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Vote for the best individual Border-Gavaskar Trophy performance by an Indian in Australia since 2000

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Nov-2024Update: This poll has ended. Virat Kohli’s Adelaide 2014 performance goes into the semi-finals. Check the other polls here.ESPNcricinfo LtdVirat Kohli was batting on another level in Perth 2018•Cricket Australia/Getty Images

Virat Kohli – 123 in Perth, 2018

India lost by 146 runs, series level 1-1Virat Kohli was already one of India’s greatest batters before 2018. He stepped up to an even more rarefied level that year, scoring 1322 runs at an average of 55.08 over 24 innings, of which 22 were played in South Africa, England and Australia.Conditions in all three tours were hard on batters, but the more challenging they became, the more Kohli seemed to relish them. When he walked in to bat in Perth, everything must have looked familiar. India had lost the toss and conceded a bigger total than they should have, bowling well but not without spells of releasing pressure. Then they lost early wickets.In similar circumstances, Kohli had scored 153 at Centurion and 149 at Edgbaston. Now, from 8 for 2, he proceeded to play an even better innings. This was a proper trampoline of a pitch, and Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins were routinely getting the ball to rear throat-high from just back of a length. Kohli negotiated the vertical threat expertly, though not without suffering blows to his arm and ribs, but the standout feature of his innings was how well he dealt with Australia’s attempts to sucker him with full balls after pushing him back.Almost every time there was an opportunity to drive, he did so pristinely, down the ground or through the covers with a decisive front-foot stride. A 20th century version of this list would have undoubtedly contained Sachin Tendulkar’s 114 in Perth in 1992. Kohli’s innings came at Perth Stadium and not the WACA, and just as the new ground seamlessly carried forward the old one’s legacy of pace and bounce, a new master had carried forward an old master’s legacy.Karthik KrishnaswamyWatch the highlights of these performances on the Star Sports network at 10am, 1pm, 4pm and 7pm IST, from November 2 onwards.Virat Kohli was only the second batter to score two centuries on Test captaincy debut•Getty Images

Virat Kohli – 115 & 141 in Adelaide, 2014

India lost by 48 runsIn a career full of milestones, Virat Kohli has a very special place in his heart for these two hundreds. He’s made that plain on every subsequent trip to Adelaide. The runs that he made, the way he made them, getting hit on the head by a Mitchell Johnson bouncer early and brushing off the Australians who came up to him to ask him if he was okay just so he wouldn’t have to break out of that bubble he needs to be in to score those big runs, and the path that he put his team on, saying they will not be going for the draw – all played a big role in helping him decide what kind of cricketer and captain he wanted to be.His 114 in the first innings on captaincy debut kept India in the game after conceding 517, and his 141 in the second gave India hope that as long as Kohli was batting, there was a chance of pulling off an outrageous chase of 364. That performance made Kohli the first visiting batter since 1961 to score two centuries in a Test in Australia, and no once has done it since.By Alagappan Muthu

SEATTLE – These are the moments we hold dearest. When everything seems to come together perfectly, as opportunity meets joy. For someone like Eugenio Suárez, a 34-year-old veteran of 12 major league seasons and four teams and a .186 hitter in his second go-round with the Mariners, everything he loves most was within his grasp.

It did not matter that it happened as he was squeezed between a box truck and a concrete wall in a hallway outside the Mariners’ clubhouse Friday night. On the greatest night of his peripatetic baseball life, he held tight to his wife, Genesis, and his daughters, Nicolle and Melanie.

“This part is the best part of everything,” Suárez said. “This is something that you dream of. To be honest, to see the happiness of my daughters and my wife—they’ve been incredible supporting me—is the best.”

Oh, and that home run? The one that will take its place next to The Double by Edgar Martínez 30 years ago among the biggest moments in 50 seasons of Seattle baseball? The one that came with the bases loaded in the eighth inning of a tie game and put the Mariners one win from the World Series for the first time? The home run that made yet another manager pay for getting too cute running these postseason games? The home run off a Seranthony Domínguez 3–2 fastball that gave Seattle a roof-shaking 6–2 victory?

Yeah, that was not bad, either.

Genesis and the girls had flown in from Miami only the previous night, getting here around midnight. They arrived just in time, just as their daddy did.

“It makes it even more special,” Suárez said. “They were coming from Miami, a long way. Just for them to come such a long way and for me to do it in front of them is … I don’t know, it’s something. It’s something else.”

Suárez is known to be one of the good guys of the game with such a professional reputation that when the Mariners acquired him for a second time, this time from the Diamondbacks in a trade deadline deal, there was more talk about how he fit into the clubhouse than his 36 home runs. He finished with 49 homers, tying a career high, but his bat otherwise was a bust in the final two months of the regular season. Those 53 games are moot now, subsumed by a gigantic home run that should never have happened this way but for the cooperation of the Toronto Blue Jays.

The Blue Jays were six outs away from going home needing one win for their first pennant in 32 years. Their 2–1 lead was facilitated by too-cute maneuverings from Seattle manager Dan Wilson, who with a 1–0 lead, pulled his best starter, Bryce Miller, who had thrown 10 shutout innings in this series against Toronto, His first two options out of the bullpen each allowed run-scoring hits to create the deficit.

As in a sloppy tennis match, it then became the turn of Toronto manager John Schneider to make an unforced error. The last, biggest at-bat in the way of a Toronto win was Cal Raleigh, the major league home run leader, who was leading off the eighth inning for Seattle. The right and obvious move is to bring in your best reliever, your closer, for the biggest at-bat remaining. You do not save him to pitch the ninth inning against the bottom of the lineup. The game was on the line .

And yet Schneider never had his closer, Jeff Hoffman, a 10-year veteran with 33 saves, warming. The manager brought in Brendon Little, a workmanlike lefty who had pitched only five times this year with a one-run lead in the eighth.

All series, Scheider has been partially driven by the Law of Exposure—the theory that the more opposing hitters see the same reliever over the course of a series the less effective the reliever becomes. It sounds plausible. Only it ignores track records, experience, stuff and what the scoreboard tells you.

“I wanted to see that part of the lineup see different guys,” Schneider said, as the 2-3-4 hitters were coming up for Seattle. “We talked about it all series. Little’s been one of our best pitchers in big spots. Tough guy to elevate. Cal’s a really good hitter.”

Behind home plate, about 20 rows back, Todd Raleigh, Cal’s dad and a veteran college coach, could scarcely believe it. The most dangerous part of the lineup was coming up for what should be the last time and the closer was not in the game.

“Yes, I was very surprised,” Todd said.

Cal, a switch hitter, had not taken a right-handed swing in a week. Todd knew that did not matter. As soon as Cal was old enough to stand, barely one year old, Todd put a big-barreled red plastic bat in his hands and practically handed him a soft ball for him to hit. Todd showed baby Cal how to switch his hands on his grip depending on whether he was swinging right-handed or left-handed. Nearly from the cradle, Cal Raleigh was a born switch hitter.

“I never wanted my boys to think one side was a strong side and one side was a weaker side,” Todd said.

Little threw one sinker. And then another. Cal took both. And then a third. This time he swung right-handed for the first time in a week. Raleigh hit it so high it was in the air for five seconds. For five seconds, an eternity for the outcome of a batted ball to be held in doubt, all of T-Mobile Park was an enormous snow globe, a tableau of wonder frozen in time. Necks craned, breath ceased, hope and fear filled the void. Left fielder Nathan Lukes drifted and drifted under it until his back was against the wall.

When the baseball finally landed, the game was tied. Raleigh had his 64th homer of the year. If anything, Schneider got burned by one of his best traits: his admirable faith in his entire roster.

“I trust every single guy on this roster, you know,” Schneider said. “It’s hard. No one feels worse than Little. No one feels worse than Ser right now, or me. But I trust every single guy on this roster.”

In Game 1, Schneider pulled his ace, Kevin Gausman, after just 76 pitches in which only a homer by Raleigh ended a streak of 16 straight batters retired. The Toronto bullpen lost the game. Schneider admitted he “had a hard time sleeping” after that decision.

In Game 5, he pulled Gausman quickly again, this time with 91 pitches after a two-out walk in the sixth. The Mariners were happy to see Gausman gone after they chased vainly at his splitter like trying to swat gnats in a windstorm. Gausman had 15 swings and misses, the most in his 11 career postseason games. Thirteen whiffs came on the 23 times Seattle tried to hit his splitter.

Louis (Everyday) Varland pitched out of the inning with a walk, but Schneider had started the bullpen carousel, which should not be a top priority. Schneider would commit the kind of unforced error that should never happen in October: losing a lead and a close game late without ever using your closer.

“Yeah, I thought about it, for sure,” Schneider said about putting Hoffman on Raleigh. Weirdly, Schneider put Hoffman on Raleigh in the eighth inning the previous night in a blowout win, 8–2. Hoffman retired him on a pop-up.

“Again, I think being … decisions are hard,” Schneider said. “I think being convicted in a process is important. You make a decision, and you leave it behind you. It’s part of baseball. Second-guessing is part of it.

“Thought about it, for sure. And, again, we have relied on every single guy on our roster to get a lot of wins this year. So I could have done that, and then you think about who do you want in the ninth inning, who do they have coming up? So, yeah, we talked about that situation, for sure. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out.”

The ninth inning would have been the bottom of the lineup. The game in the balance was when Raleigh stepped into the box to lead off. Little walked two batters, forcing Schneider to pull him. Still no Hoffman. Dominguez was next. Suárez is not a great two-strike hitter (.127), but he is dangerous because he retains his “A” swing. His homer was his 15th with two strikes.

The limb Scheider chose on his decision tree enabled Suárez a short time later to be sitting in the interview room with his two daughters by his side. Suárez originally signed in 2008 with the Tigers as a 17-year-old from Venezuela. Seventeen years later, this is the first time he is playing in a League Championship Series. Tears welled in his eyes as he tried to comprehend the meaning of what he had just done.

“Today was very special not only because I hit the grand slam,” he said, “but I give the opportunity to my daughters and my wife watching. They came here last night for this type of game. And I’ve been waiting for this. I just feel so grateful right now and feel so good because we’re going to Toronto with an opportunity in front of us to go to a World Series.

“I have a good amount of beautiful moments in my career, but today is something else.”

There will be pictures, many pictures, by which to remember the moment. Suárez following his long flyball to right field, the first fastball he hit the other way for a homer since July. Suarez floating around the bases, all the while saying a prayer of thanks. Suarez putting his hands together in the shape of a heart as he crossed home plate. Suarez looking for Genesis and the girls in the stands.

But no frame will hold the moment he shared the best night of his baseball night with his family. That is forever preserved in his heart.

Everyone seems to have a different opinion on international breaks. Any Scotland-supporting Glasgow Rangers fans may be loving them at this moment in time, after Scotland beat Denmark 4-2 to qualify for next year’s World Cup.

However, some supporters may not like the break from club football or may not be happy with watching their country play, for whatever reason that may be.

Another reason as to why someone, and possibly Danny Rohl, may not enjoy international breaks is that it means that Rangers stars can pick up injuries without playing for their club.

For example, the German head coach will currently be sweating over the availability of central defender John Souttar, after he was forced out of the starting line-up against Denmark during the warm-up.

The Scotland international picked up an unknown injury before kick-off, after initially being named in the starting line-up, and it remains to be seen whether or not he will be available this weekend.

On the same night, Derek Cornelius was forced off after just 30 minutes for Canada in their clash with Venezuela, with what is suspected to be a thigh injury, which makes him a doubt for the clash with Livingston at Ibrox in the Scottish Premiership.

Ranking Rangers centre-backs this season

Losing both Souttar and Cornelius would be a blow for Rohl ahead of Saturday’s match because they were the starting centre-back pairing in the 3-0 win over Dundee at Dens Park last time out.

The Canadian centre-back, who is on loan from Marseille, missing the match would be a significant blow because he has been in impressive form for the Gers this season, particularly since Rohl came through the door.

Cornelius has started all three of the new manager’s league matches and won 21 of his 32 duels, per Sofascore, in those matches, helping Rangers to keep two clean sheets and concede just one goal.

The Marseille loanee, with those dominant displays, has been the top-performing centre-back at the club this season, whilst Souttar has started all 11 of the club’s league matches, under Russell Martin, Stevie Smith, and Rohl, per Sofascore.

1

Derek Cornelius

2

John Souttar

3

James Tavernier

4

Emmanuel Fernandez

5

Nasser Djiga

6

Clinton Nsiala

As you can see in the table above, we have placed James Tavernier in third place because he has filled in at centre-back, most recently against Kilmarnock and Roma, and done a reliable job.

Emmanuel Fernandez has started two matches for Rangers since his move from Peterborough. He scored in his start against Alloa Athletic and won 12 of his 15 duels, per Sofascore, in his only Premiership start against St Mirren, which makes it hard to put him too high or too low, as he has impressed in limited game time.

Nasser Djiga, meanwhile, ranks below him in fifth because the Wolves loanee has played 17 times for Rangers this season and was recently described as “rotten” by Heart & Hand content creator David Edgar.

The Burkina Faso international has made several costly errors, including a red card against Dundee in August and an inexplicable mistake, letting his man race clear through on goal, against Club Brugge in the Champions League play-off tie.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

Finally, Clinton Nsiala has to rank sixth out of the six first-team centre-back options, including Tavernier, simply because he has not played a single minute of football for the Gers this season.

However, if Souttar and Cornelius are both unavailable for selection against Livingston on Saturday because of the injuries that they picked up on international duty, it could finally be time to unleash the left-footed star.

Why Rangers should finally unleash Clinton Nsiala

The former AC Milan centre-back was seemingly not in Russell Martin’s plans at Ibrox, as he did not feature in a single matchday squad, but Rohl has the chance to change that this weekend.

As aforementioned, Djiga has not had the best of starts to life at Ibrox, hence why Edgar dubbed him “rotten”, and his mistakes for the Gers suggest that another player should be given an opportunity to shine.

If Souttar and Cornelius are both unavailable, Fernandez could come in to replace the former as the right-sided centre-back, after his dominant display last time out in the Premiership against St Mirren earlier this season.

That would leave Rohl in need of replacing Cornelius against Livingston and Nsiala could be the ideal player to step in for the Canada international, as he is the only other left-footed senior centre-back option in the squad.

The 21-year-old centre-back played 11 times in the Premiership under Philippe Clement and Barry Ferguson in the 2024/25 campaign, and rarely let the Light Blues down with his performances.

Dundee

1-1 draw

St Johnstone

3-1 win

Aberdeen

3-0 win

Dundee United

3-1 win

Ross County

4-0 win

Hearts

3-1 win

St Mirren

2-0 loss

Kilmarnock

4-2 win

Celtic

3-2 win

Aberdeen

2-2 draw

St Mirren

2-2 draw

As you can see in the table above, the Scottish giants only lost one of those 11 matches in the division, which shows that he was far from a disaster in the senior team.

In fact, former teammate Ross McCausland admitted that he and some of the other players in the squad had described him as “a left-footed Van Dijk” when watching his performances on the pitch for the first-team.

Nsiala, though, has not been given a chance to build on that respectable start to his senior career with the Light Blues, as he has not played a single minute this season.

That is why Rohl should finally unleash the left-footed defender against Livingston if Cornelius is unavailable for selection, as he is a left-footed defender who has proven that he can perform in the Premiership.

Thelwell let Rangers star go for £0, now he'd walk into the XI over Aasgaard

This former Rangers star who was released by Kevin Thelwell would walk into the current team over Thelo Aasgaard.

ByDan Emery Nov 18, 2025

The 21-year-old, given these new injury blows and Djiga’s disappointing form, deserves an opportunity to show that he can play a role for Rohl moving forward, starting with the game on Saturday.

You could feel the elation rippling from the pitch. It was palpable. It was a reminder of what this squad are capable of doing to the best teams in the world. Liverpool had beaten Real Madrid in the Champions League for the second year running.

Following the professional win over Aston Villa to stop the rot of a four-match skid in the Premier League, head coach Arne Slot must have felt his side had turned a corner, but last weekend’s sobering loss at Manchester City showed the Reds have merely gone in circles.

Liverpool were outfought across every inch of the Etihad Stadium, and Slot will be chagrined after being outplayed by Pep Guardiola on the tactical chessboard. Granted, he’s not the first coach to lose such a battle against the Spaniard.

But the Reds are struggling to do the basics, and are such a far cry from the level of last season, when they dispatched so many opponents and won the league title with relative ease.

Tactical imbalances have been clear all season, and it’s obvious that Liverpool are missing Luis Diaz, who is doing so well with Bayern Munich this season.

If the problems continue for Slot, FSG may be forced to sign a new version of the Colombian.

Liverpool looking to replace Diaz

Florian Wirtz’s struggles since leaving Bayer Leverkusen and joining Liverpool for £116m this summer have been well documented.

The German playmaker, 22, is one of the most talented footballers out there, but he’s yet to find the physicality and fluency to succeed in the Premier League, and he might want to take a leaf from Diaz’s book in that regard.

Aside from Diaz’s potency in the final third, he is relentless in his work rate and rapid besides, adding width and dynamism down the flank. Liverpool need some of that, and appear to have found a candidate.

Indeed, according to Spanish sources, sporting director Richard Hughes has registered Liverpool’s interest in Real Madrid star Rodrygo, who has fallen well down the pecking order under Xabi Alonso.

Arsenal and Chelsea are also keen on the Brazil international, while Manchester City’s intrigue was confirmed by Fabrizio Romano this summer.

Florentino Perez wants €90m (£79m) for the versatile forward, but given his reduced role at Real Madrid over the past year or so, FSG would likely push to whittle down that hefty price tag.

What Rodrygo would offer Liverpool

Rodrygo finished the 2024/25 campaign at a low ebb. A few terms ago, the 24-year-old was regarded as one of the best wingers in the world, but a limited role at Real has precluded that tag from staying put.

This season, Alonso has handed Rodrygo only three starts across La Liga and the Champions League. He hasn’t yet scored, racking up two assists on the continent. This all points toward a divorce from the Santiago Bernabeu, for this is one of the most exciting and talented wide forwards in Europe, and he should have a role at a side that reflects that.

Liverpool could offer him this. Slot wanted to provide Rio Ngumoha with a pathway to the first team during the summer, and that is ostensibly why Diaz was not directly replaced.

This has proved a mistake, with the 17-year-old as yet untrusted to start games and feature prominently.

Rodrygo has the maturity and the world experience to not just challenge Wirtz and Cody Gakpo for a starting berth but stake his claim for a starring role deep into the Anfield pitch.

Sometimes, statistics must be viewed through a wider context. Take Rodrygo’s woes in the Spanish top flight last year, only scoring six goals and supplying six assists across 30 matches.

Poor, right? Well, Rodrygo was only afforded 12 starts by Carlo Ancelotti, and Sofascore data suggests he missed just one big chance, underscoring his clinical nature.

Furthermore, the South American maverick posted six goals and assists apiece from left wing last year, despite only being handed a berth on that side 12 times across all competitions. At Liverpool, it is the left which beckons, and there he could refashion that world-renowned status that has been seen on the biggest stages before.

And even after this testing period, Rodrygo’s underlying quality does not lie, evidenced through many tactical similarities with Diaz across the past 12 months.

Rodrygo vs Luis Diaz (past 12 months)
Stats (per 90)	Rodrygo	Diaz
Goals	0.31	0.47
Assists	0.23	0.20
Shots taken	2.78	2.92
Shot-creating actions	4.71	4.21
Pass completion %	85.4	83.0
Touches (att pen)	6.49	6.27
Progressive passes	4.40	4.21
Progressive carries	5.91	3.73
Successful take-ons	2.47	1.98
Ball recoveries	3.75	4.40
Tackles + interceptions	2.09	1.36
Data via FBref

It’s curious to note that the tactical differences between the two are not that great. And this in spite of Rodrygo having fallen to the Los Blancos fringes well before the managerial shift this summer.

With Alonso at the helm, it’s patent that Rodrygo will not enjoy the regular minutes that his talent deserves. After all, Luka Modric once described him as being among the club’s “world-class superstars”.

Diaz has found remarkable prolificness since switching Liverpool for Bavaria in August, and while such levels were rarely sustained at Liverpool, with the Premier League notoriously difficult, there’s no denying Liverpool miss Diaz and his athletic profile.

Rodrygo could be the perfect tonic to turn the ship around. After all, Alonso doesn’t seem to want him, and Liverpool require just the profile.

Whether the Reds manage to pull off an audacious winter swoop is anyone’s guess, but Premier League rivals are also on the hunt, and Hughes needs to pull something off if this season is to be viewed as a success.

Liverpool star is quickly becoming their biggest "disaster" since Keita

Arne Slot has a Naby Keita-style situation on his hands with this expensive Liverpool flop.

2

By
Kelan Sarson

Nov 13, 2025

Leeds United fans have been blessed with some outrageous attackers to cheer on over recent years.

The obvious names that immediately spring to mind here are the likes of Crysencio Summerville, Georginio Rutter, and Raphinha, but Pablo Hernandez is also deserving of equal levels of adoration from the Elland Road masses for the magic he regularly conjured up during his time in West Yorkshire.

Hernandez would notch up a stunning 36 goals and 39 assists for the Whites in the Championship during Marcelo Bielsa’s heyday at the helm, with the much-loved Leeds boss even going out of his way to laud his Spanish playmaker as a “silent leader” who can “harm the opponent” at a moment’s notice.

Unfortunately, though, the silky attacking midfielder would only go on to collect a measly two assists for the West Yorkshire titans in the Premier League.

Noah Okafor has already matched that same amount of goal contributions for the newly promoted Whites in the here and now, as the electric Swiss international attempts to go down in his new club’s history books as a similarly entertaining spark.

Okafor's promising Leeds start

Much like Hernandez, too, Okafor has already been showered with plenty of lavish praise when pulling on Leeds white.

Leeds-based content creator Oscar Mario has dubbed the ex-AC Milan attacker as a “difference-maker” for Farke’s side, with the two goals that he’s already confidently put away this season, undoubtedly placing him in the same bracket as the captivating Spaniard before him.

With Okafor also constantly looking to bomb forward with pace to carve out an opening – as seen in him ridiculously completing six successful dribbles versus Wolverhampton Wanderers – it’s very clear that he could go on to be a fan favourite in the same ilk as Hernandez, only this time, with the talent to be a success in the top-flight.

Yet, with no assists next to his name as of the time of writing, he hasn’t quite hit the same creative peak as the former Leeds number 19 just yet, with an unexpected creative force elsewhere in Farke’s camp perhaps more in line to be viewed as a Hernandez-type talent, with the star in question boasting league-best numbers in this regard.

The Leeds star showing shades of Hernandez

While Hernandez was known for firing home an audacious strike or two during his five-season stint in England, he is definitely more commonly remembered as an ace who could “change the course of a game” with an “exceptional” assist, as former Leeds player Noel Whelan once put it.

His 2018/19 offering in the second tier for Bielsa’s Whites saw the quick-witted midfielder create a mammoth 16 big chances in total, with Sean Longstaff potentially heading towards the same jaw-dropping numbers in the Premier League for Farke’s men this campaign, if his early scintillating form in the tough division is anything to go by.

Longstaff’s PL numbers for Leeds (25/26)

Stat – per 90 mins*

Longstaff

Games played

9

Goals scored

1

Assists

2

Touches*

46.2

Accurate passes*

27.1 (85%)

Key passes*

2.0

Big chances created

5

Tackles*

3.0

Ball recoveries*

3.0

Total duels won*

5.0

Stats by Sofascore

Indeed, Longstaff has looked a man reborn since leaving boyhood employers Newcastle United behind this summer for a modest £12m, with five big chances already created by Leeds’ new star man, putting him at the very top of the list of the Premier League’s most effective playmakers.

If he can keep this unbelievable run of form going, he could give Hernandez’s Championship peak a run for its money.

The “outstanding” number eight – as Farke has also already lovingly labelled him – further has the necessary bite in his game to be a long-term success at the very pinnacle of English football, with tackles and duels also won aplenty this season, when looking at the table above, away from just offering up an incisive pass.

Ultimately, Farke will just want all of his troops to come together and battle hard to ensure relegation is staved off.

But, with Longstaff in the same conversations as Bruno Fernandes in what he offers going forward, he will hope his unbelievable start in West Yorkshire can be kept up, as he strives to be the driving force that pushes his new side way away from the relegation zone come next May.

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Posts ByKelan Sarson Oct 27, 2025

Harshit Rana has played 16 matches for India. In nine of them, he has shared the dressing room with Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. The 23-year-old fast bowler, still making his way towards being a first-choice pick, praised the influence of the two senior players and highlighted India’s team environment as “very happy.””It is a big thing for me, and for the entire team too,” Rana said on the eve of the second ODI against South Africa, on Tuesday. “If such experienced players are with you in the dressing room and on the field, the environment stays great. At this time, off the field – even dressing room – it is a happy environment for the entire team. Everyone wants to be better. In their minds, they always want youngsters to get better. When I am bowling, for example, they always tell me how to bowl better. When a player gets such a great team environment, things automatically go well.”They are always motivated – whether it is good times or bad times. They back you and tell you what next steps you should take. As a youngster, this really helps you, because when you are on the field – in a pressure situation – they help you out a lot.”Related

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Harshit broke into the Indian white-ball team as a hustle-and-bustle seam bowler with excellent slower balls. Those skills mark him out as a middle-overs specialist, but he took on a different role in the first ODI on Sunday when he opened the bowling and picked up two wickets in his first over.”With the new ball, I’ve practiced a lot with Morne [Morkel, the bowling coach], and also talk a lot with Arshdeep [Singh],” Rana said. “He has a lot of experience, and he helps me in practices by telling how I should bowl better.”Fast bowlers have also been able to pose more of a threat this year with the ICC changing the rules of ODI cricket. Though all 50-over matches start with two new balls, at the start of the 35th over, the bowling team gets to decide which one they’ll keep for the rest of the innings.”You know that the bowlers don’t get as much help in today’s cricket,” Rana said. “This rule has been very helpful for us, because that one older ball, we always keep in the back of our minds. Whichever ball is older after the 34th [over], we try and focus on that. And about choosing the ball, that all of us do. Whoever feels which ball is older.”In India, bowling is different because the variations are what you have to depend on. In each phase, you have to bowl differently in different roles: sometimes attacking, sometimes defensive.”India may be considering a change in their middle order for Wednesday with Rishabh Pant and Tilak Varma getting a long hit against net bowlers with assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate watching on.

Manchester United are now advancing in talks to sign AZ Alkmaar midfielder Kees Smit, with it being revealed that a formal offer is in the works…

With Casemiro’s contract due to expire at the end of the season, and Kobbie Mainoo’s future still in doubt, having already held talks over a January exit, it is little wonder Ruben Amorim is keen to bring in a new central midfielder, and a Premier League player recently joined the shortlist.

With Carlos Baleba Man United’s dream target and an approach recently being made for Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson, there is no shortage of exciting options to choose from, although it was recently revealed Amorim wants to bring in two midfielders before next season.

Recruiting from the Premier League in the summer has served United well so far this season, with the likes of Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha becoming key players, but a move for a slightly more left-field central midfielder is now gaining traction.

Man Utd advancing in talks to sign Kees Smit

That is according to a report from Spain, which states Man United are progressing in talks with AZ Alkmaar over a deal for Smit, with an opening bid in the works, and the deal could be finalised when Amorim’s side formalize their ‘definitive’ offer.

The 19-year-old has caught the eye due to his passing and ability in transition, and there is a belief he would be able to adapt to life in the Premier League, despite still being relatively inexperienced.

The midfielder is valued at just €25m (£22m), meaning a deal wouldn’t break the bank, and there could be money left over to pursue the likes of Baleba or Anderson, with Alkmaar also willing to sanction a departure.

Lauded as a “duel monster” by scout Ben Mattinson, the teenager has already established himself as a key player for Alkmaar, amassing two goals and four assists in all competitions this season, while his performances last term indicate he could be the future of the Netherlands national side.

There may be some concern over the fact the Dutchman is yet to prove himself outside his home country, but a deal would be relatively inexpensive at just £22m, so it would certainly be a low-risk move.

Smit is extremely comfortable in possession of the ball, placing in the 90th percentile for both successful take-ons and progressive carries per 90 over the past year, and it would be fantastic if Man United were able to beat the likes of Liverpool and Barcelona to his signature.

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The left-arm wristspinner was back with a bang as UAE lost 8 for 10

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Sep-20252:03

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India began their Asia Cup title defence by making short work of UAE’s batting, bowling the hosts out for 57 in just 13.1 overs. UAE came into this match on the back of encouraging displays against Pakistan and Afghanistan in the tri-series they recently hosted, but all that promise came to nothing against the relentless quality of India’s bowling.Related

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UAE began well enough, all things considered, scoring 41 for 2 in their powerplay with openers Alishan Sharafu and Muhammad Waseem hitting six fours and a six between them. They fell apart thereafter, losing their last eight wickets for the addition of just ten runs.Jasprit Bumrah – India’s only specialist quick – and Varun Chakravarthy took the first two wickets, but the bulk of the damage thereafter came courtesy two bowlers who had looked less than certain to play in the lead-up to this match. Kuldeep Yadav picked up 4 for 7, including three wickets in his second over, and Shivam Dube ran through the lower order to bag 3 for 4, his best T20I figures.To their credit, UAE did not let the loss of two powerplay wickets curb their intent, but on this day they kept losing wickets to low-percentage shots. Rahul Chopra took on the large outfield at the Dubai International Stadium and the protected long-on boundary and holed out off Kuldeep. Waseem followed him to the dressing room three balls later, missing a sweep against a bowler whose stock ball, straightening into the right-hander from left-arm over, is stump-to-stump by design. Kuldeep finished the over with a trademark wrong’un to bowl the left-handed Harshit Kaushik through the gate, and UAE were already five down.India used six bowlers, and five of them ended up on the wickets column, with Bumrah – who bowled three overs in the powerplay, a rarity for him – Varun and Axar Patel taking one each. Dube, playing ahead of a second frontline quick to give India batting depth until No. 8, couldn’t help but take wickets with his medium-pace, even when India gave them back. No. 10 Junaid Siddique was given out stumped when Sanju Samson caught him wandering out of his crease, a la Jonny Bairstow, but India withdrew their appeal. Next ball, Junaid swung at a slower ball and skewed it to India captain Suryakumar Yadav, the man who had made that call.

England are “hopeful” that Ben Stokes will be fit to bowl them to a series win on Sunday after KL Rahul and Shubman Gill exposed their reliance on his old-ball threat in Manchester. Stokes, the leading wicket-taker in the series, was deemed too “stiff and sore” to bowl during the first 63 overs of India’s second innings at Old Trafford and will be assessed overnight by England’s medical team.Rahul and Gill added an unbroken 174 for the third wicket in 62.1 overs as India recovered from a nightmare start to bat through two full sessions unscathed. Barring one drop at backward point by Liam Dawson off Brydon Carse, England’s seamers struggled to create chances once the ball went soft and missed Stokes’ ability to break the game open.Stokes prepared to face India with a gruelling rehabilitation programme following hamstring surgery in January and has bowled 129 overs in the series so far, his personal record for a Test series. He retired hurt on the third day after suffering cramp in his left leg but returned later in the evening, going on to score his first Test century in more than two years on the fourth day.Related

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“He’s a bit stiff and sore,” Marcus Trescothick, England’s assistant coach, said when asked if Stokes would bowl on Sunday. “He’s had quite a big workload in the last few weeks, and then batting in the first innings, he was getting quite a bit of cramp. We are hoping that with another night’s rest and a bit more physio work overnight, he’ll be back and doing a bit tomorrow.”Stokes was seen clutching his hamstring while chasing a ball in the outfield, but Trescothick played down the concern. “It’s just a build-up,” he said. “It’s just such a heavy workload, from where he’s been to what he’s doing. It’s just trying to monitor it, and obviously the cramp that he was getting yesterday, you have that little bit of worry… We’ll see what he’s like tomorrow.”After managing his workload carefully across the first two-and-a-half Tests, Stokes bowled 19.2 overs on the final day of their win at Lord’s last week and said he spent “four days in bed” recovering. He bowled another 24 overs across the first two days in Manchester, taking 5 for 72, but appears to have struggled to recover from such a high volume of overs.1:25

‘Very few cricketers in history with the ability of Stokes’

Trescothick suggested that England had never planned to bowl Stokes on the fourth afternoon in the belief that his body would benefit from a break, and said that he had gone out to field despite his stiffness to ensure that he is allowed to bowl on the fifth day. “If he was off the field [today], then he wouldn’t be able to come back and bowl tomorrow,” he explained.Stokes will skip the Hundred next month and has not played a white-ball international for nearly two years, meaning that he may not play competitively between the end of the fifth Test at The Oval next week and the start of the Ashes in November.Michael Vaughan, the ex-England captain, said that England’s hopes in Australia would rest on Stokes’ fitness. “We saw today how much he is missed,” he said on the BBC’s . “My fingers are crossed that we don’t have a moment before the Ashes or in that first Test in Perth.”I honestly look at this England side and everything they’re delivering and think, in Australia, they have a great chance if he’s fit. If Ben Stokes is injured […] and can just be the batter, it has a huge impact on the outcome of an Ashes series overseas.”

West Bromwich Albion are back in action in the Championship this evening as they prepare to travel to St. Mary’s to take on an in-form Southampton side.

The Saints, now led by Tonda Eckert, have won five of their last six matches in the division, beating Birmingham City 3-1 in their most recent outing.

Ryan Mason will have to make some tweaks to his side after they were beaten 3-1 by QPR at Loftus Road on Saturday, and Josh Maja is one star who could lose his place in the XI.

Why Ryan Mason should drop Josh Maja for West Brom

The Nigeria international was given a starting berth for the trip to West London after he came off the bench to provide an assist in the 3-2 comeback win over Swansea in the previous game.

Unfortunately, though, the former Sunderland centre-forward was unable to build on that assist with another strong performance, as he struggled against QPR.

Maja joined Aune Heggebo to form a front two for the Baggies in London, but was unable to provide much of a threat at the top end of the pitch in a drab loss.

Minutes

64

Shots

1

Touches

20

Possession lost

8x

Key passes

0

Duels won

2/5

As you can see in the table above, the 26-year-old attacker offered very little in the final third and was wasteful with his use of the ball, only retaining possession 12 times from his 20 touches.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

With this in mind, Mason should ruthlessly ditch the striker from the starting line-up to bring Isaac Price back into the starting line-up as a number ten against Southampton.

Why West Brom should unleash Isaac Price against Southampton

The Northern Ireland international should be brought back into the side for multiple reasons, and not only for the attacking quality that he can provide.

As a natural attacking midfielder, Price replacing Maja could make West Brom more difficult to play through than they were in a 4-4-2 shape against QPR, as the youngster can drop into a midfield three, making it a 4-5-1 out of possession, which Maja would not be comfortable doing.

This is why bringing the former Standard Liege talent into the team could make a lot of sense for tactical reasons, ahead of a clash with an in-form Southampton team that will be expected to be on the front foot.

Of course, Price should also come into the starting XI because he has the potential to offer more quality to the side at the top end of the pitch than Maja does.

The 22-year-old star, who was described as a “breath of fresh air” by Chris Brunt, has been more effective than the Nigerian centre-forward with his play in and out of possession in the Championship so far this season.

Appearances

17

19

xG

1.88

4.65

Goals

1

5

Key passes per game

0.4

1.4

Big chances created

0

3

Assists

1

2

Duel success rate

36%

49%

As you can see in the table above, Price has scored four more goals, outperforming his xG, and created chances for the team on a far more regular basis than Maja.

These statistics suggest that the Northern Irish talent is far more likely to be a difference-maker in the final third against Southampton this evening, which is why he should be given the nod from the start in the hope that he can make an impact at St. Mary’s.

Their respective success rate in duels also further backs up the belief that Price would be the better option out of the two for West Brom’s plan out of possession, as he is better in his physical battles against opposition players.

Given that Southampton have won five of their last six games, the Baggies will need to roll up their sleeves and put in a lot of fight to come away from Hampshire with some points, and Price seems more likely to be effective in that situation.

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Therefore, Mason must ruthlessly drop Maja from the starting line-up, after one match, to bring Price back into the side in an attempt to secure a positive result against Southampton this evening.