Liam Dawson hopes to be able to pick the brains of Shane Warne during the Test series against South Africa but believes he remains primarily a batsman with his bowling a valuable second string.Dawson, who made his Test debut against India in Chennai, was a surprise inclusion in Joe Root’s first Test squad as captain. He had a mixed experience at Lord’s, bagging a pair but also picking up four wickets including the key scalp of Hashim Amla with a beautiful delivery in the second innings.The view of his own game, that the batting still holds sway – he has opened in the County Championship for Hampshire this season and made 66 on his Test debut – seems to go against the role he was given in the first Test where he was billed as the team’s main spinner. Trevor Bayliss, the England coach, said the reasoning behind that had been to take the pressure off Moeen Ali who responded with his first 10-wicket haul in Tests.Dawson said that he and Moeen were “equal” in terms of their bowling but that he was keen to evolve his left-arm spin by seeking out Warne who was the Hampshire captain when Dawson made his first-class debut against Yorkshire in 2007.”I will try and catch up with him over the course of this series and have a chat with him about bowling. That would be brilliant to do,” Dawson said. “Someone who is that good, been that successful and a legend of the game, you can only pick their brains. You might pick up something that might give you a little edge when you are out there and that can only be a positive.”I am an allrounder but batting is my strongest suit,” he added. “I can do a good job with the ball. Having two strings to your bow is always helpful.”Dawson admitted he had to battle nerves at Lord’s and was disappointed with his first-innings performance with the ball where although he claimed two wickets he conceded more than four an over. However, despite missing a big full toss from Kagiso Rabada to complete his pair on the fourth morning, making it three Test ducks in a row, he felt far more assured when he was brought on in the second innings and had the joy of straightening one on Amla to trap him lbw.”I usually deal with nerves pretty well, but this time I was just too nervous and I have got to handle that better next time and I think I will be better for it,” he said. “It is just part of sport and you have just got to try and deal with it and I did in the second innings. I was more relaxed second innings because I was out there again and enjoying every minute of it.”Dawson has been well-regarded by the England management since taking three wickets on his T20I debut against Sri Lanka at the Ageas Bowl last season. Bayliss has previously said “he has something about him” and Dawson prides himself on being a “smart” cricketer.”People probably watch me and think ‘you know he is not the best cricketer’ but I have got to use my cricket brain. That has always helped me for Hampshire. That is another thing I pride myself on, being smart and clever. I think I am always trying to get into a battle and enjoy it. It is nice when that happens. Test cricket is suited to that. It is hard. I have only played two Test matches and it is extremely hard but it is so rewarding when you get a win like we did.”The indications after the victory at Lord’s were that England would retain the same XI at Trent Bridge with Bayliss’ view that a fifth quick bowler in the side would be overkill regardless of how green the surface was. Toby Roland-Jones, the uncapped Middlesex seamer, is the 12th member of the unchanged squad.

Mithali Raj and Veda Krishnamurthy powered India to 265 and their bowlers put in a clinical performance to take India into the semi-final

The Report by Varun Shetty15-Jul-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Mithali Raj and Veda Krishnamurthy’s 108-run stand made the difference for India•Getty/ICCSuzie Bates’ decision to bowl first in a virtual quarter-final seemed to work out perfectly for the first hour. But Mithali Raj’s sixth ODI hundred – a decidedly positive innings, formed on the foundation of two century partnerships, with Harmanpreet Kaur and Veda Krishnamurthy – lifted India to 265. It was a total that became increasingly daunting with every passing over of New Zealand’s chase.They found themselves three-down in the 11th over and after a brief, ineffective resistance from Amy Satterthwaite and Sophie Devine, they unraveled quickly to lose by 186 runs. Left-arm spinner Rajeshwari Gayakwad, brought in to replace Ekta Bisht after warming the bench for six games, finished with a career-best 5 for 15.Raj admitted that she too would’ve bowled if the toss had gone her way. But when she came out to bat, though, it didn’t appear like the conditions played on her mind despite India losing Punam Raut and Smriti Mandhana early. The wickets were more to do with New Zealand’s discipline than prodigious movement either in the air or off the pitch. In fact, the first signs of swing came when Suzie Bates came on in the 11th over. And even those gentle awayswingers didn’t cause Raj any trouble.She creamed drives all day long, to the covers ring for a while, but eventually through them. Raj’s conscious effort to keep her strike rate in the vicinity of 80 shone through. Her fifty against Australia on Wednesday – 69 off 114 – was called out for lack of intent, and it was clear she wanted to put it to rest. So, she did. This didn’t necessarily mean India were any quicker. In fact, the run-rate hadn’t even crept past four-per-over at the end of the 30th.Raj was the aggressor, but at the other end was the promoted Harmanpreet whose longest innings of the tournament up until Saturday was a 23-ball knock against Pakistan. When she middled them, they sounded sweet, but she struggled to find the gaps. And so, once again, it looked like India were falling to the old trap of relying too much on boundaries. And the feeling was amplified when they lost two wickets in the first two overs of the batting Powerplay. Harmanpreet, who battled through injured left hand to make a half-century, chipped one back to Kasperek, Deepti Sharma fell to a stunning Rachel Priest catch, and 153 for 2 turned to 154 for 4 in the space of nine balls.India set themselves up for 250, but losing quick wickets left them with the possibility of finishing around 230 again. Raj dropped anchor and Veda Krishnamurthy looked awkward, poking and prodded to 11 off 16, before two dominant hits off Amelia Kerr in the 43rd over injected momentum. Satterthwaite dropped her on 32 at the start of the 46th, Lea Tahuhu’s chest-high full toss offered her a free-hit soon after, and by the end of the over, she had motored to 46. The first ball of the next over was drilled flat over long-on and New Zealand were now visibly anxious. Fielders ran in from the boundary and let balls bounce over them and different varieties of length balls were served in the buffet.Raj hit one boundary after the 39th over, and it came in the last over. By then, she had trotted through to her sixth ODI century. Both her and Krishnamurthy fell in that last over, but India had put up 265. Both their innings were the deflating kind – Krishnamurthy’s an ungrateful butchering, Raj’s a controlled suffocation.And Krishnamurthy was there again, during New Zealand’s chase. Bates, looking to flick Shikha Pandey’s first delivery, found the leading edge to first slip. New Zealand couldn’t find a way back – Priest hit one back to Jhulan Goswami in the next over, but the old cricketing cliche of “chasing pressure” was upon New Zealand before they could get their eye in. The ball was swinging now. And drifting, and dipping, and turning. Satterthwaite hung in, like her role demands, but No. 4 Katey Martin looked out of place all along; she’d seen one too many dot balls, and was promptly down the pitch to hit one to Kaur at midwicket.New Zealand’s hopes rested on Satterthwaite and Devine; they seemed to know this as they decided caution would be the best way forward. Raj, sensing this, unleashed her spinners on the pair. India rattled through 17 overs in an hour. The score was 51, the required rate 6.51. Gayakwad swooped in on Satterthwaite’s vulnerability and got one to spin away from her after she had stepped down. That was the start of New Zealand’s crash.The nail found the coffin in the 20th over. Gayakwad switched to over the wicket, tied Devine down to three dot balls, then pushed one wide. It was meant to turn away from the big slash through the off side, and that’s exactly what Devine did. It was too far away. She sliced it, teasingly behind Deepti at extra cover. It was India’s day, and this wasn’t getting away from the 19-year-old. She got under it, reached for it with a dive and held on. New Zealand had nothing further to offer against Gayakwad.

An update has emerged on Celtic as they attempt to add another central defender to their squad ahead of the 2023/24 Scottish Premiership campaign…

What's the latest Celtic transfer news?

According to Football Scotland reporter Mark Hendry, Legia Warsaw centre-back Maik Nawrocki has arrived in the UK to complete his medical with the Hoops.

The journalist has claimed that the Polish battler is now in the process of doing all of his tests and going over his contract ahead of joining up with Brendan Rodgers' squad.

This comes after Hendry reported on Friday that the Scottish giants were closing in on a deal to sign the 22-year-old talent for a fee of around £4m.

What is Maik Nawrocki's preferred foot?

The Poland U21 international does not have a preferred foot as he is able to use both effectively, which means that Rodgers could deploy him on the right or the left of a central defensive pairing.

He could turn out to be the long-term heir to Carl Starfelt on the left side as the Warsaw enforcer is six years younger than the Swedish defender and would come in as a player with potential.

This means that Nawrocki has far more time on his hand to develop in order to be a fantastic player for Celtic for many more years to come, whereas the 28-year-old is already in the peak years of his career and may not have much more growth left to go through.

The Polish titan caught the eye with his performances in the Ekstraklasa last season. He averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.00 across 25 matches and made 2.5 tackles and interceptions combined per game, which was more than any current Hoops central defender managed across the Scottish Premiership campaign.

Nawrocki also showcased his ability to deliver excellent displays in Europe with his 2021/22 outings for Legia in the Europa League. The 6 foot 1 tank averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.20 across four clashes and made 2.8 tackles and interceptions per appearance, whilst he also won an outstanding 78% of his duels.

These statistics suggest that the potential is there for the talented youngster to be a dominant, due to his phenomenal success rate in his individual battles, colossus at the back for Celtic if Rodgers is able to help him translate that form into regular performances at Premiership level.

Starfelt, who has never averaged a Sofascore rating higher than 7.00 in any European competition, won 67% of his league duels for the Bhoys last term but was too prone to mistakes.

The Sweden international made three errors leading to shots or goals for the opposition and conceded two penalties across 28 Premiership games. Meanwhile, Nawrocki did not give away a single penalty and only made one mistake leading to a shot or goal for the other team in his 25 league matches for Legia

Therefore, the £4m-rated brute could be a dream long-term heir to Starfelt if he can develop to a point where his dominant Europa League form becomes a consistent feature of his play, whilst also being a reliable defender who does not make blunders on a regular basis.

Celtic may be on their own in the race to sign Kieran Tierney now, with The Daily Record reporting that Newcastle are no longer so keen to sign the defender.

What is Kieran Tierney worth?

The 26-year-old originally moved to Arsenal back in 2019 for £25m and went on to play 15 times in the Premier League for them in that initial campaign. A season later though, that total had increased to 27 as the Scotland man became an increasingly important member of the first-team side.

However, despite establishing himself as their first-choice left-back during this period, his gametime has since tailed off for the Gunners. In 2022/23 for example, he still played over 20 times for the club in the top flight, but only six of those were actual starts. It means that his market value now – as suggested by Transfermarkt – could be around 25 million Euros (or £21.5m). That's less than their original outlay on the defender.

His most productive spell remains his time with Celtic. He spent five seasons with the Scottish Premiership outfit, after the side gave him his SPL debut as a 17-year-old. He was turned to continually as a teen despite his youth and went on to play in over 100 league games for the Hoops during his time there.

With the defender potentially out of the plans in north London now and down the pecking order for Mikel Arteta, there has been interest in signing the 26-year-old this summer. Newcastle have been one of the clubs tracking Tierney, with the Toon contemplating a bid for his services this summer. The Hoops though have also been linked with a sensational swoop to bring the Arsenal man back to Scotland, although they too have yet to submit an official offer.

Are Celtic signing Kieran Tierney?

Now, according to a report from The Daily Record, the SPL outfit could have been handed a big boost in their efforts to land Tierney. That's because it seems Newcastle's interest in adding the defender to their ranks has cooled, with the report also referring to Alex Crook, who states that the interest "seems to have gone quiet".

It adds that with Harvey Barnes now joining the Toon, there is less intent from the side in adding Tierney too due to financial knock-on effects. It means that Celtic may now be the only team in the race to sign him – and the pathway has therefore opened up for the Hoops to try and get a deal done.

If they did sign him, it would be another shrewd move from Celtic. Arsenal defender Oli Zinchenko, who has played and competed with the left-back for the Gunners, called the Scot "amazing" and admitted he had watched the 26-year-old in action before they were even teammates.

Celtic then would certainly be upgrading their defensive ranks if they could get a deal done – and it would likely benefit the player, as it could also mean more playing time and a second chance at a place he was appreciated and thrived.

After something of a muted start to the transfer window, Scottish champions Celtic look to be ramping up their transfer dealings, as returning boss Brendan Rodgers hopes to assemble a squad capable of competing both domestically and in Europe next term.

With the Parkhead giants having already secured the signings of both Marco Tilio and Odin Thiago Holm, the Glasgow side have now invested even further in order to add South Korean starlet, Hyunjun Yang to their ranks.

Following that latest acquisition, it looks as if there may be further additions to come before the start of the new season, with FC Voldendam's Xavier Mbuyamba among those being considered.

What's the latest on Mbuyamba to Celtic?

The Daily Mail only recently reported that the Hoops are interested in signing the former Chelsea youngster this summer, albeit with the Scottish Premiership side set to face 'competition' in their bid to snap up the 21-year-old.

The belief is that the Dutchman is 'high on a list of targets' at Celtic Park in the search to bolster the backline, with a new central defender potentially set to be needed amid reports that Carl Starfelt is the subject of interest from Spartak Moscow.

This follows a previous report from Sky Sports which revealed that Celtic – and the likes of Watford – are keeping a close eye on the one-time Barcelona youth asset, with a departure from his current side in the works despite having only joined from the Blues last year.

Who is Xavier Mbuyamba?

The towering, 6 foot 5 colossus has notably caught the attention of clubs across Europe amid his apparent likeness to compatriot, Virgil van Dijk, although he could also prove to be a dream heir to another Celtic icon in the form of ex-Guinea international, Bobo Balde.

Lauded as "complete" and "dominant" by talent scout Jacek Kulig, Mbuyamba could well be a perfect successor to the now-retired centre-back in Glasgow, with Balde – who is also 6 foot 5 – having also been a "strong, dominant" force during his eight-year stay at the club – according to ex-teammate, Neil Lennon.

Having signed from Toulouse back in 2001, the France-born sensation went on to rack up over 200 appearances in all competitions prior to his departure in 2009, having notably won five league titles during that glittering spell, among other domestic honours.

As Lennon also noted, Balde was able to simply cause "carnage" for the opposition due to his tough-tackling and no-nonsense nature, with that ball-winning prowess seemingly shared by Mbuyamba, as he notably ranks in the top 4% among his peers in the Men's 'next eight competitions' for tackles made, as well as in the top 6% for blocks and the top 7% for clearances.

One perhaps slight advantage that the £4m-rated Voldendam ace may have over Balde – who was described as "old-school" in the past by John Hartson – is his quality on the ball, with the emerging prospect having been hailed as "elegant" by Kulig.

For Mbuyamba to have the 'dominance' of Balde as well as the added bonus of a more modern approach on the ball – with "passing" noted as one of his strengths, according to Kulig – he could represent a truly perfect option as far as Rodgers is concerned.

A measured all-round display of 78 runs and figures of 10-3-46-1 from Deepti Sharma led India to their fourth straight win, beating Sri Lanka by 16 runs in Derby

The Report by Annesha Ghosh05-Jul-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsDeepti Sharma’s 78 was her sixth ODI half-century•Getty ImagesIf four top-order half-centuries had powered Sri Lanka’s 138-run shock knockout blow to India in the 2013 World Cup in Mumbai, this time around their middle and lower order made a spirited attempt to bring India’s winning streak to an end in Derby. But that was not to be as Deepti Sharma set up a 16-run victory – India’s fourth successive one in the tournament – courtesy a 78-run knock and 10 crucial overs that returned 1 for 46.After India opted to bat on a fresh pitch that barely had any tinge of green, Deepti’s 118-run third-wicket partnership with captain Mithali Raj laid the platform for India’s 232. While the total was 18 short of what Raj had originally intended to get, her decision to introduce legspinner Poonam Yadav in the 16th over proved crucial in ensuring it was enough. Yadav’s mix of legbreaks and wrong ‘uns sniped out two top-order batsmen in Chamari Atapattu and Nipuni Hansika, and bumped up the required rate with a flurry of dots.To begin, it was Sri Lanka who kept a tight leash on things. Medium-pacer Sripali Weerakkody and left-arm spinner Chandima Gunaratne bothered Smriti Mandhana and Punam Raut in dominating opening spells with well-planned lengths, sending them back for 8 and 16 respectively. That India were off to a shaky, sluggish start at 39 for 2 in the 11th over was also down to Sri Lanka captain Inoka Ranaweera’s attacking field placements. She ensured a short cover and short leg breathed down the batsmen’s necks relentlessly even well after the first Powerplay.Dropped on 5, Deepti initially struggled to put away both full and short deliveries, managing to score only 16 off 39. A release shot – a lofted sweep over square leg for four – off Weerakkody in the 15th over helped her find fluency. Thereafter, her strokeplay revolved around lofted shots over midwicket and the cover region, and singles off the back foot that were converted in twos. She brought up her sixth ODI fifty off the 89th ball of her innings, and took another 28 runs off the next 20 deliveries before failing to execute a lofted drive in the V.With 13 overs left and only on 156 on the board, India experimented with the batting order and Jhulan Goswami came in at No. 5 ahead of the more-established power-hitters Harmanpreet Kaur and Veda Krishnamurthy. The move didn’t quite work out, and the loss of wickets in pairs during that period further hurt India’s chances of a late flourish. Goswami’s run-a-ball 9 came to an end in the 40th over, only to be followed by Raj’s dismissal for 53 the next ball. While Ranaweera removed the veterans, Weerakkody accounted for Harmanpreet and Krishnamurthy, who shared a 54-ball 50 stand before falling for 20 and 29 in the 49th over.With the ball, too, India deviated from their set formula of introducing spin within the first six overs. Raj, instead, let her medium-pacers – Goswami and Mansi Joshi – share the new ball for a greater part of the Powerplay. Mansi swung the ball into the left-hand batsman Hansika and struck her plumb in front with the first delivery of her opening spell, but a stifled appeal and the lack of intent to review the umpire’s decision meant Hansika could press on to score a 66-ball 29. Goswami’s dismissal of Hasini Perera in the fifth over, however, dealt Sri Lanka a first blow, before Deepti, Yadav, Harmanpreet and Ekta Bisht began to operate in tandem to choke the chase with spin.By the time Goswami came back in the 37th over, the required rate had climbed up to 9.28. Shashikala Siriwardene, the former captain who had played a substantial part to stun India in the last World Cup, however, refused to give in. Her 60-run stand with wicketkeeper Dilani Manodara inspired a late fightback. Siriwardene clobbered two fours apiece in the 37th and the 38th over and survived a couple of run-out chances before falling for 37 to Goswami.Despite the breakthrough, Manodara motored on and kept the chase alive with a second ODI half-century that featured a healthy tally of inside-out drives, reverse sweeps and paddle scoops. Her resistance towards the end was made easier by a rather casual approach from India. A spread-out field ensured singles didn’t dry up, and some sloppy fielding – including Goswami’s boot-work in the outfield that gave away a four, and a missed stumping to reprieve Manodara – kept Sri Lanka in the game. It took a flighted offbreak from Deepti to end Manodara’s 61-run innings in the 48th over and the lower order then managed only 25 runs out of 42 required off last 17 deliveries.

Niroshan Dickwella has been fined 30% of his match fee, and handed two demerit points, for a stumping attempt that was deemed to be “contrary to the spirit of the game” by match officials

Andrew Fidel Fernando01-Jul-2017

Niroshan Dickwella has been fined 30% of his match fee, and handed two demerit points, for a stumping attempt in the first ODI against Zimbabwe that was deemed to be “contrary to the spirit of the game” by match officials.The incident had occurred in the seventh over of Zimbabwe’s innings on Friday. Dickwella gathered the ball, and waited many seconds for Solomon Mire to leave the crease, before finally breaking the stumps, long after Mire had completed the shot.When Dickwella made the appeal, the decision was sent to third umpire Nigel Llong, who found the batsman to be in his crease at the time the bails were dislodged in any case. Keepers have often waited for batsmen to overbalance before whipping off the bails, but, on this occasion, the umpires who laid the charge had likely taken exception to the length of time that elapsed between the stroke’s completion and the stumping attempt.”Dickwella admitted the offence and accepted the sanction proposed by match referee Chris Broad and, as such, there was no need for a formal hearing,” an ICC release said.This was Dickwella’s third fine of the year. In February, he had had an on-field run-in with Kagiso Rabada, and later in the month showed dissent to an umpire’s decision. He was suspended for two limited-overs games as a result, and now, having accrued seven demerit points, will suffer a similar suspension again if he is hit with any further demerit points over the next two years.

تقدم فريق الكرة بـ الزمالك بالهدف الثاني أمام منافسه الأهلي في المباراة التي تجمع بينهما الآن ضمن منافسات الدوري المصري.

ويستضيف ملعب استاد القاهرة الدولي مباراة فريقي الأهلي والزمالك ضمن مؤجلات الجولة العاشرة من عمر المسابقة المحلية.

وسجل هدف الزمالك الأول، سيف الدين الجزيري في الدقيقة الأخيرة من عمر الشوط الأول بعد انفراد تام بـ مصطفى شوبير.

وآحرز هدف تعادل الأهلي الأول، اللاعب أحمد عبد القادر في الدقيقة 73 من عمر اللقاء مستغلًا عرضية متقنة من رضا سليم.

وسجل سيف الجزيري الهدف الثاني للزمالك في الدقيقة 87 بعد تسديد الكرة من داخل منطقة جزاء الأهلي بعد وجود ارتباك بين اللاعبين. هدف الزمالك الثاني أمام الأهلي في الدوري

Leeds United have begun preparations for their return to the Championship next season and time is ticking for Daniel Farke to build a squad that can compete ambitiously to achieve an instant bounce back to the Premier League.

Despite not completing the signing of any new additions so far, the club have had a take-over with the 49ers taking full control of the West Yorkshire club, appointed a new head coach and have now started to offload the players who are not prepared to compete in the second tier.

Rodrigo, Robin Koch, Weston McKennie, Rasmus Kristensen, Brendan Aaronson and Deigo Llorente are the first team players from last season who have departed so far, which means that Farke has a real challenge to bolster key positions in the squad.

Considering the former Norwich City boss has an attacking-minded philosophy – a philosophy that has led to him masterminding promotion to the top flight from the Championship twice- there is no doubt that he will be keen to strengthen the forward line to boost goal contributions.

Rodrigo – who was the top goal-scorer for Leeds last season with 15 goals in all competitions – has completed a permanent move to Qatari side Al Rayyan, so replacing his presence in the attacking unit will be absolutely essential this summer to avoid weakening the goal threat in the final third.

One player who has been recently linked with a move to Elland Road is RB Leipzig striker Yussuf Poulsen, an experienced forward who could be an ideal replacement for the former Leeds talisman.

How good is Yussuf Poulsen?

The 29-year-old could be an incredible prospect for Farke, with a wealth of experience playing in an elite league like the Bundesliga, is a proven winner with two German cups to his name, as well as 68 caps earned and 11 goals scored for the Denmark national team.

Over 413 career appearances, Poulsen – once hailed a "machine" by his teammate Willi Orban – has scored 107 goals and registered 73 assists, with a goal contribution every 146 minutes so far, an output that would be highly valuable to Leeds in the absence of Rodrigo.

When comparing the £66k-per-week Danish forward to the Brazilian over last season beyond goal contributions, Poulsen outperformed his Leeds positional peer in a number of key attributes including shots on target rate (46.2% v 37.9%), shot-creating actions per 90 (2.84 v 2.09), goal-creating actions per 90 (0.44 v 0.19) and successful take-ons (66.7% v 41.4%), as per FBref.

Not only that, Poulsen ranks in the top 10% of his positional peers across the top five European leagues for tackles, blocks and aerial duels won, demonstrating confidence in winning the ball in dangerous positions – an attribute that would be a massive advantage against the strong defensive set-ups in the second tier.

With that being said, the signing of Poulsen would be a great piece of business for Leeds if they can strike up a good deal this summer, as the team could really struggle without replacing Rodrigo in the Championship next season.

The BCCI has done a u-turn on the appointments of Zaheer Khan as bowling consultant and Rahul Dravid as overseas Test batting consultant; the appointments were announced on July 11.Now, the chairman of the committee of administrators (CoA) has said those were mere recommendations that needed action from the CoA “in consultation with the head coach”. Ravi Shastri, India’s new head coach, meanwhile, is set to get his own support staff as that has been decided “in consultation with the head coach already”.As for Dravid and Zaheer, yet another committee has been formed to decide if they are needed at all, and terms of engagement if they are. The committee, comprising acting BCCI president CK Khanna, secretary Amitabh Choudhary and CoA member Diana Edulji, will have a meeting with Shastri. The meeting will be convened by BCCI CEO Rahul Johri.This is yet another process after a month-long farcical drama finally ended with a definitive BCCI release on July 11. It said, “The BCCI announces the appointment of Mr. Ravi Shastri as the Head Coach, Mr. Zaheer Khan as the Bowling Consultant and Mr. Rahul Dravid who will be the Overseas Batting Consultant (Test cricket) for the Indian Cricket Team.” It was followed by praise for the appointees and gratitude for the cricket advisory committee (CAC) comprising Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman, who had been tasked with identifying the new coach. The release was signed by Choudhary.

Other decisions made on Saturday

• Advertisement to be released inviting applications for the jobs of administrative managers of the India, India A and India Under-19. The deadline for applications for the senior team is July 21, and the manager’s term will be one year. The manager will be a college graduate, and will preferably be a first-class or international cricketer who has preferably “successfully” managed a state team in India or an international team. Alternatively the candidate could hold at least 10 years of work experience in public or private sector. “Sound knowledge of cricket and playing conditions” will be non-negotiable.

• The committee of Khanna, Choudhary, Edulji and Johri will decide on the India manager on July 22 in Delhi. Before that it will meet Shastri in July 18 and finalise coaching requirements and appointments, and also the financial terms of the coaches’ contracts.

• To ensure proper co-ordination and implementation, the CoA has now decided to invite the BCCI office bearers to its meetings.

On July 13, an unnamed source from the CoA – which was about to be reduced from three to two members – was quoted as saying that the CAC had exceeded its brief in appointing the two consultants. On the same day, the CAC wrote an email to the CoA expressing its displeasure, and saying it had appointed Dravid and Zaheer after discussions with Shastri.On July 15, the CoA met some BCCI officials in Delhi, and then its head Vinod Rai confirmed the u-turn. “There is no such thing as a contract yet,” Rai said, when asked if the appointments of Zaheer and Dravid had been put on hold. “It is not an appointment. The recommendation has been made. And the CoA has to act on the recommendation. That recommendation will be acted upon in consultation with the head coach.”When asked if Shastri had demanded his own support staff, Rai said: “The support staff has been decided in consultation with the head coach already. There is going to be a core support staff, which will be fielding, batting and bowling, which has been decided. Any other ancillary etc, he [Shastri] will be coming back tomorrow [from England] and we will decide.”It has been widely reported that Shastri wants B Arun back as the bowling coach. Arun, Shastri’s team-mate from Under-19 and India days, was India’s bowling coach during Shastri’s previous stint as team director too.Rai’s latest assertions, though, go against yet another BCCI release, titled “COA hails CAC coach recommendation”, sent on July 12. The email was not signed by any person, but it said, “The Cricket Advisory Committee has made its recommendation regarding the coach. It is a comprehensive recommendation covering all aspects of the coaching requirement of any team. They have applied themselves to the cause at hand with dedication and commitment. This is exactly what we had expected from a committee of such distinguished cricketers. On behalf of all interested in ‘Cricket India’, BCCI and the COA, I thank them for the service so willingly rendered by them. We accept their recommendation in totality.”The release went on to use the term “new combination”. “Now that they have made the choice, we sincerely feel that the new combination will steward the team to number 1 position in the World Cup,” the release said. “We need to put the immediate past events to rest and wish the team, the Captain, coach and support staff a very ‘happy Innings’ in the run up to the World Cup.”The BCCI’s tweets on July 11:
The CoA’s role in the coach-appointment saga has been curious to say the least. On July 10, the day the candidates were interviewed, the CAC had announced in a press conference that it needed more time and more consultation with captain Virat Kohli before it could decide on the coach. The following morning, though, various BCCI officials confirmed that they were asked by the CoA to announce the name of the new coach “as soon as possible”. The name of Shastri as new coach was then announced late on July 11.”I don’t know what exactly happened because I was not in the country at that time,” Rai said about the sudden change in timelines. “The CAC decided to decide the next day; they made the announcement.”When asked if the CoA had given any instructions, Rai said, “We need not go into the details of any of those things. There was a process, that process was followed, and the announcement was made well in time.”Explaining the CoA’s role in the whole matter following the announcement of the appointments, Rai insisted on calling them “recommendations”.”Recommendations have come to the CoA, it will be discussed with the office bearers, and it is only courtesy that we discuss with the head coach as to who the other coaches should be,” he said.When told of the CAC’s displeasure with the new turn of events, especially because, according to the CAC, it had consulted Shastri before making its choices, Rai confirmed Shastri had indeed been consulted, but only by the CAC.”It is a fact that he was consulted,” Rai said. “There was some conversation that took place. I can’t clarify on that because I was not a part of it. We didn’t know. We had left it entirely to the CAC to decide, we were told that he was consulted, but since we were not privy to it…”When asked about the CAC’s letter to the CoA, which expressed severe disappointment with the media reports attributed to the CoA, Rai neither denied nor confirmed receiving such correspondence. “CAC members have corresponded a lot with the CEO, and me also,” he said. “Some of the emails have come to me, some have been copied to me. We reacted to each one of those things.”Rai went on to add that they needed to check if Dravid and Zaheer were in conflict of interest if given these roles. “The fact of the matter is they have made a recommendation,” Rai said. “Before we put that recommendation into fact, we have to find out conflict-of-interest issues, their willingness issues, their availability issues. We have to do that.”When asked if the CAC hadn’t already spoken to the two, Rai said, “They may have spoken; we haven’t. Rahul, I am sure, is engaged elsewhere. Zaheer is also engaged elsewhere. So we have to ascertain their availability.”