Abhimanyu Easwaran has been named captain, replacing Anustup Majumdar

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Oct-2025Mohammed Shami has been named in a strong Bengal squad for the start of the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season. Shami will be partnered by Akash Deep, Mukesh Kumar and Ishan Porel in the pace department, with the squad captained by opener Abhimanyu Easwaran.Bengal had earlier named Anustup Majumdar as captain. But the late change is understood to have been made in consultation with Sourav Ganguly, the former India captain who recently took charge as president of the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB).Shami hasn’t played for India since featuring in the Champions Trophy in early March. Asked of his omission from the squad for the West Indies Tests, chief selector Ajit Agarkar had highlighted Shami’s lack of match time as one of the reasons.Related

• Suryavanshi, still only 14, named Bihar Ranji Trophy vice-captain

• Akash Deep: I was wondering 'how do I survive five Tests?'

So far, since the end of IPL 2025 in June, Shami has featured in just one first-class game, for East Zone in the Duleep Trophy. In that game, he sent down 34 overs across the two innings, picking up one wicket. In the second innings of that match, Shami didn’t bowl much on the final day in a game East Zone lost after conceding a big first-innings lead.The Ranji season is also an opportunity for Akash Deep and Mukesh to get back on the Test selection radar ahead of the South Africa series starting November 14.Akash Deep was part of the England tour in the summer, where he featured in three of the five Tests and starred with a ten-wicket haul in India’s win in Birmingham. However, since his return from England, Akash Deep has had to undergo rehab for a back injury that ruled him out of the Duleep Trophy. He has since passed a fitness test but was not picked in the squad for the ongoing series against West Indies.Mukesh was part of the India A tour of England in the summer, where he picked up three wickets in his only outing. He bowled in just one innings in the Duleep Trophy opener for East Zone before being examined for a hamstring injury. He has since cleared his fitness tests at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence.Bengal open their campaign against Uttarakhand at Eden Gardens on October 15. They are placed in Group C, with Assam, Services, Tripura, Railways, Haryana and Gujarat as the other teams.

Ahead of his final Test, Angelo Mathews looks back at a long, eventful career

Andrew Fidel Fernando14-Jun-2025In the first few years of your international career, it felt like you were a little bulletproof. You’d captained age-group teams, and suddenly you were the dynamic young allrounder in one of the greatest Sri Lanka teams that ever was. What do you remember of that start?I’d like to start off by thanking the Almighty, and then my parents, my wife, my kids, my siblings – everyone who has sacrificed a lot for me. Starting from school, I got every opportunity to study and excel in sports. I’m very thankful to my college, all my teachers, past presidents, rectors, my coaches from under-13 to first XI.I got those opportunities, and then I was able to excel and get myself to achieve the target of any cricketer’s dream – playing for the national team. I was suddenly called up to a team that I used to watch on TV. Those were my heroes. The next minute I’m with them, getting myself ready to play again. I was shocked. But the seniors helped me feel at home.Related

Mathews defies drama, one last time

Storm, steel and silverware: how Angie and SL took over the world in 2014

Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh: New beginnings for both teams as WTC restarts in Galle

Mathews' best – Rain man in Galle, Hero at Headingley

The changing game: bowlers rise, batters fall, Tests get faster and shorter

You’re sitting here a much wiser man. How do you feel about the Angelo of that early era who was playing ridiculous amounts of cricket as an allrounder? Do you think about missed opportunities to set yourself up for a sustainable peak, or do you judge yourself with a bit more kindness?I didn’t actually think about my workload management. As I said, I’ve seen a stat where from 2010 to 2015 I have played the most number of games in the entire world. So that speaks for itself.I would say the only other regret I have in my career is that I couldn’t achieve the 10,000-run mark. But every other thing, I’ve given my best in every situation. I’ve tried to win games for my country in every situation. Giving 100% to your team in every single game is another thing, so I was wanting to play all three formats and contribute with bat, ball, and in the field, in every single game. I was absolutely going for it.Obviously, I could have done things better. It was in 2018 that I sat down with Dilshan Fonseka (men’s team trainer) and looked at the amount of injuries that I had. He told me that my body couldn’t bear it. So I changed everything – the way I eat, my lifestyle, and my training.The Headingley Test was one of the highlights of Angelo Mathews’ career•AFPWe’ll get to how you changed things up a bit later, but ahead of your final Test, I wanted to also talk to you about what most people remember as maybe your greatest Test innings – the 160 in Headingley. This was at your very peak…That was one of the standouts in my career, I would say. I remember quite a few innings where I was also surprised with how well I batted, and that is definitely one of the innings. That England tour was a very heated competition between the two teams, especially starting from the one-dayers where they were targeting me as the captain. I took that energy and I transferred it into my focus and performances and that helped me play that aggressive sort of cricket. I’m pretty happy with what we did on that tour, as a team, and for me as a cricketer and captain.The young Angelo was very cool, calm and collected. That England tour was when we saw a bit of grumpiness come in…It all started with that mankading incident in the one-dayers. I’d say we’d given them enough warnings, especially in the previous game, where they were stealing quite a few runs. Both teams were grumpy. The laws weren’t that strict [on player behaviour] back then, so we exchanged a lot of words.You were doing a lot of things for this team at the time, though. You were captaining. You were expected to finish games with the bat, but you were also playing match-saving innings. You were opening the bowling in limited-overs games, and also playing a role with the ball in Tests. And you were quite young – did it feel unfair to be loaded with so much responsibility?No, every single captain goes through this. I’ve lost a lot of hair during the tenure. Not many captains have a lot of hair left. Whether you’re captaining Sri Lanka or wherever, there’s always that added responsibility. Everyone is watching you, everyone is waiting to hear from you. So that sometimes can be a bit of a pain, but I enjoyed it. Sometimes I did feel like I wanted to give up. But then I said to myself, ‘You’ve been given this opportunity. Try and take the team to another level.’In 2018, something extremely unusual happened to you. You essentially got called fat by coach Chandika Hathurusingha, in one of the most insulting ways, and you were dropped from the team you had been asked to resume captaincy of. Does that still make you angry?No, I think you shouldn’t be holding on to things. You need to learn to let go. You don’t need to react. I’ve been brought up in a way where my parents and in my school, everyone has taught me to understand and then respect people. Later, things got a bit too ugly. Let’s say, whatever, whoever said about me, I didn’t really care because I know people have their own opinions.Angelo Mathews celebrated his Test hundred at Basin Reserve with a set of push-ups•Getty ImagesBut you did react at the time, and it was putting obvious pressure on you. When you hit a hundred at the Basin Reserve, you did push ups to almost defy the coach who was calling you unfit…Whatever the selectors and the coach decide is out of my control, so I was just trying to control what was in my control. In the heat of the moment, I did some push-ups, and I did react. But I didn’t want to react like that without performing.Another fun little moment came in that 2019 ODI World Cup match against West Indies, when you hadn’t bowled in months, even in the nets, but offered to make up the overs right at the end of the game. And you ended up taking a wicket!chuckles I hadn’t bowled in about six months, but I knew [captain] Dimuth Karunaratne was running out of options because all our top bowlers were finishing their quota of overs. And then I said to Dimuth, bowl our best bowlers for now and try and get this wicket. If in case, if they don’t get out and if you’re stuck with a couple of overs, I can still bowl you those two overs.Unfortunately the quota was finished with our best bowlers, and then I had to eventually roll my arm over. I think the experience paid off. I knew I couldn’t bowl onto Nicholas Pooran’s legs because he was so strong – he was just picking everything up from his legs and hitting it over the boundaries. So I knew that I had to go wider to him, and then I just went wide to him, and he just nicked it.

“Fitness plays a major part nowadays because of the volume of cricket that we play. I understand the value of being fit. I just want to encourage the younger generation to keep pushing.”Angelo Mathews

You’ve also spoken about reorganising your relationship with food around 2018. Is that something you wish you did earlier?I’d say yes, but then all the way until 2018, I was playing all three formats and didn’t really have the opportunity of being able to block out time for just training. You need at least six to eight weeks for that. Once I started getting injured constantly, I thought I needed to slow things down and think of what I actually needed to do rather than just playing. That’s when that meeting with Dilshan happened. I was doing a lot of static training, but needed to change to a lot of functional training. I made that change and feel absolutely brilliant.After being called fat for several years, you’re now posting shirtless mirror selfies with your abs popping in your mid to late 30s. That’s got to feel good…laughs Yes, I’m feeling good. I just want to inspire the younger generation. Fitness plays a major part nowadays because of the volume of cricket that we play. I understand the value of being fit. I just want to encourage the younger generation to keep pushing.We got some very grumpy moments from you late in your career too. I’m thinking of that heated press conference where you went all out against Bangladesh after you got timed out…I think that was one of the times that I did speak quite a lot because I was angry and I felt disappointed. I hadn’t done anything wrong. When I showed the video to the match referee and the umpires post-game, they realised it and said sorry. But that was a very crucial game for us and I felt like I was targeted. I don’t know what prompted them to appeal.I felt that the umpires should have got involved a little bit more. I certainly didn’t cross the two-minute mark when I went to the crease. It was obvious that my helmet broke at the time and not before I walked into the ground. So it was a fair reason for me to get angry.Any Sri Lankan player, and particularly someone who has captained as long as you, has many off-field battles to fight through their career as well. Any battles that stick out?There was one phase where some of the past cricketers were coming out and saying unnecessary stuff [about corruption] without evidence. That really hurt the entire team. You shouldn’t drag the players into it. I just urge them to produce evidence in front of everyone, but don’t just say things for the sake of it, because it tarnishes the team’s reputation. This was around 2018, when the big allegations were happening and the ICC had started an investigation in Sri Lanka, and they went through the entire team. It was a very disturbing thing for everyone.There will always be attempts to topple the administration, and that’s not our business. But they shouldn’t be dragging players into it.Now, there is a bill passed anyway (Sri Lanka has criminalised sports fixing), so if someone talks rubbish we can raise it according to the law. Back then we didn’t have anything.Are you glad that bill has passed?Yes, because it stops the rubbish that people say. If they want to say something and have evidence, then no problem.Moving back to your cricket, are there any parts of your record you look at now and are especially proud of?To finish third on the list of Sri Lanka’s Test run-scorers, behind two of the greatest that have ever played for Sri Lanka (Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene) – that makes me really proud. I know there is regret about 10,000, but I’m happy reaching 8000-odd. Due to injuries I couldn’t play a lot of Test cricket as well. But I’m fortunate that despite that, I was able to play 118 Tests.Dinesh Chandimal, Rangana Herath and Angelo Mathews during a lap of honour after the series win against Australia in 2016•AFPYou had two truly outstanding Test series wins in your record as captain – 2014 series win in England, and the 3-0 home whitewash against Australia in 2016. Were those your favourites?Yeah, they’re my two top ones. Because winning against England in England is a very tough ask.Against Australia, wherever you play, it’s going to be a challenge. We all know that they are a very strong team. And then to beat them 3-0, when they were number one at the time as well, with a young set of guys, was incredible. Kusal Mendis and Dhananjaya de Silva were performing, and we were able to complete a whitewash with Rangana Herath leading the bowling.I know you’re available for white-ball cricket for a little while, but you must be thinking of post-retirement life. What does that look like for you?I haven’t decided. Cricket has given me everything. I would like to give back in whatever capacity. I’ll still keep playing for a year or two in leagues and other stuff if that comes my way. I feel I can still contribute to the game.I’d also like to thank SLC for all their support from 2008 till now. I’d love to thank the support staff since 2008 as well. A special mention to all the back-room coaches at the high performance centre, and all the other stuff there – the masseurs and masseuses, and the physios – everyone. Day in day out, they have helped me personally, and they have helped the teams, without much recognition. I’d like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to all the back-end staff at HPC. They’ve worked extremely hard to keep us fit and keep us in good form.

Amanjot, Ghosh, Rawal, Mandhana and others react to India’s maiden World Cup win

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Nov-2025

Amanjot Kaur is engulfed by her team-mates after taking a vital catch•ICC/Getty Images

Shafali Verma, Player of the Match: “At the start, I had said that God has sent me to do something special and that reflected today. I’m very happy that we’ve won the World Cup. I can’t express it in words. It was tough [coming into the tournament midway] but I was confident that if I keep self belief and stayed calm, then I can do anything. My parents, friends and my brother supported me immensely. Today, I was thinking that I need to make runs anyhow and that the team needed to win. My mind was quite clear and I batted according to my plans. I was happy they got executed. Smriti was talking to me continuously, Harman is always a supporter. Team-mates also supported me, they were very welcoming too. Seniors just said to play my natural game, not to move away from my natural game. [Sachin Tendulkar watching from the stands] It is a very memorable moment for me. When I saw Sachin sir, I got a special kind of boost. I speak to him occasionally, he gives me a boost always. Today also I got inspired just by seeing him.”Deepti Sharma, Player of the Tournament: “Honestly, this still feels like a dream. We have not yet got rid of the emptions. I am so happy to contribute in a World Cup final. I feel really glad. We just wanted to take the positive takeaways from every match. On the fans, I will say, they have come in huge numbers. I want to thank the fans, they have supported us in every match. This was not possible without them. As a team, we feel great after this result. I just want to enjoy every department. I like challenges. I had the bat and ball in my hand. I just had to play according to the situation, and I enjoyed a lot. What better a moment, on this stage, to perform as an allrounder for the team… can’t get better than this. [On Laura Wolvaardt] I think Laura played a very good innings. We were not relaxed. We were very calm, kept on cheering everyone up in the drinks break. As a bowling unit, we wanted to take it till the last ball. We just wanted focus on our best balls. and we did that. [On the changes she wants to see] There has been a lot of change after 2017 and I hope we get more matches. So that will be great.”Related

Deepti, Shafali star as India savour World Cup glory

Amanjot Kaur: “Everyone playing knew how important Wolvaardt’s catch was. I guess I fumbled first time ever in my life, glad I got a second chance. That’s all, I don’t have words to express. [What does this mean?] This means a lot. You can see the crowd cheering. We have created history. This is just the starting, Indian cricket will be at the next level. We are going to dominate all over the world in every format. [Message to family] Congrats to everyone. My family, my coaches, whoever has family here or those sitting at home. My grandmother is not well, she is watching at home. [The support] I think it’s their victory as well. Because they came in huge numbers to support us. This is for you Mumbai, this is for everyone, this is for Pratika who missed out due to injury. I know how it feels to miss out a match due to injury. Not everything is good but there’s good in everything. Very grateful.”Pratika Rawal gets off her wheelchair to celebrate with her team-mates•ICC/Getty ImagesRicha Ghosh: “[On the importance of the win] This win has a lot of importance. We have been waiting for the World Cup for a long time, [had the lingering feeling of] when we will lift the trophy. And today we have won the trophy. We are champions. I can’t explain this feeling but we are all very happy. You can see how emotional everyone is. It’s totally different. [Talk in the huddle] I think in the huddle, the talk was this is the last day, one more day and we just wanted to give it all. No matter what happens, we just wanted to put our bodies on the line. [On the finish] There was pressure of the final, there is so much crowd and fans. But I wanted to performed well, that was the main thing. Everyone trusted me that I can go out and hit and that helped me a lot.”Pratika Rawal: “Well, I can’t express enough. There’s no words. It’s not going to come out of my mouth. This flag on my shoulder, it means a lot to me. And you know, being here with my team, it’s just surreal. I mean, injuries are part and parcel of the game. I’m very happy that I was a part of this team, this winning team. You know, this team, I just love this team. I can’t express my feelings towards this team. So I’m very happy that we actually made it. And we’re the first [Indian] team who has won the World Cup in so long. And the whole India deserves this. To be very honest, it was very difficult for me to sit out and watch the match because it’s actually very difficult. It’s very easy to play inside, rather than watching from the outside. But seeing this energy, seeing this environment, it just, you know, it gave me goosebumps. Whenever there was a wicket, whenever there was a sixer, you can see the energy. It’s amazing. It’s genuinely amazing.”Jemimah Rodrigues is ecstatic after India’s win•ICC/Getty ImagesSmriti Mandhana: “I don’t know how to react to that [being World Champions]. Still sinking in. I haven’t been emotional on a cricket field, but just a very unreal moment. Home World Cup. Just to read ‘Champions – India’, I am still not able to process it. Every World Cup we go in and there’s been so many heartbreaks for all of us. But we always believe we’ve got a bigger responsibility with women’s cricket and genuinely to see the support we’ve got in the last one and a half months… I mean, I don’t know how to explain the last 40 days. But to end it with a World Cup win today, I will take the 45 days of not sleeping every night. [After exit from last T20 World Cup before the semi-final] The last T20 World Cup was a difficult one for all of us, but we had a clear focus on trying to work on our fitness, trying to be better at each aspect. The super-strength of this team – no one will talk about it – is how everyone just stuck in, played for each other. In a World Cup you need everyone’s support, good days and bad days. We enjoyed each others’ success. I can’t tell you how the team environment is… that’s just magic.”Amol Muzumdar: “[Feelings] Absolutely proud, there’s no doubt about it. I don’t know, it’s not sunk in yet. It’s an unbelievable achievement by all the girls. They deserve every credit, they deserve everything that will follow from here because they have worked incredibly hard. I know for a fact that they have done every Indian proud. [On the earlier losses] We did not look at those losses as losses, we just thought we couldn’t get over the line. We dominated a lot of those. There were some hiccups in the campaign, but we were still alive in the tournament and here we are on 2nd November, 2025 as World Champions. [On what this does for women’s cricket in the country] I don’t know, I really don’t know. I am sure they deserve everything what will follow hereon. They have worked extremely hard for this. It is a watershed moment for Indian cricket. [A word on Shafali?] One word… magical. Absolute magical. Turns up in the semi-final, no pressure.. in the finals, home crowd, packed stadiums, turns up a blinder of an innings and then picks up a few wicket with the ball. Absolutely magical.[On the fielding] That was one thing we spoke a lot in the dressing room in the last two years that fielding and fitness was really something we spoke about and focused on it. And here we are… they just turned it up on this day in a World Cup final. I couldn’t have asked for more.”

MatériaMais Notícias

A Confederação Brasileira de Futebol (CBF) adiou o confronto entre Chapecoense x Ponte Preta, que seria realizado neste domingo (19), pela Série B. O motivo foi o mau tempo, pois o elenco da Macaca não conseguiu embarcar para a região sul do país.

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A delegação da equipe de Campinas já estava no Aeroporto de Viracopos quando foi informada sobre o cancelamento do voo para Chapecó. Com isso, a partida foi remarcada para segunda-feira (20< às 19h (de Brasília), na Arena Condá.

– Por conta do mau tempo no aeroporto de Chapecó (SC), a delegação da Ponte Preta não conseguiu embarcar na manhã deste sábado (18) para a partida com a Chapecoense que seria realizada neste domingo (19). A partida foi remarcada pela CBF para segunda-feira (20), às 19h – diz a nota do clube.

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Os outros confrontos referentes à sexta rodada da Série B seguem inalterados, uma vez que a competição não foi paralisada.

Tudo sobre

ChapecoensePonte PretaSérie B

MLB’s winter meetings continued on Tuesday, as more deals were struck and rumors continued to fly.

The blockbuster news on Tuesday was the Dodgers signing Mets All-Star closer Edwin Díaz to a massive, three-year, $69 million deal. L.A.’s bullpen was a mess in 2025, and last offseason’s big signing, Tanner Scott, was straight up awful. The team’s closer went 1–4 with a 4.74 ERA, a 1.26 WHIP, 60 strikeouts against 18 walks in 57 innings, and posted a whopping 10 blown saves. Theoretically, signing Díaz should correct that mistake.

That was the big headline on Tuesday, but there are plenty of rumors circulating around the winter meetings. Several of the biggest we’re hearing are below.

Red Sox could look to Bo Bichette

The Red Sox want to bring free agent third baseman Alex Bregman back, but he has drawn interest from across the league. If he opted to bolt for a new home, it would leave Boston with a sizable hole in the infield. Enter Bo Bichette. Rumors are picking up steam that the Red Sox could turn to Bichette if Bregman walks. While the 27-year-old shortstop’s defensive metrics are awful, he could man the spot for a few years with Marcelo Mayer sliding over to third base.

Bichette is coming off an outstanding season for the Blue Jays in which he slashed .311/.357/.483, and set a full-season personal best with a wRC+ of 134, while producing 3.8 fWAR in 139 games. He’s a hitting machine and would fit well with a young Red Sox core ready to start making the next steps toward contention. Toronto won’t let him walk without a fight, but Boston would be an excellent fit.

Mets willing to trade David Peterson

The Mets watched Díaz leave for the Dodgers on Tuesday, and there’s another All-Star pitcher who might not be back in 2026. The team’s president of baseball operations, David Stearns, has said there is currently a “pretty active” trade market, and ’s Tim Britton and Will Sammon are reporting New York would consider parting with starter David Peterson in the right deal.

The 30-year-old lefty made his first All-Star team in 2025 and went 9–6, with a 4.22 ERA, a 1.37 WHIP, and 150 strikeouts against 65 walks in 168 2/3 innings. That followed a 2024 campaign in which he went 10–3 with a 2.90 ERA in 121 innings. Peterson is under team control through the 2026 season before hitting free agency.

Given his production and what should be an affordable salary (projected to be under $8 million) in his final year of arbitration, Peterson wouldn’t come cheap. The Mets need rotation help, so it would likely take a decent amount to pry him loose. That said, New York needs to find an outfielder to replace the departed Brandon Nimmo and may need to find a replacement for Pete Alonso at first base. Moving a valuable player to fill those holes might be the route Stearns opts to take.

Ketel Marte trade speculation continues

The Diamondbacks continue to field calls on second baseman Ketel Marte. The 32-year-old three-time All-Star is one of the big names available on the trade block this offseason, but he’ll fetch a high price if he is moved. He’s coming off a 2025 season in which he slashed .283/.376/.517, with 28 home runs, 72 RBIs, a wRC+ of 145, and 4.6 fWAR. He was also criticized for sitting out too many games.

For Arizona to move Marte, it would need a massive return. He’s owed $102.5 million over the next six years, which is an incredibly affordable contract for a player with his ability. He’s a consistent, All-Star-level performer, and while he’s leaving his prime, his deal is manageable.

Ken Rosenthal is reporting that the Red Sox are interested, along with three unnamed teams.

Dodgers not “likely” to move Teoscar Hernandez

While they have a mostly complete roster, the Dodgers are looking to rework some things this offseason. They kicked off that effort on Tuesday by signing All-Star closer Edwin Díaz, and they almost certainly won’t be done making changes. One potential deal seems to be off the table, though.

L.A. general manager Brandon Gomes said it “doesn’t feel likely” that outfielder Teoscar Hernández will be moved. After he helped lead them to a World Series title in 2024, the Dodgers re-signed Hernández to a three-year, $66 million deal last offseason. The 33-year-old proceeded to take a step back. In 2025, he slashed .247/.284/.454, with 25 home runs and 89 RBIs, while posting a career-worst wRC+ (102), and only producing 0.6 fWAR. All of those numbers were significantly lower than those he put up in 2024. It doesn’t help that he’s also a terrible defender in right field.

Hernández is expensive for an aging one-dimensional player coming off a down year, but the lack of right-handed bats available in free agency may have elevated his value. Still, it’s a big investment for a risky return. On the flip side, the Dodgers may opt to keep Hernández simply for the sake of continuity. He fits in the clubhouse, and if he underperforms again, the team is more than capable of paying to find a replacement.

L.A. is looking for another outfielder this offseason, and moving Hernández would necessitate finding a second. It’s likely he’ll stay with the team heading into 2026.

علق الإعلامي خالد الغندور، على هزيمة منتخب مصر الثاني أمام الأردن بثلاثية دون مقابل، والخروج المبكر من بطولة كأس العرب، مؤكدًا حجم الخلل الذي تعانيه المنظومة الكروية في مصر.

وقال الغندور في تصريحات عبر برنامج “الحريفة”، على إذاعة “أون سبورت إف إم”: “ماذا أقول؟ ماذا تريدون أن أقول بعد ما شاهدناه أمس في مباراة منتخب مصر أمام الأردن؟ للأسف، كانت نتيجة غير متوقعة، كارثية لكرة القدم المصرية 3-0 أمام المنتخب الأردني، الذي كان يلعب بالفريق الثاني، مع غياب حوالي خمس لاعبين أساسيين، بالإضافة إلى خمس لاعبين محترفين بالخارج”.

وتابع: “يقول البعض: نحن كنا نلعب بالفريق الثاني، لكن مهما كان، فهو منتخب مصر، الحقيقة أن المنتخب، سواء في الفريق الأول أو الثاني، كان يقدم نتائج أفضل سابقًا، المنتخب الجزائري، على سبيل المثال، حقق نتائج أفضل، وكذلك المنتخب التونسي، خرج لكنه على الأقل فاز بمباراة وتعادل بأخرى، بينما نحن جلبنا نقطتين فقط من تسع نقاط، ومع كل مباراة نتأخر ثم نتعادل، وأمس قدمنا نتيجة سيئة للغاية، إلى أي مدى ستصل الكرة المصرية؟”.

وأضاف: “بالطبع، هذه النتائج تعكس الخلافات المستمرة بين كابتن حلمي طولان وكابتن حسام حسن، وبين الاتحاد والأندية وعدم تأجيل مباريات بيراميدز، وما حدث بين الأندية والمنتخب، وكذلك وجود بعض الخلافات بين المدربين أنفسهم، مثل التصريحات على وسائل التواصل الاجتماعي، كل هذا أدى إلى حالة من الفوضى في التنظيم والنظام”.

طالع أيضًا | شوبير يُفجر مفاجأة من العيار الثقيل بشأن موقف حلمي طولان من جهازه المعاون قبل كأس العرب

وأردف: “الجمهور المصري كان موجودًا في الملعب أمس، حوالي 30 ألف متفرج، وشاهد كل شيء، ومن المثير للانزعاج أن الأندية تلعب باسم مصر، وعندما يأتي المنتخب للعب، لا يجد الدعم الكافي، كل نادٍ يسعى لمصلحته الخاصة، وهذا ما يضر بالمنتخب ويظهر عشوائية في اتخاذ القرارات”.

وواصل: “هناك غياب واضح للتنسيق بين المنتخب الأول والثاني، مثلًا، اللاعب إمام عاشور لم يكن جاهزًا للمشاركة بالشكل المناسب، وبعض اللاعبين الآخرين مثل حسام عبد المجيد، محمود صابر، وغيرهم، لم يكونوا متواجدين رغم أنه كان بإمكانهم المشاركة، وهذا يعكس غياب النظام والاستراتيجية”.

وتابع: “المنتخب الثاني، هل هو موجود فقط للبطولة العربية؟ أم لتجهيز لاعبين للفريق الأول وكأس الأمم وكأس العالم؟ لا يوجد وضوح في الهدف أو الاستراتيجية، وهذا يظهر في طريقة الاختيار والتجهيز، حيث يُختار اللاعبون بشكل غير منظم، ما يؤدي إلى نتائج سيئة وأداء متراجع”.

واختتم: “حتى اللاعبون الذين كان من المفترض أن يكونوا جاهزين للمشاركة في عدة مباريات لم يحصلوا على فرص كافية، ما يعكس نقص التخطيط والتنظيم داخل المنظومة الكروية”.

Two wickets each for Hasaranga and Theekshana restricted Zimbabwe to 146, before SL blazed to the target

Madushka Balasuriya25-Nov-2025

Pathum Nissanka found a timely return to form as he struck a devastating 98 off 58 deliveries to help Sri Lanka chase down a target of 147 against Zimbabwe in just 16.2 overs, with nine wickets to spare, in what was a must-win game in Rawalpindi. The result gives Sri Lanka their first win on the tour, and snaps a five-match losing streak in T20Is. It now means Sri Lanka go into their final game against Pakistan on Thursday knowing that a win will mean they qualify for the final of the tri-series.Before Nissanka’s blitz, Sri Lanka’s bowlers had done well to restrict Zimbabwe to a sub-par total of 146 for 5. Maheesh Theekshana and Wanindu Hasaranga ended with identical innings-best figures of 2 for 23, as Zimbabwe struggled to push their innings into high gear.There were starts for Brian Bennett and Sikandar Raza, but both fell at inopportune moments, while a final flourish from Ryan Burl was still not enough to challenge a strong Sri Lanka batting performance. The rest of the Zimbabwe batting once more fell flat. There was also a debut for Pavan Rathnayake, though Nissanka ensured Rathnayake was not required to bat.Nissanka finds formAfter that monumental 107 against India in the Asia Cup, Nissanka’s next five white-ball scores read 29, 24, 24, 0 and 17. Not necessarily terrible form, but for a side that relies heavily on his power-hitting to set the tone, it’s no surprise that Nissanka’s dip in form has coincided with a lean period for Sri Lanka.But here, with Sri Lanka chasing a middling total and needing a win to stay in contention for the final, Nissanka finally got one to stick. Sri Lanka produced their best powerplay of the series – 64 for 1 – with Nissanka accounting for 37 of those runs. Through the middle overs, Sri Lanka struck a further 73 – and Nissanka 51 of those. And only three death-overs deliveries were needed to seal the chase – a wide, a four, and a mammoth six.File photo: Maheesh Theekshana got two wickets in the powerplay•Associated Press

Full or short, it didn’t matter, Nissanka dealt with them all just the same. There were sweeps off seamers, flat-batted wallops over extra cover, slaps down the ground, and mega pulls right across the square boundary. Richard Ngarava was singled out in particular, with the tall left-arm seamer being taken for four fours and three sixes.Nissanka struck 11 fours and four sixes in total. Such was Nissanka’s control over proceedings that the final shot of the chase – a front-foot pull for six over backward square leg – had Nissanka looking up at the sky with a wry smile. No, not in celebration, rather disbelief that he had struck six when he intended to hit a four, as the latter would have allowed him to make a run at a second T20I century.Theekshana stakes his claimIn 11 T20Is in 2025, Theekshana has 11 wickets at an economy rate of 7.78. It is his most expensive year so far – his overall economy rate stands at 6.97 – while also being his least impactful (in which he has played at least ten matches) since his debut in 2021. It has meant that despite picking up 24 wickets in 2024 at a strike rate of 18.7 – the figure stands at 23.1 for 2025 – Theekshana has found himself the odd man out on more than one occasion.So having been dropped for Sri Lanka’s second game in this tri-series, Theekshana was recalled for this match, and promptly handed the new ball. By the time his three-over powerplay spell had ended, two of Zimbabwe’s top three had been sent back – he beat both edges to rattle the stumps of Tadiwanashe Marumani and Dion Myers – as his figures at that stage read 2 for 19. Zimbabwe, meanwhile, ended the powerplay on 44 for 2.Theekshana’s final over arrived at the start of the death-overs period, and in it he gave away just four runs. That was four quality overs in the game’s most difficult period for bowlers on a good batting track. In a year where he hasn’t been at the top of his game, Theekshana seemed to have provided a timely reminder of what he offers when he’s at his best.Sikandar Raza steadied Zimbabwe in the middle overs•PCB

Raza, Bennett to the rescue againOf the 581 runs Zimbabwe have struck over the course of four games this series, 273 have come off the bats of Bennett and Raza – that roughly accounts for 46%. It is a worrying dependency as of late, but one that Zimbabwe will be grateful for at present.After Theekshana’s early strikes, it was Bennett who ensured the scoring rate remained above seven runs an over, particularly with Brendan Taylor struggling for fluency at the other end. It meant that despite Taylor’s 14 off 16 balls, their partnership of 36 still came off 28 deliveries.And once Taylor fell, it brought Raza to the crease, and together he added 36 off 30 balls with Bennett – they mixed the odd boundary with intelligent strike rotation. While they were together, Zimbabwe looked on track for at least 160 as the pair navigated the middle overs expertly.Burl’s late show spares blushesBurl has flattered to deceive throughout this series, but against Pakistan last time out, his 67 off 49 deliveries finally realised some of what he had been threatening. Unfortunately for Burl, that knock came in a doomed cause, whereas on Tuesday evening, he revived an innings that had been limping to a close.After Bennett and Raza had both fallen in the space of 13 deliveries courtesy Hasaranga’s double strike, Zimbabwe’s innings was in danger of unraveling. Of the four overs bowled at the death, two went for three and four runs, respectively. But Burl, who had been on 1 off 7 balls when Raza fell midway through the 15th over, ensured the innings retained some momentum by striking 36 runs off his next 19 deliveries.If Tashinga Musekiwa had been able to offer more support than his eventual 6 off 14 balls, Zimbabwe may have reached the 160 they had been eyeing – or perhaps more.

Martin O’Neill’s time in charge of Celtic couldn’t have gone much better really.

The legendary manager saw his beat their Old Firm rivals, reach a cup final and draw level with Hearts at the top of the SPFL table.

It took the Hoops a while to find their new manager but they finally have their man in the form of Wilfried Nancy who arrives following a stint in MLS.

That said, for those at Parkhead, chiefly Liam Scales, he’s not had much time to think about what could be in store under the new boss.

Scales preparing for new era at Celtic

Republic of Ireland international Scales was asked after the 1-0 victory over Dundee on Wednesday evening whether he had been doing his research on the 48-year-old Nancy.

“No, I haven’t had time,” the defender said. “It’s been so busy. Obviously we know bits and pieces but we can’t get ahead of ourselves. We need to focus on the games that we have and now is the time where we’re going to have to really focus on the tactical changes and whatever he wants us to do.

“It’s hard to do homework on someone you’ve never met because you don’t want to create a false idea of them. It’s better just to wait and really learn from them in person.”

Nancy arrives ahead of a crucial run of games. Celtic will go top of the Premiership if they beat Hearts on Sunday before facing St Mirren in the League Cup final a week later.

“It doesn’t get much bigger than the week he has come in. It’s probably ideal. You want to come in and be part of massive games and he has a chance to win a trophy early on.

“If you come in and do well over the next three games, it’s the best way you can start a job. We’ll be doing our best to make that happen for him because we want to be successful as a team.”

Scales could be set for new role under Nancy

Scales was in excellent form under O’Neill, notably hailed as Celtic’s “player of the year” by some. Evidently, he thoroughly enjoyed his time with the interim manager in the dugout.

The defender said of O’Neill: “He’s been really good. It’s been a positive four weeks or five weeks. We’ve won a lot of games. We’ve obviously won a cup semi-final and won an away game in Europe as well. They were big wins. It’s just been really enjoyable and positive.

“In the game now, the defenders are on the ball a lot and you need to link play. But to go back to basics and just be told that you need to win your headers, you need to win your duels, I’ll keep that with me.”

Whether the centre-back continues his form remains to be seen. After all, Scales could be set for a modified role given Nancy’s preference for a back three. “I’ve played in back threes, I’ve played in back fives, I’ve played in back fours. I just want to be in the team. That’s all I care about.”

Better than Maeda: Celtic star is going to be undroppable under Nancy

This Celtic star who was even better than Daizen Maeda against Dundee should be Wilfried Nancy’s first undroppable star.

1

By
Dan Emery

Dec 4, 2025

Matthew Breetzke’s ODI career started solidly as he consistently scored runs from the top of the order. In this ODI series, though – his first both in India and against India – he is performing an entirely different role.Breetzke has been pushed down to No. 4 with senior players Aiden Markram and Quinton de Kock and the captain Temba Bavuma forming the top three, and he’s coped well, scoring a match-winning half-century during South Africa’s chase of 359 on Wednesday.”Obviously, I’m just getting more experience now batting at four, which I’m starting to feel a little bit more comfortable in the role,” Breetzke said on the eve of the series decider in Visakhapatnam. “So that helps, and I think the more I play at number four and in this role, hopefully the better I’ll get.”Related

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The two games against India provided him with two different situations to deal with as well. In Ranchi, he went in with South Africa having lost a lot of wickets and in need of recovery. In Raipur, they were chasing a bigger total but had a solid foundation.”Obviously, the first game there was a little bit of trouble that we were in, so I had to sort of build the innings and then in the second game it was about just managing the guys that were coming in.”We lost obviously Aiden [after his century] and then I had to sort of manage [Dewald] Brevis there and then just managing those guys and letting them bat around me, they’ve got the explosive power – it was just about really looking to build a partnership with them.”Breetzke also highlighted the depth and power in South Africa’s batting line-up. “I think we’ve got a nice balance in our side with a couple of guys that are just proper batters, and then you’ve got powerhouses like Brevis and [Marco] Jansen that can sort of change the game on its head.”We’ve seen [Corbin] Bosh in the last two matches play some really special innings, I think as the top four, it gives you a lot of confidence; you can take a little bit more time because, you know, they’ve got that explosive power at the back end. So for us, it’s just about setting that platform up for them to come in at the end and do their thing.”There’s a lot of confidence in the batting group at the moment, but we will have to do it again tomorrow.”

Everton are now reportedly keeping close tabs on a Premier League gem who’s been compared to Aston Villa’s Jadon Sancho.

Everton ready to pounce in Zirkzee race

Everton’s January transfer window may well centre around Premier League talent. The Toffees already enjoyed great success in the summer when they welcomed out-of-favour stars Jack Grealish and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. Now, The Friedkin Group could look to repeat that act of genius.

Despite the fact that Thierno Barry finally scored his first goal for the club against Nottingham Forest last time out, it seems as though those in Merseyside still intend to target an attacking reinforcement.

Reports have even gone as far as to claim that they’re ready to pounce in the race to sign Joshua Zirkzee from Manchester United in January. The forward has fallen down the pecking order since the arrivals of Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko, but could have his season saved by the Toffees.

Zirkzee may have struggled at Old Trafford, but Grealish and Dewsbury-Hall are living proof that a move to Merseyside can quickly revive a career.

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Even if Barry now kicks on, David Moyes could do with that extra attacking addition, given that Beto is yet to show signs that he’ll become a viable goalscoring option for Everton.

That’s not to say Zirkzee is their only target, however. Alongside the Man United forward, the Toffees have also reportedly set their sights on signing Chelsea’s young, versatile winger, Tyrique George.

Like Zirkzee, the youngster has fallen out of favour at Stamford Bridge and is now looking to leave Chelsea when the winter window swings open in less than a month.

Everton keeping close tabs on Tyrique George

According to TeamTalk, Everton are now eyeing a move to sign George and have joined Leeds United in the early race to secure the 19-year-old’s signature.

Compared to Sancho by Italian media, George wouldn’t be the first struggling Chelsea star to find life at Everton. His former teammate, Dewsbury-Hall has undeniably thrived since arriving in Merseyside.

Ultimately, fresh faces have forced George down the pecking order in West London, but Enzo Maresca was certainly impressed by the teenager last season.

The Chelsea boss told reporters after George’s display against Man United in May: “Very good. Very good. Brave. He was a threat in behind. Not easy for him because on the other side you have Maguire, you have Lindelof, you have Shaw.

“He was fighting against important defenders. But again, we tried to find a solution with a player from the academy. Overall I think also he had the penalty moment, so he works quite good.”

Whether it’s Everton or Leeds, both would benefit from George’s arrival in the January transfer window and the striker himself desperately needs senior minutes if he is to kick on.