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After flying out the blocks in the early weeks of the transfer window, Manchester City have now reportedly initiated contact to pick up where they left off by signing another impressive star.

Nypan "very proud" to join Man City

The most recent player through the door has of course been the young Sverre Nypan. The Norwegian midfielder has put pen to paper on a five-year contract, which has seen Pep Guardiola welcome one of the most exciting talents that Europe has to offer.

Speaking for the first time since arriving, Nypan told Man City’s official website: “I am incredibly happy and proud to have joined Manchester City. It’s a dream for any young footballer to become part of this Club and to join such a group of world class talent.

“I am still very young with a lot to learn but the chance to be coached by Pep Guardiola, the best manager in the world, will only help me to become a better player.

“There is already a special connection between Norway and Manchester City through Erling Haaland and Oscar Bobb, and I am very proud to have become the latest Norwegian player to have joined the club.”

Nypan’s arrival makes it five fresh faces for Man City, who have rebuilt their side in the last six months following their worst period of form during Guardiola’s entire tenure last season.

Even after signing Rayan Cherki, Tijjani Reijnders, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Nypan and Marcus Bettinelli, however, those at the Etihad still reportedly have unfinished business in the summer transfer window.

As they set their sights on reclaiming their Premier League crown next season, Man City have now reportedly initiated contact to sign an impressive star who Guardiola loves.

Man City initiate James Trafford contact

In a shock twist, the Citizens have now set their sights on compiling Newcastle’s misery in what has been a summer to forget for the Magpies. According to Fabrizio Romano, Man City have now initiated contact to sign James Trafford in a deal that would see them hijack a deal that Newcastle had otherwise been advancing towards.

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The Manchester club reportedly have a buyback clause worth £40m, but are now attempting to negotiate a lower price with Burnley, who are also reportedly set to receive a £40m bid from Saudi PIF-owned Newcastle for their shot-stopper.

City’s unexpected pursuit follows a difficult season for Ederson, which may have forced those at the Etihad to ask questions of the Brazilian for the first time.

Dubbed “world-class” by Burnley boss Scott Parker, whether Trafford’s arrival would see Ederson step aside or head for the exit door is the big question that City may yet have to answer.

In a major boost in pursuit of yet another addition, one Glasgow Rangers target now reportedly wants to complete a summer switch to Ibrox as the 49ers continue negotiations.

Rangers gearing up for crucial UCL second leg after Ibrox win

It’s an important week for Rangers and the most important of Russell Martin’s tenure so far. The Gers travel to Greek side Panathinaikos in hope of sealing their victory in the second qualifying round of the Champions League. With a 2-0 lead to defend, the Scottish Premiership giants already hold a key advantage, but will be wary of preventing any dramatic comebacks.

Of course, if the Greek side square up against the Rangers side that were just held to a 2-2 draw by Championship side Middlesbrough in a pre-season friendly, then the Gers could certainly be in for a few twists and turns.

Left frustrated by the result, Martin told reporters: “The first half was a bit frustrating because we’re playing a good team. They’re athletic, they pressed really aggressively, but a lot of the moments that were uncomfortable for us were down to a lack of intensity on our part.

“And I said to the guys, I didn’t like the warm-up, there’s a bit of disappointment in a few people, maybe not in the team and all that stuff.

“But, if you’re disappointed and especially playing for this football club, you have to show it in being more aggressive and more intense, not being downbeat and sort of just being out there and letting the game pass you by a little bit. So they know that now. That can’t happen.”

The more that the former Southampton boss sees his side in action, the more he will learn and that has seemingly seen him turn his attention towards the likes of Abu Kamara and one other potential addition.

Rak-Sakyi now wants Rangers move

As reported by The Sun and relayed by Ibrox News, Jesurun Rak-Sakyi now wants to complete a summer switch to Rangers as the 49ers continue to negotiate a deal which could cost as much as £10m with Crystal Palace.

The talented winger spent last season on loan at Sheffield United and impressed many as he scored seven goals and assisted another two for the Blades. Even after impressing in England’s second division, however, the 22-year-old’s place in Oliver Glasner’s plans is far from guaranteed, and he has now set his sights on Ibrox as a result.

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Dubbed “fearless” by Crystal Palace fan account HLTCO, Rak-Sakyi would be following the likes of Thelo Aasgaard, Emmanuel Fernandes, Djeidi Gassama and Joe Rothwell on the list of players to swap English football for Martin’s Rangers side if he completes a move in the coming weeks.

The Gers have so far enjoyed an impressive overhaul, with the 49ers looking to make an instant statement, and the arrival of the Crystal Palace gem would only add to that.

Fair to say, West Ham United supporters are not coming into the new season with sky-high optimism.

Last time round, the Hammers finished 14th, only just above the disastrous duo that was Manchester United and Tottenham, while their tally of nine home league defeats was the most they’ve endured since being relegated in 2010/11.

Graham Potter replaced Julen Lopetegui in January, but this did not lead to an upturn in results, winning just five of his 19 matches in charge.

Thus, Potter will be under pressure to make a fast start to this season, but will need some new recruits if he’s to achieve this, potentially with his eye on an attacker reminiscent of a West Ham fans’ favourite of yesteryear.

West Ham's search for a new attacker

So far this summer, in a very unpopular move amongst the Hammers’ support, star winger Mohammed Kudus has departed to join fierce rivals Tottenham for a reported fee of £55m, becoming the first player to make such a move since Scott Parker in 2011.

Meantime, left-back El Hadji Malick Diouf has arrived from Slavia Prague for around £19m, but this has done little to get supporters back on side.

Well, that could change because, according to a report by Jack Johnson for talkSPORT, West Ham have made contact with Leicester City over the possibility of signing Bilal El Khannouss.

They add that Sunderland, Nottingham Forest, Everton and Monaco also ‘hold a concrete interest’, while adding that the Moroccan international’s contract contains a £22.5m release clause, activated following the Foxes’ relegation to the EFL Championship.

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Loïc Tanzi of L’Équipe claims that El Khannouss has no intention of playing in England’s second-tier, prioritising a return to the Premier League, so could he soon swap the East Midlands for the East End of London?

How Bilal El Khannouss would improve West Ham

After arriving from Genk for £21m last summer, El Khannouss managed to impress during his debut campaign in the Premier League, despite plying his trade in a generally hopeless Leicester side, who infamously failed to score in nine successive home league matches, an unwanted new top division record.

The table below outlines the Moroccan’s importance to the Foxes last season.

Bilal El Khannouss’ Premier League statistics 2024/25

Statistics

El Khannouss

Leicester rank

Minutes

2,182

7th

Appearances

32

4th

Goals

2

5th

Assists

3

3rd

Shots

30

4th

Goals – xG

+0.7

4th

Progressive passes

128

1st

Key passes

42

1st

Passes into the box

31

1st

Shot-creating actions

78

1st

Successful take-ons

34

2nd

Take-on success %

56.7%

2nd*

Progressive carries

73

2nd

Carries into the final third

45

1st

*minimum 13 attempted.

All statistics courtesy of FBref.com

As the table outlines, El Khannouss was very much Leicester’s creator in chief last season, ranked first for a variety of passing, chances created and dribbling statistics.

Ben Mattinson of Breaking the Lines notes that he ‘boasts the vision to spot impossible passes’, adding that he ‘oozes composure’ and is capable of a match-winning moment at any time, asserting that it’s only a matter of time before he is plying his trade for one of ‘Europe’s biggest outfits’. Writing on X, Mattinson has described him as “a player made for the big stage”.

Well, that last part sounds just like arguably West Ham’s greatest player of the modern era, does it not?

When Dimitri Payet joined the Hammers from Olympique de Marseille for just £11m in the summer of 2015, no one could’ve forecast what would happen next.

In 60 appearances in claret and blue, the France international scored 15 goals and registered 22 assists, with Josh Fordham of talkSPORT asserting that he is ‘easily the most talented player’ of the club’s modern history.

Meantime, Roshane Thomas of The Athletic outlines how the “world-class” Payet “entertained supporters” with countless jaw-dropping moments, before forcing through an acrimonious return to Marseille just 18 months after arriving.

So, could El Khannouss be the next Payet? Let’s compare the pair to find out.

Bilal El Khannouss 24/25 vs Dimitri Payet 15/16

Statistics

El Khannouss

Payet

Goals

2

9

Assists

3

12

Shots per 90

0.9

2.3

Big chances created

8

16

Key passes per 90

1.3

4

Successful dribbles per 90

1.1

2.2

Dribble success %

59.6%

57%

Average SofaScore rating

6.91

7.68

All statistics courtesy of Sofascore

Of course, Payet’s statistics are more impressive, but this should not come as much of a surprise, given that, as noted by Harry Sherlock of Goal, he was one of the best players in the Premier League in the 2015/16 season, so much so that he was on the Ballon d’Or nominees list.

El Khannouss is certainly yet to hit those heights, but his numbers are comparable, especially when it comes to chances created and dribbling, so he too has the potential to light up the London Stadium.

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Liverpool have a proud tradition of identifying premium talent and bringing them through to the first team, and they could now be about to repeat the trick if reports are to be believed.

Liverpool continue train of arrivals after big-money deals

It goes without saying, but Liverpool have enjoyed a fantastic start to the window after confirming the arrivals of Jeremie Frimpong, Florian Wirtz, Milos Kerkez and Armin Pecsi.

Despite Giorgi Mamardashvili officially linking up with the Reds after signing last summer, the Premier League champions are also set to sign Freddie Woodman to occupy their third-choice goalkeeper role, and he will fill a homegrown player slot into the bargain.

Not to be deterred after an early flurry, Liverpool have eyes on Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi as an alternative to Jarell Quansah, once the AXA Training Centre graduate officially completes his move to Bayer Leverkusen.

Sending out a warning to their title rivals, new Reds full-back Kerkez believes his side are primed for more success, after his new side brought a second title of the modern era to Anfield last term.

He stated: “Yeah, definitely. This is a club that wants to win, needs to win. Of course, it’s a big thing last season, completely dominated everyone, I think, and of course, big congratulations.

Liverpool’s first five fixtures of the new season

Crystal Palace (N)

FA Community Shield

Bournemouth (H)

Premier League

Newcastle United (A)

Premier League

Arsenal (A)

Premier League

Burnley (H)

Premier League

“But always, you know, you need to want more, and definitely from last season, I think this season the club is going to build on it and only get a lot better.”

However, building for the future will also form an important part of Liverpool’s long-term sustainability, and they are now reportedly close to bringing in a rising star to strengthen their youth ranks.

Liverpool reportedly agree deal to sign Gabriel Schluter

According to Football Insider’s Pete O’Rourke, Liverpool have agreed a deal to sign Gabriel Schluter from Blackpool for a six-figure sum, and he is set to undergo a medical next week ahead of finalising a switch.

His performances for the Seasiders at youth level have attracted the interest of several different clubs, including the likes of Fulham and Stockport County.

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At just 16 years of age, the left-winger made his first-team debut for Blackpool against Liverpool’s Under-21 side in the EFL Trophy, though he will almost certainly be viewed as one for the future if he completes a move to Anfield.

Harvey Elliot, Conor Bradley and Stefan Bajcetic are prime examples of youngsters who have been bought at a young age before being developed into senior stars, and it appears the Reds have spied an opportunity to carry out the same practice with Schluter.

After losing Matheus Cunha to Manchester United, Wolverhampton Wanderers have now reportedly set their sights on signing an impressive Championship forward this summer.

Cunha officially joins Man Utd

In one of the earliest, though perhaps least surprising moves of the summer, Cunha has now officially swapped Wolves for Manchester United. In truth, as soon as the Brazilian’s £63m release clause came to light, his exit seemed inevitable. For Wolves, it’s now more important than ever that they spend the money well and replace their talisman in seamless fashion. That, however, is easier said than done.

Appearances

92

Goals

33

Assists

15

Cunha’s record speaks for itself. The former Atletico Madrid man particularly found his best form throughout the 2024/25 campaign and replacing his impact will undoubtedly be Wolves’ toughest task this summer.

Whilst it’s easy to assume the worst, Wolves already experienced a glimpse of life without Cunha throughout the season when he was missing through injury and suspension. It was then that Vitor Pereira’s side proved that they’re more than just the Brazilian, securing three of their six impressive consecutive wins to send a statement in the battle to secure their Premier League status.

With that top-flight status secured and £63m to spare, Wolves should ensure that life without Cunha remains blissful rather than the nightmare many have envisaged in the past.

To that end, who could arrive remains to be seen. Stars such as Harvey Elliott have already threatened to steal the headlines in recent weeks and signing a Premier League champion would certainly do no harm.

Whether the former Fulham gem is capable of producing the same output as Cunha is the big question, though. Instead, Wolves could push on to sign a proven goalscorer in the coming months.

Wolves "monitoring" Ivanovic

According to South London football reporter Richard Cawley, Wolves are now “monitoring” Mihailo Ivanovic following his excellent debut season at Millwall. The Serbian striker scored 12 goals in his first Championship campaign and only looks set to get better at just 20 years old.

Given how he starred in his first season, Millwall may naturally be reluctant to let their forward leave so soon after he initially arrived. But the Premier League call is certainly a difficult one to turn down.

Millwall manager Alex Neil has been among those full of praise for Ivanovic in recent months, telling reporters in April: “Any 20-year-old that leads the line in the Championship and can get nearly [10 goals], and he’ll get double figures before the end of the season.

“If you do that, that’s an unbelievable season and it won’t be surprising me if people start talking about him. I’ve already seen something the other day talking about the top 10 young talents in Europe – he’s one of them.”

Having lost a top talent in Cunha, if Wolves managed to sign one of the top 10 young talents in Europe – as Neil believes Ivanovic is – then that should be seen as excellent business.

Manchester United have now held face-to-face talks over a deal for a “powerful” forward, according to The Athletic, with the deal for Matheus Cunha now edging towards completion.

Man Utd now closing in on signing Cunha

Fabrizio Romano has now revealed that Man United are closing in on their first summer signing, as personal terms have almost been agreed to bring Cunha to Old Trafford, in what is expected to be a £62.5m deal.

The Brazilian is said to have “accepted the project” on offer at United, having been keen on joining for quite some time, and there is an expectation the forward will be brought to play in the number 10 role, which means Ruben Amorim is still tasked with bringing in a striker.

Amorim’s current striker options, Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee have fallen way short of expectations this season, netting just 17 goals between them, despite chalking up a combined 98 appearances in all competitions.

Player

Rasmus Hojlund

Joshua Zirkzee

Appearances

50

48

Goals

10

7

As such, it should be no surprise the Red Devils are now stepping up their pursuit of a new striker, and The Athletic’s Laurie Whitwell has now revealed that chiefs have held face-fo-face talks with Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap.

Delap has an active £30m release clause following Ipswich’s relegation from the Premier League, making him an attractive option for some top clubs, with Chelsea also expected to enter negotiations over a deal.

The low release clause means United will be able to sign the Ipswich forward regardless of the outcome of Wednesday’s crucial Europa League final against Tottenham Hotspur, which will decide whether Amorim’s side qualify for next season’s Champions League.

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Posts 4 ByBrett Worthington May 19, 2025 "Powerful" Delap could be perfect signing for United

It is a bonus that Man Utd will be able to sign the 22-year-old regardless of whether they are triumphant in the Europa League final, and there are some other signs that he could be an ideal addition to the squad.

Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has singled out the Englishman for high praise this season, saying: “He’s a pivotal player for [Ipswich], there’s no denying that. I think he’s had a very good season.

“He’s got big strengths, very strong, powerful runner. Certainly knows where the goal is. He’s always had a lot of potential.”

Not only that, but Amorim is clearly in need of a consistent goalscorer, given Hojlund and Zirkzee’s struggles, and the Ipswich star has a solid goal record in the Premier League, considering he has played in a poor team, netting 12 goals.

Delap could take his game to the next level by signing for a top club, and a fee of just £30m is a bargain for a striker of his quality.

Tottenham Hotspur are now determined to win the race for a “fantastic” Premier League forward, and they are willing to fork out £43m to get a deal over the line, according to a report.

Spurs return to winning ways against Saints

Tottenham’s four-game winless run in the Premier League came to an end yesterday afternoon, securing a 3-1 victory against Southampton at home, which meant the visitors’ relegation was confirmed at the earliest stage in history.

It was a game Spurs were expected to win, despite their poor form, and they got the job done in relatively comfortable fashion, with Brennan Johnson bagging a brace and Mathys Tel picking up his first Premier League goal.

Ange Postecoglou is likely to be happy with the performances of his forwards, but there are signs the Australian could look to bolster his attacking options in the summer, should he manage to retain his job.

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Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin is the most recent striker to be linked with a move to north London, while the Lilywhites are also keen to strengthen in wide areas, and Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze is among the potential targets.

Eze is not the only Premier League winger they have their eye on, however, with a report from Spain revealing Tottenham are now determined to win the race for AFC Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo.

Manchester United are also interested in the Bournemouth winger, with the two clubs set to battle it out for his services this summer, and they are willing to shell out €50m (£43m) to get a deal over the line.

The Cherries aren’t completely against cashing-in on the Ghanaian, should they receive a suitable offer, despite his importance to Andoni Iraola’s side.

Tottenham Hotspur’s upcoming Premier League fixtures

Date

Wolverhampton Wanderers (a)

April 13th

Nottingham Forest (h)

April 21st

Liverpool (a)

April 27th

West Ham United (a)

May 3rd

Crystal Palace (h)

May 10th

"Fantastic" Semenyo impressing for the Cherries

It would be fair to say Bournemouth have surpassed expectations this season, given that they still have an outside chance of qualifying for Europe, and the 25-year-old has been one of their key players.

The London-born winger almost always plays the full 90 minutes, and he has regularly provided goals and assists in the Premier League, with 12 goal contributions to his name in 30 appearances.

Journalist Thomas Hammond has also been left impressed by the Ghana international this season, lauding him as “fantastic” after an impressive performance against Newcastle United back in January.

That said, Semenyo hasn’t been in the best form in recent weeks, having now gone six games without a goal or assist in the Premier League, so Tottenham should continue to monitor his performances between now and the end of the season.

The exclusion hurt him, but it gave him a break that he perhaps needed after two years of carrying an intense workload. Now he’s back, and back to his best

Sidharth Monga06-Apr-20251:31

Rayudu: Siraj’s comeback since India omission has been amazing

Mohammed Siraj had been doing well for India in both limited-overs formats for some time when he was left out of their squad for the Champions Trophy. Even in Jasprit Bumrah’s absence, Siraj didn’t find a place in the 15-man squad. India wanted a left-arm quick, a tall, into-the-pitch bowler, and the expected conditions put a premium on the extra spinner. There was only one spot left for the traditional seam bowler, which went to Mohammed Shami, who was returning from injury.India were looking for someone who could run through a side when he got on a roll. Siraj had been doing this in 2023, but had gradually become a steady bowler since then. He didn’t have out-and-out bad days, but he didn’t run away with big hauls either. As any proud competitor, Siraj was upset by this exclusion coming hot on the heels of a release from his beloved IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).”To be honest, at the start, I couldn’t digest it,” Siraj said after his second straight Player-of-the-Match performance in IPL 2025, for Gujarat Titans (GT) against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). Put together international cricket and the IPL, and he won two in all of 2024. Now he has two in four days.Related

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It will not quite be fair to call his exclusion a blessing in disguise, because there is no guarantee Siraj wouldn’t have done well in the Champions Trophy, but the break it gave him seems to have done him good. Through that break, Siraj followed the classic arc of struggling to come to terms with it before putting in the hard work to try and come back better.”I reached a point when I had to convince my mind that my cricket is not over,” Siraj said. “That I have bigger plans. Okay, this [Champions Trophy] was not in my destiny, but what can I do now? I got my mindset right, I worked on my fitness. I was playing non-stop, so I didn’t have time to reflect on what mistakes had crept into my game. So I worked on it. Now I am enjoying my bowling. The body is fresh, I am not overthinking, I am staying in the present.”It is important to remember that as Shami and Bumrah grappled with fitness issues, Siraj was the one constant in India’s team. He was perhaps denied the break that fast bowlers need to carry out running repairs. Since the start of 2023, only Ravindra Jadeja has bowled more overs for India than Siraj.Mohammed Siraj won his second Player of the Match award in a row•AFP/Getty ImagesNow Siraj already has more powerplay wickets in this IPL – six – than he managed in the entirety of the 2024 season. Again, just looking at wickets is neither accurate nor fair when it comes to T20. It’s his control that has been impressive. In this game – played on a slow and low pitch – Siraj bowled three straight overs in the powerplay. Only five deliveries went fuller than good length. Three of them were just a fact-finding mission in the first over.Once he knew there was no swing, Siraj bowled almost robotically to capitalise on the lack of pace in the pitch. There was no anxiety to go looking for wickets. The result was 11 dot balls to Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma, and both their wickets.With the old ball, Siraj drew a hint of reverse swing – he acknowledged the use of saliva to maintain the ball – which has been reinstated in this IPL – helped him pick up two more wickets at the death.In his last game, against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Siraj started the match with a sharp bouncer that nearly got Phil Salt out first ball. Only a handful of games in the 18 years of the IPL have started with a short ball bowled in anger. That Siraj was sharp enough from the get-go to bowl one with both venom and direction perhaps said something about his state of mind and body. There is perhaps a freshness to Siraj that makes a case for regular breaks. But now that Siraj finds himself on a roll, GT – and India? – won’t want to miss a thing.

A look at the Australian batter’s 32nd Test century by the numbers

Sampath Bandarupalli29-Jun-202332 Centuries for Steven Smith in Test cricket are the joint-second most for Australia in the format. Ricky Ponting tops the list with 41 hundreds, while Steve Waugh also has 32 tons.ESPNcricinfo Ltd174 Innings Smith needed to score his 32nd Test century, the fewest among the 12 players with the feat. The previous quickest was Ponting, who scored his 32nd Test ton in the 176th innings he batted.22 Hundreds for Smith in the first innings of Test matches, the most for any batter, surpassing Ponting’s 21 tons. Seven of Smith’s 22 centuries came when the team was put into bat, the joint-most, alongside Jacques Kallis.ESPNcricinfo Ltd8 Test hundreds for Smith in England, the second-most by any visiting player in the country, behind only Sir Donald Bradman’s eleven tons. Smith has seven of those eight centuries against England, while another came against India in the WTC final earlier this month.12 Test centuries for Smith against England. Only Bradman (19 against England) and Sunil Gavaskar (13 against West Indies) have more triple-digit scores versus an opponent in Test cricket than Smith.1 Number of players to complete 9000 Test runs in fewer innings than Smith’s 174 innings. Kumar Sangakkara is the fastest to the 9000-run milestone, needing only 172 innings. Smith, however, is the fastest in terms of Tests played to complete 9000 runs, as he needed only 99 matches, while the previous fastest was Brian Lara in 103 games.ESPNcricinfo Ltd12 Smith’s hundreds in the Ashes. Only Bradman’s 19 tons rank higher in the Ashes, while Jack Hobbs also has 12 centuries. Smith is also now the fourth-highest run-getter in the Ashes with 3176 runs.2014 Test runs scored by Smith in England. Only three other visiting players have scored 2000-plus runs in England – Bradman (2674), Allan Border (2082) and Viv Richards (2014).416 Australia’s total in the first-innings is the highest for a visiting team at Lord’s since Australia’s 566 for 8 in the 2015 Ashes. Australia’s run rate of 4.13 is also the highest for any visiting team to make 400-plus in a Test innings at Lord’s.

His besting of Roy and Bairstow showed India shouldn’t just let match-ups dictate how they use their offspinner

Deivarayan Muthu15-Mar-2021In a time when T20 is all about match-ups, there’s sometimes a danger that teams can use bowlers in a formulaic way. Offspinner to left-hand batsman, left-arm orthodox to right-hander.In the first match of India’s T20I series against England, Virat Kohli held Washington Sundar back until the 12th over of England’s chase, and he struck immediately to pin Jason Roy lbw, but the game was already up by then. Axar Patel had taken the new ball against the right-handed pair of Roy and Jos Buttler, while Sundar was reserved for England’s left-hander-heavy middle order.Having slipped to a heavy defeat in that game, India put all their eggs in one basket and picked just five bowlers, including the allrounder Hardik Pandya, for the second.Sundar got to bowl in the powerplay role he so relishes, but it was in the middle overs that he made a stronger impression, and he did so by taking out two of the most dangerous right-hand batsmen going around in T20, Roy and Jonny Bairstow. Those two strikes set the scene for a slower-ball masterclass at the death from Shardul Thakur and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, as India went on to level the series with a seven-wicket win.Related

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Morgan: England's 'weaknesses exposed'

Blazing fifties from Kishan, Kohli power India to 1-1

The evening, though, didn’t begin well for Sundar. He prides himself on hitting an awkward, in-between length, and threatening the stumps with the new ball, but on Sunday he marginally missed his length and watched Roy plant his front foot and clout him over long-on for a first-ball six. Sundar immediately began hitting the pitch harder and dragged his length back to give up just a single off the next five balls of the over.In his next over, Sundar applied greater pressure and made Dawid Malan manufacture shots. Malan took a little trip down the pitch, but Sundar dug one right into it, hitting that in-between length and drawing an inside edge to the leg side. Malan then searched for one of his go-to shots – the slog-sweep – but then Sundar doesn’t offer you the length or time for that shot. He speared a non-turning offbreak into Malan’s pads from round the stumps at 103kph, with that sharp angle pushing the ball past leg stump.All of his six balls in Sundar’s second over were over 100kph, cramping the batsmen for length or room. Dinesh Karthik, Sundar’s captain at Tamil Nadu, speaking to reckoned that the spinner “looked like the fastest Indian bowler on display” on an evening where Thakur, Hardik Pandya, and Kumar all regularly took pace off the ball.When Sundar returned for his second spell, he didn’t have a left-hander to work with. Instead, he was up against Roy and Bairstow, who has been shifted down to the middle order to thrash any variety of spin. England were well-placed at 91 for 2 in 11 overs before Sundar slowed it up to 95.8kph and dared Roy to clear the longer square boundary on the leg side. The opener couldn’t get underneath it and holed out to deep square leg.Bhuvneshwar Kumar took a sharp catch in the deep to remove Jason Roy•Getty ImagesThen, in his next over, Sundar slowed it up further to 85.6kph, shifted his line wider, and found extra bounce from a length to have Bairstow skying a slog-sweep to Suryakumar Yadav at deep square leg. Eoin Morgan’s England are pretty big on match-ups, so they probably felt that their right-handers could go after Sundar, but the spinner had trumped them.Sundar is a fairly traditional offspinner without a variation that goes the other way, but his T20 smarts allow him to hold his own even without a ball that turns away from the right-hander.”Definitely, the mindset [while bowling to a right-hander] differs for me,” Sundar had told ESPNcricinfo in 2019. “And it varies from batsman to batsman as well. One might be strong on the off side and the other maybe strong on the leg side. Especially at this international level, there’s no margin for error and it’s important to do your homework. You need to be really precise with the lengths and lines you want to bowl.”Contrary to expectations, he actually boasts a better overall T20 record against right-handers than left-handers. He has 28 wickets at an average of 24.39 against right-handers as against 21 at 34.61 against left-handers. His economy rates – 6.92 against right-handers and 6.86 against lefties – are near-identical.On Sunday, Sundar’s middle-overs besting of two big-hitting right-handers from the No. 1-ranked T20I team made a big impression on his captain.”Special mention to Washi,” Kohli said at the post-match presentation. “He bowled to only one left-hander in the middle, and to all right-handers, used the big boundary really well, changed pace.”The series had begun with Kohli saying there was no room in India’s T20 plans for R Ashwin as long as Sundar was bowling well. He didn’t have much of a role to play in the series opener, but handed extra responsibility in the second game as one of only five bowlers, he rose to the occasion, in both the powerplay and the middle overs.