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Sussex completed their first win of the season in the Specsavers County Championship after beating Derbyshire by 10 wickets at Hove

ECB Reporters Network31-May-2016
ScorecardOllie Robinson finished with four wickets in the second innings•Getty Images

Sussex completed their first win of the season in the Specsavers County Championship after beating Derbyshire by 10 wickets at Hove.Derbyshire did have the satisfaction of making Sussex bat again after they were dismissed for 307, but Sussex’s openers Chris Nash and Ed Joyce needed just three balls to knock off their victory target of 11 runs to secure their first Championship win at Hove for more than a year.Resuming on 195 for 6, Derbyshire lost Matt Critchley in the fifth over of the day after the start had been delayed until 1.10pm because of rain.Critchley gloved a lifter from Steve Magoffin before Ollie Robinson struck in successive overs. Shiv Thakor, who had top scored in Derbyshire’s first innings 150 with 49, again impressed in making 81 from No. 6 from 102 balls with ten fours and it needed a good delivery which held its line and found the edge to remove him.Robinson had Tom Taylor caught by Ross Taylor, diving to his left at third slip in his next over to leave Derbyshire 256 for 9, still requiring 41 to make Sussex bat again.But the hosts were held up by some merry tail-end hitting by Tony Palladino and Ben Cotton, who smashed 53 from 29 balls together before Cotton was bowled by Ajmal Shahzad for 25.”There’s a great sense of relief that we have got that first win,” Mark Davis, the Sussex head coach, said. “We haven’t had the best of things with the weather this season and when I got up this morning and saw the rain I feared the worst but our groundstaff did a terrific job, both today and on the first day when they got the ground fit for us to have 40 overs and take nine wickets which really set us up for the victory.”I thought we bowled well in both innings and with the bat we were relentless. We’ve got a block of one-day cricket now and we’ll take some momentum from this into that.”Derbyshire batsman Wayne Madsen admitted it had been a tough four days for his team. “Being bowled out for 150 in the first innings put us under massive pressure against a good Sussex team.”It’s a massive learning curve, particularly for our young bowlers, at the moment and we have to make sure when we get back to red-ball cricket we learn from our mistakes and put things right.”But there is still a good vibe in the squad. We’re fighting hard and we will work hard to find the consistency of performance we need.”

England’s motivation for this summer is to claim the Test series wins against Sri Lanka and Pakistan that eluded them in their last campaigns against each team

Andrew Miller22-Apr-2016You’d have thought that Ben Stokes would be sick of the sight of batsmen teeing off after the agonies he endured at the hands of Carlos Brathwaite in the World T20 final in Kolkata earlier this month.And yet, after spending the morning in the company of Joe Root at Woburn Golf Course in Buckinghamshire, it is safe to surmise that Stokes – and the rest of the England team – have parked that near-miss in India and are ready to take the positives (as only sportsmen can) into their next international assignment: the Test series against Sri Lanka that gets underway next month.”I’d been back in the country for about eight or nine days before I realised I wanted to get back to training,” said Stokes, whose hectic round of sponsors’ engagements in recent days – from a game of street cricket in Soho to a bout of WWE in Newcastle and now to an Investec golf day – reflects the extent to which his and England’s exploits, in victory and defeat, have captured the imagination this winter.Though the winter ended in a manner that Stokes will not wish to dwell on for too much longer – with his head in his hands and Brathwaite’s fourth six in a row disappearing into the Eden Gardens stands – England’s shortcomings in that contest cannot detract from the sense that a real team ethic has been forged in the course of 18 extraordinary months.”The amount of people who’ve said how excited they were by the World Cup, and how we should be proud of what we achieved, it was a lot more than I thought it would be,” said Root. “That is really nice to see. That puts a smile on your face and gives us a lot of confidence.”The squads vary from format to format, and the captains too, with Alastair Cook and Eoin Morgan taking charge of red- and white-ball cricket respectively. However, Stokes and Root have been integral players throughout, from England’s reboot in limited-overs cricket to their hard-earned Test series wins against Australia and South Africa. Root in particular believes that the confidence forged in one format can be carried across to the others.”It’s a completely different playing XI, but we are implementing how we want to play in all three formats,” he said. “Cooky has been like Morgs in reminding us that we got here by playing in this way for our counties and through the last 18 months, so let’s keep trying to push that. We don’t want to get to a certain level and stop, we want to keep trying to improve and play positive and aggressive cricket.”Teeing off: Stokes prepares to unleash at Woburn•Investec

“In one-day cricket, I think perceptions have been changed for a while now,” he added. “We’ve said previously we’ve got inexperience and we are going to make mistakes, but we want to play a certain way and everyone’s committed to doing that.”We won’t get it right every time, but the more we do that, we’ll get better and better, and we’ll learn along the way, both from getting it right and getting it wrong. Hopefully throughout this summer we’ll get more consistent and become a really strong side.”England’s motivation for this summer, said Root, was to claim the Test series wins against Sri Lanka and Pakistan that eluded them in their last campaigns against each team – at home to Sri Lanka in 2014 and in the UAE against Pakistan last winter. That, he added, would complete a clean sweep of the trophies available to England in Test cricket, and help to propel them towards another of their goals – the reclaiming of the No.1 Test ranking that they last held in 2011-12.”Of course, that is obviously a main goal of ours,” he added. “But as with anything, you can look miles ahead and fall miles short, so you have to take it very slowly. If we win both series it would be a huge achievement.”England’s batting line-up for the first Test against Sri Lanka, at Headingley on May 19, may be significantly altered from the team that was beaten in the fourth and final Test against South Africa at Centurion in January. Not only are they now looking for a replacement for James Taylor, who was sadly forced to retire last week with a serious heart condition, there is talk of Root – the best batsman in the team – being pushed up the order to No. 3, from where he will be better placed to influence the course of an innings.”Who knows?” said Root, who averages more than 65 at positions 4 and 5, from where he has scored eight of his nine Test hundreds. “There have been lots of runs scored in the County Championship so far, but I’ve not had any conversations with the coaches yet about batting orders. I feel pretty settled at 4 but if they want to change things up, I’m sure we’ll have a discussion and see what’s best for the side.”One man who would prefer Root to stay exactly where he is, however, is Stokes, who has played some of his finest innings alongside his team-mate at four-down – not least their game-changing stand of 161 in the Lord’s Test against New Zealand last summer.”His record at 4 and 5 has been incredible,” said Stokes. “I’d personally like him to stay at 4 as he’s been so successful. When we’ve got off to bad starts, he’s come in and still kept the run-rate going, and also it would mean he’s closer to where I’m batting, and I enjoy batting with him.”The reason for their success as a partnership, Stokes added, was their shared sense of enjoyment and relaxation in the heat of the battle.”Some players are very keen and switched on when they are batting in the middle,” he said. “That is them. They stay with themselves in their own bubble, and you know that and respect that, you let them do what they want.”But me and Joe are very similar in the middle – having a laugh, not taking things too seriously, letting things go on. It lets us both play our natural games, which we want to do anyway, but it almost frees us up even more. I know Rooty scores quick, he knows I score quickly. We don’t put any pressure on each other.”As for Root himself, he finished the World T20 as one of the most talked-about young cricketers in the game, with most commentators agreeing it is a three-way shoot-out between him, India’s Virat Kohli and New Zealand’s Kane Williamson when it comes to identifying the best current batsman in the world.The player himself, however, only has eyes for the team cause. “You hear stuff and it’s nice when people say nice things about you, but it’s about scoring runs, isn’t it?” he said. “It’s not about personal gain. It’s about winning games of cricket and being part of something really special with your team-mates. By contributing runs, hopefully that will bring all that stuff along.”Investec is the title sponsor of Test match cricket in England. For more on Investec private banking, visit investec.co.uk/banking

A number of Rangers fans have flocked to Twitter to express their delight as former manager Steven Gerrard upset a number of Celtic supporters during a recent charity match.

What did Steven Gerrard do in the Liverpool charity game?

With domestic football put on hold while the international break takes place, two teams consisting of club legends from Liverpool and Celtic met at Anfield on Saturday afternoon.

The aim was to raise money for the LFC Foundation and other charities, with the likes of Steve McManaman, Jerzy Dudek and Sami Hyypia involved for the Reds, while for the Bhoys, former stars such as skipper Stiliyan Petrov, Mikael Lustig, and Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink all took part, too.

To open the scoring at Anfield, Gerrard sent goalkeeper Artur Boruc the wrong way from 12 yards and then taunted the away end by celebrating in their corner – much to the anger of the Celtic faithful at Anfield, who even hurled a few bottles on the pitch for good measure (as seen in this clip).

The Liverpool legend understandably isn’t too well-liked by the rival set of supporters after his time with Rangers, where he managed to stop the Bhoys from winning a 10th successive Scottish Premiership title.

And he clearly provoked the worst from this set of supporters, who momentarily seemed to forget that they’d actually travelled to Liverpool to help raise money for charity.

While his eventual exit to Aston Villa may have disappointed many at Ibrox, it seems as though many will feel he has redeemed himself somewhat after these latest scenes.

Here are the best reactions on Twitter…

shows them no respect LOVE IT https://t.co/1O9LTWK8Rk— Jamie (@Jamie38402497) March 25, 2023

Tottenham Hotspur have now been linked with a summer move for Eintracht Frankfurt centre-back Evan Ndicka…

What’s the latest on Spurs’ interest in Evan Ndicka?

That’s according to 90min, who claim that Spurs are lining up a move for the French titan as his contract at the Bundesliga outfit is set to end at the end of the season.

It’s thought that the north Londoners are keen to add a central defender to their ranks during the summer transfer window, with Ndicka a very appealing option as he’s both left-footed and available for free.

The Lilywhites had scouts in attendance for Frankfurt’s recent Champions League defeat to Napoli, where they were also keeping an eye on attacking midfielder Daichi Kamada.

How good is Spurs target Evan Ndicka?

It should come as little surprise to see Antonio Conte’s side target some much-needed defensive reinforcements ahead of next season as Clement Lenglet is currently set to return to parent club FC Barcelona, whilst the Italian’s other options have been inconsistent, to say the least.

Spurs have conceded the most goals of any team that sit tenth or above in the standings, meaning even Fulham and Brentford have shut out the opposition more often. That’s hardly what you’d expect from a side led by Conte, who has won the Premier League and FA Cup through defensive resilience in the past.

Ndicka could begin to be that solution on the left-hand side, with Lenglet out of the picture and Ben Davies a natural full-back.

In the 23-year-old gem, sporting director Fabio Paratici could well find Tottenham their very own Raphael Varane, with the world-class Manchester United colossus among the most comparable players to Ndicka, per FBref’s statistical model.

This is largely because of his ability on the ball, as well as the impact he can make in both boxes. Indeed, when compared to fellow centre-backs across Europe’s elite divisions, the Frankfurt man ranks inside the top 9% for assists, the top 13% for blocks and the top 16% for clearances per 90.

Such exploits have seen the 6 foot 4 brute trusted by Oliver Glasner to feature in more minutes than any other player across the Bundesliga and Champions League, so he must be doing something right, considering his contractual status too.

Once aptly dubbed as “towering” by journalist Jacque Talbot, WhoScored list one of Ndicka’s biggest strengths to be aerial duels, with another being concentration, which are the two same mentioned for the four-time UCL winner too, so the comparisons may well ring true.

Also hailed as a “leader” by Sport1 journalist Christopher Michel to ChronicleLive in the past, it’s evident that the former France U21 international would be one hell of a free transfer and one that could seriously bolster Conte’s struggling backline.

As such, Paratici could well sign Spurs’ very own Varane with a bargain move for Ndicka this summer.

AND in other news, Paratici eyeing 6 ft 4 “monster” in Spurs summer swoop, he’s a bargain Son successor…

It’s a typical afternoon at the National Cricket Academy in Edinburgh, where a small, but fiercely energetic staff, are multi-tasking with a resolve that belies the governing body’s dearth of finance

Neil Drysdale10-Jul-2006

Scotland: lacking finance but not resolve © Getty Images
It’s a typical afternoon at the National Cricket Academy in Edinburgh, where a small, but fiercely energetic staff, are multi-tasking with a resolve that belies the governing body’s dearth of finance.A year ago this week, Craig Wright’s team triumphed in the ICC Trophy, thereby securing World Cup qualification and earning automatic ODI status, whilst climbing to a global ranking of 12th. There were plenty of lofty promises about how the game was poised for all sorts of monetary windfalls, but as it transpired these forecasts sprung from the Wilkins Micawber School of economics.The reality for Wright and the national coach, Peter Drinnen, is that they must keep advancing in spite of a system that is absurdly obsessed with medals, and seemingly designed to deny cricket any of the same advantages afforded to other pursuits.Drinnen shrugs his shoulders when confronted with these issues. As somebody who inherited the job, in controversial circumstances, from Andy Moles, the Australian has stepped up to the plate in stirring fashion, orchestrating a series of victories for the Saltires in the revamped C&G Trophy and watching proudly as his charges rallied from 20 for 4 to push Pakistan hard at The Citylets Grange last month.Elsewhere, concerns have been expressed as to the validity of the ICC’s philosophy of introducing half-a-dozen new countries onto the ODI circuit – and the sceptics’ fears were borne out by Sri Lanka amassing a record-breaking 443 runs in 50 overs against hapless Holland – but Drinnen is unrepentant in his assertion that Scotland has the ability to rise above Bangladesh, Zimbabwe and Kenya in the next 18 months. If he was allowed access to a bigger annual budget than £180,000, there is no inherent reason why his personnel can’t be beating anybody in the planet by the start of the next decade.”Of course, we would benefit from extra cash,” says Drinnen, “and I have the plans in place if it happens to create an A team, packed with 18, 19 and 20 year-olds, who would go to Bangladesh, to India and Sri Lanka, and test themselves in high-pressure contests, which would allow a natural progression through to the senior side.”That contrasts starkly with the present situation where we are shoving in guys from the SNCL and expecting them to tackle professional rivals head-on but, to be fair, we have definitely increased our strength in depth in the last 12 months.”Drinnen highlighted the example of Neil McCallum, who made a conscious decision to put himself in the spotlight, thrived at the Grange, and forced himself into the Saltires’ scene through sheer 100% commitment and application. It was he who marched to the crease at 20 for 4 against Pakistan, and proceeded to dig his side out of a huge hole with a gritty 68.”I am always asking questions of players and Neil has responded,” added Drinnen. “What I would ask of some others is: are you equally determined to invest in the hours of practice and demand an opportunity? Even six months ago, there were some individuals who probably imagined they had booked their World Cup berths, but I have told a lot of them to take nothing for granted.”I have 18 or 19 names in my mind for 15 spots, and there is still time for one or two others to stick themselves in the frame, before the squad is announced in September. But if anybody is half-hearted, or believes they have enough talent to sit out net sessions, or doesn’t understand they have to be fit, I am afraid they are in for a disappointment when the party is announced for the most intense period in Scotland’s history.”Drinnen, a reticent character by nature, was disinclined to indulge in specific selection discussions. Nonetheless, he has been significantly impressed with Paul Hoffmann (“the lad has bowled beautifully”), Ryan Watson (“he refuses to stay out of any game”), whilst his warm words for Dewald Nel, Ross Lyons and Gavin Hamilton and for Wright and Dougie Brown’s “innate professionalism” suggest that they can anticipate a winter abroad.That winter could possibly begin with a trip to Bangladesh in November, followed by the inaugural World Cricket League, prior to meeting the UAE in the Intercontinental Cup. Then it’s off to St Kitts for their hat-trick of World Cup assignments with Australia, South Africa and Holland.It is a daunting schedule and one which promises to tax the players’ employers and spouses alike. But if Drinnen is feeling the strain of existing on a shoestring budget, he is keeping it remarkably well-hidden.”I know that some of the lads will have to make sacrifices and tough choices, which isn’t ideal, and although we are grateful for the sponsorship of Lloyds TSB and the funding from Sportscotland, it would clearly be fantastic if we could offer contracts to seven or eight players and progress towards a scenario where they were full-time cricketers.””All the same,” he added, “I’m both pragmatic and excited about our prospects, because I genuinely, 100% reckon that we can have a very good Scottish cricket team for years to come, the foundations have been laid, and an awful lot of development has occurred in a short time. What we need now is the funding to take a big leap, instead of moving forward in short steps.”Drinnen’s ultimate fantasy is for Scotland to take part in the 2014 Commonwealth Games, which could even be held in Glasgow if their bid is successful. “If it is, then Twenty20 cricket could be included on the programme and we could have a pop at chasing a medal. Why not? If we can score 200-plus against Pakistan and have them at 93 for 5, without several of our key performers, why shouldn’t we dare to dream?”Drinnen is currently debating the logistics of sending a couple of players to Australia and two more to India this winter, as part of his fast-track policy. He may speak in measured tones, but this man is on a mission and has no truck with part-timers or pessimists.

Journalist Barry Anderson has shared some "fascinating" detail on West Ham United and their move for Austria Klagenfurt midfielder Andy Irving in the last 48 hours.

Who have West Ham signed this summer?

David Moyes had to wait a fair bit for his first signing of the summer transfer window, with Mexico international ace Edson Alvarez coming through the door in early August.

The midfielder, who has started life in the Premier League very brightly, was later joined by England international James Ward-Prowse, former Arsenal defender Konstaninos Mavropanos and Ghana star Mohammed Kudus.

The latter player's signing comes as a particularly major coup for West Ham and Moyes, with Kudus excelling for both Ajax and his country at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar last year.

“I’m delighted we’ve been able to bring Mohammed to West Ham United,” said the Irons manager after Kudus' arrival.

“He’s a terrific young talent, who has already shone at the very highest level for Ajax in the Champions League and made well over 150 senior appearances at the age of 23 – so it was no surprise to see so many top clubs chasing his signature this summer.

“The fact we’ve been able to attract a player of his undoubted quality to London Stadium shows the pull West Ham have now – the Board and Tim deserve huge credit for getting this one over the line.”

West Ham also attempted a late move to replace striker Gianluca Scamacca, who joined Atalanta earlier in the window, but ultimately failed with a deadline day push to sign Paris-Saint Germain's Hugo Ekitike.

One transfer that has fell quite under-the-radar, though, is their capture of former Hearts midfielder Irving – who has apparently joined from Austria Klagenfurt.

Club insider ExWHUemployee backs this news, and he said on deadline day that the Scotsman has indeed signed but will return to Klagenfurt as part of an "affiliate arrangement agreed" with Hammers transfer chief Tim Steidten.

National World football writer and journalist Anderson, commenting on the move and sharing further background, says that Irving joins in a "big-money" deal and calls it "fascinating".

"Andy Irving's transfer to West Ham from Austria Klagenfurt is fascinating," said Anderson on X.

"He will become an #EPL player in a big-money deal two years after leaving Hearts thanks to a German data analyst. Good move for a player who worked hard to establish himself abroad."

How good is Andy Irving?

Following a 2-0 win over Morton in late 2020, former Hearts boss Robbie Neilson heaped praise on the midfielder's technical ability.

Irving, according to Neilson, can demonstrate exceptional passing ability in the final third.

“He’s got great passing ability, as you seen with the pass for the goal," said Neilson.

"It’s great to have him in. He’s still learning the game. I was really pleased with him. Obviously coming down here, we knew what the pitch was going to be like, we knew the physicality was going to be like, I thought Andy handled it very well.”

In time, perhaps Irving can showcase enough quality to get Moyes seriously thinking.

Chelsea star Lauren James has been named the Women's Super League's Player of the Month for January after scoring five goals in just two games.

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Chelsea star James named Player of the MonthScored five goals in two WSL games in JanuaryBeats Fox, Shaw and more to awardWHAT HAPPENED?

There wasn't much league action in January as cup competitions came to the fore but James made the most of her two WSL outings, scoring a hat-trick against former club Manchester United before following it up with a brace in victory over Brighton. Those performances saw her beat out tough competition for this accolade, winning it ahead of Arsenal's Emily Fox, the Manchester City duo of Bunny Shaw and Laia Aleixandri, Leicester's Janice Cayman and West Ham forward Viviane Asseyi.

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James' goals haven't just resulted in individual glory either, with this her second Player of the Month award of the season after she also picked it up in November. The England star's performances have also helped Chelsea maintain their position at the top of the WSL table, with the reigning champions now three points clear of Man City and six ahead of Arsenal with just nine games to go. The Blues are chasing a fifth successive league triumph.

DID YOU KNOW?

There could be another significant individual award coming James' way this season as she is one of the front-runners in the race for the WSL's Golden Boot. The 22-year-old has 12 goals in 12 appearances this season, just one fewer than Man City striker Shaw.

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR JAMES AND CHELSEA?

The FA Cup is the focus for James and Chelsea this weekend, as they take on second-tier Crystal Palace in the fifth round of the competition on Sunday. The Blues, the dominant side in English women's football, are looking to lift the trophy for a fourth successive season.

Liverpool are now keen on signing Leeds United midfielder Tyler Adams, but a new report has now revealed they are trailing another Premier League club in the race for his signature…

Is Tyler Adams leaving Leeds?

Adams has attracted the attention of a number of Premier League clubs following Leeds' relegation to the Championship last season, with Chelsea coming close to signing him earlier in the window, before talks broke down at a late stage.

The USMNT international, who has a £20m release clause included in his contract, was set to have a medical ahead of completing a move to Stamford Bridge, but he ultimately returned to Leeds, where he has four years remaining on his deal.

Even though the 24-year-old is tied down to a long-term contract, the Whites are powerless to stop him leaving if the £20m release clause is stumped up, and AFC Bournemouth are now willing to match it.

Read The Latest Liverpool Transfer News HERE

That is according to a report from 90min, which states the Cherries have agreed to meet the Leeds star's release clause, and talks are now taking place in the hope of striking an agreement with the player's camp.

However, Bournemouth may face competition for the central midfielder's signature, as Liverpool are also among the sides keen on signing him, having recently lost out on both Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia to Chelsea.

Jurgen Klopp is in dire need of new midfield options, owing to the fact that Jordan Henderson, Fabinho, James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have all departed, and they now have their sights set on the American.

That said, the Reds' interest only appears to be tentative at this stage, as they are yet to launch an official offer, and with Bournemouth recently agreeing to match the release clause, Klopp may have to move swiftly if he is to win the transfer race, although Adams is currently out injured with a hamstring issue.

What is Tyler Adams' salary?

The former RB Leipzig man is currently tied down to a £55k-per-week contract with Leeds, having joined the now-Championship side after impressing in the Bundesliga, and he was lauded as a "beast" by members of the media soon after his arrival.

Although the USMNT captain was unable to prevent the Whites from being relegated to the Championship, he still caught the eye with some very solid performances during his first year in England, particularly from a defensive point of view.

Over the past year, the defensive midfielder ranks in the 98th percentile for tackles, and the 97th percentile for blocks per 90, when compared to his positional peers, as per FBref, indicating he could be a fantastic alternative option to Lavia and Caicedo.

Last season, the no-nonsense midfield enforcer made 89 tackles in the Premier League, the joint-fourth highest figure in the division, far more than Lavia and only 11 fewer than Caicedo.

At just £20m, Adams could be a bargain signing this summer, so it could be wise for Liverpool to match his release clause in the next few days, as a move to Anfield would surely be his preferred destination ahead of Bournemouth.

Mahedi Hasan and Rashid Khan returned combined figures of 4 for 34 in eight overs as Comilla defended 153 and rose to second on the table

The Report by Mohammad Isam18-Nov-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsRaton Gomes/BCB

Comilla Victorians’ spin duo of Mahedi Hasan and Rashid Khan returned combined figures of 4 for 34 in eight overs to fire their team to a fourth successive win in the 2017-18 BPL and rise to second spot on the table. In a match whose value shot up simply by the presence of the number of marquee names, Comilla defended a total of 153 for 6 to beat Rangpur Riders by 14 runs in font of a packed Shere Bangla National Stadium.Rangpur were severely bolstered by the arrivals of Chris Gayle and Brendon McCullum. But their explosive power at the top could not come to their aid in a chase of 154. Rashid, the 19-year old legspinner, struck with his second ball, trapping Gayle lbw and opening the gates, as Rangpur never quite recovered.Comilla’s innings was built around Imrul Kayes’ 32-ball 47 at the top, followed by a more sedate 41 off 34 balls from Marlon Samuels. Mashrafe Mortaza led his attack brilliantly, snaring 2 for 22 in four overs, while Thisara Perera’s 2 for 26 saw him become the Sri Lankan, after Lasith Malinga, to take 200 wickets in T20 cricket.Mashrafe calls the early shotsComilla boast a top four that can pack quite a punch, but for all their hitting prowess, Tamim Iqbal, Liton Das and Jos Buttler combined for a total of 33 runs and fell well inside the first half of their innings. Rubel Hossain struck first when he got rid of Tamim Iqbal after getting spanked for a brace of fours earlier in the over. Mashrafe then struck twice in three balls. First, Liton Das desperately charged down and swung clumsily to lose his middle stump. Then, with the second ball of his next over, Mashrafe had Buttler trapped in front of middle and off after the batsman looked to play across the line. Comilla were reduced to 55 for 3 in the ninth over.Kayes keeps Comilla tickingFrom 55 for 3, Kayes and Samuels steered them to 100, adding 45 runs for the fourth wicket. Kayes’ knock wasn’t the most convincing one, but it served its purpose and set Comilla up nicely for the slog overs. He went on to become Thisara Perera’s 200th scalp, when somelate reverse swing took out his leg stump.Samuels continued to find the boundary at timely intervals, before he too fell to Perera, reaching out to a wide yorker and nicking off to the keeper. Samuels struck four fours and a six in his knock. Mohammad Saifuddin launched the final over of the innings with a six and a four against Rubel as Comilla pinched 14 runs off it and crossed the 150 mark.Gayle and McCullum’s rocky startPerhaps the biggest talking point heading into this game was Gayle and McCullum joining forces at the top of the order for Rangpur. While the duo would make for a potent partnership on most days, Comilla chose to counter them by opening the bowling with the off-spin of Mahedi. The young offspinner pinged Gayle’s pad with the first ball he bowled to the left-hander. Though it looked dead plumb to the naked eye, umpire Ranmore Martinsez refused to budge despite Comilla desperately pleading with him. Replays later showed that the ball was heading towards Gayle’s legstump.Mahedi’s first over had cost just 1, but Brendon McCullum reversed the pressure on Comilla by crunching a six and a four in the next over, off Al-Amin Hossain. Mahedi was then denied a wicket for a second time when McCullum got down to sweep him and the ball just about shaved his legstump. Two deliveries after that, Hasan Ali had Gayle dropped off his bowling when Liton Das failed to latch on to a catch after running back. With Gayle punishing Hasan for three fours in the over, it seemed as though Comilla would be left to pay a heavy price for the lapses.Rashid, Mahedi rip through RangpurRashid Khan’s introduction immediately added a sense of eagerness to the game. The potential of a contest between two of the heaviest hitters and the opposition’s most wily bowler was exciting. Two balls were all it took for Rashid to come out on top of that one as he got one to skid into Gayle’s pads. Gayle, however, wasn’t second-time lucky as the umpire gave him out despite the ball having pitched outside leg. Two balls later, he had Kusal Perera sweeping at a googly and top-edge to backward square leg.Mahedi followed it up with a double-strike of his own in the next over. McCullum charged down to a length ball and got nowhere to the pitch of the delivery to be stumped. Shahriar Nafees had his off-stump flattened with one that gripped and turned, and Rangpur had lost four wickets in eight balls.Laboured consolidationRavi Bopara survived on 1 when Kayes couldn’t hold on to a spectacular effort at first slip. Thereafter, he and Mohammad Mithun got down to rebuilding Rangpur’s innings, although Comilla’s bowlers greatly slowed things down. By the time the partnership was broken, when Mithun drove Al-Amin Hossain straight to Tamim at extra cover, they had added 67. But in the face of a mounting required rate, the partnership did not have its desired impact, as Rangpur were left requiring 55 runs off the remaining 28 balls.

Real Betis have confirmed Isco's contract renewal with a rather bizarre video.

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• Isco extends Betis deal until 2027
• Club announce news with Ali G video
• Former Madrid star impressing in Seville

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  On Thursday, Real Betis confirmed that Spanish midfielder Isco has signed a new contract with the club. The former Real Madrid man penned a deal until 2027, but Betis chose a rather unconventional way of announcing the news. Transfer and new contract announcement videos are all the rage these days, but not many feature Sacha Baron Cohen's famous character, Ali G.

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  Isco joined Betis from cross-town rivals Sevilla in the summer on a one-year deal, and has since become a mainstay in Manuel Pellegrini's side. The Ali G video was in keeping with the club's light-hearted approach to social media; earlier on Thursday, they celebrated Spain's equivalent of April Fool's Day by teasing a return of retired club legend Joaquin.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR ISCO AND BETIS?

  With Betis currently seventh in the table, Isco will look to help push them into European contention when they take on Celta Vigo on January 3.