Man Utd target Matheus Cunha urged to snub Old Trafford transfer & hold out for a 'better team' amid Wolves heroics

Manchester United may not be the right destination for Wolves talisman Matheus Cunha, a former Molineux star has claimed.

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Cunha may have 'reservations' about move to Old TraffordDon Goodman believes Cunha could wait for better offersBrazilian star man in tough seasonFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Former Wolves striker Goodman revealed he would be "shocked" if Cunha didn't receive offers from top clubs across Europe. A move to Old Trafford may not be the best option for him, Goodman told .

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Cunha has struck 15 goals in 30 Premier League appearances this season, a key part of Wolves' survival. While Vitor Pereira's side have been in outstanding form as of late, Cunha has excelled all campaign – the best goal-scoring season of his career so far. The Brazil international has been at the centre of transfer speculation for months, and is expected to move on in the summer amid links to Man Utd.

WHAT GOODMAN SAID

Goodman said: "I wonder whether Matheus Cunha should have reservations about signing for Manchester United. At this moment, if I were Cunha, I would be questioning whether it would be a good move right now joining United, who have a lot of ground to make up and rebuilding to do to get where he wants to be.

"I think he's a top player who could play for any team in the Premier League or in Europe. That's how good I think he is. He needs to sort his head out at times, which is a separate issue, but Manchester United would be very lucky to have him.

"From his perspective, and I'm not dismissing the history and tradition of Manchester United, I'd be shocked if Matheus Cunha didn't have options to join better teams. I know it was on a different level but when I left Sunderland, who are a huge club, to join Wolves, it was because Wolves were in a better position to get me to where I wanted to be at that time.

"I suppose Manchester United can still win the Europa League, which may change things, but Matheus Cunha will have to sit down and talk through all the offers he'll receive with his representatives when the season draws to a close."

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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR CUNHA AND WOLVES?

With mid-table safety already secured, Wolves host Brighton on Saturday before encounters with Crystal Palace and Brentford to see out the campaign. Cunha will have a big decision on his hands as to where his future lies in the summer.

Tottenham now set to pursue summer move for "special" England international

Tottenham Hotspur are now set to pursue a summer move for a “special” England international who will be available for free at the end of the season, according to a deadline day report.

Frantic deadline day for Spurs

It has been far from an ideal season for Tottenham up to this point, and Ange Postecoglou was determined to try and rectify his side’s issues by bringing in multiple new signings on an extremely busy deadline day.

Mathys Tel’s U-turn was perhaps the biggest twist of the day, with the Bayern Munich forward ultimately opting to move to north London, despite previously making it clear he had no interest in the move.

Postecoglou will be glad to have strengthened in some key positions in the latter stages of the January transfer window, having also signed Lens defender Kevin Danso after hijacking Wolverhampton Wanderers’ move, but he did not get a new central midfielder through the door.

One player on the list of targets is Lille’s Angel Gomes, who is set to stay at Lille for the remainder of the season, before leaving as a free agent in the summer upon the expiration of his contract.

Rather than making a transfer deadline day move, Gomes has decided to see out the remainder of his deal with the French side before making a decision about his future in the summer, and he is unlikely to be short on options.

Spurs and West Ham United want to sign the midfielder for free in the summer, taking the opportunity to complete a bargain move for a four-time England international.

Tottenham also held talks to sign "powerful" forward before Mathys Tel

Spurs are racing to confirm a deal for the Frenchman before 11pm.

ByEmilio Galantini Feb 3, 2025 What Gomes could offer Tottenham

The English midfielder has most commonly been utilised as an attacking midfielder since his days in the youth team at Manchester United, and he has amassed 52 goal contributions in 107 games from that area of the pitch.

Lauded as “special” by French manager Jocelyn Gourvennec, the former United man has also impressed with his passing ability for Lille, ranking in the 97th percentile for his pass-completion rate per 90 over the past year, when compared to his positional peers.

Tottenham Hotspur’s upcoming Premier League fixtures

Date

Manchester United (h)

February 16th

Ipswich Town (a)

February 22nd

Manchester City (h)

February 26th

AFC Bournemouth (h)

March 9th

The £11.3k-per-week midfielder’s emergence on the international stage is a real indication of his quality, and having been a key player for Lille for a number of years now, he could now be ready to take the next step in his career by signing for a big Premier League club.

Gomes being available on a free transfer is an added bonus for Tottenham, and Postecoglou will be hoping his winter transfer window additions can help his side turn the corner, to stand them in good stead to attract the highest calibre of player this summer.

Bayern Munich defender Josip Stanisic almost sparks mass brawl at San Siro after shoving ball boy over during Bavarians' Champions League defeat to Inter Milan

Bayern Munich star Josip Stanisic almost sparked a mass brawl at San Siro for pushing a ballboy off his stool against Inter Milan.

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Stanisic pushes ballboy off stoolKid threw ball away at San SiroNearly sparks Inter vs Bayern brawlFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Bayern drew 2-2 with Inter in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday as the Italian giants advanced to the last four with a 4-3 aggregate win. As the German side pushed for a late winner, Stanisic tried to get the ball back into play quickly and ended up pushing over a ballboy who had thrown the ball away from him. The Inter bench angrily confronted the defender but the situation eventually resolved itself.

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After the match, he told German newspaper Abendzeitung: "Every team in the world wastes time when they’re leading. It was a bit stupid of me to push him there."

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In the end, it mattered little as Inter knocked Bayern out of the competition, ensuring Harry Kane's wait for a first-ever trophy went on. The Serie A team are still on course to win a treble as they are top of the league, are into the Champions League semi-finals, and face rivals AC Milan in the last four of the Coppa Italia.

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WHAT NEXT?

Inter return to Serie A action on Sunday away to Bologna, whereas Bayern travel to Heidenheim the day before in the Bundesliga.

Sophie Ecclestone stars with bat and ball as Manchester Originals keep play-off hopes alive

Birmingham Phoenix suffer second defeat after being dismissed for 104 chasing 123

Charlie Peters28-Aug-2022Manchester Originals 122 for 6 (Lamb 30, Arlott 2-17) beat Birmingham Phoenix 104 (Elwis 32, Ecclestone 3-8)Manchester Originals left Birmingham Phoenix shellshocked by masterminding an 18-run victory at Edgbaston, successfully defending a total of just 122 to claim their second victory of the season.England internationals Kate Cross and Sophie Ecclestone led the charge for the visitors, ripping through the home side’s star-studded top order to leave them spluttering at 22 for 5 after 34 deliveries. A plucky sixth-wicket partnership of 46 from Georgia Elwiss and Issy Wong kept Phoenix within touching distance of a stunning turnaround in front of a record attendance at Edgbaston, but it wasn’t to be as Originals held their nerve at the death.Wong, Emily Arlott and Kirstie Gordon had earlier bowled admirably to restrict the Originals to 122 for 6, a score that threatened to be some way under par until Phoenix found themselves rattled by an electrifying new-ball performance that put paid to their chances of moving up the table into second place for now.The Phoenix reply got off to a rocky start from the outset. First Eve Jones popped one into the hands of Lee off Kate Cross for none. Then Amy Jones was clean bowled attempting to cut a Hannah Jones delivery that looked far too straight for such a shot, leaving the home side 10 for 2 after just 13 balls.Captain Sophie Devine fell soon after for 4, then Ellyse Perry edged through to keeper Ellie Thelkeld a few sets later. When Ecclestone pinned Sophie Molineux in front, things went from bad to worse. Phoenix were now teetering on the brink at 22 for 5, still some 101 off the target.An enterprising partnership from Elwiss and Wong bought Phoenix within arm’s length of a tight finish. Elwiss in particular looked to accelerate, smashing three fours in the rebuilding period as the duo put on 46 to leave them requiring 54 from the last five sets. After a quiet period, the Edgbaston crowd were briefly back to their usual raucous self.But when Jones sent Wong’s bails flying after posting a valiant 24, it seemed a tall order. Elwiss soon followed back to the dugout for a fighting 32, and with her wicket the game was as good as sealed.Earlier, Originals had started their innings off at a decent rate, as openers Lizelle Lee and Emma Lamb racked up 41 between them inside the powerplay. But it was an injection of pace that saw the first breakthrough – rapid England seamer Wong caught Lee bang in front lbw for 20, after having greeted her with a fiery bouncer the previous delivery.Lamb fell not long after to Arlott for a streaky 30, driving uppishly into the hands of Elwiss. The new partnership of Erin Burns and Amy Satterthwaite struggled to find momentum, as Wong, Arlott and Gordon were able to dry up the visitors’ ability to find the boundary.Phoenix’s pair of slow left-armers continued to apply the pressure, and not long after Gordon had breached Satterthwaite’s defences and bowled her for 13, a mix-up off the bowling off Molineux saw new batter Ami Campbell run out for a duck.Only Ecclestone was able to bring some impetus to the death of Originals’ innings. A quickfire 20 off 14 balls, including a slog-sweep for six off Molineux, was just about enough to help her side post a competitive score

عماد النحاس يشيد بثلاثي الأهلي بعد الفوز على سيراميكا كليوباترا.. ويوضح سبب الأداء الدفاعي

تحدث عماد النحاس، المدير الفني المؤقت لفريق الكرة الأول بالنادي الأهلي عن مباراة سيراميكا كليوباترا التي أقيمت مساء اليوم الثلاثاء ضمن منافسات الدوري المصري الممتاز.

ونجح الأهلي في تحقيق فوز صعب بهدف دون رد في اللقاء الذي أقيم على ملعب استاد المقاولون العرب ضمن مواجهات الجولة السادسة من عمر المرحلة الثانية للدوري.

وقال النحاس في تصريحات بالمؤتمر الصحفي: “أود أن أبدأ بتوجيه التهنئة للاعبين ولجمهور النادي الأهلي على هذا الفوز المهم، لقد كانت المباراة أمام فريق منظم للغاية، وكان علينا أن نستغل الفرصة التي أتيحت لنا لكي نتمكن من تسجيل الهدف الوحيد في اللقاء” 

وأضاف: “اهتممنا في هذه المباراة أكثر بالجوانب الدفاعية على حساب الناحية الهجومية، في المباريات السابقة، كنا نركز على الأداء الهجومي بشكل أكبر، لكن الأهم في النهاية هو الحصول على النقاط الثلاث”.

موعد مباراة الأهلي القادمة بعد الفوز على سيراميكا كليوباترا في الدوري

وأردف: “نطمح في الحفاظ على لقب الدوري، ونسعى جاهدين لتحقيق هذا الهدف، كنا حريصين على تحقيق الفوز، ولعبنا على هذا الأساس، وركزنا على التحكم في الاستحواذ في الوقت الذي تركز فيه الأهمية على استغلال مناطق الخطورة”.

وواصل: “أداء ياسر إبراهيم اليوم كان رائعًا، وكذلك مصطفى العش وأحمد نبيل كوكا، لقد قدموا أداءً مميزًا، فيما يتعلق بسؤالك عن استمرار عملي مع الفريق بعد التعاقد مع مدرب أجنبي، فإن هذا قرار يعود إلى إدارة النادي، وليس قرارًا لي شخصيًا”.

وتابع: “بالنسبة للحديث عن أخطاء اللاعبين، فأنا لا أحب الخوض في ذلك، لكن بشكل عام، كان أداء طاهر جيدًا حتى اللحظة الأخيرة، وكذلك أشرف بن شرقي، جميع اللاعبين كانوا في قمة الجاهزية، ونحن في نهاية الموسم، وأنا كمدرب أنتظر الكثير من اللاعبين في هذه المرحلة”.

واستطرد: “ما زال أمامنا مباراتين هامتين، وحاليًا نحن نركز في مباراة البنك الأهلي، هدفنا في هذه المباراة هو الفوز، وإذا تحقق الفوز وأدى اللاعبون بشكل جيد، فهذا سيكون أفضل بكثير”.

واستأنف: “فيما يخص سيراميكا كليوباترا، الفريق يمتلك مجموعة قوية، وقد أظهروا قدرة جيدة في التعامل مع الكرة بشكل عام، كان لدينا رغبة في تسجيل الهدف الثاني، لكن في الوقت الحالي، كان هدفنا هو الحفاظ على النتيجة والتأكد من الخروج بثلاث نقاط”.

واستكمل: “أما بالنسبة لخطورة سيراميكا على مرمانا، فكانت في آخر دقيقتين فقط، وتمكنا من التعامل معها بشكل جيد، عمومًا، المباراة سارت بشكل جيد بالنسبة لنا، وتمكنا من السيطرة على معظم فرص سيراميكا”.

وواصل: “نحن حرصنا على الخروج من المباراة بهذه النتيجة، لم يكن هناك أي لاعب يخرج عن إطار الخطة المتبعة، فيما يخص التبديلات، كان أول تبديل بهدف زيادة الضغط على سيراميكا، وقررنا إجراء تغيير في وسط الملعب ليظهر إمام عاشور بشكل أفضل”.

واختتم النحاس: “أما عن مسألة الدخول المتأخر في المباراة، فأنا لا أعتقد أن التأخير كان له تأثير في هذه المباراة، لكن في مباراة المصري دخلنا متأخرين بنحو 5 دقائق، ربما الجاهزية الذهنية لم تكن على النحو المطلوب بسبب توقيت المباراة”.

A star is born (to bat): Echoes of Sachin 1989 in Vaibhav's record-shattering spectacle

There have been great batters in cricket history, but none of them have done at 14 what Suryavanshi did on Monday night against a bowling attack boasting 694 international caps

Karthik Krishnaswamy29-Apr-20255:27

‘Otherworldly’ Suryavanshi wows Bishop and Aaron

Speed is distance divided by time, and in that equation rests a partial answer to a question you may have asked yourself again and again on Monday night, when you watched Rajasthan Royals (RR) take on Gujarat Titans (GT) in Jaipur.How can a 14-year-old hit the ball that far?Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s bat traces remarkable distances in remarkably brief timespans. When he winds up, he lifts his bat so high that his gloves are at shoulder level behind him. By the time his bat completes its swing, it’s usually traced a full circle and come to rest above his other shoulder.Young batters are advised not to let their hands stray too far from their body in their backlift, lest they lose control of their bat-swing. Through cricket’s long and glorious history, however, several batters have disobeyed that maxim and thrilled the world. Suryavanshi belongs to a great lineage. Garfield Sobers. Brian Lara. Vinod Kambli. Yuvraj Singh. Victor Trumper in that immortal photograph. Harmanpreet Kaur in this one.Related

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For all the remarkable things those other names have done on cricket fields, though, none of them did at 14 what Suryavanshi did on Monday night to a bowling attack boasting 694 international caps. At an age when most of us were still working out the finer details of the classic schoolchild dream – venue, opposition, shots played to reach various milestones, partner at the other end at those moments – Suryavanshi lived it.Ishant Sharma was once a teenage prodigy. He was 19 when he bowled his famous spell to Ricky Ponting at the WACA in 2008. That spell preceded Suryavanshi’s birth by three years and two months.The two came face to face on Monday, and their skirmish was just one ball old when it exploded to life.Suryavanshi had already hit a six by then – off Mohammed Siraj, the man who displaced Ishant from India’s Test-match pace attack four years ago – and that shot had come off a ball pitched on the fuller side of a good length. That six had been the classic six of the high-backlift, circular-swing type of batter, launched with a stable base over long-on, and that shot had perhaps led Ishant to think of testing Suryavanshi with the short ball.

WATCH – Highlights of Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s record-breaking hundred on JioHotstar (India only)

It was a good short ball too, slanted across the left-hand batter, finishing near his rear shoulder: a tricky angle to hook against, an awkward height to hook from. Suryavanshi picked a vacant space to the right of deep backward square leg, swiveled on his back leg, and hooked it for six.So quickly was Suryavanshi in position for this hook, back foot deep in his crease before the ball left Ishant’s hand, that it suggested he had been expecting the short ball. Perhaps this informed the length of Ishant’s next ball. Or perhaps it was just a bad ball, a half-volley bowled by a rattled 36-year-old to a batter less than half his age.Either way, Suryavanshi whipped it for another six, a 91m hit that landed on the pink canvas roof of the first tier of stands beyond the midwicket boundary.4:33

Bishop on Suryavanshi’s record: ‘That was mind-blowing’

This was the ninth ball Suryavanshi had faced. He had already played an extraordinary innings. He had shown incredible bat-speed, and he had shown the eye and control over that unusually expansive bat-swing to strike balls of different lengths, from fast bowlers of international quality, with pinpoint timing while holding his shape through shots off front and back foot. He had shown all this at the age of 14 years and 32 days.And Suryavanshi wasn’t even close to being done. There was so much more of his range still left to show off.This has been a terrible IPL season for the offspinner-to-LHB match-up. Before Monday’s game, it had produced a 140-plus batting strike rate for the first time in any IPL season. Even so, given everything Suryavanshi had done up to then, it was natural for GT to bring on Washington Sundar in the fifth over and try and see how Suryavanshi would handle him.He handled himself to the tune of 6, 0, 6, 4, and if the first six was a regulation pull, the second was a sensational example of length manipulation. This was the kind of ball with which Washington has tied down a series of left-hand batters: flat, quick, into the surface, not full enough to loft down the ground, not short enough for a genuine horizontal-bat shot, and angled into leg stump to minimise width. It’s not a ball you can hit for six over backward square leg; not unless you do what Suryavanshi did, dropping on to his back knee in a flash and swiveling through the hips like a breakdancer.We have watched Rishabh Pant play this shot numerous times, but our jaws continue to drop whenever he does it. It’s that difficult, and who else even plays it? Well, now there’s someone else, and he’s 14.5:13

What’s the best way to handle Suryavanshi?

The sixes took Suryavanshi to 47. The four – one-bounce, lofted neatly over the covers – brought up the half-century off 17 balls. The quickest of this season.And he wasn’t done even now. Having scored 52 off 20 in the powerplay, he still needed to show he could do 49 off 18 outside it. For all the gobsmacking shots he had already played, he still had to play the shot of his innings, a drive over long-off after going deep in his crease to manufacture elevation against Prasidh Krishna. For all the damage he had already done to GT’s individual bowling figures, he hadn’t yet gone 6, 4, 6, 4, 4, 6 and taken Karim Janat for 30 runs in an over.He had scored the fastest half-century of the season; he hadn’t yet scored the second-fastest hundred in the 18-year history of the tournament. It fell to Rashid Khan to bowl the ball that took Suryavanshi there, a long-hop that he dumped over the leg-side boundary with another violent hip-swivel.It was the 11th six of Suryavanshi’s innings. It was by no means the biggest one, and Siraj, flinging himself backwards at deep midwicket, made a doomed effort to catch it at the boundary, landing flat on his back and remaining there for a few more seconds, taking whatever rest this evening had to offer him, in whatever form it came.And that, perhaps, was all of us too – dazed, flat on our metaphorical backs, taking in the enormity of the moment as Suryavanshi, pulling his helmet off to reveal the full extent of his cherubic boyishness, soaked it in.1:47

When a young Tendulkar shocked Ian Bishop in his pomp

There was something poetic about Suryavanshi getting to his century off Rashid’s bowling. Rashid had been a teenage prodigy himself, an unimaginably precocious shatterer of records, but even he was 17 when he burst on to the big stage. When you are in school, the gap between 14 and 17 can seem impossibly vast.And Rashid is the great legspinner of his day. On December 16, 1989, that title had belonged to Abdul Qadir. On that day, Sachin Tendulkar had taken Qadir to the cleaners, hitting him for 27 runs in an over while scoring 53 off 18 balls in a proto-T20 game – an unofficial 20-overs-a-side match arranged after an ODI in Peshawar had been abandoned due to bad light.Tendulkar was 16 then, and Suryavanshi is younger still, an age both precocious and, to the viewer, precarious. You are old enough if you are good enough, yes, but it’s still legitimate to ask if a 14-year-old should even be playing professional sport, with all its pressures and pitfalls.But then you watch Suryavanshi’s bat trace that smooth, powerful circle and launch the ball into the night sky, and you still your doubts and fears. This boy was born to bat.

Of all Kohli's feats, one performance stands out over the others

His two centuries in a Test in Australia left a lasting impression of his extraordinary skill

Ian Chappell27-Aug-2023Virat Kohli succeeded Sachin Tendulkar as India’s champion batter, which is appropriate: they are both generational talents.While they are Indian icons, both etched their names in the world’s consciousness by performing heroic deeds in Australia. Tendulkar did so with two marvellous centuries in Australia in 1992. The first, 148 not out at the SCG, was a brilliant knock in any terms but for a player of just 19 years, it was exceptional.When he followed it with a brilliant 114 on the bouncy Perth pitch against a talented Australian pace attack, it ensured the name Tendulkar was going to shine brightly for years to come. A short man at such a young age was not supposed to treat renowned pace bowlers with such ease and score so prolifically off the back foot.In 2012, with the evergreen Tendulkar still plying his trade, Kohli showed glimpses of his talent, also at the WACA ground, with a promising 44 and 75. His skilful batting against a good Australian pace attack hinted at his talent, and when he then followed it with an excellent century in Adelaide, while others around him failed, it was widely accepted he would be the next outstanding Indian batter.Appropriately, two years later at Adelaide Oval again, the newly appointed India captain scored two sublime centuries to almost snatch a memorable victory for his side. Kohli’s second-innings 141, in particular, on a pitch that encouraged spin, was a masterpiece and with a little more help from his team-mates would have resulted in a spectacular Indian victory.

Both Tendulkar and Kohli etched their names in the world’s consciousness by performing heroic deeds in Australia

Just as compelling was his refusal to play for a draw. When Kohli said after the match that he felt success was more likely if he continued to bat aggressively, he won acclaim for his positive approach. A few years later when he said in a radio interview that he didn’t play “fancy shots” in Test cricket because he didn’t want to adversely effect his technique, it was clear he was a master batter who understood his trade. The fact that Kohli in his prime achieved the incredible feat of averaging 50 in all three forms of the game validated his theory.While Kohli’s team lost that 2014-15 series 2-0, they returned four years later to clinch an unexpected 2 -1 victory. They then confirmed their class another two years on with a similar gutsy win, though Kohli himself returned home for the birth of his first child after India’s ignominious loss in the first Test of that series.Kohli proved to be a capable captain and with hard-fought victories in Australia and England, became known as a leader for all conditions. Despite his emotional approach he succeeded as captain because the team were fully behind him and wanted to perform for their leader. Kohli’s attitude in always pushing for victory from the opening delivery of a Test played a large part in engaging his team-mates.He also endeared himself by not asking the team to do anything he wouldn’t attempt himself. His fitness, shown by the intensity with which he ran between the wickets, was an example in this regard.Despite Kohli’s amazing record and his strong leadership, it was that second-innings century in Adelaide in 2014 that cemented his undoubted skill. He hit 16 fours and one six and scored at the superb rate of 80 runs per 100 balls on a pitch that suited Nathan Lyon’s sharp-turning offbreaks. Kohli’s ability to successfully play the cover drive – the toughest shot for a right-hander on a turning pitch – was exceptional and severely frustrated Australia’s charge for victory.Kohli will be remembered for many exceptional feats as both a batter and successful captain. However, for me it was those two innings at Adelaide Oval, especially the second one, that left a lasting impression of his extraordinary skill.

How do you bat in a T20 in Chennai or Mumbai?

With the current lot of IPL games being played in these two cities, the ability to deal with the conditions there is to the fore

Aakash Chopra20-Apr-2021Strokemaking is one of the top attractions of T20 cricket and so curators usually look to prepare pitches that are a little skewed in favour of the batters. While some argue that there should always be a fair contest between bat and ball, the dynamics of a T20 game demand that bowlers need to look elsewhere than the pitch for allies.Scoreboard pressure is as real as the ball swinging in the air or turning off the surface, and must be used to your advantage. Of course, nobody wants a featherbed for a surface at a really small ground. A lot of people tell you that the watching public, at home or in the stadium, loves only big hits but the fact is that too much of anything isn’t good. In a bat versus bat contest, cricket often loses.This IPL has already produced some very interesting surfaces and the trend is likely to continue. With only six venues hosting the entire tournament and only two being used during any given block of about two weeks, the chances of pitches adding a new element to the contests are high. When there are back-to-back matches over two consecutive days at the same venue, the curator might try his best to have two similar pitches ready but it’s a lot easier said than done because he doesn’t really have the option to use the pitches that are off to one side or the other. And the ones close to the central playing surface attract heavy traffic and so are bound to have a lot of wear and tear.How do you counter challenging surfaces in a T20 game? Obviously the challenge is different on different surfaces. The pitch in Chennai has been slowing down radically as games progress, and that makes it toughest to bat during the last five overs there. On the contrary, the green and moist pitch at the Wankhede Stadium is toughest to bat on in the first six overs, while the ball is new.Since the challenges are different, they need to be countered differently too. In Chennai, you need to start the innings assuming that run-scoring is going to get tougher with every passing over, and that makes it important to play high-risk cricket up front.You must attack from the get-go, and while you should still choose the areas you want to target, there’s merit in stretching the envelope a little in the first six overs. After that, the focus must switch to rotating the strike as much possible, and perhaps, waiting for short-pitched deliveries for boundary shots. Once the ball gets old in Chennai, it’s very difficult to hit boundaries off the front foot without taking a significant amount of risk. Of course that risk must be taken once in a while but if you have gotten off to a flier and have managed to rotate the strike in the middle overs, you won’t be forced to manufacture these shots all the time.On a seaming Wankhede deck, batters must allow the ball to come to them•BCCI/IPLChepauk is a reasonably big ground and it may not be a bad idea to chip the ball over the fielders inside the circle to create opportunities for twos – that’s something we haven’t seen very often thus far in the tournament.It must be acknowledged that all of this is much easier said than done, for a game of cricket will invariably find a narrative of its own.As for the first six overs at the Wankhede Stadium, on a night when the ball is seaming around, you ought to dip into your Test batting repertoire and momentarily forget that it’s a T20 game and that Mumbai is a high-scoring ground. Our game demands that one must always respect the conditions, and if you don’t just because it’s a different format, you’re likely to fail.The swinging-seaming ball must be encountered with caution and care. Don’t play big, booming drives on the up. Instead, allow the ball to come to you.T20 cricket has changed the mindsets of a lot of bowlers and many feel obliged to try a couple of variations in any given over. Often it’s the change of pace on a surface good for batting, but even on a bowler-friendly surface, they tend to change the line and length a couple of times in an over, and that’s the opportunity you must wait for and seize.If there are no easy opportunities to score, you must bide your time and back yourself to make up for the lost time in the overs to follow. The toughest thing for a goalkeeper while saving a penalty shot is to stand still and hold his ground instead of anticipating and diving to one side, but there’s enough evidence to suggest that his best chance of pulling off a save is to not move till the ball has been kicked. A batter letting a couple of deliveries go to the wicketkeeper in a T20 game is akin to standing still for a goalkeeper, but on a seamer-friendly pitch that might be the best thing you as a batter could do to help yourself and the team.Once again, like it was the case for the strategy to succeed in Chennai, this too is easier said than done here.

سلوت يعلن موعد مغادرة محمد صلاح لـ منتخب مصر.. ويؤكد: لست مندهشًا من غضبه

تحدث الهولندي آرني سلوت، المدير الفني للفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي ليفربول عن مباراة فريقه أمام سندرلاند، ضمن منافسات الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

ويواجه ليفربول نظيره سندرلاند مساء غدٍ، الأربعاء، في تمام الساعة العاشرة والربع بتوقيت القاهرة، الحادية عشرة والربع بتوقيت مكة المكرمة.

ويستضيف ملعب آنفيلد المباراة بين ليفربول وسندرلاند والتي تجمعهما ضمن منافسات الجولة الرابعة عشرة من بطولة الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز “بريميرليج”.

وقال سلوت في المؤتمر الصحفي الذي نقلته صحيفة “ليفربول إيكو” عن تدوير التشكيل: “لم أشعر بالكثير حيال ذلك، حيث كانت لدينا فترة تعافي بالأمس، ثم سنتدرب اليوم، لذلك دعونا نرى كيف يشعر اللاعبون”.

وأضاف: “لقد غاب فلوريان عن التدريب لمدة أسبوع ونصف أو أسبوعين، إن لعبه لعدة دقائق كان بالفعل أمرًا جيدًا، من المشجع لنا أن نراه يلعب بهذه الجودة على الرغم من أنها ليست المرة الأولى بالنسبة لنا، ربما المرة الأولى التي يلاحظ عدد كبير من الناس تلك الجودة”.

اقرأ أيضًا | ليفربول يأمل شيئًا ما بعد استدعاء محمد صلاح لقائمة منتخب مصر

وأكمل: “كما أن تسجيل أليكس (إيزاك) لهدفه الأول أمر إيجابي، فهو لم يتمكن من اللعب لمدة 5 إلى 10 دقائق أخرى لأنه كان يشعر بالفعل ببعض التقلصات العضلية، إنه لاعب آخر علينا أن نرى كيف سيتصرف”.

وعن غضب محمد صلاح بسبب عدم لعبه مباراة وست هام الماضية: “افتراض عادل ورد فعل طبيعي لشخص يمكنه اللعب معنا، بالطبع، اللاعب ليس سعيدًا لأنه لا يلعب وهو ليس الوحيد الذي أستطيع أن أخبرك بذلك”.

وأردف: “لقد كان سلوكه كما تتوقع من المحترف الذي هو عليه، لقد كان داعمًا جدًا لزملائه في الفريق وتعامل مع نفسه بشكل جيد حقًا”.

واستطرد: “لا يمكنك اللعب بهذه الجودة كل ثلاثة أيام إذا ذهبت وراء عواطفك لكن مو منضبط للغاية، سيظل دائمًا ذلك اللاعب المحترف المتميز كما كان في الأيام القليلة الماضية، إنه لاعب من الطراز الرفيع”.

وعن موعد مغادرة محمد صلاح لمعسكر منتخب مصر استعدادًا لكأس أمم إفريقيا أوضح سلوت: “سيغادر يوم 15 ديسمبر، الطريقة التي عملنا بها هي أن يكون هناك تواصل بين الأطراف الثلاثة، اللاعب والنادي والمنتخب، هذا ليس جديدًا لكن فيفا أعلنت أن 15 ديسمبر هو آخر يوم لترك اللاعبين”.

وحول كيفية اللعب بدون صلاح خلال فترة تواجده في كأس أمم إفريقيا تابع: “علينا التكيف وإيجاد طريقة لعب بدونه”.

وأتم: “لحسن الحظ، خلال الفترة التي قضيتها هنا، كان شخصًا خارقًا ولكن بالنسبة لجميع اللاعبين حول العالم، هناك أوقات في النادي يكون فيها المرء بشرًا، لقد سجل العديد من الأهداف لنا وأنا متأكد من أنه سيفعل ذلك في المستقبل”

Rib injury sidelines Rabada from first Test against India

Corbin Bosch replaced Kagiso Rabada in the South Africa XI, completing the seam trio alongside Marco Jansen and Wiaan Mulder

Firdose Moonda14-Nov-2025

Kagiso Rabada was ruled out on the morning of the Eden Gardens Test•Associated Press

Kagiso Rabada sustained a rib injury during South Africa’s first training session in India on Tuesday, which ended up ruling him out of the Eden Gardens Test on the morning of the match. No decision has been made on whether he will be available for the second Test, which starts in Guwahati next week.ESPNcricinfo has established that Rabada was taken for a scan the morning after injury occurred. However, he still attended Wednesday’s training session. The extent of his participation in that session is unclear, though. He did not take part in Thursday’s optional training – which is regular practice for many senior players – and underwent a fitness test before play began on Friday morning. After experiencing discomfort during the test, a late call was made, ruling Rabada out of the Test match.Corbin Bosch, who has played three Tests prior to this tour, was named in the XI in Rabada’s place. Bosch was also part of South Africa’s Test squad in Pakistan, but did not play in either of the matches on the tour. He is now one of three seamers in South Africa’s line-up for the first Test; the other two are Marco Jansen and Wiaan Mulder.South Africa do not have any other seamers in their squad, after Lungi Ngidi was left out of both the Pakistan and India series in a horses-for-courses approach to playing in the subcontinent. Despite Rabada’s injury, no replacement players have been called up to the squad yet.South Africa will play another Test, followed by three ODIs and five T20Is, over the next five weeks in India. The white-ball squads have not yet been announced, but it is expected that South Africa will select as close to a first-choice T20I squad as possible, with next year’s T20 World Cup in mind. Rabada is expected to be part of that T20I squad.