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2014 has been a bit of a nightmare for Theo Walcott. The flying winger suffered an unfortunate knee injury during the momentous FA Cup win over Tottenham way back in January, and has since missed the Gunners’ successful top four finish and England’s World Cup journey to Brazil.

It’s been a long and rocky road for the 25-year-old, but the weekend win at home to Burnley marked the light at the end of the tunnel for Walcott, who came on for the last 10 minutes in place of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Despite nine months of rehabilitation, the former Southampton youngster was impressive in his brief cameo, forcing a good save from Clarets stopper Tom Heaton, hinting that none of the zip and flair has disappeared. Arsene Wenger has since said that the speedster is not yet at the end of his road to recovery, but the signs look good.

Coming back with Arsenal really beginning to kick into gear this season means that Walcott has the potential to drive the Londoners on to the next level. There’s no doubt that his pace has been missed at the Emirates Stadium – after all, any team would love to have the Three Lions star’s straight line speed – so with the extra injection of horsepower, Wenger will have another tool at his disposal.

It’s not just the Frenchman who will be thrilled by the return of Walcott, with Jack Wilshere having revealed a few weeks ago just how excited he, and his team-mates, is with the prospect of playing alongside the wide-man once again:

“I’ve never played with someone before who times their runs so perfectly and keeps doing it, time after time. It’s tough in a game to repeat those sprints 15 or 20 times but he does it, and it’s a dream for a midfielder.

“He gives us something different – he gives us pace. I know we’ve got Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain who gives us pace but Theo gives you something different without the ball.

“He’s got physically stronger and he looks quicker than he did before – that might seem impossible but he does. He’s done a lot of work on his quads and his power so he’s going to come back fine.”

Pretty positive then. And it’s east to see why, with Walcott’s versatility and dynamism a timely boost as the season enters its crunch period. Now the yellow match day ball is back, winter is officially here, and the festive period means one thing in English football… hectic fixture lists. The cold dark nights in north London will be pierced by the floodlights from the Emirates, which will be the venue for a few encounters for Wenger and his team.

Rotating his squad will be key for the Gunners’ manager to maintain European and domestic aspirations, so having a player of the Englishman’s ability and adaptability is a massive boost. Able to play from either flank or as a striker, Walcott will provide cover and completion for a host of stars, and allow his boss to present opponents with new threats on a weekly basis.

With one of the strongest squads they’ve had for some time and one of the greatest managers in English football’s history, things really are looking rosy for Arsenal. And with a player of Walcott’s talents now back in the fold, the season looks set to get the real jump-start needed for success.

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Another FA Cup triumph? League glory? European achievement? Who knows, but the Gunners’ 2014/15 looks likely to get better and better in the coming months.

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Norwich manager Chris Hughton celebrated the character shown by his players following their 1-1 Premier League draw with Southampton.

The Canaries fell behind to a Rickie Lambert effort, but came back through Robert Snodgrass, whose free-kick evaded Saints goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga.

Norwich are now without a loss in their last seven games following a disappointing start to the season and Hughton feels the grit they showed on field displayed why their form has improved:

“The players are doing something right.” He told SkySports.

“When you look at the latter part of the game and we’re still attacking, still pushing forward trying to get the win, it shows the character.

“I’ve got a squad, particularly a bench, that is desperate to play. We have real competition for places and, at the moment, that is the key.

“Points in this division are very tough to get. At the moment, we are getting them.

“We’ve kept the run going. The performance warranted the result. I saw them play on Sunday and they played very, very well against Newcastle.

“They’ve got a lot of very good footballers in the team and you have to defend very well against them.”

However, there was one sour not for the manager who saw captain Grant Holt storm down the tunnel following his substitution, but he played down the situation:

“It’s not about the captain – it’s about a group of players that I’ve got that are totally committed,

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“I certainly don’t want to see players that are happy not to play and are happy to be brought off.

“My responsibility is to look after the squad and try and get the best out of them.

“If that means players showing a little bit of passion and desire, then I can certainly settle for that.”

One of Australia’s best young cricketers, Sam Konstas, has announced himself on the domestic stage, hitting his maiden Sheffield Shield century for NSW.

AAP08-Oct-2024Teenage prodigy Sam Konstas has announced himself on the big stage, striking a coming-of-age century for New South Wales against South Australia in Sydney.Konstas went to his maiden century on day one of the Blues’ Sheffield Shield season opener, hitting 152 as the hosts went to stumps on 297 for 7 against South Australia at Cricket Central.One of the leading lights of Australia’s U19 World Cup success last year, Konstas has long been touted as one of the country’s best young talents. And the opener showed why on Tuesday.The 19-year-old cover-drove superbly throughout his innings, and took to spinner Ben Manenti by hitting him down the ground for three sixes. He then brought up his century off his 163rd ball in the final over of the second session, nudging Brendan Doggett down to backward-square for a single. Konstas’ first Sheffield Shield ton came with Australia’s chief selector George Bailey in attendance. And while the right-hander is not yet in the conversation for the Test opening spot, good judges expect him to one day figure.Konstas made his Shield debut for NSW last summer, and amid glimpses of promise he brought up a maiden half-century in the last round against Queensland. But he looks a far more accomplished and confident batter this summer.He used his feet well to spin, and swept Nathan McSweeney for a big six before offering up his only chance with a missed stumping by Alex Carey.The youngster then brought up 150 by flat-batting a Lloyd Pope full toss over the legside. He was eventually caught at slip off the legspinner, when adjudged to have inside-edged a ball onto Carey’s legs before it was caught by McSweeney.”It was an amazing achievement. Obviously, it’s good to get my first one,” Konstas said. “I just have to be hungry for runs. And whatever teams I make, it’s a bonus.”With Shane Watson as his mentor, Konstas is a regular meditator before games and rushes to the wicket at the start of his innings.”A big thing [I learned from last summer] was my mental stuff, just keeping simple plans and how can I do it for longer?” Konstas said. “I try to be calm.”I did [meditate] this morning, and then I was trying to do that on the field. Just breathing and using it to switch me on and off.”It worked today.”Konstas’ runs came as wickets fell around him under heavy cloud cover and light drizzle. Moises Henriques (five) and Matthew Gilkes (10) both fell to loose shots outside off stump, while Nic Maddinson was caught charging Manenti on 12.Oliver Davies provided some brief fireworks before being bowled by Jordan Buckingham for 37, while Josh Philippe hit 56 in his first Shield game for the Blues.Philippe was eventually stumped off Pope, as the South Australia spinner finished the day with 3 for 61 and NSW suffered a collapse of 3 for 17. Umpires called off play shortly after due to bad light, infuriating visiting captain McSweeney given he had kept his spinners bowling.

Wyatt half-century, Bell and Moore three-fors as Superchargers fall well short

Matt Roller27-Aug-2023Anya Shrubsole signed off from professional cricket by lifting the Hundred trophy at Lord’s, captaining Southern Brave to their first title in their third final. After successive defeats to Oval Invincibles, they comprehensively outplayed Northern Superchargers in front of a record 21,636 crowd at Lord’s.Brave’s batting let them down in their first two finals and they were 8 for 2 after nine balls on Sunday, Smriti Mandhana and Maia Bouchier falling cheaply after Superchargers opted to bowl first. But they recovered to set a target of 140, Danni Wyatt making 59 off 38 and Freya Kemp contributing an invaluable 31 off 17 from No. 5.Lauren Bell struck twice in her first eight balls in Brave’s defence, including removing Superchargers’ leading run-scorer Phoebe Litchfield who was well caught by Kemp at deep cover-point, and Superchargers were always behind the game.Rhianna Southby, Brave’s 22-year-old wicketkeeper, has played a crucial role for them despite not facing a ball this season: she effected three stumpings in the chase, and finished the Hundred with a tournament-high 11 dismissals.Jemimah Rodrigues opened the batting for Superchargers and was starved of the strike: when she was caught at extra cover for 24, she had faced just 14 of the first 73 balls bowled. Bell and Kalea Moore took three wickets each, and the winning moment came when Bell whipped off the bails to run No. 11 Grace Ballinger out after a mix-up.Shrubsole had been due to bowl the final five balls but Superchargers were bowled out with six to spare. Having left international cricket after last year’s World Cup, she opted to play on as Brave captain this year and her impending retirement has been a source of motivation for the squad throughout the season, who were determined to send her off with a trophy.Shrubsole looked uncharacteristically emotional in the aftermath of the final wicket, and admitted her overwhelming emotion was one of relief. “We feel like we’ve played some brilliant cricket,” she said, “coming into this we’d won 20 out of 25 games which is an unbelievable record. Not to have won the trophy was tough to take so it felt like this was just deserts.”For Charlotte Edwards, their coach, this was a third short-form trophy this year, after success in the Women’s Premier League with Mumbai Indians and with Southern Vipers in the Charlotte Edwards Cup. Brave have been the best team across the three seasons of the Hundred, and lifted an overdue trophy as the fireworks were set off at Lord’s.Danni Wyatt notched the first half-century in a Women’s Hundred final•ECB via Getty Images

After walking around the boundary from the stage in the Compton Stand, Shrubsole was given a guard of honour by both teams as she walked back towards the pavilion, holding the H-shaped trophy aloft as she did so. It was a fitting send-off for a great of England women’s cricket.Mandhana hit the first ball of the final for four through point but slashed the second to gully, and when Bouchier skied Kate Cross to extra cover, they were forced to rebuild through Wyatt and Georgia Adams.They had 45 off the first 43 balls of the final before Wyatt cut loose with back-to-back boundaries off Lucy Higham, at which point Superchargers became ragged in the field. Wyatt, who finished the tournament as leading run-scorer, swept Higham for four to bring up a 35-ball 50 and lofted Georgia Wareham for the first six of the game.She was primed to accelerate at the death when she was on the wrong end of a freak dismissal: Adams drove the ball straight back at her at the non-striker’s end as she started to take a run, and Cross executed a simple run-out as it popped up into her hands. When Adams holed out to midwicket after a chancy 27 off 28, Superchargers had an opening.But Kemp added 31 with a streaky cameo, hitting five boundaries to keep Brave on track. She eventually chopped Cross’ cutter onto her stumps; while Cross fumbled both a catch and a run-out chance off the penultimate ball, she was the pick of Superchargers’ attack with 3 for 21 off her 20.Bell thought she had struck with the first ball of the chase, trapping Marie Kelly on the pad only for her to successfully review the on-field decision. It hardly mattered: Kelly was dismissed by the next delivery she faced, with the ball ricocheting off her pad and onto the base of the stumps.When Litchfield lofted into the deep, Brave had two early wickets and were in control of the game. Southby’s sharp work gave Moore a wicket with her first ball, stumping Hollie Armitage, and her fast hands accounted for Bess Heath soon after, Chloe Tryon making amends for a drop on the square-leg boundary by beating her on the outside edge.Shrubsole had Alice Davidson-Richards lbw to leave Superchargers five down, and a brilliant catch by Bouchier – running in off the long-on boundary, then diving forwards at full stretch – meant Rodrigues was their last hope. Having tried and failed to build partnerships by knocking singles, she looked to loft Moore over extra cover but picked Adams out.Southby pulled off her third stumping as Leah Dobson charged Moore and missed, and Bell administered the last rites, having Higham caught at short fine leg then completing a straightforward run-out at the bowler’s end to cue the celebrations.

“The BCCI is committed to international cricket… all bilateral international commitments across all formats will be honoured”

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Jun-2022The blockbuster IPL media rights deal will be followed by a bigger window for the IPL from the next ICC FTP calendar, likely starting with the 2024 edition of the tournament, Jay Shah, the BCCI secretary, has said.Confirming the chatter about the IPL being an 84- or even a 94-match competition in the near future, Shah said in an interview to PTI, “That is an aspect we have worked upon. Let me inform you that from the next ICC FTP calendar, IPL will have an official two-and-a-half month window so that all the top international cricketers can participate. We have had discussions with various boards as well as the ICC.”The current ICC FTP, running from 2018 to 2023, ends with the men’s 50-over World Cup, to be played in India in October-November 2023. It was earlier meant to be played in the first half of the year but had to be deferred to accommodate the many bilateral series and tournaments pushed back because of the Covid-19 pandemic.As reported by ESPNcricinfo during IPL 2022, various options are on the table for the BCCI when it comes to expanding the length – and therefore value – of the IPL, including organising it in two phases every year.”We are having discussions with various stake-holders,” Shah said. “There are also multiple proposals for all the IPL franchises of playing friendlies overseas. That idea is being seriously contemplated but for that we also need to speak to other boards as we would need to know the schedule of international players.”The biggest concern, if the IPL were to take more days every year, is how the international calendar, which is already packed, will be affected. Shah stressed that the BCCI remained “committed” to international cricket.”Indian cricket will remain strong as long as world cricket remains strong – let me assure you of this,” he said. “The BCCI is committed to international cricket. And it’s not just about India versus Australia or India versus England marquee series, we are committed to playing even the smaller nations.”All bilateral international commitments across all formats will be honoured. We are playing Ireland in two T20 Internationals this month only. We want a strong robust international circuit and want to help the smaller cricketing nations by playing against them.”That could, potentially, mean a tremendous workload for India’s premier cricketers, especially the ones that play all formats. The BCCI is trying to figure out a way around the problem, according to Shah, but it could well mean more than one Indian team being engaged in bilateral exchanges at the same time in different parts of the world.”I have had discussions with NCA [National Cricket Academy] head VVS Laxman and we will always have 50 players in our roster,” Shah said. “In future, you will have a scenario, where the Indian Test team will be playing a series in one country and the white-ball team will be engaged in a series in a different country.”We are going in that direction where we will have two national teams ready at the same time.”

Kohli’s 72 in vain as England wrap up 227-run win for their sixth straight away victory

Matt Roller09-Feb-20214:23

Bell: The best I’ve seen Anderson bowl

England inflicted a 227-run defeat on India in Chennai thanks to a dominant fourth-innings bowling performance, with Jack Leach and James Anderson taking seven wickets between them on the final day as they wrapped up victory before tea.Related

• Root caution understandable as England seek reward for dominance

After removing Rohit Sharma on the fourth evening, Leach struck the first blow on the fifth morning by drawing an edge from Cheteshwar Pujara, and returned to help mop up the tail, but it was Anderson’s spell before lunch that ripped out India’s middle order and set the win in motion.With the ball reverse-swinging and keeping low from a length, Anderson sent the off stump cartwheeling out the ground twice in his first over of the day to remove Shubman Gill and Ajinkya Rahane, and induced a leading edge from Rishabh Pant to leave him with figures of 5-3-6-3 in a spell that defined the day.Despite a near-faultless innings of 72 from Virat Kohli, India’s chances were quashed by the loss of five wickets in the first session, and after a grubber from Ben Stokes snuck under Kohli’s bat, Leach and Jofra Archer finished the job to seal a sixth consecutive away win for England. This was only India’s second defeat at home since their 2-1 series loss to England in late 2012, and leaves them needing at least two wins and a draw in the remaining three matches if they are to reach the inaugural World Test Championship (WTC) final.Gill had started the day by working the first ball he faced for four through midwicket, punishing Leach as he dropped a fraction short. But if India had hoped that would be a sign of things to come, there was evidence early on that the pitch would not prove straightforward: Gill had to jam his bat down on a shooter from Leach, and was beaten by some extra bounce from a length two overs later, while Archer found inconsistency in carry while bowling to Pujara.Pujara’s wicket looked the crucial one, after his rearguard efforts in Australia and with his impeccable record against left-arm spin. But he was gone within half an hour: he closed the face looking to work Leach into the leg side, but the ball turned and bounced to take the shoulder of the bat and loop up to Stokes at slip.Gill continued to score freely, picking off Dom Bess’ loose balls and reaching a fluent half-century, at which point Joe Root threw the ball to Anderson, hoping he could get it to reverse-swing. He could. His second ball was full, and hooped in from outside off stump. It breached the gap between Gill’s bat and pad, and crashed into the off stump, sending it cartwheeling and England into exuberant celebrations.But Anderson was not content with a single breakthrough. The fourth ball of his over rapped Rahane on the pad, again hooping in towards the stumps from wide on the crease and keeping low. Umpire Nitin Menon was unmoved so England reviewed, and while the ball was shown to have been crashing into the base of middle, the decision was upheld with its impact shown as ‘umpire’s call’.James Anderson celebrates the wicket of Ajinkya Rahane•BCCI

There was no doubt about his next ball. Anderson again went very full, anticipating prodigious movement from the reversing ball, and again snuck through the gap between bat and pad. The ball kept low once more, pinging into Rahane’s off stump and sending it out of its groove. It left India four down within the first hour, and with their hopes of saving the game hanging by a thread.Anderson struck once more in his spell, with Pant unable to continue his rich vein of form. Having reversed the ball both ways, Anderson ran his fingers down the side of the ball when pitching full, and Pant, shaping to work to leg, could only miscue to Root at short cover via a leading edge.Bess returned after an inconsistent first spell, and once Kohli – who looked in fine touch right from the start of his innings – had hit him for four off a full toss, he drew a thin edge from Washington Sundar, prodding forward outside off, who was given out on review.Kohli represented India’s final hope, putting away three consecutive full tosses from the wayward Bess before lunch and lofting Archer down the ground for a crisp four. Archer rapped Ashwin on the glove before striking him on the wrist and the badge of the helmet, but India went into the break six down.After lunch, Leach again found extra bounce from a length to get Ashwin caught behind, shaping to cut but only managing to glove through to Jos Buttler behind the stumps. Kohli had not put a foot wrong, but was undone by a shooter from Stokes which skidded out of the rough and knocked back the off stump, and after Leach had Shahbaz Nadeem caught at silly point – via a deflection from Buttler – to take his fourth and England’s ninth, Archer sealed the win as Jasprit Bumrah edged behind.England were buoyant, winning their sixth Test in Asia on the bounce and extending their unbeaten run under Root’s captaincy to 11, helping him move level with Michael Vaughan with 26 career wins – the most by an England captain. Questions about the timing of his declaration were made academic by a clinical bowling performance on the final day, and his side are now 1-0 up in a series they went into as outsiders.

Derbyshire pair Harvey Hosein and Leus du Plooy post fifties in rain-hit fixture at Lord’s

ECB Reporters Network25-Sep-2019Dawid Malan and Billy Godleman joined something of an exclusive club as the game between Middlesex and Derbyshire meandered towards a draw on day three at Lord’s.The respective captains became just the fifth and sixth batsmen in Division Two to reach 1,000 Championship runs for the season on the campaign’s penultimate day. Only Warwickshire’s Dominic Sibley has managed the feat in Division One.Malan’s came in a score 72 out of a Middlesex total of 260, while Godleman achieved four figures when reaching 19, going on to make 27 as Derbyshire replied with 199 for 4.The loss of much of the first two days to rain means without contrivance this game will peter out on the final day of the season on Thursday.Middlesex began a day which started 45 minutes late on 199 for 5 and Malan, left on 999 for the season overnight, raised his landmark by stroking his first ball to the cover boundary, but departed soon afterwards, lbw to Luis Reece, who claimed 4 for 61.Reece claimed his fourth wicket when Toby Roland-Jones was lbw playing no shot before Fynn Hudson-Prentice mopped up the tail, leaving James Harris 25 not out.Godleman and Reece started with a flurry of boundaries, the openers added 49 in fewer than 10 overs before Ethan Bamber removed the latter lbw for 26 with the score on 49. When Wayne Madsen went the same way first ball Bamber was on a hat-trick, but excitement got the better of him as a leg-stump delivery on the hip was tucked away for two runs by new batsman Leus Du Plooy.Nevertheless, Derbyshire were 55 for 3, having lost three wickets for six runs, when Godleman edged Roland-Jones to Malan at slip.Du Plooy and Alex Hughes steadied matters with a stand of 48, but Tim Murtagh returned to have the latter caught by Miguel Cummins at wide mid-off just before tea.The third session saw Derbyshire in charge, du Plooy finding an ally in wicketkeeper Harvey Hosein, the pair prospering against Middlesex’s seamers who persistently banged the ball in too short. Hosein was first to reach 50 from 80 balls with six fours, while Du Plooy took 31 deliveries more, but with eight boundaries.Bad light ended play shortly afterwards meaning another 16 overs were lost in this weather-ruined fixture.

An edge-of-the-seat finish at The Oval saw Surrey take another significant stride towards the Championship title

Daniel Norcross at Kia Oval22-Aug-2018
ScorecardAn astounding one-handed reflex catch by Will Jacks at short leg broke Lancashire’s resistance and gave Surrey victory by just six runs in a match for the ages at The Oval.The victory preserves Surrey’s unbeaten run in the County Championship and keeps them 32 points clear of Somerset in second place after their win against Essex at Taunton.This match had shifted to and fro throughout 10 sessions of absorbing play, and right up to the last ball was balanced so precariously that one wise young head in the press box had prepared for the eventuality of a tie by discovering that Surrey’s last one was in 1908.In the opening session, Morne Morkel looked to have taken Surrey to the brink of victory with a sensational three-wicket burst that first broke a stubborn partnership of 78 between debutant Josh Bohannon and Steven Croft, then exposed Lancashire’s usually fragile tail.Bohannon’s dismissal may be a harbinger of things to come. Surrey captain Rory Burns, mindful that the pink Kookaburra ball was so soft it was failing to carry to the slips, even off a bowler of Morkel’s considerable pace, had stationed himself at second slip, almost suicidally close to the batsman. Instantly his bravery reaped dividends as Bohannon drove forcefully, the ball screeching to Burns who clung on quite brilliantly.With England in a perennial search for an opener and with a constantly changing slip cordon that can barely hold on to the simplest of chances, the chance of a call up for Burns, this season’s leading run scorer, grows stronger by the day.When Joe Mennie fell to another snorter from Morkel, edging behind to Ben Foakes, Lancashire’s hot pot looked well and truly cooked at 209 for 8, still needing a further 63 for victory. Amar Virdi was keeping one end tight while Morkel was wreaking havoc from the other end. The prospect of a second new ball was hoving into view, but Graham Onions decided to smash Morkel out of the attack. An unusual, unlikely and hugely risky stratagem, one might have thought, but one that worked wonders as he planted the ball over the long-on boundary.Morkel was duly replaced with Rikki Clarke, but the new ball was not taken. It was a tricky decision for Burns. Virdi was wheeling away economically, the pink new ball in this match has leaked runs, and the old one is softer than marshmallow but with Sam Curran unused and therefore fresh, it began to look like an increasingly capricious decision.At lunch Lancashire had inched to 247 for 8, adding 70 runs in 31 overs, 16 of them delivered by the diligent Virdi.
Straight after the break, Burns took the new ball. Curran, who damaged his hand fielding off his own bowling on the third day, was smote down the ground off the first ball for six by Onions. The target now just 18 runs away.Whilst there were no confirmed reports of umbrellas being gnawed through or spectators being taken away in ambulances as reportedly happened in 1882 at The Oval, the crowd was becoming increasingly panicked. Burns was taking his time between balls. Fielders were stationed in far flung parts. Then Morkel, resuming from the Pavilion End, castled Onions. Fifteen more needed for the last pair. Surely the game was now Surrey’s. Tom Bailey and Matt Parkinson had other ideas. An edged four past the diving third man and a coupled of squeezed singles took Lancashire to within one blow of the tie.By now, players and spectators in Taunton were watching the action on TVs in the pavilion. If Lancashire could get over the line, Somerset would move to within just 16 points of Surrey and play them in the penultimate match of the season. Suddenly Surrey’s supposedly insurmountable lead at the top of the table looked exceedingly precarious.Back at The Oval, Parkinson was on strike. Short leg stationed about three yards from the bat. Spectators pacing hither and yon, barely able to watch. Then the coup de grace. A short ball into the ribs. Parkinson clipped it firmly to the right of Jacks who, staying crouched but watching the ball, stuck out an instinctive right hand. The ball stayed put and he was mobbed by delirious team-mates. The crowd of around a thousand bellowed their approval, relief and belief that the title is now destined to return to Surrey after a 16-year sabbatical.Morkel has transformed the Surrey attack from reliable grafters into the most potent strike force in the country. Last season no one took more than Gareth Batty’s 25 wickets, and apart from Clarke, no one averaged below 29. Last season Surrey managed to win only two of their 14 games. In part, moribund pitches were to blame but there was a lack of cutting edge.This time round, led by Morkel’s 33 wickets at 14.12, they have five bowlers who have already taken 25 wickets or more and all of them at an average below 28.30. This victory was their seventh in nine matches. And, yes, the pitches at The Oval have offered much more to the bowlers.This match was won without Jason Roy, Scott Borthwick (both injured) and Ollie Pope (England duty). Surrey’s squad may well be tested further if Burns gets a call-up and Sam Curran is recalled, but victories like this, whilst being excruciatingly uncomfortable for their passionate fans, bring an air of destiny to their title challenge and it is the County Championship title those fans prize more than any other.As many a Surrey supporter gleefully shouted at the end of this truly terrific match, “who needs The Hundred?”

Stephen Fleming was proud of the planning and execution by Pune this IPL season, and the one-run loss in the final did not change that he said

Arun Venugopal in Hyderabad22-May-2017The one run that separated Mumbai Indians from Rising Pune Supergiant is an accurate representation of the way the IPL 2017 final played out. Both teams scrapped hard on a sluggish surface and made mistakes in turns. However, when it came to the final act, Pune, as their coach Stephen Fleming put it, couldn’t “kill the game”.”It was a game of inches and metres,” Fleming said after the match. “Steve Smith came very close to winning it in the last over and it could have been a much different story. But that was the nature of the game. It was very ebb and flow on what was quite a tough wicket to score on. We knew that it was going to be tough. We knew their bowling attack was top class. We fell behind a couple of times. We lost wickets at key times. They just hung in and created enough pressure to get across the line but it was just a great final. It was full of pressure, full of mistakes and it was full of great performances. It was a grand finish to a good competition”.After Rohit Sharma had opted to bat, Pune’s bowlers largely neutered whatever advantage Mumbai may have hoped to gain from winning the toss with tight spells at the top. While the fielding – right from Jaydev Unadkat’s return catch to send back Lendl Simmons to Smith’s direct hit that caught Ambati Rayudu short – was first-rate, there was no shortage of tactical smarts as well.Against Kieron Pollard, Pune replicated the field they had for him during the league game at the Wankhede Stadium and almost immediately found success. Manoj Tiwary was stationed on the boundary right behind the bowler, and Pollard holed out to him with unerring accuracy off the third ball he faced.”We were happy. The way we bowled and went about our work was very good. One-hundred and twenty-nine, if you asked us that as a score in a final to chase down, you would take it every time,” Fleming said. “We were calculated in the field. Some of the outs were very pleasing in terms of field positioning and tactics we used. Batting wise, it was always going to be a grind.”We were a batter short with Ben Stokes not being here. We were playing an extra bowler and we were a little mindful of that. The best way was a couple of partnerships and gain momentum. We saw Smith and [Ajinkya] Rahane come close to that. We just lost wickets at key times and it kept them just in the game, and then they came home with a real rush.”While Pune had a decent start in the Powerplay to score 38 for 1, they could make only incremental advances as they scored 27 runs in the next five overs. Fleming, however, maintained there was no other way they could have approached the chase.”If you lose three for 20, then it’s game on. It was always going to take us a partnership to get close but we just could not get the one or two overs when we were close to putting the game away,” he said. “We lost wickets, or they bowled a good over. It was never going to be a wicket where they could blast your way through. When we played against [Sunrisers] Hyderabad, we found that as well. Just batting deep was the best opportunity and we could not get over the line [tonight].”The wicket was two paced. Both teams struggled to play aggressively on it. The number of boundaries that were limited and the mis-hits that came along suggested inconsistent bounce and reverse swing. It was a tough track to score on, but the bowling on both sides was outstanding. We have some good bowlers who have performed well in that type of conditions for most of the tournament and we were at it again today. They have some good pace bowlers who did a great job, especially in the last four or five overs.”Fleming, said the result wouldn’t gloss over the advances made by Pune in IPL 2017 after finishing second from bottom on the points table last year. What pleased him most was the contribution made by relatively low-key players like Jaydev Unadkat, Rahul Tripathi and Manoj Tiwary.Stephen Fleming: ‘Steve was the captain this year and MS Dhoni slotted in to the role of a senior player very easily’•AFP

“I don’t think we are the most skilled side in the IPL. What we have had is players stand up from nowhere. We take real pride in that,” he said. “We have created an environment where some players have been able to excel. Jaydev has been extraordinary again today, so has been Rahul Tripathi and Tiwary. Big stars have stepped up at key times as well. Ben Stokes was fantastic for us.”Steve was the captain this year and MS Dhoni slotted in to the role of a senior player very easily. He is a proud man but he is humble man. We saw the interaction between the two and other leaders, Faf du Plessis as well. So leadership was never going to be a weakness for us. It was a case of making sure all our leaders were contributing in the right areas.”I am very proud of the combination we put together and the campaign we ran. We would have loved to have sat here and had the icing on the cake but it does not change the feelings about the work that we put in during the year to get to this point.”As part of the two-year agreement, Pune have possibly played their last game as an IPL franchise as Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals are set to return in IPL 2018. What does the future hold for Fleming and the team?”We concentrated on getting this game through and finishing as well as we could and then whatever happens after this, I am not sure anybody knows about it to be honest,” he said. “We didn’t spend a lot of time on working out what-ifs. It was purely what we could control and that was getting into the final. Secondly, we lost some players on the way to the final so that was a big goal to get here [to the top two] and then hopefully play two good games. And we came pretty close”.

Stiaan van Zyl, Dane Vilas and Simon Harmer remain part of South Africa’s national plans despite all being dropped from the Test squad in the 2015-16 season, as they were named in CSA’s spin camp that will take place in Mumbai in May

Firdose Moonda10-May-2016Opening batsman Stiaan van Zyl, wicketkeeper Dane Vilas and offspinner Simon Harmer remain part of South Africa’s national plans despite being dropped from the Test squad at various points in the 2015-16 season. The trio, along with four other batsmen and seven other bowlers, will travel to Mumbai for CSA’s annual spin camp which will take place for a week from May 14.

SA spin camp

Bowlers: Bjorn Fortuin, Simon Harmer, George Linde, Keshav Maharaj, Tshepo Ntuli, Aaron Phangiso, Dane Piedt, Prenelan Subrayen
Batsmen: Temba Bavuma, Reeza Hendricks, Smangaliso Nhlebela, Hector Ngobeni, Stiaan van Zyl, Dane Vilas

Both van Zyl and Harmer have participated in previous editions of the camp and, given their uncertain place in the team, may view this as a lifeline, even though some of their competitors are accompanying them on the trip.Van Zyl was dispensed with at the top of the order after a series of low scores against India and England. He was replaced by Temba Bavuma – who is part of the camp – against India, and then by Stephen Cook. After van Zyl’s struggles against R Ashwin in particular – the offspinner dismissed him in all five innings in India – he was sent back to his franchise Cape Cobras, and moved down to a more familiar spot in the middle order. Despite that, van Zyl has indicated to the national selectors that he would like to challenge for a Test opening place again and could turn out in that position when the 2016-17 season starts.Vilas also paid the price for a poor India tour and lost his spot to Quinton de Kock, who appears to have established himself as South Africa’s long-term wicketkeeper in all formats. The importance of a back-up, however, has not been lost on the management. When de Kock was injured ahead of the Wanderers Test against England in January, Vilas was flown in as an emergency replacement and has since gone on to score big runs for Cape Cobras. He finished second on the run charts of the Sunfoil series first-class competition, scoring 761 runs in eight matches at an average of 69.18.Like Vilas, Harmer dealt with the disappointment of losing his Test spot with solid domestic performances. After playing two of the four Tests in India in November 2015, he returned home to take 31 wickets in nine matches at 22.41 for Warriors to finish as their leading wicket-taker in the Sunfoil series and eighth overall.Ahead of Harmer are three other spinners: chinaman bowler Tabraiz Shamsi, who is currently with Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL and is not part of the camp, offspinner Dane Piedt, Harmer’s replacement and South Africa’s first-choice Test spinner, and left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj. Piedt and Maharaj have been picked for the camp, with Phangiso and Prenelan Subrayen, who had their actions declared illegal and then cleared in March this year. Among the younger talents is Cape Cobras’ left-arm spinner George Linde, who has been contracted to the franchise for the first time for the coming season.