Tag Futebol

West Ham United are believed to be monitoring Stade Rennais forward, Martin Terrier, according to reports.

What’s the word?

As per club insider ExWHUemployee, the 25-year-old is believed to be a potential target for the Hammers this summer, amid reports that the east Londoners – as well as Leeds United – are tracking the Frenchman ahead of a potential deal.

Asked on Twitter about a possible move for the former Lyon man, the respected source stated: “Well I know he has been a target before as this article says from our podcast.”

The article in question – which comes from This is Futbol – includes quotes made by the transfer insider earlier this summer on the West Ham Way podcast, in which he stated:

“There’s a guy called Martin Terrier of Rennes who can play on the left wing as well, all of those forwards in France would have been looked at because I know we value that league for bargains.

“And the club, Moyes, the scouts, the recruitment, the chairman all feel that the French league is possibly the one that’s got the biggest track record of players being able to convert to the English League most easily. So I think we’ll be looking at players there.”

Massive coup

A deal for the £22.5m-rated gem could no doubt prove a major coup for David Moyes and co, with Terrier having been in prolific form last season in Ligue 1, netting 21 league goals and providing three assists in 37 league outings – all of which came from the start.

That goalscoring record saw him finish joint-third alongside compatriot Moussa Dembele in the goalscoring charts in the French top-flight, with their respective hauls having only been bettered by Monaco’s Wissam Ben Yedder (25) and Paris Saint-Germain sensation, Kylian Mbappe (28).

That position among the most deadly players in the league is even more impressive considering that the 6-foot menace isn’t even an out-and-out centre-forward, having largely featured in a left-wing berth during his time with Rennes.

His overall record at his current club now stands at 30 goals in just 71 appearances thus far over the past two seasons, with the £19k-per-week man set to add undoubted competition to the current forward options at Moyes’s disposal at the London Stadium outfit.

Not just a threat with the ball at his feet, the one-time Lille marksman is also devastating in the air, notably ranking in the top 7% for aerial duels won among those in his position across Europe’s top five leagues.

With Chelsea’s Armando Broja potentially also set to come through the door, the former Everton boss could well be able to form a new look frontline next term, with such clinical new arrivals set to ease the attacking burden on the likes of Jarrod Bowen and Michail Antonio.

Equally, with Terrier in particular, managing to poach a player who is clearly heading into his prime would represent a massive coup for the Irons, with the hope being that his former teammate Nayef Aguerd can tempt him into making the move to England.

AND in other news, Contact made: Moyes can unearth a new sensation as West Ham move for “complete” £39m target 

A claim has emerged on Tottenham Hotspur and their efforts to sign Raphinha in the summer transfer window… 

What’s the talk?

Fabrizio Romano has revealed that the club are in talks with the player’s agent as Fabio Paratici attempts to bring him to north London in the coming weeks.

Spurs will have to beat off interest from Arsenal, Chelsea, and Barcelona, though, as the journalist has provided an update on the race to land the winger.

He tweeted: “Raphinha deal. Arsenal have already scheduled a meeting with Leeds next week – Leeds will ask again for £65m fee. Barcelona still in contact with Deco after personal terms agreed, but no fresh bid yet. Tottenham and Chelsea, still in talks with agents. Race still open.”

Imagine him & Heung-min Son

If Tottenham can land a deal to sign the Whites star this summer then they can secure an exciting wing partnership with him and Son next season.

Whilst Dejan Kulusevski and Lucas Moura are also set to be options out wide for Antonio Conte next season, Raphinha offers a big goal threat in the Premier League and having him and the ex-Leverkusen man on the wings is one of a number of combinations that could be used in 2022/23.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-spurs-news-transfer-rumours-gossip-much-more” title= “Read the latest Spurs news, transfer rumours and more!”]

In the top-flight last season, the Leeds man was sublime despite the club’s battle against relegation. He ended the campaign with 11 goals – a year on from scoring six in his first term – as he showed that he has the quality to score goals at an impressive rate at this level.

Creatively, he was let down by his teammates as he provided 10 ‘big chances’ and managed 1.9 key passes per game – only to register three assists. This suggests that the players he was playing alongside were not good enough to make the most of his passing ability.

With Son on the left-wing for Spurs, Raphinha, who was once dubbed a “phenomenon” by Emerson Royal, would find a player capable of finishing the chances that he is able to create.

The Tottenham star scored a whopping 23 Premier League goals last term from an xG of around 17, after finding the back of the net 17 times from around 11 xG in 2020/21.

These statistics show that he has immense finishing and would be able to thrive off the Leeds gem’s creativity, which is why they would be an exciting pair to watch play under Conte.

AND in other news: Conte could land Spurs masterclass in deal for “explosive” £30m gem, he’s Foden-esque…

Leeds United have been linked with a move for Schalke winger Rabbi Matondo.

What’s the news?

According to a recent report from Bild (via TEAMtalk), Leeds are one of the clubs interested in signing the Welsh attacker this summer.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-leeds-united-news-transfer-rumours-gossip-and-more” title=”Read the latest Leeds news, transfer rumours and more!”]

As a product of Cardiff City’s youth system, Matondo joined Manchester City’s academy back in 2016.

After making 53 youth appearances for the Manchester club where he scored 19 goals and delivered 11 assists, the Welshman then joined Schalke in the 2019 January transfer window for a fee of £11m.

The next Dan James

Last season saw the 21-year-old spend a loan spell with Belgian club Cercle Brugge where he found the net nine times and delivered two assists in 26 league games.

To further highlight his attacking talent, the winger racked up a higher average of dribbles per game (1.7) than any other player at the Belgian club.

The £3.6m-rated attacker also racked up more shots at goal (75) and shots on target (33) than any other figure in the team.

Described as having “electrifying” pace by Ryan Giggs, Matondo could be Leeds’ next version of Dan James as his Welsh counterpart is also an incredibly quick player at Elland Road.

In fact, during the previous Euros, James managed to accelerate to a speed of 33.5 km/h, the second-fastest in the tournament, which highlights just how quick he can be on the pitch.

Last season saw the former Manchester United attacker score four goals and provide five assists in 34 league games in addition to totalling the second-highest number of shots at goal (52) in the squad.

With that in mind, having the two Welsh wingers in Jesse Marsch’s side could be a real problem for opposition defenders given their lightning pace and ability to score and create goals.

Should Marsch and Victor Orta feel the need to add another attacking figure to his ranks this summer, securing a deal for Matondo would be a good step for the Yorkshire club given his young age and the clear knack he has for being a goal threat.

However, with this report also listing fellow Premier League sides Nottingham Forest and Brentford as well as three French teams as clubs eyeing up the winger, the Whites could have a challenge on their hands to secure his signature this summer.

In other news: Orta can land Leeds’ next Hernandez with swoop for “lethal” £137k-p/w “goal machine”

Manchester United have been heavily linked with a move for Villarreal defender Pau Torres in recent months and if the Spaniard were to arrive at Old Trafford, it could be the perfect chance for Erik ten Hag to axe Harry Maguire.

Recent reports say that Torres’ move to Manchester is gathering pace, as the Red Devils target defensive reinforcements following a season which saw them concede 57 goals in the Premier League, more than the likes of Brighton, Brentford and relegated Burnley.

Although it is difficult to blame one man for United’s defensive horror shows, Maguire’s mistakes were often a serious cause for concern, with data suggesting that he held the unnecessary record of most errors leading to goals in the Premier League last season.

Therefore, if ten Hag wants to turn United into contenders again, then he arguably needs to axe the England international from his starting side next season.

Reports have already claimed that the new Dutch manager plans to strip the former Leicester City man of the captaincy at Old Trafford, while further reports suggest he could be out the door altogether.

That may be seen by many United fans as a step in the right direction, but a more reliable option than Victor Lindelof and Eric Bailly needs to be brought in to partner Raphael Varane.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-man-united-news-transfer-rumours-gossip-and-more-nunez-ten-hag-nkunku-richarlison” title=”Read the latest Man United news!”]

Torres could be the ideal man after excelling in Spain for Villarreal in recent seasons. The 25-year-old made 33 appearances in La Liga last season for Unai Emery’s side, averaging a solid 6.86 rating from WhoScored for his performances.

He was also a regular as the Spaniards reached the semi-finals of the Champions League, so has plenty of experience playing at the elite level.

Former United man Owen Hargreaves was full of praise for the centre-back last season, saying:

“He’s a fantastic player. I’m quite surprised he’s still at Villarreal. English teams were looking at him.

“I think everyone was talking about Man United and even Real Madrid, I think his potential is literally that high.

“He’s got a fabulous left foot, he’s great in possession. A fantastic player so I don’t think he’ll be at Villarreal very long.”

Torres reportedly has a £56m release clause in his Villarreal contract and if United do decide to pay it and bring him to Old Trafford then you would expect him to be a regular starter.

That could be the catalyst for the club finally getting rid of Maguire for good.

And, in other news… Ten Hag must swoop for £56.5m-rated sensation, he’s got “no weaknesses”

Crystal Palace midfielder Luka Milivojevic may depart Selhurst Park this summer, according to Inside Futbol.

The Lowdown: Milivojevic under Vieira

Milivojevic, who Roy Hodgson labelled as ‘outstanding’, has struggled for regular game time under Patrick Vieira this season.

The 31-year-old has made just 10 starts in all competitions this season, the latest of which came against Aston Villa on the weekend.

That was the club captain’s first Premier League start since February, and as he enters the final 12 months of his Selhurst Park contract, it looks as if an early exit could be on the cards.

The Latest: Olympiacos make move

Inside Futbol shared an update on Milivojevic’s future on Tuesday. They claim that former side Olympiacos are keen to bring him back to the club and have already made moves to get a deal in place.

The report adds that Milivojevic is considering his Eagles future and that he could even ask Steve Parish and Co. to terminate his contract.

The Verdict: Additions needed first

Vieira could be fairly short of midfield options in the summer, with Conor Gallagher set to return to Chelsea following an extremely successful season-long loan.

Cheikhou Kouyate is also out of contract at the end of June, so if Palace let Milivojevic go, Jairo Riedewald could be the club’s only senior defensive midfielder on the books.

Therefore, holding midfield additions could be needed first before the club possibly allow Milivojevic, who doesn’t appear to be fancied under Vieira, to cut short his five-year Palace stay.

In other news: Reliable journalist now reveals ‘secret’ Parish and Vieira plan from SE25. 

Speaking to ESPNcricinfo, Tendulkar shared his views on India’s combination going into the World Cup, and who he thinks the semi-finalists will be

Nagraj Gollapudi22-May-2019Keeping in the mind the pace at which batsmen are scoring in ODIs, the flat nature of pitches in England and Wales, and the smaller grounds, what do you reckon will define this World Cup?To score that many runs in 50-over format there are a number of elements. Firstly, the pitches are flat. You’ve seen in the last three to four matches that England played against Pakistan [recently] most of the scores were around 350 runs. It has to do with two new balls as well – even in the 46th or 47th over the ball is only 23 or 24 overs old. So it is not an old ball as such, it still has a fair amount of gloss and it doesn’t reverse. As per the earlier rule when we were playing with one ball, around the 28th over or so the ball would start reversing. It would also get disfigured, get softer. So for a batsman it was a challenge to go out and tonk every bowler.Here the ball is maintaining its hardness, shine, and with field restrictions – all these elements are putting a lot of pressure on the bowling attacks. I believe if you have quality spinners to bowl in the middle overs they would end up picking wickets. It is all about bowling in partnerships – if quality bowlers could bowl in tandem and create pressure on the batting line-up, that is one way of countering all these factors [that] I feel are not in favour of the bowlers.Shikhar Dhawan is the only left-hander in the Indian batting order. Keeping in mind the utility and importance of legspinners in limited-overs cricket, do you reckon it is imperative that Dhawan bat as deep as he can?Yes, of course. A left-right combination always helps because that means the bowler has to adjust his line every now and then and the [bowling] captain has to keep thinking. And if there is a partnership the job becomes even more tougher. So, yes, it is important for a left-hander to be there to put pressure on the legspinner or for that matter any bowler.The Indian top order (1-3) is one of the best, but do you agree the middle order will be India’s biggest challenge?I look at it from a different point of view. From No. 1 to 7 or 8 you expect the batsmen to deliver. Yes, each batsman would have a different role assigned by the captain and the coach, and one has to understand that role and deliver to the best of his ability. I feel up to No. 4 it is a different requirement as far as the delivery is concerned. And from Nos. 5-8 you are looking at finishers, who stay till the end and soak in that pressure. I feel we are well equipped to do that.Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni meet mid-pitch while the ball is retrieved from the stands•Associated PressThere has been endless debate on who is best suited to No. 4. Among the batsmen in the 15 who will be your choice(s) for No. 4 and why?Now, a number of things have been discussed as far as slot No. 4 is concerned, but I feel if you have quality batsmen then they should be able to adjust their style of play at whichever number they are asked to bat. I think we have that quality which can go out and deliver at whatever number they have been sent.Rohit Sharma had said that personally he would play MS Dhoni at four. What is your view? What could be the pros and cons or is Dhoni better at five to marshall the lower order?My personal opinion is Dhoni should be batting five. I still don’t know what the team combination would be, but if you are going [with] Rohit and Shikhar as openers, to Virat [Kohli] at No. 3 and whoever at No. 4 then Dhoni could be No. 5. Then Hardik Pandya, an explosive player, follows them. That way the experienced batsmen are well spaced out and Dhoni can stretch the game towards the end where he himself can be explosive along with Hardik.Hardik proved this IPL how hungry and keen he is to perform in pressure situations. He must have had chats with you recently – what did you tell him? Do you reckon he might become the most important player if India have to go all the way in the tournament?I have general chats with Hardik. Our aim [at Mumbai Indians] was to first win the IPL and then look at anything else. Even in IPL one would go match and match and not jump too far ahead. That was our motto. We kept things simple in the IPL. Now we have moved to the World Cup. Looking at the way how Hardik has played in the IPL, he is connecting the ball really well. He hasn’t slogged, to be honest. He has played proper cricketing shots, which is an advantage because that is how one would get more consistent. That is going to work in his favour. Hardik, of course, has gone to England with lots and lots of confidence and positive energy, which will reflect on the field.This is going to be a big tournament for him. I am hoping that we, as a team, move forward and go all the way till the end and give a reason for the whole nation to smile and celebrate.Who are your probable semi-finalists?India, England, Australia should be in the semis. The fourth could be one of New Zealand or Pakistan.

Australia’s 2-1 series defeat in India has plenty of echoes from history; various sides have responded to such hard-fought results in starkly contrasting manners

Daniel Brettig29-Mar-2017A fledgling team wins a shattering early victory over the world’s No. 1 side, then fights them all the way to the deciding Test of the series, where they fall mentally and physically to earth, frustratingly short of a seismic result. The script of Australia’s narrowly failed Indian campaign has been played out at other times in Test history, with a signal lesson: longer-term success is far from guaranteed.Perhaps the greatest parallel for Steven Smith’s team sits with the England side that ventured to the Caribbean in 1989-90 for a meeting with Viv Richards’ seemingly unbeatable West Indies. Preparing judiciously and selecting a team for the expected conditions under the stolid leadership of Graham Gooch, England beat the hosts at their own pace-oriented game on a rapid pitch in Jamaica to start the series, and fell only narrowly to a 2-1 defeat by the end.As Wisden noted: “The essential weakness of any statistical record is that it can reflect neither circumstance nor injustice. A potted summary of England’s Test series in the Caribbean, early in 1990, indicates merely that they lost 2-1, with one match drawn and the other abandoned. In years to come, that stark scoreline may be read to mean that England did slightly better than anticipated. The truth of the matter is that at worst they merited a shared series, and at best an unimaginable upset of the world champions of Test Cricket.”For a team that, like Smith’s, had suffered enormous humiliation just a matter of months before – the 4-0 Ashes hiding of 1989 – this seemed a new dawn under Gooch, with a gaggle of young players eager to work hard after the fashion of their captain. Yet the success that followed was fleeting at best; a firm home summer against New Zealand and India followed by another pasting in Australia the following winter. England would not defeat the West Indies for another decade, and left the Ashes in Australian hands until 2005.One reason for England’s struggles was that the single-minded approach taken to the West Indies tour was not effectively followed up in terms of structure or philosophy. England team selection and talent identification remained shambolic for years afterwards, despite plenty of efforts to change things by Gooch and his successor Michael Atherton. By the time England did start to get things right, Gooch had long since passed into retirement.The other pathway for a team that gets close to victory over the world’s best is that followed by Australia three years after the 1990 series. Allan Border’s men got within two runs of pinching the Frank Worrell Trophy from Richie Richardson’s team in Australia in 1992-93, before falling short by that familiar 2-1 margin. Instead of falling back like England, they followed up, and under a new captain in Mark Taylor were able to win in the Caribbean in 1995 to set-up their own decade of
dominance. That series, also 2-1, began with a strong opening win, a subsequent West Indian challenge, then a commanding Australian performance in the decider.David Warner’s poor form away from home continued on the tour of India•AFPLike Gooch, and Smith, Taylor had the rough outline of how to win, and a fair idea of the areas in which his team had to improve. Positive batting that refused to be cowed by West Indian intimidation; sharp and aggressive fielding; and a combination of disciplined pace bowling and wrist spin. Australia lost in January 1993 largely because they were unable to assert themselves from a position of dominance, a symptom of self-belief that still had some growing to do.Unlike Gooch’s England, Smith and the coach Darren Lehmann have a sound and well-resourced Australian cricket system to support the team, and the thorough Dubai preparation for this India tour is likely to be replicated on future Asian visits. Like Taylor, Smith will have a potent bowling attack at his disposal for years to come, personified by the ample pace and variety of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc and James Pattinson, with worthy support from Nathan Lyon and Steve O’Keefe where applicable.The challenge ahead for Smith is two-fold. Broadly, he must find a way to ensure his team make the most of the sorts of opportunities presented in India. This is a mental hurdle above all else: no-one gave the Australians a chance of toppling India in this series and, in the moments where they genuinely could have done, it appeared that they did not quite believe it either.A more confident and seasoned team would not have blinked on days two and three in Bengaluru, nor day three in Dharamsala. The stand between Mark and Steve Waugh in Jamaica in 1995, right when that series could have swung either way, is the sort of display Smith’s men could not quite conjure against India. Finding that sort of mental fortitude at the end of a long series, when bodies and minds are tired, was a task beyond a young team, but something to aim for in future contests.More pointedly, Smith and Lehmann need to sit down with several of their team and work out the best approach they can take to contribute to victories at home or away. Chief among these is the vice-captain David Warner, whose failure to offer the sort of runs Smith managed should be cause for plenty of introspection.After Ranchi, Warner remarked that his overseas troubles were merely a statistical quirk, but an unbroken wait of nearly three years for a hundred away from home speaks pretty loudly to the contrary. Smith stated before the series that both captain and deputy needed to make big runs for Australia to be a chance. It was one of several prescient observations.There is one example of which Warner can take note: Nathan Lyon. After last year’s ignoble Sri Lanka tour, Lyon was far from assured of even being selected for India, let alone playing all four Tests. At the same time he was fighting to maintain his place with gradually improving displays over the home summer, Lyon worked assiduously on plans and techniques for India, all of which he would showcase in holding his own against his opposite number R Ashwin over the four Tests. When Lehmann said of Lyon’s Dharamsala spell that it was “the best I have ever seen him bowl for Australia”, the praise was both rich and deserved.So for Warner and Australia the way ahead is clear. Whether or not the 2017 India tour is seen as the start of a drive to sustained success, a la Border/Taylor, or simply an anomalous near-miss, per Gooch, will depend largely on how closely they choose to follow it.

India Under-19s’ ground-fielding and catching ranks among the best in the tournament, a result of clearly defined roles for players and thorough drills

Vishal Dikshit in Mirpur13-Feb-2016Going only by statistics, the fielding of the two finalists of the Under-19 World Cup is poles apart. Both teams have played five matches so far but India are third on the list of most fielding dismissals by a side [behind Pakistan’s 37 and Namibia’s 35, both from six matches]. West Indies, on the other hand, are right at the bottom with 15 fielding dismissals. Both teams have excelled at batting and bowling through the tournament, but India’s fielding could likely end up being the difference on Sunday.India’s work in the field was impressive from their first match. They got rid of the Ireland Under-19s openers by running them out with direct hits from two agile fielders, Ishan Kishan and Armaan Jaffer. The next two dismissals were excellent catches taken at first slip by Ricky Bhui. That was just the beginning. Washington Sundar and Sarfaraz Khan have maintained the slip-catching standards, wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant has completed five catches and two stumpings so far, and there have been a few one-handed catches to top these numbers.”It’s been really good so far, I’ve been pretty happy with it,” India head coach Rahul Dravid told ESPNcricinfo. “Fielding was one of the main things we wanted to work on from the beginning itself and I think the kind of practice they have had back home has really helped. They practised at the NCA and when the team got together for a couple of days we focused a lot on fielding there, too.”We thought, because of the nature of pitches here, the games would be really close, totals like 240-250 would be really competitive. For those situations, it was important for us to work on our close-in fielding. Things such as direct hits, cutting the angles, sharp throws.”As is the case with most senior teams, India’s Under-19s squad has been traveling with a hefty support staff. Apart from Dravid, the staff includes bowling coach Paras Mhambrey and Abhay Sharma, a former wicketkeeper who is the fielding coach. Dravid and Abhay have also worked together with the India A teams recently. Mhambrey, meanwhile, played an instrumental role as Vidarbha’s coach in their quarter-final run during the 2014-15 Ranji Trophy season.”These guys have access to so much nowadays compared to my days of Under-19s,” Dravid said. “There’s a team physio, a trainer, a bowling coach, a fielding coach to help them out from the age of 14-15.”When it comes to the specifics, Abhay has been working on clearly defined fielding drills and roles for the players, and different aspects of fielding. “We have been concentrating on specifics, like direct hits, how to get into position for high catches and parallel catches,” Abhay said. “Getting into the right body position is the key. Modern-day fielding is changing and we are trying to evolve, like diving in a safer way where you don’t get injured and are in a position to straightaway throw at the target.”We are working on improving each boy at his position on the field. Even things like taking caught-and-bowled chances, in the slips, in the circle, outfield.”The impact of India’s sharp fielding can be gauged from the fact that they have saved roughly 20 runs in every match•ICCThe results have shown in nearly every match. The combination of sharp slip-fielding and ground-fielding has helped India save roughly 20 runs per match and has allowed them to break partnerships consistently. India’s average fielding dismissals per innings stand at 0.581, the highest in the tournament so far.”We have worked really hard on catching: short catching, reflexes, how your hands are soft,” Abhay said. “Everybody says having soft hands is important, but how to get it normally and naturally… that is the area we have worked upon.”Dravid said that, in addition to their natural athleticism, lush outfields are also helpful for young fielders. “They are naturally athletic and nowadays grounds are so much better. We push them to put in the extra effort and go for a catch instead of staying back and playing it safe,” he said.India’s slip cordon now comprises Sarfaraz, Washington and Anmolpreet Singh, who took Bhui’s place recently both in the team and in the slips. Except a few minor errors in that area, India’s slip-fielding has been near-flawless. The kind of training they go through with Abhay and Dravid before each match shows how the fielders have reached such levels and quality. One outstanding moment came in their first match when Ireland batsman Adam Dennison edged one behind and the ball popped out of Pant’s gloves but Bhui, at first slip, reacted quickly and took it on the rebound.”We identified slip fielders on the basis of their fielding and positions in the teams they have played for so far,” Dravid said. “There were guys like Sarfaraz, Washington and Anmolpreet who are really good with sharp catches so it was about making them better.”Abhay has also been working with the two wicketkeepers in the team – Pant and Kishan. Pant was named the designated wicketkeeper for the tournament before the side left India and Abhay said he has been using some unusual practice methods with the wicketkeeper and slip fielders in the nets.”I have used some specific tools, like different kind of balls of varying weight which swings a lot, travels and comes quick,” Abhay said. “I went to a special manufacturer to get it specifically for this tournament because I knew I have to work with full intensity right from the start. Nice to see they are responding to the ideas.”It was only in the semi-final against Sri Lanka that India’s fielding showed a few blips. Pant missed a stumping, Avesh Khan dropped a simple catch and Kishan misjudged a catch, too. Against a team like West Indies, who can turn the tide of a match with such small moments, India will hope they can leave their nervousness behind and regain the high standards they have set for themselves

Stats highlights at the end of the fifth day of the first Test between Australia and Pakistan at Dubai

Bishen Jeswant26-Oct-201413 Number of Tests that Misbah-ul-Haq has won as captain of Pakistan. The record of most wins by a Pakistan captain, 14, is jointly held by Imran Khan and Javed Miandad.2 Number of back-to-back Test wins for Pakistan against Australia. Prior to this, Pakistan lost 13 consecutive Tests to Australia, extending back to 1999. Their previous win was even longer ago, in 1995. The only top-eight teams to have won fewer Tests against Australia in the last 20 years are New Zealand and Sri Lanka, who have only won a Test each.1 Number of Test matches that Australia have won in Asia, since 2007. They have nine losses and four draws, with their only win coming against Sri Lanka, at Galle.35 Zulfiqar Babar (35 years and 316 days) is the oldest left-arm bowler from Pakistan to have picked up a five-wicket haul in Tests. The only other left-armer from Pakistan to have done this after the age of 35 is Iqbal Qasim (35 years and 40 days), also versus Australia, in 1988. Saeed Ajmal and Mohammad Nazir are the only Pakistan bowlers older than Babar, who have taken a Test five-for.7 Number of wickets taken by Yasir Shah in this Test – the second most by a Pakistan spinner on debut, and the best by a Pakistan legspinner. The overall record for the best figures by a legspinner on debut is held by Narendra Hirwani (16/136).221 Pakistan’s margin of victory against Australia. In terms of wins by runs, this is their biggest against Australia, though there have been three instances of Pakistan achieving innings victories against Australia after batting first.2 Number of fourth-innings fifties for Mitchell Johnson, while batting at No. 9 or lower. No other player batting at these positions has scored more than one fourth-innings fifty. Johnson has scored 1657 runs batting at No. 8 or below, which is the second most in the last eight years.2 Number of wickets taken in 122.2 overs when teams have batted fourth on the final day of a Test at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, before this Test. In the fourth innings of this game, six wickets were taken from 68.1 overs bowled on the final day.273 Number of balls played by Australia between their fourth and fifth boundaries during their fourth innings. David Warner hit a four of the last ball of the ninth over, the next boundary after which was hit by Mitchell Johnson off the third ball of the 55th over.5 Steve Smith’s batting average in fourth innings’ before this Test. He had scored 20 runs from 4 innings. With his knock of 55 during Australia’s fourth innings in this Test, he has now pushed his average up to 15.

Plays of the Day from the fourth day of he second Test between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in Colombo

Andrew Fidel Fernando and Mohammad Isam 19-Mar-2013The poor stroke


Nasir Hossain had largely batted responsibly in the series, before the final day, but as he and Mushfiqur Rahim – Bangladesh’s final recognised batting pair – attempted to lift their side to a defendable total, a moment of indiscretion from Hossain saw his team slip even further. He had only arrived at the crease two overs before, after Rangana Herath had removed overnight batsman Mominul Haque, but spotting a flighted Herath delivery on leg stump, Hossain aimed an ambitious lofted drive, against the turn and across the line. The ball dipped beneath the shot, turned to travel through the gap in between bat and pad, and collected off stump.The drops

Aside from his batting, Mahela Jayawardene has been a terrific slip fielder throughout his career, and his absence has been felt in both matches. On the third evening, Angelo Mathews spilt a chance off Herath, but on day four, it was second slip’s turn. Nuwan Kulasekara drew an edge from Sohag Gazi, and even though the ball flew at waist-height, straight to Dimuth Karunaratne, the fielder got himself in a tangle trying to move to the left and couldn’t hold on to the chance. Karunaratne moved to short leg for the spinners and grassed a catch there as well, when he let a bat-pad catch off Tillakaratne Dilshan slip through his fingers.The shot


The mark of a quality batsman in form, it is often said, is when he can drive a ball along the ground through mid-on. Though he might be considered a tailender, albeit the more capable kind, it was Gazi who produced two such strokes on the final day. The first, which rolled along the carpet from the time it left the bat was perhaps never going to reach the boundary, given the length of the outfield grass. But the second was a searing drive struck off Shaminda Eranga, which hurtled past the bowler at shin-height, and gave mid-on no chance of running across to cut it off.The bonus
As early as the seventh over of Sri Lanka’s chase, the Bangladesh defense was crumbling. Jahurul Islam tried an unnecessary throw at the striker’s end with Dilshan inside the crease. The batsmen ran for the overthrow and were gifted another when the same throw was picked up by Tamim Iqbal running in from mid-on, and thrown towards the non-striker’s end, only to have it ricochet far enough for Dilshan and Karunaratne to pick up another run.The single


As soon as Lahiru Thirimanne drove powerfully through the covers with Sri Lanka needing just one to win, everyone, including the Bangladesh fielders, thought the game had ended. The batsmen didn’t bother running, and the fielders didn’t care for chasing after the ball. Non-striker Mathews even moved towards the stumps to uproot one that would serve as a souvenir of his first Test win as captain. Only, the ball had plugged in the slow outfield again, and had come to rest about a foot from the boundary. It took everyone about three seconds to realise this, and the batsmen looked at each other and ambled the final run, while a fielder looked back and trudged after the ball he never ended up collecting.