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Andrew Umeed battled throughout the day to score 95 runs in 96 overs and keep Warwickshire in the game against Lancashire

George Dobell at Edgbaston27-Jun-2017
Scorecard3:57

Does pink-ball cricket have a future in England?

It took 252 years to build York Minster, 400 years to build Angkor Wat and up to 2000 years to carve the citadel at Petra out of rock, so perhaps, in context, Andrew Umeed’s innings here wasn’t so slow after all. Just one of the slowest in Championship history.According to Robert Brooke, the cricket statistician, in terms of minutes, Umeed’s century exceeded the 420-minute hundred by WH Denton for Northants against Derbyshire in 1914, although at exactly seven hours that calculation sounds suspiciously like an approximation. Umeed’s hundred was raised in 429 minutes, although it is a safe guess he faced fewer balls. Only Jason Gallian, who made a 453-minute hundred for Lancashire against Derbyshire in Blackpool in 1994 has scored a slower Championship century.There was a moment – and by a moment, think a couple of hours – when it seemed Umeed might also register the slowest half-century (this time in terms of balls received) in the history of the County Championship. As it was, he edged one through the hands of Alex Davies to reach the landmark in the 71st over of the Warwickshire innings having faced 220 balls. Billy Godleman’s record – he faced 244 balls on the way to a half-century against Middlesex at Lord’s in 2013 – remains unbeaten.Umeed’s innings was, in its way, a masterful demonstration of patience and restraint. He knows where his off stump is and is clearly perfectly happy to leave and defend all day. Of the two boundaries in his first 50, only one – an off drive against Tom Bailey – was hit in front of square. It kept Warwickshire’s heads above water in this game and annoyed James Anderson enormously. At one stage, a pigeon circled and considered landing on his left shoulder. It could have nested quite comfortably without fear of disturbance. While long-form cricket is played, there will still be value – and an entertainment of sorts – in such batting.But it suggested, not for the first time, that there are limitations to the pink ball. It suggests, as was the case when the ball was trailed in a 2nd XI game here last year, that once it goes soft, the game can become terribly, mind-numbingly, counter-productively, stultifying attritional.There’s a place for attrition, of course. But the purpose of the pink ball is, in part at least, to attract a new audience to the game. And if that new audience – and at present, 45% of ticket sales to the Test here in August against West Indies are customers who have never bought Test tickets to this ground before – is presented with a spectacle like this, it’s a fair bet that few of them will be back.Perhaps, on a different type of surface, those factors might have been mitigated. This pitch, used previously for the Champions Trophy semi-final, was unusually slow and probably exaggerated the pink ball’s limitations. Warwickshire, understandably, were reluctant to risk a grassy pitch against an opposition with Anderson in their line-up but may well have learned from this experience and provide bowlers a bit more assistance for the Test. They certainly won’t utilise a used pitch for that Test and this whole game might reasonably be thought of as an experiment.From what we’ve seen in the pink-ball games so far, it seems safe to make a couple of guarded conclusions. For the first 15 overs or so, the ball appears to swing pretty much the same way as a red ball. It also retains its proud seam position for the full 80 overs, which ensures bowlers have at least something with which to work.But it seems impossible to buff, apparently due to a lack of grease in the leather (more grease would darken it), which limits the opportunities for swing – either conventional or reverse (though there was a little reverse in both innings). Combined with its propensity to lose hardness quite quickly, it means bowlers are pretty much reduced to bowling line and length and batsmen, with little pace with which to work, must wait for the poor ball. Which means, when patient batsmen and disciplined bowlers collide, you have something approaching stalemate.Andrew Umeed scored his second first-class hundred•Getty ImagesThat’s pretty much what we saw on day two at Edgbaston. Once Jonathan Trott had departed, attempting to force across the line having made a half-century, and Ian Bell had nibbled just a little tentatively at a fine ball that left him off the seam, the day became a battle for survival between Umeed and the Lancashire bowlers.The seamers gave him almost nothing to hit. But their attempts to lure him into a rash shot – or even any sort of shot – came to very little. He steered one past point and another just past gully – the uncharitable would call it an edge – but generally was happy to accumulate with a push here and a nudge there. There were no pulls and few drives but, for a man playing for his future and his team’s Division One survival, it was an admirable effort. He produced something similar – a 158-ball innings of 45 – in the pink-ball 2nd XI match here last year.He did give a couple of chances. The first, on 19, looked tough – Davies was unable to cling on to one far to his right off Clark – while the second, on 49, was similar and off Anderson. Anderson left Umeed in no doubt as to how he felt about such an innings.While Tim Ambrose, who reached his 10,000th first-class run when he got off the mark, wafted at a wide one, Sam Hain was brilliantly caught by Anderson – left-handed and ankle height – in his follow through. When Rikki Clarke and Keith Barker were dismissed by successive deliveries, victims of the swing of the second new ball, Umeed sped up. His second fifty took a relatively brisk 111 balls with his century brought up with a delightful back-foot force that would have delighted Joe Root. In all, having resumed on 8 overnight, he scored 95 in 96 overs and goes into day three with power to add. Lancashire, you can be quite sure, are sick of the sight of him.With Jeetan Patel adding some impetus, Warwickshire even managed to claim a second batting bonus point and claw themselves close to parity with Lancashire. If the weather holds – and the forecast is not promising – we might even have an intriguing finish.Meanwhile Haseeb Hameed was forced off the pitch after splitting the webbing between a couple of his fingers – he had two or three stitches and is expected to bat without undue impediment in Lancashire’s second innings – and Chris Woakes returned to training. Woakes had a bat on Monday and, after attempting a gentle bowl, decided he was not quite ready for such rigours. He could, if required, play as a specialist batsman for Warwickshire within a week or so.Warwickshire also announced the signing of Yorkshire allrounder Will Rhodes. He is not likely to be the last of their acquisitions, though they will have more scope for movement at the end of 2018 when over £1m of the annual wage bill will be freed up by players out of contract.

CA and the Australian Cricketers’ Association are inching towards a compromise, with discussions of a new hybrid model

Daniel Brettig25-Jul-20173:46

What exactly is the Cricket Australia-ACA pay dispute?

Compromise between Australian cricket’s warring parties appears closer than ever as the previously divergent positions of Cricket Australia and the Australian Cricketers’ Association shift towards long overdue middle ground.For virtually the first time in a pay war now more than nine months old, CA has appeared to consent to a model of revenue sharing that has been adjusted to allow more of the game’s financial upside to flow into areas such as grassroots cricket, while still affording a significant proportion of money above projections to all players.CA’s chief executive James Sutherland, his ACA counterpart Alistair Nicholson and their negotiating teams were believed to be meeting in Melbourne on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the board’s most recent submission of MoU articles that factor in the new, hybrid model. The players had previously consented to discussions based on “modernised” revenue sharing that would commit up to A$30 million of player payment pool money to the game’s lower levels.While negotiations appeared to hit a major snag last week when CA sent the ACA an updated Article 5 of a proposed MoU that deleted all references to revenue sharing, further discussions and correspondence between Sutherland and Nicholson have proven more fruitful.Talks between the parties now appear to be as much about the optics of the deal – CA being able to claim a break from the fixed revenue percentage model that has existed over the past two decades and the ACA being able to say it has been retained – as its detail. One industry figure noted that the emergence of issues over the wording of clauses suggested that agreement “must be close to happening”.After the ACA distributed details of its “peace plan” based on recent discussions to all contracted players over the weekend, the newspaper has published an outline of CA’s possible compromise. “Under the terms of CA’s ­revised offer,” the report said, “men and women players would draw their salaries and bonuses from an agreed total player payment pool equating to a percentage of forecast revenue. Above forecast revenue would be distributed according to a complex, sliding scale ­between the players, community cricket infrastructure and other spending priorities.”Both the Australian Cricketers’ Association and Cricket Australia have shifted from fixed positions•Getty ImagesThe same newspaper had previously published CA’s complaints about this year’s adjustment ledger payment of more than A$58 million going to the male players covered under the previous MoU but not the female players who were paid directly by CA during that time. It then published a column and front-page pointer story by the CA chairman David Peever in which he denied being “anti-union” during his days at the mining company Rio Tinto. CA’s head of communications, government relations and infrastructure is Mark O’Neill, a former Rio Tinto executive who has also worked in federal politics.The ACA’s proposed terms, meanwhile, were close to those reportedly offered up by CA. According to an ACA statement on Sunday: “Players conceded to accept CA’s lower end revenue scenarios as the basis for the allocation to Australian Cricket Revenue (ACR) given market and contract uncertainty; Players accepting an agreed percentage of the ACR forecast. (Note this percentage is of ACR and not Total Cricket Revenue (TCR) and it is not an increase in share on the last MOU but does factor in the inclusion of all female players).”Revenue sharing is modified so that the players allocate up to $30 million via a new Players Grassroots Investment Fund (PGIF) from their share of over forecast revenue and performance bonuses. Thus reducing the share of revenue players would otherwise earn.”While numerous areas remain up for debate, namely what the percentage due to players – previously 24.5-27% of ACR – should be and what should be excluded and included in the ACR definition, the earlier state of impasse has at least been broken down. CA had initially proposed fixed wages for all players, augmented by a capped bonus system for international male and female players, with minimal increases for domestic male players in particular.By contrast the ACA proposed a fixed percentage of 22.5% of agreed cricket revenue for all players, a further 22.5% for grassroots investment and the remaining 55% to remain with CA for other areas of the game. A week before the previous MoU’s expiry on June 30, CA revised its offer to include all players in the capped bonus system and also to raise the wages on offer to domestic male players, without specifying by how much.One of the ACA’s longtime complaints was that it had not been provided with sufficient financial records by which to judge CA’s offers, which the players claimed to include payroll tax, prize money and the assumption that all players would draw match fees by playing in all possible fixtures. Another point of contention was the inclusion of overseas Big Bash League players – who typically draw the most lucrative contracts from each team’s salary cap – in the “average” wage to be offered to domestic males.About three weeks remain for an agreement to be struck between CA and the ACA to avoid numerous forms of dislocation to the game, from the cancellation of the looming Bangladesh Test tour to the floundering of various commercial deals for the summer with sponsors, broadcasters and advertisers on those broadcasts.The dispute has already resulted in the cancellation of an Australia A tour to South Africa earlier this month, while more than 230 players have been left out of contract, and therefore unemployed, since the expiry of the previous MoU on July 1. All players have continued to train without pay over that period. Members of Australia’s Test squad for Bangladesh met in Sydney on Monday and stated their support from compromise, while also reiterating their commitment to refuse going on the tour unless an agreement is reached beforehand.Both CA and the ACA declined to comment.

Aston Villa are believed to be interested in signing Galatasaray midfielder Nicolo Zaniolo this summer, according to a fresh transfer rumour from Italy.

How many goals has Nicolo Zaniolo scored?

The 24-year-old has been a highly-rated footballer for some time now, but unfortunately, injuries have tended to define his promising career to date. Cruelly, a cruciate ligament problem in 2020/21 saw him miss a huge chunk of action and he has been dogged by various other fitness issues over the years, too.

On the plus side, Zaniolo has continued to perform at a good level when fit, and he scored five goals in ten Turkish Super Lig appearances for Galatasaray last season – he only joined during the January transfer window.

The attacking midfielder is also a 13-cap Italy international, further highlighting the ability that he possesses, and while his current deal in Turkey lasts until 2027, that doesn't mean that an exit this summer is out of the question.

Villa are enjoying a superb transfer window to date, bringing in the likes of Youri Tielemans and Pau Torres, while Moussa Diaby also looks set to join the club imminently. It could be that Zaniolo is another summer target for the Villans, following the emergence of a new transfer rumour.

Could Aston Villa sign Nicolo Zaniolo?

According to TuttoMercatoWeb [via The Boot Room], the Italian is wanted by Villa this summer, seeing him as someone who can bolster their options in the middle of the park, especially if other midfield targets end up being unattainable, such as Thiago Almada.

There is a clear risk element when it comes to the club potentially signing Zaniolo, with his aforementioned injury problems standing out as an obvious issue.

If Villa believe that he has overcome the worst of those issues, however, he could be an exciting signing, having been described as "incredible" by none other than Roma legend Daniele De Rossi in the past.

He tasted UEFA Europa Conference League glory with the Giallorossi in 2021/22 – a competition that Villa are of course in next season, which is an added bonus in terms of his winning mentality in it – and he also won the title with Galatasaray last term.

Whether Zaniolo's current club are willing to sell so soon after signing him remains to be seen, with a hefty offer potentially having to be table to get him, but he should certainly be viewed as an intriguing target by Villa.

His natural ability is undeniable, with 24 goals and 18 assists coming his way for Roma, and he could almost be seen as a luxury midfield option for Unai Emery – someone who may not always be available, but who can be an influential when he is fit and firing, providing something more exciting and unpredictable in midfield.

If the Villans were ultimately to decide against signing Zaniolo this summer, it would make plenty of sense because of his fitness concerns, but there would be a level of intrigue to the signing if he did come in, being seen as something of a wildcard addition that could pay off handsomely.

Aston Villa have the potential to build something special this summer, with a host of star names being linked with a move to Villa Park.

Unai Emery and Monchi have already added Youri Tielemans and Pau Torres to the squad ahead of the 2023/24 campaign, however with a reported budget of £150m, activity isn’t expected to stop there.

The Villans have been linked to Atletico Madrid forward Joao Felix over the past month, with news earlier this week suggesting that the pursuit for the £195k-per-week attacker isn’t over.

A report from Spain – relayed by Sport Witness – named Villa alongside Manchester United and Newcastle as the Premier League representatives to ‘make contact’ with the 23-year-old, who is ‘seduced’ by the English top-tier.

The Midlands club have also been heavily linked to Bayer Leverkusen winger Moussa Diaby, in whom they are reported to have opened the bidding on, with Fabrizio Romano claiming this week that the Villans ‘plan to bid again’.

Valued at £50m by his club, as per reports, it could be a lucrative summer for Emery and Monchi, and the potential to send out a statement to the league should they move closer to claiming the signatures of both talents.

Where could Joao Felix and Moussa Diaby play at Aston Villa?

The Spaniard could unearth a frightening duo in deploying Felix alongside Diaby, with the two players possessing dynamic ability in the final third.

Hailed as a “dream” by U23 scout Antonio Mango, the Portuguese gem could be handed a second shot at life in the Premier League, after an underwhelming loan spell at Chelsea.

Playing in a disjointed Blues side came at an inconvenient time for the Atletico Madrid maestro, as he bids to say farewell to the Spanish giants this summer.

In 16 Premier League appearances for the west Londoners, Felix contributed to four goals after joining the club in January.

While the numbers are less exciting than what was anticipated, the 23-year-old has plenty of talent to show, having already recorded 52 goal contributions in just 131 games for his current side, as well as 31 goals and assists in just 43 games for Benfica.

The versatile forward could be a deadly outlet for Villa, and particularly for fellow target Diaby, who too has impressed in the continent since his rise through the ranks at Paris Saint-Germain.

If given license to roam and express his talents, the Frenchman could be the perfect partner for Felix in attack, as suggested by his 97 goal contributions over four seasons for Leverkusen.

Lauded a “demon” by members of the media, the 24-year-old is a menace in the final third, not just for his goal-scoring ability, but his play-making attributes too, averaging an impressive 1.93 key passes per 90 last term, via FBref.

Such strengths could be the key ingredient to Emery unleashing a dangerous concoction in the Midlands, with the Portuguese gem being a pivotal player to target in play.

As per FBref, the former Chelsea man ranked in the top 2% in the Premier League last season in terms of total shots per 90, averaging a mammoth 4.40 to highlight his threat when given a chance in front of goal.

Combining a target man and a keen creator with an eye for goal could be pivotal in Villa’s expedition up the ranks under Emery, with the signings showing the progression mapped out by the two Spaniards in charge of orchestrating the transfer window.

A Jonathan Trott century has earned Warwickshire an outside chance of victory in the bottom of the table battle at Taunton

George Dobell at Taunton21-May-2017
ScorecardA Jonathan Trott century has earned Warwickshire an outside chance of victory in the bottom of the table battle at Taunton.Trott made 175 – the 20th score of 150 or more in his first-class career – to help Warwickshire to their highest first-innings score of the season. It was his second century of the Championship campaign and his third of the first-class season.Grant Thornton, a debutant seamer recently signed on a three-month contract, then claimed wickets with his eighth and 23rd deliveries in first-class cricket to build pressure on Somerset. Realistically, they require 264 to avert the follow-on and make the game safe on the final day.Perhaps, had Trott been caught at gully before he had added to his overnight 50, Somerset may have taken control of the match. But the chance, an outside edge from a Craig Overton delivery, was put down by Peter Trego and Trott added 146 for the fifth-wicket with Tim Ambrose – Warwickshire’s highest Championship stand of the season – to steer Warwickshire into the ascendancy.Somerset had worked hard for that chance. Trott had gone scoreless for the first 20 minutes of the third day and survived a sustained appeal for a catch down the leg side. He was also fortunate to escape a top-edged slog-sweep off Jack Leach when he had 55 that flew just over the head of Marcus Trescothick at slip.From then on, however, he began to take control. Leach, who conceded only three boundaries in his first 20 overs, was taken for five fours in seven balls at one stage while Trott hit three sixes – he admitted he couldn’t recall hitting more in a first-class innings – including a slog-sweep off Roelof van der Merwe to bring up his century and a thundering drive into the Sir Ian Botham Stand off Jamie Overton. Having suffered three ducks in the Championship this season, he was determined to take advantage of his start. It was the 42nd first-class century of his career and he passed 17,000 first-class runs in its latter stages.Jonathan Trott has kept Warwickshire hoping•Getty ImagesDespite the acceleration, Warwickshire missed out on full batting bonus points. Requiring eight runs off the final over of the 110-over qualifying period, they fell five short despite Rikki Clarke’s aggressive 50 (from 53 balls). Still, this was the first time this season they had recorded even four batting bonus points in an innings and represented a step in the right direction after a poor start to the season.Warwickshire lost their last five wickets for 22 in an attempt to up the pace. Van der Merwe finished with three wickets and probably gained a little more turn than Leach, but Jamie Overton remained the pick of the bowlers. Gaining movement in the air and off the surface, he generally maintained a good, probing length.The value of Trott’s innings soon become apparent as Somerset subsided to 86 for four against an attack containing two Championship debutants. Tom Abell’s grim run of form – he has now scored 10 runs in five Championship innings this season and starting to worry those who feared the captaincy was offered to him prematurely – continued as he defended a delivery from Jeetan Patel only to see it dribble back off his bat and knock off the bails, before Steve Davies (34 runs in five innings) turned one off his hips only to find Sam Hain, at short-leg, able to cling on to a very sharp chance.That was Thornton’s second wicket. Bowling at an odd angle amid a whirl of arms, he represents an awkward proposition for batsmen who have not seen him before and appeared to surprise James Hildreth with a full ball that found the batsmen crease-bound and perhaps playing slightly across a straight one. Dean Elgar, beaten by a couple that left him sharply, was leg before to one that didn’t swing.Had Leach, the nightwatchman, been taken at slip – as he might have been as he twice edged Patel agonisingly close to the cordon – Somerset would have been in deep trouble. But Trescothick, not for the first time, ensured some stability. Resuming on the final day nine runs short of reaching 50 for the 186th time in first-class cricket, he passed 25,000 first-class runs late on the third evening and, aged 41, remains the wicket that opposition most value in this Somerset side. He knows he has work ahead of him on the final day and he will relish it.”I’ve been sweating on that record for a couple of weeks,” he said afterwards “I knew I needed to reach 29. I remember my first run: it was 1993 and I made 1 and 3 in a game against Lancashire. I reckon my first run was down to third man. And I’ve scored a fair few more down there over the years.”Earlier in the day he pulled off an outstanding catch to dismiss Ambrose. Seeing the batsman shape for a delicate sweep, he ran from slip to leg slip and dived full length to cling on to a well-anticipated chance.”There is no chance I will be still be playing at 41,” 36-year-old Trott said later. “That’s just silly!”It’s great that Marcus is still playing county cricket and setting an example to the young players in his dressing room and opposition teams. His will be a huge wicket for us tomorrow.”Meanwhile it is understood that interviews for the role of chief executive at Somerset have begun. ESPNcricinfo understands that, of the 125 applicants, Jason Ratcliffe, Charlie Hodgson and Jez Curwin are among the short-listed candidates. Hodgson is the commercial director at Surrey, while Curwin fulfils a similar role at Somerset. Ratcliffe was a player at Warwickshire and Surrey before moving to the PCA where he spent 14 years, latterly as deputy chief executive.

Everton could be set to add to their attacking options this summer, with 90Min reporting that Wout Weghorst is wanted by Sean Dyche's Toffee side this summer.

How many goals has Wout Weghorst scored?

The striker currently plays for Burnley, with the Clarets having added him to their ranks back when they were fighting against relegation in the Premier League. When the club were demoted down to the second tier, they opted to keep hold of the forward but loan him out for the duration of their time there. That resulted in short-term stints with both Besiktas and Man United in the 2022/23 season.

His time in Turkey proved to be a lot more prolific than his stay with the Red Devils. For the Super Lig side, he managed a haul of eight goals in just 16 league games for the club and even chipped in with four assists along the way. His 12 goal contributions in total meant that he left the side with an impressive rate of 0.76 goals or assists per 90 – nearly one a game.

It prompted United to bring him in to Old Trafford from January, but that transfer didn't work out as well as all parties would have liked. He featured on 17 occasions in the Premier League – more games than during the entire spell with Besiktas – but failed to hit the back of the net once, managing only one assist to boot.

Are Everton signing Wout Weghorst?

With Burnley now back in the top flight, they have a choice – keep Weghorst or let him leave again, but this time permanently. And it appears as though there is now interest in snapping up the 30-year-old too – and it could also give him the chance to stay in England and prove himself in the top tier.

That's because, according to a report from 90Min, Everton are keen to add the Netherlands man to their ranks. It states that he is on their transfer radar and that with Sean Dyche at the helm, he is eager to reunite with the giant 6 foot 5 attacker. The two worked together at Burnley and he now wants to join up with the striker again.

The Netherlands international's record in the Premier League doesn't make for promising reading if you are an Everton fan, but Dyche could be the man to get the best out of him. In 37 games in the top flight, he has managed only two goals. It is his worst rate anywhere over the course of his career, as is his current average of 0.08 goals per 90 in the division.

His work elsewhere though suggests that he perhaps just hasn't been utilised correctly yet. His former coach John van den Brom loves him, and has stated that the attacker is always "upright with his mentality" and is "always working hard" – which sounds exactly like the kind of player Dyche, and indeed the Goodison faithful, will love.

In addition, his goalscoring record is superb elsewhere – in the Eredivisie and Bundesliga combined, he has over a century of goals to his name. If Dyche does manage to land Weghorst again then, and can give him regular first-team football, then it could finally click in England for the forward. If it does, then it could go a long way towards helping the Toffees survive the drop next season.

Worcestershire made it two wins in a row in the Specsavers County Championship and ended Northamptonshire’s 100% start to the season with a victory in two days in a tense, low-scoring contest at New Road

ECB Reporters Network22-Apr-2017
ScorecardJoe Leach was on a hat-trick early in Glamorgan’s innings•Getty ImagesWorcestershire made it two wins in a row in the Specsavers County Championship and ended Northamptonshire’s 100% start to the season with a victory in two days in a tense, low-scoring contest at New Road.After bowling out the home side for 153 in their second innings, Northants were dismissed for 164 and went down by 20 runs after being hi-jacked late in the day by Joe Leach and Josh Tongue.Having survived a tricky start at 45 for 3, the visitors seemed to be inching towards a third consecutive victory when Adam Rossington and Max Holden played responsibly in a stand of 40.But the game tilted back towards Worcestershire with two wickets in 13 balls for Leach. The newly-appointed captain had Rossington caught at cover for 22 and then bowled on-loan Middlesex left hander Holden for 37.Worse followed for Northants when Tongue picked up two in four balls. Richard Levi was lbw for 22, playing back to the 19-year-old paceman, who followed that by yorking Steven Crook.The two seamers chipped out two more wickets but Mohammad Azharullah kept up the fight with an unbeaten 17 until the result was settled at 7.20pm when Andy Carter was lbw for 8, giving Leach match figures of 10 for 122.After 16 wickets had crashed under heavy cloud cover on the first day, it was tempting to assume that batting would become easier in bright sunshine, but it proved to be just as difficult to put partnerships together.In all, 24 fell on a protracted second day.A grassy pitch, probably typical of early season with its seam movement, was a factor which became critical when coupled with a number of rash shots. Patience was not the name of the game.The first job of the day was to deal with Northamptonshire’s last four wickets and they were duly swept aside in under an hour, although they would have been reasonably happy with the 55 runs added.Nathan Buck’s unbeaten 24 included a pick-up for six off Leach and Crook gave John Hastings the first success in his spell of 3 for 27.With Worcestershire holding a lead of 31, their marginal advantage was quickly diluted with the scoreboard showing 3 for 3 after four overs from Buck and Azharullah.Daryl Mitchell nicked Buck’s third delivery behind the wicket, Moeen Ali scythed a catch to Ben Duckett in the slips and Brett D’Oliviera was given out lbw for a second wicket for Azharullah.Worcestershire came up with an innovative response by sending in Hastings and Leach in a fourth-wicket partnership after batting at Nos 9 and 10 in the first innings.The move worked to the extent of 22 for Hastings and 16 for Leach, but half the side went for 56 before regular middle-order batsmen were together at the crease.Joe Clarke did not last long before edging Buck for another slip catch by Duckett, but hopes were raised by Tom Fell (23) and Tom Kohler-Cadmore (22).Again, however, it was not as substantial as they would have wanted. Fell was bowled by Buck and Kohler-Cadmore sliced to gully in a short spell by Crook.Carter, having come out of retirement to sign for injury-hit Northants, took his fifth wicket of the match when Ben Cox was caught behind but the last pair put together the biggest stand of 45 until Tongue was bowled by Buck. Ed Barnard was left unbeaten with top score of 26.

Glasgow Rangers head coach Michael Beale has wasted little time in his attempts to improve his playing squad ahead of the 2023/24 campaign.

The Light Blues boss has already secured six new signings for the upcoming season after the club's failure to win any trophies last term.

They were unable to lift any silverware and the 42-year-old tactician will be hoping that his business this summer will allow them to compete domestically and in Europe in the coming months.

Cyriel Dessers, Sam Lammers, Abdallah Sima, Kieran Dowell, Jack Butland, and Dujon Sterling have all arrived at Ibrox over the last couple of months but there could be more to come.

It was reported last month that the Gers are interested in signing Leeds United centre-back Charlie Cresswell and that they have already had one offer turned down for the England U21 international.

Is Charlie Cresswell right-footed?

The 20-year-old is a right-footed central defender who could follow in Connor Goldson's footsteps in Glasgow, as a young English enforcer.

Rangers snapped the now-30-year-old ace up from Brighton for a fee in the region of £3m in 2018 and that deal has turned out to be a masterclass of a move by Steven Gerrard.

Goldson, who was 25 at the time of the switch, has racked up a staggering 261 competitive appearances for the club and started all 38 Scottish Premiership games in the 2020/21 title-winning campaign.

Gerrard invested in the right-footed Englishman back in 2018 and the Light Blues have reaped the benefits of that decision as the towering colossus has been a mainstay for the side over the last five years and played a key role during the aforementioned title success.

Rangers could now repeat that masterclass by swooping for the even-younger Cresswell this summer, as the Leeds starlet could be an exceptional long-term signing for the Glasgow giants.

His form on loan at Millwall whilst competing in the Championship last season suggests that the potential is there for him to be an excellent addition to Beale's squad, whilst his young age means that he has the scope to develop over time with more experience.

Cresswell averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.13 across 28 league appearances for the Lions, whilst Goldson (7.29) was the only Gers centre-back to average a higher score in the Premiership.

The 20-year-old titan, whose heading ability was hailed as "powerful" by journalist Josh Bunting, showcased his dominance at the back with a duel success rate of 60%, which shows that he is able to come out on top in the majority of his physical battles.

The £5.4k-per-week ace also made 2.8 tackles and interceptions per game, in comparison to Goldson's 2.3, to win the ball back for his side on a consistent basis.

Cresswell's impressive statistics for Millwall suggest that the 6 foot 3 colossus has the defensive quality to be a consistent performer at the back for Rangers, in a similar fashion to the way that Goldson, who won 67% of his duels in the league last term, has been for the Light Blues over the years.

Therefore, Beale could repeat Gerrard's masterclass by swooping for another right-footed centre-back with the potential to be a dominant enforcer for the Scottish side for many years to come.

Andrew Ellis, who finished seventh and eighth on the list of leading run-scorers and wicket-takers respectively in the Plunket Shield, won the accolade for the second time in three years

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Apr-2017Canterbury captain Andrew Ellis has been named New Zealand Cricket’s Domestic Player of the Year for the second time in three years. The 35-year-old allrounder pipped Todd Astle, Scott Kuggeleijn and George Worker to the accolade, having already bagged two of the three men’s domestic trophies – the Plunket Shield and the Ford Trophy – this season.Ellis’ tally of 652 runs, from ten rounds, at an average of 40.75 earned him a place among the country’s top seven run-scorers in first-class cricket this season. He also finished in the top eight on the list of leading wicket-takers, with 27 wickets at 24.59. His match figures of 8 for 92 helped Canterbury defeat Otago by an innings and 119 runs in what was the biggest margin of victory in New Zealand’s first-class summer.Selector Gavin Larsen said the jury particularly took in account Ellis’ role as a “leader in pressure situations.””In addition to his significant performances with bat and ball, we considered Andrew Ellis’ role as a leader in pressure situations – a season in which he led by example both on and off the field,” Larsen said.”Todd Astle [Canterbury], Scott Kuggeleijn [Northern Districts] and George Worker [Central Stags] would all have been a worthy winner, and the panel would like to acknowledge their excellent individual seasons.”

Michael Beale made two January signings for Glasgow Rangers only a mere six weeks into the job, luring Todd Cantwell, and Nicolas Raskin to Ibrox.

They have both been inspired moves, especially the Englishman, as he has been rejuvenated since arriving in Glasgow.

Across just 20 matches during the second half of last season, Cantwell registered 11 goal contributions – six goals and five assists – showcasing his attacking qualities which looked certain to turn him into an England international during his spell at Norwich City.

It is a great start for the 25-year-old, but the onus will be on him to keep up this momentum next season and with Rangers signing a few attacking players during the transfer window, he could link up with a number of different options.

One striker who could allow Cantwell to flourish even more than he has is Lawrence Shankland, with the Gers seemingly interested in a move for the Hearts' frontman this summer according to TEAMtalk.

Could Rangers sign Lawrence Shankland this summer?

With Sam Lammers joining the Light Blues from Atalanta and Cyriel Dessers edging closer to a move, Beale is going the right way about replacing recently departed players Ryan Kent and Alfredo Morelos.

Shankland could be another exciting option for the club, especially with his stunning form for the Gorgie outfit last term.

The £3k-per-week Scot netted 28 goals across all competitions during 2023/24, while also grabbing four assists and by creating five big chances and making one key pass per game, it indicates that he can also link up well with others around him.

This could be a big bonus for Cantwell, who instead of creating opportunities for Shankland, the feeling could certainly be reciprocated, thus making him more unplayable than he already has been for the Light Blues.

The 6 foot hitman was lauded by journalist Joel Sked last year, who said: “Lawrence Shankland has been different class for Hearts. So much more to his game than goals. His ability to drop in, act as that focal point and link player, his awareness and the way he creates space for himself. All so good and so vital.”

With just two years left on his current contract, Beale could perhaps test the resolve of Hearts with a bid during the transfer window and if he lures him to Ibrox, him and Cantwell could form a scary duo when played together that’s for sure.