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With very few decent replacements to choose from and plenty of questions about who can effectively use the new ball, Bangladesh will pin their hopes on Mashrafe Mortaza recovering from a side strain at the earliest

Mohammad Isam11-Mar-2014Mashrafe Mortaza is in a race against time to get fit ahead of Bangladesh’s World T20 opener against Afghanistan on Sunday. He is recovering from a side strain sustained during the Asia Cup game against India two weeks ago.With very few decent replacements to choose from and Bangladesh’s attack already being rather one-dimensional, there will be a lot of hopes pinned on him recovering. Mortaza is not a great T20 bowler, in fact he has done poorly in the first six overs more often than not. But he provides inspiration: he is often injured but always comes across as giving his all; he is an intelligent presence among the bowlers, and a good sounding board for captain Mushfiqur Rahim.Though Bangladesh’s T20 bowling has been dismal in general, they put in an encouraging performance on their last T20 appearance, against Sri Lanka. Dew hampered the bowlers as they defended at total of 120 but Mortaza, as stand-in captain, led the attack ably, mixing up his bowlers to good effect. He gave every bowler one or two-over spells, ensuring none of the Sri Lanka batsmen settled against a particular bowler. Although Bangladesh lost off a last-ball boundary – it was also Mortaza’s decision to ask Farhad Reza to bowl a bouncer on that delivery – it was the sort of game plan that looked effective for the bowling attack.Whether Mushfiqur will take a similar approach is debatable, but he will be very happy should he have Mortaza’s experience to fall back on against Afghanistan on March 16, in a match that is a potential banana-skin for the home side.Mortaza’s recovery is shaping up positively. Two days ago, he was reported to have been injected with cortisone to ease the pain. It did the job, and he underwent a fitness test on Tuesday, in front of Bangladesh’s physio Vibhav Singh, who said he was improving every day. He has another fitness test in the next two days, and might also bowl a few overs in the warm-up game against UAE, in Fatullah on Wednesday.”Today I am feeling better than before,” Mortaza said on Tuesday. “I have bowled ten overs each in the last three days, in the nets. I have been feeling better than before. The pain is much less than the day I got hurt. I had a fitness test yesterday, where I bowled five overs. Today I bowled five overs at 80%.”However, should Mortaza not hit 100% in time, Bangladesh have trouble at the top of their bowling innings. Their biggest issue is that their overall best bowler, Shakib Al Hasan, is also their best bowler in the first six overs in T20s. He goes at 5.85 during these overs but because of his importance in the middle-overs, he has bowled less during the fielding restrictions than Mortaza and Abdur Razzak.Mortaza has been Bangladesh’s highest wicket-taker in Powerplay overs, but given his injury history and the resultant drop in pace, he could be in need of fielding protection even if he does play.Al-Amin Hossain can be an option for Mushfiqur, having done well during the Powerplay overs in his only T20 international appearance. Though this is too small a sample size to label Al-Amin an early-overs specialist, he could be worth the risk as Rubel Hossain has taken two wickets and gone at 8.16 per over in seven innings bowled during the Powerplay. Offspinner Sohag Gazi could be another option, but then he has to bowl at a straighter line to both left-hand and right-hand batsmen, with very little margin to err in length too.It is clear that the bowling form of Rubel, Razzak and Gazi will be vital in ensuring Shakib and Mortaza – should he play – get the best cover. Mahmudullah and Reza can come in handy, but they are Mushfiqur’s second-choice attack. If they have to play without Mortaza, Shakib will have to be used prudently.Of course, it would greatly help if one bowler stood up and grabbed a cluster of wickets. Mortaza feels that such a spark will be necessary at crucial moments during the World T20. “In the last five years, we haven’t taken four or five-wicket hauls regularly,” he said. “We have had to make do with combined performances.”In an important moment, we need someone to click. We miss those performances. We have worked really hard in practice but for some reason it doesn’t happen. It might be because of confidence or some other reason. I still believe that if we try hard, we will somehow go for it.”His situation is eerily similar to that in the lead-up to the 2011 World Cup. Then, he injured his knee in a league game a few weeks before the squad announcement deadline, and though he recovered somewhat, he was left out, much to his disappointment.Recalling that setback, Mortaza said: “To be honest, it felt worse to miss the 2011 World Cup. It was the bigger tournament. But since the World T20s is being played in the backdrop of 200 million people’s expectation, I want to play well, and give my 100%. I have my pride when I play for Bangladesh.”

ESPNcricinfo presents the plays of the day from the fourth day of the final Test at Lord’s

George Dobell and Firdose Moonda at Lord's19-Aug-2012Drop of the day
James Anderson has a well-deserved reputation as England’s best fielder in any position. But his failure to accept a simple chance at short mid wicket offered by AB de Villiers off the bowling of Graeme Swann when the batsman had scored just 8 was a major blow to England’s hopes. De Villiers went on to score 43 and England later also dropped Jacques Rudolph. It meant that, in this innings they had dropped Hashim Amla on 1, de Villiers on 8 and Rudolph on six and, in the series, that they had dropped nine chances. As if it is not hard enough to beat South Africa….Celebration of the day
South African batsmen have put their emotions into their gestures when bringing up hundreds on this tour. When Jacques Kallis brought up his hundred at the Oval, he pointed to his eye as a dedication to his friend Mark Boucher. When Amla etched his name onto the Lord’s honours’ board for the second time, he wrote a square in the sky with his hands, as though he was calling for the third umpire. Some thought it was a way of indicating that his name would be engraved again but it was actually a television sign, in recognition of the teams’ video analyst Prasanna Agoram who has been helping Amla behind the scenes. Agoram has been with the team for since before their 2010-11 home series against India and previously worked with the Indian Hockey Federation, Royal Challengers Banglalore and Rafael Nadal.Review of the day
If was not for the DRS, this series may have resembled the 1998 South Africa tour of England, one which Allan Donald remembers for the number of umpiring mistakes. One mistake that was not though was the decision Kumar Dharmasena made when he rejected James Anderson’s appeal for lbw against de Villiers. Live it looked as though de Villiers was in line and height was not an issue so England seemed to have called for a good review. Replays showed the ball was only clipping legstump, less than half of it, so the call remained with the umpire, giving a rare upholding to the two men in the middle for this match.Record of the day
Andrew Strauss has not had much to celebrate in this match so far but he did achieve something significant in his 100thTest. When his fingers closed around the delivery that dismissed de Villiers – a waist high catch off a thick outside edge – he had claimed his 121st catch for his country. In doing so he surpassed Ian Botham and Colin Cowdrey and became the England player to have taken the most catches in the outfield.Dosing of the day
Morne Morkel can come across as a dopey character and while batting he showed why. Morkel reached a careful nine runs, during which he reviewed an onfield decision against him which gave him out because he was actually hit on the grill, before a loss of concentration cost him his wicket. Morkel had his front foot just outside the crease when Matt Prior collected a delivery bowled by Swann. Prior waited for Morkel to raise his back foot and took off the bails in the fraction of a second when Morkel did. His timing was impeccable because Morkel’s foot was soon back on the ground, but not quickly enough to avoid him being saved. Prior had tried something similar when Rudolph when he lifted his foot very briefly but got it down in time. On both occasions though, Prior’s attention to detail was superb.

ESPNcricinfo presents the Plays of the day from the Twenty20 between Warriors and South Australia at Centurion

Sriram Veera in Centurion25-Sep-2010Nasty delivery of the day
It was a pitch that would have suited Ashwell Prince, who is a good player of spin, if only he had survived until the spinners came on. Shaun Tait surprised him with a pacy lifter and Prince could only poke it to slip for a first-ball duck.The stunning six of the day
Tait hurled a 151kmph projectile at Davy Jacobs who had already parked himself around the off stump by shuffling across very early. Jacobs whipped it up and over the square-leg boundary for a fabulicious six.The coolest boundary of the day
It came from Nicky Boje. He had just mowed and crashed Daniel Christian for two successive sixes. He then lunged across to play a cute sweep shot to pick up his third boundary of the over. The crowd loved the cheekiness.The awkward catch of the day
Michael Klinger flicked straight to Botha at deep midwicket, who seemed to lose the ball at the last instant. He ran in too far and his hands didn’t go up. One feared an injury when Botha just about managed to bring his palms up in front of his face, but he snagged the ball to send Klinger back to the dressing room.The dry sight of the day
It was the pitch. It appeared as it was specially mowed for the occasion. Warriors’ strength was their spin and the pitch wore a dry bald look. The ball stopped, turned and created hell for South Australia, who were pushed out of their comfort zone.

Royals signed off from the Jaipur leg of their campaign with a seventh win in eight matches to cement their table-topping status

Andrew Miller22-Apr-20243:10

Sandeep ‘nailing’ new death-over role at Royals

Rajasthan Royals 183 for 1 (Jaiswal 104*) beat Mumbai Indians 179 for 9 (Tilak 65, Sandeep 5-18) by nine wicketsSandeep Sharma announced his return from injury with magnificent figures of 5 for 18, the best by any bowler in this season’s IPL, before Yashasvi Jaiswal blazed back to form with a sparkling 59-ball century, as Rajasthan Royals signed off from the Jaipur leg of their campaign with a seventh statement win in eight matches to cement their table-topping status.Set a middling 180 for victory after a Mumbai Indians’ innings that owed everything to a 99-run fifth-wicket stand between Tilak Varma and Nehal Wadhera, Royals’ chase was signalled and sealed by Jaiswal, who had 31 from 18 balls prior to a 30-minute rain delay, before converting his first fifty of a difficult season into a towering 104 not out from 60 balls.Jaiswal added 74 in eight overs with the in-form Jos Buttler, who made 35 from 25, and a further 109 in 65 with Sanju Samson, whose terrible reprieve on 19 by Tim David at midwicket was the moment all hope evaporated for Mumbai. By then, Jaiswal had also had a major let-off, on 50, when Wadhera at deep cover dropped a leading-edged swipe off Piyush Chawla over the ropes for six.Related

Jaiswal bats himself back to form, for Royals and for India

Sandeep Sharma, the metamorphosis man

Chahal becomes first bowler to to take 200 wickets in IPL

Yuzvendra Chahal's milestones on the way to 200 IPL wickets

Mumbai’s performance was summed up by the deployment of their two outstanding bowlers of the campaign. After being riled by a first-ball slap for six, Gerald Coetzee bowled like the wind in his solitary powerplay over, visibly troubling Jaiswal with his 150kph-plus pace, in particular with a top-edged pull that flew over the keeper for four. Yet he was not given another over until Jaiswal was into the 80s, when he again got a well-set batter flinching, but by this stage the match was already lost.And though Jasprit Bumrah bowled with his peerless verve up front, including a two-run first over to limit Buttler’s early intentions, he too was held back too late into the chase – and when he did return, his comeback over was not a success. A first-ball no-ball was followed by a second-ball wide on height, where upon Jaiswal swung the rolled-over free hit for six, en route to a 16-run over, Bumrah’s most expensive of a stellar season.Boult, Sandeep boss the powerplayAt the Wankhede three weeks ago, Trent Boult silenced Mumbai’s home support with the prized scalp of Rohit Sharma, who grazed his first ball of the match – and the fifth of the innings – through to Sanju Samson behind the stumps. It was a case of rinse-and-repeat in the rematch: Rohit c Samson b Boult, again from the fifth ball, albeit this time with 6 to his name. One filleted four through deep third, then a wild swing through the full length, for Samson to rush round from behind the stumps and gather with a tumble. Remarkably, it was the 26th time that Boult had struck in the first over of his IPL career.Mumbai had batted first after winning the toss, on the proviso that there’s not a lot of dew on offer when chasing in Jaipur. There was, however, sufficient movement off another dry surface to reward Royals’ attacking full lengths, and after one ball of the fourth over, Sandeep had launched a memorable performance in style, to reduce his opponents to a ropey 20 for 3.The first of his victims was Ishan Kishan, caught behind for a third-ball duck as he went fishing to Sandeep’s wide line, pushed tantalisingly up into his arc. Then, after a flurry of two fours in three balls that had hinted at riches to come, Suryakumar Yadav swung without timing across the scrambled seam, and was already wincing as the ball plopped into Rovman Powell’s hands at midwicket.Mohammad Nabi ended the powerplay with an 18-run flurry against Avesh Khan’s first over, but at 45 for 3, the damage at the top was already telling.Yuzvendra Chahal is the first bowler to take 200 wickets in IPL•BCCI

200 up for Yuzvendra ChahalOnly two bowlers in the history of T20 cricket had previously taken 200 wickets in a single competition – Danny Briggs and Samit Patel, both in the T20 Blast. With his extraction of Nabi in his first over of the night, Yuzvendra Chahal became the third entry on that list, and against Mumbai too – the team for whom he had made a one-off, wicketless debut in his maiden IPL season in 2013.The moment arose with another cunning piece of bowling, as Nabi, on 23, closed the face on the front foot to lob a leading edge back to the bowler, off his third delivery. Chahal sunk to his knees as his team-mates engulfed him, fully aware of the feat of excellence and endurance that he’d just recorded. And, at 52 for 4, Mumbai were on their knees too.Tilak, Wadhera find some fightMeasured at first – particularly while R Ashwin was rattling through four wicketless overs for 31 – and then with mounting assurance, Mumbai’s revival was entirely down to two of the younger men in their ranks. Tilak led the line with a combative 65 from 45, bringing up his fifty with a six that also made him, at the age of 21 years and 166 days, the third-youngest player to 1000 IPL runs.However, it was the less heralded Wadhera, playing his first match of the season, who provided the impetus that met the needs of this extraordinarily high-scoring edition. His 49 from 24 balls included three fours and four sixes – two of them in consecutive balls from Chahal, who moments earlier thought he had managed to trap Tilak lbw for 55 on the reverse-sweep.DRS, however, showed the ball to be missing off, and the pair celebrated the reprieve with the verve of a century, which spoke volumes for the importance of their stand. But, as it turns out, their alliance would end on 99 from 54 balls when Boult was recalled to the attack for his final over. His first delivery was a slower-ball bouncer, which Wadhera could only lob to backward point.Sandeep Sharma removed Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav in his first two overs•BCCI

Sandeep applies the gloss finishAt 170 for 5 in the 18th over, Mumbai still had designs on a 200-run total, but Royals’ death bowlers had other ideas. Avesh was on the mark to pin Hardik Pandya lbw for 10 as he walked across his stumps, and after leaking just six runs, even with Tim David looking to cut loose, Sandeep snapped the innings shut.Tilak’s excellent knock ended with a tumbling take from Powell at long-on, following which Coetzee’s first-ball launch picked out Shimron Hetmyer down the ground. David finally got the strike back with three balls remaining but he too picked out a boundary rider to make it three wickets in the over, and 5 for 18 all told for Sandeep.Not only were they the best figures by an Indian bowler for Royals, Sandeep’s figures marked a triumphant return after an injury-plagued season – he had previously managed one wicket in two outings before a side strain had kept him sidelined for most of a month.Jaiswal finds his range at the right timeAfter two double-centuries and more than 700 runs in a startling Test campaign against England, Jaiswal’s IPL had been something of a comedown – just 121 runs and a top score of 39 in seven previous knocks. But there’s never been any doubting his precocity, and when he did finally reach his first fifty of this campaign, the acclaim on the Royals bench was notable. They are already top of the table at the halfway mark, after all … if he is hitting his straps for the run-in, so much the better for their prospects of a second title.By the end, it was as if he’d never been away. His innings was studded with eight fours and seven sixes, including the winning carve through point off Tilak with eight balls left unused. On his watch, Royals are four points clear at the top, and getting better with every outing.

Former Crystal Palace owner Simon Jordan slams Alejandro Garnacho and Manchester United's culture after the Europa League final defeat to Tottenham.

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United suffered defeat to TottenhamGarnacho frustrated after substitute roleArgentinian linked with move away from Old TraffordFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

United lost the Europa League final 1-0 to Tottenham on Wednesday night. Following the defeat, Alejandro Garnacho's brother and agent took to social media to voice their displeasure at the Argentinian winger's limited playing time. Garnacho himself also expressed his frustration in an interview with Argentinian TV, hinting at uncertainty about his future.

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The loss compounds a disappointing season for United, leaving fans disillusioned and questioning the direction of the club. Garnacho's reaction is seen as symptomatic of a wider culture problem at Old Trafford, where players are perceived to be prioritising individual concerns over the team. This perceived lack of discipline and collective spirit has drawn criticism from pundits like Simon Jordan, who believes it reflects poorly on both the manager and the club's leadership.

WHAT JORDAN SAID

Speaking on talkSPORT, Jordan said: "You embolden these little runts to think they've got a sense of entitlement to say these things.

"The agent is an irrelevance irrespective of whether he's his brother or not. And United as they are have brought this upon themselves.

"We've seen this player before. Pack it in. It's nonsense, you little weakling. Get on with bringing a performance every week.

"This is the club that you've created, United. Now, this is the club that you've got to get hold of. This is what your manager's got to get hold of.

"Get hold of this dressing room, get hold of his group of players and start to get them to operate at a level that's vaguely resembling what Manchester United once were before. This is the culture that you've allowed to generate and there you are. So you reap what you sow."

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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR GARNACHO AND MAN UTD?

Garnacho will head off for his summer break after the final Premier League weekend of the season and contemplate his future at United. Ruben Amorim will need to address the culture within the dressing room to ensure improved performances next season. Tottenham, meanwhile, will be celebrating their Europa League victory, with a trophy parade planned through north London.

Barcelona goalkeeper Inaki Pena's future hangs in the balance as the club's ongoing registration issues create a logjam in the transfer market.

Pena's future is uncertain due to a transfer logjamHis departure depends on SzczesnyPena may be forced to wait until the end of the transfer windowFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Pena is in a state of uncertainty as he awaits a decision on his future ahead of the transfer deadline. According to a report from Football Espana, the Spaniard's potential departure is contingent on the club's ability to officially register Wojciech Szczesny as a La Liga player, with missing paperwork causing a final blockage. The situation is complicated by the recent arrival of Joan Garcia as the new first-choice goalkeeper.

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Pena's desire to leave Barcelona stems from his demotion in the pecking order. He was dropped by Hansi Flick in favour of Szczesny earlier in 2025, and the subsequent signing of Joan Garcia has further reduced his chances of playing time. While Marc-Andre ter Stegen has resolved his issue with the club over releasing his medical reports, which allowed Garcia to be registered, he remains ahead of Pena in the long-term plans once he returns from injury. Pena has received two offers from Turkish clubs, and Italian side Como, managed by Cesc Fabregas, have also shown interest. However, delays from Barcelona have reportedly led Como to consider other options.

DID YOU KNOW?

Pena had a brief loan spell at Galatasaray in 2022, where he famously impressed in a Europa League last-16 tie against his parent club, Barcelona.

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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR INAKI PENA?

Pena's immediate future hinges on the finalising of Szczesny's registration. If the Polish goalkeeper is registered, Pena will likely be granted permission to leave before the transfer window closes on September 1. He may need to wait until the final days to secure a move away from the club. Until then, he will remain with the squad and could feature on the bench, as he did in Barcelona's opening-day victory at Mallorca.

سجل فريق ليفربول هدفه الأول في شباك نظيره فريق نيوكاسل يونايتد، في مباراتهما الجارية حاليًا، في بطولة الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز، موسم 2025/26.

ويستضيف ملعب “سانت جيمس بارك” مباراة فريقي ليفربول ونيوكاسل يونايتد، في الجولة الثانية من الدوري الإنجليزي.

وتمكن ليفربول من تسجيل هدف أول في شباك نيوكاسل يونايتد، في الدقيقة 35 من عمر الشوط الأول، وجاء الهدف عن طريق ريان جرافنبيرخ، بعدما سدد كرة مفاجئة من خارج منطقة الجزاء، سكنت الزاوية الضيقة لحارس نيوكاسل، حيث لم يتمكن الأخير من فعل أي شئ تجاهها. هدف جرافنبيرخ في مباراة ليفربول ونيوكاسل

ويمتلك ليفربول 3 نقاط في الوقت الحالي، بعدما فاز في الجولة الأولى على بورنموث بأربعة أهداف مقابل هدفين، بينما تعادل نيوكاسل مع أستون فيلا سلبيًا، بدون أهداف.

The 27-year-old outperformed other contenders for the soon-to-be vacant opener’s job, in the tour game against Pakistan

AAP and ESPNcricinfo staff08-Dec-2023

Matt Renshaw bolstered his chances of a Test recall with a controlled century in the tour game against Pakistan, adding more intrigue to the question of who replaces David Warner when he retires. The 27-year-old outperformed other contenders for the soon-to-be vacant Australia Test opener’s job with an unbeaten 136.The Prime Minister’s XI reached 367 for 4 in their first innings at stumps on days three at Manuka Oval, still 24 runs behind the tourists with the final day’s play almost certain to bring a draw.But Renshaw sealed honours in the so-called “bat-off” in this match among the leading Warner replacements, with openers Cameron Bancroft (53) and Marcus Harris (49) and allrounder Cameron Green (46) not making the most of their starts.He denied there was extra motivation for his classy knock, instead crediting his much-improved mindsight.”It’s just another game of cricket, all the other stuff takes care of itself,” Renshaw said. “Only a couple of years ago, I took a break from the game because of how much I was taking it seriously, that was a really big learning curve for me just to go ‘why am I playing this game’?”It’s not to play for Australia, obviously I want to and that’s the goal but at the end of the day, I’m going to try and enjoy myself.”Renshaw, who has played 14 Tests, adds Friday’s century to 348 Sheffield Shield runs this season at an average of 32, while Warner has previously endorsed him as the leading contender for his job.Outside of a 10-minute period where he hoisted Pakistan spinner Abrar Ahmed for two fours and a huge six, Renshaw played a particularly defensive innings at No. 3 that featured 337 balls. He did have a couple of moments of fortune when he survived a huge appeal for a gloved pull and later edged between the keeper and slip.”It was taking a lot out of me to keep grinding down,” he said. “There were some times where I felt like I couldn’t get the ball off the square.”My game has been transitioning really well this season [from] a couple of little conversations with batting coaches and myself just to work out what I’m trying to do.”Green played some nice shots early, but reached at a wide Faheem Ashraf delivery and was caught behind just as a big score beckoned. He could still play a part in replacing Warner when the opener retires after the Pakistan series, if any of Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh or Travis Head are moved up to open for the Test team.Bancroft perhaps entered the “bat-off” in pole position as the Shield’s top run-scorer this season, while Harris has regularly travelled with the Australian side as the spare batter.Spectators at Manuka Oval perhaps were given a preview of a future Australian leader, with 24-year-old Nathan McSweeney playing some exquisite square drives on the way to his 40. A brilliant diving catch from Mir Hamza denied him the chance for a statement score. McSweeney, who is captaining the PM’s XI, has been earmarked as a future leader after skippering Australia A earlier this year.Beau Webster slugged a monster six that was caught by a youngster in the crowd, a rare highlight in a dull late session.Pakistan had rested first-choice pace bowlers Shaheen Shah Afridi, Hasan Ali and Mohammad Wasim, and spinner Abrar exited the tour match on Friday nursing what appeared to be an injured calf muscle.If they want a specialist spinner in Perth, they may need to pick 37-year-old Noman Ali who also sat out the tour match.

Fast bowler insists contracts announcement has not been distraction during grim World Cup

Andrew Miller01-Nov-2023

Mark Wood says that the timing of England’s central contracts announcement is no excuse for the team’s flatlining performances at this year’s World Cup. However, he is already looking beyond this weekend’s clash with Australia in Ahmedabad towards the 2025-26 Ashes tour, after securing a lucrative three-year deal.With England rock-bottom in the World Cup standings after five defeats out of six, the timing of the announcement has attracted significant criticism. Speaking on a podcast this week, the former England captain Michael Vaughan claimed it was “disgraceful” that Wood’s fellow squad member David Willey had been overlooked in the ECB’s 26-player list – a snub that has played its part in Willey calling time on his international career.However Wood, who will be approaching his 36th birthday by the time the next Ashes tour comes round, believes that the deal – one of just three three-year contracts handed out, along those offered to Harry Brook and Joe Root – is the best way for him to manage his workload amid the competing temptations of the T20 franchise circuit, and ensure that he can give his all for England’s highest-profile engagements.”I’m delighted obviously,” Wood said. “It is security for me as an injury-prone lad. I had to think about my family, going forward. If I ever have trouble, I’ll be well looked after by the England physios. If you’re effectively self-employed, you go to these [T20] teams and say ‘who wants me?’ But if I have a bad season or you get a bad injury, who then looks after you? So now I’m looked after by England, and employed by England.”Wood is one of eight 2019 World Cup winners in England’s current squad, and like most of his team-mates, he has fallen well short of his highest standards in their title defence, claiming four wickets at 69.75 in six matches to date. “Everyone’s trying their nuts off,” he said. “It’s just not clicked the way that we want.”Nevertheless, Wood’s raw pace has been undiminished, and in the opening match against New Zealand at Ahmedabad last month, he clocked the fastest delivery of the tournament so far, at 154kph (95.6mph).Wood has claimed just four wickets in a sorry World Cup campaign•Getty Images

And for that reason, he remains a key asset as England look towards the 2025-26 Ashes tour. On the last trip Down Under in 2021-22, Wood was his team’s outstanding performer in an otherwise dreadful campaign, claiming 17 wickets at 26.64, including a career-best 6 for 37 in the fifth Test at Hobart.Last summer, Wood’s impact was even more spectacular. He had not played competitively since the IPL in April, but he was recalled for the third Ashes Test at Headingley in July, where his first-innings 5 for 34 launched a famous fightback from 2-0 down to square the series 2-2.After the Ashes, Wood did not play again for two months, as he sat out of the Hundred and England’s white-ball home series against New Zealand to rest up ahead of the World Cup. That need to manage his workload, set against the need for an elite sportsman to maximise their earning potential during their athletic prime, meant that the ECB’s three-year offer was a compelling arrangement for both England and Wood himself.”The ECB had mentioned that, if I could keep up my standards and my pace, the Ashes away was the tour that they wanted me to get to,” Wood said. “I don’t think I could cross over loads of franchise and ECB, it just would have been too much with my injury record.”The ECB’s reworked contracts are also intended to stave off the threat of full-time franchise deals, that could eventually result in many of the sport’s biggest names appearing for IPL-affiliated teams all around the world, particularly in the newly launched leagues in the USA, UAE and South Africa.Wood, who claimed 5 for 14 on his debut for Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL in April, would have been a prime candidate for such a deal, and his £400,000 to play for Delhi Capitals in the ILT20 had created a potential clash with England’s Test tour of India next year. However, he insisted that his desire to play for his country trumped all other considerations.”I’ve always wanted to play for England,” Wood said. “That was always what I’ve wanted to do as a kid growing up. I’m going to have to be a bit better that I have been at the minute, but I’d love to be part of everything going forward.Related

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Wood: 'A great trait of the group is resilience'

Ben Stokes turns down ECB offer of three-year contract, signs one-year deal instead

When asked if he felt that the players had too much power in the sport’s current climate, Wood added: “I think it depends on each individual. Everyone will have different motivation, whether it’s money-orientated or whatever, but from my point of view, I wanted to play for England. You’re well looked after playing for England, and there are amazing things that come with England. A three-year deal? Why would I not be delighted with that?”The challenge for England’s players now, however, is to live up to the expectations that come with their new deals, and Wood admitted that the team’s displays at the World Cup had not been good enough.”I don’t think they were a distraction, but I can understand peoples’ frustration,” he said. “Obviously when lads are rewarded with things, and then they don’t perform at the level that you think, that’s justified.”People do it all the time, don’t they? Footballers get it, but it’s not through lack of trying. We are trying our hardest to get this right. We’re putting in extra work. Just look at the net sessions. It doesn’t feel any different.”There’s no cracks in the group. There’s no falling out. Everyone is generally trying to do it for each other. We believe in each other. It’s just not happening the way we want.”

Miami edged Porto to pick up three points in the Club World Cup – and tactically, it required more than just Messi's heroics

So that Lionel Messi guy is still rather good, eh? Anyone who has watched MLS for the last two years or so could tell you that. There is still magic in those legs, even if they move a little slower and walk a lot more these days. And that free kick to bury Porto? Magic, the kind of stuff that he's been doing for years.

It's those moments, of course, that grab headlines and dominate social media. After all, that's the most clickable stuff – and to this point, the most memorable moment from the 2025 Club World Cup.

But delve a little deeper, and this was also a defining moment for manager Javier Mascherano. On Thursday, his side ditched dominance for pragmatism, picked control over chaos. And even though they were outshot by a good Porto side, the way that the Argentine set up his side gave Miami a 2-1 victory and three richly deserved points – and handed him his biggest moment in club management.

GOAL analyzes Inter Miami's win over Porto, and why it was so much more than "give ball to Messi."

Getty Images SportBenjamin Cremaschi, everywhere

For a while, Benja Cremaschi's main problem was that he could do too much. The USMNT fringe player is a phenomenally active ball of energy, covering almost too much ground. Throw him into a team that needs to play positionally, occupy spaces, and slow the game down, and he looks a bit lost.

He is a rare South American footballer that looks so much better without the ball than with it. The issue is, that's not Miami's thing. They want controlled possession. And when it goes wrong, Yannick Bright is the guy charged with winning the ball back. But Bright is injured, which means Miami have a problem.

Mascherano's solution in an eventual 0-0 draw with Al Ahly in the Club World Cup opener was to use Federico Redondo. The Uruguayan is good with the ball and positionally smart, but badly lacks legs.

Porto, then, was a perfect forum for Cremaschi. Miami weren't going to be chasing shadows all evening, but they needed legs in midfield, especially against Porto's fluid 3-4-3 system. Cremaschi was the key to it all. He started, nominally, as a right midfieler, but switched into the center when needed.

A few minutes later, he was on the right again. And while Miami needed subs here and there, Cremaschi never stopped running. He finished the game with more tackles and interceptions than anyone else on the pitch. It was of little surprise.

On the ball, he was handy, too. The heat map suggests that Cremaschi had the majority of his touches on the right inside channel, basically receiving passes and dumping them off to Messi. But he also offered width on the right when needed, making all of the runs to stretch the defense for passes he knew would never come. So much about playing with Messi is dragging defenders out of the way so the Argentine can do his thing. Cremaschi's selflessness was vital.

AdvertisementGettyA defensive line, lower

It has been almost comical, at times, to see how high Javier Mascherano wants his defense to push up. A high defensive line is, objectively, very fun (just ask Hansi Flick's Barcelona.) But it relies on four crucial elements:

+ That your forwards know how to press (Miami's do not).

+ That your midfield is athletic (Miami's is not).

+ That your center-backs have legs (Miami's do not).

+ That your goalkeeper is athletic enough to routinely come off his line and bail your team out (Oscar Ustari is two years younger than his manager).

The result is a badly exposed defense that is always running towards its own goal. Throw in some hilarious individual decisions – Maxi Falcon is basically just a young David Luiz – and you have a paper-thin unit. Yet Mascherano has insisted that his team push up. This is fine against the lesser teams in MLS that Miami will thrash. Against a European power, though, it's folly.

So on Thursday, Miami bunkered in a bit. Their defense was markedly deeper than usual, and the pressure on the ball was lighter. Rather than forcing Porto into rash decisions, they squeezed all of the spaces – and challenged the Portuguese side's diminutive playmakers to make things happen.

Of course, some individual quality was on display, here and there. Porto still created chances. Samu was a real threat up front. But Miami, despite conceding 14 shots, allowed just three on target. One was a penalty. And although Falcon was called upon for a remarkable goal line clearance, the Herons were much sturdier from the opening kick.

AFPSergio Busquets stays static – and that's a good thing

There had been a lot of talk after Miami's opening game of the CWC about the state of Sergio Busquets' legs. This is nothing new. Busquets is not exactly youthful, and he has never been a great runner. But he was markedly poor against Al Ahly – and too often bypassed by a younger midfield.

The "football has left him" dialogue picked up quickly. Well, the dirty little secret about Busquets – that he never seems to get credit for – is that the Spaniard is unbelievably versatile. He is thought of, and quite rightly, as the archetype of the modern No. 6. But he can also play a bit of center-back, and operate a little higher up the pitch against possession-heavy teams.

Most of all, though, Busquets is very, very clever. Ask him to bunker in and defend, and he will do it with aplomb. Running into Busquets looks an awful lot like careening into a very spindly brick wall. There is not an ounce of fat on this man, and even at 36, he is a duel-winning expert.

And so it went against Porto. He won the third-most duels on the pitch, completed all but one of his tackles, and did the usual Sergio Busquets thing of getting away with countless fouls, avoiding bookings, and using minimal contact to get the referee to blow the whistle.

Perhaps most importantly, though: Busquets didn't really move. He sat just in front of Miami's back line, received the ball, swiveled his hips, and found a pass into Messi. He did that over and over again. No other Miami player had more touches, and no one else played more passes into the final third.

Messi often talks about how mastering the art of walking helped lengthen his career. Busquets' ability to stay relatively static actually carried Miami to a win.

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Getty Images SportLionel Messi, magical

Argentina's World Cup winning side in 2022 all acknowledged, at various points, that their job was to fight all of Messi's battles, and then sort of get out of the way. It seems a bit silly in the abstract. There are some really good footballers there – why would you ask them to do menial stuff, all for one guy?

Well, when that one guy is the best to ever kick a ball, it makes a whole lot of sense. And indeed, the strategy of "Give Ball to Messi", or, more appropriately "Balon a Messi" is still a viable thing when pieced together correctly.

Turns out, ultimately, that's what worked for Miami against Porto. The thing about Messi these days is that he still has the ball a lot. While many aging players have fewer touches and prefer to operate in moments, Messi is ever pleasant, sometimes literally just staying warm with a five-yard pass here and there.

Such was the case on Thursday. Messi had the second most touches of any Miami player, but spent a lot of his time knocking the ball about, waiting for the right moment to strike. And of course, he made his mark. Telasco Segovia may have scored the equalizer with a wonderful finish, but Messi started the move with an angled ball down the right.

He created two chances, finished the game with more expected assists than any other player, and, of course, rounded it off with a free kick for the ages. If in doubt, give the ball to the lad in the No. 10 shirt.