The last time England played in the Caribbean a tall paceman from Durham grabbed all the headlines but, as the team prepares to head out to West Indies for the World Cup, Steve Harmison won’t even be on the plane.After the 5-0 Ashes whitewash Harmison announced his retirement from one-day cricket, saying he hoped it would extend his time at Test level. His last ODIs where in the Champions Trophy, when two wayward performances continued a poor run with the white ball, which Harmison struggled to control. In 2006 he took 14 wickets at 30, but that doesn’t tell the whole story as he went for almost six-an-over, include a 0 for 97 hammering by Sri Lanka at Headingley.His efforts in the Ashes will be remembered for one ball, his opening delivery of the series which went straight to Andrew Flintoff at second slip. After his one-day retirement questions were again asked about his commitment and passion, but Harmison is shrugging all that off.”I don’t think I’ve got to prove anything to anyone, my record speaks for itself,” he told , although others will beg to differ after a career that hasn’t lived up that 2004 West Indies tour.”What I want to do is enjoy my cricket again because I didn’t enjoy what happened this winter. The reasons for that are pretty obvious, but it’s behind me and I’m only looking forward. I won’t let the criticism get to me, I’ve got big enough shoulders to deal with that. If people think otherwise, they don’t know me.”All I’ll say is, I’ve learnt a lot about who my friends are and who was pretending to be my friend. That’s all I’ll say about it, but I know what I want out of life and I know I’m still a good fast bowler.”Harmison will have a handful of early-season Championship and domestic one-dayers to prove his worth to the selectors before the opening Test against West Indies, which starts on May 17 at Lord’s.
Daniel Vettori was named The National Bank Player of the Year for the second consecutive time at the New Zealand Cricket Awards Dinner in Auckland on Thusday.”Daniel is a deserving winner having consistently delivered outstanding performances in both forms of the game throughout the 12-month period under review,” said Martin Snedden, NZC’s chief executive. “Daniel has been a dominant force in all facets of the game. He scored New Zealand’s fastest-ever Test century against Zimbabwe, and claimed 19 first-class wickets at an average of 17.47. His Test batting average was 51.2. In ODIs he maintained an ODI economy rate of 3.87 and took 23 wickets at an average of 30.17.”He also captained in this season’s Chappell-Hadlee Trophy series and was the only New Zealand player selected for the World XI which played Australia in last year’s inaugural Super Series. He also fitted in four State Shield wickets and four innings as an opener, averaging 53.25.”The other awards were:Redpath Cup Awarded to the batsman whose performances in men’s First-Class cricket have been the most meritorious: Mathew Sinclair who scored 848 runs at an average 53 with four centuries and four half-centuriesWinsor Cup Awarded to the bowler whose performances in men’s First-Class cricket have been the most meritorious: Chris Martin who took 50 wickets at an average of 23.98Walter Hadlee Trophy Awarded for the most meritorious batting by a New Zealand player in one-day internationals: Nathan Astle who averaged 45 including two centuries and four half centuries.Walter Hadlee Trophy Awarded for the most meritorious bowling by a New Zealand player in One-Day internationals: Shane Bond who took 36 wickets at an average of 18.11.State Medal Awarded to the most outstanding player in men’s domestic cricket: Jonathan Trott, who scored 275 runs and took eight wickets in the State Championship for Otago, and made 455 runs and took 14 wickets in the State Shield.State Plate Awarded to the most outstanding player in women’s domestic cricket: Aimee Mason, who took 16 wickets and scored 280 runs as she captained State Central Hinds to the State League title and played for the White Ferns in their series win over India.The Phyl Blackler Cup Awarded to the bowler whose performances in women’s cricket have been the most meritorious: Louise Milliken, who took six wickets in the White Ferns’ series win over India and took 16 wickets for the Northern Spirit in State League play.The Ruth Martin Cup Awarded to the batsman whose performances in women’s cricket have been the most meritorious: Emily Drumm, who made her 100th One-Day international appearance for the White Ferns this year, taking eight wickets and scoring 274 runs in the series against India, with a high score of 94*. She also scored 478 runs at an average of 53.11 for the State Northern Spirit in the State League.Sutcliffe Medal For outstanding services to cricket: Peter Sharp“Peter Sharp is a deserving recipient of the Sutcliffe Medal, having made an extremely valuable lifetime contribution to cricket in New Zealand,” Snedden told the audience. “Peter represented Canterbury eight times during the mid 1960s before moving into the media where, for the past 40 years, he has been broadcasting cricket on radio and, at times, on television. He has held a number of important voluntary positions within cricket where he has made a valuable contribution to the game regionally and nationally.”Peter became a Level 3 coach in 1984 and has maintained a close involvement in cricket coaching since then, including spending three years as a Kiwi Cricket co-ordinator.As well as his involvement in cricket, Peter has served as a trustee of the Murray Halberg Trust and on the Assembly of Sport, The Hillary Commission, and the New Zealand Secondary Schools Sports Council.”
The sponsorship imbroglio that threatened to rip West Indian cricket apart isseemingly over, but it has cost Brian Lara his captaincy, at least for themoment. Lara is among the four players involved in the sponsorship controversy to have been named for the second Test against South Africa starting April 8, but Shivnarine Chanderpaul has been retained as captain for the entire series.Chris Gayle, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Dwayne Bravo are the other players who are back in the fold, at the expense of Daren Ganga, Donovan Pagon and Narsingh Deonarine who were part of playing XI for the first Test.Michael Carew, the convener of selectors, said he and his panel were pleasedwith the team’s overall performance in the first Test and he expected that the “team will go from strength to strength as the series progresses.”Coach Bennett King must be one of the happiest men in the Caribbean present,” Carew said, “given the talent that has been on display. He must also be quite optimistic with the cricket World Cup in mind and even beyond that.”Lara, who has captained West Indies in 40 out of his 112 Tests, had earlier declined an invitation to be part of first Test on the grounds that he wanted the selectors to pick the best possible West Indies team. Lara and six others were contracted to Cable & Wireless, business rivals to Digicel, the official sponsors of the West Indian cricket team. The matter was finally resolved with Cable & Wireless releasing Sarwan, Gayle, Bravo and Fidel Edwards.West Indies squad Chris Gayle, Wavell Hinds, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Brian Lara, Shivnarine Chanderpaul (capt), Ryan Hinds, Courtney Browne (wk), Dwayne Bravo, Daren Powell, Pedro Collins, Reon King, Dwight Washington.
Elite Championship Sixth RoundPunjab 209 (Sahabuddin 5-52) beat Andhra 30 and 84 (Gagandeep 5-32, Sharma 4-32) by and innings and 95 runs Scorecard After being run over for 30 yesterday, Andhra put in another ignominious batting display as Punjab wrapped up the match (with a bonus point) at Mohali with two days to spare. Punjab’s batting was characterised by some quick cameos by Yuvraj Singh (38), Dinesh Mongia (38) and Pankaj Dharmani (39), which gave them a lead of 179. Syeb Sahabuddin was the pick of the Andhra bowlers with 5 for 52. That lead proved to be more than enough, as Andhra crumbled for only 84 in their second innings with none of the batsmen passing 25. The bowling heroes for Punjab were Gagandeep Singh and Vineet Sharma, as they were in the first innings, taking nine wickets between them.Railways 103 for 3 trail Mumbai 388 (Powar 131, Muzumdar 95) by 285 runsScorecard Amol Muzumdar fell five short of a hundred, but Ramesh Powar cracked an entertaining 131 to give Mumbai the advantage at the Wankhede Stadium. Resuming at 236 for 5, Muzumdar added only four runs before he was snapped up by Zakir Hussain. Three quick wickets followed before Powar was joined by Munaf Patel, the last man, with the score on 312. The next half-hour saw a flurry of boundaries – including some massive sixes – and 76 valuable runs were realised, of which Munaf blitzed 32 in just 24 balls. Munaf carried on the good work with an accurate first spell, and was rewarded when Amit Pagnis fished at one away from the body. After the loss of two more wickets, Sanjay Bangar and Shreyas Khandolkar steadied the innings with a vital 65-run unbeaten stand.Kerala 286 for 5 (Kudva 90*) v Delhi Scorecard Kerala trudged along on the second day at the Harbax Singh Stadium Delhi, on the back of a steady 90 from Ajay Kudva. Only 201 runs were added in the day, with Hemanth Kumar and Sreekumar Nair chipping in with 46 and 34 respectively. Kudva’s dogged effort took up 193 balls and contained 11 fours.Tamil Nadu 87 for 3 trail Hyderabad 447 (Vinay 93, Khaleel 75, Vishnuvardhan 59) by 360 runs Scorecard Tamil Nadu suffered three early setbacks in pursuit of 447 in Hyderabad. After a solid batting display by the Hyderabad top order yesterday, the tail picked up the baton, with Ibrahim Khaleel and Sankinani Vishnuvardhan notching up half-centuries. Narendra Pal Singh and Venkatapathy Raju finished with the innings with a flourish, as they put on 47 runs in quick time. For TN, Jayaraman Gokulakrishnan and Tamil Kumaran picked up three wickets apiece. Vishnuvardhan then snapped up both the TN openers, but Sridharan Sriram stroked 48 and held things together.Karnataka 280 for 6 (Rowland 122*) lead Gujarat 210 by 70 runs Scorecard Barrington Rowland carved out a fine century as Karnataka gained the upper hand, along with a 70-run lead, at Ahmedabad. Siddharth Trivedi (4 for 71) threatened to derail the innings, but Rowland got good support from Deepak Chougule (37) and Stuart Binny (41) and resurrected the innings. Rowland hit seven fours in his 320-ball effort.Baroda 34 for 1 trail Uttar Pradesh 473 (Samshad 168) by 439 runs Scorecard Rizwan Shamshad slammed 168 and helped UP pile on the misery on Baroda at Vadodara. Shamshad – 34 overnight – spent nearly eight hours at the crease, and hit 18 fours. Gyanendra Pandey chipped in with 44 and Pravin Gupta put on 78 vital runs with Shamshad. Rakesh Patel and Shekhar Joshi, the two medium-pacers, picked up three wickets each.Plate ChampionshipFourth RoundTripura 3 for 1 trail Madhya Pradesh 454 (Abbas Ali 109, Patwardhan 106) by 451 runs Scorecard MP posted a massive total at Indore as Syed Abbas Ali and Nikhil Patwardhan crafted fine hundreds. Patwardhan got useful support from the tail, and 204 was added after Ali fell. Arindam Sarkar, the medium-pacer, was the most successful bowler for Tripura, and finished with 4 for 72.Jammu & Kashmir 104 (Sandeep 5-56) and 36 for 4 trail Vidharbha 379 (Fazal 151) by 239 runs Scorecard Resuming at 300 for 4, Vidharbha lost their way this morning at Nagpur, as only 79 more were made for the loss of six wickets. Even that would not have been possible, if not for Chandrashekhar Atram’s breezy 37. But they ensured that it was more than enough, when J&K were skittled out for 104. Sandeep Singh scythed through the top order and finished with a five-wicket haul. And it got even worse when J&K were reduced to 36 for 4 as they followed on, which left them 239 runs in arrears.Himachal Pradesh 111 and 15 for 0 trail Goa 312 (D’Sousa 74, Jakati 66) by 186 runs Scorecard After shooting down HP for only 111, Goa gained a sizeable first-innings lead at Dharamshala. Robin D’Sousa and Shadab Jakati compiled half-centuries and Goa gained a lead of 211. D’Sousa hit eight fours but Jakati was more aggressive as he hit 10 fours in his 148-ball effort.Services 89 for 2 trail Maharashtra 403 (Khirid 117, Kanitkar 112, Fazil 5-104) by 314 runs Scorecard Maharashtra have had a great time with the bat this season, and it was no different against Services at Aurangabad. After a century from Hrishikesh Kanitkar yesterday, Ranjit Khirid smashed 117 and nudged them past the 400 mark. For Services, Fazil Mohammad finished with five victims. Services replied by crawling to 89 for 2 in 34 overs, with Yashpal Singh unbeaten on 42.Orissa 41 for 1 trail Saurashtra 228 (Vaghela 95) by 187 runs Scorecard Despite Kanaia Waghela’s sedate 95, Saurashtra were restricted to 228 at Cuttack. Waghela hit 10 fours in his 339-ball knock. Yet none of the other batsmen passed 30, as Debashish Mohanty and Deepak Mangaraj grabbed seven wickets between them. Orissa lost the wicket of SS Das before stumps were drawn.
St Cross Symondians have lost their unbeaten record but are still top of the NatWest Bank Under-16 Indoor Cricket League at the Hampshire Rose Bowl.They never recovered from a disastrous start and were well beaten by five wickets by Andover, who lie second in the table, 12 points behind.A hat-trick of run outs involving Hampshire Under-16 all-rounder Steve Williams put St Cross under pressure from the start and only Robert Miller (23) put up much of a fight as St Cross slumped to 103 all out.Williams (25), Robert Palmer (27) and James Manning (21) swept Andover to an easy 11-point win.But St Cross regained their impetus to successfully chase Mudeford’s formidable 149-5 and win by four wickets.Mike Chant (69 not out) and Scott Assinder (52) made the highest individual scores so far, but St Cross never looked back after a flying start by Miller (28) and James Burridge (27).James Irvine-Fortescue hit an unbeaten 40 to get St Cross home off the penultimate ball.Andover piled up the highest total to date when they reached 171-1 against Mudeford, with Williams (28), Palmer (27), Manning (26), Cellie van der Merwe (25) amnd Mark Copplestone (25) all retiring.Mudeford, totally bemused, managed 79-4, with only Steve Jacobs (29) and Chant (24) undefeated.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has today been having urgentdiscussions with Warwickshire County Cricket Club, other ground authorities,the ICC Match Referee Brian Hastings, and representatives of the respectiveteam managements, following the crowd incursions at Edgbaston towards theend of the England versus Pakistan NatWest One-Day International (ODI)match.Tim Lamb, Chief Executive of the ECB, said: “The crowd incursions on to the playing area last night were totally unacceptable and we are doing everything we can to ensure that there is no repetition during any of the other matches in the NatWest Series.”Our first priority is to protect the safety of the players, umpires and spectators, and we have therefore decided to act swiftly and implement a number of immediate remedial measures.”We reject the suggestion made by the Australian captain that the ECB does not regard the matter of crowd invasions as a safety issue.”The authorities at Edgbaston, who are ultimately responsible for safety matters at the ground, took the decision to double the number of police present last night and very considerable thought was given by Warwickshire to all aspects of the preparation for last night’s match.”The ECB is in close contact with other ground authorities at the venues for the remaining NatWest ODI matches.”The measures the ECB will be taking at the remaining ODI matches are:Stewarding – Ground authorities have already taken steps to increase levels ofstewarding at strategic points around the ground.Player Safety – Additional security and crowd control measures will be provided in the area around the players’ dressing rooms and in the pavilion area, whereplayers enter and leave the pitch.Suspending Play – Should spectators start to mass on the wrong side of the boundary boards and/or encroach on to the playing area whilst the match is still in progress (as happened last night), then the umpires will be given theauthority to suspend play immediately until the playing area is cleared ofall spectators.Appointment of an Urdu-speaking public address announcer – At matches involving Pakistan, an Urdu-speaking announcer will be appointed to make appropriate announcements, as necessary, in the Urdu language for the benefit of Pakistan supporters.Prosecution – Members of the general public who steal the stumps/bails and/or who cause wilful damage to the pitch will risk being prosecuted – at theinsistence of the ECB – by the police.
West Ham will be looking to strengthen their attack in the summer, with Pablo Fornals having transitioned into a deeper role and Ukrainian hero Andriy Yarmolenko’s contract currently set to expire at the end of the season.
Michail Antonio also remains the only natural striker at the club, meaning that position will likely be a priority in the next transfer window, and manager David Moyes will already have a number of transfer targets in mind.
One player that could prove to be the solution to the Hammers’ current problem, is former Everton and Watford forward Gerard Deulofeu, who has impressed this season with Udinese in the Italian Serie A.
What’s the news?
According to Italian news outlet Messaggero Veneto, Deulofeu is being targeted by the East-London club, and would be available for €20m (£16.6m).
Having transitioned into a striker role for his club, the 28-year-old would be a perfect addition for the Irons, with him also being able to play out on the wing.
Bullied West Ham before
Quietly, the Barcelona youth academy graduate has been one of the most impressive and improved attackers in Europe this season – going perhaps under the radar playing for a team stuck in 14th in the Italian Serie A.
Averaging a 7.11 match rating according to SofaScore, for his club in league football, he also has scored three goals in his last five games, taking him to a total of nine goals for the season in 25 appearances, having also created two more himself.
Among other attacking midfielders and wingers in Europe’s top five leagues and continental competitions over the last year, he ranks in the top 3% for key passes per 90 (2.49), top 2% for passes into the penalty area per 90 (2.15), and top 1% for crosses per 90 (2.78).
His progressive passing isn’t the only area of his game which has massively developed, as he also ranks in the top 3% for dribbles attempted per 90 (4.36), top 1% for carries into the penalty area per 90 (2.30), and top 5% for shot-creating actions per 90 (4.31).
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
A hero among Watford fans for his “exquisite” FA Cup semi-final goal against Wolves, the forward has also terrorised West Ham before, scoring for the Hertfordshire side in a 2-0 away victory at the London Stadium back in 2018 – so the Irons fans will know all about him already, and he would certainly be a hit among the crowd if he makes the move.
In other news: West Ham plot bid to sign £27m-rated “beast”, he can be a “top player” for Moyes
Two New South Wales players who are enjoying amazing domestic seasons have won more support for promotions to the national teams. Glenn McGrath believes Doug Bollinger, the left-arm fast bowler, is “in the mix” while Simon Katich, who has 1067 runs in seven Pura Cup games, has won the notice of Australia’s selection panel.David Gilbert, the New South Wales chief executive, could not believe Chris Rogers replaced Matthew Hayden for the third Test in Perth instead of Katich and complained. He has since talked to Jamie Cox, one of the four selectors, and learned Katich is a serious contender for the spare batting place on the March tour to Pakistan, which is currently in doubt due to political instability.”It’s fair to say [Jamie] was disappointed that I had spoken publicly about my concerns about Simon getting what I believed was a raw deal,” Gilbert told the Sun-Herald. “My point was that his performances this year had been Bradmanesque, but he seemed no closer to getting a look-in for the Test team.”After talking to ‘Coxy’, my mind is more at ease. Coxy assured me he’s being noticed by the selectors and that he’s in line for the spare batting spot in Pakistan.”Bollinger is the leading wicket-taker in the Pura Cup with 44 – eight more than Queensland’s Ashley Noffke – and McGrath is impressed with his “tremendous potential”. “He’s a left-armer, he swings the ball and has good control,” McGrath told the paper.”He’s unplayable on a wicket that offers a lot, but if he can fine-tune his game on wickets that aren’t bowler-friendly, he’ll improve. But he has done enough for an [Australia] opportunity.”
John Bracewell said New Zealand needed a good win over Kenya on Tuesday to maintain their momentum leading into the Super Eights. A win would help New Zealand’s chances of progressing through the tournament as Kenya were still in the running to make it past the group phase.”We’ve got two points to carry through should England qualify,” Bracewell told . “That’s the importance of the Kenyan match. We have to win that just in case it’s Kenya who qualify because they are the other team with two points in the bag.”However, Bracewell was not prepared to look ahead at the prospect of reaching the semi-finals. “For us it’s game by game because rhythm is quite an important thing in any tournament on getting on a roll,” he said.Kenya opened their World Cup with a seven-wicket victory over Canada, meaning the winner of Tuesday’s game will sit on top of the Group C table. Bracewell said New Zealand might know more about Kenya than some sides, as they had enlisted the help of Andy Moles, the former Kenya coach who is now coaching Northern Districts in New Zealand’s domestic competition.”We’ve got a fair degree of notes from Andy Moles who worked with them over an extended period,” Bracewell said. “We’ve got a fair bit of scouting done on them.” Bracewell was keen to give the four members of New Zealand’s squad who did not face England a run during their last two group matches.
The decision to suspend Michael Smith, Border’s opening batsman, has triggered a row which threatens to have serious repercussions .Smith was suspended for talking to the press and left out of the match against Western Province as a result of the decision by Simpiwe Ndzundzu, Border’s convenor of selectors.Smith was punished for allegedly speaking to the Daily Dispatch after being dropped two weeks ago. He admitted that he was approached by the paper and asked if he was injured or unavailable, but added that he had no contract with Border and so was not bound by any conditions as long as he did not bring the side into disrepute. It also is claimed that Ndzundzu took the decision without consulting other selectors or giving Smith the chance to defend himself.Smith issued a press release in which he said that Ndzundzu had told him that he “wasn’t good enough to make the team this time,” and that he “did not fit into the make-up of the team.After being left out, Smith said he showed Ndzundzu a letter from the journalist concerned stating that he had approached him first for comment. “The convenor then said that by then it was too late to do anything and I was still to be disciplined for answering the questions,” Smith added. “It is amazing that one man who supposedly has cricket at heart, can manipulate matters to suit himself. It is not surprising that a number of the Border amateur players are looking to play their cricket in other provinces next season.”The row has opened up a debate over the role of Ndzundzu, with reports suggesting that some of the side are unhappy with the way he operates, accusing him of arbitrarily making decisions and of favouring players from Good Hope where he is chairman.Ndzundzu would only say that he had drafted a letter to the Border Cricket Board outlining what had happened, adding: “In the meantime I can confirm that Smith has been suspended for one match for ill-discipline.”Mark Taljard, the coach at Old Selbornians, Smith’s club side, was livid at the decision and slammed Ndzundzu. “They (Border selectors) are cutting short Michael’s career and are sending out a clear signal that it doesn’t matter how good you are. If you have a white skin you stand no chance of getting selected for Border. Nine out of the 12 players in the Border squad are players of colour. All I want to see is the best players on the Border in the team. Why do they pick players from the bottom eight clubs and ignore the players who play for and against the top six clubs?”