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They have endured a bumpy road on the way to the UAE and also haven’t played much T20I cricket due to the pandemic

Peter Della Penna18-Oct-2021

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In the last few months, Afghanistan – the country – has been beset by the chaos and upheaval triggered by the American military’s complete withdrawal of troops from the country and the return to government rule of the Taliban regime. Afghanistan – the cricket team – has not been immune to turmoil during the same period: the nascent women’s team – which has yet to play an ICC sanctioned match – has been told that for them to take the field would be in violation of Taliban policy. Other countries have taken note and decreed that for the Afghanistan women to be denied the opportunity to play is a violation of their own policies towards women’s equality, and in Australia that has meant the cancelation of the inaugural Test which Australia was due to host against Afghanistan.Though their participation in this World Cup was briefly under a cloud, the ICC gave them the green light to participate in the end. That does not mean that the national team has not endured a bumpy road on the way to the UAE. Government regime change sparked the ousting of the Afghanistan Cricket Board’s chairman. A series with Pakistan wound up being postponed while Rashid Khan resigned as T20I captain in protest – that too, before he even had a chance to lead the team in a game following his appointment to replace Asghar Afghan – after saying he was not consulted before the World Cup squad was picked.The one positive for them is that they no longer have to go through the opening round. Afghanistan’s cricket has improved to the point where they were included in the second round by virtue of being in the top eight on the T20I rankings table at the tournament cutoff date. It’s a sign of their evolution from Associate prey into Full Member predator.Related

• Rashid Khan expects spinners to play 'huge role' at T20 World Cup

• ICC confirms Afghanistan to be part of T20 World Cup

• Rashid steps down as captain protesting against squad selection

• Fazli returns as ACB chairman

Recent form

Afghanistan haven’t played much T20I cricket due to the pandemic, but they have been largely successful when they have been able to get on the field. Afghanistan have won their last three T20I series – a 2-1 win over West Indies in November 2019, another 2-1 win (the only loss came in a Super Over) against Ireland in March 2020, and a three-match sweep of Zimbabwe in March 2021.

Batting

Their inconsistency in this area is what has held them back from toppling higher-ranked teams on a more regular basis. But there are signs that this could be changing with the emergence of Rahmanullah Gurbaz at the top of the order. After being named player of the series against Ireland in March 2020, he blitzed 87 off 45 in the first T20I against Zimbabwe this past March, including seven sixes in Abu Dhabi. Any decent platform from him will give Najibullah Zadran the freedom to maintain his aggression in the middle overs heading into the death overs. Outside of them, the team still leans on Asghar and Mohammad Nabi to contribute runs regularly.Teenager Rahmanullah Gurbaz has a strike-rate of 143•Abu Dhabi Cricket

Bowling

Despite the lack of national-team cricket, their stars have gotten plenty of opportunity to stay in form through the world of franchise cricket. In particular their vaunted spin trio of Rashid, Mujeeb-uh-Rahman and Nabi remain in demand for their match-winning consistency.On the pace side, Naveen-ul-Haq and Karim Janat will likely bowl most of the seam overs. But Afghanistan selectors are pining for a bit of nostalgia with the inclusion of Hamid Hassan in the squad. Even by fast bowling standards, his 34-year-old body has had more wear and tear than most. It’s one reason he hasn’t played a T20I since Afghanistan’s win over West Indies at the 2016 T20 World Cup in Nagpur. But drawing from his inspiring comeback to compete in the 2019 World Cup, he’s giving it one more go to see if he can turn back the clock.Franchise cricket has kept Rashid and Nabi in touch with the sport despite very little cricket for the national side•AFP/Getty Images

Player to watch

He has never had the pace that Afghanistan’s more-heralded fast bowlers like Hamid and Dawlat Zadran were blessed with, but that hasn’t stopped Naveen-ul-Haq from sourcing far greater interest than they ever did on the T20 franchise circuit. His clever array of slower balls and accurate yorkers at the death have added a new dimension to Afghanistan’s bowling in recent times and transformed him from fringe squad member to automatic selection, one who can win matches and lessen the reliance on the mystery spinners to do all the dirty work.

Key question

How will the players perform considering all of the instability at home? Though the ICC confirmed Afghanistan’s participation in this event, that’s not a guarantee going forward if Australia’s decision to cancel a Test match is any indication. The best way to ensure this doesn’t turn into a last hurrah is to score a few victories.Afghanistan have made a swift habit of bullying teams beneath them in the rankings so a pair of victories against both teams who advance out of the opening round is highly likely. But they’ll need to spring at least two upsets against group opponents New Zealand, Pakistan and India to have any realistic chance of progressing to the semifinals and building a case for their continued inclusion in global events regardless of what happens off the field in Kabul.

Likely XI

1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), 2 Usman Ghani, 3 Karim Janat, 4 Najibullah Zadran, 5 Mohammad Nabi (capt), 6 Asghar Afghan, 7 Rashid Khan, 8 Naveen-ul-Haq, 9 Mujeeb-ur-Rahman, 10 Fareed Ahmad, 11 Hamid Hassan

Shohei Ohtani and the Dodgers hoped to seize control of the World Series in Game 4 but they weren't able to get it done at home, losing 6-2 to the Blue Jays. The series is now tied up at 2-2 and suddenly it looks like Los Angeles could be in trouble, partly because while Ohtani has done virtually everything he can thus far, some of his star teammates are not having the same kind of success.

The biggest name that hasn't stepped up enough in the World Series is Mookie Betts. The 2018 AL MVP is an eight-time All-Star but he hasn't been himself at the plate against the Blue Jays. He has just three hits in 19 at-bats and has yet to knock in a run.

Moments after Game 4, in which Betts went 1-for-4 with his only hit being a single in the eighth inning, Alex Rodriguez seemed to call out the Dodgers' star shortstop, saying his struggles could hurt Ohtani the rest of the series.

"When I look at that lineup, the one guy that you have to circle is the great, great Mookie Betts because if Mookie doesn’t get going that means that Shohei may not get one more at-bat for the rest of series and that’s something to watch," Rodriguez said.

David Ortiz then chimed in with what he thinks has gone wrong for the Dodgers and what the team's other stars need to do to pick up Ohtani.

"Shohei has a hard job to do because he has to pitch and he has to hit but he’s more critical because if he doesn’t hit [the Dodgers] don’t hit," Ortiz said. "It seems like every night when they get going it’s because of [Ohtani]. Now you have a lot of superstars on the ball club, you have a lot of professional hitters that until this point they haven’t been able to come through collectively."

Here's that complete conversation from Fox's postgame show.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts hinted there could be some lineup changes for Game 5, saying in his postgame press conference: “I’m going to think long and hard, and it might look a little bit different tomorrow.”

The Dodgers need their other stars to pick it up, and fast. The Blue Jays were resilient in Game 4 and if they can win Game 5 they will head home with a 3-2 lead and will only need to win one game at Rogers Centre to claim their first World Series title since 1993.

Game 5 is a crucial game for both teams. We'll have to wait and see what changes the Dodgers make, if any, and if Betts can finally get going at the plate.

نشرت شبكة “ليفربول إيكو” الإنجليزية جزءًا جديدًا من حديث المدرب آرني سلوت في مؤتمره الصحفي، مساء الجمعة، فيما يتعلق بالنجم المصري محمد صلاح، والأزمة التي نشبت بسبب تصريحاته القوية قبل أسبوع.

وصرّح آرني سلوت، في مؤتمره صباح الجمعة، أنه سيتحدث إلى محمد صلاح قبل اتخاذه أي قرار يتعلق بموقفه من خوض مباراة السبت ضد برايتون في الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

وأكدت تقارير صحفية مختلفة أن سلوت استقر على إعادة محمد صلاح إلى قائمة ليفربول في مباراة برايتون، بعد جلسة محادثات بينهما اتسمت بالإيجابية.

من جهة أخرى، نشرت شبكة “ليفربول إيكو” الإنجليزية منذ قليل جزءًا جديدًا من حوار سلوت عن محمد صلاح، والذي كان في المؤتمر الصحفي قبل أي محادثات بينهما.

وقال سلوت: “العامل الأهم هو تقديم أفضل ما لدي للفريق والنادي، لم أقل هذا من قبل، لكن يمكنني القول إنني بالتأكيد لست سعيدًا بهذا الوضع، لا يعني هذا أنني راضٍ عن وجودنا في هذا الموقف على الإطلاق”.

اقرأ أيضًا.. ماكمانامان يدعو ثنائي ليفربول لحل أزمة محمد صلاح قبل كأس أمم إفريقيا

وأضاف: “لقد فزنا بلقب الدوري معًا، قدّم محمد صلاح الكثير للنادي، من الأفضل ألا يكون اللاعب في مثل هذا الموقف، أنا بعيد كل البعد عن الاستمتاع بهذا الوضع، لكن عليّ اختيار التشكيلة التي تصب في مصلحة النادي والفريق، حسب رأيي”.

وواصل: “لا يعني هذا أنني أؤيد هذا الوضع، بل هو مجرد رأيي، لا يمكنني القول إنني أحب هذا الوضع، كلا، لا أحبه ولا أستمتع به، إذا أمكنني ذلك، وكان ذلك في مصلحة الفريق والنادي، فسأفضل بالتأكيد تجنب أي فوضى أمام برايتون، لأنني لا أعتقد أن استمرارها لصالح الفريق والنادي”.

وشدد: “لا أعتبرها فوضى بالنسبة لي، ولكن إن كانت كذلك، فلن تفيد أحدًا، لذلك نحاول تجنبها ما دام ذلك في مصلحة الفريق، إذا أخبرتكم برد فعلي وما شعرت به، فلن يفيدنا ذلك في الوضع الحالي”.

واختتم الهولندي: “كل ما فعلته حتى الآن كان من أجل مصلحة النادي والفريق، لا أعتقد أن إخباركم بما شعرت به أو ما شابه سيفيدنا في هذا الموقف”.

بينما نشرت صحيفة “ديلي إكسبريس” الإنجليزية، جزءًا جديدًا من حديث سلوت، حيث قال: “ما قصدته في مؤتمر إنتر ميلان بقولي أننا لطيف ولكنني لست ضعيفًا، هو أنني لا أخشى اتخاذ القرارات التي أرى ضرورةً لاتخاذها، هل يستطيع اللاعبون استشعار الضعف؟ نعم، لكن ليس من الضروري إظهار القوة أو الضعف عندما لا يخدم ذلك مصلحة الفريق”.

وأوضح: “ليس من الحكمة أن أقول (أنا قوي جدًًا ولا أخشى اتخاذ القرارات الكبيرة)، إن لم يكن ذلك في مصلحة الفريق، ليست فكرتي أن أظهر قدرتي على اتخاذ القرارات، حتى لو كانت قوية أو صعبة، لكنني بالتأكيد كنت في غرف تبديل الملابس، وهم يراجعون قراراتي باستمرار”.

واستأنف: “أقول إنني أتخذ ما بين 40 و50 قرارًا يوميًا، إن لم يكن أكثر، لكن اللاعبين، مثل المحللين والصحفيين، نادرًا ما يعرفون كل ما يحدث، لقد سمعت الكثير عن هذا الوضع كله، ومن بين ما قاله المحللون أننا قد لا نعرف كل شيء، ومن يدري إن كان ذلك صحيحًا”.

وعن محمد صلاح من جديد، قال: “أعلم كم تحدثت معه، الأمر متروك للآخرين ليقرروا، إن كانوا على علم، ما إذا كان ذلك كافيًا، لو كانت 250 ساعة، فهل كانت كافية؟”.

وأنهى قائلًا: أعلم كم تحدثنا، ليس فقط في الأسبوع الذي سبق مباراة وست هام أو سندرلاند أو ليدز، بل أيضًا في الأسابيع والأشهر الأخيرة”.

Three inexperienced seamers tried their best to hold the line but England’s predicament felt like a failure of management

Vithushan Ehantharajah02-Aug-2025Who else but Ben Stokes?No seriously, who else? Any ideas? Anyone? Hello, is this thing on?That’s what it felt like on Saturday. England scrabbling around, looking for something, anything to save them. It was not just day three that was getting away from them, but this fifth Test and a series win.Their regular saviour, their usual captain, their standout bowler, was on the balcony, taking as well-earned a rest as you can have when your right shoulder is hanging by a thread. Meanwhile, Ollie Pope was out there on his home ground stuck in a bad dream.Related

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There he was, sifting through bowling combinations without Chris Woakes, and fields with a cordon seemingly without the ability to catch. At times, it was like watching a man trying to eat soup with his hands, occasionally heading back up to the home dressing room to wash them and ask if anyone had found a spoon, or even a fork, only to be met with big sunnies, white trainers and blank stares.The best you could say of England’s bowlers is that they kept at it in a meaningful way. Not just toiling, but doing so with a degree of hate in their hearts. No one likes being dog-walked in Test cricket as they were for 70 overs. There was plenty of bark and bite to show as much. Reward, too. Or at least souvenirs from the grind. Cool stories for the scars.Josh Tongue bagged his second five-wicket haul in Tests – expensively (5 for 125 from 30 overs) but got them nonetheless. He finishes the series as England’s leading wicket-taker with 19 despite only playing three matches.Gus Atkinson’s 3 for 127 saw him reach into what, for now, are relatively shallow reserves after two months out with a hamstring injury. He came up with 27 overs more work and a few pearlers to add to the first innings five-for. He restated just how good he is by dismissing India skipper Shubman Gill with the first ball after lunch.Jamie Overton doubled his Test tally with two dismissals – as many County Championship wickets as he has for Surrey this season – while bowling at an average speed of 85mph on day two and three. The sprinkling of 89.5mph bolts offered vindication if it were needed (it was) that his inclusion had some merit.

“In seaming conditions, England committed the cardinal sin of being cut more than they were driven. Such a pitch looked prime for Sam Cook, even Matthew Potts. Both of whom have the hardwired game for these surfaces. And yet neither was even considered worthy of the squad”

It was tough not to feel sorry for them. The dichotomy between batting and bowling was felt keenly on a day like this: the former set 374, the latter dragged for 396. It felt like that most when Washington Sundar conducted the in the stands with his sixes in the final partnership. And across the six drops – two from Harry Brook, two from Zak Crawley, one from Ben Duckett and one from sub-fielder Liam Dawson – which cost 152 all in.”Going through from yesterday knowing we were going to bowl a few overs out there, it was obviously going to be a tough ask for us bowlers, but I thought we stuck at it really well,” Tongue said at stumps.Truthfully, though, the task of marshalling a series decider was always going to be tough on the three replacements. Particularly given the series had acquired so much feeling and narrative over the last two Tests, at Lord’s and Old Trafford, which featured none of them. You think jumping out of moving car is hard, try jumping a moving one.Atkinson and Overton were coming in cold. Tongue returning a month after being parked for Jofra Archer after two Tests. Each would have dealt with their own pressures, and here they were exacerbated as they were thrown in together.Even with Woakes available, there would have been struggle. The 36-year-old had bowled just 68 of his 161 overs across the first four Tests in the second innings. Slack would have had to been picked up.But his experience might have jolted them out of bad habits. The lack of game-time showed with their collective inconsistency, which was leapt upon by Yashasvi Jaiswal to the tune of 118.In seaming conditions, they committed the cardinal sin of being cut more than they were driven: Jaiswal sliced and diced 72 of his first 100 runs behind square on the off side. Such a pitch looked prime for Sam Cook. Even Matthew Potts. Both of whom have the hardwired game for these surfaces. And yet neither were even considered worthy of the squad.England’s careful planning fell apart ahead of the fifth Test•PA Photos/Getty ImagesBut more broadly, the gamest pitch of the series, certainly the one with the pace and bounce England have craved throughout the summer, has been used by the second string. And that, ultimately, feels like a failure of management.The plan at the very start of this five-match series was for enough changes of personnel to keep the prime quicks refreshed throughout. And even with injury to Mark Wood, Olly Stone and, initially, Atkinson, there was enough to shuffle through.Certainly, for instance, enough to not get to a stage where Brydon Carse, a superior hit-the-deck bowler to Tongue, was running on fumes in Manchester after four appearances on the bounce. Though Archer’s return was well-managed, it was hard not to wonder how much joy he would have got on this surface.Perhaps England could have kept a couple in the chamber? It is only this week that Manchester hosted its first positive result across six first-class matches this summer. Of the venues to protect your quicks, particularly having already established a 2-1 lead, maybe that was it? Understandably, the prospect of clutching an outright series win with a game to spare was too enticing.The pitches should get some of the ire. England have bowled on 19 of the 23 days of play so far, sending down at least 50 overs on 12 of them. But the batters haven’t helped. On day two, for instance, having made light work of India’s last four first innings wickets in the morning, the bowlers were back at it just 51.2 overs later.Rotating bowlers is never an exact science, though science does come into it. The ECB tracks overs bowled and bodies to manage their quicks, keeping tabs on things like “red zones” – when workloads reach a point that the likelihood of injury increases.The current era take on that information and are particularly meticulous when it comes to the real five-star pace merchants, like Archer and Wood. By and large, they have moved away from leaning heavily on those metrics in favour of a more personable approach.It gives players more agency over their fitness, which they prefer. What they can play through, what they know they should not.Though you wonder, in a series as big as this, ahead of an Ashes, if a player would wilfully pull themselves out of the firing line? Especially in a team moulded in the image of a captain who needed head coach Brendon McCullum and medical advice to sit out this one. Stepping aside would also risk losing that spot altogether. Ollie Pope almost found out when he handed the No. 3 position to Jacob Bethell for last year’s tour of New Zealand.There are different strands of the multiverse where Woakes does not damage his left shoulder. Or Brook holds onto Jaiswal for 20. Or even Dawson on 40. Or Crawley and Deep on 21 to nip a nightwatcher innings of 66 before it really ate away at the team’s souls.But the one strand of note, the one that got away well before this match begun, was a more considered plan with this attack. It is something they must get right come the Ashes this winter. Lessons should be learned from the last two months.Then again, they will also hope for some blind luck. Just look at India: they possess the one generational quick in the series, and have not won any of the three matches he has played. And they could not be happier with how things have panned out.

Several starts hint at tricks in benign surface, but lack of ruthlessness may cost Australia

Andrew McGlashan19-Jul-20231:38

McGlashan: Australia missed the chance to hurt England

Australia are making it harder work than it might have been to clinch the Ashes. On the opening day at Old Trafford they had the chance of leaving England an enormous task, particularly if the poor weather forecast for the weekend proves correct. Instead, they kept leaving the door ajar.Although Pat Cummins said he would have followed Ben Stokes’ route and inserted – perhaps as much because Australia had left out their spinner – as the day unfolded it didn’t feel like a stand-out bowl-first day. Five of the visitors’ top six fell between 32 and 51 and everyone dismissed, bar Usman Khawaja, had reached double figures.Before the match, Khawaja had called it a series in which batters rarely felt completely settled at the crease. “That is England with Dukes balls and weather and conditions,” he said. “In Australia, sometimes you can kind of lock in and feel like I am in now. Whereas here it doesn’t feel like that. Because the ball is always doing enough, nibbling about.”The series runs tally does support that with only three batters – Khawaja, Travis Head and Stokes – having more than 300 now into the fourth Test. However, shortly before tea Australia were 183 for 3 with Marnus Labuschagne and Head building a productive fourth-wicket stand. Labuschagne had just gone to his first half-century of the series – ending his longest run (eight innings) without a fifty in Test cricket – when he managed to miss what was largely a straight delivery from Moeen Ali.A few moments after the break, Head took on Stuart Broad’s short ball and hooked down to long leg where Joe Root held on to an excellent catch. It was Broad’s 600th Test wicket and Australia were now 187 for 5. From there, the stumps total of 299 for 8 could be viewed as not being too bad, but equally it was a day of missed opportunity.Marnus Labuschagne walks off after his dismissal•Clive Mason/Getty Images “It felt like we were so close to turning it there, Heady and I, to getting a really big partnership together and [I was] probably a little bit lazy, trying to turn it to the leg side and Moeen got me,” Labuschagne said. “Think any [total] with a three in front of it is alright. [But] think where we were and how many guys got themselves in, we’d be slightly disappointed with no one getting a big score.”The wicket is a bit two-paced, it’s quite slow…some wickets I’ve played on here are quite quick on day one. Think [with] the thatchiness of the grass, the ball is sitting in the wicket a little bit so you are getting a bit of inconsistent bounce from that. They showed the ball was nipping for a fair bit of the day and Moeen got a few to spin.”The trend of starts not being converted began in the first session when David Warner edged behind against Chris Woakes after a punchy, if not entirely convincing, 32, slightly above his average of the last two-and-a-half years. The ball following Warner’s departure, Steven Smith might have fallen as well when he top-edged a hook, but Mark Wood was in off the rope at long leg and the ball went over his head.Related

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After that Smith quickly settled and looked on course to make amends for his light returns at Headingley, which he had partly attributed to the focus on his 100th Test. However, not for the first time in the last couple of weeks, Wood’s pace made the difference when Smith was pinned lbw in the crease, working across a delivery that, against England’s bowlers of lesser speed, he may have played more comfortably into the leg side. A graphic from Sky Sports illustrated the difference the extra eight or nine miles per hour (12-14kph) of Wood made when it came to Smith connecting and missing.When Labuschagne and Head then departed in quick succession, it left Australia’s pair of allrounders – Mitchell Marsh and Cameron Green – needing to perform a repair job in which they were partly successful. The decision to omit offspinner Todd Murphy gave them a very long batting order, and one they may be grateful for.Green, who had struggled to find his best rhythm with the bat before missing Headingley with a niggle, was uncertain, especially against Broad who found movement both ways, but Marsh was as commanding as he had been in his comeback game. He punctured the off side with fierce power and was not afraid to go in the air down the ground against pace and spin. He dominated the sixth-wicket partnership of 65 before Woakes’ double-wicket over, and Jonny Bairstow’s brilliant catch, swung things back England’s way.However, Alex Carey and Mitchell Starc dug in for 18 overs against the old ball, a sign of the opportunity that had been squandered by the top order before Woakes struck again late in the day. As so often in this series, when the players walked off it was hard to know who was really on top. England are still the team that have to make all the moves, but Australia might have left them with an opening to do so.

Here is the ball-by-ball account, and the pictures, of all ten wickets

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Dec-20214:11

Daniel Vettori: ‘Rare’ Ajaz Patel 10-wicket haul is greatest individual feat in NZ Test cricket

Wicket No. 1: Shubman Gill c Ross Taylor b Ajaz Patel 44•BCCI27.3 to Shubman Gill, he’s caught at slip. One ball after a let-off, Gill goes. Ajaz gets a nice loop going on this one too, Gill tries to push-drive from the crease, gets an edge that settles into Ross Taylor’s extremely safe hands at slip. Important breakthrough for New Zealand with India having looked so comfortable. 80/1Wicket No. 2: Cheteshwar Pujara b Ajaz Patel 0•Associated Press29.2 to Cheteshwar Pujara, he’s got him bowled! One ball after a missed stumping he got Gill. One ball after a failed lbw review, he gets Pujara – who has to go for a duck. Pujara coming down the track – he’s rarely ever even beaten coming down the track to a spinner – but this one is flighted perfectly and dips below his bat, spins viciously away from leg stump to knock back off-stump. Pujara has a slightly stunned look as he walks off. 80/2Wicket No. 3: Virat Kohli lbw b Ajaz Patel 0•BCCI29.6 to Virat Kohli, massive appeal for lbw given and Kohli reviews. What an over this is turning out to be for Ajaz. What a spell. This is really close on whether he’s inside edged it or not. The ball is fitting perfectly between bat and pad as he’s on the front foot to defend. One half of the ball is near the inside edge, the other on the pad. And there’s a spike, but is it due to ball hitting bat first or only with ball hitting pad? There doesn’t seem to be conclusive evidence of bat first, though the seam does wobble a bit when it passes the bat. Third umpire says no conclusive evidence of bat first. Ball tracking has it hitting the stumps flush. And that means Kohli has to go for a duck on his return. He has a word with the umpire for a moment before walking off. This match has turned, and how. 80/3Wicket No. 4: Shreyas Iyer c Tom Blundell b Ajaz Patel 18•Associated Press47.4 to Shreyas Iyer, Ajaz provides NZ with another breakthrough. Full, slides in from left-arm around, as opposed to turning away. Ajaz finds some extra bounce to boot. Iyer has an uncertain prod at it, searching for turn, and ends up inside-edging it onto his thigh pad. The ball lobs up to Blundell who collects it cleanly, having fluffed a stumping earlier in the day 160/4Wicket No. 5 Wriddhiman Saha lbw b Ajaz Patel 27•Associated Press71.4 to Wriddhiman Saha, Ajaz has five. Strikes in the first over of the day. This was plumb enough that Saha opts not to review after a brief discussion with Agarwal. This one went with the arm, Saha misread the length and was moving back to cut, it skids on from a length on off and hits him on the knee roll. Replay show that was umpire’s call on impact but was hitting the stumps 224/5Wicket No. 6: R Ashwin b Ajaz Patel 0•Associated Press71.5 to R Ashwin, what a beauty. That is a peach to get first up and nothing much Ashwin can do about it. Ajaz turning things around for New Zealand within an over, once again. Perfectly geometric arc to the ball, Ashwin is a tall man, stretches forward to defend but the loop is perfect so he cant quite get to the pitch, it lands in front, spins just enough to beat bat, but not too much, so it shaves off-stump. Ashwin didn’t realise he was bowled, it was that fine a margin for the spin. Ajaz got it inch-perfect. Ashwin was actually making the signal to review because he thought he’d been given caught behind. 224/6Wicket No. 7: Mayank Agarwal c Tom Blundell b Ajaz Patel 150•BCCI99.5 to Mayank Agarwal, he’s got him. Ajaz on track for the magic ten. Crucial, crucial strike and a great ball to get it. A bit of a misjudgement in length perhaps from Agarwal after exemplary concentration throughout. Ajaz gets this to dip and drift again like he has all through, Agarwal goes on the back foot, but the grip and turn mean his hands follow the ball a bit, just enough to snaffle a thin edge that is well caught by the keeper standing up. The end of a fantastic knock. 291/7Wicket No. 8: Axar Patel lbw b Ajaz Patel 52•BCCI107.5 to Axar Patel, pads up to one outside off, turning in. Ajaz appeals. No shot offered so he can be given lbw. They take the review. He stretched his front leg out a fair way so that has to turn a bit to threaten the stumps. And it is! three reds on the review. Turning enough to take out off stump full. Stunning review from Ajaz, and he has eight now. He can smell that ten-for, as can everyone else. End of an important innings by Axar. 316/8Wicket No. 9: Jayant Yadav c Rachin Ravindra b Ajaz Patel 12•BCCI109.2 to Jayant Yadav, he’s holed out to long-off and Ajaz has nine! We are one step away from history. Jayant looking for quick runs, dances down the track, gets to the pitch too and was hitting with the turn. Right idea perhaps, but wrong execution. Can’t time it well and the ball goes flat. There’s a fielder right there and he gobbles it up. 321/9Wicket No. 10: Mohammed Siraj c Rachin Ravindra b Ajaz Patel 4•BCCI109.5 to Mohammed Siraj, history! Ajaz becomes the third bowler in Test cricket to take all ten. Ajaz Patel has joined Jim Laker and Anil Kumble. Stunning, stunning feat and even the Indian dressing room is applauding. Ajaz roars out and pumps his fist. A Mumbai-born boy, coming to Wankhede and making history. What a moment. This was tossed up on the stumps and Siraj slogged across the line, got a steepling top edge as he sliced it. Hearts in mouths moment as the ball swirls high, but mid-on calmly takes it. Rachin Ravindra the man. The duo that had denied India victory in Kanpur combines for another historic moment. 325/10

On Thursday night the Twins played their first game at Target Field since the Pohlad family announced they would not be selling the team. Minnesota proceded to go out and lose to the Tigers in extra innings with manager Rocco Baldelli getting ejected following a colorful argument about whether or not a foul tip was caught or not.

The emotions from the loss, coupled with the recent news about the team's ownership situation, had the words "sell the team" fresh on everyone's mind and that became especially apparent during the team's postgame show where fans could be heard loudly chanting the request.

The Twins entered the season with a mid-range payroll, well above teams like the Marlins and Athletics, but far behind real contenders who are spending about twice as much each season in an attempt to put a competitive team on the field.

Two years removed from their last postseason appearance, Minnesota is currently 57-64, seven games out of the wild card.

It's a simple recipe for fan unrest.

If he decides to stay on, will he be getting in the way of the team’s growth?

Nagraj Gollapudi24-May-20251:26

Bangar: If I was Dhoni I would say ‘enough’

It is a question that has been asked of him repeatedly since he retired from international cricket. With that handsome and enigmatic smile, MS Dhoni has always responded, in his own idiosyncratic way: you will have to wait till next season. So, as Chennai Super Kings wind up a forgettable IPL, where they finished last for the first time, the question will once again gather momentum: is time finally up for Dhoni?What if, though, we tweak that query? If Dhoni decides to continue, will he not be getting in the way of CSK’s future growth?No athlete is bigger than the sport they play, but in the case of Dhoni and CSK, the former has acquired godlike status due to what he has achieved for the franchise from the time he was made captain in 2008. He has been central to all their success – five IPL titles, numerous playoffs, and innumerable games where he rescued them from utterly rubbish positions. The franchise has relied on him on the field and off it. No decision is taken without his counsel and his word is final, and that is how it has been virtually throughout Dhoni’s 18-year relationship with CSK, one that is familial more than anything else.Related

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• Dhoni on his IPL future: I have four-five months to decide

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• CSK face a tricky situation with Dhoni the batter

Dhoni has already said that he will review his future based on how his body feels closer to the 2026 season. That has been his parting line after the final match of every season for the last five years. By the time the next IPL rolls around, he will be 44 years old. If fit – as he has largely shown he is again this season – he will conceivably be as sharp as ever behind the wickets. His captaincy skills remain strong. But can Dhoni, the batter, walk into the best CSK XI?Early this season, against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, he came in at No. 9 in a 50-run defeat. In CSK’s next match, another chase, against Rajasthan Royals, he came in at No. 7, when the match was in the balance, but made a stuttering 11-ball 16 in a six-run defeat. Early in May, in another live chase, against RCB again, Dhoni said he took the blame for CSK’s two-run defeat, admitting he failed to step on the accelerator when he came in, in the 17th over, when 42 runs were needed.MS Dhoni: a past master at leaving things till the end•AFP/Getty ImagesAfter the defeat against Royals, CSK head coach Stephen Fleming said Dhoni decided his entry points based on the match situation, but that he could not bat too many overs anymore, following his knee surgery after the 2023 IPL. But with Dhoni’s weakness against spin well known, opposition teams keep at least an over of spin in the bag for when he comes out.In the 2024 IPL, Dhoni consciously came in late to bat, his sole intent being to wallop the ball: among batters who made at least 100 runs in that tournament, Dhoni’s strike rate of 220.54 was the second highest. In 2023, hobbling on a dodgy knee, he lifted first the Player of the final, Ravindra Jadeja, and then his fifth IPL title as CSK captain. In terms of runs scored by Super Kings batters in the last two seasons (2024 and up to May 24 this year), Dhoni is fifth on the list, with 357 runs in 24 innings at an average of over 32, a strike rate of nearly 164, and 25 sixes, which is the second highest for the team. The legend of is built on such stuff.However, to fit Dhoni in the side, Super Kings are forced to play one specialist batter fewer – who could be good against spin, or who could float in the order. So far they have seen that as a fair gamble.There is no doubt Dhoni will have dealt internally, within the CSK management, with the question of when to retire more than once. Perhaps he thinks a major part of his responsibility in this regard is to get the timing right: when he is confident the transition will be smooth. However, transitions rarely are.Despite his cult status, Dhoni has maintained it is not about the individual, it is about what is good for CSK. Ahead of the 2022 mega auction, he said it was important to build a core group that would stay together for the next ten years or so. There has been another mega auction since then, last November, and Dhoni remains part of the core group four seasons on from that 2022 auction.Knee be damned: Dhoni gets a load of his main man, Ravindra Jadeja, after the 2023 final•BCCIDhoni’s Super Kings stuck to their template regardless of how a season ended, and more often than not, it was successful. At the last mega auction, CSK decided again to pick a number of players who were close to the end of their careers, including some who had seemingly plateaued. Most of those players are likely to be released soon. There is increasingly talk about the franchise moving in a new direction, by intending to retain and invest in younger talent. But the longer Dhoni sticks around, the harder it could get for them to do this.Among Dhoni’s strengths as a leader was knowing when to pass the baton. He did that with Virat Kohli in 2014 in Test cricket, then in white-ball cricket in 2017, and he identified Ruturaj Gaikwad for the Super Kings job. One of Dhoni’s other strengths is not extending his stay. If he seems to have stuck around at CSK to the point of overstaying, it is perhaps due to a sense of obligationPerhaps it is not just the sense that he needs to oversee a smooth transition that has stopped him from going. Perhaps it is the emotional bonds he has built with the franchise and CSK fans, which have taken deep root. After a fairy-tale title-winning run in 2021, Super Kings owner N Srinivasan said: “There’s no CSK without Dhoni and no Dhoni without CSK.” Srinivasan is no longer actively involved in the running of the franchise. Does Dhoni think he cannot leave until he thinks Gaikwad is completely secure in his leadership role?There has been no other player who has been indispensable to his franchise the way Dhoni has been. CSK fans probably refuse to think of life after him. But even his most die-hard devotees might probably now admit, in private at least, that the time has come for a new beginning. Or do they still believe in their beloved ?

Yashasvi Jaiswal became the eighth Indian to win the Player-of-the-Match award on Test debut

Sampath Bandarupalli15-Jul-20230:52

Dasgupta: Ashwin should be among the first names in the XI

8 – Ten-wicket match hauls for R Ashwin in Test cricket, the joint-most for an Indian, alongside Anil Kumble. Only four bowlers have taken more 10-wicket match hauls in this format than the Indian duo.34 – Five-wicket hauls in Tests for Ashwin, only one behind Kumble’s 35. Ashwin now shares the fifth place for most five-wicket hauls in Tests with Rangana Herath.6 – Test matches where Ashwin has taken five or more wickets in both innings. Only Muthiah Muralidaran (11) and Herath (8) have done it more often than Ashwin, while Sydney Barnes also had five-fors in both innings on six occasions.7 for 71 – Ashwin’s figures in the third innings, the best figures in Test cricket for an Indian in the West Indies, bettering his own 7 for 83 in Antigua during the 2016 tour. Only Ishant Sharma (10 for 108 in the 2011 Bridgetown Test) had a ten-wicket match haul in the West Indies before Ashwin’s 12-for.12 for 131 – Ashwin’s match figures in Dominica are the fourth-best for any bowler in a Test match in the West Indies. His match figures are the second-best for a spinner in the Caribbean, behind Tony Greig, who took 13 for 156 with his offspin in Port of Spain in 1974.280 – Runs aggregated by West Indies in Dominica, the lowest by them against India in a Test match where they have been bowled out in both innings. The previous lowest was 322 runs at Sabina Park in 2006 and during the 2019 home series in Antigua. These are also the third-fewest runs by West Indies in a Test match at home.2 – Test matches with a lower aggregate by the home team against India, than West Indies’ 280 in Dominica (where they got bowled out twice). England were bowled out for 102 and 128 at Headingley in 1986, while New Zealand aggregated 240 runs across both innings at Eden Park in 1968.!function(){“use strict”;window.addEventListener(“message”,(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var e=document.querySelectorAll(“iframe”);for(var t in a.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}();