Surrey fought back defiantly in their CricInfo Championship game at TheOval today, frustrating second-placed Lancashire with valuable eighthand ninth-wicket stands.Thanks to Alex Tudor, Martin Bicknell and Ian Salisbury, Surreyachieved some respectability, reaching 248 all out after slumping to141-7.Bicknell was last out for a painstaking 50, bowled by MuttiahMuralitharan who finished with 5-81.It was an intriguing first day between the teams who have finishedtop and runners-up in the Championship for the past two years.Muralitharan produced another marathon spell of 39.4 overs and, as wellas Bicknell’s three-hour half-century, there was a superb 59 from MarkRamprakash, who is among the candidates to replace Graham Thorpe if hefails to recover from a calf injury in time for the first Ashes Testnext Thursday.Lancashire’s seamers made early inroads after Adam Hollioake had wonthe toss and, when Murali sent back Ali Brown, Surrey were in trouble at91-4. Ramprakash pulled Murali for a six on the way to his 50, but theSri Lankan was his usual persistent, probing self and was to have thelast say.In between his successes, however, Surrey hauled their way from theedge of disaster with Tudor and Bicknell chiselling out 34 for theeighth wicket. Then Bicknell and Salisbury stacked up 62 for theninth.Lancashire were running out of ideas but Murali switched ends anddismissed them both in the closing minutes.
According to club insider ExWHUemployee, West Ham are hopeful that Jarrod Bowen will be available for the upcoming clash against Everton next Sunday.
The Lowdown: Bowen’s injury
During the Irons’ 1-0 loss to Liverpool earlier this month, the 25-year-old was forced into a premature exit after sustaining an injury to his foot, cutting his game short in the 53rd minute. The winger has been sidelined ever since, having missed the Hammers’ last four games as a result.
Whilst the club had previously announced that Bowen had not sustained significant damage from the foot injury, varying reports have since arisen to the contrary.
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The Latest: Ex’s news on Bowen
When interviewed for his website The West Ham Way, ExWHUemployee was questioned by the site’s editor Mark Carlaw about Bowen’s eagerly-awaited return.
Shared on Twitter, he responded with: “Well as of now the club are hopeful that Bowen will be back for the Everton game. There is an element of confusion surrounding the injury, but from what I am told, the match against Everton is seen as his potential return. This also goes the same for Coufal.”
The Verdict: Huge boost
This news will come as a huge boost to David Moyes as his West Ham side set to prepare for a congested period over the next few weeks. It begins with a Premier League fixture against a struggling Everton side before one of the club’s most important clashes of the modern era as they host Lyon in the quarter-finals of the Europa League.
As the Hammers’ top scorer, Bowen’s return could prove to be massive for Moyes, as the Irons have struggled for goals without their star winger. To supplement his value in front of goal, the former Hull City man also adds a creative dynamic in the final third, illustrated by ranking in the 89th percentile for assists made among positional peers in Europe’s five top-ranked leagues (via FBRef).
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Therefore, if the 25-year-old can make his return in time for the upcoming bouts against Everton and Lyon, it would provide the east Londoners with a tremendous boost ahead of the season’s run-in.
In other news: West Ham target has ‘gentleman’s agreement’ to leave his current club
Owais Shah’s gritty 72 was the only innings of substance on a bitterly cold opening day of the season in which 14 wickets fell at Lord’s. Sharing in an unbeaten stand of 57 with Arun Harinath, Shah and MCC outwitted the Champion County, Sussex, and are in a good position from which to take the match by the scruff.Like the customary smattering of hardy spectators, Chris Adams, the Sussex captain, appeared to be duped by the early spring sunshine and clear blue skies. The early warmth gave way to a biting cold, and by tea, Sussex had fallen to 171 all out with Steve Kirby and Graham Onions sharing seven wickets. Chris Nash top-scored with 33, but it was a day for bowlers, however deceitful the weather gods were trying to be. In April, it was ever thus.Kirby was the first to take advantage of the conditions, replacing Onions – whose first spell was tidy but too short – at the Nursery End. Unlike Onions and Charlie Shreck, he pitched it well up and repeatedly troubled Nash and Carl Hopkinson with marked away-swing. Nash had moved surreptitiously to 33 – a sweetly timed straight-rive the highlight – before surviving a confident shout from Kirby to one which cut back on him. Kirby got his man two balls later when Nash fell over trying to work one to leg. Sussex were 42 for 1 with under an hour until lunch.Kirby was beginning to generate encouraging pace while maintaining a consistent line to Hopkinson, who never looked comfortable, and fell in predictably meek fashion cutting a lifter which cramped him. Michael Yardy crabbed two fours through midwicket before his lack of footwork cost him with a thick edge to Michael Carberry in the slips, and Sussex limped to lunch on 90 for 3.Onions took over the mantle from Kirby in the afternoon. Matt Prior fell to a loose flap outside off immediately after lunch and Adams – whose 23 contained four crunching boundaries, two of them square-cut a la Robin Smith – attempted a slap over long-on, and spooned the ball helplessly to his opposite number, Ed Joyce, at mid-off. This was not the cricket of Champions.Luke Wright replaced Prior and, inevitably, chanced his arm. Pulling Onions for a majestic four and driving Shreck through the covers, he was beginning to move the scoring rate along nicely. It couldn’t last long, however, and his natural aggression cost him when he fished at a fine leg-cutter from Onions. James Tredwell then shuffled in to clean up the tail with three cheap wickets, bowling Harris with a beautifully flighted delivery. The only question left remaining: was 171 rather more competitive than MCC first thought?Harris opened the attack with Jason Lewry and immediately matched Onions, Kirby and Co with a wonderful eight-over spell of swing and seam. Sussex have fought hard for his signing – his registration was quarantined until early this morning – but his control of line was immaculate. Joyce failed to counter the inswing, edging a simple catch through to Prior, but Harris really shone against the right-handers. Shah, in particular, was the epitome of rust: fishing and missing outside his off stump, Harris might have had his wicket five or more times. But his hard graft soon paid off.Carberry also managed to miss the ball repeatedly, but a booming inswinger hurried into his pads to trap him in front and when Ravi Bopara edged Harris to Adams at first slip, MCC were tottering on 42 for 3. Shah’s struggle against Harris continued but, in Adil Rashid, he found a partner willing to take Sussex on. Rashid’s thumping square cut for four appeared to prod Shah into life who tucked into the support bowlers, Luke Wright and Ragheb Aga. And although Rashid fell to a daft single to mid-on, Shah was well supported by Arun Harinath, the pair putting on 57 for the fifth wicket.Shortly after notching an impressively slick 65-ball fifty, Shah began to show signs of blossoming with the most delicate of pick-ups over midwicket for the day’s most authoritative and elegant shot. And with that, MCC are within touching distance of overhauling Sussex and taking a lead.
Scotland couldn’t follow up their impressive 10-run win over Lancashire yesterday, falling to a five-wicket defeat against Durham at Chester-le-Street. Scotland were reduced to 64 for 5, Graham Onions and Ottis Gibson the chief beneficiaries. Holding the fort was Australian George Bailey whose slick 92 from 105 balls at least pushed Scotland passed the 200. Durham set off in pursuit of 206 in bullish style with Gareth Breese cracking 44. But it was Will Smith’s 62 which powered their chase as they were home in the 44th overNottinghamshire plundered 170 off 13 overs to set up a 50-run win over Derbyshire at Trent Bridge. David Hussey crashed seven sixes in a 20-ball 56 while Bilal Shafayat and Samit Patel added rapid thirties. Derbyshire slumped to 9 for 4 at the beginning of their chase and never made an impression on the target.Leicestershire suffered their second washout in two days when their match against Lancashire was called off in early afternoon.There was no play at Edgbaston between Warwickshire and Yorkshire.
South Conference
Mark Butcher’s unbeaten 72 led Surrey to a nervy three-wicket win with two overs remaining against Glamorgan, in a match reduced to 39 overs per side, at Cresselly, a village with just 13 houses. His stand of 81 with Jon Batty took Surrey most of the way towards their target of 204 but they suffered a late wobble against Alex Wharf. Glamorgan were not helped by the loss of Damien Wright, the Tasmania seam bowler, after two balls and David Hemp was left to trying to fill the hole. Jimmy Maher anchored Glamorgan’s 203 with a 103-ball 76 after an early slump to 35 for 3.Marcus North and Alex Gidman starred with bat and ball for Gloucestershire who beat Essex by 22 runs in a 33-over game at Bristol. North struck a slick 55 from 61 balls while wickets tumbled at the other end to Ryan ten Doeschate’s medium pace. But it was Gidman who injected urgency into Essex’s innings with a brutal 65 from just 46 deliveries, smacking four sixes in Gloucestershire’s imposing 222. Essex’s chase began impressively – Ronnie Irani showing typical aggression in his 41-ball 60 while Varun Chopra added 51. But a middle-order collapse saw Essex collapse from 151 for 2 to 158 for 6, North picking up the key wicket of ten Doeschate – who earlier bagged 5 for 50 – and stifling Essex’s momentum.Ireland suffered their second washout in two days with no play possible against Sussex
The young Zimbabwe cricketers, fresh from a seven-match ODI series against West Indies in which they ended at the wrong end of a 5-0 result, now turn their attention to a tri-nation series featuring associate ICC members Canada and Bermuda.Today, Zimbabwe will welcome a change of pace when they square off against Canada at the Queen’s Park Oval, two days after a 104-run defeat at the hands of the regional team.Given the fact they have shown flashes of brilliance over the past two weeks – albeit each time in losing causes – coupled with the fact that this will be Canada’s first outing at this level since 2003, the Zimbabweans should be the favourites in this encounter.They have shown their positivity in attacking the ball in the field and some of their batsmen have demonstrated intelligent capability. They also have good potential in the bowling department that can only flourish with experience.Canada have an older squad, including four of their players from the 2003 World Cup in South Africa – John Davison, their captain, Desmond Chumney, Ashish Bagai and Sanjayan Thuraisingam.Davison also holds the record for the fastest World Cup ton, against the West Indies in 2003 at Centurion, where he blazed 111, reaching his hundred off just 67 balls.The other team in the competition, Bermuda, coached by former West Indies batsman Gus Logie, will be without Clay Smith, their captain, who is still recovering from a long-term knee injury, and will be lead by Janeiro Tucker.The competition is part of the ICC programme to step up the level of play for the six ICC associate members ahead of next year’s World Cup in the West Indies. The other four – Ireland, Kenya, the Netherlands and Scotland, are expected to play at least 64 ODIs before March, (some have already been played), including fixtures against full member countries.Officiating over the series will be ICC Umpire of the Year, Australian Simon Taufel, along with Roger Dill, who will become the first associate and affiliate panel umpire to stand in an ODI.
Warwickshire ensured they progressed to the quarter finals thanks to a 41-run win over division winners Northamptonshire at Edgbaston. Warwickshire raced to 205 for 2 thanks to Ian Bell’s 38-ball 66 not out, and 61 from Nick Knight, and then three wickets from James Anyon checked Northants’s progress and thereafter they were always well behind the asking rate.Gloucestershire’s defeat by Somerset in front of 6000 spectators at Taunton meant they missed out, and also secured the home side one of two quarter-final places on offer to the best third-placed teams. Graeme Smith (53) and Ian Blackwell (45) laid the foundations for Somerset to reach 228 for 5. Gloucestershire, who needed a point to book their own place in the last eight, found the pressure too much and they were skittled out for 133 with Gareth Andrew taking 4 for 22.The wooden-spoon battle was won by Worcestershire, who beat Glamorgan by 37 runs at New Road. Ben Smith hammered 105 off only 45 balls, smashing 12 fours and six sixes, as Worcestershire made 223 for 9, a score well beyond the visitors.
Greg Shippard, who coached Victoria to Pura Cup victory after the tragic passing of David Hookes, has been appointed as coach for the next two seasons by the Cricket Victoria board."I am naturally thrilled and extremely proud to have been appointed coach of the Victorian Bushrangers," Shippard said. "The playing group has displayed many great qualities over the past season and it is an exciting time to be involved as we develop a new era of Victorian dominance."Ken Jacobs, the head of Cricket Victoria, said that Shipperd’s promotion was logical, and commended him for his work during a difficult period. "Greg has done an outstanding job with the squad in the past two years and the Board had no hesitation in appointing him state coach for the next two seasons.""Greg’s leadership and guidance during what has been a devastating and challenging time in Victorian cricket has been exceptional and the Pura Cup win was testament to this. He has the total respect of his players and Cricket Victoria looks forward to a successful reign under his leadership."
Pakistan’s Aleem Dar has been allotted three World Cup matches as field umpire including the crucial clash between the oldest cricketing rivals Australia and England on March 2.Nadeem Ghauri, Pakistan’s other representative on the ICC’s panel of international umpires, will stand in two matches on the field.According to details available with Dawn, both Aleem and Nadeem will officiate in three matches each as TV replays umpires during the mega event, which gets under way in less than two weeks’ time with the opening ceremony in Cape Town on Feb 8.Both Pakistanis, who are among the 25 umpires nominated by International Cricket Council (ICC) for the World Cup, are scheduled to leave for South Africa on Thursday (Jan 30).Aleem will supervise the Bangladesh-Canada encounter on Feb 11 alongwith Sri Lanka’s Asoka de Silva with Brent Bowden of New Zealand acting as the TV umpire. Clive Lloyd, under whose astute leadership West Indies won the World Cup titles in 1975 and 1979, is the match referee of this day-night encounter in Durban.Aleem’s field partner in the India versus Namibia match in Pietermaritzburg on Feb 23 will be South Africa’s Brian Jerling with Tyronne Wijewardena of Sri Lanka monitoring the TV replays. Wasim Raja, representing Pakistan on the six-man panel of match referees, will oversee the proceedings.Steve Bucknor, world’s most popular umpiring figure nicknamed ‘Slow Death’ because of his leisurely style when lifting that dreaded index finger to seal a batsman’s fate, will stand alongside Aleem when England meet holders Australia in Port Elizabeth.Wasim Raja and Zimbabwe’s Kevin Barbour have been nominated match referee and third umpire respectively for this March 2 match.Aleem will be the TV umpire in the Sri Lanka-Bangladesh match in Pietermaritzburg on Feb 14, Australia versus Holland tie in Potchefstroom on Feb 20 and South Africa-Canada encounter in East London on Feb 27.Nadeem, meanwhile, will be the field umpire along with Arani Jayaprakash of India when Canada take on Kenya in the day-night tie in Cape Town on Feb 15. Barbour and Ranjan Madugalle of Sri Lanka will act as TV umpire and match referee, respectively.Canada will be meeting Nadeem again on the field when they play West Indies in Centurion on Feb 23. Australia’s Daryl Harper is the other on-field umpire of this match while Jerling (TV umpire) and Indian Gundappa Viswanath (match referee) are the other officials.Nadeem will act as TV umpire in the following three matches: India v Holland at Paarl on Feb 12, Sri Lanka v Canada at Paarl on Feb 19 and Namibia v Holland at Bloemfontein on March 3.After the 42-match preliminary round of the World Cup, the ICC will trim down the number of match officials for the Super Six stage, the semifinals and the final.The ICC had already announced the panel of officials for the World Cup late last year. Besides the eight-man elite panel of umpires and five referees, the game’s governing body nominated 11 members of the ICC’s international panel of umpires and the former South African wicket-keeper/batsman Denis Lindsay as the additional referee to counter the heavy workload of matches.In addition, two first umpires from the host nation, Ian Howell and Shahid Wadvalla, beside participating Associate Member countries’ umpires will be acting as fourth officials of the group matches.Rockie D’Mello (Kenya), Michael Henry (Canada), Chris Pickett (Holland) and Jeff Luck of Namibia are the representatives of the non-Test-playing nations at the World Cup. Meanwhile, the World Cup organizing committee have planned to use special coins for the toss at the start of each of the 54 matches.Every match will have a separate coin, weighing one ounce, with the face of South African President Thabo Mbeki appearing on one side with the ICC Cricket World Cup 2003 logo, the names of the two opposing teams, the date and match venue on the other.World Cup panel of umpires:Elite panel: Steve Bucknor (West Indies), Daryl Harper (Australia), Rudi Koertzen, Dave Orchard (both from South Africa), David Shepherd (England), Asoka de Silva (Sri Lanka), Russell Tiffin (Zimbabwe) and Srinivas Venkataraghavan (India)International panel: Darrell Hair, Simon Taufel (both from Australia), Aleem Dar, Nadeem Ghauri (both from Pakistan), Arani Jayaprakash (India), Peter Willey, Neil Mallender (both from England), Brent Bowden (New Zealand), Brian Jerling (South Africa), Tyronne Wijewardena (Sri Lanka) and Kevin Barbour (Zimbabwe)Panel of match referees: Ranjan Madugalle (Sri Lanka), Clive Lloyd (West Indies), Wasim Raja (Pakistan), Gundappa Viswanath (India), Mike Procter and Denis Lindsay (both from South Africa)
Durham’s record Championship stand carried them to an eight-wicket win against Nottinghamshire at Chester-le-Street.Skipper Jon Lewis made 112 and Queenslander Martin Love 149 not out put on 258, 52 more than the previous record, before Lewis was out with two needed.Durham reached their target of 315 five minutes before the start of the final hour, making a mockery of the visitors’ declaration, which left them a minimum of 102 overs to get the runs.Love needed 105 balls for his 50, two more than his captain, but then dealt almost exclusively in boundaries, hitting 25 fours in his 232-ball knock.Lewis profited from too many short balls outside off stump, reaching 112 from 227 balls against a team who were again without acting captain Darren Bicknell because of a side strain.His absence left Paul Johnson to shuffle the bowlers with no hint of success as they became increasingly dispirited in a strong, cold wind.After winning the toss, Nottinghamshire had dominated the game for three days. The loss of almost half a day to the weather may have forced their hand, but in the end they did not bowl anywhere near well enough to justify their bold declaration.They made a breakthrough on 55, when Michael Gough edged to second slip, and Andrew Harris went close to bowling Love on nine.But little got past the Australian after that as he cruised effortlessly past his previous best score of 67 in his six Championship innings.
An update has emerged regarding Newcastle United’s pursuit of Liverpool centre-back Joe Gomez…
What’s the talk?
According to Graeme Bailey of Anfield Watch, the Magpies would ‘happily take’ the defender from the Reds in the summer transfer window.
The report claims that Everton, Tottenham, West Ham and Fulham are also plotting bids for the England international and are set to compete with Newcastle for his signature.
Forget Burn
Forget current Magpies machine Dan Burn – Gomez would be a sensational signing and one who Newcastle fans would surely love because of the quality he can provide on the pitch.
Jurgen Klopp previously heaped lauded the ex-Charlton man, saying: “Since he is playing as a centre-half again – his natural position – together with Virg [Van Dijk] there is exceptional. He is a sensational footballer, which is good.
“He has outstanding speed, which helps us a lot to keep our last line high; he is a really good challenger; good in one-on-one situations; football-wise, I said already, good.”
This is high praise from the German, and “sensational” is what Gomez would be for Newcastle as he has defensive quality and the ability to pass the ball out from the back.
In the Champions League last season, he averaged a SofaScore rating of 7.27 for the Reds, winning 71% of his duels and completing 85% of his passes. He also averaged three tackles and interceptions per game, showing that he can consistently win back the ball for his team whilst also rarely giving possession away with his passing.
Gomez has had a troubled time with injuries of late and his most recent campaign of consistent game-time in the Premier League came as Liverpool won the title in 2019/20. The centre-back averaged a SofaScore rating of 6.92 as he helped the Reds to keep 12 clean sheets in just 22 starts, also completing 88% of his passes.
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The £30m tank was labelled an “unbelievable” player by team-mate Trent Alexander-Arnold, which shows how highly he is rated by his peers. His team-mates watch him in training every day and his quality behind the scenes has clearly caught the eye of the Liverpool academy graduate.
Therefore, the 24-year-old would be an excellent signing for the Magpies, as the statistics suggest that he is a quality performer at the top level; and comments from his manager and one of his team-mates back up the stats with their experience of watching him play. This is why Newcastle fans should forget about Burn and instead get excited about a potential deal for Gomez.
AND in other news, Howe can finally axe £61m dud as NUFC plot bid to sign “exceptional” 25 y/o “wildcard”…