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Pakistan captain Younis Khan has asked his team-mates to push for better IPL contracts following their triumph at the ICC World Twenty20

Cricinfo staff28-Jun-2009Pakistan captain Younis Khan has asked his team-mates to push for better IPL contracts following their success in the World Twenty20. “These players are now world champions and highly marketable. There is a higher value to their performances,” Younis said.While many in the team turned out for their respective franchises in the inaugural season of the IPL in 2008, political tensions between India and Pakistan prevented them from playing in the second season. Younis, who played for Rajasthan Royals, noted, however, that top players like Kamran Akmal, Sohail Tanvir, Umar Gul and Misbah-ul-Haq were now worth more than the $100,000 contracts they had signed last year.”Now the scenario is different. These players should talk to their agents in India and ask them to go for a hike in price from the IPL franchises. I am happy if any of our players can be better packages in the IPL for next season,” Younis said.IPL commissioner Lalit Modi had said that after Pakistan’s World Cup win he perceived no problems in the players returning to play in the IPL next year, provided both national governments were okay with it.Eleven Pakistani players, including Shahid Afridi and Gul, the stars of Pakistan’s World Twenty20 campaign, were recruited by the Kolkata, Rajasthan, Delhi, Hyderabad and Bangalore franchises before the inaugural IPL. However, the franchises opted to retain the contracts of only four of them – Akmal and Tanvir (Rajasthan Royals), Misbah (Royal Challengers Bangalore) and Gul (Kolkata Knight Riders) – after it became clear that they would not be able to play in the second season of the league.Younis though, turned his back on the league after announcing his retirement from the Twenty20 format soon after Pakistan won the world event.

Kieran Maguire has given his reaction to a fresh revelation in Newcastle United’s recent takeover case.

The Lowdown: Premier League threat

As cited by BBC Sport, Daniel Jowell QC revealed that the Premier League had threatened to expel the Tyneside club from the division in their Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) case against the top flight over the stalled takeover deal between Mike Ashley and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium.

Representing Newcastle United, Jowell claimed that the Premier League ‘abused its position’ and effectively blocked the bid.

The Latest: Maguire on threat

Speaking to Football Insider, finance expert Maguire has now claimed that, should the Premier League go through with their threat, it would have had had costly ramifications. He said:

“This would have resulted in a very, very expensive and explosive legal case.

“You’d also have Newcastle fans marching on Premier League HQ. There is no justification in the mind of any right-minded fan for taking such action.

“But such is the entrenched position of both parties, for and against Newcastle’s new owners, that was the situation.

“So I think it was an idle threat, but a threat all the same. It was an extraordinary revelation, whichever way you look at it.”

The Verdict: Pressure piling up

There is clearly pressure being piled up on the Premier League for them to have come out with such a threat, which would be very difficult to push through anyway given yet another big legal battle with Newcastle which would have likely have followed.

Nonetheless, the Magpies will now feel as if their pathway to the takeover has cleared somewhat, with the arbitration proceedings to come next year.

Win that case against the Premier League, and the Toon Army can start dreaming of a takeover once more.

In other news, one Newcastle player came in for criticism over his performance against Wolves

Younis Khan has responded to Pakistan’s first Test series defeat in Sri Lanka by pleading for more time to rebuild the team after “very little cricket over the last 18 months”

Sidharth Monga at the P Sara Oval14-Jul-2009Younis Khan has responded to Pakistan’s first Test series defeat in Sri Lanka by pleading for more time to rebuild the team after “very little cricket over the last 18 months”. Speaking after a game in which Pakistan’s batting collapses tilted the balance towards Sri Lanka, Younis said he didn’t want to put blame on any individual – the team was lacking by just 20%, failing to stay focused throughout the games and while facing pressure situations.”It’s very easy right now to write this team off,” he said, “But how many Tests have we played in the last 14 months? For one full year we didn’t play at all. As and when we start playing more regularly, we will learn to adapt. I think it’s not about the technique, not about the bowling, not about the weather.”Give this team some time, don’t point fingers too early. It will be very easy for me too to blame particular players, even myself. But the reality is, we haven’t been playing any Test cricket. It’s very easy for me to give up, to say I can’t captain this team. But somebody will have to stand up and fix the situation.”Before the start of the series, Younis had said that being undercooked should not be an excuse for international teams. But three heart-breaking collapses later, Younis said it was time to analyse the situation, and that he concluded thus not as Pakistan captain but as an analyst. “Out of the four matches we have played, one was stopped midway, one we drew, and lost two,” he said. “And that too it felt like we were not beaten, we lost them ourselves. So I am not looking for excuses but for reasons. And this is one of the major reasons.”The irony of the situation, though, is that it was not the youngsters, the debutants, who let the team down. It was the experienced pros who failed all three times to arrest the collapses. Younis saw that as one of the positives from the series. “This team is in a rebuilding phase,” he said. “We had three debutants in the last match, and one in this. But if Saeed Ajmal is putting up a fight, if Abdur Rauf is putting up a fight, if Fawad Alam is putting up a fight, if Mohammad Aamer is putting up a fight, that gives me some solace. I will have to give them some time. So too the media and the fans.”Younis reiterated that the problem came from not finishing matches. “There is only 20% that we are lacking. If we play to our potential – everybody knows about us – we will start winning. It is all about concentration and how to adapt to conditions.”Over six and a bit days, Pakistan have had three disastrous sessions, while the other sessions have been full of heartening performances from their youngsters. Their bowling attack looks in good health, especially with an impending comeback of Mohammad Asif, and Ajmal and Danish Kaneria fighting for the spinner’s slot. Yet they have lost the series, which can be a very demoralising experience.Younis, though, wants to look ahead immediately, to the next Test. “What can I do? I can only ask them to focus for longer durations. After Tests we have to play one-dayers too. It will be every difficult if we go 2-0 down or 3-0 down. If we push more, keep pushing, we can win the last Test, which should give us a lot of motivation before the one-dayers. And if we can win both, we will get some satisfaction at least.”

Shakib Al Hasan was the architect of Bangladesh’s success as he delivered a fine allround performance to lead his team to a 52-run win in Dominica

The Bulletin by Siddhartha Talya26-Jul-2009
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Abdur Razzak made a successful return to international cricket after being suspended for a suspect action•AFPShakib Al Hasan, yet again, was the architect of Bangladesh’s success as he delivered a fine all-round performance to lead his team to a 52-run win, their first over West Indies, in the series opener in Dominica. His fighting half-century helped his team post a formidable total on a slow pitch; his tactic of opening the bowling with left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak succeeded in denting West Indies early in their chase, and his dismissal of Devon Smith helped strangle the resistance which threatened to cause an upset. Mohammad Ashraful and Mahmudullah backed the effort with important contributions while fighting through a disciplined bowling performance led by Kemar Roach’s five-for.West Indies showed few signs of learning from their mistakes in the Test series. Inept footwork combined with poor shot selection from their batsmen produced a top-order collapse on a track favouring slow bowlers. Shakib, without hesitation, opened the bowling with Razzak, who made a successful return to international cricket after being suspended for a suspect action. Accustomed to sharing the new ball – he had opened the bowling in the 2007 World Cup – he struck with his second ball, trapping Dale Richards in front and returned to bowl Travis Dowlin, who was found cutting too close to an arm ball. Razzak stuck to a flat trajectory, varied his pace, got the ball to grip and surprised the batsmen with both turn and bounce.The arrival of the left-handed Floyd Reifer prompted another ploy from Shakib. Mahmudullah – the offspinner who had dismissed Reifer on four occasions in the Test series – was brought on, and he soon had the West Indies captain swinging across the line to be caught at point.West Indies had to rely on their old hand Smith, and again on Dave Bernard, who struck three half-centuries in the Test series, to stage a recovery. The pair opened up once Razzak was given a break, using their feet and opting to play the spinners straight while ensuring the strike kept rotating after the second Powerplay. Smith’s workmanlike 65 included just three fours, but he pierced the field with consistency while Bernard, the more cautious of the two, was prompt to see off any quiet phase with the pressure-relieving boundary. Their stand of 78 came close to evening out proceedings before Shakib made the change, bringing himself on in the 29th over to trap Smith in front while sweeping across the line. The call was marginal as it appeared to be just clipping leg, but proved decisive. Bernard scored just one run off Shakib’s next over, and holed out one ball later to put the visitors in control. Though the lower order kept the crowd intrigued, stepping up the pace, Razzak hit back with two more wickets to seal the finish.The comprehensive win marked a contrast to the start of play for Bangladesh. The hosts delivered the best possible start to the Dominican crowd, witnessing their first international fixture, when Roach got opener Tamim Iqbal to edge one first ball. The overnight and early morning showers had made their mark on the pitch and the four-pronged pace attack was expected to thrive on the movement on offer. But Roach and debutant Nelon Pascal, another slinger on the international scene, faced a counter-attack.Determined to make amends for a woeful Test series, Ashraful crafted an innings with traces of his usual flamboyance. Along with Junaid Siddique, he forged a methodical stand of 74 for the second wicket. Being instinctively aggressive, they went for their shots and, despite the early loss, promptly dealt with anything pitched up or dropped short. Though there were the inevitable plays and misses from Ashraful, it was not his often senseless style of batting that had proved his undoing on many an occasion. Good balls were treated with caution and the loose deliveries, like the two rare ones from Roach in his fourth over, were cannoned through cover and over midwicket.The pair dealt mainly in boundaries in the first Powerplay but became subdued once the restrictions were lifted. Sammy and Bernard maintained a tight line and gave very little away despite a spread out field. The boundaries dried up, the singles were infrequent and one of the batsmen snapped not too long after Reifer tempted him by taking the second Powerplay. Siddique’s failed attempt to clear mid-off earned Bernard his reward for persistence.The combination of Roach – who dismissed Raqibul Hasan with the first ball of his second spell – and Bernard worked superbly as both remained consistent with their lines, teasing the batsmen just outside off. Bernard, in particular, was accurate and showed excellent stamina, bowling ten overs on the trot.With the surface beginning to hold up and the spinners introduced, Ashraful and Shakib shed their aggressiveness and relied on nudges, dabs and sweeps. And when the time for acceleration came, it was Mahmudullah who cut loose, breaking a 104-ball boundary drought with a six off Lewis. Shakib joined in the act to smack two fours off Nikita Miller to reach his half-century. Though Roach bagged three wickets in his final spell, 43 runs had come off the final Powerplay, boosting Bangladesh to a match-winning total.

Manchester United striker Cristiano Ronaldo bagged his 58th career hat-trick as Portugal thrashed Luxembourg 5-0 in their World Cup qualifying encounter.

It was the 36-year-old’s tenth treble for his country and left Fernando Santos’ charges sitting in second position in Group A, a point behind Serbia, who they host in their final game.

Ronaldo got his first of the night after just eight minutes when he blasted a penalty straight down the middle of the goal and got his second soon after.

After Bernardo Silva’s mazy run won the first spot-kick, it was Ronaldo’s that earned the second, and he made no mistake from 18 yards, finding the bottom corner of the net after being forced to retake the effort due to encroachment.

His hat-trick was complete three minutes from time after nodding home a delightful Ruben Neves cross from close range, wrapping up a satisfying night’s work for Portugal.

As a result of his impressive exploits at the Estadio Algarve, Ronaldo was awarded a match rating of 9 out of 10 by SofaScore, the highest total awarded to any player on the pitch.

During the 90 minutes, the United monster had a whopping five shots on target, provided two key passes to his teammates and achieved a passing accuracy of 92%.

Ronaldo also created one big chance, lost possession just five times and won four duels, highlighting his overall influence over proceedings.

With the Red Devils currently winless in their last two Premier League outings and facing a tricky trip to Leicester City over the weekend, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will be hoping his star performer is in similar form on Saturday.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has bagged five goals in his six outings for the Old Trafford side in the opening weeks of the campaign, and he’ll be hoping to add to that against the Foxes.

And, in other news…Signed for £46.5m, now worth £81m: Man Utd struck gold over “quality” £180k-p/w beast 

Plenty of Liverpool supporters have been reacting to a video clip of Reds supporters celebrating Mohamed Salah’s incredible goal against Watford, which left some Kopites “in awe” of his brilliance.

Jurgen Klopp’s men were imperious on Saturday afternoon, destroying the Hornets at Vicarage Road and romping to a 5-0 victory. Roberto Firmino scored a hat-trick on the day and Sadio Mane also found the net, but the occasion once again belonged to Salah.

The 29-year-old registered a sublime assist for Mane’s goal before scoring a sensational solo effort in the second half, weaving in and out of tackles and firing into the net.

[freshpress-quiz id=“375258″]

It was the latest iconic Salah moment following on from his sublime strike against Manchester City a fortnight ago, and on Monday, Liverpool’s official Twitter account posted footage of Reds fans reacting to the goal in the away end.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-liverpool-transfer-news-7/” title=”Latest Liverpool transfer news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Liverpool fans love Salah goal footage

These Liverpool supporters took to Twitter to show their love for the video, as Salah continues to cement his reputation as arguably the best player in the world at the moment.

“What a video!!!!!”

Credit: @nevjamo

“Absolutely beautiful”

Credit: @aadel81

“Love this!”

Credit: @rab08lfc

“It was a joy to be a part of this, what a goal!”

Credit: @tedthered77

“In awe of Mo’s magic. Never ever forget this, Reds!”

Credit: @Eddie_250

“That second gasp! Then the release…pure joy!”

Credit: @dogdaddy_

In other news, some Liverpool fans are unhappy over one Reds injury update. Read more here.

Ramji Srinivasan has been appointed as the trainer of the Indian team for next month’s tri-series in Sri Lanka

Cricinfo staff23-Aug-2009Ramji Srinivasan, who helped Sachin Tendulkar recover from a major shoulder injury in 2006, has been appointed as the trainer of the Indian team for next month’s tri-series in Sri Lanka.He had also supervised the training sessions of the national team at Mumbai and Delhi earlier this month, and will link up with the national squad again on August 26 during its preparatory camp in Bangalore.”I’m elated,” Ramji told the . “The BCCI and the Indian cricketers have shown a lot of trust in me. The onus is now on me, and I’m confident I will deliver.”The Indian team has been without a specialist fitness trainer since February 2008 when Greg King stepped down. Since then, Paddy Upton, the mental conditioning coach, has been doubled up as trainer.Ramji has worked with some of India’s leading cricketers at the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai. He also runs one of the major health clubs in the city.

After arriving at Celtic on a season-long loan deal this summer, things did not get off to the best of starts in Cameron Carter-Vickers’ career at Parkhead, with the Bhoys winning just one of the centre-back’s opening three league games for the club, as well as suffering defeat in his first two Europa League appearances.

However, things have improved considerably for the defender in recent weeks, with the 23-year-old appearing to be much more settled within Ange Postecoglou’s side – something which had contributed to Celtic winning four consecutive fixtures in all competitions prior to Wednesday night’s trip to Hibernian.

And, in the game at Easter Road, the USA international once again proved exactly why the Bhoys wanted to sign him this summer, with the centre-back turning in arguably his best performance in a Celtic shirt to date in the 3-1 win over Jack Ross’ side.

Proved Ange right

Having earned SofaScore match ratings of 6.8 in Celtic’s 2-1 win over Aberdeen, 7.8 in the 2-0 win over Motherwell, another 7.8 in the 2-0 win over Ferencvarosi TC and a 7.6 in the 2-0 win over St. Johnstone last weekend, it is clear to see that the centre-back is in an incredibly fine run of form at present – something that certainly continued against Hibs.

Indeed, over his 90 minutes on the pitch, the £1.8m-rated man bossed the Celtic backline, blocking two shots, making nine clearances, three interceptions and not being dribbled past by an opponent once, as per SofaScore.

That’s not to mention his goal in the 14th minute to hand the Hoops a two-goal advantage.

Carter-Vickers, who Johnathan Woodgate once dubbed an “important” defender, also won three of his five aerial duels, completed 44 of his 46 attempted passes (96.7%).

These returns saw the £20k-per-week Tottenham loanee earn a SofaScore match rating of 7.9, with only David Turnbull receiving a higher rating than the American on Wednesday evening.

Ange is getting his just desserts for his continued faith in the Spurs loanee.

As such, should Carter-Vickers be able to maintain this level of form over the coming weeks and months, he will undoubtedly play a huge role in Celtic’s push to reclaim their Scottish Premiership crown this season – something that is looking increasingly likely, as the 3-1 win against Hibs took the Bhoys to within two points of the top of the table.

In other news: Ange confirms Nicholson negotiations with “huge” talent, Celtic fans will be buzzing

South Africa’s captain, Graeme Smith, believes that Andrew Flintoff’s decision to turn down his ECB central contract in favour of a “freelance” career has set a precedent that the ICC cannot afford to ignore

Andrew Miller16-Sep-2009South Africa’s captain, Graeme Smith, believes that Andrew Flintoff’s decision to turn down his ECB central contract in favour of a “freelance” career has set a precedent that the ICC cannot afford to ignore.Speaking to Cricinfo on the eve of the Champions Trophy, the second-biggest event in the ODI calendar, Smith said that the international game was going to have to adapt to its changing environment and cut down on the current glut of “meaningless” contests, if more of the world’s leading players are to be prevented from following Flintoff’s example.As tournament hosts and the No. 1 ODI nation in the world, South Africa start next week’s Champions Trophy as favourites, and with a proper challenge to whet the appetite after a rare three-month break, Smith reiterated that international cricket remained his absolute and over-riding priority. But, he added, unless the ICC tackles the thorny issue of the Future Tours Programme head-on, the riches on offer in the IPL and beyond will prove an even more tempting alternative to many cricketers who, by the very nature of their careers, have a finite period of time in which to make the most of their talents.”I don’t think you can blame the individual, but it’s an interesting time for cricket, and interesting to see where it goes now,” Smith told Cricinfo. “The crucial aspect is the decisions the leadership makes in the future. The ICC needs to give cricket a good direction, and crucial to that is how they look at the Future Tours Programme, because the decisions they make around that are going to be so important for the future of the game.”For me international cricket is still the pinnacle,” he said. “But you can’t hide the fact that huge financial rewards and benefits for players have come into the game in the last few years, and it’s obviously such a short career, so you want to make as much money in that time as possible. But I think playing for your country is the best, and the most important thing for us is to carry on being as successful as possible and try not to be distracted by other things that are taking place.”The FTP is a six-year calendar during which all nations are required to play each of the others, home and away, in at least two Tests and three ODIs. However, it expires in 2012 and a replacement has yet to be agreed upon, with some nations favouring the implementation of a World Test Championship to replace the often haphazard bilateral arrangements that are currently in place. But whatever solution is reached, Smith believes that a greater importance has to be attached to future international matches, and cited the current seven-match ODI series between England and Australia as a classic example of poor scheduling.”With the greatest respect, the seven ODIs taking place in England at the moment are more for financial benefit than meaningful cricket,” he said. “People want to see strength for strength, they want to see international sides trying their best in competitive tours. I mean, the Ashes was great to watch, it was competitive down to the last Test match, and speaking for myself as a cricketer, that’s how you want to see all cricket being played.”But all these meaningless tours just sap your body, especially when you are playing away from home for a long time,” he added. “I think the ICC needs to really look at the format going forward, and really take control of the international game.”In the absence of such leadership from above, Smith was sympathetic with Flintoff’s reasons for taking his career into his own hands. “I don’t think you can blame Fred for the decision that he’s made,” said Smith. “He’s had a very successful career, and at this stage of his career, he wants to maximise his worth and really take control of things. He’s had a number of injuries, and for his own good, he needs to take control of the few years he has left in him.”Smith’s immediate priority, as South Africa’s captain, is to lead his country to glory on home soil in the Champions Trophy, and he is determined to put all other thoughts about the future of the game out of his mind.”It’s a terrific time to be a sportsman in South Africa, and to be a role model,” said Smith. “When you think about our readmission after the apartheid years, we’ve got a young country in many ways, and our sport is going from strength to strength at the moment. The opportunity is there to grow, and the better that South African teams can be, the more the youngsters will want to be the heroes of the future. The Champions Trophy is another opportunity for that.”

The Pakistan Cricket Board has said it wants to trial one-day matches with two innings for each side during its domestic season

Cricinfo staff14-Sep-2009The Pakistan Cricket Board has said it wants to trial one-day matches with two innings for each side during its domestic season.Sultan Rana, chief of PCB’s domestic cricket department, who has also worked for the Asian Cricket Council as a development officer, has backed the idea which was brought into the spotlight earlier this month by Sachin Tendulkar.”If the International Cricket Council allows its members to experiment with this new format we will definitely be keen to try it out because our domestic structure is tailormade for this new concept,” Rana said. “I think it is going to happen soon. Because by splitting one-day games into four innings will basically allow the ICC and other countries to make one-day matches as interesting and popular as Twenty20 matches are now.”David Richardson, the ICC’s cricket manager, had said last week that the concept could breathe life into the 50-over format, which has been threatened by the rise of Twenty20s. The idea has its share of critics as well, including legendary allrounders Imran Khan and Kapil Dev, who feel the format of the one-dayer should not be tinkered with.The England board has already scrapped the domestic Friends Provident Trophy, the only 50-over domestic cricket tournament, in favour of an expanded Twenty20 competition along with a 40-over format. Cricket South Africa are also likely to join the bandwagon as it considers changes to its 45-over competition.Rana said the PCB will wait for the ICC’s green signal before experimenting with the 50-over format. “We will discuss this issue internally and be prepared for it when countries are allowed to try out the new format.,” he said. “One has to change with time and I think cricket also has to undergo slight changes with time.”