Ashes hopeful suffers low-grade hamstring strain less than a month out from the first Test

Alex Malcolm11-Nov-2021

Queensland are hopeful Test aspirant Michael Neser will still be available for the first Ashes Test after suffering a minor hamstring strain on the opening day of the Sheffield Shield clash with Western Australia at the Gabba.Neser suffered the strain during his ninth over on the first afternoon after taking the early wicket of Cameron Bancroft. He had a scan on Thursday morning that revealed a low-grade strain in his right leg. Queensland physio and former Australia Test batter Martin Love said he was optimistic Neser would be available for selection in the opening Ashes Test despite it being less than four weeks away.”He will be assessed in the coming days to arrive at a suitable return to play date,” Love said. “At this stage, we are hopeful that, if required, he would be available for selection for the opening Test.”Neser has yet to play a Test match for Australia but has been a regular member of Australia’s Test squads since 2018 and has come close to selection on a number of occasions. The retirement of James Pattinson has pushed him closer to the top of the queue of fast bowlers waiting in the wings behind Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc.Neser is a certainty to be named in Australia’s extended squad, due to be announced soon, but his participation in the three-day intrasquad match to be played in Brisbane starting on December 1 is now in doubt. He has had an interrupted start to the season, having missed two of Queensland’s Shield matches due to the birth of his child.Meanwhile, WA veteran Shaun Marsh is set for an extended period on the sidelines after suffering a bad calf injury while batting on the second day. Marsh was forced to retire hurt and did not return to bat or field on day two with his availability for WA’s next Shield game against Tasmania and his participation in the early part of the BBL season for Melbourne Renegades in severe doubt.WA bowler Joel Paris also suffered a minor hamstring injury on day one at the Gabba. He was able to bat on day two but won’t bowl in Queensland’s second innings.

One Manchester United star is very happy with the news that Ruben Amorim looks set to replace Erik ten Hag as their new manager, according to a recent report. It has been a frustrating and disappointing season for the Red Devils so far, and defeat to West Ham on Sunday afternoon was the final straw, as the hierarchy decided it was the right time to cut their losses with Ten Hag and replace him with what looks to be Amorim.

Related £8m+ manager now agrees to become new Man Utd manager after INEOS contact

Sir Jim Ratcliffe isn’t hanging around.

Posts ByCharlie Smith Oct 29, 2024 Man Utd closing in on Ruben Amorim appointment

United announced on Monday morning that Ten Hag was no longer their manager, after four defeats in their opening nine Premier League games. The Red Devils placed their thanks and wished the Dutchman all the best in their statement confirming the news.

News has since turned to who could be replacing the Dutchman after two and a half years at the helm, and it looks as though Sporting CP manager Amorim is the club’s preferred choice. The Portuguese tactician has been on United’s radar for a while now, and it was reported earlier this month that Sir Jim Ratcliffe had made an approach for Amorim.

Amorim now looks set to become the new boss, as he’s agreed in principle to take the job. United have also now completed a deal with Sporting and will pay his 10 million euros (£8.3m) release clause in order to bring him to Old Trafford.

Amorim has had a very successful reign at Sporting, winning two Portuguese League titles, two League Cups and a Super Cup, and the news that he looks to be heading to United has gone down very well with one player in particular.

Bruno Fernandes "delighted" if Man Utd sign Amorim

According to Caught Offside, Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes is “delighted” that Ruben Amorim has been chosen to replace Ten Hag as the club’s new manager. Fernandes, who is on a weekly wage of £300,000 at Old Trafford, has been at United since January 2020, joining from Sporting, so there is no doubt he has been keeping a close eye on his former club and their current manager.

The report states that Fernandes is a huge admirer of the potential new man in charge after the impressive work he has done in Portugal. The 39-year-old manager has won 161 of his 227 games in charge of Sporting, losing just 33. He has got his side playing some very attacking football, as they’ve scored 499 goals under him, including an incredible 30 in nine league games so far this term.

Bruno Fernandes’ Man Utd stats

Apps

246

Goals

79

Assists

71

It hasn’t been the best of starts to the season for United or Fernandes on a personal level, as the midfielder has yet to score this season, but he has grabbed a few assists in the Premier League and the EFL Cup. The Portuguese star signed a new contract during the summer, and he will be expected to be a key player under the new manager’s regime.

Chloe Kelly's reaction to being left out of the latest Lionesses' squad has been revealed ahead of a potential second Arsenal debut this weekend.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

Kelly left out of England squad this weekReaction to news revealed by Arsenal boss SlegersCould make second Gunners debut at weekendFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Kelly hasn't played football since January 12, despite securing a loan move from Manchester City to Arsenal on deadline day of the January transfer window. That's because the Gunners' two games following the deal were both against City and their third was in the FA Cup, for which she is cup-tied. Those unfortunate circumstances ultimately cost Kelly earlier this week though, when she was left out of the England squad due to a lack of minutes.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE

However, Kelly could finally return to action this weekend, with her eligible for Arsenal's Women's Super League clash with north London rivals Tottenham. She is familiar with the fixture, having scored in it as a teenager after breaking into the Gunners' first-team as a promising academy product, and could be about to grace it again – though head coach Renee Slegers was coy on what role the winger could play.

WHAT SLEGERS SAID

"She's settled very well and obviously she knows what Arsenal is, she comes from the club, so we're happy she's back," Slegers said in her pre-match press conference on Friday. "What she's bringing to us is obviously her qualities as an attacking player but what she's also shown is her willingness to defend and be aggressive and work hard, and I think she lifts our training environment as well. We're very happy with Chloe. We hope she's available for Sunday. We know what she can do for us. I look forward to her first minutes for Arsenal and we'll see when that is."

Asked if her absence from the England squad could actually be beneficial, by allowing the 27-year-old that little extra time to settle in her new surroundings, Slegers said: "We want the best for Chloe. I've spoken to Chloe and she's said that she accepts situations as they are. She's just really happy she's with us at the moment and she wants to take every opportunity, wherever it is, in training or match environment, to try and push herself and find the next level and get her rhythm in playing minutes again."

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

DID YOU KNOW?

As for whether this loan spell can get Kelly back into the Lionesses' squad ahead of this summer's European Championship, Slegers was keen to point out that she "can't control" such a thing, but added: "Chloe's with us and we want to make her time at Arsenal the best. We want to support her and and drive her forwards. She's very keen to find her next level and get the rhythm of training and playing, so I think that's all we can focus on and that's what we do at Arsenal with her. Of course, players have ambitions to play on a high level for the club, but also for the national teams, but that's that's not something that's in my control. I'll do everything I can to help Chloe at Arsenal."

Smriti Mandhana cracked a landmark unbeaten 64-ball 114 from the top of the order, but Sydney Thunder’s chase of Melbourne Renegades’ 175 for 4 fell agonisingly short as the rest of their batters managed to score just 51 runs, Tahlia Wilson failing to accelerate towards the close when some hits could have made the difference.The star of the show, however, was Harmanpreet Kaur, Mandhana’s India team-mate, who put in a special all-round performance on the evening. She first scored an unbeaten 81 in 55 balls, and then bowled her four overs for just 27 runs, picking up a wicket along the way. She also bowled the last over of the chase, and with the Thunder requiring 13 to win, conceded just eight.The Thunder, near the bottom of the eight-team table, won the toss and asked the Renegades, at the other end of the ladder, to bat, and got early success when Samantha Bates and Issy Wong accounted for Jemimah Rodrigues and Carly Leeson by the second over.Smriti Mandhana ended on the losing side, but only after recording the highest individual score in WBBL history•Getty Images

For the next 11 overs, though, Eve Jones and Harmanpreet controlled the flow of the game, putting together 91 runs for the third wicket. Jones became Bates’ second wicket after a 33-ball 42, with six fours and a six, but Harmanpreet batted through till the end as Jess Duffin and she upped the scoring rate significantly. The last four overs went for 51 runs, as Harmanpreet scored her third half-century of the competition – her highest score too – with 11 fours and two sixes. Duffin, who was dismissed off the last ball, scored 33 in 22 balls with two fours and a six.The Thunder’s start wasn’t great either, as they lost Sammy-Jo Johnson and Phoebe Litchfield cheaply, but Mandhana was unstoppable. She got together with Wilson with the scoreboard reading 46 for 2 after 6.1 overs, her own score 33 from 20 balls at that stage. The two batted through to the end, but while she seemed untroubled by anything thrown her way, hitting 14 fours and three sixes in her innings, Wilson didn’t have the same luck, scoring 38 not out from 39 balls from No. 4.Though she ended on the losing side, Mandhana made the WBBL record books – the 114* is now the highest individual score in the history of the competition, joint with Ash Gardner’s 114 off 52 balls for Sydney Sixers against Melbourne Stars back in 2017. This was also the highest women’s T20 score to be on the losing side and first century by a Thunder batter in WBBL history.At the end of what was a fascinating contest, the Renegades got to the top of the table with 18 points from 12 games, while the Thunder were down at seventh place, with eight from 12.Sophie Devine and Beth Mooney shared yet another century stand•Mark Brake/Getty Images

The Beth Mooney and Sophie Devine show rolls on as the pair put together their third century stand of the WBBL season to help Perth Scorchers hold off Adelaide Strikers at Karen Rolton Oval in Adelaide.Mooney continued her outstanding run of form, making her third consecutive half-century, while Devine made 61 and took 2 for 30, as Strikers fell 12 runs short despite Katie Mack’s 84 not out, her third unbeaten half-century in four games.Mooney and Devine set the game up for Scorchers, sharing a 137-run stand of 16.3 overs. It was their sixth century stand in the last two seasons. Devine was a little slower than usual, striking at just 117 with seven fours and one six before she holed out to cover off Megan Schutt. Mooney was her usual fluent self, scoring 10 boundaries in her 78 from 53 balls. She fell with just 10 balls left in the innings. Heather Graham was promoted to No.3 with Chamari Athapaththu absent for the remainder of the tournament due to international duty. Graham struck two sixes in her 22 from 11 balls to help lift Scorchers to 3 for 177.Strikers were on track in reply despite the early loss of Dane van Niekerk, falling to Marizanne Kapp. Mack and Laura Wolvaardt shared a 90-run stand before Devine made the key breakthrough in the 13th over with Wolvaardt caught brilliantly in the deep by Mathilda Carmichael for 40. It left Strikers needing 79 from 45 balls with eight wickets in hand, but the middle order was unable to support Mack, who was left not out on 84 from 61 balls. Graham and Devine picked up two wickets each.

Over the course of the Premier League era, Aston Villa have had some exceptional strikers lead the line. Perhaps the best of the bunch was Dwight Yorke, who played for the Villans between 1990 and 1998 before departing to Manchester United. Another former Red Devil who also represented the Midlands side was Dion Dublin, who played for the club between 1998 and 2004.

In more recent years, Christian Benteke was one of the best strikers at Villa Park, scoring 49 times in 101 games. Nowadays, Ollie Watkins is the man of the moment upfront for Unai Emery’s side. The Englishman has already scored 75 goals and has 29 assists in 181 games in Claret and Blue.

There is another player who is in fine goalscoring form in the current Villa side. That man is Jhon Duran.

Duran’s Villa stats

The rise to the top has been quite something for 20-year-old Duran. Since he joined in a £18m deal from MLS side Chicago Fire in 2023, the Colombian has gone on a phenomenal run of goalscoring form to become one of the Premier League’s deadliest strikers.

The Villans’ number nine has already got a superb record in that famous Claret and Blue shirt. In 63 games, he has 16 goals, but what makes it most incredible is the number of minutes he has played.

Duran has featured for just 1666 minutes so far, equivalent to 18.5 full 90-minute games, meaning his goal tally is proportional to almost one goal per game.

This campaign has been no different for the deadly centre-forward. Already, the Colombia international has scored eight times in 14 games. That includes four in nine Premier League games and two in three Champions League games.

According to FBref, the former Chicago Fire attacker ranks 4th across Europe’s big five leagues for the most goals per 90 minutes with 1.48. That only factored in players who have played the equivalent of 90 minutes once or more. That shows exactly how deadly Duran has been in this campaign.

Incredibly, Villa are targeting a winger who could join the club and make the young striker even deadlier than he already is.

Aston Villa transfer news

The player in question here is Barcelona and Spain winger Ferran Torres. According to reports from Spain earlier this week, via London World, the Villans are set to go head-to-head with Arsenal for the winger’s signature. The report suggests that both clubs are ready to pay ‘a reasonable price’ in order to sign the Euro 2024 winner.

24-year-old winger Torres has already played Premier League football. He spent 18 months at Manchester City before moving to Barca for £46.7m upfront and a further £8.5m in add-ons in 2022. During his time at the Etihad Stadium, the winger played 43 games, scoring 16 times and grabbing four assists.

He has performed well for La Liga giants Barca, too, so it is perhaps surprising they are willing to part ways with him. He has 41 goal involvements in 123 games on the Spanish coast and has been an important player for Hansi Flick as they have dominated both domestically and in the Champions League.

Should Villa sign the winger this summer, he could well form a brilliant partnership with Duran. Typically throughout his career, the 24-year-old has developed a strong understanding with the centre-forward of his side. He has combined more times for a goal with Robert Lewandowski than any other player, with six.

Position

Games

Goal involvements

CF

78

6

CF

74

4

LB

65

4

CM

65

4

CF

58

4

This is certainly a trend that could continue at Villa Park. Duran is already one of the deadliest strikers in Europe, judging by both the number of goals he has scored and the underlying statistics. With the Barcelona number seven’s habit of forming dangerous partnerships with the strikers of his team, it is something that could well continue to happen.

Signing the “insanely good” attacker, as football talent scout Jacek Kulig described him, could be an excellent piece of business from Villa. Not only would they be adding a quality winger to their attack, but Torres could make Duran even more unplayable and help them continue to fight for top four spots in the Premier League.

£15m Aston Villa target considering leaving Boca Juniors in 2025 transfer

Villa are considering making a move for a player who is happy to leave his current club.

ByBrett Worthington Oct 30, 2024

“Mistakes will be made, but whoever can capitalise next week will come out on top”

Alan Gardner03-Dec-2021Stuart Broad has suggested England’s freshness could stand them in good stead for their attempts to regain the Ashes. The final day of their intra-squad warm-up in Brisbane became more of a practice session for the batters, but with both England and Australia experiencing disjointed preparations for next week’s first Test at the Gabba, Broad said the mental battle would carry greater significance.”Mistakes will be made by both sides but whoever can capitalise and grab the key moments next week, will come out on top,” he said.As on day three at Ian Healy Oval, Ben Stokes was in the thick of the action, making 42 before retiring not out. Rory Burns also enjoyed some time in the middle in compiling 37, but there were single-figure scores for Joe Root, Dawid Malan and Haseeb Hameed, while Jonny Bairstow batted twice for 0 and 11.Broad had sent down 11 overs on Thursday, his first gallop since suffering a calf injury in August, as England’s frontline bowlers were given a workout by the Lions. That followed four straight rained-off days of cricket – England’s first warm-up game last week saw only 29 overs bowled – with Australia also deciding to cancel a planned intra-squad game because of the weather.”I don’t think any cricketer leading into Wednesday can say they will be fully ready physically, but you can be 100% switched on mentally, and every player in that 22 is going to be finding their way into that game,” Broad told reporters in Brisbane. “And that’s where you’ve got to fall back on previous experiences that you’ve had. That’s where the mental side of the game is going to be so strong come Wednesday.Related

Broad: 'The Gabba holds the key to the Ashes'

Stokes among wickets as England warm-up finally gets underway

Labuschagne eager for Anderson duel with 'target on the back'

“We know Test cricket is a mind game, we know 80% of that’s going to be getting the brain right, making sure our competitive juices are flowing and making sure that we’re switched on to what’s coming, but we just needed that extra bit of physical work to make sure that we will be ready.”Broad will be taking part in his fourth Ashes tour, though success has been fleeting – he was involved in two Tests during the victorious 2010-11 series before being ruled out by injury, and couldn’t prevent a 5-0 whitewash in 2013-14 despite taking 21 wickets at 27.52.He was happy just to have got “some miles in the legs” ahead of the Gabba opener, with England’s analysis suggesting that Australia, where conditions are often suited for batting and the Kookaburra is less responsive, is one of the most demanding places to bowl. England’s pack of seamers includes two aged 35-plus, in Broad and James Anderson, alongside Ollie Robinson, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood and Craig Overton, as well as allrounder Stokes, meaning rotation is likely.Dawid Malan made 9 as England’s batters enjoyed mixed results•Getty Images”It’s my first bowl in the middle since early August, which is a long time but we’ve got a recovery strategy in place that we’ve talked about in quarantine and how we’re going to approach it,” Broad said. “The backroom staff have done some great numbers on bowling in Australia, it’s quite obvious that it’s the hardest place physically to come and bowl.”Your workloads go up, the hardness of the ground puts more through your body, you need more energy levels, and you travel more distance, so I’ve got a lot of respect for what the Aussie bowlers have done here for their careers. But we know we’ve got to take our recovery very seriously because the Tests come thick and fast and we might rotate our bowlers through the series, but we need our bowlers available for selection.”England have not won a Test in Australia since sealing the series at the SCG in 2011 – losing nine out of ten in the interim – but with the home side having not played Test cricket since defeat to India in Brisbane in January, Broad said that the lack of preparation on both sides could ultimately work in the tourists’ favour.”We’ve just been scrambling around to get physical prep right,” he said. “So I think getting closer to the game is when we start focusing on where we’re going to bowl, what specific plans will be at the Australian team. Normally in an Ashes series leading in you’d probably have had those discussions earlier and build it into your practice, but half the squad in the head coach only got out of quarantine three days ago.Stuart Broad gets overs under his belt•AFP”So it’s been a unique start, but I see that as a positive actually. I’ve been on Ashes tours where we’ve been extremely well prepped to play three or four first-class games before and we’ve come out on the losing side. Arguably, we’re going to be the freshest England team ever going into an Ashes series. We should have a lot of initial energy, we should have a lot of buzz throughout the next few months. So yeah, I’m sort of seeing that as positive.”We know that it’s the first couple of days at the Gabba that’s important and can set up our series. Australia lost their last game at the Gabba, so will that be on their minds? Probably not as it’s quite a long time ago. But I think for us it will just be not coming here with too many preconceived ideas about how the pitch will play, how the Aussies will play. It’s a bit of a lottery. I don’t think anyone knows how batters will settle, having not faced a red ball [in Tests] for 10 months. It’s going to be a mental game, and mistakes will be made by both sides, but whoever can capitalise and grab the key moments next week will come out on top.”

وجه حسام حسن، المدير الفني لـ منتخب مصر الأول، رسالة شكر إلى أشرف صبحي وزير الشباب والرياضة وهاني أبو ريدة رئيس اتحاد الكرة، بعد دعم ومساندة الفراعنة قبل خوض مباراتي إثيوبيا وسيراليون في تصفيات كأس العالم.

ومن المقرر أن يلتقي منتخب مصر مع إثيوبيا، يوم الجمعة المقبل 21 مارس، بالمغرب، في إطار منافسات الجولة الخامسة من عمر تصفيات إفريقيا المؤهلة إلى كأس العالم 2026.

وأكد حسام حسن على أهمية كرة القدم للشعب المصري وأنها مصدر إسعاد الجميع مع الأندية الكبرى في الدوري المصري.

وشدد على أن جميع المنتمين لمنتخب مصر يبذلون قصارى جهدهم لتحقيق آمال وطموحات الجميع، لعودة اسم منتخب مصر للصدارة من جديد، والتأهل للمونديال، البطولة الأقوى والأهم لجميع اللاعبين.

طالع | حسام حسن يحدد شرطًا واحدًا لمواجهة كوريا الجنوبية واليابان وديًا

ويتواجد منتخب مصر في المجموعة الأولى من تصفيات كأس العالم، مع منتخبات بوركينا فاسو، إثيوبيا، غينيا بيساو، سيراليون وجيبوتي.

ويتصدر منتخب مصر، جدول ترتيب المجموعة الأولى من تصفيات كأس العالم، برصيد 10 نقاط، بعد خوض 4 مباريات، مُحققًا 3 انتصارات وتعادل وحيد.

Hoping to add some much-needed attacking depth, Newcastle United sporting director Paul Mitchell is now reportedly plotting a move to beat Premier League rivals Arsenal to sign one particular forward.

Newcastle transfer news

The Magpies have already shown signs that they didn’t add enough depth in the summer transfer window, having put all their eggs in one basket in pursuit of Marc Guehi, only for the Crystal Palace defender to stay put at Selhurst Park.

As a result, Newcastle have been forced to field makeshift backlines without the injured Sven Botman and Jamaal Lascelles, particularly when Fabian Schar was suspended.

Left in 2014: Goal-shy Newcastle flop is now outperforming Isak & Gordon

One former Magpies striker is now delivering the goods away from St James’ Park.

ByAngus Sinclair Oct 11, 2024

Mitchell spoke about Newcastle’s summer failures earlier this season. Facing the criticism and questions over his relationship with Newcastle boss Eddie Howe, he told reporters (as per Chronicle Live): “Did I read anything into [what Howe said in Germany] physically, no. But we were interacting all the way through that period and beyond 100%.

“In every relationship I’ve had with coaches, and I’ve been doing this a long time with a lot of different coaches from a lot of different cultures, they ebb and flow. The core foundation is the respect part, but you’re going to have points in contact because it’s a stressful industry we work in where you might have to have a strong debate, but that doesn’t mean it’s wrong.”

In a desperate need to shift the narrative into a positive one, the Magpies have now reportedly turned their attention towards making up for the summer’s shortcomings.

According to reports in Spain, Mitchell is plotting a move to beat Arsenal to the signature of Igor Jesus from Botafogo. The Brazilian forward has attracted the interest of both Premier League sides, with Edu and Mitchell now set to do battle alongside the likes of Brighton and Chelsea for his arrival in the new year.

The deal won’t come cheap, though. Brazilian side Botafogo reportedly value their 23-year-old striker at €35-40m (£29-34m) – a price that Newcastle will have no choice but to pay if they want to welcome such a reinforcement, particularly with other rich clubs like Arsenal lurking.

"Great" Jesus can replace Wilson at Newcastle

With Callum Wilson currently heading for the exit door at the end of his Newcastle deal next summer, those at St James’ Park must welcome a backup for Alexander Isak to replace the former Bournemouth ace – and that’s where Jesus should come in.

The 23-year-old is a rising star who could push Isak all the way to hand Howe some vital questions regarding his best side amid healthy competition for places.

Having scored 24 goals in 44 games in the 2023/24 campaign for Botafogo and former club Shabab Al-Ahli in Dubai, Jesus is more than ready for a big move, and as a result of that form, earned high praise from analyst Ben Mattinson, who dubbed the forward “great” after he scored on his recent Brazil debut.

A player in top form, Newcastle should act as soon as possible to sign Jesus for a £34m fee that may well turn into a bargain if he continues his recent rise. The Brazilian is certainly one to watch.

The former captain took a mental health break following his resignation

AAP09-Dec-2021Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley would love to see Tim Paine return to the Test side, having defended his organisation’s handling of the former skipper’s demotion.Paine tearfully resigned as captain, three weeks out from the men’s Ashes. He initially planned to play this week’s series opener in Brisbane then opted to take a mental-health break, prompting speculation he will never play for Australia again.The catalyst for Paine’s sudden exit was a texting message scandal, which occurred in 2017 and involved a Cricket Tasmania staffer. CA was made aware of the incident in 2018 but backed Paine to continue playing and captaining Australia at that juncture, desperate to restore the team’s image after the Cape Town cheating crisis.Coach Justin Langer has offered public and private support to Paine, flying to Hobart after being released from quarantine and keeping the door open for his “really close” friend to don the baggy green again.Related

Cricket Tasmania furious at Cricket Australia's treatment of Tim Paine

Have we seen the last of Tim Paine on a cricket field?

Justin Langer hopes that Tim Paine could return to Test cricket

Hockley is likewise upbeat Paine, who was expected to retire at the end of this summer before news broke of his indiscretion, will return to the Test XI.”Would love to see him play again, for both his state and for Australia,” Hockley told SEN. “We want to see him back out there, playing and performing, as quickly as possible.”The Sheffield Shield hiatus means Paine would be recalled on limited evidence, unless selectors want him to be part of a planned tour of Pakistan in March. The fifth Test is expected to be staged at Paine’s home ground, although Hockley shed little light on whether Hobart will win that bidding war.CA has copped plenty of criticism in recent weeks regarding its approach to Paine, with the most notable coming from Cricket Tasmania chair Andrew Gaggin”At a time when CA should have supported Tim, he was evidently regarded as dispensable. The treatment afforded to the Australian Test captain by Cricket Australia has been appalling, and the worst since Bill Lawry over 50 years ago,” Gaggin said.Lawry was sacked in the 1970-71 Ashes and learned of his dismissal via the media.Hockley, installed as chief executive on a caretaker basis in 2020 and given the job permanently almost a year later, said CA is trying to support Paine.”The head coach has been down to see him, we’ve had members of our high performance set up go down to Tassie. The Tasmanian cricket community have put their arms around him,” Hockley said. “We are all very, very concerned – to make sure that Tim is well supported. A lot of respect for Tim for owning his mistake and our job now is to really support him.”Hockley repeatedly noted Paine made his own call to step down as captain, but “that was a decision that the board felt was appropriate”.

To put themselves in a comfortable position, they need a big win against red-hot England – so they have a better NRR than Australia

Firdose Moonda05-Nov-2021

Big pictureThere are no quarterfinals at this T20 World Cup but South Africa have found themselves in one anyway – in a win-or-go-home match against England. If the latter happens, many will see it as a case of same-old-South-Africa when in fact, they’ve done better than expected so far.Though South Africa came into the T20 World Cup on the back of three successive series wins, two of those were against teams that needed to qualify for the Super 12 and the third was against West Indies. There was also an avalanche of administrative turmoil. Then, they lost their opening match to Australia and risked complete implosion after a Cricket South Africa board directive that instructed the team to take the knee ahead of their remaining games instead of continuing with their three-pronged approach of different gestures. Quinton de Kock initially refused to comply with the instruction and sat out South Africa’s second game but has since u-turned. Instead of derailing South Africa, the issue brought them closer. They’ve gone on to win their last three matches and though de Kock hasn’t contributed many runs, they are finding those elsewhere, albeit slowly. That will have to change against the big-hitters that are England.With a style of play that is uncompromisingly clinical, England have polished off three small targets quickly – their 56-run chase against West Indies inside nine overs is the best example – and defended well on the only occasion they were made to do that, against Sri Lanka. Even with their most successful seamer, Tymal Mills, ruled out of the tournament due to injury, they remain among the favourites to win and this match gives them an opportunity to sample a new bowling combination ahead of the real knockouts next week.England are all but guaranteed a place in the last four but will want to avoid facing Pakistan in the semi-finals by ensuring they finish on top of this group. That gives them a major incentive to push for victory, although losing by a close enough margin to ensure their net run rate doesn’t dip below the second-place finisher will also do.South Africa will also have an eye on net run rate, more so once they know the outcome of Australia’s match against West Indies. An Australian victory will put them on the same number of points as England, so not only will South Africa need to beat England, but they will have to have a better net run rate than Australia. If Australia lose, the equation is simpler for South Africa – just win – but that will not be straightforward. England are in red-hot form and have won their last five T20Is against South Africa.Form guideEngland WWWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
South AfricaWWWLWIn the spotlightChris Jordan is England’s leading T20I wicket-taker and a trusted lieutenant to Eoin Morgan, offering advice to the rest of the bowling attack throughout the innings. He was expensive in South Africa and India last winter but has conceded only 5.25 runs an over during this World Cup and his importance at the back end of an innings will be emphasised by the absence of the injured Mills, England’s other specialist death bowler.Chris Jordan is among the key bowlers for England•Getty Images

Anrich Nortje has been South Africa’s most successful bowler of the tournament so far, with eight wickets at 8.75, an average only bettered by four other bowlers, all of whom have fewer wickets than him. Nortje’s pace, aggression and accuracy has stood out and he now has the opportunity to make a big statement in South Africa’s biggest match.Team newsMark Wood, who is yet to feature due to an ankle problem, is the likely replacement for Mills if he gets through training on Friday, though Morgan stressed England would be “patient” with his return. David Willey, Tom Curran and Reece Topley are the alternatives if Wood is not risked.England: (possible) 1 Jason Roy, 2 Jos Buttler (wk), 3 Dawid Malan, 4 Jonny Bairstow, 5 Liam Livingstone, 6 Eoin Morgan (capt), 7 Moeen Ali, 8 Chris Woakes, 9 Chris Jordan, 10 Adil Rashid, 11 Mark WoodSouth Africa will consider the option of three specialist spinners but left-arm spinner Bjorn Fortuin has not played a match in the tournament so far. It’s more likely South Africa will be unchanged.South Africa: (possible) 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Reeza Hendricks, 3 Temba Bavuma (capt), 4 Aiden Markram, 5 Rassie van der Dussen, 6 David Miller, 7 Dwaine Pretorius, 8 Kagiso Rabada, 9 Keshav Maharaj, 10 Anrich Nortje, 11 Tabraiz ShamsiPitch and conditionsWhile Sharjah was talked up as being the most difficult batting venue ahead of the tournament, it has proved quite the opposite. Despite its low bounce, in the Super 12s, Sharjah has had the highest scoring rate per over of 7.63 and the most sixes hit. The smaller boundaries have meant that in six Super 12 matches, Sharjah averages 10.5 sixes per game while Dubai and Abu Dhabi are at 8.8 and 7.4 respectively. The match will take place on the same pitch as the New Zealand-Namibia game, and is expected to similarly slow. There’ll also be dew to contend with, as early as midway through the first innings, which will be a first for South Africa, who have had day games to date.Stats and triviaEngland have won their last five T20Is against South Africa.South Africa’s top five have the fourth lowest strike rate in the Super 12s – 107.52 – behind Scotland, Bangladesh and Namibia. England’s top five have the highest – 137.10.Quotes”I certainly don’t think it’s a wicket where you can take a lot of confidence away from batting quite a period of time on it – I don’t think many of the guys felt ‘in’ regardless of how they batted. But being in that fight for the game is going to be extremely important if the wicket stays the same.”
“It has been labeled as a quarterfinal for us. It’s a must-win game. I think that’s the main point. Irrespective of where Australia is within the group, we want to win that game, and we’ll be striving to do so. What’s happening with Australia, West Indies, I guess what helps us is that their game happens before our game, so we’ll kind of get a better sense or understanding as to how we need to approach the England game. If Australia win, then it’s going to come down to net run rate. We’ll have an opportunity, I guess, somewhere along our game to control our net run rate or alter our approach.”