All posts by h716a5.icu

Tino Mawoyo was not outwardly excited about his unbeaten 163. It was this composure that helped him survive Saeed Ajmal’s doosras, which he could not read

Firdose Moonda in Bulawayo02-Sep-2011As Tino Mawoyo left the end-of-day press conference, with his path firmly directed towards “getting some sleep”, he was stopped by an unlikely fan. Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq interrupted Mawoyo’s beeline for the team bus with a rough jolt of the shoulder.”Well batted,” Misbah said. “You’ve had a long day and I thought you played really well.”Mawoyo gave him a warm smile and they shook hands. It was a smile that expressed more satisfaction than Mawoyo had shown throughout his innings, which was carefully structured and hugely impressive, a knock that called on his all powers of concentration.The ten-hour and forty-five minute marathon was paced exquisitely. There was never a passage of play in which Mawoyo changed gear, no acceleration in the middle, no sprint to the finish, just a steady progression from beginning to end. There were few emotions, of joy or otherwise, and it was that stern focus that led Mawoyo to his highest score in all forms of the game.”I had been saying to the coach that I felt as though I kept getting starts but I wasn’t pushing on,” Mawoyo said. “I wanted to make one of those starts count and I think it worked this time.”It was only Mawoyo’s second Test but already he felt the pressure to do something more than an accomplished 30 or 40. The sense of demand came from periods in Mawoyo’s domestic career when he had been under fire, phases in his first-class career when he was dropped from his provincial and franchise sides. “I perform well under pressure, it gives me a little extra drive to do well,” he said.Mawoyo has now answered enough questions to give him a credit balance in the criticism account, but he is not getting over-excited about his performance. “I don’t think it’s quite sunk in yet, and really, I’m just happy to have contributed. We spoke about getting the team past 400 and I am happy to have been a major part of that.”Mawoyo’s lack of animation at his achievement may seem drab, but it’s the one quality that helped him survive Saeed Ajmal’s doosra, which threatened to undo him every time it was bowled. “It is very tricky to pick,” he said. “I thought I had started reading him a little yesterday, but when he bowled from the Airport End today, I had no idea. I do know that the seam is usually a little bit more upright than when he bowls the offbreak.”The rest of the bowlers were not as challenging, although Mawoyo found that good field placement when the seamers were on made it difficult to score. Aizaz Cheema mowed through the lower order but there was little else to talk about. Misbah could not find the heart to chastise his quicks on a pitch that is flatter than the Bulawayo countryside. “They bowled their hearts out, even on the second day, they were running in and bowling bouncers.”The batsmen-friendly pitch had Mohammad Hafeez in his element as he raced to 79 off 93 balls and Misbah predicted more of the same as the match entered its middle period. “On such a good wicket, the batsmen can’t control themselves and they will play their shots,” he said. With some turn expected, Misbah said Ray Price was the bowler his team will have to “keep an eye on.”

Chaminda Vaas took seven wickets as Division Two leaders Northamptonshire took total command at Wantage Road

31-May-2011
Scorecard
Chaminda Vaas took seven wickets as Division Two leaders Northamptonshire took total command of the third day of their County Championship match against Glamorgan at Wantage Road.Northamptonshire declared on 461 for 6 at lunch, with Rob White making 140 and wicket-keeper David Murphy blasting a career-best 79 off 98 balls. Glamorgan were then skittled for just 72 in the afternoon, with former Sri Lanka seamer Vaas taking a fantastic 5 for 22 before he claimed 2for 36 in the visitor’s second innings as they closed on 119 for 3.After yesterday’s wash-out, Northants began the day on 325 for 3 with White resuming on 101 and Murphy on 12. Murphy went on to complete a half-century off 58 balls by smashing Graham Wagg for six over midwicket – a shot which also gave the hosts a full set of batting bonus points.White was to depart when he chipped Alex Jones to Dean Cosker at mid-on before Murphy holed out by launching Cosker to Mike Powell at deep fine leg. Captain Andrew Hall followed him back to the pavilion with the very next ball as he was trapped lbw by Cosker. Northamptonshire then declared during lunch, leaving David Sales unbeaten on 12 and James Middlebrook on 11.Glamorgan were to lose Will Bragg early on when he was caught leg before by Vaas, and Powell followed three balls later when he edged Vaas to Middlebrook at gully. Glamorgan captain Alviro Petersen (18) went when he was caught by Murphy off Vaas, before Jack Brooks got in on the act by forcing Gareth Rees to slice him to Stephen Peters at third slip for a duck.Ben Wright and Wagg both went without scoring by being caught behind by Murphy off Brooks and Vaas respectively. Glamorgan wicketkeeper Mark Wallace then dragged Vaas on to his middle stump to give Vaas his 30th five-wicket haul in first-class cricket.Robert Croft and Jones were then both bowled by Hall before the skipper completed the rout when he was edged by Cosker to Murphy.Following-on still 389 runs behind, Glamorgan lost Petersen for two in the third over when he nudged Vaas to Sales at second slip. Bragg finally brought some stability as he made a half-century off 83 balls, but he went cheaply on 52 when he launched Middlebrook to Brooks at long leg.Powell then feathered Vaas to Murphy in the third over before the close and Rees and Jones will resume tomorrow on 44 and 4 respectively.

Fidel Edwards, the West Indies fast bowler, will join his former captain Chris Gayle at the Sydney Thunder during this summer’s Big Bash League

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Jul-2011Fidel Edwards, the West Indies fast bowler, will join his former captain Chris Gayle at the Sydney Thunder during this summer’s Big Bash League. The Thunder have confirmed Edwards and Doug Bollinger as their newest two signings as they put together a squad based around the star opening duo of Gayle and David Warner.Edwards, 29, recently made his return to the West Indies side after two years out following back surgery. The Thunder general manager John Dyson said Edwards and Bollinger would be a potent new-ball combination.”They are going to create plenty of headaches for batsmen in the KFC T20 Big Bash League,” Dyson said. “Fidel has proven to be a consistent wicket taker, especially in the last series against India, while Doug is one of the premier fast bowlers in Australia and is coming off an excellent IPL series.”The Thunder, who are based at Sydney’s ANZ Stadium, will be coached by Shane Duff, a former Sydney club cricketer who has also been Sri Lanka’s strength and conditioning coach. Daniel Smith, the wicketkeeper who recently lost his New South Wales contract, will be both assistant coach and a player.Meanwhile, the Melbourne Stars have secured another player from interstate, the Tasmania allrounder James Faulkner. The Stars scored a coup last week by locking in three current and former captains from other states, including the Tasmania leader George Bailey. The MCG-based Stars have also signed the young Victorian allrounder Alex Keath and the Bushrangers’ left-arm spinner Jon Holland.The Adelaide Strikers have given a new lease of life to Adam Crosthwaite, the former Victoria wicketkeeper, who hasn’t played at the elite level since early 2009. Crosthwaite moved to Sydney when the Bushrangers made it clear Matthew Wade was their No.1 gloveman, but he has not managed to find a way into the New South Wales squad.Crosthwaite will join his former mentor Darren Berry, who was an assistant coach at Victoria and is now in charge of the Strikers and South Australia. The Strikers have also signed Lee Carseldine, the Queensland batsman who lost his state contract this year, and the Tasmania fast bowler Brendan Drew.The South Australia-contracted players Theo Doropoulos and Gary Putland have also become Strikers. Meanwhile, Peter Forrest, the former New South Wales batsman who has signed with Queensland for this summer, will remain north of the border after being named in the Brisbane Heat squad.The squads so far
Adelaide Strikers Aiden Blizzard, Cameron Borgas, Lee Carseldine, Tom Cooper, Adam Crosthwaite, Theo Doropoulos, Brendan Drew, Callum Ferguson, Daniel Harris, Michael Klinger, Nathan Lyon, Aaron O’Brien, Gary Putland, Kane Richardson. Overseas players: Kieron Pollard.
Brisbane Heat Nick Buchanan, Daniel Christian, Ben Cutting, Peter Forrest, Ryan Harris, Nathan Hauritz, James Hopes, Chris Lynn, Michael Neser.
Hobart Hurricanes Travis Birt, Mark Cosgrove, Xavier Doherty, Luke Feldman, Evan Gulbis, Ben Hilfenhaus, Michael Hogan, Phil Jaques, Matt Johnston, Jason Krejza, Nick Kruger, Ben Laughlin, Rhett Lockyear, Tim Paine, RIcky Ponting. Overseas players: Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Owais Shah.
Melbourne Renegades Ryan Carters, Aaron Finch, Shane Harwood, Aaron Heal, Jayde Herrick, Michael Hill, Brad Hodge, Glenn Maxwell, Andrew McDonald, Brenton McDonald, Dirk Nannes, Nathan Reardon, Will Sheridan, Shaun Tait. Overseas players: Abdul Razzaq, Shahid Afridi.
Melbourne Stars George Bailey, James Faulkner, Jon Holland, David Hussey, Alex Keath, Chris Simpson, Adam Voges, Cameron White.
Perth Scorchers Tom Beaton, Michael Beer, Mark Cameron, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Michael Hussey, Simon Katich, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Marcus North, Luke Pomersbach, Nathan Rimmington, Luke Ronchi. Overseas players: Paul Collingwood, Herschelle Gibbs.
Sydney Sixers Ed Cowan, Moises Henriques, Nic Maddinson, Peter Nevill, Ben Rohrer, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc.
Sydney Thunder Doug Bollinger, Tim Cruickshank, Jason Floros, Usman Khawaja, Daniel Smith, David Warner. Overseas players: Fidel Edwards, Chris Gayle.

Gerry Alexander, the former West Indies captain, has died aged 82 in Jamaica

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Apr-2011Gerry Alexander, the former West Indies captain, has died at the age of 82 in Jamaica.Alexander was a wicketkeeper-batsman who represented West Indies in 25 Tests in a five-year career that began in 1957. He led the side in 18 of those matches, beginning with a home series against Pakistan in 1958 and stepping down after England’s visit in 1960.”He [Alexander] was a stalwart in Jamaica and West Indies cricket and made a tremendous contribution to the game as captain and a player on the field. He was an inspiration to many people off the field as well,” Julian Hunte, the WICB president, said. “He displayed a true love and passion for West Indies cricket and gave his all for the good of the game. He was a dignified and reliable leader of the West Indies team and a committed supporter of the game at all levels. He excelled in the 1960-61 Tied Test Series in Australia and will always be remembered for the fantastic role he played to help ‘save Test cricket’.”At a time when the West Indies and the world beyond it were undergoing great social change, Alexander was the last white captain of the team. He was replaced first temporarily and then permanently by Frank Worrell in time for the legendary 1960-61 series in Australia, which featured Test cricket’s first tie at Brisbane.Prior to that he courted controversy by choosing to send home the fast bowler Roy Gilchrist from the West Indies’ 1958-59 tour of India and Pakistan for reasons of indiscipline, including the bowling of repeated beamers. Gilchrist did not play for the West Indies again.In his final series as captain, before being succeeded by Worrell, Alexander equalled the record for most dismissals by a wicketkeeper in a series with 23 victims against England. He followed that up by supporting Worrell grandly with 484 runs at 60.50 in the 1960-61 series, scoring at least one half-century in each of the matches and his only first-class century in the third Test at the SCG, won by the West Indies. Alexander finished his Test career at the conclusion of the series with 961 runs at 30.03, and 90 dismissals.Away from cricket, Alexander studied and worked as a veterinarian, rising to the position of chief public sector veterinarian in his homeland.In 1982, he received the Order of Distinction from the Government of Jamaica for his outstanding contribution to sports. He was also a skilled footballer, winning an England amateur cap and an FA Amateur Cup winner’s medal.

Manchester City recently announced that they had agreed a deal to sign Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund this summer.

As the upcoming transfer window approaches, it seems as though the Manchester club could be set to see one of their current attacking stars leave the Etihad Stadium to potentially make way for their incoming Norwegian.

What’s the news?

In a recent Twitter post from journalist and transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, he relayed comments made to him by Marcelo Pettinati, the agent of Gabriel Jesus, who has recently been linked with a move to fellow Premier League club Arsenal.

He said: “We had talks with Arsenal about Gabriel Jesus, we like the project – it’s a possibility we’re discussing. There are 6 more clubs interested in Gabriel – he’s focused on final games with Man City, we’ll see.”

City secured a deal for the Brazilian back in the 2016 summer transfer window from Palmeiras for a fee of £27m.

Awful news for Guardiola

With 234 appearances under his belt for the Citizens across all competitions, the 25-year-old has 95 goals and delivered 46 assists along the way.

This shows just how much of a useful attacking figure he has been for his side since his arrival.

In 26 league appearances this season, the attacker has racked up 56 shots at goal, leaving only Joao Cancelo (77) and Kevin De Bruyne (69) with more.

To highlight how much of a deadly player he is at the top of the pitch, he currently has the highest number of goal-creating actions (17) to his name in City’s squad and the joint fourth-highest in the entire league.

After the Brazil international scored four goals in City’s 5-1 win over Watford last month, Pep Guardiola heaped praise on the player by saying that “when you behave like him, life and football rewards you.”

The City boss then added that “he doesn’t need to score four goals for me to know he has this incredible ability. He will have a long and successful career.”

This shows just how gutted the 51-year-old would be to potentially see Jesus leave the squad this summer.

Despite what his agent has had to say, City should have no intention of letting their attacking star leave the club this summer.

In other news: Pep can land the next Fernandinho as Man City eye move for “extraordinary” £83m dynamo

Andrew Strauss has admitted England fielded the wrong bowling attack in Hobart but accepted that his team should still have been able to chase down a modest target to level the one-day series

Andrew McGlashan at Bellerive Oval21-Jan-2011Andrew Strauss has admitted England fielded the wrong bowling attack in Hobart but accepted that his team should still have been able to chase down a modest target to level the one-day series. Instead they subsided to 184 all out despite Australia losing two frontline bowlers to injury, and now face a tough task to get back into the series.England twice had the home side on the ropes when they batted. Firstly the new ball reduced them to 4 for 33 after Strauss inserted Australia following heavy morning rain. However, he lacked a fourth seamer to ram home the advantage – instead having to use Jonathan Trott, James Tredwell and Michael Yardy – and the problem occurred again towards the end of the innings when Australia lifted themselves from 8 for 142 through a record ninth-wicket stand of 88 between Shaun Marsh and Doug Bollinger.”In hindsight we should probably have got the fourth seamer in our side, that was a mistake,” Strauss said. “We probably didn’t think it was going to be quite as slow and stodgy as it was. A [Luke] Wright or a [Chris] Woakes would have been a good addition to side, but things are always clearer at the end of the game than the start.”The first sign that Strauss was a frontline quick short came when Trott and Tredwell found themselves operating in tandem by 20th over with Australia still 4 for 56. “That’s the problem with only three seamers, we were probably a little light of a fourth seamer to bowl at that stage,” Strauss said. “The biggest regret is that Doug Bollinger got 30 and put on all those runs with Marsh.”Still, England should have been capable of chasing 231 but, as at the MCG where they managed to post 294, too many wickets were handed to the opposition rather than bowlers having to work for them. Trott pulled a long hop to midwicket, Ian Bell carved to backward point and Michael Yardy was run out. Eoin Morgan was also caught as he tried to clear mid-on having opted to take the Powerplay.”It was a very poor day, there’s no doubt about it,” he said. “When you are chasing that score you need one guy to get 80-odd and none of us did that. There we lots of 20s and 30s, too many early wickets and ultimately it wasn’t good.”A lot of us made poor decisions today. There were quite a few soft dismissals,” Strauss added. “The one thing I’d say is that we aren’t in the business of handing out huge recriminations to our batsmen. We want to see them play positively, that’s the most important thing for us. It’s worked well for us in the past and that last thing we want to see is batsmen going into their shells. In that sense it won’t be all doom and gloom, we just have to play smart cricket and we didn’t do enough of that today.”England are also able to point to the absence of James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann. The two quick bowlers are rejoining the squad in Sydney, but Broad isn’t expected to play during the series and Swann is out for up to two weeks. They now have an added concern about Tim Bresnan who picked up a calf problem and needed a runner when he batted, but Strauss said an early comeback for Anderson, who isn’t scheduled to play until Adelaide, wasn’t being considered.

Phil Hay has dropped an update on the future of reported Leeds United transfer target Brenden Aaronson.

What’s the word?

In a recent Q&A on The Athletic, the Leeds United correspondent revealed that the Red Bull Salzburg attacking midfielder – for whom Victor Orta saw first a £15m then a £20m offer rejected in the January transfer window – remains a target of the Whites’ Spanish sporting director this summer.

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In response to a supporter’s question regarding Leeds’ potential summer transfer business, Hay said: “Aaronson is clearly someone they really want.”

Marsch will be buzzing

With Leeds rather desperately lacking a forward-thinking and creative central midfielder in their ranks, in addition to the fact that Jesse Marsch has previously worked with the USA international, it is not difficult to see why Orta would be keen to secure the signing of Aaronson this summer.

Indeed, the 21-year-old has been a constant livewire for Salzburg over his 24 Austrian Bundesliga appearances this season, with the £18m-rated talent bagging four goals, providing five assists and creating seven big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 2.1 shots, making 1.6 key passes and completing 1.5 dribbles per game.

However, it was during the first-leg round of 16 Champions League tie against Bayern Munich in which the £19k-per-week sensation particularly caught the eye, with the 18-time capped international setting up Chukwubuike Adamu for Salzburg’s surprise opener with a deft touch on the edge of the box and drawing a fantastic save from Sven Ulreich after some incredibly tidy footwork in the Bayern penalty area, as well as completing five key passes, two dribbles and winning five duels over the course of the 90 minutes.

Furthermore, Aaronson’s 27.23 pressures per 90 over his eight appearances in the Champions League is enough to rank the 21-year-old in the top 1% of all attacking midfielders in Europe’s big five leagues in this particular metric over the last 365 days – something that clearly suits the way Marsch sets Leeds up tactically.

As such, while the signing of a player with as high a ceiling as the American will likely hinge on whether or not the Whites can secure survival in the Premier League this season, should they go on to do so, Orta simply must do everything in his power to bring the Salzburg starlet to Elland Road this summer, as Marsch would undoubtedly be buzzing to work with Aaronson once again.

AND in other news: “Very possible…”: Phil Hay drops big Leeds injury update, supporters will be buzzing

Patrick Boyland has now revealed some big Everton injury news before they play Chelsea at home in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.

The Lowdown: Davies training

The Goodison Park faithful have revealed that Tom Davies is back in training, after not featuring since the 0-0 draw at home to Tottenham Hotspur in November.

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There will be question marks over how quickly he can get back to full fitness, and of course how much impact he can actually have with so little of the season left to play.

The Latest: Injury update

Taking to Twitter, The Athletic journalist Boyland has revealed that although Davies is now eligible for selection due to Jean-Phillipe Gbamin moving out on loan, he is still ‘some way off’ a return to the team:

“Tom Davies *is eligible for selection between now and the end of the season. Everton added him to PL squad list after JP Gbamin joined CSKA Moscow on loan. But midfielder, who was pictured training today, is still some way off a return.”

The Verdict: Bad news

Of course, the fact that Davies still seems far away from a return to action will certainly come as a big blow to Frank Lampard and his side.

Before his horrific injury, the central midfield player had managed one goal and one assist in seven games this season, and being a local boy, knows how much it means to the supporters for the Merseyside club to stay up.

Nonetheless, with the campaign drawing nearer to a close, this is news that the Toffees would certainly not like to hear.

In other news, find out who the Blues are now close to signing here!

Aston Villa have seen numerous players make their way through the youth system at the Midlands club and go on to have substantial careers in the Premier League and elsewhere.

In terms of Villa’s current squad, one player that has worked his way through the ranks to make it into the first team is midfielder Jacob Ramsey.

With 65 combined appearances for Villa’s U18 and U23 sides under his belt, the Englishman racked up 24 goals and 11 assists.

He also had a loan spell with Doncaster Rovers back in 2020 where he found the back of the net three times in seven appearances.

The Englishman made his senior debut for the club back in February 2019 in a Championship defeat against West Bromwich Albion under former Villa manager Dean Smith.

Overall, the 20-year-old has now played in 58 senior games for his club and is now a fully-fledged member of Steven Gerrard’s squad. With 29 league appearances made this season, the youngster has scored six goals and provided two assists for his teammates.

As well as this, no other player at the club has made more attempts to put an opponent under pressure (461) on the pitch than Ramsey.

This highlights not only what a useful player he can be for his team in terms of winning the ball back, but also the desire and work ethic he has in him, something that Gerrard surely wants to see from his players.

Additionally, only Tyrone Mings has racked up a higher distance in yards for a player to have moved the ball while controlling it with their feet in any direction.

Once again, this shows what a tricky player Ramsey can be when he’s on the ball, as well as being a hard opponent to play against when he’s not in possession. As well as providing goals, it’s evident just how much he offers in the finer parts of the game.

All of this has seen the player’s transfer value rise considerably. Back in December 2020, Transfermarkt rated the midfielder’s market value at £1.35m, whereas it now stands at a massive £19.8m after a seriously impressive year.

Presumably based on his efforts on the pitch for Villa,

Labelled as a player that “demands attention” by Joe Cole, this highlights just how far the £15k-per-week youth graduate has come in his career.

Ramsey has certainly been a massive positive for the club as a whole and provides a great example for other youth prospects aiming to break into first-team football.

In other news: Source: AVFC’s “difficult” dud could now leave Villa Park, it’s great news for Gerrard

Mark Douglas has now revealed some big Everton news involving both Farhad Moshiri and James Tarkowski.

The Lowdown: Centre-back wanted

The Goodison Park faithful have been linked with moves for the likes of Levi Colwill, Kim Min-Jae and Gleison Bremer in the summer, suggesting that they are after a new central defender.

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They have one of the worst defensive records in the Premier League, and Jamie Carragher has even went as far as to claim that they have a ‘Championship back four’ during the embarrassing defeat at Tottenham.

Nonetheless, it is one area that the Merseyside club will surely look to strengthen.

The Latest: Tarkowski eyed

Writing in his latest piece for iNews, journalist Douglas has revealed that Tarkowski has now ’emerged’ as a potential target this summer.

Senior sources at the Toffees have claimed that there is ‘no way’ that Moshiri is going to sell the club, despite Russian links with Alisher Usmanov, and Frank Lampard can ‘expect to be backed’ in the market.

The Verdict: No-brainer

Given the fact that Tarkowski is out of contract at Burnley in the summer, he will be able to leave as a free agent, and so it would be a no-brainer for the Blues to sign him up.

Described as a ‘real leader’ by pundit Noel Whelan, the 29-year-old could be the organiser at the back that Lampard’s team need in order to be more solid and ship fewer goals.

Of course, he has plenty of experience of playing in the top flight, and so should be able to settle in fairly quickly.

In other news, find out which EFC star Manchester United have now ‘discussed’ signing here!