All posts by h716a5.icu

Manchester United defender Harry Maguire could now remain at Old Trafford this summer, if the club do not receive a suitable offer, with the player himself keen to stay, according to a recent report from Football Insider.

Is Harry Maguire leaving Manchester United?

Transfer insider Dean Jones has recently told GiveMeSport that Maguire will be leaving Man United this summer, despite the fact he has featured in some of the club's friendlies, saying:

"Harry Maguire is starting pre-season games and we are only a couple of weeks from the start of the season so as it stands, he genuinely is in the squad make-up for the start of the season. Will that remain the case? I doubt it.

"They are fielding enquiries and even if Maguire is still a United player at the start of the campaign, he won’t be there by the beginning of September."

However, journalist Alex Crook has received conflicting information, and he has recently suggested that Erik ten Hag is "content" for the defender to stay, having informed the player about his stance.

The manager believes the Englishman "has still got a job to do" at Old Trafford, meaning he could now be poised to remain with the Red Devils.

Read The Latest Manchester United Transfer News HERE

According to a report from Football Insider, the 30-year-old is believed to be keen to stay at Man United beyond this summer, and he is ready to fight for a place in the starting XI, which could make a deal difficult for any interested club.

West Ham United have already had a £20m bid rejected for the England international, with United unwilling to force him out of the club this summer, although they are willing to part ways with him for a suitable fee.

Ten Hag is keen to bolster his options in midfield, and the sale of the former Leicester City man, as well as Scott McTominay, would help facilitate new additions, but he is not putting the duo under any pressure to leave at the moment.

How much does Harry Maguire earn per week?

The centre-back is currently on a £190k-per-week deal, which means he is among the top ten earners at Old Trafford, and his sale would free up a significant amount of money on the wage bill.

It is clear to see why Ten Hag would be willing to keep hold of his former captain, given that he was hailed as "fantastic" by David de Gea back in February. However, he should definitely get rid of him if a suitable fee comes in.

The Sheffield-born defender made just 16 appearances in the Premier League last season, having fallen down the pecking order considerably, and when he was given the opportunity to play, he often failed to impress.

Quite rightly, United fans bemoaned the part the 6 foot 4 defender played in their Europa League exit at the hands of Sevilla, making an error leading to a goal in the second leg, in a match where he received a Sofascore rating of just 6.3.

Given that Maguire is an experienced England international, West Ham's offer of £20m is far too low, but Man United should let him leave for the right price this summer.

Inzamam-ul-Haq, the PCB’s chief selector, is impressed with the opener’s form and fitness since his return from his spot-fixing ban, and has said his case for a full international return will be assessed by picking him in the Pakistan A team

Umar Farooq23-Sep-2017Pakistan’s selectors have come up with a plan to reintegrate Salman Butt into the national side. They are impressed with his domestic form since his return from his spot-fixing ban, and will look to pick him in the Pakistan A team to assess his case for a full international return. A similar scheme was shelved earlier this year in light of the PSL spot-fixing controversy.”He is playing very well after his comeback and we are considering him,” Inzamam-ul-Haq, the PCB’s chief selector, said in a press conference on Saturday. “He was there in our high-performance camp and he was exceptional. It’s fantastic to see that a player has been out for five years but still maintained a high standard of fitness. He has checked all the boxes for his selection and we have a plan. We are not selecting him directly in the international circuit but we are trying to have him play in the A team first and then we will take it from there.”Butt, 32, returned to domestic cricket in January 2016, after serving a five-year ban for his role in the spot-fixing scandal in England in 2010. He scored a century in his comeback game in the National One-Day Cup, and went on to finish the tournament as its second-highest run-getter, with 536 runs at an average of 107.20.He then led his first-class team, Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA), to the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, scoring twin hundreds in the final to finish the season with 741 runs at 49.40. He was also the second-highest run-getter in the National T20 Cup last year, with 350 at 70.00.Butt was 26 when he was banned, having played 33 Tests, 78 ODIs and 24 T20Is. Since then, he has attended anti-corruption rehabilitation programmes conducted by the PCB, taken part in social work, and publicly apologised, though he had pleaded his innocence until 2013. The two other players punished at the time, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir, have also returned to cricket after completing their bans. Amir has been successfully re-integrated into the national set-up, and has set a precedent of sorts for any more returns.Over the last two years, Butt’s selection had been mooted on few occasions, but the board has waited to weigh all its options before giving its go-ahead. His consistent domestic performances impressed Pakistan’s previous head coach Waqar Younis and former captain Misbah-ul-Haq, and the lack of stability in the opening position ensured the topic of his return remained relevant. The current coaching staff led by Mickey Arthur have also been impressed with Butt as a player but have left it to the selectors and the board to decide.Butt could have returned to the Pakistan squad as early as their tour of the West Indies in March-May 2017, with the then PCB chairman Shaharyar Khan publicly clearing his possible selection. But the revelations of spot fixing in the PSL – though Butt had no connection to it – created an adverse climate for his return, forcing the selectors to wait a little longer.

A day after he was dropped from the Test side, Bangladesh’s Mahmudullah has been picked by Jamaica Tallawahs for the remainder of the CPL

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Aug-2017A day after being dropped from the Test side, Bangladesh’s Mahmudullah has been picked by Jamaica Tallawahs for the remainder of the CPL. Mahmudullah will be a replacement for Pakistan’s Imad Wasim, who played five games for Tallawahs so far this season, but was recalled by the Pakistan Cricket Board to undergo fitness testing.”We are gutted to be losing Imad Wasim but Mahmudullah is a great replacement,” Tallawahs coach Paul Nixon said. “He is a proven match winner at international level and he is exactly the kind of player we need to claim back to back Hero CPL titles.”Wasim had picked up four wickets in the 17 overs he bowled in five matches, at an impressive economy rate of 5.35, the best for Tallawahs so far. Mahmudullah, though out of favour in Tests, scored a century against New Zealand in the Champions Trophy in June, helping Bangladesh to the semi-finals. In T20s overall, he has 2344 runs from 123 innings, at a strike rate of 114.28, and 67 wickets with an economy rate of 7.04.Mahmudullah will join Tallawahs on August 23, before their match against St Lucia Stars on August 25 at Sabina Park.

Liverpool have reportedly agreed on personal terms with Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia.

Are Liverpool signing Romeo Lavia?

The Reds and Jurgen Klopp have already splashed the cash on two new midfielders so far this summer, with Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai arriving from Brighton and RB Leipzig respectively. Mac Allister was the first through the door at an initial cost of £35m, whereas Szoboszlai was more expensive at £60m.

It doesn’t look as if the club plan on stopping there when it comes to midfield additions, though, especially as James Milner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Naby Keita all departed on free transfers over the summer, whereas Jordan Henderson and Fabinho are poised to move to Saudi Arabia.

Lavia, who made the move to Southampton from Manchester City last summer, has emerged as a real target in recent weeks, however, they could be rivalled by Premier League rivals Arsenal and Chelsea.

According to journalist Sacha Tavolieri on Tuesday, the Reds have now agreed on personal terms with Lavia, who was actually getting “annoyed” with those at Anfield as he felt a potential deal was “dragging”.

“Liverpool FC finally starts the talks with Southampton for Romeo Lavia! Belgian midfielder’s side just agreed on personal terms. These days, Romeo Lavia was waiting for the green light of LFC Board and was a little annoyed that it was dragging… It moved now!

“First official bid to be send soon by the Reds. I understand Reds wants to start with an offer close to £35M… Wait & See.”

Since then, it has been reported that Liverpool have made an opening offer of £40m for the Belgian, however, the Saints have turned that down and are holding out for a fee closer to £50m, with the Reds expected to make an improved bid.

Who is Romeo Lavia?

Lavia, labelled as a "10/10 talent" by football talent scout Jacek Kulig, is 19 years of age and is primarily a defensive midfielder who can also play slightly further forward in a central midfield role. His Transfermarkt valuation has rocketed from €2m to a career-high €32m over the past 12 months following an impressive first season on the south coast where he made 34 appearances in all competitions.

Journalist Jacob Tanswell certainly feels Lavia is worth a £50m fee after watching him during his first Premier League season, saying:

“Regarding Romeo Lavia. Watched every minute of him last season and heard a lot about him. If LFC really want him, they should absolutely pay the £50 million. He is that good. Saints can wait as he's one of the few – if not only – player who has retained their market PL value.”

As per FBref over the past 12 months, Lavia has ranked highly in the defensive side of the game and is in the top 4% of midfielders for blocks, top 9% for passes blocked.

He averages 7.58 ball recoveries per 90, with all three attributes named considerably higher than Fabinho. Therefore, you could argue that the Saints man could be a shrewd addition both in the short and long run in the No.6 role, but Liverpool may need to up their offer to Southampton despite personal terms already being agreed.

There are many ways to occupy 756 minutes. Rory Burns just batted at Kia Oval

Tim Wigmore at Kia Oval06-Jul-2017
ScorecardFly from London to Bogota. Watch 14 episodes of House of Cards. Listen to all of the Beatles albums. These are many ways to occupy 756 minutes of time. Or, if you are Rory Burns, you can just bat at The Oval.”You’ve gotta stay out there Rory,” bellowed a spectator in the crowd as Burns walked off 25 minutes before lunch on the final day. Burns had just made the small matter of 219 undefeated runs, an unbroken thread throughout Surrey’s first innings. And yet, because his teammates had all been dismissed with Surrey still 16 shy of averting the follow on, Burns was still compelled to return to the field ten minutes later, to make sure the match was saved.It was, even more than a cricketing challenge, a test of endurance. At the time, Burns had been on the field – either as captain or batsman – for every moment of four sweltering, stuffy days at The Oval. Burns needed every ounce of fitness to manage his physical fatigue. Yet, perhaps even greater was the risk of mental fatigue: the need to sustain his same processes, the same impeccable judgement of each individual delivery, and maintain the same equanimity after every ball.”I’m pretty tired. Four days on your feet would take it out of anyone,” he said. “But when you’re fighting to save a game it’s far more a mental task than a physical task. It was more what was going on between my ears, and trying to replicate and be consistent in the process of how I was going about my batting.”

Burns, laughing in bemusement at the absurdity of his dismissal, finally left the field, just 29 minutes shy of being a continuous presence

On and on, he did just that. From the second evening, when he had the burden of opening Surrey’s response to the fifth largest total in Hampshire’s history, through copious menacing spells from Kyle Abbott, with both new ball and a reverse-swinging old one, a wild third day burst from Fidel Edwards, a marathon bowl for Mason Crane and then Abbott’s final, futile spell at the start of Surrey’s second innings: Burns withstood them all.Far from seeming depleted in the second innings, Burns actually produced his most fluent batting of the match, driving exquisitely and flicking the ball sumptuously through midwicket. And then, suddenly and incongruously, it was all over. After 1375 minutes unbroken on the field in the match, Burns received a looping offspinner well outside leg stump. It ricocheted off his pad, and unknowingly deflected off the wicketkeeper’s pads onto his stumps. A dream died: that Burns would manage the staggering feat of being undefeated throughout this game, and being on the pitch throughout.Still, the umpires and opposition players were united in applause as Burns, laughing in bemusement at the absurdity of his dismissal, finally left the field, just 29 minutes shy of being a continuous presence in this County Championship game. All recognised an extraordinary feat. Burns had batted for 535 balls in the match, making 287 runs for once out. Most importantly, Surrey’s stand-in captain had, through sheer force of will, saved this match. In a month and a day their Championship summer recommences; Burns’ extraordinary feat will survive much longer.Rory Burns was indefatigable•PA Photos”I think that is the best I’ve ever played,” he said. “I just simplified it. I just tried to stay in my box and watch the ball. It sounds stupid, but that’s basically what I was thinking because how the game was set up was that we had to bat seven sessions to try and get ourselves to safety.”I somehow managed to keep going. I managed to narrow my focus down and was thinking about balls rather than the context of the game.” In so doing he had secured the maiden double century of his career, brought up when he glided Crane through midwicket just after noon – a shot, like so many he played, of wonderful timing and precise placement.The extent of Burns’ achievement was unbecoming of a farcical end, with Surrey briefly using the opportunity for some T20 practice ahead of the start of the Blast against an exhausted Hampshire. Both knew that, if Surrey went into the lead, it would mean they could declare – and the match could end 10 minutes earlier. And so, at ten to five, the players shook hands and finally relief came from this dour, spirit-sapping pitch, enough to send everyone – well, all except Burns – comatose.

Journalist Dean Jones believes Aston Villa are building towards something "hugely exciting" under Unai Emery and has hailed the atmosphere the manager has created during pre-season.

What's the latest news on Aston Villa?

When Emery arrived at Villa Park last October, few supporters would have believed that the club would be embarking on their first European campaign since 2010/11 come the end of the season.

The club finished seventh following their victory over Brighton & Hove Albion on the final day of last season and subsequently qualified for the Europa Conference League.

What the Spaniard has managed to achieve in such a short space of time is truly outstanding, having transformed every aspect of the Villa side since taking over from Steven Gerrard.

Given Emery's European pedigree – a four-time Europa League winner with Sevilla and Villarreal – the Villans will be hoping to emulate the same kind of success that West Ham United managed in the Conference League last term.

According to journalist Jones, Emery is building on the success of last season and is creating a wonderful project in the Midlands, helped by a great atmosphere created in pre-season.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, Jones stated: "For Aston Villa, in terms of where they've been in the last few years, to be at this moment is hugely exciting.

"European football is coming up, but the team is becoming much stronger. In pre-season, I'm told Emery is also creating a really good atmosphere within the squad."

Crucially, Emery made a number of Villa's underperformers significantly better upon his arrival last season. The likes of Ollie Watkins, John McGinn and Emi Buendia all improved dramatically towards the latter part of the campaign, showcasing a level of consistency and quality that had disappeared under Gerrard.

However, the Spanish coach is not averse to spending big in the transfer market either. While the brilliant Alex Moreno was the 51-year-old's only January signing last season that made an immediate impact in the team, Emery has been very active in the summer transfer window so far.

Villa had already brought in Youri Tielemans on a free transfer from Leicester City and signed Pau Torres from Emery's old side Villarreal for approximately £35m – two major coups for the clubs – but they have since finalised a deal for the impressive Bayer Leverkusen winger Moussa Diaby.

Emery is assembling a mouthwatering squad ahead of next season, adding the quality and depth that will allow Villa to compete on multiple fronts next year. For the club's supporters it really is an exciting adventure that lies in wait.

Who are Aston Villa signing?

Given Villa's hierarchy have loosened the purse strings for Emery, more signings are likely to come this window. The slog of playing Thursdays and Sundays due to European commitments next season means rotation is key and the former Arsenal manager will be keen on reinforcing his squad further.

Despite Diaby's arrival, Villa are still being linked with several wingers this window, one of which is Rennes' Jeremy Doku. The Belgian attacker is still only 21-years-old but has already earned 14 caps for the national side, but does occupy a similar role to Diaby.

Similarly, Juventus' Federico Chiesa has been touted with a potential switch to the Premier League with Villa one of the clubs monitoring the Italian's situation. The 25-year-old occupies the left wing meaning he could co-exist with Diaby and the thought of both wingers providing service for Watkins next season is an exciting one.

Departures could help fund such moves, with the likes of Philippe Coutinho and Bertrand Traore potentially leaving Villa Park this summer as Emery moulds his squad ahead of an interesting campaign.

Celtic’s move for Maik Nawrocki is on the verge of being completed, according to an update from reliable reporter Mark Hendry, sharing an update on Saturday morning.

Who have Celtic signed in 2023?

The Hoops have enjoyed a fairly productive summer transfer window so far, with Norwegian prospect Odin Thiago Holm, exciting attacker Hyun-jun Yang, Aussie star Marco Tilio and midfield enforcer Tomoki Iwata all arriving through the doors at Parkhead to work under new boss Brendan Rodgers.

There is still plenty of work to be done to tailor the squad to the returning manager’s liking though, especially after Ange Postecoglou’s star man, Jota, left to join Al Ittihad in a record departure worth close to €30m (£26m).

A centre-back looks to be next up on the agenda, with reports emerging late last week that the Bhoys board have lined up a move for Nawrocki, a promising 22 year-old Poland youth international who currently plies his trade for Ekstraklasa club Legia Warsaw.

Reports in the player’s homeland broke the news that Celtic had “entered the game” for the youngster and would compete with Turkish Super Lig club Galatasaray for his signature, and it appears the Parkhead outfit have now won the race.

Taking to Twitter from Japan on Saturday, where the Hoops were in action against Gamba Osaka, Football Scotland’s Hendry said: “Nawrocki is in the UK to do medical tests and sort out his contract details with fine tooth comb. Expect real (deal*) to be completed soon.”

Is Maik Nawrocki good?

Celtic fans can be forgiven for not knowing much about their imminent new arrival, but the 6 foot 2 ace certainly looks like a player with real potential. He's been in the Polish top flight since he was 19, starting with Warta Poznan before moving to Warsaw.

His first season in the capital didn’t exactly go to plan, as one of the country’s biggest clubs slumped to 10th in the final league standings, but he did manage 18 starts in the top flight, forcing his way in as a regular feature in the first XI.

His second campaign with the club – this season just finished – Nawrocki started 23 games in the league as they shot up to a second place finish, and he actually proved to be a consistent source of end product from set pieces too, scoring four times and providing one assist to boot, averaging a direct goal contribution one out of every five lots of 90 minutes, an impressive rate for a centre-back.

The youngster has yet to make his mark on the senior national team setup. He has been able to break into the fold for their Under-21 side though, making his debut for them in 2021 having already featured at various youth levels for the Under-15, 16, 17, 18 and 19 sides, so one would have to assume it’s only a matter of time before that progression leads him into the senior set-up.

What probably appeals most to Rodgers is the defender’s versatility, as not only is he equally comfortable on either side at centre-back, but he can also function as a full-back or even further ahead in defensive midfield, which likely reminds the boss of another towering player he had at his disposal during his last stay in Glasgow, Brentford’s Kristoffer Ajer.

The Supreme Court has asked N Srinivasan and Niranjan Shah to explain their position, after the Committee of Administrators said the two individuals were stalling the implementation of the Lodha Committee recommendations

Sidharth Monga and Nagraj Gollapudi14-Jul-20175:55

Ugra: Old BCCI challenging Supreme Court

N Srinivasan and Niranjan Shah will have to explain to the Supreme Court of India their roles in stalling the implementation of the Lodha Committee recommendations. The pair of former BCCI office bearers were singled out by the Committee of Administrators (CoA) in a scathing appraisal of the progress – or lack of – made by the BCCI in implementing the recommendations.The court will hear the matter on July 24, two days before the next BCCI SGM to discuss the recommendations.At Friday’s hearing, Justice Dipak Misra observed that “if a person is disqualified to be an office bearer, he cannot be nominated by office bearers”.Misra’s statement is significant because Srinivasan and Shah, despite being disqualified as office bearers on grounds that they are over 70 years old and having exceeded the tenure cap, had attended BCCI meetings as representatives or nominees of their respective state associations – Tamil Nadu and Saurashtra. And according to the CoA’s latest status report, Srinivasan and Shah have prevented other BCCI members from reaching a consensus on implementing the Lodha Committee’s recommendations.Anurag Thakur in the clear

Anurag Thakur, the former BCCI president, was cleared of perjury charges for a letter he had written to the ICC asking it to intervene, saying the Lodha Committee reforms amounted to government interference in the board. A day before Friday’s hearing he filed an affidavit, apologising unconditionally.

Over the last month, a special committee was formed by the BCCI to shortlist the most significant problems the board had with those recommendations in order to put them before the court for reconsideration.However, according to amicus curiae Gopal Subramanium, when the wider BCCI body held special general meetings to discuss and ratify the shortlisted recommendations, the meetings were “hijacked” by Srinivasan and Shah.”Till now, most recommendations were by and large accepted,” Subramanium said, but Srinivasan and Shah kept repeating “nothing can be implemented”.Advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing on behalf of Srinivasan and other state associations, responded on behalf of his client, “I am a member of TNCA. Nobody can take my membership away.” The states have argued that the disqualified office bearers – such as Srinivasan and Shah – are not attending the meetings as office bearers but as representatives, and that the Lodha Committee’s eligibility criteria did not apply to representatives.In the status report submitted to the court on July 12, the CoA said disqualified office bearers were “impediments” to the implementation of recommendations.The BCCI secretary Amitabh Choudhary, in an affidavit filed in the court on Tuesday, said that five state associations – Tamil Nadu, Saurashtra, Karnataka, Kerala and Goa – had objected to the implementation of the recommendations at the SGM on June 26. Choudhary noted the efforts of the CoA, which had met the state associations twice and “stressed” that it could work with the BCCI in “canvassing the impracticality or difficulties that may arise in implementation of some clauses” of the recommendations.Choudhary said that in addition to the three shortlisted recommendations, the special committee wanted restrictions waived for representatives of states attending board meetings, and members who sit on different committees. “The house also felt there should not be any disqualifications in terms of age, tenure or cooling off for representatives, nominees of the associations and the BCCI and the members of the BCCI committee.”The court did not hear the other requests in the CoA’s status report, which will be heard on July 24. The court accepted the resignations of CoA members Vikram Limaye and Ramachandra Guha, and Subramanium submitted six names as possible replacements. Sibal argued that his clients should also be allowed to suggest names; the court granted him the request and decided to hear the matter on July 24.The lawyer for Railways argued that they had been relegated to Associate status under the one-state-one-vote policy, and despite being regular contributors to Indian cricket, they were not invited to these meetings to decide their fate. They requested a “recall” of that specific part of the order. Subramanium argued this issue had been discussed at length previously, but the court agreed to hear the matter on September 5.

Tottenham Hotspur deciding to sign Clement Lenglet on a permanent basis from Barcelona could enable Ange Postecoglou to make two more defensive additions due to the Frenchman being 'good value' for money, according to transfer insider Dean Jones.

Although, he does state the names of two potential top-end signings Spurs could make.

Will Clement Lenglet join Tottenham Hotspur permanently?

According to Sport via Sport Witness, Barcelona are willing to accept a low fee for Lenglet as they try to get his £145k-a-week pay packet off the books this summer and an offer of €5 million (£4.29 million) from Tottenham has been floated by the outlet.

Nevertheless, Mundo Deportivo transcribed by Sport Witness claim that Lenglet is training by himself at the Catalan giants. However, any deal to take the 28-year-old back to north London is 'not even close', which contradicts information from other publications.

Barcelona boss Xavi doesn't see a place for Lenglet in his plans and he will be left out of their tour of the USA and instead train back home with staff at the club.

Last term, Lenglet turned out on 35 occasions for Tottenham in all competitions, registering one goal and two assists in the process, as per Transfermarkt.

Spurs are also mulling over alternative defensive targets this off-season and Fulham star Tosin Adarabioyo is on the radar at Hotspur Way as a potential addition, according to The Evening Standard.

Bayer Leverkusen central defender Edmond Tapsoba and Wolfsburg youngster Micky van de Ven are two other names that have been heavily linked with a move to the Lilywhites in the last few weeks, as reported by various sources.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, transfer insider Jones thinks that Spurs signing Lenglet would be a financially prudent deal that could enable Postecoglou to add two more defenders to his player pool this summer, as well as naming who the two top-end signings could be.

Jones stated: “I wonder if Lenglet would be a third centre-back. Because of the terms of that one, I think it'd be such a good value signing that Tottenham could potentially be able to sign three defensive-minded players if he was one of them.

“Adarabioyo is one they’re looking at. He’s reasonably cheap as well. Van de Ven or Tapsoba is going to be the top-end signing.”

Who else could Tottenham Hotspur bring in this window?

Spurs have made positive inroads in the transfer market so far under Postecoglou's leadership and have confirmed the signings of James Maddison, Manor Solomon and Guglielmo Vicario, alongside finalizing permanent deals for Dejan Kulusevski and Pedro Porro, as per Transfermarkt.

In a surprise twist, FootballTransfers have claimed that Tottenham could look to make a surprise move for Brentford strike Ivan Toney in the January window as a potential replacement for Harry Kane, who faces an uncertain future in N17.

The Sun report that Tottenham are keen on striking a deal for Crystal Palace defender Joachim Andersen, though the Eagle are likely to demand around £50 million for the Denmark international.

Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher has emerged as a shock target for Tottenham this summer amid competition from Aston Villa, Newcastle United and Crystal Palace for his signature, according to talkSPORT.

In the next few weeks, more arrivals will be expected at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as Postecoglou prepares for the new season by stamping his authority on his new side.

The scenario for Australia to stay in the tournament beyond the group stage is pretty simple according to captain Steven Smith, with a win needed over England to qualify for the semi-finals

Alan Gardner at The Oval 06-Jun-20172:14

What do Australia and Bangladesh need to do to qualify?

“I guess we’ve just got to beat England.” That was Steven Smith’s matter-of-fact conclusion after Australia were denied an almost-certain victory over Bangladesh at The Oval by the English weather. Having been saved from a potential defeat to New Zealand at Edgbaston in their previous match, Australia were left with two points from two games – but with destiny still in their own hands ahead of their last Group A fixture against England on Saturday in Birmingham.Smith was frustrated but understanding after rain ruined Australia’s attempts to chase a target of less than four an over, which was set up by Mitchell Starc’s four-wicket haul that saw Bangladesh dismissed for 182 in 44.3 overs.”Disappointing not to get a result but we can’t do much about the weather,” he said. “The equation is pretty simple for us now. We have to beat England and I think then we’re through.”This fixture was the first day-night match of the tournament but rain was forecast to arrive during the evening, which it duly did with Australia four overs short of the 20 required to constitute an officially completed game. Although the showers did relent long enough to allow the umpires, Nigel Llong and Chris Gaffaney, to inspect at 8 pm and schedule a restart for 8.30 pm – with seven overs lost – rainfall returned almost immediately, causing the groundstaff to cover the pitch again, to desultory cheers from the remaining Bangladesh fans in The Oval.Australia’s sense of frustration was compounded by the fact that at 83 for 1, they were well ahead of the 20-over Duckworth-Lewis-Stern par score of 48 despite having only batted 16 overs. Smith had blocked five balls from Mashrafe Mortaza with rain falling as he tried to hurry the innings through but, with the umpires appearing to signal for drinks, the downfall intensified and the players were taken off for the first time.Although the Bangladesh innings finished early, at around 4.40 pm, play couldn’t restart until 5.30 pm due to drizzle during the interval. The umpires then took the players off at 6.43 pm, meaning Bangladesh were only slightly behind the required rate of four-minute overs. The rain then stopped for around 45 minutes later in the evening but Llong and Gaffaney felt there was too much mopping up required to get the game going straight away and any chance to get in the four overs required slipped by.”A little bit frustrating,” Smith said of that missed opportunity. “The groundsmen perhaps could have shown a bit more urgency, being a big tournament, but I think they did the best job they could and the umpires said it was an 8.30 pm start, so you’ve got to do what they say.”Of course I didn’t want to go off, I was happy to keep batting through the rain. But the umpires are there to make a decision and I think drinks was at the end of that over, which probably didn’t help. If the game had just carried on, perhaps they may have had a different opinion. But to be fair it was raining reasonably hard when we came off.”The no result means that Australia will likely have to beat England to go through to the semi-final, although they could still theoretically go through with as little as two points – if England win all of their games and New Zealand-Bangladesh is washed out – either on net run rate or due to having a higher seeding than the other teams in the group. The high chance of rain affecting the England-New Zealand match in Cardiff on Tuesday may add to the intrigue.The computation for Bangladesh is slightly simpler, with a win required against New Zealand at Cardiff on Friday in their final match to stay in the hunt for a semi-final spot. A win over New Zealand combined with a pair of England wins over Australia and New Zealand would guarantee Bangladesh a place in the semis. Yet, Bangladesh could still miss out on the semi-finals on three points, having suffered a hit to their run rate in defeat to England last week. They would also miss out, regardless of a win over New Zealand, if England beat New Zealand on Tuesday and Australia beat England on Saturday in which case both England and Australia would end the group stage on four points.Mashrafe Mortaza, Bangladesh’s captain, was nevertheless happy that his team remained alive in the tournament and referenced the point gained from a similar abandonment against Australia in the 2015 World Cup – when they qualified from the group stage at England’s expense – as reason to be optimistic.”I can remember in the 2015 World Cup, we got one point from Australia and it really helped us go through,” he said. “This time we’ve got a straight chance, even though we have to beat New Zealand. So our job is to play hard against New Zealand and you never know.”If you look at today’s match, I think Australia was far ahead of us. But in the last match, against New Zealand, I think Australia were in the same position. You can’t do anything with the weather so, as I said, both teams are now in the situation where Australia has to win against England and we have a great chance to beat New Zealand and go through.”