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Manchester City superstar Kevin De Bruyne has been praised for his starring role as the Premier League champions overcome Wolves at Molineux.

The Lowdown: City seal win…

The Sky Blues sealed yet another convincing win this afternoon with a 3-0 victory away to 10-man Wolves, and as per usual, summer signing Erling Haaland made headlines by adding another goal to his scintillating record.

It didn’t take long for City to open their account with club record acquisition Jack Grealish grabbing his first strike of the campaign after just 60 seconds, feeding off De Bruyne’s low cross to bundle an effort past Jose Sa.

Haaland then joined in on the act by guiding a low, precise effort into the bottom left-hand corner – twisting Wolves defender Max Kilman inside-out before unleashing the drive.

It got bad to worse for Wolves with defender Nathan Collins sent off for a dangerous tackle on Grealish, but that wasn’t all she wrote, as the home side briefly threatened City in the second period – even managing to carve out some good chances.

Despite being a man down, Bruno Lage’s men attempted to pressure their visitors but were caught out by a swift counter-attack which ended the game.

Haaland, De Bruyne and goal scorer Phil Foden linked up brilliantly for the Sky Blues’ third of the game and ultimately ended proceedings.

The Latest: De Bruyne praise…

After notching two assists on the day, one for Grealish and one for Foden either side of Haaland’s strike, Belgium international star De Bruyne was praised by media members for his ‘mesmerising’ display.

“It’s mad how intelligent De Bruyne is with his crosses, be it low or high” – Roberto Rojas, journalist for DAZN (via Twitter).

“Kevin De Bruyne is mesmerising to watch” – Thierry Nyan, journalist for TV 3 Network (via Twitter).

The Verdict: Huge player…

While Haaland will continue to grab all the attention, you cannot understate the role De Bruyne plays in manager Pep Guardiola’s system.

The 31-year-old has now been directly contributed to 150 goals in 217 English top flight games (via Squawka), a truly astonishing record and one which could cement his place as an all-time great of the division – as if he wasn’t already.

De Bruyne will have a major role to play as City seek to retain their domestic crown for a third successive season.

As many as 16 of the 18 counties are expected to turn to a legspin option when the Vitality T20 Blast begins this week

Matt Roller03-Jul-2018Imran Tahir’s stint at Durham in the Vitality Blast will take his collection of England’s 18 first-class counties to seven. It is too much to hope that Tahir, a veteran at 39, will one day manage to collect the whole set, even if he has been a mainstay of domestic T20 cricket in England for the past ten seasons, but it is quite a list.But Tahir’s signing is also a reflection of a growing trend in the county game. One in three teams in this season’s T20 Blast has secured the services of an overseas legspinner and as many as 16 of the 18 teams can be expected to put legspin in their mix. Only Gloucestershire and Leicestershire might miss out.While counties used to use their overseas quota on top-order batsmen or fast-scoring all-rounders, there has been a gradual shift in their approaches to who they should sign. Teams now use data analysts to help with recruitment, and the numbers show that legspinners are the men to go for.There is more to the signings than just their worth on the pitch, of course. Rashid Khan, the teenage sensation from Afghanistan, has won the hearts of fans across the world since shooting to worldwide fame a year or so ago; it is no surprise that ticket sales for his three games at Hove are booming, with Sussex recording sales 68.8% higher for their first home match (vs Surrey on 13th July) compared to last year’s equivalent.

This year, counties appear to have cottoned on. And a study of the wrist-spinners in this year’s competition should provide evidence as to why they are such hot property in 20-over cricket

By now, few need a reminder that 20-over cricket was presumed to be the format that would make legspinners, with all their perceived exoticism obsolete. Adam Hollioake, who played four Tests and 35 ODIs for England and who led Surrey to the inaugural Twenty20 Cup in 2003, said: “Straight away, we thought ‘spin bowlers are going to get hit out the ground’. We thought they’d be hopeless.” Instead, it has brought them to the fore; the top T20 franchises around the world pay over the odds to secure the services of Khan, Ish Sodhi, Shadab Khan and Samuel Badree.But England’s counties have been slow to follow this lead, perhaps influenced by a cooler climate, smaller grounds and in-built conservatism. While Tahir, Shahid Afridi and Adil Rashid have been mainstays of the tournament since its formation 15 years ago, last year’s winners, Nottinghamshire, were the first victorious team since Sussex in 2009 to pick a legspinner – Sodhi – in the final.Back in 2009, legspin was still viewed as a gamble. That year, Will Beer took 2 for 29 in their win against Somerset, but he was at the start of his career and was viewed as a risk; Sussex captain Mike Yardy brought his own 65mph left-arm darts into the attack before taking the risk. Now, legspinners are seen not just as attacking options, but as containers; not just wicket-takers, but economical too.This year, counties appear to have cottoned on. And a study of the wrist-spinners in this year’s competition should provide evidence as to why they are such hot property in 20-over cricket; the leg-spinning class of 2018 exude control throughout an innings, and can be relied upon in the Powerplay or at the death.ESPNCricinfo’s Smart Stats, unveiled ahead of the 2018 IPL, help contextualise more rudimentary data, and take the differences between high-scoring and low-scoring matches, and phases of the game into account.ESPNcricinfo LtdAnalysis of legspinners’ Smart Economy Rates – which take into account the rate of other bowlers in a match, and the phase of a game – in their T20 careers since 2015 shows just how effective they are.There are no prizes for guessing that Rashid Khan comes out on top, with a Smart ER of just 4.62 in that period. Other overseas spinners are also miserly: Hampshire’s mystery Afghani spinner Mujeeb ur-Rahman has a Smart ER of 5.23, while Northants’ Seekkuge Prasanna (6.44), Essex’s Adam Zampa (6.52), Tahir (7.16), and Sodhi (7.22) are not far behind.But the stats also show just how successful domestic bowlers have been in the Blast. Lancashire’s exciting prospect, Matt Parkinson, was the highlight of their otherwise-unsuccessful T20 campaign last year, and weighs in with a Smart ER of just 4.8.Parkinson, a 21-year-old from Bolton, has certainly made an impression in his fledgling white-ball career: he impressed the national selectors so much in his inaugural Blast campaign last year that he was given a List A debut on the England Lions tour of the West Indies. If he maintains such statistics it is inevitable that T20 leagues worldwide will take an interest.Just as impressive are the Smart ERs of Adil Rashid (6.8), Brett D’Oliveira (6.93), and Mason Crane (7.18), a trio of diminutive talents who are turning the ball less, and bowling flatter and shorter than when they made their debuts.Rashid, of course, will feel the added pressure of a disenchanted set of Yorkshire fans. His white-ball-only deal was met with displeasure by most of the members and Yorkshire, threatened by relegation in the Championship remain eager to persuade him to change his mind. He will need to impress again in the shortest form to win back favour and to prove the decision was a good one.Strikingly, it is hard to find a legspinner who is a weak links in a county side. In fact, since 2015, the average economy rate across all bowlers in the Blast is 7.94. All of the frontline leggies likely to play in the first round of matches have a Smart ER lower than that figure in the same time period, with Dawid Malan (7.95) and Scott Borthwick (8.12) (who has failed to build on his solitary Test at the end of England’s 2013-14 Ashes disaster) the only wrist-spinners with worse data.Expect legspin to feature not only in the middle overs, but in the Powerplay and at the death, too.
Four years ago, Samuel Badree’s rise to become the number one-ranked T20I bowler was based on bowling two or three overs of skiddy wrist-spin in the Powerplay, barely turning the ball, but relying instead on changes of pace and subtle variations. Similarly, much of this year’s cohort has experience bowling in the Powerplay. Mujeeb and Khan have 19 Powerplay wickets between them since 2015, with Smart ERs of 6.11 and a miserly 4.00 respectively.Domestic spinners can be successful despite fielding restrictions, too: Max Waller opened the bowling four times for Somerset last season, and since 2015 has combined figures of 5 for 37 across his six Powerplay overs – he has only been hit for one boundary in that time.
There’s nothing to say legspinners shouldn’t be used at the death, either. Across all major T20 tournaments since last year’s Blast, spin has proved more economical in the death overs than pace, and yet just 16% of deliveries in overs 16-20 are bowled by spinners, compared to 36% in the innings overall.As can be seen below, there is a trade-off between wrist-spinners who take wickets at the death with a high economy (Critchley) and those who keep things tight without offering so much threat (Waller). Only the best of the bunch – Parkinson, Rashid, Khan, and Zampa – can do both.ESPNcricinfo LtdThe Blast’s set of leggies have impressed in the slog overs on the whole. Of the seven wrist-spinners who have bowled more than ten death overs since 2015, three – Sodhi (8.27), Waller (8.49), and Ingram (10.92) – have Smart ERs that are significantly worse than for the rest of the innings, but Khan, Zampa, Prasanna, and Rashid are all successful there.Rashid is particularly impressive: his Smart ER in overs 16-20 is 3.63, and his 21.4 death overs have yielded 12 wickets and only nine boundaries. Don’t be surprised if Yorkshire use him alongside Tim Bresnan in the latter stages of an innings this year.The next few weeks should give an idea as to whether legspinners will dominate this year’s tournament. If they do, the Blast will be following the global trend. That is not something they have always been able to claim.Legspinners in the Blast
Birmingham: Josh Poysden;
Derbyshire: Matt Critchley;
Durham: Imran Tahir, Graham Clark;
Essex: Adam Zampa;
Glamorgan: Colin Ingram;
Gloucestershire: None;
Hampshire: Mujeeb ur-Rahman;
Kent: Joe Denly;
Lancashire: Matt Parkinson;
Leicestershire: None;
Middlesex: Nathan Sowter;
Northants: Seekkuge Prasanna;
Notts: Ish Sodhi;
Somerset: Max Waller;
Surrey: Scott Borthwick;
Sussex: Rashid Khan;
Worcestershire: Brett D’Oliveira;
Yorkshire: Adil Rashid.

Haseeb Hameed’s tour has been ended prematurely by injury but he has already made a lasting impression on team-mates and opponents

George Dobell in Mohali29-Nov-20162:00

Ganguly: What stands out for Hameed is his age

They say it is best to never meet your heroes, but Haseeb Hameed may well disagree.The night before this series, he spoke with wide-eyed wonder about how “amazing” it would be to meet Virat Kohli. He was one of his cricketing heroes and the thought of playing against him was clearly a thrill.Now he has not just met him, but won his respect. For while the relationship between these teams is not especially good – they came into the series with baggage from 2014, in particular – it was noticeable that Kohli not only applauded Hameed upon reaching his half-century in Mohali, but ran up to shake him by the hand at the end of his innings.He had, to his great credit, recognised not only an innings of class and bravery, but perhaps something of a kindred spirit, too: this was one fine batsmen acknowledging another, albeit one who has achieved little by comparison at this stage of his career. It is a moment that is likely to console Hameed long after he has made the journey home to have surgery on his left hand.”He’s showed great character for a 19-year-old,” Kohli said. “He put his hand up when his team wanted him to do it and the way he played with Anderson showed great maturity. You can sense it as a captain: this guy is intelligent, this guy knows the game.”He’s a great prospect for England. He’s definitely going to be a future star in all forms if he keeps persisting with his skill. I’m really impressed and that’s why I patted him on the back. It was an innings full of character and something that you need to applaud.”It may be relevant that Hameed, unlike some of the other players involved in this match, let his cricket do the talking and therefore hasn’t irked the opposition. He doesn’t feel the need to posture or pose; he doesn’t feel the need to give opposition players a send-off when they’re out or give them abuse when he is fielding.Any thought that such behaviour equates to strong or brave cricket should have been banished years ago. Hameed has reminded us that you can be gutsy and determined without denigrating the opposition. And, both with his batting and his demeanour, he might have reminded one or two how this game could, and should, be played.There were many impressive aspects of this innings. There was the range of strokes – including a delicious late cut, a slog-sweep for six and a front-foot hook – that showed he had been playing within himself in previous innings and hinted at an ability that could well feed into white-ball cricket. There was the sight of Hameed going to meet his new partner – James Anderson, a man with 118 more Tests than him – to offer some advice and encouragement and there was his ability to rotate the strike so effectively that Anderson only faced 11 out of the 40 balls they batted together.But perhaps the most impressive feature of this innings was his ability to adapt to the physical imposition he faced and the bravery to attempt to do so.

“To change the way you play to combat [an injury] … There’s a lot of guys in there in awe of what he’s been through”Trevor Bayliss, England’s coach

Hameed batted three times in the nets on Monday. The first two times were unsuccessful: the pain was such that he could hardly hold the bat, far less control it. It seemed he would bat only in an emergency and perhaps at No. 11. But then he experimented with a different grip where he was able to take his little finger off the bat. And, after some practice in the nets, reported that he was happy with the new technique.So, as a 19-year-old in his third Test, he not only went out to bat with such a badly damaged finger that he knew it required surgery, but he did so with a makeshift grip. And then he played England’s best innings of the match. It was hardly surprising that Trevor Bayliss, the England coach, described the team as “in awe” of their young colleague.”It’s a hell of a skill to have,” Bayliss said. “To change the way you play to combat that. A couple of headache tablets and out he went. It is a lesson for others. There’s a lot of guys in there in awe of what he’s been through. The lack of showing any pain, and guts and determination is a good sign. There’s plenty of other guys who have got hit and make a big song and dance about it. Obviously he’s got a big pain threshold.”They were sentiments echoed by Alastair Cook. He has been searching for an opening partner since July 2012 and the retirement of Andrew Strauss. But the search is over. Hameed is likely to be his regular opening partner for the rest of his career.”He has impressed us all with technique, his talent and now his bravery,” Cook said. “He has shown us he will do anything to get out there. That was a very special knock. We will hold him in huge respect for it.”International cricket is brutal though and, when Hameed does return, he must know he will face a sustained examination of his technique against the short ball. While his bravery is not in question, his habit of playing with low hands might render this the sort of incident that could reoccur.Keen to test him with the bouncer here, India started with a short leg, leg slip and deep-backward square for him in the second innings. But while there were a couple of times he looked hurried by the short ball – and Mohammed Shami has bowled terrifically this series – he managed to get on top of the ball and play it straight down into the ground at his feet. And each time the follow-up full delivery demanded a forward stroke, his feet moved without hesitation and his judgement over which ball to play and leave remained impeccable. He looked, once again, calm and composed.Within a couple of overs the leg slip had gone. An over later, the short leg had gone. Instead of just tucking the ball off his ribs or into the ground, Hameed had started to pull and hook. He is learning and adapting with every innings. It is a shame his series is over.Haseeb Hameed changed his technique to bat with a broken finger in England’s second innings•AFPHe was desperate not to go home. He has loved this experience and pleaded with the medical team to tape up the finger and let him carry on. But sense prevailed. He will leave in the next day or two and have the operation as soon as possible. You can be quite certain, however, that he will be opening the batting for England when their Test schedule resumes in July.”He wants to stay and play the last two Tests,” Bayliss said. “He wouldn’t take no for an answer. He wants to stay. His old man said ‘Just tape it up, he’ll be all right’.”It’s a great sign. It’s the sort of attitude you want. Not only can he play but it’s great to see an attitude like that. We’ll make sure he gets back and gets it done so he’s right to go early next season.”It seems Hameed may have come into the match carrying the injury. He took a blow to the hand in the second innings in Visakhapatnam – his first ball was a sharp bouncer that he played poorly – and was then dismissed in the first innings here by a ball that jumped off a length and hit his glove in exactly the same place.”The medical people think he probably cracked it in the second Test,” Bayliss said. “He’s copped another one in the same spot. It’s a break that is all the way through the finger. The finger’s in two pieces so it’s an injury that the medical people say if he gets another knock on it, especially in the field, it could bend it right back. It’s best to get it done as soon as we can.”Indeed it is. And for all the disappointment England may well have at the end of this series – it is hard to avoid the conclusion it reached tipping point on Monday – they will go home consoled in the knowledge that they have found a batsmen who should serve them well for a decade or more. You suspect Bayliss and Cook thought so after Rajkot. In Mohali, Kohli recognised it, too.

England’s one-day team has been revived this season, but now they face the world champions while, behind the scenes, the best way forward for the domestic version is hammered out

George Dobell02-Sep-2015As Trevor Bayliss starts his daunting first assignment as England ODI coach – a series against the world champions – he may be encouraged by the knowledge that England are prioritising the format in their plans.Stung by a wretched World Cup campaign – wretched World Cup campaign – the ECB decided that something must be done.This was the World Cup for which they had prepared for years. The Ashes schedule had been moved and England had organised a pre-tournament diet of unrelenting limited-overs cricket that was designed to take them to Australia brimming with experience and confidence.Except it didn’t. They sacked their captain not long before the tournament, changed their tactics – and some selections – for the first game and never, for a moment, looked as if they would progress from the group stages. If you were being kind, you might describe it as awful.So they sacked two men who were deemed cautious – Paul Downton and Peter Moores – and replaced them with two who they saw as more in tune with modern cricket. Andrew Strauss was appointed with a remit to create the wider environment whereby the England team management had every resource and every chance of achieving success, while Bayliss was appointed to mould the team environment.While the appointment of Strauss, in that context might have been something of a surprise – he retains a reputation as a conservative – the appointment of Bayliss was less so. His record as a limited-overs coach is exceptional.He oversaw Sri Lanka’s progress to the World Cup final (in 2011), the Kolkata Knight Riders winning the IPL twice (in 2012 and 2014) and Sydney Sixers winning the Big Bash (in 2011-12) and the Champions League (2012). While many of those successes have come in T20, recent evidence would suggest that format has heavily influenced the 50-over game.But still the ECB felt that more had to be done. Strauss, who has turned out to be far less conservative than he looks, insisted that limited-overs cricket must no longer be seen as the poor relation to the Test game.To that end, the ECB have, over the last couple of days at Lord’s unveiled their proposals to the county chief executives and chairmen. And, at the heart of it, was an attempt to improve England’s ODI performances.Noting that the next two global ODI events – the Champions Trophy in 2017 and the World Cup in 2019 – are to be played in England in relatively early season, the ECB were hoping to persuade the counties to accept a system from next season where 50-over cricket was played earlier than it is currently – in early to mid-summer – on better pitches and in something approaching a block, although not without many ramifications across the domestic game.Trevor Bayliss is working with England’s one-day side for the first time•Getty ImagesHowever, the county structure is not for Bayliss to worry about. Australia are his immediate concern and the raw materials he has at his disposal are promising. England’s progress since the World Cup has been staggering. Under the guidance of Paul Farbrace, England impressed most observers with the bold cricket they exhibited in the ODI series against New Zealand and will no doubt be looking for more of the same. They will remain unflinchingly, uncompromisingly, unrecognisably (from the World Cup, at least) aggressive.England’s batting, even without the rested Joe Root, looks relatively strong. While there will surely be days when the aggressive approach backfires horribly, there is a depth to it – with the likes of David Willey and Adil Rashid coming in as low as No. 8 and No. 9 – that is reassuring. Moeen Ali returns and will be vying for a place in the top three, while James Taylor will also hope for a chance to show what he can do.It is the bowlers that still have questions to answer. One of England’s key failings at the World Cup was an inability to take wickets and, impressive though England were in the ODIs against New Zealand, that was an area that remains in need of improvement. There are places to be claimed, or England may well return to the experience of Stuart Broad before 2017.Eoin Morgan, the captain who often cut a beleaguered figure at the World Cup, admitted he had been pleasantly surprised by the pace of England’s improvement.”The development of the side in the one-day series against New Zealand was brilliant,” he said. “Even in the game the other day, we managed to continue the aggressive nature in which we played – both with ball and bat.”The team has transformed and it’s down to the players. Everybody has played their natural game, the way they have for their county. That’s been a credit to the culture that was created by Paul Farbrace at the start and has been continued throughout the Test series.”In the slightly longer term, the ECB are likely to further demonstrate their deeper commitment to limited-overs cricket by giving Morgan a central contract. While these are usually the preserve of Test players, Morgan’s importance to the white-ball side – and his decline in the red-ball game – are likely to result in him being viewed as an exceptional case.

Shakib Al Hasan has had discipline issues in the past, and had he been pulled up earlier this latest incident may not have occurred

Mohammad Isam22-Feb-2014Less than 24 hours after his dressing-room misdemeanor, Shakib Al Hasan left the Shere Bangla National Stadium with a three-ODI ban and a heavy fine. The punishment may seem disproportionate to this particular crime, but it is a fair verdict for a man who has enjoyed lots of leeway as Bangladesh’s No. 1 cricketer.Shakib’s inappropriate gesture during the second ODI against Sri Lanka was the big incident waiting to happen, after several smaller ones over nearly four years were overlooked by the Bangladesh Cricket Board.Shakib’s first public outburst was in October 2010 but the incident was buried under his match-winning performance on that day, and the bigger picture was missed. He was on 92 in the fourth ODI against New Zealand when there was movement near the sightscreen that the umpires could not stop. After a few minutes Shakib, Bangladesh captain at the time, ran towards the sightscreen, hurled abuse and threatened to hit the offender with his bat.He was warned by the match referee but because he had led Bangladesh to their first major series victory over higher-ranked New Zealand, the BCB ignored the incident despite it happening in front of a large audience.Shakib hit a low before and during the 2011 World Cup. In the lead up to the tournament there were several reports of him giving the BCB a hard time over small issues, while also having a bigger battle with them over permanent captaincy.After Bangladesh’s World Cup match against West Indies, several people in the Mirpur grandstand complained Shakib had reacted too strongly when he was booed. The offending picture was spread over the internet and published in several newspapers.Within days of that incident, Shakib blasted former national cricketers in his column, retaliating to their criticism of Bangladesh’s implosion against West Indies. All the BCB did at the time was put a gag-order on the whole team for a few days, until Bangladesh beat England in Chittagong and everything was forgotten and forgiven.A few months after the World Cup, in August 2011, Shakib was sacked as captain after Bangladesh lost a Test and an ODI series to Zimbabwe. The decision derailed the team, and the BCB was seen as being responsible, not Shakib. If this was Monopoly, Shakib seemed to hold all the get-out-of-jail-free cards.In this latest incident, Shakib seemed to be getting angry because the camera had panned on him in the dressing room more than once. Shafiul Islam, the player sitting next to him, was laughing when Shakib suddenly gestured towards his crotch. The laughing continued, but by then the camera had refocused on the cricket. Shakib had played a poor shot to get out, and the immediate television attention was the trigger.There has always been a tendency to portray Shakib as a dissenter against authority, particularly during his battle with the BCB regarding permanent captaincy. He wanted the board to stop naming a captain on a series-by-series basis, and he had his way.While he was praised for his vision as Bangladesh captain and his record as an allrounder, there are not many in the BCB who have disciplined him when necessary. Nobody was willing to be held responsible for annoying the country’s most valuable cricketer. It has been done this time, though, and quickly by BCB’s standardsShakib has been delivered a clear message, but he should have got it at least three years ago, through a different medium. On a crisp winter evening, Shakib walked into a room full of five-year-olds and they screamed his name in delight. He is a hero to people of all ages in Bangladesh, and that cheer should have been enough to make him understand his responsibilities.Perhaps the healing process can start with him saying sorry to the kids.

South Africa and Australia have consistently produced high quality, exciting Test cricket when playing each other recently. Will the battle for the title of world’s best throw up another classic series?

Brydon Coverdale in Brisbane08-Nov-2012First it was 2-1 to South Africa. Then it was 2-1 to Australia. Next it was 1-1 in a pitifully short series last November. The battles between Graeme Smith’s men and Australia over the past four years can be bracketed together, such has been the shared narrative running through the contests, and the two teams will walk out on to the Gabba on Friday locked together at 4-4. There has not been a draw or a dull match among them. Now it’s time for the decider. A grand final spread over four weeks and three cities.Of course, it is not strictly correct to call this the tiebreaker, for they meet again in South Africa in 2014. But by then the teams from those 2008-09 encounters could be those of a bygone era. Should Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey retire after next year’s back-to-back Ashes – if they make it that far – Michael Clarke and Peter Siddle may be Australia’s only remnants of that first 2008 series. South Africa have also lost a few veterans and by 2014 may have said goodbye to Jacques Kallis, although he appears so indestructible that he might still be around when Pat Cummins retires.Victory by any margin in this series for either team will give them a lead in their head-to-head, as well as the ICC’s Test championship mace – the latter perhaps only briefly though, as England’s results in India could shuffle the table again. The fact that the No. 1 ranking is up for grabs, as it was when Australia under Ricky Ponting toured South Africa in early 2009, is an indication of how little separates these teams. This time it’s Smith’s side that holds top spot, but given the troughs Australia have been through over the past four years it’s difficult not to think South Africa should be further in front.Have they made the most of this period of South African strength, an era in which Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel and lately Vernon Philander have clinically dissected batting line-ups all over the globe? Do they have the killer instinct required to stay on top, and to increase the gap between themselves and the rest of the world? It is notable that over the past four years, South Africa have won less than half the Test matches they have played; Australia have won more than half of theirs, despite two Ashes debacles.But enough numbers. To reduce these contests to a set of statistics is like describing the Mona Lisa as oil on poplar, 77cm x 53cm. Over the past four years, the meetings between Australia and South Africa have been as remarkable as modern Test cricket gets. They have been eagerly anticipated by fans from all over the cricket-playing world. If every Test match was as gripping as the eight put on by these two sides, day-night cricket wouldn’t be necessary because fans would skip work to watch it.

Over the past four years, the meetings between Australia and South Africa have been as remarkable as modern Test cricket gets. If every Test match was as gripping as the eight put on by these two sides, day-night cricket wouldn’t be necessary because fans would skip work to watch it.

Think of Mitchell Johnson breaking Graeme Smith’s hand in Sydney, and the spine-tingling sight of Smith walking down the SCG race late on the final afternoon, barely able to hold the bat but determined to give his team every chance of salvaging a draw. Think of Johnson’s blood-on-the-pitch spell in Durban, where his bouncer struck Kallis under the grille, leaving his chin wounded and forcing him to retire hurt. Remember the twin tons Phillip Hughes scored in that match, his second Test.Think of South Africa’s near world-record chase of 414 at the WACA, when the debutant JP Duminy showed poise beyond his years to score an unbeaten half-century, and the 166 he scored the following week in Melbourne, where he and Steyn humiliated Australia’s bowlers with a four-hour tail-end partnership. Think of Marcus North’s debut hundred and Johnson hitting catches into the crowd as Australia won with three debutants at the Wanderers. Think of poor Bryce McGain, Australia’s 37-year-old rookie, being belted out of Test cricket in Cape Town, where Johnson’s thrashed 123 in a losing cause.And, of course, remember the day at the same venue last year when Australia were 21 for 9. Yes, . They scrambled to 47. On a day of carnage, parts of all four innings took place, only the third time it had happened in all of Test history. And on either side of the massacre, the greatest innings Michael Clarke has ever played, and a pair of match-winning hundreds from Smith and Hashim Amla. And finally, think of Pat Cummins, 18 years old and barely out of school, resurrecting Australia’s hopes with a match-winning display full of youthful joie de vivre at the Wanderers a week later.There is no reason to expect any less of this series. It is a battle between the world’s best pace attack and a bowling group with a bright future ahead of them. In the role of Cummins this year is the 22-year-old James Pattinson, whose swagger and skill make him irresistible to watch. Pattinson bowls with the speed and the outswing of Steyn. He doesn’t yet have the same consistency, but he is unquestionably the man to watch in Australia’s attack.The pace-friendly pitches at the Gabba and the WACA should help make this another series to remember. How will Amla handle the Australian conditions? Will David Warner’s bite match his bark? Will AB de Villiers be a shadow of the batsman he once was, now that the wicketkeeping duties are on his mind as well? Will Ponting be able to reproduce the form he showed last year against a blunt Indian attack?Does Mickey Arthur hold the inside knowledge that will end South Africa’s outstanding record away from home? And if South Africa win the first Test, can they go in for the kill?We’re about to find out. Enough talk. Let the grand final begin.

Most fast bowlers wish they were skilled in both arts. And though physics and genetics play a role in determining who gets what, it’s not impossible to achieve the golden combo

Aakash Chopra07-Oct-2010Mitchell Johnson, despite clinching a five-for in the first Test in Mohali, might happily concede some of his pace in exchange for being able to get the ball to swing. He was candid enough to confess his inability to swing it consistently. Then again, Praveen Kumar, who swings the ball appreciably, probably longs to add those few extra miles of pace.The combination of pace and swing is an enviable one and very hard to achieve. If swinging the ball is a difficult skill to acquire, bowling quick has a lot to do with genetics. But just like Johnson discovers that crucial swing every now and then before losing it again, it’s possible to increase one’s pace – though you can only do so to a certain extent before hitting your threshold. So what makes the ball swing? And how does one bowl fast?Swing
While science confirms that shine plays a huge role in determining the direction in which the ball swings, there’s still only one method to swing the ball when it’s new. Since both sides are equally shiny, the bowler’s wrist and seam position dictate the ball’s path after release. The ball must be delivered with an upright seam position and enough backspin to ensure that the seam stays straight when it hits the ground. If the wrist is not behind the ball, or has fallen sideways, the ball will not travel correctly.You’ll notice this difference in the actions of Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma. While Zaheer’s wrist is firmly behind the ball at the time of release and imparts enough backspin, Ishant’s wrist falls sideways and prompts the ball to tilt heavily towards the leg side upon release.Ideally you should point the seam in the direction in which you want it to swing. To bowl an outswinger, tilt the seam slightly towards first slip; for an inswinger, towards leg slip.Most bowlers alter their point of release to suit the swing they are trying to achieve. An outswing bowler like Matthew Hoggard maintains some distance between his ear and the bowling arm, making his action slightly round-arm, while Javagal Srinath, an inswing bowler, used to keep his arm as close to his ear as possible.Once the shine on one side becomes prominent, the air pressure starts to assist the swing. The ball moves from high static pressure, which is the shinier side, towards low static pressure – the rough side. There’s an early separation of air at the shiny surface, which makes it act like a ramp, pushing the ball towards the direction the rough side is facing. But you still need to maintain the correct wrist and seam position for swing.The dynamics change once the ball gets old and starts to reverse. There has been a lot of talk about how one side gets heavier thanks to the application of sweat and saliva, which supposedly makes the ball swing towards the heavier side. But science doesn’t buy that theory. According to research, when the ball reaches a particular stage, the rough side acts like a ramp and makes the ball move in the direction the shiny side is facing.Science may explain the phenomenon, but the fact remains that reverse-swing, if executed properly, is very difficult to negotiate. While the seam position is a giveaway when the ball is new, it’s of not much help to a batsman facing the old ball, because the same rules don’t apply. Reverse-swing is truly effective when the ball swings very late, for which the bowler must position the seam opposite to that for a new ball. Wasim and Waqar were masters of this art.*Speed
Swing may be difficult to master but speed is tougher to generate. For starters, everybody has either the fast-twitch fibres (white) or slow-twitch ones (red) in their body. These determine whether you can be a quick bowler, like Brett Lee, or a medium-pacer, like Praveen. While fast-twitch fibres give you a definite edge, there are other factors that help an individual generate pace.

The force generated from the run-up, the landing, the hip movement, the shoulder rotation and the wrist movement is translated into the speed of the ball. The more aligned the movements, the better the outcome

First, a proper run-up. A bowler must accelerate as he gets closer to the stumps, while keeping both arms close to the body (close levers ensure no wastage of energy).Second, the momentum generated by the run-up is transferred to the jump. That’s why most genuine quick bowlers – Imran Khan, Brett Lee, Malcom Marshall – have a reasonably high jump.Third is the landing. When the front foot hits the ground, the force generated is transferred to the hip before moving upwards. The bowler rotates the shoulder, which uses the force it receives from the movement in the hip. This force is then transferred to the wrist. The result: the force generated from the run-up, the landing, the hip movement, the shoulder rotation and the wrist movement is translated into the speed of the ball. The more aligned the movements, the better the outcome.Your fibres don’t limit you, either. I’ve seen people increase their speed as they gain power and better alignment. Ajit Agarkar is one such player who started as a medium-pacer (he even had the wicketkeeper standing up to the stumps in Under-16 cricket) but grew into a genuine quick.From the start of the run-up to the end of the follow-through, it’s important to keep the body aligned in the direction of your target – the batsman. The bowler must stay as close to the stumps as possible after delivering, without getting into the danger zone, while moving towards the batsman. A lot of bowlers, Zaheer and Praveen among them, are guilty of either having no follow-throughs or very limited ones, while others tend to fall towards the off side, killing the momentum and with it the speed.A bowler must also be careful about the order in which his limbs move in his action. If the shoulder begins to move before the hip has completed its action, the hip will stop contributing to the building up of momentum.Swing makes a bowler feel like a magician, someone who can get the ball to move in the air at his command, while speed feeds his hunger to be ferocious. There’s no better sight for a quick bowler than seeing his prey, the batsman, jump around with fear in his eyes, not knowing which way the ball will move or how fast it will get there. But as exciting as that may sound, it’s equally difficult to master both crafts.

Marc Cucurella has been linked with Al-Nassr but is considered unlikely to leave Chelsea, according to the the latest reporting.

• Chelsea clear on Cucurella transfer
• CR7 rumoured to be pushing Al-Nassr interest
• Left-back among Blues' most important players

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  reports that Chelsea have "no intention" of parting ways with Cucurella, despite links with Al-Nassr. The Spain international has become a crucial part of Enzo Maresca's team at Stamford Bridge, after initially struggling when he joined from Brighton for big money in 2022.

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  Cristiano Ronaldo was credited as the source of Al-Nassr interest, thought to have personally told the Saudi Pro League club to pursue Cucurella. It comes after Al-Nassr agreed a deal with Chelsea for the permanent transfer of Joao Felix, Ronaldo's Portugal teammate who has already started training with the club, despite no official announcement of his move.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Cucurella made 54 appearances for Chelsea across the 2024-25 season, including nine in the UEFA Conference League and six in the FIFA Club World Cup. His 4,346 minutes on the pitch was the most out of anyone in the squad, leading Moises Caicedo (4,289) and Cole Palmer (4,247).

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  WHAT NEXT?

  Due to Club World Cup involvement, Chelsea only finished their 2024-25 season on July 13. The chance to rest for Cucurella and others will be very short, with a reported pre-season state date of August 4. The Blues have organised friendlies against Bayer Leverkusen and AC Milan at Stamford Bridge on August 8 and 10, respectively, before their Premier League campaign begins against Crystal Palace just a week later – barely more than a month since lifting the Club World Cup trophy.

Ruben Amorim can breathe a huge sigh of relief ahead of the Manchester derby as the Red Devils have reportedly received positive updates on Matheus Cunha. Concerns had grown when the Brazilian limped off during the Red Devils’ thrilling 3-2 victory over Burnley last weekend, sparking fears of a lengthy absence.

Cunha injury boost for UnitedMount setback could open door for MainooHuge Manchester derby test looms aheadFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Cunha’s injury drama unfolded just minutes into the contest at Turf Moor, with the forward visibly struggling before being forced to withdraw. His absence from Brazil’s 2026 World Cup qualifiers only heightened concern that United’s summer signing might face a damaging spell on the sidelines.

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Now, according to Cunha’s knock is far less severe than first thought. The belief within the camp is that the 26-year-old could even make it back in time for the crunch clash against Manchester City at the Etihad on September 14.

WHAT CUNHA SAID

Cunha was seen walking out of Old Trafford later that evening without any visible discomfort, a sign that perhaps the injury wasn’t as alarming as feared. Adding to the optimism, the forward later shared a message on Instagram, writing: "What an incredible environment, it’s great to be here. I’ll be back soon, always with joy and gratitude. Thanks for all the messages."

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DID YOU KNOW?

While Cunha’s news provides much-needed positivity, not everything is rosy at Old Trafford. Mason Mount’s fitness is now a growing concern, with the midfielder’s unspecified injury casting doubt over his participation in the derby. Mount soldiered on for half an hour against Burnley before being replaced at the break by Kobbie Mainoo. The young talent impressed with his composure, and Amorim could now be preparing to hand the academy product his first Premier League start of the season at the Etihad.

Barcelona's Marc Casado applauded Gimnastic de Tarragona for cancelling Jose Manuel Calderon's transfer after his anti-Catalan remarks came to light.

Gimnastic cancelled Calderon’s transfer over offensive remarksCasado responded with an applause emoji on InstagramEx-Betis star fired back at Barcelona manFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

The 25-year-old defender had joined Gimnastic from Cordoba, but the deal lasted only four hours as the Primera Federacion club swiftly annulled it after severe backlash from fans. Notably, Calderon had made some anti-Catalan statements after securing promotion with Cordoba to the Second Division. The incident occurred last year after the qualifying round of play-off between the Andalusian team and Barca Atletic.

"I sh*t on all dead Catalans," the left-back said in a live broadcast on his Instagram account. He later apologised, saying: "I apologise to all the people of Barcelona and all Catalans for my actions during this afternoon's live stream." 

Barca midfielder Casado, who clashed with Calderon during that playoff tie, publicly welcomed Nastic's decision, which earned him more praise from La Liga fans.

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The 21-year-old midfielder reacted to Nastic’s announcement reversing Calderon’s signing by leaving an applause emoji in the comments section. His comment has garnered over 2k likes. 

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CALDERON RESPONDS

Speaking on , Calderon addressed Casado’s reaction, saying: "I'm not surprised, to be honest. He can say whatever he wants, just like I did, because I made a mistake at the time. He mentioned applause, so applause for him too."

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GettyWHAT NEXT FOR CASADO AND CALDERON?

Casado’s social media reaction comes while his own future at Barcelona is under discussion. Despite speculation and Atletico Madrid interest, Casado is determined to break into the first team and has no desire to leave the club he grew up in. 

For Calderon, the fallout from his comments has proven costly, and it remains to be seen where and when his next opportunity will come.