Category Uncategorized

Multan Sultans believed to be considering Olly Stone as replacement

Danyal Rasool12-Feb-2024

Multan Sultans have been dealt a dual blow, with injuries to fast bowlers Reece Topley and Ihsanullah ruling them out of the upcoming edition of the Pakistan Super League. While Ihsanullah has a long-standing elbow injury and his unavailability was expected, Topley’s absence was announced on Sunday by Sultans owner Ali Tareen.”[Topley] hasn’t received his NOC [no-objection certificate from England] and is out of the PSL,” Tareen tweeted.Topley hasn’t played in the PSL before, but had a full T20 workload through the winter, playing 12 games in the SA20 with Durban Super Giants, finishing ninth on the tournament wickets chart. He is also scheduled to play the IPL with Royal Challengers Bangalore.ESPNcricinfo understands his injury is not serious enough to imperil his participation in the IPL, and pulling him out of the PSL was a decision taken out of an abundance of caution with a T20 World Cup in the USA and the Caribbean in June.It is understood Sultans wanted to replace Topley with South African quick Nandre Burger – who also had a stellar season in the SA20 – but was told by Cricket South Africa he wouldn’t be granted an NOC. They are believed to be considering Olly Stone, who played in the SA20 and the ILT20 recently, as well as Sri Lankan seamer Dushmantha Chameera. Chameera, however, injured his left quadriceps on Sunday and will be missing the rest of the white-ball series against Afghanistan. The extent of his injury is currently unknown.The PSL starts on Sunday, February 17. The Sultans have reached the final in each of the last two seasons, falling short at the hands of Lahore Qalandars each time.

Strikers will travel to the Gold Coast and face Brisbane Heat in the Challenger on Monday

Tristan Lavalette20-Jan-2024Legspinners Lloyd Pope and Cameron Boyce starred on the traditional pace-friendly Optus Stadium surface as Adelaide Strikers ended Perth Scorchers’ historic bid for a hat-trick of BBL titles with an upset victory in the knockout final.Strikers will travel to the Gold Coast and face Brisbane Heat in the Challenger on Monday, with the winner to meet Sydney Sixers in the final at the SCG.It was a remarkable turnaround for Strikers, who were in big trouble at 48 for 4 before a hard-hitting 56 off 32 balls from Jake Weatherald ignited a comeback.Strikers then superbly defended 155 for 7 with Boyce and Pope combining for seven wickets, including stars Aaron Hardie and Josh Inglis, to stun Scorchers.It was a shock exit for Scorchers, who had a late-season fadeout after losing to Sixers in a last-ball defeat that cost them second spot and the double chance.Scorchers and Western Australia had swept all six domestic titles over the last two seasons. But they could not stop red-hot Strikers, who defied the absences of ILT20-bound Chris Lynn, Adam Hose and allrounder Jamie Overton.After being sent in, Strikers’ hopes of setting a big target rested with skipper Matthew Short who was coming off scoring the most-ever runs in a 10-game regular season. He had also blasted Scorchers for a pair of 70s during the season. But it was his namesake D’Arcy Short who came out blazing before falling to a brilliant return catch from left-arm quick Jason Behrendorff.Matthew Short looked in ominous form when he whacked a short delivery from speedster Lance Morris to the boundary. Something special was needed to dismiss Short cheaply and veteran seamer Andrew Tye stepped up with a gem of an inswinging yorker that rattled the stumps.Strikers were seemingly shaken by the dismissal with Thomas Kelly struggling to score in the overs before drinks. In an inspired move, Hardie reverted to left-arm spinning allrounder Cooper Connolly who hadn’t bowled in Scorchers’ last three matches.Connolly justified the faith by dismissing Kelly before Hardie brilliantly ran out Harry Nielsen with a direct throw from mid-on to leave Strikers in ruins at 48 for 4.Jake Weatherald counter-attacked with a quick fifty•Getty Images

Veteran Weatherald has grabbed his opportunities since being a late-season inclusion and dominated after drinks. He used his feet superbly against left-arm spinner Ashton Agar, whose home struggles continued in contrast to his miserly bowling on slower surfaces on the east coast.Weatherald raced to his half-century in 30 balls, but fell shortly after when he failed to execute a reverse scoop against Hardie, who then dismissed James Bazley to put Scorchers well on top.But their death bowling woes against Sixers reared with Strikers smashing 45 runs off the last five overs. Ben Manenti, who in recent seasons has been a thorn to Western Australia in the Sheffield Shield, and Henry Thornton effectively threw the bat as Strikers finished with a competitive total.Strikers’ strong attack sensed an opportunity against a revamped Scorchers opening partnership of Sam Fanning and Marcus Harris, who were both late-season signings.Debutant Fanning started with a fearless approach to continually bludgeon through the offside. Fanning, 23, made a duck against Queensland in the Sheffield Shield in his only innings in domestic cricket this season. But he had entered with a century in local grade cricket and carried over that form with an assault on the new-ball, where he cracked two sixes off left-arm seamer David Payne in the fourth over.Fanning overshadowed Harris, who played sedately in his first innings since being overlooked for Australia’s Test team. It appeared like a fairytale was unfolding until Fanning holed out in the fifth over after scoring 31 of Scorchers’ first 38 runs.But it triggered a collapse of 4 for 10 capped by Hardie being clean bowled by Pope, who bowled well in tandem with Boyce in the middle overs.The pressure fell on Inglis, who plays aggressively against spin but he succumbed to a rampant Boyce as Scorchers crashed to 70 for 5 in the 12th over.Boyce was pumped up and Strikers were further buoyed when skipper Short took a spectacular diving return catch to dismiss Nick Hobson. Strikers were on fire as Bazley took a tough juggling catch on the boundary to snare Connolly to leave Scorchers’ faithful stunned and quickly heading for the exit.

Bayern Munich have taken their interest in Rafael Leao up a notch, holding direct talks with the AC Milan star’s entourage.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

Bayern hold direct talks with Leao’s agentsAC Milan demand massive transfer feeGerman champions won't rush negotiationFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

According to Bayern held talks with Leao’s camp as they seek a new left-sided winger. The Portuguese forward is open to the move but Milan's valuation, reportedly above €100 million (£84m/$114m), could make this deal a complex one.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportTHE BIGGER PICTURE

After parting ways with club legend Thomas Muller and facing uncertainty over Kingsley Coman and Leroy Sane, Bayern are prioritising wide reinforcements. According to , a face-to-face meeting between Bayern and Leao’s representatives recently took place in Munich. While the 25-year-old Portugal international is reportedly open to the idea of joining the Bundesliga champions, Milan are reluctant to sell.

DID YOU KNOW?

Leao had 12 goals and nine assists in the 2024-25 campaign and reportedly has a €175m (£148m/ $199m) release clause at Milan, one of the highest for any Serie A player.

Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR BAYERN?

With the Club World Cup approaching, Vincent Kompany's side are not expected to rush negotiations. They are unlikely to meet that figure and may explore alternative targets such as Cody Gakpo, Kaoru Mitoma or Eberechi Eze. Nevertheless, Leao remains high on their wishlist, offering the kind of explosiveness, creativity and physical presence that Die Roten want on the left flank to complement Michael Olise on the right.

Enzo Maresca claimed he is not to be blamed for Cole Palmer's dip in form as the Chelsea boss admitted that the Blues talisman is "worried".

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

• Palmer has drawn a blank in the last 16 games
• Maresca thinks the problem is "mental"
• English star desperate to end goal drought vs Everton

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Palmer has had a sensational debut season with Chelsea, but is now going through a rough patch. He has drawn a blank in his last 16 appearances for the Blues, and the pressure is mounting on the forward to deliver the goods. Things are even more complicated since he has not faced such an extended dip in form at West London since his £40 million ($53.2m) transfer from Manchester City.

Advertisement

• Getty Images Sport
  

  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  However, Maresca was quick to dismiss suggestions that Chelsea’s tactical setup was to blame for Palmer’s struggles. Speaking ahead of their clash with Everton, the Italian manager stressed that the issues were more psychological than tactics or quality.

• WHAT MARESCA SAID

  Before facing Everton, Maresca told reporters: “For sure, it’s mental. I don’t think it’s tactical, I don’t think it’s technical, because Cole is still the same player who scored this season with us. The style of football we play is the same one. The manager is the same one. The club is the same one. So nothing changes around Cole and Cole doesn’t change. It’s just mentally at this moment. For sure, you can see that he is a little worried because he wants to help the team.”

• Getty Images Sport
  

  WHAT NEXT FOR PALMER?

  While it was almost inevitable that Palmer would find it hard to maintain the extraordinary levels he displayed during his first 18 months in top-flight football with Chelsea, the extent of the drop-off has still become a major talking point. Despite the challenges, Palmer will have a golden opportunity to rediscover his scoring touch this Saturday against Everton – the very same side he famously scored four goals against in a 6-0 rout a year ago.

Alick Athanaze dropped in only change to squad that lost 2-1 in Sri Lanka

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Oct-2024Shimron Hetmyer has been handed a recall to West Indies’ ODI squad for the three-match series against England, which starts in Antigua on Thursday. Hetmyer replaces Alick Athanaze in the squad as the only change from the touring group that has just returned from Sri Lanka.Hetmyer last played ODIs in December 2023, when he was part of the team that beat England 2-1. He missed the Sri Lanka tour for personal reasons, having recently finished fifth on the run-scorers’ list at the CPL.Athanaze had been one of the incumbent openers, but lost his spot to Evin Lewis for the third ODI against Sri Lanka, in Pallekele. Lewis, making his first ODI appearance in more than three years, made an unbeaten 102 from 61 balls as West Indies finished the series with a consolation win on DLS.Shai Hope will captain the group, which also includes 17-year-old batting prodigy Jewel Andrew, who made his debut at the end of the Sri Lanka series.ESPNcricinfo LtdEngland have already arrived in the Caribbean for their third limited-overs tour since 2022. They will be led during the ODI leg by Liam Livingstone, with Jos Buttler continuing his rehab following a calf injury that has kept him out since July.”Playing against England always provides a new challenge and reignites a rivalry that the players and the people of the Caribbean are eager for,” Daren Sammy, West Indies head coach, said. “Somehow, we West Indies always find a way to raise our game when we face England.”This rivalry goes back for decades, and after defeating them last year at home for the first time in a long time in an ODI series, we’re ready to face the challenge of a strong England squad again. It’s always special to play at home, where the local support brings energy and passion to every match. With our sights set on qualifying for the ICC Men’s World Cup in 2027, we’ve selected a balanced squad that will no doubt push and compete with one of the best teams in the world.”Antigua’s Sir Vivian Richards Stadium will host the first two ODIs, before the series moves on to Barbados. It will be followed by five T20Is, played at the Kensington Oval and the Daren Sammy National Stadium in St Lucia.West Indies ODI squad: Shai Hope (capt), Jewel Andrew, Keacy Carty, Roston Chase, Matthew Forde, Shimron Hetmyer, Alzarri Joseph, Shamar Joseph, Brandon King, Evin Lewis, Gudakesh Motie, Sherfane Rutherford, Jayden Seales, Romario Shepherd, Hayden Walsh Jr

Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start writing!