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Australia stormed to a resounding 81-run win as Sri Lanka were steamrolled by extreme pace and sustained pressure, folding for 87

The Bulletin by Liam Brickhill09-May-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Cameron White slammed five sixes, including two in consecutive balls from Chanaka Welegedara, to power Australia’s fightback•Getty ImagesAustralia stormed to a resounding 81-run win that all but assured their semi-finals spot as Sri Lanka were steamrolled by extreme pace and sustained pressure, folding for 87. Dirk Nannes and Mitchell Johnson were the main destroyers of the Sri Lankan batting line-up, but the win was made possible by Cameron White’s unstoppable 85 from 49 balls, which rescued his side from a perilous 67 for 5.White was ably aided by Michael Hussey in an unbroken stand of 101 in less than ten overs, and when the Sri Lankan top order was bullied out by a formidable Australian pace attack in quick succession, the rest of the batsmen collapsed in a heap.Australia had been in a similar situation against Bangladesh in the group stage, sinking to 65 for 6 before they were saved by a 74-run partnership between Hussey and Steven Smith. Today, they had White to thank, as he saw off the threatening Suraj Randiv, making the most of a missed chance on 23 to establish his dominance over the rest of the attack, as he passed 50 from 32 balls.Shane Watson and David Warner have given Australia solid starts more often than not in this tournament, but today they were parted with the fifth ball of the innings, as Angelo Mathews snaked one in to rattle Watson’s stumps via an inside edge. In an impressively-controlled opening spell, Mathews then deceived Brad Haddin, sent in ahead of Clarke with Australia one down, with a slower one that took the leading edge and looped up to give Sanath Jayasuriya an easy catch.Australia were then under real pressure when Mahela Jayawardene held a blistering reflex take at slip when Warner nicked a flashing drive to Randiv’s third ball of the match. In a dramatic over, Randiv then set Sri Lankan hearts racing when he beat David Hussey first ball with a flighted delivery that went the other way as the batsman drove on the walk, and Kumar Sangakkara whipped the bails off milliseconds later – not that it mattered, as the ball had also brushed the edge on its way through.The hat-trick evaded him, but he topped off an outstanding spell when Clarke backed away to cut a turning ball and lost his off bail. Australia were 67 for 5 after 11 overs at that stage, and were in real danger of crumbling for an insubstantial total.But Sri Lanka could not carry the intensity from their opening onslaught into the second half of the innings. After racing to his half-century, White led Australia’s charge in the closing overs, lifting Welegedara down the ground with brutal hits from consecutive deliveries to move into the 70s.With that, Hussey, who had nudged his way to 9 from 15 balls, took his cue, walking across his stumps to paddle a knee-high full toss from Lasith Malinga to fine leg. Hussey followed that up with a majestic lofted cover drive, before closing the over with an audacious sweep to a searing yorker. White took Australia past 150 with his fifth and sixth sixes in the penultimate over, and an incredible 91 runs came from the final seven overs.Jayawardene has been Sri Lanka’s linchpin at the top of the order in this tournament, and when he swivelled to pull Nannes handsomely over square leg it appeared that the stage had been set for another excellent knock. But Nannes dug the next one in even shorter, and the ball rose alarmingly to take the splice and balloon up to give Smith an easy catch at long leg.It was pace and aggression that did for Sangakkara, too, as Shaun Tait sent down a brutish bumper that beat the attempted hook for pace, striking the glove on the way through to Haddin. The slide continued as Nannes fired one in at Jayasuriya’s pads in his next over, beating an aimless swish to pin the batsman lbw to reduce Sri Lanka to 26 for 3 in the fifth over.Watson was brought on in the last over of the Powerplay, and his medium-paced seamers proved to be a far more attractive prospect than the 90mph-plus barrage of Nannes and Tait. Dilshan responded with a caressed cover drive and a clean hit high over long on, and Mathews didn’t miss out either, slamming Watson straight back over his head as 15 were taken from the over.But they still had Johnson to contend with from the other end, and he made his intentions clear by banging his first two balls in before rolling his fingers over his third to induce an uppish cut from Dilshan. White at backward point went airborne to pull off a stunning catch inches from the turf, and when Mathews picked out Hussey on the cover boundary four balls later, Sri Lanka’s short-lived counterpunch was nipped in the bud.Sri Lanka were 67 for 5 after 10 overs – almost exactly the position in which Australia had found themselves in the first innings – but their middle order lacks White’s power and Hussey’s class, and from that point on the two sides went in opposite directions, Australia seizing back the game with a supremely confident fightback; Sri Lanka capitulating meekly in the face of sustained pressure. Such was the scale of the win, Australia are now virtually guaranteed a place in the semi-finals.

Now that the January transfer window has opened, this will open the doors for plenty of clubs to make some transfer deals to help them strengthen their squads.

For Leeds United, it seems as though they could be set to say goodbye to one of their rarely-seen young talents on a temporary basis.

What’s the word?

In a recent report from the Daily Mail, it has been claimed that Championship club Nottingham Forest are in advanced talks to sign Cody Drameh on loan.

The report claims that German clubs Hoffenheim and Bayer Leverkusen are also interested in signing the defender and that Forest are “keen on including an option to buy in any loan deal for Drameh.”

Since joining Leeds’ U23 side from Fulham’s U23 squad back in August 2020, the 20-year-old has made 33 appearances for the Yorkshire club’s U23 side, chipping in with one goal and four assists in the process.

Drameh, who is currently earning a weekly wage of £4.4k-per-week according to Salary Sport, has also made four senior appearances for Leeds, showing that Marcelo Bielsa has enough faith in him to perform alongside the more senior players at Elland Road.

Even though Drameh has been in ten Premier League matchday squads so far this season for Leeds, it could be better for him and his development to leave on loan and play on a regular basis elsewhere.

While that would certainly be a plus point for Drameh to go and get regular playing time away from Elland Road until the end of the season, the Yorkshire club should deter from giving the green light on any deal that would include an option to buy the player on a permanent basis.

Labelled as a “revelation” in the past by Tom Hill, Drameh has the capacity to save Victor Orta, Bielsa and the club millions in potential future transfer fees given his age. If he manages to perform well at Forest and comes back ready to play regularly in a Leeds shirt, the youngster could be their future right back.

Moving forward, if the Whites can work out a suitable loan move for the young defender this month that doesn’t involve an option to buy, this would undeniably be the best next step for him.

In other news: Alan Nixon drops worrying Leeds transfer update, it could spell disaster for Bielsa – opinion

Aston Villa could make a move for Everton’s Lucas Digne during the January transfer window, according to The Telegraph’s Mike McGrath. 

The lowdown

Villa confirmed on Friday that they had reached an agreement over their first signing of the January window – a loan deal for FC Barcelona’s Philippe Coutinho.

Digne’s future looks to lie away from Everton, with manager Rafael Benitez revealing in a recent press conference that he wanted to leave.

He hasn’t played a minute for The Toffees since a row with the Spaniard in front of his team-mates.

The club have already moved for another first-team left-back in the form of Dynamo Kyiv’s Vitaliy Mykolenko.

The latest

After the ‘statement signing’ of Coutinho, McGrath looked to who might be next for Gerrard and Villa.

“They have also considered EFC left-back Lucas Digne, who could move this month,” he wrote on Twitter.

The verdict

Digne feels that Benitez’s style of play has constrained his ability to impact the game going forward, but prior to this season he was one of the outstanding creative talents in the Premier League.

What’s more, a football analytics firm even found that he was one of the top ten in the world in his position.

Digne is valued at £27million by Transfermarkt, but Benitez has surely weakened Everton’s negotiating position by publicly admitting that he’d submitted a transfer request.

On the back of Coutinho, this would be another indication that Villa mean business.

In other news, fans flocked to this transfer update.

Ireland women’s squad for their upcoming tour of England blends experience with youth

Cricinfo staff15-Jun-2010Ireland women have announced their squad for the forthcoming tour of England in July, where they will play the hosts, New Zealand and MCC. Medium-pacer Heather Whelan will lead a squad that has a mix of youth and experience.The bowling attack will be lead by Heather and her sister Jill Whelan, with legspinner Ciara Metcalfe and the Joyce twins, Isobel and Cecelia, handling the spin duties. The batting revolves around the experienced Clare Shillington, the Joyce sisters and Jill Whelan. Allrounders Laura Delany, Kim Garth and pace bowler Louise McCarthy, who were part of the Under-17 European winning team last season, have also been included.”Wicketkeeper Mary Waldron will make her debut and another new player, exciting batting prospect Sinead Lyons, from Leinster joins the tour party,” said coach Paul Delany. “The selection very much reflects current form with all of the new players scoring runs and taking wickets.”Ireland’s campaign will begin on July 4 when they take on New Zealand women in an ODI at the Kibworth Cricket Club New Ground.Squad Heather Whelan (capt), Isobel Joyce (vc), Laura Delany, Kim Garth, Cecelia Joyce, Suzanne Kenealy, Sinead Lyons, Ciara Metcalfe, Louise McCarthy, Clare Shillington, Melissa Scott-Hayward, Mary Waldron (wk) and Jill Whelan.

Marcus Trescothick’s unbeaten 54 led Somerset to a rain-affected seven-wicket win over Glamorgan to send them top of the Friends Provident t20 South Group

15-Jul-2010
ScorecardMarcus Trescothick’s unbeaten 54 led Somerset to a rain-affected seven-wicket win over Glamorgan to send them top of the Friends Provident t20 South Group. Under the floodlights Glamorgan were restricted to 116 for 7 in their 20 overs, with Mark Turner returning his Twenty20 best figures of 3 for 25.Somerset’s victory target was then reduced to 92 from 15 overs under the Duckworth-Lewis method following a heavy downpour that forced the players from the field. Trescothick anchored the chase with his fourth successive Twenty20 half-century before Kieron Pollard smashed a straight six to claim the winning runs with 19 balls to spare.Somerset’s eighth win in nine games further strengthened their bid for a home quarter-final, while defeat for Glamorgan ended their hopes of qualifying for the last eight. Glamorgan chose to bat on a seaming pitch and soon found themselves in trouble at 10 for 3.Despite an impressive six from Mark Cosgrove over long-on in the second over Somerset, who welcomed back wicketkeeper-batsman Craig Kieswetter from England duty, dominated the opening exchanges.Ben Phillips recovered from Cosgrove’s blow to bowl Jim Allenby and in the next over Mark Wallace gave a return catch to Turner from a top-edged pull. Phillips then had Cosgrove caught behind attempting a big shot over extra cover as the hosts slumped.Glamorgan fought back though, with a 61-run partnership from 46 balls between Tom Maynard and Ben Wright before both batsmen were caught in the deep off successive Turner overs. From the final 10 overs Glamorgan could only manage 48 runs to set an achievable chase.Trescothick and Kieswetter played positively in the opening overs of Somerset’s reply with the former taking 14 from Shaun Tait’s opening over including a six over third man. At the other end Kieswetter struck James Harris for successive sixes before being bowled via a bottom edge.Somerset had reached 48 for 2 when heavy rain forced a 40-minute delay. When the players returned Somerset required a further 44 from 8.2 overs and led by Trescothick, who reached his half-century from 29 balls, they were never unduly troubled.

West Ham United are interested in a deal to bring Fabio Carvalho to the London Stadium.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by TEAMtalk, who claim that David Moyes’ West Ham side – as well as Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Southampton – are keeping a very close eye on the situation of the Fulham attacking midfielder ahead of a potential swoop this summer.

The report goes on to state that, with the 19-year-old’s current contract at Craven Cottage set to expire at the end of the season, Fulham are concerned that the former England U18 international has already agreed a move away from the club, with the youngster believed to have turned down a number of new contract offers from the Championship side.

GSB must move

Considering the sheer amount of potential Carvalho quite clearly possesses, it would indeed appear to be a very smart move by the West Ham board to attempt to tie a deal up for the teenager prior to him becoming a free agent at the end of the current campaign, as there will undoubtedly be a huge amount of interest in the 19-year-old’s services should he go on to leave Fulham for nothing this summer.

Indeed, the £3.15m-rated man burst onto the scene last season, scoring one goal, creating one big chance and taking an average of 2.3 shots over his four Premier League outings, with these returns seeing the youngster average a highly impressive SofaScore match rating of 6.95 in the top flight.

The player who Fulham’s academy director, Huw Jennings, claimed wants to be “competing for the Ballon d’Or” in a few years time has continued this fine form into his 14 Championship appearances in the current campaign, scoring four goals, registering one assist and creating three big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 1.9 shots and making 1.6 key passes per fixture.

These metrics have seen the £650-per-week starlet average a SofaScore match rating of 6.89, a rather extraordinary accomplishment considering the midfielder’s tender age.

As such, it would very much appear as if the signing of the teenager, particularly on a free transfer, would be a hugely exciting coup for West Ham, leading us to believe that the Hammers board simply must do all they can to land Carvalho’s signature ahead of next season.

In other news: Moyes can form scary duo as West Ham plot bargain swoop for £22.5m-rated “phenomenon”

After PIF’s takeover of Newcastle United was confirmed a number of months ago, we were all expectant and excited to see the type of talent they could lure to St James’ Park.

Sadly, and rather unsurprisingly, however, they have found life difficult during the winter.

January is always a tricky time to recruit and the club’s new owners are finding that our swiftly.

What’s the word?

News broke on Wednesday that Newcastle were trying to complete a deal to bring Jesse Lingard to the club.

However, the Magpies have been rebuffed in their attempts to lands the Manchester United playmaker and it’s thought he’d prefer another move to the capital.

As a result, the Toon are considering making moves for two other players, one of which is Tottenham’s Dele Alli.

That’s according to 90min who report that the England international is an alternative to Lingard this winter.

It’s thought Spurs had set an asking price of £25m according to a separate report last year.

The new Gazza?

A few years ago Darren Anderton was incredibly effusive in his praise for Dele, hailing the creative midfielder as a “freak of a talent.”

Indeed, that talent is clearly still lurking in the 25-year-old but there is a sense that he needs a fresh start elsewhere in order to discover that.

After all, the playmaker has scored just twice in all competitions this term and has only registered one assist too.

That is a far cry from the numbers we saw him rack up in the early stages of his career. In 2015/16, Dele amassed as many as ten goals and nine assists in the top-flight, then went even better in the campaign after that, scoring 18 times with another nine assists to his name.

2017/18 was also productive for the attacking midfielder who racked up nine goals and 11 assists.

With that kind of dynamism in mind, he could well become Newcastle’s next Paul Gascoigne if he finds his form again.

Gazza was a wonderful player in his prime and scored 133 times during his career.

The duo have also been compared previously by none other than Barcelona manager, Xavi. He once said: “There are some very promising young English midfield players and there is no doubt he is very special.

“He is very talented, very technical. I can understand why the Tottenham fans are hoping he is the next Paul Gascoigne.

“For me, Gascoigne was an inspiration when I was developing, one of the best midfield players I have ever seen. It is important not to put pressure on Dele with these comparisons but I can see why fans are excited.”

Of course, his form has subsided since that comparison but there is certainly a belief that he can get back to his best with new tools and resources.

Newcastle must make that happen.

AND in other news, “From sources” – Fabrizio Romano drops big NUFC transfer update that’ll delight fans…

Medium-pacer Maurits Jonkman has been ruled out of the ICC World Cricket League Division One due to injury, and has been replaced by Bernard Loots

Cricinfo staff08-Jul-2010Medium-pacer Maurits Jonkman has been ruled out of the ICC World Cricket League Division One due to injury, and has been replaced by Bernard Loots. Netherlands have won and lost two of their four games thus far in the competition and face Ireland in a crucial encounter in Amstelveen on Friday.

Following on from their 2-2 draw against Manchester United in their previous Premier League outing that saw Aston Villa crawl back from being 2-0 down to secure a point, Steven Gerrard takes his side to Goodison Park this afternoon to take on Everton in their latest league clash. 

Having sacked Rafa Benitez after their 2-1 defeat against Norwich City last weekend, Duncan Ferguson will be leading Everton in his first game as caretaker manager to try and get their season back on track. 

In terms of Villa and which players Gerrard could select to be in his starting XI, with Bertrand Traore and Trezeguet still away on international duty and Marvelous Nakamba and Leon Bailey still out through injury, Villa are also sweating on the fitness of defender Ezri Konsa after he picked up a hip issue in the draw against the Red Devils last weekend. 

With that in mind, here’s how we fee Villa will line up today. 

In goal, having played in all but one of Villa’s Premier League games so far this season and recently putting pen to paper on a new deal with the Midlands club, it’d be hard not to see Emi Martinez start this afternoon. 

For the full-back positions, we think Gerrard will stick with the same pair that started against United with Matty Cash on the right and January signing Lucas Digne on the left once again. 

In the centre-back roles, Gerrard may not feel it’s worth the risk putting Konsa back in so we think he’ll stick with Tyrone Mings and put Kortney Hause in, who, like Martinez, has recently signed a new deal at the club. 

In midfield, with John McGinn back after serving a one-match ban in the game against United, we think Gerrard will have no issue in putting him back straight back in the side with Morgan Sanson dropping out. 

Next to McGinn we can see Douglas Luiz and Jacob Ramsey playing in midfield to try and provide some stability and control against the Toffees.

For the attack, we think Gerrard will give Philippe Coutinho his first start in a Villa shirt on the left-wing after making a big impact off the bench on his debut against United by scoring their crucial equalising goal. 

Then finally we predict that Gerrard will make a big decision and drop Danny Ings, who is currently earning a weekly wage of £100k-per-week according to Salary Sport, from the side with Ollie Watkins playing through the middle with Emi Buendia on the right. 

In other news: Ashley Preece drops Villa transfer claim amid Gerrard comments, fans surely delighted – opinion

Sachin Tendulkar led India’s attempt to stay alive in the series on an attritional day at the SSC

The Bulletin by Siddhartha Talya28-Jul-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Sachin Tendulkar made his 48th Test century•Associated PressSachin Tendulkar led India’s attempt to stay alive in the series on an attritional day at the SSC, battling his way, supported by VVS Laxman and Suresh Raina, to a determined century that took India closer to avoiding the follow-on. This, after Sri Lanka’s spinners brought the Test back to life just when it seemed the bat would dominate for the third successive day.The conditions on Day 3 were still batsman-friendly but the Sri Lankan bowlers varied their pace and lengths with greater skill than their Indian counterparts to create chances. However, India survived a couple of nervy moments that helped turn the third day, if only slightly, in their favour. When on 29, Tendulkar attempted to upper-cut Dilhara Fernando and was dropped by wicketkeeper Prasanna Jayawardene. And an appeal against Raina was turned down in the final session when he was struck on the pads by a straighter delivery from Tillakaratne Dilshan; replays suggested the ball would have gone on to hit leg.Charged, yet again, with the responsibility of reviving the Indian innings, Tendulkar batted with assuredness amid the pressure. The spinners didn’t extract much turn though they did generate good bounce, but Tendulkar adapted well, opting to deal with the length deliveries outside off with caution while treating the ones that were pitched short harshly. He struck Suraj Randiv for eight boundaries through the off side – point, cover and past slip – and comfortably picked off deliveries bowled on his pads for a couple more. The one time he did step out to the spinners was when he brought up his half-century, a clean strike over long-on.Tendulkar played the ball late on a slowish track, and targeted Randiv while approaching his century, reaching the landmark, his 48th in Tests, with a sweep through square leg. He also ensured a steady flow of singles with Raina, whose strokeplay masked the nerves of a batsman making his first Test appearance.Smart stats

Sachin Tendulkar’s unbeaten 108 is his 48th Test hundred, and his 94th in all international cricket. It’s his fifth Test century in Sri Lanka; among overseas countries, only in Australia has he scored more hundreds (six).

Suresh Raina is the second Indian batsman to score more than 50 in his debut Test this year – S Badrinath had scored 56 against South Africa in Nagpur. Virender Sehwag is the only other Indian to achieve this feat since 2000.

Sehwag became only the third batsman to be dismissed stumped on 99. It’s also the eighth instance of an Indian being dismissed for 99.

The 165-run stand between Sehwag and Murali Vijay is the fourth instance of a century stand for the first wicket by India in Sri Lanka. It fell six runs short of equalling the record, between Navjot Siddhu and Manoj Prabhakar, in 1993.

Raina was uncertain early on against the round-the-wicket line bowled by the two spinners, failing to pick a legspinner from Mendis and leaving a straighter one from Randiv. But, unlike Tendulkar, it was against the length deliveries that he was most comfortable. He stepped out to both spinners to drive them through mid-on, and struck Dammika Prasad for consecutive boundaries. He was equally solid in defence, offering the full face, and eased towards his maiden half-century with a couple of delicious cover drives off the spinners.Tendulkar began India’s recovery after Virender Sehwag’s swipe on 99 triggered a rush of wickets that undermined a strong start. Facing Randiv’s first delivery of the day, Sehwag stepped out and swung hard towards cow corner, missed and was stumped to become the offspinner’s maiden Test victim.The wickets that followed were a consequence of some crafty bowling from the spinning pair. Mendis snared opener M Vijay with a googly that he failed to pick after erroneously opting to play the length delivery off the back foot. Rahul Dravid was trapped in front with a ball that skidded on before Laxman joined Tendulkar to rebuild the innings.Laxman was edgy during his stay and was troubled by Randiv as he played inside the line while expecting more turn. He got the leading edge twice and edged one to slip on the bounce. He appeared far more comfortable against Mendis, capitalising with a couple of boundaries when he was generous enough to stray on the pads. But his concentration wavered and he didn’t read Mendis’ wrong ‘un and was struck in front of leg stump. His wicket at the stroke of tea shifted a see-saw day Sri Lanka’s way, but Tendulkar and Raina, with a bit of fortune, put India’s survival plans back on track.