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South Africa had an appeal turned down after the Pakistan batter brought day three to an unusual close. What do the Laws say?

Danyal Rasool22-Oct-2025There was so much that happened on the third day in Rawalpindi that it was easy to miss the odd circumstances of its end. Off the final ball of a day South Africa thoroughly dominated, Pakistan batter Mohammad Rizwan drove Keshav Maharaj to cover. There wasn’t a run on, and so he turned around, and, in one deliberate unbroken motion, tapped the base stump with his bat, knocking off the bails.There appeared no indication he believed he had done anything to get him in trouble, but South Africa wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne threw his hands up in appeal immediately, believing Rizwan was out hit wicket. The umpire hadn’t yet called stumps, and fielder who had collected the drive hadn’t yet thrown the ball back to the wicketkeeper. Thus, the ball was not yet dead.Related

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However, umpire Sharfuddoula at the bowling end almost immediately waved off the appeals with a smile, and square-leg umpire Chris Brown backed him up. ESPNcricinfo understands the umpires did not directly explain to the South Africans why they had ruled Rizwan not out.Conventionally, it is the umpires who take the bails off at stumps, with the bails at the non-striker’s end usually removed first owing to the umpire’s proximity to them. Batters do, on occasion, take the bails off – usually with their hands rather than bats – though it is almost always done after the ball is dead and the umpires have called stumps. That none of those criteria were met led to South Africa believing their appeal might be legitimate.The Laws of the game, though, appear to side with Rizwan, and the umpires’ judgment. Law 35.1 states that a batter can only be deemed out hit wicket after the bowler has entered their delivery stride

• in the course of any action taken by them in preparing to receive or in receiving a delivery
• in setting off for the first run immediately after playing or playing at the ball
• if no attempt is made to play the ball, in setting off for the first run
• in lawfully making a second or further stroke for the purpose of guarding their wicket

None of those criteria were met by Rizwan’s actions, and it remains unclear how committed South Africa were to the appeal. In the moments after, it appeared South Africa did not seem especially aggrieved anyway, with allrounder Senuran Muthusamy downplaying the incident at his press conference, saying he was fielding too far away and was unaware of what happened.South Africa finished the day with strong hopes of levelling the series, with Pakistan leading by 23 runs at stumps with six wickets in hand.

Abandonment of conventional top-six approach destabilised campaign that promised better

Mohammad Isam31-Oct-2023Mohammad Ashraful made a noise with his hands that only batters watching other batters can. He stroked his right hand with his left palm the way Mahmudullah had made his wrist-work to play the square-cut off Mohammad Wasim in the 17th over. Ashraful is working as an analyst for one of the Bangladeshi TV channels. Obsessive about statistics and an acute observer, Ashraful quietly nodded his head to mimic Mahmudullah’s head position too.It was followed by loud applause from Ashraful who was sitting in the gallery below the Eden Gardens press box. Shortly afterwards, Litton Das tried to smack Usama Mir over the covers, but checked himself. Mahmudullah showed him how later in the over with a blast through the covers. Ashraful appreciated the shot, saying that either you hit it hard to this cover fielder’s left or you play that same ball down to mid-off for a single.”But, what can we do now?” Ashraful exclaimed.Indeed, as Bangladesh’s World Cup campaign reached its seventh match, regret hung in the air. A bit of common sense and smarter planning could have provided a different perspective to this tournament. Instead it is one that speaks loudly of the Bangladesh team management’s rigidity with their batting line-up.They finally got back to their conventional batting line-up against Pakistan, seven matches into the tournament. ESPNcricinfo understands that the “revert-to-type” instruction came from all the way up in the chain of command. BCB president Nazmul Hassan, after Bangladesh’s 87-run defeat against Netherlands, reportedly told the team management to get the batters in their right positions, and continue that pattern for the remaining matches.Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah went back up the order for the first time this year. Mahmudullah was batting above No. 6 for the first time since August 2022. Mushfiqur was back at No. 4 after seven months. The selectors have always maintained that they “rested” Mahmudullah after the England series back in March, even though that excuse was condescending to the man himself. Mushfiqur was given the No. 6 role to slog his way through the last ten overs, despite reaching his batting peak at No. 4.The changes meant that Najmul Hossain Shanto batted at three, with Shakib at six, and Towhid Hridoy and Mehidy Hasan Miraz at 7 and 8. This line-up might have worked but for Litton’s soft dismissal, or if Shakib Al Hasan’s 64-ball struggle had delivered greater reward. These regrets are nothing new to Bangladesh’s World Cup campaign. Even when Mahmudullah was looking set on Tuesday, he ended up receiving Shaheen Shah Afridi’s best ball of the day.Speaking at the post-match presentation, Shakib was asked by Ramiz Raja about the rejig – although the specific query was whether he’d consider a return to No.3, the position from which he made 606 runs at 86.57 at the 2019 World Cup. “I was batting in the top four and I hadn’t scored runs, so my confidence was low too,” Shakib replied. “Luckily I got some runs [today] and I’m feeling better so we can discuss it. At this moment, changing too many things gets difficult, but we have to keep moving forward and think of something which might work.”Mehidy Hasan Miraz’s role as Bangladesh’s enforcer ended up being one of a firefighter in a tournament that never took off•Associated PressNo member of the Bangladesh’s hierarchy showed up in the press conference or the mixed zone, however. It would have been interesting to learn more about their batting plans, but the fact they promoted Mushfiqur and Mahmudullah, and sent Mehidy to No. 8 finally, spoke volumes about their mindset.After Tamim Iqbal was jettisoned from the team late into the World Cup build-up phase, captain Shakib and coach Chandika Hathurusingha called all the shots. However, their plan to bring a changed identity to their batting approach in the World Cup now looks like cosmetic changes.Towards the start of the tournament, they wanted Mehidy to be the enforcer, and leave Mushfiqur, Mahmudullah and Hridoy to deal with the death overs, but given that the Bangladesh openers Tanzid Hasan and Litton Das didn’t fire in most of the matches, Mehidy was mostly firefighting bad starts. Shakib and Shanto never showed good form, while Mahmudullah seemed surplus to requirements, even though he now has 274 runs at 68.50. It is hard to fathom that he didn’t play against England.Shakib and Hathurusinghe simply didn’t have a plan B. That may sound simplistic, and some might argue that Mehidy being shuffled around was proof that they were trying something. But it now seems clear that Mehidy’s movement their plan A. Bangladesh sacrificed their whole batting line-up to implement a shortcut that always looked like failing. True, Mehidy made that century against Afghanistan in the Asia Cup, but how does one successful batting promotion prove that the rest of the batters are dispensable? It’s beyond the understanding of many who follow Bangladesh cricket closely.Instead, Bangladesh could have simply come to the World Cup with the tried and tested. Litton and Tamim have had a successful opening partnership, simply because of Tamim’s evolved role as the banker at the top of the order. He rotates the strike to ensure Litton can play his natural game. Shanto would then have followed at No 3, followed by Shakib, Hridoy and Mushfiqur.Related

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Then, the debate could have centred on playing the seventh specialist batter or using six bowling options. It had been working pretty well for Bangladesh over the previous two years, especially when the top six fired. With 24 wins from 39 matches from the start of 2021 until the start of the Asia Cup, they looked like a side that knew what their next move was going to be. Bangladesh were also winning close games as they had chosen to go with six bowlers on batting wickets too.It is very hard to imagine had a problem with Tamim. He fell out with the BCB chief Hassan, which shouldn’t matter to the team’s cricketing plans. Instead, Hassan first riled him with an interview, and then begged him to come back from retirement.When they finally got rid of Tamim before the World Cup amid another embarrassing episode, Bangladesh believed that the team would soon forget Tamim’s impressive leadership. He had forged a strong unit since Mashrafe Mortaza’s resignation in 2020, bringing the team much success with his no-nonsense approach, and marrying well with Russell Domingo’s approach to allow players room to think.The same cannot be said about Shakib and Hathurusinghe. Both have struggled in their second stints as captain and coach respectively. This, despite BCB chief Hassan giving both the confidence and space to take their decisions. It is rare for Hassan to allow such freedom to the team management but perhaps it was because of Shakib’s stature as a cricketer. Hathurusinghe too is well respected in the BCB’s inner-circle. Now that the dust has settled, maybe it is time that someone in the BCB, perhaps the president himself, stepped up and asked the pair some tough questions.

The left-arm wristspinner who was let go by the Knight Riders produced a statement performance against them

Deivarayan Muthu10-Apr-20223:19

Manjrekar: You can see Kuldeep’s angst, wanting to prove himself again

Kolkata Knight Riders’ head of talent scouting and player acquisitions AR Srikkanth spotted Kuldeep Yadav in the Buchi Babu tournament in Chennai in 2014 and was so impressed by him that he immediately called up Trevor Bayliss, the then head coach of the franchise, and convinced him to snap up the left-arm wristspinner at the IPL auction that year. This was even before Kuldeep had emerged as India’s highest wicket-taker in the 2014 Under-19 World Cup in the UAE, where he also claimed a hat-trick.Knight Riders picked Kuldeep up for INR 40 lakh and he stayed with the side until 2022. He had made his IPL debut, for KKR, in 2016 and across the next two seasons, he became their highest wicket-taker, with 29 strikes in 27 games at an economy rate of 8.20.Then his world turned upside down. After being taken to the cleaners by England on a flat Edgbaston pitch in the 2019 World Cup, he was no longer a regular in India’s white-ball sides. By 2020, he was no longer a regular in the Knight Riders’ XI, with the franchise veering towards pairing Sunil Narine up with another mystery spinner in Varun Chakravarthy.In IPL 2021, Kuldeep didn’t get a single game before a knee injury prematurely ended his stint and forced him to fly back home for rehab.On Sunday afternoon, Kuldeep, who was recruited by Delhi Capitals at the auction earlier this year, ran into his former franchise. A few hours later he was toasting a Player-of-the-Match performance.Sure, Kuldeep (4-35) had scoreboard pressure to lean on in Capitals’ defence of 215, but his control over his variations against a power-packed Knight Riders line-up saw him add another chapter to his re-emergence.The left-handed Nitish Rana lined up Kuldeep in his very first over and walloped a slog-sweep over midwicket for six. Then, when he returned, Shreyas Iyer was in big-hitting mode, having charged at Axar Patel and launched him over his head for six. The preceding over from Rovman Powell had gone for 17 runs.Kuldeep cut his pace down to 78.9 kph and dangled one so wide that it would’ve been an off-side wide had Shreyas missed it. Not only did the batter reach it, he also expertly shovelled it to the left of Shardul Thakur at wide long-on. Shreyas then dashed out to Kuldeep as well, pumping his stock ball over the midwicket boundary for a six that brought him his fifty off 32 balls. With Andre Russell – and Pat Cummins – in the dug-out, it felt like Knight Riders were onto something, despite the rapidly rising asking rate.The Brabourne Stadium pitch was perhaps as flat as the Edgbaston one where he was torn into shreds in 2019, but Kuldeep was now wiser and more confident with his skills. He immediately struck back, sliding a wrong’un across an advancing Shreyas from a shorter length and having him stumped for 54 off 33 balls.He then took out Cummins, Narine and Umesh Yadav in the space of four balls in the 16th over to send Knight Riders tumbling to a 44-run defeat. Cummins was done in by a skidder while Narine and Umesh skied the legbreak. No longer one to leave anything to chance, Kuldeep tore across to the midwicket region from his followthrough and dived full-length to snag Umesh’s return catch near the 30-yard circle.Was that a point proven to his former franchise? The cathartic roar that he let out after completing that spectacular catch suggested it might well have been.

The bottom of the 11th inning of Game 4 of the National League Division Series between the Phillies and Dodgers will be remembered largely for one reason: Phillies relief pitcher Orion Kerkering's throwing error that led to the winning run scoring in the form of Hyeseong Kim, ending Philadelphia's season and sending Los Angeles to the National League Championship Series for the second straight year.

But it very nearly could have been remembered for a different sort of mistake, one that was quickly remediated despite being missed in all of the end-of-game chaos.

In his haste to hurry home and score the winning run, Kim seemingly failed to touch home plate.

Fortunately for the Dodgers, Kim quickly realized what had occurred and, after Kerkering's throw sailed past catcher J.T. Realmuto's head to the backstop, doubled back to touch home plate.

It was another what-if moment in an eventful inning filled with them.

أستأنف برشلونة تدريباته استعداداً لمواجهة ريال بيتيس، غداً على ملعب لاكارتوخا ضمن منافسات الجولة السادسة من الدوري الاسباني لكرة القدم.

وأفادت صحيفة “سبورت” الإسبانية بأن فيرمين لوبيز وفرينكي دي يونج واصلا تدريباتهما صباح الجمعة في مدينة خوان جامبر الرياضية مع بقية زملائهما.

ومن المتوقع أن يعتمد هانز فليك مدرب برشلونة على ثنائي الفريق ضد ريال بيتيس وسيكونا في قائمة المباراة إلى جانب بيدري ورافينها اللذين تدربا أيضاً بشكل طبيعي.

أقرأ أيضاً.. شلوتربيك يحسم اختياره بين الانتقال إلى برشلونة أو ريال مدريد في الصيف

وعاد نجما برشلونة لأداء التدريبات الجماعية أمس الخميس وأستأنفا عملهما أيضاً صباح الجمعة، ومن المتوقع أن يحصلا على التصريح الطبي غداً.

وكان فرينكي دي يونج قد غاب عن آخر ثلاث مباريات لبرشلونة ضد أتلتيك بلباو بسبب الإيقاف وضد ألافيس وأتلتيكو بسبب الحمى ورغم استمرار معاناته من الأعراض لكنه تدرب بشكل طبيعي.

ومن جانب آخر فقد تدرب أيضاً الحارس الألماني مارك تير شتيجن والذي عاد لأداء المران بشكل طبيعي تحت قيادة هانز فليك، بينما غاب أراوخو ولم يتم رؤيته في مدينة خوان جامبر الرياضية صباح اليوم.

Ruben Amorim’s polarising tactical set-up is reliant on fluent and efficient wing-backs. Establishing a winning formula down the flanks has proved difficult for the Manchester United manager in his year at the Old Trafford helm, though.

Though the right-sided pairing of Bryan Mbeumo is an imperfect combination, there is much to like about this front-footed and dynamic dimension.

The same can’t be said for Patrick Dorgu down the left, who Amorim admitted last week creates an air of “anxiety” when on the ball at the moment.

Harsh words, but not without the ring of truth. The Red Devils are short on effective options on the left, with Diogo Dalot the stand-in. However, he too leaves much to be desired, as was clear as United secured a from-behind Premier League win over Crystal Palace on Sunday.

Dalot flatters to deceive at Selhurst Park

Dalot has struggled under Amorim’s wing, having found tough work in adapting to the new system. Content creator Liam Canning actually said a month ago that the Portuguese defender is “becoming a worry long term”, given that he “doesn’t look like he suits the wing back role”.

Such words rung true against Palace at the weekend, albeit with the intensity and aggression improving after the break.

While content creator Adam Joseph feels the left side is “completely toothless”, there are signs of life.

Dalot did win eight duels on the afternoon, as per Sofascore, succeeding with his one tackle and making six ball recoveries besides. But he also failed with two attempted crosses and didn’t create a single chance, illustrating the on-the-ball imbalances that Amorim has yet to iron out.

However, given Dorgu has been so unconvincing and the alternative options are few and far between, it’s unlikely we will see any drastic upheaval in the immediate future.

But Amorim may look to chop and change another part of his backline.

Amorim must drop 3/10 Man Utd star

There has been a promising increase in levels at Manchester United this season, but Amorim still has much ground to cover before his tenure can be confirmed as a success.

Going forward, he may need to make a few tough calls, and one of those calls centres on dropping Leny Yoro, who has struggled of late and must be pulled to the bench.

Yoro, 20, is considered one of the most talented centre-backs in the world, and United scored a coup when beating Liverpool and Real Madrid to his signature.

However, he’s been out of form this season, and journalist Nathan Salt believes he “needs a break from the XI to restore some confidence”.

Yoro was at fault for the penalty which Jean-Philippe Mateta dispatched – controversially – to put the hosts 1-0 up before half-time. The Manchester Evening News gave him a 3/10 match rating after an error-strewn performance that saw him hooked before the hour mark.

Minutes played

54′

Goals conceded

1

Touches

33

Accurate passes

22/23 (96%)

Unsuccessful touches

3

Recoveries

3

Tackles won

0/2

Clearances

3

Duels won

3/6

The timing is at least fortuitous. Lisandro Martinez has completed his long-anticipated return from injury, and the Butcher at his best will be sure to nail down a starting berth in Amorim’s team.

Yoro is strong on the ball and a progressive passer, ranking among the top 14% of positional peers in the Premier League this season for shot-creating actions per 90, as per FBref, but he’s also shorn of confidence.

United fans must retain their excitement over the dynamic, promising defender, who has what it takes to become one of the very best in the business. But, for now, he needs to put the brakes on his campaign.

After the match, content creator Adam Joseph acknowledged that the Frenchman is “going through a tough period in his development”, but that he was “brilliant last season” and will bounce back soon.

This is true, but, for now, Amorim would be wise to take the young centre-half out of the firing line, especially now that Martinez is match fit once again.

Not just Zirkzee: Man Utd star who was a "waste of time" is now undroppable

This Man Utd player starred in their 2-1 win away to Crystal Palace

1 ByJoe Nuttall Nov 30, 2025

Pant had suffered a fractured left foot during the England tour in July and is currently in rehab at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru

Nagraj Gollapudi22-Sep-20252:05

Is there a role for Nitish Kumar Reddy in home Tests?

India wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant is set to miss the two-match home Test series against West Indies, starting in Ahmedabad from October 2.India’s selection meeting for the series is scheduled for September 24. ESPNcricinfo has learned the Ajit Agarkar-led panel will pick 15 players, which is two fewer than the squad for the New Zealand Tests last October, the last home series India played.Pant, who was India’s vice-captain in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy in England this year, suffered a fractured left foot during the fourth Test in Manchester. While he limped out to bat in the first innings, he was replaced by N Jagadeesan in the squad for the final Test at the Oval. Pant is currently at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.It is learned that Pant has been undergoing strength and conditioning and is awaiting further updates from the BCCI medical team before he can resume batting and keeping. There is no firm timeline drawn for his return. India are scheduled to play a white-ball series in Australia from October 19, after the West Indies series.In Pant’s absence, Dhruv Jurel is expected to be India’s wicketkeeper during the West Indies series. Jurel, who is currently in Lucknow playing against Australia A, kept wicket in the final two Tests of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. Jagadeesan, who opened in the first match against Australia A as well as swapped keeping duties with Jurel, could be the back-up in case the selectors opt for a second specialist wicketkeeper for the West Indies series.It is also understood that the selectors are likely to consider Nitish Kumar Reddy and Devdutt Padikkal for the Test series. Padikkal, who made 150 for India A against Australia A in the first four-day game in Lucknow, has played two Tests so far. He was part of the Perth Test against Australia last year, when he made scores of 0 and 25 from No. 3.Reddy was also part of that series, as well as the England Tests that followed, and has played a total of seven Tests so far. Reddy, who was supposed to make a comeback from the knee injury he suffered in England in the first four-day game against Australia A, did not make the XI. Both players are in the squad for the second four-day game which begins on Tuesday.The India-West Indies Tests are part of the World Test Championship (WTC). India are currently third on the WTC table, after drawing the five-match England series 2-2. West Indies are sixth after three losses in three games.

The Los Angeles Dodgers continued to reshape their roster on Thursday, shipping a former top prospect to the Minnesota Twins.

Los Angeles sent catcher Diego Cartaya to the Twins in exchange for minor-league pitcher Jose Vasquez. Cartaya was long thought to be the team's future backstop and was the Dodgers' No. 1 prospect on MLB Pipeline as recently as 2023, and MLB.com rated him as the No. 14 prospect in all of baseball before the 2023 campaign.

The 23-year-old Cartaya has yet to reach the major leagues and spent the 2024 season split between Double-A and Triple-A. In 95 games, he slashed .221/.323/.363 with 11 home runs and 52 RBIs.

Cartaya was MLB Pipeline's top-rated player in the 2018 international class, and Los Angeles signed him for $2.5 million out of Venezuela. He was designated for assignment last week to open a 40-man roster spot for the recently signed Hyesong Kim.

In return, the Dodgers are getting the 20-year-old Vasquez, who went 4-0 with a 4.99 ERA for the Twins in the Dominican Summer League in 2024.

India Under-19 51 for 1 trail England Under-19 309 (Ekansh 117, Pushpak 4-76) by 258 runsEkansh Singh completed a superb hundred on a second day of England’s Youth Test against India that was severely truncated by rain.Only 28-and-a-half overs were possible between the cloudbursts but that was long enough for Kent right-hander Singh to compile 117 sprinkled with three sixes and 14 fours. Singh was last out, as England’s youngsters totalled 309, having shared an eighth-wicket stand of exactly 100 with James Minto who made 46.Naman Pushpak finished with 4 for 76 for India who lost teenage starlet Vaibhav Suryavanshi for 20 in reaching 51 for 1 before a thunderstorm ended play shortly after 5pmOvernight and morning rain delayed the start until 12.30pm and the showers returned 22 minutes later to drive the players off again. The intervening period was long enough for Ekansh to treat the smattering of spectators to four boundaries, including two sumptuous cover drives.It was 2.15pm before the game resumed but Ekansh had lost none of his rhythm, twice driving the ball back past the stumps for four as he continued to deal exclusively in boundaries on the day until he moved into the 90s. His battle with strike bowler Aditya Rawat was an engaging one, the seamer producing two excellent yorkers both superbly dug out by the batter. There would be no nervous 90s, Ekansh raising his 100 in the grand manner with a huge six over long-on.Minto provided great support, an uppercut over the slips for six resulting in a lost ball, necessitating the third change of the cherry in the short afternoon session.The 100-stand was raised before Minto chipped one straight back to Pushpak after which the end came swiftly. Alex Green became Pushpak’s fourth victim, before Singh holed out on the long-on boundary.India’s reply began in explosive fashion with Suryavanshi and his skipper Ayush Mhatre playing almost a shot a ball. The latter top-edged one over the slips before being given a life by Ralphie Albert when he spilt him at cover, Alex French the unlucky bowler.Suryavanshi meanwhile took a heavy toll of Green, nonchalantly driving him over mid-off for six before slashing one backward of square for another maximum. However, youthful impetuosity got the better of him when he pulled Green’s next delivery down the throat of fine leg – something of a waste, especially given three balls later the rain returned, forcing an early tea.Only 15 minutes more play was possible – just long enough for India to raise their 50.

نجح اللاعب الدولي الإسباني لامين يامال، في تسجيل هدف التعادل الثاني لصالح برشلونة أمام كلوب بروج، ضمن منافسات دوري أبطال أوروبا.

ويحل برشلونة ضيفًا ثقيلًا على كلوب بروج مساء اليوم الأربعاء، وذلك ضمن منافسات الجولة الرابعة من مرحلة الدوري في بطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا.

ونجح لامين يامال في تسجيل هدف التعادل في الدقيقة 61 ليعود بالنتيجة مرة أخرى إلى النقطة الصفر وتصبح 2/2.

وسجل لامين يامال الهدف الثاني والتعادل لصالح برشلونة بطريقة أكثر من رائعة، إذ اخترق عمق دفاع الفريق البلجيكي ومرر الكرة إلى فيرمين لوبيز، الذي مررها بكعبه إلى لامين ووضعها بيساره في المرمى.

لكن لم يهنأ برشلونة بهدف التعادل، فقد سجل فوربس الهدف الثالث لصالح كلوب بروج والثاني له في اللقاء في الدقيقة 63 من انفراد تام بالحارس تشيزني.