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Virender Sehwag has taken the art of opening to new levels and Strauss briefly managed a passing impression of him

Andrew McGlashan in Durban27-Dec-2009If the Durban weather plays ball over the next three days – and sadly that is anything but certain – this match has the makings of an extremely compelling contest. Each time one side has seemingly grabbed the advantage, the other has evened the scales, never better illustrated than by the cameo nature of the batting so far in this game.Batsmen have threatened to dominate, but then have been cut off either by a good ball or poor judgment, and that has made for engrossing viewing. It started with the dual efforts of Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis, who thwarted a hostile new ball in tough conditions before succumbing meekly after tea; it continued with AB de Villiers’ punchy counter-attack and Mark Boucher’s bustle on the second morning, then Dale Steyn’s tail-end hitting which lifted South Africa to 343.England continued in the same vain with Andrew Strauss looking in prime form. He so often does these days, but he failed to build on an aggressive 49-ball half-century – the fastest of his career – when he was dramatically bowled by Morne Morkel to be left with one stump standing. Although Strauss’s innings ended too early for England’s liking, it was a vital response from the captain after the frustrations of South Africa’s last-wicket stand of 58 between Steyn and Makhaya NtiniStrauss and Steyn are separated in batting talent by almost the full length of the order; a tailender and an opener, one whose runs are a bonus against one who is expected to lead the scoring. But they both played equally valuable roles for their sides. Without Steyn, South Africa would have been dismissed for under 300 and without Strauss’s counter-attack the home side would have had the chance to build on that lower-order boost.There is nothing better for a team than to be boosted by a tailender who bats above his means, not least because of the frustration it brings to the fielding unit. It’s far better for an innings to end with a bang rather than a whimper. Then, at the other end of the spectrum, there is the impetus that a positive opening batsman can bring when the opposition have hoped to make inroads with the new ball. Michael Slater and Matthew Hayden were masters of it, Virender Sehwag has taken the art to new levels and Strauss briefly managed a passing impression of them all.”I came out of the shower, and he was already on 30, and I don’t take that long in the shower,” said Graeme Swann. “It’s great to see him go out there and play shots from the word go. He’s very disappointed to have only made 50-odd and lose his wicket after tea, to a very good ball.””We didn’t sit down and say ‘let’s go all guns blazing’ to get back on top,” he added. “But it was important that we did that, because it’s wrestled straight back the initiative that South Africa have taken from us.”Strauss has developed into one of the premier opening batsmen in the world and is finishing 2009 in the same positive form he has shown throughout the year. His innings included three fours in four balls off the struggling Ntini, and was Marcus Trescothick-like in its impact. That was a role he tried to perform in Australia in 2006-07, when Trescothick pulled out of the tour, but he mislaid his disciplines in his quest for aggression, and that played a part in his career-threatening dip in form. The latest version of Strauss can play in variety of guises, however. He also took the pressure off Alastair Cook, who was able to concentrate on survival in his battle for form.It looked for all the world as though Strauss would be the batsman who would build on his start, but Morkel has caused him problems throughout the tour – having him caught behind in the second innings at Centurion from round the wicket – and ended his stay via a thin inside-edge. In 16 balls Strauss faced against Ntini he scored 24 runs, but the 21 deliveries from Morkel produced just 11 and four of those came from an outside edge through gully which shows the difficulties he posed.It also means that the wait for a substantial innings in this match goes on, but the bowlers have managed to hold sway. This contest is crying out for a hundred. It could prove to be a matchwinner.

Seamer managing “chronic” problem and won’t return before India series but Ben Stokes is progressing well after a hamstring injury

George Dobell18-Jun-2018England have confirmed that Chris Woakes will take no part in the limited-overs series against Australia as he deals with a “chronic” knee injury. Ben Stokes is also not expected to play in the three remaining ODIs but could return in next month’s T20 series with India.Woakes sustained a tear in his right quad during the second Test against Pakistan in Leeds, but a statement released by the England management now suggests it was caused in part by “a flare-up of a chronic right knee problem”. He was given an injection in the knee a week ago and has begun a rehabilitation and conditioning programme.England are putting no date on his return to action, but he will not feature in any of the games against Australia or the T20s against India. He will be reassessed ahead of the ODI series against India that starts on July 12.”I’m aiming for the India ODIs and fingers crossed I can play some cricket before then so I’m ready,” Woakes said. “Whether it’s for Warwickshire or England I’m not sure. The word chronic makes it look like it’s drastic but the knee is not something I’m worried about.”Woakes’ absence has been felt keenly by England in recent days. As their top-ranked ODI bowler, and easily most impressive white-ball seamer in Australia and New Zealand, he has the responsibility for bowling at the start and end of the innings; areas that have been exposed a little in the defeat against Scotland and, at times, during the victory over Australia in Cardiff.Woakes missed almost the entire Champions Trophy in 2017 after sustaining a side strain during the opening moments of the game against Bangladesh. He has managed the knee problem for several years, having had surgery in 2015.”I’ve had the same problem for about eight or nine years and it’s been niggling away at me but I’ve got on with it and put up with the odd niggle because it’s not the sort of thing that will get better overnight,” he said.”With the quad injury it was a good time to get a jab in there and settle it down. I don’t know what the definition of chronic is but it doesn’t really stop me from playing cricket. It just flares up and during Headingley it felt sore but compared to a couple of weeks ago it feels like a million dollars.”There may also be some concern at Warwickshire. The county felt that Woakes required more bowling before returning to Test cricket following his spell in the IPL. To go from bowling a maximum of four overs to bowling in a Test, they felt, required more time and conditioning work. It will have been noted that both England seamers who went from the IPL to the Test team – Woakes and Stokes – without a warm-up match sustained injuries.With the World Cup looming as England’s priority for next year, Woakes suggested he would consider whether managing his fitness might mean missing out on the IPL.”IPL is a great thing for players to have the opportunities to improve themselves, at the same time as earning a hell of a lot of money, but I think next year will be tricky,” he said. “If I don’t get retained that’s when I will have to ask myself whether it’s worth going in the auction again, with such a big summer ahead. It’s something I’ll know nearer the time, especially going into what could be the biggest summer of my career. You want to make sure you’re in tip-top condition for a home World Cup.”There is better news of both Stokes and Eoin Morgan. Morgan, who missed Saturday’s game in Cardiff due to a back spasm, took part in training at Trent Bridge on Monday morning and hopes to play in the third ODI against Australia on Tuesday, while Stokes is said to be “progressing well” after sustaining a torn left hamstring a couple of weeks ago. His batting is unrestricted and he is able to run at 90% capacity so will begin a “return-to-bowling programme” this week.Stokes will be with the squad for the fourth and fifth ODIs in the hope that he is fit to play in the T20s against India in July.

James McClean has slammed the “embarrassing” celebrations of “wally” Jean Belehouan following Wrexham’s disappointing defeat to Tranmere.

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• Red Dragons came unstuck on home soil
• Local rivals revelled in their success
• Irishman stuck on sidelines serving a ban

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  WHAT HAPPENED?

  The Red Dragons saw their bid for automatic promotion out of League Two suffer another untimely blow when slipping to a 1-0 derby date reversal at the hands of local rivals from the Wirral. Tranmere are still clinging to hopes of staging a late surge into the play-off places, leading to them celebrating wildly at SToK Racecourse.

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• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Tempers threatened to boil over at the final whistle, as players from both sides tangled on the field at full-time, with Rovers defender Belehouan firing up the travelling support despite failing to make it onto the field across 90 minutes of intriguing fourth-tier action.

• WHAT MCCLEAN SAID

  McClean was another that saw no game time, as he serves a suspension for collecting 10 yellow cards, and the Irishman has called out Belehouan for celebrating as if Tranmere had won the league. He posted on Instagram: “Absolute wally, not sure what’s more embarrassing, him giving it large whilst being an unused sub during the game or the fact that he was an unused sub for them.”

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• WHAT NEXT FOR WREXHAM?

  Wrexham remain third in the League Two standings, level on points with second-placed Stockport and five adrift of leaders Mansfield, but only goal difference is keeping them above MK Dons while Barrow in sixth are only six points adrift of Phil Parkinson’s side with eight games left to take in.

Series wins in England and Australia – could 2008 have been any better for South Africa?

Colin Bryden06-Jan-2009

Mickey Arthur and Graeme Smith could hardly have dared to dream of the triumphs they would achieve after proclaiming, following a disappointing end to their 2007 World Cup campaign, that the focus for the next two years would be on Test cricket.The Proteas have achieved an unprecedented run of success, culminating in a first series win by any South African team in Australia. That victory was South Africa’s ninth win in ten series going back to the 2006-07 season.The ledger for 2008 shows 11 wins, two draws and two defeats in 15 Test matches, spread over six series, of which five were won and one shared.South Africa’s one-day performances were less impressive than might be suggested by a superficial glance at a record of 12 wins, four defeats and one no-result. Seven wins were achieved against the negligible opposition of
Bangladesh and Kenya and five against West Indies. In their most challenging series, South Africa were beaten 4-0 by England, with a fifth match washed out. The one-day side was hit by the retirement of Shaun Pollock, the loss of “death” bowler Charl Langeveldt to a Kolpak contract in England, and a sudden dearth of hard-hitting bowling allrounders.With two years before the next World Cup, Arthur and Smith will devote energy to building a one-day unit to match the success of the Test side. The selection of untried youngsters such as Wayne Parnell, Vaughn van Jaarsveld and Lonwabo Tsotsobe for the forthcoming one-day series in Australia is part of that process.It was South Africa’s Test cricket, however, that commanded attention in 2008, as they disposed of West Indies at home and Bangladesh away before beating India by an innings in Ahmedabad. Leading 1-0 in the series they
were caught on a disgracefully under-prepared pitch in Kanpur as India earned a share of the spoils. The first series win in England since unity – and only the third of all time – was a highlight, but nothing surpassed their victory in Australia.All the essentials of a winning team were in place, with the possible exception of excellence in spin bowling. A settled top six played in every match, with the exception of the injury-enforced absences for one match of Neil McKenzie and two by Ashwell Prince. When Prince was put out of action before the first Test in Australia,
the prodigious talent of Jean-Paul Duminy was revealed on the Test stage. After making an unbeaten half-century in the thrilling pursuit of 414 in the final innings in Perth, Duminy turned the second Test, in Melbourne, on its head with a magnificent 166.Duminy had been on no fewer than four Test tours before he finally made his debut – a situation he accepted with the calm pragmatism that he showed when his opportunity finally arose. Now Prince, who scored 900 runs at 64.28 during the year, may find himself the man waiting for an opening.Prince was just one of five of the regular top six who averaged above 50 for the year. Remarkably, the odd man out was Jacques Kallis, who nevertheless played a prominent role with bat, ball and his safe hands in the slips during the first two Tests in Australia.While runs on the board are a crucial foundation for winning cricket, the ability to take 20 wickets was the clincher during the year. Dale Steyn led a potent if not wholly consistent fast bowling attack. The 2008 ICC Test Cricketer of the Year finished the year with 74 wickets in 13 matches at 20.01. When Steyn was good he was excellent, bowling at high pace and getting late away-swing.Rather like Allan Donald before him, Steyn is a bowler who needs a match or two to find his rhythm, and he was not at his best early in the series in England and Australia. Any suggestions that he owed his impressive record to
a preponderance of matches against weak opponents – notwithstanding five-wicket hauls in both Pakistan and India – were blown away, however, by a sensational ten-wicket haul in Melbourne.After a decade of lung-bursting effort, Makhaya Ntini, at 31, showed signs of losing his sting, but a break after the England tour and a spell in domestic cricket seemed to be the tonic he needed. He finished the year with 54 wickets at 28.46.The tall Morne Morkel was seen as South Africa’s next great match-winning bowler. He produced some unplayable deliveries and took 43 wickets, but his best days lie ahead.Kallis and Paul Harris provided competent support to the main strike bowlers.South Africa’s catching throughout the year was excellent, particularly in the all-important cordon, where wicketkeeper Mark Boucher and Smith, Kallis and AB de Villiers in the slips held almost every offering that came their way.

The ultimate hero was the captain. Smith was an impressively mature leader and led by example with the bat. He scored six of South Africa’s 23 centuries, including a monumental unbeaten 154 not out in the decisive run
chase against England at Edgbaston, a century that set up the record pursuit in Perth, and 75 in the final innings in Melbourne.What was most remarkable about Smith’s 1656 runs at 72.00 was that for almost half the year he battled against the pain of a chronic tennis elbow injury. Not for the first time, he refused to allow extreme physical discomfort to deter him from contributing to his team’s cause.New kid on the block
Duminy looked a player of genuine quality when he played two key innings against Australia in his first two Tests.Fading star
After eight years of harrumphing and hassling opponents with his muscular fast bowling, the international career of Andre Nel seemed to have run its course.High point
Edgbaston? Perth? Melbourne? The most dramatic of three successful run-chases was Edgbaston, the most remarkable Perth, and the most significant Melbourne.Low point
An anti-climactic final-Test loss in England was followed by four limp performances in the one-day series.What 2009 holds
A return series against Australia and a home series against England will provide further Test challenges while South Africa will seek improved performances in one-day internationals and the World Twenty20 in England.

Former Chelsea star Hakim Ziyech has declared his spell with Galatasaray is "over", while tearing into "low level" coach Okan Buruk.

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• Ziyech left Chelsea for Galatasaray
• Winger now wants transfer exit
• Hits out at "low level " coach Buruk

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Ziyech initially joined the Turkish giants on loan for the second half of last season from Chelsea before making the move permanent in the summer. After a productive loan stint, the 31-year-old has struggled at the Super Lig team this term, making just three starts in his 11 appearances and failing to get on the scoresheet. Now, the Morocco international says he doesn't want to play for the club anymore and tore into Galatasaray manager Buruk, too.

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  WHAT HAKIM ZIYECH SAID

  "Galatasaray is over for me. I don't want to play here anymore. I'm leaving in January," he said, relayed by journalist Haluk Yürekli. "I've never seen a coach of such a low level. I don't care that much [if joining Galatasaray was a mistake]. I want to be left alone, no matter what happens. I regret coming here."

• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  The career of the attacking midfielder Ziyech, who can also play as a winger, appears to be on a downward trajectory after falling out of favour at Chelsea and now Galatasaray. The former Ajax man's contract runs until next summer but he may be off before then as these comments are unlikely to go down well at the Turkish giants.

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  WHAT NEXT?

  It may be up in the air if Ziyech will play for Galatasaray again, with the January transfer window just a couple of weeks away. There is also the chance he runs down his contract and leaves as a free agent at the end of the season.

Tottenham chiefs are "determined" to sell striker Richarlison this summer, despite him finishing last season as their second top goalscorer in all competitions, and it is believed one forward in particular is keen on replacing him.

Richarlison linked with Spurs exit amid interest from Saudi Arabia

The former Everton star endured an underwhelming debut campaign at Spurs under former boss Antonio Conte, scoring just once in 27 league appearances, after making the move from Goodison Park in a deal worth £60 million.

Tottenham consider swap move for £162k-a-week forward with Ange "obsessed"

The Australian is desperate for a new attacker.

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Emilio Galantini

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Richarlison, in comments to the Brazilian press late last year, opened up about his struggles with mental health issues off the field, which could've been a key reason behind some of his performances, but then backed himself to come back stronger under Ange Postecoglou.

“On the field I’m a happy team player, I try to help as much as possible," said Richarlison on his psychological challenges.

"Sometimes, things don’t go the way we want. I think this part is a bit of the off-field side that ended up getting in my way. Even though you want to do things right, it ends up going wrong. I will continue to focus on the club, the storm has passed.

“I went through a turbulent time in the last five months off the field. Now things are right at home. People who only had an eye on my money walked away from me. Now things will start to flow, I’m sure I’ll get a good run at Tottenham and make things happen again.”

The 27-year-old proved himself correct, as things did start to flow for him in a Lilywhites jersey.

A phenomenal mid-season purple patch saw Richarlison bag nine goals in eight Premier League appearances from mid-December through to early February, finishing 23/24 as Tottenham's second top scorer behind Son Heung-min with 12 goals and four assists in all competitions.

However, it has been reported this summer window that Spurs are willing to sell the South American regardless. Technical director Johan Lange, chairman Daniel Levy and the wider recruitment team are fully aware of interest from the Middle East, with clubs in Saudi Arabia keen on signing Richarlison.

Lange is prepared to green-light Richarlison's exit for £60 million, according to some reports, and GiveMeSport have now gone one step further.

Tottenham "determined" to sell Richarlison with Ivan Toney keen to join

According to the news outlet, Tottenham are determined to sell Richarlison in the coming weeks, and it is believed that Brentford striker Ivan Toney likes the idea of joining Spurs as his potential replacement.

Saudi sides are still keeping a watchful eye on Richarlison, while Spurs have "emerged" as Toney's "most likely landing spot". The Bees forward, who is reportedly valued at around £50 million, wants to join a club with regular European football prospects and Tottenham fit the bill.

GMS sources close to the situation claim a move for Toney could go right down to the wire, meaning it may not be completed till nearer the end of the window, so it will be interesting to see how this develops.

More clarity required against India’s spinners, says the West Indies vice-captain

Shashank Kishore17-Feb-2022IPL 2021 was ordinary by any standards for Nicholas Pooran. He managed all of 85 runs in 12 innings, including five ducks, for Punjab Kings. Yet, when the fresh auction came around last weekend, Kolkata Knight Riders, Chennai Super Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad went big bidding for him. Finally, when the paddle came down, he was the second-most expensive overseas buy at INR 10.75 crore (USD 1.42 million), going to Sunrisers.On Wednesday, Pooran, the West Indies T20I vice-captain, showed why he is rated highly, anchoring a floundering innings with a 43-ball 61 from No. 3 against India in the first T20I. It kept West Indies in the contest and allowed them to post 157, which he later felt was “ten or 15 short”. While it wasn’t a flawless effort, Pooran’s adaptability against both pace and spin was something his team-mates would do well to note.Related

• Bishnoi, Rohit hand India lead as Pooran 61 goes in vain

• West Indies' six-hitting machine ready to rumble in T20Is

• Simmons: West Indies' batting needs 'urgent attention'

Pooran himself struggled to manoeuvre the ball when it was bowled into the pitch. Ravi Bishnoi and Harshal Patel profited from this approach. As per ESPNcricinfo’s logs, West Indies struck just 27 runs off the 32 deliveries bowled short of a good length. He was a lot more comfortable when it was tossed up, although Yuzvendra Chahal should have had him on 8 in the seventh over, but for Bishnoi’s drop at long-off.”We fell short, and that is where the game definitely slipped,” Pooran said. “We can’t fault the bowlers, to be honest. As batsmen, we need to pace [the innings] much smarter, so it was definitely the batting [that let them down]. We need to continue to build partnerships and negate spinners better.”What should the others be doing to play spin better?”We were in two minds against them,” Pooran explained. “Whether to attack them or keep them out of the game. We got caught there. It is a small fix. We have to be more clear in the next game to execute our plans. It was a bit tricky today. The ball was stopping on the surface. It was two-paced. When the spinners and pacers bowled back of a length, you had to adjust to the pace off the pitch, so hitting through the line was difficult early on.”Dew was as big a factor as well. When we were bowling, a lot of guys were wiping the ball. The guys bowled a lot of full tosses as well [because of dew] towards the end, so conditions played a big factor. The wicket also played a lot better in the second half, it came on a lot better. That said, India batted really well, have to give them credit.”One of the ploys West Indies tried to unsettle India’s spinners was to promote hitter Akeal Hosein, the left-hander, ahead of Kieron Pollard to try and take advantage of the legspin, deliveries coming into his swinging arc, as against the ball turning away. But Bishnoi was a step ahead on that count and used the wrong’un as his stock ball.His drift and the lengths he bowled in taking the ball across, meant they didn’t get too many deliveries in the hitting arc. Bishnoi delivered as many as four dots in the 13th over, his third, as Hosein tried to hit out. He was eventually dismissed in the following over for 10 off 12 balls. This strategy may not have worked on the night, but Pooran felt the call to have him come up ahead of Pollard was a peek into their mindset of being flexible.”If you think about it and look at T20 cricket all over the world, it’s about being smart,” he said. “We had just lost two wickets in the 11th over. The thinking, I guess, was to have a left-hander negate the spinner. As soon as Akeal came in, they brought in Venkatesh Iyer and pushed the spinners deeper in the innings. I thought from a team perspective, that was a good plan. Had Akeal hit that [the delivery he got out] for six, we would’ve been back in the game. It didn’t work out, but I like that thinking.”

From growing up in Kasur to his exploits in domestic cricket, everything you need to know about Pakistan’s rookie sensation

Umar Farooq30-May-2017Where’s he from?
He was born in Kasur, a city close to the Indian border, and about a 45-minute drive from Lahore. You might know the city for the shrine of Bulleh Shah, the celebrated Sufi poet-saint, and also as the birthplace of Noor Jehan, one of Pakistan’s most famous singers. If he plays for Pakistan, Ashraf could become another reason the city is known for – he would be the first from Kasur to play for Pakistan.Tell me a little about his riseThough Kasur is close to Lahore, for the PCB, the district comes into the Faisalabad region, and this is where Ashraf started his competitive cricket, playing in the inter-district Under-19 competition in 2010. He turned out for Kasur at the time as a fast bowler, picking up 10 wickets in 2010, and 15 in 2011. He was promoted to the Faisalabad Under-19 team and wasn’t able to make a major impact, taking 14 wickets, apart from 117 runs, batting with the tail.So what caught the selectors’ eye?In 2013, at a senior district-level tournament, he became the top wicket-taker for Kasur with 22 wickets at 11.13 and also scored 189 runs with the help of two half-centuries. Those performances won him a ticket to first-class cricket, as he broke into the Faisalabad team for the 2013-14 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.I see. And how did that go?Pretty good. He hit a hundred on first-class debut against Multan, at a healthy 60-plus strike rate. Since then, he has played 31 first-class matches, scoring 1207 runs at 32.62 – not a bad haul for someone selectors essentially consider a lower-order batsman. Oh, and he’s also picked up 94 wickets at 26.63. His List A numbers are decent, too, though it is with the ball that he has shone in that format: 60 wickets in 38 games, at a strike rate of 28.1.Any other performances I should be able to reel off like I’m a selector?He might not have compiled remarkable numbers, but with Ashraf, the cameos are the ones that are remembered. He scored 44 against WAPDA at a time when his side, HBL, was languishing at 21 for 6 in the final of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. Handily, that was in front of the selection committee last year in Karachi, and he has been on their radar since. He made it to the Pakistan ‘A’ team that played against Zimbabwe and England Lions recently, and 19 wickets in the Departmental One-Day Cup – the highest in the tournament – earlier this year meant he was pushing for an international debut.Is he the answer to…
Pakistan’s ongoing, eternal search for an allrounder? Hold your horses just a second and take a reality check. He is, currently, a kind of leader of the tail, batting mostly between Nos. 7, 8 and 9 for his domestic sides. He averages less than 16 in the format he is likely to make his Pakistan debut in. With the ball, he is usually first or second change, unless an especially grassy pitch presents itself, when he has been known to open the bowling. His nine overs in the two warm-up games have gone for 65, without a wicket, so…Still, don’t just take our word for it.
When he was working his way up from district level and onto the first-class scene, the current national selector and former offspinner Tauseef Ahmed was keeping an eye on him. Tauseef had a chance to monitor Ashraf closely in 2015 while at National Bank of Pakistan (he has since moved to Habib Bank). There, Ashraf made some valuable runs with the tail (271 altogether, at 38.71) and picked up 23 wickets. His ability to strike the ball clean and provide regular breakthroughs – in addition to the ferocity and confidence with which he played the hook shot – was something that stuck with Tauseef.”I actually saw him when he was playing for NBP, and his ability to strike the ball was impressive,” Tauseef said. “What else does a team want when a batsman batting with the tail can get a run-rate between 8 and 10 an over? He has great firepower, and I have seen him doing that quite often on the domestic circuit.”

Ruben Amorim admitted his Manchester United side were lacking in quality as they slid to a 3-2 home defeat against Nottingham Forest.

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• Portuguese honest after Old Trafford defeat
• Coach has four PL points from four games
• 'We started really bad', admits new boss

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  United conceded the first goal in just the second minute after slack marking from Lisandro Martinez from a corner, while Andre Onana was at fault when Morgan Gibbs-White restored Forest's lead in the second minute of the second period following Rasmus Hojlund's equaliser. The goalkeeper was caught flapping at Chris Wood's header which proved to be the eventual winner, with Bruno Fernandes pulling one back for the Red Devils before being taken off.

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• WHAT AMORIM SAID

  Amorim told : "Tough game. We started really bad, the first play we suffered a goal and then it's hard to try to fight. We then controlled the game and had a lot of situations. We improved the movement in the last third. We managed to draw the game and then at half-time we were ready to go for the win and then started really bad. Two goals. Then we tried a lot of things with not a lot of quality. We didn't have many situations to score."

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Amorim got off a strong start as United boss, winning two of his first three games since succeeding Erik ten Hag but following the defeats at Arsenal and against Forest, he now he has just four points from his first Premier League matches – as many as the Dutchman earned from his final four league games in charge. The Portuguese said: "Tough game in a tough moment but we have to continue the job. This is a long journey. We are improving in some aspects. We have to win games to help us improve the team. We are in the start of something so big that we pay attention to every detail. We already know it's a big job so we have to continue."

• DID YOU KNOW?

  This was Amorim's first home defeat in a league game since February 2023 and only the second time he has lost successive league games in his entire coaching career. He said: "I had this and worse at Sporting in the beginning. You know Sporting in Portugal but in Manchester you have a lot of attention, but for me it is the same feeling. This happens to a lot of clubs and we have to continue improving the team because this will turn around."

I woke this morning with an increasingly unusual feeling in my cricketing belly – one of genuine anticipation

Andy Zaltzman25-Feb-2013I woke this morning with an increasingly unusual feeling in my cricketing belly – one of genuine anticipation. This emotion, of course, has almost been successfully and completely excised from the cricketing calendar by the powers that be, as they pile wodge upon wodge of increasingly indistinguishable contests on top of each other, crammed into the few remaining crannies of time available.

Furthermore, as a die-hard lover of the five-day game, Test matches increasingly seem to me to be tagged on as a regrettable but contractually essential precursor to an interminably tedious one-day series, which would be forgettable were anyone able to take enough notice of it in the first place for its existence to register in their brain before being lost into the swamp of time and the ICC rankings.However, hearing the words “Sabina Park” on the radio instantly conjured up childhood memories of listening to terrified English commentators describing even more terrified English players in the terrifying heyday of the Caribbean pace attack, and of trying to work out if the resounding clonk I had just heard was leather on bat (unlikely), leather on stump (likely), or leather on nose (probable).This is a series that possesses that rarest of cricketing commodities – rarity. It is only the second time in the last 11 years that West Indies have hosted England in a Test series. (Admittedly, when the two sides reconvene for a hastily-arranged two-match series in England in May, minutes after concluding business in the Caribbean, and seconds after some of the players have returned from briefly adorning the non-business end of the IPL, it will be the third time in five years that the two have met in England, it will begin almost before the and looks set to smash all records for Least Eagerly Awaited Test Series Of All Time.)There are other factors adding to the excitement. Under their new captain Strauss, England are entering a new dawn, albeit with the same players who have boldly woken up on its last few new dawns, stretched, pulled back the new curtains, calculated the minimum allowable performance to avoid being dropped, hit the snooze button and settled down for a well-deserved lie-in, whilst Owais Shah sits alone in the breakfast room, picking at his corn flakes with an increasingly irritable spoon.England should win, although, hopefully, not quite as easily as in recent series between the two, if only because of the height of their bowlers – the most successful bowlers in the Caribbean recently include Harmison, Nel, Clark and Shabbir Ahmed – and because deposed skipper Pietersen appears to be in vengeful mood, like Anne Boleyn after her husband had had her head chopped off, only with his head still attached to his central nervous system, and therefore more able to act on his anger than the young church-schisming temptress of Kent and England. This is all dependent on someone concocting a method of dismissing Chanderpaul, who is arguably now the single most important player in world cricket, as well as the oddest.A few statistical pointers:The Lara Effect
Chanderpaul averaged 44 before Lara retired at the end of 2006, but a Bradman-embarrassing 104 since then. The team’s next best two batsmen have also posted more impressive numbers since the great Trindadian swished his spectacular bat for the final time. Both Sarwan and Gayle averaged 38 before his retirement; they average 45 and 44 respectively since.Fast Bowlers
In their last 16 Tests, Steve Harmison averages 47, Fidel Edwards 32, and Jerome Taylor 31. Harmison does however average 24 in 12 Tests against West Indies.Spin Bowlers
Since 1980, England’s specialist spinners in the West Indies have taken 53 wickets in 6 series at an average of 49.70.England’s stagnant batsmen
Excluding Pietersen (50) and Flintoff (32), five of England’s current top 7 have career averages in the low 40s. However, their recent form is less impressive.Cook: career average 42. Last 19 Tests: 36. First 17 Tests: 48.
Strauss: career average 42. Last 24 Tests 37. First 31 Tests: 46.
Bell: career average 41. Last 21 Tests: 36. First 24 Tests: 45.
Pietersen: career average 50. Last 20 Tests: 45. First 25 Tests: 54.
Collingwood: career average 42. Last 24 Tests: 37. First 17 Tests: 48.
Flintoff: career average 32. Last 12 Tests: 24. First 60 Tests: 33.
Prior: career average 40, but excluding century-spanking debut, has averaged 33 over 11 Tests.The statistics speak for themselves. Exactly what they are trying to say is not clear, and the selectors almost certainly are sticking their fingers in their ears and humming the theme tune to themselves, but they are certainly speaking.Possible interpretations of their utterances include:

• “These boys have been operating in the comfort zone of undroppability for too long.”
• “Moores was really, really adequate.”
• “They still haven’t got over the 5th day at Adelaide in 2006.”
• “If at least two or three of you don’t swing your career curves upwards again, you could lose this series.”

Finally, an apology. To Jack Russell. I have lain awake over the last few nights tormented by feelings of guilt and anguish that I have perpetrated a grave injustice by including the Gloucestershire genius in my World’s Dullest XI. His sublime glovework alone should have rendered him beyond consideration, let alone selection, and his batting provided far too fascinating an insight into the curious psyche of a tatty-hat-wearing painter-cricketer. Selectors often make mistakes – I am prepared to be the first in history to admit my error in public.