O’Neill took 4 for 53 while Bartlett and Hadley took two wickets each as Australia A romped to an innings and 127-run victory

AAP08-Dec-2025

England’s miserable Ashes tour has reached the depths of their Lions side, who were beaten by an innings and 127 runs by an Australia A team.England’s alarming lack of Ashes depth has been further emphasised, after their Lions side were thrashed by an innings and 127 runs by Australia A in Brisbane.Fresh off the tourists’ heavy loss at the Gabba on Sunday leaving them 2-0 down in the Ashes, the Lions were humiliated 10 minutes down the road at Allan Border Field on Monday.Related

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After being bowled out for 166 on Friday, England’s batting managed slightly better in their second innings before being all out for 295.Youngster Asa Tribe, who has played five ODIs for Jersey, finished unbeaten on 129, but Fergus O’Neill’s 4 for 53 for Australia A ensured there was no chance of a final-day draw.Those innings were sandwiched by Australia A’s 588 for 8 declared, with Nathan McSweeney using the match to push his Test claims with an unbeaten 226.The defeat follows a loss to a Cricket Australia XI last month, but most players featured in a first-innings win over a Prime Minister’s XI in Canberra.England’s senior side desperately need change ahead of next week’s third Ashes Test in Adelaide, but realistically their options are limited.Ollie Pope is under mounting pressure to keep his spot at No. 3, after failing to reach 50 in any of his first four innings of the series.But the man most likely to replace him, Jacob Bethell, is still yet to hit his maiden first-class hundred in a career spanning 25 matches.Bethell showed some signs of promise with a 71 against Australia A on Sunday, but his returns for the tour are now 3, 70, 44, 16, 19 and 71.Tribe’s century in the third innings in Brisbane has been the only hundred of the tour from an England Lions player, with no one sticking their hand up for selection.The bigger concern for England could be spinner Shoaib Bashir, after years of preparing him for this Ashes summer.The 22-year-old went for 0 for 115 from 25 overs against Australia A, with McSweeney pulling his first two balls for four on day one, and the match barely getting any better.Will Jacks was picked ahead of Bashir for the Gabba Test and took the wicket of Brendan Doggett, while offering some value with the bat.England’s back-up quicks Josh Tongue and Matthew Potts did not play in this Lions fixture, with Nathan Gilchrist taking 4 for 128 and Josh Hull 3 for 103.

Chelsea star Raheem Sterling has been urged to push for a sensational transfer to Wrexham and end his struggles at Stamford Bridge. The winger is part of the club's infamous 'bomb squad' and is training away from the first team in west London. Former Wales and Liverpool striker Dean Saunders says a transfer to Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac's side would be a great bit of business.

Sterling out in the cold at Chelsea

Sterling has been deemed surplus to requirements at Chelsea which has led to speculation over his future, and talk of a sensational transfer to Wrexham. The winger's last competitive appearance came back in May, at the end of his loan spell with Arsenal, and it remains to be seen when he will return to action. With the January transfer window now just weeks away, Sterling's future is likely to come under the spotlight once again. Saunders has been left baffled by Sterling's situation at Chelsea and feels a shock move to Wrexham is not out of the question.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportWrexham told Sterling 'not over the hill'

Saunders told BOYLE Sports who offer the latest football betting: "Raheem Sterling to Wrexham? Why not? You might see some big players that have watched the documentary and they think, ‘I'll have a bit of that. I'd love to play for them, Wrexham.’ You might get somebody like Raheem Sterling saying that. I can't get my head around his situation. What's going on? He’s not over the hill. He's a very good player. Having said that, the Championship's not easy to play in. I've managed in the Championship and sometimes Premier League players come down and play in it and they can't believe what's going on. We're playing all the time and every game's a battle. Millwall away on a Tuesday night. When the ball's up in the air all night, some of them find it difficult."

'Everybody wants to play for Wrexham'

Saunders also feels that Wrexham is an attractive club to join following their rapid rise up the leagues under Reynolds and Mac, and the Hollywood duo's subsequent heavy investment in the first team.

"I always thought that if we could get Wrexham back in the league, I thought our team would be better than most of the League Two teams. If you get in League Two, you can go up again to League One.  Now, when you get to League One, the budgets can be five million, then you get teams like Sunderland who are in there with twenty million," he added.

"You get a few big clubs trying to go up. To get into the Championship, once you get into the Championship, I thought we could get to the Championship, but then you're competing with three Premier League teams who've just got relegated. A couple who tried to go back up but never made it, with massive playing budgets and Premier League players in it. And I thought that might be the difficult bit because you have got to put your hand in your pocket then to try and compete in the Championship. And to be fair, they have.

"I mean, I'm hearing what some of the players are earning now. You know, they've signed Josh Windass, they've signed Nathan Broadhead, Kieffer Moore. They can play at that level every day of the week and all day long and have an impact most weeks. Fair play to the manager because they've turned the players over ruthlessly so they've kept momentum.

"If Wrexham get to the Premier League I'll be delighted because it's a great club. They've got great, great supporters. And there is a massive catchment area around Wrexham, in between Wrexham and Cardiff, there's a catchment area which they're getting players through now into the academy. 

"Obviously not far the other way is Man City, Man United, Liverpool, Everton. So they normally nick the best young kids. Then you've got Stoke not far away. So they have had all the best players nicked off them, but now everybody wants to play for Wrexham, don't they? Famous all around the world. It's an incredible story."

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Getty Images SportSterling to move on in January?

Wrexham have been tipped to spend again in January as they bid to secure promotion to the Premier League. Phil Parkinson's side currently sit 10th in the table but are only three points off the final play-off place. It's not clear yet if Sterling could be tempted to head to Wales, but it certainly would be no surprise to see the 30-year-old move on in a bid to try and resurrect his career after losing his place at Chelsea.

Liverpool have now reportedly joined the race to sign a rising star who could replace Ibrahima Konate, having already sent their scouts to watch the defender in action.

What next after Salah's explosive rant?

Just when they thought it couldn’t get any worse, Mohamed Salah found himself strolling through the mixed zone towards the first microphone available. And this was no friendly catch-up. The Egyptian unleashed a sensational rant, accusing Liverpool of throwing him “under the bus” and claiming that there is no longer a relationship with manager Arne Slot.

So, where do Liverpool and Salah go next? The Egyptian has trained today and a decision is yet to be made as to whether he travels to face Inter Milan in the Champions League on Tuesday evening.

According to The Athletic’s James Pearce, some teammates were expecting his rant and those higher up at Anfield knew it was only inevitable that the chances increased that he’d speak out with every passing week on the bench.

Slot maintains the backing of Anfield chiefs, however, who view his decision to drop Salah as a selection choice which was unlikely to be long-term.

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What’s more, as reported by the BBC’s Sami Mokbel, the relationship between Slot and Salah is genuinely broken at present and the Egyptian simply does not see a future at Liverpool whilst the Dutchman is in charge.

It’s the lowest moment of Liverpool’s season so far and one that they could certainly do without as the fixtures come thick and fast. Alas, business goes on for FSG, who have reportedly joined the race to solve another one of Slot’s glaring problems at Liverpool.

Liverpool join race to sign Jeremy Jacquet

According to Sky Sports’ Sacha Tavolieri, Liverpool have now joined the race to sign Jeremy Jacquet, who has impressed their scouts at Stade Rennais.

The Reds have already made checks on the 20-year-old defender and could welcome his arrival to replace Konate in 2026. The Frenchman is in the worst form of his Liverpool career and has already played himself out of a potential move to Real Madrid. Now, with his contract still on course to expire in the summer, he could still leave as a free agent.

Dubbed “physically imposing” by Como scout Ben Mattinson back in May and as “an insane centre-back in the making” by Jacek Kulig, Jacquet has only come on leaps and bounds ever since. At 20 years old, he’s someone that should be on the radar of several top clubs.

For Liverpool, that physicality would be key. The Reds have been bullied far too often this season with Konate at the scene of the crime all too often.

Salah replacement: Liverpool keen to sign "one of the best wingers in Europe"

LOS ANGELES — Like a Battle of Gettysburg reenactment, the visiting clubhouse of Dodger Stadium in the first hour of Tuesday morning reeked of equal parts loss, pride and discarded bandages. Just as Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora did in the same room seven years ago, Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider poured salve on wounds 18 innings in the making.

“This game,” he told his players, “is not going to beat us twice.”

Said ace pitcher Kevin Gausman, “He was pretty adamant.”

The Red Sox in 2018 Game 3 lost in 18 innings on a walk-off home run. The Blue Jays lost Game 3 Monday in 18 innings on a walk-off home run. Cora in his 2018 postgame address made sure his troops honored the losing pitcher, Nathan Eovaldi, who threw 97 pitches in emergency relief work. Cora believes the Red Sox won the World Series that night because of not just how Eovaldi saved the bullpen from overuse but also the way he personified the grit of the team.

Carlos Febles, a coach with those Red Sox and these Jays, was the one person in the room on both nights of the two most grueling losses in World Series history.

“Erik Lauer,” he said to Schneider, “is our Nathan Eovaldi.”

Lauer threw 4 2/3 innings in the defeat, his longest outing in two months.

At least for one game, the Blue Jays reenacted the postscript to the original Battle of 18 Innings. They had no business winning Game 4, at least if you buy into narratives, what with Jays DH George Springer, an all-time great World Series slugger, out with an oblique injury suffered in Game 3 and the Dodgers giving the ball to Shohei Ohtani, who was unbeaten with a 1.33 ERA at Dodger Stadium in his career. The Blue Jays did not care and won 6–2.

“Really, it just started last night,” Gausman said. “It was just flushing it and moving on to the next one. Maybe that’s a little naïve, but we just kind of believe that the next guy up mentality. We’re good whatever happens, going up against anybody, whoever’s pitching on the other side.

“So, it was really just kind of hurry up and go to sleep and get ready for tomorrow and today. Yeah, I mean, it's pretty loose in here. This is the loosest team I’ve ever been on. Nothing changed today.”

Stop me if you heard this before: Vlad Guerrero Jr. hit a home run (off a hanging sweeper from Ohtani, who had allowed one homer on the pitch all year), the Jays’ fast-break offense put up four runs in a 19-pitch eyeblink in the seventh inning (without benefit of a home run), and the pitching staff worked its pitching backward postseason philosophy to exquisite results.

Shohei Ohtani and the Dodgers hoped to seize control of the World Series in Game 4 but they weren't able to get it done at home, losing 6-2 to the Blue Jays. The series is now tied up at 2-2 and suddenly it looks like Los Angeles could be in trouble, partly because while Ohtani has done virtually everything he can thus far, some of his star teammates are not having the same kind of success.

The biggest name that hasn't stepped up enough in the World Series is Mookie Betts. The 2018 AL MVP is an eight-time All-Star but he hasn't been himself at the plate against the Blue Jays. He has just three hits in 19 at-bats and has yet to knock in a run.

Moments after Game 4, in which Betts went 1-for-4 with his only hit being a single in the eighth inning, Alex Rodriguez seemed to call out the Dodgers' star shortstop, saying his struggles could hurt Ohtani the rest of the series.

"When I look at that lineup, the one guy that you have to circle is the great, great Mookie Betts because if Mookie doesn’t get going that means that Shohei may not get one more at-bat for the rest of series and that’s something to watch," Rodriguez said.

David Ortiz then chimed in with what he thinks has gone wrong for the Dodgers and what the team's other stars need to do to pick up Ohtani.

"Shohei has a hard job to do because he has to pitch and he has to hit but he’s more critical because if he doesn’t hit [the Dodgers] don’t hit," Ortiz said. "It seems like every night when they get going it’s because of [Ohtani]. Now you have a lot of superstars on the ball club, you have a lot of professional hitters that until this point they haven’t been able to come through collectively."

Here's that complete conversation from Fox's postgame show.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts hinted there could be some lineup changes for Game 5, saying in his postgame press conference: “I’m going to think long and hard, and it might look a little bit different tomorrow.”

The Dodgers need their other stars to pick it up, and fast. The Blue Jays were resilient in Game 4 and if they can win Game 5 they will head home with a 3-2 lead and will only need to win one game at Rogers Centre to claim their first World Series title since 1993.

Game 5 is a crucial game for both teams. We'll have to wait and see what changes the Dodgers make, if any, and if Betts can finally get going at the plate.

لا تزال تصريحات محمد صلاح النارية تجاه مدربه آرني سلوت ونادي ليفربول تُلقي بظلالها على الإعلام الإنجليزي، الذي لم يهدأ منذ اللحظة الأولى لانفجار الأزمة.

ولم يعد الأمر مجرد خلاف فني أو غضب لاعب من جلوسه على مقاعد البدلاء، بل تحوّلت إلى ملف مفتوح تتصدره الصحف الكبرى يوميًا، مع تحليلات مستمرة حول مستقبل النجم المصري.

ورصدت صحيفة “ديلي ميل” البريطانية تقريرًا يتناول اللحظة الحالية في مسيرة محمد صلاح مع ليفربول ووضعه في مقارنة مع أساطير النادي السابقين، وجاء بعنوان: “انفجار غضب محمد صلاح يوضح لماذا من المستحيل أن ينتهي الأمر بنهاية سعيدة في ليفربول، كلمات الملك المصري تسببت في أضرار لا يمكن إصلاحها”.

تبدأ الصحيفة تقريرها بالحديث عن قائد وأسطورة ليفربول السابق ستيفن جيرارد الذي لم يحظٍ بنهاية مثالية في “آنفيلد”، القائد الذي حمل النادي على كتفيه لسنوات، لم يختتم مسيرته بكأس أو لحظة خالدة، بل بهزيمتين موجعتين وخلافات مع الإدارة.

صرّح جيرارد بعد الهزيمة في نصف النهائي أمام أستون فيلا، بعدما كان يتمنى اللقب: “كان الأمر رائعًا لدرجة يصعب تصديقها، أليس كذلك؟، الفوز بكأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي، في عيد ميلادك، في مباراتك الأخيرة؟”.

كانت آخر مباريات جيرارد مع ليفربول، هزيمة 3-1 أمام كريستال بالاس وهزيمة 6-1 أمام ستوك؛ كان ذلك بعد أن تعامل النادي مع محادثات تمديد عقده بشكل مؤسف، وتدهورت علاقته مع بريندان رودجرز.

اقرأ أيضًا | ديلي ميل: تجربة جوارديولا حل ليفربول للخروج من مأزق أنانية محمد صلاح

وقبل جيرارد كان ستيف ماكمانامان، الذي أضاء عتمة الليل في ليفربول بأدائه خلال فترة التسعينات، لكنه ترك خلفه جدلًا وغضبًا بسبب انتقاله إلى ريال مدريد، رغم أن النادي نفسه حاول بيعه قبلها دون رغبة منه.

والقصة تكررت مع لويس سواريز، الذي عاش موسمًا استثنائيًا، لكنه عاد إلى آنفيلد بقميص برشلونة محاطًا بصافرات الاستهجان.

وهناك أيضًا مايكل أوين، الذي حصل على الكرة الذهبية وقاد النادي لبطولات تاريخية، خرج بدوره من الباب الخلفي وانتقل إلى ريال مدريد، ثم انتهى به الأمر في مانشستر يونايتد، والآن يُذكر اسمه بألفاظ نابية.

وتشير “ديلي ميل” إلى أن هناك المزيد، من الماضي وحتى الآونة الأخيرة، حيث ثارت ضجة عندما بيع روبي فاولر إلى ليدز (2001) وانتقال تشابي ألونسو إلى ريال مدريد (2009).

وكان فيليب كوتينيو نجمًا ساطعًا في عهد يورجن كلوب، لكن رغبته في الانتقال إلى برشلونة، أثارت حوله موجةً من الاستهجان، وباعه ليفربول مقابل 142 مليون جنيه إسترليني، لكن الغضب من رحيله، في البداية، لا يُنسى.

وفي الآونة الأخيرة، جوردان هندرسون، قائد التتويج بالدوري بعد ثلاثين عامًا، ودّع النادي في صيف صامت وسط أعمال بناء خالية من الجماهير، وهو يكافح دموعه، بعد أن قرر الانتقال إلى نادي الاتفاق.

وتوضح “ديلي ميل” أن هذه الخلفية ليست مجرد سرد تاريخي؛ لكن هي مفتاح لفهم اللحظة التي يعيشها محمد صلاح الآن في ليفربول.

المصري حين خرج بتصريحات نارية ضد سلوت، لم يكن مجرد اختلاف في وجهات النظر، بل بدا وكأنه إعلان مواجهة مباشرة، وفتيل قنبلة يشعله، خطوة منفردة تحمل ضجيجًا سياسيًا وإعلاميًا داخل النادي، وتفتح الباب أمام أزمة يصعب التراجع عنها بسهولة.

وأفاد التقرير بأن محمد صلاح أحدث مثال على استحالة أن تكون نهاية مسيرته في ليفربول مثالية، بإلقاء نظرة على التاريخ، سنرلا العديد من الأمثلة على أبطال انتهى بهم الأمر في صراع مع النادي، أو انقلب عليهم المشجعون، أو تركوا الجماهير في خلاف مع المالكين.

وتوضح “ديلي ميل” أن صلاح يعرف جيدًا تأثير كلماته، ويعرف أكثر كيف يُحدث الضجة، وكيف تتحرك الجماهير حين يتحدث، وقبل عام فقط استخدم ردود الفعل الجماهيرية لدعم موقفه في مفاوضات العقد الجديد، لكنه هذه المرة لم يجد نفس الصدى؛ فالتوقيت حساس، والأداء محل نقاش، والعلاقة مع المدرب تمر بمرحلة دقيقة.

اقرأ أيضًا | ذا أثلتيك: 3 أطراف وراء استبعاد محمد صلاح من مباراة إنتر ميلان.. وهذا موقف ليفربول من تأديبه

ويفيد التقرير أن السيناريو الأقرب خلال الشهور الماضية كان رحيل صلاح بنهاية الموسم نحو الدوري السعودي، إلا أن ما حدث الآن وضع الجميع في مأزق.

والسؤال الآن كيف سيُعامل هدّاف تاريخي للنادي إذا اضطر المدرب إلى استبعاده؟ وفي المقابل، كيف يمكن لصلاح أن يتصرف كلاعب “منضبط” وسط هذا الكم من الضجيج؟، وكيف يمكن أن يكون صلاح في موقف يُستبعد فيه كتلميذ مشاغب؟.

كان يعتقد أن محمد صلاح سيشهد نهاية لهذه القصة حيث يغادر بحذاء ذهبي آخر وميدالية أخرى وإشادة أنفيلد ترن في أذنيه، وإذا لم يحدث هذا لجيرارد، فلن يحدث للملك المصري، الذي عانى تاجه من أضرار لا يمكن إصلاحها.

MatériaMais Notícias

O avião da Placar, de propriedade da presidente do Palmeiras, Leila Pereira, levou a Caxias do Sul (RS) cerca de 30 veterinários, além de alimentos e medicamentos para animais. A ação aconteceu nesta terça-feira (21).

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➡️ Siga o Lance! Palmeiras no WhatsApp e acompanhe todas as notícias do Verdão

A aeronave retornou para Sorocaba (SP) com cerca de 100 animais resgatados, entre cães e gatos. Na última semana, o avião havia trazido 30 animais resgatados, depois de transportar toneladas de mantimentos para o Rio Grande do Sul. A presidente do Verdão é entusiasta da causa animal e tem 16 cães.

AÇÕES DO PALMEIRAS

Além da iniciativa de Leila Pereira, o Palmeiras tem promovido uma série de ações em prol da população que sofre com a tragédia ocorrida no Rio Grande do Sul, causada pelas intensas chuvas na região.

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O clube disponibilizou seu centro de treinamento, o Allianz Parque e a Arena Barueri para Internacional, Grêmio e Juventude utilizaram as instalações durante o período de calamidade no RS.

Além disso, o Palmeiras destinou a renda do confronto com o Athletico-PR, pelo Brasileirão, em forma de doação ao estado.

O clube também prontificou alguns postos para arrecadação de doações: o Allianz Parque (Portão A), a Academia de Futebol, as escolas de futebol e em todas as lojas Palmeiras Store.

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Leila PereiraPalmeiras

This is the first time in four seasons that the final of the Women’s Premier League will not be played on a weekend

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Nov-2025The 2026 Women’s Premier League (WPL) will have its final on a weekday (Thursday, February 5), and not over the weekend, for the first time, and feature two double-headers, both on Saturdays, after kicking off on January 9.The 28-day-long tournament will be played across two venues: Navi Mumbai, where India won the ODI World Cup in early November beating South Africa in the final, and Vadodara. The first 11 matches, including the two double-headers, will be played at Navi Mumbai’s DY Patil Stadium, and the remaining 11 matches, including the eliminator on February 3 and the final will be played at Vadodara’s Kotambi Stadium.The dates and venues were confirmed by the WPL’s chairman, Jayesh George, on Thursday, the day of the WPL auction. All games bar the earlier fixture on the double-header days will be evening affairs.The week of the final is a busy one for multi-team competitions, with the men’s Under-19 World Cup finishing the day after the WPL final, on February 6, and the men’s T20 World Cup starting the following day, on February 7.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Apart from having a weekday final, this is the first time the WPL will be played in the January-February window. The first three seasons were played in February-March just before the start of the IPL. This will also be the first time the WPL will not clash with major international fixtures.Mumbai Indians (MI) are the defending champions of the WPL and have won two titles in three editions so far, with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) the other past winners. Delhi Capitals (DC) have been runners-up in all three seasons. The other two teams, Gujarat Giants and UP Warriorz, have never made the title round.Ten days after the WPL ends, India will start an all-format tour of Australia, playing three T20Is, three ODIs and a Test from February 15 to March 9.WPL 2026 schedule
Jan 9: Mumbai Indians vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Jan 10: UP Warriorz vs Gujarat Giants
Jan 10: Mumbai Indians vs Delhi Capitals
Jan 11: Delhi Capitals vs Gujarat Giants
Jan 12: Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs UP Warriorz
Jan 13: Mumbai Indians vs Gujarat Giants
Jan 14: UP Warriorz vs Delhi Capitals
Jan 15: Mumbai Indians vs UP Warriorz
Jan 16: Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Gujarat Giants
Jan 17: UP Warriorz vs Mumbai Indians
Jan 17: Delhi Capitals vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru

Jan 19: Gujarat Giants vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Jan 20: Delhi Capitals vs Mumbai Indians
Jan 22: Gujarat Giants vs UP Warriorz
Jan 24: Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Delhi Capitals
Jan 26: Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Mumbai Indians
Jan 27: Gujarat Giants vs Delhi Capitals
Jan 29: UP Warriorz vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Jan 30: Gujarat Giants vs Mumbai Indians
Feb 1: Delhi Capitals vs UP Warriorz
Feb 3: Eliminator
Feb 5: Final

The three quicks shared seven wickets for India A, while KL Rahul was unbeaten at stumps

Shashank Kishore07-Nov-2025A few days after being left out of the Test squad to face South Africa, Prasidh Krishna stung South Africa A in a terrific spell of seam bowling to help India A open up a sizeable lead by stumps on Day 2 of the second four-day fixture at BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.Prasidh picked up three, while Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep picked up two apiece as South Africa A folded for 221, giving the hosts a 34-run lead. They converted this into a 112-run lead by stumps, albeit for the loss of three wickets.KL Rahul was unbeaten on 26, unhurried and composed, after Abhimanyu Easwaran bagged a pair and B Sai Sudharsan was pinned lbw yet again after playing around his front pad to a nip-backer from left-arm seamer Tiaan van Vuuren. Devdutt Padikkal, also part of the Test squad, appeared to have steadied the innings after two early wickets, but fell for 24 at the stroke of stumps as South Africa A ensured the hosts were still within touching distance.Related

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Rishabh Pant returns to India's Test squad for South Africa series

After warming the bench during the two Tests against West Indies, Prasidh reveled in conditions he would love to take with him everywhere. He troubled batters with bounce, had batters awkwardly fend at deliveries and consistently beat the outside edge with seam movement.Siraj, meanwhile, was a bit more blockbuster. Barring one solitary over where he was taken for 24 – courtesy three fours and two sixes by centurion Marques Ackerman – Siraj breathed fire with the new and semi-new ball. He swung it both ways, troubled batters with the late tail, celebrappealed after pinning Zubayr Hamza plumb and shattered Kyle Simmonds’ stumps with a terrific in-swinger.It started with Akash Deep’s pearler to Lesego Senokwane in the very first over – easily the ball of the day – angling in and straightening to beat the outside edge and hit top of off. While he couldn’t quite top that – anyone would’ve found its hard to – there were plenty of moments in that first spell where he could’ve picked a few more wickets. He eventually finished with 2 for 28 in 10 overs.For Akash Deep, this outing was massive from a confidence standpoint after suffering a series of niggles since returning from a breakout Test tour of England. It was also a timely boost ahead of the South Africa Tests, where he could line up to be the third seamer in home conditions at Eden Gardens.India A’s lead could’ve been a lot bigger, but for a superb fourth first-class century by Ackerman, the South Africa A captain, who held a crumbling middle order together and fought through periods of prodigious swing and seam movement early in the session on a green surface that still had plenty in it for the fast bowlers.Marques Ackerman celebrates his century•PTI Ackerman is very Dean Elgar-like in his setup. As the day progressed, he showed it wasn’t just in the aesthetics that was Elgar-like, but in his fight too. He seemed intent on crease occupation, but the only problem was he had to shift gears quickly as the middle order caved in. And once he crossed a half-century, he went into overdrive, with some help from No. 9 Prenelan Subrayen.He stepped out to loft Kuldeep Yadav for six over long-off and rocked back to cut him. He also played a neat, little reverse-sweep off Kuldeep when he drifted the ball away. The real aggression came when Siraj went after him with a few verbal volleys, seemingly frustrated after beating the outside edge a number of times in the middle session.Ackerman drove him imperiously for two boundaries and flicked a leg-stump half-volley for a third when Prasidh misfielded at fine leg. With more steam coming off his ears as he knocked the stumps down at the bowler’s end in frustration, Siraj returned to bang in two short balls that got picked away for sixes. The first – a ramp over the slips, and the second a hook over fine leg.Ackerman brought up his century off 99 balls, and raced away to 134. He took a liking to left-arm spinner Harsh Dubey, who was introduced late and bowled just three overs, before becoming the ninth batter to fall. Ackerman was Dubey’s only wicket. Prasidh, who had picked up two in two in the first session, then cleaned up the last batter to finish with 3 for 35 off 11.3 overs.

Barring rain-affected matches, the 106 balls in which India beat UAE is their shortest T20I ever

Sampath Bandarupalli10-Sep-20251:55

Why did Suryakumar let Siddique bat despite being out?

57 UAE’s total against India in their Asia Cup game on Wednesday. It is the lowest total by any team against India in men’s T20Is. The previous lowest was New Zealand’s, who were bundled out for 66 while chasing 235 in Ahmedabad in 2023.1 UAE’s 57 all-out is their lowest total in the format, going past the 62 all-out against Scotland in 2024, also in Dubai.
It is also the second-lowest total in the men’s T20 Asia Cup, behind Hong Kong’s 38 all-out against Pakistan in Sharjah in 2022.93 Balls remaining when India reached the target of 58. It is their biggest win by balls to spare in men’s T20Is, bettering the win by 81 balls against Scotland in the 2021 T20 World Cup, chasing a target of 86.It is also the second-biggest margin of victory for a Full Member nation in men’s T20Is, behind England’s against Oman in last year’s T20 World Cup when they chased down 48 with 101 balls to spare. No team, before India, had won a game with ten or more overs to spare in the men’s T20 Asia Cup.Lowest men’s T20I totals against India•ESPNcricinfo Ltd4 for 7 Kuldeep Yadav’s bowling figures against UAE, the second-best in the men’s T20 Asia Cup, behind Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s 5 for 4 against Afghanistan in 2022, also in Dubai.Related

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Kuldeep now has four four-wicket hauls in this format. Among Indians in men’s T20Is, only Bhuvneshwar (5) has more.4 Instances of Kuldeep taking three (or more) wickets in an over in T20Is. Among Indians, only Yuzvendra Chahal (2) has done it more than once in men’s T20Is. Overall, only Rashid Khan (6) has taken three or more wickets in an over in men’s T20Is as often as Kuldeep (where ball-by-ball data is available).10 Runs that were added by the UAE’s last seven partnerships from 47 for 3. Only once before has a Full Member team contained the opposition’s last seven partnerships to as little as 10 runs in a men’s T20I and that was India too, against England in 2017 at Bengaluru, when England were bowled out for 127 from 119 for 3.ESPNcricinfo Ltd17.4 Overs that UAE and India played out, the shortest completed match in the men’s T20 Asia Cup. The previous shortest, non-curtailed game was between Afghanistan and Sri Lanka in Dubai in 2022, which lasted 29.5 overs.It is also the shortest men’s T20I involving India (excluding rain-affected matches). The previous shortest was against Scotland in 2021, which lasted 24.1 overs.15 Consecutive tosses lost by India across formats before the Wednesday’s game against UAE. Their previous toss win was in January this year against England in Rajkot. India’s streak of 15 tosses lost is the longest by any team in men’s internationals.