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Philiip Hughes, certain to make his Test debut against South Africa at the Wanderers, is cool

Brydon Coverdale in Johannesburg24-Feb-2009
Phillip Hughes: “Five years ago I was sitting back in the lounge room watching these guys. Now to get out there and play with them and mingle with them, it’s been great fun” © Getty Images
A few weeks ago Phillip Hughes received a simple piece of advice fromthe man who on Thursday he will replace at the top of Australia’s Testline-up. Matthew Hayden was having a quiet beer with his 20-year-oldsuccessor when he told him that when he takes the field in his firstTest he should “just be yourself”.It was the same tip Michael Hussey received when he went out to bat onhis Test debut, although the mentor on that occasion was Shane Warne,standing at a toilet in his underpants with a cigarette in hand. It’sa fair bet Hayden was fully-clothed when he handed out his words ofwisdom. The naturally composed Hughes probably didn’t need the advicebut the source was important to him.When Hayden made his Test debut, Hughes was five years old. Haydenwent on to become one of the most successful Test openers of all timebut it was in part the dominance of Hughes at state level this yearthat contributed to pressure building on Hayden to retire from theTest arena. Hughes said it had only recently started to sink in thathe was replacing one of the icons of Australia’s modern era.”When I first got on the plane with all the guys, that’s when itreally sank in,” Hughes said. “That was about a week later after I’dgot the call-up. Matthew Hayden has been great for Australian cricket,he’s played at the top level for so many years. It’s great to be hereand I think it’s only just sunk in.”I heard from him just before I came over. I actually had a quiet beerwith him at a function for the Steve Waugh Foundation. He was thereand we had a quiet little chat there. He said, ‘just be yourself’. Wejust had a chat about life and cricket and a few things. He just toldme to keep it simple and play how I normally play.”That’s exactly what Hughes did in his first match for Australia, thetour game at Potchefstroom, where he made a confident 24 in the firstinnings before going on to post a half-century in the second. He wasstill struggling to believe some of the names he was playing with,including the captain Ricky Ponting, who made his Test debut whenHughes was seven.”[It was a] great experience, to play alongside the likes of RickyPonting, Michael Clarke,” Hughes said. “Five years ago I was sittingback in the lounge room watching these guys. Now to get out there andplay with them and mingle with them, it’s been great fun.”Australia could have as many as three or four debutants at theWanderers on Thursday but Hughes is the only one whose place iscertain. The travelling selector David Boon has been impressed by theway such a young man has handled the pressure in the lead-up to thefirst Test.”He seems pretty calm about it all, he’s quiet,” Boon said. “You wouldexpect that around the dressing room, around the players, but you cansee an intent with it, you can see that he always appears to bethinking about the game, thinking about his role and what he’s goingto do. He’s attuned to what his game is and he doesn’t try to gooutside of it.”Hughes embarked on the tour with a first-class average of more than 60and an especially good sign was his ability to make big scores inimportant situations. The most notable came in the Pura Cup final lastseason, when he helped New South Wales to victory and became theyoungest man to score a century in an Australian first-class decider.”That was a massive deal,” Hughes said. “I think I’d played sixfirst-class games going into that game. I had six fifties under mybelt with no century. The press were saying can he do it or whatnot,and to get the big one on that stage was very exciting. The Aussieguys like Michael Clarke and Katto [Katich] were back then, so it was a greattime to play with those guys.”Simon Katich will be beside Hughes when they walk out to face themusic in the first innings in Johannesburg, where Hughes hasvolunteered to take strike against the opening delivery. No doubtthere will be a few nerves as Dale Steyn runs in with the new ball inhand but Hughes has spent the past few weeks analysing the SouthAfrican attack.”In Australia obviously I was just watching them on TV, watching themgo about their stuff,” he said. “And now I’m definitely watching themon tape. The main thing is just talking to the likes of Ricky Pontingand all the batsmen, all the guys in the side to see how they go aboutapproaching playing them.”All will be revealed when the Test starts on Thursday. One thing thatis certain is that Hughes will be himself.

Manchester United extended their unbeaten start to the new Premier League campaign with a comfortable 4-1 victory over Newcastle United.

Summer signing Cristiano Ronaldo marked his return to the club with a well-taken brace, predictably stealing the headlines on his first Old Trafford outing since leaving 12 years ago.

However, it was arguably another one of United’s household names that was the real star of the show for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s charges.

World Cup-winning midfielder Paul Pogba put in another fabulous performance on Saturday, controlling the centre of pitch with his incredible passing range and dictating the tempo of the game.

The 28-year-old also provided two assists for his teammates, taking his tally up to seven for the season after just four top-flight appearances.

And his underlying numbers were perhaps even more impressive. As per SofaScore, Pogba made three key passes during the 90 minutes, created one big chance and had a whopping 129 touches.

He also achieved a passing accuracy of 92%, won eight duels and pulled off two successful dribbles, leading to a match rating of 8.1 out of 10, the second-highest amongst any player on the pitch.

Doubt still remains over the Frenchman’s future in Manchester as he has now entered the final year of his current contract at the club, and after his blistering start to 2021/22, Solskjaer will surely be desperate for Pogba to put pen to paper on fresh terms as quickly as possible.

United’s Champions League campaign gets underway in midweek, and Pogba will be hoping to take his domestic form onto the European stage when the 20-time English champions take on Young Boys.

And, in other news…Report reveals MUFC make “excellent” £63m-rated gem top priority, Ole will be elated 

A round-up of the sixth day of the first-round matches in the 2008-09 Royal Bank of Scotland Cup

Cricinfo staff19-Mar-2009Group AA five-wicket win over Abbottabad Rhinos in Karachi helped Multan Tigers maintain their perfect record and ease into the semi-finals. Abbottabad posted a competitive 239 and had Multan in a spot of bother at 86 for 4 during their run-chase, but Kashif Naved and Mohammad Hafeez – who also starred with the ball – were involved in a match-winning partnership of 107 for the fifth wicket. Both scored at above a run-a-ball, and were especially harsh on left-arm spinner Khalid Usman who conceded 68 in 9.1 overs. Khalid Usman broke the stand, having Naved stumped for 79, but Hafeez helped complete the formalities, adding 48 in quick time with Rizwan Haider to see his team through with almost six overs to spare.Hafeez was largely responsible in keeping Abbottabad down to a chaseable score, taking 4 for 47 in an impressive bowling effort from Multan, who struck at frequent intervals to prevent the opposition from dominating at any stage. Abbottabad were struggling at 85 for 4 but an 89-run stand between Hammad Ali and half-centurion Usman Khan did threaten to seize the initiative. However, Abbottabad lost five wickets for 65, including Usman Khan, who was run out, to undermine the recovery.Karachi Dolphins, at the start of their match against Hyderabad Hawks, would have been hoping for a loss for Multan Tigers, their main competitors in Group A, but were to be disappointed. Though they managed to beat Hyderabad convincingly, by 66 runs at the Niaz Stadium, they have to reconcile themselves to second place. Their openers Ali Asad and captain Khalid Latif – who made exactly 100 – set the stage for a massive score of 341, adding 174. Though there was a slight hiccup in the latter half of their innings – they lost four wickets for 33 – a quickfire 41 off 21 balls from Tariq Haroon helped them set Hyderabad an intimidating target.Hyderabad’s chances became bleaker still after losing their first three wickets for 79 but put up a good fight, courtesy opener Aqeel Anjum (62) and middle-order batsman Noor Mohammad (68), who added 98 for the fourth wicket. However, medium-pacers Haroon and Faraz Ahmed took six wickets between them to ensure there was little resistance.Quetta Bears slid to a fifth consecutive defeat as Rawalpindi Rams completed a clinical 203-run rout at the National Stadium to grab the third place. After posting a formidable 301, it took Rawalpindi just 20.5 overs to wrap up the proceedings as the Quetta batsmen capitulated to the pace of Rashid Latif and Mohammad Ayaz who took nine wickets between them. Both achieved career-best figures – Rashid took 5 for 30 – and had their opponents struggling from the outset. The first three wickets fell for nine runs and the rest of the batting line-up offered little resistance – Mohammad Aslam was Quetta’s top-scorer with 27 – with only three batsmen reaching double-digits. The innings finally folded for 98, marking a disappointing end to Quetta’s campaign in the tournament.The foundation for this humiliating defeat was laid by a collective batting display by Rawalpindi. The highest score in their innings was 55 by opener Babar Naeem, but unlike Quetta, the others chipped in with valuable contributions and consistently built partnerships. Each of the first eight batsmen managed to get to double-figures, including four forty-plus scores.

Multan Tigers 5 5 0 00 20 +1.175 1305/220.1 1188/250.0Karachi Dolphins 5 4 1 0 016 +0.910 1533/248.1 1302/247.1 Rawalpindi Rams 5 3 2 0 0 12+1.829 1210/216.5 931/248.1 Hyderabad Hawks 52 3 0 0 8 -0.8081147/244.4 1330/242.0 Rhinos 5 14 0 0 4 -0.695 1152/250.01119/211.0 Quetta Bears 5 0 50 0 0 -2.367 960/250.0 1437/231.3

Celtic’s start to the new season has been a topsy-turvy affair as the Hoops look to adapt and transition to Ange Postecoglou’s way of life.

The beginning of his tenure has been a bumpy ride with some free-flowing football but defensive mistakes aplenty at Parkhead.

He did oversee their exit from the Champions League, but after significantly improving the playing staff available to him, they qualified for the Europa League.

Their group stage campaign got underway in midweek but they tasted defeat in what was a dramatic encounter with Real Betis. Celtic went 2-0 up before they succumbed 4-3 to La Liga’s sixth-best outfit from last season.

The Glaswegian side travelled to Seville without a plethora of first-team names. Liel Abada was missing due to religious reasons while Kyogo Furuhashi is set to miss the next month through injury.

However, one of the biggest losses was in the form of Callum McGregor who had picked up a small knock. Fortunately, Postecoglou hopes to have him available when they face Livingston on Sunday afternoon.

He said: “We’ll see how Callum McGregor is, but we’re optimistic he’ll be available.”

If that sense of optimism becomes a reality, then the skipper’s return to the squad will be absolutely massive for Celtic.

He has starred so far this season, scoring an all-important goal against Midtjylland and taking on the captaincy duties with great effect.

The midfielder has also been in supreme form for Scotland, putting in a display which was described as his ‘best’ in international colours when they beat Austria earlier this month.

However, the most important aspect of McGregor’s game is his leadership and ability to calm things down. How Celtic could have done with his words of wisdom in the middle of the park when Betis began to fight back last Thursday night.

With him in the team, he may have been able to settle the nerves and grab the bull by the horns as they attempted to batter away a wave of opposition pressure.

Livingston should be an easier ride this weekend but despite that, McGregor’s potential return is a welcome boost for the club. The manager will no doubt be delighted at the captain’s swift recovery.

AND in other news, Move over Bitton: Ange has a rising star in “powerful” rarely-seen 19 y/o at Celtic…

Virender Sehwag has hailed Gautam Gambhir, who scored a series-topping 445 runs on the recent tour of New Zealand, as India’s best opener since Sunil Gavaskar.

Cricinfo staff10-Apr-2009Virender Sehwag has hailed Gautam Gambhir, who scored a series-topping 445 runs on the recent tour of New Zealand, as India’s best opener since Sunil Gavaskar.Gambhir’s contrasting Test centuries in New Zealand – a 643-minute match-saving 137 in Napier and a much faster 167 in Wellington – have lifted him to a career-high fourth in the ICC rankings. He was the leading run-getter in ODIs last year, and proved his credentials in the game’s shortest format at the World Twenty20 in 2007 and last year’s IPL. “Gambhir is the only opener I have known who is at ease in any form of the game,” Sehwag told the . “Gavaskar was a great opener in Tests and one-dayers and Gambhir has adapted wonderfully to the T20 format too. He is just too good.”Despite a run-filled 2008, there were still questions about Gambhir’s ability to make big scores outside the subcontinent, which he answered with his strong showing in New Zealand. “Just see how he kept adapting. I can’t think of anyone better than Gambhir in terms of technique, temperament and style,” Sehwag said. “To me, he is the best opener India has had since Gavaskar.”Gambhir, though, said he didn’t believe in comparisons. “But having come from my favourite player it means a lot to me,” he told PTI. “Sehwag is such a big player and that he feels so makes me really happy.”He also called his performance in the series “very satisfying”. “I always wanted to do well abroad, I am very happy that I could do that.” He rated his epic rearguard effort in the second Test in Napier his best Test innings.It has been a dream run for Gambhir over the past year-and-a-half but he insisted that a lot more had to be achieved. “You can never be stagnant. You have to keep moving. You have to keep working on your game for your progress and move ahead.”

Leicester City have received a big injury boost ahead of their Premier League encounter against Burnley this afternoon, with manager Brendan Rodgers confirming that Jonny Evans will be part of the matchday squad.

What’s the word?

The 33-year-old centre-back has only featured in 29 minutes of top-flight action this season due to a recurring foot issue, but he played from start to finish against Millwall in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday.

“It was his first 90 minutes which was great,” Rodgers said in his press conference on Friday. “He’s recovering. He’s a little sore. But it’s good news for us that he’s come through it.”

The Northern Irish tactician was then asked if Evans would be ready to play against the Clarets, and he confirmed that his compatriot would be taking up a place on the substitutes’ bench at least.

“I think it’s one where it’s managing him. That’s his first 90 minutes. It’s managing that and seeing how the foot reacts. We’ll find out later on. We have to think it’s a long season,” Rodgers revealed.

“I’m delighted he’s got the game-time in. When he’s playing, we are a better team. He gives assurance to the back-line. We’ll see if he can start, but he’ll at least be on the bench. We know we’ve got the players we can play there.”

That wasn’t the end of the good news for Leicester, though. Rodgers confirmed that long-term absentees Wesley Fofana and James Justin are the only current injury concerns for the Midlands outfit.

When asked if he is having to contend with any other issues, the 48-year-old replied: “No, Wesley and JJ are the only two. Everyone else is fit.”

Brendan Rodgers will be delighted

Having Evans available for selection today will surely leave Rodgers feeling delighted. The former Manchester United academy graduate has become a pivotal part of the Leicester backline since arriving in 2018.

The 6 foot 1 beast has made 114 appearances for the current FA Cup holders during his three-year stay at the King Power Stadium, highlighting his importance to the side. Furthermore, only Caglar Soyuncu won more headers per game last season than Evans’ 3.8, illustrating the merits that the latter brings to the team.

Leicester have made a slow start to the new Premier League campaign, but their chances of ending a two-game losing streak in the top flight should be significantly increased with Evans back in the side.

In other news… Bought for £30m, now worth £16.2m: Rudkin has endured a transfer nightmare over this Foxes dud 

Liverpool will be aiming to maintain their unbeaten start to the season when they take on Brentford in the Premier League over the weekend.

Jurgen Klopp’s charges seem to have put an underwhelming 2020/21 campaign behind them after starting the new season in impressive fashion, with six wins and a draw in all competitions.

The return of Virgil van Dijk to form and fitness has been a huge bonus, while Mohamed Salah has maintained his ruthless streak in front of goal, but one player’s contribution has come as more of a surprise.

Divock Origi was heavily linked with a move away from Anfield over the summer after struggling for game-time in recent years, although a concrete offer failed to materialise.

However, the 26-year-old dynamo has worked his way back into Klopp’s first team plans and has put in two impressive performances for the 19-time English champions.

Origi’s first start of the season came against Italian giants AC Milan in the Champions League, where he claimed a vital assist in their 3-2 victory, with his manager lauding the Belgian’s ability in the aftermath.

“Divock Origi… people forget so quickly in life and in football, he’s an outstanding striker,” said the German in his post-match press conference (as relayed by talkSPORT).

“He did really well especially (because) for a long time he didn’t start – it’s just really difficult to get in this team, to be honest, and it makes sometimes life a bit uncomfortable.

“But he’s a great guy, and I’m really happy for him that he could play like this tonight. In ten years’ time when we look back, he will be a Liverpool legend. He’s just too young right now to be seen as a Liverpool legend, so he has to play football,” Klopp concluded.

The Belgium international then followed up that European performance with a stellar showing against Norwich City in the Carabao Cup third round in midweek, producing another assist and his first goal of 2021/22 in a comfortable 3-0 win.

As a result, Klopp must keep faith with his in-form hitman for the trip to Brentford on Saturday, allowing one of his regular front three extra time to rest and recover ahead of a gruelling campaign.

Origi has the ability to be Liverpool’s match-winner in west London, and with the form he’s showing, it’s going to take a big performance from the Bees’ defence to stop him from firing the Reds to victory once more.

In other news… Bought for £4.4m, now worth £27m: Liverpool sealed transfer masterclass with “sensational” gem 

Full statement of PCB chairman Ijaz Butt on the removal of Pakistan as co-hosts of the 2011 World Cup

09-May-2009STRIPPING PAKISTAN’S RIGHT TO CO-HOST ICC CRICKET WORLD CUP, 20111.On 17 April 2009, a meeting of ICC Executive Board was convened at Dubai wherein being a Full Member, PCB was also invited. The Agenda of the meeting consisted inter alia Management Reports/Items including Lahore Incident, Incident Report, Security Issues for International Cricket and other Issues arising from the Lahore Incident. Along with some other points, the agenda of this meeting consisted “Safety and Security – Post Lahore Incident i.e. Liberty Chowk attack on Sri Lanka team”, Issues (other than security) arising from Lahore Incident.2.Foreseeing that the Executive Board Meeting was being convened after the unfortunate and tragic incident of Liberty Chowk, PCB sent a working paper to be placed before the Meeting.3.During the meeting, when security and safety issues regarding CWC 2011 was being discussed in the light of Lahore incident, views of Captain of Sri Lanka Team Mahela Jayawerdene and ICC official Chris Broad were presented; both of them were part of the team and officials who were attacked in Lahore. Unfortunately, the interview CD of the bus driver of Sri Lanka team that PCB had sent to ICC was never presented at the meeting. Rather, its transcript was circulated by e-mail to members after the meeting.4.PCB did not get an opportunity to explain its position and in a slip shod manner, a decision was passed by at the Executive Board meeting whereby PCB was stripped off its right to Co-host CWC 2011. As claimed the basis of this decision were the safety and security concerns.5.It is very surprising that this decision was passed in a meeting which was not even authorised to do so. As per procedure, it is the IDI Board and not the Executive Board that is only authorized to make recommendation to the Meeting of Members of ICC which is the Annual Conference and which is alone authorized to take decision on it. The ICC Executive Board in which this decision was made on 17th April, has purposed to exercise a power which vests only in IDI.6.PCB has not yet received the minutes of the said meeting of Executive Board, therefore the exact tenure of the decision is not known. But in reality, the decision of ICC is actually being acted upon. We can see that the Central Organizing Committee (which originally comprised of representatives of all 4 Co-hosts) convened its meeting in Mumbai wherein PCB was not invited.7.The Executive Board, while taking this decision, completely failed to take into account that the law and order situation in the entire sub-continent is not exemplary;a.Bangladesh recently faced mutiny by its armed forces and refused to host Pakistan on accounts of security concerns which resulted in cancellation of Pakistan Series in Bangladesh in March 2009.b.Sri Lanka is embroiled in a long standing civil warc.India due to law and order situation had to relocate IPL Series to South Africa although the official reason given is IPL schedule clash with the national elections. Recently Australia refused to send its Tennis Team to India for Davis Cup which was due to be held in Chennai, India.If security and safety was the only reason, no security assessment of the other three co-hosts has been done.8.Under the Host Agreement, prior to taking any decision on relocation of matches, PCB should first have been given an option to remedy the situation. This was never done.Pakistan Cricket Board has yesterday 08 May 2009 issued a Legal Notice to President ICC through Mr. Mark Gay of DLA Piper, London who is well known in the field of sports legal issues and has also previously represented PCB. He is being assisted by PCB’s Legal Advisor Mr. Taffazul Rizvi. In the Legal Notice ICC has been asked to rescind the decision of the Executive Board being ultra vires and void. We have also informed ICC that we will be shortly referring the matter for determination by an arbitral tribunal appointed in accordance with the Rules of the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland under the ICC Dispute Resolution Committee.

Abdul Qadir has stepped down as Pakistan’s chief selector barely six months after taking over the post

Osman Samiuddin08-Jun-2009Abdul Qadir has resigned as Pakistan’s chief selector, barely six months into his stint. The move comes the morning after a dispiriting defeat to England in the ICC World Twenty20 in England, but it is believed that was not the spur for the decision.”Abdul Qadir has handed in his resignation to the chairman of the board and it has been accepted,” Salim Altaf, chief operating officer PCB, told Cricinfo. “No reason has been given to us by Qadir.”Wasim Bari, the board’s HR head, also confirmed that no reason had been provided by Qadir. “All we know is that he handed in his resignation and it was accepted,” he said. The status of the other members of the three-man selection committee, ex-Test cricketers Salim Jaffer and Shoaib Mohammad, is for the moment unaffected. “Only Qadir has handed in his notice,” Bari said.Cricinfo understands, however, that differences had arisen between the chairman of the board, Ijaz Butt, and Qadir. In particular, a recent selection committee meeting in Lahore to pick Pakistan’s A squad for their tour to Australia is said to have been pivotal in Qadir’s eventual decision.During the meeting, it is believed Butt and Qadir developed differences over the squad’s composition. One source said that Qadir had been irked by Butt’s less than tactful dealings with him and was disturbed by interference in selection matters. Butt is said to have taken serious objection to some of the selections in the squad.Qadir’s tenure may have been short on time, but it was not short on news. A unique thinker on the game and a straight talker, Qadir was increasingly a voracious media’s dream. Soon after the squad for the Twenty20 World Cup was finalised, Qadir publicly expressed his concerns over the composition, in particular Saeed Ajmal’s inclusion. The selection of Shahzaib Hasan – though not opposed at the time – also did not go down well with Qadir.Soon after he was appointed, his ideas on how Pakistan would warm up for the Sri Lanka series in January – with a series of practice matches among themselves instead of domestic cricket – also attracted the public ire of PCB officials. His relationship with Younis Khan, Pakistan’s captain, began rockily but is said to have improved over the months. The deterioration in his relationship with Butt, however, appears to have been more critical, leaving Pakistan looking for its fourth chief selector since the 2007 World Cup.

Speaking to Football Insider, BBC Radio 5 Live pundit Alan Hutton has reacted to a big claim coming out of West Ham United involving Declan Rice.

The Lowdown: GSB plot Rice sale…

As per Football Insider, it appears that a significant update has emerged in the last few days regarding Rice’s future in east London.

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Indeed, according to their information, GSB and West Ham are now planning to sell the 22-year-old for around £90m while his stock his high after the player refused to pen fresh terms at the London Stadium.

While they were hoping to get around £100m originally, Rice rejecting offers of a new deal from West Ham will force the club to sell for less.

The Latest: Hutton reacts…

Speaking to Football Insider, the former Premier League defender has dropped his take and believes that the England international could leave if it suits all parties.

When asked if Rice could leave West Ham, Hutton replied: “Probably. I think so.

“I love what West Ham have done. They’ve done really well in the transfer market, the manager has done a fantastic job.

“But Rice is at a level now, like Kalvin Philips, he’s an England international now, his profile is massive.

“The big teams are hovering so it could be time to cash in. I mean, if we’re talking the best part of £100million, that’s a lot of money.

“Just like Leeds, the big thing is can David Moyes get that money to reinvest in the squad?

“He’s done a great job so far so if he can get that in, I think it’s one of those ones where they’ll part ways and everybody could be happy.”

The Verdict: Irreplaceable…

Even for a figure around £90m, if West Ham do indeed to sell for that amount, you can make the argument that Rice is simply irreplaceable to manager David Moyes.

The mainstay, who has started every Premier League game for the Irons so far in 2021/22, has eclipsed all of his West Ham teammates in terms of interceptions per match (2.3), even managing an incredible 94.4% pass accuracy in that time (WhoScored).

It’s little wonder that defender and team-mate Craig Dawson believes Rice is ‘unbelievable’ and a ‘quality’ player (West Ham Q&A), and we certainly think that letting him go could be a big risk, no matter the cost.

In other news: West Ham source: GSB have now set sights on signing ‘outstanding’ star for Moyes, talks already held…find out more here.