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Zimbabwe captain Elton Chigumbura is planning to establish a cricket academy in Harare

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Apr-2011Zimbabwe captain Elton Chigumbura is planning to establish a cricket academy in Harare. Chigumbura hopes the project, named ‘Aspired Cricket Academy’, will be up and running by August this year and will target primary school children from schools that do not currently have cricket programmes.”I have gained so much from playing the game, so I thought I should give back in a big way,” Chigumbura told . “I love cricket so much that even when I stop playing I will still be a big fan so I am contributing in my own way to make sure that the future of the sport in the country is bright.”We have the Interfin Bank Cricket Academy catering for secondary and high school students and I thought we should have something for the primary schools so that we generate interest at an earlier stage.”Chigumbura is in negotiations to secure land in Borrowdale, in Harare’s northern suburbs, for the academy. He has decided to take on a lot of the expense himself, but is also hoping to secure corporate sponsorship, particularly for the purchase of cricket equipment. He estimates that the academy needs about US$50,000 to get off the ground, which will go towards securing land, equipment, and appropriate playing and practice facilities.”It’s an expensive project which will require that I get sponsorship but the important thing is to get it running first then I am sure we can generate corporate interest once in motion.”Chigumbura plans for the academy to be operational throughout the year with permanent coaches to run it when he is committed with the national team or his domestic franchise. He’s also hoping some of his team-mates will be interested in helping out.He has already teamed up with fellow Zimbabwe cricketers Prosper Utesya, Tinashe Panyangara, Craig Ervine, Graeme Cremer and Hamilton Masakadza to conduct holiday cricket sessions at Prince Edward School in Harare from April 18 to 30. The players are hoping the sessions, which are free and open to children between seven to 12 years old, will become a yearly event and have sent out invitations to schools.

Despite two flop shows in the tournament, the Indian team’s morale ahead of the crunch match against New Zealand seems to be pretty high

Siddarth Ravindran in Dambulla24-Aug-2010Despite two flop shows in the tournament, the Indian team’s morale ahead of the crunch match against New Zealand seems to be pretty high. MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina were involved in a brief, fun game of tennis-ball cricket with some of the local net bowlers ahead of practice. There was plenty of banter between the Indian batsmen and the bowlers during the nets, mostly debating whether a particular shot would have cleared an imaginary fielder or not.There was serious training as well. Gary Kirsten had one-on-one chats with several of the young batsmen after giving them throw-downs in the nets, pointing out chinks in technique. For Monday’s optional session, 12 members of the side turned up, instead of the usual half a dozen or so.”I think the preparation has been very good,” Dhoni, the India captain, said. “Hopefully execution will also be good tomorrow.”With Dambulla’s pitches different in character to the usual subcontinental tracks, Dhoni stressed the need to be watchful at the start of the innings. “It’s more about the mindset because in one-day cricket you’re so used to going after and hitting the bowlers right from the first delivery,” he said. “[Usually if you] give respect to the bowlers for the first 10 overs, the next 40 overs are yours. This is one of those venues where you have to prolong the respect for bowlers by another 10 overs.”India folded for 88 and 103 in two matches, sandwiching a victory crafted by a Virender Sehwag special, but Dhoni wasn’t overly worried about the batting. “I won’t be bothered too much,” he said. “But if it’s said that this is the batting strength of our side, I won’t agree with that. One thing we can’t deny is that we have had two batting failures and we have to rectify the problem, get on the wicket and try to score some runs.”In both defeats, the loss of wickets led to a near halt in the scoring: after losing the third wicket against Sri Lanka, India made 13 runs in seven overs, while the corresponding number in the opening game against New Zealand was six runs in five overs. Dhoni called for a more enterprising approach. “Most of the batsmen are trying to battle through and there are times when you can’t do that. If you get eight or 10 runs off five overs, it doesn’t really help you. You have to be brave enough to play your big shots or challenge the bowler. You have to keep speculating and you have to try and make a way through the opposition.”Rohit Sharma is one batsmen having a horrid time, rarely looking comfortable at the crease all tournament, but he got a vote of confidence from his captain. “It’s a tricky situation for him,” Dhoni said. “There’s pressure when you are always in and out of the side. Especially on these wickets. Unfortunate to get out once when he didn’t get the umpire’s decision in his favour. He is working hard and his fitness has improved a lot.”Wasim Akram reportedly called some of the Indian youngsters ‘softies’, a charge Dhoni denied. “They have done really well in adverse and difficult conditions. Whether it’s in Australia or the T20 World Cup or some of the other tournaments where we were not at our best,” Dhoni said. “I think the guys are courageous enough to go through any conditions or situations thrown at them. We are just on the back foot right now, with the conditions maybe. But these are the boys who will ultimately be part of the Indian cricket team now or sometime later.”

Mitchell Johnson hit a low point of his career during last year’s Ashes but is now ready to shown what he has learnt

Brydon Coverdale in Birmingham04-Jul-2010This time last year, Mitchell Johnson was approaching his nadir. He was on Australia’s Ashes tour of England; his mother was in the tabloids back home, claiming Johnson had been “stolen” away from her by his fiancée. The stories were picked up in the London press, and it was an ugly episode that distracted Johnson from his role as the team’s spearhead.At Lord’s, he bowled short and wide and was carved up by England’s batsmen, and finished the match with 3 for 200. The crowds around the country got stuck in to him, he couldn’t swing the ball, and nothing went right. Next week, he returns to Lord’s to face Pakistan in a Test, almost a year to the day after he last wore the baggy green there, under nothing like the same intense scrutiny.”Lord’s was my lowest point, performance wise,” Johnson said in Birmingham, where he was preparing for Monday’s Twenty20 against Pakistan. “Even that, I look at the second innings and I started to feel a little better about my bowling. You look at the whole series and I was one of the leading wicket takers, I just wasn’t really at my best.”I’m definitely more relaxed this time. It’s totally different to last time. I don’t feel those pressures. My game, I feel, has improved a lot since last being here. I had that exposure of what it was like to be the new leader of the attack and getting all the media hype and what you were getting from the crowds as well.”On that front, Johnson is right. The Ashes this series is not, so the media hype will not follow him. And when the return contest comes later this year, Johnson will have the local fans behind him. Even so, he feels he has learnt from his last trip to England, and his focus was tested again earlier this year in New Zealand, when he clashed heads with Scott Styris in an ODI in Napier.”In New Zealand I copped a fair bit as well from their crowds, with the incident that happened over there with Scott Styris,” Johnson said. “I copped a fair bit over there after that, but I showed that I can pull my head together and just go out there and play cricket and not let the emotions get to me. I’ve pretty much shown that I have improved.”His focus is one thing, but Johnson must also find a way to master the English conditions. He finished the Ashes tour with 20 wickets at 32.55 – not a bad analysis, but one that flattered him a little. Part of the problem at Lord’s was the unusual slope, which Johnson had been warned about but which caused him all sorts of trouble, while he also found the English surfaces slower and softer under his feet.Against Pakistan at Lord’s and Headingley, Johnson will be Ricky Ponting’s go-to man in a pace attack likely to feature Doug Bollinger and Ben Hilfenhaus. He doesn’t view the series so much as a second chance in England as an opportunity to fine-tune his game, which has improved dramatically since last July – he has taken 41 Test wickets at 25.90 since the start of the Australian summer.”I did find Lord’s quite different, quite a hard place to bowl because of the slope in it,” Johnson said. “It’s something that I was warned about, speaking to past players and [Australia’s bowling coach] Troy Cooley, who has been over here as the England bowling coach. It was a pretty good experience for me.”I haven’t played county cricket before, and it’s always a good experience coming over here and playing on different kinds of wickets. Whether it’s a second chance or not – I’m not looking at it that way. I just want to go out there and do my best again. Hopefully we can start off with these Twenty20s and then work into the Test matches, which I’m really looking forward to.”Monday’s Twenty20 will be Johnson’s first match back after missing the ODI series against England due to an infection in his right elbow. He had a tattoo on the arm ahead of the World Twenty20 and there has been speculation the two could be linked, but Johnson isn’t convinced that his artwork had anything to do with his soreness.”I wouldn’t have thought so,” he said. “I got the tattoo three weeks before I travelled away, so that ruled that out. I got to the West Indies and I felt like I knocked it on the plane, but I’m not 100% sure. It started off as a little bursa, a little sac of fluid, and then progressed from there. We’re not really 100% sure how it came and got infected. At the moment it’s feeling very good.”So is the rest of Johnson. What a difference a year makes.

Lasith Malinga, the Sri Lankan fast bowler, has been rested from the second Test against India beginning in Colombo on July 26

Sa'adi Thawfeeq24-Jul-2010Lasith Malinga, the Sri Lankan fast bowler, has been rested from the second Test against India beginning in Colombo on July 26. Malinga was one of the architects of Sri Lanka’s ten-wicket win in Galle but will miss out at the SSC because of “stiffness in his knee”. He will be replaced by Dilhara Fernando, while spinner Ajantha Mendis also returned to the squad.Aravinda de Silva, the chairman of selectors, said Malinga was rested on the advice of team physiotherapist Tommy Simsek after the bowler complained of stiffness in his dodgy right knee, which had kept him out of Test cricket for 30 months.”We have to be cautious with Malinga. He was not feeling quite fit to go through a five-day Test. He complained of stiffness in his knee,” de Silva said. “We are closely monitoring Malinga’s fitness and we are hopeful he will be fully fit for the third Test starting in ten days time.” The third Test starts on August 3 at the P Sara Oval.Malinga had made his comeback to Test cricket in Galle after a long absence and played a critical role in Sri Lanka’s victory by taking 5 for 50 in the second innings. He bowled a total of 30 overs in the match for seven wickets.The setback to Malinga is a severe blow for Sri Lanka especially since the SSC Test will be their first after Muttiah Muralitharan retired from the format. Malinga and Muralitharan had combined to take 15 of India’s 20 wickets in Galle.Mendis, who had taken 6 for 67 in a practice game against the Indians but was overlooked for the first Test, is likely to take Muralitharan’s place. The other contender for the spot, offspinner Suraj Randiv, retained his place in the squad.Following Muralitharan’s retirement, former captain Mahela Jayawardene was named vice-captain to Kumar Sangakkara. “We want Mahela, who has a good cricket brain, to be part of the decision-making process in the middle,” de Silva said.Squad: Kumar Sangakkara (capt), Tillakaratne Dilshan, Tharanga Paranavitana, Mahela Jayawardene, Thilan Samaraweera, Angelo Mathews, Prasanna Jayawardene, Ajantha Mendis, Dilhara Fernando, Chanaka Welagedara, Suraj Randiv, Rangana Herath, Thilina Kandamby, Dammika Prasad, Lahiru Thirimanne, Nuwan Pradeep.

Former Leeds United striker Noel Whelan has been reacting to an update regarding Kalvin Phillips, as per Football Insider.

The Lowdown: On-air claim

The midfielder has missed the club’s last six Premier League games with a hamstring injury he sustained against Brentford back in December.

However, talking to Sky Sports towards the end of January, the 26-year-old admitted that his recovery is all on track for a March return following an operation.

He also discussed his hopes for the World Cup at the end of the year, with his interview being broadcast live on Sky Sports News.

The Latest: Whelan reacts

Whelan, who contributes as a pundit for BBC Radio Leeds, was talking to Football Insider regarding Phillips’ comments. He labelled the midfielder’s return as ‘huge’ and was buzzing over the update, saying:

“It would be massive to get him back soon.

“Especially in this second part of the season, as it gets closer down towards the bottom and teams around Leeds have made lots of signings.

“To have someone like Kalvin with his quality and the stability he brings to the side, it’s huge.

“His experience and what he brings to the team is so important. I think you can see that from the points that have been dropped in his absence this season.”

The Verdict: Fingers crossed

Leeds have since shared pictures of Phillips and Liam Cooper all smiles on the training pitch, so hopefully it is just a matter of time until both are back up to speed and ready for action.

Marcelo Bielsa needs all the sidelined players back as soon as possible due to the size of his squad, and both Phillips and Cooper have been pivotal under the Argentine over the last four seasons.

That is especially true for Phillips, with Bielsa having limited midfield options as it is and needing to rely on centre-back Robin Koch to line out in the defensive midfield role in recent weeks, with the German himself only returning from a long-term layoff.

In other news: Phil Hay and Graham Smyth buzzing over free transfer news involving Leeds

Paul Collingwood and Ian Bell both enjoyed some valuable time in the middle, but the rest of England’s batsmen failed to make use of a good batting pitch in their second warm-up game

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Nov-2010
Scorecard
Paul Collingwood enjoyed returning to the venue of his highest Test score•Getty ImagesPaul Collingwood and Ian Bell both enjoyed some valuable time in the middle, but the rest of England’s batsmen failed to make use of a good batting pitch in their second warm-up game. Adelaide Oval would have seemed the ideal venue for key men to get runs under their belts, but Australia’s newest Test bowler, Peter George, made life difficult for the top order.Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott are the two men England would like to see fire in the second innings; they are the only specialist batsmen who have not yet recorded a half-century on the tour. As they had in Perth, the visitors again played their best XI, a strong indication of how seriously they are taking the practice matches still a fortnight from the first Test.Collingwood’s 94 was a positive sign, as he enjoyed returning to the venue of his highest Test score, but he missed the chance for a century when he edged to gully off the fast bowler Jake Haberfield. He scored his runs quickly – he took only 116 deliveries – and his partnership with Bell helped England recover from a shaky 4 for 95.The early wickets came mostly through George, who played the Bangalore Test in October but is likely to have been overtaken by Peter Siddle and Ryan Harris, who have come back from long injury lay-offs, in the queue for a place in the Gabba Test. George began by removing Andrew Strauss, who was caught down leg side for 4, before he added Trott, who on 12 miscued a pull and gave George a return catch.George had all three wickets when he came back after lunch to have Cook caught behind for 32, and England were in a hole at 3 for 63. Kevin Pietersen and Collingwood began the rebuilding process but Pietersen departed for 33, the victim of a clever take at deep square leg, where his hook was caught on the boundary by Aiden Blizzard, who tossed the ball back in the air while he fell out of play, and snaffled it again after stepping back in.If that was a sign that it was not England’s day, it was ignored by Collingwood and Bell, who combined for a brisk 131-run partnership. Bell was bowled by Ben Edmondson for 61 before the left-arm spinner Aaron O’Brien picked up a couple of lower-order wickets that encouraged a declaration from Strauss at 8 for 288 late in the day.However, England’s bowlers didn’t have any success in nine overs before stumps. South Australia closed the day at 0 for 26, with James Smith on 16 and Daniel Harris on 10, and the fast men will need to find whatever help George (3 for 65) located in the surface if they are to enjoy their day in the field on Friday.

Paul Wilson, the former Test fast bowler, has been added to Cricket Australia’s national umpires panel for 2010-11

Cricinfo staff25-May-2010Paul Wilson, the former Test fast bowler, has been added to Cricket Australia’s national umpires panel for 2010-11. The promotion of Wilson, 38, continues Australia’s trend of encouraging former first-class players to join the umpiring ranks.Rod Tucker, who captained Tasmania in the 1990s, has steadily progressed to international level and officiated in his first Tests earlier this year. The former Test seamer Paul Reiffel has also been a project umpire for Cricket Australia for several years and has now stood in three one-day internationals and four Twenty20 internationals.Wilson has had a taste of umpiring state cricket, having been in the middle for two Sheffield Shield games last summer, as well as a handful of limited-overs outings. A hardworking fast man who played one Test and 11 one-day internationals in 1997-98, Wilson has taken the place of his fellow Western Australian Jeff Brookes on the 12-man panel.”Paul Wilson’s elevation to the national umpires panel demonstrates Cricket Australia’s commitment to provide opportunities for past players to continue their involvement in cricket after retirement,” James Sutherland, the CEO of Cricket Australia, said. “Paul deserves his promotion after a number of years on the project panel and we look forward to his continuing development and progress along the umpiring pathway in the coming seasons.”National umpires panel Gerard Abood (NSW), Simon Fry (SA), Geoff Joshua (Vic), Ian Lock (WA), Mick Martell (WA), Bruce Oxenford (Qld), Bob Parry (Vic), Paul Reiffel (Qld), Rod Tucker (NSW), John Ward (Vic), Tony Ward (Vic), Paul Wilson (WA).

Celtic ‘are looking’ to loan out Osaze Urhoghide during the January transfer window, according to Joe Crann for The Scotsman. 

The lowdown: Urhoghide limited

Urhoghide was the first signing of the Ange Postecoglou era at Celtic, penning a four-year deal after his contract at Sheffield Wednesday expired (via Sky Sports).

However, he was limited to a solitary appearance prior to the winter break, and that came in a Europa League dead-rubber against Real Betis.

The right-back produced an all-action performance against the La Liga outfit, winning five tackles, prevailing in nine out of 15 duels, completing two dribbles and creating a chance (via SofaScore).

The latest: Celtic plan loan move

‘(I) understand that the club have turned down approaches to sign Osaze Urhoghide on a permanent basis,’ Crann said on Twitter.

However, the Hoops do intend to let him leave Parkhead on a temporary basis.

There’s interest in the 21-year-old from ‘clubs in the SPFL and English Championship’.

The verdict: Great decision

Opportunities have been hard to come by for Urhoghide, but he very much looks to remain part of Celtic’s long-term plans.

And no wonder, based on a ‘fantastic debut’ against Betis that Football Scotland’s Euan Robertson rated eight out of 10.

If he can impress on loan further down the SPFL or in the English second tier, he’ll return to Lennoxtown for pre-season with his prospects of a greater squad role significantly boosted.

Listing him for loan is a smart move from the Hoops, and a permanent deal should absolutely be out of the question given how little we’ve seen of his abilities so far.

In other news, Gabby Agbonlahor is in awe of this transfer business.

West Ham United have failed in their attempts to bring Duje Caleta-Car to the London Stadium in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a recent claim made by Claret & Hugh, with the West Ham insider revealing in a recent post that, despite David Moyes’ side’s continued attempts to find an agreement with Olympique de Marseille regarding a deal for the centre-back, sources on both sides of the transfer have stated that a compromise between the two clubs does not look likely to be reached.

It is reported that the Hammers are looking to take the 25-year-old on a loan to buy deal, while Marseille are only willing to part with the Croatia international for an up front fee of £15m.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/check-out-the-latest-west-ham-news” title=”Check out the latest West Ham News”]

In their post, Claret & Hugh said: “West Ham are believed to have finally missed out on signing Croatian central defender Duje Caleta-Car. The Hammers have been chasing the player for several weeks and are likely to continue doing so up until the end of the window.

“But Claret & Hugh’s information from both sides of the deal is that Marseille are unwilling to do a loan to buy option and continue to insist on a £15 million permanent deal. The Hammers have made it clear they have no interest in such a deal at this point and want to take a look at the player over the remainder of the season.

“We are planning to pursue things until the end of the window but Marseille sources insist no deal other than a permanent switch is considered suitable.”

Moyes can kiss top four goodbye

With West Ham’s absolute priority targets in the January transfer window having been a new centre-forward and a new centre-back – neither of which Moyes has managed to land – the news that the Premier League side are set to miss out on a defender they have been pursuing for a large portion of the current market is sure to have left Hammers fans livid with their club’s strategy this winter.

Indeed, with a little under 36 hours until the transfer window closes on Monday evening, each hour that passes from now on looks to reduce the club’s likelihood of bringing a new centre-back to the London Stadium this winter – meaning the stalemate with Marseille regarding a deal for Caleta-Car appears to have been extremely important time wasted.

And, with the Hammers pushing for a top-four finish in the league this season, should Moyes indeed fail to bring in both a new centre-back and centre-forward this month, the Scot may as well kiss goodbye to the prospect of Champions League football next season now – as the 58-year-old’s squad simply does not have enough strength in depth to maintain a top-four push in its current state.

In other news: “I can confirm…”: ExWHUemployee drops huge transfer update, WHU fans will be buzzing

Haroon Lorgat has said the organisation has put together a case against the three Pakistan players accused of spot-fixing that will “stand the test of scrutiny”

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Dec-2010Haroon Lorgat, the ICC’s chief executive, has said he is confident the organisation has put together a solid case against the three Pakistan players accused of spot-fixing that will “stand the test of scrutiny”. The players, former Pakistan Test captain Salman Butt and new-ball bowlers Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif, will face an independant tribunal that will decide their fate from January 6 to January 11 next year”We’ve worked hard at collecting all the evidence that we would require to make the charges stand,” Lorgat told the .Michael Beloff QC, who chairs the ICC’s code of conduct commission, will head the tribunal that will hear the case, along with fellow code of conduct commissioners Justice Albie Sachs of South Africa and Kenya’s Sharad Rao. If the players are found guilty, Lorgat said they will be dealt with firmly. “We would want to be proportional but at the same time we do not want to show any leniency. These are severe issues and integrity of the game is absolutely fundamental and we would not want to tolerate any of that in the sport.”The players, however, will be free to challenge the ruling in the Court for Arbitration for Sport. “My understanding is that any matter that we decide on in a disciplinary process is always open to contest in the Court of Arbitration for Sport,” Lorgat said.The , the tabloid that broke the spot-fixing story in August, is also set to be part of the tribunal hearings. The story first appeared in the publication on the third evening of the fourth Test at Lord’s between Pakistan and England.NOTW alleged that the three players were involved in bowling deliberate, planned no-balls in England’s first innings. Much of the published story centred around a video sting operation in which Mazhar Majeed, an agent to the players, was filmed talking about the no-balls and allegedly taking payment for them from undercover reporters posing as a betting syndicate.The evidence gathered by the publication was passed on to Scotland Yard and the ICC’s anti-corruption unit (ACSU), who subsequently launched their own investigations and gathered more evidence. The UK’s Crown Prosecution Service is currently considering whether the evidence passed on to them by police is enough to warrant criminal prosecution against the players.The ICC’s response was swifter. They provisionally suspended the three, soon after the story emerged, based on the ACSU’s investigations. Since then, Butt and Amir have had their appeals against suspensions dismissed by Beloff in a hearing in Dubai. Asif chose not to appeal.