كشفت تقارير تعرض لاعب الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي ليفربول لإصابة بتمزق في الرباط الصليبي الأمامي بعد مواجهة ساوثهامبتون بكأس رابطة الأندية الإنجليزية.
وواجه ليفربول نظيره ساوثهامبتون في دور الـ32 من بطولة كأس كاراباو على ملعب “آنفيلد” وحقق فوزًا صعبًا بهدفين لهدف، في المباراة التي جمعتهما مساء أمس، الثلاثاء.
وقال الصحفي الموثوق في أخبار الانتقالات والتعاقدات، فابريزيو رومانو، أن مدافع الفريق الأول لكرة القدم الإيطالي جيوفاني ليوني، تعرض لتمزق في الرباط الصليبي الأمامي.
وكشف أيضًا أن مدة غيابه عن الملاعب ستكون عدة أشهر طويلة من الموسم، بسبب تلك الإصابة اللعينة التي تعرض لها في أول ظهور له مع ليفربول.
اقرأ أيضًا | موعد مباراة ليفربول القادمة بعد الفوز على ساوثهامبتون في كأس كاراباو
وكان أول ظهور له بقميص ليفربول مساء أمس، في كأس كاراباو أمام ساوثهامبتون والذي كان فيه آرن سلوت سعيدًا للغاية بالأداء الذي قدمه اللاعب الشاب.
ويعتبر ليوني مهددًا بالغياب عن الفريق حتى نهاية الموسم لكن الموعد الأكيد سيتم تحديده بعد إجراء العملية الجراحية.
حتى الآن لم يعلن نادي ليفربول أي تفاصيل تخص ليوني وإصابته ومدة غيابه ولا يوجد أي تقرير رسمي حول حالته لكن الأكيد أن النادي سيصدر بيانًا خلال الساعات المقبلة.
Celtic have not made a big splash in the summer transfer window as of yet, with over a month left to go before it slams shut, as they have not spent more than £2m on a single player.
Benjamin Nygren
The £2m that they shelled out for versatile midfielder Benjamin Nygren is the most money that they have spent on a single signing so far, which means that there could be bigger deals to come in the next few weeks.
Brendan Rodgers recently made it very clear that the Hoops need to “improve the squad” further if they want to be ambitious and progress as a club.
This means that the Scottish Premiership champions may have to look at higher-profile signings before the end of the window, in an attempt to replicate the success they had with Arne Engels last summer.
Celtic hit the jackpot with Arne Engels
Celtic reportedly smashed their club-record transfer fee to sign the Belgium international from Bundesliga side Augsburg for £11m, which was an ambitious move that paid off on the pitch.
Engels ended his first season at Parkhead with a return of ten goals and 13 assists in 53 appearances in all competitions for the Scottish giants, which shows that he offered quality as both a scorer and a creator of goals.
Although you could also put it down to the change in format, the Belgian star also helped Celtic to get past the group/league phase of the Champions League for the first time since the 2012/13 campaign, as they lost to Bayern Munich in the play-off stage.
Engels produced one goal and three assists in ten games in the competition, and Celtic could find a similarly effective midfield star by signing Salvatore Esposito.
Why Celtic should sign Salvatore Esposito
The Hoops have been linked with an interest in the Spezia star, who is valued at around £5m by the Italian side, and he could arrive as their next Engels-esque deal.
Although he would not be as expensive, a fee of £5m would still be more than double what Celtic have paid for any other player this summer, and he would come in as a potentially game-changing signing.
Esposito, who has been hailed as “elegant” and an “orchestrator” by talent scout Jacek Kulig, caught the eye with his brilliant performances in the Serie B for Spezia last term.
His form in the second division in Italy suggests that the potential is there for the 24-year-old star to have a similar impact to Engels at Parkhead.
Appearances
34
34
Goals
9
7
Big chances created
11
18
Assists
6
9
Duels won per game
2.5
7.3
Ground duel success rate
49%
68%
Aerial duel success rate
49%
51%
As you can see in the table above, their respective performances at league level last term even suggest that Esposito could offer more to the team as a creator and in terms of what he can offer out of possession, by creating more high-quality chances and winning more duels with greater efficiency.
Therefore, the Italy international could have a significant impact on the team if he is able to translate these performances over to Scottish football and the Champions League, potentially pushing Celtic on to reach the next level on the European stage, by being a fantastic box-to-box midfield presence.
Salvatore Esposito for Italy vs England.
Celtic have won the Premiership title in each of the last four years, which means that the Champions League is where they should be targeting progress, and Esposito’s form in comparison to Engels suggests that he can help them to push on once more.
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Therefore, the Hoops should consider pushing the boat out to splash £5m on a new midfield signing to play alongside the likes of Engels and Reo Hatate next season.
He helped Australia pille up 196 before Scotland were bowled out for 126 with Stoinis and Green picking up a combined 6 for 39
Karthik Krishnaswamy06-Sep-2024In conditions where every other batter from both sides struggled for timing, Josh Inglis struck the ball with remarkable fluency on his way to the fastest T20I hundred by an Australia batter. He brought up the milestone in 43 balls, beating the previous record – held jointly by himself, Aaron Finch and Glenn Maxwell – by four balls, and finished with 103 off 49.To put the innings in context, the rest of Australia’s top six scored 89 off 73 balls between them. His innings laid the foundation of Australia’s 70-run win over Scotland and also helped them take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.Sent in, Australia set Scotland 197 to draw level after their shellacking in Wednesday’s series-opener. The home side had their moments in the chase, particularly during a 42-ball 59 from Brandon McMullen, but they could never quite keep up with the asking rate. On an occasionally two-paced pitch that offered a bit of seam movement, Australia’s seamers used their height advantage expertly, bowling hard lengths and extracting every ounce of help they could find.Scotland managed the odd spurt of quick scoring – George Munsey whipped Xavier Bartlett for two leg-side sixes in the first over, and McMullen used his feet against the quicks and hit four sixes, the pick of them a front-foot pull over wide long-on off Aaron Hardie – but Australia kept chipping out regular wickets, bowling into the pitch and inducing miscues.When Sean Abbott employed this modus operandi to end McMullen’s charge in the 13th over, the contest was all but over. From there, the end was swift, with Scotland losing their last six wickets for just 20 runs and being bowled out for 126 in 16.4 overs.Take Inglis away, and Australia didn’t do a whole lot better with the bat. Jake Fraser-McGurk, who had fallen for a duck on T20I debut on Wednesday, got off the mark in the format with a first-ball four. But he struggled to middle the ball – and often failed to connect – as his aim-for-the-grandstand methods proved unsuitable for the conditions, particularly against McMullen’s nibbly new-ball medium-pace.Marcus Stoinis picked up 4 for 23 with his medium pace•AFP/Getty ImagesHe fell for a run-a-ball 16, and Travis Head, who had battered Scotland for 80 off 25 in the first T20I, was out for a first-ball duck, bowled by a peach of an inducker from left-arm quick Brad Currie. Currie was one of five players in Scotland’s XI who hadn’t played on Wednesday.Three of the incomers were bowlers, and the revamped attack continued to make the Australia batters not named Inglis work for their runs. Cameron Green scratched his way to 36 off 29, and Marcus Stoinis finished with an unbeaten 20 off 20. They would eventually have their revenge with the ball, picking up a combined 6 for 39 in 5.4 overs.Inglis, though, seemed to bat on another pitch, against another attack. Where his team-mates seemed to lack options if they were denied room to free their arms, Inglis kept finding the boundary by means of quick feet and quicker hands. He manipulated the field expertly with his movements around the crease and his use of the scoop and reverse-scoop. When the Scotland bowlers tried to cramp him by going short and into his body, he generated incredible bat-speed through his short-arm whips and pulls.Despite this, Australia had only got to 179 when Chris Sole ended Inglis’ innings in the 19th over. Sole, introduced only in the 11th over and bowling just three overs, was perhaps Scotland’s best bowler on the day, quicker than his colleagues and as a result more impactful when he used his pace variations.In the end, Australia got close to 200 thanks to a cameo from Tim David, who clubbed the first two balls of the final over, bowled by Brad Wheal, for six, the second one soaring well beyond the midwicket boundary and landing outside the ground.
Arsenal are reportedly set to kickstart a significant squad overhaul over the course of this summer transfer window, as Mikel Arteta attempts to build a Premier League-winning team after missing out on this year’s crown to Liverpool.
Andrea Berta set for busy summer at Arsenal
La Liga expert and respected journalist Guillem Balague has already shared what supporters can expect from new sporting director Andrea Berta, with the Italian already hard at work to back Arteta in the transfer market.
£50m star could now reject Arsenal move and sign new deal after talks
He also snubbed an exit last summer.
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Berta has held extensive talks over a move for Sporting striker Viktor Gyokeres, and met with RB Leipzig director Marcel Schafer in London to discuss the prospect of a deal for Benjamin Sesko, according to Sky Germany’s Florian Plettenberg.
19/20 – winter
£0
20/21 – summer
£81.5m
20/21 – winter
£900k
21/22 – summer
£156.8m
21/22 – winter
£1.8m
22/23 – summer
£121.5m
22/23 – winter
£59m
23/24 – summer
£208m
23/24 – winter
£0
24/25 – summer
£101.5m
24/25 – winter
£0
Arsenal are working to discover the conditions of deals for Sesko and Gyokeres before deciding which striker to prioritise, according to the BBC, but Berta is believed to have other key items on his agenda this summer as well.
While Martin Zubimendi’s signing is proving more complicated than first thought, with the Spain international now denying he’s set for an imminent Arsenal move, it is also rumoured that the Gunners are actively pursuing a new wide player.
“He’s been described to me by one of the decision makers, one of the ones that decided to bring him in, that he’s experienced, he’s a hard worker, and he’s very brave,” said Balague about Berta to TNT Sports.
“But basically, he’s going to have to be creative as well. Arsenal are not here with the intention of spending £200 or £300 million. They just want to be creative with what they’ve got and what they bring in.
“They’re going to have to create three or four players that go straight into the line-up. I would say a left winger, centre-forward and holding midfielder. Mikel Arteta said it’s the biggest transfer window for a long while and having Berta next to him as a partnership will definitely help.”
Jorginho set for Flamengo medical after leaving Arsenal
A new centre midfielder, which could still be Zubimendi, is especially vital considering Jorginho is leaving the Emirates, with Arsenal announcing his departure today via their retained list.
The Italy international has agreed a pre-contract deal to join Brazilian side Flamengo, and has been in talks to terminate his Arsenal contract earlier than June 30 so he can feature for his new team at the Club World Cup.
That is apparently done and dusted, with GE Globo reporting that Jorginho is set for a medical on Friday ahead of signing a three-year contract at Flamengo.
With the 33-year-old leaving, it makes the arrival of Zubimendi and a potential contract extension for Thomas Partey all the more important, otherwise Arteta risks being left very short in that area.
“I know him a lot, so for me it is nice to play with him, he knows me well,” said Kai Havertz about Jorginho in 2024.
“It makes life easy for me, he is a world-class player.”
Celtic have designs on breaking the glass ceiling in the Champions League next term and could now launch a move for a powerful enforcer to help their bid, according to a report.
Celtic's summer window and where they need to strengthen
The Bhoys are currently taking stock before deciding where to prioritise in the market safe in the knowledge that Kieran Tierney and Ross Doohan will arrive on free transfers from Arsenal and Aberdeen, respectively.
While the homecoming of the former will be widely celebrated by supporters, Chris Sutton believes time is ticking for Celtic and indicated three bodies are needed to supplement the reigning Scottish champions’ squad between now and the Champions League qualifiers.
He explained: “In an ideal world you’d have two or three new faces reporting for the first day of pre-season, giving them time to bed in ahead of the new campaign and the crucial Champions League qualifiers.
“The transfer market doesn’t always work that way but they will need to move quickly to bring in at the very least three new players.”
Adding another attacking option appears to be their main priority at the moment, and the notion of a sensational Celtic reunion with Kyogo Furuhashi is alive as he is set to be left out of Rennes’ pre-season plans by Habib Beye.
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The Bhoys are fielding interest for star players…
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Peterborough United’s Harley Mills has been approached by the Bhoys and could add some support behind Tierney at left-back, though the two positions mentioned aren’t the only areas Rodgers may look to bolster during the window.
Taking things up a notch, Celtic have now made contact to sign a midfielder who could add some bite in the engine room if recent developments were to escalate.
Celtic make contact to sign Demir Tiknaz
Per A Bola, Celtic have initiated contact over a potential deal for Turkish defensive midfielder Demir Tiknaz, who spent the campaign gone on loan at Rio Ave from parent club Besiktas.
Intriguingly, the Primeira Liga side are expected to trigger a release clause option to sign the Istanbul-born man for £4.2 million. Then, they will aim to double their money with a quickfire sale at around the £8.4 million mark.
Demir Tiknaz at Rio Ave in 2024/25 – why do Celtic want to sign him? (Fotmob)
Tackles won
37
Pass completion
85.9%
Duels won
121
Chances created
16
Aerial duels won
25
Standing at 6 foot 4 he is currently on duty with the Turkish national team and would add some much-needed steel into an engine room made up primarily of technicians.
Callum McGregor isn’t getting any younger and the lack of a deeper like-for-like alternative to the Bhoys’ club captain could now be resolved if negotiations were to accelerate.
Ligue 1 outfit LOSC Lille are also keen on Tiknaz and will provide stiff competition for his signature, though the carrot of Champions League football at Celtic is something worth dangling for intended targets.
Everton are set to embark on an exciting new era at Bramley-Moore Dock and could make a bargain signing to kick off their summer business, according to a report.
Everton preparing for summer of mass changes
David Moyes has comfortably ensured top-flight survival for Everton and has managed to revive a squad that has plenty of uncertainty hanging over it heading into the summer.
With the Toffees set to say farewell to Goodison Park, key figures such as Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Seamus Coleman and Ashley Young are yet to commit to extensions, while several loanees find themselves in limbo.
Everton manager DavidMoyesreacts
Abdoulaye Doucoure has commented on his future at the club, stirring debate among supporters, stating: “There’s not been any talks so far with Everton. I think personally, I don’t wait for them to give me a contract or not, because my contract is finished. I already have some proposals on the table, to be honest, and I think in the next three weeks, I will have to take my decision — whether I stay or not.”
Clearly, Moyes has plenty of work to do in the market before his squad is in ideal shape for next season. Ipswich Town pair Liam Delap and Omari Hutchinson have emerged as Everton targets, offering an inkling of the direction his recruitment strategy could take.
Burnley’s Josh Brownhill could join the Toffees on a free transfer, which would be a wise move in the face of PSR regulations, which could otherwise create problems in a moment of positivity.
Sky Sports reporter says 49ers want to sign £20m+ Everton star for Leeds
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ByBrett Worthington May 8, 2025
Tapping into that theme, another star from the EFL Championship may also arrive this summer without the Toffees having to spend a penny in transfer fees.
Everton want to land Leeds United full-back Junior Firpo
According to Everton News, as per journalist Graeme Bailey, Junior Firpo could make a surprise move to Everton this summer on a free transfer once his contract expires at Leeds United.
While Spain is thought to be his preference, Everton appear to be at the front of the queue if the defender opts to remain in England.
Labelled “immense” by Conor McGilligan, the Dominican Republic international has registered four goals and 10 assists this campaign, playing a major role in the Whites’ promotion back to the top flight.
Ricardo Chavez Soto
Monterrey
Ryan Hollingshead
Los Angeles FC
Jesus Gallardo
Toluca
Anton Gaaei
Ajax
Juan Sanabria
Atletico San Luis
Earning £60,000 per week at Elland Road, it is said that Firpo also has admirers from Spain, where he came through the ranks at Real Betis before joining Barcelona back in 2019.
Previously, the Santo Domingo-born defender struggled with life in the Premier League under Marcelo Bielsa, but he has been a key attacking force down the left flank this term and appears primed for another tilt at the top flight.
Now, Everton’s task is to put forward a convincing argument that they are a better proposition than Leeds in the long run. Given their newfound stability, they stand a good chance of winning the race for his signature.
INEOS and Manchester United have now reportedly sent scouts to watch one defensive target as they begin to plot a summer swoop to secure his signature and ease their Lisandro Martinez injury woes.
Man Utd still targeting defensive additions
After Anthony Elanga ran the length of the pitch before firing home for Nottingham Forest in midweek, it should come as no surprise that Manchester United are still seeking defensive reinforcements. Now in April, the Red Devils are yet to win back-to-back games in the Premier League and their defensive issues in Ruben Amorim’s 3-4-2-1 system have played a large part in what has been a disastrous campaign.
Man Utd’s last five Premier League games
Date
Nottingham Forest 1-0 Man Utd
01/04/2025
Leicester City 0-3 Man Utd
16/03/2025
Man Utd 1-1 Arsenal
09/03/2025
Man Utd 3-2 Ipswich Town
26/02/2025
Everton 2-2 Man Utd
22/02/2025
It should not go without saying, however, that defeat at the City Ground was United’s first in five league games and Amorim echoed that positivity in his post-match press conference, telling reporters: “It’s more [of] the same since this season began. So I think if you look at the game we are improving the way we play football. We are creating more chances, we are dominating more games.
“But in the end, when you don’t win, you feel that and that is a good thing. So we know that this season is going to be like that, the momentum. So we continue to go to the next [game].”
The former Sporting Club boss may well look at his side’s recent run as something to build on before welcoming some key additions. Among those already linked with a summer switch to Manchester United includes Oumar Solet. The Udinese centre-back has impressed at times this season and now has a queue beginning to form for his signature, with United in that queue.
Oumar Solet for Udinese.
Solet isn’t the only defender that has caught the eye of those at Old Trafford, however, with another Serie A star emerging on INEOS’ reported radar.
Man Utd plotting move to sign "superb" Comuzzo
According to Caught Offside, INEOS and Manchester United are now plotting a summer swoop to sign Pietro Comuzzo from Fiorentina this summer and have already sent scouts to watch the 20-year-old in action. Valued at around €45m (£38m) by the Italian club, the deal should be within the Red Devils’ range even as their cost-cutting measures continue around the club.
Dubbed “superb” by football talent scout Jacek Kulig, Comuzzo’s arrival would instantly see the injured Martinez replaced next season, before Amorim is handed the ultimate selection headache when the Argentine completes his eventual return.
Bhuvneshwar, Cummins and Natarajan have got the job done for SRH in different phases of the game
Vishal Dikshit05-May-2024SRH are in Mumbai. A team that has been scoring 200 as easily as you can make a bowl of instant noodles will play at a ground where you can smash sixes more fluently than you can say ‘Sunrisers Hyderabad’.Behind SRH’s batting feats this season, however, is a well-oiled pace attack that has the new-ball skills of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, the experience and leadership of Pat Cummins in the middle overs, and the death-over smarts of T Natarajan. This trio, along with Jaydev Unadkat, has helped SRH defend five out of six targets this season. While they have had the cushion of some 250-plus totals, they were defending 202 in their previous game against Rajasthan Royals and emerged on top despite having only 26 to defend in the last three overs.In those 18 balls, Natarajan showcased his variations and yorkers, Cummins his slower bouncers, and Bhuvneshwar his calmness even as Royals needed only six off the last three deliveries.”What we’re lucky with, particularly in our pace-bowling unit, is that we’ve got a lot of experience, so we’ve got a lot of guys who’ve been there and done that so when they’re presented with some difficulties or problems in the game, they’ve got that sage wisdom,” SRH bowling coach James Franklin said on the eve of the match against Mumbai Indians. “They can think on their feet and discuss out there and work out there what’s needed for the game’s context. As much as the data is there, you still have to play the game in front of you and that’s where experience helps.”Sometimes the way we’ve seen matches unfold and with how dominant the bat has been, from a bowlers’ point of view you need just calm, cool heads that have a little bit of experience and a little bit of know-how and hopefully, all through the course of the season, it’ll hold you in good stead. So those four players, they’ve been going nicely, it’s been a really tough campaign for most bowling units. But we, like other teams, are trying to find ways to be in the contest and to have an effect and those bowlers have been doing a really good job for us.”Bhuvneshwar has moved the new ball when there is swing on offer and is up there at the top for the most wickets in the powerplay this season.Cummins, who in his maiden captaincy stint in T20 cricket has galvanised a team that finished bottom last season, has taken on a middle-overs role that has filled a requirement for SRH, especially when flanked by Bhuvneshwar and Natarajan on either side. His slow bouncers and offcutters dug into the pitch have restricted batters and yielded seven wickets in the middle overs this season with an exceptional economy rate of 7.71.And while Natarajan missed out on selection for the 2024 T20 World Cup, his death-overs exploits have served as a reminder of the promise he had in his initial years. He’s taken nine wickets at the death, second only to the peerless Jasprit Bumrah (10), and is in the running for the Purple Cap even though he’s played only eight out of SRH’s first ten games. If he can stay injury free, he will give India another potent fast-bowling option in the future.”Everyone knows in India his pedigree particularly with the old ball and death bowling,” Franklin said of Natarajan. “But for me, it’s been his first one or two overs that have been really exciting to watch and how he gets into the game. He’s another guy who adapts to the situation. He generally comes in the back end of the powerplay for us so the game is already underway and he adapts very well. His great strength is the yorker and that’s where he’s an asset for us. If he keeps going the way he’s going and holds his form throughout the rest of this IPL, then those conversations around India will take care of themselves.”With bowlers taking a pounding this season, Franklin said they were looking at it as a different kind of opportunity.”With the expectations around the batting groups, we try to flip that around and go, ‘ok, there’s an opportunity, we can actually have some fun with it’,” he said. “Yes, there might be challenges out there, but our bowling unit has good experience, and we try to execute the best we can.”After two successive defeats, SRH’s bowlers stole a one-run win against Royals to keep them among the top four in the points table. They need more of that from their experienced attack in Mumbai to stay ahead of the chasing pack.
How important are captains in cricket? But also, what happens when a World-Cup endangering slump in form meets complex socio-political nuances?
Sidharth Monga28-Oct-202213:35
How do teams deal with underperforming captains?
The weight on Temba Bavuma’s shoulder is unlike what any other player carries in this tournament. And it’s built up to such levels thanks to a perfect storm of cricket’s archaic power structures and the complex socio-political realities of South Africa.We will get to the scope of captaincy in due course, but first, its roots, which can be traced back to when the amateurs – often batters of varying skill levels – would almost always lead the professionals. The upper classes used this construct to maintain their superiority over the rest, who dared to ask for money for their time. The horror. How could such people be entrusted with the spirit of the game?Related
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Times have changed: while captains are still the face of their team and in many teams still get a suite while others board in standard rooms, the primacy of a captain is now questioned more often than it used to be. Especially when the said captain is not pulling their weight with their cricketing skill. There will never be another Mike Brearley.However, do you aggressively challenge the originally upper-class English construct of the supreme captain when, for a change, the person probably benefitting from it is the first Black African man to lead South Africa in international cricket?Let’s get one thing clear first. Bavuma did not get the captaincy because he is a Black man. In fact he took a thorny crown when leadership in the sinking ship of South African cricket was scarce. He shepherded the team with firmness and with grace when Quinton de Kock refused to take the knee at the last Men’s T20 World Cup. He then welcomed de Kock back into the fold. He was an accomplished leader at domestic levels. As for his current competitors for a spot in the XI, Rilee Rossouw had gone Kolpak back then, and Reeza Hendricks was yet to have his best year in T20 cricket.Bavuma may not have got the captaincy because of his race, but race becomes an important consideration when deciding his future as a T20 player and captain. Admittedly, Bavuma is not the only T20I captain struggling at the moment, but Aaron Finch definitely and Kane Williamson arguably have better T20 pedigree and can be backed to bounce back. Bavuma’s T20I strike rate is 115, and he is keeping out another player of colour in Hendricks, who is having a cracker of a year in T20s with an average of 42 and a strike rate of 144.
Bavuma may not have got the captaincy because of his race, but race becomes an important consideration when deciding his future as a T20 player and captain
Then again, cricket has always been weird when it comes to dealing with non-performing captains. Once the XV is selected and the reins have been handed over to the captain, it is really up to them to drop themselves. Coaches know better than to be forceful. More so in Bavuma’s case. It is not unimaginable that there will be extra motivation for selectors to stick with him and for him to fight on because there is a stereotype to be beaten that Black Africans are not natural leaders.Not that any leader wants to second-guess themselves. They don’t make it all the way to international cricket by doubting their prowess. You wonder, though, if one or more of Bavuma, Finch and Williamson doesn’t quietly wish that the decision was taken out of his hands. The bigger matches of this T20 World Cup are yet to come, and they don’t want to get stuck in the middle where they can neither hit out nor get out in order for other hitters to maximise their time at the wicket.It can be a lonely place trying to decide whether you should be playing yourself. Bavuma is hopefully keeping good counsel. Dropping yourself can be a sign of weakness, the opposite of elite competitors’ instinct. At the same time, you have to think of the player sitting out and what he can bring to the team.Some say that this pruning of the XV to XI is the most important job of a captain, but the job itself doesn’t come properly described. At modern amateur levels, the captain creates a WhatsApp group, finds fixtures, gets enough players to commit, follows up with them on team dues, and only then thinks of batting orders and bowling changes. They often don’t have to select an XI because frequently only that many turn up even when more have confirmed in.The role definition of the captain at professional levels is less clear. Some teams tend to hand over full control to them – selectors listen to them when picking the XV, they also pick the XI and run the game – while some only give them the control on the field. At the elite level of the modern game though, plans on the field are mostly pre-decided, the longer the format the more the team’s fate depends on the fitness and depth of its bowling attack, players have become more and more responsible for themselves, and coaches and support staff are playing a bigger role in running T20s.Is the impact a captain has on his team overstated in cricket?•Getty ImagesThere remain the hollow parts of the job description such as maintaining good body language, shaping the team in their own image et cetera, but leaving all of it aside, the fact remains we still like the idea of one boss with whom the buck stops. In cricket, this is the captain: they front up when the team loses, and take credit for the wins. It possibly makes sense too, because the coach doesn’t really experience the conditions out in the middle, and that feel for the game is important to make crucial decisions. In it lies the assumption that say a Keshav Maharaj, as vice-captain, cannot make those decisions, but if Maharaj is made the captain, the next person in line can’t make these decisions. And in it lies the assumption that those decisions are more crucial than runs and wickets.It might not be ideal – perhaps it’s too disruptive – to do this in the middle of a big tournament, but this is a conversation cricket needs to have: how important is captaincy? There is no data to measure the impact of captaincy. To attribute a team’s win-loss record to a captain is cricket’s oldest problem: it doesn’t take into account the strength of the team or the opposition, and leaves undue credit and criticism at the captain’s door.If it feels outlandish – if anything feels outlandish – always think, ‘What would Sri Lanka have done?’ They had a leadership group – Sangakkara, Jayawardene, and then Mathews was added into the mix – and who actually captained didn’t matter that much. They once changed captains mid-tournament to avoid an over-rate penalty. They won a T20 World Cup with Lasith Malinga as captain, and he was handed the reins in the first place because the regular captain Dinesh Chandimal was done in by a slow over-rate penalty and then couldn’t regain his place in the side.Now that the ICC has discontinued the old tradition of banning captains because of over rates, here’s another thought: what would that canny Sri Lankan side have done if they had an under-performing captain keeping a better option out of the XI?
“I think we’re pretty happy with our combination, it’s worked for us over the last couple of years in T20 cricket,” he says
Daniel Brettig05-Sep-2020Australia’s first international match since the previous home summer was shut down by the Covid-19 pandemic was always going to throw up some selections. None more so than the shape of a middle order that had to be manufactured from a bevy of top-order batsmen.So there was undoubted significance to the decision to place Marcus Stoinis in the No. 5 position after a pair of domineering seasons with the Melbourne Stars as an opening batsman, either side of his failure to have any impact on last year’s World Cup in a similar “finisher” role.What damage Australia’s collapse from a virtually unassailable position against England on Friday will have had on Stoinis only he can say. But it now appears inevitable he will get numerous opportunities to make the critical role his own ahead of the 2021 T20 World Cup in India, largely because other more suitable candidates appear determined to keep their more traditionally prominent spots higher up the order.While once established at the crease, Stoinis’ hitting power is unquestioned, his tendency to soak up dot balls and create pressure for the batsman at the other end has long been viewed as a deficiency for opponents to exploit. It was more or less the main reason why the Stars pushed him to the top of the order, where a full 20-over allotment and the initial powerplay gave him much more time to work with.There are numerous accomplished middle-order merchants in the BBL, not least the Adelaide Strikers’ doughty clean-up man Jon Wells. But of the players on the England tour, the best candidates for this critical role would appear to be the captain Aaron Finch, who has excelled in it in past editions of the IPL, or the prodigiously talented and adaptable Steven Smith. Both, though, appear to have settled into their top three perches. Mitchell Marsh also occupied the role in recent times when Stoinis was out of favour, while Marnus Labuschagne would happily fulfil any role offered to him.Pat Cummins, the vice-captain, was at the other end as Stoinis was unable to clear the boundary on the last ball of the night to hand England a win that had seemed impossible half an hour earlier. He indicated that the pairing of Stoinis and Alex Carey at Nos. 5 and 6 was likely to be persisted with in order to give them the chance to make the berths their own in the absence of dedicated middle-order specialists in the chosen group.”I’d say them, plus we’ve got the other guys in this squad over here that are identified in that middle order, so more than likely those guys are going to get a long run,” Cummins said. “I think we’re pretty happy with our combination, it’s worked for us over the last couple of years in T20 cricket, so it’s just about slotting those guys into those roles consistently. I’d say that’s more than likely going to happen.”It’s something we’ve spoken about for exactly that reason. They’re all the best players when they go back for domestic comps and you could argue that middle-order role is one of the hardest in any cricket team. That’s what we’ve identified – that we’ve got to try and give guys a go in that – because someone like MS Dhoni was best in the world at it because he’d played 300 or 400 ODI games. And I think you saw this week during the practice games we gave a lot of guys a go in that and we know it’s not going to happen overnight.”That’s been a common theme that the selectors and Finchy have spoken about – we’ll identify roles and give them a long run in that. I think we’ve got the right squad, the right players, it’s just about trying to get plenty of games into everyone now.”Reflecting on the result, Cummins was happy to admit that the pain of defeat was nothing like that of an Ashes Test – Australia’s last Test loss to England was Ben Stokes’ match at Headingley a year ago – but was equally forceful in stating that it was a scenario from which no one should be losing, not least the No. 1 team according to the ICC rankings.”I thought for 80% or 90% of the game we played really well, we were on top, in a commanding position and just the last third of the batting innings we let it slip, a few wickets,” Cummins said. “I felt at times like we were only two boundaries away from the game finishing in about the 15th over. So it’s a shame, something we’re going to have to try to get better at, it’s happened a few times, so I’m sure every one of us will review in our own way and think about what we could’ve done differently. But for sure, you should be winning just about every game in that position.”He also noted the oddness of playing in an empty stadium, although he doubted it had any impact on performance.”It, for sure, was strange. We know what we were signing up for, but until Starcy’s [Mitchell Starc] bowling that first over and you can hear a pin drop, it’s just weird. After a couple of overs we got into it, but it’s just odd that unless we create the noise out in the field there is absolutely no noise happening. So a bit of an adjustment, but everyone has played enough cricket. It’s certainly different being over here in England and not hearing some of the songs.”As for the BBL, a tournament that Labuschagne in particular would dearly like to show his T20 wares in, Cummins said he was hopeful of ways being found for uncontracted Australian players to take part. This comes on the back of ESPNcricinfo’s report that next year’s scheduled series against New Zealand is likely to be moved in order to give the tournament’s pointy end some clear air.”This summer’s going to have a lot more challenges than perhaps in the past, but I’m not going to rule it out, we’ll see how it all comes together,” he said. “It’s going to be busy, it’s going to be hard, but it’s a great competition, us Aussie guys love playing it [and] international guys. Even speak to some of the English guys, they really want to have a crack at it like they do every year. I’m not going to say either way, but we’ll see how it pans out.”When we’re not playing the Big Bash it means we’ve got international cricket, so whatever happens we’re normally playing cricket somewhere, but I’ll leave the scheduling to the other guys.”Whatever the scheduling, Australia’s T20I batting order remains a puzzle in which a couple of top-order pegs must be fitted into middle-order holes – Stoinis, Smith or Finch. Unless, that is, they belatedly turn to a specialist like Wells.