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Rangers could potentially look to sign Heerenveen midfielder Joey Veerman after Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s arrival, according to journalist Stuart Hodge.

The Lowdown: Van Bronckhorst takes charge

A new era at Ibrox is now in full swing, with Van Bronckhorst replacing Steven Gerrard as Gers manager following the latter’s switch to Aston Villa.

The Dutchman won his first Premiership match in charge on Sunday, with his side picking up a 3-1 victory away to Livingston.

It is a promising start to life as Rangers boss for Van Bronckhorst, who will be hoping to achieve similar success to his playing career at Ibrox, when he won two league titles.

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The Latest: Veerman linked with Rangers move

He will be no doubt be eyeing up a few signings in order to further stamp his blueprint on the team and one player who could move to Rangers is Veerman, who has been linked with the Scottish champions in recent months.

That’s according to Hodge, who told GIVEMESPORT that he could see a transfer materialising. He said: “That one, yeah, potentially. But I think more so, that’s a market that van Bronckhorst will know well, that’s a market that’s affordable for Scottish clubs.”

The Verdict: Strong creative addition

Veerman is a midfielder with great potential, with Dutch coach Robert Molenaar once hailing him for having ‘extremely good’ technical ability.

Still only 23, he has already registered six assists in just 13 Eredivisie starts this season, highlighting the creativity he could bring to Van Bronckhorst’s team. Only James Tavernier (13) has accrued a higher assists tally for the Gers in 2021/22 across all competitions, with Ryan Kent (five) the next closest.

Veerman’s average of 2.4 key passes per game is also only bettered by Tavernier (3.9) at Rangers, so he is someone who could be an exciting and productive signing.

In other news, some Rangers fans have blasted one player after an incident against Livingston. Read more here.

Danny Mills says Michael Beale couldn’t turn down the opportunity to manage Cardiff City if it presented itself.

The former Manchester City and Leeds United man was discussing the Rangers coach’s future with Football Insider.

The lowdown

BBC Sport reported last week that Beale had emerged as a candidate for Cardiff, who are looking to appoint a replacement for Mick McCarthy.

And as of Monday, Beale remains firmly ‘on the radar’ of the Bluebirds, even if ‘there is feeling in some corners of the hierarchy’ that he would be a risky appointment (via Wales Online). Indeed, he’s yet to have a shot at first-team management.

The former Liverpool Under-23 boss followed Steven Gerrard to Scotland in 2018, and his tactical aptitude has been described as ‘amazing’ by former Rangers man Kyle Lafferty, who feels he’s ‘the brains’ behind their success.

The latest

Via FI, Mills, 44, is impressed by Beale’s track record and thinks appointing him could be worth the risk.

He’s urged the 41-year-old to jump at the chance if it materialises, and also suggested that he could return to Ibrox if he struggled.

“If I was Cardiff I’d be thinking ‘He’s done well at every club he’s been at, he’s obviously a very, very good coach. Yes, let’s give it a go’.

“If he got offered that chance, it would be difficult to say no and not take that opportunity.

“If it goes wrong he can always go back to Rangers as a coach.

“If you don’t try, you probably regret not trying and giving it a go.”

The verdict

Having played a part in Rangers’ unbeaten run to the Scottish title, Beale might now back himself to take the reins elsewhere.

But it might not be as straightforward a decision as Mills makes out given the precariousness of Cardiff’s position.

They currently find themselves 21st in the Championship with the second-poorest defensive record in the division – it would take quite a turnaround to transform them towards safety.

Would a manager without any experience really want to walk straight into a potential relegation battle?

In other news, Paddy Kenny sent this message to the Gers over the Beale links.

Cricinfo previews the first Test between India and Sri Lanka in Ahmedabad

The Preview by Jamie Alter15-Nov-2009Match factsNovember 16-20, 2009
Start time 9.30am (0400 GMT)Big PictureKumar Sangakkara has talked bravely of Sri Lanka setting their record in India right•Associated PressThe lead-up to this series has been more muted than the last time the Sri Lankans visited India, in 2005-06, when the scheduling of the first Test in Chennai during the monsoon and Cyclone Baaz hogged the headlines along with fevered speculation over which day Sachin Tendulkar would score his record 35th Test century. This time there has been no verbal discourse, no individual battles hyped, no records or player targeted, and no controversial sound bytes. In fact, Sri Lanka have slipped into their preparations almost completely under the radar as the country goes gaga over Tendulkar’s 20th year at the top.This lack of hoopla is slightly odd – or refreshing, depending on how you choose to see it – ahead of a series in which the No.1 spot in the ICC Test rankings is up for grabs. Sri Lanka are No. 2 and India No. 3, separated by one point. India will go on top if they beat Sri Lanka by 2-0 or better, while Sri Lanka just need to win the series to go past South Africa.It won’t be easy. Sri Lanka have made six tours to India over the last 27 years, played 14 Tests, and are yet to win one. It’s a record their captain Kumar Sangakkara is keen to rectify. For Sri Lanka, the batting and bowling are areas of grave concern. Totally at ease on sluggish pitches at home, the batsman have struggled in more testing conditions away. Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene will be expected to shoulder an immense burden; Thilan Samaraweera and Tillakaratne Dilshan have new challenges of translating their home form overseas; Tharanga Paranavitana has a chance to cement the opening berth and allrounder Angelo Mathews, on whom Sangakkara is banking to give the team flexibility and balance, needs to step up if Sri Lanka are to ending their sorry run in India.Similarly, Sri Lanka’s bowling has been dominated by Indian batsmen over the years at home, with fast bowlers and slow suffering in equal measure. Muttiah Muralitharan has, by far, been the most effective, while none of the others have taken more than ten wickets.For India, this series marks a return to the five-day game after seven months of limited-overs cricket. After a chastening defeat to a depleted but supremely confident Australia, keeping with a generally disappointing limited-overs record since the tour of New Zealand, India go into the series without much fanfare, in a way indicative of the history the teams share. India are terribly short of Test-match practice, having played only three this year, and all before the first week of April. Sri Lanka have played eight this year, the most recent in September.Perhaps, ever so slightly, the pressure has been turned up on India because of all the focus on Tendulkar. Losing at home to Sri Lanka would not only be a huge blow for their morale, it would be a major setback to their goal of becoming the best side in the world.Form guide (last 5 Tests, most recent last)India DDWDW
Sri Lanka WWDWWWatch out forKumar Sangakarra: The Sri Lankan captain has said his team is “under no pressure” to scratch India off the list of countries (South Africa and Australia are the others) where they have never won a Test. To help ensure that, he’s going to have to lead extremely well and score heavily. Captaining a superb fielding unit and a bunch of bowlers skilled in home conditions is one thing, but doing so in a country that has daunted Sri Lanka since their Test initiation is something else. His own batting average of 24.80 from three Tests played in India will also desperately need some correcting.
After nearly nine years on the international circuit, you sense that the time has arrived for Yuvraj Singh to stamp himself in Test cricket. Sourav Ganguly’s retirement has given him a massive chance to establish himself No. 6 as India prepares itself for life beyond Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman. Whether or not he will be able to hack it is something to watch, for his temperament and technique have been exposed on occasion by quality fast bowlers and spinners. His limited-overs form has been decent, and for once Yuvraj can look forward to a full three-Test series at home to expand his credentials. Whether he’s looking forward to playing three top-class spinners – lesser bowlers like Brad Hogg have made him look like a novice – is another matter.Thilan Samaraweera has had a year to remember, as 1083 runs in Tests attest; he’s the highest run-getter this year. While his new avatar has seen him turn into a run-machine at home, Samaraweera’s record in India is one he will be desperate to improve on. In three Tests here, he has scored 42 runs at 10.50, with 35 coming in one unbeaten innings.Zaheer Khan has recovered from the shoulder injury he sustained during the ICC World Twenty20 which ruled him out of all of India’s series since. He featured in Twenty20 matches during the Syed Mushtaq Ali tournament and a Ranji Trophy fixture, but it remains to be seen how he shapes up over five days. He has been India’s best fast bowler for some time and they need him to be back at his best.Team newsZaheer returns after a long lay-off to take the new ball, and that means it’s a tussle between Ishant Sharma and the returning Sreesanth for the second fast bowler’s spot. Ishant should win purely based on the fact that he’s played way more international cricket than Sreesanth, whose last game for India was 19 months ago. The second spinner’s spot should go to Amit Mishra who, even though he’s not played for a while, bowled well in the nets. There aren’t too many left-handers in the side so it’s highly unlikely the left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha will be handed a debut.
India : (probable) 1 Gautam Gambhir, 2 Virender Sehwag, 3 Rahul Dravid, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 VVS Laxman, 6 Yuvraj Singh, 7 MS Dhoni (capt/wk), 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 Zaheer Khan, 10 Ishant Sharma, 11 Amit Mishra.Sangakkara has confirmed that one of Prasanna Jayawardene and Kaushal Silva will keep wicket, meaning that Dilshan will play as a specialist batsman. Dilshan has been under the watchful eyes of the team physio after spraining his ankle but a final decision on his availability will be made on the morning of the Test. The toughest decision, though, will be on picking the second spinner behind Murali. Sangakkara said before the game that the decision would be made on “performers” and by that logic the choice should be the left-armer Rangana Herath.Herath has done very well in four recent home Tests against Pakistan and New Zealand, taking 23 wickets, and was picked ahead of Ajantha Mendis for the last match Sri Lanka played. Mendis hasn’t been the same since his outstanding debut series against India last summer, but mere thoughts of his mesmeric bowling then will put him in the reckoning. The allrounder Mathews is back in the side and will slot in at No. 6.Sri Lanka: (probable) 1 Tharanga Paranavitana, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (capt & wk), 4 Mahela Jayawardene, 5 Thilan Samaraweera, 6 Angelo Mathews, 7 Prasanna Jayawardene/Kaushal Silva (wk), 8 Nuwan Kulasekara, 9 Thilan Thushara, 10 Muttiah Muralitharan, 11 Rangana Herath/Ajantha Mendis.Pitch and conditionsThe last time India played a Test in Ahmedabad, they were bowled out for 77 on the opening morning on a green top that came under widespread criticism, not least from then captain Anil Kumble. This time, however, the track looks rather flat and neither side need worry about the ball zipping around like its Headingley. MS Dhoni termed it “a bit sticky in the sense that last evening they had watered it” but was certain it would dry up and be “perfect” track to bat on initially. The weather on the eve of the Test was sweltering.Stats and TriviaMurali has taken 31 wickets in eight Tests in India at a relatively disappointing average of 39.58. The top five batsmen constitute 15 of his wickets, but at a heavy price – Murali averages 64.56 for each of those breakthroughs. He’s been far more successful against the lower order; for batsmen from No.6 to 11, Murali has taken 16 wickets at 17.58. Virender Sehwag averages 50.00 in five Tests against Sri Lanka, and just 18.66 in two games against the same team at home. 251 of his 400 runs against Sri Lanka came in one Test. India beat Sri Lanka by 259 runs the last these teams played here, with spin accounting for 28 of the 39 wickets to fall. Sri Lankan bowlers have taken 143 wickets in India overall, at 47.87. Pace bowlers have grabbed 65 of those, at 49.47. Chaminda Vaas, who has the most wickets among the fast bowlers, has taken 11 of those at 41.27. Sri Lankan spinners have fared only marginally better, taking 75 wickets at 46.81. Sri Lanka’s Test record in India reads – 14 played, 0 won, 8 lost and 6 drawn.Quotes”Indian team and pressure go hand in glove. I have not played a series where it was said that we were not under pressure. That’s nothing new. We play the best side in the world, we are under pressure. We play the lowest ranked side in the ratings, then also we are under pressure.”

“I have played enough cricket over the years. This could be my last tour overseas. Sri Lanka has not won a Test series in India, so it would be great if my team won the series this time.”

Yuvraj Singh made up for the absence of key players with an explosive century and led his team to a hard-fought win

The Bulletin by George Binoy26-Jun-2009
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Yuvraj Singh’s century formed the backbone of India’s imposing score, which they struggled to defend•AFPIt ended dramatically at Sabina Park, with tension contorting the faces of anxious fans, both Indian and West Indian, as the hosts pursued India’s massive total of 339 with tenacity. West Indies chased valiantly and stayed in the game throughout despite the regular fall of wickets but, in the end, their challenge lacked an innings combining aggression with longevity, two qualities that Yuvraj Singh blended perfectly during his match-winning 131 off 102 balls.India were succumbing to their bugbear, having lost early wickets to the short ball, when Yuvraj joined Dinesh Karthik to rebuild the innings from 32 for 2. His approach made up for the absence of Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Suresh Raina and allayed fears of weakness in the batting order. Yuvraj revived the Indian innings by adding 135 with Karthik for the third wicket, a partnership that laid the platform for only the second ODI total in excess of 300 in Jamaica.That two out of the three 300-plus scores at Sabina Park were made in this match despite a slow pitch and outfield spoke volumes about the mediocrity of the bowling attacks. West Indies’ bowling disintegrated after Jerome Taylor’s opening spell, losing discipline in line and length as they fed the Indian batsmen a diet of short or full balls. They conceded 22 runs in extras, and bowled three front-foot no-balls resulting in free hits, largesse they could ill afford. India’s bowlers were worse, conceding 19 runs through wides, and bowling two no-balls: Chris Gayle deposited one of the free-hits over the long-on boundary. That they defended the target by 20 runs, was more due to the size of the total they were protecting and the West Indies’ batsmen’s ill-timed dismissals each time they got on a roll.India seemed unlikely, however, to reach such a large total on evidence of how they batted at the start. Taylor hurried the batsmen with pace and beat them with seam movement during his first spell. He unsettled Gautam Gambhir with a 92mph delivery from round the wicket that hurried the left-hander, whose feeble attempt to hook landed in Dwayne Bravo’s hands at midwicket. Unfortunately for West Indies, the pressure Taylor created dissipated because there was none forthcoming from the other end with Lionel Baker, Dwayne Bravo and David Bernard unable to bowl economically for a sustained period.Even the batsmen who revived India survived nervous starts: Karthik was cut in half by Baker while Yuvraj was constantly beaten by short-of-length deliveries which seamed across him. The moment the length was full, though, the batsmen took advantage: Karthik drove Dwayne Bravo to the extra-cover boundary and Yuvraj was able to put away Baker’s full offering to the point fence.After growing in confidence, Karthik added Twenty20 flavour to the sedate pace of 50-over cricket, reaching his half-century with a scoop that carried for six over fine leg against Bernard. He tried it again, on 67, but this time he was undone by Bernard’s slower ball and scooped a catch to the wicketkeeper.Yuvraj, however, stayed firm and the momentum swung towards India in two phases, the first of which was when the spinners came on after the 20th over. He attacked Suleimann Benn and Gayle, pulling and slog-sweeping thrice over the midwicket boundary and India, largely through Yuvraj scored 70 runs between overs 20 and 27.The second period of acceleration was during the batting Powerplay, taken in the 34th over. India began the five-over spell on 191 for 3 and Yuvraj set the tone by carving Baker to the cover boundary off the second ball before launching sixes over cover and midwicket to take 16 runs off the over.Gayle turned to his best bowler but Yuvraj tore into Taylor’s second spell, flicking him twice off the pads for four, and hitting him for sixes over cover, midwicket and long-on. MS Dhoni also went after him, shoveling a six down the ground. Taylor’s two-over spell cost 37 runs and India scored 62 off the Powerplay. Taylor never recovered from the onslaught and finished with 1 for 74 after conceding only 16 off his first five overs.West Indies appeared hapless against Yuvraj until Dwayne Bravo found the edge of his bat as he tried to glance towards fine leg. Bravo raised hopes of a fightback by dismissing Ravindra Jadeja first ball but useful innings from Dhoni and Yusuf Pathan steered India past 300, and a six from Harbhajan Singh off the last ball took them to 339.Chasing 340 needed something special from Gayle and he began to deliver, muscling his way to 37 before top-edging a pull off Ashish Nehra to mid-on. Morton attempted to fill the void left by his opening partner and stepped up after his departure, steering West Indies to 70 for 1 after ten overs before he was unlucky to be given out caught down the leg side for 42. Despite the loss of both set batsmen, Ramnaresh Sarwan ensured West Indies kept abreast with the asking-rate, using his feet nimbly against the spinners to clear the boundary. In fact, Sarwan had just lofted Yuvraj for the most languid of straight sixes when he was run out for 45 the next ball while attempting an unnecessary second run.It was now down to Shivnarine Chanderpaul and he too stepped up to ensure the equation didn’t get out of hand, carting Yuvraj for consecutive sixes and reaching his half-century with two whips to the fine-leg boundary off Ishant Sharma. However, Chanderpaul also fell immediately after hitting a six: he had smacked Yusuf Pathan over the square-leg boundary and was caught repeating the shot the very next ball. Chanderpaul’s dismissal for 63 was a crippling blow and appeared to be the end of West Indies chances but they fought on determinedly. Denesh Ramdin threw his bat around, so did Jerome Taylor and David Bernard, fraying India’s nerves to the limit. They couldn’t quite complete what would have been an astonishing win, though, for they needed one of their more accomplished top-order batsmen to stay to stay a little longer.

Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica will clash in one of four matches opening the WICB President’s Cup one-day tournament in Guyana from October 28

Cricinfo staff05-Oct-2009Reigning domestic one-day champions Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) and regional four-day title-holders Jamaica will clash in one of four matches on the first day of the WICB President’s Cup one-day tournament in Guyana from October 28.T&T, who currently hold both-50-over and Twenty20 titles, will face the Jamaicans in a Zone A fixture at the National Stadium in Providence.At last year’s tournament, T&T beat Barbados by seven wickets in the final to emerge new champions. Jamaica are enjoying a solid year in regional cricket and will be going for a fifth regional title in the 2009 campaign having won the four-day George Headley/Everton Weekes Trophy, the CLICO Under-15 title and the U-19 three-day and one-day titles at home in August. Other matches on the opening day are Windward Islands against Combined Campuses and Colleges at Everest in Zone A, Barbados against West Indies Under-19s at Bourda, and Guyana facing the Leeward Islands at Enmore in Zone B.The other preliminary round dates are October 30 and 31 before the semi-finals on November 2 and November 3, with the final set for November 5.The WICB confirmed that all preliminary round matches will start at 9.15 am (local time) while the semis and final are day-night fixtures listed for 1.30 pm starts at the National Stadium.

Leeds United left-back Junior Firpo will not be available vs Wolves but could return from injury in time for the Premier League clash with Norwich City, according to journalist Phil Hay.

The Lowdown: Injuries mount up

The Whites entertain Wolves on Saturday afternoon, looking for a crucial win that would steer them away from the relegation zone.

Marcelo Bielsa’s team currently sit 17th in the table, with their form a far cry from last season’s, when they ended up finishing in 11th place.

There are numerous injury problems for Leeds going into Saturday’s game, with key players Luke Ayling, Kalvin Phillips, Robin Koch and Patrick Bamford on a list of four players out (Premier Injuries), with Hay now providing news on a fifth.

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The Latest: Key Firpo update

Another individual who will play no part this weekend is Firpo, but Hay took to Twitter to deliver a five-word verdict claiming he could return for the trip to Norwich on October 31st:

“Could be back for Norwich.”

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The Verdict: Huge few weeks

Leeds have three more league matches before the final international break of the year next month, with Wolves, Norwich and Leicester awaiting.

It is vital that the Whites pick up a healthy chunk of points in that trio of outings, showing that their blip is only a short-term one, climbing towards the mid-table mark once more.

While Bielsa and co will not want to see themselves as in a relegation battle yet, the match against the Canaries seems particularly crucial, so having Firpo back would be a big boost.

In other news, one Leeds United player has been slammed. Find out who it is here.

Herschelle Gibbs, the South Africa opener, will miss the opening game of the Champions Trophy against Sri Lanka on September 22 because of a rib injury

Cricinfo staff19-Sep-2009Herschelle Gibbs, the South Africa opener, will miss the opening game of the Champions Trophy against Sri Lanka on September 22 because of a rib injury but is likely to recover in time for the rest of the games.Gibbs picked up the injury during the warm-up game against West Indies on Friday after he took evasive action at the non-striker’s end to avoid a straight drive from Graeme Smith. He retired hurt after scoring a 40-ball 38.”Herschelle suffered a minor rib and intercostal injury in the warm-up match against the West Indies at Potchefstroom on Friday,” Brandon Jackson, the South African physiotherapist said.”We will reassess his position after Tuesday’s match with the aim of getting him back on the field either for the New Zealand match on Thursday or the one against England next Sunday.”

Lee Ryder has criticised the performance of Matt Ritchie as Newcastle United lost 2-1 away to Wolves in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon.

The Lowdown: Slippery slope

The Magpies are going down a bit of a slippery slope at the moment, with still no wins and a mere three points from their first seven games in the Premier League, as they currently linger in 19th spot in the table (Premier League).

The international break has come at the right time for Steve Bruce and his team, who will look to regroup and try to fix what is happening on the pitch.

The Latest: Ryder on Ritchie

Writing in his latest piece for The Chronicle, while a lot of Newcastle players received criticism from Ryder, he was particularly critical of Ritchie’s performance.

The journalist claimed that the 32-year-old ‘lacked quality’ in terms of his distribution and gave him a mere 4/10 overall rating, the joint-second lowest out of any of his teammates.

The Verdict: Must do better

Ritchie, who is currently on £39,000 per week at St James’ Park, did not have his best game at Molineux as he lost out on three of his duels and also failed to record a single dribble, clearance or block from left-back (Sofascore).

As Ryder pointed out, the Scotland international was only successful with two out of his 12 attempted crosses in the match, while he also lost possession of the ball on 20 separate occasions, the joint-third most of any player on the pitch (Sofascore).

Indeed it was a day to forget for both Ritchie as well as Newcastle as a whole.

In other news, find out what big PIF claim has been dropped on the potential takeover

Four fast bowlers steam in, bang the ball short and put batsmen on the defensive

Anand Vasu22-Jul-2009Four fast bowlers steam in, bang the ball short and put batsmen on the defensive. There is repeated glory for the quick men, while the spinners wait patiently on the sidelines, chipping in wherever necessary. The West Indian team of yesteryear, right? Think again, and before you fall off your chair laughing, we are talking about India. The time of looking back fondly at the spin quartet, at dusty tracks and long spells from tweakers is threatening to be put to rest by a brigade of young fast bowlers who refuse to be denied.The Indians take on Zimbabwe with pacers Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan and Tinu Yohannan, seamer Sanjay Bangar backing his faster colleagues up. It seems that India has such an embarrassment of riches that there is no place in the side for Ajit Agarkar or Ashish Nehra, leave alone those further on the fringe like Baroda’s Rakesh Patel or Tamil Nadu’s L Balaji.
© AFPBut what brought about this dramatic revival? After all, not long ago, India were struggling in this very department. Madan Lal, former India medium-pacer and now national selector, explains that things have changed. “It is a question of having someone to follow. Kapil Dev was the role model for us. After him there was Srinath, who has done so well, and Venkatesh Prasad for a few years too. The pace bowlers these days get much more chances also, and that helps, “he began, speaking to CricInfo from his residence on the outskirts of Delhi.It is not only a question of role models, though; there is also the small matter of the lack of quality spinners coming through the system. Sure, Anil Kumble motors on manfully, Harbhajan Singh shines every now and then, and Sarandeep Singh is rapping loudly on the door. “In the last 4-5 years, things have improved for medium-pacers because there haven’t been too many qualityspinners coming through. When I was playing, we had a lot of high-class spinners, and they were doing most of the bowling. The trend was changed with Kapil, and then Roger Binny, Karsan Ghavri and myself taking wickets in the big matches,” says Madan Lal, explaining why medium-pacers play a much larger role in matches these days.Not too many will acknowledge it, and it will remain a source of debate, but the MRF Pace Foundation at Chennai has also played its part in developing a base for fast bowling. Former Australian great Dennis Lillee has been closely involved with the foundation, regularly conducting camps for fast bowlers from all over the world. Former India medium-pacer TA Sekhar, the head coach at the Foundation, has overseen the training for many years, and his views on the subject are just as interesting.”Basically, what has happened is that there is now a formal set-up in place for coaching fast bowlers,” he began, referring to the Foundation.
© CricInfo”From a few years ago, methods of coaching fast bowling have improved dramatically. I’ve been coaching for 14 years and can see that these techniques have spread all over the country as well. Srinath, Prasad and Zaheer Khan have all done well, and this is encouraging more people to take up fast bowling,” explained Sekhar, concurring with Madan Lal on this count. His point iswell taken too, given the fact that it takes any system, and indeed any academy, some time to start producing results.For years now, critics have demanded, “Show me one fast bowler that the Pace Foundation has produced.” Now that there are at least two – Zaheer Khan and Yohannan – Sekhar can safely counter that line of criticism. He instead pointed to the indirect benefits of having such an academy in place. “Because there is expertise available, people feel more comfortable taking up the art. In India we have plenty of expertise and legends when it comes to spin bowling, but there really isn’t one definitive place you can go if you want to fine-tune your art.”There is, however, still one major stumbling block that needs to be overcome if India are to be a force to reckon on the world stage of fast bowling, to wit, the appalling condition of wickets that domestic cricket is played on. Sekhar’s frustration at this is plain.”Making pitches is not in our hands at all. Dennis Lillee has been talking about the need to improve pitches in India since 1987. For example, if it were up to me, I would certainly have played the Zimbabwe tour game on a greentop,” he said. “If we had played 3-4 fast bowlers on a wicket that was conducive to fast bowling, we would have known where our bowlers stand against an international team.”Talking specifics is certainly a good way forward in this case. Anyone who watched the tour match that Zimbabwe played on the flattest of tracks at Vijayawada would have seen the futility of it all. “I appreciate the fact that our batsmen have done well on a good batting track, but really, what is the use of watching Abhijit Kale make 90 or Gautam Gambhir 218 if they are not even in the reckoning?”The more pressing case, as Sekhar pointed out, is using matches like this as an opportunity to blood promising youngsters. “Take the case of L Balaji. He is a promising fast bowler and has been taking wickets consistently. If he had played in the side game and taken 4-5 wickets, he would have been in the reckoning. Now he has to wait till next season to get a chance against a touringside,” explained Sekhar.
© CricInfoThe talk of Balaji being a fast bowler to look out for have been doing the rounds for a while now. His omission from the squad for the Zimbabwe series certainly raised a few eyebrows.One does hope, however, that young fast bowlers like him will get their chances. Only then will youngsters continue to throng the with dreams in their heads and a new ball in their hand. There is a tale that Sir Richard Hadlee carried a picture of Lillee in his kit-bag; we all know what Hadlee managed to achieve. Perhaps, one day, there will be a starry-eyed lad with a picture of Srinath in his kit-bag…

Sheffield Wednesday manager Darren Moore has provided an injury update on Dennis Adeniran following Saturday’s 3-0 loss at Plymouth Argyle.

The Lowdown: Mid-table start

The Owls’ start to the League One campaign has seen them accumulate three wins from six matches, but after winning three of their opening four games, Moore’s side have now lost their last two.

Morecambe defeated them 1-0 before the international break before Plymouth romped to a 3-0 on Saturday afternoon thanks to goals from Joe Edwards, Dan Scarr and Ryan Law. The defeat leaves Wednesday 12th in the table, albeit only five points off Sunderland at the top of the league.

The Latest: Adeniran injury

Speaking to Yorkshire Live, Moore provided an update on 22-year-old Adeniran, who missed the game through injury.

The Owls manager said: “It’s nothing serious; he had a bit of a muscle strain that we thought would keep him out for seven to 10 days – so we didn’t risk him here today.

“But we’re very hopeful that he’ll be fit again for next week.”

The midfielder has one goal to his name this season, scoring in the 2-0 home win over Doncaster Rovers in August, and had played in all of Wednesday’s matches before yesterday [Transfermarkt].

The Verdict: Quiet September

After playing seven games in August, Wednesday have just three more fixtures this month as they face Shrewsbury, Ipswich Town and Wigan, before a tough schedule in October with a further seven matches.

Adeniran’s performances so far this season have been a telling part of the Owls’ good start to the campaign and the result would suggest that he was badly missed yesterday. His power, pace and athleticism alongside Barry Bannan and George Byers in the middle of the park has stood out in the opening five games, while according to WhoScored figures, he is the second most-fouled player in the squad and has the fourth-best tackling average at Hillsborough.

With Wednesday’s next two games against teams beneath them in the table, resting Adeniran until they host second-placed Wigan may be on Moore’s mind. At least the manager’s comments offer reassurance that the 22-year-old should be back before long.

In other news, details of Owls’ summer signing contract have emerged. Find out more here.