NFL superstar Patrick Mahomes, along with his wife Brittany, is hoping to tempt Taylor Swift into watching a NWSL fixture involving the KC Current.
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It might not have had much of a bearing on the result of the match, but the third umpire might have looked at the wrong replay when the on-field officials turned to him to check on a no-ball during the match between Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore.Jasprit Bumrah is no stranger to bowling no-balls – his costliest one coming in last year’s Champions Trophy final – but he got away without scrutiny when he dismissed Umesh Yadav, the eighth Royal Challengers batsman to fall, on Tuesday. The on-field umpire immediately asked to see if he had overstepped. The replay shown, though, has Umesh at the non-striker’s end, and the heel of Bumrah’s front foot lands well inside the crease. The commentators were surprised that it was even checked. “No need to go [to the third umpire] for that,” commentator Sunil Gavaskar said on air.It went unnoticed that Umesh was in the picture at the non-striker’s end until Twitter user @ronak_169 brought it to ESPNcricinfo’s notice. While this was not significant to the result – Royal Challengers were 137 for 7, chasing 214, with only 13 balls left – it once again raises the possibility of this human error in more critical stages of the match. Nor is this the first time that the third umpire has ruled on a no-ball when watching the wrong replay.In the 2011 IPL, Sachin Tendulkar was ruled out similarly. The first two replays showed that the bowler Amit Mishra was close to overstepping, but a third angle, from cover, had him just okay. It was later noticed that in the third replay, Tendulkar was at the non-striker’s end. Later that year, in a Test match in Barbados, MS Dhoni was ruled out off a no-ball even though on-field umpire Ian Gould suspected Fidel Edwards had overstepped and went upstairs to check. The wrong replay was shown to the third umpire on that occasion, which the broadcasters, , then admitted as “a human error, compounded by a senior replay operative having to return home at a very short notice”. There must be others that go unnoticed.This kind of error often occurs when the replay operator clicks twice, thus going to the previous ball and missing the ball in question. In this case, Umesh was indeed at the non-striker’s end one ball before he got out. There is no plausible reason for this to be anything other than an innocent human mistake, but such an error has the potential to attain major significance in a tight situation.In this particular instance, perhaps the third umpire could have been more vigilant. Perhaps checking who is at the non-striker’s end when checking for no-balls can be added to the third umpire’s protocols, but by no means is it an exhaustive check: in this case, for example, if the previous ball had been a dot played out by Umesh, a wrong replay would have shown Virat Kohli at the non-striker’s end.The trickiest part of the situation is the delegation of the decision-making arm to the broadcaster, which is not neutral in international cricket. The ICC doesn’t pay for the technology used for decision making, which means it cannot hold the broadcasters accountable for any errors. If ICC does assume control of the decision making, the money will have to ultimately come from the member boards’ share of profits, which reduces the likelihood of this happening in the near future.
Victoria vaulted back into contention for the Sheffield Shield final after bowling out Western Australia for 213 on day four
ESPNcricinfo staff27-Feb-2018
ScorecardVictoria has vaulted back into contention for the Sheffield Shield final after a crushing 255-run win over Western Australia at the WACA.The Bushrangers needed just two wickets on the final morning to complete the rout but they were frustrated by Josh Inglis and Matt Kelly, who put together a 109-run partnership for the ninth wicket.Victoria opted not to bowl any of their frontline quicks on the final day leaving Daniel Christian, Cameron White and Glenn Maxwell to try and finish the job. Inglis moved within sight of his first Sheffield Shield century before he was trapped in front by Christian on 87.Kelly also fell to Christian nine balls later for his highest first-class score. Christian finished with 2 for 27. Chris Tremain was named Man of the Match for his first career 10-wicket haul.
Nottinghamshire’s T20 batting line-up will look different this year but the overseas pairing of Dan Christian and Ish Sodhi offers stability
ESPNcricinfo staff25-Jan-2018Birmingham Bears have announced the return of explosive New Zealand all-rounder Colin de Grandhomme as the dedicated T20 overseas player for 2018.De Grandhomme, who scored the second fastest Test century by a New Zealander in December off just 71 balls, will be available for all games in next year’s T20 Blast campaign after helping the Bears to the final at Edgbaston in 2017.Ashley Giles, Warwickshire’s sport director, said: “I spoke about Colin being a moneyball player when we announced his signing last year. He was still establishing himself in the international game, but had made plenty of game-changing performances for Auckland. We also recognised that he is an outstanding character who would be a good addition to the dressing room.”He went on to play a huge role on our path to the final last year and we saw him change the outlook of several games very quickly, particularly his innings against Derbyshire Falcons at home, and Northants Steelbacks and Surrey away.”He’s incredibly popular with everyone at Edgbaston and we’re looking forward to welcoming him back to the club in July ahead of our first game away to Notts Outlaws.”De Grandhomme played in Birmingham Bears’ 16 NatWest T20 Blast games in 2017, scoring 322 runs at a prodigious strike rate of 170.32 and taking five wickets.”We came very close to winning the T20 Blast on Finals Day,” Grandhomme said. “We’ve got a young squad with plenty of firepower, and I believe that we have every chance of going one step further in 2018.”
Leeds United are reportedly interested in completing the signing of Venezia attacker Joel Pohjanpalo in the summer transfer window.
How old is Joel Pohjanpalo?
The Finnish striker is 28 years of age currently and has become a key player for Venezia, having arrived at the Serie B club from Bayer Leverkusen in 2022. Last season, Pohjanpalo scored 19 goals and registered seven assists in 40 appearances for his new team, outlining his relentless end product in the final third.
Pohjanpalo's current deal expires in 2025, and while his club will no doubt be desperate to keep hold of him until that point, they may be aware that there will be plenty of interest in him this summer.
Read the latest Leeds transfer news HERE…
Leeds are badly in need of adding firepower to their squad this season, with their Championship season getting off to a disappointing start with a 2-2 draw at home to Cardiff City, and it would be a surprise if they didn't strengthen in that area before the end of the summer transfer window.
Patrick Bamford doesn't look like the force he used to be, with injuries curtailing his progress in recent years, while Rodrigo has sealed a summer move to Saudi Arabia. Now, it looks as though Pohjanpalo is a target for Leeds in the current window, following a new report that has emerged.
Will Leeds sign Joel Pohjanpalo?
According to TuttoMercatoWeb [via Sport Witness], the Finland international is "tempting" clubs both in Italy and abroad, with the Whites one of those in the conversation to sign him. West Ham, Norwich City and Blackburn Rovers are all mentioned as possible suitors, with Genoa attacker Massimo Coda seen as a replacement for him at Venezia, suggesting they are resigned to losing him.
Pohjanpalo could be a fascinating signing by Leeds this summer, solving what has become an issue ahead of what is hopefully a promotion-winning season in the Championship. Wilfried Gnonto was used in the No.9 against Cardiff, but the young Italian is arguably at his best in a wider role.
The Venezia man has scored 100 goals at club level in his career, not to mention netting 14 times in 63 caps for Finland, so he is clearly someone who a lot of experience at the top down the years, suggesting he could come in and spearhead the Whites' promotion push.
The fact that there is some Premier League interest could act as a stumbling block, though, with the idea of playing in England's top flight something that is likely to appeal more, should West Ham retain their interest in him.
Pohjanpalo is also a character, as highlighted by him celebrating last season by drinking a beer straight after being substituted, and that personality could make him an immediate cult hero at Elland Road.
Having a relentless goalscorer in the Championship is vital for any team with aspirations of going up to the Premier League and that is no different with Leeds, who are unlikely to mount a serious challenge if that problem isn't addressed sooner rather than later.
B Indrajith and Washington Sundar led Tamil Nadu’s fightback against Mumbai, while Rajat Patidar and Harpreet Singh Bhatia shored up Madhya Pradesh against Tripura
ESPNcricinfo staff25-Oct-2017Andhra captain Hanuma Vihari (302*) slammed his maiden triple-hundred and propelled his team to 584 for 5, before declaring the innings against Odisha in Vizianagaram. Resuming on 278 for 2, Vihari put on a 208-run stand with Ricky Bhui (100) and deflated Odisha, who had to wait 43.3 overs for their first wicket of the day. During the course of his 456-ball knock, Vihari smashed 29 fours and two sixes and added 159 to his overnight score. This was Vihari’s 13th first-class ton and second consecutive score of 150 or more.Bhui, meanwhile, brought up his fourth first-class hundred before Odisha captain Govinda Poddar trapped him lbw in the 134th over. In the next over, seamer Suryakant Pradhan dismissed D Ravi Teja to pick up his second wicket, but nothing was going to stop Vihari’s march. Odisha suffered an early jolt in their first innings when left-arm spinner Bhargav Bhatt had opener Natraj Behera lbw in the fourth over. Sandeep Pattanaik and Poddar, however, ensured there was no further damage as Odisha went to stumps at 32 for 1.B Indrajith (105*) and Washington Sundar (69) mounted a rescue effort with a fifth-wicket partnership of 157 runs to lift Tamil Nadu from 69 for 4 to 239 for 5 by stumps against Mumbai. Indrajith’s sixth first-class hundred, which included 12 fours, stood out as much for its elegance as its risk-free nature. While he mostly preferred to hit down the ground, he wasn’t averse to playing the horizontal shots on either side. Giving him useful company was Sundar, who drove and cut confidently, and responded swiftly to his partner’s calls for tight singles. Sundar, however, fell with 6.2 overs left in the day, after a half-hearted pull off Dhawal Kulkarni found deep square leg.Mumbai had hit the ground running in the morning with some quick wickets after being bowled out for 374. Seamer Akash Parkar cleaned up captain Abhinav Mukund in the fourth over before M Vijay (11) was caught behind by left-arm spinner Vijay Gohil in the 11th over. Mumbai captain Aditya Tare juggled the ball on a few occasions before snaffling it.After Kaushik Gandhi fell three overs later, Vijay Shankar, who had recovered from an injury scare to pick up his fourth wicket in the morning, looked to have settled down in the company of Indrajith. However, he gave Gohil the charge in the 25th over and was stumped. Indrajith, though, remained steady and took Tamil Nadu to safety in the company of R Ashwin.A 62-run partnership between opener Bishal Ghosh (65) and Gurinder Singh, who smashed a 55-ball 57, helped Tripura finish on 220 against Madhya Pradesh in Agartala after tottering on 88 for 6 at one stage.Tripura’s bowlers then reduced Madhya Pradesh to 200 for 7 to set up an interesting battle for the first-innings lead. Ishwar Pandey and Ankit Sharma finished with three wickets each for Madhya Pradesh. In their reply, Madhya Pradesh got off to a shaky start, as they lost opener Wasim Ahmed and Shubham Sharma inside the first 10 overs. With Naman Ojha (8) and captain Devendra Bundela (3), too, falling cheaply, it was left to opener Rajat Patidar (79) and Harpreet Singh Bhatia (70) to resuscitate the innings with a 104-run alliance for the fifth wicket.However, Gurinder trapped Patidar in front with his left-arm spin in the 52nd over before Ankit Sharma and Bhatia were dismissed in quick succession.
Tottenham Hotspur defender Eric Dier is "desperate to prove himself" to Spurs' new manager Ange Postecoglou but having just a year left on his deal could be a problem, claims journalist Alasdair Gold.
Is Eric Dier leaving Tottenham Hotspur?
The Lilywhites have been doing some good business so far this summer.
Not only have they managed to keep hold of their superstar striker Harry Kane – for now – but they have also added strength and depth to the squad as a whole.
The big-name signing so far has undoubtedly been James Maddison, who joined the north London outfit for a relatively reasonable fee of £40m from relegated Leicester City, but the signings of Manor Solomon and Guglielmo Vicario also represent good business.
The one area the club are yet to improve upon – and one they really need to – is in central defence, where the personnel has remained the same, other than the absence of Clement Lenglet, who has been linked with a return.
According to The Telegraph, one of those defenders – who does not want to leave the club – is former England international Dier.
The 29-year-old is one of the players Daniel Levy would be willing to sell this summer, but despite having just a year remaining on his current deal, he wants to stay and fight for a place under Postecoglou, per Alasdair Gold.
He explained the situation on his YouTube channel, saying:
"It's an interesting situation with Eric Dier, really. He's desperate to prove himself to Postecoglou as a fully fit player and he is excited about playing under Postecoglou. But then, the other side to it, of course, is that he's only got a year left on his contract.
"So it's whether they tie him down to a new contract, which I'm sure would not go down well with some Spurs fans."
Should Tottenham Hotspur sell Eric Dier?
With just a single year left on his deal and his desire to remain in north London, the Lilywhites have a decision to make. Should they stick by the player and see if he earns himself a new deal, or should they do what they can to force him out?
The first thing to say is that last season, as disastrous as the Tottenham team was – especially the backline – he wasn't any worse than his teammates. In fact, he was probably one of the better defenders in the side.
According to WhoScored, he averaged a rating of 6.66 across his 33 Premier League games last season, which on its own is a reasonably decent campaign, while it was the second-highest rating for a central defender in the squad, only behind Christian Romero.
Again, his underlying numbers are nothing spectacular but solid across the board and suggest that he would be a great squad player to keep around.
According to FBref, which compares players across Europe's top five leagues, the Cheltenham-born defender sits in the top 19% for attempted passes, the top 21% for total shots, the top 23% for non-penalty expected goals, the top 24% for aerials duels won, and the top 27% for progressive passes received per 90.
He was also a player that former boss Antonio Conte was a big fan of, with the Italian once saying:
"We are talking about a reliable player, 100 per cent focused in every game. He is not a player who alternates with a big performance then a drop. He is providing great continuity in his role and playing every game.
"I can also tell you he is a really good guy, with great will, desire to work and improve. He knows he has space for improvement and I see every day in his eyes the desire to become stronger, to become a top defender."
Dier probably isn't quite of the level to make it as a starting centre-back for a title-chasing team anymore, but that isn't what Spurs are at the moment, and keeping him around, at least as a squad player, seems like the best option.
Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland has declined to intervene in the pay dispute between the board and the Australian Cricketers’ Association on his return to the head office last week
Daniel Brettig03-Jul-2017Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland has declined to intervene in the pay dispute between the board and the Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) on his return to the head office last week.The players have maintained their calls for Sutherland to negotiate CEO-to-CEO with his opposite number Alistair Nicholson as the best way to resolve a standoff that has left around 230 of the nation’s elite players out of contract and all players refusing to take part in tours until a new MoU is agreed. However, ESPNcricinfo has learned that Sutherland indicated his unwillingness to get involved after returning to Melbourne from a visit to England on ICC duty.FICA reaffirms its support to ACA
The Federation of International Cricketers’ Association was “concerned” that the dispute between Cricket Australia and its players has been dragging on. In a press release on Monday, executive chairman Tony Irish said, “FICA and its member associations stand shoulder to shoulder in support of the ACA and the Australian cricketers in their current dispute with their board. As an important stakeholder in the game, players and their associations deserve to be treated with professionalism and respect. It is in the interests of everyone in the world game that the situation in Australia is resolved quickly and in a manner that is acceptable to the players collectively.”
With the passing of the June 30 deadline for putting a new MoU in place, nearly 230 of Australia’s best players are out of contract. Some of them might now be looking to the many T20 leagues for work, but CA had said that it might deny them the necessary no-objection certificates. This has led FICA to “reiterate its strong opposition to any artificial restrictions that unfairly attempt to prevent players from earning a living and that have not been agreed with players or their representatives. FICA believes that such restrictions would be open to legal challenge in most jurisdictions as a restraint of trade.”
In Sydney on Sunday, the ACA’s executive passed a resolution stating that: “The players affirm their view that third party mediation at CEO level remains the right process to resolve the current impasse.”Reticence from Sutherland to get involved in the dispute – apart from sending a terse letter on May 12 stating that out of contract players would be unemployed should no agreement be reached after the expiry of the June 30 deadline – maintains his customary position of delegating industrial relations to other senior executives. However, he has historically entered talks late in the process to ensure their smooth progression.Negotiations over the next MoU have instead been led by Kevin Roberts, a former board director now employed as CA’s head of strategy and people, with strong involvement from the CA chairman and former Rio Tinto managing director David Peever. In addition to expressing his own strong views about needing to break up the revenue sharing model reducing the influence of a “third party” in the workplace, Peever added his own industrial relations advisor, Ken Bacon, to the negotiating team.Another former Rio Tinto executive, Mark O’Neill, is also now working at CA as the head of a new public affairs department, communications, government relations and infrastructure. O’Neill’s appointment was revealed in February as part of a wider executive restructure that also saw the head of the Big Bash League, Anthony Everard, appointed as executive general manager for events and leagues.Roberts’ position mirrors that of Sutherland himself when he was first hired by the former chief executive Malcolm Speed to oversee financial and MoU matters at what was then the Australian Cricket Board. After three years in that role, Sutherland was elevated to the role of CEO, and it is widely expected that Roberts will be in line to succeed Sutherland whenever either the incumbent or the board decide it is time for change.”Kevin Roberts is an incredibly good operator, an incredibly smart and capable man but it’s got to the point where this needs to get resolved,” former Test opener Ed Cowan told . “We want it to be resolved, everyone in the game wants it to get resolved. Whatever it takes for it to be resolved, if that means the CEO [needs] to get to the table, that’s what we’re calling for.”A key to any succession, or Sutherland’s retention, will be the outcome of the current dispute, which on Monday saw state players and also the Australia A squad taking part in pre-season training without being under contract. The Australia A squad has effectively given CA and the ACA until Friday to make progress in MoU talks while going about their pre-tour training camp in Brisbane as usual, while reserving the right to withdraw from that tour or any subsequent ones if there is no sign of a resolution.Much of the players’ discontent relates to the desire to remain partners in the game by sharing in its revenue. The current CA offer to the ACA has been used as an example of why reverting to employee status would leave the board without accountability and the players with inferior terms of pay and conditions to those they enjoyed before June 30.Cowan made this point on Monday by pointing out the difference between average domestic player wages quoted in CA’s offer – A$235,000 per player by 2021-21, including combined state and BBL contracts, Superannuation and prize money – and the real median wage level of state contracted players – less than A$100,000.”The median [state contract] income for a domestic player is less than $100,000,” Cowan said. “We’re trying to compete with other sports, attract talent, and yet domestic players, particularly those who don’t play in the Big Bash, do not get paid very well.”Averages and medians are very different numbers. What CA likes to do is average the top contract with the bottom contract and say ‘that’s your average player’. But we’ve got 20 people in our [New South Wales] squad, and 70% of them will be within A$20,000 of the base contract. The top contract is within A$40,000 of the bottom contract, and there’s a A$70,000 gap between that and the [CA offer] average. No-one’s even close to that.”Across the states, I’ve talked to players from every single state, I’ve played for two states, and been a senior player in both those states.”CA revised its offer to the players a week ahead of the June 30 MoU expiry by offering to include all players – male and female, international and domestic – in its capped bonus model and also offered to increase wage levels being offered to domestic male players. However, this was rejected by the ACA due to a lack of detail and the continued absence of revenue sharing.
Sri Lanka’s selectors are confident that the fast bowler will be fit enough to bowl 10 overs and field for 50 overs by the time of the tournament
ESPNcricinfo staff24-Apr-2017Lasith Malinga, who last played an ODI in November 2015, has been named in Sri Lanka’s 15-man squad for the Champions Trophy in June. Long-standing injuries had put his availability in doubt, but Sri Lanka’s selectors have been satisfied he can be fit enough to deliver 10 overs and field for 50 by the time the tournament starts on June 1.Also in the squad are batsman Chamara Kapugedera, who has not played ODIs since January 2016, and fast bowler Nuwan Pradeep, who has been only a sporadic presence in Sri Lanka’s ODI squads over the past year. Omitted, however, are batsman Danushka Gunathilaka, allrounders Dhananjaya de Silva and Milinda Siriwardana, and quicks Lahiru Kumara and Dushmantha Chameera.The team will be led by Angelo Mathews, who returns after a hamstring injury kept him out of ODI series against South Africa and Bangladesh.Malinga made his return to T20 internationals in February, following a 12-month layoff from all competitive cricket due to a knee injury. Though his form has been somewhat indifferent in the IPL, he has been largely impressive in his international matches this year, even picking up a first T20I hat-trick in his most recent game, against Bangladesh.”Malinga has got his medical clearance to bowl 10 overs, since about two weeks ago,” SLC president Thilanga Sumathipala said. “We need to build him up to bowl 10 overs now. He’s playing in the IPL, which is to our advantage, because he’s in a top-class cricketing environment and he’s practising. Right now we are getting reports that he’s going into eight overs in a spell. We have to make sure he’s fit to bowl 10 by about the 10th of May.”This is the third successive ICC tournament in which Sri Lanka are sweating over Malinga’s fitness, however. He had missed last year’s World T20, from which he withdrew in the week before Sri Lanka departed for the tournament. He had also been injured in the approach to the 2015 World Cup.”Match fitness is what he’s lacking now – his physical fitness is superb,” Sumathipala said of Malinga. “We are looking for Malinga to be fit to play the practice games before the tournament – it’s very important for him to play those games.”Elsewhere on the seam-bowling front, Mathews himself is expected to be fit to bowl at the Champions Trophy – he has begun bowling in the IPL. Nuwan Kulasekara, Suranga Lakmal, Thisara Perera and Pradeep are the other seam options in the squad. Peculiarly, Sri Lanka have not picked a specialist finger spinner – legbreak bowler Seekkuge Prasanna, and left-arm wrist spinner Lakshan Sandakan have been chosen instead.Upul Tharanga – who led the team in Mathews’ absence – is one of three potential openers in the squad, with Niroshan Dickwella and Kusal Perera there as well. Kapugedera’s inclusion is likely thanks to good performances in the ongoing provincial one-day tournament, in which he has scored two hundreds in four innings.Among the standby players for the tournament are Gunathilaka and offspinner Dilruwan Perera – both of whom will be traveling with the squad – and Siriwardana, Kumara and seam bowler Vikum Sanjaya, who SLC said would be undergoing “continuous training” in Colombo.The Sri Lanka squad – including Malinga – is expected to assemble in Sri Lanka on around the 10th of May, before they leave to Kandy for a six-day training camp. Sumathipala said the board chose the Pallekele Stadium for the camp, in order to better replicate conditions Sri Lanka may face in England. The team leaves the island on May 18, and has two ODIs against Scotland scheduled before they are due to play further practice matches – against Australia and New Zealand.On-tour standbys: Dilruwan Perera, Dhanushka Gunathilaka; Standbys on training in Colombo: Vikum Sanjaya, Lahiru Kumara, Sachith Pathirana, Milinda Siriwardana, Akila Dananjaya
Wayne Rooney hopes his Birmingham team give his old friend Michael Carrick no reason to smile after their match against Middlesbrough on Saturday.
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Rooney ready for first Birmingham matchFaces Carrick's Middlesbrough in ChampionshipNew coach hopes for winning startWHAT HAPPENED?
Rooney's first Championship match as Birmingham manager sees his side come up against a Middlesbrough team coached by his former Manchester United and England team-mate Carrick.
The home side are 16th in the table but head into the game against Birmingham on a five-game winning run.
AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE
Rooney has taken over a Birmingham team sitting sixth in the English second-tier and with two straight league wins under their belt.
The ex-D.C. United coach is tasked with taking the club up to the Premier League and he will hope to get off to a good start by inflicting a defeat upon his good pal Carrick.
WHAT THEY SAID
"Michael is a good friend of mine and I will shake his hand before and after the game but I want to beat him," Rooney told reporters. "He will tell you the same. We have a lot of respect for each other but we are both winners. He is a very intelligent person. I spoke to him before he went to Middlesbrough last year, before he moved there. I felt it would be a really good challenge for him and he has done a really good job."
He added: "I spoke to Michael last weekend. We are really good friends and so are our children. I played with him for many years and we lifted the FA Cup together as captain and vice-captain. They are special memories but I want to beat him. I don't want to see him smiling at 5pm on Saturday. But of course there is great respect and it would be nice to have a good chat after the game, whatever the result."
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GettyWHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
A win for Birmingham at Middlesbrough will strengthen their hold on a play-off place in the Championship.