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If Pakistan are to achieve anything significant in this tournament as a team they will have to do so inspite of themselves

The Preview by Osman Samiuddin12-Jun-2009Match factsSaturday, June 13
Start time 1730 local (1630 GMT)Abdul Razzaq has unwittingly set himself up as a potential saviour and wildcard and may play at The Oval•AFPBig PictureIf Pakistan are to achieve anything significant in this tournament as a team they will have to do so inspite of themselves.As a bowling unit they have been both wasteful and outstanding. The comeback to halt Sri Lanka on Friday was as good as they have been, but the waste of Sohail Tanvir’s first over and the extras ultimately rendered it futile. It is an age-old problem and will not be resolved overnight. As a batting side, they have lacked the bombast required to negotiate the Powerplay and even the nous to keep singles coming along. Younis Khan has battled alone and if it is said that he is not a Twenty20 player, it is forgotten that he needs others to play around him. With bat in hand he has done his job, more than many expected; his colleagues have failed him. The less said about the fielding the better, though at least they didn’t drop any catches against Sri Lanka.These are elementary things and it will require something special to overcome them. Loathe as we should be to say it, Pakistan’s progress depends on one of those bewildering, fascinating, unexpected individual hands that occur from time to time. A Shahid Afridi or Umar Gul spell, an Abdul Razzaq or Misbah-ul-Haq special; something, anything, any spark for they are perilously close to being extinguished fully.As with Sri Lanka, their record against New Zealand in big tournaments is solid; they’ve won nine of 12, and if this were a semi-final you’d bet on Pakistan such has been their dominance over the Kiwis at that stage. But it isn’t and in any case Sri Lanka rendered a similarly poor record irrelevant. New Zealand’s concerns are primarily of a medical nature. Jesse Ryder is gone and Ross Taylor and Daniel Vettori, vital cogs both, are still hampered; Vettori has yet to play a game in the tournament.Though one McCullum has done well, they wouldn’t mind a Brendon spectacular either. Like India to an extent, they are untested, especially their batting; wins over Scotland are Ireland will count for little and the loss to South Africa, where their batsmen struggled, was a dead tie.Form guide (last five matches, most recent first)
Pakistan: LWLWL
New Zealand: WLWWW
Watch out for…Abdul Razzaq has unwittingly set himself up as a potential saviour and wildcard. Such is Pakistan’s despair that the fact that he hasn’t played international cricket for two years or that he was in dire form when he last did so, doesn’t matter much. Razzaq’s return has, over the last two days, been viewed by many to be just the tonic to galvanise Pakistan. Don’t rely on it but if he did do something special with bat or ball – he was at least outstanding in the ICL – you wouldn’t be entirely surprised.Aaron Redmond’s return to New Zealand colours was similar in a sense though as a replacement for Jesse Ryder, he had vastly bigger shoes to fill. He brought all the verve of one who wasn’t expecting any such opportunity in his 30-ball 63 against Scotland and you wouldn’t bet against a repeat. If Brendon McCullum finally locates his range, Redmond may not be needed.Team newsIf Pakistan don’t drop Salman Butt now then it will be the most emphatic confirmation that they are not taking this tournament seriously enough. Sohail Tanvir’s troubles are more complex but now may not be the time to patiently see him through them. Razzaq is certain to come in. The question is who else will?Pakistan: (probable) 1 Ahmed Shehzad, 2 Kamran Akmal (wk), 3 Shoaib Malik, 4 Misbah-ul-Haq, 5 Younis Khan (capt), 6 Abdul Razzaq, 7 Shahid Afridi, 8 Fawad Alam, 9 Umar Gul, 10 Mohammad Aamer, 11 Saeed AjmalNew Zealand will only hope that both Daniel Vettori and Ross Taylor are fit enough to play.New Zealand: (probable) 1 Brendon McCullum (capt), 2 Aaron Redmond, 3 Martin Guptill, 4 Scott Styris, 5 Jacob Oram, 6 Peter McGlashan (wk), 7 James Franklin, 8 Neil Broom, 9 Nathan McCullum, 10 Ian Butler, 11 Kyle MillsStats and TriviaYounis Khan is the tournament’s second-highest run-scorer, averaging 66 with a strike rate of 150. Decent figures for a man not considered to be a Twenty20 player by his own (ex-) chief selector.New Zealand have lost to Pakistan three times in a World Cup semi-final; 1992 and 1999 in 50-over World Cups and in the 2007 Twenty20 World Cup.Quotes”In every single game we’ve had trouble with our start. Today was a crucial game and we had back-to-back no-balls in the first over.”

“When you’ve got nothing to lose you go out there and give it a go. I was pleased it came off. I got a couple in the slot early on and took it from there.”

Robert Croft, the most authoritative voice on spin-bowling in Cardiff, believes the Australians will be sending a poor message to Nathan Hauritz if they field an all-pace attack for the first Test on Wednesday

Alex Brown05-Jul-2009Robert Croft, the most authoritative voice on spin-bowling in Cardiff, believes the Australians will be sending a poor message to Nathan Hauritz if they field an all-pace attack for the first Test on Wednesday. Croft, who represented England in seven Ashes Tests and has amassed 329 matches for Glamorgan, expects England to play both Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar on a Sophia Gardens pitch that will take turn, potentially leaving the Australians exposed should they opt against a frontline slow bowler.The condition of the Cardiff pitch is proving every bit as intriguing as the make-up of the respective XIs ahead of the first Ashes Test. The decision of the ECB pitch panel in May to penalise Glamorgan for producing a pitch that “demonstrated excessive turn and should therefore be rated ‘poor'” has prompted much nervous discussion ahead of Sophia Gardens’ first-ever Test, and the move to place the curator, Keith Exton, under a media ban, has only added to the drama.So curious were the Australians to uncover the truth about the Sophia Gardens playing surface that they dispatched Troy Cooley, their bowling coach, and Steve Bernard, their team manager, to Cardiff a day early for a recce of the pitch. Both will hope that the wicket proves as conducive to reverse swing as it does spin, but Croft, a four-time Glamorgan player-of-the-year, has warned of the dangers of relying on an all-pace attack.”Ricky [Ponting] and the Australians will do whatever they want, but my feeling is that if they go into the match without a spinner it will be a real downer for Nathan Hauritz,” Croft told Cricinfo. “If they don’t play him in Cardiff, I don’t know where he’s going to play in this country. It could be a bit dangerous to go in with some bit-part bowlers, particularly if they go for a shedful of runs. I think they could really miss a spinner from day four.”We’ve only played three Championship matches there this season and all of those were affected by rain, but I would expect the wicket won’t change too much for the first two or three days, then start to turn a bit. It is the outfield that has been relaid, not the square, and if there is five days of good weather, I think it will spin.”Australia’s selectors had hoped Hauritz would make a compelling case for selection in the two tour matches against Sussex and England Lions, but a combined return of 2 for 260 from 68.2 overs has given them little choice but to play four fast bowlers, and rely on the part-time spin of Marcus North, Michael Clarke and Simon Katich for variation. That could lead to a major contrast in the make-up and strategies of the opposing teams, with Australia placing their faith in reverse swing and England hoping for turn to assist Swann and, possibly, Panesar.Brett Lee has signalled Australia’s intention to legally scuff the new ball, duplicating India’s tactic from last year’s Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, in an attempt to reverse the ball early. Croft said the strategy could work on the abrasive Cardiff surface, but felt spinners would similarly benefit.”I have not seen the pitch in the last four or five days, but I would have thought England would probably look at playing the two spinners,” Croft said. “That said, there has definitely been reverse there in the last few seasons. If the weather is hot, the ball will go reverse earlier than you probably think.”The Met Office is predicting intermittent rain for Cardiff early in the week, but clear skies for the first two days of the Test. That will come as pleasing news to both the teams and administrators, the latter of whom have been excoriated by critics for scheduling the first Test of an Ashes series at a stadium with a capacity of just 16,000.Croft, though, is adamant the awarding of the first Ashes Test to Cardiff is due recognition for Wales’ long-standing contributions to the England team. Sophia Gardens will become world cricket’s 100th Test venue on Wednesday, and the first new one in England since Chester-le-Street hosted an England-Zimbabwe Test six years ago.”It is the England Wales Cricket Board, and this is well deserved as far as I’m concerned,” Croft said. “I think this will be the kick-start cricket in Wales needs, and will encourage a new generation of kids to take up the game here. For kids to have the opportunity to now watch the best players in the world on their doorstep is incredible. I think the knock-on effect of this will be huge.”

As per a report by Italian source Calciomercato, a big update has emerged on Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Harry Winks and his future in north London.

The Lowdown: Winks impresses behind the scenes…

According a claim by The Sun last month, the England international actually got off to a pretty fine start to life under new head coach Nuno Espirito Santo.

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Indeed, as per their information, Winks impressed the Portuguese tactician behind closed doors and it looked certain at one point that he would be staying at Tottenham.

However, as this news emerges from Italy, it appears there has been a twist in the tale.

The Latest: Winks actively looking, Italian clubs interested…

According to Calciomercato, the 25-year-old is now ‘out and looking’ for a new team in January after falling down the pecking order under Nuno in recent weeks.

Winks cut a bit-part figure under former boss Jose Mourinho too, starting just nine Premier League matches over 2020/2021, and it appears he could be going the same way this season – having played just over one hour of top flight football (WhoScored).

As the midfielder seeks pastures new, it is believed that Serie A giants Inter Milan and AS Roma are battling it out on the January market for him.

The Verdict: Time to go…

It is clear that Winks’ time is well and truly up at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

After being deemed surplus by two different managers in two seasons, chairman Daniel Levy needs to make some profit off the homegrown academy ace as soon as possible.

His age and the fact he is indeed homegrown could raise his market value just enough for Spurs to command a reasonable fee for him.

Winks is also a composed dictator of the ball in midfield, as evident by the fact he has averaged a head-turning 90% pass accuracy across all competitions since making his senior debut for Spurs in 2014/2015.

In other news: Levy told to hire ‘world class’ boss over Poch if Nuno is axed, Spurs players love him! Find out more here.

Manchester United travel to the King Power Stadium this afternoon as they attempt to end their two-game winless run in the Premier League against an out-of-sorts Leicester City side.

The Red Devils haven’t been firing on all cylinders themselves either. Although Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s charges sit just two points behind league leaders Chelsea, their recent form has been quite alarming.

Defeats against Young Boys, West Ham United and Aston Villa in recent weeks have raised serious question marks over the progress being made in the red half of Manchester, adding greater importance to today’s encounter with the Foxes.

The problems for Solskjaer appear to be all over the pitch. The Old Trafford outfit have kept just one clean sheet all season, the debate over the midfield double pivot continues to rumble on, and the forward line has scored just three goals in the last four games. However, the solution to at least one of those issues could be a rather simple one for the Norwegian.

Despite making just one start in all competitions in the opening weeks of the campaign, Jesse Lingard has caught the eye with multiple standout cameo appearances off the bench.

He added gloss to the scoreline with a well-taken goal against Newcastle United, sealed all three points with a sumptuous last-minute strike in the victory over West Ham and provided the assist for Cristiano Ronaldo’s injury-time winner against Villarreal.

There was much talk of Lingard leaving his boyhood club on a permanent basis over the summer after he entered the final year of his current contract, but Solskjaer decided to keep hold of the versatile forward, and he is now being rewarded for doing so.

In just 45 minutes of Premier League action, the England international has been on the scoresheet on two occasions, and now the time has come for Lingard to be thrown in from the start.

With Marcus Rashford only just coming back from injury, Edinson Cavani unavailable, Jadon Sancho still acclimatising to his new surroundings and Anthony Martial struggling for form, Lingard could arguably be the main attacking threat over the weekend for the 20-time English champions.

The £19.8m-rated wizard was labelled “outstanding” after firing the Hammers to sixth place last term, and now he must be given a chance to prove that he’s worthy of a place in Manchester United’s starting line-up against the FA Cup holders this afternoon.

Lingard’s previous exploits have shown that he’s capable of having a huge impact for United today at Leicester, whom he scored against on the final day of the 2019/20 season, but Solskjaer needs to provide him with the opportunity to do so.

In other news… Signed for £19.8m, now worth £9m: MUFC endured a transfer nightmare over £25k-p/w dud 

Brian Lara has confirmed he is in talks with the Trinidad & Tobago board about a role for him in T&T’s Champions League campaign

Cricinfo staff15-Aug-2009Brian Lara, the former West Indies captain, has confirmed he is in talks with the Trinidad & Tobago board about a role for him in T&T’s Champions League campaign. His role is likely to be a coaching one since he cannot join the side as a player – under the rules, the squad must be the same as the one that participated in the domestic competition.”I haven’t been approached but we have had discussions on it,” Lara was quoted as saying in the . “I think we really want to come to a mutual understanding of exactly what Trinidad and Tobago cricket wants to get out of Brian Lara. I think you are going to play in an international tournament for the first time, we’re accustomed to playing regional tournaments but we have to know exactly what the pitches are going to be like.”T&T are the only West Indies team to compete in the tournament, which includes three sides from India, two each from Australia, England and South Africa and one each from Sri Lanka and New Zealand. They will be up against international stars like Brendon McCullum, Andrew Symonds, Adam Gilchrist, Dale Steyn, Virender Sehwag and Daniel Vettori.”The opposition is on an international stage … so I see some merit in it but to know exactly what role I’ll be playing, I’m not so sure. If they see I can be an asset, it is something I’ll definitely look at.”Lara had signed up with the ICL for their first season but that is unlikely to affect his role with the T&T since players who have ended their association with the unofficial league are being rehabilitated by their country’s boards.

Crystal Palace were linked with a move for former Bournemouth winger Arnaut Danjuma over the summer, and the club’s hierarchy may be ruing not signing the 24-year-old just a few months on.

What’s the story?

According to Sky Sports, the Eagles were amongst Danjuma’s potential suitors in the previous transfer window after he put in a string of impressive performances in the Championship last season.

The Netherlands international was one of the second tier’s standout performers in 2020/21, bagging 15 goals and laying on a further seven assists in 33 appearances for the Cherries.

However, despite Danjuma adding a further two strikes to his tally during the two-legged play-off semi-final against Brentford, his efforts weren’t enough to see off the capital club, meaning Bournemouth were consigned to another year outside of the Premier League.

It led to a tussle for his signature between multiple clubs, but it was Spanish side Villarreal who stumped up the £21.3m asking price to secure the wing wizard’s services, and he’s been in scintillating form ever since.

One of Parish’s biggest Palace mistakes

Since arriving in La Liga, Danjuma has quickly established himself as one of the division’s most exciting attacking talents, bagging four goals in just seven league games, and adding another strike and two assists in three Champions League outings.

His eye-catching performances at club level have also earned to versatile forward a recall to Louis van Gaal’s national team setup where he scored in the 6-0 thrashing of Gibraltar.

It was Danjuma’s first cap for the Oranje since 2018, but it’s unlikely to be his last after his standout showing from the substitutes bench earned glowing praise from the Dutch coach in his post-match interview.

“This was a spectacular substitute by Danjuma,” Van Gaal said. “He deserves to be praised because what he showed was very clever.

“On the left, we have plenty of options; on the right, we don’t. He deserves to be praised. Danjuma had nice, good dribbles. His fellow players were not quite ready for his hard crosses yet.”

Although Palace have made a promising start to the current campaign, no winger within Patrick Vieira’s first-team squad has hit the back of the net from open play.

Wilfried Zaha has bagged two penalties, while Jordan Ayew continues to search for his first goal since November 2020, and although Michael Olise has notched his first goal for the Eagles, he prefers to play through the middle.

Therefore, not signing the £22.5m-rated Danjuma will surely have to go down as one of Steve Parish’s biggest transfer mistakes during his tenure as Palace chairman.

The versatile forward could have been a mainstay of the south London outfit’s attack for many years to come, but now Vieira is left still searching for the final piece of his forward line.

And, in other news…Vieira could unearth the next CPFC prodigy in 20 y/o beast, he’s “one for the future” 

Not only did Worcestershire break the golden rule of never inserting at Edgbaston, but they then produced a bowling performance so full of juicy half-volleys and succulent long-hops that Warwickshire were able to gorge themselves with gratitude

George Dobell at Edgbaston02-Sep-2009
ScorecardIan Westwood has all but sealed his place in the side with an unbeaten 101•Getty ImagesWhile it may be customary to offer gifts when visiting neighbours, Worcestershire may reflect they were generous to a fault on the first day of their visit to Birmingham. Not only did they break the golden rule of never inserting at Edgbaston, but they then produced a bowling performance so full of juicy half-volleys and succulent long-hops, that Warwickshire were able to gorge themselves with gratitude.In defence of Vikram Solanki’s decision, the pitch was so unusually green it was barely distinguishable from the rest of the square. Had his bowlers maintained anything like a decent line and length, batting might have proved hard work.But they didn’t. Though Matt Mason was tidy enough, Gareth Andrew and Imran Arif both conceded over five per over, with Richard Jones’ undermining the odd threatening delivery by delivering too many poor balls. It was not hard to see why the team are adrift at the foot of the Division One table without a win all year.”We didn’t bowl as well as we could,” admitted Steve Rhodes, Worcestershire’s director of cricket “and the pitch didn’t do as much as we thought it would.”Ian Westwood was the biggest beneficiary of Worcestershire’s largesse. The Warwickshire captain, who was averaging just 21 in first-class cricket this season before this match, compiled the seventh first-class century of his career and his first in 15 months.Very nicely he played, too. His chanceless innings has, so far, contained 18 boundaries, the majority of them driven through the covers with some panache. Though there were periods of playing and missing, Westwood maintained his concentration and looked far more compact than previously this season. Having taken 89 balls over his first half-century, his second took just 57 deliveries.It was a timely innings from Warwickshire’s captain. Not only are his side desperate to claim a win that would shore-up their first division survival hopes, but Westwood was in dire need of such a performance to silence those who question his place in the side. This century might just have saved his position.He has so far added 100 for Warwickshire’s second wicket with Ian Bell. Looking hungry for a long innings, Bell adopted a safety first approach, but received enough poor balls to ensure he was never bogged down. Jonathan Trott, who returned from England duty only the night before the game, was not required but came into the side in place of Rikki Clarke, who has a minor knee injury.The only moment of joy for the visitors came when Ant Botha played around a fine delivery that nipped back through his gate from Jones.Warwickshire may still struggle to squeeze out a result this week, however. Rain cut 48 overs from the day and there was no play after 3.15pm. It was hard to escape the impression that Worcestershire had given up some time earlier.Warwickshire are winning the battle off the pitch, too. The clubs are vying for the services of a number of players, but Warwickshire have drawn first blood after Naqaash Tahir, the subject of an approach from Worcestershire, verbally agreed a new two-year contract to remain at Edgbaston. He will sign within the next few days.Both clubs are also interested in Yorkshire seamer Ajmal Shahzad and Devon left-arm spinner Chris Metters. Warwickshire are also considering an approach for former England seamer Matthew Hoggard, possibly as a player-coach to succeed the departing Allan Donald.There is a possibility of further transfers as counties seek to plunder Worcestershire. Warwickshire, like most counties, would be interested in Stephen Moore and Kabir Ali if they became available. Moore has a clause in his contract allowing him to speak to other counties if Worcestershire are relegated, while Kabir is contracted until the end of 2010.

Injury expert Ben Dinnery has been talking to Football Insider regarding an update on Celtic defender Christopher Jullien.

The Lowdown: Jullien back in training

Jullien, who was labelled as ‘excellent’ by Neil Lennon, is yet to feature in 2021 after suffering a serious injury in the final game of 2020.

The Hoops brought in four centre-backs over the summer, possibly due to Jullien’s injury, with Ange Postecoglou still yet to see the French centre-back in action.

He has returned to training at Lennoxtown earlier this month, however, it seems as if the towering defender won’t be ready for competitive action for the next three games.

The Latest: Dinnery reacts to recent update

Postecoglou recently confirmed, as cited by Football Insider, that Jullien won’t be available until after the next international break.

That means he’ll miss games against Livingston, Ferencvaros and Dundee, with the earliest possible chance of a return seemingly against St Johnstone on November 20.

Dinnery was giving his thoughts to Football Insider regarding the update, to which he said:

“It’s always going to be difficult when you’re in the gym and training on a one-to-one basis.

“You’re missing out with the banter and if the team is doing well, you want to be a part of it.

“The initial timeline with his injury was in and around four months, and now we are approaching 10 months.

“The important thing with any long-term injury is to yourself small goals. Rather than looking to the end, it’s all about small motivating factors.

“It will be dispiriting, but it needs to be contextualised. It’s a risk and reward strategy.

“You would rather have an extra month out than risk returning too early and putting yourself out of action for even longer.

“At this moment in time, learning that you’re not going to be ready until late November is massively upsetting.

“But there is another six months left of the season and a lot of football to be played.”

The Verdict: Frustrating, but the right decision

The last thing Celtic would want is to rush Jullien back too quickly, as Dinnery mentions. The Hoops don’t exactly need to, either, with Carl Starfelt and Cameron Carter-Vickers becoming regulars in a solid backline recently – the latter in particular was praised by Celtic legend Kenny Dalglish earlier this season.

Celtic have conceded just twice in their five October fixtures, a record that should keep Postecoglou calm about not bringing back Jullien too soon.

It’ll be interesting to see if Jullien will be a regular when he is fully fit, especially as he is the club’s sixth most expensive signing of all time, but if Starfelt and Carter-Vickers continue to impress, he could remain on the sidelines despite being ready to play.

In other news: ‘That has been alleged’ – Devlin’s worrying answer on ‘quick’ Celtic signing and Dermot Desmond. 

Iain O’Brien has been okayed as Daryl Tuffey’s replacement in the New Zealand squad for the remainder of the Champions Trophy

Cricinfo staff30-Sep-2009Iain O’Brien has been cleared to replace Daryl Tuffey in the New Zealand squad for the remainder of the Champions Trophy.O’Brien, 33, will replace Tuffey, who was ruled out of the tournament after breaking his hand while fielding. Tuffey will return to New Zealand for surgery.O’Brien has featured in 10 ODIs for New Zealand, picking up 14 wickets at 34.85. He last played an ODI against India in Auckland in March this year.New Zealand, having topped Group B, will play the second-placed team in Group A in the second semi-final at the Wanderers on Saturday.

It’s safe to say Jurgen Klopp hasn’t had the best luck when it comes to injuries so far this season at Liverpool, especially with his midfield players.

With the Reds having Thiago Alcantara and Harvey Elliott out with injuries since September, losing James Milner to an injury in their 5-0 win over Manchester United and Naby Keita to a hamstring injury during their recent Premier League match against Brighton & Hove Albion.

However, with the Merseyside club set to take on Atletico Madrid at Anfield in the Champions League this evening, it seems as though they have been delivered some good news that will surely have their fans buzzing.

What’s the news?

It has been revealed that Fabinho had returned to first-team training on Monday after missing the club’s 2-2 draw against Brighton and their two league games against Watford and Manchester United prior to that.

In his latest press conference ahead of the match against Diego Simeone’s side, Klopp revealed that both Fabinho and Thiago are “in contention” to play in midweek, which will be a big plus for everyone at the club if either of the duo can get some minutes under their belts and come away unscathed.

In regards to Fabinho, with Liverpool having conceded two goals in the game against Brighton after being 2-0 up after 24 minutes, his return will be hugely welcomed.

The Brazilian has managed to rack up an average of 1.7 interceptions and four tackles per game in the Champions League so far this season as well as winning 72% of the duels he’s been involved in, which says that his fitness boost will be a welcome one. With those stats in mind, he’d tighten the side up defensively, something that would certainly delight fans.

Klopp said they needed to improve in that regard during his press conference after failing to keep a clean sheet in the Champions League so far this season.

Looking ahead to the showdown against Atletico, we feel that if Klopp feels Fabinho is fit enough to start, he should definitely be in the starting XI. He would give the Reds a great chance of securing a victory and keeping their 100% win rate in the Champions League going before their remaining group games against FC Porto and AC Milan come around.

In other news: Klopp could already own £54m-rated machine’s heir with “excellent” 18 y/o LFC prodigy – opinion