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Danish Kaneria, the Pakistan legspinner, will be out of action for six weeks after undergoing a finger surgery

Cricinfo staff28-Aug-2008
Danish Kaneria joined Essex a month into the season, and took 75 wickets in all forms of the game © Getty Images
Danish Kaneria, the Pakistan legspinner, will be out of action for six weeks after undergoing a finger surgery. Kaneria, contracted to Essex, will miss their remaining matches of the season.Kaneria fractured his finger in Essex’s County Championship game against Worcestershire on August 22, and flew back home for the operation, which took place on Wednesday.”There was a fracture in my right hand ring finger which I sustained while taking a caught-and-bowled chance,” he told . “I have had the surgery to set it right,” he said. “Hopefully I should be bowling again after six weeks.”Kaneria was disappointed to be missing out, with him unlikely to play for Pakistan this year. A regular in the Test team, Kaneria had taken 220 wickets in 51 Tests, but has only featured in 18 ODIs, the last of which came in the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies. “Already Pakistan is not playing a Test series this year and we are short of cricket,” he said. “The injury has really come at a bad time.”Pakistan haven’t played a Test this year, after Australia postponed their visit citing security concerns. In July, Kaneria had dismissed rumours that he was switching allegiance to England. He had been reprimanded by the PCB in April for criticising them after he was demoted to category C among Pakistan’s centrally-contracted players.Kaneria had not been included in Pakistan’s preliminary squad of 30 for the Champions Trophy, which has been deferred to 2009.

Leeds United have learned that midfield target Lewis O’Brien is keen to join, according to Football Insider. 

The lowdown

The same publication claimed on Friday that ‘preliminary talks’ over a deal for the Huddersfield Town ace are underway.

O’Brien made 42 Championship appearances for the Terriers last season, scoring three goals and providing as many assists.

An all-round option, he averaged two tackles, one interception, 1.1 key passes and 1.3 dribbles per 90 minutes over the course of the campaign (via WhoScored).

O’Brien, Huddersfield’s Player of the Year in 2019/20, has been praised for his ‘incredible’ fitness levels and ‘never seems to get tired’.

The 22-year-old is into the final year of his deal, but the club have the option to extend it for a further 12 months. He’s valued at £2.7million by Transfermarkt.

The latest

The Whites have reportedly been ‘given encouragement via third parties’ that the ‘ambitious’ O’Brien wants to play Premier League football under Marcelo Bielsa.

Now, though, ‘much will depend’ on whether Leeds are willing to meet Huddersfield’s demands.

O’Brien is apparently viewed as an alternative to Conor Gallagher, who opted to joined Crystal Palace on loan from Chelsea.

The verdict

O’Brien would be a real asset to Leeds given his versatility – he’s been used as a central midfielder, no. 10, left-back and left midfielder – not to mention his aforementioned lung capacity, making him a perfect fit for Bielsa’s intense system.

You can understand why they missed out on Gallagher. Game-time would have been his priority when going out on loan, and there’s considerably less at competition at Palace.

O’Brien, by contrast, is eager to make the move, and the signs are that he ticks all the boxes as a plan-B.

In other news, a Serie A expert has delivered a major update on Leeds’ pursuit of Nahitan Nandez.

A round-up of matches on the fourth day of the ICL 20-20 Domestic Tournament

Cricinfo staff24-Sep-2008Left-arm spinner Bipul Sharma was the eighth bowler used by Chandigarh Lions and his spell of 4 for 8 was crucial in dismissing Royal Bengal Tigers for 120, a target which Chandigarh overhauled with six wickets in hand in Hyderabad. Bengal’s openers had added 44 runs in quick time before Deep Dasgupta fell. The innings went downhill thereafter as wickets fell at regular intervals. Bipul ran through the middle and lower order, taking four wickets in three overs. Chandigarh opener Chetan Sharma scored 51 off 42 balls to rule out the possibility of Bengal bouncing back. Bipul remained unbeaten on 11 off six balls when the winning runs were scored in the final over.Chennai Superstars’ openers Ganapathi Vignesh and Hemanth Kumar added 92 for the first wicket against Delhi Giants, a partnership that laid the foundation for their team’s 24-run victory in Hyderabad. Vignesh scored 49 and Kumar made 80 and by the time the latter was dismissed, Chennai had reached 151 in the 18th over. They lost four wickets cheaply as the remaining batsmen tried to accelerate and settled for a total of 167 for 7. TP Sudhindra was Delhi’s best bowler, taking 4 for 35 in four overs. Delhi’s openers struggled against Chennai’s new-ball attack of Rajamani Jesuraj and Tamil Kumaran, and they slipped to 50 for 5 in the 11th over. Syed Mohammad struck two more quick blows to ensure there was no fightback even though Abid Nabi smashed 41 off 15 balls with three sixes. Delhi finished on 143 for 8 after 20 overs.

Tottenham Hotspur could launch a bid for one of their former youth players this month…

What’s the word?

According to the Evening Standard, PSV Eindhoven winger Noni Madueke is among Spurs’ transfer targets as they look to bolster Nuno Santo’s squad with a new creative star.

It’s thought that the Lilywhites are monitoring the 19-year-old ahead of a potential return to the club he left in 2018. However, they are likely to face competition from Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich as well as a whole host of Premier League teams.

The former Spurs academy starlet is thought to be available for around £20m this window, as per The Sun.

Imagine him and Gil

Spurs sporting director Fabio Paratici could be setting Spurs up for an exciting future should he manage to secure the young PSV sensation.

The Italian supremo has already stunned many with his move to sign promising Spanish wonderkid Bryan Gil from Sevilla, which also saw the ageing and injury-prone Erik Lamela go in the other direction.

Aged just 20, Gil is thought to be one of Spain’s biggest prospects behind names like Ansu Fati and Pedri, and he has been described as a “big talent” with “huge potential.”

Perhaps one day, he’s the man to take the reins from Heung-min Son.

Meanwhile, on the other flank, we could see a mouthwatering partnership for the future blossom with the arrival of Madueke.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/spurs-latest-team-news-transfer-rumours-gossip-and-much-more-copy” title= “Read the latest Spurs news, transfer rumours, gossip and much more!”]

Spurs may have given up on him prematurely by allowing him to leave on a free transfer to the Eredivisie, but it’s worked out massively for the player.

Last season, the England U21 international enjoyed a breakthrough year.

In 32 appearances (just 11 starts), he provided nine goals and eight assists, averaging a direct contribution once every 75 minutes, via Transfermarkt. When you compare this to Harry Kane’s exploits, you’ll quickly learn just how impressive that is.

The Spurs striker provided a whopping 33 goals and 17 assists but did so at a rate of one every 79.6 minutes, marginally worse than the former Lilywhites gem.

Madueke’s qualities aren’t just simply his creative and finishing abilities as he offers brute strength and rapid acceleration which would strike fear into many a Premier League defence, especially with Gil on the other side.

His former England U21 head coach Aidy Boothroyd recently described him as a “powerhouse of a player”, whilst ex-Dutch midfielder Tommie van der Leegte dubbed him “explosive.”

On the above evidence, it would be wise for Paratici to sanction a move for Madueke sooner rather than later. He and Gil may not be a hit right away, but under the right coaching, they could form Spurs’ attack for many years to come.

It’s an exciting and mouth-watering thought.

AND in other news, Spurs must secure “phenomenal” £25m-rated dynamo with “magical powers”, Nuno needs him…

An extraordinary opening day was followed by an incredible second as Ireland kept their hopes of making it to the final alive with a eight-run win in Windhoek

Cricinfo staff04-Oct-2008
ScorecardAn extraordinary opening day, on which 25 wickets fell, was followed by an incredible second as Ireland kept their hopes of making it to the final alive with an eight-run win in Windhoek. Leading by 27 with just five wickets left in their second innings, Ireland stretched it to 114 and the bowlers ensured Namibia, already in the final, didn’t overhaul the target. It was the bowlers who dominated the day again, medium-pacers Kola Burger and Boyd Rankin completing five-wicket hauls with no batsman crossing 30 in the match.Ireland’s comeback began confidently with Andrew White and Trent Johnston, their former captain, adding 27. Left-armer Kola Burger dismissed the two in quick succession to make it five for the innings, but Regan West (27) and Kyle McCallan (19) put on 47 for the eighth wicket. Kola’s brother, Sarel Burger, took two lower-order wickets.Set 115, Namibia’s hopes of a win were quickly jolted when they were reduced to 31 for 4. Gerrie Snyman top scored with a 14-ball 28 (three fours, two sixes) but Namibia managed just four double-figure stands. The best was the seventh-wicket stand of 27 between Craig Williams and Bjorn Kotze, both of whom scored 16. The tail failed to wag enough to take Namibia to victory; Rankin took 5 for 39 as Ireland sealed the win. Johnston took 2 for 9 off his five overs, while Rankin’s new-ball partner Peter Connell had three wickets in his nine, conceding 49.Ireland now need an outright win, without conceding a lead on the first innings, in their final game, against second-placed Kenya, to qualify for the final. The four-day clash begins on October 11 in Nairobi.

Namibia 7 6 1 00 0 108 1.226 3088/122 2849/138 Kenya 6 4 1 00 1 96 1.367 2075/73 2079/100 Ireland 6 4 0 02 0 86 2.122 2494/58 1925/95 Scotland 7 3 1 02 1 82 1.302 1969/69 1972/90 Netherlands 7 3 4 00 0 48 0.771 3050/128 3030/98 U.A.E. 7 1 5 01 0 29 0.787 3024/124 3129/101 Canada 7 1 5 01 0 29 0.782 2814/114 3094/98 Bermuda 7 1 6 00 0 26 0.670 2883/140 3319/108

Everton have been offered the chance to sign striker Salomon Rondon, according to Ekrem Konur.

The Venezuelan has experience of the Premier League after spells with West Bromwich Albion and Newcastle United. The Baggies paid £15.3m to sign him from Zenit St Petersburg in 2015, and three years later he headed to Tyneside on a season-long loan.

Could Rondon link up with Benitez for a third time?

Rondon was managed by Rafael Benitez, now Everton’s manager, while at St James’ Park. He scored 12 goals and provided seven assists in 33 games under the Spaniard’s tutelage at Newcastle, and they would later reunite at Chinese Super League outfit Dalian Yifang in the summer of 2019.

He has played 140 Premier League games throughout his career, scoring 35 goals in the division to give him a return of one every four matches, which wouldn’t mark him out as a hugely prolific player.

Rondon, who spent the latter half of last season on loan at CSKA Moscow, is into the final 18 months of his contract with the club. The 31-year-old is valued at £5.4m by Transfermarkt.

Everton could be in the market for a back-up to Dominic Calvert-Lewin after Josh King left at the end of his contract.

Fan feed Toffee TV relayed the rumour, and here’s what some supporters made of it, with many unconvinced by Rondon.

Everton fans weigh in on potential Rondon move

“We are going to turn into Newcastle”

Credit: @DiegoMa98867682

“He wasn’t good enough for us when he played for WBA and now he’s a few years older. Jesus wept.”

Credit: @KingMantisBand

“Are we scraping the bottom of the barrel or something, this is ridiculous”

Credit: @lebatman1

“Oh good god, stop being offered has beens”

Credit: @Rowley684

“It was literally a matter of time, wasn’t it”

Credit: @RoutledgeJordan

“Rafa Benitez doing Rafa Benitez things”

Credit: @Pro_crastinator

In other news, many Everton fans erupted over this update on a defensive target.

Chris Martin was named in New Zealand’s squad for the first Test against Australia but there was no room for the offspinner Jeetan Patel in a group heavy on fast-bowling options

Cricinfo staff05-Nov-2008
Chris Martin is back in the Test frame © Getty Images
Chris Martin was named in New Zealand’s squad for the first Test against Australia but there was no room for the offspinner Jeetan Patel in a group heavy on fast-bowling options. New Zealand chose a 15-man squad for the first Test at the Gabba starting on November 20, although only 13 will travel to Brisbane.Peter Fulton will remain in New Zealand to play domestic cricket and Gareth Hopkins, the backup wicketkeeper, will leave for Brisbane on the eve of the Test as cover for Brendon McCullum in the case of injury. A separate squad will be named for the second Test, which begins on November 28 in Adelaide.The inclusion of Martin, who missed the recent tour of Bangladesh due to niggling hamstring and back problems, is a boost for an attack that features five fast bowlers. Spin was the key in Bangladesh, where the strike bowler Kyle Mills picked up only one wicket in two Tests, but Daniel Vettori is the only slow bowler in the team for the Gabba.As expected, Jacob Oram was not selected as he continues to battle a back injury. Grant Elliott, who replaced Oram in the second Test in Mirpur, could get a chance to add to his two Test caps.New Zealand’s tour begins with a warm-up match against New South Wales in Sydney starting next Thursday. New Zealand have not won a Test in Australia since 1985-86.New Zealand squad Aaron Redmond, Jamie How, Jesse Ryder, Ross Taylor, Peter Fulton, Daniel Flynn, Brendon McCullum (wk), Grant Elliott, Daniel Vettori (capt), Gareth Hopkins (wk), Tim Southee, Kyle Mills, Iain O’Brien, Mark Gillespie, Chris Martin.

A tenth-placed finish in the league last season was not good enough for Everton, especially under Carlo Ancelotti.

The Italian had been brought in to guide the Toffees to Europe’s top table but their chances of doing so have dramatically decreased since he departed Merseyside.

What’s the word?

Everton now have Rafa Benitez at the helm but they’ve struggled to improve their options ahead of the new campaign this weekend.

They have signed three players for a combined £1.7m and it doesn’t look as though they’ll spend too much more.

That being said, they should make a late dart for Sassuolo winger Jeremie Boga before the window closes.

Valued at just £18m by Transfermarkt, he was linked with a move to Goodison Park earlier this summer.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast this week, Forza Italian Football editor Conor Clancy suggested he should have been signed already.

He said: “There’s no competition between Boga and Townsend. Boga is twice the player Townsend is – and then some.”

Must sign him

Like Clancy states, Boga is evidently a better player than one of the players they’ve brought in.

Consequently, Benitez could take his Everton attack to a new level by securing the 24-year-old’s services.

Once of Chelsea, the left winger was described as a “supreme talent” by former Blues coach Michael Beale.

It’s clear to see why too. Boga is a nightmare for defenders and is capable of dominating opponents with his incredible dribbling ability.

During the 2020/21 campaign, the Ivorian completed 3.2 dribbles per match, a number that was only bettered by Rodrigo de Paul in the whole of the Italian top-flight.

If we compare that figure to those already at Everton, it’s streets ahead of anyone. Their top dribbler last season was Richarlison who completed 1.8.

To elaborate on his ability with the ball, Boga ranks in the 97th percentile for dribbles completed by players in his position across Europe’s top five leagues.

With the attacker displaying a keen eye for goal in Italy, he has the potential to be devastating in the Premier League too. This is a move that would improve Everton’s offensive line significantly.

AND in other news, Fabrizio Romano delivers worrying Everton transfer update, fans must be fuming…

A complete team performance from the West Indies ensured a 14-run win against Sri Lanka in the fourth ODI at the Premadasa in Colombo

Cricinfo staff11-Nov-2008
ScorecardA complete team performance from the West Indies ensured a 13-run win against Sri Lanka in the fourth ODI at the Premadasa in Colombo. While Deandra Dottin and Lisa-Ann King batted well to take West Indies to 170 earlier, Kirbyina Alexander and Shanel Daley picked up two wickets apiece to ensure the series stayed alive.An allround performance from captain Shashikala Siriwardene was not enough for Sri Lanka as they failed to take advantage of their 2-1 series lead going into the match.A brisk start by openers Deandra Dottin and Stefanie Taylor may have had Sri Lankan captain Shashikala Siriwardene ruing her decision to put West Indies in to bat after winning the toss. However, having raced to 53 in the 11th over both fell in successive overs. Dottin (34) was caught by Suwini Alwis off Chamari Polgampola, while Taylor (19) was caught and bowled by Chandi Wickramasinghe.The spinners were then introduced in the attack, and Siriwardene struck immediately trapping Charlene Taitt leg-before and Anisa Mohammad was the next to go, lbw to Rose Fernando. It was once again upto their most-successful batsman on the tour, Lisa-Ann King, to repair the damage.But as in the last match, the middle order crumbled even as King held up the other end. A fighting 39 off 43 balls from King, which comprised three fours and two sixes, helped the West Indies clamber to 170. Polgampola was the pick of the Sri Lankan bowlers, finishing with 3 for 23, while Siriwardene ended up with 2 for 23.Sri Lanka struggled right from the beginning during their reply. They were reduced to 55 for 4 in the 27th over as Daley struck twice to remove Fernando and Sanduni Abeywickrama. However, Siriwardene led from the front with a fluent 46.She put on 70 runs with Wickramasinghe for the fifth wicket as Sri Lanka looked to rebuild. But King had her caught behind with the score on 125, and 10 runs later when Wickramasinghe fell to Alexander, Sri Lanka’s chances of victory looked grim. The lower order failed to put up any resistance as they were shot out for 157.The fifth and final ODI will be played at the same venue on Wednesday.

Crystal Palace have made an inquiry for Bournemouth midfielder David Brooks as new manager Patrick Vieira looks to further bolster his squad.

What’s the story?

According to The Sun, the Eagles opened talks with the south coast club over the highly-rated 24-year-old, but the Cherries were quick to inform them that he’s not for sale.

The report claims that the Bournemouth hierarchy wanted £50m to release Brooks a year ago following their relegation from the Premier League and are now refusing to quote a price.

He’d be another Parish masterclass

After leaving boyhood club Sheffield United in an £11.5m move back in the summer of 2018, Brooks enjoyed a fabulous maiden Premier League campaign at the Vitality Stadium.

The Wales international bagged seven goals and laid on a further five assists in 30 league appearances for his teammates as the versatile youngster showcased his quality and potential in the top flight. However, Brooks’ progress was severely hampered by a persistent ankle injury throughout 2019/20, limiting him to just nine outings in the entire campaign.

A return to form last season saw the creative talent make 13 goal contributions in all competitions, though, but his efforts weren’t enough to get Bournemouth out of the Championship.

As a result, the £14.4m-rated magician is now attracting interest from the Premier League, and Vieira openly admitted that he’s searching for extra reinforcements in Friday’s press conference.

“When you look at the squad we are maybe a little bit more light on numbers, and we are working hard to improve the squad (with) the window are still open. We will try to bring players that can improve our squad,” the Palace manager stated.

“I think where we are maybe a little bit more short is upfront and in the midfield, I think it would be good to reinforce those positions.”

Palace chairman Steve Parish has already pulled off several pieces of impressive business in the current window, securing the services of Joachim Andersen, Marc Guehi, Michael Olise and Conor Gallagher.

Adding Brooks into the mix would certainly go down as another masterstroke from the capital club’s chief, given the impressive figures the Welshman has racked up at Bournemouth.

In other news… Journalist drops exciting Crystal Palace transfer update, fans will be buzzing