Tag Futebol

Yorkshire 348 for 3 (Bean 164, Lyth 129) vs Gloucestershire Adam Lyth continued his Scarborough love affair with a fourth Vitality County Championship hundred on his home ground as he and opening partner Fin Bean shared 307 to ensure Yorkshire dominated day one against Gloucestershire.Lyth, 36, is seemingly getting better with age, the former England opener also scoring his fourth hundred of the ongoing campaign. He was helped along by fellow centurion Bean as Yorkshire closed on 348 for 3 from 96 overs.Lyth, from the nearby Whitby, learnt his cricket on this ground and walked off with 129 from 243 balls to his name. Bean bettered him with 164 off 250 with six leg-side sixes included.Lyth’s quartet of Championship centuries here – where he has also scored two in List A cricket – now includes one in each of the last three seasons.Gloucestershire’s decision to bowl first upon winning the toss will surely be questioned. Their captain, Graeme van Buuren, struck late in the day alongside seamers Ajeet Singh Dale and Beau Webster. However, in fairness, when the toss was made there was a decent amount of cloud cover which quickly burnt off.There wasn’t as much pace in this North Marine Road pitch as there usually is, and Lyth and fellow left-hander Bean advanced serenely against a visiting attack who failed to build any pressure.New ball seamer Dom Goodman was the pick of their bowlers with nought for 29 from 17 overs.Gloucestershire created very few chances during a morning session which concluded with Yorkshire at 106 without loss. Lyth was on 64, while he and Bean had swept sixes off Ed Middleton’s leg-spin.Lyth had to fend one short ball from Singh Dale away from the end of his nose, but the extra bounce on offer was from a spongy surface rather than one that was hard and fast.Lyth and Bean weren’t really threatened through the afternoon and into the evening – the two openers bettering the 180 they shared in the second innings of the second round draw at Bristol in mid-April.Lyth led the way in the morning, but Bean was the dominant player in the afternoon and evening.Bean swept his second and third sixes off Middleton and off-spinner Ollie Price after reaching his fifty in the early stages of the afternoon and both men had eyes on centuries.Lyth was first to that milestone, off 179 balls, when he drove Middleton for four to take the score to 206 without loss in the 59th over.It has been well-documented that Yorkshire Cricket has gone through the mill over the last few years, with not a great deal to sing from the rooftops about.However, one major positive has been the opening partnership forged between these two players against the red ball.They shared four century partnerships in last year’s Championship and have now added two more this year – both against Gloucestershire. It has certainly been the Master and the Apprentice, with fellow left-hander Bean – 22-years-old – only in his second full season of first-team cricket.When Bean reached his century, off 184 balls, in the closing stages of the afternoon, Yorkshire had 216 on the board.After tea, they bettered the 246 shared between Messrs Hobbs and Sutcliffe for the HDG Leveson-Gower’s XI against the touring New Zealanders in September 1931 – the previous highest opening partnership on this ground in first-class cricket.All of Bean’s half a dozen sixes came over midwicket or long-on against spin.Lyth offered a tough low catch to a diving Cameron Bancroft in the gully off fellow Australian Webster, though neither opener were able to see the day out, Bean caught at point off van Buuren’s left-arm spin at 307 for 1 in the 81st over. It was Yorkshire’s first triple century opening partnership for 10 years.Lyth was then bowled by Singh Dale with a further 15 added to the total before Webster had James Wharton caught behind.

Having already signed Lukas Nmecha on a free transfer, Leeds United have now reportedly reached an “agreement” to sign their second player of the summer in a deal worth £19m.

Leeds sign Lukas Nmecha from Wolfsburg

Getting their summer transfer window underway in bargain fashion, Leeds announced the arrival of Nmecha on Sunday. The versatile forward will join up with those in Yorkshire at the beginning of July, when he will hope to make an instant impact. It’s in the Premier League, of course, that the former Wolfsburg man will become the latest of a growing list of Manchester City graduates scattered around the country.

Speaking for the first time since putting pen to paper, Nmecha told Leeds’ official media channels: “I’ve got some people that have been here, like Joss (Joshua Guilavogui), who I’ve played with and he told me about the atmosphere and the fans.

“I trust Joss. He’s one of the nicest guys in football. He said it’s a massive club and if I get the opportunity, I should definitely do it. He said the fans are crazy and the boys are great as well. So yeah, he gave a really good first impression.”

After struggling to find his form in a season controlled by injuries at Wolfsburg last time out, Nmecha will be hoping that a fresh start hands him a fresh opportunity to find the back of the net on a consistent basis.

Related Leeds and Burnley battle for free agent signing of "immense" Premier League defender

The two clubs squared off all season for the Championship title and will now go head to head off the pitch for a new signing.

Posts ByBrett Worthington Jun 17, 2025

Now 26 years old, the German could be at the peak of his powers at exactly the right time for Daniel Farke’s side. Nmecha looks likely to be just the start of the Whites’ summer business too, amid links with the likes of Facundo Buonanotte and reports now suggesting that they’ve reached an “agreement” to welcome a second transfer target.

Leeds reach "agreement" to sign Jaka Bijol

According to Fabrizio Romano, Leeds have now reached an “agreement” to sign Jaka Bijol from Udinese with “personal terms” also agreed and the “deal done” for the defender to join those at Elland Road.

A deal worth €22m (£18.75m), the 49ers have proved that they’re not afraid to spend this summer and back Farke in the Premier League. The addition of Bijol could go a long way towards survival at the first time of asking too.

Like Nmecha, the defender is now 26 years old and should be at the peak of his powers. Just last season, he played a vital part for Udinese in Serie A – starting 34 games – as they secured a solid mid-table place.

Leeds certainly wouldn’t argue if Bijol helped them to a similar finish next season, which would instantly turn his transfer fee into an undeniable bargain.

Southampton have now held talks with a 35-year-old coach as a possible alternative to the heavily linked Will Still, as their search for a new manager continues.

Latest on Southampton’s manager search

Saints are once again looking for a new manager after Ivan Juric left the club even before the Premier League season came to an end. It is a rather difficult job for any interested manager, as Southampton are heading back to the Championship after a disastrous campaign and will no doubt have some of their best players poached by Premier League clubs.

Approach made: Southampton now in advanced talks to hire new 4-3-3 manager

He’s just left his previous role…

ByTom Cunningham May 19, 2025

The league comes to an end next week, and the club will hope they can have a new man in place as soon as possible to give them the best chance of aligning with their new boss in the transfer market.

Sheffield Wednesday manager Danny Rohl is one manager under consideration, and according to David Ornstein, Rohl is considering his options, but Southampton may not be a priority given he has interest from the Premier League and the Bundesliga. Steven Gerrard has also been linked with a move to St Mary’s, but those links have gone rather quiet in recent weeks.

Along with Rohl, Will Still is heavily linked with a move to Southampton, and it’s been reported that Still is in advanced talks over a move to St Mary’s after leaving RC Lens.

Still told reporters that his decision to leave Lens was so he could be closer to his family: “I will not be the coach of Lens next season. Today was my last match of the season at Bollaert. For multiple reasons, the main reason behind my decision is that I need to go back home. It is a logical choice for me to be closer to my wife for her well-being.”

It’s claimed that Southampton are confident of agreeing a deal with Still for him to become their new manager, but he is not the only person they have recently spoken to.

Southampton now hold talks with 35 y/o who's just been sacked

As well as holding talks with Still, according to The Guardian, Southampton have also held talks with recently sacked Tom Cleverley.

The Guardian reports that the Saints are looking to rebuild after their relegation and have identified a handful of young, up and coming managers who could be in charge next season, with Cleverley one of those.

The 35-year-old is currently out of work following his sacking from Watford after the Hornets fell short of the Championship play-offs, making him their 12th such casualty in the space of just six years.

This update goes on to state that Cleverley, who likes to operate in a 4-2-3-1 formation, has made a good impression on Southampton during those discussions, and he now has a strong chance of becoming the club’s new manager – Cleverley is seen as one of the most promising young English coaches in the game.

Games

61

Won

20

Drawn

14

Lost

27

Points

74

Points per game

1.21

Cleverley’s time at Vicarage Road was his first time as a senior manager, as the former Manchester United midfielder had been working in Watford’s academy before he was given the caretaker role at the end of last season. Cleverley is still very early into his coaching career, but the same could be said for Rohl, who has only managed Sheffield Wednesday, and while Still has managed a couple of sides in France, it is very clear the club are planning for a new dawn with a long-term vision.

Stepping up their summer plans, Manchester United are now reportedly expected to submit an opening offer to sign a Serie A midfielder who dominated former Old Trafford star Scott McTominay this season.

INEOS preparing for big summer

Ahead of Ruben Amorim’s first full season in charge, in which he will be forced to operate underneath an even greater spotlight, it’s fair to say that INEOS must get things right on the transfer front.

The Red Devils desperately need to show the door to several stars and are even more desperate for fresh faces to arrive and make their mark at Old Trafford.

Amorim is keen to ensure that his side waste no time before finally turning things around at the club, despite questions around a long-term task.

The former Sporting CP boss told reporters earlier this month: “I understand, but I’m not naïve. I don’t want to think we need a lot of years to be competitive. I can’t think like that, I cannot manage that, it’s not in me. That’s why I’m putting pressure on myself.

Bye-bye Onana: Man Utd seriously interested in "incredible" English 'keeper

Onana had another evening to forget against Lyon.

ByTom Cunningham Apr 11, 2025

“I know we won’t be the biggest challengers in the next year or two years. We are changing a lot of things inside the club and we know it will take a lot of time, but I will not say I need a lot of years. Next year is our goal. I’m not saying we’re going to win the title in the next year, I’m not crazy.”

What would certainly help accelerate Manchester United’s turnaround is an impressive transfer window – something that INEOS are seemingly planning for.

Already, names such as Liam Delap and James Trafford have been mentioned among those who could yet be on their way to Amorim’s side, but it’s a Serie A midfielder who may well be most likely.

Man Utd expected to submit offer for Ederson

According to TuttomercatoWeb, Manchester United are now expected to submit an official offer to sign Ederson from Atalanta in the coming weeks. The Serie A side reportedly value their midfielder at around €60m (£52m), but it remains to be seen whether United’s pending offer will reach that mark and satisfy the Italians’ requirements.

It should come as no surprise that Atalanta are demanding such a high price, however. If Manchester United kept an eye on academy graduate, turned Napoli star, Scott McTominay, they would have seen Ederson’s quality for themselves earlier this season. The Brazilian dominated the Napoli midfielder in a resounding 3-0 victory.

By the end of the 3-0 thrashing, the Atalanta star had made eight passes into the final third, won 100% of his tackles and completed as many as 10 recoveries. McTominay, meanwhile, was limited to the least amount of touches of any outfield player on the day and won just 50% of his tackles, according to FotMob.

Described as “strong” by South American football expert Tim Vickery, Ederson is exactly the type of combative midfielder that Amorim needs alongside Manuel Ugarte if he is to turn Manchester United around once and for all.

10 midfielders Man Utd could sign to replace Casemiro

The Brazilian could soon be on the way out of Old Trafford.

ByCharlie Smith Apr 7, 2025

The moment Glenn Maxwell fell first ball you started to wonder what was possible, but in the end the predicted script played out

Melinda Farrell06-Jun-20241:16

Stoinis: Oman were a very skillful team

The powerplay is done. Australia: 37 for 1. Not bad Oman, you think, not bad at all.From the start you had nodded in approval, all you associates dreamers, as Kaleemullah twice drew the inside edge from Travis Head and pinged David Warner’s front pad. The wicket is tacky and slow and everyone says that’s a great leveller, just the thing to cut the big boys down to size.First blood to the underdogs!, you hurrahed, as Head drove Bilal Khan to Khalid Kail. When Shakeel Ahmed fired one in at Warner and the stumps lit up, you crowed in unison with the small crowd and the Kensington Oval big screens that screamed OUT!, only to discover the ball had ricocheted off Prathik Athavale’s pads. Still, it was another play and miss. Score one for Oman’s bowlers.Related

Scotland take on Oman with Super Eight spot a realistic dream

Oman captain on playing Australia: We don't think we are going to play someone extraordinary

Ponting: You want 'natural winners' like Warner at World Cups

All-round Stoinis stars as Australia overcome early wobble

You admire the gusto and commitment of the red-clad fielders as they sprint hard and fling themselves at every ball. Aqib Ilyas’ sharp dive in the covers that prevents a Mitchell Marsh boundary is so good Ayaan Khan runs in all the way from the boundary rope to backslap his captain and you throw a little fist pump yourself.When Marsh picks out long-on you feel a little tremor but the big quake is yet to come.Oh man, oh man, OMAN!, you scream as Ilyas soars to his left and clings onto Glenn Maxwell’s first-ball loose drive. Two in two! A screamer, a cracker, a pick-your-superlative blinder. Could this be Australia’s banana skin moment? Could you dare to believe this fairytale might come to life?As Warner and Marcus Stoinis scrap and scrape you start calculating. Could Oman keep them to 120? 130? Anything under 150 and surely it’s game on.In the 14th over Ilyas is hurling his legbreaks and googlies with the same conviction he had hurled himself in the covers. He draws Stoinis forward and the ball fizzes past his bat and barely misses the off stump before Athavale puts it down. Yeah, you muse, he’s got him on the run. It’s only when you see the replay that you realise it wasn’t a play and miss but the finest feather, a chance gone begging. Still, the skipper has Stoinis’ number, surely, it’s only a matter of time.Aqib Ilyas celebrates his stunning catch to remove Glenn Maxwell•ICC/Getty ImagesMehran Khan is back for the 15th over. He has two wickets already, two in two. He took 3 for 7 against Namibia and inspired an avalanche of commentary questioning Oman’s decision not to bowl him in that game’s Super Over. Maybe this would be his moment.His first ball finds the outside edge of Stoinis’ bat. It’s two runs, but another edge will do.It’s not an edge, it’s a lusty blow and it’s heading straight for Ayaan on the deep cover boundary, eyes on the ball as he backpedals, hands above his head. He takes the catch – yessssssssss! – but no, his momentum sees him tumbling back over the rope. So close. But still, you hope, it’s only a matter of time.Down the ground goes Stoinis; he has found his range and suddenly the dream starts to waver.Wham! Splat! Old school Batman graphics wouldn’t be amiss as Stoinis goes down the ground, again and again, but even Adam West couldn’t fill a skintight superhero suit the way Stoinis does when he flexes his sizeable biceps.Marcus Stoinis took advantage of his reprieves to kickstart Australia•Associated PressBig Papi is in town, the Stoin unleashed, as he grabs the momentum and casually slings it over his shoulder. The most alpha moment comes at the start of the final over, when he drives Bilal down to long-on for what would be an easy single. Stoinis turns it down with Tim David at the non-striker’s end. Yes, that Tim David, the bloke who eats death bowlers for breakfast. Flex much?Oman’s fate is sealed. Australia have too much firepower and too many runs to defend. Mitchell Starc mixes a few loosey-gooseys with the magic balls. Adam Zampa finds drift and grip, Nathan Ellis is suitably sharp and Josh Hazlewood gives little away.Starc, Zampa and Ellis take two wickets apiece but that won’t do. This is Stoinis’ joint and he pops his pecs one, two, three times. He does for the current captain with a ball that straightens, clipping the edge of Ilyas’ bat on the way to a diving Matthew Wade. The former captain is his next victim, chasing a wide one that lands in the same pair of gloves. The icing is Mehran. Who cares if it’s a full toss or it takes a boundary rope juggle from David to complete the catch? The wickets belong to the pumped-up West Australian who models on the streets of New York in his spare time.The dream was fleeting for Oman, before the beautiful brutality of The Big Stoin.Australia march on, the first hurdle surmounted. Wobble, what wobble? There is only Stoinis’ megawatt smile.

The first major move for IPL 2023 has been made, with franchises releasing players ahead of the auction on December 23. Here are the biggest talking points from the IPL’s retention day

Nagraj Gollapudi16-Nov-20223:43

Uthappa: Knight Riders don’t have a back-up Indian batter, which is a worry

KKR: second-smallest squad, smallest purse
Franchises sometimes use trades to increase their purse for the auction. It’s what Delhi Capitals did when they offloaded India allrounder Shardul Thakur, whom they had bought for INR 10.75 crore, to Kolkata Knight Riders.Knight Riders, however, used the trade window differently. Thakur was the third player they got via a trade, having already procured New Zealand fast bowler Lockie Ferguson (INR 10 crore) and Afghanistan wicketkeeper-opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz (INR 50 lakh) from Gujarat Titans. So Knight Riders dropped INR 21.25 crore during the trading window to acquire three players, a decision that might seem debatable to some given they could have potentially bought more players for less at the auction.Related

• Sunrisers release Williamson ahead of IPL 2023 auction

• How the IPL teams stack up ahead of the 2023 player auction

• Pollard calls time on IPL career, stays with Mumbai Indians as batting coach

• Shardul Thakur traded from Delhi Capitals to Kolkata Knight Riders

Here’s why Knight Riders will disagree. They already knew that Pat Cummins, Sam Billings and Alex Hales were going to be unavailable for IPL 2023, so they had to fill those three gaps. And they went after three players likely to feature in their starting XI. In Ferguson, they got a quick capable of bowling in all phases of the game and someone who has already had some success with them. In Gurbaz, they brought in firepower at the top of the order, something they sorely missed last season. In Thakur, they saw a replacement for Cummins – a wicket-taking bowler who can bat in the lower order. During the previous mega auction, Thakur had been bid for by several franchises, so there was no guarantee that Knight Riders would have got him for this price had he gone into the upcoming auction.The auction, however, is going to be tricky for Knight Riders. They have only 14 players in their current squad – so they certainly need to bolster their bench – but only have INR 7.05 crore. They don’t have deep pockets to outbid their competition, so they will have to be strategic about whom they want and how they are going to buy them.6:24

Uthappa: Sunrisers Hyderabad will go all out to get Ben Stokes

A wake-up call for West Indies?
West Indies’ disappointing performances in the previous two T20 World Cups have not gone unnoticed, and the stocks of their players seem to have fallen in the format they were better at than most not so long ago. On Tuesday, ten West Indian players were released from the IPL franchise rosters [the number of South Africans released, for perspective, was two]: Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard, Nicholas Pooran, Jason Holder, Odean Smith, Evin Lewis, Fabian Allen, Romario Shepherd, Sherfane Rutherford and Dominic Drakes.A lot of these players were bought at inflated prices last year, a by-product of the mega-auction dynamics, and the teams could look to buy some of them back at lower costs. However, is this also a reflection of the state of West Indies cricket? Is it a wake-up call to their players that IPL franchises are not just looking at muscular batting, but are keen to see a wider array of skills and peak fitness?5:59

Uthappa: Chennai might look to buy back Bravo

What next for Mayank Agarwal?
Even before they appointed Shikhar Dhawan as their new captain, Punjab Kings were clear they needed to release Mayank Agarwal, who led the franchise in IPL 2022. Agarwal had been retained for INR 12 crore last season but scored only 196 runs at a strike rate of 122.5. And, under his captaincy, a team full of explosive batters finished sixth. With Kings going in another direction for their captain next year, it was only prudent to release Agarwal and perhaps try and buy him back at a lower price.The catch, however, is that established Indian batters are always in high demand and usually in short supply at a smaller auction like the one next month. Even though his returns in the T20 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy were modest – 165 runs, strike rate 154.2 – he has been prolific in recent IPL seasons and is superb in the field. With several teams in the market for an Indian top-order batter, Agarwal could just be in for another big payday.Different roads to recovery
Sunrisers Hyderabad, Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians finished eighth, ninth and tenth respectively last season, and each team has adopted a different retention strategy.Sunrisers have dismantled most of their class of 2022, releasing their captain Kane Williamson and star batter Pooran, who could have been a potential leader in the future. Williamson’s drastic dip in batting form coincided with Sunrisers finishing last in 2021 and third last in 2022. And Pooran’s 306 runs at a strike rate of 144.34 last season did not justify his price tag of INR 10.75 crore, the highest for a West Indian player at an auction.ESPNcricinfo has learned that Brian Lara, Sunrisers’ new head coach, wanted a fresh start and was not shy of dropping big names while retaining a (mostly) younger group of players who have shown promise of developing fast. It is a pragmatic approach, but Sunrisers also have the cushion of the largest purse to aggressively pursue high-profile players at the auction.Mumbai and Chennai have not made many drastic changes to their squads•BCCILike Sunrisers, Mumbai have also failed to make the playoffs in the last two seasons. Their strategy at the previous mega auction was questionable: they spent massively on a couple of players, which forced them to bulk-buy lesser-known names to fill up the squad. Now Mumbai have released 13 players – one more than Sunrisers – letting go of several bowlers, most of whom did not create enough impact or did not have the opportunities to do so. Their core, however, remains intact. They expect Jofra Archer to be fit and form a formidable pace attack with Jasprit Bumrah with Jason Behrendorff, whom they traded in from Royal Challengers Bangalore. Mumbai, however, are still without a quality allrounder and a lead spinner, and those remain significant holes to fill for their extensive coaching staff as well as their famed scouts.The Super Kings, on the other hand, released only eight players, including Robin Uthappa, who had retired, the injury-prone Adam Milne, who played just one game last season, and Chris Jordan, who featured in four matches in IPL 2022. Bravo was the only regular first XI player that they released, and it remains to be seen if they buy back the 39-year-old allrounder.While Bravo could still be bought back for a lower price, Super Kings’ leadership group has enough faith in their new bowling core that played consistently last year: Mukesh Choudhary, Matheesha Pathirana, Simarjeet Singh and Dwaine Pretorius. And Deepak Chahar, who missed last season with an injury, is with them too. Also, with Ravindra Jadeja declaring that he was ready for a “restart” at Super Kings, MS Dhoni’s men have a formidable attack led by Sri Lanka’s Maheesh Theekshana for the spin-friendly home conditions at Chepauk.So while Sunrisers have gone in for a revamp, Mumbai and Super Kings have retained the backbone of their squads. All three franchises will have a lot to do to fill gaps at the auction on December 23.

Traditionally Pakistan’s fast bowlers have done best in England of all countries – and the rewards on offer for them there have been the highest too

Danyal Rasool04-Aug-2020A decade ago, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir lit up an overcast English summer, heirs apparent to some of the most exhilarating fast-bowling pairings you could think of. They bowled Australia out for 88, beating for the first time in 15 years an opponent they didn’t know how to beat, before turning their focus to England, against whom Amir was Player of the Series despite Pakistan losing it 3-1, and despite – well, you know what. They combined for 53 wickets across six Tests over that delirious English summer. They were 27 and 18, and they were the future.Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah will have watched those two run riot, either at the time or in the years since. They were ten and seven at the time, watching their heroes flourish in the country Pakistan’s bowlers have found to be the most fertile breeding ground for their skills. A place where, among other things, a mixture of colonial grievance, stylistic conflict and simmering mutual resentment have combined to birth some of the most celebrated moments in Pakistan’s history.Blue-eyed Fazal Mahmood on a crackling transistor radio would begin it all with a 12-wicket haul at The Oval in 1954, setting benchmarks for Pakistan’s quicks. Many failed to live up to that standard, but it wasn’t a coincidence that plenty who went on to earn immortality could trace it back to an England tour. Open-chested Imran Khan, who tormented David Gower on English pitches and Ian Botham in English courthouses, learned the basics of his trade entirely in the English university and county system. A bit of guidance from Sarfraz Nawaz didn’t hurt, and it was Nawaz’s discovery of reverse swing that took cricket from the back pages to being a matter for the English courts in the first place. Wasim Akram enjoyed the privilege of having both Khan’s ear and his backing on his first English tour in 1987, where he would finish below only his mentor on the wickets chart as Pakistan won a series there for the first time.Five years on, Akram had accumulated half a decade of English county experience and he teamed up with Waqar Younis to clean up again, the pair combining for 43 England wickets in another series victory. They would go on to become a byword for the ideal fast-bowling partnership, and after several false dawns, years of Umar Gul hopefulness and Mohammad Sami hopelessness, it appeared Amir and Asif were finally the next logical step in that cycle. Their performance in 2010 would be an inspiration, and then, crushingly, provide a cautionary tale. In other words, it would be a welcome to Pakistan cricket.To England, perchance to take buckets of wickets•Getty ImagesIt might have been hard to believe then, but those depressing days of the spot-fixing scandal would eventually lead to where Naseem and Afridi stand now. Afridi is yet to hit 21, and will lead an attack once spearheaded by the names above it who it still feels sacrilegious to compare him to. Seventeen-year-old Naseem likely lies in wait as first-change. They might not have got their opportunities quite so soon, especially if Amir had not retired from Test cricket so prematurely, or even if Asif, lost to the game forever, had gone on to fulfil the promise their talent foreshadowed.England, make no mistake, is where these young men’s destinies lie, where their careers, should Pakistan’s history be any guide, will be forged. For all the acrimony, for all the accusations, both true and libellous, that Pakistan have felt aggrieved by, England has been perhaps the most generously rewarding place in the world for its most prized skill: fast bowling. It has turned anonymous chancers into household names, extended exposure to players who might otherwise have been severely underrated, and since the late 1960s, offered lucrative county contracts to players who financial pragmatism might have otherwise forced out of the game. It may have been a bully, but it has also been benefactor.Even with cricket’s freshly aligned priorities, the shifts of power from the English and Australian antipodes to the subcontinent, the value of excelling in England is higher for Pakistan than it has arguably ever been. Deprived of cricket’s most reliable cash cow – bilateral cricket against India – and locked out of the IPL, proving oneself in England remains a Pakistani cricketer’s one big chance to be heard beyond their echo chamber, and a chance at earning a fraction of the income contemporaries around the world have the luxury of taking for granted.