"تلقى عناقًا".. كواليس مشاركة محمد صلاح في تدريبات ليفربول بعد تصريحاته النارية

أثارت تصريحات محمد صلاح ضجة كبيرة، وقد سلطت الأنظار عليه خلال جلسة تدريبية مفتوحة لفريق ليفربول بعد وقت قصير من المقابلة التي أجراها.

وقد طغت أحداث ما بعد مباراة ليدز يونايتد والتي انتهت بالتعادل الإيجابي بثلاث أهداف لكل فريق وتصدر صلاح عناوين الصحف بسبب تصريحاته.

وأثارت تعليقات صلاح حول آرني سلوت مدرب ليفربول ضجة عالمية، ولم يتوقع أحد كل ما قيل منه وتساءل الجميع إذا كان المصري سيشارك في الجلسة التدريبية المفتوحة.

ولاحظ الصحفي “مارك أوجدن” ما كان يفعله محمد صلاح أثناء خروجه لتدريبات ليفربول قبل لقاء إنتر ميلان في دوري أبطال أوروبا.

اقرأ أيضاً.. أليسون بيكر على رادار عملاق أوروبي للرحيل عن ليفربول

وأفادت “rousing the kop” أن الجميع يعلم أن صلاح يستمتع بكونه النجم الأبرز في ليفربول وأن الأنظار مسلطة عليه وهذا ما جعله لاعب عظيم.

ومع ذلك فقد تخلي النجم المصري عن غروره قبل بدء الجلسة التدريبية وشوهد وهو يحاول التصرف بشكل طبيعي قدر الإمكان، وتجاهل الموقف لتخفيف الضغط عن النادي.

وذكر أوجدن في بودكاست لـ “ESPN”: “نعم، بالطبع، طلب منا الحضور لبدء التدريبات، وكان هناك بعض الانتظار مما زاد من ترقبنا ولكن عندما خرج صلاح كان كل شيء طبيعي للغاية”.

واختتم: “خرج مع إيكتيكي ولم يكن هناك أي شعور بأنه يسير في آخر المجموعة، لم يكن دخوله متأخراً بشكل درامي ولم يثر ضجة كبيرة، ذهب مع إيكتيكي وعانقه أيضاً سوبوسلاي عناقاً خفيفاً ثم انضموا للتدريبات وخاضوا مباراة تحضيرية مصغرة”.

India get a thrilling dose of the Zak Crawley experience

The England opener has remained undroppable despite plenty of patchy form, and he showed why at The Oval

Matt Roller01-Aug-2025

Zak Crawley got to his half-century in just 42 balls•AFP via Getty Images

How do you explain a cricketer like Zak Crawley? He is an outlier, a player who continues to defy conventional wisdom. No man in Test history has opened the batting so often (93 innings) and averaged so little (31.06), yet he is one half of England’s most prolific opening partnership for a decade and his place has rarely been so secure.This Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy series has been a trademark Crawley series: he has averaged 34.50, a tick over his career mark, and has thrilled and frustrated in equal measure. He has made three substantial contributions in eight innings, yet none of England’s first-choice top seven have scored fewer runs. He remains England’s enigma, his career a web of contradictions.Crawley was England’s top-scorer in their first innings at The Oval and personified their approach, jumping at the chance to dominate India’s seamers. Before his dismissal, Crawley hit one in every four balls that he faced for four, maintaining a strike rate well above 100. He scored 56 of his 64 runs in boundaries, reasoning that on a seaming pitch, attack was the best form of defence.Related

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It was the perfect attack for him to face. Crawley has the peculiar distinction of getting better when the bowling gets faster, reasoning that he is at his best when he has no time to think and lets his instincts take over. Facing seam, he averages 43.31 against balls at 84mph/135kph or quicker, compared to just 27.31 against those below.But that is precisely why England’s management have retained him for so long. He has missed only three of their 47 Tests since Boxing Day 2021 – and those through injury – despite two long ruts in form. That he was their top-scorer in two consecutive marquee series (Australia 2023 and India 2024) vindicated the sense that he is better equipped against the best than the rest.Crawley is encapsulated by the fact he has only been dismissed once in 119 balls in this series against Jasprit Bumrah, but twice in the seven balls he has faced from Nitish Kumar Reddy. India’s rebalancing at The Oval pitted him against three fast-medium bowlers; Crawley may have been the only England batter to breathe a sigh of relief when India left Shardul Thakur out.If he rode his luck at times – inside-edging Prasidh Krishna past leg stump, flashing him over the slips – he made good use of it. Crawley hit two perfect straight drives – one mid-off, the other mid-on – in three balls from Mohammed Siraj, and made a capacity crowd collectively purr when he spanked Prasidh through cover point.1:58

Bangar on Crawley-Duckett: Haven’t seen batting of that quality

His partnership with Ben Duckett was worth 92 in just 12.5 overs, and the collapse that followed vindicated their ultra-positive approach. Crawley and Duckett refused to let India’s seamers settle, disrupting their lengths by charging down the pitch and – in Duckett’s case – playing conventional and reverse-scoops. On a green seamer, it was defence that proved fatal.It was evident from Shubman Gill’s reactions at third slip – and, soon enough, mid-off – that England’s openers put India under severe pressure. After India folded for 224, Gill was caught between stools: he had no runs to play with, yet knew that he needed to break the partnership as soon as possible. Duckett’s fluffed reverse came as a huge relief.By that stage, Duckett and Crawley had reached a rare milestone, bringing up 500 runs for the series as an opening pair. It was the first time any opening pair had done so since 2015, and they were the first England openers to since Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook in the 2010-11 Ashes. No wonder Crawley, for all his flaws, is considered undroppable.Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett have been the perfect contrast as an opening pair•Getty ImagesIt is not hard to work out why they have been such a success together. “One’s right-handed and a giant, the other is left-handed and isn’t,” Ben Stokes wrote in his programme notes for the Edgbaston Test. “When they get going, it can be a nightmare for bowlers trying to find rhythm.” A good ball to one is a freebie to the other, and vice-versa.Crawley is clearly frustrating to play against, and not only for his free-wheeling batting. He thrived on his role as pantomime villain at Lord’s and was on the wind-up again last week in Manchester, telling India’s batters their decision to bat on for centuries was “embarrassing” – seemingly oblivious that he was England’s only specialist batter without one in the series.His spliced pull to square midwicket felt oddly apt: he has always been a player of style over substance, and an anticlimactic dismissal was perfectly in keeping with the Crawley experience. On the flipside, for all that it looked like a missed chance to define the match, Crawley’s 64 was the highest score across both teams’ first innings.The Oval suits Crawley: it is one of two venues (along with the Utilita Bowl) where he has passed 50 three times in Test cricket, and is the English ground where he has scored the fastest. England have averaged fewer runs per wicket at The Oval than any other home venue in the last four summers; it is utterly in keeping with Crawley’s eccentricities that he has thrived there.

"Looks haunted…" – Samuel Luckhurst slams Man Utd star in Crystal Palace win

Samuel Luckhurst criticised a Manchester United star, who looked “haunted” in the first half of the 2-1 victory against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

Man Utd complete second-half comeback to prevail at Palace

Man United’s performance in the first half of the win against the Eagles left a lot to be desired, with Mark Goldbridge taking to X to criticise Ruben Amorim, while also taking aim at the manager’s reluctance to change things at half-time.

However, Amorim’s approach ultimately paid off, with Joshua Zirkzee cancelling out Jean-Philippe Mateta’s opener early in the second half, before Mason Mount secured all three points after being laid off by Bruno Fernandes from a free-kick.

The Red Devils were able to close out a 2-1 win, bringing their four-game winless run against Palace to an end, but it was far from a vintage performance, with Luckhurst taking to X to criticise Casemiro’s performance during the first half.

The reporter said: “Not remotely got going and Casemiro looks haunted up against Adam Wharton again.”

Man Utd should go all out to sign Wharton

It is little wonder United are so keen on signing Wharton, who put in a fantastic first-half performance, once again catching the eye with his passing ability.

With Amorim in the market for a new midfielder, INEOS should go all out to sign the Crystal Palace star, who was unlucky to be on the losing side after bossing the midfield in the first half, although Casemiro did manage to turn things around.

Although he lost possession 11 times, the Brazilian made a number of key defensive contributions throughout the match, winning seven duels, the second-highest number of any United player, while also making two interceptions, three clearances and three tackles.

Man Utd have unseen teenager who "looks better than half their first team"

Carrington has produced another gem.

By
Tom Cunningham

Nov 29, 2025

Journalist Liam Canning was also left impressed with the 33-year-old’s display, in what could be his final season as a Man United player, although an encouraging new update from Fabrizio Romano suggests the central midfielder could extend his contract beyond next summer…

Ronald Araujo makes 'spiritual journey' to Tel Aviv to boost recovery as Gerard Pique defends 'emotionally shaken' Barcelona star

Barcelona defender Ronald Araujo has travelled to Tel Aviv on a "spiritual journey" to aid his physical and mental recovery following a difficult period at the club, a decision that has been fiercely defended by club legend Gerard Pique who has called for a radical change in how fans treat players after admitting the Uruguayan "raised his hand and said enough" regarding the abuse he receives.

  • Araujo takes special break from Barcelona

    The Uruguayan centre-back has been absent from the first-team picture recently, missing the last three La Liga matches due to personal reasons. However, it has emerged that Araujo has been granted special permission by the club to travel to Israel, seeking solace and mental clarity as he attempts to reset ahead of the second half of the campaign.

    According to reports from , the trip is not merely for leisure but serves as a crucial component of his rehabilitation. A deeply religious man, Araujo felt the need to disconnect from the toxic noise surrounding Barcelona and reconnect with his faith. The pressure of wearing the captain's armband, combined with persistent injury setbacks and fierce criticism from sections of the fanbase, has reportedly left the defender "emotionally shaken," prompting the need for a total psychological reset.

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    Pique praises Araujo's decision

    The decision to step away from the spotlight has been applauded by former Barcelona captain Pique. In a candid interview with , the retired defender praised Araujo for having the courage to prioritise his mental health over the demands of the fixture calendar.

    "Mental health must be taken care of. It is evident, not only in the world of football or sport," Pique stated. "In this case, Ronald has raised his hand and said 'enough' and I think the club does very well to listen to him, give him the necessary time, and I think that all football fans in Spain should reflect a little."

    Pique’s comments highlight a shifting culture within the club. Previously, players were expected to play through the pain, whether it was physical or mental. However, Hansi Flick and the Barcelona hierarchy appear to be taking a more modern, holistic approach with Araujo, recognising that a player cannot perform at the elite level if their mind is not at peace.

  • No more free-for-all on abuse, says Pique

    Pique went further than just defending Araujo; he launched a scathing attack on the culture of abuse that permeates Spanish football. The World Cup winner believes that football lags woefully behind the rest of society when it comes to basic respect and human decency.

    "Sport has always been slower in all this," Pique argued, referencing the slow progress on other social issues. "I remember the era of racism, that of violence in stadiums… At the fan level, it is like in football we are always the last to adapt to the moments.

    "It is time for there to be respect towards the professional, it is time that we stop being a world of 'open bar' [free-for-all] where everyone can do and insult whatever they want."

    Pique spoke from a place of deep personal experience. During the height of the Catalan independence referendum and Spain's golden era, Pique was often the target of vicious abuse from his own countrymen while playing for the national team. He revealed the unhealthy coping mechanisms he was forced to develop to survive, mechanisms he implies Araujo should not have to rely on.

    "I remember that I, in my time, especially for a few years with the issue of the independence process, going to the national team I lived that," Pique recalled. "You have to build an armour and it reaches a point, which is not even healthy, that you don't care what they say or what people think.

    "But that is the only way to preserve your mental health and be well emotionally. Others may find it harder or do not want to adopt these measures that I took."

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  • AFP

    What comes next?

    For Araujo, the immediate priority is finding peace in Tel Aviv. The club has set no specific date for his return to competitive action, prioritising his full recovery over rushing him back for La Liga duty.

    The hope within the Barcelona camp is that the defender returns revitalised, free from the "emotional shaking" that has plagued his season. 

Johnson upgrade: Spurs plot mega-money bid for "the best winger in England"

Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank only has to wait just over a month for the chance to make further additions to his squad in the January transfer window.

The Danish head coach was backed by the club during the summer window with a host of expensive signings to bolster his options across the pitch ahead of the 2025/26 campaign.

Mohammed Kudus for £55m from West Ham United and Xavi Simons for £52m from RB Leipzig were the headline arrivals, as the Lilywhites splashed over £100m on two attackers to transform their frontline.

Xavi, unfortunately, has no goals and one assist in eight Premier League games so far this season, but Kudus has delivered one goal and four assists in that time, per Sofascore, as he has impressed out wide.

The former Hammers star has provided real creativity and excitement on the flanks for Spurs since his £55m move, but, like Xavi, there have been some underperforming players in Frank’s attacking ranks.

One of the Tottenham stars who needs to improve his performances ahead of the January transfer window is Brennan Johnson, who is at risk of being replaced.

Why Spurs should replace Brennan Johnson

Spurs signed the Wales international from Nottingham Forest for a fee of £47.5m in the summer of 2023, and he has been a successful signing on the whole.

Johnson, of course, scored the winning goal in the Europa League final under Ange Postecoglou at the end of last season, which is why he should be considered a worthwhile signing for £47.5m, as he won the club a major trophy.

However, the underlying numbers behind his performances last season and in the current one suggest that Spurs could upgrade on him out wide if they can find the right players to improve the team.

Johnson scored 11 goals in the Premier League, to his credit, but his all-round play and lack of creativity were issues in the 2024/25 campaign for the Lilywhites.

xAG

0.10

Bottom 18%

Assists

0.12

Bottom 37%

Progressive passes

2.94

Bottom 39%

Progressive carries

2.48

Bottom 33%

Successful take-ons

0.79

Bottom 22%

Passes into the final third

1.03

Bottom 20%

Key passes

0.79

Bottom 9%

As you can see in the table above, the Welsh forward was one of the worst-performing wingers in the top-flight when it came to progressing the ball in possession and creating chances for his teammates.

It has been a similar case this season. Johnson currently ranks in the bottom 12% for progressive passes (1.24) and the bottom 1% for shot-creating actions (1.53) per 90, whilst he does not have a single assist to his name, per FBref.

You cannot knock his knack for scoring goals, with another four in all competitions this season, but his all-round performances are why the club should look to replace him.

Spurs considering bid to sign Premier League winger

According to TEAMtalk, Tottenham Hotspur are considering a bid to sign Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo when the January transfer window opens for business.

The report claims that the Ghana international has a clause in his contract with the Cherries, which means that he can be snapped up for a fee of £65m early on in the winter window, which has put a number of sides on alert.

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Spurs were said to have been expecting a January deal to be too difficult to do before they learned of his release clause, and they are now weighing up whether or not to make a £65m offer to activate it.

TEAMtalk adds, though, that Liverpool are set to provide competition for his signature and that could make it tough for the Lilywhites, given that the Reds are the reigning Premier League champions.

If Spurs are able to win the race for the Bournemouth star’s signature at the start of next year, he could arrive in North London as a big upgrade on Johnson at the top end of the pitch.

Why Spurs should pay Antoine Semenyo's release clause

The Lilywhites, per TEAMtalk, have the financial power to pay the £65m release clause in January, and they should do so because of the quality that he could bring to Frank’s team.

Semenyo has already racked up six goals and three assists in 11 appearances in the Premier League so far this season for the Cherries, per Sofascore, whilst Johnson has produced two goals and no assists.

The chart above illustrates the gulf in class between the two players from an offensive perspective, as the former Bristol City marksman has offered far more to his team as both a scorer and a creator of goals in the top-flight.

Semenyo, who can play on either flank or through the middle as a centre-forward, also outperformed the Spurs winger at the top end of the pitch in the Premier League in the 2024/25 campaign.

Appearances

37

33

xG

9.98

10.40

Goals

11

11

Key passes per game

1.2

0.6

Big chances created

11

4

Assists

5

3

As you can see in the table above, the 25-year-old star scored as many goals as the Tottenham winger last season, but provided almost three times as many assists and averaged twice as many key passes per game.

Speaking last month, former Spurs star Chris Waddle dubbed Semenyo “the best winger in the country (England) right now”, and it is hard to disagree with that assessment when you consider his form in the 2025/26 campaign.

Per Sofascore, no winger in the Premier League has scored as many goals as Semenyo (six) so far this season. In fact, only Igor Thiago (eight) and Erling Haaland (14) have scored more goals than the Bournemouth sensation.

Therefore, Spurs could improve their team and land a proven Premier League superstar by activating his £65m release clause in the January transfer window, which could leave Johnson on the fringes of the squad because the Ghana international appears to be a significant upgrade on him.

He can end Bentancur's stay: Spurs gem is showing "shades of Mousa Dembele"

Tottenham Hotspur have a star who could end Rodrigo Bentancur’s career in North London.

ByEthan Lamb Nov 19, 2025

It is now down to Fabio Paratici and Frank to convince the 25-year-old star to make the move to North London in the winter window, as he could be a phenomenal addition to the squad with his quality as a scorer and a creator.

Robinson, Coles star for Sussex as Worcestershire collapse again

Ex-England seamer takes six wickets before classy century builds healthy overnight lead

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay24-Sep-2025

Ollie Robinson was in the wickets for Sussex•Getty Images

Sussex 228 for 5 (Coles 102, Simpson 62*) lead Worcestershire 123 (Lategan 41, Robinson 6-68, Unadkat 4-43) by 105 runsOllie Robinson produced a reminder of his capabilities with a stunning six-wicket haul as Sussex took charge on day one of their Division One clash against Worcestershire.Taking two wickets in the first over of the match, Robinson went on to finish with season-best figures of 6 for 68 as he and Jaydev Unadkat combined to skittle Worcestershire for 123.James Coles then registered a measured century during a dominant afternoon session for the visitors, in which skipper John Simpson made 62 not out as Sussex finished the day 228 for 5, leading by 105 runs. Earlier, Dan Lategan (41) top-scored for the home side, with contributions from Matthew Waite and Gareth Roderick the only other scores of note.Returning to action for the first time since Saturday’s One Day Cup final triumph, already relegated Worcestershire were brought back down to earth with a bump, as a searing spell from Robinson saw the former England seamer take four wickets in the first hour of the match.Youngster Rehaan Edavalath was caught behind with the third ball of the match, before Pears skipper Jake Libby’s off stump was sent cartwheeling after facing just one ball as the Pears fell to 1 for 2.19-year-old Lategan provided a classy counter-attacking cameo for the hosts, easing the ball through the vacant offside whenever the opportunity arose, but Robinson continued his unrelenting start to the morning, claiming two further scalps, including that of first-class debutant Isaac Mohammed who was pinned lbw. A sobering opening hour was rounded off with the dismissal of Rob Jones, who suffered the same fate, leaving his side in a heap at 36 for 4.Lategan continued to regroup, but Worcestershire’s woes deepened with Gareth Roderick (22) caught behind after an encouraging start to his innings off the bowling of Unadkat. Robinson then collected his fifth wicket of a superb spell by removing the key man, Lategan, for his resolute 41.Robinson almost secured his sixth wicket in a morning session dominated by the bowlers, but the umpires were not convinced Simpson had held onto a rebound catch behind, as lunch was taken with Worcestershire 91 for 6.Unadkat picked up where he left off after the resumption as Ethan Brookes became his second victim with a regulation catch provided to Coles at slip.Unadkat took his season tally of wickets to 13, after removing Tom Taylor caught behind for nine and trapping Ben Allison in front without scoring as the Pears’ landslide continued.Robinson completed his six-fer with the wicket of Waite, who was the last man out for 33 as Worcestershire were dismissed for 123.Worcestershire hit back in resilient fashion as Ben Allison led the way in an inspired early spell, taking three wickets to help reduce Sussex to 67 for 4.The seamer first trapped Hughes lbw for 24, then took a stunning one-handed caught-and-bowled to remove Carter, before bowling Alsop for just one. At the other end, Taylor took his 51st Championship wicket of the season to drag the hosts back into the contest.Simpson and Coles led the Sussex revival however, dominating an afternoon session that saw the fifth-wicket pair add 90 runs before tea, with Coles reaching a fluent fifty in the process.Both batters moved past 1,000 first-class for the season during the evening session, with Coles reaching his century from 105 balls, before he was bowled by Ben Gibbon as Simpson and bad light closed out a dominant day for the visitors.

VIDEO: Gareth Bale sends classy message to Son Heung-min ahead of South Korean's emotional Tottenham return following summer exit

Former Tottenham star Gareth Bale has sent out a message to club legend Son Heung-min ahead of his return to Spurs on Tuesday. The South Korea international will make his first trip back to north London for the team's Champions League match against Slavia Prague where he will be given the chance to say a proper goodbye to fans following his summer exit.

  • Son set for emotional Spurs visit

    Son left Tottenham in the summer after a decade with the club and joined MLS side LAFC on a free transfer. The popular star ended his stay on a high by captaining Spurs to a first trophy in 17 years by beating Manchester United in the Europa League final. The 33-year-old subsequently departed after the club's pre-season tour of Asia, meaning he is yet to say a proper farewell to Spurs supporters. That will all change on Tuesday night when Son will make his first return to the club for Tottenham's Champions League game against Slavia Prague. Son will be on the pitch before kick-off and will address the crowd in what promises to be an emotional occasion.

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    Bale has sent a special message to Son ahead of the fixture and hopes he enjoys what promises to be a very special occasion: "Hi Sonny, Just wanted to say a massive congratulations on your time here at Tottenham. Not many players get to bow out with their last game for their club with a trophy. You are a living legend here. Hopefully you will enjoy the evening. You deserve all the plaudits you get and good luck with my old club, LAFC, and hopefully you can bring home the title there as well."

  • Spurs pay tribute to Son

    Tottenham have also unveiled a mural in tribute to Son ahead of the match. The artwork displayed on Tottenham High Road features Son's trademark celebration and the Spurs star with the Europa League trophy. Son paid a visit to the mural during his return to London and added his signature to the bottom.

    Son has also spoken about how important the trip back to his former club is for him, telling the club's media: "When I announced my difficult decision to leave Spurs in the summer, it was in Korea and I never got a proper chance to say goodbye to fans at the stadium. Now I am so happy because I am going to come back to London on 9th December, for the Champions League match, and be able to tell the Spurs fans in person just how much their support and love over 10 years has meant to me and my family. It will be emotional, but it's important for me and the club that this happens.”

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  • Tottenham hoping to enjoy home comforts

    Son will no doubt be hoping to cheer Spurs to victory on Tuesday, with Spurs having been in good form at home in the Champions League. Head coach Thomas Frank is hoping his team can build on the weekend's win over Brentford and deliver another victory for fans. He told reporters: "It's always good to build momentum, to get more consistent performances. We will try to build on that tomorrow night, we have a good opportunity against a Slavia Prague side who are very direct and physical, man mark all over the pitch. That can particularly make it difficult for us. It is about us making sure we perform well, with forwardness and directness in attacking play."

Switch Hit: Baz Supremacy and Root maths

Alan is joined by Miller and Fidel to discuss England’s victory at Lord’s and a promotion for Brendon McCullum

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Sep-2024England sewed up another series win, as well as a fifth consecutive Test victory, beating Sri Lanka by 190 runs at Lord’s. The ECB then announced two days later that Brendon McCullum would add the white-ball remit to his job as head coach. On this week’s Switch Hit, Alan Gardner was joined by Andrew Miller and Andrew Fidel Fernando go over the talking points – from Dhananjaya de Silva’s decision at the toss, the outstanding performances of Joe Root and Gus Atkinson, what to expect at The Oval, and whether adding to McCullum’s workload makes sense.

The many moods and tempos of Jaiswal and Gill

Both are versatile batters and they missed out on big scores in Ahmedabad, but they were never going to miss out two Tests in a row

Karthik Krishnaswamy11-Oct-20251:39

‘Jaiswal has to blame himself for the run-out’

A little under an hour of the Delhi Test had elapsed when Yashasvi Jaiswal decided he had had enough of letting Anderson Phillip bowl on his terms. Phillip, at that point, had bowled 5.3 overs and conceded just ten runs.Jaiswal had mostly been away from the strike when Phillip had bowled. He had faced only four balls from him, and shouldered arms to all of them. He had batted watchfully against the other two West Indies seamers as well, and was on 10 off 36 balls. He had left alone 12 of those balls.Now, he decided he was done with all that. Phillip bowled this one full, angled a fair way away from off stump, and may have perhaps expected another leave. Instead, out of seemingly nowhere, came a straight wallop of fearsome wind-up and flat, lethal trajectory. This was no drive with head over the ball; this was an elemental hit with head thrown back. Phillip, following through, was fortunate head was a foot or so wide of the ball’s path.Related

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Everything about that shot, and the passage of play leading up to it, was pure Jaiswal. He can leave every third ball he faces. He can make a stadium sit up with a shot of pure violence. He can bat in all sorts of moods and tempos, often in the same innings, to the point where it becomes impossible to define the kind of batter he is in Test cricket.In one sense, though, it’s very, very easy to define him. Jaiswal is a run-scorer. Send him out with bat in hand, anywhere in the world, against any kind of attack, and you can be pretty sure he’ll find a way to score runs.One of many, many ways. Jaiswal has now gone past 70 on 14 occasions in Test cricket, and those innings have come at strike rates ranging from 40.38 – when he made 84 off 208 balls while attempting to save the MCG Test last year – to 141.17 – when he smashed 72 off 51 balls during India’s push to make victory possible in a heavily rain-affected Test against Bangladesh in Kanpur.Those 14 innings have ticked all but two of the ten strike-rate “decades” from the 40s to the 140s. Only the 120s and 130s are still waiting to be achieved.Over the course of three sessions on Friday and a small fraction of one on Saturday, Jaiswal scored 175 at 67.82, and that strike rate, so close to his career strike rate of 66.33, was an indication of just how comfortable he was on a flat Delhi pitch against a modest West Indies attack, scoring briskly while never looking in a hurry or getting too greedy, batting through a whole day’s play without ever looking weary or seeming to suffer dips in focus.We’ve become so used to this that we almost take it for granted, and forget that he’s not yet 24.2:57

Chopra: Gill destined for greatness

The dismissal, in the second over of day two, came first as a shock. Did he really get out, when 200 – even 300, who knows – seemed within reach? But then it began to make sense. If it had to happen, it had to be a run-out. It had to be that particular kind of run-out. It’s one of Jaiswal’s minor vulnerabilities that he often starts running as soon as his bat meets the ball; if he misjudges how firmly he’s struck the ball or how far it is from a fielder, he’s liable to realise this only when he’s already halfway down the pitch.Jaiswal, in short, was looking like only he could get himself out. Through most of day one, the other mode of dismissal that had seemed vaguely likely was a top edge off an over-eager square cut. He had been out like this in Ahmedabad last week, but he seldom misses a chance to attempt the shot, even when he doesn’t have a lot of room to work with.And it gets him a lot of runs, and quick runs. Against pace, he’s scored 399 runs off 243 balls through his Test career with variants of the cut – cut, late cut, upper cut, ramp, dab, steer, as classified in ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball data – while being dismissed five times. That’s an average of 79.80 and a strike rate of 164.19; so what if he’s achieved all that with a control percentage of just over 71?Those numbers are a small window into Jaiswal’s mind. It’s the mind of a batter who understands percentages, who knows that cutting so frequently can lead to plays-and-misses or edges, but understands that he’ll still be batting next ball if he’s played and missed, and that while top edges might occasionally get him out, the odds suggest they are likelier to send the ball flying over or past the slips cordon if he flashes hard enough.If these are indeed the workings of Jaiswal’s mind, it’s a mind fixated not on batting as a pursuit of technical perfection but on batting as a means of scoring runs.”On Jaiswal, I’ll say he’s very clever in terms of his batting,” Ravindra Jadeja said in his press conference at the end of day two. “He knows which bowler to attack and which bowler to play out. His maturity level is very good. It’s not like he looks to hit every bowler. He has a very good idea of which situation to attack in, and at which time to attack.ESPNcricinfo Ltd”I think it’s very good when a batsman knows what shot he needs to play at what time. I think this has contributed a lot to his success, and the fact that he’s made so many big scores, match after match.”Jaiswal has turned five of his seven Test centuries so far into 150-plus scores, and two of them into doubles. The highly memeable helmet-palm with which he greeted his dismissal in Delhi suggested that 175 was a long way short of the number he had set out to put next to his name when Saturday dawned.It fell to his partner, Shubman Gill, to take on the mantle of insatiable run-hooverer.Gill has always had the smarts to know where his run-scoring opportunities lie in any situation. He was just 20, and only in his third Test, when the then India batting coach Vikram Rathour asked him what his plans were if Australia went short to him after lunch on that magical final day at the Gabba.Here’s Rathour’s recollection of that conversation, from this profile of Gill by Nagraj Gollapudi:”And the kid had a great answer. He said that the end [Mitchell] Starc was bowling, it was a shorter boundary on the leg side. So he said, ‘I’m not going to pull from the other end if they bowl short, but I will pull from the end Starc is bowling if they bowl short, because I’m pretty sure that I can clear this boundary most times. If it’s below my shoulder, I’ll look to play it down, but if it’s up, I’ll look to play it over, and if it’s on this [on] side, I will leave. And if it’s on this [off] side, I will maybe play an uppercut.’ […] I told him, ‘Boss, you have it sorted. So do just that, whatever you want to do.’ He had a lot of clarity [about] what he was looking to do. And with logic – he was not just talking nonsense, he was not bluffing his way.”Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal: The mainstays of India’s batting line-up•AFP/Getty ImagesAll that ability and all those smarts, but it took a while for Gill to translate them into consistent run-scoring in Test cricket, which only really began to happen during last year’s five-match home series against England. And it was only this year, in England, that Gill got his first chance to play a full Test series, home or away, on pitches that gave him a chance to think of batting big time and again.In retrospect, it should have surprised no one that he finished that tour with the second-highest bilateral series aggregate by any India batter anywhere, anytime. It’s exactly the kind of thing everyone’s expected from him ever since he was a teenager.For all that, though, he still gives the impression sometimes that he can get bored if the contest isn’t really challenging him. Last week in Ahmedabad, he had been out immediately after reaching his fifty, attempting a reverse-sweep, an echo of his dismissal soon after reaching his hundred in Visakhapatnam last year against England.He’s showing more and more frequently, however, that he can bat in that insatiable Jaiswal way too. He followed Visakhapatnam with the grittiest half-century of his career, a match-winning fourth-innings effort in Ranchi. He followed Leeds this year, where his first-innings dismissal on 147 was one of numerous dismissals of India batters not quite making the bowlers earn their wicket, with a monumental 269 in Birmingham.And now he followed Ahmedabad with a century of ruthless, getting-the-job-done batsmanship. He played his shots, and played them freely because the situation allowed him to, and asked him to, with India building up to a declaration, but he played Shubman Gill shots. He brought out the slog-sweep when the left-arm spinners left the leg-side boundary unprotected. He brought out the back-foot jab either side of point, a shot he nowadays shelves early on if there’s movement for the fast bowlers, but any movement off this day-two Delhi pitch was minimal. He used his feet with aplomb, against spin and medium-pace, and played that pick-up whip over the leg side that he employs so profitably in the shorter formats.1:51

Chopra: WI needed a little more application

Each time he played a shot like this, it seemed less a reaction to the bowling than an expression of what he felt he needed to do at that moment, against a particular bowler who had set a particular field. But he knew exactly whom to take on and whom not to: he scored at above four an over against six of West Indies’ seven bowlers, but just 12 runs off 64 balls from Jomel Warrican, who constantly challenged India’s batters with his deceptive trajectory and the odd instance of square turn.It was the kind of innings Sachin Tendulkar and Mohammad Azharuddin routinely played in home Tests in the 1990s, or that Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman routinely played in the 2000s, or that Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli routinely played in the period from 2016 to 2019, when India played many of their home Tests on traditional Indian pitches that produced big first-innings totals.India went away from those pitches in the 2021-24 period, with the pressure of World Test Championship points, the fear of draws on flat pitches, and the fear of toss-influenced results like Chennai 2021 pushing them to prepare a succession of square turners in home Tests. After going down 3-0 to New Zealand last year and falling prey to the pitfalls of dustbowls, India are now making an effort, as Gill confirmed before this series, to try and restore the balance between bat and ball in their home pitches.Jaiswal and Gill couldn’t have asked for a better time to be batting in home Tests. They missed out on big scores in Ahmedabad, but they were never going to miss out two Tests in a row.

Naim, Hridoy, Litton go for big money at BPL auction

After initially going unsold, Mahmudullah and Mushfiqur Rahim were picked up by Rangpur Riders and Rajshahi Warriors, respectively

Mohammad Isam30-Nov-2025

Mohammad Naim was the leading run-scorer in the previous season of the BPL•Khulna Tigers Media

Mohammad Naim was the only player to fetch more than BDT 1 crore (USD 88,000 approx) at the BPL auction on Sunday, when Chittagong Royals signed him up for the upcoming season. Naim, the highest run-scorer in the BPL last season (511 runs at a strike-rate of 143.94), was incidentally the first player who went up for sale in the auction.Towhid Hridoy (USD 73,600) and Litton Das (USD 56,000) also went for big money, both signed up by Rangpur Riders.There were, however, no initial bids for veterans Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah, who were both in category B. Later in the day, after a request from BCB director and Rangpur chief executive Ishtiaque Sadeque, the auctioneer put up both players for sale again.Eventually, Rangpur took in Mahmudullah, while Rajshahi Warriors signed Mushfiqur, for their base price of BDT 35 lakh (USD 28,000 approx).Dasun Shanaka was the most expensive signing among the overseas players, going to Dhaka Capitals for USD 55,000. Angelo Mathews and Niroshan Dickwella were sold at their category A base price of USD 35,000, to Chittagong Royals and Sylhet Titans, respectively.Among the uncapped players, Habibur Rahman Sohan, who recently did well for Bangladesh A in the Asia Cup Rising Stars tournament, was taken by Noakhali Express for USD 40,000.This was the BPL’s first auction since the inaugural edition in 2012. The rest of the editions have been done through the drafting process.During the auction, there were also a few Bangladesh cricketers who sat in the bidding tables, including Nurul Hasan, Najmul Hossain Shanto and Mehidy Hasan Miraz.The BPL will be contested by six teams – Dhaka Capitals, Rangpur Riders, Rajshahi Warriors, Noakhali Express, Sylhet Titans and Chittagong Royals – with the tournament likely to start on December 26.

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