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England were kept on the field for 143 overs in the second innings as teams head to The Oval with India trailing 2-1

Matt Roller27-Jul-20252:09

Manjrekar: ‘Warriors’ keep sprouting for India when needed

An epic series will be decided at The Oval. England lead 2-1 after 20 tense days of Test cricket but were denied a decisive win by five sessions of doughty, determined batting in which India lost only two wickets. Not even Ben Stokes, battling cramp and a shoulder injury, could pull this one off, and was forced to settle for only the second draw of his captaincy tenure.India were 1 for 2 at lunch on the fourth day, frazzled after more than 150 overs in the field, and still trailing by over 300 runs. But Shubman Gill’s new-look side underlined their character with two mammoth, match-saving partnerships – Gill put on 188 with KL Rahul, and Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja put on an unbroken 203 – to ensure India escaped with a draw.Related

• Drawn out, but never dull – India's Old Trafford escape rekindles the art of Test survival

• Down but not out: India's greatest Test escapes of the 21st century

• 'Pain is just an emotion' – Stokes likely to play Oval Test

• Weary England show their frustrations as Test ends on sour note

• India's grit outlasts England's endurance to make 2-2 a possibility

They can no longer win the inaugural Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, but will travel down to London on Monday battered, bruised and bullish. India’s batters not only saved this match, but ground England’s bowlers down: they spent 257.1 overs in the field in Manchester, including 143 in the second innings, and now face a three-day turnaround before Thursday’s fifth Test.The finale was farcical: Stokes offered a draw at the start of the last hour but Gill had no interest, instead allowing his two allrounders to complete their centuries. England were incensed, serving up some 35mph/56kmph lobs, but India’s players celebrated on the balcony as their batters filled their boots.”It’s going to happen in a flurry, lads,” Ben Duckett had promised his team-mates during the second session. In fact, it never happened at all. It was long established that no captain had ever won a Test match at Old Trafford after winning the toss and choosing to bowl; Stokes asked his team to defy history, but they could not.It was Gill who had walked in to face a hat-trick ball in the first over of India’s second innings shortly before lunch on the fourth day. When he walked back off just over 24 hours later, he had become only the third man to score four hundreds in a Test series as captain, going past 700 runs for the tour. Every time he has reached 20, he has gone on to score a century.1:19

Harmison: ‘A little bit farcical towards the end’

He was supported by two marathon efforts from his spin-bowling allrounders. Washington batted at No. 8 in the first innings but was promoted to No. 5 after Rishabh Pant’s injury, and made his maiden Test hundred, while Jadeja capped his stellar series with the bat. Much as it frustrated England, both players deserved centuries, and had earned the right to make them.Stokes’ bowling fitness was uncertain overnight: he did not bowl at all on the fourth day after a heavy workload in the series – and a five-wicket haul in the first innings – having retired hurt during his century. But he shared the old ball with Liam Dawson early in the day and threatened to break the game open, creating two early chances in an eight-over spell.He grimaced after every ball he bowled and repeatedly stretched out his right shoulder, but Stokes bowled with good pace and found variable bounce on a good length outside the right-handers’ off stump. He had Gill dropped early on, Ollie Pope failing to cling on to a stinger at short cover, but then trapped Rahul on the back pad to have him lbw for 90.It was a brilliant spell, one which exposed just how much England had missed his bowling on the fourth evening. Stokes was in pain, then inflicted some on his opposite number: he found some steep bounce to strike Gill on the helmet – via the glove – with a lifter which exploded from a good length.3:12

‘Would they have walked off?’ – Gambhir on Stokes’ draw offer

But Gill pressed on, steering Chris Woakes through the off side then yelping in celebration as he brought up his fourth century of the tour. His dismissal, edging Jofra Archer behind, represented an opening, not least when Jadeja edged his first ball to first slip. But Joe Root put the catch down, and England hardly created another chance all day.Dawson wheeled away for 47 overs in the second innings and bowled tightly, but rarely threatened the edge, and the seamers had nothing to work with: Archer exchanged tense words with his captain over a field change, Woakes bowled slower balls into the rough, Brydon Carse was hardly seen, and Stokes bowled only three overs after lunch.Jadeja and Washington had 89 and 80, respectively, when Stokes offered a draw, but Gill looked out steadfastly through the dressing-room window. It prompted Brook to bowl some filth, and both batters reached three figures off his bowling: Jadeja roared in celebration on reaching his by lofting a straight six, while Washington raised his arms as he sauntered back for two.It made for a strange end to a compelling Test match. Only 24 wickets fell across the five days, and the finish was an anti-climax. But the fraying tempers were the result of India’s resistance across five sessions of determined batting. It seemed unfathomable on Saturday afternoon, but they will head to The Oval believing that they can snatch a series draw.

Acting captain hails togetherness of club as they secure another notable success after years of fallow fortunes

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay11-Sep-2025Ian Holland, Leicestershire’s acting captain, says the club will celebrate their achievement of returning to the top flight of the County Championship for the first time in 22 years, but have already set their sights on cementing top spot and sealing their first piece of red-ball silverware in more than a quarter of a century.Holland was at the crease, on 27 not out, when Leicestershire shook hands on a rain-affected draw with Gloucestershire at Grace Road on Thursday. The result put them more than 50 points clear of Derbyshire and Middlesex in third and fourth place – two teams that had earlier played out their own stalemate at Lord’s – thereby guaranteeing Leicestershire at least a top-two finish. Glamorgan, 25 points behind them in second place, are their only remaining rivals for the second division crown.”There’s a lot of emotion, excitement, relief in the dressing-room,” Holland told the ECB Reporters Network. “We’re savouring this moment to get promoted, but it’s not a full celebration just yet because now we want to win the trophy as champions.”But, yeah, to be promoted is a great achievement for this club. It’s a credit to the people in the club that have turned it around over a period of time.”The result comes just two years after Leicestershire’s remarkable victory over Hampshire in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup final – their first List A trophy since 1985 – and continues a steady uptick in the team’s fortunes from the dark days of the mid-2010s, when they had habitually finished bottom of the Championship table, including a near three-year run between September 2012 and June 2015 when they didn’t win a single first-class fixture.”This today isn’t just a six-month thing, it’s been a few years in the making,” Holland said, as he paid tribute to Claude Henderson, the club’s director of cricket, as well as the coaching staff and Sean Jarvis, the outgoing chief executive who oversaw the upswing in fortunes since joining from Huddersfield Town FC in 2020.”The players have been able to go out and play the way we have this year because things are right,” Holland added. “It’s a great feeling. When I first met Claude and [head coach] Alfonso (Thomas), I got a sense of the trajectory that the club was moving in, and that was really attractive. I was always optimistic that we would get promoted at some stage, but I think it’s probably happened a little bit quicker than we thought.”If you’d asked me at the start of the season, are we going to get promoted this year? I wouldn’t have put my house on it, but it’s been great that things have clicked and we’ve played the cricket we have. Getting those wins early on gave us a really good head start, which has paid dividends.”Related

• Leicestershire celebrate promotion after 22 years in exile

Holland namechecked Rehan Ahmed, who is currently away on England duty, as one of the stars of their campaign. After initially stepping up as an auxiliary opener, he struck five hundreds in ten appearances, while also claiming 23 wickets at 19.00 with his legspin – 13 of which came in a statement victory against Derbyshire in July.”There have been contributions from everybody. Rehan has got five hundreds, which is amazing, but so many people have stood up. I think just the consistency with the way we’ve played sums up our group.”The club captain Pete Handscomb, who is now back in Australia preparing for his Sheffield Shield campaign with Victoria, was another key contributor to Leicestershire’s season. “He’s been amazing with the way he’s captained the team and the group,” Holland said. “His calmness around the group has been incredible.”Leicestershire were made to battle in their title-seizing contest against Gloucestershire. They conceded a first-innings deficit of 140 despite a century for Shan Masood, but after being set a stiff fourth-innings target of 316, the week’s heavy rain reduced any prospect of a tense finish to the match.”In this game, it’s a real credit to the guys the way we fought back after getting behind the game early on day one,” Holland said. “There were a few niggly moments, but we were able to keep coming back, and just to get the points we needed to get promoted was a great result.”We faced a long chase today if we were to win the game. You can’t go out and go after it gung-ho, but I think you still want to have that positive intent, which we did, to take the game deep, and then whatever happens, happens. It was a good performance today to not be five, six, seven wickets down at the close. To do it the way we did was nice.”There will be a celebration, a few beers tonight. But we want to go on and win the trophy now, that’s very important to us.”

Tottenham Hotspur have endured a topsy-turvy spell over the last couple of years, with Ange Postecoglou’s reign one that was as turbulent to say the least.

The Aussie achieved a fifth-placed Premier League finish in the 2023/24 campaign, but he was ultimately unable to replicate such levels in his final year in North London.

He could only guide the Lilywhites to a 17th-placed finish last time around, subsequently losing 22 games in the process – the most of any side who haven’t been relegated from England’s top-flight.

However, the 60-year-old did win the Europa League last campaign, ending the club’s 17-year wait for a trophy, but it wasn’t enough to keep him in the role in North London.

He was subsequently sacked in the summer, with Thomas Frank taking the reins as a result, with the Dane potentially wanting to offload numerous of the Aussie’s additions in the upcoming window.

The players who could leave Spurs in the January window

During Postecoglou’s tenure at Spurs, he made numerous high-profile additions, with Dominic Solanke arriving in a club-record £65m transfer from Bournemouth in 2024.

Such excitement was generated given the nature of the transfer fee, but ultimately, his move to North London has been a failure, with injuries massively halting his progress of late.

The 28-year-old has only featured for a total of 31 league minutes in 2025/26, with Frank often unable to call upon the Englishman when needed during the early months of his tenure.

As a result, the manager may look to move the centre forward on in January, according to recent reports, which could allow for added investment in a new striker to bolster the attacking department.

He could also be joined in departing the club by numerous other players, with Manor Solomon a player who is seemingly edging closer to the exit door.

Like Solanke, the Israeli international joined under Ange’s guidance, but he’s also struggled to make the impact he would’ve envisaged upon his switch to North London.

He’s only made six senior appearances for the Lilywhites, even being sent on various loan spells – with the 26-year-old currently spending the year on loan at Spanish side Villarreal.

However, his tally of five combined goals and assists in just six games could lead to a permanent exit, which could bring his two and a half year spell at the club to an end.

The Spurs player who may now need to leave

The lowly Premier League finish last season highlights the job Frank has had on his hands since taking over, but the Dane has been unable to fully fix the problems at Spurs.

His side currently sit in fifth place in the Premier League 2025/26, even sitting 10th in the Champions League table, but the underlying problems are still evident.

The Lilywhites have only won one game on home soil in England’s top-flight to date, with such a record placing them second bottom for home form in the division.

However, away from home, the club appear unstoppable, with Frank’s men winning four and drawing one of their five league outings – subsequently boasting the best record in the league.

Other problems are also evident within the first-team squad, with Brennan Johnson a player who has seen his form take a nose-dive over the last couple of months.

The Welshman joined in a £47.5m transfer from Nottingham Forest in the summer of 2023, with many supporters raising eyebrows at the nature of the fee.

Last season was by far and away his best of his career in North London, as the 24-year-old ended 2024/25 on a total of 18 goals across all competitions – the highest of any player in the squad.

However, Mohammed Kudus’ arrival has pushed the Welsh international down the pecking order and highlighted his struggles which were masked by his goalscoring tally last year.

Johnson has only started five times in the league to date, only scoring on two occasions, with his last effort in England’s top-flight coming way back in August.

His underlying figures further suggest he’s underperforming this year, with Frank desperately needing to sell the £100k-per-week star in the upcoming window.

Johnson has only completed 0.5 dribbles per 90 at a success rate of just 42%, which has led to criticism from the supporters over his lack of talent at getting past his opponents.

Brennan Johnson – PL stats (25/26)
Statistics (per 90)	Tally
Games played	11
Games started	5
Goals scored	2
Dribbles completed	0.5
Dribble success rate	42%
Shots on target	0.3
Shot on target accuracy	30%
Big chances missed	2
Stats via FotMob

In front of goal, he’s been just as terrible, only achieving a total of 0.3 shots on target per 90, at an accuracy rate of just 30% – with the winger unable to match his goalscoring heights from last year.

In the view of talkSPORT’s Simon Jordan, he’s a “work in progress” and a “speedboat without a brain”.

Given Kudus’ arrival and Johnson’s lack of impact, it would be a surprise to no one if the club decided to cash in on his services to avoid losing a small fortune on their investment.

It’s clear both parties need a fresh start in the months ahead, which could allow the club to invest needed funds in other areas to help them rise up the Premier League table in the second half of the season.

Spurs have another Kane in the making but he's likely to leave like Parrott

Tottenham have to watch from afar as Troy Parrott emerges as a clinical forward on the global stage.

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By
Angus Sinclair

Nov 17, 2025

Mic'd Up: The former UNC stalwart knows college soccer is as crazy as ever, and figuring out who might win the NCAA Tournament is a frightening prospect.

College soccer is increasingly hard to predict. At least, that's what Kacey White thinks. This is a changing sport, full of competition, with more jeopardy than ever. Conference realignment has packed some of the biggest divisions in the U.S. The constant churn of players, movement into the pros, and alternative pathways have made the thing that was once the crux of American women's soccer just a little more chaotic.

White covers it for ESPN+. She also loves it. Players get better, she argues.

"Everything about this part of the game and development is about understanding competition and knowing that you have to bring your best every day. A lot of times, you'll see where, whether it's in youth soccer, college soccer, or professional soccer, if you don't have those moments to show resilience, or have those moments where there's adversity that sets in, you don't know how to deal with that," she tells GOAL. 

Never is that clearer than in the ACC. White's beloved UNC won the national championship last year. This season, a repeat would be a major upset. 

"There's always been a lot of parity, but it seems to get tighter and tighter every year. A team like North Carolina doesn't have a lot of numbers that they use in their substitutions, and they have a very young roster, so they finished just outside the top six [in the ACC]," she adds. 

The next steps are trickier to figure out, too. The abolishment of the NWSL draft means players have a bit more freedom to move. Change is afoot at all levels. White thinks players just have more options.

"I just see it as different. I think there's not necessarily a waiting game now to go through the draft for players that may have accelerated growth and they would like to go to the professional game for whatever reason is personal to them. You just don't have to wait till that moment," she says. 

As for NCAA tournament predictions? Who knows. White is just here for the ride. She knows, after playing for UNC, representing the USWNT, and spending six years as a professional, that making any sort of projection is a fool's errand. Still, she's backing Stanford to win it all.

White talks the ACC, college drafts, conference realignment, and who might just win it all in the latest edition of Mic'd Up, a recurring feature in which GOAL taps into the perspective of analysts, announcers, and other pundits on the state of soccer in the U.S. and abroad. 

• Getty Images
  

  ON UNC

  GOAL: First of all, what has happened to UNC? They were convincing winners last year and are struggling this season…

  WHITE: Well, I think it speaks to just the parity that's in the ACC. We've seen that for years, even 10-20 years ago, there's always been a lot of parity, but it seems to get tighter and tighter every year. A team like North Carolina doesn't have a lot of numbers that they use in their substitutions, and they have a very young roster, so they finished just outside the top six. But I think we have other teams like that, too. Wake Forest was in the finals last year with North Carolina, and they're in ninth place in the ACC. And for me, it's not so much a drop off of those schools. It just speaks to the incredibly competitive environment that the ACC has year in and year out, and there are such fine margins that separate teams.

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• Getty
  

  ON THE COMPETITION IN THE ACC

  GOAL: Has conference realignment shifted things? Is it more competitive now?

  WHITE: I think it has, and especially when you look at the ACC, when you add Stanford and Cal into it, to programs that have always been at the top of the college game, and are very well thought of. Especially Stanford, having won titles, and you add that into the mix that already existed in the ACC, it becomes incredibly competitive. And we are seeing that in other conferences as well. But with a conference like this that tends to get many teams, sometimes double digit teams, into the NCAA tournament, you've now added two more to the mix, and it just really muddies the water, but in a great way.

  GOAL: So you vouch for chaos? The more hectic, the better?

  WHITE: I do. I believe everything about this part of the game and development is about understanding competition and knowing that you have to bring your best every day. A lot of times, you'll see where, whether it's in youth soccer, college soccer, or professional soccer, if you don't have those moments to show resilience, or have those moments where there's adversity that sets in, you don't know how to deal with that. And so I think, for these conferences getting stronger, that they're able to face each other earlier, and it prepares them for down the road, not only from a program perspective, but individual players, too. 

• Imagn/GOAL
  

  ON THE CHANGING LANDSCAPE OF COLLEGE SOCCER

  GOAL: We've seen a lot of change in women's college soccer over the last few years. Would you say that the pipeline to pro is easier? Is it more difficult? Because obviously, you don't have a draft anymore, how do you see that as a changing landscape?

  WHITE: I just see it as different. I think there's not necessarily a waiting game now to go through the draft for players that may have accelerated growth and they would like to go to the professional game for whatever reason is personal to them. You just don't have to wait till that moment. But I just think it's different. I don't think it's necessarily a better or worse thing, just a different landscape that players are now navigating.

  GOAL: So was the draft maybe holding players back a little, by extension?

  WHITE: I don't know if I can necessarily put a direct answer to that, because it's such an individual decision. You can't necessarily make a universal statement that affects all players on whether the draft is better or not, or whether it not being there has done that. I think it's just very personal.

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• NCAA Soccer
  

  ON WHO WINS THE NCAA TOURNAMENT

  GOAL: To round it off, give me your college cup picks. And then, if you had to tentatively say, "I don't know, but I'd vouch for *insert team", who are you going with? 

  WHITE: Okay, so let's go with this. I do believe that the ACC will have a minimum of two teams in the College Cup. We saw four teams last year. I do think the ACC will get two in. And I will say this, not because it's at the forefront of my mind, but the way that Stanford played in the first half of the ACC semifinal, I didn't think any team could stop them. But if I had to say right now, I would say, of all the games that I've seen and what I've watched this season, I would go with Stanford.

  GOAL: So, at least two ACC teams and Stanford to win it?

  WHITE: That gives you a little bit of wiggle room!

Arya and Prabhsimran are among the pairs to have delivered strong starts for their teams this season


Omkar Mankame30-Apr-20255:32

Aaron: Sai Sudharsan ‘definitely’ in if there’s vacancy in India’s T20I side

Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan (GT)

Last year, in Wriddhiman Saha’s absence, GT briefly tried out Sai Sudharsan to open with Gill, and it worked. The pair crossed fifty in all three innings they opened together. Building on that, GT have stuck with the same opening combination this season and it’s paid off.A standout feature of their campaign has been the ability of the openers to bat deep. Only once this season have both fallen inside the first ten overs. While the duo may not be ultra-aggressive in their approach, their consistency has been key to GT’s success in IPL 2025.Phil Salt and Virat Kohli have been consistent this season•Getty ImagesVirat Kohli and Phil Salt (RCB)
Ahead of the IPL 2025 auction, RCB released their captain and opener Faf du Plessis and invested INR 11.5 crore in bagging Salt. The move paid immediate dividends. In the season opener, Salt and Kohli stitched together a 95-run stand off just 51 balls, taking the sting out of Kolkata Knight Riders’ (KKR) 175-run target. While they’ve occasionally been separated early, the duo has consistently provided rapid starts, often putting RCB in commanding positions within the powerplay.Prabhsimran Singh and Priyansh Arya, the uncapped PBKS wunderkinds•AFP/Getty Images

Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh (PBKS)

Two uncapped Indians walking out to open an IPL innings is usually the result of an emergency – injuries, loss of form, or last-minute reshuffles. But PBKS placed their trust in Prabhsimran, a retained player, and Arya, an IPL debutant, and they have been vindicated. Though their aggressive style has often led to brisk but brief partnerships, they did demonstrate impressive composure in a rain-affected clash against KKR. On a slow Eden Gardens wicket, the duo stitched a 120-run stand off 72 balls, pacing their innings smartly and choosing their moments to attack.Mitchell Marsh and Aiden Markram have been dominant up top•Associated Press

Aiden Markram and Mitchell Marsh (LSG)

LSG went into IPL 2025 with an overseas-heavy top order. Marsh, despite having limited experience as an IPL opener, was up and running as he scored more fifties in his first five outings this season than he did in his previous eight campaigns combined. Markram took a few matches to find his rhythm but has since added four fifties to his name. While their scoring rate has been modest, the duo has brought a measure of reliability to LSG’s top order.Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma haven’t found their golden touch from last season•AFP/Getty Images

Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head (Sunrisers Hyderabad)

It was the ‘Travishek’ pair that transformed SRH’s fortunes in IPL 2024. They picked up from where they left off with a 45-run blitz in just 19 balls in their season opener this year. But over the next four games, oppositions have found early breakthroughs, dismissing one of them inside the first three overs. A glimpse of their last year’s form came against PBKS at home, where they put on a 171-run stand off just 75 balls during a chase of 246. Outside of such flashes, they’ve struggled to produce consistent partnerships this season.

The game between the Miami Marlins and New York Yankees Friday night had it all.

Grand slams, bullpen collapses, drastic comebacks, players debuting for their new teams after the trade deadline and even major league debuts. And runs—lots of runs. The Yankees took a 9-4 lead into the bottom of the seventh before the Marlins scored six runs on New York's new-look bullpen additions to miraculously come back.

Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe then tied the game in the eighth before New York reclaimed the lead with two runs in the top of the ninth. The Marlins weren't done though, tying the game again in the bottom of the ninth as catcher Agustín Ramírez stepped up to the plate with one out and a runner on third.

He just needed a fly ball to end the game, but ended up doing the opposite of that.

Ramírez sent a chopper straight into the dirt right in front of home plate as Xavier Edwards dashed in from third. Yankees catcher Austin Wells went to field the ball, which left nobody at home covering the plate, allowing Edwards to slide in before Wells could get back for an electric walk-off win.

New Yankees relievers Jake Bird, David Bednar and Camilo Doval gave up nine combined runs in their Yankee debuts, which includes the blown save from Doval in the ninth. A rough start for the new-look pen, but you have to give credit to the Marlins for finding a way to come out on top.

Chelsea have now submitted an opening bid for Athletic Club forward Nico Williams, amid a new update on his future at the La Liga club.

The Blues already have a plethora of attacking options, having invested heavily during the summer transfer window, with Jamie Gittens grabbing his first Premier League assist of the season in the 2-0 victory against Burnley on Saturday afternoon.

Gittens set up fellow winger Pedro Neto with a perfectly weighted ball from the left, before Enzo Fernandez sealed all three points with just minutes left to play, moving the Blues up to second in the Premier League in the process.

After the disappointing 2-1 defeat against Sunderland at the end of October, Enzo Maresca’s side look like they are starting to click, and there may be an outside chance they could even compete for the title, although BlueCo may need to strengthen the squad in January to make that dream a reality.

Chelsea submit opening offer for Nico Williams

According to a report from Spain, Chelsea have now submitted an opening offer of €70m (£62m) for Athletic Club star Williams, and they are willing to triple the winger’s salary in order to tempt him into a January move to Stamford Bridge.

The Blues have been working on a deal for weeks, and they are now confident they will be able to get it over the line soon, with the 23-year-old being identified as a key target, although there is set to be competition for his signature.

Tottenham Hotspur have now matched the west Londoners’ offer for the Spain international, with it being revealed his future at Athletic Club is ‘more open than ever’, amid interest from two of the Premier League’s top sides.

There are question marks over whether the Athletic Club star would be a necessary signing, given that Maresca already has a wide array of attacking options, as Chelsea have been obsessed with signing young forwards with high potential.

However, the Pamplona-born forward has certainly impressed in both Spain and Europe over the past three seasons, indicating he could be capable of displacing Gittens in the starting XI at left-wing.

Nico Williams’ performance by season	Appearances (all comps)	Goal contributions
2023-24	37	26
2024-25	45	18
2025-26	10	4

The Spaniard was also one of the stars of Euro 2024, scoring two goals and picking up one assist as his side went on to defeat England 2-1 in the final, while Statman Dave was left particularly impressed by his performance against Georgia in the round of 16.

As such, Williams, who is regarded as one of the best wingers in the world, could be a solid signing for Chelsea, as they look to mount an outside push for the Premier League title.

Chelsea plotting fresh talks to sign another winger alongside Williams

Chelsea plot fresh talks with forward after failed £62m bid and 'very exciting proposal'

He’d be a stellar addition to Enzo Maresca’s side.

By
Emilio Galantini

Nov 20, 2025

And which Indian Test bowler has sent down the most overs after age 35?

Steven Lynch02-Sep-2025Mackay in Australia hosted a one-day international again recently for the first time in 33 years. Was this a record gap for a single venue? asked Karthik Ramanan from India

The Great Barrier Reef Arena in Mackay staged two matches in Australia’s recent off-season white-ball series against South Africa. The ground – formerly known as Harrup Park – had previously held just one men’s international, the match between India and Sri Lanka during the 1992 World Cup. That one lasted only two balls before it rained, so the locals had to wait a long time for some meaningful cricket (men’s, anyway; the ground has staged five women’s white-ball internationals).The 33-year gap between men’s internationals is the second longest for any ground, and the identity of the first one is a bit of a surprise, considering the ground concerned had held its country’s first Test: it’s St George’s Park in Gqeberha (formerly Port Elizabeth), which saw no international cricket between Tests against England in February 1914 and March 1949, a gap of more than 35 years.Mackay lies second, but there’s another slight surprise in third place: Edgbaston in Birmingham did not have an international match for nearly 28 years between 1929 and 1957. There were only Test matches back then, so no opportunities for occasional ODIs or T20Is.The Bulawayo Athletic Club in Zimbabwe went more than 25 years without staging a men’s international (1992-2018), while Essex’s County Ground in Chelmsford went almost 24 years without one between the 1999 World Cup and Ireland’s transplanted home series against Bangladesh in May 2023.I noticed in On This Day that Richard Illingworth scored 13 in both innings of his Test debut. I’m assuming that two ducks is the most common such double, but what’s the highest? asked David Cohen from Australia

Ten men managed a higher debut double than Richard Illingworth’s brace of 13s against West Indies at Trent Bridge in July 1991. Highest of all was two 36s, by South Africa’s Dan Taylor against England in Durban in February 1914. Dan was the younger brother of Herbie Taylor, one of South Africa’s early greats, and their captain in that series.Syed Abid Ali of India and Bangladesh’s Soumya Sarkar both scored twin 33s on debut, while in the 19th century Bernard Tancred made two 29s in South Africa’s very first Test, against England in Port Elizabeth in March 1889. The England pair of Arthur Carr and Mark Ramprakash both started their Test careers with two scores of 27.You’re right that a pair of ducks is the most frequent (and most unwanted) debut double: in all, 46 men and nine women have suffered this fate.Who has bowled the most overs among Indian Test fast bowlers after 35 years of age? And who has taken the most wickets? asked Chetan Mishra from New Zealand

The fact is there haven’t been many Indian fast bowlers aged 35 or more: top of the list is Lala Amarnath, with 28 wickets, followed by Zaheer Khan with 16 and Umesh Yadav with 12. Amarnath bowled the equivalent of 503 overs, Zaheer 195.3, and Yadav 124. Vijay Hazare bowled the equivalent of 199 overs at a fairly modest pace, and took only nine wickets.If you lump in all Indian bowlers then Anil Kumble leads the way with 154 wickets after turning 35, while R Ashwin took 114 (note that this could exclude wickets taken in matches during which the player celebrated his 35th birthday).Among pace bowlers worldwide, James Anderson took the remarkable total of 224 Test wickets after his 35th birthday, while Courtney Walsh had 180 and Richard Hadlee 116.Lala Amarnath sent down about 503 overs and took 28 wickets after turning 35•Getty ImagesWhich Test ground (which has staged more than ten matches) has the highest average runs per wicket? I’m thinking Adelaide Oval… or perhaps somewhere in Pakistan? asked Andrew Dowling from China

An interesting question, and your first guess is not far off: as this list shows, Adelaide Oval lies seventh overall, with an average of 35.07 runs per wicket, and it has staged many more Tests than the grounds above it – 83 so far, with Georgetown’s Bourda Oval (36.26) next of those higher up, with 30 matches.On top overall is the Antigua Recreation Ground, with an average of 38.47 runs per wicket from 22 Tests: next comes McLean Park in Napier, which just scrapes in with ten Tests, in which the average is 37.99. After Bourda (and not including Adelaide), there’s a run of subcontinental grounds: Mumbai’s Brabourne Stadium (36.07), Mohali (35.7), Chattogram (35.16), Lahore (35.05), Kanpur (34.9), Delhi (34.86), the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo (34.73), Rawalpindi (34.71) and Ahmedabad’s Modi Stadium (34.5). The top English ground is Trent Bridge in Nottingham at 32.55.I gather from Wisden that Shane Warne dismissed 236 different batsmen in his career. Is this a record? asked N Ravikanth from India

I suppose this is the opposite to last week’s question about the bowler with the most unique wickets. You’re right that Shane Warne dismissed 236 different batters in Tests, but the list is headed – as you might expect – by the overall leading wicket-taker, Muthiah Muralidaran. He’s clearly fond of round numbers, as he took 800 wickets in all, made up of 300 different opponents.Warne actually lies fourth on this list, also behind Anil Kumble, who dismissed 264 different batters, and James Anderson (263). He’s just ahead of Stuart Broad (234).Shiva Jayaraman of ESPNcricinfo’s stats team helped with some of the above answers.Use our feedback form, or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

Fast bowler’s workload to be managed in lead-up to Perth Test, in less than a month’s time

Cameron Ponsonby22-Oct-2025Jofra Archer will miss the opening ODI against New Zealand at Mount Maunganui, as England ramp up their fast-bowling preparations for the Ashes.Archer returned to Test cricket in spectacular style this summer, after spending over four years on the sidelines with injury. There is no suggestion that he is missing the opening ODI through injury, rather that England are continuing their strategy of micromanaging one of their star players’ programmes in an attempt to have him fit for as much of the Ashes as possible.Archer, who had already been rested from the ongoing T20I series against New Zealand, will arrive in the country on Thursday alongside fellow quicks Mark Wood and Josh Tongue as England’s fast-bowling pack begin their conditioning before the Perth Test in just over four weeks’ time.England will face criticism from some quarters for only scheduling one warm-up fixture ahead of the Ashes, against the Lions in Perth the week before the first Test. However, they have been ultra-attentive to their fast bowlers’ preparations, with the entire Test fast-bowling group, Ben Stokes included, set to join up with the Lions from November 2 – a week in advance of the rest of the group.Of the seven fast bowlers in England’s Ashes squad, only Brydon Carse and Archer are playing any role in the white-ball series against New Zealand. However, Gus Atkinson has been with the squad for close to a week, working on his own individual preparations, with Wood and Tongue set to join him in their own training.”We’ve worked so hard to get to this point,” managing director Rob Key said in September about England’s fast-bowling group who – Wood’s final steps towards full fitness pending – are close to reporting a full bill of health. “It is the last little step. So we get this bit right and hopefully we have every option available to us going into that first Test in Perth.”Of England’s battery of fast bowlers, only Matthew Potts will not spend any time in New Zealand leading up to the England Lions camp, with Stokes expected to visit family in New Zealand before the group meets. Potts’ delayed arrival is due to him playing all three of Durham’s final matches in the County Championship in September.Related

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Archer’s absence from the opening ODI in Mount Maunganui means he will not return to the ground which is often associated with the start of his injury problems. In only his fifth Test match for England, Archer bowled 42 overs in an innings as New Zealand racked up 615 for nine. It was a figure that James Anderson only bettered once in his career when he bowled 44 overs against South Africa in 2008, while Stuart Broad only ever bowled a maximum of 36. Archer first reported elbow pain a little over a month later.During that same fixture in 2019, Archer was also subjected to racial abuse by a member of the crowd. The spectator in question was subsequently caught and banned from attending cricket for two years.

England decide against naming XI ahead of final T20

England broke from convention as they opted against publicly naming their XI a day out from the third and final T20I at Eden Park.In both Test and white-ball cricket, England have become accustomed to putting out their team early. However, with plenty of rain around in Auckland, there is doubt over the balance of the XI England will go with.Eden Park, an iconic stadium that is synonymous with All Blacks rugby, is an unusual ground for cricket with the straight boundaries particularly short. This is a factor that, combined with the damp conditions, may lead to England selecting an extra seamer rather than picking two specialist spinners in Liam Dawson and Adil Rashid.”It can sometimes be a bit mickey mouse at Eden Park,” Black Caps wicketkeeper Tim Seifert told the press in Auckland. “250 can be a par score. It’ll be interesting to see what the wicket plays like and we’ve just got to adapt to whatever we play on.”

The Houston Astros' battery of Framber Valdez and César Salazar were not on the same page during Tuesday night's 7-1 loss to the New York Yankees, leading to a strange moment. In the top of the fifth inning and facing a bases-loaded situation, Salazar tried at the last moment to get his lefthanded pitcher to step off the rubber instead of delivering a pitch but his desperate motioning was ignored as Valdez continued his delivery. The offering resulted in a Trent Grisham grand slam that ultimately put the game out of reach.

The next Yankees hitter up was Anthony Volpe and Valdez delivered a straight pitch when his catcher was expecting something with some bend in it, which caused a dangerous situation.

Now, cross-ups are fairly common in baseball. Considering the circumstances, though, people were left to wonder if something unusual was happening.

Valdez made it clear that this miscommunication was not intentional.

"What happened with us, we just got crossed up," Valdez said in Spanish through an interpreter after the game. "I called for that pitch, I threw it and we got crossed up. We went down to the dugout and I excused myself with him and I said sorry to him and I take full responsibility for that."

"We were able to talk through it," he added. "We spoke after the game … at his locker and everything's good between us. It's just stuff that happens in baseball. But yeah, we talked through it and we're good."

Salazar said after the game that crowd noise led to the mix-up:

All's well that ends well and it's a good thing Salazar wasn't injured. The Astros seem bound for the playoffs and it will be important everyone's on the same page going forward.