A round-up of matches from the third week of the Standard Bank Pro20

Firdose Moonda14-Feb-2011The Dolphins became the first team to qualify for the semi-finals with a third consecutive victory before registering their first defeat of the competition. At the other end of the table, the Knights are out of semi-final contention, not having won a single game from their four matches.Their best chance at victory came in the rained out encounter against the Lions on Wednesday in Potchefstroom. The Knights put on a modest 137 for six in their innings with Reeza Hendricks the highest run-scorer with 47. Ethan O’Reilly, Alfonso Thomas and Paul Harris all conceded less than six runs an over and the only other damage came from Johan van der Wath who hit 29 off 21 balls.The Knights bowlers looked up to the task, removing Alviro Petersen for three and Jonathan Vandiar for eight. The Lions were 12 for two when the rain came down and no further play was possible.In Durban, the Dolphins secured their place in the final four with a nine-run win over the Cobras on Friday. Devon Conway led the way, scoring 62 off 60 balls. He shared a 92-run third wicket partnership with Vaughn van Jaarsveld, who scored a bruising 53 off 38 balls. Daryn Smit’s quickfire 22 off 11 balls took the Dolphins to 154 for 3. Vernon Philander was the most successful Cobras bowler, claiming the wicket of David Miller for a duck and finished with 1 for 23.The Cobras lost Richard Levi, who went without scoring, in the first over but Andrew Puttick and Herschelle Gibbs kept them in the game with 32 and 31 respectively. The pair were slightly sluggish is their approach and it kept the Cobras behind the run rate. Owais Shah chipped with 28 and when he departed in the 16th over, the Cobras needed 55 to win in 26 balls. Imran Khan’s four overs went for just 13 and Kyle Abbott was economical in picking up two for 21. Dane Vilas tried to resurrect the challenge but the task was too much.The final nail got smacked into the Knights coffin when they lost to the Warriors on the same day in Kimberley. Things started well for them when they restricted the Warriors to 152 for nine. Davy Jacobs and Ashwell Prince went cheaply again, both to Ryan McLaren. It was the 46 off 35 balls from Jon-Jon Smuts and 57 from 42 balls from Justin Kreusch that restored respectability. McLaren ended with four for 16 after mopping up the tail.The Knights looked comfortable in the chase at 99 for two in the 14th over. Kreusch removed Rilee Rossouw for 30 and that started the rot. Nicky Boje accounted for Ryan Bailey’s wicket and then Rusty Theron bowled a typical spell at the death to make sure the Warriors could defend their total. He took two wickets in three balls in the last over of the match and the Warriors won by six runs.On Sunday, the Titans earned a commanding seven wicket win over the Dolphins in Centurion. The Dolphins looked like fish out of water when in the third over, they were 1 for 3. Devon Conway was run out by an athletic Henry Davids, David Miller was caught off the bowling of Andre Nel and Loots bosman fell to Albie Morkel. A hat-trick of ducks sat at the top of the Dolphins scorecard. Ahmed Amla scored 44 in testing circumstances and Yasir Arafat added 17 batting at number eight to take the Dolphins to 103 for 6.The Titans made light work of the target, reaching it in the 16th over. Davids’ impressive showing continued with 45 off 32 balls, Jacques Rudolph scored 29 and Farhaan Behardien 24. Morkel and Wiese, who both impressed with the ball, were there at the end to see the Titans home. They move to second on the standings after their win.Bowler of the week: Ryan McLaren has been in sublime form in this competition and his four-wicket haul against the Warriors should have been a match-winning one. He leads the standings with eight wickets at an average of 10.12.Batsman of the week: Devon Conway was the key man in the Dolphins’ success over the Cobras, the match that secured a place in the knockouts. His 62 earns him this week’s award.

Laura Marsh continued her strong form as England swept aside Australia again to take a 4-0 lead with a match to play in the Twenty20 series

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Jan-2011
ScorecardLaura Marsh gave England a great start with 43 off 28 balls•Getty Images

Laura Marsh continued her strong form as England swept aside Australia again to take a 4-0 lead with a match to play in the Twenty20 series. Marsh starred for the second game in a row as England defended their 144 to secure a 13-run win at Canberra’s Manuka Oval.England had a stunning start as Marsh (43 off 28 balls) and Charlotte Edwards, who collected 15 off eight, sped out of the blocks, but the hosts fought back through the spinners Shelley Nitschke and Sarah Elliott. Nitschke removed Danielle Wyatt and Marsh on the way to 3 for 19 off four overs, while Elliott broke through the middle order with 3 for 17.Elliott had Jenny Gunn (10) lbw and bowled Lydia Greenway, the star of the series, for 28 before dismissing Fran Wilson. That left England at 6 for 118, but the tail-enders boosted the total before the innings ended with a ball to spare.Australia’s troubles really began when they lost Leah Poulton, who top scored with 32, and Alex Blackwell in two deliveries with the score on 59. Jess Cameron fell nine runs later and despite a stand of 40 between Rachael Haynes (25) and Nitschke (22), the side was left with too much to do.Holly Colvin ended up with 2 for 25 as Australia finished at 6 for 131. The final game of the series is in Canberra on Tuesday.Marsh was suitably pleased with her performance and is hoping the run of form can continue. “We’re delighted with another win today, it was a great team performance,” she said. “We were brave with the bat and attacked from the start and I enjoyed playing with a bit of freedom.”The bowlers did well to restrict the runs on this pitch and we upped our game in the field. We are looking forward to the final game of the series tomorrow and carrying this momentum forward into the Test match.””England played really well again today and full credit goes to Charlotte and her team,” said Australia coach Richard McInnes. “It’s obviously disappointing not to get the win today; we made some changes to the team to try and find that winning formula but again we’ve come up just short. We need to turn things around tomorrow and finish this series with a win before we head to Sydney for the Ashes Test at Bankstown starting on Saturday.”The Ashes Test gives Australia a chance to put the misery of the Twenty20 series behind them and captain Blackwell is confident her side can spring a surprise.”England currently hold the Ashes and we have one chance to get them back so we will be playing some good attacking cricket to do everything we can to win them back,” Blackwell said.”We’ve played some good one-day and Twenty20 cricket so far but there is no doubt an Ashes win would be the highlight of the summer for us,” she said. “We’ve got half the squad from New South Wales so we’re all really looking forward to getting back home and putting on a good show.”

ستكون المبارزة عن بعد بين كيليان مبابي وليونيل ميسي أكبر نقطة جذب في نهائي كأس العالم بين فرنسا والأرجنتين يوم الأحد، وقبل أيام من المباراة، قام كلارنس سيدورف، بتحليل الاختلافات بين النجمين.

إنها ليست لعبة داخل اللعبة، لأن الثنائي، بحكم موقعهما في الملعب، لن يضطروا إلى اللعب ضد بعضهما البعض.

لكن تواجد ميسي ومبابي يوم الأحد في ملعب استاد لوسيل هو أكبر عامل جذب في نهائي كأس العالم بين فرنسا والأرجنتين.

في غضونيومين، سيتنافس كيليان مبابي وليونيل ميسي، الزملاء في فريق باريس سان جيرمان، على الكأس المقدسة لأي لاعب كرة قدم.

اللقب العالمي الثاني على التوالي في يد الفرنسي … أو سيكون الأول للأرجنتيني.

كلارنس سيدورف، اللاعب الهولندي الدولي السابق (87 مباراة دولية)، الموجود في قطر خلال نهائيات كأس العالم، أبدى رأيه في هذه المبارزة بين النجمين ميسي ومبابي.

وقال سيدورف في تصريحاته لـ “RMC” الفرنسية: “مبابي قام بعمل لا يصدق وأنا أحب مشاهدته يلعب، بمجرد أن يلمس الكرة، تعلم أن شيئًا ما سيحدث”.

مضيفًا: “لكنه لاعب مختلف عن ميسي، يمكن لميسي أن يقرر مسار المباراة في أي جزء”.

وتابع سيدورف: “مبابي أقرب إلى الأهداف، وهنا يصنع الفارق، كما رأينا في المباراة الأخيرة، يلمس الكرة ويحدث شيء سحري، آمل أن يستمر على هذا النحو”.

اقرأ أيضًا | تشواميني: ميسي مذهل لكن مبابي فوق الجميع.. ونهائي المونديال مباراة بين 22 لاعبًا 

وأستطرد: “إنه صغير جدًا وأتمنى أن يستمر مثل ذلك لأنه من دواعي سروري مشاهدته يلعب، لكن لا ينبغي أن نقارن أي شخص بميسي اليوم”.

كما يتوقع الهولندي، مدرب الكاميرون بين عامي 2018 و2019، مباراة نهائية مفتوحة للغاية.

وأشار سيدورف: “آلهة كرة القدم تمنح ميسي فرصة أخيرة للفوز بما يستحقه، لكن على الأرجنتينيين العمل بجد لأن فرنسا تدافع عن لقبها وهذا إنجاز عظيم”.

وأتم: “لعب البلوز بشكل جيد خلال نهائيات كأس العالم وأفضل بكثير مما كان عليه خلال كأس العالم 2018”.

Allan Donald, the former South Africa fast bowler, will join New Zealand as a bowling coach for the ODI series against Pakistan and World Cup that follows.Donald was formerly coach of Zimbabwe’s domestic team Mountaineers and was released from his contract, enabling him to take up the job with the New Zealand team under John Wright. Donald had also briefly served as England’s bowling coach in 2007.”I’m extremely grateful to Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) and the Mountaineers for agreeing to release me and I’m equally excited about the possibility of joining New Zealand Cricket on a more permanent basis,” Donald told on Monday. “Even though I was only in Zimbabwe for three months I thoroughly enjoyed my time there and learned a lot about being head coach.”Zimbabwe Cricket is undoubtedly heading in the right direction and I was looking forward to being a part of their return to Test cricket. But the opportunity to return to international cricket was irresistible and to work with somebody of the stature of John Wright is something which doesn’t come along every day and I can’t wait to get started.”New Zealand Cricket chief executive Justin Vaughan was pleased to secure Donald’s appointment, having tried first in 2008 to get him involved. “Allan’s appointment is an exciting one. His extensive coaching and playing experience should make a really positive impact,” he said.”We talked to Allan back in 2008 when an assistant coaching role was available and although he seriously considered coming on board he decided to stay on with Warwickshire. It is great he is now willing to commit and I know he is really looking forward to the challenge of returning to international cricket.”New Zealand are trailing 0-1 in the ongoing Test series against Pakistan and will play six ODIs in the lead-up to the World Cup next month. Donald joins the squad in Wellington on Thursday, ahead of the opening ODI of the series.

Jurgen Klopp is looking to add to the Liverpool squad with a bid for Portuguese forward Rafael Leao this summer.

What’s the word?

FSG are plotting a bid for the 22-year-old AC Milan maestro and, according to Italian newspaper La Repubblica (via Milan News), Liverpool are one of the clubs interested in signing him.

Although Newcastle are believed the frontrunners due to their recent takeover and the ability to splash the cash, the Reds could offer much more in terms of potential success.

The £60m-rated gem wont come cheap, and Liverpool will have to spend big in order to secure his signature.

Liverpool’s Thierry Henry

The “extraordinary” player, as described by San Siro legend Zvonimir Boban, has been in wonderful form for AC Milan this season as they are aiming to end an 11-year wait to win the Serie A title.

The left winger has played 39 times so far this term and scored 13 goals whilst supplying seven assists in all competitions, a solid return from the youngster.

Former Juventus midfielder Alessio Tacchinardi believes that Leao is in a similar mould to ex-Arsenal icon Thierry Henry, and those comparisons are accurate, with the 22-year-old sharing the Frenchman’s explosive pace and ability to score and set up goals in almost equal measure.

Henry gradually shifted from the left wing into a more central role, especially when he joined the Gunners, and Klopp may have similar thoughts for Leao, especially when January signing Luis Diaz is performing exceptionally well out wide for the Reds.

The prospective signing of the Portuguese gem could be a masterstroke for Klopp and Liverpool. Also, with Roberto Firmino slowly getting on a bit and his goal return dropping this season, a change could be mooted in the centre of the attacking three.

FSG could be on to something special once more if they seriously pursue a mooted bid for the precocious Leao, who can take great heart from being compared to a Premier League legend in Henry.

AND in other news, Liverpool potting bid to sign “dangerous” £19.8m-rated weapon, he’s Klopp’s new Firmino

Darren Sammy insisted his side can make the quarter-finals, and that they can overcome the loss of Dwayne Bravo

Firdose Moonda in Delhi27-Feb-2011The West Indies squad formed a circle around the small field where they were going to do their fitness drills in Delhi. Two players took turns standing in the middle and hurling an inflated ball at their team-mates, who had to get out of the way or get hurt. They squealed and squirmed and amid the protests most managed to avoid being blasted in the end.Not so when they are not in training.The squad has been playing a figurative dodgeball with the media since the mid-90s and most times they get stung hard. Most of the international press don’t have any positive feelings about the side, their ability, their commitment, their desire and their skills and nothing the players can say will change their minds. Those critics don’t want justification, they want crucification, a forum to tell the men from the Caribbean, time and time again, that they have failed their predecessors and are simply not good enough.This time it came as an accusation when a reporter said the West Indian batsmen were not prepared for South Africa opening the bowling with a spinner in their World Cup match on Thursday. “We were not caught off guard,” Darren Sammy, the West Indies captain said. He was, of course, challenged on that statement. Why was Chris Gayle out after three balls if they weren’t surprised? “These things happen in cricket,” Sammy explained, before he attempted to justify further. “The second wicket pair put on a partnership of over 100.”None of it mattered, because the hyenas wanted more. The West Indies had only scored 222 in their first match of the tournament and hadn’t even been able to bat out all fifty overs. The Netherlands, who they will play on Monday, managed to bat out their full allotment of overs and post 292 against England. Dodge that one, Darren.Darren Sammy insists West Indies can cope with the loss of Dwayne Bravo•AFP”They put on a good batting display against England. We saw how England bowled to them. We’ve been practicing hard in the nets. Our bowlers did their best defending 223 but we need a better batting and fielding performance.”Ah yes, that’s what they want to hear: the West Indies admitting that they have to try harder and that they need to do more and that’s it going to be difficult for them to do that. Already, the last part of that is fact because they are missing premier allrounder Dwayne Bravo, who injured his knee in the match against South Africa. “He covers two options for us, with bat and ball,” Sammy said. “The other allrounders, and I am one of them, will have to put up their hands and put performances in on the field.”Sammy gave little indication suggesting who may replace Bravo. Having seen the South African spinners perform well on the Kotla pitch, he said that Nikita Miller “has a strong case for coming into the starting XI.” That will leave them a batsman short given the lack of penetration in their attack, it may be more beneficial to have the extra bowler.Bravo’s loss is going to present the West Indies with this puzzle for the remainder of the tournament, they’ll have to continually “rethink combinations” and will need to be able to rely on the top order batsmen like Chris Gayle and Darren Bravo even more than usual. It’s a massive setback in their attempt to dodge more claims of incompetence, but it’s one they are determined to turn into a positive. “Dwayne’s injury will be an inspiration for us,” Sammy said. “We’ve seen him give his heart for the West Indies and we are going to do the same.”It’s a nice thought but not one that has anyone convinced that West Indies are serious about what they’re here to do as could be heard from the snide sneers when that comment came out. Sammy became more serious, trying his best to put across that the knockouts are still in his team’s sights. “Everyone in this team is responsible. We know what to expect. This is a must-win game for us.”

MatériaMais Notícias

O lateral-direito João Pedro desembarcou em Portugal na tarde desta terça-feira para fazer exames médicos no Porto. O Palmeiras está prestes a concluir a venda dele à equipe europeia por valores ainda não divulgados.

O jogador de 21 anos estava emprestado ao Bahia até o fim desta temporada e tem contrato com o Palmeiras até o fim de 2020. O Verdão é dono de 50% dos direitos econômicos do jogador, enquanto o Tricolor de Aço ficará com uma parcela do dinheiro da venda como “taxa de vitrine”.

A realização do exame médico é considerado o primeiro passo para finalizar a negociação, e não o único. Ele voltará ao Brasil após a bateria de testes, enquanto os clubes continuam em tratativas. A tendência é de que o acordo seja sacramentado ainda nesta semana.

Revelado pelas categorias de base do Palmeiras, o garoto disputou 16 jogos com a camisa do Bahia nesta temporada.

Depois de se destacar no clube em 2014, em meio à briga contra o rebaixamento, João Pedro não teve tanto espaço em 2015 e 2016. Em 2017, foi emprestado à Chapecoense. Lá, além de ter boas atuações na lateral direita, foi bem quando atuou na linha de armadores.

No começo desta temporada teve bastante cotado seu retorno à Academia de Futebol, mas o clube acabou contratando Marcos Rocha e aceitou emprestá-lo ao Bahia.

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مازالت محادثات تمديد العقد بين نادي إنتر ميلان الإيطالي والمدافع ميلان سكرينيار، بعيدة عن تحقيق أي تطورات ملموسة، لكن من المتوقع أن تشهد الأيام المقبلة بعض التغيرات.

ووفقا لصحيفة جازيتا ديلو سبورت، فإن النيرازوري يريد توضيحًا بشأن ما إذا كان اللاعب البالغ من العمر 27 عامًا، سيوافق أو يرفض العرض المقدم له.

اقرأ أيضًا.. رئيس إنتر ميلان يقطع الطريق أمام باريس سان جيرمان: قادرون على الاحتفاظ بـ سكرينيار

كان هناك القليل من التطور في مفاوضات إنتر مع سكرينيار وممثليه خلال الشهر الماضي، وكان عرض النادي مطروحًا على الطاولة، بينما تم منح اللاعب وممثليه الوقت للتفكير فيه.

وبحسب الصحيفة، فإن إنتر ليس حريصًا على الإطلاق على استمرار الموقف لفترة أطول، حيث أن اللاعب سيكون قادرًا على التوقيع مع أي ناد بدءًا من يناير المقبل.

وسيحتاج النادي لرد سريع من سكرينيار بحسم موقفه، حيث أنه إذا قرر الرحيل فإن النادي سيبحث عن بدائل لتعويض اللاعب.

ووفقًا لبعض التقارير الواردة من إنجلترا، فإن توتنهام ونيوكاسل يونايتد مهتمان بضم سكرينيار، وكان باريس سان جيرمان مهتمًا بضم اللاعب في الصيف الماضي.

John Hastings derailed the Bangladesh Cricket Board XI chase with a hat-trick to spur the visiting Australians to a comprehensive victory in their only warm-up game ahead of the three-match ODI series

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Apr-2011
Scorecard
John Hastings rattled the hosts with a hat-trick•Associated PressJohn Hastings, the medium-pacer, derailed the Bangladesh Cricket Board XI chase with a hat-trick to spur the visiting Australians to a comprehensive victory in their only warm-up game ahead of the three-match ODI series.Raqibul Hasan and Maisuqur Rahman had built a solid century stand in the BCB XI’s response to 308, though the hosts were well behind the required rate. But that partnership was put to an end by Hastings, who bowled Raqibul for 65 and trapped Alok Kapali and Shuvagoto Hom off successive deliveries to claim a hat-trick in the 36th over. He wasn’t done, as he returned in the 38th over to dislodge Maisuqur. The tail offered some resistance as BCB XI limped to 218 for 7.Australia’s strong performance with the bat centered around half-centuries from four of their batsmen – Brad Haddin, Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke and Michael Hussey. Ponting, having relinquished his post as captain, played a fluent innings, striking 10 fours and a six in his 69. Clarke, his successor, made 55 in 56 balls and Hussey made a quickfire 69.At 236 for 3 at the end of 41 overs, Australia would have hoped to pile up more than what they eventually got, but it proved more than sufficient. The first of three ODIs begins on April 9 in Dhaka.

Like everyone in the world of work, William Porterfield is heading into a weekend and wants to forget about what the middle of the week was like. Unlike for everyone else, Sunday will not be a day of rest for him, and he thinks putting the past behind is mandatory. “First of all, we have to put Wednesday behind us,” the Ireland captain said, just over 24 hours from the time he will walk out with India captain MS Dhoni for the toss of the World Cup game at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.Porterfield’s Wednesday was made up of the match that has put Ireland’s cricketers on the front pages of their newspapers back home and top of the mind of the cricketing public, particularly in the heated heart of the tournament’s biggest hosts. A match that should have been a regulation two points for one team has suddenly turned into a contest between a high-profile, high-coverage outfit regarded as among the biggest favourites to lift the World Cup and a squad who, from the tournament’s warm-up games up to Wednesday, have never left the field without a scrap. Victory over their historic and cultural rivals England on Wednesday has suddenly made Ireland genuine contenders for a quarter-final spot but Porterfield wants to brush all that under his team’s suddenly-airborne carpet.”We put in a good performance on Wednesday and created a wee bit of history there. Now we’ve got to start all over again,” Porterfield said. His voice carries the vocabulary and echo of Ireland’s strong, north-western ‘Derry’ accent that makes listeners from other parts of the cricket world lean forward, mouths open, in an attempt to both concentrate and comprehend. There is possibly no other cricket captain in the world who speaks in Porterfield’s quick bursts of rapid speech or can use the word ‘wee’ on the way to sounding tough and purposeful.He said, “We have a bigger challenge ahead of us, we’re playing India, we must take good things from the [Wednesday] game and the biggest things for ourselves is to go out fresh on the pitch and concentrate on what’s at hand.”Ireland’s captain William Porterfield said he uses his bowlers depending on who is performing on the day•AFP

The team, he said, wouldn’t be daunted by going out before a 39,000-strong crowd in Bangalore because their opening World Cup game in Dhaka had given them useful practice. “When we started the competition we knew we were playing two of the home nations in the group stage and they were going to be massive games.” Indian support in Bangalore he thought would be similar to the “pretty fanatical supporters” Ireland had encountered in Dhaka. “I don’t think that India’s going to be too different from that; there’s going to be a few more in tomorrow [Sunday] night than what there were in Bangladesh.” He paused for the briefest of seconds saying. “India in India is a pretty special occasion but it’s a challenge we are looking forward to.”What Ireland have braced themselves for is the possibility of a large 300-plus chase and Porterfield said it was why his team had chosen a long batting line-up, something facilitated by their many bowling options. The return of Andre Botha, their best death-overs bowler who was out of the England game due to an nth hour groin injury, would help the balance of the team but his absence now is not seen as critical as it may have been before the England match.”It didn’t really affect us because we’ve got so many options with the ball. Whoever comes up with the goods on the day, we just go with that. It could be that someone doesn’t bowl, but as long as the team is doing well players just have to deal with that.” He mentioned Paul Stirling’s ten overs versus England as an example of making the team’s options work. “He too pace off the ball, and bowled very well for us and it has kind of gone without mentioning. He took 1 for 45 off his ten through the middle overs which was crucial in helping restrict England.”Stirling is Porterfield’s opening partner, and was used as a bowler in the England match ahead of the team’s regular batting allrounder Kevin O’Brien, who went on to have what Porterfield would no doubt call a “wee” hand to play in the victory. With a poker face, Porterfield went on, “I don’t think Kevin was too upset with that [not bowling]. He would take 100 off 50 balls and not having to bowl any day.”Questioned several times about the pressure of the crowd, Porterfield was quick, bald and revealing in his summary of what he expected. “If you can’t go out there and get up for a game in front of 40-50,000 people, then I think there’s something wrong with you. Whether they are for you or against you, it doesn’t matter.”Win or lose on Sunday, Porterfield would want his team to hijack the name that the US’ University of Notre Dame gives all its sports teams. They call them the Fighting Irish.