After two sensational first seasons in Europe, the Canada international has now become the first million pound player in the women's game

Just months after Naomi Girma became the first million dollar player in the women's game, the sport has delivered another milestone, with Olivia Smith usurping the Chelsea defender at the top of the most expensive transfers list by becoming the first million pound player in history.

For some, Smith will not be a particularly familiar name. Still only 20 years old, she has just finished her first season in England's Women's Super League with a Liverpool side that finished in the bottom half of the table. It was only her second campaign in the senior professional game, too, after she decided to end her time at college in the United States prematurely in search of a path that suited her better.

Yet, Arsenal have seen plenty. The Gunners, the reigning European champions, have completed a £1 million ($1.35m) deal for the Canada international as she swaps Merseyside for north London. Why do Arsenal value her so highly? What will she bring to the table? Is she worth such an incredible fee?

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  Where it all began

  Smith started playing football at the age of three and, after turning out for some local teams as a young girl, she would soon join the Canadian national team programme in the Ontario region. There, she would constantly excel at levels well beyond her age, so much so that, at 15, she became the youngest player in the history of the Canada women's national team.

  "She can do so much already," then-head coach Kenneth Heiner-Moller said after granting Smith her senior debut in a clash with Brazil. "She can already perform at a level that's beyond what you could think a kid her age could actually do. So it's about taking very, very good care of her, but also pushing her."

  Smith would soon take the traditional North American route of college, committing to Florida State University. However, a change of coach would prompt her to transfer to Penn State instead and, then, after just one season, she decided to opt for a different path altogether. She went pro.

  Believing that the style of play in the U.S. didn't suit her, the forward decided to cross the pond and sign for Sporting CP. There, she would quickly make a serious impact, so much so that Liverpool signed her for a club-record fee a year later. It was form that caught the eye back home, too, with Smith's four-year wait for a recall to the senior national team also ending in a season that saw her named Player of the Year in the Portuguese top-flight.

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  The big break

  Coming into a high-profile competition like the WSL allowed Smith's talent to grab more headlines and earn much more attention. It helped that she regularly turned up in the big fixtures, too, most notably Liverpool's win over Manchester United at Anfield and the FA Cup shock that the Reds produced against Arsenal. At the end of her first season in England, the 20-year-old had seven goals, plus another couple in cup competitions, from 20 games in a team that finished in the bottom half of the table.

  "She needed to go somewhere where she knew she would be important, she would play and I think she's been smart about that, at Sporting and then at Liverpool. I think it's been good for her," Mariana Cabral, Smith's coach in Portugal, told GOAL earlier this year, before adding, with a laugh: "I would already say that she is ready for bigger steps, but one thing at a time!"

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  How it's going

  That bigger step is here in the form of Arsenal, with the £1m transfer having been made official, and it feels like the right-sized move for Smith, again. The Gunners are a massive power in the women's game, winning the Champions League less than two months ago, but there will also be opportunities for the forward to get minutes right away in a squad that isn't too big.

  After settling into the WSL last term, the switch would see Smith exposed to a higher level of expectation, higher stakes matches in competitions like the Champions League and she'll have a serious chance of winning some of the top honours. That would help her development massively, all while she continues to establish herself more firmly in the picture with Canada, two years out from the next World Cup.

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  Biggest strengths

  In Smith, Arsenal will pick up an incredibly exciting forward who can play as a striker or a No.10, but is certainly at her best out wide. There, she has the freedom to run at defenders and make things happen, showcasing her wonderful skill, dribbling abilities and crossing, as well as her eye for goal. "She's also an intelligent girl, so you talk to her, tell her you need to do this or that and she adjusts and she does it," Cabral added.

  The Canada international isn't just an asset with her technical excellence and attacking prowess, either. She has a marvellous work rate and will not shirk her defensive responsibilities. That only six players in the WSL won possession back more often in the final third last year is evidence of how that can be of use in a team's pressing.

  Perhaps most significant of all, given she has become the first million-pound player in the women's game and joined a huge club, is that she has a fantastic attitude. Wise beyond her years and with a good head on her shoulders, Smith is regarded as a dream to coach and someone who never forgets those who have helped her along her journey.

India offspinner R Ashwin has withdrawn from India’s Test side in Rajkot, effective immediately, because of a family medical emergency.”The BCCI extends its heartfelt support to the champion cricketer and his family,” the Indian board said in a media release. “The health and well-being of the players and their loved ones are of utmost importance. The Board requests respect for the privacy of Ashwin and his family as they navigate through this challenging time.”The Board and the team will continue to provide any necessary assistance to Ashwin and will keep the lines of communication open to offer support as needed. Team India appreciates the understanding and empathy of the fans and media during this sensitive period.”Related

• Ashwin rejoins Indian team in Rajkot

• Crafty Kuldeep undoes Bazball in 12-over spell for the ages

• For Ashwin, process trumps outcome in the face of England's risky business

• Duckett leads charge as India feel the force of Bazball

• Why England started their innings in Rajkot with five runs on the board

The BCCI’s announcement came at 11pm IST, hours after the second day’s play in Rajkot had ended, during which Ashwin had provided India their first wicket of the Test.Ashwin’s withdrawal could leave India with only ten players, with three days of play left in the Rajkot Test. Ordinarily, playing substitutes are only permitted for players ruled out by concussions or Covid-19. In the absence of Ashwin, India are left with Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav as frontline spin options for the rest of this Test.With his wicket on the second day, Ashwin had reached a significant milestone, becoming the ninth bowler to 500 Test wickets.

She praised Ayanda Hlubi and Eliz-mari Marx, who shared four wickets, and said they would go on to have ‘massive careers’

Ekanth07-Feb-2024Marizanne Kapp showed she is an all weather, all-conditions and all-situations match-winner yet again with a player-of-the-match performance in Sydney that took South Africa over the line against Australia for the first time in their ODI history, and she knows the significance of this result.”It’s a proud moment,” Kapp said, “not only for me but for South African cricket as a whole. We all know we’ve never beaten Australia in a one-day game. So, to be able to perform and help my team over the line is a massive achievement for me.”It wasn’t straightforward as South Africa’s innings was hit by a couple of rain breaks in the middle overs, after they were sent in to bat. Kapp wasn’t always comfortable but that didn’t stop her from grinding away to 75 off 87 balls, which carried the visitors to a healthy total of 229 in a shortened 45-over innings.Related

• Kapp's stunning all-round display secures South Africa another famous win

“At first it was okay,” she said, “but then I probably got a little bit annoyed because I was worried that the wicket might get too wet and it might make things difficult later on. I definitely felt like at the back end when I batted it got really tough, one or two balls really sprung at me especially off a length.”I knew It was gonna be tough. In saying that, I knew Australia would have to bat on it as well. So it was something that went both ways.”But this was Australia, a team that has sustained long-term excellence thanks to their talent and professionalism. However, this was also a team in transition. They no longer had Meg Lanning, who had led them from the front for nearly a decade. And while they still boasted a strong side, they didn’t carry that air of invincibility. There’s another side to the story though, and it’s not all that bad.”There’s definitely a change and I’ve mentioned it previously as well,” Kapp said of Australia. “Losing someone like Lanning, you’re never going to be able to replace her, not her captaincy and I don’t think her batting as well. I remember too many games where we had Australia in trouble and she came in to bat and she saved them. So, yeah, I think everyone’s catching up a bit around the world. Even your Associate teams are picking up against your lower-ranked teams. It’s good for the women’s game. It’s a lot more challenging and, hopefully, this can continue.”Ayanda Hlubi dismissed Ellyse Perry for her first ODI wicket•Getty Images

South Africa themselves are an evolving side looking to fill the void left by Shabnim Ismail, who drew curtains on a 16-year-old career last year. Apart from Kapp and Nadine de Klerk, no bowler in their side has picked up more than five wickets with an average below 30 since her retirement. It led to some introspection and soul-searching within the side.”We had a [the] odd chat,” Kapp said. “I feel like, a lot of times, we don’t wanna speak straight and say it as it is, and we had that chat. We asked the whole squad to just to go to your room, look at yourself a bit and come back with [answers]. It’s always easy to say, ‘it was tough conditions or they really bowled well,’ but we also bowl well. You have to try things and you have to be positive. I feel like, today, we were a little bit better at that.”After a thumping in Adelaide, they brought in young blood to strengthen their bowling despite the series being on the line. Nineteen-year-old Ayanda Hlubi was handed an ODI debut and 21-year-old Eliz-mari Marx came in as well. The duo repaid the team’s faith by sharing four wickets, including big guns Ellyse Perry and Ashleigh Gardner.”I’m relieved, I’m not gonna lie.” Kapp said of the two youngsters joining the attack. “It meant I could ease off a little bit. They’re two upcoming youngsters. I love the way they bowl. I’ve seen them in the nets. It’s a big thing to come for them in their career.”It obviously helps when you get a wicket like this to bowl on. But they’ve been been brilliant. I feel like they have massive careers ahead of them. For now, it’s big boots to fill. We all know how good Shabi is and she is missed, I’m not gonna lie, she is missed, but it’s good to see different bowlers picking up their hands.”The conditions were tricky and South Africa managed to get over the line this time. What if it happens again in two days’ time in the series decider? Kapp not only dismissed those concerns but also welcomed the challenge.”I think it’s probably the rain that made it so tough,” she said. “I think it’s usually a flat wicket, it’s very good for batting. It was one of those days where it got a little bit too wet and it moved around a bit. So I feel like it’ll probably be a little bit flatter the next game. But that’s cricket. Look, as an allrounder I get so annoyed when we keep on playing on these flat and low wickets. You want wickets like this where you need a little bit more skill and it brings the bowlers into the game as well.”

Cricket Australia have allowed the quick to play the club’s first eight T20 matches after initially blocking his County Championship stint

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Apr-2024

Xavier Bartlett will join Kent for the Vitality Blast weeks after Cricket Australia blocked the fast bowler from playing for them in the County Championship.Bartlett was originally signed for Kent’s first five Championship games, but CA denied him a No Objection Certificate on the eve of the season, a week after handing the 25-year-old a central contract. It was the first national deal Bartlett had earned after a breakthrough Australian summer in which he made his ODI and T20I debut and led the Big Bash League wickets list with 20 for Brisbane Heat.Kent acted swiftly to replace him, signing South African bowling allrounder Beyers Swanepoel on an all-format deal which runs from May 1 until the end of the season. They had remained hopeful Bartlett would be able to uphold the white-ball element of the initial deal which amounted to at least eight Blast games. That has now been confirmed.CA are understandably cautious with Bartlett’s workload, particularly when it comes to first-class cricket. He played just three Sheffield Shield matches for Queensland after returning from a back stress fracture sustained during the last English summer while playing club cricket. He is likely also to land a deal in Major League Cricket, which is set to begin on July 4. Though unlikely to make the final 15 of Australia’s T20 World Cup squad, he is firmly in the frame for their limited-overs tour of England in September.Bartlett will join Swanepoel and fellow Australian seamer Wes Agar as three overseas options for Kent’s Blast campaign, which begins on May 31 against Middlesex at Chelmsford. Only two of them are permitted in any given playing XI.In a statement released by Kent on Tuesday, director of cricket Simon Cook said: “We’ve been working extremely hard with Cricket Australia to ensure that Xavier can join us in some capacity this season, and we’re really pleased to have secured his services for eight matches of our T20 campaign.”He is hot property at the moment and fully deserves his new central contract with Australia. I know that Spitfires supporters around the world will be extremely excited that the BBL’s top wicket-taker this Winter will be pulling on a Kent shirt this June.”

“Let’s see what the future holds,” Narine said after the match when asked if he’d reconsider his decision to retire

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Apr-20243:22

Powell: ‘Tried to take down KKR’s main bowler Narine’

Is Sunil Narine being coaxed into coming out of international retirement for the T20 World Cup in the Caribbean and USA that follows IPL 2024?Three nights ago, Narine, who had announced his international retirement in November 2023, was certain he’d be watching the tournament from home. But on Tuesday night, after hitting a magnificent century to power Kolkata Knight Riders to 223 for 6, Narine gave an inkling of that stance changing.”It is what it is, but let’s see what the future holds,” Narine, said after the match, when asked if he’d reconsider his decision to retire.Related

RCB have Narine to tackle, again, with their campaign starting to go belly-up

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Buttler's 107* tops Narine's 109 as Royals ace record chase against KKR

After the match, Rovman Powell, West Indies’ T20I captain, revealed he’d been trying to change Narine’s mind through every channel possible.”For the last 12 months, I’ve been whispering in his (Narine’s) ears, but he’s blocked out everyone,” Powell said when asked about trying to convince Narine to reverse his decision. “I’ve asked [Kieron] Pollard, [Dwayne] Bravo, [Nicholas] Pooran. Hopefully, before they select the team, they can crack his code.”Powell himself was a key contributor to Rajasthan Royals’ chase, hitting 26 off 13 balls. He came into his own in the 17th over, when he took apart Narine for a four and two back-to-back sixes in a 16-run over that left Royals needing 46 off the last three.They eventually got home off the last delivery when Jos Buttler, who struck his second century of the competition, heaved Varun Chakravarthy into the leg side with the scores level.Powell was one of Royals’ big-ticket auction signings at INR 7.4 crore, but opportunities have been limited. Tuesday’s game at the Eden Gardens was just his second outing with the bat this season, but he was all praise for the team management.Rovman Powell played a crucial role in Rajasthan Royals’ win•AFP/Getty Images”The morale in the team is very good, even when I am not playing the communication has been very good and as an international player, I really appreciate when the communication is precise and clear,” he said. “The guys are in good space and long may that continue.”Powell was also asked tongue-in-cheek if he’d been whispering into Kumar Sangakkara’s [director of cricket] ear about a batting promotion.”I told them, ‘hey, I bat at No. 4 or 5 for West Indies and if you think West Indies is a good T20 side, then you can push me up the order,” he said with a smile. “We have got a few days off now and I will keep ringing it in their (the management) ears.”Powell likened the emotions at the end to that of a roller-coaster ride as Royals pulled off IPL’s highest successful chase. He also revealed he went out to bat with not set plans of taking down spin, and was merely reacting to the situation.”The emotions are all over the place at the moment,” he said. “I didn’t plan to take on Sunil, I knew he’s their best bowler, but when it comes down to 80 off 30, you have to take your chances. I backed my strengths, took my chances and came off today.”

Cristiano Ronaldo wants Al-Nassr to pursue a move for Chelsea left-back Marc Cucurella.

• Ronaldo offers Al-Nassr transfer advice
• Saudi Pro League side set to sign Joao Felix
• Want another Chelsea star as well

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Marca journalist Jose Felix Diaz reports that Ronaldo wants Cucurella to join Al-Nassr. The news comes after the Saudi club agreed the transfer of Joao Felix from Chelsea for an initial fee of €30m (£26m/$35m). That deal could eventually rise to €50m, as per Fabrizio Romano, who reports the deal has "add-ons and a significant sell-on clause".

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Cucurella has become a key part of Chelsea's starting XI in the past few years, after an initial battle for game-time with Ben Chilwell after joining from Brighton in 2022. The Spanish left back made 54 appearances in all competitions for the Blues last term, including 36 games in the Premier League.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Cucurella is under contract until June 2028, placing the west London side under no real pressure to sell. A firm favourite of his manager Enzo Maresca and the Stamford Bridge faithful, there will is little indication that Chelsea will sell.

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  WHAT NEXT?

  CR7 will likely have to be content with one ex-Blue making the switch to the SPL. Felix will become an Al-Nassr player upon the completion of his medical. This move represents a fresh start for a talented player that failed to make good on his immense promise. The same certainly cannot be said of Cucurella who continues to thrive in west London.

Michael Vaughan is suffering from a run of poor form much like Nasser Hussain

Andrew McGlashan06-Aug-2005

Michael Vaughan heard the clatter of timber again © Getty Images
Michael Vaughan is following in the footsteps of Nasser Hussain by suffering a poor run of form as England captain, but without anyone calling for his head. Although Vaughan’s trot is not quite as grotesque as the horror period Hussain suffered in 2000-01, when it was truly painful to watch him bat, the current captain is heading back to the pavilion too soon for his liking.When Vaughan’s stumps were rearranged in the second innings at Edgbaston – for the third time in this series – it meant he had faced a total of 89 balls in four innings for 32 runs in the two Tests. But Vaughan has not been himself for a considerable period of time, in fact since he took over as captain, which then turned into England’s run of success. Only briefly has he recaptured the flowing strokeplay that graced Australia on the 2002-03 tour – his twin hundreds in the Lord’s Test against West Indies in 2004 was as close as he as come to recapturing his best form.However, at no point has anyone been calling for the captain’s head, it obviously helps that England have been successful of late, and Hussain was given the same vote of confidence. When Hussain couldn’t buy a run – from the start of the 2000 season until he ground his way to a hundred against Sri Lanka at Kandy in 2000-01 – he was always the best man to captain England. He was bringing improved results, with wins over West Indies, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.Both Vaughan and Hussain have captained England during an era when the team performance is the ultimate goal and the captain is someone who builds a team ethos, holding it together through the tougher times. Compare that to the years when Graham Gooch and Michael Atherton led England. Captains and players were looking over their shoulders to make sure their name was on the next teamsheet. When Atherton suffered his poor form as captain – especially on the Zimbabwean tour of 1996-97 – there was a call for him to step down and be replaced as batsmen and captain. Atherton’s stubborn character got him through but it would not happen nowadays.While Vaughan and Hussain have experienced slumps as captain the style of them is significantly different. Vaughan still unleashes the occasionally mouth-watering shot, be it his cover-drive or pull, whereas Hussain almost lost the ability to clear the infield. There is still the feeling that Vaughan is just one knock away from a decent score but with Hussain it was hard to see an end to the torture.If there was a dodgy umpiring decision lurking, Hussain would find it and Vaughan is doing the same with attracting straight balls. Three times now in this series he has been castled without getting bat on ball, a worrying development for a high quality batsmen. Curiously, however, Hussain wasn’t bowled once during his lean period. But, at the end of the day, it’s the results that matter. After all, Mike Brearley masterminded three Ashes victories in 1977, 1978-79 and 1981 but averaged only 19.72 in those series.

Inside Cricket assembled a panel of ten experts, including Dennis Lillee and Greg and Ian Chappell, to choose the best Australian Test XI from 1995 to 2005

Adam Burnett30-Nov-2005

The XI 1 Matthew Hayden, 2 Mark Taylor (capt), 3 Ricky Ponting, 4 Mark Waugh, 5 Steve Waugh, 6 Adam Gilchrist, 7 Ian Healy, 8 Shane Warne, 9 Jason Gillespie, 10 Craig McDermott, 11 Glenn McGrath.The openers
“The opening batsmen spots were tricky – talk about spoilt for choice,” says the former New Zealand opener Mark Richardson. Plenty agreed, but in the end, one player was drawn from each of two of the most successful opening partnerships of all time. Matthew Hayden was the most popular choice to head the Australian batting line-up; his dominance of bowling all over the world for a sustained period – combined with his overall record – proved irresistible for eight of the panellists.Mark Taylor was preferred next, finding his way into half the sides. Terry Jenner described Taylor as “the best Australian captain since Ian Chappell,” while Chappell himself cited Taylor’s catching ability as another factor in his favour. Justin Langer received four votes and Michael Slater three. The fact this pair missed out is indicative of the talent Australia has had at the top of the order in recent times.No. 3
The No. 3 position came down to a battle between Tasmania’s two favourite sons. Greg Chappell and Darren Berry selected David Boon to fill what many perceive as the most demanding batting position. And both chose Boon’s successor of Tasmanian pride, Ricky Ponting, at No. 4, as did Dennis Lillee. Yet the current Australian captain fills the No. 3 spot. “His ability to dominate bowlers either on the front or back foot is peerless in the current game,” says Jenner, while Geoff Lawson acknowledges Ponting’s brilliance in the field would add further quality to the side. Nos 4 and 5
If there’s a sniff of class in the top three, the side is positively reeking of it by the time we get through to No. 6. Ponting’s three votes at No. 4 were automatically ruled out and the only other selection at second drop was Mark Waugh. “Wonderful to watch his batting,” says Lawson. “Simply class,” enthused Richardson. “For pure entertainment it is impossible to go past the junior Waugh’s stylishly effortless batting,” adds Jenner. Only Darren Berry wielded the selection axe on the gifted New South Welshman.As with Ponting, Steve Waugh collected votes from all panellists, from positions three to six. He was favoured most heavily at No. 5 and his ability to be cool in a crisis, as well as his ruthless and determined attitude, were the major reasons given for Waugh’s inclusion. In fact, “an automatic selection” was generally the only comment given – or needed – regarding Australia’s most successful skipper.Nos 6 and 7
The final middle-order place came down to a choice of two. Damien Martyn narrowly missed selection but our panel opted to play Adam Gilchrist at No. 6 and relieve him of the wicketkeeping duties. Ian Healy, with five votes at No. 7, pipped Martyn’s four and sneaked, shifting Gilchrist, whose ten votes were evenly divided at six and seven, up the order.”Healy is the best keeper and it’s a specialist position,” says Ian Chappell, “plus he was no slouch as a batsman. However, Gilchrist is such a devastating batsman that he’s ideal for the No. 6 slot, where a match can be won by a couple of hours of scintillating stroke play.”

No. 8
Guess who? The bamboozling leggie SK Warne was a walk-up starter with comments such as “the best spinner in the game’s history,” from Lawson being the prevailing wisdom. The next creator of controversy was Warne’s brilliant back-up and sometimes-spinning sidekick, Stuart MacGill. Could a side with the Waugh twins at their peak go into battle with two quicks and two spinners? Four experts thought so. “MacGill’s numbers [169 wickets at 27] are hard to ignore,” said Jim Maxwell. “Most teams can’t play legspin, so why not have two?” Lawson asked. Yet, much like his real life story, MacGill was consigned to the bench.Nos 9 and 10
The first two of the three quicks – Jason Gillespie and Craig McDermott. Gillespie’s 251 wickets at 26 are outstanding and this was acknowledged by our panellists. “At his best, Gillespie was on a par with Warne for difficulty of handling,” says Richardson. McDermott’s feats as Australia’s spearhead early in his career and then at the start of this era were rewarded by six panellists, earning him selection just ahead of MacGill. Brett Lee, who was favoured ahead of Gillespie by Lillee, Michael Kasprowicz and Damien Fleming all received votes yet the men with the most wickets on the board – 542 between them – got the nod.No. 11
The final member of the side received all 10 votes. McGrath takes the honour of receiving the new ball and leaving Gillespie and McDermott to share it with him. “His record speaks for itself,” Lawson said, while others were quick to highlight his absence as the key reason why Australia lost two Ashes Tests in 2005.The leader
The selection of a captain was also a close call. Mark Taylor was elected skipper in every side in which he appeared. Steve Waugh received four nominations and Mark Nicholas deemed Shane Warne worthy of the honour. “Ideally, Warne’s inventive and attacking cricket brain would captain this team, which is a choice of personal favourites rather than anything else,” Nicholas says. With five votes Taylor, the man who led Australia into the era, takes up the reins.Selectors Dennis Lillee, Ian Chappell, Greg Chappell, Mark Nicholas, Terry Jenner, Geoff Lawson, Mark Richardson, Darren Berry, Dean Jones, Jim Maxwell.

Statistical highlights for the third day’s play of the second Test between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in Colombo

Mathew Varghese05-Jul-2007 The sixth-wicket partnership of 191 between Mohammad Ashraful and Mushfiqur Rahimis the best for any wicket for Bangladesh in Tests, bettering the 187-run stand between HabibulBashar and Shahriar Nafees against Australia at Fatullah in 2006. The stand is also the third best for the sixth wicket on Sri Lankansoil, behind the unbeaten standof 246 between Jeff Crowe and Sir Richard Hadlee in Colombo in 1987and the 218-run partnershipbetween Justin Langer and Simon Katich in Colombo in 2004. Mohammad Ashraful became the first Bangladesh batsman to score fourcenturies in Test cricket. Habibul Bashar is second on the list, havingscored three hundreds for Bangladesh. Ashraful and Bashar are the onlyplayers to have made a hundred while captaining Bangladesh in Testcricket. This is also Ashraful’s second hundred in Sri Lanka. Ashraful’s century was preceded by a duck in the first innings. This was the 14th instance of a captain scoring a duck and a century in the same Test, with only Billy Murdoch, Garry Sobers and now Ashraful having scored unbeaten centuries. Mashrafe Mortaza bagged his second pair in Test cricket. The openingbowler now has eight ducks in 44 innings. After 45 innings, CourtneyWalsh had eight ducks as well in Test cricket. Walsh tops the chart formost ducks. Muttiah Muralitharan picked up only one wicket in Bangladesh’s secondinnings, his worst performance against them in a Test innings. He haspicked up eight five-wicket hauls in eight Tests against Bangladesh. His previous worst of 2 for 62 came at Bogra in 2006.Some of the information was provided by HR Gopalakrishna.

Sri Lanka’s 78-run defeat against South Africa leaves them on the brink of being eliminated from the Champions Trophy, but all isn’t lost for them yet

S Rajesh24-Oct-2006

Sri Lanka’s 78-run defeat against South Africa leaves them on the brink of being eliminated from the Champions Trophy, but all isn’t lost for them yet. Since they have played all three matches in the group, the situation isn’t in their hands any more, but if other results pan out well, Sri Lanka might still make it to the semi-finals.For that to happen, though, Pakistan will need to win both their remaining matches, which will put them on top of the group with six points, leaving New Zealand, South Africa and Sri Lanka with one win each. In such a case, the net run rate will decide which team joins Pakistan in the semi-finals.Currently, Sri Lanka’s NRR of -0.195 is below that of South Africa (-0.090) and New Zealand (0.414). For them to make it, Sri Lanka will have to hope that Pakistan demolish South Africa and New Zealand by big enough margins to make their NRR drop below Sri Lanka’s.In fact, South Africa’s NRR is so marginally above Sri Lanka’s that even a narrow defeat against Pakistan will be a huge setback – if, for example, Pakistan score 250 and South Africa lose by 30 runs, their NRR will still drop to -0.26.For Sri Lanka to beat New Zealand’s NRR, though, they’ll need greater help from Pakistan. If Pakistan manage 250, they will have to restrict New Zealand to less than 189 for Sri Lanka to get through. Considering the way batsmen have struggled in this tournament, such a margin of defeat can hardly be ruled out. It’s not the ideal situation for Mahela Jayawardene and his team, but it’s hardly time yet to pack their bags and head home.