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Everton have had a shocking season, with numerous injury problems and poor performances contributing to their current relegation challenge. If they can remain in the Premier League next season, there seems little doubt that Frank Lampard will be making changes over the summer, but there is one player’s future which could be out of his hands already.

What’s the word?

Journalist Dean Jones has made a big claim on the future of Toffees deadline day signing Dele Alli, with his future at the club uncertain and potentially cut short.

The transfer insider told GiveMeSport: “If he’s not in the team by the end of the season, it’s pretty likely he’s gone.”

Lampard will be fuming

Lampard only joined the club on transfer deadline day in January but wasted no time bringing in Alli on the very same day to offer him the opportunity to revive his career away from Tottenham. However, due to the nature of Everton’s situation in the Premier League, the 43-year-old does not have the time at this point of the season to find the attacking midfielder’s best position in the team.

With only ten league games left for the Toffees, Lampard is obviously looking to his most experienced and reliable attacking players to secure safety for the club to remain in the Premier League this season. With Alli struggling for consistency in his game, as seen at Spurs over the last few seasons, the former Chelsea boss clearly doesn’t trust him yet.

Lampard will surely be fuming at the speculation surrounding the 25-year-old, and after giving Alli a chance to join him at Goodison Park, he would no doubt be disappointed if the player decided to leave due to a lack of game-time in a vulnerable period for the Toffees, as there could be an opportunity to take a much more consistent role in the team next season if they aren’t relegated this year.

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Even this season, there could still be moments when Lampard feels that he can lean on the ex-Spurs playmaker, but it could really pay off for Alli if he maintains patience and works with his manager to secure a role in the team in the future. Alas, this could ultimately depend on the league status of the club next season – if they were to drop into the Championship, they will likely have a tough time trying to keep many of their marquee players, including Alli.

In other news: Everton handed fresh lift as update emerges, Lampard will be buzzing

	Mohammad Yousuf could soon be part of an IPL franchise © AFP

A decision on whether or not Mohammad Yousuf will be allowed to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) is expected to be made on March 29, following a final hearing of the Mumbai-based arbitration court looking into the dispute.Yousuf had initially signed up for the unsanctioned Indian Cricket League (ICL) last year, seemingly in protest after he was dropped from the Pakistan squad for the Twenty20 World Championships. The Pakistan board, however, eventually convinced him to change his mind and renege on his contract, luring him back with the promise of an IPL contract.The ICL, understandably, took the matter to an arbitration court, claiming that Yousuf had already signed up and his contract prevented him from playing in any rival league. The matter has been stuck in a legal limbo since then, a few hearings this year so far not resolving anything.Yousuf was the only player whose services remained unsold at the recent IPL auctions, franchises undoubtedly hesitant over his legal status. Yousuf himself is said to be annoyed that the Pakistan board hasn’t resolved the matter yet, but officials maintain that full support is being provided.”The PCB is fully defending Yousuf’s decision to play in the IPL,” Nasim Ashraf, chairman PCB, told Cricinfo. “We have lawyers in India handling the matter and a legal representative from the board has also been there at the hearings. The last hearing went on for considerably longer than expected but a final decision is now expected on March 29.”Ashraf also revealed that though Yousuf had not been ‘bought’ by any franchise, the IPL had guaranteed to match the package that the ICL had offered to him initially.

Ken Gordon: ‘It is palpably unfair to be criticising the team and its captain in the middle of a series like this’ © T&T Express

Changes are already being made to the West Indies cricket team prior to their tour of England in May, according to West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) president Ken Gordon.”You better believe that they have started already”, Gordon said when asked whether changes would be made to the team prior to the upcoming tour to England in the face of their dismal performance in the current World Cup tournament. He however declined to go into details.And, asked to respond to a call being made in the Express editorial for the resignation of the WICB, Gordon said: “Well, that is par for the course. I can only say that if newspapers feel that is the best judgment they can make, who am I to tell them not to make it. But it just goes to exemplify the kind of very poor judgment of which I am speaking.” He added, however, he would have “absolutely no hesitation in resigning, if I thought for one moment that it would assist the situation. He said that such a call “absolutely doesn’t demoralise me, and it doesn’t demoralise the board”.Gordon was fully in defence of the West Indies team and its captain Brian Lara, even while conceding that all was not well with the team and its performances in the current Cricket World Cup. In an interview at his hotel Suite in Grand Anse, it was a combative Gordon who hit back at critics of the team and its captain, including journalists and commentators in the regional media have been calling for Lara’s resignation.Nothing is wrong, Gordon said, with proper and full analysis of the team’s performances “but when you make that almost like an agenda item, this attack, attack attack, it is not in anybody’s best interest. Not at this time”. Saying there was going to be ample time for such full scale, hard hitting analysis at the end of the series, Gordon said the force of the sustained criticisms at this time had the effect of demoralising the players.He had not spoken with or seen the players in the previous two days, certainly not after their fourth straight defeat to South Africa at the National Stadium on Tuesday. But, he said it was “almost unnatural that it would not have some kind of effect,” referring to what he described as the potentially demoralising commentary being carried on in parts of the regional media.”It is palpably unfair to be criticising the team and its captain in the middle of a series like this, he said. There was going to be the time when “no holds should be barred in the analysis that is necessary. But for the moment, he said what was required was an exercise of “some care, judgment and timing.”Calls for Lara’s resignation, he said, were premature and unjustified. “Let’s face it. He was put there by the management, and I would be prepared to take whatever responsibility for it,when the time comes,” he said, disputing the basis on which those calls were being made at the moment. Nothing fundamental about what Lara brings to the game had changed since he was reappointed captain, he added.Granting that Lara had been committing “errors of judgment” during the series up this point, Gordon said, however he was going to make no criticism of those decisions at this time. “Do you want to see them get out for 50 runs in a game?” he asked rhetorically, in answer to a question that on the basis of the loss to South Africa the West Indies was not effectively out of the series. “They have to continue to play the best game they can,” he said, adding that for too long now West Indies cricket had been propelled on the basis of raw talent and not much else. There was widespread hope across the region for the West Indies to be doing better than it is in this series and that was understandable, Gordon said.

Two years ago, there was not even hope. The team was at the very bottom of the heap

But, he said, that was largely unrealistic, since “two years ago, there was not even that hope. The team was at the very bottom of the heap.” Some “sparks” were ignited in the interim to create that hope, But it ought to have been accepted that the team has not been enjoying its best days. “We all know that on its best day this team can beat anybody, but the reality is that the team is not enjoying its best days. We have come from very far. We had hoped to get back closer to the top but it has not happened,” he said.Reflecting on the time when the West Indies prevailed principally on the basis of that talent, he said the game had changed significantly. It changed, he said, “when the Australians went to the drawing board and decided to find away to beat these talented guys.” They came up with a formula, he said, and it was copied, “by the Indians, by England, by everybody except the West Indies.”We continue to send extraordinarily talented youngsters out there almost as sacrificial lambs,” he said, adding that “there is absolutely no substitute for the kinds of development that comes with the academies” and the other elements which ought to go into the production of a truly professional unit.

Sri Lanka are hoping to give Sanath Jayasuriya a memorable farewell to Test cricket © AFP

Sri Lanka are hoping to give their former skipper, Sanath Jayasuriya, a grand farewell by winning the second and final Test against Pakistan, which starts at Kandy on Monday. Jayasuriya, 36, Sri Lanka’s highest run-scorer in both Test cricket and one-day internationals, announced his retirement from Tests on Friday.Trevor Penney, Sri Lanka’s assistant coach, said: “We haven’t beaten Pakistan for 20 years at home. It is going to be the last Test for Sanath and he deserves a grand send-off for what he has been for cricket.”Penney, who took charge after Tom Moody, the senior coach, flew to England to attend the funeral of his father-in-law, said the team would miss Jayasuriya, who will continue to play one-dayers. “We won’t be doing anything drastically different but just stick to the basics and try to come up with a good show.”Jayasuriya, meanwhile, has confirmed that he will retire from all cricket following the World Cup. “Not playing test cricket will help me keep fit and allow me to play on until next year’s World Cup. I will definitely retire from all cricket after that tournament.”The opening Test ended in a draw in Colombo after Sri Lanka set an improbable 458-run target for Pakistan, who played out over four sessions to save the match. The home side will not be risking Chaminda Vaas, who is recovering from a side strain and have named an unchanged squad.Penney added: “He has sort of recovered but we don’t want to risk him in a match situation. The idea is to give him plenty of rest and recovery period and have him fit for the upcoming England tour.”Nuwan Kulasekara, the young seamer, is expected to come in for Dilhara Fernando, who failed to take a wicket in the first match. Sri Lanka were also likely to field the uncapped left-arm spinner, Sajeeva Weerakoon, in place of Malinga Bandara.For Pakistan Mohammad Yousuf, who missed the first Test with a hamstring injury, has recovered although Abdul Razzaq is battling to be fit after suffering a knee injury. Pakistan have a selection dilemma as they will have to leave out Faisal Iqbal, who put up a match-saving partnership with Shoaib Malik in the first Test.Inzamam-ul-Haq said: “I was impressed with the way the youngsters performed. I am always happy when there is a problem in selection because it means there is competition.”Sri Lanka (from) Mahela Jayawardene (capt), Kumar Sangakkara (wk), Sanath Jayasuriya, Upul Tharanga, Michael Vandort, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Thilan Samaraweera, Chamara Kapugedera, Farveez Maharoof, Lasith Malinga, Nuwan Kulasekara, Dilhara Fernando, Muttiah Muralitharan, Malinga Bandara, Sajeewa Weerakoon.Pakistan (from) Inzamam-ul-Haq (capt), Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, Abdul Razzaq, Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal (wk), Salman Butt, Danish Kaneria, Rao Iftikhar, Imran Farhat, Faisal Iqbal, Umar Gul, Mohammad Asif, Arshad Khan.

Inzamam: ‘I wasn’t thinking anything on the last ball’© Getty Images

Inzamam-ul-Haq
On whether this was his best innings
No. My contribution was very small. The real contributions came from the top order – from Afridi, Razzaq, Butt and Malik. It was a total team effort to chase 316.On what he was thinking on the last ball
I wasn’t thinking anything on the last ball. I was just praying to God to help me.On using Danish Kaneria so late
You have to use a bowler according to the match situation. Afridi was bowling well at the time so I didn’t use him.On Pakistan’s biggest chase
It was a difficult target, but our only chance was to keep wickets in hand for 25-30 overs. The top order did that and kept the required run-rate down which made it easier for us later on.On Ahmedabad
The public really supported us and looked after us. The team is very happy with the way things are here.On whether he thought Pakistan’s chances had gone at any stage
After Malik’s dismissal and then the two run-outs later, I thought our chances slipped a little. But the required run-rate, thanks to our top order, was always manageable.On the series from here
Every game is a new game. We have to work hard, continue working hard and plan well for the next few games.On the run-outs
In the one-day game it happens a lot. You have to take a chance, you have to push runs. It happens sometimes, Younis Khan is a good runner, and Akmal’s was a direct hit.On Sachin’s form
Sachin is a great player and he will make it difficult in the next few games. But if my boys play like this then we will be fine.On Sachin bowling the last over
He was the most experienced guy around. Sourav took a chance and it almost succeeded as well.Rahul Dravid

Ganguly’s batting position has to be in the best interests of the team, says Rahul Dravid© Getty Images

On the game-plan
The game-plan was to try and defend 315, that was the basic idea. Give credit to Pakistan, they chased brilliantly during the middle overs. The Malik-Razzaq and Malik-Inzamam partnerships were crucial, they ran lots of singles. We let them collect a lot of singles. We didn’t bowl as well during the middle overs, and the fielding wasn’t that great either.On Sourav Ganguly opening
The decision is for the team management and Sourav to take. But the decision has to be in the best interests of the team.On the commitment
We never gave up trying. We just didn’t bowl enough in the right areas. Three hundred and sixteen is a big total to defend, and although the game slipped during the middle overs we did well to fight back. But it was a little too late.On what’s gone wrong
In the last match we didn’t bat well. Here we didn’t defend well and the fielding wasn’t that great. We have to improve in all three areas, our allround game. We have to play well over 100 overs, we played well just in patches but we have to play well throughout.On missing Harbhajan
There’s no point talking about people who aren’t on the field. We have to do with the 11 players we have on the field.On Tendulkar bowling the last over
Experience. We thought he was a tough guy to face, especially out of the rough, in the last over. We had to take a gamble. Every decision is the captain’s. He is the final authority and he can take advice from anyone, including me. He has to take the praise or the criticism.On who had more at stake
You can’t say one team had more at stake than the other. We both want to win the series.On whether he would have made Sachin bowl the last over
Yes, I would have.On the crowd booing
You get used to the crowd reaction, whether it is praise or criticism. They are fulsome in their praise and vocal in their criticism, but it is part of the game and we have to deal with it.

Close Australia 317 for 3 (Hayden 136, Ponting 120*) trail India 366 (Sehwag 195) by 49 runs
Scorecard

Matthew Hayden toyed with the Indian bowlers on his way to 136 © Getty Images

A resurgent Australia called all the shots on the second day of the third Test,first taking six wickets for 37 to bowl India out for 366, and then racking up 317 for 3 by the close. Matthew Hayden and Ricky Ponting both made hundreds in apartnership of 234 for the second wicket, and for a large part of the second andthird sessions India were under siege. Only two wickets late in the day from Anil Kumble, including that of the promoted Adam Gilchrist, kept India in with asemblance of a chance. It was quite clear that the balance of power had turnedquite dramatically in this Test match.Australia had struggled previously in the series to run quickly through the Indian lower order and tail, but their effort with the ball this morning was exactly what they would have envisaged last night when they considered how to get back into this Test match. India, resuming on 329 for 4, started brightly, with Sourav Ganguly unfurling some gorgeous drives against Brett Lee and Nathan Bracken, but they began to lose their way immediately after reaching 350.Lee, who had come around the wicket to Ganguly, was hit for two boundaries in three balls, but broke through with a short-of-length ball that Ganguly popped to gully (350 for 5). It is a batting tic against the fast bowlers that Ganguly has struggled to eradicate completely, and it cost India dearly here.Wickets fell in a procession thereafter, mostly to poor judgement on the part ofthe batsmen. Ajit Agarkar was the most culpable, hitting his first ball straight to mid-off and attempting a suicidal single only to be run-out. Kumble played another ill-judged stroke, driving at a wide ball from Williams and edging to third slip (366 for 8), and VVS Laxman fell before he could scrape together a few runs with the tail, reaching for a legbreak and was caught by Hayden at slip for 19. India had collapsed spectacularly, much like Australia on the second day of the Brisbane Test.

Brett Lee nails Sourav Ganguly to provide Australia with the perfect start to the day © Getty Images

The door was now open for Australia to get quickly to the Indian score – no morethan a moderate one given the excellent batting conditions – and then run the game from there. India had the consolation of a wicket before lunch, when Agarkar dismissed Justin Langer for the fourth time in the series (30 for 1), but there was to be little respite for the Indian bowling thereafter as Hayden and Ponting piled on the runs. The batting collapse in the morning and the run-scoring of two of the most prolific batsmen in the modern game were not the only reasons for Ganguly’s distracted air. Zaheer Khan seemed to feel the effects of the injury that kept him out of the second Test, and was unable to give it all, though it was a relief to the Indians that they did not lose him altogether.Hayden brought up his hundred off only 137 balls, but his innings was not as evenly paced as that statistic suggests. His dismissals at Adelaide, driving loosely at the seamers on both occasions, would have impressed upon him the need to be more selective about his strokeplay instead of trying to dominate all the bowlers. He batted circumspectly against Ashish Nehra, who bowled two probing and accurate spells at him, and most of his runs came against the bowling of Agarkar, whom he drove down the ground repeatedly, and Kumble, who was slog-swept with impunity and never allowed to settle. Akash Chopra, fielding at short leg to the bowling of Kumble, must have on more than one occasion felt that facing Lee’s bumpers with a bat for protection was infinitely more preferable to having to dodge Hayden’s swipes from five yards away.A feature of Hayden’s innings was his superb running between the wickets. Herepeatedly hit the ball straight to mid-off or mid-on and made it to the nonstriker’s end by the time the throw was fired in. Hayden made merry after hereached his hundred, taking guard well outside his crease and savaging even goodballs with powerful strokes off the front foot.Ponting, whose attacking instincts rival those of any other batsman in contemporary cricket, was content to play second foil for once, ensuring nevertheless that he scored at a healthy rate. He took heavy toll of Agarkar when he dropped short and Zaheer when he overpitched, but his batting against Kumble was less than assured, and he was lucky to survive on a number of occasions. It was not among his best hundreds, but it was vital nonetheless, and he remained undefeated at stumps.When Hayden was finally out for 133, lbw to Kumble swinging across the line oncetoo often (264 for 2), Australia made a strong statement of intent. Though still102 behind the Indian total, they showed that they were confident they would notfall short of it by sending in Adam Gilchrist at No.4 to have a go at the bowling. Gilchrist swung at quite a few without looking very convincing, but he is easily among he most dangerous batsmen in international cricket, and India would have been relieved to see the back of him when he skied Kumble high in the air and was caught at mid-off (295 for 3).Ponting and Damien Martyn then saw Australia through till stumps, at which pointthey were only 49 shy of the Indian score. It was the first time in the series that Australia had dominated the day with both bat and ball.

The Kenyan tour is in full swing, with two one-day internationals completed out of three; the final match will be played in Bulawayo on Sunday, weather permitting. The Harare match was rained off with Zimbabwe chasing a none too challenging total, while the Kwekwe match resulted in a comfortable victory for Zimbabwe using the cricketer’s old friend Duckworth-Lewis.CONTENTS

• One-day internationals, Kenya in Zimbabwe
  • First ODI, at Harare Sports Club: Scorecard | Report
  • Second ODI, at Kwekwe Sports Club: Scorecard | Report
• Alistair Campbell on the tour by Pakistan Interview
• 10 Years Ago: the First Test match between Zimbabwe and New Zealand, 1992/93 Report
• Vigne Cup cricket Report
• Letters

So far Kenya’s batting has not been as successful as it might have been, although the loss of their major batsman Steve Tikolo through illness for the first match was certainly a handicap. They could come through in the final match to give Zimbabwe’s errant bowlers a hammering. Brijal Patel, who took Tikolo’s place at number three in the first match, looked a batsman of considerable potential, and he batted well again at Kwekwe. Martin Suji bowled a very impressive spell, ten overs without a break, in Kwekwe, for just 17 runs, but the rest of the bowlers have so far made no impact on the Zimbabwean batsmen.But I repeat my assertion of last week, that Kenya urgently need more first-class cricket. It would be good if Zimbabwe could consider ways to help them out, within the strict limits of finance. Ideally a Kenyan team might, as some readers have suggested in the past, be included in the Logan Cup competition, but at the moment that hardly seems possible for financial reasons. Tours are also expensive and a certain financial loss as the television companies are not interested. Perhaps the ICC might put their money where their mouth is and help out here.For Kwekwe their first official one-day international was a major event, and a successful one. They were very fortunate, for a start, to avoid rain until late in the afternoon, as that day most of the country had a lot of rain. The officials, led by provincial general manager Ken Connelly, who himself representative Midlands in their first Logan Cup season in 1999/2999, spared no effort to ensure that all went smoothly and in order. The local population supported the match well, and there were several corporate tents along one side of the ground. ZCU have declared their intention to make Kwekwe the third ground in the country and, financial constraints permitting, it will be exciting to see what developments take place during the next two or three years.In this issue we also feature a major interview with Zimbabwe’s acting captain Alistair Campbell, who discusses the recent tour by Pakistan and analyses the performances of players in both teams.We have become aware of one omission: during the Pakistan and Kenyan tours, the Vigne Cup has been continuing quietly – so quietly that only recently did we remember it, and are now trying to access the scorecards. Our apologies for the omission, and we hope to catch up in the next week or two.

Matthew Bulbeck is suffering from a strained muscle in his right buttock, which is not related in anyway to his previous back injury. He misses the CricInfo Championship match at Bath as a precaution but could well be in the reckoning for the Norwich Union match on Sunday.Keith Parsons is still suffering with his knee injury, but will hopefully play for the Second XI next week at Worcester on Monday and then against Gloucestershire, at Taunton on Tuesday.Graham Rose is recovering from his knee injury but is not 100%. He has started to bowl but not at full pace and it is likely that he will play for the second team next week.Joe Tucker is suffering from a suspected stress fracture of the foot and will be missing for a little while.Richard Johnson and Rob Turner both missed the National League match at the Oval after contracting food poisoning. Both have made a full recovery and are expected to play at Bath on Wednesday.

Leeds United are reportedly eyeing up a summer move for Trabzonspor goalkeeper Ugurcan Cakir, as Jesse Marsch looks to perfect his squad.

The Lowdown: Cakir shining in Turkey

Cakir has emerged as arguably Turkey’s best ‘keeper in recent years, winning 17 caps for his country and starting three matches at Euro 2020 last summer.

The 25-year-old’s form once saw him linked with a move to Liverpool but the transfer failed to materialise and he has remained at Trabzonspor since making his debut in 2014.

Cakir’s current deal doesn’t run out until the summer of 2024 but it appears as though Leeds are eyeing up a move in the near future.

[freshpress-quiz id=“383507″]

The Latest: Leeds already in talks with agent

According to Turkish outlet Fanatik [via Sport Witness], the Whites have ‘stepped in’ for the Turk regarding a summer move, with Newcastle United also mentioned in the report.

It is claimed that ‘officials of the British team contacted the agent’ of Cakir, as interest in his signature hots up.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-leeds-united-news-38/” title=”Latest Leeds United news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Verdict: Meslier heading elsewhere?

Considering Cakir would likely arrive at Leeds expecting to be first choice, it does potentially raise doubts over Illan Meslier’s future at Elland Road.

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Marsch surely wouldn’t feel the need to have both players in his squad – keeping them happy would be extremely difficult – so you have to wonder if their current stopper is heading elsewhere.

The hope is surely that Meslier stays put, given his potential, but Cakir is only 25 years of age himself and also has a high ceiling, having been hailed as ‘one of the best goalkeepers I have seen in my life’ by Leicester City Head of Senior Recruitment Lee Congerton.

In other news, one club are reportedly lining up a fresh bid for one Leeds player. Read more here.

	Tim Nielsen wants Australia to make sure they don’t throw away any momentum gained over India © Getty Images

Tim Nielsen wants Australia to emerge from their first-final loss with an aggressive mind-set during the key moments of their must-win encounter at the Gabba on Tuesday. Nielsen was disappointed his team stumbled a couple of times when it had control at the SCG, where India won by six wickets, and asked the players to sharpen their outlook after two sloppy defeats in three days.”It’s probably the mental side of the game that’s let us down in the last couple of games,” Nielsen said. “We had a couple of situations [at the SCG] when we felt we were on top and then gave our wickets away, which then put us back under pressure. For us to have some success in this series we have to make sure we take the game by the throat when we have the opportunity and don’t give up that momentum.”The 100-run partnership between Matthew Hayden and Andrew Symonds threatened to revive Australia after they were 3 for 24 in Sydney, but both batsmen departed to outfield catches in quick succession and they were in more severe discomfort at 5 for 135. The home side also sensed a chance shortly before the halfway stage of the India innings and was unable to maintain the bowling or fielding intensity required to prevent India from cruising to victory.Team meetings were held in the dressing room after Sunday’s game and in Brisbane on Monday as they contemplated how to fight back. “The biggest challenge for all of us is not to get too carried away with one loss,” Nielsen said. “We certainly had a chat last night and Ricky put it pretty clearly what he expected from the group, not just about playing cricket but the way we present ourselves and the way we go about our things. We want to make sure we’re competing for 100 overs of the game.”Australia’s players feel comfortable at the Gabba and are excited to be playing on a pitch with bounce and carry, especially when compared with the lower and slower surfaces around the country. The team will accept any advantage knowing that it has to win the second match to extend the series to a third final in Adelaide on Friday.”It is a tough challenge, it’s not the ideal situation to be in, to be 1-0 down,” Nielsen said. “India played better than us and we didn’t play to our potential, so our challenge now is to have a quick turnaround and get ready to go and put our best foot forward.”