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Warwickshire have signed Imran Tahir, the Pakistani legspinner, as their overseas player for 2010. The county have also signed 22-year-old opener Varun Chopra from Essex in a three-year deal

Cricinfo staff26-Oct-2009Warwickshire have signed Imran Tahir, the Pakistani legspinner, as their overseas player for 2010. The county have also signed 22-year-old opener Varun Chopra from Essex in a three-year deal.Tahir, 30, has taken 382 first-class wickets at an average of 25.89 and 95 List A scalps at 22.85. He joined Hampshire for the 2008 county season and was one of the better overseas signings: he took 96 first-class wickets in two seasons with the county, including 44 in just seven matches to save them relegation in 2008.Ashley Giles, Warwickshire’s director of cricket, welcomed the addition of Tahir to the squad. “He brings with him knowledge and experience that will add much to our young, developing squad,” he said. “Not only is his first-class bowling average impressive but his one-day figures are up there with the best. I am sure that Imran will be a valuable addition to our attack next summer”.The phrase journeyman doesn’t do justice to Tahir’s career which has seen him play for at least 10 teams before he signed for Hampshire and the Titans in South Africa last year.In contrast, Chopra has been at Essex since he launched his professional career in 2006. He averages a modest 29.63 in 48 first-class matches but has a better limited-overs record, averaging 38.03 in 34 games. Chopra called the decision to leave his home county, where he was offered a two-year deal, “one of the hardest I ever had to make.”He said: “The combination of joining one of the country’s biggest clubs, playing at a Test-match ground and working with Ashley Giles was too good an offer to refuse.”Paul Grayson, the Essex coach, was disappointed at losing Chopra. “He is a talented player and an Essex boy. Myself and the club have done a lot of work with him over the last three to four years” he said before outline the reasons for Chopra’s departure. “Varun was asking things that we could not guarantee him for next year. He feels his County Championship cricket has not developed as much as he would have liked and wishes to set himself a new challenge out of his current comfort zone.”

Crystal Palace have received a potential injury boost ahead of their Premier League encounter with Wolverhampton Wanderers after it was revealed that star midfielder Eberechi Eze may be fit enough to take a place on the substitute’s bench.

What’s the word?

The highly-rated 23-year-old has been sidelined with an Achilles problem since May and is yet to feature for Patrick Vieira’s new-look side this season.

However, Eze made his comeback for Palace’s U23’s on Monday night, playing 62 minutes as the youth side lost 2-1 to Blackburn Rovers.

It was initially believed that the youngster wouldn’t be included in Vieira’s matchday squad until after the upcoming international break, but now, according to The Sun, he could be available over the weekend.

The report states that: “And now SunSport understands the playmaker has a chance of being on the bench for Saturday’s hosting of Wolves.

“If he does and makes an appearance as a substitute, Eze would play in front of fans at Crystal Palace for the first time since joining from QPR for £16million in August 2020.”

Patrick Vieira will be delighted

After his successful outing for Shaun Derry’s U23s, Eze expressed his excitement at the prospect of playing in front of Palace supporters for the first time, stating he ‘cannot wait’ to entertain the capital club’s fanbase.

“That’s going to be a beautiful feeling.  Stepping out and feeling the atmosphere, hearing the fans, entertaining them. That’s all I want to do, and I honestly cannot wait for the day,” he said.

And news that Eze could make his return to the first-team squad for the visit of Wolves will leave Vieira feeling absolutely delighted.

The Selhurst Park outfit have made a strong start to life under their new manager, but having one of their main creative forces make his comeback will still be a significant boost.

Eze bagged four goals and provided six assists in 34 top-flight appearances last term, highlighting his importance to Palace, and everyone associated with the south London side will be eagerly anticipating his first minutes of the season.

And, in other news…CPFC could repeat Olise masterclass by signing 20 y/o who has a “really big future”

With Graeme Jones heading into Saturday evening’s Premier League clash knowing that the fixture would more than likely be his last in charge of Newcastle United, the 51-year-old caretaker manager would have undoubtedly been hoping for a much-improved performance than the Magpies’ resounding 3-0 home defeat last time out.

And, despite falling behind against Brighton & Hove Albion after Leandro Trossard’s 24th-minute penalty, Newcastle did put up something of a fight in the second half of the match, with Isaac Hayden’s 66th-minute strike ultimately proving to be enough for a share of the spoils at the American Express Community Stadium, with the game ending 1-1.

However, while the Magpies did make the long trip back home with a point, there were nevertheless a number of disappointing performances from Jones’ side, with the likes of Emil Krafth, Jamaal Lascelles and Matt Ritchie having games to forget on the south coast.

Although, it will more than likely be Newcastle winger Miguel Almiron most frustrated with his performance against the Seagulls, as the 27-year-old turned in an extremely abject display on Saturday evening.

Fewer touches than Darlow

Indeed, over his 74 minutes on the pitch, the right-winger was largely ineffective, managing a total of just 26 touches of the ball – nine fewer than Karl Darlow between the Magpies sticks – completing a mere 11 passes, failing with his one attempted dribble and not finding his man with his one attempted cross.

The £15.75m-rated man also lost possession of the ball on 12 separate occasions, won just two of his six duels and made one tackle.

These returns, or lack thereof, saw the man who Steve Bruce dubbed an “unbelievable pro” earn an extremely disappointing SofaScore match rating of 6.2, with no player from either side – including Brighton’s red-carded goalkeeper Robert Sanchez – receiving a lower score than the £74k-per-week forward.

Indeed, in Lee Ryder’s player ratings from the fixture, the Chronicle Live journalist awarded the Paraguay international a four, as well as claiming that “it’s just not happening for him” in the black and white of Newcastle.

As such, with the club’s likely new manager Eddie Howe watching on from the stands on Saturday, Almiron will have much work to do to convince the 43-year-old he is worthy of his starting spot in the Magpies team going forwards, as the winger badly let his teammates and manager down against the Seagulls.

In other news: “I’m told”: Edwards reveals fresh twist in NUFC manager hunt that’ll have fans buzzing

A round-up of the second day’s play of the third-round matches of the Ranji Trophy Plate League 2009-10

Cricinfo staff18-Nov-2009

Group B

Scorecard
The contest between Jammu and Kashmir and Kerala in Jammu has proved a closely-fought one. A four-wicket burst from Abid Nabi helped the hosts bowl out Kerala for 133, and gain a lead of 31. Raiphi Gomez (39) and Sachin Baby (32) provided some resistance but Kerala couldn’t capitalise after having bowled out the opposition for 164 on the first day. Though they fought back well in J&K’s second innings, the hosts still held the edge at stumps. An unbeaten 57 from Hiken Shah steered J&K to 157 for 6 at stumps – Sony Cheruvathur took three wickets an increased his match tally to nine – and took the lead to 188.
Scorecard
There was no play possible as rain played spoilsport on the second day of the game between Madhya Pradesh and Vidarbha in Vijaywada.

Group A

Scorecard
Assam reached a position of advantage against Jharkhand in Guwahati. First, their bowlers, led by Sairaj Bahutule’s 5 for 53, bowled out Jharkhand for 261; then their batsmen responded by notching up 149 at stumps with the loss of just one wicket. Jharkhand will rue the fact that their middle-order batsmen failed to consolidate on starts. Five reached double-figures, while three – Saurabh Tiwary, Rajeev Gupta and Shahbaz Nadeem – reached 30-plus scores but didn’t press on. Assam, in response, were boosted by opener Parvez Aziz’s 85 and an opening stand of 128. Dheeraj Jadhav is still there, unbeaten on 49, and will look to take his team to a substantial lead tomorrow.
Scorecard
Goa, buoyed by Swapnil Asnodkar’s century, reached a dominant position against Rajasthan in Margao. They began the day on even terms, on 149 for 4, but a 128-run stand between the two overnight batsmen, Asnodkar and Rahul Keni, tilted the balance in Goa’s favour. Fast bowler Pankaj Singh bagged 4 for 92, but Goa had posted a competitive 338. In reply, two quick wickets from Saurabh Bandekar dented Rajasthan in their innings and left the visitors in a precarious situation at stumps.
Scorecard
The first day of the game in Nagpur was washed out, but the hosts were pegged back on the second as Tripura limited them to 217 for 9. The Vidarbha score could have been much worse had it not been for a 59-run sixth-wicket stand between Ravi Jangid (45) and Himanshu Joshi (38). The lower order stepped up with some important contributions but Wilkin Mota, who grabbed 3 for 39, ensured Tripura stayed ahead of the eight-ball. Tripura used nine bowlers in the innings, and Mota was supported well by the rest in keeping the opposition in check.

The Indian batting machine is in prime form, but the shoddy fielding has captain MS Dhoni worried

Cricinfo staff17-Dec-2009Dhoni defends flat tracks

After a glut of runs in the Tests and Twenty20s against Sri Lanka, the first one-dayer in Rajkot also turned out be a bowler’s nightmare raising questions over the quality of pitches in India, but MS Dhoni defended the curators.
“Wickets are not easy to prepare. You try to get a good wicket and it turns out to be a flat one,” he said. “The Kanpur Test the wicket was flat but still the game ended one and a half days’ before schedule. In the last four games the wickets have been consistent and batter-friendly. It’s easy to criticise preparation of wickets.”

The Indian batting machine is in prime form, but the shoddy fielding has captain MS Dhoni worried. Three chances were grassed by India during Sri Lanka’s spirited pursuit of 415 in the first ODI in Rajkot. That added to some appalling fielding in the two Twenty20s took the dropped catches’ tally to 12, over 90 overs of limited-overs cricket in one week. And then there were the missed run-outs.”We were fielding well in patches and not dropping catches at the international level,” Dhoni said in Nagpur ahead of Friday’s second ODI. “You may drop the odd difficult catch but straightforward chances need to be taken. In the last three-four games we have dropped a lot of regulation catches. Of course it bothers me.”At the same time it will be solved at some point because of the effort that we are putting in. We are hoping we don’t drop catches in this game.”India did hold their nerve in the field towards the end of the Rajkot game, when Sri Lanka needed only 15 runs in the final two overs. Two run-outs in the penultimate over and a Sachin Tendulkar catch off the third-last delivery helped India edge home by three runs.The bowling from Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra at the death, another facet where India haven’t excelled, came in for praise from Dhoni. “It was one of the best in the past year. I have always said we had not been very consistent with the death bowling,” he said. “In the last game, in the last five overs we gave away only 27 runs. It was a very good effort.”Ashish bowled five overs in a row. There was a bit of reverse-swing going, which actually helped us a bit.”Dhoni said that on superb batting tracks like in Rajkot, the key is to stop singles. “Normally you don’t get wickets like that. It was not a big ground with the straight boundary not more than 60-65 yards. Since the wicket was so nice, it was easy for the batsmen to clear the field. It’s important not to give easy singles.”Looking ahead to the second one-dayer in Nagpur, Dhoni said he expected another run-fest. India racked up 354 when they played Australia in an ODI last month, and 401 runs were scored in the Twenty20 against Sri Lanka last week. “In the last T20 game here there was good bounce. The wicket for the match looks like good and flat. I had a conversation with the curator.”

Celtic are ‘likely’ to sign in-demand midfielder Fernando Henrique from Gremio, according to reports from Brazil, relayed by The Daily Record.

The Lowdown: Henrique profiled

Henrique is 20 years of age and is primarily a central midfielder, although he can also play in a defensive or attacking role.

Already sponsored by Adidas and comfortable playing with both feet, Henrique has made 16 appearances for his current employers, with the last of those coming in September.

The 5 foot 9 midfielder hasn’t featured in Gremio’s last 14 games, and it seems as if he could be making the move to Celtic Park fairly soon.

The Latest: January move ‘likely’

The Daily Record cite reports from Brazil where it’s claimed the Hoops are leading the race for Henrique’s signature.

Scotland is thought to be the ‘most likely’ destination for Henrique once the Brazilian top flight is concluded next month.

The Verdict: Interesting…

Celtic’s scouts must have had their eye on Henrique for some time, considering the midfielder not featuring in Gremio’s last 14 games.

From the outside looking in, a transfer appears strange, but Ange Postecoglou does want to bolster his midfield options and Celtic’s representatives made contact with Gremio last month, so it shouldn’t come as a shock.

Postecoglou has relied heavily on Callum McGregor, David Turnbull and Tom Rogic this season, so Henrique’s versatility could come in handy and bolster the club’s midfield depth, should he make the move to Parkhead as now expected.

In other news: Celtic keen to sign ‘unbelievable’ versatile ace who’s hailed for his fitness. 

Wolves could hand academy youngster Luke Cundle a chance to prove his worth during the December period, journalist Liam Keen has hinted.

The Lowdown: Busy period ahead

Bruno Lage’s side have done impressively to sit sixth in the Premier League after 12 matches, overcoming an iffy start to find a strong run of form.

Wolves have seven Premier League fixtures to tackle in December, though, which is going to be a massive test of their squad, especially with injuries mounting.

Lage has hinted in press briefings that the Molineux faithful may see an unnamed new face take to the field in order to tackle the relentless run of games.

The Latest: Cundle could feature

According to Keen on Twitter, an ‘unnamed academy player’, potentially Cundle, looks set to be given an opportunity to excel in the first team. He tweeted: “Bruno Lage has some injury issues and a smaller than ideal squad, meaning he is anticipating a tough December. An unnamed academy player (suspected to be Luke Cundle) could get his chance too.”

The 19-year-old midfielder has a contract keeping him at Molineux until 2023 and he has shone for the club’s youth teams, registering nine assists in 43 appearances for Wolves’ under-23s.

He has featured twice for the first team (both in Carabao Cup matches) and has made the bench for all but two Premier League matches this season, although he is still awaiting his top-flight debut.

The Verdict: Big test of the squad

As mentioned, Wolves are in a good position right now, but the key is to stay amongst the big clubs and continue to kick on throughout a hectic December.

We may learn a lot about Lage’s squad in the next month, with legs tested amid so many games and the depth of the squad potentially coming into question.

It would be great to see someone like Cundle given a chance, though, and it is encouraging that Lage looks set to show some faith in youth.

In other news, one Wolves player has been linked with a move to a big club. Find out who it is here.

The pitch was tough but Michael Hussey felt Australia under-performed in falling to a disappointing 127 on the opening day at the SCG

Peter English at the SCG03-Jan-2010The pitch was tough but Michael Hussey felt Australia under-performed in falling to a disappointing 127 on the opening day at the SCG. After winning the toss, the hosts tumbled to 7 for 62 and had to rely on 38 from Mitchell Johnson and Hussey’s 28 to push them to three figures.”We knew we were going to have to tough it out in the first couple of hours and we weren’t able to do that,” Hussey said. “They did bowl well, we must give them credit, but for myself, I was a bit disappointed with the way I got out after doing some hard work.”Hussey had played the most sensibly of the specialist batsmen before pulling at Asif and being caught off the top edge at first slip. It was an unnecessary mistake but Hussey wasn’t the only one who messed up, with Ricky Ponting, Phillip Hughes and Brad Haddin also responsible for their exits.”At the end of the day we are disappointed to be bowled out for 127,” Hussey said. “Come tomorrow with a positive attitude, if we bowl patiently and with real discipline, we’ll create enough chances to hopefully have the game on an even keel tomorrow night and then the toss is irrelevant.”Green tops have become rare in the modern game and the bowlers deserve to enjoy their days with assistance in the air and off the pitch. However, Hussey said the days could still be fun for batsmen.”I really enjoyed the challenge,” he said. “In some respects the pressure goes off the batsmen a little bit, the pressure is more on the bowlers, who are expected to get you out cheaply. It’s really rewarding if you can get through the period on a tough pitch, it doesn’t get any tougher than that as a batsman.”A major problem for the run-makers is they don’t run into seaming surfaces very often and have to play from the memory of their club or county days. “We’re generally well treated everywhere around the world with excellent batting conditions,” Hussey said. “Sometimes in net practice in places around Australia and the world, you do get some spicy conditions, so you do practice a little bit. For me, growing up in Wanneroo [in Perth], plenty of our net sessions were like that. It takes you back to your youth a little bit.”

Kamran Akmal, the Pakistan wicketkeeper, has described his terrible outing in the Sydney Test, which Pakistan lost by 36 runs, as a “scary dream”

Cricinfo staff09-Jan-2010Kamran Akmal, the Pakistan wicketkeeper, has described his terrible outing in the Sydney Test, which Pakistan lost by 36 runs, as a “scary dream”.Akmal’s keeping has come in for criticism in the recent past and reached its peak during the second innings in Sydney, when he dropped Michael Hussey thrice to give Australia an opportunity to sneak back into the match. Hussey scored a century and was involved in what turned out to be a match-winning partnership with Peter Siddle for the ninth wicket, as Pakistan capitulated in their chase of 176 to concede the series 2-0.”It was from my point of view my worst performance in any match of my career. It was like a scary dream and I just want to get over it and now approach the rest of my career with a new resolve and positivity,” Akmal was quoted as saying by Pakistan daily .For a period over 2004-05, including the last trip to Australia, Akmal’s keeping was widely lauded. But during 2006, in particular the tour to England where he continued playing with an injured finger, his form dipped alarmingly, and he dropped a number of chances over the next two years. Sarfraz Ahmed will be joining the Pakistan squad for the third and final Test in Hobart, and it still remains to be seen if he will replace Akmal in the line-up. Pakistan coach, Intikhab Alam, yesterday, called for Akmal to take a break from international cricket given his form with the gloves.Akmal, however, was determined to fight back and called on those criticising him for his performance to display some perspective by also taking his past performances into account. “It is fine and anybody’s right to criticise me but to make my Sydney Test performance the basis for starting a campaign against me is not fair and neither ruin the interest of Pakistan cricket,” he said. “I must want to quietly play and enjoy my cricket. I know my mistakes cost us the Test but no cricketer gives a bad performance on purpose and my critics should not forget I have played leading roles in many of Pakistan’s past successes as well.”I am ashamed of my performance as well and I apologies to the nation for this and I don’t want to make any excuses but I am also confident that I am capable of hitting form again and doing well for my country.”Fitness, Akmal said, was not at all a problem for him and was not a reason for his poor display in Sydney. He added he would seek advice from Ian Healy and Rashid Latif, the former Pakistan wicketkeeper, on improving his skills.”I am totally fit and I enjoy playing in all three forms of the game for my country. They are many other wicketkeepers who have played non stop cricket for their country people like MS Dhoni, Adam Gilchrist, Mark Boucher, Kumar Sangakkara so I am no exception,” he said. “Rashid is my idol and I will talk to him to sort out my problems soon. But I have not given up hope on my career at all.”

Speaking to GiveMeSport, reporter Paul Brown has made a potential Tottenham Hotspur exit claim involving midfielder Dele Alli.

The Lowdown: Alli on downward trajectory…

Life at Tottenham since the beginning of 2019 has seen the England international go on a downward trajectory with his market value absolutely plummeting as a result (Transfermarkt).

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/spurs-developments-2/” title=”Spurs developments!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Former Spurs boss Jose Mourinho famously shunned Alli out of his Lilywhites side with the 25-year-old barely getting a look in over last season under the Portuguese.

He was handed a lifeline by another former manager, Nuno Espirito Santo, at the beginning of this season but has failed to impress so far over 2020/2021 – leading to a claim by reporter Brown on his future.

The Latest: Brown makes claim…

Speaking to GMS, the journalist has claimed that Tottenham could now sell him on if the ‘right offer’ arrives.

He explained:

“”I think the club as a whole, if they get the right offer for Dele Alli, they probably would take it.”

The Verdict: Dele downfall…

Praised by former manager Mauricio Pochettino as ‘one of the best in Europe’ in his position, it remains to be seen whether Alli can be given yet another chance ton rediscover his best form.

Antonio Conte’s arrival signifies an opportunity for the attacking midfielder but he will have to act quickly, with Tottenham’s new boss even confirming that he is making squad ‘evaluations’ ahead of January.

It could be crunch time for the player and this claim that Spurs may be willing to entertain offers for their once prized asset could be a wake up call to Alli.

The likes of Newcastle United have been linked with a move in January but we believe letting him initially leave on loan to possibly elevate his market value, in the hope he is a success, could be the best course of action.

In other news: ‘The one Spurs like most’ – Journalist says Conte is now eyeing ‘world-beater’ for ‘main role’, find out more here.