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Afghanistan’s coronation as kings of the Associates’ four-day competition will have to wait another day as UAE captain Rohan Mustafa and Chirag Suri strung together a record partnership and push their Intercontinental Cup match into the final day

The Report by Peter Della Penna in Abu Dhabi01-Dec-2017Peter Della PennaAfghanistan’s coronation as kings of the Associates’ four-day competition will have to wait another day as UAE captain Rohan Mustafa and Chirag Suri rallied to string together a record partnership and push their Intercontinental Cup match into the final day.Afghanistan had seemed like they would canter to victory after taking the five remaining wickets in UAE’s first innings within the morning session. Having secured a 313-run first-innings lead, Asghar Stanikzai enforced the follow-on, before Mustafa and Suri began UAE’s resistance. They put on 146 – UAE’s highest opening-wicket stand in the Intercontinental Cup – each batsman raising his respective maiden first-class fifty.Zahir Khan had been the star of the morning session. He dismissed three batsmen, including Amjad Javed and Mohammad Naveed at the end of the 58th to leave UAE nine down. However, he was denied a chance at a hat-trick when he injured himself diving to stop a boundary in the following over, and didn’t return until the second innings. Rahmat Shah replaced Zahir in the attack and claimed the final wicket with around half an hour to go before lunch. Shaiman Anwar, unbeaten on 29 overnight, added another 56 but ran out of partners. He was left stranded on 85 not out.Suri and Mustafa safely batted out six overs before lunch, and sustained their obstinance through the afternoon session. By tea, UAE were 94 for no loss, with Mustafa two short of a half-century. He raised it in chaotic fashion early in the final session, with a scampered single that nearly had Suri runout.While Mustafa grinded his way to the landmark, Suri was slightly more fluent, striking a series of boundaries that included elegant straight drives. The fifty came off 96 balls, with a steer through backward point off Rashid Khan, who went wicketless on the day.Suri looked even more assured after passing the landmark. He put behind his short-ball discomfort from a day earlier as he pulled Dawlat Zadran to midwicket, before mixing in a few wristy flicks through the same region off Dawlat and Yamin Ahmadzai.UAE’s refusal to buckle left Afghanistan visibly frustrated. Umpire Ahsan Raza had to intervene at one point in the afternoon session, when Rashid, having fielded the ball off his own bowling, hurled it back past Suri to the wicketkeeper, triggering a verbal confrontation.UAE eventually cracked when Mustafa heaved Nabi lazily to mid-off halfway into the final session. Zahir returned after nursing his injured left shoulder to nab Suri for 81 five overs later. Replays showed the ball, which pitched on middle stump, struck Suri marginally in line with leg stump and may have spun past it.Play had ended at 5pm local time on the first two days. But the timings were amended for Friday prayers, extending play by a few minutes to accommodate a longer lunch. With the floodlights coming on amid fading light, pace spearhead Dawlat lifted Afghanistan’s spirits when he lured Shaiman Anwar into a false drive to cover, 10 balls before the players were taken off for bad light.Having secured six points for a first-innings lead, Afghanistan only need three more points from a draw to become the Intercontinental Cup champions. But with UAE still 112 runs behind and the spine of their batting dismissed, an Afghanistan win appears to be a matter of when, not if.

In the newest chapter of a sorry saga for the fast bowler, a return to bowling has re-aggravated his previous back stress fracture, a matter of months after he was ruled out of the tours of Bangladesh and India

Daniel Brettig04-Oct-20170:34

Quick Facts – James Pattinson

James Pattinson, touted as the fourth member of Australia’s Ashes pace barrage, is out of the 2017-18 Ashes series and faces a clouded future after medical staff confirmed the seriousness of his latest back injury.In the newest chapter of a sorry saga for Pattinson, a return to bowling has re-aggravated his previous back stress fracture, a matter of months after he was ruled out of the tours of Bangladesh and India due to pain he complained of following appearances in the English county season and then the Champions Trophy.”Soon after returning from the UK, following the Champions Trophy and his county cricket contract, James presented with back pain,” Cricket Australias head of sports science, Alex Kountouris, said. “We made the decision to withdraw him from the Tour of Bangladesh and monitor his pain. He returned to bowling after a period of rest and unfortunately he is still experiencing pain with bowling.”During this time we have been monitoring him, including regular scans and recent imaging has confirmed that James has begun to re-aggravate his previous lower back stress fracture. As such, he has discontinued bowling as part of his recovery which unfortunately means that he will be unavailable for the beginning of the Sheffield Shield and subsequently Ashes campaign.”At the age of 27, Pattinson has endured multiple stress fractures in his back, which Kountouris said was causing a flow-on effect, in that one part of his spine faces more stress than it would in other cases. This diagnosis leaves Pattinson and medical staff with a difficult road ahead to chart a path back to a more sustainable bowling career.ESPNcricinfo LtdEarlier this year, Pattinson revealed he had asked not to be considered for selection for the India Test tour in order not to be rushed back from injury. “I had a chat with the selectors before this series, saying that I just wanted to really get through this Shield season,” Pattinson said in March.”I know the last two times I’ve done something like this, flown over to a series where it’s in the balance and there’s the potential of me bowling close to 40, 50 overs, which I have – in South Africa in 2014 I did it, and then last year I did the same thing in New Zealand, going in with not a lot of cricket, and it hasn’t really turned out very well for me. We didn’t want to make that same mistake again, because at 26, if I went over there and did my back again or something, it would be not an ideal thing for the third time.”Much of CA’s approach to fast bowlers is based upon the theory that pace bowlers’ bodies don’t fully mature until around the age of 25, making it vital that they do not develop chronic injuries while still growing. That theory has been governed largely by case studies such as that of Bruce Reid, the left-arm paceman who took on a heavy load for Australia at a young age before losing most of his prime years due to chronic back problems.”Whilst this is very disappointing that James has re-aggravated this old injury, we are confident that he can recover from this and return to playing,” Kountouris said. “However, James’ current injury is complex because his history of old stress fractures from his teenage years means there is one part of his spine that absorbs more force than it would normally do.”This is the area of the current re-aggravation but we are hopeful that we can put strategies in place to help manage this when James returns to playing.”Pattinson, who has previously spoken about the mental toll of long months rehabilitating alone, away from the camaraderie of a cricket dressing room, was distraught at the news. “Obviously I am extremely disappointed with this setback after just getting back into a good run of playing cricket,” he said.”I’m especially disappointed to miss out on the possibility to play in a home Ashes series. Over the next few weeks I will discuss all available options available to me with medical staff, to work out the best plan to prevent this from happening again.”Pat Cummins is presently the only member of the aforementioned quartet to be fully fit, and is currently resting after the ODI series in India. Mitchell Starc is due to return from a foot injury for New South Wales in their next domestic limited-overs fixture, while Josh Hazlewood is in the latter stages of recovery from a side strain. Nathan Coulter-Nile, who bowled impressively in India, is now expected to be a part of Australia’s Ashes squad in Pattinson’s stead.

Tottenham Hotspur are believed to be among a raft of Premier League clubs who are interested in signing Leeds United star, Tyler Adams, with manager Ange Postecoglou seemingly keen to strengthen his midfield ranks before the end of the window.

How much would Tyler Adams cost?

According to 90min, the Lilywhites are one of the top-flight sides who are 'keeping tabs' on the 24-year-old's current situation at Elland Road, with the likes of Manchester United, Liverpool and Brighton and Hove Albion also showing an interest in the American maestro.

As per the report, Tottenham's London rivals, Chelsea, are perhaps attempting to steal a march on those other suitors having made 'contact' regarding a potential summer deal, with Leeds having seemingly accepted that the former RB Leipzig man will depart following the club's drop into the Championship.

Read the latest Tottenham transfer news HERE…

The piece adds that the New York native – who made the move to Yorkshire on a £15m deal last summer – is set to be available for just £25m this time around due to the presence of a release clause in his existing contract.

How good is Tyler Adams?

That apparent interest in the 5 foot 9 ace has come amid reports that Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg is set to be allowed to depart before the end of the window, with the Denmark international looking likely to seal a move to La Liga side Atletico Madrid over the coming weeks.

Prior reports had indicated earlier on in the summer that the north Londoners were open to offers for the 27-year-old, with Postecoglou seemingly keen to take his midfield in a different direction despite Hojbjerg having been a crucial figure under the likes of Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte.

Having missed just five Premier League games over the last three seasons, the former Southampton man has evidently been a key cog in the centre of the park of late, albeit with there a chance for Daniel Levy to land a potential upgrade with the signing of Adams.

Even despite missing a fair chunk of last term through injury, the United States international still ranked fourth in the division for tackles made (89) as a sign of his defensive dominance in front of the back four, with Hojbjerg, meanwhile, placing 62nd after making just 56 tackles in total.

That difference in quality can also be seen by the fact that Adams averaged a remarkable 5.2 tackles and interceptions per game from his 24 league outings, while the current Tottenham man averaged just three tackles and interceptions per game from his 35 top-flight appearances.

Unsurprisingly lauded as "aggressive" and a "tackling machine" by pundit Kevin Campbell, the £55k-per-week asset also won 57% of his total duels as a further sign of that ball-winning prowess, with that again ahead of what Hojbjerg achieved in 2022/23 (53%).

That would suggest that if Postecoglou is looking for a figure who can protect the backline and provide an effective, defensive screen then Adams could well be the man for the job, with the American likely to allow Spurs' attacking talents the freedom to shine higher up the pitch.

Although at present it does appear that a move to Stamford Bridge looks more likely for the 36-cap ace, if Levy were to produce a late hijack it could be a particularly astute piece of business.

Tottenham Hotspur are set to make a long-term contract offer to Bayer Leverkusen defender Edmond Tapsoba after sealing a deal for Wolfsburg's Micky van de Ven.

Who will Spurs sign?

Ange Postecoglou, as reported by reliable media sources like Fabrizio Romano, are closing in on the signings of both van de Ven and Rosario Central striker Alejo Veliz.

The former, who will sign from Wolfsburg for around €50 million (£43m) including add-ons, is travelling to London on Saturday ahead of a medical with Spurs as chairman Daniel Levy finally captures a centre-back.

Meanwhile, Romano has also given his famous "here we go" to a Tottenham deal for Veliz, with the highly-rated South American striker coming in as a potential star for the future.

There are suggestions that this could well be a busy final month of the window for Spurs with some reports even claiming they could sign two senior centre-backs before September 1 – not including Blackburn starlet Ashley Phillips – whose arrival has just been announced by Tottenham.

Read the latest Tottenham transfer news HERE…

Postecoglou, after his new side conceded 63 league goals last season, has admitted to the media that signing a new defender or two is one of their summer agendas.

"That's definitely our intention, absolutely," said the Spurs head coach when asked about centre-backs.

"We've been working on it for a while and we'll definitely try to get it done as quickly as possible.

"I don't think it's any secret about some of the areas we needed to strengthen. Some of it I identified early on. The goalkeeper was one and central defence is another.

"In terms of the other boys, we've got a big squad but my view is I wanted to bring them along and just work with them, get some clarity in my head and give clarity to them."

After van de Ven, it appears Spurs are indeed aiming for at least one more option in that area. Indeed, Football Insider saying they're still in the hunt for Tapsoba, with a "long-term contract" currently in the offing.

The Burkina Faso international, who played more Bundesliga minutes than any other Leverkusen outfielder last season, is at the centre of interest from Spurs.

They will apparently turn attention to prising him away from Germany following van de Ven and are set to offer him a long-term contract in a bid to tempt him towards Tottenham.

This comes as Postecoglou aims to sign two centre-backs before deadline day, with Spurs pushing to complete a number of deals, according to the outlet.

How good is Edmond Tapsoba?

An untouchable member of Xabi Alonso's starting eleven last campaign, Tapsoba has been praised for his composure on the ball and even likened to former Bayern Munich star defender Jerome Boateng.

The Bundesliga website wrote:

"The legendary Bayern Munich defender, who made 364 appearances across 11 seasons for the Bavarian giants, was as cool and calm as it gets both on the ball and in the tackle while he was also famed for his pinpoint long passing that set up many an attack for the record champions.

"Tapsoba has similar traits and such is his eagerness to start forward thrusts, he has often been referred to as a defensive playmaker."

Australia failed to fully capitalise on a 231-run opening stand, but better fielding than India and excellent bowling from their quicks made sure India’s ODI juggernaut was halted at nine wins in a row, still their longest streak

The Report by Sidharth Monga28-Sep-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
1:27

Tait: Australia’s quicks have been good all through series

It is tough to imagine an Australian side of the old 3-0 down in a series after the dominant positions they got themselves into in the three preceding games. In failing to capitalise fully on a 231-run opening stand, they left themselves susceptible to a fourth such reversal, but better fielding than India and excellent bowling from their quicks made sure India’s ODI juggernaut was halted at nine wins in a row, still their longest streak.David Warner scored a hundred in his 100th ODI, Aaron Finch biffed his way to 94 and to the top of the runs chart this series despite playing only two matches, but Australia managed just 102 runs in the last 15 overs, setting India 335. For a good part of the chase, India seemed on course to add to their record of five successful chases of 330 or more and Australia’s unwanted record of eight unsuccessful defences of 330 or more, but their fielders and bowlers redeemed themselves on a damp outfield where it couldn’t have been easy to grip the ball.The moment of magic came from the captain Steven Smith, who has so far had an ordinary series in the field, dropping two catches in Chennai and one in Indore. Two of those were crucial. In Bengaluru, he led by example at point in a match where India let quite a few slip through on a bumpy outfield that is dangerous to dive on. While India seemed cautious diving, Smith threw himself at everything. One of those balls was a Virat Kohli cut with India’s two best ODI batsmen in the middle.Smith flew to his left at point. All of a sudden what seemed like at least a single caused panic. Kohli returned, oblivious that Rohit Sharma – on a sublime 65 at that point – kept running. It should have been Rohit’s call anyway even though he would have been only just out had Smith hit the stumps at the striker’s end direct. Smith missed, but both the batsmen were at the same end, and Australia had enough time to run Rohit out. Kohli was in no position to sacrifice his wicket for the set batsman because he had run past the wicket.To make it worse, Nathan Coulter-Nile returned to provide Kohli a replay of his Kolkata dismissal. Coulter-Nile went wide on the crease, bowled short of a length, asked Kohli to dab it to third man, but took the inside edge with the angle. India had slipped from 106 for 0 to 147 for 3, losing both half-centurions Ajinkya Rahane and Rohit. For the first time in a long time, India’s middle order was going to be tested with the asking rate a worry.India responded by promoting Hardik Pandya again. Pandya responded with three sixes in a 40-ball innings, moving to No. 1 on the six-hitters’ list this year, in under half the balls faced by the No. 2 on that list, Eoin Morgan. Adam Zampa had his own back after the Chennai mauling and two sixes on the night when he got Pandya out in the 38th over. Zampa bowled well to Pandya, not giving him the length he could hit straight. Pandya responded well with a pulled six and another over extra cover, but finally the short ball from Zampa got Pandya at long-off.It was, however, Pandya’s partner in that 78-run stand that seemed to be India’s man for the night. And afternoon. His low-arm action resembles a man bowling to under-10 kids in street cricket, but in international limited-overs cricket, India go to Kedar Jadhav only when all else has failed against big-hitting batsmen. As seen in the Champions Trophy, hardly ever does Jadhav’s unusual bowling fail. He came on to bowl in the 31st over with no wicket taken, with two of cricket’s biggest hitters looking to hit every ball big, and produced the wicket of Warner in a spell of 7-0-38-1.Umesh Yadav then removed Finch and Smith to expose the softer underbelly of Australia’s batting. Three wickets fell for five runs, no boundary came in 50 balls, only 56 were in scored before the last five overs.Umesh had in part been responsible for the rollicking start. Mohammed Shami and Umesh, playing ahead of the rested Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, provided full balls far too often on a pitch that seemed difficult if the pace was taken off with the length on the shorter side. Finch began the aggression, but Warner caught up soon and then left his opening partner far behind. Both took full toll of all of India’s specialist bowlers, including Axar Patel, replacing the rested left-arm wristspinner Kuldeep Yadav.Then Jadhav happened, giving himself a chance when his turn to bat came. Every time the asking rate crept towards or beyond eight in that partnership with Pandya, Jadhav would keep finding a way to hit a boundary. He managed the same later with Manish Pandey, but the turn available meant Smith could bowl 15 overs of spin, which was a bonus especially with Marcus Stoinis injured.Zampa began the 42nd over with a slight drizzle around. This was a crucial over because Australia’s three big quicks could bowl out after that over. To add to the drama, the drizzle was deemed hard enough to take the players off after one ball, with India two runs behind the DLS par score. Teams came back on, Zampa’s over went for 12, and Australia now had 75 to defend in eight overs of their three gun bowlers.Pandey sent Coulter-Nile back with a six over midwicket in the 43rd over, but Kane Richardson began to chip away at India. The 44th over was perfect for Australia: a slower yorker from deep inside Richardson’s palm and five other singles meant India needed more than 10 an over in the last six.Pat Cummins followed it with an eight-run over, and that Richardson slower ball – no change in arm speed or release – got Jadhav caught at long-off. Out came MS Dhoni with 49 required off 26. Despite his important hands of late, this was Dhoni’s test. Nobody has questioned Dhoni’s calm and acumen, which has shown in his recent efforts, but it is when quick runs are needed that Dhoni struggled of late. Especially after Pandey’s wicket early next over, it was all down to Dhoni.Dhoni showed a new side, in that he didn’t take ones and twos to take the chase into the last over. He tried a big hit to almost every ball, managing to hit one six, but he played a damaging five dot balls before chopping on. The chase was over. Australia finally had smiles on their faces.

Juventus transfer target Franck Kessie is currently "leaning towards" joining Tottenham Hotspur this summer, according to recent reports.

Who will Spurs sign this summer?

Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou has been backed with three major signings so far as we enter the latter phase of this transfer window, with August coming as their last chance to strengthen.

Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario, midfielder James Maddison and winger Manor Solomon have arrived in the last month – coming after both Pedro Porro and Dejan Kulusevski made their Tottenham loan deals permanent.

The agenda for Postecoglou and chairman Daniel Levy is, now, to sign multiple senior centre-backs to reinforce a fragile defence which conceded 63 league goals last season.

Tottenham, as per rumours in the last fortnight, could also sign a star midfielder to replace Denmark international Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg – who has recently been in talks to join Atletico Madrid.

The La Liga side have reportedly seen a £16 million bid rejected for Hojbjerg, but that doesn't mean the deal is off, as The Times (SB Nation) report there is still confidence a deal will be reached eventually.

A new midfielder could therefore be a priority for Postecoglou, as they will be in need of a capable stand-in for Hojbjerg should he depart for Spain.

Kessie is one of the names linked with a move to north London, alongside the likes of Chelsea's Conor Gallagher, with La Gazzetta dello Sport sharing an update on the former.

Page nine of the newpaper (via Football Italia) say the Ivory Coast international is "currently leaning towards a move" to Tottenham.

This is bad news for fellow interested side Juve, who have been in close contact to try and seal a move for the Barca star. The Serie A giants want Kessie on loan with an option to buy, a deal which Xavi's side are open to themselves, and could well be encouraging financially from a Spurs perspective.

How good is Franck Kessie?

Over the 2020/2021 season, Kessie starred for ex-club AC Milan, scoring 13 goals and assisting four others in 36 Italian top flight starts for the Rossoneri (WhoScored).

These flashes of form potentially resulted in Barca snapping up the African last summer, but he's found consistent game time difficult to come by since, having started just seven league games last season (WhoScored).

That being said, he has displayed his quality on occasion, with Xavi praising his performance after a 1-0 victory against Villarreal in February.

"Kessie was great today," explained the Spain footballing legend.

"He recovered many balls, distributed well… Everything for the team. He is very solid.”

Former Spurs keeper Paul Robinson, commenting on Tottenham's previous links to Kessie, also said he would've fit the bill for ex-boss Antonio Conte as a "quick" and "amazing" player.

"Kessie would fit the bill," said Robinson to Football Insider.

"He is strong, quick and effective at both ends of the pitch. He ticks a lot of boxes.

“There is no doubting that he is an amazing player. The question is, would he come in and command a starting spot? Hojbjerg and Bentancur have done extremely well. [Yves] Bissouma has struggled to get a look in at times.

“Would Kessie upset that midfield? Maybe but I don’t think it’s a certainty. It’s really important that Spurs sign better than what they already have."

Allrounder Marcus Stoinis will return to his home state of Western Australia for the 2017-18 season, after spending the past five summers playing with Victoria

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Aug-2017Allrounder Marcus Stoinis will return to his home state of Western Australia for the 2017-18 season, after spending the past five summers playing with Victoria.Stoinis had debuted for the Warriors in 2008-09 before moving to Melbourne in 2012, and his change of states led to consistent output at domestic level and international selection in the limited-overs formats.Stoinis, who turns 28 this week, has been Victoria’s second-leading run scorer in the Sheffield Shield in the past three years, behind only Test batsman Peter Handscomb.He will be joined in the Western Australia squad this summer by allrounder Matthew Spoors, who has been handed a rookie contract for the first time.Gone from last year’s squad are the retired batsman Adam Voges, along with Nathan Rimmington, Ryan Duffield, Josh Nicholas and Liam O’Connor.”We’re thrilled to have Marcus coming home to Western Australia, not only because he’s an extremely talented player but he’s a great character as well,” coach Justin Langer said. “Young Matt Spoors is an exciting young talent. I love his dancing feet; a lot of kids these days have really slow footwork, but Matt’s got really fast batting feet.”Twelve players have been Australian representatives and that’s a great tribute to the program we’re running here at the WACA.”Western Australia squad Ashton Agar (Cricket Australia contract), Cameron Bancroft, Jason Behrendorff, William Bosisto, Hilton Cartwright (CA), Nathan Coulter-Nile, Cameron Green, Josh Inglis, Michael Klinger, Simon Mackin, Mitchell Marsh (CA), Shaun Marsh, David Moody, Joel Paris, Jhye Richardson, D’Arcy Short, Marcus Stoinis, Ashton Turner, Andrew Tye, Jonathan Wells, Sam Whiteman. Rookies Alex Bevilaqua, Jake Carder, Kyle Gardiner, Clint Hinchcliffe, Matthew Kelly, Matthew Spoors.

Hemantha Devapriya said that competing with the top countries was an invaluable experience even though Sri Lanka came home with only one win in seven matches

Sa'adi Thawfeeq22-Jul-2017Sri Lanka may have won only one match out of seven in the Women’s World Cup, but coach Hemantha Devapriya believes the experience of playing against the top seven countries was an invaluable learning curve.”The tournament enabled our players to really see the standards of the other teams,” he said. “It’s a big demand for them to work hard and get into that level within a very short time. They have been talking to players from other teams and they know the areas they have to work on and they are ready to learn.”Sri Lanka beat Pakistan in their final league match before returning home, and Devapriya contended that they could well have beaten West Indies and India too if not for a couple of issues. “Overall I am happy with their performance but we could have done a little better if our middle-order batting and fielding came up to their capabilities.”We were struggling to put 200-plus runs on the board and only two players had strike-rates of over 50 – Chamari Atapattu and Eshani Lokusuriyage,” he said. “However, if you see during the tournament, we crossed the 200-run mark on four occasions and the girls have shown improvement in their strike-rates. Some batters’ strike-rates have gone up to 85-90 and that is a good indication.”Where, in the past, Sri Lanka have struggled to the match power-hitting in modern cricket, at the World Cup, they had one of their key players, Atapattu, slam an unbeaten 178, with 22 fours and six sixes, against a full-strength Australian attack. Devapriya noted this as an improvement, but highlighted that there were other aspects of batting that needed work.Chamari Atapattu’s breathtaking knock against Australia has won praise from the Sri Lanka women’s coach•Getty Images/ICC”We did practice a range of shots and I can see that they are now capable of using those shots,” he said. “We worked a lot on playing off the back foot and how to use the pace of the ball especially the flat bat shot and the sweep shot and inside out shots. The players are now taking calculated risks and playing those shots little by little.”We are concentrating now on taking more singles because the confidence is not there. We have given them a lot of singles targets, which quietly they are improving but still we are not up to international standards. Placing the ball and working with soft hands those are the areas we are working on.”Another lesson learnt was the importance of facing up against quality sides and battling it out. “We noticed that against sides like Australia, England, India and New Zealand very hardly do you get a loose ball,” Devapriya said. “They are accurate and they are well ahead in the practical and mental game. Our players aren’t powerful strikers of the ball. We have to put the players through special exercises to get more power into their shots and bowling. Fielding is coupled with fitness. The players now have a better understanding of what is required of them to become better cricketers.”As much as improvements need to be made to the current squad of players, Devapriya was conscious of highlighting the need to build the necessary infrastructure that will feed new players into the system.”If you notice our present side has aging players,” he said. “India has several players who played in the last World Cup because they introduced them as youngsters. Now they have a lot of experience behind them and their mental and tactical game is streets ahead of us. India has developed fast. They were a little ahead of us when we played them in the last World Cup, but now for us to get there it’s going to take some time.”The first steps towards that goal have been taken. “Sri Lanka Cricket, in the recent past, has introduced an under-23 tournament,” Devapriya said. “There was no tournament like that before. The selectors picked 60 players from the tournament called the development squad and after further trials pruned it down to 30. Of that we are hoping to get at least another 5-6 players from the emerging squad. We’ll have to work closely with them and see how they can fit into the national squad.”What is encouraging is leading girls’ schools have now taken up to cricket. At the moment we have about 2500 girls playing and Sri Lanka Cricket is working hard to promote the game. If all goes well we might see some good players coming through the schools.”Sri Lanka are next scheduled to tour the Caribbean for a series of five ODIs in October. The tour, however, is yet to be finalized by the two cricket boards.

Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly in the running to sign Conor Gallagher from Premier League rivals, Chelsea, with the Englishman looking set for a departure from his current home.

What's the latest on Gallagher to Tottenham?

According to journalist Nizaar Kinsella, the Lilywhites are set to fight it out with West Ham United for the signing of the 23-year-old, with the Blues believed to be open to moving on the former Crystal Palace loanee this summer.

Writing on Twitter, the transfer insider revealed: "Chelsea are ready to sell Conor Gallagher despite his preseason appearances. It's a direct battle between Tottenham and West Ham for his signature. He'll cost around £35m with two years left on his Chelsea deal."

In his piece for the Evening Standard, Kinsella writes that the north Londoners are in need of homegrown players as well as a possible replacement for Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, with the Danish maestro having asked to leave the club in order to join Atletico Madrid.

If Ange Postecoglou's side are keen to get their hands on Gallagher over the coming weeks they may well need to get a move on, with West Ham having already stolen a march by lodging a £40m bid, which has been rejected by those at Stamford Bridge.

Should Tottenham sign Conor Gallagher?

Postecoglou has already moved to strengthen his midfield ranks with the signing of James Maddison from Leicester City, although the playmaking ace – who finished tenth in the division for chances created last term – could well be aided by a relentless, "box-to-box" presence, as described by writer Zach Lowy, alongside him, such as Gallagher.

With Maddison typically being deployed in a right-sided midfield berth – or on the flanks – during his time with the Foxes, it is likely that the Chelsea man would slot in on the left of Postecoglou's three-man midfield, allowing him to strike up an exciting partnership with wing wizard, Heung-min Son down that side.

The latter man enjoyed a below-par season by his standards last time out after scoring 'just' ten league goals – having netted 23 times the previous campaign – although he could well be rejuvenated by the change in the dugout, having already been hailed as an "elite" talent by Postecoglou as a sign of the important role that he is set to play next term.

With the South Korean star undoubtedly a real "goal threat" – according to his manager – the aim will be to keep the 31-year-old operating at the top end of the pitch whenever possible, hence having a workmanlike presence behind him such as Gallagher to put in the hard yards defensively.

Previously lauded as a "sensation" by Lowy during his loan stint at Selhurst Park in 2021/22, the Epsom-born ace is a truly relentless presence in the centre of the pitch, with Chelsea legend Pat Nevin having recently stated:

'If you need someone to cover ground, go from box to box, make tackles, be a threat in the opposition box one minute and making superb defensive blocks in his own area the next, then Conor is your man.'

That ability to cover ground with ease should allow Son the freedom to wreak havoc in the final third, while Gallagher could also offer support to the long-serving Spurs ace when needed, with his desire to get forward showcased by the fact that he ranks in the top 3% among midfielders in Europe's top five leagues for touches in the attacking penalty area.

That all-action style will not only be beneficial to Postecoglou, but it could also ensure that Son is able to shine even brighter from the flanks next term.

Yorkshire and Lancashire shared a tie in their Roses T20 in front of a record crowd at Old Trafford after heavy rain forced the result to be decided on the Duckworth-Lewis method

Jon Culley14-Jul-2017
ScorecardKarl Brown gave Lancashire a lightning start•Getty ImagesYorkshire and Lancashire shared a tie in their Roses T20 in front of a record crowd at Old Trafford after heavy rain forced the result to be decided on the Duckworth-Lewis method.The largest attendance for a Blast match outside of London watched these two rivals repeat the T20 tie at Headingley four years ago as a compelling contest was curtailed in the ninth over of Yorkshire’s reply.After Lancashire had made 176 for 4, Karl Brown top-scoring with 61 off 47 balls, Yorkshire’s reply began under a threatening sky and it was not long before the first hint of what was to come as spectators began to reach for their waterproofs.Umpires Rob Bailey and Martin Saggers kept the players on the field for as long as possible, mindful that a sell-out crowd of almost 20,000 had come to be entertained and has a different attitude to the time-honoured assumption that rain should immediately drive the players from the field.At the end of the eighth over, half an hour into a Manchester downpour that was showing no sign of easing off, Yorkshire were suddenly one run ahead on the score chart at 63 for 2, nudged in front by a soaring David Willey six over midwicket off Junaid Khan.Conditions by then were becoming farcical, posing problems for batsmen, bowlers and fielders alike. As it happened, a single to Shaun Marsh off the next delivery, from Steven Croft, changed the D-L equation again so that the scores were effectively level, the umpires determining as the rain strengthened that this was an appropriate moment to lead the teams off.The rain did not relent and an abandonment was inevitable. It denied Yorkshire what would have been only a fifth win in 14 away fixtures against their fiercest rivals in the shortest form of the game but on this occasion it felt that the result was a fair one.Ryan McLaren had taken both Yorkshire wickets, bowling Tom Kohler-Cadmore with a full delivery before Adam Lyth, who made half-centuries against Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire in Yorkshire’s two completed matches so far, was caught by Arron Lilley, getting under a steepler at cover.Lyth’s shot was hard to understand from the outer as it instantly put Yorkshire behind the D/L calculation with the chance seemingly that the umpires could leave the field at the end of the over.But Andrew Gale, Yorkshire’s coach, explained: “Lythy spoke to the umpires and they said they had no intention of coming off. What do you do? knock it around or play the game as you see it. He was in control of the situation. The umpires said they wanted to play for as long as they could. If he goes into his shell and we get behind the Duckworth Lewis and it stops raining, we could have been in a bad position.”At least the dominant home contingent in the crowd, easily identifiable by the red Lancashire baseball caps supplied by the club, had seen a full innings from their own side.And it had started superbly, Brown driving England’s Willey for three powerful cover boundaries in the opening over, setting a pace they maintained throughout the six Powerplay overs, at the end of which they were 59 without loss with a score of 200+ looking within their range.Liam Livingstone fell in the next over after Yorkshire introduced spin for the first time, Adil Rashid reading his intention to come down the pitch and finding just the right degree of turn to pass the edge of the right-hander’s bat, Peter Handscomb reaching out for the ball to complete the stumping.Nonetheless, with 34 off 24 deliveries, including 15 in one over against Tim Bresnan, Livingstone had given his side the start they required and there was scarcely any loss of momentum after his departure as Brown responded with a couple of boundaries off Steve Patterson.What’s more, Brown now had Jos Buttler for company and the England white-ball specialist signalled his intentions by lofting Azeem Rafiq beyond the reach of Lyth and into the stands at long-on.After 10 overs the score was 93 for 1, to which Buttler promptly added a dozen more as he teased Ben Coad, including a couple of brilliantly executed scoops to the boundary in which his footwork will have surely impressed the twinkle-toed Ryan Giggs, the former Manchester United winger, who was spotted in the crowd.But between them Rashid and Rafiq – with an over in between from Patterson – pegged back the assault. Overs 12 to 16 yielded only 27 runs for Lancashire, during which Buttler sliced Rafiq straight to Kohler-Cadmore at deep extra cover and Dane Vilas gave the off-spinner his second wicket as Lyth took a brilliant diving catch at deep mid-wicket.Brown then enjoyed the second escape of his innings. Put down by Willey at short mid-wicket on 15 off Coad, he was dropped by Kohler-Cadmore on 56, the fielder never in position as Brown skied one from Rashid.The pace picked up as Willey returned to the attack, Ryan McLaren picking up four from a no ball signalled for above waist height and taking four more from the free hit but then Patterson dismissed Brown, the batsman playing an attempted ramp into his own stumps.After where they had been at the halfway stage, Lancashire’s total felt 20 runs or so short of what it should have been – although as it happened, it could be argued that it was precisely right on the night.Lancashire have explained, meanwhile, that wicketkeeper Alex Davies has been left out of the NatWest Blast thus far as part of his fitness management programme following the knee surgery he underwent last year.Davies has played a full part in Lancashire’s Specsavers Championship cricket this season and the Royal London One-Day Cup but the club want to protect him from the rigours of fielding in T20.Head coach Glen Chapple said: “Alex has worked hard to recover from last year’s knee injury and we’ve been delighted with his form already this season but following medical advice, we have taken the decision to rest him.”