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Lancashire have named Tom Smith as captain in all formats to prepare the way for Glen Chapple to move into a coaching role

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Feb-2015Lancashire have chosen the captain who must assume the onerous role of replacing Glen Chapple, one of county cricket’s most respected figures. Tom Smith, the England Lions allrounder, takes charge in all three formats of the game with Steven Croft appointed as vice-captain.Chapple who led Lancashire from 2009, will now concentrate on a coaching and playing role with many anticipating that he will call time on his career after one last hurrah – he needs 25 first-class wickets to reach 1000.Smith, 29, graduated from the county’s Academy to make his senior debut for Lancashire in 2005 and was part of their unexpected Championship success in 2011. He was named as Lancashire’s Player of the Year in 2014, one of the few stand-out performers as they were relegated from Division One of the Championship, taking 54 wickets and scoring 773 runs as a lower-middle order batsman.Lancashire’s head coach Ashley Giles said: “Tom has all the right ingredients of a good leader. He is well-respected, he plays all forms of the game, is a good professional, extremely mature and a good communicator.”He is a guy who has come through the Lancashire system and knows exactly what it means to play for such a great county. The same can also be said of our new vice-captain, Steven Croft, who is another exceptional individual.”Glen has done a fantastic job. He has moved into coaching and this is now an opportunity for the next generation of leaders. I believe the future of the club is in good hands.”

Europe's premier club competition gets underway this week, with a number of potential future superstars set to play key roles

Getty ImagesAlphonso Davies | 18 | Bayern Munich

With Bayern failing to sign any top-class replacements for Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery over the summer, the weight of responsibility has grown substantially on Canadian international Davies.

While Kingsley Coman and Serge Gnabry remain Niko Kovac's first choice wide pair at the Allianz Arena, Davies is seen as the first reserve – along with Ivan Perisic – and has all the tools to make it at the very highest level.

AdvertisementPeter LousSergino Dest | 18 | Ajax

Ajax may have sold a number of their young stars following last season's run to the Champions League semi-finals, but that has allowed a new batch of teenage stars to break through in Amsterdam.

The most impressive of them so far this season has been right-back Dest, whose performances have been rewarded with a first cap for the senior United States side as well as a fresh contract with the Eredivisie champions.

Getty ImagesAnsu Fati | 16 | Barcelona

Few 16-year-olds get the chance to play for Barcelona's first team, and even fewer make the impact that Fati has during the opening week of the season.

In just his second appearance for the Blaugrana he found the net against Osasuna before marking his first start against Valencia with a goal and an assist inside seven minutes at Camp Nou.

It remains to be seen how many chances he gets once the likes of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Ousmane Dembele return to full fitness, but he has certainly made his mark on Ernesto Valverde.

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GettyErling Braut Haaland | 19 | Salzburg

The son of former Leeds United defender Alf-Inge Haaland, the teenage striker has been in superb form for Salzburg in his first full season with the Austrian champions.

Having scored nine times in a game for Norway during the Under-20 World Cup over the summer, he has backed that up with 14 goals in eight games to kick-off the new campaign. He has now earned a first full international cap, and is already being linked to a host of top European clubs.

Vivianne Miedema posted an emotional message on her Instagram story after making her Emirates Stadium return for the first time since her ACL injury.

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Article continues below

Miedema makes return to Emirates StadiumInjured ACL in very same groundArsenal thump United 3-1 in WSLWHAT HAPPENED?

Miedema injured her ACL at the Emirates Stadium in a Champions League clash with Lyon which forced the Dutch superstar to miss the rest of the Gunners' season and the 2023 World Cup. Arsenal comfortably beat Manchester United 3-1 in front of a record-breaking sell-out crowd and, with the score at 3-0, Miedema was substituted on to raucous celebration.

AdvertisementWHAT MIEDEMA SAID

Posting on her Instagram story, Miedema said: "First time being back on the pitch as the Emirates. Pretty decent game as well. Thank you for filling up the stadium, again. ❤️"

Vivianne Miedema InstagramGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

It has been a long road to recovery for Miedema who must have felt emotional making her return to the very same pitch where she was struck down by the crippling injury. The greatest-scoring WSL player in history will have felt bittersweet watching on from the sidelines as her team-mates played in front of record crowds over the past 12 months. Having returned to playing earlier this year, including scoring a spectacular goal against Liverpool, Miedema has had to wait for her chance to play at the Emirates. But, finally, Miedema was able to get her first taste of playing in a sold-out Emirates stadium and the recognition her recovery deserves.

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GettyWHAT NEXT FOR MIEDEMA?

Miedema will keep aiming to get more minutes in the tank as the road back to being at the top of her game continues. With the Gunners possessing one of the best attacking units in the world, she may have to be patient but it will surely only be a matter of time before Miedema is back among the goals and records.

Moin Khan, the former Pakistan wicketkeeper and captain, has been named the head coach of the national side

Umar Farooq11-Feb-2014Key decisions of the managing committee meeting

Moin Khan to replace Dav Whatmore as Pakistan’s head coach

Aamer Sohail denounced as chief selector and director game and development national cricket academy

Azhar Khan to head interim selection committee

Mohammad Akram’s two-year contract as bowling coach endorsed

Shoaib Mohammad appointed as fielding coach

New role of chief cricket consultant created. Zaheer Abbas to fill the position and travel with the team as batting consultant

Moin Khan was appointed manager of the Pakistan team before the tour of Zimbabwe last year•AFPAmid a slew of changes to Pakistan cricket, Moin Khan has been named the new head coach of the national side. The decision was taken at an eight-member management committee meeting, a day after PCB chairman Zaka Ashraf was dismissed and the board of governors dissolved.Moin will replace Dav Whatmore, whose contract expires this month. He had been appointed team manager before the tour to Zimbabwe in August 2013 but had recently been replaced by Zakir Khan.In other major changes, Aamer Sohail’s appointment as chief selector last week was denounced, and former Pakistan cricketer Azhar Khan was put in charge of an interim selection committee.The committee, headed by newly reappointed PCB chairman Najam Sethi, also endorsed Mohammad Akram’s two-year contract as Pakistan’s bowling coach. A new fielding coach was also appointed, with Shoaib Mohammad put in charge for the Asia Cup and World Twenty20.When Ashraf was in charge of the PCB, he had appointed Sohail as director game and development national cricket academy and given him an additional charge of chief selector. But the Sethi-led PCB denounced a majority of the decisions taken by Ashraf since Ashraf came to power last month. “The management committee decided in principle that any decision which lacks transparency or due process shall not be ratified,” said Sethi while briefing the press in Lahore after a five-hour meeting.”(Since) PCB service rules were not followed in the decision to appoint him [Sohail] … further, the record reflects that Aamer Sohail was never issued a letter of appointment for any post in PCB, therefore he held no post in PCB.”The appointments of Mr. Basit Ali (coach of regional cricket academies in Karachi) and Mr. Mohammad Ilyas (chief selector of junior teams and the women’s national team) were not in accordance with PCB Services Rules. Their appointments are declared as void abinitio, null and void.”Apart from these major cricketing changes, the committee also took several administrative decisions including the appointment of the advisory Committee on Regional Affairs comprising representatives of Regions, and another committee on Cricketing Affairs comprising former captains and former chairmen of PCB.Though the PCB advertised three coaching positions including head, batting and fielding coach, the management committee scrapped the batting coach position. It has decided to introduce a new role called chief cricket consultant, filled by former captain Zaheer Abbas – also a managing committee member, has been named to travel with the team to supervise the batting department.

Were it not for an England captain registering a second consecutive hundred, there would have been little to cheer as Essex and Surrey played out an inevitable draw

Vithushan Ehantharajah at The Oval23-Apr-2014
ScorecardAlastair Cook made his second consecutive hundred in Essex colours•Getty ImagesAn inevitable draw to what could have been a compelling encounter came to pass at The Oval. Were it not for an England captain registering a second consecutive hundred, having been battered from pillar to post in the winter and since, there would have been little to cheer but the afternoon sunshine and pre-rush hour finish.Alastair Cook’s was an entertaining century – 127 coming off 202 balls in more than four hours at the crease – not least because it gave us an indication of what kind of form he was in. His biggest tell is the drive; out of nick, he seems almost allergic to it. Here, he was getting his nose to the ball, breathing it in before thrashing it to the boundary. “To me, it indicates I’ve got good balance,” he said afterwards.Another comfort for Cook was the ECB announcement confirming Paul Farbrace’s role as England’s new assistant coach. Cook, who was coached by Farbrace at England age-group level, is currently satisfied with his own game. Work away from the limelight has benefitted him greatly.”The most important thing for me personally is I’ve gone back to hitting the ball nicely,” he said. “I had a good month-and-a-half away from playing in the public eye, working in the nets with Paul Grayson.”You never turn a corner as such but to get two hundreds at the start of the season, especially in April, is pleasing. I’m genuinely quite chuffed with how things have gone in the past few weeks.”Cook will meet Peter Moores and, presumably, Farbrace on Friday, before Essex’s game against Gloucestershire. That might be his last county appearance for a while, with an England training camp being planned for the first week of May, ahead of the ODI with Scotland on May 9, which clashes with Essex’s game at Leicestershire.He looked relieved – a word he corrected himself from using – even taking time to talk shop with young Surrey opener Dom Sibley. Elbows were raised, in the batting, not the football sense, as they discussed technique and Sibley hung on every word. At the end, they shook hands and Cook wished Sibley good luck. Whatever you think of his leadership, Cook has his moments of excelling as a statesman.Essex made light work of finishing off Surrey’s first innings in the morning. While Jason Roy was able to take 14 off David Masters’ second over of the day, a sharp over from Mills saw Chris Tremlett’s stumps splattered and Jade Dernbach caught on the off side, going for a wild hack to leg. Graham Napier’s first ball was full and straight to trap Roy in front and, with Zahar Ansari not batting, Essex took a lead of 69 into the second innings.While Jaik Mickleburgh took some time to get used to the pace of the pitch, which was also displaying some variable bounce, Cook was in his element. He was troubled once by a ball that died a touch and hit him in front but the vociferous appeals were turned down; it looked to have pitched outside leg stump.Everything else that strayed on to his pads was dispatched accordingly. Full balls were defended or driven; balls there to cut were, well, you know the rest. Matt Dunn was unable to get the better of him this time around, but the young Surrey quick had his sixth victim of the match when Mickleburgh, who had started to look settled, edged behind.That the afternoon resembled square practice to Cook is no fault of the home attack. Assistance off the pitch declined with each over and the England captain was more committed with his footwork than at any point. In the 44th over, he hit Dernbach through extra cover and signed off the shot with an outlandish flourish that had his bat finishing parallel to his back.It was a cathartic moment, a release through flamboyancy – a trait he is not associated with. He was almost apologetic after, playing out the rest of the over in dot balls, before returning to manoeuvring the ball from his back-foot base. A guide behind point, follow by a cut in front of it took him to 96, before a procession of singles, culminating in a squirt into the leg side, got him to three figures.Those that remained in the ground awoke 20 minutes before the close when Dom Sibley let out a dull shriek for his maiden first-class wicket, as Ravi Bopara attempted to guide a ball on off stump down to third man, but missed. If both had the opportunity to do it all again, you hope they would decline.

Akshar Patel’s match-winning unbeaten 64 off 38 balls helped West Zone snatch the Deodhar Trophy semi-final away from South Zone

Amol Karhadkar01-Dec-2014
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsFile photo – Akshar Patel slammed an unbeaten 38-ball 64 to propel West Zone to their target of 315•Getty ImagesIt’s his bowling exploits in domestic cricket, particularly in the IPL, that have earned Akshar Patel his ODI cap. Still, Akshar has time and again stressed that he is a better batsman than a bowler. On Monday, he proved his batting credentials with a match-winning unbeaten 64 off just 38 balls to help West Zone snatch the Deodhar Trophy semi-final away from South Zone.Thanks to Akshar’s assault and his quickfire partnerships with Suryakumar Yadav and Shardul Thakur, West managed to overhaul South Zone’s total of 314 with almost three overs to spare. West will face East Zone in the final on Wednesday.Despite being defending champions, West entered the game as underdogs against a strong South outfit. When Akshar joined Suryakumar at the crease, South were on top. At 174 for six in the 33rd over, with their middle order having crumbled, West required a special effort if they were to get back in the game.Suryakumar had survived two dropped catches on 9 and 11, a return chance to Ashish Reddy and a skier at square point by Mayank Agarwal off the same bowler. In the 34th over, Suryakumar began the fightback with a hooked six off Abhimanyu Mithun. Then came a momentum-shifting Powerplay.Akshar timed a lofted drive off Vinay Kumar in the 36th over, sending it sailing over the long-on fence, and then drove the next ball over cover for four. The first three overs of the Powerplay yielded 38 runs and with 87 required from 12 overs, the West dressing room could begin to think of winning.Suryakumar then plundered Stuart Binny for 16 runs from the first four balls of the 39th over, but flicked the next ball, a full-toss, from way outside off stump and offered Baba Aparajith a regulation catch at deep square leg.With more than 70 runs still required, it was left for Akshar to do the scoring, hoping that Dhawal Kulkarni would stay with him at the other end. Akshar ended the Powerplay on a strong note, with a cut off Vinay that landed beyond the point boundary and pulled four in the same over. West had scored 67 runs in the Powerplay.But they suffered another jolt soon after, with Kulkarni going for a big hit in the 41st over, despite Akshar having struck a six and a four off the first two balls, and holing out to long-on.With 46 runs required and just two wickets in hand, Patel found an ally in Shardul Thakur and the Mumbai bowler was by no means a silent contributor to the partnership. With 23 runs required off the last four overs, Thakur took charge and tonked Reddy for two sixes and two fours to seal the fate of the game. Akshar completed the formalities at the start of the 48th over, lifting Aparajith for a straight six.The ferocity of Akshar and Suryakumar’s late charge, helped by medicore bowling from South once they were put under pressure, overshadowed an impressive batting effort earlier in the day. Put in to bat, three of South’s top five scored half-centuries to help South raise a 300-plus total. But that turned to be far from enough.

Shaun Marsh hit his eighth first-class century – an unbeaten 127- to take Western Australia to a mammoth 581, before three wickets apiece from the seamers Jason Behrendorff and Nathan Coulter-Nile left Victoria precariously placed at 158 for 7

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Nov-2013
ScorecardFile photo: Shaun Marsh struck 16 fours and two sixes during his unbeaten 127•Associated PressShaun Marsh hit his eighth first-class century – an unbeaten 127- to take Western Australia to a mammoth 581, before three wickets apiece from the seamers Jason Behrendorff and Nathan Coulter-Nile left Victoria precariously placed at 158 for 7 heading into day three in Perth.Western Australia’s captain Adam Voges departed early on day two for 69, but Marsh kept going and struck 16 fours and two sixes during his knock. He was well-supported at the other end by Sam Whiteman, as the pair put up 177 runs for the sixth wicket to take the team beyond the 500-run mark.Whiteman eventually fell for 87 in the 135th over having hit 10 fours and two sixes, but Marsh still carried on, adding a further 63 runs with the tail, Western Australia eventually declaring at 8 for 581.Victoria began poorly, as Rob Quiney was trapped lbw by Behrendorff off the fifth ball of the innings. They were dealt two more blows in the fourth over, as Coulter-Nile dismissed Aaron Finch and Cameron White off successive deliveries, before removing Peter Handscomb for 7 in the eighth, leaving Victoria wobbling at 4 for 25.Glenn Maxwell tried to stablise the innings, scoring 38, but Behrendorff once again struck, removing both Maxwell and Daniel Christian in quick succession as Western Australia took firm control.David Hussey put up the sole resistance, scoring an unbeaten 76 and adding 54 for the seventh wicket with John Hastings, who contributed just six runs during the partnership. The pair batted out 13.4 overs, but Hastings fell in the 39th, as Victoria ended the day trailing by 423 runs.

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According to the Daily Record, Celtic are close to completing a £1.75 million deal for Karpaty Lviv winger Maryan Shved.

What’s the story?

The Ukrainian right-winger has been in fine form so far this season. According to Transfermarkt’s statistics, the 21-year-old has scored eight goals and racked up three assists in seventeen appearances in the Ukrainian top flight, the Premier Liga.

Shved is clearly a player with plenty of talent and capable of producing end product. With so much of his career still ahead of him too, he could improve a great deal in the future.

Be sure to check out the incredible story of the man who rose from a Tanzanian refugee camp to become one of Australia’s biggest football stars in the video below…

The once-capped Ukraine international would face a challenge in making the step up to the Scottish Premiership, but he could also provide the boost of quality and fresh attacking ideas that Brendan Rodgers’ side currently needs.

A much-needed boost

So far this season, the Bhoys have struggled to consistently show their best form. The reigning Scottish champions have at times looked stale and in need of an overhaul of their squad. Too many players have failed to regularly reach the required standard.

The likes of Scott Sinclair and Leigh Griffiths have failed to shine for the most part this season. Shved’s arrival could provide the level of competition that they need in order to get back to their best, or the young Ukrainian could usurp them in the starting XI at Celtic Park altogether.

For such a small fee, the gamble on Shved is one worth taking for the Hoops this month.

Chris Lynn has become the second Australian cricketer this week, after David Warner, to be fined for his remarks over Twitter

ESPNcricinfo staff27-May-2013Chris Lynn has become the second Australian cricketer in the last week, after David Warner, to be fined for his remarks over Twitter. Lynn, who plays for Queensland, pleaded guilty to breaching Rule 6 of Cricket Australia’s Code of Conduct, dealing with “Unbecoming Behaviour”. Lynn was fined A$2000 by Queensland-based Code of Behaviour Commissioner Glen Williams.Rule 6 states: “Without limiting any other rule, players and officials must not at any time engage in behaviour unbecoming to a representative player or official that could (a) bring them or the game of game into cricket or (b) be harmful to the interests of cricket.”Lynn used his Twitter account to comment on the assault allegations made against rugby player Ben Te’o by a Brisbane woman. Te’o vehemently denies the accusations of assault and police said on Wednesday they were no longer investigating the alleged incident. Lynn tweeted that “The girl accusing Ben Teo is bad news” and then agreed with another tweeter, who had said “She should serve 2 months in jail for her make up! #booyah”. Lynn replied that “She definately (sic) should!” and went on to tweet: “it does my head in …”The tweets have been since deleted, and Lynn apologised for his comments. “It was inappropriate to express my personal view on a forum like Twitter and I apologise whole-heartedly for that to the individual involved,” Lynn said. “Violence against women is not acceptable and I’m sorry that my words could been seen to condone that.”Warner was fined A$5750 for his angry tweets at two journalists last week.

Former Sri Lanka assistant coach Paul Farbrace has been added to Sri Lanka Cricket’s shortlist for the position of national coach, after a positive first interview, SLC secretary Nishantha Ranatunga has said

Andrew Fidel Fernando09-Dec-2013Former Sri Lanka assistant coach Paul Farbrace has been added to Sri Lanka Cricket’s shortlist for the position of national coach, after a positive first interview, SLC secretary Nishantha Ranatunga has said. Farbrace will be asked to face a second interview sometime next week, as he, Marvan Atapattu and Mark Davis compete for the position.”We spoke to him at SLC today, and it was a cordial discussion,” Ranatunga said. “We told him what we are looking for and he gave us his plans and ideas. We will have the second round of interviews with him next week, which could happen over the phone, or in person.”Ranatunga said he could not disclose details of the interview, but said the board remained open to new candidates, even at this stage of the process. Farbrace had been among the 11 initial applicants for the role, but had then withdrawn, before intimating a renewed interest in the job to chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya. The board had by then narrowed its field of candidates down to Atapattu and Davis, but chose to accommodate Farbrace, who currently coaches Yorkshire’s second XI.”It’s down to three, but we are open to anyone who is interested and has the right qualifications,” Ranatunga said.Farbrace had been Sri Lanka’s assistant coach under Trevor Bayliss from 2007 to 2009, before leaving to become Kent’s director of cricket.He appears to be the frontrunner to become the next coach, given the board’s lukewarm attitude towards the remaining candidates. There are doubts about Atapattu’s ability to establish control of the side while former team-mate Kumar Sangakkara and former captain Mahela Jayawardene remain in it, and the little-known Davis has never been head coach of a first-class side.Current coach Graham Ford will end his tenure with the team when the ongoing tour against Pakistan finishes on January 21. Ranatunga said the board would seek a final decision on who will take over by the end of the month.