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Despite bowling with a wet ball, he conceded only three runs and picked up Moeen Ali’s wicket to put Punjab Kings ahead

Deivarayan Muthu02-May-20242:16

McClenaghan: ‘Unbelievable’ Brar, Chahar hit the perfect lengths at Chepauk

Conventional T20 wisdom suggests that only the super-specialists or the best bowlers like Jasprit Bumrah bowl the 19th over as the batting teams are looking to make the most of the remaining balls.But on Wednesday evening against Chennai Super Kings at Chepauk, Punjab Kings captain Sam Curran tossed the ball to legspinner Rahul Chahar for the 19th. It was the first time that Chahar was bowling the 19th over in the IPL, and it was also the first time since 2020 that PBKS were having a spinner bowl that over.Having already trapped Ravindra Jadeja for 2 off four balls in the tenth over, Chahar returned with a dew-slicked ball for the 19th. Eight members of the Chepauk groundstaff had just broken into the field, dragging four ropes between them.Related

• Fleming: CSK know what Dhoni can give them, and they will 'max that out'

• Deepak Chahar's injury not looking good, says CSK coach Stephen Fleming

• Brar and Chahar go into CSK's den and spin them out

Chahar responded with a cagey three-run over, which also included the wicket of spin-hitter Moeen Ali. More importantly, Chahar doused MS Dhoni’s explosive finishing ability by hiding the ball wide outside off and denying him easy access to his favourite leg-side boundary. ESPNcricinfo’s Shiva Jayaraman puts Dhoni’s off-side limitations against spin in numbers: out of the 147 boundaries hit by Dhoni against spinners in the IPL, only 43 have come on the off side. The last time he hit a spinner for a boundary on the off side was in 2022. Since then, Dhoni has faced 35 balls from spinners without a boundary to the off side.Chahar does not have the T20 pedigree of Rashid Khan or Sunil Narine, but he still has attributes that make him a difficult bowler to put away. He is quick through the air, bowls into the surface, and doesn’t allow you to charge at him. He can also turn the ball sharply at that quick pace, and often runs up in a reverse diagonal across the umpire to confound batters.Chahar didn’t go for the funky run-up against Dhoni, but darted three of the four balls he bowled to Dhoni away from his reach. Dhoni hastily chopped the first ball to cover-point. He then tried to do something different by bringing out the scoop, but it narrowly missed leg stump and thudded into the keeper’s pads. Dhoni then stabbed a skiddy legbreak to cover-point for a single and closed out the over with a pulled single to deep midwicket.Rahul Chahar got 2 for 16 against CSK, and denied MS Dhoni boundaries•BCCIChahar deployed the angular run-up against Daryl Mitchell, and, like Dhoni, he could not find the boundary. Job well done.”I was backing myself that if I bowl my best ball [in the 19th over], then they can’t hit me,” Chahar said after helping PBKS restrict CSK to 162 for 7. “I wanted to ensure I don’t pitch it up to Dhoni, or not [bowl] near his face. Otherwise, it would have gone [to the boundary]. I think, yes [it was one of my best spells].”Dhoni has struggled against spin for some time now, and CSK have delayed his entry point so much this season that he had faced just three balls of spin before Wednesday’s game. However, Curran, a former CSK allrounder who had worked closely with Dhoni, held Chahar back and won the tactical battle.Rilee Rossouw, who had recently captained Quetta Gladiators into the PSL knockouts and has played T20 leagues around the world, was full of praise for Curran’s captaincy.”I’ve got to give credit to Sam,” Rossouw said after PBKS beat CSK by seven wickets. “He came to me and said: ‘What do you think about bowling the legspinner in the second-last over?’ And he took the gamble. It was his gut feel, and it came off beautifully well. So a lot of credit has to go to Sam for making that decision. It’s not something that we see every day in cricket nowadays. Also, Chahar bowled fantastically well. That’s how the game has evolved, I feel. On a slow, turning wicket that was a very good call from Sam.”Bowling at the death (overs 17 to 20), though, isn’t an entirely unfamiliar territory for Chahar, especially against CSK in Chennai. He has faced CSK four times at Chepauk, and has operated at the death in three of those games.Recall the IPL 2019 qualifier. Chahar, who was with Mumbai Indians then, had bowled the 17th over with Dhoni in the middle even though it meant Lasith Malinga would not bowl out. It proved to be a turning point for MI as Chahar gave away only three runs. Five years later, Chahar did the same for PBKS.Before this match, Chahar had made just four appearances for PBKS this season, managing just three wickets while conceding more than ten runs an over. He will be hoping that his match-winning spell of 4-0-16-2 against CSK in Chennai will turn his own form around as well.

The recent disappointments of the white-ball side has created a sense of disillusionment the Test team isn’t immune from either

Danyal Rasool22-Aug-2024It can be tempting to conclude, upon first glance after entering the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, that Bangladesh’s tour of Pakistan has not captured the public imagination.Evidence to that effect is visible throughout the area, and extraneous factors don’t exactly help. This is the earliest start to a Pakistan home summer in history, August being among the least hospitable months to play cricket in any of Pakistan’s major centres owing to the oppressive humidity. The journey to the stadium on Thursday was an adventure in its own right, with the main access routes closed off by giant shipping containers to subdue political protests planned throughout the city. When a media colleague was asked if official attendance figures would be released for the day, “count them” was the wry riposte from another.None of this is new, though. Pakistan has always had hot summers, and yet attendances at the Asia Cup in similar weather last year were sizeable. The challenges of getting to stadia hasn’t prevented fans from filling seats if they really want to get to games, as many PSL games will verify. Even if you argue that Bangladesh’s lack of Test star power is unconducive to crowd pulling, recall that Rawalpindi recorded a full house on day five of a Test against Sri Lanka in 2019 after three near-washout days had guaranteed a drab draw.Related

• Bangladesh have a mountain to climb, but the baby steps give hope

• Rizwan, Shakeel tons define Pakistan's day of gains

• Bangladesh pacers vs Pakistan batters: a song of ice and fire

• Shanto says Bangladesh unfazed by off-field turbulence: 'We can do special things here'

However, as Saud Shakeel and Mohammad Rizwan walked on for the second day of a finely poised Test match, hardly anyone was about to watch them put on a masterclass in drawing Bangladesh’s sting out. Shakeel has been gently coaxed by Pakistan’s backroom staff into more aggressive shot-making of late, but with the visitors just two wickets away from bringing Shaheen Shah Afridi out to the middle, he understood the value of falling back on the solid conservatism that brought him initial success with Pakistan. He struck five boundaries from 88 deliveries on the first day; it would be another 42 overs before his first on the second.But what Rizwan was up to from the other end was eminently watchable. In that fidgety, punchy mood that is equal parts delightful and infuriating depending on where your allegiances lie, he kept the runs whizzing along, forcing Bangladesh to spread out their field while giving his partner the space to play at his own tempo. He went reaching for the fuller deliveries finding gaps through the offside early on, and pulled effectively off the ribs when the line allowed him. When Nahid Rana, perhaps the fastest bowler Bangladesh have ever produced, decided to use the surface to target the diminutive Rizwan, he bent his knees, moved his head out of the way and helped him over third man for consecutive boundaries, demonstrating an elasticity that might not have been out of place in Paris a fortnight earlier.It wasn’t long before the pair had toppled the game off the tightrope it balanced on overnight, though the only ones around to watch were a smattering of spectators that gathered on the eastern terraces as the sun gave way to shade at a ground renowned in Pakistan for guaranteeing full houses for all international cricket. It is in part Rawalpindi’s historical crowds that have inspired the idea of taking Test cricket to smaller centres around the country, with broadcasters and wider stakeholders aware of the atmosphere packed crowds in cozy venues can generate.Mohammed Rizwan and Saud Shakeel both raised tons during a dominating fifth-wicket stand•AFP/Getty ImagesLittle of this is the fault of a Pakistan Test side that attempted a hard relaunch towards the end of last year. Shan Masood’s side may have been whitewashed in Australia like every iteration of Pakistan has since 1999, but they attempted to play a brand of cricket that saw them take the lead in one Test and come intriguingly close to winning another. Indeed, Pakistan’s new Test head coach Jason Gillespie told ESPNcricinfo several Australian players had praised Pakistan’s approach to that series, admitting they were unlucky not to win a Test. While the opposition’s quality plays its part – and England in October is almost assured of larger, more boisterous crowds – it is hard to imagine spectator interest being quite this low if this series was played immediately off the back of that one.But much like an upsetting meal can put you off food for a while – no matter the quality – the white-ball cricket Pakistan served up in the intervening months has left a bitter taste in spectators mouths. The farcical manner in which Pakistan’s change of captaincy was handled, the resentful power struggle in the camp, and the disastrous T20 World Cup it all culminated in has created a sense of disillusionment the Test team isn’t immune from, either. There is a trust deficit Pakistan have to bridge, and with nine Tests scheduled in the next six months, it is this red-ball team that responsibility will fall upon.Rizwan’s supporters and detractors alike acknowledge him as a legendary reader of public sentiment. Both him and Shakeel will have been aware that while praise for what they achieved today may be muted, any criticism had the early stages of this day gone differently would have been intense. The early stages of a rebuild can often put teams in no-win situations, but on the day, Rizwan and Shakeel ensured Pakistan did not lose. And though Pakistan supporters’ anger and passion is caricatured to the point of parody, they are also among the most forgiving. It won’t take too many more days like these to have Rawalpindi rocking again.

It has been a disappointing year for India in the shortest format but they have a positive record against in-form West Indies

Sruthi Ravindranath14-Dec-20242:52

Harmanpreet: Australia series was learning experience for young bowlers

Can India end their gloomy T20 year on a high?

Despite winning 13 out of 20 T20Is they’ve played so far this year, it’s been a disappointing year for India in the format. After starting the year with a series loss to Australia in Navi Mumbai, India bounced back with a dominating 5-0 win against Bangladesh away. In July, they went unbeaten into the final of the Asia Cup but suffered a heartbreaking loss to Sri Lanka. The heartbreak continued in the T20 World Cup in October when they were knocked out in the group stage after losses against New Zealand and Australia. The next World Cup, in the ODI format, is set to take place next year in India, but this T20I series is not without context, especially for the hosts. It is a chance for them to rethink their approach in T20Is, especially in crunch games, and also start building their squad for the 2026 T20 World Cup in England.Related

• India drop Reddy; Kashyap, Bist, Rawal get maiden call-ups

• WPL 2025 auction: Dottin, Bell, Bist and others to watch out for

• Harmanpreet points to players' 'mindset' for India losing big games

WI’s chance to improve their record vs India

While West Indies arrived in Navi Mumbai a week early to acclimatise, India have been dealt with a rough schedule. They have barely had time to prepare after finishing the ODI series in Australia, which finished on December 11, and took a day off on Friday to rest it out. That they lost 3-0 to Australia in that series also doesn’t help their case. West Indies will want to use this opportunity to improve their record against India.The results between these two sides have been one-sided, with West Indies losing 13 out of the 21 matches they have played against India. In fact, West Indies have lost their last eight games against India. But an overall improved form this year, where they have won six out of their last eight T20Is and also made the semi-final of the T20 World Cup, will add to their confidence.”We’ve been working really hard and been really focused on our game and what we can improve,” West Indies captain Hayley Matthews said on the eve of the first T20I. “Coming up against a team like India, we know it is going to be a tough assignment. But we have been playing some really positive cricket over the last year and back ourselves to hopefully go out there and be able to change things around a bit.”Harmanpreet Kaur keeps an eye on proceedings•PTI

Are India too dependent on their Big Two?

Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur are among the top three for most T20I runs in India this year. That Mandhana and Harmanpreet were the top run-scorers in the Asia Cup final and the T20 World Cup match against Australia, respectively, highlights India’s dependence on the duo. India have also lacked firepower in the middle order, with the likes of Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh, Deepti Sharma and D Hemalatha (dropped for this series) struggling to score consistently. Rodrigues, Deepti, Mandhana, Yastika and Hemalatha also played in the recently concluded WBBL but none of them had great returns.

Selection questions

India have dropped Arundhati Reddy and Shafali Verma from both ODI and T20I squads. When asked about the reason behind it, Harmanpreet said the question should be directed to the “right people”.Reddy was the joint-highest wicket-taker for India at the T20 World Cup. Shafali, who was dropped for the Australia ODIs as well, has been racking up the runs in the domestic one-day tournament where she’s currently the highest run-scorer for Haryana and second-highest overall with 330 runs in six games with one century and two fifties. She even took three wickets with her offspin in Saturday’s match against Vidarbha to go with her 68 off 39 with the bat.There’s also been plenty of chopping and changing. Hemalatha, who played eight matches, has been dropped from this series. Amanjot Kaur, who last played in the Australia T20Is earlier this year, has not found a spot since. Uma Chetry has been travelling with the team since her call-up for the South Africa series in July but has played just four T20Is so far.The likes of Priya Mishra, Saima Thakor, Minnu Mani and Titas Sadhu have also been named in the T20I squad as well, but whether they will get their chance to play remains a question. Seamer Thakor, who had a breakthrough WPL 2024, may earn her T20I cap and take Reddy’s place having already played six ODIs. India have also handed maiden call-ups to Uttarakhand batters Nandini Kashyap and Raghvi Bist. Both players are known for their big-hitting abilities and are coming off good domestic seasons, and India might want to try them out as they look for fresh faces to build for the next T20 World Cup.Deandra Dottin has been a key figure for West Indies since her international return•Getty Images

The Dottin impact for WI

West Indies have hugely benefited from Deandra Dottin’s return to internationals. She was their top run-scorer at the T20 World Cup, scoring at a strike rate of 162.16 and hitting most sixes (9) in the tournament. She singlehandedly threatened to take the semi-final away from New Zealand, first taking four wickets and then scoring 33 off 22 in the chase. Her wicket was the turning point in the game as West Indies lost by eight runs.She has also had success with the ball, highlighted by her recent performances in the WBBL, where she finished with ten wickets in Melbourne Renegades’ title run. Matthews has been excellent as an opener, but West Indies rely on Dottin’s power game for quick runs in the middle and death overs.”She is an impact player on the whole,” Matthews said of Dottin. “She is obviously a very dangerous player out on the field. When you speak about something in T20 cricket, what’s very important is boundary-hitting and six-hitting and there are probably not many people in the world that can strike a cricket ball like her. So it’s just been great to have her back. She has really enjoyed being back in the group, and I think everyone is taking her in well again. It has just been good to have it back on and off the field.”

Stats highlights from Navi Mumbai, where India completed the highest-ever chase at the Women’s ODI World Cup

Sampath Bandarupalli30-Oct-2025339 The target chased by India against Australia in the semi-final. It is the highest-ever chase in women’s ODI cricket, bettering the 331-run chase by Australia against India earlier in the tournament in Visakhapatnam.India’s previous highest successful chase was 265 against Australia in 2021, and they had never chased a 200-plus target at a World Cup.15 Consecutive wins for Australia at the Women’s ODI World Cup, coming into Thursday’s semi-final. Their previous defeat was also against India, in the semi-final in 2017.Related

• Rodrigues completes her redemption arc as the silence turns to roars

• Australia feel India's force as Rodrigues brings down the Death Star

• Alyssa Healy on semi-final defeat: We did that to ourselves

• 'The belief, the fight, the hunger to win' – cricket world reacts to India's historic win

• Rodrigues: Felt like a dream after a month of anxiety

It is the joint-longest winning streak for any team in the Women’s ODI World Cup, equaling Australia’s earlier streak of 15 wins between 1993 and 2000.341 for 5 India’s total in the chase is their highest at the Women’s ODI World Cup, a run more than the 340 for 3 they posted against New Zealand in Navi Mumbai last week.It is also the second-highest total by any team against Australia in women’s ODIs, behind their 369 in Delhi last month. In fact, that is the only total in a women’s ODI chase higher than India’s 341 on Thursday.679 Runs by India and Australia on Thursday in Navi Mumbai, making it the highest aggregate for a Women’s ODI World Cup game. The previous most were 678 runs between England and South Africa at Bristol in 2017.The 679 runs are also the second-most for any women’s ODI, behind the 781 runs in last month’s Delhi ODI, also featuring India and Australia.3 Number of successful chases of 300-plus targets in a knock-out match across men’s and women’s ODIs. The previous two were by India in men’s ODIs, who chased 315 against Pakistan in the third final of the Silver Jubilee Independence Cup in 1998 and 326 against England in the 2002 NatWest tri-series final.127* Jemimah Rodrigues’ score against Australia is the highest for India in an ODI chase, bettering the 125 by Smriti Mandhana, also against Australia last month in Delhi.167 Partnership between Rodrigues and Harmanpreet Kaur for the third wicket – the highest by any pair against Australia at the Women’s ODI World Cup.It is also the third-highest partnership against Australia in all women’s ODIs and the highest for the third wicket.3 Fifty-plus scores for Harmanpreet in the three knockout matches she has played in the Women’s ODI World Cup. Only Belinda Clark, with four, has more fifty-plus scores in World Cup knockouts than Harmanpreet.Harmanpreet aggregated 311 runs across those three games, the second-most in Women’s ODI World Cup knockouts, behind Clark’s 330 runs.Hug it out: Smriti Mandhana congratulated Jemimah Rodrigues after India’s epic chase•ICC/Getty Images77 Balls Phoebe Litchfield needed for her century against India, the fastest in any knockout game in women’s ODIs. The previous quickest was off 90 balls, by Harmanpreet against Australia in the 2017 World Cup semi-final and by Nat Sciver-Brunt against Australia in the 2022 Women’s ODI World Cup final.Litchfield is also the youngest batter to score a hundred in a knockout match in women’s ODIs.23.3 Overs bowled by Australia’s spinners in the semi-final. They also conceded 157 runs without taking a wicket. These are the most overs the spinners have ever bowled in a women’s ODI while being wicketless. The previous highest by Australian spinners was the 23 overs against New Zealand in 2012 at SCG.0 The 2025 edition will be the first Women’s ODI World Cup final to not feature either Australia or England. At least one of the two teams have featured in all the previous editions of the World Cup which have had a final.

Abject. It is, painfully, an accurate way of summing up Liverpool’s form this season. The Premier League champions will not retain their belt, not like this, not with such deep tactical cracks and incoherent players and non-existent belief in Arne Slot’s plan.

The most concerning part of the recent 3-0 defeat in Manchester against Pep Guardiola’s resurgent outfit is that Liverpool were outplayed across the park. Be it physical, mental or tactical metrics, Manchester City shone, and the Reds were blinded by their opponent’s superiority.

Jeremy Doku stood out, darting this way and that, scoring a stunning goal in the second half after breaking away from Ibrahima Konate. The Belgian winger completed seven of eight dribble attempts and created three chances, as per Sofascore.

Liverpool have got so many problems, and the recent wins over Aston Villa and Real Madrid provided only the veneer of a revival as City hit the Merseside club with a sobering reality check.

Among Slot’s biggest concerns is the enduring slump of Mohamed Salah. For so many years, the Egyptian has been an unstoppable force for Liverpool, but, aged 33 and at the front of a sinking ship, he is struggling to recover more than a flicker of his former greatness.

Mohamed Salah is becoming a problem

Will we see the best of Salah in a Liverpool shirt again? There’s every chance that the right winger expended incredible amounts of mental and physical energy driving his club to the league title last season, and across all competitions, he scored 34 goals and supplied 23 assists.

Almost three months into the new campaign, Slot’s second in the dugout, Salah has recorded eight goal involvements, but his general play and the accuracy of his shooting have paled in comparison to the many years behind him. Salah is not himself.

This is a worry, to be sure. Not just because Liverpool are playing without their talisman in his groove, but because Slot has shown a hesitance toward unleashing Federico Chiesa right from the start of last season, and that doesn’t look like it’s going to change any time soon.

How much longer can it go on like this? Man City reduced Liverpool’s superstar to half-chances and a role within the defensive press. How many times has Salah picked Pep apart? How often has he been the leading light against this arch-rival of modern times?

There is, of course, the caveat to all this that Salah would be far better placed in a system of greater fluency. This has been anything but the case for the Anfield side this season.

But Father Time is not on the Premier League legend’s side, and, having penned a new two-year extension worth £400k per week in April, Salah has around 18 months to show that FSG have received more than bang for their buck one final time.

But there’s a very real possibility that Salah is past his prime, and that Liverpool need to find a successor.

An onerous task if ever there was one. However, Liverpool actually have a Kirkby prospect who has what it takes to swipe the icon’s shirt.

The Liverpool teen who can take Salah's #11

Slot needs to find a solution to Liverpool’s current woes, but let’s all take a breather, just for a moment. Liverpool have so much talent. Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz will come good. But, more excitingly, there’s a wealth of teenage talent soon to be at Slot’s disposal, with one prospect a cut above the rest.

Rio Ngumoha knew he was headed to the upper crust of the Premier League, and a youth system that has shown itself since Jurgen Klopp came along to be a hothouse for those immensely gifted young stars.

Chelsea’s loss was Liverpool’s gain. Ngumoha was poached from Cobham in 2024 and made his professional debut against Accrington Stanley in the FA Cup midway through his maiden year on Merseyside.

A left-sided winger with incredible speed and dribbling, the 17-year-old Ngumoha has the potential to become a superstar at Liverpool, with his physical, athletic and fierce playing style offering shades of that man Doku, Anfield villain last weekend.

You could say Ngumoha is preternaturally talented. After all, journalist Kieran Gill is among those to have singled him out as a “generational talent”, and he certainly illustrated his potential with an incredible strike on his Premier League debut, netting the winner against Newcastle United at St. James’ Park in August.

Since then, he has featured sporadically for the Redmen, playing seven games in all competitions but only starting in the Carabao Cup, among that youthful group who were brushed aside by Crystal Palace last month.

Ngumoha’s time will come. He is so fast, so sure of himself when on the ball. He is among the youngest goalscorers in Premier League history, and that goal is sure to be the first of many.

Time must be afforded to one so young. Take Doku. Criticised often at Man City for being endowed with such ferocity and fleet-footedness, but lacking end product and elite decision-making.

Doku is only 23, and his performance against Slot’s beleaguered lot last weekend was the display of a winger reaching new levels of maturity and technical understanding.

Ngumoha will only get better and better as the years go on, and while he can contribute this season, these foundational years could see him bloom at the end of next term, when Salah supposedly leaves, and he could take his shirt, stepping up as Liverpool’s new wide talisman.

Can Nghumoha reach those heights, take that #11 from Salah himself? You’ll have to stay tuned. But Ngumoha will make it easy to do that. Watching him play football is a treat, and he has the capacity to not just emulate a stylistic peer like Doku but become one of the very best in world football.

More than Wirtz: £36m Liverpool star is becoming a "serious issue" for Slot

Liverpool were condemned to a fifth defeat in six Premier League matches at the Etihad.

By
Angus Sinclair

Nov 10, 2025

Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim said he avoids using social media in order to protect himself after he was revealed to be the top target of online abuse in English football. An investigation by the BBC found that Amorim received more abuse than any other figure in the game during the weekend of United's 2-2 draw with Tottenham in November, followed by Liverpool manager Arne Slot.

• Amorim receives most vile abuse according to report

  The BBC investigation showed that Amorim received more than 160 online messages described as 'extremely abusive' on the weekend of November 8-9, bearing the brunt of some 2000 messages flagged by data science company Signify. They included death threats and hate speech, breaking the rules of the platforms they were posted on including X, Instagram and TikTok.

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• AFP
  

  Amorim: Social media abuse 'normal' but I don't read it

  Amorim told a press conference: "First of all, nowadays it is normal in any profession, when you are exposed, like we are exposed, it's harder, but I don't read it. I'm not faking it – I don't read it. I protect myself from everything. I don't watch TV when they are talking about Manchester [United], not because I don't agree most of the times. I agree with a lot of things that you guys say. But it is a way of me being healthy because it's enough. When we lose, when we draw, I know that we play bad, my feeling as a coach is enough. I don't need another another [person]'s feelings about around the club. So for me, this is the only way, there is no other way. The only way is protect myself."

• Amorim: Extra money from social media promotion 'not worth it'

  Amorim has no official account on X and the official Instagram page set up in his name has had no updates since 2020. He said he is missing out on extra income from social media endorsements and promotions but said it was a price worth paying to not have to witness all the abuse.

  He added: "Of course, I lose money in sponsors, in Instagram. I could earn a lot of money. But for me, the quality of life, the protection of my family the way I can live a normal life – because I guarantee you, I live a normal life – it is not worth it. Some more dollars or pounds is not worth it. So I protect myself, and no one can be tougher than me when we lose, and when we lose when we don't play well. So that is the only way. But it's normal nowadays. Is really normal to have that abuse. So for me it's the only way to survive in this world."

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  Amorim guarded about injury issues before West Ham

  Amorim revealed that two players were fresh injury doubts ahead of Thursday's game against West Ham, but would not reveal who they were. However, he confirmed that Matheus Cunha is back after missing the last two games with a knock sustained in training, while Benjamin Sesko and Harry Maguire are still out.

  "We have two doubts, I will not tell you today because it will tell you the way we are going to approach, but the rest of the squad is good," said the coach.

  West Ham are 17th in the Premier League and they will be without playmaker Lucas Paqueta after he was sent off for arguing with the referee in their last outing against Liverpool. The game will see Amorim come up against compatriot and new Hammers boss Nuno Espirito Santo, whose Nottingham Forest side beat United on two occasions last season.

  "I had no doubts that he would have success, no matter what the club," Amorim said of Nuno. "He is really experienced. He knows how to work with different with different squads. He understands really well the league, and that is a plus. He's really smart, preparing the games, understanding the environment of the game. So it's going to be a tough match."

  United earned a vital 2-1 win over Crystal Palace in their last game and will be desperate to make amends for their most recent home game, when they were beaten 1-0 by Everton despite the Toffees playing the majority of the game with 10 men.

Vote for the best individual Border-Gavaskar Trophy performance by an Indian in Australia since 2000

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Nov-2024Update: This poll has ended. Rahul Dravid’s performance goes into the final. Check the other polls here.ESPNcricinfo LtdRahul Dravid celebrates a famous win at Adelaide Oval in 2003•AFP via Getty Images

Rahul Dravid – 233 and 72* in Adelaide, 2003

India win by four wickets, lead series 1-0Long before Rahul Dravid was immortalised for revealing that he too had the ability to yell his head off, he was immortalised for having the ability to yell his head off and also punch the air. The image of him doing so as he hit the winning runs in Adelaide almost 20 years ago is part of Indian cricket history. It was only the fourth time they had ever won a Test match in Australia – and their first victory since 1981 – and they had to come from behind to do it. From way behind, 556 runs to be exact. But Dravid kept whittling away at it, wearing Australia down not once but twice. Finally, after 12 and a half hours at the crease, scoring more runs than he has ever done or will ever do in a single Test, it made perfect sense that he would be there at the end, soaking in the Adelaide sunshine, teeth gritted, arms up high, the personification of triumph.Dravid’s heroics in that match gave India a 1-0 lead, in a series they went on to draw in Australia for the first time since 1985.Round of 16: Dravid’s 233 & 72* beat R Ashwin’s 3-57 & 3-92.Quarter-final: Dravid’s 233 & 72* beat Sachin Tendulkar’s 241* & 60*.By Alagappan MuthuWatch the highlights of these performances on the Star Sports network at 10am, 1pm, 4pm and 7pm IST, from November 5 onwards.

Jasprit Bumrah – 6-33 and 3-53 in Melbourne, 2018

India won by 137 runs, lead series 2-1India had won in Adelaide, lost in Perth, and knew Melbourne would be a hard slog on a slow surface where only 24 wickets had fallen in a drawn Ashes Test the previous year. Time was precious, particularly with rain forecast on days four and five, so they declared seven down with less than 450, recognising they had batted nearly 170 overs.Turns out you don’t need much time if you have a game-breaker who can take the pitch out of the equation. India bowled Australia out twice in 156.2 overs, with nine of their 20 wickets coming from Jasprit Bumrah’s irresistible blend of brain and biomechanical brawn. They wrapped up victory shortly after lunch on day five, with even a washed-out first session powerless to stop them.Bumrah’s first three wickets, all on day three, all from round the wicket to left-hand batters, showcased how dangerous he could be even with minimal swing, seam or pace off the deck. A pinpoint bouncer managed to both rush Marcus Harris and cramp him for room. An unstoppable yorker, with a hint of reverse, burst through Travis Head.In between came the last ball before lunch, a devious, 113kph change-up that would go on to define not just this spell but all of Bumrah’s remarkable career. Shaun Marsh’s movements, tuned to Bumrah’s regular 140 kph rhythm, were entirely out of step with this ball out of a slow-motion nightmare. Fixated on a front leg that moved too far across and far too early, it dipped late to miss the cue end of the bat and pinged the pad on the full, plumb in front.Round of 16: Bumrah’s 6-33 & 3-53 beat Cheteshwar Pujara’s 50 and 77.Quarter-final: Bumrah’s 6-33 & 3-53 beat Pujara’s 123 & 71.By Karthik Krishnaswamy

Pitcher Steven Matz has reinvented himself in 2025—and the Boston Red Sox appear hopeful he can reinvent their bullpen.

The Red Sox are acquiring Matz from the St. Louis Cardinals for infielder Blaze Jordan, according to a Wednesday night report from ESPN's Jeff Passan.

Matz, 34, is in the first year of a shift to the bullpen after 10 years as a starter. That move has gone fairly well—in 32 games this season, he is 5-2 with a 3.44 ERA and 47 strikeouts in 55 innings pitched. His 2.88 FIP suggests he may be even better than his numbers let on.

Among most baseball fans, Matz remains best known for his stellar—albeit injury-marred—early years with the New York Mets. The Long Island native helped the Mets win the National League pennant in 2015, and went 9-8 in a very good rookie season in 2016.

He reportedly joins a Boston team clinging to the American League's second wild-card spot; it leads the Seattle Mariners by one game.

Carlo Ancelotti has lifted the lid on why his final season at Real Madrid unravelled despite Kylian Mbappe’s blockbuster arrival. Speaking from Brazil, the legendary coach detailed the defensive crisis that derailed Los Blancos’ campaign and forced tactical improvisation in key moments as the campaign ended without a major trophy.

• Why Ancelotti believes his final Madrid season collapsed

  Ancelotti’s Madrid era ended far differently from how he imagined. After winning La Liga and the Champions league in 2024 and seeing Mbappe join an already star-studded squad featuring Vinícius Junior and Jude Bellingham, expectations were sky-high. Instead, the season ended in disappointment as they finished four points behind Barcelona in La Liga and they crashed out of the Champions League at the quarter-final stage, resulting in the Italian being replaced by Xabi Alonso.

  The veteran coach has now broken down what went wrong. Speaking to , he explained how an unprecedented defensive injury crisis forced Los Blancos out of their natural structure. With Dani Carvajal and Eder Militao sidelined with anterior cruciate ligament injuries and Antonio Rudiger playing through significant pain, Madrid lost the backbone that had powered their earlier success. Those problems triggered a domino effect across the pitch, reshaping rotations, shifting the midfield, and destabilising the rhythm of the team. Ancelotti says the collapse had far less to do with individuals leaving and far more to do with a team losing its defensive identity.

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  "We lost our entire starting defence" – Ancelotti breaks down the failure

  Ancelotti expanded on the real reasons behind Madrid’s drop-off, pointing directly to the defensive situation: “What happened was that we lost our entire starting defence. We lost Carvajal and Militao, and Rudiger played with a serious injury. Luckily, [Raul] Asensio came up from the youth academy and did very well. Let’s not forget that many times I had to play [Federico] Valverde at right-back and [Aurelian] Tchouameni at centre-back, which left the midfield with significant absences. We lost solidity at the back, and that cost us titles.”

  He pushed back on the idea that Toni Kroos’ departure destabilised the team, adding: “I don’t think it was because of Kroos, because we adapted to playing with [Eduardo] Camavinga, [Dani] Ceballos, Bellingham, Tchouameni, or Valverde. We have great midfielders, but finding another Kroos or [Luka] Modric is impossible.”

• Brazil beckoned after Madrid exit

  The 66-year-old ended up taking over as Brazil coach in the wake of his Madrid departure, an outcome he admits he never seriously imagined during his time in Spain.

  "Thinking about going to another club was difficult for me because of the legacy I had left here, which was huge," he said. "I found it hard to imagine myself at another club. But then Brazil called, and it became a great challenge, a great dream to prepare for a World Cup with the five-time champion team, the historic Selecao. Besides, being the national team coach is a different job. I really enjoy what I'm doing. I made the right decision.

  “At Real Madrid, I had brutal daily pressure… six press conferences a week. Brazil is also under pressure, but it’s a more relaxed job, more about observation than intervention. I don't have much time to train, but that was already the case at the clubs because of the demanding schedules. I try to learn every day about the current state of football in Brazil, the country's culture, everything. I live in Rio de Janeiro as much as possible. I really like the city. Now I'm not involved in the daily grind like before. There's time to observe calmly: the players, the structure of Brazilian football, with a very young Confederation president who wants to change things for the better. All of that is good."

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• Ancelotti aiming to get the best out of Vinicius

  The Brazil boss also discussed the challenge of helping Vinicius reproduce his Madrid form on the international stage, saying: "With the national team, he hasn't been able to reach the level he usually has at Real Madrid. But in these last few matches, he's improved and has done very well with Brazil, scoring goals and providing assists. Nobody can dispute his qualities. Vini is top-class."

  He also addressed Vini’s emotional outburst in El Clasico after being substituted by Alonso: "He simply made a mistake that day and needs to understand his new role at Real Madrid, a more important role in the dressing room than before. He made a mistake, he apologised, and he must learn from it. The coach has the right to make the changes he needs to improve the team."