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The five areas of significant tactical interest ahead of the Champions Trophy final

Karthik Krishnaswamy08-Mar-20254:00

Key match-up: India spinners vs NZ batters

Most ODI teams are incomplete in one way or another. They either prioritise batting depth and end up relying heavily on part-timers, or pick the best possible bowling attack and end up with a long tail. India and New Zealand are easily the two most complete teams of the Champions Trophy 2025. They have top-order batters with a wide range of gears, bowling attacks with variety and incision, and allrounders who ensure both batting and bowling depth. It’s only fitting that they meet in the final, in a rematch of the title bout of 2000. Here are five areas of significant tactical interest ahead of the match.

Win the toss, and?

It’s not been the easiest question to answer in Dubai, with the four matches here so far producing only one clear pattern: India have lost all their tosses and won all their matches.A lot of this, of course, is down to India’s sheer strength. They bat all the way down to No. 8, have six genuine bowling options, and the conditions have allowed them to pack their attack with spinners and not really worry about the one big issue they had coming into the tournament, of dealing with Jasprit Bumrah’s absence.Related

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Because they’re so good, they’ve won three games while chasing and won the one game they batted first in despite slipping to 30 for 3. Through all this, it hasn’t been clear at all whether it’s better to bat or bowl first in Dubai.That’s generally a good thing ahead of a big match, suggesting that conditions haven’t changed all that much between innings. Dew hasn’t been a factor – unlike during the T20 World Cup in 2021, which was played in October-November, when chasing proved distinctly advantageous.Given this, both teams may prefer to bat first, with Dubai’s pitches having shown signs of slowing down over 100 overs – though not to the extent of giving the defending team an obvious advantage. During their semi-final defeat here, Australia perhaps showed the best way for teams to approach playing at this venue, even if they didn’t themselves follow through fully. At 198 for 4 in the 37th over, they were perfectly placed for a big finish, only for the back-to-back wickets of Steven Smith and Glenn Maxwell to derail their innings.With Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell and Mitchell Santner in their lower-middle order, New Zealand could well look to follow the template that Australia half-set: bat first, keep wickets in hand, and put pressure on India through the back ten.

New Zealand’s new-ball threat

They could put plenty of pressure through the front ten, too – with the ball. Of all bowling teams at this Champions Trophy, New Zealand have been the most impressive side in the first powerplay, boasting the best economy rate in the phase (4.32) and the second-best average (24.71) behind India (21.55). It’s a particularly impressive feat, given that New Zealand have played three of their four games on the flatter pitches of Pakistan. Their efforts to keep the top orders of Pakistan and South Africa on the tightest of leashes on pitches where their own batters had scored 320 and 362 showed just how good they have been with the new ball.ESPNcricinfo LtdIndia found this out when the teams met in the group stage, when Matt Henry’s seam and Kyle Jamieson’s swing (and Glenn Phillips’ GlennPhillipsness at backward point) reduced them to 30 for 3 inside seven overs. They managed to fight back and win that game, but they won’t want to get into that sort of situation again in the first place.There is some doubt around Henry’s availability for the final, as he recovers from a shoulder injury sustained while taking the catch of Heinrich Klaasen in the semi-final against South Africa, and it will be a major blow to New Zealand’s hopes if he is ruled out. But his colleagues have been pretty good with the new ball. Jamieson has a first-powerplay economy rate of 4.21 in this tournament, and Will O’Rourke has done even better, going at 3.33 while picking up two wickets in six overs in this phase.

The Rohit effect

Whichever pair takes the new ball for New Zealand, they’ll come up against Rohit Sharma, who’s had a most curious Champions Trophy.He’s scored 104 runs at an average of 26.00, with a top score of 44, and that doesn’t look particularly good on the surface, but all his runs have come in the first ten overs, a phase in which no batter from any team has scored more runs.And he’s scored those runs at a strike rate of 107.21, which has allowed his opening partner Shubman Gill to take his time early on. If Gill’s first ten-overs strike rate of 93.42 doesn’t seem particularly slow compared to Rohit’s, consider the first five overs – Rohit has scored 71 runs at 102.89, Gill 28 at 63.63.Rohit hasn’t always looked fluent while batting this way, and it might potentially benefit him, at a personal level, to take a little more time getting his eye in. Given the duration of ODIs and the conditions in Dubai, there’s even an argument to be made that it could benefit India for him to do so. But their batting depth allows him to start innings in this turbocharged manner, and these starts are the biggest stamp Rohit has put on India’s white-ball teams as captain, so it’s unlikely he’ll change it in this big final.

Can Mitchell and Latham put India’s spinners off their lengths?

Whether India stick with four spinners – they seem likely to – or pick just – just! – three, New Zealand’s batters know they’ll face a trial by spin. They’ll know they can’t simply let the spinners settle into their lengths and will have to figure out ways of putting pressure back on the bowlers. Two of the best weapons for doing that are the sweep – and all its variants – and the use of feet to get down the pitch, and New Zealand have a middle-order pair who excel at using them.ESPNcricinfo LtdAmong Full Member batters with at least 300 runs against spin since the start of 2023, Tom Latham has scored a greater percentage of his runs (52.63) than anyone else via these two methods. His prowess at the sweep and reverse-sweep are well known, but he’s also a frequent user of his feet – only Sadeera Samarawickrama (70) has stepped out to spinners more often than Latham (66) in this period. Much like Cheteshwar Pujara in Test cricket, Latham generally keeps the ball along the ground when he uses his feet, and is one of only two frequent steppers-out in this period (Afghanistan’s Rahmat Shah is the other) with a sub-100 strike rate while doing so.Daryl Mitchell also steps out a lot, and he does this in a more stereotypical way, hitting 13 sixes – only Shubman Gill (15) has hit more while stepping out in this period – and striking at over 220 while doing so. He’s a pretty adept sweeper and reverse-sweeper too, and his total percentage of runs via sweeps and forays down the pitch (41.52) puts him in the top five among Full Member batters.This contest between India’s spinners and New Zealand’s Nos. 4 and 5 comes with a fair amount of history. Latham and Mitchell have scored two hundreds each against India, with both of Mitchell’s efforts coming during the 2023 World Cup.They’ll know they’ll have to battle the conditions as well as the bowlers, though, with the pace of India’s spinners – Kuldeep Yadav is the only one of the four who consistently bowls below 85kph – making it a genuine challenge to get down the pitch to them, and their ability to attack the stumps turning sweeps into a risky proposition, particularly given Dubai’s lack of bounce. Latham found this out the hard way when he was lbw missing a reverse-sweep off Ravindra Jadeja in the group stage.

Kohli vs Santner (and Ravindra?)

It feels like a while ago now, but Virat Kohli came into this Champions Trophy with quite a lot of scrutiny – external, certainly, if not from the team management – around his form. His 100* against Pakistan and his 84 against Australia have, however, shown that he retains his genius for the 50-overs game no matter what he’s going through in other formats.Both those innings showcased the method – so simple on its surface, yet so hard for most others to replicate – that’s made Kohli one of the ODI GOATs. Very few batters through the format’s history have matched his ability to accumulate risk-free runs at a rapid clip; he’s an expert manipulator of balls into gaps, and a supreme athlete between wickets. There’s a lot more to his game, too – he couldn’t have pulled off Hobart or Jaipur, among many other innings, otherwise – but those other facets haven’t really been tested at this Champions Trophy.As the graphic above shows, only three batters (minimum 100 balls faced in that phase) have achieved lower dot-ball percentages through the middle overs of this tournament than Kohli (38.65). And though his boundary percentage (25.43) is on the lower side as well, this is mostly down to the fact that he hasn’t needed to attempt that many boundaries, with so much of his batting during this tournament coming in chases of sub-250 targets.Given the conditions in Dubai, Kohli is likely to play a similar sort of role in the final, whether India bat first or second, with the batters around him given greater responsibility for finding boundaries.New Zealand’s challenge, then, will be to try and force Kohli out of his comfort zone and find ways to push up his dot-ball percentage. In Mitchell Santner, they perhaps have just the weapon for this task.Since the start of 2021, Kohli has scored significantly quicker against pace (strike rate 102.70) than spin (84.50) in ODIs, and while he’s struck at over 80 against the other three kinds of spin, he’s had his struggles against left-arm orthodox, going at 73.02 and getting out ten times in 21 innings.ESPNcricinfo LtdIn this period, Santner has a terrific head-to-head record against Kohli, getting him out twice in five innings while conceding less than four an over (3.82). Rachin Ravindra hasn’t done too badly either, not dismissing Kohli but keeping him to 36 runs in 46 balls. New Zealand certainly could get through a few overs of Santner and Ravindra in tandem if Kohli and another right-hand batter are together, particularly given the conditions in Dubai.This is precisely why India have used Axar Patel as their regular No. 5 through this tournament. He breaks up their otherwise entirely right-handed top order, and has the game to put pressure back on the spinners.

Seamer looks back on the controversy of 2013, and the sequence of events it kicked off

Andrew Miller13-Jun-2023Admittedly, the Ashes rivalry hasn’t offered a lot to write home about from recent tours Down Under, but Australia in England on the other hand… now we are talking. From Edgbaston 2005, to the great escape at Cardiff four years later, all the way through to Ben Stokes’ miracle of Headingley in 2019, there’s scarcely been a summer of recent vintage that has not served up an all-time Anglo-Aussie classic. And ten years have now passed since one of the tastiest tussles of the lot.England’s 14-run win at Trent Bridge in the opening Test of the 2013 series had something for everyone… from Ian Bell’s masterful second-innings century to the bittersweet romance of Ashton Agar’s debut 98, all the way through to James Anderson’s tireless ten-for on a dry and unresponsive deck.But in spite of such rich pickings, the incident that truly endures is – from an Australian perspective – the one that got away. Or, as England’s fans might prefer to see it, the one that Stuart Broad got away with.England had conceded a first-innings deficit of 65, and were struggling second time around too before Broad and Bell came together in a match-turning seventh-wicket stand of 138. Without his doughty 65 from 148 balls that spanned the third afternoon and the fourth morning, there would have been no grandstand fifth-day finish.And yet, as Australians recall all too well, that effort should have ended on 37, when Agar tossed up a wide one, into the rough outside the left-hander’s off stump. Broad shaped to cut, the ball ended up in the hands of Michael Clarke at slip, and that should have been that.Aleem Dar, however, thought otherwise, and as Clarke glowered and gesticulated from behind his sunglasses, Broad donned his finest poker-face and stared down his accusers.”I was thinking, ‘we need more runs here, we’re 230 ahead,'” Broad recalled on the eve of the 2023 campaign. “If I get out, we lose the game. So I’m never just going to walk off and accept a loss. I looked up at Aleem and he said not out.”Moments later, in the Sky Sports commentary box, David Lloyd’s instinctive reaction to the first slo-mo replay rather encapsulated the furore that was about to break out. “Oh my goodness me,” he intoned, as the ball clearly kissed off the edge of the bat, onto the tips of Brad Haddin’s gloves, and away into Clarke’s hands… “speechless!””It was all absolute nonsense, wasn’t it?” Broad said. “It still follows me around. Everyone’s been convinced that I nicked it straight to first slip, which is remarkable really. Because even Brad Haddin said afterwards, ‘did you nick that?’, because it cannoned into his gloves and went to first slip.”Related

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Broad has had a decade to contemplate the incident, and so it’s perhaps unsurprising that he’s done his research in the interim. By his reckoning, across that year’s home and away Ashes, there were 21 other instances of batters not walking for catches – including, it might be pointed out, Haddin himself, who would eventually be given out on review at the gripping climax to that Trent Bridge Test, when Anderson was shown to have found a thin inside-edge with Australia in touching distance of victory.However, the optics of an edge flying into the hands of first slip – albeit via a double deflection – were always likely to inflame sensibilities. And this was especially so because, as Broad has also posited, the presence of one of two of the so-called press-box “Dukes”, senior sportswriters with an angle to grind, meant the incident was ripe for sensationalism.”If it was just cricket writers in the press box. I don’t think it would have become a story because we’ve all watched a lot of cricket. But it was the weekend before the Premier League started, so it was the sportswriters in – your Ollie Holts, Martin Samuels. They were like, ‘let’s make a big story’. I don’t know if that’s absolute nonsense, but that’s how I’ve dealt with it. That was the reason why it became a talking point.”Broad’s certainly not wrong that the Dukes did go to town on it. “Did Broad injure cricket yesterday?” Samuel asked, rhetorically, in The Daily Mail “Sadly, he did. He didn’t mean to. He was just playing hard, playing to win.”Writing in , meanwhile, under the headline: “What he did wasn’t just disappointing. It was deeply, deeply embarrassing,” Holt said that the incident was reminiscent of “Rivaldo rolling around clutching his face when a ball kicked at him by a Turkey player had hit him on the arm”.”Let’s be honest,” he added. “It was hard to witness what happened without feeling a sense of sadness and contempt.”Broad, however, remains utterly unswayed by such sentiment. “I think I’ve only ever played with one true walker,” he said. “That was Graeme Swann, because he just hit the ball to cover anyway. It’s just not a thing in the modern game. I don’t know anyone that does it. And ultimately, if I had have just wandered off having been given not out, I think I’d have been criticised the other way, because we’ve lost the game.”Stuart Broad stands firmly by his decision not to walk•PRAll of which helped set the parameters for part two of an extraordinary grudge match, in Brisbane four months and three England Test wins later, when Australia’s media took up the cudgels ahead of a series in which Mitchell Johnson and Co. would deliver the ultimate act of vengeance with a 5-0 trouncing.Upon arrival in Australia, Kevin Pietersen had been the initial target of the Aussie media, with the Courier-Mail proclaiming on its front page: “He’s so arrogant not even his own team likes him”. However, when KP responded in a tweet that such attention was good for his ego, the seed of an alternative strategy was germinated, as the newspaper’s editor, Christopher Dore, later told The Guardian.”Stuart Broad earned the role of Ashes villain … by acting with complete contempt for the spirit of the game on that dark day in July,” Dore wrote. “We settled on calling him the ’27-year-old English medium-pace bowler’ in all our reports. We felt this was an even a graver insult than turning him into an asterisk and refusing to publish his image. What fast bowler wouldn’t be furious about being relegated to mediocrity?”It wasn’t just the papers who got stuck in though, as Broad recalled: “Darren Lehmann [Australia’s coach] didn’t help the cause, having eight beers and going on a podcast …”Lehmann, who had taken over from Mickey Arthur just two weeks before that infamous Trent Bridge Test, was cut from a very different cloth to his more schoolmasterly predecessor, and was clearly itching to lay down a marker for his first home campaign, as he addressed the radio station Triple M with a startlingly frank call to arms.”From my point of view, I hope the Australian public give it to him right from the word go, for the whole summer,” he said, to gales of on-air laughter. “I hope he cries and goes home.”Broad said: “A few of the Aussie players came and apologised for their coach, for what he said. But I didn’t cry …” Instead, his response merely added to his legend – and, dare one say it, the grudging respect that he’s long since earned over the course of eight previous Ashes campaigns.After shrugging off the catcalls and banners in the crowd to pick off a first-day five-for at the Gabba, Broad strolled into the press conference with a copy of the Courier-Mail under his arm. Whereupon he was re-christened “The Phantom Menace” for the rest of the Test … at least until Johnson’s fireworks came along to scorch the narrative.”I really enjoyed that Australia tour because it was feisty,” Broad recalled. “It was a bit niggly, I got booed, and all sorts of songs were sung. But that’s quite unique. You don’t boo a player you’re not bothered about, so that’s the way I took it, and that’s the positive I dragged from it.”Overall, however, were he given the chance to relive the events of that first Test of the English summer all over again, how would he play it?”I wouldn’t change it for anything,” Broad said. “Because we won the game by 14 runs, and if I’d have walked off, we’d have lost the game.”Stuart Broad was speaking at the launch of wine merchant Laithwaites’ partnership with England cricket. For exclusive offers on great wines this summer, visit laithwaites.co.uk

The likes of Krunal, Krishna, Kishan, and Gill have given India a level of depth few other sides can match right now

Sreshth Shah24-Mar-2021Shubman Gill (Test debut: 2nd Test vs Australia)In his nascent Test career, Shubman Gill has displayed supreme match-readiness against the world’s best•BCCIHe walked into his debut Test when the Indian openers were considered walking wickets in New Zealand and Australia. Against a full-strength Australia attack and thereafter on tricky Indian surfaces against England, he averaged 34.36 with three half-centuries in seven matches. Unlike some other names on this list, who made their mark due to opportunities courtesy injuries, Gill’s entry into the XI was to make up for the poor form of Prithvi Shaw and Mayank Agarwal.Why his success is not surprising: He overcame English conditions as a 17-year-old to dominate a white-ball series against England Under-19. That started a run of overseas tours that culminated in a Player-of-the-Tournament performance at the 2018 Under-19 World Cup. In India A tours, he has hit double-hundreds in New Zealand and the West Indies. Before his Test debut, Gill had hit seven centuries and 11 half-centuries in 23 first-class games on three different continents at an average of 68.78. Throw in facing the best bowlers as an opener in the IPL, playing Pat Cummins, Sunil Narine, and Lockie Ferguson at the Kolkata Knight Riders nets and spending invaluable time with India players during the tour of New Zealand in 2020, and that explains his supreme match-readiness against the world’s best.Mohammed Siraj (Test debut: 2nd Test vs Australia)Siraj picked a number of big wickets in Australia•Getty Images and Cricket AustraliaFrom his father’s death to facing racial abuse on the boundary line in Australia, whatever life has thrown at Siraj over the last six months, he has converted them into positive energy. He made his debut in the second Test against Australia and, by the end of the tour, was leading the pace attack, taking a five-for in Brisbane. After five Tests, he averages 28.25, taking 16 wickets so far. Siraj’s standout quality was leading the attack with his consistency and guile with the red ball when India had no senior fast bowlers fit to play.Related

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Why his success is not surprising: Although casual fans would know Siraj from his IPL stints with the Sunrisers Hyderabad and the Royal Challengers Bangalore and an outing in a T20I in Rajkot in 2017, Siraj has been one of the best Indian red-ball fast bowlers for a few seasons. His ability to swing the ball and bowl a mean bouncer made him stand out but it’s his 38 first-class games before his Test debut that played a major role in sharpening his skills. Over the last three seasons before his Test debut, Siraj had been a regular for India A, touring England, New Zealand, South Africa and the West Indies, and had 152 first-class wickets to his name.T Natarajan (ODI debut: 3rd ODI vs Australia, T20I debut: 1st T20I vs Australia, Test debut: 4th Test vs Australia)Before September 2020, Natarajan was nowhere in the vicinity of the Indian team. But a good IPL 2020 season thrust him into national reckoning in the limited-overs formats. Dismissing some of the best T20 batsmen in the death overs helped Natarajan’s stocks rise in white-ball cricket and earned him debuts in the Australia ODIs and T20Is, where he picked eight wickets in four games. Bio-bubble restrictions and injuries to fast bowlers handed him a Test cap as well, and he delivered with three wickets in the historic win in Brisbane.Marnus Labuschagne was Natarajan’s maiden ODI wicket•Getty Images and Cricket AustraliaWhy his success is not surprising: According to his former coaches, discipline has been key to Natarajan’s growth from playing tennis-ball cricket to internationals. Unlike Siraj – who was bought at IPL 2017 by the Sunrisers alongside him – Natarajan focused mostly on one format, T20s. That helped him dominate the TNPL and develop a cool head to bowl in high-pressure situations. He once bowled six yorkers in the last over of a TNPL final and played key roles in Tamil Nadu winning the 2019 Vijay Hazare Trophy and the 2020 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Natarajan’s ability to consistently deliver yorkers and tinker with his pace has also made him a potent weapon. Being a left-arm seamer in international cricket helps, too.Ishan Kishan (T20I debut: 2nd T20I vs England)Ishan Kishan scored a half-century on T20I debut•BCCIWith Rohit Sharma rested and Shikhar Dhawan dropped, Kishan was given the chance to open for India in the second T20I against England, and he ended up with a Player-of-the-Match performance. He hit five fours and four sixes in a 32-ball blitzkrieg of 56 when the pressure was high, given India had lost the series opener and his opening partner KL Rahul was out for a duck in the first over. He failed in his second game and then got injured. But given his T20 exploits, Kishan is here to stay and is being seen as one of India’s X-factors for the upcoming T20 World Cup at home later this year.Why his success is not surprising: The switch from the Gujarat Lions to the Mumbai Indians before IPL 2018 has been pivotal to changing Kishan’s career. No longer a regular wicketkeeper at the Mumbai Indians and batting higher than he previously did, Kishan married his explosive shot-making with better choice of strokes to become a regular in one of the world’s best T20 franchises. Kishan has always been fearless, but he has added a dash of experience to it. It helps when you spend large periods with the likes of Sharma, Kieron Pollard, Mahela Jayawardene and face Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult in the nets. He has also gained experience playing white-ball games for India A.Washington Sundar (Test debut: 4th Test vs Australia)Washington Sundar has consistently impressed with the bat•Getty ImagesAnother beneficiary of the injuries on the Australia tour and the large squads teams carry in bio-bubbles these days, Sundar was asked to stay back for the Tests after the ODIs and T20Is. It wasn’t long before he was thrown in at the deep end with a Test debut for the final match – with the series on the line – with R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja injured. It was the first time he was playing a red-ball game since November 2017. And yet, he contributed with four wickets and a half-century to play a key role in India ending Australia’s ‘Gabbatoir’ dominance. He then played three Tests against England, scoring an unbeaten 85 on a tricky Chennai surface and then an unbeaten 96 in the final Ahmedabad Test. In six innings, he averages 66.25 with the bat.Why his success is not surprising: Simply put, Sundar is prodigiously talented. Before making his India debut in T20Is as a teenager, he was opening with the bat in the TNPL and opening with the ball at the IPL. Over time, he was given more responsibility at the Royal Challengers Bangalore, Tamil Nadu, and India, which allowed him to strengthen his game to evolve into a true allrounder. That he doesn’t bat much for India in T20Is or for the Royal Challengers has never been a reflection of his skill but of the talent those teams’ batting line-ups have. His batting technique is rock solid, his stroke-making fluent and, his temperament of a seasoned player.Navdeep Saini (Test debut: 3rd Test vs Australia)Navdeep Saini has been one of the main bowlers for Delhi in the domestic circuit•Getty ImagesHaving had an initiation into international cricket with the white ball in 2019, a promotion to Test cricket was always on the cards for the fast bowler. Injuries to India’s first-choice bowlers in Australia meant he played in the last two Tests. Although an average of 43 – with four wickets in two Tests – isn’t very flattering, it is important to remember Saini suffered a groin strain on the first morning of his second Test. It was a commendable start to his Test career considering there was no Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, or Bhuvneshwar Kumar to offer him advice on the field.Why his success is not surprising: Saini has been a dominant force in red-ball cricket for Delhi since 2014. Alongside Ishant Sharma, he took Delhi to the Ranji Trophy final in 2017 and since 2018 has been rubbing shoulders with the big boys of Indian cricket as part of the Deodhar Trophy, India A and senior squads. Playing for India A, he has troubled visiting teams and in 2019 got a taste of high-stage when he was part of the stand-bys during India’s ODI World Cup campaign. In the IPL, the responsibility of leading an inexperienced Royal Challengers attack also helped his growth. Before his Test debut, he had played 46 first-class games.Axar Patel (Test debut: 2nd Test vs England)Axar Patel took 11 wickets in the third Test against England•BCCIWith 27 wickets in his first three Tests at an average of 10.59, Patel has made one of the best starts by any bowler in the longest format. Over eight years on from making his first-class debut, Patel got injured on the eve of what would have been his Test debut in the series opener against England, but he then made full use of his opportunity through Tests two to four. His performance was so superlative that Jadeja’s absence was barely felt.Why his success is not surprising: The pitches against England were helpful to spinners but Patel is an experienced campaigner, having represented Gujarat, a side that consistently does well in the Ranji Trophy. Besides, he has played a lot of red-ball cricket when he hasn’t been part of India’s white-ball squads. He isn’t a big turner of the ball, relying instead on consistency and subtle changes. That Patel is a special cricketer was on display when he was the only player retained by Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) ahead of IPL 2018. He has also played first-class cricket in England, for Durham. If Jadeja was not around, chances are we might have seen Patel much earlier in Tests.Krunal Pandya (ODI debut: 1st ODI vs England)Krunal Pandya looks skywards as he walks off after a debut innings most memorable•Getty ImagesOn an emotional ODI debut, he came in to bat in the 41st over of the first innings and went on to pummel the reigning world champions around for an unbeaten 31-ball 58. That helped India post a par first-innings total, after which he took 1 for 59. With the bat, Krunal did what is typically expected of his younger brother Hardik Pandya or even Rishabh Pant. With the ball, he took on a role similar to Jadeja’s.Why his success is not surprising: The Mumbai Indians’ scouts picked Krunal and Hardik up from Baroda when they were relatively unheralded and invested time and energy in the pair to turn them into the match-winners over the years. Krunal was always known to possess the smarts, particularly with the ball, and he gradually added finesse to his batting. Three IPL titles, with crucial contributions in each of them, is testament to his mental strength too. In fact, he has even been Player of the Series for India in T20Is previously. Questions, however, hovered for a long time over his aptitude for 50-over cricket. But his 388 runs in five games at an average of 129.33 in the latest edition of the Vijay Hazare Trophy quelled those doubts.Suryakumar Yadav (T20I debut: 2nd T20I vs England)Suryakumar Yadav hits his first ball in international cricket for a six•BCCIAlthough he did not get to bat on his T20I debut, his next two outings for India resulted in victories where Yadav played important roles. On his maiden batting innings, he hammered a 31-ball 57 when Sharma, Rahul, and Virat Kohli failed and took home the Player-of-the-Match award. In the series decider, he showed a lot of clarity in his choice of shots while scoring a 17-ball 32.Why his success is not surprising: Yadav is known to possess a match-winner’s mentality, having honed his skills on the domestic circuit in Mumbai, Indian cricket’s perennial powerhouse. However, his focus wavered for a while a few years ago due to a combination of poor batting form and being a hothead. But that all changed when, in the IPL, he moved back from the Knight Riders to the Mumbai Indians some years ago. There he bloomed once again as the fluent top-order batsman he was always known to be, and a boost in his self-confidence along with maturity on the personal front has made him one of the most exciting Indian batsmen in the shortest format.Prasidh Krishna (ODI debut: 1st ODI vs England)2:04

Manjrekar: Prasidh Krishna is a talented bowler who has his basics right

Krishna took 4 for 54 to hand India a come-from-behind victory on his ODI debut. At 135 for 0 in the 15th over, England were cruising in a 318 chase but Krishna removed Jason Roy to get his maiden scalp. He then dismissed Ben Stokes, Sam Billings and Tom Curran to derail England’s chase and was a contender to bag the Man-of-the-Match award in his first international. Krishna came back after a terrible first three overs, where he had an economy rate of over 12, to finish with the best figures by an India debutant in ODIs.Why his success is not surprising: Krishna believes “consistency is the best weapon” a bowler can have, and he has shown that in plenty in domestic cricket. In his first two Vijay Hazare Trophy competitions (2016-17 and 2017-18), he took 30 wickets, the most for Karnataka. Time with the Knight Riders has helped him become the side’s best domestic pace bowler and develop a knack for delivering match-winning performances – most notably a 3 for 37 in the 2017-2018 domestic 50-over tournament’s final – in vital games for Karnataka. Nicknamed ‘Skiddy’ due to his ability to bowl quicker than what appears, Krishna has also added muscle to his body, which has made him stronger in the last two years. He was one of the standout pace bowlers in the 2019-20 Vijay Hazare Trophy.

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Abel Ferreira surpreendeu na escalação do Palmeiras contra o Liverpool-URU, apostando em Luís Guilherme e Estevão. O primeiro foi substituído após o intervalo, enquanto o segundo anotou seu primeiro gol pelo Verdão.

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Abel admitiu que o gol sofrido no início deixou os jogadores nervosos e pediu ‘pés no chão’ com os jogadores formados nas categorias de base do Verdão.

– Sofremos o gol no início e ficamos nervosos. Queríamos ter a bola na frente sem construir com critério, e disse para eles no intervalo que era necessário ter mais a bola, construir de forma apoiada. Fico feliz porque os jogadores estiveram bem, os meninos estão felizes e precisam manter os pés no chão. A linha entre o elogio e a crítica é muito tênue – disse Abel.

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Com a vitória sobre o Liverpool-URU, o Palmeiras ampliou a invencibilidade no Alllianz Parque para 17 jogos. Contudo, o público de 28 mil pessoas não agradou Abel Ferreira, que conta com a presença da torcida para empurrar o time. Vale destacar que o ingresso mais barato para o jogo estava em R$ 200.

– Gostaria de ver o estádio cheio, não vi. O estádio tem que estar sempre cheio. Isto é a Libertadores. Quanto mais formos aqui no nosso chiqueiro, melhor. As nossas vitórias em casa, 30% é deles (torcida), e hoje só tivemos 15% da força deles. Temos todos que fazer um esforço para ter o nosso chiqueiro cheio. Senti falta daqueles que não vieram – lamentou Abel.

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➡️ Veja tabela com datas, horários dos jogos da Libertadores

O próximo compromisso do Palmeiras de Abel Ferreira será no domingo (13), contra o Vitória, pela primeira rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro, no Barradão.

Tudo sobre

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This week, Tottenham Hotspur fans will get to see Heung-min Son again. On Tuesday, he will be there, down N17, beaming and emotional as he waves goodbye to the club he devoted the prime years of his iconic career.

Poetry has a funny way of weaving its way into so many narratives in football, and there was certainly something romantic about the South Korean legend sealing silverware on his final game for Spurs, ending the endless drought.

Tottenham haven’t really replaced their former captain, just as someone on a level with Harry Kane at number nine has not been signed either.

That may change in 2026.

Spurs lining up new forwards

In October, Tottenham announced a £100m equity injection. What this pertains to could go on interminably, but it effectively means Frank’s first-team squad will be seeing some improvements in the near future. Investment is imminent.

And it’s clear that additions are needed up top, with the potency Son provided – even on the decline, the 32-year-old scored 24 goals and assisted 19 more across his final two Premier League campaigns – yet to be matched.

Should the Lilywhites win the race for RB Leipzig prospect Yan Diomande, with their interest confirmed by Caught Offside, Frank might just land the talisman he is looking for.

The report claims Spurs are among the myriad of top clubs to have sent scouts to watch the 19-year-old winger this season, and such competitive intrigue indicates a market value or around €80m (equating to £68m).

The news comes just days after it was revealed by separate sources that Spurs were in ‘very advanced talks’ with the player’s agents last week to sign the player.

Why Spurs should sign Yan Diomande

Diomande might be in the hatchling stage of his career, but already, he is proving that he can throw down with the heavyweights, having made an electric start to his career in Germany with Leipzig, scoring seven goals and supplying four assists across 15 matches this term, having joined from

The Ivorian winger’s technical skills stand out, and a slippery dribbling style makes him a force to be reckoned with. Coach Harry Brook believes he will “be worth £100m plus” in the not-too-distant future, and so it’s worth Tottenham snapping him up promptly.

Already, we can observe startling progress across a range of areas for Diomande. He is physical and he is fast, and he is also fostering a natural-born clinical edge in front of goal, with his defensive work-rate not leaving much to be desired either.

Remind you of anyone? This could be the new Son, especially since he hails from the Bundesliga, with Tottenham signing their departed hero from Bayer Leverkusen in 2015.

Diomande vs Son (past 12 months)
Stats (per 90)	Diomande	Son
Goals scored	0.36	0.31
Assists	0.21	0.31
Shots taken	2.08	2.75
Shot-creating actions	5.23	4.51
Touches (att pen)	7.16	5.55
Pass completion (%)	81.2	76.4
Progressive passes	3.44	4.25
Progressive carries	6.66	4.30
Successful take-ons	4.01	1.61
Ball recoveries	6.01	3.16
Tackles + interceptions	2.72	0.83
Data via FBref

Diomande is showing signs of elite balance in output. He’s got an eye for goal, but that doesn’t detract from his playmaking, and nor does it mean he shirks away from defensive duties, from using his speed to cover plenty of ground and influence in different areas.

Son, in many ways is irreplaceable, and perhaps that’s why the board opted against trying to find a carbon copy, as they did with Kane.

But now, real quality, bona fide quality, is needed up top, else Tottenham will find themselves struggling to match the might of rivals at the top of the Premier League.

Diomande has talent in spades, and he might just find himself developing into a winger of a similar level with Son, following that Korean legend’s footsteps from Germany over to English shores.

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1

By
Dan Emery

Dec 8, 2025

After the saga surrounding Alexander Isak during the summer transfer window, it was crucial that Newcastle United navigated their way past the situation.

The Swedish international netted 23 Premier League goals last campaign, helping the Magpies secure Champions League football, but that wasn’t enough to keep the striker happy on Tyneside.

Eddie Howe was left with no choice but to cash in on the 26-year-old’s services during the summer transfer window, subsequently taking in an English record £125m for his services.

However, it no doubt left a huge hole that needed filling within the final third, leading to over £100m being splashed on numerous players to soften the blow of his departure.

Despite the recent spending spree, the hierarchy appear to be targeting numerous attacking reinforcements to take the club to the next level in the months ahead.

Newcastle’s hunt for new attacking signings in January

Over the last couple of days, Newcastle have been just one side credited with an interest in landing Stuttgart star Bilal El Khannouss ahead of the January window.

The Moroccan international joined the German side on loan from Leicester City in the summer window, already making an immediate impact – as seen by his tally of five goals and assists in 10 outings.

However, Howe’s men could strike a permanent deal with his current employers this winter, which could result in a £25m switch to St James’ Park for the attacking midfielder.

He’s not the only player currently on their radar, with Brentford striker Igor Thiago another player currently being considered ahead of the upcoming window.

According to TEAMtalk, the Magpies are just one Premier League club monitoring the Brazilian, after his tremendous start to 2025/26, which has seen him score 11 times to date.

However, the report also states that Keith Andrews’ side are unwilling to sanction a move, but may be forced to consider a move if a huge offer is made for his signature.

Why Newcastle’s latest target could be bad news for Woltemade

In an attempt to soften the blow of Isak’s summer departure from Newcastle, the board backed Howe by spending a reported £69m on the signature of striker Nick Woltemade.

The German’s transfer fee certainly raised eyebrows across the division, but a couple of months on and the deal now appears to be an excellent piece of business by the board.

He’s already featured in 11 Premier League matches to date, scoring on five separate occasions, whilst also managing to lay on one assist for his teammates.

The 23-year-old’s latest effort came in the 4-1 demolition of Everton, with Woltemade producing an outrageous lob over Jordan Pickford to cement all three points for the Magpies.

However, despite his excellent start to life in the North East, he could struggle for consistent minutes if Thiago arrives, with the Brazilian man in tremendous form in recent weeks.

When comparing the pair’s respective stats, the Brazilian has managed to outperform Woltemade in key areas, showcasing why it could be bad news for the German.

Thiago, who’s been labelled “phenomenal” by boss Andrews, has scored almost double the number of goals netted by the Magpies star – showcasing his clinical edge in front of goal.

How Thiago & Woltemade compare in the PL (2025/26)

Statistics (per 90)

Thiago

Woltemade

Games played

14

12

Goals & assists

11

6

Shot on target accuracy

50%

30%

Shots on target per 90

1.1

0.5

Passes into final third

0.9

0.6

Take-on success

56%

38%

Aerials won

2.9

1.5

Aerial success rate

43%

34%

Stats via FBref

He’s also registered more shots on target per 90, whilst achieving a better accuracy rate with the chances he’s been presented with – arguably making him a more consistent option in the final third.

However, he’s also demonstrated a more all-round skill-set than the German star, as seen by his higher take-on success rate and higher tally of passes into the final third per 90.

The Brazilian’s dominance over Woltemade is further reflected in his aerial presence, which no doubt makes him a better focal point than the number 27.

It’s unclear how much the Bees would demand to part ways with their talisman, but it’s clear he’s currently a leading talent in the Premier League this season.

Such a move could be harsh on Woltemade, but the added competition in the months ahead could allow the youngster to find the next level in his career as a result.

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Francisco Lindor is a bad, bad man.

The New York Mets star shortstop walked it off Friday night at Citi Field, mashing a towering 401-foot solo shot in the bottom of the ninth inning to secure a dramatic 5-4 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. It's still early in the 2025 season, but everything about this walk-off homer will make it one of the coolest plays of the year.

First off, look at Lindor's reaction to the homer. He didn't even watch the ball fly into the bleachers. Instead, he casually dropped the bat to the dirt and stared into his own dugout to encourage teammates to start celebrating before the ball even landed in the upper deck.

The view from the SNY production truck was pretty cool, too.

Add in the context that it marked Lindor's first career walk-off homer in a Mets uniform, and the fact that New York was rocking its classic black jerseys in front of a packed home crowd? Yeah, it doesn't get much better than this.

Lindor is hoping the homer propels him out out of a slower start to the 2025 campaign. Through 19 games, Lindor is batting .263/.322/.395 with two homers and two stolen bases.

The Mets enter Saturday afternoon's game against St. Louis with a 13-7 record—good for first place in the NL East.

Leeds United are looking at a January move to sign PSV’s Ismael Saibari, who has been likened to Burnley’s Hannibal Mejbri.

FA look into Hannibal after alleged spit at Leeds fans

The Whites fell to a 2-0 Premier League defeat to Burnley last month and look set to battle the Clarets in a bid to avoid an immediate return to the Championship in 2026.

A major talking point from the loss at Turf Moor was around the actions of Hannibal, who was alleged to have spat at the travelling Leeds fans, something which was reported at the time by supporters.

Since then, it has been stated that the FA are looking into the allegations, and former referee Keith Hackett has suggested that if found guilty, Hannibal would be suspended for at least three games.

“The spitting allegation will be investigated by The FA, having entered the public domain. If proven, the player faces a suspension. It is classed as violent conduct and a minimum of three games.”

It remains to be seen what the FA’s conclusion will be, however, in the transfer market, Leeds are after an attacking midfielder similar to the Burnley man.

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ByKelan Sarson Nov 4, 2025 Leeds looking to sign PSV midfielder Ismael Saibari

According to reports from Leeds United News and journalist Graeme Bailey, Leeds are looking at a January deal for PSV Eindhoven attacking midfielder Saibari.

The Morocco international has played in holding, central and attacking midfield roles this season and has scored an impressive 10 goals in 16 games, two of which have come in the Champions League. Saibari also netted a hat-trick in a 3-2 win away to Feyenoord, with Bailey saying:

The 24-year-old looks like an ideal target for Leeds, who need more goals in the team, scoring the joint third fewest in the Premier League behind Nottingham Forest and Wolves.

Sean Longstaff and Anton Stach have both found the back of the net, however, adding someone like Saibari could be a shrewd move.

James McAtee

Nottingham Forest

Hannibal Mejbri

Burnley

Jobe Bellingham

Borussia Dortmund

Gus Hamer

Sheffield United

Arne Engels

Celtic

He has been likened to some pretty talented youngsters, including Hannibal and Jobe Bellingham, and considering Saibari’s start to the season, a deal could help Leeds’ attempts to beat the drop.

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Ahead of a new era, one former Ibrox star has fired a direct warning to Celtic as Rangers set their sights on climbing the Scottish Premiership table.

Rangers set to appoint Gerrard

It’s de ja vu for Rangers, who are reportedly on the brink of reaching a full agreement with Steven Gerrard to return to the club. The last manager to win the Scottish Premiership at Ibrox, the 45-year-old is set to step foot in the dugout in Scotland for the first time since leaving for Aston Villa. He has a lot of making up to do, but arrives with it all to do after Russell Martin’s disastrous tenure.

Games

192

Wins

124

Draws

41

Defeats

27

If the former manager can pick up where he left off, then Rangers should begin to bridge the gap on Celtic and Hearts at the top of the Scottish Premiership. As things stand, his first game back in charge of the club is likely to be Dundee United at Ibrox, before travelling to face Brann in the Europa League after the international break.

It will be a hectic start for Gerrard and the Rangers squad, but the manager will be hoping to have learned from recent lessons in the technical area to enjoy a quick start.

He recently told Rio Ferdinand when asked about returning to management: “I’d love another go at some point. I want to change a few things and improve a few things and come back fresh, with a few different people around myself.

“I’d love another couple of challenges doing this and that’s what I’m working on in the background at the moment. A few different ideas, a few different people around me.”

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It will certainly be interesting to see the current version of Gerrard compared to 2021 and one former Ibrox star has already issued a warning to Celtic with that in mind.

Kyle Laferty fires fresh warning to Celtic

Speaking about Gerrard’s return to the club, former Ibrox ace Kyle Laferty warned Celtic about the immediate plan that the Liverpool legend has, claiming that’s what Rangers fans will “want”.

Currently nine points away from Celtic and 11 away from leaders Hearts, it would take a monumental effort for Gerrard to win the league from here, but he’ll be looking to draw on his previous experience as a champion to do exactly that.

Celtic have won the Scottish Premiership title in 13 of the last 14 seasons, but might just be facing genuine competition for this season’s trophy.

Last Sunday, Brendan Rodgers’ team were beaten domestically for the first time this season, defeated 2-0 by Dundee at Dens Park.

This, though, had been on the cards for a while.

Across the previous four Premiership outings, the Hoops had required stoppage time goals to beat both Kilmarnock and Motherwell, as well as being held to goalless draws by Rangers and Hibs, thereby failing to score on six occasions across all competitions to date.

So now, on Sunday lunchtime, they will travel to league leaders Hearts, the Jambos currently five points clear at the top, so which “animal” should Rodgers select in attack for this eagerly-anticipated clash at Tynecastle?

The latest Celtic injury news

Celtic did claim their first European victory of the season on Thursday, fighting back from a goal down to beat Sturm Graz 2-1 in the Europa League, but this win may have come at a cost, or three to be exact.

During the first half, featuring for the first time since picking up an injury against Kairat on 20 August, Alistair Johnston suffered a recurrence of this hamstring tear, which is a major blow for both the player and Rodgers.

Even before that, as early as the fourth minute, Kelechi Ịheanachọ had hobbled off too, which is not ideal considering he’s the only senior centre-forward at the club.

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Then, right at the end, star centre-back Cameron Carter-Vickers was stretchered off having picked up a serious Achilles tendon injury that could see the American international sidelined until March; an enormous blow.

On top of this, Daizen Maeda is also already sidelined, unlikely to feature at Tynecastle on Sunday, while also a doubt for the following Sunday’s clash with Rangers in the League Cup semi-finals at Hampden.

The Japanese striker scored 33 goals last season, per Transfermarkt, four of which came in the Champions League, with former Celtic striker Chris Sutton thereby asserting that he ranks among the club’s best-ever bargain buys, alongside Henrik Larsson and Ľubomír Moravčík.

Now, though, with neither Maeda nor Ịheanachọ, Rodgers has to trust the Celts’ rarely-seen “animal” to lead the attack.

Celtic's new Daizen Maeda

When Ịheanachọ hobbled off very early against Sturm Graz, it was Johnny Kenny who was introduced, so it stands to reason that he will be the number nine for the foreseeable.

The young Irishman joined Celtic back in January 2022 from Sligo Rovers, before being immediately loaned out to Queen’s Park, subsequently making a name for himself in a different shade of green and white hoops.

His form at Shamrock Rovers certainly caught the attention of those across the Irish Sea, with the table below documenting his eye-catching form in Dublin.

Appearances

76

Goals

26

LOI goals

18

European goals

7

Assists

8

Statistics below are UECL only (per 90):

Shots

2.9

Shots on target

1.9

Shooting accuracy %

66.67%

% of touches in opposition area

13.5%

As the table above notes, Kenny scored 13 goals in the League of Ireland last year; only two players bagged more, but it was his European form that caught the eye.

The youngster scored five goals in six Conference League appearances, helping Rovers reach the knockout phase, on target against Larne, APOEL Nicosia and Rapid Wien, before bagging a brace when Borac Banja Luka were battered 3-0 at Tallaght.

Speaking on Premier Sports, following Shamrock Rovers’ credible 1-1 draw in Vienna last November, former teammate Ronan Finn asserted that Kenny has become a “different animal” in recent years, adding that “physically he’s got stronger” and that his ceiling is sky-high.

Stylistically, Kenny proved to be not only a clinical finisher in the box, but also an energetic nuisance to defenders, constantly closing them down and running all day, characteristics he certainly shares with Maeda.

Since returning to Celtic in January, he has seen limited game time, just 438 minutes to be precise, heading home his first goal for the club at Pittodrie back in May, before also netting during the drubbing of Livingston in August.

So now, set to enjoy a run in the team, can he replicate the success enjoyed by Maeda?

When the Japanese forward first arrived in January 2022 from Yokohama F. Marinos, he was very raw, often erratically missing chances, but has now become a well-rounded attacker who is a pivotal figure in this side.

Well, as already alluded to, Kenny possesses similar traits, simply needing an opportunity to showcase what he is capable of, so could he come to the fore and be the hero at Tynecastle on Sunday as Celtic’s new Maeda?

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