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Bowlers tighten up at crucial moment to allow one final Bazball blast for the summer

Vithushan Ehantharajah11-Sep-2022As Zak Crawley timed and Alex Lees thudded their way to 97 for no loss, charging towards a series-winning target of 130 like revellers chasing a night bus, there was sense we were getting the ending we deserved. Here were two players, limited in their own ways but ever-willing, who haven’t quite found their comfort zone but, as they did in the chase against India at Edgbaston earlier this summer, embraced the fact comfort was not their thing and eased those closest to them.It felt emblematic of this absurd three-match Test series, right down to the fact 33 were needed when they went off for bad light to give us another day of it all. It’s been an awkward, low-quality affair, but entertaining in bursts, providing this three-Test series with a winner inside just nine days. The good kind of bad, like sniffing a permanent marker, battered haggis, or “London Bridge” by Fergie.Indeed day four of this third Test as a whole felt like a microcosm of what has been: an absurd tangle of good bowling spells in favourable conditions and some shambolic batting on both sides. England kicked off losing the final three wickets of their first innings in the space of 16 balls, before all 10 in South Africa’s second effort fell in 56.2 overs. And while on the one hand you could commend the hosts for not adding to that tally, it’s worth remembering Lees was dropped off the very first ball of the chase and was almost run out off the eighth. Crawley, immaculate otherwise, was dropped at midwicket on 51, then edged between wicketkeeper and first slip.South Africa have managed just one half-century between them, to England’s two centuries (Ben Stokes and Ben Foakes) and three fifties (both from Ollie Pope before Crawley’s effort) at the time of writing. Marco Jansen, who inexplicably missed the second Test, has the highest batting average for the Proteas at 27.33, which is more than twice as high as Joe Root’s – yes him – a dismal 11.50 from four innings. England as a whole only had four averages above 20 (Foakes 44.33, Pope 42.00, Stokes 37.25 and Jonny Bairstow 22.33) coming into this final innings. Lees and Crawley could join them if they finish the job on Monday.Related

The bell still tolls for Zak Crawley, despite vital return on investment

South Africa suffer a Bazboozling as defeat comes in fast-forward

Ben Stokes 'blessed' as England show collective buy-in to seal memorable summer

Crawley's unbeaten 69 leads England to nine-wicket win and 2-1 series triumph

Robinson reinforces faith with career-best five-for

Given some of the shots we’ve seen this summer – good, bad and plenty ugly – it is clear the messaging from Stokes and the reinforcement from Brendon McCullum has encouraged free-wheeling and, ultimately, to embrace a little immaturity. While the latter has understandably irked traditionalists, perhaps they might find comfort in the fact that rarely has England’s bowling been as mature and responsible as it is right now. And it was because of their work after lunch that Monday’s return will be a short and sweet finale after a rewarding summer of graft.All 10 South Africa dismissals on Sunday came within 111 runs, but the 58 that came first appropriately sets the scene. It took Dean Elgar and Sarel Erwee just 8.5 overs to wipe off a first innings deficit of 40, with gorgeous sunshine illuminating some risk-free strokeplay and guides through the slips, aided by some manageable lengths. CricViz recorded that 33% of England’s deliveries were fuller than 6m from the stumps in the first innings, yet only 19% were in that range in the first 11 overs of the second.By lunch, the only victim was Erwee, finally brought uncomfortably forward by Stokes’ third delivery of the innings (and the match). South Africa went into the break with a lead of 30, nine wickets in hand and plenty more of the game on their plates than they had 24 hours ago.And then came the shift. Suddenly, everything was a little tighter. Those loose deliveries that gave the openers and No. 3 Keegan Petersen enough satisfaction to tick along were nowhere to be seen. “After lunch we had real intent,” Stuart Broad said. It showed.Everything seemed a little bit smarter, too, and all without the ball in hand that little more switched on. Broad dug deep to create some drama to such an extent that Elgar didn’t think to review an lbw against him that was sliding down. Even to the batter, it just felt right. Pope took a sharp catch to his left at fourth slip to remove Petersen. Suddenly, the runs stopped – typified by Khaya Zondo taking 23 deliveries to get off the mark – as England sped the game up for their own ends.Wiaan Mulder, survival on his mind for his 69 minutes at the crease, was undone with extra bounce from his 52nd and final delivery, as Ollie Robinson registered his first of the innings and 50 dismissals in just his 11th Test. No. 51 came when a little less bounce did for Zondo, who swayed into a leg-before dismissal.Ollie Robinson roars after a review went his way•AFP/Getty ImagesThen of course, there was the obligatory monster spell from Stokes, with two wickets in 11 overs split over tea. The first took them to the interval – bowling Marco Jansen an over after he had him caught (Pope again) off a no-ball – the second arriving two deliveries after the break when he completed his over with Kagiso Rabada’s tame guide to Harry Brook in the cordon.With that, England had taken back control Broad and James Anderson reclaimed it beyond doubt with the final dismissal to leave South Africa bereft and all out on 169.”That was the best we’ve bowled as a unit all summer,” Broad said, 3 for 45 in his back pocket that not only has him as the leading wicket-taker in the series (14) and the summer (27) but has also moved him three above Glenn McGrath and into fifth on the all-time list with 566 dismissals.Perhaps Broad, at 36, might embody all that is working in the field under Stokes and McCullum. It begins, in some ways, with the parking of any egos and the desire to do right by the team which he embraced when giving up the new ball to Robinson. And it extends with the way he feels rejuvenated by the field settings which are almost exclusively catchers rather than sweepers. As chaotic as the batting can seem, the bowling plans are akin to blinking contests. England have won most of them this summer.”Baz’s mindset is you take the scoreboard completely out of the equation at all times so not worrying about economy rate, your mindset is always how am I getting wickets in this over? Which sounds quite a basic obvious thing, but I’ve played under a lot of really good captains who were very much all about economy rates.”So Straussy’s [Andrew Strauss] number one rule was you had to go at under three an over to build pressure and create pressure and wickets in that way. And that worked and we were really successful doing that. But people like Steven Finn probably didn’t play as much Test cricket as they could have done because of that philosophy, whereas this mindset is every over you start, ‘How are you getting the batter out what’s your way of getting a wicket’, so that’s been quite refreshing.”The rejuvenation in Broad’s voice is clear. Though he is expected to miss the Pakistan series ahead of the birth of his first child, he seems pretty certain he will carry on through to the Ashes next summer. The credit, he believes, should go to the two in charge. It is “fresh”, “invigorating” and “sort of no consequences, trying to play on the front foot the whole time”. Everything we identify Broad with, basically.A music journalist once wrote the difference between Busted and Blink 182 was that one were a group of teenagers pretending to be musicians and the other was a group of musicians pretending to be teenagers. You don’t need to squint too hard at the names on the batting cards of England and South Africa to figure out which of these line-ups should know better and which are still trying to find out.But there can be no doubt ahead of a final dash to dot the ‘i’s and cross the ‘t’s for a sixth Test win of the summer that the reason England’s pop-punk brand of cricket has been so successful is the exemplary fundamentals and educated approach of their bowlers. A group of right-armers once criticised for being too samey are now one of the same: relentless, incisive and enjoying their cricket like never before.

Also: what’s the record for the most bowlers used in an ODI?

Steven Lynch10-Mar-2020Was Beth Mooney’s 78 not out the highest score in a T20 World Cup final? asked Jan Peterson from Australia
Beth Mooney’s unbeaten 78 in Melbourne at the weekend was the highest in a women’s T20 World Cup final – and the 75 her opening partner, Alyssa Healy, made was the second highest. They both beat the previous best, Hayley Matthews’ 66 for West Indies against Australia in Kolkata in April 2016. The highest in a men’s final is 85 not out, by Marlon Samuels for West Indies against England, again in Kolkata in April 2016; Samuels is also second, with 78 against Sri Lanka in Colombo in October 2012.India’s recent Test at Christchurch featured six half-centuries, but the highest score was only 55. Was this some sort of record? asked Sujay Hathwar from the United States
Statsguru tells me that there have now been 111 Tests with six or more scores of 50-plus but no hundreds – and the 55s of Hanuma Vihari and Tom Blundell in the recent match in Christchurch were the lowest top individual scores from those games. The previous mark was six fifties but a highest of 67, in a tense match between West Indies and Pakistan in Bridgetown in 1987-88.England’s Test against Pakistan at Lord’s in May 2018 featured eight half-centuries but a highest score of 70. The most fifties in a single Test without a hundred is 13, by South Africa and England in Durban in 1927-28, when the highest individual score was Wally Hammond’s 90.There were 14 bowlers in Australia’s third ODI in South Africa – was this a record? asked David Weston from England
South Africa and Australia both used seven bowlers in the third one-day international in Potchefstroom at the weekend – but this was some way short of the ODI record. That currently stands at 17, by Afghanistan (nine) and Canada (eight) in Sharjah in February 2010. There are also 13 cases of 16 different bowlers in the same match.The Test record was set in a quiet draw between South Africa and England in Cape Town in 1964-65, when 20 different bowlers were used, the only unemployed men being the two wicketkeepers, Denis Lindsay and Jim Parks. The T20I record is 16 bowlers, which has happened twice – in matches on successive days, both involving Papua New Guinea, in last year’s T20 World Cup Qualifier. On October 19 they used nine bowlers and Bermuda seven in Dubai, and the next day both PNG and Namibia employed eight bowlers, on a different ground in Dubai.Graeme Smith made more than 8000 Test runs for South Africa during his time as captain•Associated PressI noticed that Virat Kohli recently passed 5000 Test runs as captain. Who is top of this list? asked Gagan Sharma from India
After the recent series in New Zealand, Virat Kohli had scored 5142 runs in 55 Tests as captain. That puts him in sixth place overall, not far behind New Zealand’s Stephen Fleming (5156 from 80 matches) and West Indies’ Clive Lloyd (5233 in 74). A little further ahead lie the Australian pair of Ricky Ponting (6542 in 77) and Allan Border (6623 in 93), but way out in front at the moment is Graeme Smith, who amassed 8659 runs in 109 Tests as captain. Kohli averages 61.21 as skipper, the highest of anyone with more than 3000 runs, with the predictable exceptions of Steve Smith (70.36) and Don Bradman (101.51).Who has played the most Tests and ODIs at a single venue? asked Lawrence Broughton from England
The Test record-holder is Sri Lanka’s Mahela Jayawardene, who played 27 at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo – which was also his home club. Muttiah Muralitharan played 24 Tests at the SSC, which puts him third; Alastair Cook made 26 Test appearances at Lord’s. James Anderson and Stuart Broad have both played 23 Tests at Lord’s so far.In one-day internationals, the list is headed by the Bangladeshi trio of wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Rahim, allrounder Shakib Al Hasan and opener Tamim Iqbal, who have played 86, 80 and 78 matches respectively in Mirpur. Next comes Pakistan’s Wasim Akram, who played 77 times in Sharjah.Rahim also leads the way in T20Is, as he has played 24 in Mirpur; Mahmudullah has appeared 21 times at that ground. Hamilton Masakadza played 20 T20Is in Harare, and Umar Akmal 20 in Dubai. Overall, Rahim has played 129 matches in all three international formats in Mirpur, al Hasan 116, Iqbal 111, and Mahmudullah 106. Next come Masakadza and his Zimbabwean team-mate Elton Chigumbura, with 101 and 94 in Harare.Use our feedback form or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz was announced Tuesday as the fifth participant in this year's Home Run Derby, bringing one of the game's biggest sluggers to the forefront of MLB's ultimate test of power.

Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes, who will be making his second All-Star appearance this year, offered some words of excitement after news of Cruz's addition to the player pool was announced.

Skenes has watched his teammate take batting practice many times over the past year, and he described it as being "the most impressive batting practice I've ever seen in my life."

"My pick is Oneil to win (the Home Run Derby). The BP he takes everyday is the most impressive batting practice I've ever seen in my life. Just some of the balls he hits––he mishits balls and they go into the fifth row and the second deck at some of these stadiums. I think he hit a ball over the Chop House when were in at Atlanta last year, so he's gonna be doing that a lot," Skenes said via MLB Network Radio.

"I think I'm as excited about that as I am about the actual All-Star Game. It's going to be pretty dang cool."

Cruz is frequently listed atop or near the top of Statcast's tracked data for hardest hit baseballs. On May 25, he mashed the hardest hit home run in Statcast history, cranking a 122.9 mph blast into the seats against the Milwaukee Brewers. That type of power is rare to find, and Cruz will be looking to showcase all of it at the derby.

Skenes seems to already know what's coming next Monday, and he's eager for the rest of the baseball world to get a glimpse of what he's seen regularly from his slugger of a teammate.

لم يقدم العديد من لاعبي ليفربول مستويات جيدة هذا الموسم، ويأتي من بين اللاعبين إبراهيما كوناتي بسبب عدم تجديد عقده، كما تراجع أداء فيرجيل فان دايك، وكذلك محمد صلاح.

وتحدث إيميل هيسكي مهاجم ليفربول السابق في تصريحات نشرتها “Rousing the kop” عن أداء النجم المصري هذا الموسم.

وقال هيسكي عن صلاح :”صلاح لاعب مثير للاهتمام، سجل العديد من الأهداف، لذا فهو يخفي الكثير من المشاكل التي تسببها الأهداف عادة”.

أقرأ أيضاً.. سلوت: نشبه مانشستر سيتي.. ولعبنا مباراة كل يومين لن يساعدنا على تغيير أسلوبنا

وأضاف :”يغيب أحياناً عن المباريات ولكن لأنه يسجل هدفين أو ثلاثة في النهاية، يتذكر الجميع ذلك، لكنه يفعل ذلك منذ فترة وأنت بحاجة لثنائيات كهذه، تحتاجها في فريقك أحياناً، لأنك تبقى في الملعب فقط لتلك اللحظة الصغيرة التي تسجل فيها هدفاً”.

وواصل: “لكن الشيء الوحيد هو أنه إذا لم يسجلوا هذا الهدف أو يمنحوا أي فرصة للركض ولم تحصل على أي فرصة للتتبع، ولم تحصل على كل هذه المساحة في الجانب الآخر من الملعب فمن الصعب للغاية الدفاع ضدهم”.

Arsenal’s terrible luck with injuries last year seems to have carried over to this season.

On top of the mountain of attacking injuries, Mikel Arteta is now set to be without Gabriel Magaheles for up to two months.

Fortunately, the squad is fairly well stacked in defensive areas, and so while it’s not ideal, the Spaniard should be able to find a way to make his backline work.

Moreover, that defensive depth is likely to get even stronger within a few years, as Hale End are currently brewing someone who could be a dream Gabriel heir.

Arsenal's next Hale End stars

It feels like every season now, a Hale End gem or two emerge and slot right into Arsenal’s first team, be that Ethan Nwaneri, Myles Lewis-Skelly or even Max Dowman.

The good news for the Emirates faithful and Arteta is that the production of incredible young talents shows no signs of stopping, with a few academy gems looking likely to make a first-team appearance or two in the coming years.

One of those who seems destined for the senior side is Northern Irish youth international Ceadach O’Neill.

The 17-year-old attacker joined the club in 2023 and has shone for the u18s.

On top of being able to play across the frontline, the “brilliantly” talented gem, as dubbed by the Gunners’ U21 coach David Horseman, has shown an eye for goal, scoring 11 and providing five assists in 32 games for the u18s.

Another hugely exciting young attacker is Brando Bailey-Joseph.

The 17-year-old only signed scholarship terms with the club a few months ago, but has already been rewarded with a professional deal thanks to his sensational performances this season.

For example, in 14 appearances this season, totalling 929 minutes, he’s scored four goals and provided four assists, which comes out to a goal involvement every 1.75 games, or every 116.12 minutes.

Hale End expert Will Balsam has described the youngster as an “explosive” attacker whose “quickness and sharp cuts” make him a “menace” for opposing defenders – which sounds like the sort of left-winger the first team could use.

In all, there are more than a handful of academy gems like O’Neill and Bailey-Joseph who could soon make it into the first team, but few are as exciting as Hale End’s best defensive prospect in years.

Hale End's future Gabriel replacement

Now, for a youngster to be considered as a future replacement or heir for Gabriel, they’ve got to be something pretty special.

Fortunately, as things stand, Marli Salmon looks to be just that.

In fact, Mattinson has gone out on a limb and described the exceptionally talented prospect as “the best CB Hale End has produced.”

What makes the 16-year-old so special, then? Well, like the big Brazilian he might one day step in for, he’s excellent at reading the game and is incredibly cultured on the ball.

For example, Mattinson has described him as “technically advanced,” and Balsam argues that he’s “different gravy on the ball” and has a perfect “mix of control and aggression.”

In The Pipeline

Football FanCast’s In the Pipeline series aims to uncover the very best youth players in world football.

However, if he wants to one day step into Big Gabis’ shoes, he also needs to be someone who can engage in a bit of old-school defending, someone who can hold their own against the battering rams.

Fortunately, despite looking relatively slight – he is still 16 after all – the Hale Ender is already showing signs that he’s far stronger than he looks.

According to Balsam, he’s an “athletically gifted” defender who marries technical composure with “freak physical attributes.”

Finally, the last sign that he has a bright future ahead of him is that he featured in pre-season and, just like Dowman, didn’t look too out of place.

Ultimately, there is still a long way to go, but Salmon looks like he could be Hale End’s next superstar and the perfect long-term replacement for Gabriel.

A new Zubimendi: Berta makes first move to sign "Rodri-like" CM for Arsenal

The incredibly exciting prospect could be another Zubimendi for Mikel Arteta and Arsenal.

1

By
Jack Salveson Holmes

Nov 20, 2025

Hasaranga is back after recovering from a hamstring injury

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Sep-20252:05

Jaffer: Hasaranga’s return big boost for SL

Toss Sri Lanka captain Charith Asalanka chose to bowl in the high-stakes clash against Bangladesh on a fresh pitch in Abu Dhabi. He confirmed that Wanindu Hasaranga, who missed the recent tour of Zimbabwe with a hamstring injury, is fit and back in the XI.Hasaranga is one of three allrounders in Sri Lanka’s XI alongside Dasun Shanaka and Kamindu Mendis, and the only attacking spin option, with Maheesh Theekshana and Dunith Wellalage left out. They picked three specialist fast bowlers, however, in Dushmantha Chameera, Matheesha Pathirana and Nuwan Thushara.Bangladesh picked three quicks too, but made one change to their pace attack from the win over Hong Kong, bringing in Shoriful Islam for Taskin Ahmed. This meant they had two left-arm seamers – Mustafizur Rahman being the other – apart from the right-arm swing of Tanzim Hasan Sakib, and two spin-bowling allrounders in Mahedi Hasan and Rishad Hossain.Sri Lanka: 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 Kusal Mendis (wk), 3 Kamil Mishara, 4 Kusal Perera, 5, Charith Asalanka (capt), 6 Dasun Shanaka, 7 Kamindu Mendis, 8 Wanindu Hasaranga, 9 Dushmantha Chameera, 10 Matheesha Pathirana, 11 Nuwan Thushara.Bangladesh: 1 Litton Das (capt & wk), 2 Tanzid Hasan, 3 Parvez Hossain Emon, 4 Towhid Hridoy, 5 Jaker Ali, 6 Shamim Hossain, 7 Mahedi Hasan, 8 Rishad Hossain, 9 Tanzim Hasan Sakib, 10 Shoriful Islam, 11 Mustafizur Rahman.

يقيم الاتحاد الدولي لكرة القدم “فيفا”، فعاليات قرعة الملحق العالمي المؤهل لـ كأس العالم 2026، من أجل حسم آخر مقعدين للمنتخبات المتأهلة إلى المونديال.

ويشارك في الملحق العالمي 6 منتخبات من 5 قارات، وفق نظام يعتمد على التصنيف الدولي؛ حيث يُوضع منتخبان في المستوى الأول بحسب تصنيف الفيفا، بينما تخوض 4 منتخبات أقل تصنيفًا مواجهات نصف النهائي بنظام خروج المغلوب.

ويتأهل الفائزان من هذه المرحلة لملاقاة منتخبي المستوى الأول في مباراتي النهائي، على أن يحجز الفائزان بطاقتي العبور إلى كأس العالم.

ويعد هذا الملحق محطة حاسمة في طريق التأهل، إذ يمنح مقعدين فقط للمنتخبات المشاركة، ضمن كأس العالم 2026 الذي سيقام لأول مرة بمشاركة 48 منتخبًا.

طالع | مباشر | قرعة الملحق العالمي المؤهل إلى كأس العالم 2026

المحلق العالمي المؤهل إلى كأس العالم 2026، يقام بين 6 منتخبات، منتخب من قارة إفريقيا ومنتخب من قارة آسيا ومنتخبان من قارة أمريكا الشمالية ومنتخب من قارة أمريكا الجنوبية ومنتخب من قارة أوقيانوسيا. تصنيف المنتخبات المتأهلة إلى الملحق المؤهل إلى كأس العالم 2026

الكونغو الديمقراطية.. 56 عالميًا.

العراق.. 58 عالميًا.

جامايكا.. 70 عالميًا.

بوليفيا.. 76 عالميًا.

سورينام.. 123 عالميًا

منتخب كاليدونيا الجديدة.. 149 عالميًا.

بحسب التصنيف، لن يخوض منتخبا الكونغو الديمقراطية والعراق الدور نصف النهائي في الملحق العالمي.

طالع| من يواجه العراق في الملحق العالمي المؤهل لـ كأس العالم 2026؟

تجرى جميع مباريات الملحق بنظام خروج المغلوب في دولة المكسيك خلال شهر مارس 2026. موعد قرعة الملحق العالمي المؤهل لـ كأس العالم 2026 اليوم

ومن المقرر أن تقام فعاليات القرعة، يوم الخميس 20 نوفمبر 2025، وذلك بمقر “فيفا” بمدينة زيورخ السويسرية، عند الساعة الثانية ظهرًا، بتوقيت مصر، الثالثة عصراً بتوقيت السعودية والعراق. القناة الناقلة لـ قرعة الملحق العالمي المؤهل لـ كأس العالم 2026 اليوم

وتذاع فعاليات قرعة الملحق العالمي عبر قناة بي ان سبورت الإخبارية.