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ECB disciplinary committee issues another final warning as it warns Somerset they “are treading a very fine line”

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Sep-2018

Somerset have escaped a points penalty by the ECB’s Cricket Discipline Committee after a full-scale investigation accepted the initial verdict that the pitch should be marked as “below average.”But the county, which received a final warning for a surface prepared against Middlesex almost a year ago, have now received a final, final warning.The CDC report concluded: “Somerset CCC’s pitch preparation will continue to be monitored very closely. The club should expect any proven breach of ECB’s pitch regulations in future to result in a points deduction.”A carefully measured statement indicated that the ECB had not taken action because of lack of evidence and they warned Somerset that they were “treading a very fine line”.The match against Lancashire ended in a tie with Lancashire’s director of cricket Paul Allott fuming that, in his view, Somerset had not tried to create the best possible pitch, as regulations, for the game.Somerset’s defeat at Hampshire effectively ended their Championship challenge, but they will go into 2019 knowing that they cannot afford to incur the wrath of those in high places.Dean Cosker, the Cricket Liaison Officer at Taunton, rated the pitch ‘Below Average’ on the grounds of excessive turn. An investigation was then carried out by a second CLO with support from the ECB Pitch Consultant Chris Wood.The CDC considered whether there were any factors relating to the preparation of the pitch that were beyond Somerset CCC’s control and whether they intended to prepare the best quality pitch they could.The investigation concluded: “All parties agreed that the pitch was under prepared. There were various explanations for this and while the reasons given by Somerset may be regarded as satisfactory, the fact is that they cannot be considered as any more than that.”The Somerset groundsman stated that he sought to prepare the best possible pitch but heavy rain cost a day of preparation time.”Some of the factors which might indicate intent in the way the pitch was prepared were absent. This is significant. These would include over-aggressive scarification of the ends to accentuate wear, or use of a sand ameliorant dressing to enhance friction / grip. There was no evidence that this had occurred.”This lack of evidence means that CDC cannot, on balance, direct ECB to charge Somerset CCC with a breach of regulation. ECB would simply not be able to make the case that action, or inaction by Somerset CCC constituted a breach of the regulation requiring them to seek to prepare the best quality pitch.”CDC notes Somerset’s practice of preparing pitches to assist their spinners. This may be regarded as making use of home advantage, and CDC notes that ECB is keen to support opportunities for all disciplines in the game. However, they must take care that it is in the right degree. They are treading a very fine line.”

St Kitts & Nevis Patriots dismissed Stars for the third-lowest total in the CPL, in a game that barely lasted 20 overs

The Report by Deivarayan Muthu22-Aug-2018
Sheldon Cottrell brings out the dab•CPL T20/ Getty Images

After shellacking 226 – the highest total in the CPL – and snapping their 14-match losing streak on Friday, St Lucia Stars returned to their old ways, folding for 69 in 12.3 overs against St Kitts & Nevis Patriots at the Darren Sammy Stadium. Notably, this was the shortest innings and the third-lowest total in the league.It was seamer Sheldon Cottrell and spinners Mahmudullah and Sandeep Lamichhane who had skittled Stars by collecting seven wickets among them. Wicketkeeper-batsman Devon Thomas, who was promoted to the top in place of captain Chris Gayle, then hastened the victory, with an unbeaten 38 off 21 balls, in a game that barely lasted 20 overs.Stars fade away
In their previous two matches at Gros Islet, Stars had amassed 226 and 212. But Tuesday’s pitch was a bit two-paced and even lent assistance to spin. Andre Fletcher launched the first ball over wide long-on for a big six, but it turned out to be a red herring. Three balls later, he scooped an innocuous low full-toss back to Cottrell, the bowler. Stars’ batsmen lurched from one poor shot to another, while Gayle sat back and kept himself at slip through the innings.Bangladesh’s Mahmudullah, who took the new ball from the other end, had Rakheem Cornwall chipping a catch to mid-off in his first over and then had Lendl Simmons stumped in his second – a wicket-maiden.The onus was on Kieron Pollard and David Warner to rescue the Stars, but they too couldn’t deal with the two-paced surface and Patriots’ relentless accuracy. Pollard laboured to 4 off 10 balls, before being undone by Cottrell’s extra bounce. Later, in the post-match presentation, Cottrell revealed that Patriots’ plan was to hit hard lengths against Pollard and cramp him for room.Warner, who had faced all of eight balls in the Powerplay, himself fell, when he was duped by a wrong’un from Lamichhane in the ninth over. Stars were 49 for 5 at that point.Afghanistan’s Qais Ahmad, who had turned 18 last week, was more confident against Mahmudullah and Lamichhane, taking two sixes and a four off them. All told, he was the only Stars batsman to pass 15. However, he was dismissed in the 12th over, when Lamichhane drew him out of the crease with a loopy legbreak. In the next over, Cottrell had No. 11 Obed McCoy nicking off to provide the coup de grace.Devon Thomas sparkles
After effecting four dismissals behind the stumps – the joint-most in a CPL innings alongside Kumar Sangakkara – Thomas was bumped up to open the batting alongside Evin Lewis, who had managed only four runs in five T20 innings prior to Tuesday’s game. Lewis’ lean patch continued, as he was bounced out by Mitchell McClenaghan for 13, but Thomas reeled off three boundaries off McCoy in the arc between backward point and mid-off. He went onto smear Kesrick Williams for a flat six over extra-cover, and added 30 off 17 balls with Brandon King.King and Tom Cooper were dismissed in successive overs, but Thomas and Anton Devcich eventually sealed Stars’ fate, with seven wickets and 74 balls to spare.

The former Zimbabwe captain and convener of selectors has severely criticised the current administration for their treatment of players

Firdose Moonda21-Jun-2018Tatenda Taibu, former Zimbabwe captain and their convener of selectors until March, severely criticised the current administration for their treatment of players – in particular Brendan Taylor – and called on cricketers in the country to band together.Taylor, who opted out of a Kolpak-deal with Nottinghamshire a year early to return for Zimbabwe last September, was left out of Zimbabwe’s 22-man training squad to play a T20 triangular series next month, which includes Australia and Pakistan. Taylor, along with former captain Graeme Cremer, batsman Craig Ervine and allrounders Sikandar Raza and Sean Williams, have not played in the warm-up matches against Kenya, and Raza made himself unavailable for the tri-series to play in a T20 tournament in Canada instead. The other four remain available for Zimbabwe but only if their demands for a payment plan for outstanding salaries and match fees is delivered by Zimbabwe Cricket to its players by June 25.The players are negotiating through their resurrected player association, which Taibu singled out as being driven by Taylor, and told ESPNcricinfo a union is the only way to stop ZC from intimidating younger players into playing, despite not being paid.”I felt it was very unfair for Brendan Taylor to be targeted for doing what was right and forming a players’ union,” Taibu said. “It’s the right thing to do, to have the players’ union, but I know that if there is a players’ union, the board cannot do what they are doing now.”At the moment, the chairman (Tawengwa Mukuhlani) is in Harare holding meetings with players individually. A lot of the players are young and will be scared to stand up to the chairman. If there is a players’ union in place, the board will have to speak to the players’ union and there will not be able to divide and rule like they are doing. Brendan had to pay the price there, which is not right, which is what I am standing against. It takes a lot of courage for Brendan to stand up for what’s right. He has my utmost respect.”Taibu initially stoked the flames with a tweet on Wednesday evening which read: “What is this? @BrendanTaylor86 tries to do the right thing by helping to set up a players union, which all the other countries have. What do the selectors and ZC do, exclude him from the series. Shame on ZC. Everything that has a beginning has an end.”He also challenged the rest of Zimbabwe players to stand with Taylor and behind the idea of a union, including those who attended Taibu’s academy, Rising Stars. Taibu tweeted Brandon Mavuta, Blessing Muzarabani (who is not in the Zimbabwe squad as he is playing overseas), Tarisai Musakanda, Rugare Magarire and Tinashe Kamumhukamwe the following: “I never taught u to be divided. I taught u principal. @BrendanTaylor86 needs u 2 stand with him.u’re theones who’ll benefit from his stand. If u’re divided,u’ll finish your career and have nothing to show 4 it.”He told ESPNcricinfo that he believed he taught his academy charges better. “When they were at the academy, I taught them principles and the right thing so I reminded them that,” he said. “And I had to let the players know that what’s happening to Brendan is unfair and can happen to anyone.”But Taibu’s biggest challenge was issued to the senior players, in particular Elton Chigumbura, Hamilton Masakadza and Chamu Chibhabha, who were all named in Zimbabwe’s squad. “When are you ever going to stand up for principle? When are you ever going to show youngsters the right way? Surely you can’t tell me that you haven’t been seeing what’s been happening. Earn some respect for standing for the right thing.” Taibu tweeted.And in a series of replies to other Twitter users, including a former sports minister of Zimbabwe David Coltart, he continued to put pressure on Masakadza to “do something.””Hamilton has a chance to do something credible by rallying the troops to stand with @BrendanTaylor86. Let’s see how he wants to be remembered by the cricket world.” For Taibu, it is now time for “the older generation that are in the sideto stand up for what’s right.”Taibu clarified that he was not calling on the players to strike but rather to insist on the formation and legitimacy of a players’ union, which was reformed on June 1, but is yet to attain the signature of all the players. “People mustn’t get me wrong. I am not asking them to boycott the games,” Taibu said. “I am asking them to stand with Brendan and sign to have a players’ association and the players’ representative will take it from there. They will be consulted on decisions. That’s how all the other countries operate. Why shouldn’t we operate in the same way?”Taibu also confirmed he believed part of the reason he was sacked following the failed 2019 World Cup qualifying campaign was because “I said all the things I should have said while I was in the organisation. That’s why I was ousted,” he said.On Twitter, Taibu also promised a tell-all autobiography “soon.”

The fast bowler enjoyed a productive BPL season in late 2017, particularly impressing with his yorkers and slower balls in the death overs

Mohammad Isam30-May-2018Bangladesh have called up Abul Hasan as Mustafizur Rahman’s replacement in their squad for the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan in Dehradun. He is scheduled to arrive in India on June 1, the day Bangladesh play their only warm-up game on the tour.Abul last played for Bangladesh in an ODI in January during the tri-series that also involved Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe. He has struggled for wickets since his international debut in 2012, taking only five in 14 matches across formats, at an overall average of 144.60.In the 2017 BPL, however, Abul was one of the better performers among the local fast bowlers, particularly impressing with his yorkers and slower balls in the death overs. He took 10 wickets at an average of 24.40 and ended the tournament with an economy rate of 8.13.Mustafizur was ruled out on the eve of Bangladesh’s departure for Dehradun, with a toe injury sustained during the last game of Mumbai Indians’ IPL season.Bangladesh play their first match of the series on June 3.

A new scheme, fronted by David Gower, is offering members of the public a chance to buy shares in Lord’s

Andrew Miller25-Apr-2018David Gower, the former England captain, insists that his aim is to be a “good neighbour” to MCC, the owners of Lord’s, after being unveiled as the public face of a consortium that is offering members of the public an opportunity to own parcels of land at the Nursery End of the ground – the scene of numerous development battles in the ground’s recent history.Gower unveiled the New Commonwealth consortium alongside Keith Bradshaw, the former MCC chief executive, at a breakfast meeting in St John’s Wood on Wednesday. Allan Lamb, his former England team-mate, was also in attendance, while other grandees of the game, including Viv Richards and Clive Lloyd, are also believed to be supportive of the scheme.The radical venture comes as a direct consequence of the vote in September, by the 18,000 members of MCC, to reject ambitious plans for a complete overhaul of the ground and instead press on with their own GBP194 million “MCC Masterplan”, funded from the club’s own resources.The alternative “Morley Plan” would have involved collaboration with Charles Rifkind, the property developer whose purchase, in 1999, of a 999-year lease on the disused tunnels beneath the Nursery End of the ground, effectively denied MCC an outright say in the future of their ground.MCC does still own the leasehold on the top 18 inches of land at that end of Lord’s, but the club members baulked – by an overwhelming 90% majority – at Rifkind’s desire to fund a complete overhaul of the venue through the erection of two blocks of flats alongside the Wellington Road.That vote might have been assumed to be the end of the saga. However, Rifkind’s decision to now sell off GBP500 shares, through the use of Blockchain technology, means that the debate will rumble on.Furthermore, the return of Bradshaw to the fray will add an extra layer of intrigue, given that he stood down from the MCC in 2011 in frustration at his ambitious “Vision for Lord’s” being kiboshed by the then-chairman Oliver Stocken.As SACA chief executive, Bradshaw has since gone on to oversee an even more ambitious redevelopment of the Adelaide Oval, which this winter played host to the first day-night Ashes Test – another concept that he championed during his five-year tenure at MCC.”We love Lord’s, but it is generally accepted that the stands are becoming tired, the facilities are tired and need some redevelopment. That requires money, and the Vision for Lord’s was one of the plans that was looked at,” Bradshaw told ESPNcricinfo.”The MCC and members made a decision not to go down that path and I would say we accept the umpire’s decision – there’s no DRS – and we move on.”The lease is for 120 years and if there’s no development on that piece of land and no agreement between MCC and New Commonwealth, then that land will revert back to the people who today acquire a piece of that land.”Millions and millions of people around the world have an emotional attachment to Lord’s,” he added. “Well, now they can go beyond an emotional attachment and have a financial attachment.”Gower, who scored two Test centuries at Lord’s in 17 appearances, was an outspoken advocate of Rifkind’s plan prior to the September vote, and says that the need to reinvigorate the look and feel of his favourite Test venue is the overwhelming reason for his involvement.”Before the vote in September I was quite vocal about what I saw as an opportunity to make the place look better,” Gower told ESPNcricinfo.”I still say that perimeter wall on the Wellington Road and St John’s Wood Road looks like a prison wall. It doesn’t look like something outside the most iconic cricket ground in the world. If they had opted to do something with it at that stage, it could have been a fantastic frontispiece.”That strip of land at the end has had a million hours of conversation about it. We’ve seen what happened with the club in September when the vote was to leave it as it is. They don’t want to develop it and we respect that.”So what we are doing now is saying ‘shall we get some fun out of that land, get some good use out of that land, offer it to people to have a stake in that land?’ Why not?”It’s a glorious ground with a glorious history. I can honestly say I’ve got some very good memories of playing out there, and some downright appalling ones.”Lord’s is iconic in the world of sport. It’s a wonderful place but it needs some TLC to regain its status as the No.1 ground in the world, because there are grounds around the world – Adelaide for one, where they are doing wonderful things to improve facilities.”We want to be good neighbours to the MCC. This is not about confrontation in any shape or form, it’s about making good use of a valuable piece of real estate.”We’re not anti-Lord’s, we’re not anti MCC. I’m a proud member of MCC. This is done if anything for love.”

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Uma das principais forças do Nordeste nos últimos tempos é o Fortaleza. Em seu segundo ano na elite do futebol nacional, o Leão começa a sonhar com a zona de classificação da Libertadores e busca o melhor equilíbrio dentro dos jogos.

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Um dos pontos que o Leão precisa melhorar nesta edição do Brasileiro é o papel como visitante. Em oito jogos, a equipe venceu apenas um duelo, desempenho que impede uma evolução na tabela de classificação.

Conhecido pelo estilo ofensivo de armar a equipe, o ataque marcou oito gols, sendo que três saíram na mesma partida, quando o Fortaleza bateu o Goiás, o lanterna. Já a defesa tomou sete tentos.

Após 15 jogos disputados, o Fortaleza é o 8º colocado, com 22 pontos. O próximo jogo fora de casa é no dia 7 de novembro, quando encara o Athletico, na Arena da Baixada.

Veja o desempenho do Fortaleza como visitante:

São Paulo 0 x 1 Fortaleza
Goiás 1 x 3 Fortaleza
Corinthians 1 x 1 Fortaleza
Ceará 1 x 0 Fortaleza
Flamengo 2 x 1 Fortaleza
Grêmio 1 x 1 Fortaleza
Santos 1 x 1 Fortaleza
Coritiba 0 x 0 Fortaleza

Hampshire have signed South Africa batsman Hashim Amla as their overseas player for the first three months of the 2018 domestic season. Amla, who has been rated as the No. 1 batsman in both Test and ODI cricket, will be available for County Championship and Royal London One-Day Cup action.The move, coming just after the club completed the signing of Sam Northeast, further strengthens the Hampshire batting and underlines the club’s ambition for the coming season. Both men might also be considered captaincy options in due course.While Giles White, Hampshire’s head coach, has confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that James Vince will be the first choice-captain in all formats should he be available – his future in the England team could be decided in New Zealand in the coming weeks – both Northeast and Amla have extensive leadership experience.Either way, Amla’s signing confirms that George Bailey will not return. Despite having a year to run on his contract, Bailey had expressed reservations about coming back some time ago and White confirmed he will not be signed for the second half of the season to replace Amla.”Hashim is an exciting acquisition for us and we feel he’ll be an excellent fit within the group we’ve got, both on and off the pitch,”White said.”He’s a world-class player and this addition adds strength and depth to our batting for the first three months of the season. Runs on the board are important and hopefully this will help us achieve that consistently in both the four-day and 50-over competitions. We’re looking forward to welcoming Hashim and his family to the club.”Amla said: “I am really pleased to be joining a club like Hampshire. Everyone I have spoken to, who have either played or are currently playing there, have only had good things to say about the team.”I look forward to spending the first three months of the season with them, which works out well for me to be able to get some high-quality cricket in before the Proteas tour to Sri Lanka in July.”The 34-year-old has previously had spells at Essex (2009), Nottinghamshire (2010), Surrey (2013-14) and Derbyshire (2015) and underlined his comfort in English conditions by becoming the first South African to score a triple-century in Test cricket when reaching a career-best 311 not out against England at The Oval in 2012.

Tom Blundell is in line for a Test debut after BJ Watling was unable to prove his fitness to keep wicket in the opening match of New Zealand’s season

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Nov-2017

New Zealand will need a new wicketkeeper for the opening Test against West Indies in Wellington after BJ Watling was forced to relinquish the gloves due to his ongoing hip problem.The uncapped Tom Blundell is favourite to take the role although the decision won’t be confirmed until after the New Zealand A match against West Indies.Watling, who has not kept wicket in the last four Plunket Shield matches for Northern District, will remain part of the squad and could be considered as a specialist batsman. If he misses out completely it will be the first Test he is absent from since England at Headingley in 2013.The New Zealand A squad for the warm-up match has also been hit by injury and illness with Martin Guptill (hamstring), Colin Munro (ill), Adam Milne (back) and Scott Kuggeleijn (ill) all withdrawing.

Tottenham Hotspur are acclimatising to life under the stewardship of Ange Postecoglou in the early stages of the new season.

They are also getting used to the absence of Harry Kane, and journalist Rudy Galetti has given an update on the search for his replacement.

Who will replace Harry Kane at Spurs?

The long and drawn-out process of Harry Kane’s departure from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium finally reached its conclusion earlier this month.

Kane is a legend in that half of north London, and so the Spurs faithful will have been glad that he at least chose the Bundesliga over a Premier League rival when angling for a move.

The England captain’s time in the German top flight has got off to a strong start with a goal, assist and three points to boast from the season opener.

He played a very intelligent ball through for Leroy Sane to open the scoring against Werder Bremen before getting in on the act with one of his textbook finishes on Friday night.

Tottenham’s attentions can now turn towards replacing their all-time top scorer, a very sizeable pair of boots to fill.

Football Insider is reporting that one of the names on the Lilywhites' wishlist is Gift Orban, who plays his club football in Belgium with Gent. The Nigerian striker is just 21 years old, so would be brought into the squad as a player for the present and the future.

What has Rudy Galetti said about the Gift Orban rumours?

Rudy Galetti offered his opinion on Tottenham Hotspur’s pursuit of Orban as they look to fill the Harry Kane-sized void.

Speaking recently to GIVEMESPORT, he said: "Tottenham are seriously interested in Gift Orban. They are targeting him as one of the possible replacements for Harry Kane.

"After approaching the representatives of the striker, the pace of a potential deal is a little bit slow. Spurs, in fact, want to negotiate a fair price with Gent, but the Belgian club seem to be quite adamant in their position for the Nigerian player.

"The Belgian club already set the price for Gift Orban at around €30m or €35m. The price is considered a bit high by Tottenham.

"Gent, today, don't want to lower their request. They are still in talks, so let's wait for the developments, which are expected in the next days."

What is the latest Tottenham transfer news?

There may not be much more business to take place at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium if Ange Postecoglou’s recent quotes are anything to go by.

He said: “Our focus at the moment is trimming the squad down and seeing where that takes us in terms of reinforcements.”

That being said, Spurs are being linked with a familiar face, as reports suggest they could reunite with defender Clement Lenglet.

The Frenchman was on loan at the club from Barcelona and he remains excluded from Xavi’s plans at the Nou Camp, having not featured in the squad for the season-opening draw with Getafe.

Elsewhere, there were previous murmurs of the Tottenham boss being an admirer of Nottingham Forest forward Brennan Johnson – and they, of course, have money to spend following the sale of Kane.

He is the man in the World XI squad with most-recent experience of having playing in Pakistan, and he’s happy to share his experience of and enthusiasm for the same with his team-mates

Osman Samiuddin09-Sep-2017Darren Sammy, St Lucian, allrounder, twice world-champion captain, the nicest man in cricket, one of its most popular and now – as the World XI ventures to Pakistan for a potentially pathbreaking tour – Pakistan expert.Sammy is one of five men in the World XI squad with experience of playing in Pakistan – Paul Collingwood, Tamim Iqbal and Hashim Amla have played international cricket there, while Imran Tahir’s first-class career began in the country.Sammy’s is the most current experience, however, having played in Lahore in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) final in March as Peshawar Zalmi’s title-winning – and extremely popular – captain.Sammy spoke to members of the squad as part of a security briefing on Saturday as they began arriving in Dubai, ahead of the flight out to Lahore on Monday. The first of three T20Is is scheduled for Tuesday, at Gaddafi Stadium, the scene of Sammy’s triumph earlier in the year.”I did brief them quickly about my experience in Lahore for the PSL final,” he said. “We’ve had the best security team, who have also briefed them. Like I said before, it’s important. I get to play in front of my fans in St Lucia and around the world and we see how passionate they are, and to get an opportunity after so long, they are all happy to be part of that process.”First thing I said to guys after the PSL final – apart from all the security and the protocol – once I stepped on the field, it felt like playing in St Lucia. That is my honest experience – the crowd were just hungry for cricket, to see their icons and role models play in the game. That is what it felt like. That is what I briefed the players when the coach [Andy Flower] asked me about my experience.”The enthusiasm is unlikely to have been feigned. Even in the uncertainty over which foreign players would attend the PSL final, Sammy was the most eager advocate, an eagerness that has translated into an endearing bond with Pakistani fans. And as soon as he heard about the possibility of this tour, he was in – he would’ve been “disappointed” he said, had he not been called.”We have a reason, a greater cause,” he said. “Everybody here has accepted that they are part of something more important than just their selves. To me, it’s a place where I have a great connection and going back there, like I said through the PSL final, to bring cricket back to Pakistan, if we can be part of history, a greater purpose, it’s a wonderful opportunity.”One of the players interested in Sammy’s experiences would no doubt have been Ben Cutting. The allrounder is one of three Australians in the squad and, alongside George Bailey and Tim Paine, stands a fair shot at becoming the first Australian cricketer to play an international match in Pakistan in nearly 20 years.Australia’s absence from Pakistan dates back to well before the 2009 attacks on the Sri Lanka team which forced international cricket out of the country. They had not toured since a series in 1998-99, choosing to play their away commitments against Pakistan in the UAE, Sri Lanka and England in that time, though an Australia A side did tour in 2007-08.Cutting wasn’t aware of the little bit of history he might create. And some time playing alongside Azhar Mahmood a few years ago is about the breadth of his experience of Pakistan and its cricket.But a passing encounter with a former Australian cricketer who was part of that ‘A’ team tour a decade ago confirmed that this will be an experience to remember.”I did run into Jason Gillespie about a week ago and he said well done,” Cutting said. “I asked him what he knew about Lahore and Pakistan, and he said you’re really going to enjoy it, particularly Lahore itself. He spent some time there. So that was refreshing and good to hear.”