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A game that was nicely poised going into the final day petered out into a draw as Essex successfully negotiated the 63 overs that were bowled in their second innings

ECB Reporters Network25-May-2016
ScorecardNick Browne’s 71 anchored Essex’s rearguard•Getty ImagesA game that was nicely poised going into the final day petered out into a draw as Essex successfully negotiated the 63 overs that were bowled in their second innings, finishing on 160 for 5. Glamorgan had batted on in the morning session to set Essex an unlikely victory target of 334 in 70 overs. On a pitch where free-scoring has been difficult throughout this match, a required rate of nearly five an over was always beyond Essex, but Glamorgan went for a safety-first approach.When Essex began their chase just before the lunch break, Timm van der Gugten had early success, claiming the wicket of Jaik Mickleburgh with the score on 12. The Dutch international followed that up with another wicket shortly after the interval when he found the edge of Tom Westley’s bat to leave Essex in trouble at 30 for 2.When Michael Hogan had Ravi Bopara well caught by Aneurin Donald at second slip Essex were 46 for 3 and Glamorgan were dreaming of their first win in the County Championship since June 22, 2015.While there were wickets tumbling at the other end, Essex opener Nick Browne remained unmoved. He did a fine job at playing the ball late and with soft hands so that the edges did not carry to the slips as he made an excellent 71 before he was dismissed by Graham Wagg bowling left-arm spin. Browne put on a decent stand with Daniel Lawrence who played with more freedom than any other Essex batsman before he was bowled for 24 by a ball from Hogan that he left alone.When Lawrence and Browne had departed, Jesse Ryder and Ryan ten Doeschate came to the crease and closed the game out for a draw. Ryder played with uncharacteristic restraint as he scored just 25 runs from 83 balls.Glamorgan had batted in the morning session but took a while to get going, Will Bragg looking to pass his highest first-class score of 129 that he made against Derbyshire earlier in the season and Aneurin Donald looking for his second Championship fifty of 2016. Once both men had passed those landmarks there was an injection of impetus but the declaration did not come until 20 minutes before the lunch break.There was a hint of over-cautiousness in the length of time that Glamorgan batted but, with the struggles they have had so far this season, it was perhaps understandable that they went for a “first don’t lose” approach rather than something more aggressive. In reality, even another 20 overs at Essex would have most likely not been enough to force a win on a pitch that, for all of its faults, has held together well.Bragg finished on a career-best 161 not out, his second hundred of the season, as he and Donald completed the third century stand of the Glamorgan innings.

Newcastle United will head to west London for their Premier League clash with Brentford at the Gtech Community Stadium this afternoon, following their comfortable victory on Wednesday night.

The Magpies have been in fine form over their last two fixtures and look to be back to their best in front of goal, with seven scored in less than a week, and Eddie Howe will be hoping that his squad can continue to dominate their opponents when they meet with Thomas Frank's side today.

In terms of injuries, Emil Krafth and Miguel Almiron remain unavailable for selection, and despite the thrashing delivered against West Ham United, the Newcastle boss is prepared to make changes to rotate his team to keep them fresh during the quick turnaround of fixtures.

Howe took to his pre-match press conference to hint that he has no problem with making tweaks to his starting XI for their second game in London this week, so there could well be some rotation in store for the Toon against the Bees.

How could Newcastle line up vs Brentford?

Nick Pope (GK), Kieran Trippier (RB), Fabian Schar (CB), Sven Botman (CB), Dan Burn (LB), Joe Willock (CM), Bruno Guimaraes (CM), Joelinton (CM), Anthony Gordon (RW), Alexander Isak (ST), Allan Saint-Maximin (LW)

Football FanCast predicts that Howe will make three changes to the team that beat West Ham, maintaining his successful 4-3-3 formation.

We expect to see an unchanged defensive setup with Sven Botman and Fabian Schar retaining their centre-back partnership, whilst Dan Burn and Kieran Trippier occupy the wider positions.

The first change we predict will be in the highly competitive midfield three, with Joe Willock replacing Sean Longstaff in the centre of the pitch alongside Brazilian duo Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton.

£80k-per-week ace Willock – hailed "immense" by Rio Ferdinand – has been incredibly influential over the last few weeks with two assists and one goal scored in his last four games, so it would be a no-brainer to include him in the starting XI to add fresh legs and a boost to the attacking threat.

The second and third changes we expect to see are found in the front three, with the in-form Alexander Isak replacing Callum Wilson in the striker role and January signing Anthony Gordon coming in for Jacob Murphy on the right, with only Allan Saint-Maximin retaining his spot in the final third.

With that being said, subtle tweaks and rotation could pay off massively for the Newcastle boss if they can snatch all three points from Brentford this afternoon, and will give him the opportunity to keep his players fresh to ensure their Champions League qualifying dreams are still alive as we go deeper into the run-in.

Newcastle United have reportedly scouted Glasgow Rangers central defender Leon King ahead of a potential move this summer.

The Lowdown: King profiled

King is a 19-year-old centre-back who has played 19 senior games for Rangers so far this season, including six appearances in the UEFA Champions League.

He is rated highly in and around the club, having been hailed as an ‘absolutely top class‘ talent by renowned Gers bloggers Four Lads Had a Dream.

The Latest: Newcastle watch King

According to Football Insider, Newcastle have sent scouts to watch King play at Ibrox over the last few months, along with fellow Premier League rivals Manchester United and Leeds United.

He signed a new long-term deal with Rangers back in December, but is yet to play under new Michael Beale, suggesting that he has fallen down the pecking order.

The Verdict: Get it done

By signing King, the Magpies would be following a similar profile to the likes of Garang Kuol and Harrison Ashby in terms of young talents with plenty of potential.

The Scotsman showed promise in the Champions League earlier this campaign despite the Light Blues being knocked out, having been lauded by journalist Jonny McFarlane for his ‘incredible’ ability to ping the ball across the pitch from centre-back.

Nonetheless, King shares the same agent as Toon right-back Kieran Trippier, and so this could help push a deal through ahead of their rivals this summer.

Juan Soto is—by far—the biggest name to hit the open market this MLB offseason.

As teams prepare to break the bank for the 26-year-old superstar, agent Scott Boras outlined to reporters Wednesday exactly what Soto is looking for as he makes his decision this offseason.

"Juan Soto wants ownership that he knows is going to support an opportunity to win annually," Boras said. "His focus always was, 'I want to know who my owner is; I want to know that we're going to be able to win. And I want to know that, besides me, there's going to be a great number of support on part of the owner that he has the same desire to win that I do."

Soto is hitting the market for the first time after seven seasons in the big leagues in which he earned four All-Star nods, four Silver Sluggers and a World Series title with the Washington Nationals in 2019.

In 2024, Soto batted .288/.419/.569 with 41 home runs and 109 RBIs for the New York Yankees. He is expected to sign a massive long-term contract this winter north of $50 million per season for at least 10 years.

One of those teams expected to be in the mix to sign Soto are the Yankees, who finished just shy of their first World Series title since 2009 by falling to the Los Angeles Dodgers in five games.

"Playing in New York for Juan was really, really comfortable," Boras said. "He really, really enjoyed his teammates, the Yankees experience. Juan loves winning."

Glasgow Rangers secured their first win since 27 September at the weekend, claiming a 3-0 victory over St Mirren in the Premiership and it was a much-needed three points on the road.

Interim manager, Steven Davis – who was placed in charge following the sacking of Michael Beale – moved on from the horror show in Limassol last week to claim his first win as interim boss, and it ensures the Gers move into second place in the league table, albeit still seven points behind Celtic.

The title race appears to be over, and it isn’t even Halloween yet, and the Light Blues are looking for their third manager in just two years following the sackings of Beale and Giovanni van Bronckhorst.

Chief executive James Bisgrove is now looking to appoint just the 19th permanent manager of the club, and he has a massive decision to make over the next few days, no question about it.

Indeed, chairman John Bennett and Bisgrove travelled down to London on Monday in order to conduct more face-to-face talks with potential candidates, with the role looking likely to be filled by the end of the week.

With the club seemingly near the end of their hunt for a new manager, who will be the lucky man that arrives in Glasgow for arguably the biggest challenge of their managerial career?

Who will be the next Rangers manager?

According to Andy Devlin from the Scottish Sun, four names are currently in the running to take over the role. Scott Parker, Philippe Clement, Kevin Muscat and Pascal Jansen have all been noted, but a favourite is yet to be revealed.

Aside from Parker, these names have all enjoyed solid success in their respective careers to date and would be worthy appointments, but they face a major task in getting a tune out of some of the players.

Summer arrivals such as Kieran Dowell, Sam Lammers and Danilo haven’t really hit the ground running at Ibrox as yet while it is another forward – Cyriel Dessers – who has been subject to plenty of criticism during his brief spell in Rangers thus far.

If he hits a run of form and gains some confidence, the Nigerian could potentially light up Ibrox, but this ability has been missing so far and requires an excellent coach to come in and light a fire beneath him in the next few months.

How has Cyriel Dessers performed for Rangers?

Beale earmarked Dessers as one of his main targets during the summer transfer window after he had scored seven goals for Serie A side Cremonese during the 2022/23 season.

The 43-year-old finally got his man for a transfer fee in the region of £4.5m and it looked as though he had all the necessary attributes to lead the line and fill the void left by Antonio Colak and Alfredo Morelos.

It hasn’t quite gone to plan for the 28-year-old yet, however. He has found the back of the net only three times across 15 games for the Gers and his all-round statistics haven’t been much better.

Across the whole squad for league performances, Dessers ranks in a lowly 22nd spot for overall Sofascore rating (6.7) while also ranking first for big chances missed (six), 13th for big chances created (one) and eighth for successful dribbles per game (0.6), hardly the numbers that Beale was looking for.

Clubs Cyriel Dessers has played for	Games	Goals
FC Utrecht	56	19
KRC Genk	43	11
Feyenoord	41	20
NAC Breda	40	29
Lokeren	40	7
Cremonese	29	7
Heracles	29	18
Rangers	15	3
Stats via Transfermarkt

Although not endearing himself to the supporters with these performances, perhaps a change of manager may do him the world of good and managerial candidate Jansen could potentially bring out the best in the former Feyenoord striker, that’s for sure.

Will Pascal Jansen be the next Rangers manager?

The London-born coach has been in charge of AZ Alkmaar since December 2020 and has done a wonderful job trying to disrupt the hegemony of the big three of Ajax, PSV Eindhoven and Feyenoord and his side currently sits second in the Eredivisie table following seven wins and just one draw from eight matches.

Journalist Graeme Bailey praised the manager before AZ took on West Ham United in the Europa Conference League semi-finals last season, saying: “Spoke with AZ manager Pascal Jansen this week ahead of their Europa Conference League semi-final second leg with West Ham.

“English-born, a truly fascinating and engaging character who would love chance to manage in the Premier League.”

The 50-year-old typically deploys a 4-3-3 formation which would certainly suit the players in the current Gers squad, especially Dessers, as he could be the focal point of the attack while being surrounded by creative-minded talents such as Todd Cantwell, Abdallah Sima or Rabbi Matondo.

Jansen will know all about the striker due to his season at Feyenoord during 2021/22 and the Nigerian even netted against AZ in a 1-0 win back in November 2021, giving the manager a closer view of his talents.

That season was one of Dessers’ finest as he scored 20 goals across 41 matches, including nine in the top flight and Jansen might just have a few methods which could bring out the best from the out-of-form striker.

During his stint managing AZ, Jansen has a wonderful 1.99 points per match average while his side has netted 306 goals during just 147 matches in charge and this works out at just over two goals per game which indicates that the Ibrox side could be set to see some attacking football on show.

He hasn’t won anything in his managerial career yet, but neither had Beale and taking the safe option yet again would set the Light Blues back even further.

A gamble is the only logical option for Bisgrove and co and Jansen is exactly that. He has proven he can mix it with the big guns in the Netherlands while developing his own players along with making sure the established professionals in the squad stay happy and perform on a consistent basis.

With knowledge of Dessers from a couple of seasons ago, the AZ coach could transform his fortunes and get him firing in a Rangers jersey.

If he does, there is no doubt he could add goals and the gap to Celtic, with some luck, may just shrink in the coming months.

England were not as dominant as they were expected to be, but were still far too strong for a West Indies team struggling for batting consistency

Madhusudhan Ramakrishnan12-Jun-2012Ever since England came back to win the Lord’s Test in the 2000 series against West Indies, they have completely dominated the head-to-head contests. Between the Lord’s win and the final Test of this series, England had won 13 out of 15 home Tests against West Indies. Only persistent rain in Edgbaston and dogged resistance from West Indies’ lower order prevented a whitewash.West Indies briefly raised hopes of a surprise win at Lord’s and managed to stay competitive but were simply overwhelmed by England’s all-round strength. With Chris Gayle missing at the top of the order, the inexperienced opening batsmen were unable to fight it out in bowler-friendly conditions. England, not quite at their dominant best as they had been in recent home series, were still a far more potent bowling unit than West Indies, who struggled with injuries. On the batting front, England were far from impressive but were boosted by the timely return to form of Andrew Strauss, who scored consecutive centuries at Lord’s and Trent Bridge.West Indies were bowled out in each of the innings they batted (five innings) and averaged 30.98. In contrast, England averaged a much higher 43.58 while losing just 31 wickets. However, England’s batting performance was well below their exploits in recent home series. Only twice since 2009 have England averaged lower (against Australia and Pakistan) in a home series. In contrast, England had averaged 61.12 in their previous home series against West Indies. Both West Indies and England had nine fifty-plus scores with West Indian batsmen scoring more centuries (three). England, however, were by far the better bowling team with Stuart Broad picking up the only five-wicket haul of the series.

Overall stats of England and West Indies in the series

TeamRunsWickets lostRuns per wicket100/505WI/10WMEngland13513143.582/71/1West Indies15495030.983/60/0The England-West Indies contests over the last decade in England have been a mismatch. With a below-par bowling attack and a vulnerable batting line-up, West Indies have hardly threatened. In the first Test at Lord’s, disciplined batting in their second innings and an inspired burst by Kemar Roach created an opening but the lack of firepower in the attack meant that West Indies were unable to capitalise. An all too familiar collapse in the second innings at Trent Bridge ended West Indies’ chances of levelling the series. On more than one occasion in their last two series (against India and Australia), West Indies had lost the grip after collapsing for sub-200 scores. Although the series result (2-0) was never in doubt given the gulf in quality, West Indies competed far better than they did on previous visits.In 2000, when they lost 3-1 (first series loss in England for 31 years), West Indies had an excellent bowling average of 22.55 but a poor batting average of 21.67. Their average difference (difference between batting and bowling averages) in that series was -0.88. Following the retirements of Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh, the bowling quality took a major hit in the subsequent series. In the next three series, the average difference values were -18.99, -20.47 and -38.77. In comparison, their corresponding figure in this series is a much improved -12.60. The wickets difference (difference between the wickets picked up per match and wickets lost per match) is the best for West Indies in the 2000 series (-1.60). In the 2012 series, the corresponding figure is much poorer (-6.33). In both 2004 and 2007, the wickets difference values were better than the number in the 2012 series. West Indies’ worst performance on this front came in the 2009 series when they lost 40 wickets but managed to pick up just 24 (wickets difference of -12).

West Indies in the last five series in England

YearMatchesWins/LossesBat avgBowl avgAvg diffWickets/match (bat)Wickets/match (bowl)Wickets diff200051/321.6722.55-0.8817.4015.80-1.60200440/429.1148.10-18.9919.5014.25-5.25200740/328.6049.07-20.4717.0013.25-3.75200920/222.3561.12-38.7720.008.00-12.00201230/230.9843.58-12.6016.6610.33-6.33With the openers badly out of form, the top-order (1-4) of West Indies wore a very unsettled look and managed an average of just 15.65. On the other hand, England’s top order did much better averaging close to 50. Not only were Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell in form, Strauss also got back among the runs and ended the series as England’s top run-getter. West Indies were able to stay afloat in the first two Tests purely because of their battling middle order. After being recalled to the team, Marlon Samuels batted brilliantly and topped the run-scoring charts. He scored a century and three fifties in five innings and averaged 96.50. His series aggregate of 386 runs is the fourth-highest by a West Indian batsman in a series in England since 2000.Shivnarine Chanderpaul came away without a century but still managed over 200 runs at an average of 78.33. West Indies’ middle order (5-7) averaged 65 with two centuries and five fifties while England’s middle order managed an average of 38.50 with three half-centuries. Denesh Ramdin and Tino Best were involved in a 143-run stand for the last wicket in the third Test with Best scoring a record 95. Darren Sammy’s century at Trent Bridge and Best’s heroics pushed up the lower order (8-11) average for West Indies to 21.50, which was higher than that of England (17.50).

Batting stats for both teams in the series by batting position

Batting positionTeamRunsAverageSR100/501-4England83849.2955.242/45-7England30838.5056.930/38-11England10517.5048.830/01-4West Indies31315.6538.590/05-7West Indies78065.0047.072/58-11West Indies38721.5059.081/1Since 2008, only New Zealand have a lower average than West Indies for the opening wicket. In the recent home series against Australia, the West Indies openers struggled and had five single-figure partnerships in six innings. They did better in England but an average of 22.40 meant that the middle order was almost always under pressure. England’s openers managed only one fifty stand but were more consistent than their West Indian counterparts (average 38.60).For both the second and third wickets, West Indies failed to aggregate 100 partnership runs. England, on the other hand, scored over 200 runs for both the partnership wickets and averaged 71.25 and 55.50 respectively. The in-form Samuels and Chanderpaul ensured that West Indies’ middle order did not cave in meekly. West Indies averaged much higher than England for the fifth wicket and shared a century and two fifty stands. The visitors’ seventh-wicket partnership was also more prolific with the highest stand coming in the second Test at Trent Bridge, where Sammy and Samuels added 204 in the first innings.

Partnership stats for both teams in the series

Partnership wicketEngland (Runs, Average)England (100/50 stands)West Indies (Runs, Avg)West Indies (100/50 stands)1193, 38.600/1112, 22.400/02285, 71.251/186, 17.200/03222, 55.501/196, 19.200/14220, 55.001/0107, 21.400/05195, 48.751/0340, 68.001/2666, 33.000/0112, 22.400/1730, 15.000/0364, 72.801/0Broad continued his superb run of form picking up 14 wickets in the series including 11 in the first Test at Lord’s. In the first two Tests, Broad and James Anderson reaffirmed their status as one of the best opening-ball pairs. Broad troubled Adrian Barath dismissing him twice while conceding just 32 runs. Anderson, meanwhile, made life extremely difficult for Kieran Powell and Kirk Edwards dismissing them both twice while conceding only seven and ten runs respectively. Graeme Swann got Chanderpaul twice in four innings and improved his record against the left-hander to five dismissals in ten innings.However, Swann had no such luck against Samuels. Samuels scored 131 runs 131 runs off 191 balls from Swann (run-rate of 4.11) without being dismissed even once. Roach bowled some quick spells and tasted success against Strauss (two dismissals at average of 27.00) and Jonny Bairstow (two dismissals at average of 12.00). Tim Bresnan’s place in the squad was questioned before the start of the series but he ended the series as England’s second-highest wicket-taker (12 wickets) with a best match haul of 8 for 141 at Trent Bridge.

Bowler v batsman in the series

BowlerBatsmanRunsDismissalsAverageBalls per dismissalStuart BroadAdrian Barath32216.0025.50James AndersonKirk Edwards723.509.00James AndersonKieran Powell1025.0016.00Graeme SwannShivnarine Chanderpaul36218.0048.50Kemar RoachJonny Bairstow1326.5012.00Kemar RoachAndrew Strauss54227.0065.00Graeme SwannMarlon Samuels1310–

Anything less than 20 wickets won’t suffice if the No. 1 side in the world is to go back home with their faces saved

Sidharth Monga at the P Sara Oval02-Aug-2010The P Sara Oval is a quiet old-world ground built on what used to be marshy land in Borella, beyond which, it seems, lies nothing. Somewhere around is Sri Lanka’s largest prison, the maximum security Welikada, spread over 48 acres of land. India are playing the series-decider in fitting surroundings. For they are themselves in jail. The batsmen put them there through their show in Galle, and the bowlers now need to become escape artists. Anything less than 20 wickets won’t suffice if the No. 1 side in the world is to go back home with their faces saved.It has been a tour full of woe for India. They lost Zaheer Khan even before boarding the flight, Sreesanth was gone on the first day of training, Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh have been battling flu, and Gautam Gambhir’s series lasted only five deliveries before a knee injury came calling. Ask MS Dhoni about team news, and he says, “Injury list, you mean?”That they would have been resting at home, nursing tired bodies, had the BCCI not agreed to this out-of-FTP tour is likely to have crossed their minds. Especially since India haven’t fielded a full-strength team in any form of the game since Sri Lanka’s tour of India last year.Injuries are just the start of the story though. India’s bowling, Harbhajan included, has scarcely looked like troubling batsmen, even in the tour game. Take away one session on an overcast day on a pitch under covers and rain for a day, and the bowlers have only endurance and fitness to show for their efforts so far. The fast bowlers don’t seem to have the skill for these pitches – swing, both conventional and reverse. They both hit the deck, and need seam movement, which is all but absent in Sri Lanka. That India stuck with the same attack for the first two Tests shows the kind of confidence the team management has in Munaf Patel and Amit Mishra.All this made the role of the batsmen even more important, and they crumbled in Galle against an inspired out-going Muttiah Muralitharan and a dangerous in-coming Lasith Malinga. Still, they had no business losing that match in three-and-a-half days of cricket. Virender Sehwag refused to leave wide deliveries when India were batting to save the Test; Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Sachin Tendulkar made different kinds of errors in the first innings, and under immense pressure when following on, India could just not hang in.On a tour such as this, it isn’t surprising that the team is holding on to little crumbs of comfort, like the updating of the ICC tables that secured their No. 1 ranking. “Of course, being the captain, I have reason to feel proud, but all credit to the team… To the players… After all, it’s a team effort,” Dhoni told the Kolkata-based after he came to know India can’t lose their top spot in Sri Lanka.Before the ICC updated their tables, the batsmen upgraded their application and made sure they didn’t break under the pressure of 642 runs on the SSC scoreboard. After their bowling show, the best the batsmen could have done was keeping the series alive, and despite the odd nervy moment they managed it.Now India need something that has looked out of their reach. They haven’t taken 20 wickets in the series so far, and they need them – fairly cheaply too – in one Test. To make things more difficult, Harbhajan is unlikely to play thanks to a calf niggle. However ineffective he might have proved so far, Harbhajan will be missed.The P Sara Oval gives touring sides, and also sides that lose the toss, the best chance to do well. That said, these are still some of the toughest conditions for visitors. Obviously there won’t be too much assistance from the pitch since Sri Lanka know that India desperately need it, and also since Sri Lankan bowlers are better suited to bowling in unhelpful conditions. Fair enough too. Away Test wins shouldn’t come easy.This one won’t be easy either. In fact it will be a grand achievement, a great show of character, if India can win this Test to level the series with such a depleted line-up. They will need every trick they can muster: early movement (almost none so far), reverse-swing (ditto), fresh ideas, fresh menace in the attack (not quite visible on the surface), flawless fielding (can’t be accused of that so far). And then some special batting. India’s predicament is such that all of those put together would amount to just an escape. The inmates of Welikada would approve.

The out-of-favour former South African spearhead looks forward to cycling with Lance Armstrong, while still hoping to return to the side

Telford Vice14-Feb-2010Makhaya Ntini won’t forget the past few weeks in a hurry. Nor is next month likely to leave his memory anytime soon.”I’ll be riding with Lance Armstrong, and you wouldn’t believe how much I’m looking forward to it,” Ntini said.Ntini, an inveterate fitness freak, came out of the cycling closet years ago. If he can’t be contacted outside of the hours of play, he’s probably on his bike somewhere. So the news that Armstrong, a veritable Don Bradman on wheels, would take part in the Argus Pick ‘n Pay Cycle Tour – billed as “the world’s largest individually timed cycle race” – in Cape Town this year hit Ntini like a runaway bus. And not only because he would breathe the same air as another elite sportsman.Armstrong’s career seemed over when he was diagnosed with testicular cancer that spread to his brain and lungs in 1996. Three years later, he began his record run of seven victories in the Tour de France.”I’ve always followed his career, especially in the Tour de France,” Ntini said. “He’s such an inspiration. If he can come back from cancer, who’s to say what can be achieved by people in other sports?” Who says, in other words, that Ntini’s international career is over?”Why can’t we let someone decide for himself what he wants to do, and not decide for him,” Ntini said. “It’s one of the most irritating things – that people want to make up other people’s minds for them.”Ntini came like a comet in 1998. Eleven years later he has played 101 Tests, taken 390 wickets, and earned a place in history as South Africa’s first – and greatest – black African player. But, at 32, his powers are waning. Ntini was a poor imitation of his former self in the first two Tests against England this southern summer, and consequently left out of the last two. He is also missing from the South African squad in India, and watched from a distance their innings victory in the first Test.”I saw Dale Steyn take those seven wickets in the first innings, I saw Jacques Kallis and Hashim Amla batting together. And it hurts. You feel like you should have been there. You would have loved to be there to experience it and to celebrate with the guys. There’s no other place where winning feels as good as it does in India, except Australia.”For a bowler who doesn’t have the gift of express pace, nor the ability to move the ball off the seam consistently, and less yet to swing it through air, relentlessness and control are all-important. So it figures that there should be a note of panic in Ntini’s tone now that his destiny is no longer in his hands.”I still want to play for South Africa, and I still want to achieve so much for the country. Each and every one of the people behind me knows I can still offer a lot. But we can all say that. If the people who are running cricket don’t agree, there’s nothing we can do. I can’t control what the selectors do and what the captain thinks.”The c-word comes up again when he is asked whether he feels it is important that a team representing South Africa should include at least one black African player: “That’s none of my business. It’s out of my control.”But let’s not paint Ntini as a sad, spent player. He remains in love with the game, and never more so than this season, when he was part of the Warriors team that won a trophy, the MTN40, for the first time in the franchise’s history.”Immediately after we won the final, the rain came down. We were waiting to receive the trophy in the rain, and I knew then that we were really blessed.”Ntini is a man of unplumbed depth of character and a heart at least as big as the grounds he has graced. Whether or not he makes it back to the big time, blessed is how we should feel to have known him.

Glasgow Rangers have not had the best of luck with regard to injuries during the current campaign as it appears Philippe Clement is having to deal with a fresh blow following every match.

During the tie against Hearts in October, Nico Raskin was substituted after suffering an injury. He was expected to be out for just a few weeks, yet his recovery hasn't been going quite to plan and he won't play until 2024 at the earliest.

Scott Wright and Tom Lawrence have also suffered injuries which will rule them out for an unspecified period of time, while Danilo is the latest player to suffer a season defining injury…

Danilo's injury blow is bad news for Rangers

The Brazilian had enjoyed a decent start to life under the Belgian tactician, scoring three times and grabbing four assists as he was staking his claim to be the main option in the number nine role.

Despite missing a few games after suffering a fractured cheekbone during a match against St Johnstone back in September, the former Feyenoord hitman had returned to full fitness, albeit wearing a mask to protect his face.

With Cyriel Dessers – who has netted just five league goals – struggling for any kind of form and Kemar Roofe going through his own fitness issues, there was a chance for Danilo to establish himself in the starting XI.

The 24-year-old started against Hearts last week and while he didn’t find the back of the net, the 1-0 win could prove crucial in the chase for the Premiership title.

Bad news was to follow after the match, however, with the 49-year-old providing an update on an injury suffered by the Brazilian.

He said: "Danilo has a problem with his knee because of a bad tackle in the game, an unlucky situation, part of football. Because of contact, he had a problem with his knee.

"The chances are he requires surgery so yes, it could be long term.”

It was confirmed that he needs surgery on the injury and will be out for around four months and this could force Clement into the transfer market for a potential replacement.

It remains to be seen how much of a budget he will have to work with next month, but the former Club Brugge coach simply cannot rely on Dessers and Roofe as his only centre-forward options for the remainder of the season.

Rangers transfer news – Lawrence Shankland

The links to the Scottish striker have stretched all the way back to January of this year, with Barry Ferguson claiming that the Light Blues would be keeping an eye on him after a solid start to his spell in Edinburgh.

In June, Michael Beale appeared to be taking a closer look at the player, yet no move ever materialised, and he ended up signing Dessers, Danilo, and Sam Lammers instead.

With the January transfer window fast approaching, Ferguson was once again suggesting Shankland would be an ideal fit for Rangers during the recent league clash between the two sides, even comparing him to a former Premier League legend, saying:

“Let’s start with Lawrence Shankland who catches my eye every time I see him play for Hearts.

“This guy has improved his game to such an extent over the last couple of years that I’m surprised he’s not been snapped up already but, watching him on Wednesday, I saw a ready made Rangers centre forward.

“I’m not exaggerating when I say his overall game reminds me of a young Teddy Sheringham. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying he’s at Sheringham’s level. But he does have similar attributes in terms of game intelligence and that natural ability to drop into dangerous areas and link up with his team mates.”

His statistics since joining the Gorgie outfit have demonstrated his ruthlessness in front of goal, and he could well be worth a punt next month.

Lawrence Shankland’s statistics at Hearts

The 28-year-old joined the Jambos last summer for a modest fee of around £500k and this soon proved to be one of the bargains of the season.

The former Dundee United marksman ended the 2022/23 campaign with a total of 28 goals across all competitions for Hearts, with 24 of these coming in the Premiership.

This tally saw him finish third in the top scorers list, while he contributed 38.1% of his team's goals during the whole term and it was hardly a wonder that Rangers were looking to add him to their squad.

Despite a barren spell a few months ago, Shankland has already found the back of the net on 12 occasions this season along with registering three assists and while it is a far cry from his sensational form last year, he is still scoring regularly.

The Scot currently ranks first among the Hearts squad for goals and assists in the top flight during 2023/24 (seven), while also ranking first for scoring frequency (a goal every 206 minutes), shots on target per game (1.2) and third for successful dribbles per game (1.1), underlining his importance to the team.

He may not be the marquee name that the Ibrox faithful expect to sign, but he has proven his worth in the Premiership and there is no doubt that, with better service, he could score a lot more goals leading the line at Rangers.

4

7

1

0

1.5

1.2

9

2

0.8

1.1

It remains to be seen what sort of price the Tynecastle outfit will place on their most prized asset, but he won’t come cheap, that’s for sure.

The onus is now for Clement to ship out some deadwood during the upcoming January transfer window in order to not only reduce the wage bill but also to raise funds for any potential new signings.

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The likes of Dessers and Lammers have failed to live up to their inflated transfer fees, and it is clear they don’t have a long-term future at Ibrox under the Belgian manager.

Moving them on for a decent fee could allow the club to go after a move for Shankland and this could certainly be a wise investment, especially considering Danilo will miss the most important part of the season.

India’s chief selector MSK Prasad had earlier stated that Dhoni would appear for Jharkhand in the quarter-finals, much like Rohit Sharma for Mumbai

Saurabh Somani13-Oct-2018MS Dhoni will not take part in Jharkhand’s knockout matches for the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018-19.Jharkhand will play their quarter-final against Maharashtra at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Monday, and Dhoni wasn’t present at the first nets the team had, at the adjoining NCA ground, on Saturday. Team members that ESPNcricinfo spoke to on Saturday said they weren’t expecting Dhoni to join the squad.Jharkhand coach Rajiv Kumar said that he had not received any official word about Dhoni joining, but in his opinion, Dhoni wouldn’t have wanted to disturb the team’s combination, especially since he would have been able to play only one match.”He has to go to Hyderabad on October 16 to report for the ODI series,” Kumar said. “Maybe he will come for a day, I don’t know yet what his plan is, but so far, he is not coming. But it may be possible. You know he takes his own decisions. He is saying the boys are doing well, so there is no point coming for just one game and taking somebody’s place.”Jharkhand topped Group C with 32 points from nine matches, to qualify.The semi-finals are scheduled for October 17 and 18, meaning Dhoni would not have been able to take part even if Jharkhand win their match against Maharashtra.It is understood that Dhoni linking up with the Jharkhand team in Chennai was spoken of before he left for the Asia Cup. The Asia Cup concluded on September 28, with India beating Bangladesh in the final. Jharkhand had four league games remaining in Group C after that, with the first one on October 1. They won three of the games, with one abandoned without a ball bowled. Dhoni, however, eventually didn’t join the team.At the press conference after the Indian ODI side had been announced, chief selector MSK Prasad had said that Dhoni would be playing in the Vijay Hazare quarter-final.Dhoni’s decision is rendered more curious given his recent struggles in limited-overs cricket, and questions beginning to be asked about whether he is the right man to be the first-choice wicketkeeper in the 2019 World Cup. In the Asia Cup, he batted four times, scoring 77 runs with an average of 19.25 and a strike rate of 62.09. Overall in 2018, he has batted 10 times in 15 matches, for an average of 28.12 and a strike rate of 67.36. Dhoni’s last first-class match was in the Irani Trophy over a decade ago, while his last List-A game for Jharkhand was in the 2017-18 Vijay Hazare Trophy semi-final against Bengal.However, while Dhoni has decided to stay away, Rohit Sharma will be part of the Mumbai XI that takes on Bihar in the first quarter-final on Sunday. Rohit, who also didn’t join the Mumbai squad during the league stages, has flown down to be part of the first knockout match. A Mumbai team spokesperson confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that if the Indian ODI team had asked players to report by October 16, Rohit would also miss any subsequent knockout matches.