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Surrey’s bid for victory in the Champion County fixture in Dubai was thwarted by rain, as the final day was curtailed after just 19 overs

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Mar-2019MCC 265 and 265 for 4 (Sibley 128) drew with Surrey 520 (Pope 251) Surrey’s bid for victory in the Champion County fixture in Dubai was thwarted by rain, as the final day was curtailed after just 19 overs.MCC had resumed on 221 for 1, a deficit of 34, and had inched into a one-run lead when Tom Westley became the first victim of the day, bowled by Scott Borthwick’s legspin for 28.Dom Sibley, who had resumed on 102, moved along to 128 when he too was bowled, this time by Rikki Clarke, who trapped Tom Abell for a first-ball duck one delivery later.That, however, was the end of Surrey’s surge, as the match was called off with MCC leading by 10.Surrey’s next fixture is against Durham MCCU on April 4, before they launch their County Championship defence against the 2017 champions, Essex, at The Oval on April 11.

Man Utd co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe sent an email to club staff fuming over the state of facilities this past week.

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Ratcliffe fuming over Utd facilitiesBillionaire joined ownership in 2024Message sent to staffWHAT HAPPENED?

The email was sent to club staff earlier this week, and in a memo obtained by the Athletic, Ratcliffe called the untidiness of the facilities 'a disgrace.'

The billionaire and his company INEOS purchased a minority stake in the club earlier this year.

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Ratcliffe drew issue with the club's IT Department, while throwing shade at the state of the club's youth side's tidiness as well saying “frankly the dressing rooms of U18s and U21s” were not better.

The Billionaire said INEOS would not accept that level of uncleanliness, and that they should have higher expectations for themselves.

DID YOU KNOW?

Ratcliffe will have a major role in the recruiting process for the Red Devils this summer, both internally and externally, and is clearly working on improving the staff's standards at the club.

GettyWHAT NEXT FOR MAN UTD?

The Red Devils are back in action this weekend against Crystal Palace. They'll look to pull off a result as they look to lock in a European competition spot in the EPL standings as the season winds down.

After 37 wickets in two days, South Australia are 81 runs behind with three second-innings wickets in hand

The Report by Daniel Brettig12-Mar-2019South Australia middle-order batsman Jake Lehmann stood between Queensland and outright victory after another frenetic day of wickets against the moving, bouncing Dukes ball in a Sheffield Shield match at the Gabba in Brisbane.As though not content with the 17 wickets that fell on day one, the two sides gave up 20 on day two, 10 for each side, as the quick end of the Redbacks’ first innings and the rapid decline of the Bulls’ second left SA with a victory target of 175.Bowlers on both sides enjoyed themselves, but none more so than SA left-arm spinner Tom Andrews, who finished the match with 9 for 82 after picking up three second innings victims the day after he had opened up the match with a haul of 6 for 40.In stark contrast, Bulls’ wrist spinner Mitch Swepson is yet to bowl a single ball in the match, as their captain Jimmy Peirson stuck with the all-pace attack of Michael Neser, Luke Feldman, Cameron Gannon and Mark Steketee.At 7 for 82 in SA’s chase, it appeared that the Bulls were headed for full points inside two days, but Lehmann found an ally in Nick Winter, as the pair crept to the close to keep the Redbacks in with some chance of a win. Lehmann’s 41 not out is already the highest individual score of the match.

The "Turkish Messi" provided a crucial moment as Carlo Ancelotti's side picked up three valuable points.

From Vinicius Jr to Eduardo Camavinga Real Madrid have an embarrassment of youth talent at their disposal. And on Friday night, another, newer face entered the fold – and made his mark. Arda Guler, making his first La Liga start for the club, scored the only goal of the game to hand his side a 1-0 win and inch closer to regaining the title.

Los Blancos pieced together a largely unspectacular performance. Reserve goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga was called into action on a handful of occasions in the first half, while the Madrid attack toiled. Guler provided the crucial moment, though, sneaking in at the far post to meet Dani Carvajal's cross and give his side a 1-0 lead.

La Real thought they had an equaliser when Take Kubo curled one into the far corner, but his goal was harshly ruled out for a foul in the build up. The home side had further chances in the second half, seeing another goal ruled out – this time for offside – and narrowly missing on two other occasions.

By the end of it all, Los Blancos were left holding onto a scrappy win, one of the litany of young talents at their disposal to thank for a moment of quality.

GOAL rates Real Madrid's players from Anoeta…

GettyGoalkeeper & Defence

Kepa Arrizabalaga (7/10):

Made a nice save or two, kept a clean sheet. Job done.

Dani Carvajal (8/10):

Worked tirelessly on the right, and assisted the winner. He's been excellent this season.

Eder Militao (6/10):

Not bad in his first start in six months – one nutmeg notwithstanding.

Nacho (5/10):

Filled in for Antonio Rudiger. Wasn't his most composed performance, and he was fortunate to end the game still on the pitch.

Fran Garcia (7/10):

An energetic showing on the left flank. Handled Kubo well, and also looked to get forward. He's improved of late.

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Aurelien Tchouameni (7/10):

Not his finest game in midfield. Pushed around a bit, and didn't have a big impact defensively. Played a wonderful pass to set up the winner, though.

Luka Modric (8/10):

As elegant as ever on the ball, and made things happen around the box.

Brahim Diaz (5/10):

Not on the ball as much as Ancelotti would have liked, and didn't do loads when he had it. Far from his best game.

GettyAttack

Arda Guler (8/10):

Impactful throughout, and grabbed the winner. Another talent has arrived.

Joselu (5/10):

Not his best showing. Ran a lot, won a few headers, but could never impact the game.

Dani Ceballos (5/10):

Rather misused coming off the left wing, and he never really settled into the game. Could probably do with going elsewhere for more minutes

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Federico Valverde (7/10):

Added midfield thrust to see the game out.

Vinicius Jr (6/10):

A late burst of energy. Unlucky not to grab an assist.

Antonio Rudiger (N/A):

No time to make an impact.

Eduardo Camavinga (N/A):

No time to make an impact.

Carlo Ancelotti (7/10):

Rotated heavily with a Champions League semi-final to worry about. Madrid weren't particularly good, and didn't really deserve the three points on performance alone – not that Ancelotti will care…

Phil Foden has explained why Jude Bellingham is a “gift from God” and how he is hoping to right European Championship wrongs in Germany this summer.

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Real Madrid star key for club & countryCity playmaker thriving in tournament yearDetermination to make amends for final painWHAT HAPPENED?

The Manchester City forward, fresh from savouring a historic Treble triumph in 2023, has been in the form of his life this season. Foden has registered 22 goals and 10 assists across all competitions and is expected to figure prominently in Gareth Southgate’s plans for Euro 2024.

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The same can be said for Real Madrid star Bellingham, who has also reached the 20-goal mark in his debut campaign at Santiago Bernabeu. He is fast becoming a talismanic presence for club and country, with Foden telling the of his talented international team-mate: “I have never seen anyone so mature for his age. I feel he’s got a gift from God with his physique. We really need him at his best.”

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Bellingham will turn 21 during Euro 2024, the same age that Foden was when helping England to the final of that event three years ago. The City star missed out on facing Italy in a Wembley showpiece back then after picking up an unfortunate injury, with the highly-rated playmaker old adding on that subject: “That was just crazy. I was walking in after training the day before the final. Someone just passed me the ball. I tried to control it by putting one leg behind the other, just a trick, and my standing leg just, well I heard a crack and I knew straight away. I couldn’t walk. It was devastating. I remember Gareth speaking to me and I just couldn’t help crying. I couldn’t even get any words out. I was so upset. I have learned a lesson from that, you know. I try and not do so much after training now. The coaches will probably tell you I am lying. But that really woke me up.”

GettyWHAT NEXT FOR FODEN?

England will be competing in Group C this summer alongside Slovenia, Denmark and Serbia. Foden will be hoping to figure prominently in another quest for continental glory, with the City academy graduate currently boasting 33 caps and four senior goals for his country.

Cameron Bancroft asked the umpires to check the catch and they gave the soft signal as out despite the fielder indicating he didn’t think the ball carried

Alex Malcolm04-Feb-2019Melbourne Stars captain Glenn Maxwell has labelled Ben Dunk’s controversial dismissal in Sunday night’s clash with the Perth Scorchers “an extraordinary decision”, as yet another BBL match was marred by an umpiring controversy.Dunk was given out caught early in the chase when he mistimed a pull shot to Nick Hobson at square leg who had to dive forward as the ball dipped on him. The ball nestled in Hobson’s hands but he immediately signaled to everyone on the field that he felt the ball didn’t carry and bowler Nathan Coulter-Nile agreed without reacting and walked straight back to his mark.Scorchers keeper Cameron Bancroft, with a good sight of it from behind the stumps, asked if the umpires could check upstairs. Umpires Nathan Johnstone and Gerard Abood convened and sent the decision upstairs to the third umpire Simon Lightbody and significantly gave the on-field ‘soft signal’ as out.The TV evidence was inconclusive and the third umpire was unable to overturn the on-field decision as a result. Maxwell, Dunk and the Stars were left bemused by the sequence of events.”It looked to me that the bowler and fielder said that it didn’t carry and then everyone went back to their positions, and Bancroft asked for it to be looked at,” Maxwell said post-match. “Somehow the umpire has come up with, [the decision] that’s out. It’s an extraordinary decision in the end. But that’s history.”From our point of view, it was pretty disappointing. The fielder says he doesn’t catch it and the bowler accepts that and walks back to his mark and somehow, it’s been given out on field.”Judging by the evidence given to them I would have just thought the umpires would have said the ‘soft signal’ was not out. If there was evidence that it was out then I’m fine with the decision being overturned. But the cameras looked a bit blurry and as soon as you don’t have the right evidence to overturn it, unfortunately it’s going to stick with umpire’s call. We’ll have to live with that.”It was the second controversial umpiring decision involving the Perth Scorchers at Perth Stadium this season. Scorchers batsman Michael Klinger was dismissed off the seventh ball of an over against the Sydney Sixers after the umpires incorrectly allowed an extra delivery. The decision did not affect the outcome of the game.The Heat were also left to bemoan two incorrect lbw decisions in their successful chase against the Adelaide Strikers on Sunday night when both Max Bryant and Brendon McCullum were given out. There is no DRS in the BBL but TV broadcaster Fox Sports did have ball-tracking and used it for replays of both decisions. Bryant’s was clearly missing leg stump by some margin while McCullum was hit well outside the line of off stump, but the decisions did not affect the outcome of the match with the Heat winning comfortably.Sydney Thunder and Brisbane Heat also shared the points in another controversial incident after a power failure at the Gabba ended the match early in the chase. The Thunder appealed the no result decision from the match officials after it was deemed conditions were unsuitable to continue. Cricket Australia dismissed the appeal after finding that the correct protocols had been followed by the match officials in calling the game off.

Harry Kane says he is always motivated to score against Arsenal because he wants to prove them wrong for releasing him as a youth player.

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Kane has great record against ArsenalWas released by Gunners as a childFeels he still has "point to prove"WHAT HAPPENED?

Kane was a constant thorn in Arsenal's side during his time at north London rivals Tottenham, scoring 14 goals in 19 appearances against the Gunners. He built on that record last week on his return to the English capital with his new team, Bayern Munich, when he scored in the 2-2 draw in their Champions League quarter-final tie.

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There are only two teams – Everton and Leicester – that Kane has managed to score more goals against and he admits that being released by Arsenal as a nine-year-old is a key factor behind his hunger for goals whenever he comes up against them.

WHAT KANE SAID

Kane told : "We played them at least twice a year for the last 10 years [with Tottenham] and it was always a big occasion, big moment. Maybe it was in the back of my mind, being released from a young age, and there is always a point to prove.

"I am the type of player who, throughout my career, has had points to prove along the way. I don’t think that ever leaves you. It will always be in my DNA, until I retire. There will always be a reason to prove someone wrong or to prove myself I can do something.

"I don’t think specifically back to that and think ‘I was released when I was nine years old, I really have to make a difference tomorrow.’ Now I am at Bayern Munich it is about being a top team in the Champions League. Of course I have history with them [Arsenal], but all I can do is try to help Bayern Munich."

GettyWHAT NEXT FOR KANE?

The 30-year-old will hope to add even more goals to his record against his old rivals when Bayern host Mikel Arteta's team in the second leg of their European tie this week. The two teams play the return fixture in Munich on Wednesday.

Lyon was named Test Player of the Year, Marcus Stoinis took the ODI award and the T20I honour went to Glenn Maxwell

Andrew McGlashan11-Feb-2019Pat Cummins has been named the Allan Border medalist at the Australian Cricket Awards in Melbourne to confirm him as the standout performer in a tough and controversial year for the men’s game.In a period which included the ball-tampering scandal leading to Steven Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft being suspended it was between Cummins, Nathan Lyon and Aaron Finch for the main award.The voting period of January 9, 2018 to January 7, 2019 took in Australia’s tours of South Africa, England, Zimbabwe and UAE, the one-day series against England after the 2018-19 Ashes, the T20 tri-series which followed plus the recent home season up to the end of the final Test against India at the SCG along with the ODIs against South Africa and T20Is against India.Cummins took 44 wickets across all formats, seven behind Lyon who had earlier been named Test player of the year, with Finch the only other serious candidate with 1302 runs in the voting period in which Test matches are given a greater weighting. Cummins tallied 156 votes, Lyon 150 and Finch 146.Pat Cummins was named the Allan Border medalist•Getty ImagesA look the through the Test batting statistics of the voting period (which doesn’t include the recent Tests against Sri Lanka when four centuries were scored or the suspended trio) highlights the difficulties Australia faced with the bat. Marcus Harris topped the averages with 258 runs at 36.85 and Usman Khawaja the run-scoring with 592 runs at 32.88.Though Cummins missed the two Tests against Pakistan he produced impressive performances in Johannesburg (the Test after ball tampering) and in Melbourne against India and only went wicketless once in a Test, at the SCG when India piled on the runs.His 4 for 24 in the Adelaide ODI against England last season will have earned him an extra points haul to keep him ahead of Lyon and Finch and in the final count that may have been the difference.Though yet to be elevated to the new-ball role, Cummins has become Australia’s most consistent pace bowler and has developed into a handy No. 8 which he showed by scoring half-centuries against South Africa and India.Beyond the wickets, and useful runs, the standout feature for Cummins has been his ability to stay fit throughout two full Australian seasons following an early part of his career that was hampered by regular injury.Marcus Stoinis with Cricket Australia’s Men’s ODI Player of the Year Award•Getty ImagesElsewhere, Marcus Stoinis was named ODI Player of the Year in a period where he was the only player to appear in all 13 matches. He made four half-centuries in 13 innings among his 376 runs and claimed 13 wickets to cement his position the ODI team. By the end of the international season last week he had also earned his first Test call-up and is tipped to be part of the Ashes squad later this year.Glenn Maxwell, fresh from his outstanding innings for Melbourne Stars on Sunday to secure a place in the BBL semi-finals, was named T20I Player of the Year after making 506 runs in 19 matches including an unbeaten century against England in Hobart. Barring a major reversal, Maxwell will be part of Australia’s squad for the World Cup in England but appears unlikely to appear in the Ashes.Someone whose numbers mean he probably should be under consideration for all squads but appears likely to find himself missing out is Matthew Wade. He claimed the Domestic Player of the Year title for his prolific form last season which carried into the 2018-19 of which the first part of the Sheffield Shield counts towards this year’s votes alongside the latter half of the 2017-18 campaign. Across all formats, Wade scored 1509 runs in the voting period with five centuries.The Bradman Young Cricketer of the Year award went to Will Pucovski, the Victoria batsman who was part of Australia’s Test squad against Sri Lanka recently. Having been selected with a view to making his debut as part of a revamp of the batting line-up he then saw his spot go to Kurtis Patterson at the last moment. He was later released from the squad to allow him to continue to manage his mental health issues which kept him out of action earlier this season.

India’s captain and coach had different reasons for the same sentiment, as they celebrated India’s first series win in Australia since first playing there 71 years ago

Sidharth Monga in Sydney07-Jan-20198:23

‘No one plays Test cricket with more passion than Kohli’ – Shastri

India’s captain and coach are both World Cup winners but they rate this series win in Australia higher than those triumphs, albeit for different reasons. Ravi Shastri, the coach, was part of the India squad that won the 1983 World Cup although he didn’t play in the final. Virat Kohli played through the 2011 World Cup that India won.”I was part of 2011 World Cup team,” Kohli said, “but I didn’t have the emotion of not having been able to win a World Cup before. Playing at home and winning it eventually… a lot of the senior players had that emotion. Yes, it was a great moment for me but if you ask me which moment is more emotional, I would say this one because this is my third tour here and I have seen how difficult it is to win here. And all the struggles that we have gone through in the past 12 months as well as the team.”So, from that point of view this one is more emotional for me. It will definitely be more special, purely because of the fact that we really wanted to win a series away from home. We didn’t want to be a one-match-wonder kind of team. So, having stuck to our task and executed what we wanted and got the result, we, as a team, feel absolutely complete now that we have done what we set out to do…not to show to anyone else but to prove ourselves that yes, we could do it and we have done it. From that point of view this one is more special for me.”For Shastri, this is a win achieved in a purer format. “I will tell you how satisfying it is for me,” Shastri said. “World Cup ’83, World Championship ’85. This is as big, or even bigger, because it is in the truest format of the game. It’s Test cricket, which is meant to be the toughest.”There was the usual combative reaction to criticism – Shastri took another potshot at Sunil Gavaskar’s criticism, calling his shots “blanks” that are “blown away like a tracer bullet” by the time they reach the southern hemisphere – but there was a genuine feeling of relief and pride in Kohli. All the psyching up he had to do, all the effort put in to not let the mind wander ahead of himself, could now be laid to rest. He was asked about his comments before the Test that history doesn’t mean much to him.Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri share a light moment before team photos•Mark Kolbe/Getty Images”We all play mind-games, don’t we,” Kohli said with a smile. “Look, it’s obviously a very proud moment, more so because we understand what we have gone through as a team for the last 12 months. We understand the kind of cricket that we have been able to play, and I was just mentioning the fact that after losing tosses, we have been in competition throughout in the games that we have lost. We understood as a team we were on the right track. What has come in the most historic series for Indian cricket is the cherry on the cake and something that, as I said, in the 10 years that I have played, is the proudest moment that I have experienced.”I am so happy for the whole team because a young bunch of guys, to have that belief and to keep striving for excellence on a daily basis and to get a reward like this, we definitely have to be happy. Although changing history or creating history is still not what I am thinking of, it is pure satisfaction of the hard work of 12 months to understand that what we believed in has been proven right and regardless of the whole world being against you, if you are striving in the right direction with good intent, God’s going to reward you. So that’s what I am more happy about.””So history does matter?””Of course it does.”Shastri, though, continued to be caustic. He was asked if he would like to share this success with captains who – from Lala Amarnath to MS Dhoni – tried their best to win in Australia but couldn’t. “Past is history, future is a mystery,” Shastri said. “Okay? We have won today after 71 years, I’d like to live in the present. And salute my captain for being the captain of the team that beat Australia for the first time in Australia in a series.”When talking about the satisfaction of winning this series, Shastri again referenced teams from the past, and also said Kohli shows more passion for Test cricket than any other captain in the world.”I don’t think anyone plays Test cricket with more passion than he [Kohli] does,” Shastri said. “At least I don’t see any other international captain coming close to him on the field when it comes to showing that passion needed to play the game. He is very expressive, which is different to others. Other captains could have different personalities but Virat is someone who is in your face and it rubs off on all the youngsters who are watching the game in India. His team-mates watch him, they want to emulate him. And to believe that they can be someone like him who can go out there and strive for excellence.”So when an individual puts his neck on the line as captain then the others follow. And you have seen that transition happening over the last two-three years where guys in the team have become more and more confident, about their own ability and the ability of the team as well and it’s made all the difference. I said in Melbourne – I think I mentioned people taking pot shots and firing blanks. I wasn’t joking there, because I knew how hard this team had worked. When you fire from there, by the time it crosses the southern hemisphere, it’s blown away by the wind like a tracer bullet. But lead with something in it can be pretty serious. And that’s what we have fired right through the series against Australia. We were committed, and it jolly well made a bloody difference at the end of it all.”This is not a team of gods or demigods, seniors or juniors. This is an Indian cricket team that will jump over a cliff to win a match for the country. And that’s the determination, that’s the ruthlessness, that’s the mindset with which this team went to play in this series. And hats off to them to show that courage. Today I can say I am proud of my boys and I can also tell them one thing which Virat touched in the presentation – that this team now has an identity to look at any other Indian team from the past in the eye and say, ‘We play proper Test match cricket. You did, we did too,’ without being intimidated.”

Former Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward is back in football after landing his first job since his Old Trafford exit.

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Woodward left Manchester United in 2022Has now taken up new football-related roleWill work with London-based charityWHAT HAPPENED?

Woodward has been appointed to the board of trustees for Bloomsbury Football Foundation. The charity has described Woodward's appointment as a "huge signing" as he takes up his first football-related position since leaving United in 2022.

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Woodward spent a decade at Old Trafford but was unpopular with supporters, largely due to some poor transfer decisions. He took up a position in 2023 as a non-executive director at eSports company EStars but his latest role is his first football-related position since leaving United. The Bloomsbury Football Foundation is a London-based charity that offers an inclusive football programme aimed at young people.

WHAT WOODWARD SAID

He said: "I am thrilled. This is an exciting opportunity to join a charity that is already having a significant impact on the lives of young Londoners using the power of football. Visiting a Bloomsbury Football session reaffirmed my belief that football has the power to change lives. It is clear the support the charity is already receiving is making a real impact on the pitch. The session represented the diversity of London – the coaches were supportive, players were engaged, and they seemed to be enjoying every minute."

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Woodward will be hoping he can make an impact in his new role but will likely also be watching events at Manchester United with interest. The Red Devils are also set for major changes this summer, with Omar Berrada set to take over as CEO, while the club are also hoping to bring in Dan Ashworth and Jason Wilcox as part of a shake-up.