 259 for 5, after choosing to bat on a surface that is already tough, and will get tougher.The major difficulty, at this stage, is the lifelessness of the track, which is not offering significant spin (yet) but there have been signs of deliveries keeping low. South Africa also benefited from reverse swing with the older ball. Pakistan’s top and middle order navigated the challenges well, albeit not quickly. Their scoring rate remained under three an over as they batted conservatively and will be happy to have only lost five wickets on a day where many more could have gone down.South Africa put down four clear chances: Abdullah Shafique on 0, 15 and 41, on his way to a sixth Test half-century, and Shan Masood on 71 but also created several others. They found the edge several times with balls falling short of the slips or short leg on at least seven other occasions and will know they could have Pakistan in a much tighter spot.Their innings was built largely on the 111-run second-wicket stand between Shafique and Masood, and Masood went on to top score on 87. Saud Shakeel added a handy 42 and remained unbeaten overnight.Keshav Maharaj was South Africa’s most effective bowler•AFP/Getty Images

South Africa should have had a wicket in the first over when Kagiso Rabada found Shafique’s outside edge, but Tristan Stubbs at third slip dropped the chance. Shafique immediately got his revenge as he pushed the ball past point for the innings’ first boundary. Rabada then also found Imam-ul-Haq’s edge twice, but both fell short of the cordon.Left-armer Marco Jansen shared the new ball and beat Shafique’s inside edge as the ball touched the stumps but did not dislodge the bails. Another early opportunity went down when Shafique got a leading edge back to Keshav Maharaj, but he could not hold on to the return catch. In his next over, Maharaj spun the ball away from Shafique and found the edge, but the chance did not carry.Just as South Africa may have wondered if anything was going to go their way, Simon Harmer’s third delivery turned past Imam’s outside edge and bowled him. Harmer then almost had Masood caught at short-leg but the ball didn’t carry to Tony de Zorzi.With all that was happening, Pakistan’s progress was sedate for the first 16 overs, in which they only managed a scoring rate a shave about 2.5 runs an over. By the start of the 17th, Masood had enough – he charged down the track to hit Harmer for six at the start of his next two overs, and then meted out similar treatment to Senuran Muthusamy.Abdullah Shafique scored a half-century as well•AFP/Getty Images

Pakistan went to lunch on 95 for 1 and progressed slowly but steadily in the afternoon. Shafique continued to provide chances when he came forward to defend against Maharaj, and got an edge which deflected off Kyle Verreynne’s gloves to Aiden Markram at slip. Markram went left instead of right. By the time he readjusted, he was not able to hold on. Riding his luck, Shafique got to a patient fifty off 120 balls, but would only add seven more runs before he followed Harmer down leg and got a fine edge through to Verreynne.Babar Azam announced himself when he smashed Harmer through the covers but almost lost Masood the over later. The Pakistan captain was on 71 when he swept Maharaj to Muthusamy at short fine. He had to make some ground to his right and was in an awkward position trying to take a two-handed catch and put it down. With Babar spanking another two poor balls for fours, South Africa’s desperation grew and they decided to review a Maharaj lbw shout against him. Babar had come forward to defend and the ball seemed close to the bat, which was confirmed on UltraEdge.After four drops and four more that didn’t carry, South Africa’s moment of magic came. Babar lunged forward to defend the last ball of Maharaj’s over and the ball lobbed up in the air. De Zorzi, at silly mid-off, dived one-handed to his right and took the catch inches off the turf. Pakistan were 177 for 3 at tea.Markam bowled himself for an over before the break and three after, raising questions over why Muthusamy was being so sparingly used before Maharaj took over. The first ten overs after tea brought 31, largely untroubled runs, before Jansen was given a 72-over old ball and a license to see what it could do. He found reverse swing and beat Saud Shakeel several times and there was growing anxiousness among the batters. Masood, in search of his century, tried to sweep Maharaj over square leg but top-edged to Jansen.Jansen could have had Mohammad Rizwan three overs before the second new ball was due, but the edge fell short of Harmer at wide slip. Muthusamy finally returned in the 80th over and South Africa did not take the second new ball until the 85th, when it worked for them. Rabada, with his fifth ball, jagged one back in and hit Rizwan on the knee roll. Shakeel and Salman Agha took Pakistan to the close on a day when 91 overs were bowled in the scheduled time.

Chelsea star Raheem Sterling has been urged to push for a sensational transfer to Wrexham and end his struggles at Stamford Bridge. The winger is part of the club's infamous 'bomb squad' and is training away from the first team in west London. Former Wales and Liverpool striker Dean Saunders says a transfer to Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac's side would be a great bit of business.

Sterling out in the cold at Chelsea

Sterling has been deemed surplus to requirements at Chelsea which has led to speculation over his future, and talk of a sensational transfer to Wrexham. The winger's last competitive appearance came back in May, at the end of his loan spell with Arsenal, and it remains to be seen when he will return to action. With the January transfer window now just weeks away, Sterling's future is likely to come under the spotlight once again. Saunders has been left baffled by Sterling's situation at Chelsea and feels a shock move to Wrexham is not out of the question.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportWrexham told Sterling 'not over the hill'

Saunders told BOYLE Sports who offer the latest football betting: "Raheem Sterling to Wrexham? Why not? You might see some big players that have watched the documentary and they think, ‘I'll have a bit of that. I'd love to play for them, Wrexham.’ You might get somebody like Raheem Sterling saying that. I can't get my head around his situation. What's going on? He’s not over the hill. He's a very good player. Having said that, the Championship's not easy to play in. I've managed in the Championship and sometimes Premier League players come down and play in it and they can't believe what's going on. We're playing all the time and every game's a battle. Millwall away on a Tuesday night. When the ball's up in the air all night, some of them find it difficult."

'Everybody wants to play for Wrexham'

Saunders also feels that Wrexham is an attractive club to join following their rapid rise up the leagues under Reynolds and Mac, and the Hollywood duo's subsequent heavy investment in the first team.

"I always thought that if we could get Wrexham back in the league, I thought our team would be better than most of the League Two teams. If you get in League Two, you can go up again to League One.  Now, when you get to League One, the budgets can be five million, then you get teams like Sunderland who are in there with twenty million," he added.

"You get a few big clubs trying to go up. To get into the Championship, once you get into the Championship, I thought we could get to the Championship, but then you're competing with three Premier League teams who've just got relegated. A couple who tried to go back up but never made it, with massive playing budgets and Premier League players in it. And I thought that might be the difficult bit because you have got to put your hand in your pocket then to try and compete in the Championship. And to be fair, they have.

"I mean, I'm hearing what some of the players are earning now. You know, they've signed Josh Windass, they've signed Nathan Broadhead, Kieffer Moore. They can play at that level every day of the week and all day long and have an impact most weeks. Fair play to the manager because they've turned the players over ruthlessly so they've kept momentum.

"If Wrexham get to the Premier League I'll be delighted because it's a great club. They've got great, great supporters. And there is a massive catchment area around Wrexham, in between Wrexham and Cardiff, there's a catchment area which they're getting players through now into the academy. 

"Obviously not far the other way is Man City, Man United, Liverpool, Everton. So they normally nick the best young kids. Then you've got Stoke not far away. So they have had all the best players nicked off them, but now everybody wants to play for Wrexham, don't they? Famous all around the world. It's an incredible story."

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Getty Images SportSterling to move on in January?

Wrexham have been tipped to spend again in January as they bid to secure promotion to the Premier League. Phil Parkinson's side currently sit 10th in the table but are only three points off the final play-off place. It's not clear yet if Sterling could be tempted to head to Wales, but it certainly would be no surprise to see the 30-year-old move on in a bid to try and resurrect his career after losing his place at Chelsea.

“When we dropped Shaheen and Nawaz, that’s where the game changed,” the Bangladesh coach said

Mohammad Isam25-Sep-20253:15

Why do Bangladesh struggle in pressure situations?

Bangladesh coach Phil Simmons felt three dropped catches followed by “bad decisions” from the batters in a 136-run chase against Pakistan upended his team’s chance of reaching the Asia Cup 2025 final. Bangladesh lost by 11 runs in their Super Fours fixture after Pakistan’s lower order bailed them out of a dire situation.Pakistan were 51 for 5 when Nurul Hasan and Mahedi Hasan dropped Shaheen Shah Afridi in the 12th over. Afridi went on to hit two sixes in a 13-ball 19 and hand Pakistan a bit of momentum. After he fell, Parvez Hossain Emon dropped Mohammad Nawaz on zero; Nawaz went on to make 25 off 15 balls with two sixes and a four.Fielders often have a difficult time picking the ball up against Dubai’s unusual “ring of fire” floodlights, but Simmons didn’t think this had been an issue with any of the chances.Related

Old habits die hard for new-era Bangladesh

Plan C (Chaos) does the trick for Pakistan, not for the first time

Afridi, Rauf and Ayub set up a Pakistan vs India Asia Cup final

“When we dropped Shaheen and Nawaz, that’s where the game changed,” he said. “Before that, we were in control. Some of the catches maybe [had something to do with the lights] but I don’t think the ones we dropped had anything to do with the lights.”Simmons felt Bangladesh’s batters had taken better decisions against Sri Lanka compared to this chase against Pakistan. Bangladesh hit more sixes than Pakistan, but they also lost a number of wickets while trying to play big shots. Simmons also suggested that the team had missed captain Litton Das, who sat out his second straight game with a side strain.Mohammad Nawaz had Mahedi Hasan caught at cover•AFP/Getty Images”We didn’t have to chase it in any [particular number of] overs. We just had to win the game,” Simmons said. “It was just bad decisions. All of the teams have that at some point. It was us today. We didn’t make the best shot selections.”We just chased 160 [169 vs Sri Lanka] two games ago. We are not a team that can lose Tanzid [Hasan] and captain [Litton] in one game and just fill [the void] like that. We are getting to that stage, we are not there yet. Losing the captain in such good form is a big thing for us.”We chased 160 [169] on the same wicket, where we made better batting decisions. Batting order doesn’t say we batted well or badly. We made bad decisions today.”

“You look at it as someone batting at No 4. I look at it as someone taking on the pacers in the powerplay.”Phil Simmons on promoting Mahedi Hasan

Bangladesh have historically struggled to match the most successful T20I sides when it comes to strike rates. Simmons felt they were starting to address this issue, but what cost them in this game was their inability to build partnerships.”The [strike-rate] gap will reduce the more we play at the international level, the guys will know what to do at this level,” he said. “I agree that our strike-rate isn’t up there, but we are up there in six-hitting. I don’t think it is about our ability to score quickly. We have to bat for longer and put on partnerships.”Bangladesh shuffled their batting order in this chase, with Mahedi Hasan promoted to No. 4. Simmons felt this was the right move given Mahedi’s ability to counter pace, even if he only managed 11 off 10 in this game.”You look at it as someone batting at No 4. I look at it as someone taking on the pacers in the powerplay,” Simmons said. “He could have taken on the pacers more than if he went in the lower order against the spinners. I had Jaker [Ali] and Shamim [Hossain] down there, who could take on the spinners.”The defeat against Pakistan ended Bangladesh’s Asia Cup campaign. They beat Afghanistan and Sri Lanka in succession before going down in back-to-back matches against India and Pakistan.All was not lost, though, and Simmons pointed out a couple of positives from the competition..”[Saif Hassan] is definitely the biggest positive from this [campaign],” he said. “The other one is how our bowlers did in the whole tournament. They were spot-on, every game.”

Wolverhampton Wanderers have now made contact with Xavi as a replacement for Vitor Pereira, with the 57-year-old being dismissed after the 3-0 defeat against Fulham on Saturday.

Pereira was given plenty of time to turn things around, but the loss against the Cottagers was the final straw for Fosun, with the Old Gold now eight points adrift of safety in the Premier League, having made a very poor start to the season.

Goalkeeper Sam Johnstone was particularly critical of the performance after the match, describing it as “embarrassing.”

Wolves are still searching for their first top-flight victory, having collected just two points from their opening ten games, while they were also dumped out of the EFL Cup by Chelsea last Wednesday, with the Blues emerging as 4-3 winners at Molineux.

It is going to be a tall order for whoever replaces Pereira to dig the Wanderers out of trouble, but Fosun are now eyeing what has to be considered an ambitious move for Xavi…

Wolves make contact with Xavi to replace Pereira

That is according to a report from Spain, which states that is indeed not Gary O’Neil at the top of the wishlist. Wolves have now made contact with the former Barcelona manager, who they have identified as the main candidate to replace Pereira, given his experience of managing at an elite level.

Fosun see appointing the legendary midfielder as a golden opportunity, as they are admirers of his possession-based style of play, and believe the 45-year-old could restore confidence to the squad.

The Spaniard is the top target, but he is not the only manager on the shortlist for the Old Gold, who are working quickly to appoint a new manager, with Bologna boss Thiago Motta emerging as a potential alternative option, given the Italian side’s impressive start to the campaign.

It would no doubt be a major coup if Wolves were somehow able to tempt the former Al-Sadd manager into a move to Molineux, given that he is held in very high regard by Barca president Joan Laporta.

The Terrassa-born manager, who prefers to implement a 4-3-3 system, has won eight trophies as a coach, across spells in Qatar and La Liga, most impressively lifting the Spanish title in the 2022-23 season.

Xavi has been out of work since being dismissed by Barcelona over 18 months ago, but in truth it is difficult to picture him moving to Molineux, given the mess Wolves currently find themselves in, sitting bottom of the Premier League, having shipped 22 goals, the highest number of any side.

Wolves also targeting Brendan Rodgers as replacement for Pereira Related Wolves targeting Brendan Rodgers amid doubts about Vitor Pereira

The Old Gold have made a very poor start to the season.

Posts 2 ByDominic Lund Oct 29, 2025

Liverpool supporters are likely to be buoyed by some fresh remarks regarding the club’s January transfer business, as FSG line up a move for one of Europe’s brightest defensive talents.

Liverpool's centre-back issues under the spotlight

The Reds have looked flawed this season, with record signings Florian Wirtrz and Alexander Isak still bedding in and Mohamed Salah among those out of form, and they also look light on centre-back options.

Granted, Virgil van Dijk largely looks as good as ever, barring a recent dip, but he is 34 years of age and will need replacing eventually, while Ibrahima Konate has flattered to deceive and is injury-prone.

Joe Gomez is another player who is known for his fitness woes in his career, while highly-rated new signing Giovanni Leoni will cruelly miss the rest of the season after suffering ACL damage in the EFL Cup clash with Southampton.

Not only that, but Marc Guehi is now being linked with a move to Bayern Munich, and Liverpool’s failure to sign the Crystal Palace captain on deadline day is increasingly looking like a bitter blow.

The January window will give the Reds a chance to bolster their defensive options, with Bayern Munich’s Dayo Upamecano linked with a move recently, and now another Bundesliga player has been backed to come in.

Liverpool could sign another "phenomenal" England international with Guehi

He is having an outstanding period in his career.

ByHenry Jackson Oct 25, 2025 Liverpool "serious" about strengthening in January

Former Everton CEO Keith Wyness, who is well connected on Merseyside and now reports for Football Insider, claims Liverpool could look to sign Borussia Dortmund defender Nico Schlotterbeck in January, with “serious movement” expected in the market.

“He’s proven to be the best defender so far this season in the Bundesliga. He looks to be a real talent and he’s the right age at 25. Look, there is no doubt Liverpool are working overtime right now trying to fix this defence. They’ve got to push the boat out in January.

“It doesn’t look as though it’s going to be Schlotterbeck now, but he could still be one of the targets, certainly. I do expect to see some serious movement in January from Liverpool, and they’re going to be spending where they probably hadn’t planned to because there’s some some cracks appearing. They’re going to have to get that defence shored up.”

A new centre-back does feel like a pressing matter for Liverpool, given the aforementioned options there, both in terms of form and fitness.

It often feels like a matter of time before Konate misses a chunk of action, and should Van Dijk pick up an injury, it would have the potential to completely derail the Reds’ season.

Appearances

4

8

Starts

4

8

Minutes played

360

720

Clearances per game

5.5

4.9

Tackles per game

1.8

2.0

Aerial duel wins per game

1.8

2.9

Goals

0

1

Assists

0

1

Schlotterbeck stands out as an impressive option alongside Guehi, but it remains to be seen if Dortmund let him go, and the likes of Arne Slot and Richard Hughes have a big decision to make when it comes to whether to wail until the end of the season for the ideal signing or not.

انتهت مباراة الزمالك أمام طلائع الجيش، التي جمعتهما على ملعب استاد القاهرة الدولي، منذ قليل، في إطار منافسات الدوري المصري.

حقق الزمالك فوزًا غاليًا على طلائع الجيش بثلاثية مقابل هدف، ضمن منافسات الأسبوع الثالث عشر من مسابقة الدوري المصري موسم 2025-2026.

طالع.. ترتيب هدافي الدوري المصري بعد ثنائية ناصر ماهر وهدف الدباغ أمام طلائع الجيش

ثلاثية الزمالك جاءت عن طريق ناصر ماهر، هدفين في الدقيقة السابعة والدقيقة 52، وعدي الدباغ في الدقيقة 61، بينما هدف طلائع الجيش جاء في الدقيقة 81 عن طريق محمد عاطف.

ورفع الزمالك رصيده إلى 22 نقطة في المركز الثاني بشكل مؤقت، بينما تجمد رصيد طلائع الجيش عند 10 نقاط في المركز الثامن عشر.

وقاد الزمالك، في مباراة اليوم أحمد عبد الرؤوف بعد توليه المسئولية الفنية عقب رحيل البلجيكي يانيك فيريرا بسبب تراجع النتائج. رجل مباراة الزمالك وطلائع الجيش

 وحصل ناصر ماهر، لاعب الزمالك على جائزة رجل المباراة كأفضل لاعب في اللقاء بعد تسجيله هدفين.