ارتبط اسم المدرب البرتغالي فرناندو سانتوس مؤخرًا بالنادي الأهلي، وسط تكهنات حول إمكانية توليه القيادة الفنية للفريق خلال المرحلة المقبلة.
وفي ظل البحث المستمر عن مدرب أجنبي يملك خبرة أوروبية قوية، تزايدت الشائعات حول اهتمام بعض الأندية الأوروبية بمدرب المنتخب البرتغالي السابق.
وخلال الساعات الماضية، خرجت بعض التقارير تفيد بأن سانتوس لديه عرض من نادي باناثينايكوس اليوناني للعودة إلى تدريبه مرة أخرى.
اقرأ أيضًا.. خاص | إجراء عاجل في الأهلي بعد إصابة إمام عاشور
نادي باناثينايكوس اليوناني نفى كل الأخبار التي تحدثت عن رغبتهم في إعادة فرناندو سانتوس إلى الفريق مرة أخرى، بحسب مصدر خاص لـ بطولات.
وأوضح المصدر أن النادي لديه خيارات أخرى لتدريب الفريق، على رأسها البرتغالي نونو إسبريتو سانتو، لكنه أشار إلى أن الاتفاق مع المدرب لن يكون سهلاً.
أما الخيار الثاني، حسب المصدر، فهو الإيطالي تياجو موتا، مدرب يوفنتوس السابق، والذي يُعد من بين الأسماء المرشحة لتولي المهمة الفنية.
وبهذا يصبح فرناندو سانتوس خارج حسابات باناثينايكوس، بينما يظل اسم المدرب البرتغالي مرتبطًا بجدل حول إمكانية توليه الأهلي أو فرق أخرى في المنطقة.
الجدير بالذكر أن باناثينايكوس خلال الساعات الماضية أعلن رحيل مدرب منتخب مصر السابق، روي فيتوريا، الذي كشف بطولات عن وجوده ضمن لائحة المرشحين لقيادة الأهلي.
Clubs can sign one player outside of the draft on a multi-year deal and up to four overall
ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jun-2024Hobart Hurricanes will have pick one in the WBBL draft later this year after coming out first during the weighted lottery that was not in their favour.The first four picks involved those sides who did not make finals in the 2023-24 season – Hurricanes, Sydney Sixers, Melbourne Renegades and Melbourne Stars – followed by the four sides that reached the playoffs. The Melbourne teams finished in the bottom two places last season so had a greater chance of earning the first pick, but will have to wait behind Hurricanes and Sixers.Hurricanes finished sixth last season having taken Shabnim Ismail and Bryony Smith in the draft alongside Lizelle Lee as a direct nomination.Perth Scorchers, who were knocked out in the Challenger, will have the last pick in rounds one, two and four of the draft – in round three, the order is reversed. Picks can be traded between clubs so the order could change. The draft is expected to take place in September.Last season’s first pick went to Sydney Thunder who took South Africa allrounder Marizanne Kapp as a platinum player with Scorchers opting not to use their retention option.Cricket AustraliaThis year clubs can sign up to four overseas players which would include anyone who joins under the new multi-year pre-draft option. New Zealand’s Amelia Kerr was the first player confirmed under that part of the system after being lured away from Brisbane Heat and signing a deal with Sixers.The pre-draft route in the WBBL essentially replaces the direct nominations option that was in place last year and which most clubs made use of. If clubs opt to sign a fourth player, they would become the first overseas replacement.The draft will again include four price bands: platinum (AU$110,000), gold (AU$90,000), silver (AU$65,000) and bronze (AU$40,000).Next season’s WBBL has been reduced to a 40-game regular season in a bid to manage the workload of the game’s leading players and boost attendances. The tournament is expected to start shortly after the conclusion of the Women’s T20 World Cup in Bangladesh, which will finish on October 20.Given the proximity of the World Cup to the WBBL season, it remains to be seen how many of the world’s leading players commit to the tournament in Australia.
It’s all changing at Tottenham Hotspur at the moment.
Ange Postecoglou may have led the club to their first trophy in a generation, but a 17th-place finish in the Premier League was enough for Daniel Levy and Co to send him on his way.
In his place, former Brentford manager Thomas Frank has been tasked with dramatically improving the club’s domestic form next season, and one way to make that happen is by adding genuine quality to the squad.
Fortunately, recent reports suggest the North Londoners may be closing in on a signing who’d be a more exciting addition to the team than Mathys Tel.
Tottenham transfer news
The transfer window may have only just opened again, but Spurs have recently been linked with many talented attackers, such as Bryan Mbeumo and Yoanne Wissa, who thrived under Frank’s management.
Transfer Focus
Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.
Moreover, to ensure the squad aren’t left short on numbers in attack next year, Levy and Co have also re-signed Tel on a permanent transfer.
The young Frenchman did well enough in spells last season, and the potential is certainly there, but based purely on what we saw from him this year, it’s hard to describe his £30m signing as particularly exciting.
The good news is that the Lilywhites now appear to be advancing in talks to sign someone who certainly would be an exciting signing: Antoine Semenyo.
According to a recent report from TEAMtalk, the Spurs are incredibly interested in the Bournemouth star and are ‘growing in confidence in striking a deal’ with the South Coast side.
The report does not mention how much the Ghanaian international could cost the North Londoners, but reports from earlier this month claim that a fee of up to £70m should be enough.
Now, that is certainly a lot of money, but given Semenyo’s ability and experience, it’d be worth it for Spurs, especially as he’d be a more exciting signing than Tel.
Why Semenyo would be a more exciting signing than Tel
Okay, so the first thing to address is that Semenyo has an inherent advantage here in that the newest attacking signings are going to be more exciting than a club re-signing someone they’ve had on loan before purely for the fact that they’ll represent something fresh and relatively unknown.
AFC Bournemouth's AntoineSemenyolooks on
However, while this is undoubtedly the case here, there are other significant reasons why the Bournemouth star would be a far more exciting addition to the team than Tel, starting with their output.
In 20 appearances for the North Londoners, totalling 1257 minutes, the Sarcelles-born attacker was able to score three goals and provide a single assist, which comes out to an average of a goal involvement every five games, or every 314.25 minutes.
In stark contrast, the Cherries ace scored 13 goals and provided seven assists in 42 appearances, totalling 3562 minutes, which comes out to an average of a goal involvement every 2.1 games, or every 178.1 minutes.
Moreover, while the Frenchman can play off the left or up top relatively easily, the Chelsea-born ace can play off either flank, up top or even in midfield, thanks largely to the fact he’s ambipedal.
Finally, on top of everything else, the 25-year-old “monster,” as dubbed by respected analyst Ben Mattinson, also comes out way on top when we take a look under the hood at their underlying numbers.
For example, he comes out on top in almost all relevant metrics, such as non-penalty goals plus assists, shot and goal-creating actions, key passes, successful take-ons and many, many more, all per 90.
Semenyo vs Tel
Statistics
Semenyo
Tel
Non-Penalty G+As
0.45
0.23
Progressive Passes
3.06
2.31
Progressive Carries
3.93
2.62
Shots
3.51
2.47
Shots on Target
1.12
0.85
Passing Accuracy
73.4%
74.4%
Key Passes
1.29
1.15
Passes into the Final Third
1.38
1.31
Passes into the Penalty Area
1.26
1.38
Live Passes
29.5
27.8
Shot-Creating Actions
3.71
2.47
Goal-Creating Actions
0.37
0.31
Successful Take-Ons
1.94
1.62
Ball Recoveries
4.44
3.62
Aerial Duels Won
1.85
0.38
All Stats via FBref for the 24/25 EPL Season
Ultimately, while Tel is a talented player who could develop into something special, Semenyo is streaks ahead of him and would be a far more exciting signing for Spurs.
A better signing than Mbeumo: Spurs enter talks to sign "unbelievable" CF
Tottenham Hotspur could be about to make a move to land an attacker who could star in North London.
This summer is massive for Arsenal football club in their attempts to finally end the two-decade wait for a Premier League title, with the transfer window providing them with a huge opportunity.
Numerous players will need to be sold and brought in to hand manager Mikel Arteta the best possible chance of being a success and completing the overhaul of the first team squad.
The Spaniard has done an excellent job in taking the side from mid-table struggling to title challenges in the five years he’s been in charge at the Emirates.
However, his side have finished second place in each of the last two seasons in England’s top flight, looking set to finish in the same position once again this season.
There’s no denying that key areas are in need of investment to take the side up a notch in 2025/26, with the hierarchy already laying the foundations for various moves in the summer window.
The latest on Arsenal’s hunt for new midfielders this summer
The one midfielder whose name is on the lips of many supporters is that of Real Sociedad star Martin Zubimendi, who’s been a constant target for the Gunners in the last few months.
Arteta’s men tried to land him during the January transfer window, but ran out of time to complete a deal, subsequently needing to wait until the upcoming window to land their target.
It appears they’ve done just that, with new sporting director Andrea Berta confident that the 26-year-old will become his first addition after joining the club after Edu’s departure a couple of months ago.
However, despite the potential incomings, it was confirmed earlier this week that the club were planning on offering Thomas Partey a new deal with his current one set to expire at the end of the campaign.
Whilst the 31-year-old would be a solid squad option in 2025/26, he shouldn’t be a regular starter in Arteta’s side – needing to utilise one player ahead of him at the Emirates.
The Arsenal star who should be ahead of Partey in 2025/26
Declan Rice has been a key player for Arsenal over the last couple of months, single-handedly playing a vital role in their two-legged Champions League quarter-final triumph over defending champions Real Madrid.
His two free kicks in the first leg helped the Gunners boast a three-goal lead ahead of the second leg, whilst producing another Man of the Match showing to seal the deal for the club at the Bernabeu.
The 26-year-old now looks to be a bargain at £105m, but he needs to be partnered by other top-quality talents if they are to go one better and win the title for the first time in over 20 years.
The hierarchy may not need to spend any money on finding a perfect player to play alongside him in the form of Myles Lewis-Skelly, who’s mainly featured at left-back after breaking into the first team.
However, the 18-year-old is a central midfielder by trade, subsequently having the tools to star in such a position – with his stats from the current season backing up his versatility.
Myles Lewis-Skelly for Arsenal
The teenager, who’s been labelled “sensational” by former Spurs star Jamie O’Hara, has completed 94% of the passes he’s attempted, at an average of 40 passes per 90 – handing added opportunities to those around him in the process.
He’s also completed 57% of the dribbles he’s attempted, whilst notching 1.3 touches per 90 in the opposition box, showcasing the impressive talents he has with the ball at his feet.
Myles Lewis-Skelly’s stats for Arsenal in the PL (2024/25)
Statistics (per 90)
Tally
Games played
19
Goals & assists
1
Pass accuracy
94%
Passes completed per game
40
Dribbles completed
57%
Touches in opposition box
1.3
Tackles won
67%
Duels won
6.3
Stats via FotMob
Lewis-Skelly’s impressive ability doesn’t end there, winning 67% of the tackles he’s entered, and coming out on top of 6.3 duels per 90 – not afraid to put himself about despite his tender age.
The youngster’s performances in 2024/25 have been nothing short of remarkable, having the ability to star in Arteta’s side for many years to come.
He’s already earning rave comparisons, notably similar in style to fellow Hale Ender Jack Wilshere. Like Lewis-Skelly, his ability to evade the press, manipulate the ball in tight areas and dribble, are certainly reminiscent.
However, he should be doing so at the heart of the side alongside Rice, with the boss needing to drop Partey out of the side and utilise him as a bench option with Lewis-Skelly needing a chance to star in midfield.
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Manchester City staged an excellent comeback from two goals down to seal a 5-2 victory over Crystal Palace in the Premier League this afternoon.
When Eberechi Eze and Chris Richards put the away side 2-0 up, it looked as though it was going to be another poor result for the Etihad side in the top flight.
They rebounded wonderfully well to seal all three points and they remain fourth in the table at the time of writing as they chase a Champions League spot next season.
All the talk this week was on Kevin De Bruyne finally departing City, and he was outstanding against Palace.
Kevin De Bruyne’s stats vs Crystal Palace
The Belgian won’t go out winning another league title, but he is doing his best to make sure City finish in the top four.
Kevin De Bruyne
Against Palace, he was pushed into a more advanced role and not only scored, but he also grabbed an assist during the tie.
De Bruyne also registered six total shots, missed two big chances, made four key passes and hit the woodwork in what was an energetic display in Manchester.
Manchester City vs Crystal Palace – Key Statistics
Metric
Highest-ranked
Accurate passes
Rúben Dias (105)
Key passes
Kevin De Bruyne (4)
Tackles
Chris Richards and Nico Gonzalez (4)
Ground duels won
Daniel Munoz and Nico Gonzalez (5)
Shots on target
Omar Marmoush (3)
Via Sofascore
He might be advancing in age, but there is no doubt that when he is at his peak, few come close to performing like this. That’s for sure.
Pep Guardiola wasn’t relying on him solely, however, as there was a young talent making his first Premier League start for the club who shone today.
Man City shown why they don't need Gibbs-White
It appears as though City are keen on replacing De Bruyne with Nottingham Forest star Morgan Gibbs-White this summer.
Despite registering 14 goal contributions this season, Forest have reportedly slapped a £100m price tag on the attacking midfielder.
Do they really need him? James McAtee was superb this afternoon at the Etihad. On his first ever league start for the club, he scored a delightful goal in the second half along with creating two big chances and making two key passes throughout the game.
The youngster may have been deployed on the right flank against Palace, but he is at home in the number ten slot, playing there on numerous occasions this season to excellent effect.
James McAtee
McAtee’s maturity is getting better with each game. He only lost possession seven times during the clash, while making one tackle and winning two ground duels.
Chief Manchester City writer for the Manchester Evening News, Simon Bajkowski, gave the Englishman a match rating of 7/10, stating that he ‘made a lot happen’ when he was on the pitch.
Guardiola will need to bring in another big-name signing or two this summer to please the supporters and give the club a shot at winning another league title.
Is spending around £100m on Gibbs-White the right option, however? Especially with McAtee proving today that he can step up when it matters most.
Man City in contact with "electric" £30m full-back with Walker-esque pace
Playing for England wasn’t always a goal but she soon realised “pace, swing and bounce” were her true calling
S Sudarshanan09-Oct-2025For Lauren Bell, cricket just happened. Naturally athletic and competitive, she dabbled in multiple sports for the fun of it while growing up. A lot of football and a little bit of cricket. Playing for England wasn’t always a goal. It just happened.”If you asked probably like 7-8-year-old Lauren, she would be in a full football kit running around with the shin pads on,” Bell tells ESPNcricinfo in Guwahati. “My grandad always brought us Manchester United kits and I was always in the garden doing football. Like kids spend their time doing different things, what I found fun was playing sports.”Bell played for Reading FC from when she was eight. She also played cricket at the time, and her parents took her to training for both sports. It was in 2017, after the second edition of the Kia Super League (KSL), that Southern Vipers offered 16-year-old Bell a contract for their winter training programme and to then play for them in the summer. Training was on Saturday mornings, the same time as her football games.”My parents were like, you need to choose because we can’t physically get to these two places,” Bell says. “That was when I made the decision that I’ll follow cricket. I haven’t played football since, which is a bit sad, but I’ve not really looked back since then.”Related
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Bell is about six feet tall, nicknamed ‘The Shard’. She bowls at good pace and has a mean inswinger. However, she used to lose her footing and fall to her left during her bowling action, which gave her a bit of back pain. Last year, she worked hard to remodel her action, and she can now swing the ball both ways.”I don’t think I was really aware that being this tall is a massive advantage for me,” Bell says. “When I was a kid, I was so much taller than everyone. So obviously as a fast bowler, that’s going to bring its advantages. But I never thought, ‘oh, I’m tall, I’m going to do this’. It just all fell into place.”As I became a professional, I actually started to learn my craft. Before then, you worked on your talent and you’ve already been coached, but you don’t learn about the intricacies of fast bowling and bowling action. Only since I’ve started learning about my skill set and I guess the intricacies of my action, have I learned that obviously my height and the balance I can get in the extra bounce and how I play differently to other seamers. It’s obviously a big advantage for me or it makes me different to other girls and fast bowlers in the game.”Once she understood the advantage her height gave her, she worked hard on improving her speed and controlling swing.”I take the new ball and swinging the ball is a big skill of mine and one of my biggest advantages,” Bell says. “My coaches and I always talk about the three massive things – pace, bounce and movement. If you’ve got them, then you’re going to be a really hard bowler to face. With my height, I can get bounce and if I keep working on my strength, I can increase my pace. I’ve got the ability to swing the ball and hopefully I’ll keep progressing to moving the ball both ways. Swing, pace and bounce is probably where I’m most threatening.”Lauren Bell: ‘Swing, pace and bounce is probably where I’m most threatening’•Getty ImagesIt is not just her bowling that differentiates Bell from most other cricketers. She likes to make a statement with her hairstyle, which has inspired many young players to wear their hair in plaits like she does, and wants to see women cricketers embrace their “girly” side.”I’ve always liked doing my hair,” Bell says. “I remember vividly when I first played with plaits in my hair. I played in a [T20] World Cup with plaits and then played in the Hundred in England and I was meeting these girls and they were obviously there for the cricket. But so many of them had matching hair, like they had their hair in plaits. I was meeting the mums, who were like, ‘I have to do this hairstyle for my daughter every day now’. Stuff like that is part of the reason that I love playing and having the platform to inspire these young girls.”I want cricket to be seen as cool and mainstream, and you can be girly and do your hair and wear whatever you like and play cricket. You don’t have to be like a certain type of personnel. When I was growing up, it was like a boy sport, which has changed over time. This is one thing that I’m passionate about and I care about, and doesn’t affect my cricket in any way. If anything, it reaches an audience that someone else might not reach.”Bell is a graduate in sociology and criminology. She completed her degree before her England debut but worked on her dissertation while being involved in the Women’s Ashes and the 2022 ODI World Cup as a standby.”When I was at school, my parents were really keen for me to go to Bradfield College and do really well at my A levels and study really hard,” she says. “I always wanted to do whatever my sister did and she went to uni, so that was always going to happen. My A levels were good and then I went to Loughborough.”I chose Loughborough with the cricket in mind as well because it made training easier. But when I started at Loughborough, I wasn’t a professional cricketer. I wanted to just study something I enjoyed. I didn’t know what I wanted to do, but after uni, if I wasn’t a cricketer, I just wanted to study something that I thought I enjoyed.”
“I want cricket to be seen as cool and mainstream, and you can be girly and do your hair and wear whatever you like and play cricket.”Lauren Bell
With Covid-19 impacting cricket in 2020 and 2021, her first two years at university were relatively easier, in that she did not have to juggle cricket and course work. But her third year was a challenge, when she was picked for England A’s tour of Australia just before the Women’s Ashes.”It was hard, especially on tour when you’re touring such amazing countries like New Zealand and you have a dissertation to write. It’s tricky to turn down the social part and the exploring. It was the first time I’d been to Australia and New Zealand. So you want to obviously see it, but I also knew that I needed to get this dissertation written and I needed to study and keep up with my lectures. Because of Covid, everything was online and I managed to get through. I had a lot of support and few extensions on deadlines. I’m glad I did it and graduated, but it was tricky.”Since her debut in July 2022, no England fast bowler has taken more wickets in women’s ODIs than Bell’s 40. Kate Cross was close with 39 but she was left out of the World Cup squad, elevating Bell as the leader of the pace attack. In England’s first two games at the 2025 World Cup, Bell took 1 for 24 in four overs against South Africa and 1 for 28 in seven overs against Bangladesh, on slightly sticky surfaces in Guwahati.”It is responsibility; it’s how I really thrive,” she says. “When Heather [Knight] was captain and now Nat [Sciver-Brunt] is the captain, I think the more responsibility I’m given and the more clarity I have on the importance of my role, the more I thrive. I really enjoy taking those opportunities, being the bowler to make an impact or leading the seam attack. It gets the best out of me. I really enjoy it and every time I get a chance to do it, it’s great.”As England travel to Colombo to play Sri Lanka on what could be a slow surface, the once-football-crazy Bell will have another opportunity to show off her new-ball skills. England will hope that just happens.
One bounced batters out, the other had them playing and missing in a typically crafty showing – India’s selectors will be a pleased lot as they firm up plans for bigger challenges ahead
Shashank Kishore20-Aug-2023In today’s day and age of myriad sponsor awards, one for the smoothest bowling action seems to be an obvious miss. If one were to be instituted, Prasidh Krishna will be a front-runner to snap it up. Like he is for a spot in India’s Asia Cup squad which will be announced on Monday in New Delhi, a squad which will in all likelihood also be India’s World Cup squad.After making a whirring first impression on Friday upon return after a year out, injury-ravaged, repaired and realigned Prasidh was back at it again on Sunday, with the old vigour and verve. His 2 for 32 in the series opener served as a perfect prelude to the chin music he inflicted on a better batting deck and under sunny skies today. He was generating pace, getting balls to rear up awkwardly and catching batters on the hop, all without seemingly making it look like he was huffing in.Unlike Jasprit Bumrah, who builds momentum only in his final few strides before delivery, Prasidh is like a steam engine who chugs in, almost robot-like, before he eases into a silky-smooth load up and release. It’s sleek, a neatly contained force that must make batters feel like he’s been warming up for hours elsewhere before coming on.Related
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Paul Stirling must have definitely felt that way when he was snuffed out by a ripper. Imagine knowing what’s coming and what you want to do and yet being unable to have any control over what ensues. That’s how Stirling must have felt when he was all tangled up and beaten for pace as a meek top-edged pull landed in Arshdeep Singh’s hands at fine leg.It was a shoulder-high short-ball that Stirling made the mistake of trying to fetch from outside off. A split-second’s indecision set Ireland back early in a tall chase. Their powerplay enforcer, their most-accomplished batter, among the most experienced across both XIs, was taken out for a four-ball duck.Lorcan Tucker, who replaced Stirling, also got an early taste of this fire when he was late on the pull, the ball lobbing off the splice to mid-on for a three-ball duck in the same over. It was a giant blow to Ireland’s aspirations of upsetting India. It was also a ringing endorsement of Prasidh’s rhythm and form upon return from injury.ESPNcricinfo LtdThe rest of Prasidh’s evening on the field wasn’t quite as thrilling as his opening burst, but there was enough to tick off a box full of markers the selectors and team management would’ve been looking for. Prasidh effortlessly cranked up pace in his second over, hitting upwards of 140 clicks regularly, and also narrowly missed out on a third wicket when Andy Balbirnie’s attempted short-arm jab eluded Ruturaj Gaikwad at extra cover.Balbirnie and Mark Adair would later take the challenge to Prasidh by muscling him over the ropes for three sixes between them in his third and fourth overs – the 15th and 19th of the innings respectively – but by then the asking rate had already spiralled beyond reach. Prasidh finished with 2 for 29 from his four overs and, to go with his two scalps from Friday, he must have been satisfied overall.The other key piece in India’s fast-bowling jigsaw, Bumrah, had a mellower outing. But there were shades of his mastery in his very first delivery when he beat Balbirnie with a ripper that angled in and deviated ever-so-slightly to whizz past a feeble forward push. In the same over, there was also wicked inward movement. Even though it drifted away for five wides, it kept the batters honest, in that they knew he was whizzing it both ways.Bumrah mixed these variations with a mean bouncer, slower length balls later on with batters swinging for the hills, and toe-crushers that had batters scrambling. Most importantly, Bumrah walked the talk, in that, like he had said ahead of the series, at no stage did it appear like he was holding back. And he spoke on the same lines at the post-match presentation today, saying he would not let the immense expectations all around get to him.”Feeling good. Today, I could run in and bowl a little faster,” Bumrah said. “If you play with the baggage of expectation, you are going to be under pressure. You have to keep those expectations aside. You are not doing yourself 100% justice if you are playing with so many expectations. You have to learn to manage the expectations and keep it on the side.”Happy to be back and couldn’t have asked for anything more.”Bumrah’s first strike came in the 17th over, which began with Ireland needing 62 off 24. Prime territory for the batters to go after the bowling you’d think, but he went for just four runs in the over, not a boundary conceded. He did not concede one all day, in fact, and he closed out the game with a particularly mean final over that ended with a dipping slower ball that beat Josh Little to wrap up a wicket maiden, figures of 4-1-15-2 in the bag. The smile at the end, four byes notwithstanding, was that of a content man who knows he’s back to where he belongs.
The Delhi Capitals batter hit six fours in an over and went on to ‘shell-shock’ Kolkata Knight Riders
Saurabh Somani30-Apr-20214:07
Steyn: Prithvi Shaw’s six fours in first over off Mavi took the steam out of KKR
The first time Prithvi Shaw batted in a senior competitive match after his much-dissected failure on India’s tour of Australia, he hit 105* off 89 for Mumbai against Delhi in the 50-overs Vijay Hazare competition. Since then, including that knock, Shaw has gone on an absolute tear: 105* off 89, 34 off 38, 227* off 152, 36 off 30, 2 off 5, 185* off 123, 165 off 122, 73 off 39, 72 off 38, 2 off 5, 32 off 17, 7 off 5, 53 off 39, 21 off 18, and 82 off 41.Apart from the number of balls faced on certain occasions, you almost can’t make out whether those scores came in a T20 match or a 50 overs one. It’s been about half and half, eight List A games and seven IPL matches, with Shaw having reeled off 1000-plus runs in two months. Since that Australia tour, his tally across formats stands at 1096 in 15 innings from just 761 balls. All the worries about the incoming ball, his trigger movement, and his poor form in Australia have been left behind in a blaze of runs, first for Mumbai and then for Delhi Capitals.Related
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Shaw becomes second batter to hit six fours in an over in IPL
Ponting reveals Shaw doesn't bat in the nets when he's not scoring
In their season opener, against Chennai Super Kings, after Shaw flattened them with a 38-ball 72, Ricky Ponting had asked him in the change-room whether he had ever batted better in an IPL game. The question was rhetorical, the Capitals coach believed that was the best he’d seen Shaw bat in the tournament. Then he went on to ask what Shaw was thinking during the innings. “Nothing,” was the answer – an answer Ponting liked because it told him there was clarity in Shaw’s mind and he wasn’t thinking of anything else when in the middle. Three weeks since that knock, Ponting might have to revise his opinion on Shaw’s best IPL innings, because the 82 off 41 against Kolkata Knight Riders had to be right up there too.This was a Shaw throwback to his prodigy days, a comparison made more apt because the bowler who started against him was the man he had captained often at Under-19 level, Shivam Mavi. Shaw seemed to be able to read the bowler’s mind, even as Mavi looked bereft of ideas in a 25-run opening over. It might be the only time a bowler looks back fondly at a wide, because his first ball was so far down legside, Shaw couldn’t get bat on it. He got bat on each of the other six, and each one flew to the boundary.”I wasn’t thinking anything to be honest,” Shaw told after the game. “I was just waiting for the loose balls, because even if it’s the first ball, I’m going to hit it. I knew where Shivam is going to bowl because we have played for four-five years now, so I knew exactly where he is going to bowl to me. So I was ready for it and with my instincts I just went for it.”Prithvi Shaw launched six fours in the first over of the chase•ESPNcricinfo LtdNot thinking extraneous thoughts. Going on instinct. Preternatural awareness of what the bowler would do. And the skill to pull it off. This was an innings that started off with the best of Shaw, and continued in that vein.It left Brendon McCullum gushing too. The Knight riders coach, who at his best played with a similar mindset and skillset, spoke of how Shaw’s innings was “the perfect template” for what he wanted his side to do. He also acknowledged how a 25-run first over in the Capitals’ chase had knocked the wind out of his team.”It was a huge psychological blow from Prithvi Shaw,” McCullum said. “I have an immense amount of respect for Prithvi because not too many people in world cricket play the game with that sort of approach. You’ve got to give kudos as well to Rishabh Pant and Ricky Ponting and the Delhi Capitals management that they’ve been able to ask a player to bat like that, and for him to buy into it. He’s a rare talent, he put us under an immense amount of pressure early.”It was a big blow for us but we should have still been able to come back. You shouldn’t be shell-shocked in one over and not be able to respond to it, but we were tonight. And that’s going to ask some tough questions of us. But I won’t stress, I thought Prithvi Shaw was outstanding, played a wonderful innings and he deserves the accolades.”In between his Australia tour and the return to runs, Shaw spent a well-documented few days with Pravin Amre to rediscover his touch. Along with his bat swing though, Shaw seems to have found a balance in his mind too.”I feel my dad has supported me very well. After getting dropped from the Australia tour, I was really not happy with myself, that ‘What am I doing?’ And my dad just said to play my natural game, work hard on it,” Shaw said. “When talent is not getting you what you want, just work hard and get that back again. These words really set a target for me and I worked hard after that. Obviously, in cricket, the graph is going to be up and down for sure. Lots of failures are going to come in my career, but I’m not really thinking about that. Just going day by day.”That batters fail more than they succeed is a fact of cricketing life. It’s even more stark in T20 cricket. If Shaw can hold on to that balanced process of treating triumph and disaster just the same even when the lows arrive, you’d venture to say that the failures may come, but they won’t stay.
Nearly a decade after leaving it for the world of football, Paul DePodesta is reportedly returning to the sport that made him famous.
DePodesta plans to leave his current position as the Browns' chief strategy officer to become the Rockies' head of baseball operations, according to a Thursday afternoon report from Ken Rosenthal of . The 52-year-old has served in his role with Cleveland since Jan. 2016.
Despite not having worked there in over two decades, DePodesta remains heavily associated with the Athletics and the analytics-first approach they helped pioneer in the 2000s. He served as that team's assistant general manager from 1999 to 2004; in 2012, actor Jonah Hill received an Oscar nomination for portraying a character based on DePodesta in Bennett Miller's .
In '04, DePodesta became the Dodgers' general manager, only for Los Angeles to fire him after two years. He spent time with the Padres and Mets before moving to the Browns, where he struggled under the supervision of owner Jimmy Haslam.
Colorado is coming off one of the worst Major League Baseball seasons of this century; it finished 43-119 and finished 50 games behind the first-place Dodgers in the National League West race.
Perth Scorchers 159 for 4 (Devine 49*, Scholfield 46*) beat Adelaide Strikers 158 (Edgar 4-25, Ainsworth 3-22) by one runAs if there hadn’t been enough drama in Perth on Saturday, Scorchers clung on for a thrilling one-run victory against Adelaide Strikers to secure their third win of the season.Strikers began the final over needing 13 runs, and with one wicket in hand, but fell an agonising two runs short of victory when Darcie Brown top-edged a sweep off the penultimate ball.Scorchers wicketkeeper Beth Mooney and non-striker Megan Schutt almost collided but Mooney was able to take evasive action and pouch the catch to clinch victory.Earlier, Sophie Devine joined Mooney and Ellyse Perry as the only players with 4000 runs in the WBBL as she top-scored for Scorchers. Brown was the pick of the bowlers for Strikers.When Strikers batted, Scorchers took 4 for 6 in the two-over power surge, including a team hat-trick in an Amy Edgar over (the second a run out) with Strikers on 121. Edgar finished with 4 for 25.Opener Laura Wolvaardt made a rapid 41 off 36 balls, and Madeline Penna chipped in with 36.