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The ICC has been challenged to do more for disability cricket if they are to justify the claim of governing a truly global game

George Dobell03-Oct-2016The ICC has been challenged to do more for disability cricket if they are to justify the claim of governing a truly global game.The call was made by Ian Martin, the ECB’s head of disability cricket, as the organisation seek to stage a World Championship for physically disabled cricketers in 2019.The first disability World Cup was staged in Bangladesh in 2015. On that occasion, five nations took part with the hosts joined by England and the other teams – India, Pakistan and Afghanistan – heavily subsided by the International Red Cross.ECB name squad for Dubai T20 tournament

A 15-man England Physical Disability team will head to Dubai later this month to compete in the ICC Academy Dubai Invitational T20 tournament.
The competition, which runs from 19 to 25 October, also features Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
England, the defending champions, will be captained by Iain Nairn and have included three uncapped players in Lee Clarke, Joe Seabridge and Lee Walker, alongside England disability player of the year, Callum Flynn.
“This tour is vital preparation as we build towards the 2019 World Championship in England,” said Ian Martin, the ECB head of disability. “We are really looking forward to testing ourselves against some of the best sides in the sub-continent and our aim is to retain the trophy.”

The ECB now hope to host a seven-team event (this time termed a World Championship) in 2019. The hope is that those nations invited – Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, South Africa and England – will play a two-week T20 competition between the 2019 World Cup and The Ashes.The process is complicated, however, as several cricket boards have little involvement with disability cricket. In India, for example, four or five organisations claim to be the governing body of the nation’s physical disability cricket with the BCCI seemingly reluctant to take responsibility. As a result, funding – or even just selecting a side said to represent India – is problematic.In 2015, and again for the 2019 tournament, the ICC have had no meaningful involvement with the organisation of the tournaments, in spite of comments made by Haroon Lorgat in 2012, when he was the chief executive of ICC, that “disabled cricket is on the agenda”.”We’re not as inclusive as we should be,” Ian Martin, the ECB’s head of disability cricket, told ESPNcricinfo. “We talk of being a global game and we celebrate images of it being played in different communities and in different environments – by Maasai Warriors or on mountain tops – as evidence of its popularity and diversity.”But if we are not providing opportunities for people to play in countries where we think of cricket as a popular, accessible sport, we’re not truly global and we’re not fulfilling our duty.”A global governing body should be able to evidence what it is doing to enable participation for disabled communities within its member nations. But rather than being driven and guided by the ICC, such matters are devolved to individual boards who have little or no experience in developing the game for disabled people. I think we can do better.”In the long term, the likes of Martin would like to see ICC membership criteria extended to include requirements for the encouragement and development of disability cricket. In the short term, he is hopeful that some contribution from ticket sales for the 2019 World Cup will be allocated towards the physical disability World Championship.But while other sports embrace and take pride in the development of their physical disability programmes – the Paralympics, for example, attracted a huge TV audience – the lack of support from the ICC for such schemes in cricket reflects poorly upon them.

Manchester City are readying an unexpected swoop for West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice, according to a recent report from Football Insider.

What's the latest Declan Rice transfer news?

According to one report, Arsenal have now dropped out of the race for Rice, despite the fact the player himself is keen on a move to north London, as they believe the £120m price tag West Ham are demanding is too high and unreasonable.

At one stage, the Gunners were said to be leading the race for the Englishman, but he may now have to move elsewhere, with Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United all registering their interest, as per a report from Sky Sports.

Although Pep Guardiola is adamant about keeping Ilkay Gundogan, with talks ongoing about a new deal, the German's future remains up in the air, and the West Ham captain could now be targeted as a replacement.

According to a report from Football Insider, the Sky Blues are readying an unexpected swoop for the 24-year-old, laying the groundwork for a deal, with it now looking likely they will miss out on Jude Bellingham, who is close to joining Real Madrid.

City are monitoring the situation of the central midfielder, despite interest from Arsenal, as they are one of the only clubs that would be able to commit to spending over £100m.

With the summer window approaching, Guardiola could formalise his long-term interest in the England international, who has spoken about his desire to play in the Champions League on several occasions.

Should Man City sign Declan Rice?

With Man City set to miss out on Bellingham, signing the West Ham midfielder would be the next best thing, given that he has proven himself at Premier League level over a number of seasons.

Hailed as "world class" by former Huddersfield boss Danny Cowley, the maestro has made 201 appearances in the English top flight, making his name as a box-to-box midfielder, with a keen eye for cutting out opposition attacks.

That is demonstrated by the fact he ranks in the 86th percentile for progressive carries, and in the 97th for interceptions per 90 in the past year, displaying both his attacking and defensive qualities.

One minor criticism that could be made is that Rice does not score enough goals, however he has played in a deep role for the vast majority of his career, and he more than makes up for his lack of threat going forward with his defensive capability.

India coach Anil Kumble has said he is looking to cultivate a “feeling of Indianness” in the team. That, he said, would involve incorporating the “best practices” in Indian culture into the way the players play and interact with each other.”It is important we create an Indian way,” Kumble told . “I don’t mean to say sledging is not Indian culture or is somebody else’s culture. What I meant is, you would want to bring a feeling of Indianness – that is, extended family, respect for one another.”Take all the best practices in Indian culture, mesh them in a way that all of us own what we want to be seen as, known as, how do we want to play the game, how do we want to practice, how do we want to be seen as an Indian team.”The best practices in the Indian family would be, generally, follow whatever elders say, but here we want to be a bit more open and express our views even if they differ from that of the seniors. Here it is having family values and say, if a senior has taken a decision, I will follow it. However, you should also have the freedom to disagree but in a more civilised way, where everyone has the opportunity to express himself.”India left for the tour of the West Indies earlier this week, following a five-day training camp in Bangalore. Kumble said he was pleasantly surprised by the players’ receptiveness to new ideas during that camp.”This group is very open to ideas and, I must confess, given the current generation and the way they are perceived, I thought getting them into a room for an hour or so and seriously discussing certain issues would not be easy and after ten minutes or so, they won’t be listening or responding. But I was surprised to see that not only were they very receptive and embraced new ideas, but we spent more time than what was stipulated.”

Tottenham Hotspur may have been hard done by on Thursday night by referee Anthony Taylor after he failed to show Victor Lindelof a second yellow of the game.

Are Tottenham's Champions League dreams over?

After the rough weekend for the Lilywhites on Tyneside, Thursday's clash against Manchester United may have been a must-win to keep their faint hopes of Champions League football alive.

In truth, even a win for Spurs would've still provided them with an uphill challenge to land a spot inside the top four with just five games to go.

However, there will be positives to be taken from the game in north London with Ryan Mason's side showing a lot of desire to fight for their manager in the second half.

The first half showing optimised the issues at Spurs currently, however, the side which showed out for the second 45 minutes provided the fans something to cheer about.

Alongside some glaring misses, Spurs may feel they should have had a crack at three points against 10 men after Lindelof manhandled Son Heung-min to give away a free kick.

However, Anthony Taylor only awarded Tottenham the free kick and failed to pull a second yellow card out of his pocket for the Swede.

As it was not a dangerous challenge, VAR was unable to intervene, but an image of the incident shows the centre-back should feel very fortunate not to have been sent for an early shower:

Should Lindelof have been red-carded?

The Swede probably felt an incredibly lucky man after Taylor only awarded the free kick as he done his absolute best to prevent Son without making any attempt for the ball.

Had he not already been on a yellow card, then it would have been interesting to see whether Taylor's decision would have been different.

The incident happened with around 20 minutes – including stoppage time – remaining on the clock with the north London side pushing for an equaliser.

Taking to Twitter during the game, The Athletic's Charlie Eccleshare said: "Really should have been a second yellow for Lindelof."

Although Spurs probably should have played the remaining time against one-less man, they can only have themselves to blame for not winning the game.

Dire defending in the first half set them up for an uphill challenge in which they still missed some huge opportunities to win the game.

Eric Dier's header somehow was put wide from a matter of yards out and the South Korean could have had another on the night.

There were some positives to take for Spurs, it will be interesting to see if they carry into their next game away to Liverpool.

أكد لاعب مانشستر سيتي الإنجليزي، فيل فودين، أن فريقه قدم مباراة جيدة للغاية، وذلك عقب الفوز على هدرسفيلد تاون، مشيراً في حديثه إلى أن المكسب لم يأتي بسهولة.

وتلاقى الفريقان في إطار منافسات دور الـ64 من بطولة الكأس، حيث فاز مانشستر سيتي بخمسة أهداف دون رد، على ملعب “الاتحاد”.

اقرأ أيضًا.. جوارديولا بعد خماسية مانشستر سيتي أمام هدرسفيلد: لا نريد الضغط على دي بروين

وقال فيل فودين في تصريحات نشرتها شبكة “بي بي سي” العالمية: “أستمتع بكرة القدم حالياً، أتواجد بين الخطوط وهذا هو المكان الذي أريد أن أكون فيه”.

وأضاف فودين: “أحتاج إلى مواصلة مساعدة الفريق بالأهداف والتمريرات الحاسمة وأن أكون لاعب الفريق الحاسم، سأحاول أن أفعل ذلك في كل مباراة”.

وأكد: “أنا سعيد بالنتيجة، لم يكن الأمر سهلاً، بذلوا كل ما في وسعهم، لكن لم ينفذ صبرنا، واصلنا لعب كرة القدم، نحن سعداء بالنتيجة”.

عن عودة دي بروين: “من الرائع أن يعود كيفن دي بروين، إذا أردنا الفوز بأي شيء فنحن بحاجة إليه، إنه أحد أفضل اللاعبين في العالم”.

وعن هدفه الأول في مرمى هدرسفيلد، أوضح فودين: “التقطت الكرة في منطقة ضيقة واعتقدت أنني قد مررت للتو، وكنت سعيداً برؤيتها تصطدم بالشباك”.

وتابع: “الفريق يتعامل بشكل جيد مع الأمر، نحتاج فقط للتحلي بالصبر والاستمرار، لقد هاجمنا في الوقت المناسب وبقوة لذا كانت نتيجة رائعة”.

Journalist Derek Clark has praised the turnaround Fashion Sakala has had at Rangers since Michael Beale returned to the club.

How has Sakala performed for Rangers?

The Zambia international arrived in 2021, but took a while to nail down a starting place under Steven Gerrard and Giovanni van Bronckhorst.

The 26-year-old has since exploded into life under Beale and has now scored in each of his last three Scottish Premiership games.

He is starting to become a reliable attacker for Rangers and he has now been praised for the remarkable uptick in his performances at Ibrox.

Speaking on The Rangers Review, Clark lavished Sakala with praise for his improvement in end-product, particularly in away games.

"He was brought in when Beale was a coach under Steven Gerrard back in the summer of 2021, and it never quite happened for him under Giovanni van Bronckhorst, but since Beale returned to the club, his numbers have skyrocketed.

"He's had 12 goal involvements, six goals and six assists in 16 starts and two substitute appearances under the new manager. And away from home, he's had nine goal involvements in eight league away trips. He's really come into his own, hasn't he, under Michael Beale.

"Particularly away from home, for me, he's possibly Rangers' most threatening outlet up top at the moment. There's been a remarkable turnaround for him; he wasn't really getting a look-in under Giovanni van Bronckhorst but he's just had a new lease of life under Michael Beale."

Can Sakala be Rangers' main attacker?

The £8.3k-per-week star typically plays on the wing, but has lined up through the middle on occasion. With the future of Alfredo Morelos up in the air, as the Colombian's contract is set to expire amid transfer links, Beale will likely need a new striker in the summer.

Given Sakala's excellent form in front of goal, there is a case to be made that he could step up as the main goalscorer of the team once Morelos departs, and he could either start down the middle or on the wings supporting another striker such as Antonio Colak.

It may be too early to get carried away by Sakala's form, but Beale's remarkable impact on the forward in a short period of time suggests that there could be plenty more to come from him, and if he can develop into a consistent goalscorer and iron out the frustrating elements of his game, Rangers may not need to panic over losing Morelos.

Tottenham Hotspur are eyeing a ‘dream signing for any manager’ amid their links to Leeds United defender Robin Koch, says reporter Pete O’Rourke.

The Lowdown: Spurs target Koch…

In the last few weeks, reports have suggested that Spurs and sporting director Fabio Paratici are targeting the German who is currently excelling at Elland Road.

The 26-year-old could be one of this summer window’s talking points as the Lilywhites reportedly scour for an elite-level centre-back.

It is believed Paratici and co are prioritising the addition of a central defender this summer with some transfer plans being made amid all the noise surrounding Antonio Conte.

The Spurs head coach is widely expected to leave north London after his furious post-Southampton rant, where he fired digs at both the squad and club board.

The Latest: O’Rourke thrilled by Koch links…

As the N17 side eye a move for Koch, O’Rourke has told GiveMeSport that he is a ‘dream signing for any manager’ due to his versatility and Premier League quality.

The journalist claimed:

“He’s a good player and a good versatile player as well.

“He’s comfortable playing a number of positions, can play centre-half, and he can also play centre midfield, so I’m sure he’d be a dream signing for any manager considering his versatility.

“And I think he’s only going to get better, he’s a Germany international, and has proven at Leeds that he can mix it with the best in the Premier League.”

The Verdict: Fantastic player…

The 6 ft 3 Leeds mainstay has been pivotal under both Jesse Marsch and Javi Gracia this season as they battle relegation to the Championship.

Indeed, only goalkeeper Illan Meslier has played more league minutes than Koch this season, highlighting his real importance to their cause (WhoScored).

The former Freiburg star has averaged more clearances per 90 than any Leeds player in the top flight this season and sits just behind Liam Cooper for most aerial duels won (WhoScored).

Koch’s disciplinary record is perhaps one small caveat to his game, having been booked more times (5) than any other Leeds player bar midfielder Marc Roca.

Current Spurs star Cristian Romero has similar issues with his game and Paratici may want to avoid two hot-headed centre-backs in the squad of Conte’s eventual replacement.

The Leeds ace is wanted by many clubs also and the north Londoners could face a real battle to secure his services amid the growing interest.

Newcastle United have been enjoying a fantastic season so far and Eddie Howe will be absolutely thrilled with the rapid progression his squad has made in the short time they have been together.

The Magpies are currently fifth in the Premier League table following the incredible form that has seen them concede just two defeats over their 23 outings – fewer than any other side so far – as well as getting to their first domestic cup final since 1999 at Wembley last weekend.

Despite the success on Tyneside of late, there is still plenty of work to be done to fine-tune the squad so that Newcastle can really become competitive for trophies and comfortably compete in Europe, should they qualify this season.

As a result, Howe will surely be looking for areas of his team that can be improved upon and the left-back position is one of the most obvious places to start with centre-back Dan Burn currently occupying the spot on the left flank.

One player who has been linked to Newcastle and could replicate Kieran Trippier’s impact on the opposite side next season is Benfica’s Alejandro Grimaldo – a talented and versatile fullback who could make the move to the North East for free as his contract expires in the summer.

Could Howe repeat his Kieran Trippier masterclass with Grimaldo?

There is no doubt that Burn is solid in his defensive attributes but finding a player who can offer the progressive presence that Trippier provides on the right would be massively advantageous to Howe and could considerably improve the pressing machine that the manager has developed in every other area of the pitch.

Over 21 Liga Portugal appearances, Grimaldo has scored two goals, delivered six assists, and created a whopping 13 big chances, as well as averaging 86.4 touches, 50.5 accurate passes, 2.1 key passes, 1.1 successful dribbles, two tackles, and 4.7 duels won per game.

Meanwhile, Trippier has created 3.1 chances per match and produced 18 ‘big chances’ for his teammates in total, which shows that both players excel at making things happen in the final third on a regular basis.

Not only that, the Spanish sensation – hailed “incredible” by presenter Alexandra Jonson – ranks in the top 15% of his positional peers across the ‘Men’s Next Eight Competitions’ for non-penalty goals, assists, progressive passes, shot-creating actions and pass completion rate over the last 365 days, proving that he is extremely effective in progressive play.

When comparing Grimaldo with Burn over the season so far, it is clear that the Benfica ace would be a huge upgrade, outperforming the defender in a number of attributes including tackles and interceptions won (64 v 45), goal-creating actions (11 v 1), progressive passes (118 v 71) and ball recoveries (114 v 98).

Just like Trippier, the 27-year-old is extremely experienced in his position with 325 appearances tallied up in the left-back role, so not only can the powerbrokers at St James’ Park save millions by acquiring Grimaldo’s services for free but also add a player who is proven and confident in the position.

With that being said, it would be a no-brainer for Newcastle to secure the signing of Grimaldo this summer and if he can replicate his current output in the Premier League, it would add some great quality to the squad next season and could be a case of Trippier 2.0 for Howe.

West Ham United’s academy seems to have produced a new top talent every other year, with Declan Rice the current crowning jewel of those to be promoted.

The central midfielder has announced himself as not only a mainstay in David Moyes’ team but in the England side too, with his combative displays belying his incredible technical proficiency.

There are few who can hold down the engine room with as much poise as the 24-year-old, as he breaks up play and then utilises his quality to set his teammates on the counter.

However, rumours have persisted for some time now linking him with a move from east London, and especially following this relegation-threatened campaign a summer exit seems all the more likely.

Therefore, even if they do receive the British transfer record that his Scottish manager demands, they could once again look to the academy for his readymade replacement.

Who can replace Declan Rice at the London Stadium?

That man is Freddie Potts, who has been shining for the U23s for some time now. His composed and classy midfield performances even earned him his senior debut last season, which he built upon in a slightly more elongated cameo in this campaign’s Europa Conference League.

He is widely regarded as the next big thing at the club, with journalist Roshane Thomas even lauding him in a Tweet where he earmarks him as the club’s Mark Noble successor.

“The long-term replacement for Noble is a young player in the academy called Freddie Potts. [He’s the] best prospect at the club,” he said.

The 19-year-old, who is the son of former Hammers great Steve Potts, boasts a bright future in which he even suggested himself that he hopes to emulate Rice. Upon signing his new contract, he claimed:

“Declan Rice has been my role model since he’s pushed through into the first team. 

“The way he’s gone through the Academy to become the player he has now – as West Ham captain and to play in the Euros at the moment with England – that really inspires me to try to follow his journey.”

How is Potts performing for the U23s?

Potts has starred this season yet again for the youngsters, where he has featured 14 times in the Premier League 2 whilst notching two assists.

However, in the Football League Trophy is where he has truly shone, as he boasts a 7.50 average rating whilst clashing with senior sides.

His work rate and creativity are outlined perfectly in these games however, where he averages 4.5 tackles and three interceptions per game, and pairs this with one key pass per 90 too, via Sofascore.

For comparison, this season Rice records 2.3 tackles, 1.7 interceptions and 1.2 key passes per game, also via Sofascore.

The two do show striking similarities, and should their club captain leave they can be safe in the knowledge that someone of Potts’ quality is waiting patiently in the wings.

James Maw of The Athletic claims that Djed Spence could have some form of future with Tottenham Hotspur despite a loan move to Stade Rennes last month.

The Lowdown: Spence makes loan move

Spence left Antonio Conte’s side this month and will be on loan with the Ligue 1 outfit until the end of the season.

The deal contains no obligation or option to buy for Rennes, meaning he will definitely head back to north London at the end of the season.

Tottenham only bought the player last summer, but he’s struggled for game time this season. Spence has only featured four times for Spurs in the Premier League.

The Latest: Maw makes Spence claim

Speaking to The View From The Lane podcast, Maw claimed that the straight loan is not something you see often in football nowadays and claims the player will be at Spurs next season.

He stated (22:24), “It’s quite rare that you’ll see a loan deal like this with no option or obligation these days. Normally, it will come with one or the other.

“So maybe that’s quite telling the fact that there this is an expectation that he’ll be back at Tottenham next season, and that things will suddenly be different.”

The Verdict: An uncertain future

We believe that if Spence is to have some sort of future with Tottenham, then he’ll have to really impress on loan at Rennes between now and the end of the season.

A straight loan certainly indicates that Spurs have no intention of letting him go immediately, but in our view, there’s one factor around his Spurs move that is a concern.

Conte claimed that signing the 22-year-old was not his decision, it was the club who saw him as an ‘investment’ and not the Italian.

This could mean that the full-back will have to make a massive statement if he’s to impress Conte, he could be harder to impress if he wasn’t signed by him specifically.

What could work in his favour is if Conte leaves at the end of the season when his contract runs out, a new manager may give Spence more opportunities in the first-team next season.

Ex-footballer Trevor Sinclair labelled Spence as ‘the real deal’ when he joined the club after his loan spell with Nottingham Forest.

He told TalkSport that he ran Arsenal players Kieran Tierney and Gabriel Martinelli ‘ragged’ in an FA Cup match last season.

Spence has bags of potential and shown what talent he has last season, but he needs to grasp this loan opportunity with both hands if he is to have a long-term future at Spurs under Conte or another manager.