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Liverpool have been struggling with numerous injury issues in the squad which has led to a poor start in the Premier League, but now a reliable source has given a promising injury update that will be a huge boost for Jurgen Klopp.

What’s the latest?

According to The Times’ Northern football correspondent Paul Joyce, Jordan Henderson has recovered from his hamstring injury faster than first anticipated and will join the England squad for the upcoming international fixtures.

Joyce tweeted:

“Jordan Henderson has been called into Gareth Southgate’s England’s squad for the games against Italy and Germany after recovering from a hamstring injury ahead of schedule.”

Klopp will be delighted

There is no doubt that Klopp will be delighted to have the Liverpool captain back in contention to start for Liverpool when they return to action next month, following the disappointing and disjointed form the side has displayed over the season so far.

Liverpool are currently 8th in the Premier League table with just nine points on the board, which is currently nine points shy of Arsenal who currently occupy the top spot, and the German coach will be desperate for a positive response from his team when they get back to league football against Brighton on the 1st of October.

The return of Henderson will be warmly welcomed as the team seemingly lacks leadership in the heart of the pitch with a string of lacklustre performances, and it will be no surprise if the skipper is selected for the first game back as Klopp is a huge admirer of the midfielder.

The Reds boss hailed Henderson as “unbelievably important” to the team in an interview a few years back, saying:

“If anybody who is with us still doesn’t see the quality of Jordan Henderson, then I cannot help them. Is Hendo the perfect football player? No. Do I know anybody who is? No. Is he unbelievably important to us? Yes.”

The 32-year-old captain has tallied up 455 appearances for the club and has made 11 years with the Merseysiders, proving that he is clearly one of the most trusted players in the team as one of the only mainstays since the manager took over seven years ago.

With that being said, now that Liverpool are starting to get their players back from their respective injury troubles, there is no excuse for the Reds not to go out all guns blazing when the Premier League returns in a few weeks’ time.

Zimbabwe coach admits that recent developments have been disturbing for the players, but expects the team to make a big statement in the tri-series in Bangladesh

Mohammad Isam11-Sep-2019You’re the head coach of an international team. You do what you can, within your means and resources, to make the team as good as it can be, but things outside your control lead to the team being suspended from the international game. What do you do then? Lalchand Rajput, the Zimbabwe coach, has what he calls a simple motto: “Be positive, look ahead, and think about what you want to achieve. That’s it.”As things stand, the Zimbabwe men’s and women’s cricket teams are suspended by the ICC. The reason is a spat between Zimbabwe Cricket and the country’s Sports and Recreation Commission. The conflict, based on what we know, has been resolved. The ICC decision stands, but if everyone in Zimbabwe plays by the rules, that could change in the not-too-distant future.The players, of course, have been hit hard, and they have made their displeasure public. Sikandar Raza, the senior allrounder, has been dropped from the squad for the T20I tri-series in Bangladesh – with Afghanistan as the third team – because of disciplinary reasons, while Hamilton Masakadza, the captain, has announced his desire to quit after the series because “with Zimbabwe barred from [ICC T20 World Cup Qualifier in Dubai next month], I feel the time is right to shift the focus to the next generation”.It can’t be easy under the circumstances, and Rajput admits that it isn’t.ALSO READ: Brickhill – The troubled history of Zimbabwe player unions”Obviously everyone was worried, because no one knew what was going to happen. The players were disturbed because it came as a surprise. We had just landed in Netherlands [for a white-ball series], and before the first game we got the news. So everybody was worried, understandably,” Rajput told ESPNcricinfo. “It was a difficult phase, that tour. But we tried to motivate the players, we tried to … I told the players to leave these things behind, and once at the ground, focus on the job. I think we have overcome that. We want this to be a new beginning for us, I’d say, a fresh start, and I hope we move forward now.”We will, of course, miss Raza, because he has been one of our better players. But we have to move on, move forward with the players we have. Whatever team we have got, we must utilise to the best potential.”

Yes, things have happened back home, but that’s not really in our control. But that’s why we have to try and be very positive, look ahead. Hopefully, there is a future, because that’s what we are here for

Fortunately for the team, their trip to Bangladesh wasn’t cancelled, and they now have a chance to make a statement in the T20Is in Dhaka before travelling to Singapore to take on the home side and Nepal in another T20I tri-series.”A lot of eyes are on Zimbabwe cricket – that’s what I have told the players. Everyone is watching us, so we have to make sure we do well; if you do well, things will change,” Rajput said. “In cricket, the bottom line is performance. It’s a good platform for us, that we are getting to play. We have got a nice mix of young and experienced players, and they are hungry. They want to perform, and this is the best platform. So, hopefully, we do well, and do well in Singapore as well.”It should help. After all, bar a 1-1 Test series in Bangladesh late last year, it’s mostly been rough going for Zimbabwe since Rajput’s appointment was confirmed, in August 2018. They swept UAE 4-0 in an ODI series at home in April this year, but have lost everything else in the format – in South Africa and Bangladesh last year and in Netherland and Ireland this year. And in T20Is, the record is one win and four losses in six matches.As things turned pear-shaped, first at home and then in the form of the ICC suspension, everything seemed to be in a state of disarray; emotions among players ran high, with questions about the team’s – and their – future uppermost in everyone’s mind.While accepting that the circumstances – “not in our control” – made things tough for him and the players, Rajput, whose last gig before joining Zimbabwe was with the Afghanistan team, said he just shifted to what was his “speciality”, man-management.”Yes, things have happened back home, but that’s not really in our control. But that’s why we have to try and be very positive, look ahead. Hopefully, there is a future, because that’s what we are here for. You can’t think about the things that have happened. You do, but you have to look ahead too. We must all think of what we are going to do next. My motto is simple: be positive, look ahead, and think about what I want to achieve.Lalchand Rajput was the coach when Afghanistan achieved Full-Member status•Getty Images”In international cricket, the mindset is the main thing. A player is judged by the nine inches above his shoulders. If you have a good head, a strong mind, you can conquer anything. Look at Steven Smith. His technique isn’t what coaches teach you, but look at the runs he has scored in England. It’s because he is mentally strong. That’s all the matters. Technique will take you only so far. After that, it’s the mindset. It’s the self-belief.”I said that to the Afghanistan players too, and that’s what I am telling the players in Zimbabwe. If you have the self-belief, that I can do it in the middle, then you can. As a coach, my job is to give them the self-belief, the confidence. I can give those inputs, what it requires to perform in the middle. After that, of course, it’s over to the players. Whatever the conditions and circumstances, you have to have the courage. If you have the courage, you can conquer anything. No backward steps.”In Bangladesh now, Zimbabwe are the lowest-ranked of the three competing teams: 14th, with the home side at No. 10 and Afghanistan three spots higher. Rajput is, however, targeting a final appearance.”The pressure is on Afghanistan and Bangladesh. We have nothing to lose, and we have to play fearlessly. We have to give our best in every game, and if we can show some self-belief, we can do anything we want on the ground,” Rajput said. “We have to reach the final, that’s the main thing. We go one game at a time, take stock after each game, and see what we need to do. In T20s, I believe there are no favourites. You do well on the day, and you win. That’s what we have seen in T20 competitions. We are as good as any other team in T20s, and if we play to our potential, we can win matches.”We have a good bunch of players coming through the ranks now, and we have the regular seniors too. This is a transition period for us, and hopefully, we will overcome it, and you’ll see a better Zimbabwe team in the near future.”Rajput has just under two years to go on his contract but Masakadza, who took over as captain across formats in February this year, won’t be a part of the remainder of Rajput’s time with the side.”He has served Zimbabwe cricket for a long, long time,” Rajput acknowledged. “He has been an ambassador for Zimbabwe cricket, he has done yeomen service for us. His performances are right up there, they speak for his skills and ability. As a coach, I have had a wonderful time working with him, and I hope he leaves on a high note. If we can win the final, that would be a perfect farewell for him. That’s what we are hoping for.”

It tells you much about the current state of world cricket that Edgbaston had only budgeted for a three-day Test

George Dobell20-Aug-2017It tells you much about the current state of world cricket that Edgbaston had only budgeted for a three-day Test.Little was expected of West Indies but they disappointed nevertheless. And just as David Gower joked that West Indies would be “quaking in their boots” ahead of the 1985-86 tour following his side’s success in the Ashes, so it seems fair to suggest few in Australia gulped, crossed themselves and whispered prayers when they saw the scorecard from Birmingham.Before reaching conclusions over West Indies’ future it is worth remembering a few things. It is not so long since England succumbed to whitewash defeats in Australia (2006-7 and 2013-14), the UAE (2012), India (1992-93) and West Indies (1984, 1985-86). West Indies won the previous Test between these sides – in Barbados in May 2015 – and this series remains live. It is probably sensible to postpone the firmest of judgements.This was, however, a desperately lame performance from West Indies. Arguably not since an inexperienced Bangladesh team were brushed aside in 2005 – England lost only six wickets in the entire series; winning both Tests by an innings – has such weak opposition played in a Test series in England. The difference is that Bangladesh side was at the start of its journey in Test cricket; this West Indies side has no such excuse and no such hope for the future.Coming on the heels of a series of other one-sided encounters – there have been more than a dozen series (of three matches or more) whitewashes this decade alone including the recently-concluded thrashing of Sri Lanka by India – it is a reminder that it will take more than a pink ball and some floodlights to save Test cricket. Such novelties worked in encouraging record crowds to Edgbaston over recent days (the ground has never seen a higher single day attendance for a non-Ashes Test than it did on the second day) but once that wears off, it will become tough to retain the numbers in the grounds or the numbers watching on television.The solution? If players are well compensated for their work – at least as well compensated as they are for their appearances in T20 leagues – and if greater context can be added to such games (ideally the introduction of promotion and relegation in Test cricket) the format can be saved. But the water is rising fast now and, with more players from South Africa and West Indies exploring their options away from international cricket the situation will, if not confronted, only worsen.All of which renders it hard to gauge what progress England have made. In winning three Tests in succession for the first time since 2014 (when they defeated India), they demonstrated admirable ruthlessness. They also gained some experience of pink-ball cricket, albeit with a different ball to that to be used in Adelaide, and the confidence gained from such performances may prove beneficial. They will know, though, that far tougher challenges lie ahead.Mark Stoneman has precious little time to prepare for a potential Ashes tour•Associated PressRoot made a point, after the match, of praising his “record breakers.” In Alastair Cook, England’s leading Test run-scorer, James Anderson, England’s leading Test wicket-taker and Stuart Broad, who overtook Ian Botham to move into second place in the list of England’s greatest Test wicket-takers, he has an extraordinary bank of experience in his dressing room. Add to that the all-round depth offered by Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali and he has the basis of what could be an excellent team.Anderson may have lost a little pace but he has compensated with exemplary control this summer. He has hardly bowled a poor delivery and, after five Tests, almost a third of the overs he has bowled (47 out of 147) have been maidens. His economy rate – 2.22 runs per over – and average – 13.12 – in that period are not too shabby, either. It is also hugely encouraging that he has managed five successive Tests without fitness issues. Trevor Bayliss suggested he would have his head bitten off if he suggested either Anderson or Broad be rotated out of the team ahead of the next two games. Besides, Chris Woakes – while in the 13-man squad for the second Test – may well find himself playing another Championship match next weekend as he seeks a return to Test levels of fitness and consistency.But we knew Anderson and Broad were fine bowlers before this match. And we knew Cook and Root were fine batsmen. None of them taught us anything new by bullying a soft West Indies team.What Root didn’t learn was the readiness of Mark Stoneman for Test cricket, the ability of Tom Westley to add substance to his obvious style or whether Dawid Malan can cut it as a Test match batsman. It was Stoneman’s ill-fortune to receive perhaps the best delivery of the match, while Westley (who looks so like John Crawley you half expect his hair to fall out and then have a ferocious disagreement with Lancashire) may have to play straighter if he is to sustain a career at this level. Malan survived some nervous moments early on to register his first half-century in Tests, but may yet come to regret not compiling the sort of score that makes an irrefutable case for his retention. All three will have another chance at Headingley.That, in itself, is an issue. There are now only two Tests left until the Ashes start. If Stoneman and co. are unable to find their feet in those next two games, it leaves England with no chance of blooding anyone new before Australia. There’s no time for a Plan B now.In time, though, you suspect England may omit one of the specialist batsmen, shuffle their talented middle-order up a space each and bring in both Chris Woakes – who is a more than capable batsman – at No. 8 and find room for a second spinner.Yes, that would leave England with six bowlers and yes, that would be harsh of Toby Roland-Jones who has had a terrific start to his Test career. But with three of those bowlers more than decent allrounders – Woakes, Stokes and Moeen – it would not much weaken the batting and would mean the burden on the bowlers could be lessened a little. On tough days in Australia and with a couple of those bowlers carrying a few miles in their legs, that would be no bad thing. It’s not as if that extra batsman has contributed a great deal, anyway.The test for England now is to retain the intensity they have shown since The Oval for the rest of what promises to be a mis-match of a series. While they do not have a great record in such situations, the level of hunger palpable in Root does appear to have instilled a new edge in the side. And, if the newer players in the side can settle and gain some confidence, it may yet prove a valuable experience.

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Feb-2016Martin Guptill looked in good form before he holed out to deep cover for 31•Getty ImagesKane Williamson, though, kept the runs coming with another solid fifty•Getty ImagesAdam Zampa, on debut, chipped away at the middle order with the wickets of Williamson and Grant Elliott•Getty ImagesNew Zealand collapsed soon after, and were reduced to 205 for 7•Getty ImagesMitchell Santner added a useful 39-ball 45 to guide the hosts to a score of 281 for 9•Getty ImagesUsman Khawaja started the chase in sprightly fashion and struck his first ODI fifty•Getty ImagesKhawaja and Warner smashed a 122-run opening stand in 98 balls•Getty ImagesHowever, the game turned again as New Zealand roared back into the game with quick wickets•Getty ImagesDavid Warner looked set for a ton before he was given out lbw on review for 98•Getty ImagesMitchell Marsh and John Hastings then combined for a 86-run seventh-wicket stand to calmly take Australia to a series-levelling win•Getty Images

Daniel Brettig15-Jan-2015You’ve been away from the Australian team but are now back in time for the World Cup.It’s great to be back. I’ve been looking forward to this ever since I got the call. I’ve been up in the north woods and actually the day I left it was 20 below zero Fahrenheit and there was 15 inches of snow following me as I drove to the airport six hours back to Chicago. Then I got out here and it’s 90 degrees out here – that was a wake-up call.When did you get the call to come back to the team?It’s been about a month I knew. Darren (Lehmann) called me and said get involved with the tri-series and the World Cup, so very pumped up about that.This will be your fourth World Cup campaign with Australia. Winning the trophy in 2003 and 2007, and knocked out in the quarter-finals in 2011, which was not so good. What do you take out of those campaigns?First of all let me comment on the not so good. Playing in India we made it to the knockout round and we played pretty well and almost beat India. What I take out of them is experience. Every World Cup game is important. I can pass on a few little things here and there from those World Cups but these guys know what they’re doing.In 2013-14 you worked with the team through the home summer and in South Africa and fielding standards were very good but then you didn’t continue. Why was that?Darren was just moving the staff around, making some changes. I’d been with the team and I’m back for now. Greg Blewett I know very well, he’s doing a great job, he and I talk every day. It’s good to inject new people – the coaching projection, to be quite frank, is if you’re doing a good job you want to make yourself redundant. It sounds crazy and people don’t like to hear that about most of their work, but there comes a time when they need to have another injection of a different personality to keep players sharp. I think what Boof’s done here is a really good job.

“Nobody on this planet in cricket respects how hard it is to catch a cricket ball more than me, because I didn’t play. When I got into the game I was amazed. These guys are the best in the world – you’re going to drop some balls, you’re going to catch some.”Mike Young

What have you made of their fielding performances this summer?I was in America, I followed it and read some things and I take offence to some of those things because there’s a lot of facts, and nobody on this planet in cricket respects how hard it is to catch a cricket ball more than me, because I didn’t play. When I got into the game I was amazed. For years in America on they’ve got the top 10 plays of the day. I called up New York City and said ‘that was a nice play baseball-wise, but I see two of those every match in cricket that are better than that’. All of a sudden I’m watching , they’ve got top 10 plays and there’s a cricketer on it. I was happy about that because they have no idea how hard it is. These guys are the best in the world – you’re going to drop some balls, you’re going to catch some.Catches win matches in any sport, but in a World Cup it’s even more important to hold those?The worst thing to do is to say it’s more important, honestly. Because why put the excess pressure on somebody when it’s already hard enough. You’re going to have good games and bad games – what I consider a drop and what other people consider a drop can be different – I see guys diving for a ball, it hits them one-handed and it’s labelled they put it down. Come on, it’s not that easy. I think that [the fielding problems] has been overplayed a bit.Darren has spoken about how it’s not an issue of training volume but more confidence dropping after a couple chances have been missed.Confidence is everything. But to their credit they’re so resilient, they’ve been through so much, they bounce right back. You’re going to drop a catch, no big deal. I’m going to go public on one thing – I’ve been around coaching for 30 years, I read something the other day and it doesn’t matter who wrote it, but I have a problem with people calling me a lucky charm. I have a problem with that as a professional. I’m not a lucky charm, I’m not a horseshoe. They don’t need a lucky charm, they’re good enough. I’m here to impart anything I can to help. My job is to help Blewey.Ricky Ponting wrote a column recently in which he said one of your qualities is that when later in a season guys are getting tired or have sore hands, they will still want to train with you because of how you operate.Ricky was the best thing for me because he loved fielding training. Being Ricky Ponting the superstar and the captain, if he’s going to do it people will follow. That made my job so much easier, and let’s not forget the talent. I just take a different approach, I come from a different background. This is my coaching style. Some guys might not like it, I don’t know, but I’m just there to help.Do you know what you’ll be doing after the World Cup?I have no idea. If they wish for me to continue I’ll happily do it – I’m an Australian, don’t let the accent fool you – I’d love to continue on but that’s not my decision and whatever it is I’ll support it.

Plays of the day from the IPL game between Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals in Kolkata

Devashish Fuloria03-May-2013The surpriseRahul Dravid sent in James Faulkner at No. 3 and you thought that was the surprise of the day. But as Rajasthan Royals’ batsmen started falling one by one, everyone expected to see Dravid walking in. Samson came in to bat, then came Yagnik, then Owais Shah, surely Dravid was the next in line? Apparently not. He came in to bat at No. 8, possibly the lowest he has ever batted. He struck his first ball for four, missed the second and charged back for a quick couple off the last ball of the innings. Three balls. That’s it for the legend.The buggy algorithmShane Watson had been making smooth progress and looked set for another important innings, until Sunil Narine was introduced in the 11th over. Watson got a leading edge off the first delivery, then survived a very good shout for lbw to one that was going away, then survived another shout to one that came into him, and was finally trapped in front off the fifth ball. What does one expect of lesser batsmen when an international biggie like Watson still has no algorithm to decode the mystery?The dropWhile the rest of Royals’ batting line-up was struggling against spinners on a pitch that magnified the effect, Sanju Samson, all of 18 years, was stroking the ball beautifully. But then he tried to go leg side to a Sunil Narine wrong ‘un and got a thick leading edge that ballooned towards short cover. Manvinder Bisla, the wicketkeeper, called for it and comfortably got under it, only to see the ball pop out of his hands. Bisla couldn’t believe it, Eoin Morgan, who had tried to catch the fumble, couldn’t believe it, the bowler couldn’t believe it, but reaction of the day came from team co-owner Juhi Chawla, who stared with a blank expression like she had seen a ghost.The wide Manvinder Bisla had just been beaten by a Brad Hogg wrong ‘un which he didn’t read as he went for a sweep. The next ball he tried the sweep to a chinaman that was down the leg side. He missed that one too and the keeper was unable to stop it cleanly, allowing the batsmen to change ends. The umpire, CK Nandan, didn’t signal anything, which means it would have counted as runs for Bisla. The batsman, though, signalled to the umpire that he hadn’t touched it after getting to the non-striker end. A polite request was all the umpire need to call it a wide belatedly.

How come Australians prefer to catch the ball with their hands reverse-cupped? Steve Rixon and Ian Chappell weigh in

Sidharth Monga05-Mar-2012For much of the 1990s, cricket in India was infatuated with Australia. The team was on its way to becoming the best in the world, and games played there provided the best television product in India – the quality of pictures, the commentary. Kids in playgrounds – I was one – would run in a few extra feet when taking outfield catches, so that they could take them with fingers pointing up. During international matches in India, when a fielder caught the ball that way, the Indian commentator would say: “That is the Australian way of catching.”Like other kids back then, I dropped a few. I got hit in the face once because I covered my eyes with the “reverse cup”, losing sight of the ball. Then I stopped, going back to what came naturally to me, believing the Australian way of catching was some sort of idiosyncrasy that belonged to them alone. Like the inverted scores. Like their own cricket dictionary. Like the eight-ball over. When I finally got to Australia, though, I just had to try to trace the history and the logic behind the practice.I ask Ian Chappell, a brilliant slip fielder and someone who has watched most top-level cricket in Australia from the ’70s onwards, about the “Australian way of catching” with the fingers pointing up.”That’s not my way of catching, I can tell you that much,” he says, to my shock. He turns to Mark Taylor and asks, “Ever heard any Australian player call this the Australian way of catching?” Taylor says no, but adds, “I liked to catch that way, but not everyone does.””I think the other nations might talk about it,” Chappell says. “I have never heard one Australian player say that.”Why do the Aussies catch that way, though? How did it start? I ask a few players from older eras, but they can’t pinpoint how the reverse cup became the preferred way. A possible explanation could be the influence of baseball, which is quite popular in Australia, but Chappell quashes that notion too.”I can remember the first time I ever caught in baseball. I was about 11 years old,” he says. “And first time it popped up, and I went like that [], and I dropped it. I was walking up to pick the ball up and throw it back to the pitcher. I looked at my glove and said, ‘Ian you are an idiot. Have a look at the shape of your glove. It’s much better [fingers] down.’ I don’t remember my father telling me [either way]. He probably did, but I don’t remember it.”It was not all uniform in the Chappell family. Ian and Greg preferred the traditional method; Trevor caught with fingers pointing up.Taylor offers a plausible explanation. “I think it comes from the fact that some of the Australian players have also played Australian Rules football in the past,” he says. Fingers pointing up is how you catch in footy. “Typically the Western Australian blokes. Graeme Wood used to catch it that way,” Taylor says. At which point Chappell chips in and says, “[Simon] Katich is terrible. Ricky Ponting too.”Steve Rixon, Australia’s current fielding coach, is not entirely convinced footy is the key influence, but can see the logic. “I wouldn’t have thought that is the reason they catch it that way, but that’s not a bad summation,” he says. “I reckon there is merit in that.”Rixon, a wicketkeeper himself, preferred catching the ball with fingers up. The idea for him, and for Michael Hussey, another Western Australian, is to get the eyes in line with the ball, bend the knees and use that foundation to absorb the catch.”Either side of the body there is [a risk of losing] the ability to watch the ball closely,” Rixon says. “When the ball is round about eye level, all the way into your hands, people find it much easier. I haven’t seen Mike Hussey drop ever with fingers up. I have occasionally seen him drop some when the fingers are down.”There is merit to catching with fingers up but only if you do it as well as Hussey does, where you don’t risk losing the ball in the background: you are just waiting for it to come at you.This technique also obviously helps when you are at the edge of the boundary and can’t push further back. We watch Peter Forrest take one such during a game against India, and Taylor immediately brings up his background. “He is a rugby league player. New South Wales. His dad was a first-grade rugby league player.”I ask Rixon, how the average Aussie father teaches his kid to catch the ball. “Try both,” Rixon says. “With the understanding that if the ball is at chest level, [you] bend your knees, bring your eyes to the level of the ball, and just see how it feels. If it feels extremely uncomfortable that way, try the other way.

Chappell liked to move to the side and take chest-high catches in a normal cup. Bob Simpson would let the ball hit him full force and then take the rebound. Most modern Australian fielders get down low to make sure they catch with fingers pointing up

“What he will then find, like a lot of people, who play differently with a bat in their hands, a lot of people do things differently with a ball in their hand – ot is no different to a fieldsman, when it comes to the specifics of catching.”The safe way of catching the ball is to obviously cup your hand, but a lot of people find it easier to catch it the other way, and my advice to young cricketers is, try both, find out for yourself which feels comfortable, find out which feels safer. I know if I ask Mike Hussey right now right here, he would say he feels safer with his fingers pointing up.”A source of ire to Chappell and concern to Rixon is the chest-high catch taken in close-in positions. The overhead ones you can take with fingers pointing up, and the low ones you can cup your hands under, but what about the in-between height? Chappell liked to move to the side and take them in a normal cup. Bob Simpson would let the ball hit his chest full force and then take the rebound. Taylor used to get his hands together, with palms facing the chest, as if hugging the ball. Most modern Australian fielders get down low to make sure they catch with fingers pointing up.”I mean, it’s abysmal the way Ricky does it down here,” Chappell says. “For the obvious reason – lots of catches in the slips, the ball is looping down.””Makes me a little nervous, yes, but he has got beautiful hands,” Rixon says.The chat with Chappell and Taylor also busts the myth that the Australians prefer catching with fingers up because it lets them have a second grab. “The whole basis isn’t about if you drop, you get a second chance,” Rixon says. “That’s just an outcome of bad execution of the catch. The reason is, you are bringing your eyes to the same level of the ball coming to you.”Catching the ball with fingers pointing up has become more and more popular in Australia with time. Rixon sees a lot more players employ the method than did in his own playing days.Australia continue to be up there among the best fielding sides. They seems to remain casual and natural with how they catch, but to outsiders, especially those who grew up watching cricket in the ’90s, it is the “Australian way of catching”.

Stats highlights from the last day of the first Test between Pakistan and Sri Lanka in Karachi

Cricinfo staff25-Feb-2009

The USWNT legend expressed skepticism about the national team's standing, suggesting European nations have surpassed them

Lloyd ranks USWNT behind Spain, EnglandSays American squad has "a bit more to prove"Says Spain is "light years ahead" in developmentTSTWHAT HAPPENED

With England outlasting Spain for the Euro 2025 title on Sunday, former USWNT star Carli Lloyd said that – even coming off a 2024 Olympic gold medal – Emma Hayes' side is still behind European nations on a global scale.

“It's an interesting debate,” Lloyd said on the State of the Union podcast. “After watching this tournament, I mean, even teams like Switzerland, Italy, you know, Italy, you could argue that they had a little bit of an easier path to get to the semiinal, but they still came out brave. They were tactically flexible. They played really, really well.

“And so, yeah, it kind of got my wheels turning a bit to think about our current US women's national team, where they're at right now. I know that they had just won the Olympics. I still think they're hovering currently right now, third or fourth behind Spain, England – you could throw in Sweden than there."

AdvertisementWHAT LLOYD SAID

Lloyd emphasized that while Hayes is working to improve the squad, the team still has significant ground to make up compared to their European counterparts

“I mean, Germany down, down 10 men. Their epic performance was pretty amazing," she said. "But I do still think that there's a bit to go. There's a bit there's a bit more to prove to me. You know what they have as far as the depth. And I know Emma's spending a lot of time getting a lot of different players minutes and caps and doing all that to build the 2027. But Europe is in a really, really good position right now. I mean, Spain is undeniably the best. I think they are light years ahead as far as a playing style.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE

FIFA released its latest Women's World Ranking last month, with the United States maintaining their top position. The gap between the Americans and their closest challengers narrowed, with Spain (second) and Germany (third) rising.

Brazil, which split two matches with the USWNT this spring, moved into fourth place, representing a substantial four-position climb in the rankings.

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Jake Weatherald has been slower to find his feet in T20 but it has been a combination of persistence by the Adelaide Strikers and evolution on the young left-hander’s part that led him to Sunday’s innings

Daniel Brettig in Adelaide04-Feb-2018Two years ago, in his fourth first-class match, Jake Weatherald opened the batting for South Australia in a Sheffield Shield final and looked right at home. So much so, in fact, that he made it to 66 and 96 before throwing his hands away with a pair of shots that might best be described as presumptuous. In the second innings his skied slog at Fawad Ahmed, after a brief scoreless period, ushered the collapse that won a more composed Victoria the title in an away decider at Glenelg Oval.These memories were at the forefront of the mind of Adelaide Strikers captain Travis Head as he batted in the slipstream of Weatherald on another day when he looked in control – the Big Bash League final in front of more than 40,000 spectators at Adelaide Oval. At 24, Head has already captained his state for three seasons and the Strikers for this tournament, and he made sure he was in the ear of Weatherald who, at 23, is one of the richer batting talents in the Australian system.Unlike the four-day game, Weatherald has been slower to find his range in T20 matches, but it has been a combination of persistence by the Strikers and evolution on the young left-hander’s part that led him to Sunday’s innings. With Head in his ear to keep him focused, he surged to the first-ever century in a BBL final, underpinning a total of 202 that was ultimately far too much for even the redoubtable Hobart Hurricanes to chase, and enough for the Strikers to defend without the speed of Billy Stanlake and the wrist-spinning wiles of Rashid Khan.”It just comes down to experience, he got those scores in the Shield games and he had the foot on the throat and didn’t capitalise. Today I just kept reminding him, just kept telling him to capitalise,” Head said of Weatherald. “He didn’t slog, he played great cricket shots, he was very calm, selective on who he targeted and that just comes from experience.”He’s a mature man now, he’s played a lot of cricket, he’s played in big games, a lot of our big games for South Australia and today he’s gone out and shown he’s learned from experience and a few opportunities he’s had in the past and really put his foot down and made sure it was a match-winning performance. Last year and the start of the year, he probably didn’t give himself much of an opportunity, and we knew how good he was in the sheds, so we backed him in.”We gave him every game, we said we weren’t going to change that, him and Kez [Alex Carey] were going to open the whole time and gave him full confidence to go out there and back his skill and ability. We knew how good he was but he probably wasn’t giving himself the opportunity he would’ve liked, and at the back end he showed he’s given himself a chance and had some crucial innings for us.”The innings Weatherald conjured on Sunday arrived at the end of a period in which he had been trending ominously upwards. Scores of 65, 3, 56 and then 57 in the semi-final thriller against Melbourne Renegades on Friday night indicated that Weatherald was ready to step up from handy to substantial, and he was helped by some less than precise Hurricanes bowling in doing so. Their captain George Bailey said that Weatherald’s strengths square of the wicket were well known, particularly on a ground like Adelaide, but that his attack had offered too many deliveries in his strong zones.”I reckon he hit a lot of balls where we talked about not letting him hit balls,” Bailey said, his typical smile more of a grimace. “Like most of these young blokes they’re beautiful strikers of the ball, so you want to make them hit the ball where they don’t like to or they’re not as strong as they are [elsewhere]. He’s very strong square of the wicket and I reckon he hit too many pull shots and cuts shots today.”Having blazed eight sixes and nine fours Weatherald, too, agreed he had been offered the chance to play the square-of-the-wicket shots with which he is most comfortable, following a long tradition of South Australian left-handers from Clem Hill and David Hookes to Darren Lehmann. “I wanted to stick to my strengths and thankfully they bowled to them today,” he said. “Throughout the tournament I haven’t been overly successful, but thankfully they bowled where I wanted and I was able to hit to the boundary”I felt like I was hitting the ball really well throughout the tournament, I said that to anyone who asked me, I felt I was close to getting a big score and everyone around me was so supportive and saying the same thing, which was probably why they stuck with me. It’s really good to perform when I and the team really needed it.”The support staff have been so great throughout the tournament, letting me know my spot’s secure and backing me in to perform at some point. It was great they were so supportive throughout, all the players were supportive too, we’ve got such a great group, and that’s why we’ve been so successful.”Much like the Strikers themselves, Weatherald has taken time to find his best ways of succeeding in the shortest format, often seeming in too much of a hurry for one so capable of striking the ball cleanly once he has had a few sighters. But the ball-striking talent he possesses has been gradually honed through the faith of the captain Head, the coach Jason Gillespie, and the parallel state set-up led by Jamie Siddons. Tim Nielsen, the former Australia coach, serves as the high performance link between the two.”To be honest I found T20 cricket the hardest of all formats,” Weatherald said. “You obviously don’t have as much time, and I hadn’t really played too much T20 cricket before I played Big Bash, so it was a massive learning curve, the first 14 games I really found it quite hard to play, but just having good support staff around, Greg Blewett, “Dizzy” Gillespie and Jamie Siddons my Shield coach has been amazing. They’ve got around me and said ‘just bat the way you normally bat and you’ll make runs in T20 cricket’. My game’s evolved to hopefully perform in all formats, which is slowly coming together.”It is in finding the aforementioned adaptability that a link can be drawn from the Weatherald of the 2016 Shield final and the Weatherald of the 2018 BBL finale. For Head, there is satisfaction in knowing that several players have now come through the experience of losing three finals for their state – also the 2016 limited-overs decider and the 2017 Shield final, this time in Alice Springs – to be part of a dominant team on the most high-profile stage in Australian domestic cricket.”It was nice to take a back seat to Weathers today, he was exceptional, a match winner,” Head said. “That’s what we asked for Friday night and asked for that today, you want to step up in big games, be a match winner, he’s probably gone a bit unnoticed earlier in the tournament, probably teased us a little bit, been in really good form, but it’s fantastic that he’s gone out and played an unbelievable innings and won us the game.”It was nice to get it off the back I guess and nice for a lot of the guys who’ve played in them to celebrate winning a final and hopefully we can build something really special with this group of guys. Looking at it from the SACA perspective there’s a lot of guys in there that are playing Shield cricket for us and it’s great for South Australia but it’s also great for the Strikers. I’m sure this team will roll out the same next year and we expect nothing less than to win. We’ve set the example now.”That does not just bode well for the Strikers and South Australia, but for the national team at the top of the Australian pyramid.