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Leeds United supporters are arguably blessed at this moment in time as the West Yorkshire giants regularly flirt with promotion up to the Premier League.

Not too long ago, the Whites were seen as mid-table fodder in the Championship, with a number of poor finishes in the competitive division regularly dampening the mood at Elland Road before Marcelo Bielsa graced the famed dugout.

Daniel Farke will hope he can follow in Bielsa’s footsteps by guiding his side to a triumphant title success in the second tier, with the German already having to make some cutthroat calls to try and steer his team to said glory by ditching Illan Meslier.

What the future holds for Illan Meslier at Elland Road

It’s fair to say Meslier finds himself on extremely thin ice at Leeds at this moment in time, with stand-in goalkeeper Karl Darlow the chosen man now in between the sticks away from the wobbly Frenchman.

Before that, Meslier had started every Championship game available to him this season, but errors seeping into his game at an alarming rate means the former Newcastle United ‘keeper is now Farke’s surprise number one.

Coincidentally, the aforementioned Bielsa was the first boss at the Elland Road helm to hand Meslier senior chances, with the ex-Lorient shot-stopper up to 214 appearances and 72 clean sheets for the promotion chasers before falling out of favour.

Now, it seems Meslier will be heading for the exit door, with rampant reports suggesting that Southampton goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale is on the summer shopping list.

Frustratingly, if Leeds could reverse time, they’d potentially opt to have a different stopper back over splashing excessive wads of cash on new personnel.

Former Leeds goalkeeper is now better than Meslier

Of course, if Darlow continues to perform competently, he too will be in the running to be Leeds’ first-choice ‘keeper for the foreseeable.

Yet, if Farke had a figure like Kasper Schmeichel at his disposal right now, it would be a no-brainer as to who would pull on the Whites’ number one jersey, with the Danish veteran going on to have a distinguished career after leaving Leeds behind all the way back in 2011.

Simon Grayson was the boss in the Whites hot-seat when a far younger and rawer Schmeichel departed the building, with the Scandinavian stopper only going on to make 40 appearances for his ex-employers all across the 2010/11 campaign.

He wasn’t helped by the poor environment he found himself in, considering the West Yorkshire titans finished outside the playoff spots in seventh during his one and only full season, with Schmeichel only able to collect a low ten clean sheets along the way.

Games played

603

Clubs played for

4

Goals conceded

710

Clean sheets

192

Premier League title wins

1

Looking at the table above, however, the Copenhagen-born ‘keeper has never let this swift exit from Elland Road impact him, with Schmeichel going on to assert himself as a Premier League regular at Leicester City where he even lifted a dramatic top-flight title.

Picking up a bumper 192 clean sheets since walking out of the Whites too, the “outstanding” 38-year-old – as he was once lauded by his ex-Foxes boss in Brendan Rodgers – is continuing to age like a fine wine with current side Celtic, who are funnily enough managed by the aforementioned Rodgers.

A regular in the Champions League this season, if his wealth of experience wasn’t enough to prove his credentials above Meslier, the Bhoys’ number one also has a gleaming record of 22 clean sheets this campaign from 40 appearances.

Of course, playing for Leeds in the Championship is a far trickier situation than playing your part in Celtic’s dominance over Scotland, but the Whites must still rue letting Schmeichel leave so prematurely, especially with their recent ‘keeper woes.

Not just Darlow: Farke has revived £70k-per-week Leeds star's career

Karl Darlow is not the only Leeds star who has revived his Elland Road career.

ByDan Emery Apr 13, 2025

The New Zealand quick chats about what inspired her to take up fast bowling, the tools of her trade, and its pitfalls

Sruthi Ravindranath22-Oct-2025Rosemary Mair always wanted to bowl fast. Watching Shane Bond tear through batting line-ups on TV as a kid, she was hooked by his raw pace and built her action in his image – high-arm, strong follow-through, with a fierce desire to attack the stumps.The inswinger became Mair’s signature. It’s been her go-to since the moment she decided fast bowling was her calling, and it’s served her well in clutch situations.In New Zealand’s 2024 T20 World Cup opener against India, Mair swung one in from outside off to trap Harmanpreet Kaur in front, one of four wickets that night. At this ODI World Cup, she opened her tournament tally by knocking off Bangladesh opener Sharmin Akter’s bails with one that nipped back in.Related

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“So when I’m bowling my best, I’m bowling fast and attacking the stumps, and then any movement off the wicket is a bonus,” Mair tells ESPNcricinfo.”The nipbacker off the seam is definitely my stock ball, but I’ve also been working on a bit of an outswinger to try and beat both sides of the bat, so yeah, obviously the inswinger is my danger ball, but it’s just [about] keeping the batters guessing as well. For myself, it’s always just how many times can I hit the top of the stumps and be really boring.”Mair has a clever change of pace too. It came in handy in the 2024 T20 World Cup final, as she removed the dangerous Nadine de Klerk with a slower ball wide outside off en route to figures of 3 for 25 and a title win.”The slower balls are more about when I bowl them rather than the actual skill [itself],” she says. “I think so far in this tournament, we haven’t had a lot of the death phase, so haven’t had to bowl too many slower balls. But it’s definitely in my armoury if needed.”Another set of stumps is rearranged by Mair’s trademark nip-backer•ICC/Getty ImagesLike many New Zealand players, Mair’s sporting life began with football and squash. Cricket came into the mix when she was seven, courtesy of three older brothers. She started out at Taradale Cricket Club, playing in boys’ teams until she was 13.”The boys started growing a bit faster… and the bowlers got a bit too quick,” she says. “When I kind of got to high school, it was when I started to focus on my cricket a lot. Having three older brothers, I just kind of went to the cricket nets and grew up playing boys cricket and then, it was just a natural progression in my family.”I think growing up playing with the boys, it made me competitive. I guess I had to better my game to be able to stay and keep up with the boys.”That competitive edge fast-tracked her rise. After debuting for Central Districts in 2014-15 and impressing over the years with her consistency, she earned her New Zealand call-up in 2019 following an impressive tour-game performance against India. A T20 World Cup debut came in 2020.But her career since has been stop-start, plagued by injuries. A shin injury ruled her out of a key England tour in 2021. She missed the 2023 T20 World Cup but forced her way back with strong Women’s Super Smash performances. Then came a back injury in early 2024 but she made it back just in time for the T20 World Cup that year. A side strain at the start of this World Cup kept her out of crucial matches against Australia and South Africa.But Mair knows that injuries come with the territory for a fast bowler. “I think for me especially, I’m not gifted physically with height or a fast bowler’s build, so it’s just keeping on top of things in the gym and especially when it’s so hot here, things like recovery and hydration.”Our head coach Ben Sawyer is also the fast-bowling coach, so during a tournament like this, it’s not [about] big technical changes [to keep injury away], it’s just maintaining your key points and making sure your technique is repeatable and not prone to injury.”Mair on Lea Tahuhu: ‘I think she really understands the players, she understands the pressure, so I’ve really been leaning on her this World Cup’•ICC/Getty ImagesThe best thing about New Zealand’s pace unit, for Mair, is the variety within it. And she leans heavily on one experienced head.”Lea Tahuhu has been a real idol for me,” Mair says. “She’s obviously played at a lot of World Cups and she’s one of the leading wicket-takers of all time in World Cups, so I think she really understands the players, she understands the pressure, so I’ve really been leaning on her this World Cup. But as a pace unit, we’ve learned a lot from each other during this World Cup.”Beyond India, and this ODI World Cup, Mair has her sights set on the next T20 World Cup in England in 2026, particularly because she believes the conditions will help her kind of bowling.”The last few World Cups have been in the subcontinent, so a bit of a different game plan for the seniors, but I’m really looking forward to England, the T20 World Cup next year. I think it’ll be a really high-scoring, powerful, fast kind of game, so I think as a fast bowler, I’m really excited to have a bit more pace and bounce.”Mair has also picked up new ideas from time spent in the WBBL, and from overseas players she’s shared dressing rooms with. “In New Zealand, you often work with the same coaches for a long time. So getting different perspectives on field settings or game plans has been a real eye-opener.”Back home, she’s seen the domestic game grow rapidly. “When I started at 15, the standard wasn’t great. But over the last ten years, especially the last three or four, the investment from New Zealand Cricket has been amazing. Playing on TV now, for young girls to see that, it’s just huge.”While her current focus in on her growth in the two white-ball formats, she hopes to play Test cricket someday; New Zealand haven’t played that format since 2004.”I’m a bit of a nuffy,” Mair says. “I love Test cricket. It would be amazing to play one day.”

India’s besieged leader is discovering how much scrutiny there is of every move made by every captain who goes up against Bazball

Alagappan Muthu01-Feb-20241:27

Manjrekar on the lack of runs from Gill and Iyer

It cannot be a pleasant experience, going up against Bazball.Pat Cummins was essentially eviscerated when he deployed a deep point in the first over of the Ashes in 2023.”I must admit I’m not a huge fan,” Ricky Ponting said.”It feels a bit un-Australian,” Alastair Cook said.”They have been the first to blink,” Eoin Morgan said.At times, it feels like there is more judgment lashed out in the course of a Bazball Test than in a whole season of Real Housewives.India are the ones being picked apart right now, in a way that they really haven’t been for more than a decade of playing on their own turf. The weight of all that history is falling on Rohit Sharma’s shoulders. He has now lost as many Tests at home as his predecessor, except his ledger says seven matches in charge. Virat Kohli’s says 31.

****

Jasprit Bumrah is getting serious reverse-swing.When he takes out Ben Duckett, India are asked to huddle up by their captain. A few moments previously they’d seen the big screen show that they’d made a mistake not going for DRS. Now it has been rectified. The batter who had been reprieved is gone. But Rohit wants to make sure his team seizes the opportunity. He refocuses them. The front of his trousers is stained red. He’s been the one taking care of the ball, keeping one side rough and the other shiny.Rohit Sharma got a lot right in Hyderabad, but the result amplified everything he got wrong•Associated PressAfter looking rather docile for 18 overs, India pick up two wickets in 2.1. It is their most electrifying passage of play and Rohit is a big part of it.He puts a lot of thought into his decisions. He keeps the field up to start the Test match and only after a few boundaries start flying does he ask for more cover. He tries to curb the threat of the sweep and reverse-sweep with in-out fields, having a man catching for the top edge and a man sweeping to stop the boundaries. He tries to enhance the threat of his two left-arm spinners and their natural variation by deploying them at the press box end, because the ball is keeping low from there. But he misses some stuff too.

****

R Ashwin is in the middle of a lovely spell. He bowls a maiden to Ben Stokes, working him around the crease by varying his flight. The over – the 31st – ends with a generously tossed-up ball that is defended confidently. The next one begins in similar fashion, except this ball dips on the left-hander, rags past his outside edge and nearly has him out stumped. England are still trailing by 36 runs. Stokes falls in the course of this unrelenting examination.In this six-over spell, Ashwin bowls 27 dots, concedes 10 runs off the bat, and produces a false shot once every 3.14 deliveries. Rohit takes him out of the attack.Perhaps he reasons that with two right-handers now at the crease – Ollie Pope and Ben Foakes – his left-arm spinners might have a better chance of pressing the advantage. Except that isn’t how it turns out.The tea break comes and goes and Rohit still doesn’t turn to the bowlers who have, thus far, looked the most likely to take a wicket – Ashwin and Bumrah. It brings back memories of the Boxing Day Test in Centurion, where on the second day he had opted for Shardul Thakur and Prasidh Krishna to start proceedings after lunch and they gave away 42 runs in eight overs.

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There is a line between being bold and being rash and Stokes somehow keeps moving it for England. He keeps faith in Tom Hartley, sinking overs into him, even when he’s being hit around the park, because he is going to have to bowl again and he isn’t going to get better hidden away in the outfield.Zak Crawley got the same unflinching support and he repaid it with a phenomenal 189 in the Ashes. There’s pride in Stokes’ voice when he discusses his openers now. A smile tugs at his lips almost as if he’s picturing it all in his head. “Balls that Zak plays on the front foot, Duckett plays on the back foot. So it’s very tough, I think, for bowlers to settle into a rhythm and settle into a line or length against those two.”Nearly every punt Ben Stokes took in Hyderabad came off•Associated PressIts blue-sky thinking. And it keeps coming off. Ahead of this tour, Stokes looked at one of England’s most prolific run-getters and went, nah, you’re my allrounder. “When Rooty [Joe Root] walked off with four-for [in Hyderabad] I did say to him, “see, I told ya I’d make a bowler out of ya.”When success plays out in those terms, a captain doing the little things right, like helping take care of the cricket ball, starts to fade into the background.

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A lot of Rohit’s tenure, including in the white-ball formats, has been hampered by key players missing out due to injury. It was a point of such consternation that he brought it up when asked about a lack of ICC silverware when India were in the West Indies last year. He was annoyed that he didn’t have always have access to a full squad.Here, in this series, he’s been better at rolling with the punches. He’s everywhere at India’s first training session in Visakhapatnam. First, he’s batting. Then he peels his pads off and goes to study how the rest of his men are doing. He has a lot of time for Sarfaraz Khan and some last-minute advice for Yashasvi Jaiswal. He claps the bowlers on when they create opportunities. He doesn’t look like a guy who’s even the slightest bit unhappy with his situation.”After the [first] game, the atmosphere is absolutely relaxed,” KS Bharat says. “They just told us not to panic, which we are not. The instruction is very clear. It’s a long Test series, and we have played a lot of series like this in the past and we as individuals have to focus on good things and which we want to do in the coming games and everything is chill and relaxed. We are definitely looking to play good cricket as a team, that’s the message from the captain and the coach and we are very confident about it.”Stokes proved last week that a captain’s belief can sometimes be enough to compensate for his players’ inexperience. It could be Rohit’s turn this week.

He beat them with wrong’uns, length, dip, pace, and more to finish with 4-0-15-0

Karthik Krishnaswamy25-May-20221:46

Hardik: I relax and let Rashid do his magic

He took no wickets, and conceded no fours or sixes, so the chances are that highlights packages of Tuesday night’s Qualifier at Eden Gardens will include no footage of Rashid Khan bowling.But if you were there, and you watched him bowl, you’ll remember it for a long, long time.You’ll remember this ball to Jos Buttler in the ninth over of Rajasthan Royals’ innings. A legbreak that pitched on middle stump – or thereabouts – and beat the outside edge as Buttler prodded hurriedly from deep in his crease.Related

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Watching from the media box, it briefly seemed as if Buttler was bowled, but what initially looked like the bails lighting up turned out to be the metallic finish of Wriddhiman Saha’s keeping gloves glittering under the floodlights.Illusions upon illusions.It’s possible that Buttler had failed to pick the legbreak out of the hand and played for the wrong’un – a common enough occurrence against Rashid. But before that, he had been done for length, his feet immobilised by Rashid’s vicious overspin. The ball had dipped and landed significantly shorter than expected, and Buttler’s front foot, having shaped to stride forward, had ended up going nowhere.Against other wristspinners, batters can occasionally adjust when they are beaten in the air, and shift onto the back foot. At Rashid’s pace, it’s next to impossible.This was the second time in a row that Rashid had beaten Buttler’s outside edge. Then, in his next over, he turned a quick, fizzing wrong’un past the outside edge of the left-hand batter Devdutt Padikkal, for symmetry’s sake. Again, the batter’s feet were hypnotised into immobility.Ten other bowlers bowled on Tuesday night and finished with a combined economy rate of 10.23. Rashid bowled four overs and conceded just 15 runs. That’s 3.75 per over. While doing this, he was also beating the bat for fun.At his post-match press conference, Hardik Pandya, Gujarat Titans’ captain, put it simply when asked about Rashid’s impact. “When I give him the ball, I just relax and let him do his magic.”Rashid Khan conceded just 15 runs in his four overs•BCCIMagic, yes, but there’s more to it.When Rashid finishes a match with an absurdly low economy rate, it can sometimes feel as if batters give him too much respect. That they play into his hands in the effort to deny him wickets. But respect, in cricket as everywhere else, must be earned.Through the first half of Tuesday night’s match, this Eden Gardens pitch was grippy and two-paced, and with Rashid turning the ball both ways at pace, it was always going to be difficult to go after him unless he erred in length. Rashid simply refused to do that. When he wasn’t beating the bat, he was landing the ball on that typical Rashid length – slightly short of a traditional spinners’ good length, which makes both the lofted hit down the ground and the sweep risky propositions – while targeting the stumps or following the batters’ premeditated movements to deny them room.He was willing to let them take singles to his deep fielders via punches down the ground or clips and jabs to the square sweepers. If they wanted any more than that, they were going to have to take risks.Royals’ batters refused to do this, and you could see why. They had only six genuine batters, notwithstanding the contributions R Ashwin has made this season. Buttler was struggling for fluency, and was perhaps setting himself up for a tame dismissal if he decided to go after Rashid on this surface. And on this day, the outcome of seeing out Rashid’s overs was having both Buttler and Shimron Hetmyer at the crease when the last four overs began.Hetmyer didn’t last too long, but Buttler shrugged off his scratchy start, capitalised on a couple of lucky breaks, and tore into the fast bowlers at the finish. Having been on 39 off 38 at the end of the 16th over, he ransacked 50 off his last 18 balls.Royals finished with 188, and their captain Sanju Samson maintained at the post-match presentation that it was an excellent effort given how the pitch behaved in the first half of the match. That dew made conditions easier to bat in during the chase was beyond Royals’ control.It still came down to Titans needing 16 off the last over. How many more might they have needed had Rashid Khan not done his thing?

أرسل الاتحاد المصري لكرة القدم، خطاباً رسمياً للاتحاد الدولي لكرة القدم “فيفا”، بشأن مباراة منتخب مصر أمام إيران والمقررة إقامتها في مدينة سياتل الأمريكية يوم 26 يونيو 2026 في الجولة الثالثة من دور المجموعات لبطولة كأس العالم 2026.

وكانت شبكة ESPN قد كشفت أن فيفا يخطط لجعل مباراة مصر وإيران في كأس العالم “لقاء فخر” لمجتمع المثليين، في قرار أثار جدلًا كبيرًا.

طالع | تقارير: فيفا قد يورط مصر وإيران في كأس العالم بقرار صادم

وأكد الاتحاد المصري في الخطاب المرسل إلى ماتياس جرافستروم، الأمين العام لفيفا، أنه تم تداول معلومات تفيد بقرار اللجنة المحلية المنظمة وتخطيطها لإقامة بعض الأنشطة المرتبطة بدعم (المثلية الجنسية) خلال تلك المباراة، وأنه يرفض تماماً مثل هذه الأنشطة، والتي تتعارض بشكل مباشر مع القيم الثقافية والدينية والاجتماعية في المنطقة، ولاسيما في المجتمعات العربية والإسلامية.

وأوضح الاتحاد المصري في الخطاب، أنه مع التزام فيفا بضمان بيئة محترمة وترحب بجميع الجماهير، ومن أجل الحفاظ على روح الوحدة والسلام، فإنه من الضروري تجنب إدراج أنشطة من الممكن أن تثير حساسيات ثقافية ودينية بين المشجعين، الحاضرين من كلا البلدين، وهما مصر وإيران، خاصة أن تلك الأنشطة تتعارض ثقافياً ودينياً مع البلدين.

واستند الاتحاد المصري في خطابه إلى مبادئ فيفا المقررة في لائحة النظام الأساسي، وتحديداً المادة الرابعة والتي تؤكد الحياد في المسائل السياسية والاجتماعية، والحفاظ على الحياد في القضايا السياسية والاجتماعية، خلال مسابقات فيفا، وضمان عدم استخدام كرة القدم كمنصة للترويج لقضايا، تكون ذات حساسية أو طابع خلافي.

كما استند الاتحاد المصري إلى قانون فيفا التأديبي، ولوائح الفعاليات، والتي تؤكد صراحة بأنه يجب أن تبقى مسابقات فيفا خالية من أي مظاهر تثير التوتر أو سوء الفهم أو النزاع بين جماهير من خلفيات مختلفة.

وكذلك استند الاتحاد إلى مبدأ فيفا الراسخ حول احترام الثقافات وتشجيع جميع الأطراف على تنظيم الفعاليات بشكل يراعي معتقدات وهويات المجتمعات المشاركة، وبالتالي من أجل ضمان إقامة المباراة في أجواء يسودها الاحترام والتركيز على الجانب الرياضي فقط، فإن الاتحاد المصري يرفض تلك الدعوات بشكل قاطع ويطالب فيفا بعدم إقامة أي فعاليات أو عروض ذات صلة بفعاليات دعم (المثلية) داخل الاستاد يوم المباراة.

يذكر، أن منتخب مصر وقع في المجموعة السابعة لمنافسات كأس العالم 2026، مع منتخبات إيران وبلجيكا ونيوزيلندا.

San Francisco Giants legend Barry Bonds may not have to wait much longer for his very own statue outside Oracle Park.

Giants president and CEO Larry Baer joined on Wednesday and candidly discussed the team's potential plans to honor Bonds in the future. Baer admitted there was "no disagreement" within the Giants organization on the topic of erecting a Bonds statue but didn't go into specifics.

"On the radar, I would say it's on the radar," Baer said. "Barry is deserving of a statue and I would say, should be next up. We don't have the exact location and the exact date and the exact timing, but you're saying things that we're totally in sync with.

"You probably notice, Barry's around a lot, more recently this year and last year as well … It's coming. All I can say is it's coming."

Bonds would be the sixth franchise icon to have his effigy sculpted outside Oracle Park, joining Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Orlando Cepeda, Juan Marichal and Gaylord Perry.

Bonds belted 586 home runs in his 15-year stint with the Giants—including his storied 73-homer-season—and few would argue against the once-unstoppable slugger getting immortalized alongside fellow Giants greats. Though the seven-time MVP and 14-time All-Star's illustrious career was tarnished by his steroid controversy, Bonds is an obvious choice and fitting candidate for the Giants' next historic statue—the only question is if it'll be built right outside the ballpark or around his favorite splash zone, McCovey Cove.

His efforts handed India their biggest defeat in men’s Tests, and their second whitewash at home in three series

Sidharth Monga26-Nov-20256:06

Karim: ‘Harmer’s variations upset India batters’

In front of empty stands in India’s newest Test venue, South Africa competed their utter domination of the hosts with a whitewash and their heaviest Test defeat in terms of runs. More than just the order of session breaks was turned upside down in India’s eastern-most Test ground where South Africa sealed their first series win in India in 25 years and India’s second series defeat in 12 months after 12 years of spotless record.Simon Harmer out-bowled by miles the home spinners in a country, whose ordinary tour in 2015 resulted in a seven-year hiatus for him in Test cricket. No one has now taken more wickets at a better average in a series in India than his 17 wickets at 8.94. Marco Jansen was a little behind with 12 at 10.08, but he ended the series with yet another thing about which we can say: “only Marco could have done that”. A sensational catch over the shoulder, running back, diving and taking it one-handed. Just the kind of wicket Harmer won’t mind being denied a maiden 10-for by.This was the farthest result on India’s minds when Shubman Gill joked after losing yet another toss in Kolkata that it seems he will win only in the World Test Championship (WTC) final. Since then, India lost Gill to injury three balls into his work, and then both the Tests to leave themselves a hill to climb if they want to entertain thoughts of the WTC final. They now have 48.15% points halfway into their league matches. Historically at least 60% has been needed to get through to the final.Related

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Harmer flips Test cricket in India upside down

'Can't take anything for granted' – Pant rues missed chances after 2-0 clean sweep

The defending champions, who had to deal with some elitist sniggering about their schedule in the last cycle, now have 75% of their points. Temba Bavuma, the captain who brought home the mace, was still undefeated in Tests after 12 matches at the helm.That Bavuma wouldn’t lose this one had been clear halfway into this Test. Since then, South Africa played India out ruthlessly and started the fifth day needing eight wickets to take the full 12 WTC points from this match. This classic Indian Test pitch was now offering consistent turn and natural variation.Simon Harmer picked up his second Test five-for•BCCISo a combination of Harmer and Jansen, who took a five-for and a 93 in the first innings, was always going to test India’s resolve to bat the day out. The overnight batters, B Sai Sudharsan and nightwatch Kuldeep Yadav, enjoyed some luck with one wicket denied by a no-ball and another by a drop at slip by Aiden Markram, who took five catches in the first innings.The luck ended around half an hour into the day. It had always looked a matter of time against Harmer’s guile and persistence. Kuldeep was the first one to go, bowled by an offbreak that didn’t turn. You can’t quite make an offbreak not turn, but you can give it every chance to do so by changing the seam orientation, which Harmer did.In the same over, Harmer completed the brace of dream dismissals for an offspinner. He had bowled KL Rahul through the gate on the fourth evening; now he took Dhruv Jurel’s outside edge with drift and less turn than expected.Rishabh Pant is often criticised for taking too many risks, but this innings provided a counterpoint. Against a really slow offbreak from Harmer, Pant was a sitting duck the moment he decided to offer a forward-defensive. The extra bounce took the catch to Markram at slip, who was now moving rapidly towards the world record for most catches in a match.Sai Sudharsan enjoyed another dropped catch as he and Ravindra Jadeja took India into tea. Sai Sudharsan’s luck ran out in the first over after the break with Harmer getting a rest having bowled through the entire first session. He defended a Senuram Muthusamy half-volley. It didn’t turn, and Markram took another catch.South Africa registered their first Test series win in India in 25 years•BCCIAdequately rested, Harmer came back from the other end than the one that had been giving him wickets and took out Washington Sundar and Nitish Kumar Reddy in quick succession. With a softer ball now, he started to bowl quicker and took the edge from Washington with a 90kmph offbreak. Markram took a sharp catch to go past Ajinkya Rahane’s world record of eight in a match.The right-hand batters were always going to struggle more now with three dismissals in play: bowled through the gate, outside edge and bat-pad catches. Reddy introduced the glove on the reverse sweep to give Harmer his best match figures, making him South Africa’s most successful bowler in India and the most prolific South Africa bowler after 14 Tests.Jadeja was the one India batter who swept well from the length that had other batters in trouble. He scored a consolatory half-century, read the room and shelved his sword celebrations, and was stumped when trying to take Keshav Maharaj on.The final moment, fittingly, belonged to Jansen. He scored quick runs when India were in control of South Africa’s scoring in the first innings, when it seemed no one could dominate the bowling. His long levers, which made this possible, also created the wicket of Yashasvi Jaiswal in the first innings, then India’s only half-centurion. Then he unleashed bouncers when the pitch was still flat, taking more wickets with bouncers than anyone has taken in an innings in India.By the time South Africa bowled the second time around, the pitch offered consistent turn and didn’t call out for a superhuman effort from Jansen. Then again, why deny us when you can nonchalantly take an impossible catch to end the match and the series? Lest we forget.

Former England women’s head coach returns to home county in newly created role

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Oct-2025

Jon Lewis has joined his old county Gloucestershire in a newly-created director of cricket role which will cover both men’s and women’s cricket, after losing his job as England women’s head coach earlier this year.Lewis, who won 16 England caps across formats as a swing bowler, spent the vast majority of his playing career at Gloucestershire and has worked at the ECB in various coaching roles since, including as Under-19s head coach and fast-bowling coach in the men’s game. “It feels like I’m coming home,” he told the club’s YouTube channel.He took over as England women’s coach in late 2022 but paid the price for their disastrous 16-0 Ashes defeat in Australia last winter, which saw him replaced in the role by Charlotte Edwards. Lewis also spent three years at UP Warriorz in the WPL, and will oversee Gloucestershire’s push towards a fully professional women’s set-up in the years to come.Lewis will work closely with Mark Alleyne, Gloucestershire men’s head coach, who won the T20 Blast in his first season in charge but oversaw a disappointing 2024 campaign. His arrival will belatedly fill the vacancy left by Steve Snell’s removal as performance director midway through the 2023 summer.”It’s a big job. There’s a lot to do,” Lewis said. “I’m excited to be back at a place that has a really special meaning for me. It created a lot of opportunities for me to be better as a player, and hopefully I can give people opportunities to do the same things that I did here.”Ajeet Singh Dale is among several seamers leaving Gloucestershire•Dan Istitene/Getty Images

Lewis said that a long-term priority will be to bring through more players from the local area. “We haven’t had a really strong production line of cricketers coming from Gloucestershire and Bristol. That’s a high priority for us here at the club, to make sure that we put the processes in place that are able to produce Gloucestershire cricketers from Gloucestershire.”Gloucestershire’s men have already lost a swathe of seamers ahead of next season, with Archie Bailey (Durham), Ajeet Singh Dale (Lancashire), Zaman Akhter (Essex), Josh Shaw (Somerset), Dom Goodman and Tom Price (both Sussex) all leaving the club. Craig Miles (Warwickshire) and Will Williams (Lancashire) will both join, but Lewis wants further reinforcements.”It’s important that we try to work out how to replace those players, whether it’s from within the squad or also from outside, or from overseas,” he said. “We’ve got some real thinking to do in that space to make sure that the club becomes really competitive across all formats next year.”Gloucestershire’s women play in Tier Two of the ECB’s new domestic set-up, but Lewis hopes that will change in the long term: “That’d be a big goal for us here at the club… I’m hoping that this becomes a place where players become really fond of playing, and they feel like they’re able to grow, to learn, and to get a lot better at playing cricket.”Stevens returns to Kent for 2026Darren Stevens was a fan favourite in his playing career for Kent•Nathan Stirk/ECB/Getty Images

Meanwhile, Kent have announced that club legend Darren Stevens will work in Adam Hollioake’s coaching staff as a bowling consultant in 2026. Stevens left the county three years ago when, at 46, he was not offered a new contract and has since worked in coaching roles for South East Stars and Essex women.He will work alongside Kent’s newly-appointed bowling coach Sam Faulkner, who has progressed through the club’s backroom staff and will replace Robbie Joseph in the role. Jaahid Ali, a former Pakistan A player, has replaced Toby Radford as batting coach.”Stevo coming back to Kent to join our bowling coaching provision will undoubtedly by popular with our members and supporters,” Simon Cook, the club’s director of cricket, said. “His experience and coaching skills will be invaluable to our first-team bowlers as we head into a new season under Adam Hollioake.”With Sam and Jaahid, there will be clear guidance and mentoring for our young talent at first-team, Academy and Pathway level to make any transition to a higher level more seamless from a playing perspective. Both Sam and Jaahid have worked closely with our Talent Pathway for a number of years now and are both held in high regard by our Pathway players and staff.”

An ACB statement says that Naveen-ul-Haq is still recovering from a shoulder injury and has not been declared fit by the medical team

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Sep-2025Afghanistan fast bowler Naveen-ul-Haq has been ruled out of the ongoing Asia Cup, and Abdollah Ahmadzai has been named his replacement.Naveen had been named in the Asia Cup squad despite missing the UAE tri-series prior to the tournament. According to an Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) release, Naveen is still recovering from a shoulder injury and has not been declared fit by the medical team. “Naveen will continue to undergo intensive treatment and rehabilitation until he is fully fit,” the statement said.Ahmadzai, who was originally in the list of reserves for the Asia Cup, was a part of the UAE tri-series with Naveen out of action. He made his international debut in the series – also the only T20I he has played so far – where he took 1 for 31 in three overs against UAE. Overall in T20s, he has 15 wickets from 11 games.Naveen last played for Afghanistan in December 2024, against Zimbabwe in a T20I in Harare. He was part of the SA20 earlier this year, taking five wickets in eight games for Durban’s Super Giants. He also played MLC in June where he took eight wickets in five games for tournament champions MI New York.Fazalhaq Farooqi and Fareed Ahmad are the other specialist quicks in the squad, with Azmatullah Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib and Karim Janat the fast-bowling allrounder.Afghanistan have played only one match at the Asia Cup so far, the tournament opener, where they beat Hong Kong by 94 runs. Their next group match is against Bangladesh on September 16, and they play Sri Lanka on September 18.

Tottenham manager Thomas Frank has heaped praise on a member of the Spurs squad who he’s barely called upon lately.

Tottenham travel to Everton as concerns surround midfield

Spurs travel to the Hill Dickinson Stadium as they prepare to battle David Moyes’ Everton on Merseyside this weekend.

Cristian Romero, Destiny Udogie and Dominic Solanke are the club’s most notable absentees, joining Ben Davies, Radu Dragusin, James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski and Yves Bissouma on their extensive injury list.

After a dismal 0-0 draw away to Monaco in the Champions League, where goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario was on hand to spare their blushes time and time again with a string of excellent saves, Spurs supporters are concerned by their lack of control in midfield.

Joao Palhinha has been one of Tottenham’s players of the season so far, but his partnership with fellow in-form ace Rodrigo Bentancur has attracted debate.

While both men have performed brilliantly in an individual sense, as a pairing, they don’t appear to be connecting defence with attack that well, and this was on full display in France on Wednesday.

Concerns have also surrounded Xavi Simons, who’s largely failed to make the desired impact creatively since his £52 million move from RB Leipzig last summer, with the Dutchman having just one goal contribution to show for his efforts.

Lucas Bergvall was given the nod in Simons’ position against Monaco, but he was equally ineffective, leading to suggestions that their lack of creative guile stems from a broader tactical issue in the engine room.

Tottenham cannot keep relying on Mohammed Kudus to provide all of their cutting edge from the right-hand side, so it’ll be interesting to see if Frank shakes things up a bit for Everton.

Frank has also raised eyebrows with his decision to drop Pape Sarr, despite the Senegalese starting 2025/2026 in excellent form.

The 23-year-old hasn’t started a Premier League game since Tottenham’s 4-0 win at West Ham, playing just 33 minutes across their last four top flight games, leaving many to wonder if there is an issue with him behind-the-scenes.

Thomas Frank clarifys Pape Sarr situation at Tottenham

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Frank addressed the concerns around Sarr.

Spurs’ head coach insists that nothing is wrong with the African, and that he has been left very impressed by Sarr since arriving in north London.

The former FC Metz sensation was one of Fabio Paratici’s first signings at Tottenham, and he’s gone on to justify his bargain price tag by becoming a real success story at the club.

Physical and combative, Sarr’s work rate always catches the eye – breaking up opposition play and helping to launch attacks with his excellent turn of pace. His energy adds balance to Tottenham’s midfield, providing both cover and a steady link between the backline and their attack.

He is an excellent option to potentially partner Palhinha against Everton, and Frank should definitely consider recalling Sarr to the eleven amid the growing criticism surrounding Spurs’ engine room.