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MatériaMais Notícias

da bet nacional： O São Paulo encerrou nesta segunda-feira (24), no CT da Barra Funda, sua preparação para a partida ante o Ituano, duelo de volta da terceira fase da Copa do Brasil, fora de casa, às 21h30 (de Brasília). A atividade serviu para o técnico Dorival Júnior buscar o substituto para Raí Ramos na lateral-direita, já que o jogador é desfalque certo para o confronto por já ter jogado a competição justamente pelo rival rubro-negro.

Atualmente, Dorival conta com outras três opções para a posição: Rafinha, Nathan e Orejuela. A escolha dependerá do tipo de jogo que o comandante tricolor quer implantar para a decisão. Após o empate em 0 a 0 no duelo do Morumbi, o São Paulo precisa vencer o jogo para se classificar. Nova igualdade leva a disputa da vaga para os pênaltis.

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da premier bet：
+ Hulk interessa a time de ex-técnico do Atlético, atacante da Seleção pode jogar na Inglaterra… o fim de semana do Mercado!

Mais veterano entre as peças, Rafinha atende um anseio defensivo do comandante. Com o antecessor Rogério Ceni ele entrava e atuava mais fechando uma linha de três na zaga, como defensor, do que propriamente apoiando como exigirá sua posição no 4-4-2 habitual usado por Dorival.

Nathan era uma espécie de ‘xodó’ de Ceni, que chegou até mesmo a treiná-lo na zaga na mesma função de Rafinha. Entretanto, no primeiro jogo de Dorival, a vitória sobre o América-MG no último final de semana, sequer foi relacionado para ficar no banco. Posto ocupado por Orejuela.

A lateral de fato será a sina tricolor para o jogo. Isso porque na esquerda, o garoto Patryck, único nativo na posição, sentiu de novo a pressão do pouco tempo no profissional e acabou substituído e criticado pela torcida no sábado. Pode ser que a opção seja por Caio, atacante improvisado no setor.

O restante da equipe deverá ser mantido igual. O São Paulo deve jogar com Rafael; Rafinha (Orejuela ou Nathan), Arboleda, Beraldo e Patryck (Caio); Luan, Pablo Maia, Nestor e Michel Araujo; Luciano e Calleri.

O treinamento desta manhã começou com um circuito físico, comandado pelos preparadores. Na sequência, o técnico Dorival Júnior e os auxiliares Lucas Silvestre e Pedro Sotero comandaram dois trabalhos táticos. No primeiro, utilizando uma área delimitada do gramado, o grupo fez um treinamento coletivo, de 11 contra 11. Depois, já utilizando toda a extensão do campo, fez um complemento posicional. Houve ainda um aperfeiçoamento de bolas paradas.

A delegação viaja para a Itu somente no horário do jogo, saindo do Centro de Treinamento da Barra Funda direto para o estádio Dr. Novelli Júnior.

+ Confira os jogos e classificação resultados do Brasileirão-23 na tabela do LANCE!

+ Confira os jogos, classificação e simule resultados da Copa do Brasil-23 na tabela do LANCE!

+ Confira os jogos, classificação e simule resultados da Sul-Americana-23 na tabela do LANCE!

continua após a publicidade

Tottenham Hotspur have been tipped to appoint a 52-year-old after he was spotted at the Spurs stadium recently, which also follows his rumoured talks with chairman Daniel Levy.

Ange Postecoglou facing sack as Tottenham make boardroom change

Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou’s long-term future will seriously hinge on their Europa League quarter-final second leg against Eintracht Frankfurt next week.

Tottenham make contact with former manager as Levy hatches transfer plan

Spurs have reached out to their ex-boss.

ByEmilio Galantini Apr 11, 2025

Fabrizio Romano is among the credible media sources to report that there is a strong possibility Postecoglou will be dismissed if Tottenham fail to mount an impressive run in Europe, so the pressure is on the 59-year-old to get it right during their return leg in Germany.

Wolves (away)

April 13th

Nottingham Forest (home)

April 21st

Liverpool (away)

April 27th

West Ham (away)

May 3rd

Crystal Palace (home)

May 10th

Tottenham have identified a few candidates to replace Postecoglou already, including Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola, who is seen as a top target for the Lilywhites alongside the likes of Brentford’s Thomas Frank and Fulham boss Marco Silva (The Athletic).

All of this comes amid their fresh appointment of new CEO Vinai Venkatesham, who will officially commence his role this summer after swapping Arsenal for the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

It is a hire which could have major implications on Levy’s influence and the running of the club, with Venkatesham set to oversee both on-field and off-field matters in a very senior role (Dave Hytner).

His arrival will also have a big say on whether Tottenham end up re-hiring former managing director Fabio Paratici.

After he resigned from his post in 2023, due to a worldwide ban from football, that sentence is set to end on June 30th – and Spurs have reportedly been pursuing a return for Paratici.

According to journalist Graeme Bailey and other reports in Italy, Levy has held talks with Paratici over re-joining Tottenham, and the Lilywhites chief was thought to be “working hard” to bring him back to N17.

Milan’s recent negotiations to appoint Paratici also collapsed last week, handing Spurs a potential free run.

Tottenham tipped to appoint Fabio Paratici after Daniel Levy talks

Interestingly, Paratici was spotted at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Thursday, sitting in the stands as he watched Postecoglou’s side draw 1-1 with Frankfurt.

After seeing this image, following on from these alleged Levy talks, pundit John Wenham is convinced that Paratici is returning to Tottenham, and the Italian could already be working on a replacement for Postecoglou.

“If Postecoglou is sacked, I’m not sure who will come in until the end of the season,” Wenham said to Tottenham News.

“We will have to wait and see. However, we saw that Paratici was at the stadium again on Thursday, sitting with the club legends. Therefore, it looks like he is coming back, and perhaps he is already lining up a new manager to replace Postecoglou.”

He would be a controversial hire after his footballing ban, but sections of supporters are keen for it to happen.

Paratici played a key role in their appointment of Antonio Conte, whilst also orchestrating deals for Rodrigo Bentancur, Dejan Kulusevski, Yves Bissouma, Cristian Romero, Pedro Porro, Djed Spence, Destiny Udogie and Pape Sarr, who’ve all gone on to impress since joining Spurs.

When West Bromwich Albion handed Tony Mowbray the reins for his second spell at the Baggies, another promotion, one that the impressive Carlos Corberan failed to deliver, was being dreamt of.

Indeed, Mowbray has been here before when guiding West Brom triumphantly to the Championship title back in 2008, with his task in the here and now to steer the West Midlands outfit to a playoff finish.

Part of that great side were players like Graham Dorrans, James Morrison, Robert Koren and, of course, Jonas Olsson.

Perhaps Mowbray has found his next version of the big Swede in 2025.

Jonas Olsson's time at West Brom

Last time the current manager took West Brom up to the promised land of English football, Mowbray did, unfortunately send his side straight back down.

But, the dismal relegation that did occur at the end of the 2008/09 season – which ultimately cost the manager his job – didn’t mean it was all doom and gloom at the Hawthorns, with Olsson sticking out as a formidable performer even as the Premier League slipped out of his new team’s grasp.

In total, the Swedish powerhouse tallied up 261 appearances donning a Baggies strip, with this unfortunate relegation blot on his resume not deterring him from going on to amass eight goals and six assists in the Premier League from 201 clashes.

Often using his towering 6 foot 5 frame to resiliently battle and grind out important wins, there’s one player in Mowbray’s current camp who bares similarities to the modern West Brom icon by displaying equal amounts of grit.

West Brom's new version of Olsson

The second-tier promotion chasers were very proactive in the busy January market, with the likes of EFL sharpshooter Adam Armstrong joining the ranks on loan, alongside Tammer Bany joining from Scandinavia in a surprise switch.

Amazingly, this isn’t the only pursuit from this neck of the woods that West Brom have signed off on in recent times, as tough defensive battler Torbjørn Heggem joined from Swedish top-flight side IF Brommapojkarna for a modest £500k last summer.

Heggem has managed to instantly fit in – much like Olsson after his move in 2008 – with a header being powered home back in December eerily similar to the many goals the Swede scored in crucial moments.

Moreover, the ex-Brommapojkarna titan has managed to shore up Mowbray’s side like the memorable number 4 before him, seen in Heggem winning a high five duels on average per Championship clash.

Games played

39

Games started

39

Goals scored

1

Assists

2

Touches*

67.8

Accurate passes*

44.5 (88%)

Ball recoveries*

3.3

Clearances*

4.9

Total duels won*

5.0

Clean sheets

12

The “outstanding” summer recruit – as he’s been lauded by pundit Carlton Palmer for his Baggies heroics – has also managed to collect 12 clean sheets from his 39 second-tier appearances, resulting in Heggem cementing himself as a regular by missing zero Championship games this season.

Heggem would love to round off his stunning debut season in England with a promotion in hand, as the 26-year-old no-nonsense defender potentially becomes more and more like West Brom’s next Olsson if he passes any upcoming hurdles in front of him with flying colours.

Best signing since Pereira: West Brom have struck gold on "special" star

West Bromwich Albion struck gold when snapping up this lethal attacker.

ByKelan Sarson Mar 31, 2025

With a day off followed by rain, it is possible that on match day, Virat Kohli may have last seen the pitch 72 hours ago, but India remain circumspect in their approach and insist there is no complacency

Sidharth Monga in Pallekele11-Aug-20172:45

Agarkar: Play Kuldeep, he’ll be useful in away Tests

India have travelled to the hills to play the final Test of the second series in a row. When they did so last, in Dharamsala against Australia, they had all sorts of questions to answer. Virat Kohli raced against time to be fit, a race he would eventually lose. The pitch was not a typical Indian track, so the selection was tricky. On the line was a series against Australia, who had shocked India by first taking the series lead, and then frustrated them by holding on to a draw in the third match.In the seemingly endless rolling green heights of Pallekele, though, things couldn’t have been more different. India have already won the series against a side whose inadequacies have been accentuated by injuries to key players. India’s first-ever overseas whitewash in a series of three Tests or longer is now a distinct possibility. There is one selection question because of the suspension of Ravindra Jadeja, but there are many takers waiting for the opportunity to get into the side.It is no big surprise then that when it rained a little on the morning before the Test, India called off their training. It is possible that on the morning of the the Test, captain Virat Kohli will have last seen the pitch about 72 hours ago. The day after their only training session in Pallekele, India went to visit a temple that originates from the mythological book Ramayana.While they were away, the groundsmen at Pallekele International Stadium unveiled a lush green pitch, one that could rival the hills around. But over the next three hours, they studiously clipped off a lot of the grass. Sri Lanka’s chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya stood there by the pitch, almost overseeing the process.This is not quite the same as Napier 2008-09, when India chose to reach the city of the Test on the afternoon before the match, but you suspect India’s preparation – rain or no rain – would have been different had Sri Lanka put up a stiffer fight in the series.At least India this time didn’t justify not looking at the pitch like MS Dhoni had done in legendary fashion in 2008-09. “The mind doesn’t know if it’s Napier or what you’re feeding. You come and say ‘this is Napier’, and it believes it’s Napier. If you see, it’s an abstract.” Famous last words. Dhoni pulled out of the Test with a bad back, and Gautam Gambhir and VVS Laxman had to dig deep to salvage a draw.India this time are a little more circumspect. “Not really,” Kohli said when asked if he remembered the last time he went into a Test without having had a look at the pitch a day before the toss. “I mean, it’s quite a different situation, but the management has gone to the stadium to have a look. We heard there were some changes to the pitch so they have gone to check how things look at this stage, so we will have more clarity on what we need to go in with. But I haven’t yet really gone in without looking at the wicket at least 8-10 hours before the game before this. So it’s probably a different kind of situation.”Sri Lanka captain Dinesh Chandimal inspects the pitch even as the groundstaff works on it•Associated PressAll this means India will likely travel to the ground on Saturday morning without a fixed XI in mind. The fact that India have been playing so much cricket of late means they can afford to take a day or two off when it comes to training.”You can say we are certainly better placed to be able to afford a couple of days off,” Kohli said. “Yesterday, we took an off voluntarily, and today, it just happened to rain. But the day before that, we had a good practice. Also, what you need to understand in places like Sri Lanka, it is very hot and humid. People sometimes end up doing too much at practice, and then, maybe, you don’t recover for a game. It might just be a good thing for those who needed more rest, especially the bowlers who have massive workload during Test matches.”For us, I feel it’s more of a positive thing than a hindrance that we didn’t have practice a day before the game because we are in a good zone. Everyone is playing good cricket and everyone is bowling well. So we feel absolutely comfortable going into the Test match even though we didn’t practice today.”Kohli assured there was to be no complacency when he insisted India were not going to make wholesale changes to the XI now that the series has been secured. “We have to understand that to play consistent cricket, you need to make sure that people are playing on a regular basis,” he said. “Those who are preforming and those who are doing well should continue in more games than not. To be a consistent side, I think we need to have continuity as well, unless the situations where things are not controllable arise.”So we certainly don’t want to take anything lightly. We want to play the same kind of cricket that we have, and hopefully, retain the team that played the last game as much as we can. So we are certainly not thinking of too many changes at all, especially in this format because you don’t want to start taking things for granted and lose that momentum. We certainly are not thinking of drastic chances at this stage.”Kohli said thinking of a first away whitewash was a distraction they could do well without. It is just another Test match for them, Kohli said. And, as they do with every other Test, they want to win. Yet, there is a bit of a stamp of a 2-0 lead in the preparation for it.

MatériaMais Notícias

da supremo： Depois da classificação sobre o Iguatu-CE para a próxima fase da Copa do Brasil, o Santos começa um longo jejum de partidas oficiais. A equipe alvinegra não disputa mais jogos no mês de março e seu próximo compromisso será definido pelo sorteio da Copa Sul-Americana.

O treinador Odair Hellmann terá um longo período para realizar as atividades necessárias para melhorar o desempenho do Santos, que não fez um bom Campeonato Paulista. O Peixe só estreia no Brasileirão no dia 15 de abril, contra o Grêmio, em Porto Alegre.

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da apostebet： +ATUAÇÕES: Meninos da Vila brilham e garantem classificação tranquila do Santos na CDB

A equipe santista terá bastante tempo para aprimorar vários problemas, como o crônico desafio de melhorar a defesa nas jogadas de bola aérea. Nos clássicos do estadual, o Peixe foi vazado por este tipo de jogada em todos jogos.

O tempo livre no calendário também assegura um tempo hábil para recuperar atletas que estão lesionados. No momento, Soteldo, Alex, Sandry, Joaquim, Mendoza e Carabajal possuem problemas físicos ou estão na fase de transição de suas respectivas lesões.

Sob muita pressão da torcida, o Santos também deve ir ao mercado para reforçar seu plantel. O treinador Odair Hellmann participa da busca por contratações e terá tempo para integrar e adaptar os novos comandados.

MatériaMais Notícias

da pinup bet： Neste Campeonato Paulista, mesmo que o São Paulo esteja na liderança do grupo B, com 11 pontos, a derrota para o Red Bull Bragantino acendeu um alerta: de nove pontos disputados contra times que estão na série A do Campeonato Brasileiro, o Tricolor só conseguiu um.

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da pixbet： Até agora, foram sete partidas disputadas no Estadual. As únicas vitórias do Tricolor no Paulistão aconteceram contra a Ferroviária, a Portuguesa e o Santo André. Nenhuma destas equipes disputa o Brasileirão na série A em 2023.

ATUAÇÕES: Galoppo faz golaço, mas meio de campo não ajuda em derrota do São Paulo

Veja tabela do Campeonato Paulista e simule os próximos jogos

Porém, contra o Palmeiras, o Corinthians e o Red Bull Bragantino, nenhuma vitória. O único ponto que surgiu entre estes nove disputados contra estas equipes mais complicadas foi no clássico contra o Palmeiras, que aconteceu no Allianz Parque e terminou em um empate sem gols.

Contra o Corinthians e o Bragantino, foram duas – e únicas até então -, derrotas. E ambas com o mesmo placar: por 2 a 1. A única diferença é que o Majestoso aconteceu no Morumbi e o encontro com o Massa Bruta foi no Nabizão.

Neste domingo (12), o Tricolor tem a chance de melhorar este aproveitamento contra equipes de maior porte, e que mais tarde reencontrará no Brasileiro. O São Paulo enfrenta o Santos, no estádio do Morumbi. Analisando números das duas equipes no Paulistão até agora, a equipe de Rogério Ceni tem um certo favoritismo ao seu lado.

Além do fator casa e mais de 23 mil ingressos vendidos até o momento, está em uma situação melhor na tabela. Como dito antes, lidera o grupo B e soma três vitórias, dois empates e duas derrotas. Já o Peixe, está em terceiro lugar no grupo A, com nove pontos e duas vitórias, três empates e duas derrotas.

Veja as movimentações do São Paulo na janela de transferências

O duelo com o Santos será o último do São Paulo contra times da série A nesta primeira etapa do Paulista. Depois, encontra Inter de Limeira, São Bento, São Bernardo e Botafogo-SP. Os próximos duelos contra estas equipes maiores só acontecerá se o Tricolor passar para a próxima fase.

Sarah Glenn and Charli Knott took seven wickets between after Grace Harris and Georgia Redmayne both impressed

AAP20-Oct-2023

Sarah Glenn picked up four wickets including a brace in the power surge•Getty Images

Spinners Charli Knott and Sarah Glenn starred with the ball as Brisbane Heat edged Melbourne Renegades by six runs to win a pulsating WBBL clash at Junction Oval.A swashbuckling cameo from Georgia Wareham (36 from 16 balls) put Renegades in position to snatch victory late on Friday after the Heat posted 187 for 9.She and Georgia Prestwidge each belted Courtney Sippel for two fours in the penultimate over, leaving Renegades requiring 23 runs from the last six deliveries.Related

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Wareham blasted fellow spinner Jess Jonassen for six over deep midwicket to put a stunning win within reach. But when Jonassen caught and bowled her from the next delivery, Renegades needed a miracle that did not transpire.Keeping superstar batters Hayley Matthews and Harmanpreet Kaur quiet was key to Heat’s success in the second match of the new tournament, and they could thank spinners Glenn and Knott.English legspinner Glenn inspired a collapse of 5 for 55 either side of the drinks break and emerged as the pick of the bowlers for Heat.She took the crucial wicket of Kaur, who was player of the tournament the last time she appeared for Renegades but mistimed a slog-sweep and was sent packing.Knott broke the Heat’s 55-run opening partnership by taking down Tammy Beaumont with her offspin and in the same over dismissed  Matthews, West Indies’ star player in the recent T20I series against Australia.Earlier, Heat’s openers had their side off to a similarly flying start, taking advantage of the batter-friendly Junction Oval wicket and fast outfield.Australian representative Grace Harris notably belted Ella Hayward for two back-to-back sixes in the second over.In her first WBBL game since rupturing her achilles tendon in last season’s semi-finals, Heat’s reigning topscorer Georgia Redmayne was similarly influential.But Wareham broke the 77-run opening partnership when Harris slogged her to Prestwidge at deep midwicket.Matthews took 2 for 2 just after the drinks break and though Heat never quite replicated their prolific start, their total proved enough.

Manchester City’s last outing was a hugely disappointing 3-1 defeat in the Champions League against Real Madrid. It saw the Citizens crash out of the premium European club competition in a frustrating manner, losing 6-3 on aggregate.

A phenomenal Kylian Mbappe hattrick was enough to sink Pep Guardiola’s side, with the French forward scoring three superb goals, including a lob over goalkeeper Ederson and a lovely strike from range with his weaker left foot to seal the treble.

City lost John Stones just minutes into the game, with the England international succumbing to injury. It was a bit of a makeshift defence for City, which included new signing Abdukodir Khusanov at right-back.

Khusanov’s performance vs. Real Madrid

So far, the Uzbekistan international has played a bit-part role in a Man City shirt. The January signing from French outfit Lens has featured four times, with his start against Madrid the first time he has played in the Champions League for City.

However, it was a tough night at the office for Khusanov against Los Blancos. Defending against Mbappe, Jude Bellingham, Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior, a quartet often quite fluid in their rotations, you could not have really asked for a tougher assignment.

In fact, the youngster received a 3/10 for his performance against the Spanish giants, courtesy of Goal. Richard Martin said Khusanov ‘was tortured from start to finish’ by the likes of Mbappe and Vinicius.

Chalkboard

When the Frenchman received the ball for his second goal, it came to him after City’s number 45 had the ball poked through his legs by Rodrygo.

It was certainly a baptism of fire in the Champions League for the first time donning that famous Blue shirt. It will be interesting to see if Guardiola keeps him in the side for the heavyweight clash with Liverpool on Sunday.

The same thing could be said for another City defender, who also struggled against Madrid.

The City player who could be dropped against Liverpool

When you’re defending against the likes of Mbappe, Bellingham, Vinicius and Rodrygo, it is never going to be easy. Khusanov found that out first-hand, but perhaps no one can relate more than Josko Gvardiol.

If Khusanov had a tough night, then Gvardiol certainly did. He was, in many ways, embarrassed by Madrid’s hattrick hero, who sat him down for his second goal, moments after the Uzbek defender was nutmegged by Rodrygo.

With Gvardiol sliding in for a challenge on Mbappe, the Madrid number nine simply shifted the ball from his left foot to his right, and watched as the Croatian defender slid past him and ended up on his back. Gvardiol could only watch as Mbappe slotted home,

It was a poor performance from City’s left-back at the Santiago Bernabeu. He received a 4/10 from Martin, which was justified when looking at his stats on Sofascore.

He won just five out of 14 ground duels and was dribbled past twice, including for Mbappe’s second goal.

Stat

Number

Touches

69

Pass accuracy

90%

Ground duels won

4/12

Aerial duels won

1/2

Tackles won

2/4

Number of times balls lost

8

Fouls committed

3

Sadly for Gvardiol, there will be no respite this weekend against the Premier League leaders, Liverpool. Should he get the nod at left-back again, he will have to face one of the most in-form players in the Premier League, Mohamed Salah.

The Reds’ number 11 has 29 goals and 20 assists in just 37 games in all competitions this season, playing as a right-winger. That means Gvardiol will come up directly against the Egyptian international.

Perhaps Guardiola will decide not to risk his number 24. After being embarrassed by Mbappe, there is no reason to say why the same will not happen against another world-class attacker.

This is a crucial game for City in their fight for a top-four spot, and perhaps the City boss will want a more watertight defence.

It would not be hard to argue against dropping Gvardiol for the clash at the Etihad Stadium. The left-back has not been playing to the high levels he can hit, and City might need someone else in better form to help keep someone like Salah quiet.

Man City already sold their answer to Mbappé who Pep dubbed "incredible"

Following Kylian Mbappé’s hat-trick to dump Manchester City out of the Champions League, did the sky blues sell their own superstar attacker?

ByBen Gray Feb 21, 2025

Bangladesh batter was dropped from the Champions Trophy squad on Sunday morning, and scored a BPL hundred later that day

Mohammad Isam13-Jan-2025

Litton Das has been out in single digits in six of his last seven ODI innings•BCB

Bangladesh batter Litton Das has accepted that he was dropped from the ODI squad for the 2025 Champions Trophy because of his poor form. Bangladesh announced their squad on Sunday morning and later that day Litton smashed an unbeaten 125 off 55 balls for Dhaka Capital against Durbar Rajshahi in the BPL.”The Champions Trophy selection wasn’t in my control,” Litton said after his performance. “The selectors took the call. They decide whom to play. My job is to perform. I haven’t been able to do that. I think I was a bit upset about it. I have the same mindset before and after the game today. The day has already passed. I have played a good knock but it’s in the past. I start from zero again. I will keep working hard, let’s see what happens next.”I was given a clear message. Maybe not from the selectors but it is easy to find out why I wasn’t picked in the team. I was dropped because I wasn’t performing. There’s nothing to hide about it. Basic, normal.”Related

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Litton Das and Tanzid Hasan slam tons to take Dhaka Capitals to record total

Litton and Shakib left out of Bangladesh's Champions Trophy squad

Litton hasn’t made it out of single digits in his last seven ODI innings and his previous 50-plus score was in October 2023. “Fans will support me but then when I don’t do well, people will be negative. That’s not really my concern,” he said. “I am focused on what I need to do. I haven’t been playing well, so I need to improve my game. I won’t change overnight, so I have to keep trying. People will love it when I score runs.”I am not out there to prove to anyone. I only look for improvement. I don’t think I was playing well for the last few months. I will try to become more consistent from this point, especially after this innings.”Litton began the BPL season poorly with scores of 31, 0, 2 and 9 before making 73 and 125 not out in consecutive games. The hundred helped Dhaka Capital end a run of six consecutive defeats.His unbeaten 125 contained 10 fours and nine sixes and his 241-run opening stand with Tanzid Hasan was the second highest partnership in men’s T20 cricket. Litton credited Shahin, a member of the Dhaka support staff who has given him throwdowns for years, for helping him out of his rut.”Shahin has been working in the [Dhaka Capital]) team. He has worked with Comilla Victorians for the last three years … He helps me in training all the time, and passes on information from time to time. He is capable of pointing out a batter’s mistake. That’s why I thanked him. But listen, please don’t make a news that he has now become a coach.”Litton believes Dhaka’s 149-run win against Rajshahi will help them perform better in the second half of the BPL season. “We have a good team but we haven’t been able to click so far. I think today was the first time we performed as a unit, both with bat and ball. We still have five matches left. Two teams are at the top, while the rest are around the same points. I think our run rate will improve after this game. We got our rhythm going. I don’t know if we can win the next games, but we feel more confident.”

Worryingly for South Africa, Miller has a hamstring niggle and Shamsi is nursing a groin strain, and there isn’t much turnaround time

Firdose Moonda30-Oct-20211:56

Tabraiz Shamsi: ‘There’s a World Cup to be won, how can you not be passionate?’

It wasn’t perfect – almost nothing about South African cricket is these days – but they kept their knockout hopes alive with a scratchy but ultimately successful chase against their favourite opponents. This was South Africa’s sixth successive win over Sri Lanka and their best, because it came against the backdrop of serious pressure.Although defeat would not have guaranteed they would be knocked out, it would have made progressing to the semi-finals complicated. It may still not be straightforward but this team has now proved to itself that it can overcome adversity. They have done it twice this week, which could otherwise have descended into (even more) chaos following what most in the squad have described as their toughest time in international cricket.Related

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The drama, in case you missed it, started on Monday night when the CSA board resolved to issue a directive to the men’s national team instructing them all to take a knee before every game. The players found out on Tuesday morning, five hours before their match against West Indies, and by the time they reached the ground, that Quinton de Kock had decided he would not comply and withdrew from the XI. Two days later, de Kock apologised and U-turned, and yesterday Keshav Maharaj said the squad was more united than ever.As they took the field against Sri Lanka, they were determined to show it. They stood with their arms around each other as they sung the national anthem, the first time they have done that at this tournament and, in the time of Covid-19, the first time they have done that in a while. They all took a knee. And then they worked together to end Sri Lanka’s most profitable partnership, the 40-run second-wicket stand between Pathum Nissanka and Charith Asalanka. Crucially, they kept Sri Lanka under 150, thanks mostly to Tabraiz Shamsi, who has now taken more T20I wickets in a calendar year than anyone else, and a strangling effort at the end of the opposition innings.

“We have won these kinds of moments more often than we have lost them. That’s a huge positive. We are here to win the World Cup”Tabraiz Shamsi

Dwaine Pretorius is not the perfect death bowler. In fact, South Africa entered this tournament without an obvious candidate for the final overs but chose Pretorius despite his domestic record, which does not immediately suggest he would be a good candidate. Prior to this tournament, Pretorius had bowled 36 overs at the death, taken 18 wickets and had an economy of 10.38. In the three matches he has had so far, he has bowled 5.4 overs at the death, taken six wickets, and has an economy of 8.64. His use of the slower ball, in particular, has been impressive. Today, two of them brought him wickets and he finished with his second three-wicket haul at this tournament.”If we had to give out an award for Scholar of the Team, it would be Dwaine Pretorius,” Shamsi said at the post-match press conference. “He wants to make sure he is well prepared and he is always working with our analyst. We can’t speak enough about the job he did for us at the end. The game was so close. It’s turned out that he has become our death bowling specialist and he has done a great job.”Temba Bavuma is not the perfect T20 player – and most of the criticism around him is about scoring too slowly – but he is, as de Kock put it, “a flipping amazing leader” and this was the week he showed it in word and deed. His run-a-ball 46 anchored a wobbly chase but there will still be pressure on him to get going. Bavuma faced 29 balls before he found the boundary and was on 37 off 42 when he hit the six over midwicket that took his strike rate to 100. He took that as his cue to finish the innings and tried to hit Wanindu Hasaranga over cow corner but picked out a fielder to become the filling in the hat-trick sandwich. Bavuma berated himself and told the television broadcast he wanted to see the chase through. “I took on that responsibility. I felt someone had to take it to the end.”South Africa have their problems, but they are learning to live with them•ICC via GettyDavid Miller is not the perfect finisher. Although his ability to clear the rope is reputed, he has not won a game for South Africa recently and he was fast going to run out of partners. Luckily Kagiso Rabada “always has the shot of the day”, as Shamsi put it, and the classy six he smashed over long-off cut through some of the stress of the situation but not all of it. “I was a bit tense,” Bavuma admitted. “But I had a lot of confidence in the fact that David was there. He hasn’t done that for us in a while but he has got the most beautiful swing.”

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This is not a perfect South African team, and their batting has big holes. Today was an example of where their top-heavy approach could backfire. Like it or not, there simply isn’t room to play what are essentially five openers – de Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Bavuma, Aiden Markram and Rassie van der Dussen – in the top six, but because South Africa lack middle-order options, it’s a combination they are stuck with for now.Shamsi is comfortable with it, because “there’s different batters that put their hands up and take the team to victory”, but against stronger opposition, like Australia (as we saw in the Super 12s opener) and England, who are yet to come, it may not work. More worryingly, the only middle-order batter they seem to want to use, Miller, has a hamstring niggle. Shamsi, too, is nursing a groin strain. South Africa’s next match is against Bangladesh on Tuesday so there isn’t much time to recover.But these are all problems that tournament-winning teams, who are often imperfect, overcome and Shamsi believes South Africa will do the same. “We have won these kinds of moments more often than we have lost them. That’s a huge positive,” Shamsi said. “We are here to win the World Cup.”