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Half-centuries from Quinton de Kock (77) and Matthew Breetzke (52) set Sunrisers Eastern Cape (SEC) up for a big finish, but they ended up with 188 rather than the 200-plus total they seemed on course for, with Tymal Mills and Lungi Ngidi conceding just 20 off the last three overs with their slower balls into the pitch.It proved a big enough total, however, as Pretoria Capitals (PC) faded away after a promising start, with Adam Milne wrecking their chase with figures of 4 for 25.The game was in the balance with Will Smeed well set and PC requiring 92 off the last 58 balls, with seven wickets in hand. But Senuran Muthusamy cleaned Smeed up with a left-arm spinner’s dream delivery, triggering a collapse of 3 for 14 that all but ended the contest. SEC eventually won by 48 runs, picking up a bonus point.Quinton de Kock gave SEC’s innings its early momentum•SA20

De Kock, Breetzke add 116

After Ngidi dismissed Jonny Bairstow in the second over, de Kock and Breetzke dominated for almost 12 overs. By the end of the powerplay, SEC had 64 runs on the board and had hit five sixes. Four of them had come off de Kock’s bat, one of which stood out for its grace. Off the second ball of the fourth over, de Kock leaned into a length delivery wide of off stump from Ngidi and effortlessly lofted it over mid-off.De Kock reached his fifty off 29 balls in the eighth over, even as Breetzke took his time at the other end. But from 25 off 20 at one stage, Breetzke thumped 27 off his next 13 balls to get to his half-century in 30 deliveries. By the time de Kock was stumped off Bryce Parsons in the 14th over for 77 off 47 balls, SEC looked set for a huge total.

PC limit the damage despite Hermann cameo

Jordan Hermann arrived when de Kock departed, and hit two boundaries off his first three balls. He started the 17th over with four and six off Wihan Lubbe, and was on 27 off 12 balls with three overs left. SEC were sitting pretty at 168 for 3, with an eye on 200. But Tristan Stubbs pulled Mills to deep backward square leg, and the changes of pace kept working for Mills and Ngidi. Hermann fell to Mills in the final over, for 37 off 20 balls.Adam Milne ripped through Capitals with four wickets•SA20

Milne trumps Hope and Smeed

PC were 49 for 1 five overs into their chase. Shai Hope had motored to 36 off 18 balls with five fours and a six, including three boundaries off Anrich Nortje in the fifth over. But just when PC had all the momentum, Milne’s back-of-the-hand slower ball landed on a yorker length and flattened Hope’s off stump.Lewis Gregory then had Dewald Brevis caught at wide long-on in the eighth over. Smeed, though, looked in control just over the halfway mark, only for Muthusamy to get him with a beauty. The ball drifted in and dipped onto a length on leg stump, and turned and bounced enough to hit the top of middle. Smeed departed for 35, and the others followed.Milne bowled Connor Esterhuizen off another slower ball in the 13th over, and a mix-up with Sherfane Rutherford resulted in Lubbe’s run-out. Milne got two more wickets – both in the 17th over – when he had Keshav Maharaj and Rutherford caught. With the match going out of PC’s hands with every passing wicket, Rutherford was their only hope for a miracle. But he only managed 25 off 19 balls, having been left with too much to do.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details2:58

Chappell: Hundred will give Pandey more belief

Manish Pandey and MS Dhoni, rising star and fading force, combined to deliver India victory over Australia at the last possible opportunity in another run-fest at the SCG. Having crumpled in a humiliating heap in Canberra, the tourists were able to hold their nerve this time, helped by a pair of critical Australian dropped catches.David Warner and Mitchell Marsh had made centuries for Australia, but the allrounder conceded 13 from the final over of the night to allow the visitors avoid the ignominy of a 5-0 series sweep. It also provided partial vindication of Dhoni’s longtime belief in seeing out an innings, even if his steady 34 was a diminished version of supreme closing displays he used to be able to put together for his team. Australia were denied an unbeaten home summer.Fluent hands from Shikhar Dhawan and the Man-of-the-Series Rohit Sharma had put India in sight of victory though both men fell short of centuries. Dhawan was brilliantly caught by Shaun Marsh at deep point, before Rohit reached 99 only to edge John Hastings behind and be given out by the umpire Paul Wilson after a dramatic pause for the crowd of 33,710.Pandey, playing his fourth ODI, weathered that moment and pushed on to his highest and best innings for India. His crisp stroke play found plenty of gaps around the SCG and kept the run chase within sight. Dhoni arrived at the fall of Rohit’s wicket and after a halting start India’s captain gradually found his range in time-honoured fashion.The pair allowed the equation to leak out to 35 to win from the final three overs, before taking 13 from the 48th over and nine from the 49th. Needing 13 from the final over, Mitchell Marsh gave away a wide first ball, before Dhoni hammered a six over long off. He then perished trying to repeat the shot, but Pandey squirted a boundary past the gloves of Matthew Wade to reach a deserved hundred and put the result beyond doubt.Heavy rain around Sydney in the lead-up to the match affected the ground staff’s preparation, ironically resulting in arguably the fairest surface of the international summer – excepting the grassy, experimental pitch prepared for the inaugural day-night Test in Adelaide. Dhoni duly sent the Australians in, and was rewarded with early wickets.But after the loss of Aaron Finch, Steven Smith, the captain, George Bailey and Shaun Marsh inside the first 22 overs of the afternoon, David Warner and Mitchell Marsh combined for a partnership all the more impressive for the fact that they had to deal with a moving ball for virtually the first time since Adelaide back in November.Warner’s hundred was his second from as many SCG fixtures this summer, and he also made a century against India on this ground in their Test match last January. His momentum built throughout the innings even as he appeared to try to make certain of a hundred after being dismissed for 93 in Canberra. The resultant celebration is now near enough to choreographed, but Warner added a baby-rocking motion in recognition of the recent birth of his second daughter.Less scripted was the manner of Mitchell Marsh’s celebration, having rattled to a maiden international hundred on the same ground where he made his first Sheffield Shield century for Western Australia in 2011. Twice before this summer, Mitchell Marsh had been promoted by Smith in order to grant the allrounder extra time in the middle, and he had looked awkward each time.This was more the role he has been groomed for, staging a middle-order recovery after early wickets with good judgment and power hitting. There was some drama to Mitchell Marsh’s hundredth run – he spent three nervy deliveries on 99, before flicking Ishant through midwicket to reach the milestone from a mere 81 balls. Mitchell Marsh’s 82nd struck him amidships, and precious momentum was lost in the final 12 balls.Those two overs meant India were chasing a target somewhat skinnier than they had faced in Canberra; Dhawan and Rohit began with venomous intent, and for a time there seemed nothing that would stem their momentum. The stand was worth 123 at comfortably better than a run-a-ball when Dhawan lofted John Hastings and was caught by a leaping Shaun Marsh.Rohit’s prolific scoring in this series was completed by another confident hand, which ended only when a baying crowd and tight field placed by Smith had the opener edging behind. Shaun Marsh had dropped a far simpler chance from him the over before. That wicket may have given Australia the momentum to go on to win, but Dhoni’s early struggles were reprieved when Nathan Lyon spilled another chance at deep midwicket.The spin of Lyon and Smith cost 78 from 10 overs, leaving much responsibility on the shoulders of Hastings and Scott Boland. Mitchell Marsh bowled well enough until India’s final onslaught, and the all-round skills of Glenn Maxwell, missing due to a knee knock in Canberra, were notable for their absence.Ishant Sharma had found seam movement in the very first over of the afternoon, fooling Aaron Finch into shouldering arms to a nip-backer that struck him in the vicinity of the off stump. The umpire Richard Kettleborough raised his finger without hesitation, though ball tracking was to show the ball may not quite have been moving back enough.Smith looked at ease despite his early arrival to the crease, until the introduction of the debutant Jasprit Bumrah who appeared to catch Smith a little off guard. Bumrah generated decent pace from an abbreviated run up and unusual action, and after tying down Smith was able to gain his wicket when a pull shot found Rohit Sharma at midwicket. Bumrah later added the wicket of James Faulkner: his control put other more experienced teammates to shame.Neither George Bailey nor Shaun Marsh were able to prosper, the former fooled by Dhawan’s leg cutter and the latter a run out when Umesh Yadav’s return from the outfield rebounded from the knee of Gurkeerat Singh to disturb the bails. At 4 for 117, Australia were teetering, but Warner and Marsh were to recover the innings in some style. They seemed to have done enough, until a mere seven runs from the final two overs of the innings gave India a glimpse.

Munaf was a polar opposite to the bowler who rattled England on Test debut © Getty Images

Watching Munaf Patel, Ranadeb Bose and Ishant Sharma standing side by side on the eve of the Irani Trophy match, taking turns to bowl, one might have been tempted to feel for Mumbai’s batsmen. Each one of these bowlers is six-and-a-half-feet tall, Bose and Sharma sport mullets and all can appear capable of mean acts. The trio were also India’s second-string bowling attack – Munaf, when fit, is a shoo-in, Sharma had toured Bangladesh and Bose England.Mumbai’s batsmen on the other hand, Wasim Jaffer and Abhishek Nair apart, are diminutive in stature. Two of them, Ajinkya Rane and Prashant Naik, were just one game old and one, Sahil Kukreja, is still raw with one-and-a-half years of first-class cricket to his name.All that said, on a non-supporting pitch it was the short batsmen dominating the tall bowlers. The menace was just restricted to their looks and the frustrated appeals every time they managed to strike the pads. And their captain Mohammad Kaif’s persistence, introducing spin as late as the 36th over, didn’t help the matters. By then, they were a battered lot.Munaf, operating at a speed ranging from mid 120 kph to the mid 130s, rarely put any devil into the delivery. It was easy pickings for Rahane once he realised Munaf wasn’t doing much with the ball. This was a far cry from the Munaf who rattled England on Test debut and the spearhead who was arguably India’s best bowler on their tour to West Indies last year. In fact that bowler has been missing for a while now, what with Munaf ending with none for 71 in his 15 overs, including nine no-balls. Even those figures might not completely represent the tameness he bowled with.

At this stage of his career, with the selectors watching every move, Munaf can ill afford to have more such days

Few other than him may know what is wrong. His fitness issues are public knowledge: his ankle injury restricted him to only one Test innings throughout the tour of South Africa last year. He was then sent back from Bangladesh because of a back injury. Later, after having spent time at the MRF Pace Academy, he said he was fit and was selected for the one-dayers in England. Yet he wasn’t half the bowler he used to be, forcing India’s bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad to comment on his lack of intensity. At this stage of his career, with the selectors watching every move, he can ill afford to have more such days.Bose, the domestic stalwart and the untiring warhorse, came into this match needing to take his game one notch higher. Instead his intensity dipped. He began spraying the ball at a gentle mid-120kph and was duly dealt with. Although he came back somewhat creditably, with a much more accurate spell, he would know that the extra zip was missing. It required him to grab 57 wickets last season for the selectors to take notice; anything less may not be enough.Sharma, the tallest of the three, was thought of as a promising youngster. He had his moments in the tour games in England, showing signs of improvement with every game, but he was a bit too tepid on this occasion. With hardly any movement off the pitch, and a pace that rarely went beyond the mid-130 mark, he was unthreatening throughout the day. He strove manfully – even Abhishek Nayar, one of the centurions, admitted that later – but it was way short of good enough against a quality batting line-up.

Shoaib Akhtar needs to play domestic cricket before and international return © Getty Images

Bob Woolmer, the Pakistan coach, has said Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif are unlikely to make a rapid return to the team despite having their drug bans overturned this week.Both pace bowlers trained with the Pakistan squad ahead of the third one-day international against West Indies in Lahore, but Woolmer is playing down thoughts of them lining up in any of the last three matches.”Of course their return is good for the team and I hope everything goes well for them. I don’t see them playing in this West Indies series because they need match practice, but you never know.”Akhtar told me he needs a month and Asif too needs time so they must play some domestic matches. Their return will certainly boost our bowling.”Akthar and Asif, banned for two years and one year respectively in November after testing positive for the steroid nandrolone, won their appeals against the punishments on Tuesday. The decision prompted criticism from ICC, but Woolmer said he was satisfied.”I read a lot of reaction on the judgment, most of which was uninformed. Both the commissions did the right thing and if you read the appeal committee’s judgment, you would be satisfied like I am.”

Scorecard
Before this tour, England’s captain Charlotte Edwards said this would be her toughest challenge yet – playing India in India. But she shook off any concerns to hit a composed 68 as her team took an early lead in the five-match one-day series to beat India by 20 runs.Jenny Gunn blasted her way to her first international fifty, with 56, and the lower order chipped in to lift England to 188 for 7. England’s coach, Richard Bates, admitted afterwards that this was below their target of 200, but he had revised his expectations as the game got underway on a pitch that was slow, low and without much bounce. “We came up a bit short,” Bates told Cricinfo, “but soon realised that 188 was a decent score.”India’s batsmen made life difficult for England at Faridabad, Monica Sumra and Jaya Sharma putting on a very good opening partnership of 68. But England’s bowlers stuck to their task, showing character and discipline to apply the squeeze and take six wickets for 13 runs as India folded under the pressure.England’s ground fielding wasn’t up to their usual high standards, but there is room for improvement ahead of the second one-dayer at Lucknow. The teams haven’t seen much of each other in one-dayers – aside from one match in this year’s World Cup.”I’m very, very pleased with today’s performance,” Bates added. “They were a bit of an unknown before today’s match. Now we’ve seen the players we can look at how we can change our ways to restrict their bowlers. It was interesting to see how they fared under pressure – and we got a good look at their spinners. We hope to be firing on all cylinders for the next match.”

© Getty Images

It was one of cricket’s iconic images of the 1990s. When Jonty Rhodes dived headlong into the stumps to run out Inzamam-ul-Haq in the 1992 World Cup, a star was born, and that previously unglamorous discipline of fielding had suddenly been granted its very own cheerleader.For the next decade and more, Rhodes was a constant spring-loaded menace at cover point, forever on hand to pull off a stunning catch or a lightning-quick pick-up-and-throw, and his influence spawned a whole generation of imitators, from Herschelle Gibbs to Ricky Ponting to Paul Collingwood.And yet, Rhodes was more than just a champion fielder. To reach the top of his game, he had had to overcome epilepsy, and in doing so he became a role model and inspiration for all who suffer from the condition. Here was the most hyperactive proof imaginable that epileptics the world over could live full and happy lives, free of the prejudice and misunderstandings that often come with the territory.But it is not just epileptics who benefit from Rhodes’s high profile. As a committed Christian, his charity activities in South Africa are far-reaching and almost as renowned as his exploits in the field, while his clean and wholesome lifestyle make him a natural ambassador and spokesman for a wide range of charities, many of which are concerned with the well-being of children.Sadly for Rhodes, he suffered a broken finger during his swansong at the 2003 World Cup, which denied him one last chance to say goodbye to his adoring fans. But since leaving the field of play behind, he has if anything stepped up his charity work, and remains an iconic figure to an entire generation.

England’s first-class umpires will be allowed to continue until they are 70 if the British government accepts European Union legislation which will make it illegal to forcibly retire any employee before that age. At the moment umpires have to retire at 65, but many of them believe that this age limit is too low and makes no allowance for individual ability.Allan Jones, the chairman of the First-Class Umpires Association, will discuss the legislation with the ECB. "It will come in too late for some of our members and I do not know yet how our contracts, which are renewable after one to three years, will affect us," he told The Times. "We shall probably have to be given more stringent medical checks. Someone who wants to continue until he is 70 will be able to do so."An ECB spokesman told the newspaper: "I understand that the legislation will be phased in and organisations would still be able to contract employees to retire at a certain date."

Uttar Pradesh registered an outright victory over Rajasthan in theirRanji Central Zone tie at the Kamla Club grounds in Kanpur on Nov. 3;as a result, the winners picked up the full complement of eight pointswhile Rajasthan gained none.Rajasthan won the toss and elected to bat, but they could not takefull advantage of their time in the middle. Rahul Kanwat (63) andSanjeev Sharma were the only batsmen to register significant scores;although many got into double figures, none could convert their startsinto scores large enough to build a sizeable total. As a result,Rajasthan was bowled out for 250 just before the close of play on DayOne.Uttar Pradesh, although able to take the first innings lead, did notfare significantly better. Jyoti P Yadav, continuing his fine run ofform, scored 117 off 241 balls (17 fours, one six), but the onlysupport he got was from Mohammad Kaif, with whom he put up a 130-runpartnership. Kaif scored a responsible 55, but the lower middle-ordercollapsed in a hurry, with the last eight wickets falling for just 62runs. Bowled out for 281, Uttar Pradesh gained only a slender lead of31 runs.The batting department continued to be the bane of both teams in thesecond innings as well. Rajasthan, who could conceivably have wipedoff the first innings deficit and set their rivals a competitivetotal, refused to buckle down to the task. Aside from an encore fromKanwat, who made 55, the rest of the line-up failed miserably, leavingthe side bowled out for 153. Uttar Pradesh captain Gyanendra Pandeywas the wrecker-in-chief, returning second innings figures of16.4-4-33-5.Uttar Pradesh, thus, needed to make only 123 runs in their chase towin the game; any onlooker, however, could have been forgiven forbelieving that the target was a mammoth one, judging by the heavyweather that the batsmen made of it. Jyoti P Yadav shone again with48, but Kanwat, who impressed tremendously with his fighting spirit inthis match, and Lokesh Jain did not make runs easy to come by. Kanwatreturned figures of 15-2-34-3, picking up seven wickets in the game togo with his twin fifties; Jain’s figures read 10.5-2-34-4.The total, however, was ultimately too small to defend, and MohammadSaif and Javed Anwar saw Uttar Pradesh safely home with three wicketsto spare.

Celtic outcast Boli Bolingoli has returned to the club after his loan move to Russian club FC Ufa collapsed, The Glasgow Evening Times report.

The Lowdown: Pictured holding shirt

It looked as if the Hoops finally managed to get the left-back off the books last month, with FC Ufa posting a picture on Twitter of Bolingoli holding up their shirt.

FC Ufa confirmed that an agreement had been reached between the two clubs over a loan move to the end of the season.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/celtic-updates-23/” title=”Celtic updates!!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Bolingoli, who the Hoops slammed for a ‘stupid’ health protocol breach in 2020, had made just two Premiership appearances under Ange Postecoglou this season.

The Latest: Glasgow return

As reported by The Glasgow Evening Times, Bolingoli had been training with FC Ufa in their Turkish winter training camp for the last month.

However, the Russian side were unable to secure a work visa for the defender due to diplomatic relations between the UK and Russia. As a result, Bolingoli will have to return to Celtic, with the Hoops once again stuck looking to offload the 26-year-old.

The Verdict: Ange’s awful international break continues

Postecoglou hasn’t had the best of starts to the international break with concerns over both Daizen Maeda and Tom Rogic, so this update on Bolingoli just adds to his woes.

Celtic already have Vasilis Barkas surplus to requirements at Parkhead, with the Greek goalkeeper ‘demanding’ to leave the club.

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The Hoops are now stuck with having to deal with Bolingoli once again, as he prepares to enter the final 12 months of his Celtic contract in the summer, potentially even reaching the point where he will prefer to let his deal run down so he can demand more wages elsewhere as a free agent.

In other news: ‘Unfortunately…’ – Journalist gutted ‘for Celtic’ as more exit news emerges from Parkhead. 

AB de Villiers has refused to commit his long-term future to Test cricket despite being named South Africa’s stand-in captain and has warned that leading players will leave international cricket behind unless there are significant changes within the game. De Villiers, who was reported to be considering early retirement at the start of the England series when he also spoke about managing his workload, has once again emphasised the need for time off and explained his own uncertainty in the current set-up.”There have been a few rumours floating around, and in most rumours there is always a little bit of truth,” de Villiers said. “It’s not just in the last while; it’s for two or three years I’ve been searching for the right answers, to play a little bit less cricket in one way or another, to keep myself fresh and to keep enjoying the game. Every now and then in the past few years I’ve found myself on the pitch not enjoying myself as much as I should be, and that raises concerns within myself. I’ve been searching for answers and speaking to people and obviously that’s leaked a bit.”That also means de Villiers is not sure whether he will want to lead South Africa’s Test team permanently, even though he earlier said that being given the captaincy was the “fulfilment of a lifelong dream.” The decision on who will take over as long-term successor to Hashim Amla, who stepped down after the Newlands Test, will be made during the winter break which is also when de Villiers will decide on his own future.”I’m still very committed, to the job I’m not sure – obviously the two Test matches for now are all I’m focusing on and then there’s a nice big break of six months before we play Test cricket again. Lots of things can happen before then so I don’t want to commit myself too much to everything before that. But for now, I’m as committed as I can be and very, very hungry to make a success of the next two Test matches,” de Villiers said.Asked what he will consider in that period, de Villiers was unsure but mentioned the things that he would still like to achieve as an international cricketer, which stretch across various formats.”I honestly don’t know. But I’ve got some good advice around me, good people who have my best interests at heart, and we’ll just try to make the right kind of call on which direction I want to go,” he said. “My focus is on international cricket and I want to play for as long as possible. I’ve got dreams of winning World Cups and maintaining this No.1 status in Test cricket for as long as possible. Obviously I want to get my experience across to some of the youngsters. There are so many dreams that I’d like to follow. I’d just like to sit down, take some time away from the game and discuss all these things and make the right call.”For the next four months, de Villiers will find it difficult to get away from the game. After the Tests against England, South Africa play five ODIs and two T20s against the same opponents and three T20s against Australia before the World T20 in March and early April, which will be closely followed by the IPL.De Villiers is contracted to Royal Challengers Bangalore until the end of 2017 on a deal worth Rs 9.5 crore (US$1.5 million). At today’s exchange rate, that is 23.45 million rand, which is at least ten times more than his national contract which is believed to be between 2 and 3 million rand. The financial implications of that gulf against the backdrop of the congested international schedule is the biggest challenge facing the games’ global organisers, according to de Villiers.”I think it’s a growing concern for the ICC and they’ve been talking about it for the last few years to find the right structure to keep all the guys fresh. Obviously international cricket is the main cricket you want to play, especially Test cricket. It’s the main format and we all want to be part of that. There are huge traditions and culture in this format. I believe there are one or two areas where we can improve, and make sure that we keep the guys focus in the right place,” de Villiers said.”Obviously there are big tournaments going on around the world. Some you can’t ignore because financially they make a huge difference in our lives, and obviously you’ve got to look after that side of it as well. International cricket is the main one you want to play, and one or two things will have to change in order for that to happen.”De Villiers said the ICC have conducted surveys to ascertain player concerns. “I have seen some changes,” he said. “But there are definitely one or two that need some more attention.”His recommendation is for established players to have some leeway so that they can avoid being overworked and continue to enjoy the game. “One of those are the schedules of some of the older guys, to make sure they keep their focus on the right places. I don’t know what the answers are, I just know there are quite a few guys feeling that we’re playing a little too much cricket at times. We just need to get the focus right.”