Arne Slot says he "would have loved" to have brought on Diogo Jota in a heartbreaking admission following Liverpool's dramatic 4-2 win over Bournemouth on Friday.
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Netherlands were 167 for 5. They had never chased a target as big as 291 in ODI cricket. Fast forward to the 49th over and they were gifted the winning run off a wide
ESPNcricinfo staff21-Jun-2019
Pieter Seelaar darts for a single on the off side during his 68•Peter Della Penna
Zimbabwe came into this game after getting a proper beating. But nearly all of their key players stood up to change the narrative. Sikandar Raza played finisher to perfection, making 85 off only 68 balls and remaining unbeaten so that the effort of his team-mates higher up the order – Craig Ervine scored 84 and Brendan Taylor struck a fifty as well – yielded a solid total. At the innings break, 290 for 6 looked a winning score. And that perception only grew when Sean Williams too four wickets with his left-arm spin.Netherlands were 167 for 5 in the 33rd over. They had never chased a target as big as this in ODI cricket before. But fast forward to the 49th and they were gifted the winning run off a wide.Much of the recovery had already been done, with Roelof van der Merwe striking a composed 57 off 54 balls and the wicketkeeper Scott Edwards keeping pace despite scoring only three boundaries in his unbeaten 44. Eventually though that sixth-wicket partnership at nearly run a ball gave way to one that was pure mayhem.The Netherlands captain Pieter Seelaar came out with the equation reading 62 off 42 balls and completely broke the game. He faced only 15 deliveries but sent six of them to the boundary to ensure his team set a new national record.A big chase usually needs a good opening stand and Netherlands had that too. Tobias Visee, who will be opening the batting with Chris Gayle at the Global T20 Canada, batted in a matter befitting that as he whacked 41 off only 33 balls. His partner, Max O’Dowd who scored a half-century on debut on Wednesday followed it up with another, but when he fell to Williams, the game seemed to tilt towards Zimbabwe and the series was set to be shared 1-1.Then everything changed.
The opener added that they would be going hard on visitors Pakistan, keeping the points needed for direct 2021 ODI World Cup qualification in mind
Liam Brickhill05-May-2019Vital ranking points that could be crucial in deciding who qualifies for the women’s ODI World Cup in 2021 are up for grabs as Pakistan’s tour of South Africa kicks off with the first of three one-day internationals at Senwes Park in Potchefstroom on Monday.Hard-hitting opener Lizelle Lee is delighted with the consistent improvement of the team, and particularly the batting unit, and is cautiously optimistic of their chances against the visitors.Squads
South Africa: Sune Luus (captain), Nadine De Klerk, Shabnim Ismail, Sinalo Jafta, Marizanne Kapp, Masabata Klaas, Lizelle Lee (wicketkeeper), Zintle Mali, Mignon du Preez, Tumi Sekhukhune, Nondumiso Shangase, Andrie Steyn, Chloe Tryon, Laura Wolvaardt
Pakistan: Bismah Maroof (captain), Aiman Anwar, Aliya Riaz, Fatima Sana, Javeria Khan, Jaweria Rauf, Kainat Imtiaz, Nahida Khan, Nashra Sandhu, Nida Dar, Rameen Shamim, Sana Mir, Sidra Amin, Sidra Nawaz (wicketkeeper) and Omaima Sohail
“There is no better teacher in cricket than game time against good opposition,” Lee said. “We’re really fortunate to be getting more and more time out on the field. It really helps teams grow and ups the competitiveness of women’s cricket around the world.”When we go into game one on Monday, we’re going to go hard because we understand the importance of the World Cup and the points needed for World Cup qualification,” added Lee. “The way we are batting and bowling now and even fielding gives me confidence that we can do well in this series. We’re definitely going out to get those six points, we’re not going to hold back.”Right now, because we’ve played so much cricket we have a team that’s more confident in themselves and their abilities because we’ve been in enough match situations that we don’t panic when things don’t go our way – it’s the healthiest and most competitive that we’ve ever been as a national team.”Hosts South Africa are currently ranked fifth and visitors Pakistan sixth in the women’s championship, with just a single point separating the two teams. The eight-team championship provides the path for direct qualification for the World Cup for four teams, alongside hosts New Zealand.South Africa, on 13 points from 12 matches, would look to improve their points position in home conditions after their recent 3-0 series win over Sri Lanka, while Pakistan would be hoping to keep up the tempo after a 2-1 series win over the West Indies. They are also without captain Dane van Niekerk, who picked up a leg injury during Sri Lanka’s tour earlier this year, with Sune Luus standing in as skipper.Australia have assured themselves of a place in the World Cup as they are at the top of the table with 22 points from 12 matches while England, who have 18 points from 15 games, will get the chance to do so in a home series against the West Indies next month. India and New Zealand are second and third on the table with 16 and 14 points, respectively.There are also personal milestones at stake in the series for both sides. Seamer Marizanne Kapp is South Africa’s top-ranked bowler in sixth position, with an eye on a move into the top five. She is only 10 points behind India’s Shikha Pandey with 678 points. Just behind Kapp with 663 points is Shabnim Ismail in seventh position. For Pakistan, former captain Sana Mir could challenge for the top position among bowlers as she goes into this series in third position, just 12 points adrift of the top-ranked Jhulan Goswami of India.South Africa fought back with Sune Luus’ five-for•ICC/Getty ImagesThe hosts’ squad also includes a couple of fresh faces looking to make a strong impression. Wicketkeeper Sinalo Jafta, who is back in the national set-up for the first time in two years, said she is both nervous and excited about her re-call.”I actually thought I got called to be told that I’ve missed out on the call-up, until he [Clinton du Preez, national convenor of selectors] told me that I’ve made it for the tour,” Jafta siad. “I thought it was just for the ODIs because previously, I only ever played ODIs so when he said I was in for the whole tour, inside I was like ‘finally all this hard work has brought me back here.’ It’s taken two years but I’m finally back. It was emotional.”This time around, yes there are nerves, which is good. If I wasn’t nervous I think I would be wasting my time, but at the same time, it’s not overshadowing my confidence.”After a promising spell in the national academy, 23-year-old Nondumiso Shangase could be in line for an international debut against Pakistan. Shangase was the first black African woman to score a hundred for KwaZulu-Natal, a team she also captains, achieving the feat against Mpumalanga in a provincial match last year. Success at provincial level saw her included in the academy intake – alongside the likes of Robyn Searle, Tumi Sekhukhune and Lara Goodall – and she could now be tested in one of the allrounder slots against Pakistan.”I was at Kingsmead practising (with the KZN women’s provincial team) when Clinton (du Preez) called me and told me that I’m gonna be part of the squad in both formats,” said Shangase. “I was so speechless. I froze, I didn’t say anything to him, I kept quiet. I was so excited and emotional. I even cried.””I didn’t think it was gonna happen so fast. I was aiming for maybe after this year’s national academy but I’m grateful,” Shangase added. “By the end of this tour, I’m hoping to be a better player than before. To learn a lot about my batting and bowling because I’m an allrounder and I want to take in as much as I can so that I can get another call-up.”
Michael Neser’s unbeaten 75 had earlier lifted Queensland well over 400 on a good batting surface
Alex Malcolm24-Feb-2019
Marcus Harris drives through the off side•Getty Images
Australia opener Marcus Harris fell agonisingly short of a second Sheffield Shield century of the summer to leave Victoria’s clash with Queensland evenly poised at stumps on day two.Harris was given out caught behind for 95 off the bowling of Mitch Swepson in the second last over before the close. He was bitterly disappointed having hit his pad with his bat as he defended from the crease but the umpire deemed the ball scratched his outside edge.”I didn’t hit it,” Harris said after play. “I hit my back pad. But it doesn’t matter.”It was the first time Harris had been dismissed in the 90s in his first-class career having struck 15 fours in a very fluent 155-ball innings. He was savage on anything straight as Queensland’s quicks overpitched on his pads on seven occasions.He did have some fortune early with two loose shots wide of off stump flying safely off the edge wide of the cordon. He also edged a ball on 55 at knee height through a vacant third slip.Harris, who had a lean Test series against Sri Lanka after impressing against India, put on 82 with Nic Maddinson after stands of 49 and 56 with Travis Dean and Will Pucovski respectively. Dean edged Michael Neser to slip for 26 while Pucovski looked very comfortable for his 22 before gloving a pull shot down the leg side off Mark Steketee.Maddinson finished the day 36 not out alongside nightwatchman Scott Boland with Victoria 257 runs behind.Earlier, Charlie Hemphrey fell seven runs shy of his fifth first-class century on a day of near misses. Victoria’s quicks starved him of scoring opportunities in the morning and he finally succumbed slashing and edging a wide one from Peter Siddle for 93.Neser proved a thorn in Victoria’s side making an unbeaten 75, his fifth half-century of the Shield summer. It was the first time he batted at No.7 in his career after pestering the Bulls coaching staff for an opportunity to move one spot higher in the order. He was very fortunate to survive an lbw shout on 38 when Siddle him on the back pad in front of off stump but the umpire gave it not out. The decision allowed Neser to help propel Queensland’s total well beyond 400.
Pakistan will hope to extend their T20I winning run to nine in a row having already sealed an 11th consecutive series victory
The Preview by Danyal Rasool03-Nov-2018
Pakistan have been pushed this T20I series, in a manner they weren’t against Australia, but no matter the challenge thrown at them, they seem to find a way in this format. The detractors are finding it harder to explain away Pakistan’s spell of dominance as a purple patch, a streak of good fortune, or a consequence of playing against weaker teams. They have now put Australia and New Zealand to the sword with the same ruthlessness that overpowered West Indies, Sri Lanka and Scotland, showing a versatility in the paths to victory this side can take. They have won tough, they have won easy. They have won by enormous margins and heart-stoppingly narrow ones. They have won batting first, they have won chasing. And now, with one to spare, they have won another T20I series, their 11th in a row.This one comes against the side that has tested them more in this run than arguably any other, both this week and in New Zealand earlier this year. Yet, they go into the final game in Dubai having won their last four against Kane Williamson’s men, and their last eight overall. Should they stick to their plans, they are well-fancied to come out of yet another series unblemished, their strength lying not just in the playing XI, but their overall depth. They might make the odd change to the fast-bowling unit, but in what is overall a very settled side there should be no overhaul for a dead rubber. With Pakistan having such a proud recent record to defend, there really are no dead rubbers for Sarfraz Ahmed’s team.Despite having lost one series within three days of the tour beginning, it is unlikely Williamson will be too disappointed with what his men have showed. There is plenty to suggest New Zealand have a lot to offer for the remainder of this tour, with the visitors always likely to mount sterner challenges in the longer formats. A win in the final T20I could well be a springboard to success in the games that follow, and with New Zealand having lost one game by two runs and the other by two balls, it isn’t a stretch for them to hope they can put one on Pakistan even if they cannot prevent them lifting the trophy.New Zealand have missed Martin Guptill’s big hitting at the top, with the young Glenn Phillips unable to complement Colin Munro quite as effectively. They have to work out how to make better use of the first six overs to relieve some of the pressure on Munro. It may see the captain promoting himself to open, with Williamson famous for his ability to pierce narrow gaps in the infield. There is a large discrepancy between Phillips’ T20I strike rate – 98.27 after nine innings – compared to the 134.20 he boasts in T20s overall, and if he is backed for a third game, he will need to bring his best to give his side the greatest chance to victory.
Pakistan WWWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)New Zealand LLLLL
There are few more exciting players in Pakistan cricket than Fakhar Zaman, and yet, since his heroics in Zimbabwe, he has been going through a slightly barren limited-overs run. Either side of a successful Test debut, Fakhar has scored 105 runs in his last eight white-ball innings at an average of 13.13, numbers that sit uncomfortably with his deservedly elite status in the current Pakistan side. There is no particular reason you could put this down to except just one of those runs every cricketer will go through; after all, in his maiden Test appearance against Australia, he amassed 160 runs. But having returned for the second T20I from a slight niggle, Fakhar may be itching to make the sort of singular impact only he can. With the series won and the pressure off, it is an ideal opportunity, and if Fakhar is primed to grasp it, he could smash New Zealand out of the game very early on.While New Zealand have almost matched Pakistan in both games, the one area where the difference in quality is vast is the spinners the respective captains can turn to. While Sarfraz has a plethora of options the envy of any international side – think Shadab Khan, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Hafeez, perhaps even Shoaib Malik – Williamson is limited to Ish Sodhi and Ajaz Patel. There is a reason Sodhi is ranked among the top ten T20I bowlers, but his economy rate is higher than any of Pakistan’s quartet of spinners, and it was his 17-run over that put Pakistan on course on Friday. Add to that the inexperience of Patel, who after an impressive debut was indifferent in the second game, leaving Williamson to draw on three overs of Munro’s medium pace. If New Zealand are to seriously challenge Pakistan, Sodhi and Patel have to perform out of their skins in these conditions where spin matters so much, because so far, the gulf is evident.
It is unlikely Pakistan will make too many changes to a side so brimful of confidence. With the series sealed, Waqas Maqsood is set to make his debut.Pakistan: (Possible) 1 Babar Azam, 2 Fakhar Zaman, 3 Asif Ali, 4 Shoaib Malik, 5, Mohammad Hafeez 6 Sarfraz Ahmed (capt & wk), 7 Faheem Ashraf, 8 Imad Wasim, 9 Shadab Khan, 10 Hasan Ali/Shaheen Afridi, 11 Waqas MaqsoodIt has been a bit of a surprise not to see Mark Chapman feature yet. He may be drafted in for the third T20I, should New Zealand decide to drop Phillips. Lockie Ferguson’s pace, too, may see him get a start ahead of Adam Milne, who despite looking promising, hasn’t quite hit the heights he may have this series.New Zealand: (Possible) 1 Colin Munro, 2 Glenn Phillips/Mark Chapman, 3 Kane Williamson, 4 Colin de Grandhomme, 5 Ross Taylor, 6 Corey Anderson, 7 Tim Seifert (wk), 8 Tim Southee, 9 Adam Milne/Lockie Ferguson, 10 Ish Sodhi, 11 Ajaz Patel
Winning the toss and batting first seems to be the favoured formula at the moment, and there has been nothing to suggest the teams rethink that. As has been the case all series, competitive totals appear to nestle in the narrow strip between 145 and 155.
Chief operating officer Kevin Roberts has re-emerged as the most likely candidate to succeed James Sutherland when the Cricket Australia chief executive exits the role after 17 years.Little more than a week after it appeared that the race was down to CA Board director John Harnden and former Cricket New South Wales chairman John Warn, 46-year-old Roberts is now considered the name first in line amid a flurry of late jockeying for one of the most critical roles in the game. The final word will come whenever the lengthy and at times internally criticised succession process concludes.Sutherland’s replacement will inherit a freshly minted cultural review of CA as a whole, prepared by the corporate ethics expert Simon Longstaff, and also a review of the Australian men’s team following the Newlands ball-tampering scandal, helmed by the former Test opener Rick McCosker. The findings of both reviews are also in line for imminent release.CA’s chairman David Peever – who has the in-principle approval of the Board to continue in his role for another three years pending re-election by the state associations at the CA AGM in October – is a keen backer of Roberts. He also strongly hinted at an internal replacement on the day Sutherland formally announced his resignation in early June with 12 months’ notice.”This is an incredibly complex job, it has many dimensions,” Peever said at the time. “What we must do is find the best person for the role. While I don’t want to put any constraints around it, it is a Cricket Australia role, so we’re probably going to have a little bit of bias towards an Australian, and it is a role in cricket, so we’ll probably have a bias towards someone in cricket.”Before that announcement, CA Board director Bob Every had resigned in protest at Peever’s plans to remain as chairman, listing the succession planning for Sutherland among numerous reasons for his decision. “The list is long but in my opinion his handling of the MoU, the media negotiations, his ‘fake’ resignation and particularly his handling of succession planning for the CEO leave a lot to be desired,” Every wrote in an email, according to the .A former NSW batsman with two centuries for the state team to his credit, Roberts graduated to corporate roles with the apparel companies Adidas – a former CA sponsor and clothing supplier – and Colorado, before serving as the chief executive of 2XU. In late 2012 he, Peever and Jacqui Hey were jointly named as the first independent directors on the CA Board, after a historic governance change to convert the Board from a collective of 14-state appointed delegates to nine independent directors.He had appeared the heir apparent to Sutherland when he stepped down from the Board to become executive general manager for strategy, people and culture in late 2015, and was set the kind of task historically associated with CEOs-in-waiting when he was named as lead negotiator for the governing body in their pay negotiations with the Australian Cricketers Association.These talks, in which CA attempted to break up the fixed revenue percentage model at the core of all collective agreements between the Board and the players since 1998, degenerated into a full-blown dispute, and all players went without pay for nearly a month when the existing MoU expired at the end of June last year. Roberts appeared in a pair of videos attempting to sell CA’s preferred model, which replaced revenue sharing with a capped-bonus system, initially restricted to the top international players but then expanded to include domestic cricketers also. These pitches were not well received by the players.With an Australia A tour of South Africa cancelled and time ticking down to a Test tour of Bangladesh, Roberts was ultimately sidelined from talks with the ACA’s chief executive Alistair Nicholson, leaving the final compromise to be brokered by Sutherland and the team performance manager Pat Howard. Concerns about the possibility of the dispute stretching into the home Ashes summer compelled Australia’s then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull to make a rare call to leaders on both sides of the divide.Nevertheless, Roberts has had increasing responsibility bestowed upon him, including a role as the CA executive commissioned to be the main contact for all the state associations. Shortly before Sutherland announced his impending exit, Roberts was promoted to the role of COO, a position that the longtime CEO had never previously entertained as part of CA’s structure.He is seen by his supporters as a dynamic executive, given to swift decision-making and support for strategic decisions in the realms of scheduling and funding to the states to grow participation numbers in particular. It is also believed that Roberts’ hard-line approach to the MoU was judged as vindicated by a CA internal review.Other interested candidates have at various stages included the NSW chief executive Andrew Jones, and the Western Australian Cricket Association chief executive Christina Matthews. Warn resigned from his NSW role and also his executive position at shopping-centre company Westfield earlier this year, with a vacancy also emerging for the role of chief executive for the SCG Trust. Harnden has been in parallel negotiations surrounding the possible extension of his tenure as chairman of the Melbourne Grand Prix Corporation.
Today’s countdown features a lone, all-powerful machine at the top, followed by nine outrageously powerful humans
ESPNcricinfo staff21-Mar-201710. Kieron Pollard, 125 sixes in 97 inningsPercentage of IPL runs in sixes – 38%There are not too many grounds in world cricket which Kieron Pollard cannot clear with his powerful forearms, and it is no surprise that he features on this list despite playing far fewer innings than most of the others. Pollard’s sixes are among the biggest in the tournament, and his match-winning contributions with both bat and ball have arguably made him Mumbai Indians’ most valuable player over the years.9. Yuvraj Singh, 133 sixes in 105 inningsPercentage of IPL runs in sixes – 34%One of the cleanest hitters of his generation, Yuvraj has made it a habit of depositing cricket balls onto rooftops of stadia. Yuvraj’s ball-striking abilities, combined with a six-hitting map that extends across the entire wagon wheel, have produced some of IPL’s finest batting displays over the years.8. David Warner, 134 sixes in 100 inningsPercentage of IPL runs in sixes – 24%‘Warner has repeatedly spoken about his philosophy of defending balls in his weak zone, and his ability to do so has been among the biggest changes in his game since he started off in the IPL. Earlier, his blistering starts would end with a rash shot while trying to accelerate. His ability to desist has coincided with some of his best six-hitting seasons, culminating in 31 sixes in 2016, when he led Sunrisers Hyderabad to their first IPL title.MS Dhoni and sixes go hand in hand•BCCI7. MS Dhoni, 140 sixes in 128 inningsPercentage of IPL runs in sixes – 26%The hitter of the most famous six in Indian cricket history has, over nine seasons, built a reputation of taking games deep into the death overs and pulling the trigger right in the nick of time. While his strike rate has dipped over the past few seasons, he remains among the most reliable finishers in the format, with a knack of muscling the most effortless sixes across the park.6. Yusuf Pathan, 140 sixes in 122 inningsPercentage of IPL runs in sixes – 30%Yusuf’s big-hitting abilities for Baroda earned him a spot in India’s squad for the inaugural World T20 in 2007. Since the beginning of the IPL, his career has come a full circle – first the realisation of his all-too-known potential, followed by a lengthy lull where he has failed to put together innings of note in the tournament. What has not changed, though, is his place as one of Indian cricket’s most merciless hitters of the ball, a fact reflected in his strike rate of 146.78, despite going through multiple middling seasons.5. AB de Villiers, 141 sixes in 109 inningsPercentage of IPL runs in sixes – 26%De Villiers has excelled in multiple roles over nine seasons in the IPL – as a finisher first, followed by a deserved shift up the order, where he continues to plunder bowling attacks for Royal Challengers Bangalore. Among the most consistent conjurers of outrageous shots that come with a please-don’t-try-this-at-home warning, his six-hitting history – from 13 sixes in 21 games in 2008-09 to 37 only in the 2016 season – goes some way to explaining his rise as one of modern cricket’s most destructive batsmen.You can fill trucks with sixes when these two bat together•BCCI4. Virat Kohli, 148 sixes in 131 inningsPercentage of IPL runs in sixes – 22%Warner once spoke about Kohli being a “conventional player, who knows he cannot be like Gayle or de Villiers”. The reference was in a positive context, with Warner praising Kohli’s ability to score across the field with proper cricketing shots, without needing to clear the boundary all the time. While this remains true – Kohli gets 35% of his runs from fours – Kohli’s record-breaking 2016 season meant he has now leapfrogged a number of ‘traditional’ six-hitters.3. Suresh Raina, 160 sixes in 143 inningsPercentage of IPL runs in sixes – 23%When he hangs up his boots some day, one of the most lasting sights from Raina’s career would be him in a yellow jersey, playing one of his powerful flicks over midwicket, or lofting a barely believable six over the cover boundary. Raina has been among the IPL’s most consistent performers over the years, and this reflects in his place as the tournament’s second-highest run-scorer of all time.2. Rohit Sharma, 163 sixes in 138 inningsPercentage of IPL runs in sixes – 25%At one point, during the first few seasons of the IPL, Rohit Sharma was known as the man who could pull off late-innings heists with feisty displays of six-hitting during tight chases. Since his move to Mumbai Indians, he has metamorphosed into a consistent opener, the position where T20s’ most impactful batsmen bat.1. Chris Gayle, 251 sixes in 91 inningsPercentage of IPL runs in sixes – 44%The title of Gayle’s autobiography, , apart from being a cheeky innuendo, is explained by jaw-dropping numbers in the game’s shortest format. An astounding 44% of his runs come from sixes, and despite having played 47 fewer innings, he has hit 54% more sixes than his nearest competitor on this list. All this despite suffering a dip in form during the 2014 season.
24-Aug-2016Tillakaratne Dilshan exposed his leg stump inadvertently and allowed a Nathan Lyon delivery to bowl him off his thigh pad•Associated PressSri Lanka, however, fought back through Kusal Mendis, who struck a run-a-ball 69•AFPDinesh Chandimal kept Mendis company for 21 overs and they added 125 for the third wicket•Associated PressThe stand was broken when Chandimal perished attempting to play against the turn and was trapped lbw by Adam Zampa•AFPZampa struck two more times, removing Mendis and Dhananjaya de Silva to help Australia regain control•Associated PressBut Kusal Perera provided the innings with a late thrust during his half-century•Associated PressHe was supported by Angelo Mathews who scored 57 off 60 balls. They added 103 for the sixth wicket in 94 balls•Associated PressSri Lanka’s hopes of a strong finish were thwarted by James Faulkner’s hat-trick. They were bowled out for 288 with seven deliveries remaining•AFPThisara Perera struck first ball, shaping on away from David Warner who nicked to the wicketkeeper•Associated PressAaron Finch inside-edged a slog to his stumps in the bowler’s next over as Australia were reduced to 16 for 2•Associated PressSteven Smith tried to get the innings back on track, but gave a simple catch to mid-on. When he fell, he had scored 30 out of his team’s total of 41•Associated PressGeorge Bailey struggled to get going and plonked around for 46 balls for his 27•Associated PressWhen Moises Henriques was stumped off Seekkuge Prasanna, Australia were struggling at 118 for 5•AFPWade, however, held firm and struck a gritty half-century. He added 64 for the sixth wicket with Travis Head before sweeping a full toss to the hands of deep mid wicket•Associated PressSri Lanka, however, surged closer to a win as Wade and Head fell in successive overs, the latter dismissed by Mathews•AFPAmila Aponso quickly wrapped up Australia’s last two wickets to finish with returns of 4 for 18 in only his second ODI, sealing Sri Lanka’s 82-run win•AFP
Geoff Clements, who has been on the job behind the camera for half a century, talks about his career
Firdose Moonda12-Mar-2017The 2017 Dunedin Test was probably a success for only one man, and he was not even playing the match.Cameraman Geoff Clements, from Canterbury, celebrated a half-century behind the lens and then signed off on a career that began in the early years of television in New Zealand, when sports coverage was rudimentary.Clements was 18 years old and an occasional cricketer at St Albans Cricket Club when he began work as a cameraman in his home town. His first match was between Canterbury and the touring Australians in 1967. He was part of a simple three-man team who broadcast in black and white to a 50km radius around Christchurch. There were two main cameras trained on the pitch, and Clements, on the grass bank, manned the third.Given that the game took place 50 years ago, it’s understandable he doesn’t remember too much about it, except that his friend, Canterbury bowler Ken Ferries, played in the match, that they drank a beer in the club rooms afterwards, and that, at some point over the course of the three days, Clements fell in love with covering the game with a camera. “It’s like gardening on speed,” he says.
“To do any sport, you’ve got to be able to know the game. If you’ve played the game at any level, you get to understand the parabola of the situation and how a batsman shapes to play the ball and where it’s going to go”
He was soon employed by Television New Zealand, where he did a range of jobs, including studio work and administration, and covered other sports, but he remained a cricket specialist at heart. In particular, he attached himself to the toughest job, working the ball-follow camera – a role that is self-explanatory and a lot more difficult than it sounds.When hit, a cricket ball often moves even faster than when it is bowled, and you have to have both good reaction time and good anticipation if you’re tracking it with a camera. That is why Clements thinks it is essential for a cricket cameraperson to have played the game at some level. “To do any sport, you’ve got to be able to know the game. If you’ve played the game at any level, you get to understand the parabola of the situation and how a batsman shapes to play the ball and where it’s going to go,” he says. “If you’ve played and you have good hand-eye co-ordination, then you must be more capable of doing the job.”His best example of that is also his most memorable match, at his home ground in 2002. Although New Zealand lost that Test at Lancaster Park, Nathan Astle blazed 222 , which remains the fastest double-century in Test cricket. Astle struck 11 sixes in the innings, which was challenging for Clements. “He hit so many balls in the air, and on the ball-follow camera, I lost some of them. Some went on top of the roof and a couple went right over.”Having now retired, Clements hopes to catch up on his gardening and his bowlsLong before Clements was awed by Astle, he was charmed by another cricketer, who he names as the player who impressed him most. “The Nawab of Pataudi. He was a wonderful batsman with a superb cover drive,” Clements, who covered India’s 1968 series to New Zealand, remembers. “I said to one of the guys afterwards, ‘How the hell can that joker see everything so well and still play like a two-eyed human?’ He was wonderful.”Clements also counts Greg Chappell as a favourite. He says he probably has a “hundred other names which I could mention but won’t” when it comes to cricketers he admires. Instead, he concentrates on the nuances of his job, which apart from steady hands, concentration and the wearing of a lot of layers of clothes, especially in Dunedin last week, where he donned five, is based on storytelling.”It’s about not being too tight with your shots,” he says. “A ball going across the ground says nothing. A ball with someone running after it says something. A ball with someone reverse cup underneath it says something; a ball that suddenly two seconds later is caught means nothing.”Clements says the advancements in technology have aided that cause, especially the replay and the increased number of cameras. “Although sometimes we have more replays than are necessary, it really helps you to create a narrative,” Clements said. “Typically we have more than 25 cameras at the match. At this match, we have 28, and I am told that in Wellington next week there will be 30.”
“It’s about not being too tight with your shots. A ball going across the ground says nothing. A ball with someone running after it says something”
He still finds it hard to believe that the pictures he is shooting travel such a great distance in such a short time. “I still can’t understand how it happens,” Clements says. “Well, I know how it happens, but I can’t conceive of the fact that we can portray this beautiful game – this is the beautiful game, not the big round-ball thing – how we can transmit this and 500 million people somewhere can see that three seconds later. It eludes me. But I am only a television cameraman, I am not an engineer.”Soon he will be a retiree. The decision to stop now, at the age of 69, is his own. “As George Harrison, the great Beatle, wrote, all things must pass, and I think that’s a fair thing,” he says. He has been mentoring colleague Karla Underwood for “the last three or four years” to take over from him.In his time, Clements has only covered cricket outside New Zealand twice, in 1997 during the Pepsi Independence Cup in India, and a version of Cricket Sixes in Kuala Lumpur some years later. He has never been hit by a cricket ball, though he had a near miss once at Eden Park No. 2.In his retirement, he hopes to “play a lot more bowls, try and coach the Canterbury women’s bowls team again, if they will let me, dig more gardens and watch a lot more cricket on the telly”.
Oliver Glasner’s Eagles have managed to climb the Premier League table with a recent upturn in form, finding themselves now 12th in the division, sitting on 27 points after 22 games played, winning six times, drawing nine times and losing seven times.
Since the start of December, Crystal Palace have only lost two games, both of those losses coming against Arsenal, once in the Premier League and once in the EFL Cup.
This run of form has seen draws against the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea, and some big wins against the likes of West Ham, Brighton and Leicester.
It looks as though they’re finally getting over Michael Olise’s summer exit.
Michael Olise's record at Palace
Glasner’s side have started to find the back of the net on a more regular basis over the last few games, with the front three now establishing itself and beginning to gel after Olise departed for Bayern Munich.
Of interest to plenty of Europe’s biggest teams, he left Selhurst Park behind having dazzled their adoring fans on a regular basis.
In total, the French winger scored 16 goals and registered 25 assists in 90 outings with 16 of those goal invovlements coming in just 19 matches in 2023/24.
So, replacing him was always going to be a tricky one, but Ismaila Sarr is beginning to prove his worth.
Ismaila Sarr's form at Palace
Once Olise left Palace in the summer, the Eagles went ahead and signed Sarr from Marseille, joining the club for a fee of around £12.5m.
He now is finally starting to settle, having an impact on games and helping the Eagles to get points on the board. Since the 26-year-old signed, he has made 27 appearances, scoring four goals, providing three assists and totalling 1,635 minutes played.
It took until the end of November for Sarr to fully impact games with his output, but since then, the Senegalese winger has shown why Steve Parish and Co struck gold by bringing him to the club. He’s found a real nice balance in attack with Eberechi Eze and Jean-Philippe Mateta, which has seen Glasner’s side go on a good run in the Premier League.
Sarr’s transfer valuation has already risen slightly since joining, with his market value now sitting at £17m according to Transfermarkt.
Market Movers
Football FanCast's Market Movers series explores the changing landscape of the modern transfer market. How much is your club's star player or biggest flop worth today?
For context, that is already worth more than their new signing, Romain Esse, who joined from Millwall this month for a fee of around £12m (potentially rising to £14.5m with add-ons).
How Ismaila Sarr compares to Romain Esse
Esse made 26 appearances for Millwall this season, scoring five goals and providing one assist in 2,165 minutes. He has shown his versatility playing on both the left and right wing, as well as through the middle when needed.
Goals
0.3
0.2
Assists
0.2
0.1
Shots
1.8
0.8
Chances Created
1.5
1.2
Take-Ons Completed
0.6
2.3
Take-On Success %
36.36%
50.5%
Touches (Opp Box)
5.1
3.1
Labelled a “freak talent” by Ben Foster, who played with the Senegal international at Watford, Foster has previously spoken of how Sarr makes things happen, even if he doesn’t know what he’s going to do, which fits nicely with his direct nature, often looking to attack the box as often as possible, create chances and get shots off when possible. That’s rather similar to Esse who has been lighting up second-tier defences already this term.
Dubbed a “superstar in the making” by Millwall manager, Gary Rowett, the youngster could benefit from challenging Sarr for a starting spot alongside Eze behind the striker, both offering slightly different attributes in that role.
Having Sarr ahead of Esse could allow the young winger to settle at the club with less pressure, not being thrust immediately into the limelight, building up his experience and showing quality with rotated/substitute appearances, which are likely to spark support from the fans with his excellent technical ability.
Crystal Palace could sign immediate upgrade on Esse all for £25m
Crystal Palace announced the signing of Romaine Esse on Saturday.
ByConnor Holden Jan 19, 2025