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Inter Miami and Argentina star Lionel Messi was spotted working hard in the gym during the MLS offseason Monday morning.

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Messi spotted in the gymInter Miami in offseason modeMLS cup six days awayWHAT HAPPENED?

The Argentine international was seen doing pull-ups in the gym Monday morning, after a clip of him surfaced on social media platform X, formerly Twitter. The Inter Miami star is in offseason mode with the Herons right now, and his national team is done for the calendar year as well, so December is a month for relaxation and recovery for the 36-year-old.

AdvertisementWATCH THE CLIPTHE BIGGER PICTURE

After the 2023 MLS season, that saw Messi and the Herons claim the inaugural Leagues Cup, you'd think he'd be pictured on a beach somewhere enjoying some time away from the game. Not the case for the Argentine, though, as his offseason truly doesn't exist! He's been pictured in the gym or on the training pitch since returning from international duty with Argentina in November, and it appears that won't change anytime soon.

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GettyWHAT NEXT FOR MESSI & MLS?

The Herons return to the pitch on January 19 in a friendly against the El Salvador national team to get their 2024 preseason underway. Until then, it's planning ahead for the campaign. For MLS, it's nearing the end now – finally – as MLS Cup sits six days away. The Columbus Crew are set to host LAFC for the crown on Saturday, December 9.

Guyana Amazon Warriors have signed Pakistan batsman Umar Akmal for the 2015 edition of the Caribbean Premier League

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Jun-2015Guyana Amazon Warriors have signed Pakistan batsman Umar Akmal for the 2015 edition of the Caribbean Premier League. Akmal is expected to join the CPL franchise on July 3 after finishing his stint with Leicestershire in the ongoing NatWest T20 Blast.If he is picked for the Pakistan limited-overs side, however, Akmal will have to proceed to Sri Lanka on national duty for the five ODIs and two T20Is, with the first ODI on July 11 and the second T20 on August 1. The CPL runs from June 20 to July 26.It will be Akmal’s second appearance in the CPL after he played for Barbados Tridents in 2013. He had a disappointing return of 49 runs from six games before he suffered a seizure on a flight to Jamaica and was called back to Pakistan by the PCB for medical examination.Akmal has been in good form recently. He debuted for Leicestershire three days ago with an unbeaten 76 off 49 against Nottinghamshire. He was also the second-highest run-getter in the Super8 T20 Cup in Pakistan last month with 216 runs from four games at a strike-rate of 151.

IPL franchises are likely to have two options to keep the core of their teams intact ahead of the 2014 season: the usual practice of player retention, and a new system of ‘right to match’ cards that can be used during the auction

Nagraj Gollapudi02-Dec-2013Salient points from the Singapore meeting

IPL teams could be allowed to retain five players, and they could be given ‘right to match’ cards in order to buy back more players at the auction

The auction is likely to be held on February 12 and 13

The salary cap for the 2014 auction is likely to be Rs 600 million (approximately $10 million) and could increase by 10% each year. For the first time, the purse is in Indian Rupees and not dollars

If a franchise chooses to retain five players, it will likely lose Rs 390 million from its auction purse

The contracts for players retained or signed at the auction will likely be valid for three seasons, with the franchise holding the right to renewal at the start of each of season

The number of players in a squad is also likely to be reduced from 33 to 27, and the number of foreign players cut from 11 to nine per team

IPL franchises are likely to have two options available to keep the core of their teams intact ahead of the 2014 season: the usual practice of player retention, and a new system of ‘right to match’ cards that can be used during the auction. A team is expected to be able to retain up to five players and the IPL has recommended three ‘right to match’ cards per franchise, which means up to eight players could be retained, salary cap permitting. The auction is likely to be held on February 12 and 13 at a yet-to-be-decided venue.The franchises were also informed that the 2014 general elections in India will have an impact on the venue for the tournament. Once the Indian government announced the election dates, the IPL will work out a feasible venue for next year’s edition, the franchises were told.The idea of the ‘right to match’ card was discussed during a two-day IPL workshop in Singapore on November 28 and 29 that was organised by the BCCI. A card would allow a franchise to buy back a player during the auction by simply matching the highest bid. For example, if two or more franchises were bidding for a player who had represented a different team in the 2013 season, then that team’s owners could buy back the player if they wanted to by matching the highest bid for him.During the discussions in Singapore, one suggestion was to bring all the players back into the auction but the IPL was not interested in abandoning the retention policy. Although officials did not specify the reasons, the feeling was that a retention policy allowed certain powerful franchises to hold on to the players that formed the core of their side over the previous seasons.It is understood that the idea of a ‘right to match’ card was floated to offset the retention rule, which some franchises felt was detrimental to their chances. Before the 2011 auction, franchises were allowed to retain up to four players from their old squads, but for every player retained, the franchise would lose a certain amount from the salary cap of $9 million available for spending at the auction. For the first player retained, $1.8 million was deducted from the salary cap, for the second player it was $1.3 million, the third $900,000 and the fourth $500,000. However, these were not necessarily the amounts paid by the franchise to the retained players. So a team that kept four players went into the auction with only $4.5 million to spend.”There were some franchises that did not retain any players, but still ended up paying more money [for four players in the auction] than a franchise that retained four players and paid just half the salary cap,” a franchise official said. “In fact these teams [which retained players] obviously paid more money although that was never made public. So that was a perfect way for teams to go to an auction with half the purse and also circumvent the salary cap.”Not all franchises were in agreement about the ‘right to match’ card, though. “It works for teams where players are asking for a big price [to be retained],” an official who did not agree with the concept said. He felt it was unfair that a franchise, which had not participated in the bidding for a player, could walk away with that player only because of a ‘right to match’ card, when there were other teams actively involved in the bidding. “If two franchises are locked in a bid to buy a player and then suddenly a third franchise comes and says he has the right to buy the player, you might end up paying more [in order to discourage teams from using the card].”The salary cap for the 2014 auction is likely to be Rs 600 million (approximately $10 million) and is likely to increase by 10% each year. For the first time, the purse in is Indian Rupees and not dollars. If a franchise chooses to retain five players, it is likely to lose Rs 125 million from the purse for the first player, Rs 95 million for the second, Rs 75 million for the third, Rs 55* million for the fourth and Rs 40 million for the fifth – a total of Rs 390 million, leaving them with Rs 210 million for bidding during the auction.It is not clear at the moment whether there is a restriction on the number of Indian or foreign players that can be retained. “There is nothing definitive,” a BCCI official said. “All five can be Indians or all five can be overseas. Or there could be a mix of both.”According to the official, a higher purse was unhelpful for the smaller teams, as they had lesser money to spend compared to sides like Mumbai Indians or Chennai Super Kings. With the 2014 purse likely to be capped at Rs 600 million, the playing field will be more level because that was the average expenditure of the smaller teams in terms of player payments and operation costs. The salary cap had been $12.5 million (approximately Rs 750 million at current exchange rates) in 2013.The contracts for players retained or signed at the 2014 auction are likely to be valid for three seasons, with the franchise holding the right to renewal at the start of each of season. The number of players in a squad is also likely to be reduced from 33 to 27, and the number of foreign players cut from 11 to nine per team. Another important change is that all Indian domestic players, who have either played first-class or List A cricket, will be eligible for sale at the auction. Previously only players who had played for India or played a certain number of games for their IPL teams could be auctioned.All these suggestions and recommendations will now be discussed by the IPL governing council, which has to ratify the changes for them to take effect. The Singapore meeting was the first gathering of IPL officials and franchises since the betting and spot-fixing scandal marred the 2013 season. Ravi Sawani, the head of BCCI’s anti-corruption unit, addressed the franchises and gave a presentation on the various corruption-related events in the past two IPLs. Sawani also spoke of the various measures his team would put in place to protect the integrity of both the players and the tournament.December 3, 2013, 05.50 GMT: This figure was earlier stated as 50 million

Cameron White’s familiar, muscular straight hits finally made a reappearance as he powered Chargers to a competitive 177 for 4

The Report by Siddarth Ravindran26-Apr-2012
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Cameron White made his first significant contribution of the season•AFPYuvraj Singh was on hand to cheer Pune Warriors, but they gave him little to shout about as Deccan Chargers eased to their first win of IPL 2012 in the absence of their most likely match-winner, Dale Steyn. There was no last-over heartbreak that has been such a familiar feeling for Chargers this season, after $1.1m-rated Cameron White made his first significant contribution to power them to 177.Warriors made a reasonable start to their chase, but bungled it in the middle of the innings. Though Jesse Ryder made his fifth single-digit score of the season, first Manish Pandey and Sourav Ganguly, and then Ganguly and Robin Uthappa found the boundary frequently to keep pace with the asking rate.In the 10th over, Ganguly was even put down by Chargers’ best fielder, JP Duminy, who managed to spill a straightforward chance at backward point. It didn’t prove too costly, though, as four deliveries later, Ganguly slapped a short ball to cover where substitute Daniel Harris held on to a sharp chance.That brought together Uthappa and Marlon Samuels, neither of whom were able to play the big hits. They seemed more intent on finding the cheeky single, than the boundary the situation demanded. The bowling wasn’t unhittable, but the pair could score only 15 off the next three overs, and in little more than ten minutes the required-rate ratcheted from 10.50 to nearly 13.Then debutant Ashish Reddy bowled the over that more or less killed the game. Uthappa realised the need to get a move on, and decided to target Reddy. He went for an over-ambitious shot – looking to paddle a delivery from several feet outside off. He connected with the ball, but only well enough to deflect it on to leg stump. Five deliveries later, Samuels swung a catch to Sangakkara at cover. The fist-pumping celebration from Sangakkara indicated how close Chargers felt they were to victory. Steven Smith, Warriors’ designated finisher, walked in with his team needing 86 off the last six overs, a task which proved beyond him.While Smith has been doing all he can at the IPL to revive his career, White hasn’t had much of an opportunity so far. He got his chance to bat early today as the openers, Shikhar Dhawan and Parthiv Patel, fell within the Powerplay after providing a cracking start. Those wickets stalled Chargers as White and Kumar Sangakkara, who demoted himself to No. 3, mostly picked up singles for the next few overs. Chargers seemed to find themselves in a familiar muddle at 83 for 3 in the 12th over when legspinner Rahul Sharma knocked over Sangakkara’s middle stump, sending off the batsman with a flying kiss.White had been pottering along at a run-a-ball till then, but then switched to boundary-hitting mode. Rahul Sharma was clobbered for a couple of fours, and when a near yorker from Alfonso Thomas was powered to the straight boundary, his first fifty came up. Rahul Sharma was taken apart in another over of ferocious straight hitting that yielded 19.Thoughts of a hundred would have crossed White’s mind but he holed out in the 18th over to deep cover. That sucked the momentum out of the innings – there were no more boundaries – and Chargers ended at least 10 shorter than they would have expected when White was in top gear. That wasn’t enough to prevent their first win, though, and Pune slumped to their fourth loss in five matches.

The Brazilian might just be the best player in the Saudi Pro League right now, but his career could have turned out far differently

Very few casual football fans would have been aware of Anderson Talisca's existence before Cristiano Ronaldo's shock transfer to Al-Nassr in January. Indeed, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's arrival in Saudi Arabia soon sparked an unprecedented European exodus, with other household names such as Karim Benzema, N'Golo Kante and Jordan Henderson also accepting mega-money contracts in the Middle East.

The Pro League hasn't just attracted players who are into the final stretches of their careers, either. Neymar, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Riyad Mahrez and even 21-year-old Spain playmaker Gabri Veiga have also been persuaded to turn their backs on Europe.

The world is now watching as the Saudi game grows at an exponential rate – which has presented Talisca with a unique opportunity. The Brazilian could easily have shrunk into anonymity at Al-Nassr as merely a supporting cast member, existing only to help keep the spotlight on Ronaldo, but has instead made it his mission to show people that he is also a superstar.

The question is, how did a player with Talisca's immense talent go under the radar for so long?

GettyWhere it all began

Talisca was born in the city of Feira de Santana in Bahia – the fourth-largest state in Brazil. Like most children in the country, he was raised in poverty, and quickly realised that football could be a path to a better life.

After honing his skills on the street, Talisca stepped into Vasco da Gama's youth ranks as a 13-year-old and spent two years with the club, before joining then-Brasileiro Serie B outfit EC Bahia in 2009.

He graduated from Bahia's academy four years later, at which point they had been promoted to the top-flight, and made his professional bow in a clash with Corinthians. Talisca opened his scoring account for the club in his second appearance against Sao Paulo, and soon became a regular in Cristovao Borges' team.

The raw edges in Talisca's game were clear, but so was his limitless potential. "We have to understand that at this age this inconsistency of performance is natural," Borges told reporters when quizzed on the forward's development. "He is a national-team player. Just be patient."

Talisca went on to net a crucial last-minute goal at Cruzeiro that ensured another season in Serie A for Bahia, who parted ways with Borges in December 2013 before appointing another Brazilian coach in the form of Marquinhos Santos. The manager was impressed with Talisca's dedication right from the off, and his ability from a dead-ball.

"Talisca has been reaping the rewards of his training," said Santos. "He is a player who dedicates himself. He is always one of the last to leave the field. After training, he is insistently training free-kicks. It's still early days, he's a young man who has potential and my biggest concern is with his head. Let him continue to evolve and become a great player."

AdvertisementGettyThe big break

Talisca found the net nine times in the first half of Bahia's 2014 season, and his impressive performances eventually attracted the attention of Portuguese giants Benfica, who forked out €5million for the Brazilian starlet that July. Jorge Jesus gave his newest signing big billing, telling the media at his unveiling: "He’s another one who is going to make millions for Benfica."

The manager's words had the desired impact as Talisca scored eight league goals in his first three months at Benfica, including a stunning hat-trick in a 5-0 victory over Vitoria Setubal. Jesus received widespread praise for unearthing a new gem, which prompted a surprise outburst from Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho.

"I think Benfica hired well," Mourinho said to Portuguese broadcaster . "They say Talisca is unknown, but he is only so unknown because he's only not playing in England because he doesn't have a work permit. If he had one, he would be here!"

Jesus then fired back in hilarious fashion: "They knew as much about him as I know about D’Artagnan and the Three Musketeers!"

Former Bahia coordinator Newton Mota was the man who really deserved all the credit for discovering Talisca, and he wasn't at all surprised by his fast start to life at Estadio Da Luz. "People call him Yaya Talisca [after Yaya Toure], but I think he is closer to Rivaldo, who was left-footed, with long strides and good shot from distance," Mota told.

Benfica were flying in the Primeira Liga, but had only picked up one point from their opening three Champions League games. They were eight minutes away from being held to a disappointing 0-0 draw at home to Monaco on matchday four, too, only for Talisca to score a last-gasp winner after ghosting in at the back post to meet a corner on the half-volley.

That was the moment he truly announced himself to European audiences and lived up to his tag as the 'new Rivaldo'. Although Benfica still ended up exiting the competition at the group stage, his status as one of the continent's most exciting young players had been secured, and links to Chelsea began to intensify.

Jesus' side finished the 2014-15 season as Portuguese champions and also lifted the Taca da Liga trophy, with Talisca managing 14 goal contributions across all competitions. He also received his first call-up for Brazil, but everything changed when Jesus cut ties with Benfica to join their arch rivals Sporting CP.

GettyThe turning point

Rui Vitoria was the man selected to replace Jesus after an impressive four-year spell in charge at Vitoria Guimaraes, and he instantly set about stamping his authority on the squad, insisting on a 4-4-2 formation with two combative central midfielders, which essentially eliminated the need for the playmaker role Talisca had made his own under Jesus.

The Brazil Under-23 international only started three league games in the first half of the 2015-16 campaign, and he was forced to come out and address reports of tension with the new manager. "Every player has to go through such moments" Talisca said in December of that season. "There is insecurity and lack of confidence, but I am working hard. I played more under Jesus, but there is no personal feud with Rui Vitoria."

Talisca scored nine goals in all competitions despite his limited playing time, including a brilliant free-kick against Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-finals. Benfica ended up losing that tie 3-2 on aggregate, but earned plenty of plaudits for their surprise run in Europe, and bounced back to clinch their third successive league title.

Vitoria had undoubtedly taken Benfica to another level, and decided that Talisca's services were no longer required ahead of his second season in the dugout. Liverpool and Wolves emerged as suitors for the former Bahia wonderkid, but Besiktas won the race for his signature – agreeing a two-year loan deal with Benfica.

Less than a month later, Talisca came up against his parent club in the Champions League. Benfica were 1-0 up when the Brazilian was introduced to the action as a second-half substitute, and they managed to hold their lead under deep into stoppage-time. However, with seconds remaining, a needless foul gifted Besiktas a 25-yard free-kick, and Talisca stepped up. Inevitably, he was able to whip the ball into the far corner using his instep, and didn't hold back with his celebration before being mobbed by his team-mates.

In his post-match interview with , Talisca accused Benfica of not paying him his final salary after the birth of his daughter, before emphatically denying that his exit from the club was financially motivated: "I want to send a message to Benfica management, because they didn't respect me. There were people who criticised me and said that I left Benfica because of money, but that is a lie."

Talisca ended his maiden season at Besiktas with 17 goals and another league title, earning the nickname 'Kiralik Katil' from supporters, which translates to 'Hired Assasin'. He was the top scorer for the club in all competitions in 2017-18, too, but Besiktas dropped a level as a team and they were not able to make his transfer permanent.

Benfica were still determined to offload Talisca, who had burned all of his bridges at Estadio Da Luz, and it was reported that Mourinho reignited his interest in the attacking midfielder, this time as Manchester United boss.

Guangzhou Evergrande beat United to the punch, though, snapping Talisca up on an initial loan deal in June 2018. Four months later he joined them outright for €19m (£17m/$21m), bringing his time in European football to a premature end.

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GettyHow's it going?

Talisca spent three years at Guangzhou, scoring 39 goals and setting up another 13 in 65 appearances. He added one Chinese Super League title to his crown during that period, and was identified as a top target by Saudi giants Al-Hilal in the early months of 2021.

The allure of even greater riches in the Middle East did indeed prove too much for Talisca to ignore, but it was Al-Nassr who won the race for his signature as they struck a bargain $9m deal with Guangzhou in May that year. Talisca was an instant hero in the eyes of Al-Nassr fans for turning down their main rivals, and their bond grew as he quickly established himself as the most important member of the squad. A prolific haul of 31 goals from his first 37 games saw Talisca singled out as the new Pro League poster boy – but Ronaldo took that title from him at the start of the year.

They quickly forged a strong partnership, though, not least because of their Portuguese language connection, and combined for a number of crucial goals in the second half of Al-Nassr's 2022-23 campaign. However, the league title did not come back to Mrsool Park, which ensured another busy transfer window in the summer.

Al-Nassr bolstered their squad by bringing in the likes of Sadio Mane, Marcelo Brozovic, Aymeric Laporte and Seko Fofana, along with Ronaldo's Portugal colleagues Otavio and Alex Telles. Talisca's position at the club was called into question after Mane's arrival, with it suggested that head coach Luis Castro would be unable to fit the Brazilian into his line-up next to the ex-Bayern Munich star and Ronaldo.

A potential return to Besiktas was mooted for Talisca, but he committed to staying put – only to suffer an injury that saw him miss the first few weeks of the new season. Fears over Al-Nassr's tactical set-up were raised again upon his return to full fitness, despite the club's poor start in the Pro League.

As it turns out, Talisca was actually the missing piece in the puzzle. Al-Nassr have been flying since welcoming the former Benfica man back into the fold, winning 17 of their last 18 games in all competitions.

That has included picking up maximum points in the AFC Champions League group stages, with Talisca scoring all three goals in their latest victory over Al-Duhail. He's already up to 17 goals for the season in total, just four fewer than Ronaldo.

Two days into back-to-back series and the cricket has already been more interesting and entertaining than anything David Warner does after midnight

Daniel Brettig at Trent Bridge11-Jul-2013As a boy, Ashton Agar was inspired by Steve Waugh’s legendary SCG century, achieved with a box office boundary from the final ball of the day. As a teenager, Agar found himself joining Waugh in the pantheon of Ashes history, after conjuring 98 of the most staggeringly nonchalant runs ever made by a Test debutant, let alone a No. 11.If there was any momentary grief in Agar at managing to pick out Graeme Swann on the midwicket boundary with a pull shot, it did not last long. As he turned on his heels in the direction of the dressing room, the applause swelled and so did Agar’s pride. Partnered by Phillip Hughes, he had made history of the rarest kind in an Ashes Test, and in doing so revived Australia’s hopes of forcing a series lead.”It was a bit out of the ordinary,” Agar said. “One of my favourite Ashes moments was Steve Waugh hitting four runs off the last ball of the day to make his hundred, and to make a hundred in an Ashes test would have been awesome. But I’m very happy.”Obviously it’s a dream to make a Test match hundred but I didn’t really dream I was going to make 98 on debut. I’m super happy, and I’m happy me and Hughesy could get the team in some kind of winning position.”I probably hit it a bit too well. All the other ones I’d been hitting up and over the top and I tried to come down a little bit on that one and picked him out perfectly. I could have made a better decision there but, oh well.”Though lacking any Test match experience, Agar had demonstrated his batting ability numerous times at club and first-class levels. Last summer in Perth he rattled off 108 for the University of Western Australia after arriving at the fall of the fifth wicket for 58 and also facing a large first-innings deficit. For the Warriors he had also been instrumental in Sheffield Shield wins over Queensland and South Australia.What they said about Agar’s 98

“I thought I was presenting a first cap to a bowler, not a batting all-rounder” – Glenn McGrath
“Never ever thought I would say I am disappointed a Aussie got out but I really wanted Ashton Agar to get a 100…” – Michael Vaughan
“Whether he got 100 or not, it doesn’t matter. I’m most proud he got out playing his shots. He didn’t hold back. That’s great.” – John Agar, Ashton’s father
“What a stunning, gutsy, agonising 98 from Ashton Agar in the Ashes Test” – prime minister Kevin Rudd

“I like to keep myself fairly relaxed,” he said. “I don’t get too nervous when I bat. I just try to play freely and when I’m hitting the ball well I try and keep doing that throughout my innings and not change too much. Darren Lehmann told me to bat the way I know how to bat and he has told the whole team to bat in their own natural styles. That is what I tried to do.”I’ve done it before. In Queensland I had to bat at No. 10 and was fortunate enough to get 50. I was lucky to have a really good partner at the other end in Phil Hughes, he is a seriously, seriously good player and he helped me through it.”The stand with Hughes pulled Australia back into a game that had been well in England’s keeping at the fall of the ninth wicket. “It could have been a lot worse, so to do that with Hughesy has helped me a lot in terms of mentally getting around batting in a Test match and hopefully help put the team in a winning position,” Agar said. “He just said keep watching the ball hard and keep playing it ball by ball. That’s all we were really thinking of, just keeping it really simple.”England’s frustration at being held up by a world-record tenth-wicket union was evident in the field but afterwards the fast bowler James Anderson was generous in his praise. Anderson admitted to little knowledge about Agar before the innings, but was now well aware of his capabilities. “I didn’t know a great deal about him but he played really well and put us under pressure,” Anderson said. “I’m sure it will be looked back on as one [special Ashes moment], on debut he played brilliantly in a pressure situation and coped well.”In an innings speckled with handsome strokes, Agar picked out his drive of Swann over long-on for six as his personal favourite. Swann pumped his fists after claiming the catch that did for Agar, but was quick to catch up to the younger man as they made their way off. Swann offered the words “well done young fella”. Millions around the world shared exactly that sentiment, no doubt including Steve Waugh himself.

South Africa won the first trophy available to them in their home summer with victory in the three-match Twenty20 series

The Report by Firdose Moonda26-Dec-2012 Scorecard and ball-by-ball details Aaron Phangiso picked up the big wickets of Martin Guptill and Brendon McCullum•AFPSouth Africa won the first trophy available to them in their home summer with victory in the three-match Twenty20 series. After piling on the fifth highest score posted in the shortest format (at both international and domestic level) at St George’s Park, thanks largely to an 89-run third wicket stand between Henry Davids and Justin Ontong, Aaron Phangiso and Ryan McLaren ensured South Africa defended it comfortably.All of New Zealand’s bowlers save for Mitchell McClenaghan and Ronnie Hira failed to read the pace of the Port Elizabeth pitch. Against the aggression of Davids and Ontong they gave away too many runs which allowed the pair to lay the launch-pad for take-off.New Zealand did not have the batsmen to do the same. With Martin Guptill and Brendon McCullum at the crease, there was some hope. Once the dominoes began to fall, there was no stopping the slide. Still, New Zealand competed with the hosts with more heart than was expected of them to set the tone ahead for the Test matches.As an example of their ability to ruffle feathers, New Zealand had the hosts in early trouble, even in the absence of Richard Levi. South Africa’s opening partnership stuttered again when Faf du Plessis, who was promoted to bat in his preferred top-two spot, was bowled by Ronnie Hira as he attempted to hit through mid-wicket.Levi’s omission also meant Quinton de Kock was given more responsibility at No. 3 but his inexperience showed. Instead of rotating strike while Davids kept going, de Kock tried to loft McClenaghan over long-on and got a leading edge. Corey Anderson ran from mid-off to take the catch at mid-on and de Kock’s series with the bat ended without him living up to the hype.Davids had none of the same expectation but exceeded all hopes. He displayed a range of classical shots, tinged only with some extra intent. The drive off the back foot and the pull shot were his hallmarks but more notable than that was that he scored off almost every ball he faced. Both he and Ontong pushed each other between the wickets and put pressure on the New Zealand fielders.The only chance they offered was when Davids went aerial against Doug Bracewell and lobbed the ball to Martin Guptill at short extra cover. Guptill seemed to lose the ball in the background and although he got fingers to it, spilt the chance. Davids was on 32 and went on to more than double his score.As Davids grew in confidence, so did Ontong, whose assurance swelled against James Franklin. Ontong hit him for back to back sixes: down the ground and then to deep mid-wicket but Franklin won the mini-battle when Ontong was caught trying to send another slower ball over the leg-side boundary. Still, he had taken 16 runs off the five balls he faced in that over and South Africa had 116 runs and seven wickets in hand as they approached the last five overs.Those turned out to the most profitable, even though Davids departed mid-way through. South Africa added 63 runs in the final quarter of their innings, thanks to their big-hitters. Farhaan Behardien and David Miller both struck the ball cleanly against New Zealand’s clueless death bowlers.Contrastingly, South Africa’s attack had a firm grip on what was required. Ryan McClaren had Rob Nicol lbw in the first over when he was struck in line of middle and offstump. Guptill showed glimpses of the form he displayed three days ago when his 101 took New Zealand to victory. He drove with power and was assisted by McCullum, who seemed to finally find his placement.Just as the two settled, Guptill tried to paddle Phangiso over short fine-leg but was caught by Robin Peterson. Phangiso claimed another big scalp in his next over when McCullum thought he had got him over long-off but was caught on the boundary.New Zealand remained in the hunt and after 11 overs had the same score South Africa had posted – 71 – but had lost two more wickets. Colin Munro edged a McLaren short ball and James Franklin swung to long-on to give Phangiso his third. The point of no return was reached when Morne Morkel leapt to his left at short third man to send Jimmy Neesham on his way.The required run rate climbed to over 14 to an over with six to go and only last rites were left to be performed. Rory Kleinveldt took the ninth wicket but Morne Morkel finished without reward as a new South African era made itself known. For New Zealand, there remains much to work on. They were suspected to have bled 20 runs too many but in the end, were almost double that short.

ESPNcricinfo previews the fifth Investec Ashes Test at The Oval

The Preview by Alan Gardner20-Aug-2013Match factsAugust 21-25, The Oval
Start time 1100 (1000 GMT)Chris Tremlett has a “good chance” of coming back into the side for a first Test appearance since January 2012•Getty ImagesBig Picture Not since 1981 have England arrived at The Oval for the last Test of an Ashes summer with the series already won. The possibility that lies tantalisingly before them is even rarer. Never before have Australia been beaten 4-0 by England and only once have they lost by such a wide margin (the 5-1 home defeat in 1978-79, when Packer was a dirty word). After a demoralising six weeks, when Australia have regularly misplaced their key moments, they will have to find extra reserves if they not to be swept away by an English tide.Metaphor aside, Australia have again delved into their squad to supplement an ever-changing cast, with James Faulkner called on to make his Test debut. Only Mathew Wade of the original 16-man party has not been utilised and, with the additions of Ashton Agar and Steven Smith, Australia will have used 17 different players over the course of the series – not to mention a batting order that has changed with every Test. England, by contrast, have been their usual, methodical selves and only an injury to Tim Bresnan will force them to alter the team for the first time since Steven Finn was dropped for the second Test at Lord’s. It is not only the scorelines that have changed in Ashes cricket.It may not be the cauldron of expectation experienced in 2005 and 2009, then, but The Oval has a recent record of producing memorable finales. Despite England’s supremacy, this series has at times brought to mind the joke from about a conversation between two elderly women at a resort in the Catskill mountains: “One of them says, ‘Boy, the food in this place is terrible.’ The other one says, ‘Yeah, I know, and such small portions.'” There has been a shortfall in quality on both sides – only Ian Bell, Graeme Swann and Ryan Harris can claim to have had outstanding series – but the Investec Ashes continues to serve up irresistible moments.Form guideEngland: WDWWW
Australia: LDLLL
Players to watchJonny Bairstow has been attempting to nail down a spot in England’s Test side for over a year now but, despite frequent encouraging episodes, the hammer keeps descending at a crooked angle. His 67 at Lord’s was crucial in helping to right England’s first innings and 203 runs at 29.00 in the series puts him above both Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott but doubts about his technique and temperament persist. England have not had a century from their No. 6 batsman since Eoin Morgan in 2010 but it feels like Bairstow needs a three-figure score to be sure of his place this winter.When you have backers like Shane Warne in your corner, big things are expected and James Faulkner has provided plenty of evidence of his talent since his debut for Tasmania as an 18-year-old. Now 23, Faulkner averages 30.31 with the bat and 22.87 with the ball in first-class cricket and his feisty, competitive spirit has been to the fore in a handful of limited-overs appearances for his country. That aside, Australia may hope the fact Faulkner hails from Launceston, hometown of Ricky Ponting, is enough to make England edgy.Team newsAlastair Cook said that Chris Tremlett has a “good chance” of coming back into the side for a first Test appearance since January 2012. Bresnan’s back injury means a space has opened up in the attack and Tremlett will be up against Chris Woakes – more of a like-for-like replacement for the all-round talents of Bresnan – and Finn. Giving Simon Kerrigan a debut alongside Graeme Swann remains an outside possibility, though England have not played two spinners at home since Cardiff 2009.England (probable) 1 Alastair Cook (capt), 2 Joe Root, 3 Jonathan Trott, 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Ian Bell, 6 Jonny Bairstow, 7 Matt Prior (wk), 8 Stuart Broad, 9 Graeme Swann, 10 Chris Tremlett 11 James AndersonAustralia have announced their XI in advance, with Faulkner set to make his debut and Mitchell Starc returning. Usman Khawaja and Jackson Bird drop out and, with allrounder Faulkner coming in at No. 7, Australia will rejig their batting order again. After two innings at No. 6 (and one at No. 4), Shane Watson moves back up the order to first drop, a position that has caused Australia a deal of grief in recent times, while Brad Haddin is now in the top six, above a lengthy, if doughty, tail.Australia 1 Chris Rogers, 2 David Warner, 3 Shane Watson, 4 Michael Clarke (capt), 5 Steven Smith, 6 Brad Haddin (wk), 7 James Faulkner, 8 Peter Siddle, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Ryan Harris, 11 Nathan LyonPitch and conditionsThe Oval has been on the slow side and more liable to turn in recent years but, although the pitch for the fifth Test is dry, there is an expectation that it will be quicker and bouncier than usual. The weather is forecast to be warm, although there is the possibility of showers interrupting a couple of day’s play.Stats and triviaEngland have only lost six times to Australia at The Oval, against 16 wins, making it their most successful home ground.The last time Australia went two consecutive series without winning a Test was in 1986.After 98 and 96 Test matches respectively, the batting records of Kevin Pietersen and Alastair Cook are separated by 33 runs and 0.21 in average. Pietersen is marginally ahead of his captain but Cook has two more centuries (25 to 23).James Faulkner will become the 435th player to represent Australia in Tests.Quotes”I think it would be very special to win the Ashes 4-0. That is what our motivation is as a side and we are hopefully going to pick the right side – the side that we think can win this Test match.”
“He is an extra option to help us take 20 wickets but it is the overall package that James Faulkner brings. His toughness and performances of late in whatever format and the fact that he is not just a bowler. He can make some very handy runs for us.”

South Africa Women took an unassailable 2-0 lead courtesy of three top-order half-centuries, as they beat Sri Lanka Women by 67 runs in the second ODI in Potchefstroom

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Oct-2013
ScorecardFile photo: Marizanne Kapp made a half-century and picked up a wicket•ICC/Solaris ImagesSouth Africa Women took an unassailable 2-0 lead courtesy of three top-order half-centuries, as they beat Sri Lanka Women by 67 runs in the second ODI in Potchefstroom.Sri Lanka elected to field, but early breakthroughs were a difficult commodity as 21-year old Lizelle Lee and Trisha Chetty strung together an opening partnership of 72 runs. Chetty was the more dominant partner and departed first, caught in front by Shashikala Siriwardene. Lee held firm, reaching her third ODI half-century and when she fell in the 29th over, South Africa had already built a strong foundation at 141 for 2. Captain Mignon du Preez, with an unbeaten 79 and allrounder Marizanne Kapp, with 72, constructed an excellent charge, with the final 10 overs yielding 82 runs.Sri Lanka’s chase was hampered early when seamer Shabnim Ismail had the openers bowled inside the first five overs. Siriwardene offered resistance, with good support from No. 6 Chamani Seneviratna. Their 95-run partnership ensured Sri Lanka remained in the hunt, but when Ismail returned and had Siriwardene out for 68 in the 37th over, the chase began to slip away. An equation that read 120 runs off 78, proved enough cushion for offspinner Sunette Loubser to run through the lower order and limit the visitors well below their target.”The top order did really well to get us to a good position so I’m happy with the first innings,” said du Preez. “There were a few extra runs that we didn’t need to give away but I’m happy with the way the bowlers recovered. It was definitely a team effort today.”Du Preez wanted to take the momentum from this win into the third and final ODI on Monday and whitewash Sri Lanka. “It would be really good to finish with a three-nil series victory, we look forward to going out there and giving it our all.”

Wicketkeeper-batsman Anamul Haque will lead a 15-member Bangladesh squad in the Under-19 World Cup in Australia

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Jul-2012Anamul Haque, the wicketkeeper-batsman, will lead a 15-member Bangladesh squad in the Under-19 World Cup in Australia. Nurul Hasan will be Anamul’s deputy. Anamul toured Zimbabwe recently for the Twenty20 tri-series with the senior side and was not part of the junior team which was knocked out by Afghanistan in the Under-19 Asia Cup.Bangladesh Under-19 squad for the World Cup

Anamul Haque (capt), Nurul Hasan (vice-capt), Asif Ahmed, Soumya Sarkar, Salman Hossain, Noor Hossain, Mosaddek Hossain, Naeem Islam jnr, Nasum Ahmed, Dewan Sabbir, Abu Haider, Al-Amin, Taskin Ahmed, Liton Das, Abu Jayed

There are four changes from the Asia Cup squad whose failure prompted the BCB to ask the captain, coach, manager and selectors for an explanation. Bangladesh finished third in Group B, behind Afghanistan, and lost out on a semi-final berth.Bangladesh have been grouped with South Africa, Sri Lanka and Namibia in Group D. They will face Sri Lanka in their opening match on August 11.