No suggestions of an increased quota, but focus on including more black African players in the national sides

Firdose Moonda12-Oct-2020Cricket South Africa (CSA) intends to outline the implementation of a more aggressive transformation policy to parliament, if they are allowed to present their plans to the sports portfolio committee on Tuesday. The meeting comes a week after CSA were hauled over the coals by the same committee for failure to present the forensic report they used to fire former CEO Thabang Moroe.At a two-hour meeting last week, in which no other matter was discussed, CSA committed to furnishing the committee with a copy of the report by Friday. The deadline was met, though the version of the report CSA sent contained redactions, and discussion over the report are expected to take up most of the meeting time tomorrow. However, if the meeting moves past the report, CSA may have the opportunity to unveil its Social Justice and Nation Building (SJN) agenda.Among CSA’s proposals is an emphasis on ensuring “that more black players, particularly black African players are included in national teams on a sustainable basis,” and major changes to the way cricket is governed at franchise and provincial level, to ensure greater representation of black women. Beginning in December this year, CSA would like all its affiliates to make new appointments according to affirmative action requirements, and will fine those who do not.”It will become part of the membership requirements that the executive management teams of unions and the boards become predominantly black with a heavy focus on black female members in these critical positions. The intention is to identify at least 10 black female candidates. The onus will be placed on Affiliates to address the current status of non- transformed positions especially in CEO and Executive positions. Failure by the Unions to do this will result in financial penalties,” CSA’s presentation reads.Similarly, CSA have committed to filling the independent director vacancy on its board, which resulted from the resignation of Steve Cornelius in August “by a black female, preferably with skills in media and marketing”. The position is expected to be filled by the end of November, before the rescheduled AGM which will take place on December 5.On the playing field, the presentation notes that “the number of selections for whites’ dwarfs (54%) the numbers for any of the black demographic, with the players of Indian descent and Coloured players, making up an equal 12% selection in any of the 15 matches played,” over the last year. It notes that selection was particularly skewed in fifty-over cricket primarily because of the consistent inclusion of four players. “It is particularly within the ODI format where the selection frequency is predominantly in favour of white players. These numbers are boosted by the consistency in selection of (Quinton) de Kock, (Rassie) van der Dussen, (Faf) du Plessis and (David) Miller.”While the presentation does not say there will be an increased quota (currently the national team is required to field six players of colour, of which at least two must be black African, on average over the course of a season), it does state that there will be no target reduction and that the direction of cricket, the coaches and selectors will have to adhere to transformation key performance areas, which will be part of their contracts. CSA exceeded their 2018-19 transformation target, with the 2019-20 data yet to be released, but have also come under fire from the sports minister, Nathi Mthethwa, for failing to have people of colour in senior roles.Since then, CSA have committed to applying a preference for consultants of colour and now appear to be taking the policy further. The presentation also mentions addressing the salary difference between the men’s and women’s teams and confirms a cash injection of R10 million (US$604, 575) for the SJN project, which could offer reparations to players who were discriminated against in the past. In August CSA named Advocate Dumisa Ntsebeza as their SJN ombudsman and they intend to begin hearing at provinces in January 2021. The ombudsman will also independently present to parliament and the sports minister.

The SCG will be filled to 50% capacity, and India will play their first game in nine months

Karthik Krishnaswamy26-Nov-20206:47

Moody: Will pick Agarwal over Gill as second opener

Big PictureThe SCG. Australia and New Zealand played an ODI here in March, in eerie silence. It was to be the last bit of international action for four months.Cricket has been back for a while now, but the silence hasn’t gone away. On Friday, though, we could witness something close to normalcy – something like the old times – with the SCG filled to 50% capacity when Australia meet India for the first of three ODIs.Fans at the ground, and India. You have both been missed.The match will open a long and an important Australian summer for both teams, who are looking to address two major long-term goals: to build towards next year’s T20 World Cup, and to win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and firm up their respective chances of qualifying for the World Test Championship final.There’s plenty of wider context to the ODI series too. It’s part of the new ODI Super League, and for the India players who will be featuring in the Test series too, it’s also a chance to get back into the rhythm of longer innings and longer spells after a long IPL season that followed months of dormancy. For once, though, the wider context will be secondary.The context, on Friday, will be the game itself, and for India fans especially, all those familiar pleasures you may have regretted taking for granted. Two of the best teams in the world filled with some of the most competitive characters in the sport, clashing in front of a crowd. What more can you ask for?Form guideAustralia WLWWL (last five completed matches, most recent first)
India LLLWW
In the spotlightAn average of 15.42, a strike rate barely scraping above a run-a-ball, and no sixes in 106 balls. Glenn Maxwell had a horror IPL with the bat, but he’s back in home conditions. And in the ODI format too, which should give him a little more space and time – only a little, mind you, down at No. 7 – to play himself back into form. He batted magnificently in his last ODI series, in England just before the IPL, tonking 77 off 59 balls in the first ODI and 108 off 90 in the third, turning two dire situations into wins for Australia. But can Maxwell recapture that sort of form after a lean patch, and how will he go against his old nemesis Yuzvendra Chahal?Hardik Pandya didn’t bowl a ball right through IPL 2020, and while that didn’t necessarily hurt the Mumbai Indians’ campaign, it could upset India’s ODI balance given none of their other batsmen is a viable sixth bowling option. Pandya was in terrific hitting form right through the IPL, but he may have to show a little more versatility as a top-six batsman in ODI cricket. He has the game for it, but it will be interesting to see how he adapts, especially given that he hasn’t played an ODI since the World Cup semi-final against New Zealand in July 2019.Aaron Finch and Virat Kohli pose with the ODI trophy•Getty Images

Team newsSteven Smith, who missed the ODI series in England with a concussion, is all set to slot back into the side in place of the injured Mitchell Marsh, with Marcus Stoinis vacating the No. 3 slot in all likelihood.Australia: 1 David Warner, 2 Aaron Finch (capt), 3 Steven Smith, 4 Marnus Labuschagne, 5 Marcus Stoinis, 6 Alex Carey (wk), 7 Glenn Maxwell, 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh Hazlewood.In the absence of Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal is likely to partner Shikhar Dhawan at the top of the order with KL Rahul continuing to keep wicket and bat at No. 5. If India pick both Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah, they will have to choose between Navdeep Saini’s pace and Shardul Thakur’s lower-order batting for the third seamer’s role. Also, Chahal’s IPL form may help him edge out Kuldeep Yadav for the lone wristspinner’s slot.India: 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 Mayank Agarwal, 3 Virat Kohli (capt), 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 KL Rahul (wk), 6 Hardik Pandya, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Shardul Thakur/Navdeep Saini, 9 Yuzvendra Chahal/Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Mohammed Shami, 11 Jasprit Bumrah.Pitch and conditionsThe game should be high-scoring if the pitch plays true to recent form. Teams batting first have won six of the last seven ODIs at this ground, and the average first-innings total in that period has been 312. The weather is expected to be warm and sunny, with a high of around 24 degrees Celsius.Stats and trivia Virat Kohli has an excellent ODI record in Australia – 1154 runs at 50.17, five hundreds – but Sydney has been something of a nightmare venue for him. He averages 9.00 after five innings at the SCG, with a highest score of 21. Australia have a 14-2 win-loss record against India at the SCG. It’s easily India’s least-favourite ground to play Australia at. India, however, come into this game having won three of their last four ODIs in Australia. Aaron Finch needs 17 runs to reach the 5000 mark in ODIs. Quotes”If you look at his record, it’s second to none. It really is remarkable. So I think what we have to keep in mind is we have to keep looking to get him out. When you go away from that and you’re looking to contain players, you can miss a trick there. He’s probably the best one-day player of all time, so it’s about sticking to our plans and being really committed in that regard.”

Faf du Plessis has hinted he would like to continue as South Africa captain until the T20 World Cup in Australia next year.While du Plessis continued to rule out the suggestion that he would retire from international cricket after the current World Cup he expressed a belief that his experience could help younger players – and perhaps a new captain – through a transitional period.Imran Tahir and JP Duminy have already confirmed their retirement from ODI cricket, while it seems there is little chance that du Plessis (who is 35 in a few days) and Hashim Amla (who is 36) will be viable contenders by the time the next 50-over World Cup comes round in 2023.WATCH on Hotstar (India only): Faf du Plessis’ hundredBut du Plessis, in particular, feels he is batting as well as ever – he made a century as South Africa defeated Australia at Old Trafford on Saturday to take his tournament tally to 387 runs at 64.50 – and suggested he might be interested in playing until the T20 World Cup – which is scheduled for October and November 2020 – to help younger players “grow and mature” into their roles.Asked whether he had just played his final ODI innings, du Plessis replied: “I don’t know right now. I love playing for South Africa, but the big thing for me is to have purpose as a leader.”I don’t want to just play games for the sake of playing games. When I play I want to make sure I’m motivated to keep doing it and right now sitting here I am still, very, very motivated.”I decided way before this World Cup that I was going to play, win or lose, good or bad, and then after the tournament sit down and relook at what how hungry I am, how motivated, and what are Cricket South Africa’s plans. Those things will happen over the next three or four weeks. But I really enjoyed this game, so it will be hard to walk away from that feeling and playing international cricket. The decision will probably be decided in front of a fireplace with a glass of red wine in my hand.”Although du Plessis accepted that it would, “in a perfect world,” make sense for South Africa to start building a new ODI team for the 2023 tournament now, he urged caution over blooding too many inexperienced players at the same time.”If your plan is to start introducing some young players, I think you need to have some experience around those players because they learn very quickly from those [more experienced] guys,” he said. “From a leadership point of view, whoever is going to be the next captain, I think there is still a lot of value of playing with me for a year or two to make sure that they can learn and grow and mature into what will be the next World Cup.”I think to completely cut off everything is not necessary. I think probably four or five players make space in the team and then you start phasing it out by getting players ready for four years’ time.”Initially the plan was for me and [the coach] Ottis Gibson to go to the T20 World Cup so that is in a year’s time. For both of us, the plan was not to look past that. Then Cricket South Africa may change the coach and captain probably after that tournament and still have two-and-a-half to three years before the World Cup. That’s a possibility.”

After taking 7 for 22 in the last ODI between the sides, Australian all-rounder says the stage is set for an exciting Test

Valkerie Baynes17-Jul-2019Having had a full week to reflect on her remarkable bowling feats in the third ODI against England, allrounder Ellyse Perry was as humble as she had been while receiving the Player of Match award in front of her team-mates and – very humbled – rivals two Sunday evenings ago in Canterbury.Perhaps it was the fact she was still surrounded by her fellow Australian players on the team bus as they made the journey to Taunton for the Ashes Test starting on Thursday, perhaps there was something in the fact it sounded like she had just been awoken from a nap when she picked up the phone. But a modest, understated, team-first attitude seems simply to be Perry’s style.”I think it did come out of the blue, to be honest,” Perry said of her career-best 7 for 22 which routed England, bowled out for 75, and sealed a 3-0 ODI series victory, worth six Ashes points. It was also the the best ODI bowling performance ever by an Australian woman.Ellyse Perry picked 7 for 22, the best by an Australian woman in ODIs•Getty ImagesShe credited Australia bowling coach Ben Sawyer, who is also head coach of Perry’s WBBL side Sydney Sixers, with helping her – and, of course, her fellow bowlers – since he joined the national team last September.”I’ve been really fortunate to work with Ben Sawyer for a number of years now and we just always try to keep developing and progressing things as a bowling unit,” Perry said. “For whatever reason the other day it was just my day and it went my way and I guess you have those days every now and then when you play. It was just one of those ones that I can’t really explain but it was nice.”Perry had another one of those days the last time Australia played England in a Test. Her unbeaten 213 in the drawn match at North Sydney Oval in November 2017, is the third-highest in a Test innings by any woman.An elite athlete, Perry takes a keen interest in many sports, having gone to watch Roger Federer play Kei Nishikori and Novak Djokovic against David Goffin in the Wimbledon quarter-finals and kept tabs on the FIFA Women’s World Cup, having made 18 appearances for Australia’s national team, the Matildas, in her previous career as a football player.”It feels like a long, long time ago now but I certainly, like anyone else, absolutely love the Matildas and enjoy following their progress and how they’re going,” Perry said. “But personally I think football feels like a whole other career ago, I guess. With England making it to the semi-finals there was a lot of buzz over here. It was really big news and I kept a bit of an eye on it.”But back to cricket, and the team. Perry, who has played all of her seven career Tests against England, expects the hosts to come out firing, given they must win the match to keep alive any hope of wrenching the Ashes from Australia.”The situation has set up a really exciting Test match because I know as a team we’re really eager to play an exciting, enjoyable brand of cricket to watch and part of that is trying to push for a result and be successful in the Test match,” Perry said. “England are in a position now where they need to win the Test match, so from that point of view, it means there’s going to be some really great cricket played.”England are an incredibly capable side with a number of very, very good players. I know they’ve been disappointed with how they’ve performed in the series so far but I think we’re all incredibly wary of them and what they’re capable of doing and given the pressure that they’re under to be aggressive and play well and win this match coming up it’s going to be a really good fight for us.”

Leeds United have put plenty of work into improving their options across the backline since the summer transfer window officially opened for business last month.

The Championship champions confirmed their latest arrival of the window last week when they unveiled Brazilian goalkeeper Lucas Perri as their number one for next season.

He has arrived from Ligue 1 side Lyon on a permanent deal to compete with Illan Meslier and Karl Darlow, and will play ahead of the likes of Sebastiaan Bornauw, Gabriel Gudmundsson, and Jaka Bijol, who have also been signed to improve the defence.

In front of the backline, Leeds have also swooped to sign defensive midfielders Sean Longstaff and Anton Stach to provide some steel in front of the back four in the top-flight.

German centre-forward Lukas Nmecha, who arrived on a free transfer from Wolfsburg, is the only attacking player who has been added to the squad this summer, though, and the club could now turn to signings in the forward areas.

When the Whites were last promoted to the Premier League under Marcelo Bielsa, the signing of forward Raphinha was vital to their survival.

Why Leeds need their next Raphinha

Leeds need to find Daniel Farke his own version of Raphinha before the end of the summer transfer window because the club’s current options in the attacking midfield and wide positions are uninspiring.

The West Yorkshire outfit do not have any players in those positions who have shown that they have the quality to make a big impact in the Premier League next season, as they all struggled in their most recent seasons in the division.

Appearances

24

36

34

24

Goals

2

1

1

2

Big chances created

3

5

6

3

Key passes per game

0.4

1.3

1.0

1.0

Assists

1

3

0

4

As you can see in the table above, Dan James, Brenden Aaronson, Jack Harrison, and Wilfried Gnonto have only scored six goals combined in their most recent seasons in the Premier League.

Raphinha, however, scored 11 goals and created ten ‘big chances’ in 35 top-flight games in his second and final season at Elland Road, after a return of six goals, 12 ‘big chances’ created, and nine assists in his first year in the league.

The Brazilian forward, who signed from Rennes for a fee of £17m in the summer of 2020, made a huge impact in front of goal with his quality as both a scorer and a creator of goals, and it does not seem like Farke has any similar players in his current squad.

That is why the Whites must dip back into the market to improve their attacking options, which appears to be what they are on the verge of doing.

Leeds set to agree deal for Brazilian forward

According to L’Equipe, Leeds United are on course to reach an agreement with Feyenoord over the signing of Brazilian winger Igor Paixao this summer.

The report claims that the Whites have submitted an offer of around £28m, with add-ons on top of that, and the Eredivisie side are said to be happy with the numbers involved, but it is now down to the clubs to finalise the finer details.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

It adds that Ligue 1 side Marseille are also interested in signing the 25-year-old forward and have already agreed a five-year contract with the player.

However, the French outfit have failed to reach an agreement with Feyenoord on a transfer fee, which opened the door for Leeds to swoop in with this latest offer.

L’Equipe states that Marseille will need to raise their offer to match the Whites’ proposal if they want to remain in the race to sign the attacker, but it remains to be seen if they are willing or able to do so.

What Igor Paixao would bring to Leeds

Leeds must push to get this deal over the line before Marseille can re-enter the race because he would bring plenty of goals and assists to Elland Road next season.

Paixao has the quality on the ball to be the next electric Brazilian sensation to grace the wings in the Premier League for Leeds, following in Raphinha’s footsteps in West Yorkshire.

The Feyenoord star showcased his quality in the Champions League with two goals, including the one in the post above, and four assists in 11 games during the 2024/25 campaign.

On top of his impressive performances on the European stage, which showed that he can compete against the best of the best on the continent, Paixao also delivered exceptional numbers in the Eredivisie for his side.

xG

10.56

Top 2%

Goals

16

Top 2%

xG on target

16.25

Top 2%

Shots on target

43

Top 2%

xA

6.71

Top 4%

Assists

10

Top 3%

Chances created

70

Top 1%

Successful crosses

36

Top 2%

As you can see in the table above, the Leeds target was one of the best players, if not the best player, in the Dutch top-flight when it came to making an impact as a scorer and a creator of goals last term.

Analyst Ben Mattinson claimed that Paixao has “insane” technique from long range, and he has scored six goals from outside the box in the last two Eredivisie seasons to back that up.

This suggests that the £28m-rated star could provide Leeds supporters with some special moments on the pitch by scoring some long-range screamers to win vital points for the team in the Premier League next season.

Paixao is a winger who can score great goals, score goals on a regular basis, and create and assist goals consistently, and has proven himself in the Champions League.

Leeds submit offer to sign ex-Barcelona star who earns £12m-a-year

This could be quite the coup…

2 ByTom Cunningham Jul 27, 2025

This is why he could be Farke’s own version of Raphinha, who helped Leeds to stay in the Premier League for two seasons with his goals and assists, as he could be a match-winner for the club with his quality in the final third.

Memphis Depay hit out at criticism over his new look as he claimed his girlfriend adores his appearance.

Article continues below

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Depay hits out at criticsSporting a new look on the fieldNetherlands beat Iceland 4-0WHAT HAPPENED?

The former Manchester United and Barcelona forward played an important role in the Netherlands' 4-0 win over Iceland in their final international friendly on Monday ahead of Euro 2024. Depay had found the back of the net in the game but his goal was ruled out due to a handball.

AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

The 30-year-old's new on-field look, where he was seen sporting a headband, has been a subject of criticism among a section of fans in the Netherlands. On Monday, however, he defended his new appearance while speaking to the press after the game.

WHAT MEMPHIS DEPAY SAID

Speaking to reporters, Depay said: "The previous match I made twenty minutes of time for the press in the mixed zone. And I haven't had any questions about it. Who cares? Who cares? It looks great on me and helps me sweat.

"My girlfriend likes that sweatband. Amazing, right? It's a new look and I feel good about it. I'm already thinking about what colour I'm going to wear in Germany."

GettyWHAT NEXT FOR NETHERLANDS?

After registering back-to-back thumping wins over Canada and Iceland respectively, Ronald Koeman's side will begin their Euro 2024 journey in Germany on Sunday against Poland.

The Melbourne Renegades have signed England opener Tammy Beaumont as their replacement for absent skipper Amy Satterthwaite ahead of the new Women’s Big Bash League season starting in October.Beaumont played for the Adelaide Strikers in second and third seasons of the WBBL but did not play the last one. She was named in Wisden’s Five Cricketers of the Year for 2019 and produced her sixth ODI century during the recent Ashes series in England.Beaumont, 28, joins England team-mate Danielle Wyatt and New Zealand’s Lea Tahuhu as the overseas players at the Renegades after Satterthwaite was ruled out of the tournament after recently announcing she was pregnant.”I’m thrilled to be heading back to the Big Bash,” Beaumont said. “I’ve played against a lot of the talent in the Renegades line-up so it’ll be nice to be playing alongside them this time. The Renegades are a side on the rise and the Big Bash is such a tough competition so I’m looking forward to testing myself against some of the best players in the world.”

CI chief welcomes ‘much-needed funding injection’ ahead of ‘uncertain 2021’ season

Matt Roller04-Nov-2020Cricket Ireland (CI) has been awarded a €1.5 million government grant as part of a rescue fund for Irish sport due to the financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.Ireland’s entire home international summer was wiped out by the pandemic, with the men’s team only playing three ODIs in England since the lockdown in March and the women’s side yet to return to action.Warren Deutrom, CI’s chief executive, said that the “much-needed funding injection” was a recognition of the impact that Covid-19 has had on Irish cricket at all levels, from grassroots to international.”This funding goes some way to acknowledging the scale of loss of our growing commercial revenues as well as our commitment to compliance costs towards Covid preparedness for our 2020 season,” Deutrom said. “We are also reassured by the new funding package announced by the government in the recent budget, and we look forward to further support over coming months as we build towards a still uncertain 2021.”CI recently released its financial report for 2019, in which it reported only a small deficit of €9,797 despite the loss of $175,000 due to a cyber-crime incident, the loss of a broadcast partner immediately before the start of the home summer and disappointing attendance in the ODI against England.The financial report said that Ireland’s Test against England at Lord’s had attracted a higher TV audience than England home Tests against every opponent except India and Australia in the last decade, and revealed income of over €1m from the Euro T20 Slam – in which CI is a minority shareholder – despite the league’s failure to launch. It also served a reminder of the challenges faced by Ireland’s lack of a permanent home stadium, with a net loss of €2.2m from hosting home internationals in 2019. CI also reported an increase in revenue from ICC distributions, from €5m in 2018 to €6.1m in 2019.Ireland’s women are scheduled to play two 50-over matches and three T20Is against Scotland in Spain this month. Discussions are ongoing around the men’s team’s winter plans, with a multilateral T20 tournament in the UAE and involving Scotland understood to be on the table.

South African leads way to down Surrey and keep Lightning in Finals Day contention

ECB Reporters Network15-Aug-2019Mignon du Preez struck a majestic unbeaten half century as Loughborough Lightning crushed hosts Surrey Stars by seven wickets at Guildford.The former South African captain made 70 off just 41 balls, sharing an unbroken fourth wicket stand of 92 with Georgia Adams, meaning Lightning made short work of a below par target of 121.Earlier, Surrey Stars had struggled to muster 120, their efforts strangled by tight bowling from Hayley Matthews and Kathryn Bryce in particular.Jenny Gunn, standing in for Georgia Elwiss as Loughborough skipper won the toss and chose to field, and the decision initially looked questionable as Lizelle Lee launched four boundaries off the second over bowled by Tara Norris to give the Stars some early impetus.Bryony Smith attempted to follow suit, hitting the game’s first six off Gunn, but skied the next ball to Chaman Attapattu at cover.Lee was given a life when she pulled a short one from Hayley Matthews behind square, the ball going through the hands of Glenn and away to the boundary, but fears it would be a costly were erased later in the over when Matthews lured Lee down the pitch and she was expertly stumped by Amy Jones.Marizanne Kapp and Stars’ skipper Nat Sciver attempted a rebuild, the former striking a six which just cleared mid-on. However, in attempting to repeat the shot in the next over, the South African all-rounder picked out Norris on the fence.With the pitch slow and Gunn rotating her bowlers cleverly, even the usually free-scoring Sciver struggled to get the ball away, eating up 27 balls for 23.Frustration ultimately got the better of her as she missed an ugly heave to cow corner off Matthews and over-balanced, giving Jones her second stumping of the day.Thereafter, only Dane van Niekerk, who hit a huge six into the car park, briefly broke the shackles as Stars limped to 120-7.The hosts needed early wickets and Mady Villiers delivered when Matthews hoisted her into the hands of Kapp at deep mid-wicket with just eight on the board.Kapp was in the action again next over ball in hand, though the wicket of Jones owed much to a stunning catch from Lee, who flung herself full length at point to take the ball inches from the ground, and when Aylish Cranstone clung on to a top edge from Attapattu off Van Niekerk, Lightning were wobbling at 31 for 3.Their hopes appeared to rest on the duo of du Preez and Georgia Adams and the former struck four early boundaries as 50 came up in the eighth over.The former South African skipper punished both Laura Marsh and Sciver as runs came quickly helped by several fumbes in the field from Stars. Adams caught the mood, sweeping Villiers to the fence to raise the fifty partnership in just 38 balls.Du Preez raced to 50 in just 33 balls courtesy of her ninth four and three more followed as Lightning romped home with 31 balls to spare.

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ESPNcricinfo staff23-Feb-2021