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Sergio Gomez is an entirely viable option for Aston Villa.

What’s the word?

That is according to a report from Birmingham Mail who claim that the 21-year-old is still on Aston Villa’s “list” as a young but experienced understudy option for Lucas Digne.

After the sale of Matt Targett to Newcastle United, Digne is undoubtedly the first choice left-back, with Gerrard looking to embed competition for places in order to maintain a level of desire within the squad.

The Anderlecht left-back is rated at around £9m, as per Transfermarkt.

Gomez x Watkins

Barcelona youth product, Gomez, has found his feet in the Belgian top-flight, chipping in with five goals and 12 assists in 34 appearances throughout his maiden Jupiler Pro League campaign.

Operating throughout Vincent Kompany’s 4-4-2 system as an offensive left-back, he has gathered more goal returns in the league this season than Digne has managed throughout the last two Premier League campaigns and has quite simply been “on fire” as put by Stefan Buczko.

With 65 chances created, Gomez surpasses Digne’s squad-topping 52 chances at Villa, with the Spaniard’s 15 big chances created almost double that of Villa’s top ‘big chance’ creator Emi Buendia, with eight in the season just gone.

His offensive acumen is astonishing and represents what would be an unorthodox, but entirely prosperous, partnership with Ollie Watkins, who has enjoyed two solid Premier League campaigns back-to-back.

Watkins finished as Aston Villa’s top-scorer for the second season in a row and despite possessing athleticism and agility, has slotted into the role of a poacher with relative ease.

With an average of just 33.51 touches per game, he is reliant on teammates to create chances, so you can imagine the field day he would have if Gomez was operating on the left flank.

As a versatile asset, Gomez can occupy more advanced positions, so it would not be a shock to see him deployed as a left-midfielder at times.

But ultimately, he shines in defence and has proven himself as one of Europe’s most promising defensive prospects.

Gerrard needs to wrap this deal up.

AND in other news: Lange eyeing Villa move for £30m “goalscoring machine”, he’d be their own Darwin Nunez 

Former Leeds United goalkeeper Paul Robinson has been reacting to the club’s interest in Aberdeen right-back Calvin Ramsay.

The Lowdown: Leeds links

The Whites were first linked with a move for the 18-year-old during the January transfer window and rumours have continued, with reports at the end of April suggesting Leeds were granted permission to enter talks.

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Phil Hay stated after the club secured their Premier League status last weekend that Ramsay was a player Leeds were working to bring to Elland Road.

Liverpool are also keen on the Scot, with Aberdeen willing to sell if they receive a ‘significant’ seven-figure fee.

The Latest: Robinson’s comments

Robinson, who contributes for Sky Sports, was talking to MOT Leeds News regarding the interest from Elland Road in Ramsay.

He believes the Whites simply have to sign a right-back due to Stuart Dallas and Luke Ayling’s respective injuries.

“Leeds have to sign a right-back.

“Luke’s a top player. He’s a leader on the pitch and they miss him when he doesn’t play because of those leadership qualities. He’s very vocal, he’s a captain without being a captain.

“But I think they’ve come out and said he’s not going to be back until the autumn which rules him out of pre-season and the start of the season.

“It’s vitally important they get some reinforcements in that area.

“Stuart Dallas would have been a natural replacement but obviously, we know that he’s out for a long time as well.

“That’s two players who you need reinforcements for.”

The Verdict: Spot on

The Whites’ small squad and injury woes nearly cost them their place in the Premier League last weekend, so it’s vital that the club add to their squad over the coming months.

They’ve made a solid start by signing a midfielder on a permanent deal for the first time since 2018 in Brenden Aaronson.

Bolstering their right-back ranks could be a smart next step, especially with Ayling and Dallas sidelined.

Cody Drameh and Jamie Shackleton should be available for Marsch at the start of his first full season in charge, but it looks as if the club like what they see in Ramsay, so landing him ahead of Liverpool could be an exciting move.

In other news: Orta now working on bizarre transfer for ‘magnificent’ ace; he has history with Leeds supporters.  

A big update has emerged on Newcastle United’s pursuit of Atletico Madrid left-back Renan Lodi heading into the summer transfer window.

What’s the talk?

Sky Sports reporter Keith Downie has confirmed that the club are eyeing up a potential deal for the Brazilian defender and has pointed out that PIF already have an existing relationship with the Spanish side.

Downie Tweeted: “Understand Renan Lodi is a player Newcastle have looked at & could potentially form part of their summer plans. 15-times capped Brazilian international left-back. Newcastle have already done business of late with Atletico for fellow full-back Kieran Trippier #NUFC.”

Jacque Talbot replied to this with an update to the story, Tweeting: “Just to add to this report by @SkySports_Keith, price I was told for Renan Lodi is around £42million, but there could be some flexibility around how it’s paid.”

This comes after Brazilian journalist André Hernan recently claimed that the club have been in talks over a swoop for the left-back, with Downie now confirming the interest and Talbot revealing the potential price.

Eddie Howe will be buzzing

This claim from Downie will surely leave the Toon head coach buzzing as the full-back would be an excellent signing for the club.

He already has a pre-existing relationship with current Magpies defender Kieran Trippier and this could help him to hit the ground running on Tyneside.

The pair played alongside each other in 68 matches for Atletico – totaling over 4,200 minutes of action as part of Diego Simeone’s backline. This suggests that they know each other well and that Trippier will be able to assist Lodi in settling in under Howe.

Whilst playing for the La Liga outfit, they would need to know when and when not to go forward as one would need to stay back to cover at the back when the other goes forward. This means that there will be no excuses for them not having that connection on the pitch for Newcastle next season.

This will be particularly important for the Toon as the Brazilian left-back is a threat in the final third. He has created an impressive seven ‘big chances’ in his last 24 starts in La Liga, which shows that he has a terrific left-foot capable of putting chances on a plate for forwards.

Therefore, Howe will be delighted with the club’s pursuit of Lodi as he can slot straight into his Premier League squad next season and provide an exciting full-back duo alongside Trippier.

AND in other news, Howe now plotting £17m move for “terrific” machine, he’d be a “big influence” at NUFC…

Scottish champions Celtic continued their relentless defence of the league title with a crushing derby day victory over Old Firm foes Rangers on Saturday afternoon at Parkhead, the hosts running out 4-0 winners thanks to an electric first-half display.

Much like the 3-0 triumph back in February, the Hoops raced into a three-goal lead before the interval to all but confirm the points, with the lively Liel Abada netting a devastating double either side of a delightful dink from the ever-impressive Jota.

With the home side firmly in control after the break, substitute David Turnbull then added further gloss to the scoreline with a late strike to heap more misery on Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s men, stretching the gap at the top of the table to five points as a result.

That result has ensured that the winning run this season goes on under title-winning coach Ange Postecoglou, with the Glasgow side still yet to taste defeat in the league since back in September.

While the aforementioned goalscorers – particularly Abada – will no doubt grab the headlines following that statement showing, one man who was perhaps the club’s true hero on the day was Matt O’Riley, with the 21-year-old once again looking at ease in such a pressurised environment.

It is easy to forget that a matter of months ago that the January arrival was plying his trade in League One at MK Dons, with the Denmark U21 international having made such a smooth transition to life in the Scottish Premiership.

His impact has been to such an extent that he has even been courting attention from some of Europe’s elite clubs in recent times, with the player himself admitting that he has been the subject of vast interest.

Unperturbed by that potential distraction, the one-time Fulham youth product was at his sparkling best this afternoon, notably laying on two assists in that brutal first-half dismantling, taking his total tally to five assists in just six league games so far this term.

The elegant, graceful midfielder caught the eye early on with his remarkable willingness to win back possession in the final third – having previously been dubbed a “pressing machine” by former boss Russell Martin – before truly showcasing his quality on the ball as the Hoops ran riot.

After his deflected pullback had helped set up the hosts’ opener, O’Riley then played in teammate Jota with a stunning threaded pass that split the Gers defence in two, before going on to provide the telling touch just minutes later after teeing up Abada for his second of the game.

The London-born menace could have potentially had a hat-trick of assists had early substitute Giorgos Giakoumakis not squandered a glorious headed chance following a delightful, teasing delivery from the midfielder.

Such an impactful 72-minute display – in which the £2.07m-rated ace had 51 touches and provided four key passes – unsurprisingly saw the playmaker record a hugely impressive match rating of 7.9, as per SofaScore, with that the second-highest rating among the Celtic squad.

Equally, such a performance will also rubberstamp just how important he has become to Postecolgou’s side in such a short space of time, with his reported £20m valuation only set to keep rising higher.

Time is running out to make a case for the summer’s big event, but two players in particular have stepped up

George Dobell in St Kitts09-Mar-2019If Chris Jordan were the Barbados-born cricketer qualifying for England next week, you wonder how much momentum calls for his selection would be gathering.As things stand, it is Jofra Archer who is dominating discussions around World Cup selection. And with his pace and potential, you can understand that.But you wonder if the lure of the new sometimes obscures the value of the familiar. For Jordan also offers a compelling package of skills. And, while he has not played an ODI since September 2016, he has provided a timely reminder of his qualities in these last two T20I matches. It’s not impossible it could yet win him a recall.While some limited-overs bowling figures can be misleading – bowlers might see their figures improved by a flurry of late wickets, with batsmen caught on the boundary, for example – Jordan’s figures here were reward for some high-class seam bowling. At one stage, he took four wickets in eight balls for the cost of two runs as Darren Bravo edged a fine one angled across him – the sort of wicket you might see in Test cricket, really – Jason Holder played around a straight one and Nicolas Pooran and Fabian Allen were punished for attempting to run good length, well-directed balls down to third man.This backed up his impressive performance in St Lucia. There he dismissed Chris Gayle with a well-directed yorker – a delivery that proved beyond his ODI counterparts for much of the preceding series – and followed it with an excellent slower ball (and brilliant return catch) to dismiss Bravo.So, in two games, he has shown the skill to bowl with variation and control, and an ability to bowl at most stages of the innings.This second match may prove especially relevant, though. The England management already know he is a good bowler at the death. They are less confident of his ability to maintain a tight line and length and bowl in earlier phases of the game. He may have gone some way towards convincing them here.Jordan has probably been unfortunate to play as little international cricket as he has. He was, by the coaching staff’s reckoning, the pick of England’s bowlers when he played the last of his eight Tests in Barbados in May 2015. But he was then left out of the team for the first Test against New Zealand a few weeks later on the basis that the selectors wanted to give Mark Wood a Test debut to ensure he had some experience at that level before the Ashes. At the time, it was presumed Jordan would be back later in the summer.But a couple of weeks after those Tests against New Zealand, Jordan sustained a side strain when bowling in an ODI. He had already stayed on the pitch too long for his own good – he went for 97 from nine overs – but was then obliged to bat as England went close to chasing 379 from 46 overs. That brief innings worsened the side strain and he was forced into a long lay-off. He fell out of the reckoning in that layoff and has only played half-a-dozen ODIs since.He has not, perhaps, developed his batting quite as much as it once seemed he would. And he does not have quite the pace of Archer or Wood. But he is a bowler with a good range of skills and as good a fielder as anyone available to England. He could be a very useful member of a 15-man World Cup squad.Sam Billings steers the ball through the on side•Getty ImagesMuch the same might be said about Sam Billings. His innings here – his highest in international cricket – showcased both his ability as a ball-striker and his cricketing intelligence. We don’t have to look too far back to see what happened the last time England’s top-order were knocked over cheaply in international cricket but on this occasion, Billings – in company with Joe Root, who made his first T20I half-century since the World T20 final in Kolkata – showed an ability to adapt their game to reflect both the match situation and a pitch offering the bowlers some assistance.With England reeling at 32 for 4 at one stage, his first 34 runs occupied 31 balls before, having established a base, he accelerated so dramatically that his final 16 balls brought him 53 runs. The 44 England scored from the final two overs of the innings left West Indies needing the largest score ever made in a T20I on this ground and a total perhaps 25 or 30 above par.It may well not be enough to earn Billings a place in that World Cup squad, though. With Alex Hales seemingly guaranteed the spot for the reserve batsman, there are only three sports remaining in the squad. While Ed Smith is clearly keen on Joe Denly, there seems limited point in having a third spinner in the squad – it is hard to see any circumstances in which he would play – so it may well be those final three spots are all taken by seam bowlers. It’s not impossible there could be two Barbados-born bowlers in that squad.”That would be a dream,” Jordan admitted. “But we haven’t talked about it. We don’t put that sort of thing in the atmosphere. We try and stay grounded and not get too far ahead of ourselves. We put our energy into what’s in front of us.”At least Billings is winning an opportunity now. The likes of James Vince, Dawid Malan (who has scored four half-centuries in his five T20Is) and Liam Livingstone are struggling to win an opportunity even in this second-string side.It is reflective, up to a point anyway, of the days when Australian cricket possessed such strength in depth that fine players such as Stuart Law (one Test, 54 ODIs) or Martin Love (five Tests) were limited to relatively brief international careers.There is a sense that this T20I series, coming at the end of a long tour, is a bit of an afterthought. But winning the series so comprehensively is a decent achievement for England. West Indies are world champions in this format, after all, and England have rested half-a-dozen of their first-choice players.To bowl a side out for 45 – the lowest total in T20I history by a Full Member of the ICC – and complete victory by 137 runs – only three times in T20I history has a larger margin of victory (in terms of runs) been achieved – is testament to England’s depth.It must bode well for their chances in both the World Cup and the T20 World Cup. But for the likes of Jordan and Billings, it makes securing a place in the side desperately tough.

Lehmann’s second autobiography offers a compelling window into his philosophies and experiences, but it’s not quite timed perfectly

Daniel Brettig15-Jan-2017In addition to the story it tells, every book has another story: that of its making. The tale of , Darren Lehmann’s insight into his time running the Australian team, begins with an earlier autobiographical tome entitled . Released in November 2004, it chronicled Lehmann’s playing career up to the point where he finally and belatedly demonstrated all his talents on a fitting stage, that year’s Test tour of Sri Lanka.That tome ended on a hopeful note, suggesting that Lehmann might see a rich final chapter as an Australian cricketer. Its final words were: “I finally felt I belonged in the Australian cricket team; I had shown that I was capable of making a significant contribution to a winning side and no longer felt on the periphery. Also, I felt that the emotional roller-coaster I had been on might finally be slowing and I started to feel some closure about recent events. I looked forward to the future.”As the following summer started, Lehmann enjoyed a blaze of publicity. He was Wisden Australia’s cricketer of the year, he was promoting a book, and he seemed firmly ensconced in the national team. But the seeds of a very different book were to be sown that season. Even as he travelled around the country, selling himself as the rough diamond all grown up, Lehmann’s Australia career was coming to a swift close. The final Test of 2004, against Pakistan at the MCG, was to be his last. Hopes of showcasing his rich English experience with Yorkshire on the 2005 Ashes tour were limited to observations from the commentary box.Lehmann’s obvious regrets about the way his Australia career ended provide a pair of the more notable passages in a book styled, in collaboration with the unfailingly professional craftsman Brian Murgatroyd, after the half-instructional, half-anecdotal fashion of Sir Alex Ferguson. He notes that the night before his final innings, which ended when he turned Shoaib Akhtar to short leg, he was out on the town until “far too late” as the result of a “far too relaxed attitude”, and found his Test days ended soon afterwards.

A relatively experienced collective unit [in Lehmann’s first two years as coach] was ideally placed to respond well to his combination of jocular, simple advice and the occasional clip around the ears

A few pages later, Lehmann relates how his mind had swung within the space of a few weeks from relaxation to panic, as his ODI career reached a similar point of no return. In his penultimate match, he tried to reverse-sweep Shahid Afridi first ball and was dismissed, leading his friend and captain Ricky Ponting to ask, “What on earth were you thinking?”Lehmann’s lack of an answer then contrasts with his explanation, in hindsight, of a feeling many have felt whether in sport or elsewhere: “There was no logic at all to my decision to play that shot other than the fact that I felt under pressure to deliver something special to maintain my spot. Rather than thinking clearly, I succumbed to pressure and allowed my mind to become clouded. I played one more match and then never played for Australia again.” was never updated to feature the tribulations of that final international summer, nor those that followed in state cricket afterwards. It was a case of striking while the iron was hot, rather than waiting until the metal had cooled to get a more rounded picture of the man and his times. When Lehmann helped to helm Australia’s return of the Ashes in 2013-14, the publishers of the original reprinted with the subtitle “My playing career”. By all accounts, Lehmann was not best pleased about this, and preferred to reframe his story in the coach’s context.The likes of Shane Watson, Mitchell Johnson and Brad Haddin appreciated the senior-player-driven system that Lehmann reintroduced•Getty ImagesWhat we have, then, is a run through the various elements of his own philosophies and experiences as coach, served up with a substantial dose of self-deprecation and hindsight about his time playing the game. Significantly, he offers a more conciliatory view of Australia’s former coach Bob Simpson than he held as a young man; having walked away from his first week or two with the Australian squad in 1990, he admits to thinking the coach was a “f***wit”, but now better understands exactly why he was harshly judged, as an outrageous talent happy to coast off those skills.If this all sounds like a case of “do as I say, don’t do as I did”, then the proof is in the use of that very phrase more than once; on pages 82 and 119, for those keeping score. He reserves particular praise for David Warner’s ability to avoid a similar fate by smartening up his behaviour, and also asserts that the key to any sustained success in sporting sides is to “convince the players that success is just the start of something”.But in chronicling how he was able to make a positive difference to the Australian side in the first two years after his arrival as coach, Lehmann also outlines the circumstances that made this possible. A relatively experienced collective unit in England was ideally placed to respond well to his combination of jocular, simple advice and the occasional clip around the ears; the likes of Shane Watson Mitchell Johnson and Brad Haddin remembered this as the senior-player-driven system of their youth, not the discipline-by-committee that entangled them during the “Homeworkgate” saga.Random House AustraliaTellingly, he speaks of wanting to develop a side that regulates itself, through the observance of senior players and their ability to have trusting conversations with the coach and the captain. That, as much as any technical or tactical advice, is at the core of why Lehmann has been successful, and why this summer’s changeover of players and push for a more youthful direction has been challenging. Lehmann mentions Haddin, Watson, Johnson, George Bailey, Ryan Harris and Peter Siddle as key men in this sort of structure: all are either gone from the scene now or close to leaving.And there, ultimately, lies the rub with . It does offer some new insights, and some useful reflections. But as Lehmann did in putting together while his playing career was still unfolding and ultimately unravelling, he has left us with a less than complete picture. The irony here is that just as the season after Lehmann’s first book turned out to be his most challenging as a player, the pattern has been more or less repeated this time around, thanks to Sri Lanka and South Africa.Of course with a contract inked in to 2019, Lehmann need not fear for his future as he did in 2004-05. But it would be gratifying for all concerned if the next book – if there is one – can be composed at a time when Lehmann is in position to reflect fully and frankly on his life in the round. Only then may readers be fully privy to the sort of robust honesty that many of Lehmann’s players have admired him for.Coach
By Darren Lehmann
Random House Australia
287 pages

We look back at six encounters between Pakistan and England that became iconic (sometimes for the wrong reasons)

Andrew McGlashan10-Oct-2015The Oval 1954An historic moment in Pakistan’s Test history as they overturned England for the first time in a low-scoring encounter. There were just two half-centuries in the match – by Denis Compton and Peter May – but it was Fazal Mahmood, Pakistan’s first great fast bowler, with 12 wickets, who provided the defining performance. It was his second 12-wicket haul in Tests, following the 12 for 94 he claimed against India in Lucknow, which gave Pakistan their maiden Test victory in 1952. Those two hauls remain Pakistan’s best overseas. In this match he earned Pakistan a three-run lead with 6 for 53 in the first innings and then, defending 168 with England seemingly cruising on 109 for 2, claimed 6 for 46 in the second. Pakistan’s lower-order batting was also key: over the two innings the last two wickets added 138 runs. Speaking of the match, Mahmood said: “Even though we were bowled out for 133, I did not think for a second we would lose.”Faisalabad 1987Mike Gatting, Shakoor Rana and Peter Lush, the England manager, after the uneasy truce•Getty ImagesThe scorecard records Match Drawn – that does not even tell the half of it. Mike Gatting’s infamous confrontation with umpire Shakoor Rana led to the third day’s play being lost and almost caused the abandonment of the tour. England, and especially Gatting, were already peeved by the standard of the umpiring and the tension came to a head when Rana claimed that Gatting had been moving a fielder – David Capel – without the knowledge of batsman Saleem Malik. It began one of the most heated exchanges on a cricket pitch – and produced the iconic photo, taken by Graham Morris, of Gatting with his finger jabbing at Rana, who refused to stand again until an official apology was made. “It was not his job at square leg to inform the batsman what I was doing. I did nothing for which I need to apologise,” Gatting said. His hand was eventually forced, but England did not have time to press home a strong position, which had been based on Chris Broad’s hundred and then bowling out Pakistan for 191. “Mike Gatting was packed off to the headmaster’s study without so much as a to stick down the back of his trousers,” wrote Martin Johnson in the . However, in the , Ted Dexter wrote: “Regardless of the provocation, Gatting has made a mess of it and should be disciplined.”Lord’s 1992Wasim Akram celebrates Pakistan’s two-wicket win at Lord’s•Getty ImagesThe two “Ws” won many matches for Pakistan, but this one was with bat in hand – although they did share the small matter of 13 wickets. Chasing 138 against a depleted England attack down to three fit bowlers, after the loss of Phil DeFreitas and Ian Botham (in what proved his last Test), Pakistan slipped to 95 for 8 as debutant Ian Salisbury and Chris Lewis took six wickets between them. However, Lewis and Devon Malcolm ran out of gas and Salisbury could not quite cap a memorable debut as Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis held their nerve deep into the Sunday evening.”What England’s captain needed was an over from Wasim or Waqar,” said. “But they were batting for the other side and, slowly but surely, they took Pakistan to victory. Rarely can a Test crowd have been through so many emotions in a single day’s play.” Earlier in the match, Waqar had been central to sparking a trademark collapse as England fell away from 123 without loss, but in reply, Malcolm went through Pakistan’s middle order. A combination of Akram and Mushtaq Ahmed dismantled England’s second innings, although Alec Stewart carried his bat for an unbeaten 69. Lewis removed Pakistan’s Nos. 2, 3 and 4 for ducks and Salisbury hinted at a legspinning future for England, but both proved false dawns.Karachi 2000Nasser Hussain and Graham Thorpe celebrate victory in the dark•Getty ImagesA series that had crept along on dead pitches with slow scoring came to life on the final day as England somehow conjured a remarkable victory moments before Karachi would have been enveloped in complete darkness. Even before Graham Thorpe edged past his stumps for the winning runs, Pakistan’s fielders had remonstrated that they could not see the ball, but the protests fell on deaf ears against Steve Bucknor after their previous attempts to slow the game down. England’s astonishing victory push actually started the previous evening when Thorpe took an outstanding catch on the long leg boundary to remove Saeed Anwar, and Ashley Giles ripped a delivery across Inzamam-ul-Haq to clip his off stump. It opened the door a fraction, and on the final morning Giles, Darren Gough and Craig White chipped through the rest of the Pakistan order to leave a tantalising target of 176 in 44 overs and a race against the light. Thorpe led the way, while Michael Atherton – who, the first innings, had made what would become his final Test hundred – Marcus Trescothick and Graeme Hick all chipped in before the denouement in the gloom.Multan 2005Shoaib Akhtar demolishes Ashley Giles’ stumps during Pakistan’s final-day victory push in 2005•AFPFresh from their heady 2005 Ashes glory, England appeared set to continue their surge with victory in the opening Test of this series. They had stayed ahead of Pakistan throughout the first four days, restricting them to 274 on a flat pitch then building a lead of 144 on the back of Trescothick’s 193. Pakistan fought hard in their second innings, led by Salman Butt’s 122, but England’s pace attack – the powerful trio of Steve Harmison, Matthew Hoggard and Andrew Flintoff – chipped away with stamina and skill to leave a target of 198. At the close of the fourth day England were 24 for 1, losing Trescothick but still strongly placed. When they moved to 64 for 1 on the final morning all seemed in order, but then Danish Kaneria removed Ian Bell and Andrew Strauss in the same over and Pakistan sensed their moment. Paul Collingwood fell next over to make it three wickets in seven balls, and when Kaneria snared Flintoff and Mohammad Sami removed Kevin Pietersen it was all Pakistan at 101 for 6. A Shoaib Akhtar thunderbolt left just one of Giles’ stumps standing, but Geraint Jones and Shaun Udal eked out a stand of 49 to pull England within 32 of victory. However, Kaneria removed Udal and then Shoaib finished the job with another searing yorker to Jones before Harmison fended to gully. England’s 2005 bubble was burst.Lord’s 2010There was only one thing people were talking about on the fourth day at Lord’s•Getty ImagesAs the players left the field after the third day’s play, all the talk was of a world-record eighth-wicket stand of 332 between Jonathan Trott and Stuart Broad, and the implosion of the Pakistan batting, which left them 41 for 4 following on. Yet, a few hours later, the focus dramatically, and permanently, shifted. Shortly after 10pm, the broke the spot-fixing story of no-balls to order involving Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir, who had etched his name on the honours broad with 6 for 84 earlier in the match. Overnight few people slept and next morning there were doubts as to whether the Test would resume. It did, but amid a torpid atmosphere where England could barely bring themselves to celebrate wickets as they secured a massive, but forever hollow, innings victory to take the series. The match was over; the real story had only just begun. The three players were found guilty and each handed prison sentences of varying lengths. Five years on, there remains a possibility that England could face Amir at some point in this tour.

Is MS Dhoni’s reputation of a last-over specialist justified in international cricket?

Bishen Jeswant21-Sep-2014The only Twenty20 international between England and India in September was the last match of a long tour – India had been thoroughly outplayed in the Tests and England had lost the ODIs. India needed 17 runs off the final over to take the T20.MS Dhoni was on strike, facing Chris Woakes, and Ambati Rayudu was at the other end. Dhoni began the over with a six, and hit a four later on, but despite having a specialist batsman as a partner, he refused two singles. Dhoni took the burden entirely upon himself and India eventually fell short by three runs.Opinion was divided on whether Dhoni’s tactics of keeping the strike was justified. He has a reputation of thriving in such situations, but should he have trusted his partner more? Since the match was a T20I, the table below lists Dhoni’s performances in the final over of a chase in this format.

Dhoni in the last over – T20Is

YearOpposition Runs neededRuns scored by DhoniResult*2014England1713Loss2009England197Loss2013Australia76Win2012New Zealand135Loss2012Australia383Loss*Click on the results to view match scorecardsDhoni has batted in the last over of five T20I chases and pulled off only one win, when India needed seven runs off six balls, a favourable equation for the batting side. One of the other four games was impossible to win – 38 needed in the last over – and two others were extremely difficult – with 17 and 19 runs required. The other match, against New Zealand, was within reach with only 13 needed, but Dhoni got to face only two balls and scored 5. While Dhoni isn’t solely to blame for the defeats, there isn’t much in his T20I stats to burnish his image of being a clinical final-over finisher.Does the reputation come from ODI cricket then? With an average of 53 and a strike rate of 89, Dhoni is certainly one of the most productive players in the 50-over game.

Dhoni in the last over – ODIs

YearOppositionRuns neededRuns scored by DhoniResult*2012Australia1311Win2013Sri Lanka1516Win2011England88Win2012Sri Lanka97Tie2013Australia66Win2007Sri Lanka115Loss2008Sri Lanka32Win2009**West Indies119Win*Click on the results to view match scorecards
**This match was not originally in the piece and has been added since, 22-Sep-2014 22:00Dhoni has batted in the last over of eight ODI chases and India have won six. Three finishes can be directly credited to Dhoni: against Sri Lanka in the Caribbean, where India needed 15 in the last over, in the Commonwealth Bank series against Australia in 2012, when India had to get 13; and in a bilateral ODI in 2009, against West Indies at St. Lucia, where India needed 11. In the other situation where India needed more than 10 in the last over, against Sri Lanka in 2007, Dhoni was not able to win it.So in international cricket, there have been seven instances of India needing between 10 and 20 runs in the last over of a chase with Dhoni at the crease, and he has come good thrice. Those numbers aren’t convincing enough for a great finisher. That being said, there may be several international games where Dhoni has bailed India out of difficult situations and achieved victory without taking it to the last over, but this article only looks at final-over finishes. The only other form of cricket left to analyse is domestic cricket, or more specifically, the Indian Premier League.

Dhoni in the last over – IPL

YearOppositionRuns neededRuns scored by DhoniResult*2010Kings XI Punjab1618Win2013Mumbai Indians4216Loss2014Kings XI Punjab4014Loss2013Sunrisers Hyderabad1514Win2014Delhi Daredevils1112Win2014Mumbai Indians1112Win2014Rajasthan Royals1211Win2012Rajasthan Royals86Win2014Sunrisers Hyderabad65Win2009Mumbai Indians34Win2009Mumbai Indians251Loss2012Kolkata Knight Riders90Win2013Mumbai Indians120Loss*Click on the results to view match scorecardsIn the IPL, Chennai Super Kings have lost only four of the 13 T20s when Dhoni has batted in the last over of a chase. In three of those four defeats, Super Kings needed 25-plus runs in the last over. In six matches when Super Kings needed between 10 and 20 to win off the last over with their captain batting, Dhoni achieved victory five times. An 83% success rate shows that Dhoni is exceptional in such pressure situations in the IPL. These numbers suggest that Dhoni’s reputation as a master of the last over stems from the IPL, rather than international cricket, where the quality of bowling is generally higher and the conditions tougher.

Tributes to Tony Greig, who died in Sydney at the age of 66

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Dec-2012″Tony was a tough opponent who took on all opposition with aggression and a determination to win. He had a take-no-prisoners attitude which helped him lead England with flair and toughness. He was a genuine allrounder who in turn was an integral part of World Series Cricket’s success. Once his playing days were over Tony offered an insightful commentary. We will not forget the way he stirred the viewers in a similar vein to the way he did to opposition teams. He will be sadly missed.”
“I was only speaking with Tony a couple of days ago so news of his passing is absolutely devastating. Tony has a long and decorated history with international cricket both as a player and commentator and cricket will be much poorer for his loss. Personally, he has also been a great mentor for me, providing great advice through the good times and the bad.”
, the Australian captain, in The Age.”Tony was a very willing opponent on the field, but was equally willing as a friend off the field. He made himself into a successful Test cricketer and Test captain by that willingness to take the game up to his opponent whether with bat or ball. He was also one of the best slip catchers of all time. I got to know Tony well during the World Series period and have worked with Tony many times since as a commentator. His enthusiasm for the game and his combative nature came to the fore in this role as well and while he was always happy to stir the Australian audiences, behind the scenes he loved this country as much as we do. My memories of Tony are of his gregariousness and his generosity of nature.”
.”I don’t know as a player whether he was an icon. I think in some ways he’ll be remembered more for his commentary in Australia. I don’t think that is a bad thing to say about him because he was very special as a commentator. He got the place alive and working, that Channel 9 commentary box. He loved the game and he served the game very well.”
.”It’s a deeply upsetting time for his family and for everyone associated with Tony at Nine, and indeed for many, many others who came to know and love the man. He’s not only been part of our family, but he’s had a seat at the head of the table.”
“He was a combative on-field rival of Australian cricket but became one of Australian cricket’s firmest friends, with his long-running role as a Channel Nine commentator making him an Australian household name.”
.”Tony did so much for the game of cricket & always stood up for what he believed in & had the game of cricket at heart, we will all miss him.”
“As a superb all-rounder, ambitious national captain and authoritative commentator over the best part of half a century, Greig’s standing in the game is matched by very few others. Australia has lost one of the iconic voices of sport.””Vale Tony Greig, a good man, a strong man, a trailblazer, a crash-hat wearer. Pitch reporters have lost their patron ..summer is poorer.”
.”Tony Greig will forever be in our commentary box. RIP Tony. It was a privilege to play against you and to work with you.”
.”Awfully sad news with Tony Greig’s passing. A significant contributor to players’ rights worldwide and never afraid to speak his mind.”
.”There isn’t a single professional cricketer playing today who does not owe him a debt of gratitude for the role he played in the 1970s in vastly improving their working conditions and making professional cricket a viable and attractive career proposition.”
“He was a giant of a man who played a major role in the changing face of cricket during the 1970s. He will be fondly remembered for his informed commentaries, his embracing of innovation to enhance the game including day/night cricket as well as his performances on the field of play.”
.”Tony will long be remembered as someone who gave so much to cricket in this country and in particular to the development of the sport in this State. As someone who resided in Sydney and was an outstanding cricketer with the Waverley Cricket Club, Tony was actively involved in the promotion of cricket at junior level, particularly through his close relationship with the Scots College. He was forthright and passionate about the game and always thinking about how it could move forwards and develop.”
.”Can’t believe one of my heroes Tony Greig has passed away. One of the greatest voices in cricket and will be sorely missed.”
.”His cricketing talents were combined with a fierce competitive nature and, as such, his personality was imprinted on any team he represented. I consider myself very fortunate to have played in the same Sussex team as Tony, and saw first-hand his resolute love of cricket.”
.”RIP Tony Greig. You have left a great footprint on the world of cricket.My condolences to the Greig family.”
“Saddened to hear the passing away of Tony Greig, RIP. Great commentator,mentor, player & friend will be missed by the cricketing family.”
on Twitter.“RIP Tony Greig. So many memories. So much to thank him for, for where themodern game is, along with many of his mates @ the time.”
.”RIP Tony Greig. Mentor and friend. We will miss you, a genuine friend andadmirer of SL cricket. It was indeed a pleasure to have known you!”
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Watching Associates get hammered in World Cups is dispiriting, but there must be a way of ensuring they play against big teams more than once every four years

Osman Samiuddin in Hambantota20-Feb-2011Such days make for a dispiriting – and complicated – spectacle. The two matches in Chennai and Hambantota on Sunday are precisely what the format and the World Cup don’t need, yet it is the very existence of such matches that allows cricket to think of itself as a global game.Much has been said on the issue of the Associates in the run-up to this tournament. Probably the most thoughtful and reasoned assessment of their plight came from Ricky Ponting, who in his sporting old age, appears to have found a wisened balance.The World Cup needs to be more competitive, he said, and that can’t be argued with. The first two days have seen individual and collective quality, but no competitiveness. But Associates also need to be given a platform to develop. They only get to play big teams once every four years. There, they get duly battered, go away, come back four years later and go through it again. Here is the real plight.Occasionally there is hope: Kenya’s run in 2003, Ireland’s performances in 2007. But where do they go from there? Into the glass ceiling Ireland spoke of a few years ago? Mostly, there is what happened to Kenya and Canada on Sunday. What, Ponting asked, do they learn from such batterings?Canada showed some spirit and bite in Hambantota. For 25 overs in the field they can say they had things under control. But it was always a precarious kind of hold, prisoner to the gulf in quality of superior opponents and their own lack of exposure to it. Once Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara decided to take the game away, they simply went on and did so. As Canada’s Sri Lankan coach Pubudu Dassanayake later acknowledged, they what to do; the plans were in place; presumably some kind of SWOT analysis coaches love doing was carried out as well. They just didn’t have the tools to do it.In four World Cups since 1979, Canada has won one game, against Bangladesh. Yet there is something to build on with this side. There are young players coming through. They have coaches with international experience. The ICC facilitates their preparation for such tournaments.But without playing any top-flight cricket outside the World Cup, how do they grow as players, as a team, how do they build? Not by playing top sides every four years.Dassanayake seems a cheery man, so he insisted that his players would have learnt something from the 210-run defeat to Sri Lanka. “Mainly this is a great experience for my youngsters,” he said. “Playing against great bowlers like [Muttiah] Muralitharan and [Ajantha] Mendis, it gives them a lot of confidence. If you talk about talent they are all talented but just not exposed at this level. We can coach certain things but it’s all about them going and experiencing this and getting the belief they can compete against top players.”They might very well take something from this, but where do they take it? These sides want to become full Test members. Ultimately, that must be the aim of everyone involved in cricket. By not playing regular top-level cricket, or not, as may be the case, playing in future World Cups, that will not happen.Ponting’s suggestion – taken up by Mahela Jayawardene as well – that there should be another way of getting them to play constant top-flight cricket offers a solution if there is seriousness about finding one.”You need to give them opportunities to play more regular cricket with top nations,” Jayawardene said. “Maybe on and off they need to organise certain things for them because their cricket can be improved. Cricket is a global game and we need to try and make sure everyone plays and comes to that standard one day.”Until – and if – that day comes, associates, as Dassanayake put it, are in the dark about where they go next. He is not alone.