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Deccan Chargers dropped too many catches in the first half of the game to allow Kolkata Knight Riders to motor along to 169, and then dropped intensity alarmingly in the chase to succumb to their sixth defeat in nine games

The Bulletin by Nitin Sundar03-May-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsDeccan Chargers let themselves down badly on the field•AFPDeccan Chargers dropped too many catches in the first half of the game to allow Kolkata Knight Riders to motor along to 169, and then dropped intensity alarmingly in the chase to succumb to their sixth defeat in nine games. Yusuf Pathan was the biggest beneficiary of Deccan’s fielding largesse, surviving three clangers to pummel his way to his highest score of the season. His assault yielded 47 off 26 balls, and he helped Kolkata double their score in the last eight overs in Manoj Tiwary’s company.Deccan’s pursuit followed a similar template to their misfiring chase against Chennai: Sunny Sohal kept opening up the off side and swiping in hope and Shikhar Dhawan once again receded into a shell after starting with promise. As he has done regularly this season, Iqbal Abdulla made things happen, removing Sohal and Kumar Sangakkara in his second over with clever changes of pace. Cameron White then crawled listlessly as the chase slumped to a mid-innings comatose. Rajat Bhatia put White out of his misery in the 11th over, and the game was over as a contest when Daniel Christian was wrongly adjudged lbw three balls later. Dhawan tried to reignite Deccan’s hopes, but the innings had meandered too far off course by then.It seemed unlikely that Deccan would be chasing 170 when they limited Kolkata to 84 for 3 by the 12th over. Gautam Gambhir exited at that pivotal juncture, leaving two new batsmen to do a repair job. Deccan, however, simply refused to seize the moment. Pragyan Ojha kept attacking with flight, and Yusuf tried to break free by lofting over the leg side. He was beaten in the air, though, and Amit Mishra ran back at long-off to get under the mis-hit. Drop. In the next over, Mishra had Yusuf miscuing in the same direction, towards Christian. Another drop. The next ball was whacked with the turn over the extra-cover boundary, and Kolkata never looked back.Sangakkara missed a trick by holding Dale Steyn’s second spell back until the 16th over. Yusuf had got his eye in by then, and the fact that Tiwary faced that entire over did not help Deccan’s cause. Tiwary looted two off-side fours off Steyn, before Yusuf thumped Ishant Sharma for a massive six over long-on. By the time Dhawan grassed Yusuf again in the 19th over, Deccan were in damage-control mode, and doing a poor job at it. Tiwary launched Christian for six more, before Yusuf fore-handed Ishant and whipped Steyn for boundaries to ensure Kolkata finished with a bang.The start of Kolkata’s innings was a dawdle by comparison, in spite of Eoin Morgan’s innate energy at the crease. He nearly ran himself out first ball, and charged out to the third and dumped Christian over long-on for a six. Thereafter Jacques Kallis settled into accumulation mode. He checked in with a typically pristine set of boundaries, charming Steyn through the covers, before redirecting short balls from Ishant on either side of the wicket for fours.Gambhir took charge after Christian foxed Morgan with a slow offcutter. Gambhir lofted his first ball emphatically over the covers for four, before slashing Ojha through point. His joust with Christian was the most captivating mini-battle of the session, and included a heaved pull for six, a drop, a collision and a heated exchange of words. Kolkata progressed to 73 in the first ten overs, and Deccan were in need of some inspiration. The spinners produced just that, with Mishra foxing Kallis in the flight and Ojha hoodwinking Gambhir, but the fielding was about to let them down big-time. Yusuf exacted full toll, and ensured it was another forgettable night for the Hyderabad supporters who have witnessed only one home win in three-and-a-half seasons.

The ICC has reacted strongly to FICA chief Tim May’s comments about players not approaching its Anti Corruption and Security Unit [ACSU] because they have no faith in it.

Nagraj Gollapudi12-Nov-2010The ICC has reacted strongly to FICA chief Tim May’s comments about players not approaching its Anti Corruption and Security Unit [ACSU] because they have no faith in it. Haroon Lorgat, the ICC chief executive, said he was extremely annoyed by May’s remarks and even called them “irresponsible”. Lorgat said he would have normally preferred not to react but what had fuelled his ire was May’s point that the ICC leaked details to the media in the past of the players who approached its watchdog. That only led to players becoming more insecure, May said.”He said that the players have no confidence in approaching the ACSU. I felt quite strange that Tim May [was] making such comments,” Lorgat told ESPNcricinfo. He said he was trying hard to understand the FICA chief’s reasoning. “He either made that out of ignorance or I hope he is not being irresponsible. Those comments are certainly not justified in my view.”In an interview to BBC World Service on Thursday, May had praised former Pakistan wicketkeeper Zulqarnain Haider’s defection to the United Kingdom after receiving threats from unnamed people during the ODI series against South Africa in the United Arab Emirates. In London, Haider subsequently revealed to the media the reasons behind his escape. He even had a few suggestions for the ACSU including “tapping” the players’ phones to discourage the bookies.May said Haider had made an unprecedented and brave move. “If what he [Haider] says is true, what he’s done is not cowardly, it has taken a significant amount of courage, because no one has ever done that before,” May said. But May, a former Australian off spinner, said there were not many players like the Pakistani. “Some players have concerns about reporting [corruption]. They fear the confidential nature of them reporting it will be breached,” May said.According to May the players’ biggest concern was they feared the details they shared with the ACSU would be made public without their knowledge. “In the past, players have gone to the anti-corruption unit and somewhere details of their talks with the anti-corruption has reached the media. Whether those leaks have come from the ICC or whatever, it still gives the players the question over whether they can trust the ICC’s anti-corruption unit.”Lorgat was critical of May’s opinion and disagreed. “In fact we have got numerous players who have come forward and told us they were willing to talk,” he said, while stressing that neither the ICC nor the ACSU had ever gone public whenever a player revealed any kind of approach. “We have never done that,” he said.Lorgat also picked up on one of the May’s comments in the BBC interview, in which he stated that FICA had made a couple of suggestions to the ACSU recently which would encourage players to come forth with more information whenever any approach was made. “We have put forward a couple of options to the ICC in a meeting we had with anti-corruption unit in October for a change in the reporting system,” May said, and added that he was still waiting for a positive reply.Lorgat said May had only exposed his own hand here. “That is a classical example that he going to talk to media. The ACSU or ICC did not go to the media. In the past a few players made their own declarations about talking or speaking to the ACSU. We have made never made any disclosure about which player came and spoke to us. We don’t say who has come because we protect their identities.”

Australia’s batsmen had the workout they wanted, and they were backed up by their bowlers to complete an easy win over Nepal

The Report by George Binoy in Townsville13-Aug-2012
Australia’s batsmen had the workout they wanted, with Cameron Bancroft and Kurtis Patterson spending time in the middle and playing substantial innings to achieve the first 200-plus total of the Under-19 World Cup at the Tony Ireland Stadium. The target of 295 was always out of Nepal’s reach but their chances of batting 50 overs were shattered by fast bowler Harry Conway, whose early hat-trick precipitated a collapse in 23.5 overs.Though Nepal had a torrid first game, they were constantly cheered by a surprisingly large number of their fans. They came early, wearing purple shirts and carrying flags, sitting on the grass banks and in the grandstand. They were approximately about 75 of them, outnumbering and out-cheering the Aussies.Nepal’s captain Prithu Baskota won the toss and, given how poorly England and India had fared after getting sent in, asked Australia to bat. They celebrated an early wicket, when an aggressive Jimmy Peirson drove Krishna Karki to mid-off. The next breakthrough, however, was a long time coming.Bancroft, who made 2 in the first game against England, did not try to over attack and just knocked the unthreatening bowling into gaps. He could have been dismissed on 15, though, had the fielder hit the stumps direct. Bancroft received four overthrows instead.Patterson, who was contracted by New South Wales in July, did attack more than Bancroft. Their run-rate was around four an over at the 25-over mark and with plenty of wickets in hand, Australia were poised for a surge in the second half of their innings. Patterson was lucky to survive a stumping opportunity on 42, when he came out of his crease and was beaten down the leg side, but wicketkeeper Subash Khakurel did not collect cleanly.Patterson went on to reach his half-century before Bancroft did: off 62 balls to Bancroft’s 93. Australia took the batting Powerplay in the 34th over and scored 44 runs off its first 3.2 overs. Patterson cleared the big boundaries at long-on and square leg and looked set for a century in quick time. On 86, however, he tried to slog-sweep but was bowled by one that kept extremely low from the left-arm spinner Bhuvan Karki.Bancroft had also picked up speed, and reached his hundred off 129 balls, his fourth century in Under-19 internationals. He hit medium-pacer Avinash Karn over the midwicket and straight boundary, and was aiming to clear midwicket again but his pull was intercepted by Sagar Pun, who, moving to his right, caught a ball that was travelling quickly, and held on to it as he hit the turf hard.Australia lost a few more wickets as they tried to get as many as they could and finished on 294 for 7.Nepal had made 11 for 0 before Conway, who did not play against England, began to batter the right-handers’ off stump. Three times in a row he pitched full and straight and all three times he was on target, while the batsmen played down the long line.Nepal lost wickets quickly after that and slumped to 82 all out. The offspinner Ashton Turner, who had taken 3 for 30 against England, had another good day, picking up 4 for 28 to take an early lead in the race for most wickets.

Jacques Kallis, the South Africa all-rounder, was involved in a car crash early on Tuesday morning

Firdose Moonda21-Dec-2010Jacques Kallis, the South Africa all-rounder who scored his maiden double-century in the first Test against India in Centurion, was involved in a car crash early on Tuesday morning. He drove his Audi R8 in to the gate of a house in Wynberg, a suburb in the south of Cape Town.”He has no injuries at all and is totally fine,” Dr Mohammed Moosajee, South Africa’s team manager, told ESPNcricinfo.Kallis was on his way home at 12:30 a.m. and in an error of judgment drove into the gate, doing damage to the front of his car. “It was a freak, minor accident and there was nothing untoward about the manner in which it happened,” Moosajee said. The South Africa squad departed from Johannesburg yesterday to be with their families over the festive season, and will reconvene in Durban on Thursday for the second Test which starts on Sunday.Police arrived on the scene and took statements. Kallis was unable to drive his own car home because the front tyres were flat. His girlfriend, Shamone Jardim, arrived to fetch him and the car was towed away. “There is a dent on the front of the car but besides that, it’s fine,” Moosajee said. “The insurance will sort all the details out.”The all-rounder may be liable for any damage done to the gate of the house.

Brett Lee, Shaun Tait and David Hussey have all been given the chance to impress the selectors in Australia’s only ODI before the World Cup squad is named

Brydon Coverdale11-Jan-2011Brett Lee, Shaun Tait and David Hussey have all been given the chance to press for World Cup selection after being named in Australia’s squad for the first ODI against England. The match in Melbourne on Sunday will be the only one-day game Australia will play before their 15-man World Cup group needs to be finalised, so there is plenty at stake for several fringe men.Nathan Hauritz was also chosen, having not been part of Australia’s team in any format since he was axed before the first Ashes Test. Hauritz, Xavier Doherty and Steven Smith are all in the 14-man squad, and with the World Cup to be played on spin-friendly subcontinental surfaces, they will all be keen to impress in the 50-over format.Michael Clarke, who last week announced his retirement from Twenty20s, will captain the side with Ricky Ponting still sidelined by his finger injury. Brad Haddin was picked and will be Australia’s first-choice gloveman at the World Cup, despite the selectors giving Tim Paine the vice-captaincy for the two Twenty20s against England this week.Lee will be aiming to play his first ODI since October 2009, after a severely injury-disrupted 2010, and he has already made clear his ambition to be part of Australia’s World Cup defence. He will form part of a quick attack with Tait, Doug Bollinger and Peter Siddle forming the rest of the fast-bowling group.One of the most interesting selections was that of David Hussey, who hasn’t played an ODI since a one-off match against Scotland in August 2009, and has been considered a Twenty20 specialist by the national selectors since then. Despite having scored only 143 runs at 23.83 in the split-innings Ryobi Cup this summer, Hussey has been give a chance ahead of his Victorian team-mate Brad Hodge, who is the competition’s leading run scorer.There was no room for Callum Ferguson, although that might be because he is already considered a lock-in for the World Cup, while Shaun Marsh was also overlooked. A new squad will be chosen for the remaining six ODIs against England, and that is likely to comprise the 15-man World Cup group, as it will be their final hit-out before flying to India.”We’ve given David Hussey the opportunity to push for inclusion in the World Cup squad as we think he will be well suited for the sub-continent conditions which will be faced in the World Cup,” the chairman of selectors, Andrew Hilditch, said. “Ricky Ponting is recovering from a finger injury sustained during the Ashes, which gives Michael Clarke another chance to lead the one-day side.”His vice-captain will be Cameron White, who has had a real impact on this form of the game in the last year and Cameron will be coming off leading Australia in the two Twenty20 internationals this week. We have some explosive fast bowling with Shaun Tait, Brett Lee, Mitchell Johnson, Doug Bollinger and Peter Siddle all selected in this squad. Shaun and Brett will therefore have an opportunity to impress in this form of the game before World Cup squad selection.”We’ve included Nathan Hauritz, who has been a key part of our one-day side for some time now and Xavier Doherty in this squad, who played well against Sri Lanka at the start of the summer. This gives us a chance to look at both of them prior to the World Cup.”Squad Shane Watson, Brad Haddin (wk), Michael Clarke (capt), Cameron White, David Hussey, Michael Hussey, Steven Smith, Mitchell Johnson, Nathan Hauritz, Brett Lee, Xavier Doherty, Peter Siddle, Shaun Tait, Doug Bollinger.

Everton manager Frank Lampard must unleash defender Jarrad Branthwaite against Leicester City tomorrow to help solve their issues at the back.

On the chalkboard

The Toffees have been woeful defensively throughout the season and it has resulted in a battle for survival. Whilst they can’t improve their back-four through signing anyone until the summer, they can make better use of what they already have.

Branthwaite moved to Goodison Park in 2020 from Carlisle United for £990k and has since been tipped as another bargain young signing for Everton.

He is only 19-years old so has many years ahead of him, but he should be used by Lampard now and could be the answer to their problems.

Former Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti described him as “confident” and said that “he never loses control”. Praise like that from one of the world’s elite manager has surely got to mean something.

If it doesn’t to the Toffees then it will to other clubs with a recent report in the Daily Mirror linking the £7.2m rated man to Manchester United.

The Toffees are 5th when it comes to goals conceded this season and it has been the main problem as to why they could be relegated. Branthwaite is better than Everton’s current partnership of Ben Godfrey and Michael Keane in many defensive areas.

He has the second highest successful press percentage amongst the squad this season and the highest of any defender at 48.1%. Winning possession of the ball back can be key to ensuring Everton concede less.

The Englishman has also won far more of his aerial duals than his fellow defenders at 71.4% which again ranks the highest amongst those in his position.

We have only seen glimpses of Branthwaite this season as he has suffered from injuries, but it may also be down to the fact that Lampard wants to trust more experienced players in a serious relegation battle.

However, the little we have seen of the 19-year old has been enough to say that he deserves a chance and should start against Leicester.

In a defence as leaky as Everton’s, it’s hard to see why he has only been given four appearances. Trying something different may give them the best chance at surviving.

IN other news: Everton could repeat Pickford masterclass as exciting behind-the-scenes news emerges – opinion

A huge Glasgow Rangers injury setback has emerged on Swedish international Filip Helander…

What’s the latest?

Gers head coach Gio van Bronckhorst has confirmed that the centre-back will not play again this season after the issue he sustained last weekend in the Premiership.

The central defender was taken off in the 45th minute with a knock after an awkward landing left him unable to continue.

Van Bronckhorst said: “Filip’s injury is not good, we won’t have him for the remainder of the season.”

He now joins Alfredo Morelos and Ianis Hagi on the treatment table until the start of the 2022/23 campaign, at the earliest.

Ibrox faithful will be infuriated

This devastating update will surely infuriate the Ibrox faithful as it comes as a major blow to van Bronckhorst’s squad heading into the final part of the season.

Whilst he was ineligible to face Braga in the Europa League and his absence will make no difference to their fortunes at Ibrox on Thursday night, it will impact the squad rotation in the cup and the Premiership. The defender had started five domestic matches since the 20th of February and this shows that the head coach has been relying on him as an option on a semi-regular basis.

Helander has been a useful player for the Dutchman to call upon in the Premiership and in the Scottish Cup in order to rest the likes of Leon Balogun and Calvin Bassey. Van Bronckhorst has now been rid of that option and will have to see out the rest of the campaign without one of his experienced defenders.

This could then pile the pressure on the other players in that position and lead to them being overloaded with minutes on the pitch, risking further injuries.

Supporters will also be frustrated because this is the second time this season the centre-back has suffered a major knee injury. He will now end the campaign on six league appearances and that may leave supporters wondering whether or not he is worth keeping hold of.

If Rangers are unable to rely on him being fit for the majority, or even half, of the season then that makes him a liability within the squad. They would be better off cashing in on him and attempting to bring in a more durable player to take his place going forward to prevent this situation from happening again.

AND in other news, From £4.5m to £25m: Wilson had huge Rangers howler over “remarkable” 12-goal gem…

Having entered the winter break in eighth place in the Premier League table with 34 points on the board from 21 games, Wolves are in a comfortable place to push on with their campaign and aim to secure a European place by the end of the season.

In addition to that, it seems as though the Old Gold could be set to see the return of one of their barely seen players from injury in the coming weeks.

What’s the latest?

On the subject of what the current situation is with defender Willy Boly in regards to his recovery from injuries that have kept him sidelined for the past few weeks, Lage had this to say on the matter.

He said: “He’s started training outside, not with the team, with his physio. Good news.”

Wolves originally signed Boly back in the 2017 summer transfer window from FC Porto on loan before securing him on a permanent basis a year later.

Overall, the 30-year-old has gone on to make a total of 137 appearances in a Wolves shirt across all competitions, scoring nine goals and providing four assists along the way, which is a decent return for a defender.

Fans will be delighted

While a full return to action may not be on the cards for the Ivory Coast international just yet, it’s good to hear that he has taken a step towards making a full recovery, something that surely delight a lot of fans in the process.

Even though the trio of Conor Coady, Romain Saiss and Max Kilman have been three of the top five outfield Wolves players in terms of minutes played this season in the Premier League, and have done pretty well as a defensive unit with Lage’s side conceding just 16 league goals this season, it would be a massive boost for them to have Boly back as a viable option at the back in case any of the other defenders get injured.

After all, he is still vitally important. Last term, for instance, in a three-month injury layoff Wolves played 15 league matches and kept just one clean sheet. Once Boly returned, they didn’t concede over the next 283 minutes of league action.

Moving forward, if the defender can recover as quickly as possible and keep his fitness up for the remainder of the season, he could put a turbulent first half to his latest campaign with Wolves behind him and potentially help his side secure European football again.

In other news: Alex Dicken delivers crushing Wolves transfer claim, Shi is making a huge mistake – opinion

A lot of the talk around north London this week has been surrounding Tanguy Ndombele’s future at Tottenham Hotspur and just days away from the derby, there is all sorts coming out behind the scenes.

Indeed, the Frenchman has been subject to controversy once again, with reports suggesting that the club are trying to move him on before Deadline Day on January 31st.

He was booed off during their FA Cup third-round victory over Morecambe on Sunday afternoon. He went straight down the tunnel after being substituted in the second half and the more raucous the crowd’s reaction was, the slower he trudged off.

A shocking sign from your club-record signing when the team was 1-0 down at the time. It’s hard to imagine any way back for him now. But we’ve been here before under both Jose Mourinho and Nuno Santo.

In fact, some reports suggest that he isn’t even unhappy at the club and it will be hard enough to find an exit strategy for him when he’s rolling in £200k-per-week.

It wouldn’t be the end of the world if he did stay as he’s certainly been better than his fellow club-record arrival, Giovani Lo Celso, who in his absence delivered another shocking display during their Carabao Cup semi-final exit earlier in the week.

The Argentine playmaker, who also cost Spurs around £55m from Real Betis in August 2019, has shown an inability to beat the first man with his set-pieces – leading to a parody account being made on social media about his mistakes – whilst he has very rarely contributed in front of goal.

As per Transfermarkt, the 25-year-old midfielder has provided only eight goals and six assists across 83 appearances, nearly lower than the total number of yellow cards he’s received (13). That is a direct goal contribution of once every six matches (or once every 327 minutes).

Ndombele by comparison is clear as an attacking option. He has managed a goal or assist once every 4.7 games (or once every 271 minutes), also via Transfermarkt.

As you can see by those figures alone, the disgraced Frenchman is way, way clear of his fellow expensive flop.

Lo Celso does earn less on around £70k-per-week but that doesn’t excuse the fact that he has been absolutely stealing a living from the club, more so than Ndombele.

Now valued at just €30m (£25m) by CIES Football Observatory, perhaps it is the Argentina international who needs to be axed this month. After two-and-a-half years at the club, he is yet to show much promise at all and his stats being worse than Ndombele’s is certainly alarming.

Once dubbed “phenomenal” by Mourinho, Lo Celso’s time at Spurs must be waring thin after another disappointing outing.

AND in other news, Forget Gollini: £74k-p/w Spurs calamity who had only 21 touches failed Conte yet again…

Manchester United are keen on signing Aston Villa midfielder John McGinn in the summer.

That’s according to The Telegraph, with a number of Red Devils fans giving their thoughts to the news on social media.

United aren’t expected to be busy during the January transfer window, with the club turning their attentions towards a busy summer.

Midfield is thought to be an area where United want to strengthen, with McGinn featuring against Ralf Rangnick’s side in a 1-0 FA Cup defeat last week.

The Telegraph’s James Ducker revealed on Monday that the 27-year-old is admired by Old Trafford technical director Darren Fletcher and could be valued at around £40m. Should his contract situation remain the same in the Midlands, the Scot would have two years left on his deal in the summer, although he is expected to be offered new terms.

United fans react

@utdreport shared the links regarding McGinn on social media. Here is what these United fans had to say in reply, with a mixture of responses available to view below, where one supporter labelled it as ‘ridiculous’.

“Wow”

Credit: @3112Christian

“This is fantastic”

Credit: @Bosun_Betiku

“This is ridiculous when he costs as much. He does why not get someone more suited to the manager like Zakaria whilst saving a lot of your money for a better player and get them now, I don’t really just see the point, just trying to throw us off surely!”

Credit: @detectivechimpR

“These are the types of players we need ‘work horse’ ”

Credit: @Jornwathe4

“Shame on Man United.”

Credit: @manutdtimes

“If we’re even looking at this it’s absolutely ridiculous”

Credit: @henryja04492394

In other news: ‘Conte at it again’ – Lots of Man Utd fans react as Spurs now eye move for £120k-p/w ace