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Up against the most balance sided in the league, there’s just no margin for error. Mumbai, take note

Jamie Alter in Delhi16-Mar-2010Match factsWednesday, March 17
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)Big pictureDirk Nannes v Sanath Jayasuriya promises to be a cracking contest (file photo)•Associated PressDelhi and Mumbai have been India’s long-standing rival cities but not so in the IPL with their representative teams; Delhi Daredevils have beaten Mumbai Indians three times out of four. Delhi have hit form early in the tournament, equally with bat and ball, and will also have with them passionate support. Mumbai, though, won’t be without fans at the Feroz Shah Kotla, given their captain is the biggest star in international cricket. But their memories of facing Delhi are discouraging, with two defeats in 2009 that made in three in a row.Mumbai escaped with their hair on their necks against the most audacious of Twenty20 century from Yusuf Pathan at the Brabourne Stadium. Having gone past 200, thanks to two innings from their domestic players – after their richly experienced openers failed – Mumbai were pushed to the brink by Pathan’s bravado. Apart from Zaheer Khan and Lasith Malinga, their bowlers suffered and had it not been for a superb run-out and Malinga’s full-and-straight line, the result could have easily been different. Barring their two international fast bowlers, the bowling appears thin and the lower middle order equally shaky. They have their task cut out against a resourceful bowling attack, cannily led by Dirk Nannes.Delhi sit atop the IPL points table and are looking a good bet to go a long way forward. Their openers, Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag, have each hit match-winning fifties and the bowling has been good so far. Tillakaratne Dilshan has two ducks on the trot so he’s due an innings. Even the extended absence of Ashish Nehra with a rib injury has not deterred the assistant coach Eric Simons from putting faith in Delhi’s rich depth of reserves.Up against the most balance sided in the league, there’s just no margin for error. Mumbai, take note.Team talkDelhi will to be without Nehra, who Simons confirmed faces a two-week lay-off. That means Farveez Maharoof, who has been their most expensive bowler in two games, is likely to play unless Delhi opt for an extra batsman in David Warner and persist with the legspinner Sarabjit Ladda, who made his IPL debut on Monday. The sheer brute force Warner brings is just too tough to pass up for a third straight game.Mumbai have been monitoring JP Duminy’s progress as well as that of Harbhajan Singh, who hurt his leg while batting against Rajasthan Royals and did not bowl. Harbhajan appeared just fine in the nets and Duminy is expected to come back into the team, so it may be a quick return to the bench for Ryan McLaren. Mumbai showed a degree of flexibility by promoting Aditya Tare to No. 3, with decent success, so a few more Indian players could also perform floating roles. The West Indians Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard are due to arrive in India late tonight and the management will decide whether both will slot straight in to the playing XI. The left-arm spinner Ali Murtaza was caned during the first game, so he could be benched for Abhishek Nayar.Previously…The teams shared the spoils in 2008, with Mumbai winning their first encounter by 29 runs and Delhi hitting back with afive-wicket win. When they came up against each other in South Africa, Delhi beat Mumbai by seven wickets, and by four wickets.In the spotlightThe pitch: The Feroz Shah Kotla is currently serving a 12-month ban from international cricket after the farce played out here last December, when an ODI between India and Sri Lanka was called off. The ban does not apply to domestic events and the IPL, but it is believed this game will not be played on the same strip that caused problems for the batsmen in December. In fact, it is believed that the pitch preferred by Gambhir is an adjacent one. The head curator Venkat Sundaram has played down talk of the pitch being a concern, and said it would be “rock hard”. Despite his words, there is bound to be plenty of buzz about the track at the Kotla.Sachin Tendulkar: The last time he played at the Kotla for Mumbai he managed just 18, but Tendulkar against Nannes is a contest to watch out for. Age seems to be no bar for this man and as he has showed during the past few months, Tendulkar can still make bowlers bow.Dirk Nannes against Sanath Jayasuriya: Nannes has been quite a handful against the left-handers, and his natural angle, into the left-handers, will give Jayasuriya no room to free his arms.Prime numbers Virender Sehwag has the third-highest strike-rate of the season so far, having scored his runs at 207.50.Dirk Nannes has the best economy rate in an innings in this edition – his four overs against Kings XI Punjab went for just 12 runs, and he picked up two wickets.The chatter”He’s only faced three deliveries, so you can’t say he’s out of form. If he’d played 20 balls and struggled, you could maybe look into it.”
“Like any other senior player in the team, I am always willing to help youngsters. I feel that the inputs of younger players are also important. I have learnt a lot from them. The more you talk with them, the more you learn.”

Manchester United interim boss Ralf Rangnick has decided to keep hold of Donny van de Beek during the January transfer window, according to The Mirror’s David McDonnell. 

Van de Beek is reportedly ‘valued’ by the German coach and as such, he ‘will not be allowed to leave’ at the turn of the year.

Opportunities under Rangnick?

Rangnick has only taken charge of three games so far, but Van de Beek has been involved each time. He was handed brief run-outs in the 1-0 victories over Crystal Palace and Norwich City and played the full 90 minutes of United’s final Champions League group stage game against Young Boys.

The £22.5million-rated midfielder still has at least three and a half years left on his contract at Old Trafford, having joined from Ajax in 2019.

Van de Beek scored the final goal of the Ole Gunnar Solskjaer era in the 4-1 defeat away to Watford in November, and was hailed by ex-United player Owen Hargreaves for an ‘absolutely fabulous’ display.

Fan feed Utd Report relayed McDonnell’s claim, and here’s what supporters made of it, feeling he can recapture the type of form he enjoyed with Ajax, where he bagged 41 goals and 34 assists in 175 games.

These United fans erupt over Van de Beek news

“Yesssss redemption time”

Credit: @UTDKN_

“OUR TIME IS SOON TO COME”

Credit: @SznWeigl

“He will be class again just like when he was at Ajax, watch”

Credit: @jrwbritain

“Oh my!!! Am relieved”

Credit: @EbrimaJones

“Perfect decision”

Credit: @Shamil45700651

“Praise the Lord”

Credit: @scottyirl

In other news, could United sign his compatriot?

Worcestershire’s losing streak in the Twenty20 Cup continued with a fifth straight defeat as Derbyshire won by six wickets to move into the top three of the North Group

Cricinfo staff21-Jun-2010
Scorecard
Worcestershire’s losing streak in the Twenty20 Cup continued with a fifth straight defeat as Derbyshire won by six wickets to move into the top three of the North Group. Moeen Ali did his best to halt the slide with 67 off 52 balls out of the Royals 127 for 7 and then took 2 for 14 from his four overs to make the Falcons sweat under the County Ground floodlights.But Garry Park hit an unbeaten 41 from 40 balls and shared a stand of 64 in 10 overs with Robin Peterson to see the Falcons to 128 for 4 with four balls left. The result means Worcestershire have now lost 35 games in the competition, more than any other team in the eight-year history of domestic Twenty20 cricket.The signs were ominous for the Royals after they were put in and Phil Jaques chopped the first ball of the match from Charl Langeveldt onto his stumps. Sanath Jayasuriya also failed, scooping Tim Groenewald to mid on for nine in the fourth over and a great reaction return catch by Wes Durston cut short a blossoming innings from Alexei Kervezee.After 10 overs, the Royals were struggling at 59 for 3 and only Moeen came to terms with another slow Derby pitch to at least give his bowlers something to defend. Daryl Mitchell was lbw playing across the line at Peterson and when James Cameron sliced Durston to backward point in the 15th over, the visitors were still well short of a challenging total on 83 for 5.But Jack Manuel drove Greg Smith for the only six of the innings – which also included only eight fours – in the next over and helped Moeen add 40 before Steffan Jones speared one in to trap Moeen lbw in the 19th over. Gareth Andrew came in but failed to give the innings a final flourish and was bowled for a duck swinging wildly at Langeveldt, who conceded only four from the last over.The Falcons appeared to be coasting to victory when Loots Bosman launched the chase by hitting seven fours, three of them in one over from Andrew, but the spin of Moeen and Jayasuriya put the Royals back in the game. Bosman skied Moeen to long on and Smith played around one to be lbw before Durston was caught and bowled in the next over when he drove too soon at the Sri Lankan.The flow of runs had now dried to a trickle and the pressure on the home side would have increased if Peterson had not been badly missed before he had scored by Cameron at deep midwicket, who fell over and allowed the ball to cross the ropes. The result was still in doubt when the Falcons needed 25 off 18 balls but they had wickets in hand and Park settled any nerves by twice hitting Alan Richardson for four in the 18th over.He then swung Mitchell for six over midwicket and although Peterson was bowled for 24 off 22 balls trying to seal victory in style, Park pulled Andrew for the winning run off the second ball of the final over.

Gautam Gambhir has come out strongly in defence of Yuvraj Singh, who was criticised by the media for his poor performance in the 2010 season of the IPL

Cricinfo staff03-Apr-2010Gautam Gambhir, the Delhi Daredevils captain, has come out strongly in defence of his India team-mate, Yuvraj Singh, who was criticised by the media for his poor performance in the 2010 season of the IPL.”You have got to show confidence in your cricketers, you have got to back them up when they are down,” Gambhir wrote in his column for . “Yuvraj is an exceptional cricketer, and the match-winner right now in this country. He’s always been the way he is, in form or out of it. He’s had the same lifestyle, the same carefree, happy attitude to life in general. So why kick the guy when he’s down?Yuvraj has scored only 137 runs in eight IPL games at an average of 17.12. His performance mirrored Kings XI Punjab’s woeful showing and they are virtually out of contention for the semi-finals after winning only one out of eight games. That led to speculation that his poor form was due to an alleged rift between Yuvraj, the former Punjab captain, and incumbent Kumar Sangakkara. An upset Yuvraj vented his feelings on his Twitter page.”This is the same Yuvraj who’s single-handedly won matches for India,” Gambhir said. “So yes, he’s going through a lean patch, that doesn’t make him any less of a fantastic player. Every person, whether it’s Yuvraj, or you or me or anyone else, needs space and time to recoup, the freedom to be allowed to do that and the confidence that someone out there is standing by him.”Yuvraj had also stressed that his poor batting form was due to his recent injury and nothing else.

Raina remains confident of turning in a strong performance in the tough series against South Africa coming up next month

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Nov-2010Indian batsman Suresh Raina’s hold on the No. 6 spot in the Test side has become less secure after managing only 26 runs in four innings against New Zealand, but he remains confident of turning in a strong performance on the tough tour of South Africa, beginning next month.”It is a very important series, and a big challenge, for me,” he told the . “Though I have played there before, it has been only in the ODIs and Twenty20.”South Africa have a formidable record over the past four years, losing only one series since the reverse in Sri Lanka in July 2006, and Raina wasn’t expecting an easy tour. “Self-belief, confidence and mental discipline will be the key to success in South Africa,” he said. “I am looking forward to the challenge because when you do well against good teams, you get appreciated for having done well. This is also why you want to play international sport.”His Test career got off to a dream start with a debut century against Sri Lanka in July, though he has found the format to be more challenging in the two home series that followed. “To succeed in Tests, your temperament is more important than your technique,” he said. “How you handle pressure situations and how you work your way out of trouble through grit and courage is also important.”

Speaking to Football Insider, former Premier League goalkeeper and Sky Sports pundit Paul Robinson has been left thrilled by a Tottenham Hotspur transfer development involving AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessie.

The Lowdown: Spurs set for ‘lucrative’ offer…

As per a recent update by American news giant ESPN, Tottenham are now set to make a ‘lucrative’ pre-contract offer to sign the Ivorian with a view to a free transfer in the summer.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/spurs-latest-updates-5/” title=”Spurs latest updates!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The 25-year-old is out of contract at the San Siro at the end of this season, meaning he can negotiate formal agreements with overseas clubs to sign for them once his deal expires.

Tottenham are major contenders to sign the Milan star as Fabio Paratici now allegedly eyes a bumper proposal.

The Latest: Robinson thrilled…

Speaking to FI, ex-Tottenham shot stopper Robinson has been left thrilled by this news, claiming he is a ‘hell of a player’ and would undoubtedly add ‘quality’ to Antonio Conte’s squad.

“Conte knows a lot about him from his time at Inter Milan,” the ex-Three Lions international explained.

“Can they get him on a pre-contract ahead of the summer? I hope so.

“It would be a hell of a player to get in early. He is the type of player Spurs need to be looking at in January. A top player who is out of contract in the summer.

“They could get a deal done for him now or if not they can line it up for the summer.

“Kessie is a player Conte knows well and he’d undoubtedly add quality to the squad.”

The Verdict: Get it done…

Thriving in a more attacking role under manager Stefano Pioli in recent seasons, Kessie could add that much-needed midfield creativity for Conte for a zero cost transfer fee if they can bring him in on a pre-contract.

Bagging 19 goals and seven assists since the start of 2020/2021, the 52-cap star possesses real threat in the final third and is still only 25-years-old – coming with real sell-on value and a long shelf life.

Valued at £43.2 million by Transfermarkt, it’s safe to say Spurs would be striking a real bargain by signing Kessie for nothing.

In other news: Tottenham ‘working strongly’ for ‘phenomenal signing’ as reporter drops Twitter claim, find out more here.

Surrey’s CEO Paul Sheldon, envisages a future in which The Oval, soon to be regenerated as a 25,000-seater stadium, can be at the forefront of any further drive to globalise the game

Andrew Miller and Andrew McGlashan09-Feb-2010Hampshire’s groundbreaking deal with the Rajasthan Royals, which was announced at Lord’s on Monday, could have changed at a stroke the dynamics and priorities of the remaining 17 first-class counties, as the scramble intensifies to reposition English cricket in the midst of the IPL revolution.As many as six county chief executives are currently believed to be in India, sounding out investment opportunities for the future of their clubs, and one of those, Surrey’s CEO Paul Sheldon, envisages a future in which The Oval, soon to be regenerated as a 25,000-seater stadium, can be at the forefront of any further drive to globalise the game.”I have been having various discussions with various people to investigate possible links that can be made in a country that’s full of opportunities,” Sheldon told Cricinfo. “Business-wise and stadium-wise, and international cricket-wise, we like to think of ourselves as a global leader, and we believe it’s vital that Surrey is at the forefront of such discussions, given that we’ve had many, many, more people through our gates for Twenty20 cricket than any other ground.”Despite enduring three of the leanest on-field years in the county’s long and illustrious history, the sheer value of Surrey’s bricks and mortar – crucially situated in the heart of London – give them the right, in Sheldon’s opinion, to drive a hard bargain, and he confirmed that, as a potential senior partner in any future alignment, the business model adopted by Hampshire is not a direction that they would contemplate following.”We are well situated in London, and we have a very, very strong Indian and Asian following,” he added, highlighting Surrey’s success in marketing previous matches with a subcontinental slant, in particular the 2005 Tsunami relief match featuring Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan, and the World Twenty20 warm-up fixture between India and Pakistan last summer, both of which were sell-outs.”Without jeopardising anything in terms of our agreements with the ECB, it is clearly my responsibility to use the ground as much as we can,” said Sheldon, who reiterated his belief in the sanctity of Test cricket, but acknowledged that the days of relying on the England team as the sport’s principal source of income could be drawing rapidly to a close.”We all acknowledge that we need to broaden our revenue streams, particularly if there is a reduction of TV revenue due to the potential delisting of Ashes cricket,” he said. “If that occurs, we may have to take individual initiatives, and here at Surrey, we’re in a very strong position to capitalise on that.”

Business-wise and stadium-wise, and international cricket-wise, we like to think of ourselves as a global leader, and we believe it’s vital that Surrey is at the forefront of such discussionsSurrey chief executive, Paul Sheldon

If Surrey and the Lord’s-based MCC are the two clubs best placed to thrive in the changing landscape, then there are still opportunities to be had for the next tier in the county game. Durham’s chief executive, David Harker, sees clear parallels between themselves and Hampshire – two of the most ambitious counties in the land, with modern green-field venues to attract investors, and uncomplicated business models which, as Hampshire have already shown, allow for a quick decision in the event of a opportunity arising.”Test match grounds are looking for ways of making returns from their investments,” Harker told Cricinfo. “Organisations that are in the business of cricket will look at ways they can sustain their ventures. Whether what has happened at Hampshire is right for other counties, I really don’t know. but it is certainly intriguing and something we are all keeping a close eye on – and perhaps even informally beginning to explore opportunities with other franchises.”Other counties are not so fortunate. Leicestershire had harboured hopes of securing a deal with Rajasthan through their longstanding links with the franchise chairman and former Investors in Cricket partner, Manoj Badale, but they were beaten to the punch despite their strong links with the Midlands Asian community. “We had negotiations with Badele, but we always knew a deal would be unlikely,” Neil Davidson, Leicestershire’s chairman, told Cricinfo. “The key will be when we have Indian players in the first team, when we can boast an iconic, home-grown figure.”Meanwhile, Somerset enjoyed an eye-opening foray into the Champions League in India last October, and in a bid to bludgeon themselves a second bite of the cherry, they have assembled a formidable team of power-hitters including Marcus Trescothick, Craig Kieswetter and Kieron Pollard for this season’s Twenty20 Cup. But in terms of long-term viability, the bucolic charms of Taunton have little to offer any potential franchise tie-up, and on Friday last week, their chief executive, Richard Gould, issued a bleak warning that county cricket could cease to exist beyond 2013.”The one thing we want to make sure of is that if we join anything it isn’t a bandwagon,” Gould told Cricinfo. “The Champions League was a great adventure and something we would love to return to on a regular basis, but our club has been going since 1875 and we’ve got a great deal of equity and tradition in the brand and the name of Somerset. The one thing you can risk by creating a franchise is that you disenfranchise all the supporters you have built up.”With regards to franchise and branding, would we be prepared to wear another team’s colours, and would we be prepared to put another team’s suffix onto the end of Somerset? I think that’s a more difficult point. Hampshire are a well-run club and I’m sure they will have identified that they will need to put a lot of investing into making sure the brand and the franchise does have meaning to existing supporters.”Gould acknowledged that, in the iconic figure of Shane Warne, the Royals franchise possess a priceless figurehead with personal links to three of the five key clubs involved, as well as a global appeal that few cricketers – with the possible exception of Sachin Tendulkar – can ever hope to match. Without the cachet of big-name players or the security of a world-class venue, the future for several counties has rarely looked bleaker.

Rangers manager Steven Gerrard could have some tough decisions to make next summer as a number of players are due to be out of contract.

Connor Goldson, Steven Davis, Leon Balogun, Scott Arfield and Jon McLaughlin are just a few of the first-team names on the expiry list, although the club hold a one-year extension option for Balogun.

This means that Gerrard, along with Ross Wilson, could be set for some difficult conversations in the upcoming months as Rangers plot their squad for the 2022/23 campaign.

His time’s up

One player who the club should be looking to move on is Canadian international midfielder Arfield. Gerrard must make the tough decision and cut ties with the experienced ex-Burnley man as his time is up at Ibrox.

The 33-year-old has only played six times in the Scottish Premiership this term, with one start to his name to date, and has averaged a dismal WhoScored rating of 6.40. In the Europa League, he has played 12 minutes of football off the bench in the three group stage games against Lyon, Sparta Prague and Brondby combined.

This suggests that the £16k-per-week dud is not deemed good enough to play regularly in the Europa League or Premiership for Rangers. At the age of 33, he could still have a few years left in the tank to go somewhere else and play week-in-week-out, which is why Gerrard ruthlessly axing him from the squad could work for all parties involved.

In terms of how his departure would affect the squad, a replacement could already be in the works. TEAMtalk reported last month that Rangers are closing in on a deal to sign Joe Rothwell on a pre-contract deal in the January window.

This means that the 26-year-old would arrive at Ibrox on a free transfer in the summer, providing the perfect opportunity for Gerrard to allow Arfield to leave, with Rothwell taking up his place in the squad.

Therefore, it is time for the former Premier League midfielder to leave Glasgow at the end of the season. The succession plan, with Rothwell, appears to be well underway and his lack of involvement on the pitch this term suggests that Gerrard does not rely on his footballing ability enough to warrant paying him £16k-per-week for another two or three years.

AND in other news, Sold for £203k, now worth £900k: Rangers had a transfer howler over “dream” battler…

West Brom were drawn at home to Premier League side Brighton in the FA Cup third-round draw on Monday evening.

However, a number of Baggies supporters weren’t exactly thrilled at the news when it was confirmed by the club on social media.

Valerien Ismael’s side began a busy December with a 2-1 win at Coventry City on Saturday and still have four Championship fixtures before the New Year. When 2022 comes around, the Baggies will soon turn their attention to the FA Cup and will take on Graham Potter’s side at The Hawthorns, with the tie set to be scheduled between 7 and 10 January.

West Brom actually faced the Seagulls in the FA Cup in the fourth round back in 2018/19, with Brighton winning a replay in the Midlands 3-1 after extra-time. The Baggies will be hoping for a better result this time around, with their last major run in the FA Cup coming back in 2007/08, when they reached the semi-finals.

West Brom fans react

Here is what these West Brom fans had to say in reply to the club’s post regarding the draw, with many not happy, possibly due to the fact it isn’t exactly a glamour tie and one even labelling it as ‘awful’.

“you’re joking man”

Credit: @jpriv78982

“Record low attendance”

Credit: @ftblchaz

“It’ll be the U23’s vs a Brighton team with 3-4 changes. Woeful draw”

Credit: @J_Phillips1994

“Such a boring tie, would’ve rather had Kidderminster away”

Credit: @danhewett17

“so boring..”

Credit: @joebell45

“What an awful draw. Only small solace is that hopefully any commentators would refer to us as “The Albion”. I’m sure we will field the kids and take another L”

Credit: @sjpatel212

Wicketkeeper-batsman Karu Jain and allrounder Thirush Kamini have been included in India’s 15-member squad for the Women’s World Cup to be held in Mumbai

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Dec-2012Wicketkeeper-batsman Karu Jain and allrounder Thirush Kamini have been included in India’s 15-member squad for the Women’s World Cup to be held in Mumbai. Offspinner Archana Das, who debuted in February 2012 and played nine ODIs this year, has been left out.Twenty-seven-year-old Jain last played an ODI more than four years ago, on India’s tour of England. Kamini’s last ODI appearance was also against England, in February 2010.The team will be led by Mithali Raj, who was also the captain of the side during the 2005 World Cup in South Africa; India had then finished as the runners-up, their best showing in this tournament.India are placed in Group A along with West Indies, Sri Lanka and three-time champions England. They play their first match against West Indies on January 31 at the Wankhede Stadium.Squad: Mithali Raj (captain), Harmanpreet Kaur (vice-captain), Ekta Bisht, Karu Jain, Jhulan Goswami, Reema Malhotra, Mona Meshram, Sulakshana Naik, Nagarajan Niranjana, Rasanara Parwin, Poonam Raut, Amita Sharma, Shubhlakshmi Sharma, Thirush Kamini, Gouher Sultana