Neste sábado (22), Cruzeiro e Grêmio jogam pela segunda rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro. O confronto, que será realizado no Estádio Independência, às 21h (de Brasília), tem o simbolismo de colocar frente a frente dois gigantes do futebol nacional que estão retornando a elite na atual temporada.
Pelo lado gremista, está será a 37ª oportunidade que o clube enfrentará o adversário em questão na condição de visitante. E o retrospecto não é dos melhores. São apenas sete vitórias e cinco empates em meio a outros 24 resultados negativos.
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>Quem vai ficar no G4 e no Z4 do Brasileirão? LANCE! ouve 17 nomes de peso
Entretanto, nos últimos três confrontos, o Grêmio venceu dois: triunfo por 1 a 0, no Brasileirão de 2018, além da imponente goleada por 4 a 1 no Brasileirão de 2019. No ano passado, pela Série B, as equipes ficaram no empate em Porto Alegre. Já em Belo Horizonte, melhor para o Cruzeiro.
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Para repetir o feito das edições de Campeonato Brasileiro em questão, o técnico Renato Portaluppi terá outro obstáculo além do próprio rival mineiro: o número de ausências. Ao todo, o treinador do Grêmio não pode contar com 11 jogadores, todos com problemas físicos. São eles Carballo, Cuiabano,Diego Souza, Fábio, Ferreira,Geromel, Gustavo Martins, Jhonata Robert, Pepê, Reinaldo e Villasanti.
SL head coach feels batters didn’t convert their scores and that their bowlers gave away too much to the SA lower-order batters
Andrew Fidel Fernando09-Dec-2024Sri Lanka arrived in South Africa dreaming of a World Test Championship final spot, but having now been crushed 2-0, that dream has almost certainly faded. There is special regret that Sri Lanka got to play on the two venues that would have best suited them – Durban and Gqeberha – and still could not seriously push the hosts, as they had done in 2019.Head coach Sanath Jayasuriya broke down the defeat, putting it largely down to the failure of batters to push on from starts to bigger scores. This was especially evident in the first innings at Gqeberha, when each of the top five got to at least 20, but only one passed 50. And Pathum Nissanka, who did make a half-century, did not push on to triple figures, though he had the chance to do so.”Batsmen have to convert their scores into hundreds – 30s and 40s aren’t enough,” Jayasuriya said. “It’s tough on these wickets, but at least two batters have to score hundreds on a tour like this. We didn’t get that. All we got were two 80s. I think the batters by now know the value of hundreds on the road, having played in a place like England recently as well. We missed that this time.Related
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“Although there was a lot of effort from the senior batters, I think if they assess themselves individually, they will realise it wasn’t enough.”This was also the first series in his Test career that Kamindu Mendis failed to make a score of substance. He made scores of 13, 10, 48, and 35 – his average plummeting from a Bradmanesque 91.27 before the series, to 74 by its end.”Kamindu Mendis is a key player,” Jayasuriya said. “In every Test match almost he was in the runs, aside from this series. If you saw the way he batted in this series, it was still with a lot of confidence. In his last innings especially, you saw that. You can’t expect a batter to hit 50 or 100 every innings – that’s why you have six or seven batters. As a player, he’s a quality player. If he’s got shortcomings, he works with the batting coach to figure those out.”I know that oppositions are quite concerned, and South Africa were as well. Now, he will have to work hard to counter that. But I love watching a player like him in the team – he scores at a run-a-ball, and plays positively. What I’ve told everyone is to play their natural game and play positive cricket.”Centurion Kyle Verreynne walks back after his century•Gallo Images/Getty ImagesOn the Gqeberha loss itself, he felt the match had been lost in key periods. The first of these was the second morning, on which South Africa had put on 89 runs via their last two partnerships.”In that first innings, after we got eight or nine wickets, we let them have roughly 40 runs too many.Another period was the third morning, on which Sri Lanka lost five wickets, having ended the previous day 116 runs behind, and with seven wickets in hand.”We couldn’t afford those wickets. We could have got a big first-innings lead, and we let the match slip a bit on that morning.”And then on the fourth day, there were a couple of instances in which Sri Lanka did not quite turn their momentum into a definitive advantage. They’d had South Africa 282 for 8 at lunch but allowed the No. 9, 10, and 11 batters to crash 35 further runs. Later that day, they’d also been 117 for 3 before losing two quick wickets.”That 25-30 extra runs from their tail also hurt us in the second innings. In the second innings, when we gave two extra wickets in the evening session. If we’d had the chance to come in today only three down, that would have made a big difference to our batting unit. It’s in those little places that it got away from us.”
The MET office has delivered an update amid fears Liverpool's Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid could be postponed due to extreme weather. A yellow weather warning was issued ahead of the match warning of gusty winds that could disrupt travel and cause power outages.
Harsh weather condition in Merseyside
The MET office's initial forecast carried a warning of strong winds interrupting road, rail, and ferry travel, with coastal communities put on alert for spray and waves as the weather front moved in. The forecast was put in place from Sunday evening to Monday, which raised concerns over the midweek Champions League game at Anfield.
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Fresh update from MET Office
Fortunately for Liverpool and Atletico fans, the MET Office has issued a new update confirming that severe weather conditions will subside before the ball is kicked at Anfield on Wednesday evening. The heavyweight European encounter is expected to go ahead as planned with no further formal warnings issued.
Liverpool protecting perfect record
Arne Slot's Liverpool side have begun their Premier League title defence with four consecutive wins, including a narrow 1-0 victory at Burnley last time out. In stark contrast, Diego Simeone's Atletico have only won one of their opening four La Liga matches and are currently down in 11th in the table.
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Atletico missing key players
Atletico will head to Liverpool without star striker Julian Alvarez and USMNT midfielder Johnny Cardoso. While the former Manchester striker suffered a knee injury in the club's 2-0 win against Villarreal at the weekend, Cardoso picked up a sprain during Monday's training session, and both men were left out of Simeone's final 22-man squad.
Leeds United have made strengthening their defence a priority during the summer transfer window ahead of their return to the Premier League in the 2025/26 campaign.
Lucas Perri has been signed to be the club’s new number one, Jaka Bijol and Sebastiaan Bornauw have come in to compete at centre-back, and Gabriel Gudmundsson has replaced Junior Firpo at left-back.
Olympique Lyonnais'LucasPerricelebrates their second goal scored by Olympique Lyonnais' Rayan Cherki
The Championship champions have also swooped to add defensive midfielders Anton Stach and Sean Longstaff to their squad to provide the defence with more strength in front of them.
However, Stach showed against AC Milan on Saturday that he does have more to his game than just being a towering defensive presence in midfield, with a stunning strike in the 1-1 draw.
Daniel Farke, though, does now need to focus on bringing in attacking players to ensure that there is enough firepower in the team to win matches in the Premier League.
As part of that, Leeds need to find a creative attacker who can unlock opposition defences on a regular basis, which essentially means that they need their next Pablo Hernandez.
Why Leeds need their next Pablo Hernandez
During his time at Elland Road, the Spanish forward, who played centrally as a number ten or out wide on the right, provided immense quality at the top end of the pitch.
Hernandez really emerged as a superstar when Marcelo Bielsa arrived at the helm in the summer of 2018, as the Argentine’s system seemed to get the best out of him.
Former Leeds winger Pablo Hernandez.
The former Valencia and Swansea man became a cult hero at Elland Road with his majestic performances on the pitch, consistently unlocking opposition defences with his technical quality and wonderful eye for a pass.
Hernandez was an attacking midfielder who offered a big threat as a scorer, with 21 goals in two Championship seasons under Bielsa, but his biggest strength was his creativity.
Appearances
39
36
Goals
12
9
Assists
12
9
Big chances created
16
13
Key passes per game
3.0
2.3
As you can see in the table above, the Spanish whiz created at least 2.3 chances per game on average across two seasons in the second tier and created a whopping 29 ‘big chances’ for his side.
Meanwhile, no current Leeds player averaged more than 1.6 key passes per game in the Championship in the 2024/25 campaign, which does not suggest that they are likely to be hugely creative after the step up to the Premier League.
That is why the Whites should be in the market to sign an attacking midfielder who can be a creative spark in the final third for Farke’s team this coming season.
Leeds considering bid for £25m attacking midfielder
According to GIVEMESPORT, Leeds United are looking at a potential deal to sign a number ten who could arrive as their next Pablo Hernandez, Bilal El Khannouss.
The report claims that the Whites are ‘considering’ a bid to sign the Leicester City attacking midfielder before the end of the summer transfer window.
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It adds that the Morocco international is expected to move on from the King Power in the coming weeks, with Leeds, Spurs, West Ham United, Crystal Palace, and Bayer Leverkusen all eyeing him up.
GIVEMESPORT reveals that the 21-year-old star has a £22.5m release clause in his contract with the Foxes, but clubs are willing to pay a higher overall fee in order to secure more favourable payment terms, possibly with a lower upfront fee and more add-ons.
The outlet states that the higher fee could be in the region of £25m, and it now remains to be seen whether or not Leeds are prepared to pay that much to bring him to Elland Road to bolster their squad.
Why Leeds should sign Bilal El Khannouss
Farke should push the board to get a deal done for El Khannouss before the summer transfer window slams shut at the start of September because he could be the Pablo Hernandez-esque figure that they need at the top end of the pitch.
Despite Leicester’s relegation from the Premier League last season, the Morocco international showed that he has the technical and creative qualities to make an impact at that level.
Nottingham Forest's Morgan Gibbs-White in action with Leicester City'sBilalEl Khannouss
The £25m-rated star, who was dubbed a “sensational prospect” by analyst Ben Mattinson, created eight ‘big chances’ for his teammates in just 27 starts in the Premier League for the Foxes.
In their last respective seasons in the Premier League, Dan James created three, Wilfried Gnonto created three, Brenden Aaronson created five, and Jack Harrison created six.
This suggests that El Khannouss has the quality to step in as Farke’s most creative attacking midfielder or winger straight away, as the current options at the club have not proven themselves to be particularly adept at consistently creating chances in the Premier League.
xAG
0.19
Top 46%
Assists
0.12
Bottom 35%
Passes attempted
43.85
Top 15%
Progressive passes
5.28
Top 14%
Passes into the final third
3.67
Top 10%
Key passes
1.73
Top 37%
Through balls
0.45
Top 16%
As you can see in the table above, the Leicester starlet ranked highly in a host of creative metrics in the top-flight last season, but was let down by poor finishing from his teammates to end up in the bottom 35% of his positional peers for assists.
El Khannouss, who predominantly plays as a number ten, could be the creative presence that Leeds are currently lacking in their squad, given his ability to progress play with passes into the third third, with key passes and through balls to set up his teammates.
Bilal El Khannouss.
He has the potential to emerge as the new Pablo Hernandez at Elland Road, as an attacking midfielder who could be the creative hub of the team, and has plenty of room for improvement as a young player.
That is why the Whites should be pushing to get a deal done for him as quickly as possible, because El Khannouss could fill a big creative hole in the squad and still has the potential to get even better in the future.
Solomon repeat: Leeds have discussed swoop for "explosive" £20m "menace"
Leeds United are reportedly interested in signing a star who would be a Manor Solomon repeat.
Chelsea are actively pursuing a double deal for RB Leipzig’s Xavi Simons and Manchester United winger Alejandro Garnacho right now, but they could still sign more players alongside the duo.
Both Simons and Garnacho are determined to sign for Chelsea, but the Blues are still yet to reach full agreements with either of their clubs.
The former has made it clear that he wants to join Enzo Maresca’s side, and is patiently waiting for Chelsea to shake hands on a fee for his services as negotiations continue behind-the-scenes this week.
Garnacho, meanwhile, has earmarked Stamford Bridge as his “only” desired landing spot this summer (David Ornstein) – coming after the Argentine dropped a teasing hint on Instagram.
The 21-year-old liked a post linking him with a move to Chelsea, which is perhaps a clear indication that Garnacho has set his sights on joining the west Londoners.
To make room for the attacking pair, Chelsea are expected to green-light a few more high-profile sales amid pressure from UEFA to produce a positive transfer balance by next month.
Carney Chukwuemeka, Raheem Sterling, Ben Chilwell, Christopher Nkunku, Nicolas Jackson and Alfie Gilchrist are all being linked with the Cobham exit door before this summer’s transfer deadline on September 1, and this host of departures could also free up space for PSG keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.
The Italy number one announced that he will be leaving PSG this summer in an emotional goodbye post on Tuesday evening, coming after he was left out of Luis Enrique’s squad for their UEFA Super Cup clash against Tottenham.
“To the special Paris fans, From the first day I arrived, I gave everything – on and off the pitch – to earn my place and defend the goal of Paris Saint-Germain,” said Donnarumma.
“Unfortunately, someone has decided that I can no longer be part of the group and contribute to the team’s success. I am disappointed and disheartened. I hope to have the opportunity to look the fans at the Parc des Princes in the eyes one more time and say goodbye as it should be done.
“If that doesn’t happen, I want you to know that your support and affection mean the world to me, and I will never forget it. I will always carry with me the memory of all the emotions, the magical nights, and of you, who made me feel at home.”
With the 26-year-old now officially leaving the Parc des Princes, PSG’s loss could well be Chelsea’s gain.
Gianluigi Donnarumma holds talks to join Chelsea
Reports from France earlier this week suggested that Chelsea have inquired about Donnarumma, and now journalist Graeme Bailey has told TBR Football that the ex-AC Milan shot-stopper has held talks to join Maresca via his representatives.
Maresca is arguably in need of an experienced figurehead, and all Premier League title-winning sides possess one thing in common – a world-class goalkeeper. Donnarumma fits the bill in all these aspects.
Amid reports he’ll cost around £26 million, Chelsea could seal a major bargain after deciding not to sign Milan’s Mike Maignan earlier in the window.
علق دانييل ستوريدج نجم ليفربول السابق على هزيمة الريدز الثانية على التوالي أمام جالطة سراي بهدف، في الجولة الثانية بمرحلة الدوري لدوري أبطال أوروبا.
وكان ملعب “رامس بارك” التركي قد استضاف مباراة الفريقين الساخنة ضمن منافسات دوري أبطال أوروبا.
وأحرز فيكتور أوسيمين هدف جالطة سراي الوحيد في المباراة، بعد حصول الفريق المضيف على ركلة جزاء تسبب فيها لاعب خط الوسط المجري دومينيك سوبوسلاي.
أقرأ أيضاً.. تقييم محمد صلاح في مباراة ليفربول وجالطة سراي بـ دوري أبطال أوروبا
وقد تجمد رصيد ليفربول عند ثلاث نقاط فقط، بعد تلقيه أول هزيمة في دوري أبطال أوروبا هذا الموسم، وحصل جالطة سراي على أول ثلاث نقاط له في المسابقة.
وقال ستوريدج في تصريحات نشرتها “بي بي سي سبورت” البريطانية :”آخر مرة فشل فيها ليفربول في التسجيل كانت ضد باريس سان جيرمان في دوري أبطال أوروبا في 11 مارس”.
وأضاف: “من الواضح أن الانسجام والكيمياء في الفريق ليس على ما يرام، لكنه الآن ليس وقت الذعر”.
وسيستأنف ليفربول مشواره في الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز على ملعب ستامفورد بريدج بلقاء تشيلسي يوم السبت المقبل 4 أكتوبر.
Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta has made a serious statement during his debut summer window at the club, having already spent well north of £200 million on a host of key additions.
Kepa Arrizabalaga, Martin Zubimendi, Christian Norgaard, Noni Madueke, Cristhian Mosquera and star new number nine, Viktor Gyokeres, have arrived to rejuvenate Mikel Arteta’s squad ahead of another Premier League title challenge.
19/20 – winter
£0
20/21 – summer
£81.5m
20/21 – winter
£900k
21/22 – summer
£156.8m
21/22 – winter
£1.8m
22/23 – summer
£121.5m
22/23 – winter
£59m
23/24 – summer
£208m
23/24 – winter
£0
24/25 – summer
£101.5m
24/25 – winter
£0
25/26 – summer
£208m
According to reports, Arsenal have maintained their long-standing interest in Eberechi Eze too, which has been ongoing for well over a month now.
Crystal Palace's EberechiEze
The Gunners are prioritising the creative midfielder as they seek to bolster their attacking options – but Berta wants to balance the books first (Fabrizio Romano), with the likes of Reiss Nelson, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Fabio Vieira, Jakub Kiwior, Albert Sambi Lokonga and Leandro Trossard all tipped for potential exits recently.
Major discrepancies revolve around Eze’s £68 million release clause, with some credible reports claiming that this buy-out expired over a week ago on Friday at 11:59pm, whilst others believe that the clause doesn’t run out until August 15. However, there was never a plan from Arsenal to trigger it anyway.
talkSPORT reported last week that Arsenal wish to strike a deal for the England international at around £55 million after Eze’s direct talks with both Arteta and Berta.
This situation is definitely one to keep an eye on from now until the transfer deadline on September 1, but Palace chairman Steve Parish has displayed in past windows that he’s not afraid to dig his heels in when it comes to selling key assets.
In January, the Eagles snubbed an ambitious £70 million bid from Tottenham for star defender Marc Guehi, despite the centre-back’s contract expiring in 2026, so Palace are unlikely to be bullied around in negotiations over Eze either.
A deal may end up not being feasible for Arsenal after a summer of lavish spending, but Berta is known for working on many different transfer targets at once, so it’s not surprising to see them linked with a move for wantaway Atalanta star Ademola Lookman.
Arsenal plot £44m bid for Atalanta forward Ademola Lookman
The Nigerian wants out of Atalanta, and has admitted to handing in a formal transfer request in his bid to wave goodbye to the Gewiss Stadium.
Lookman was occasionally deployed in the number 10 role last season, making the rest of his appearances as a left-winger, centre-forward and striker, so he could tick many boxes for Arteta, who demands versatility from his players.
Atalanta's Ademola Lookman celebrates scoring their second goal with Atalanta's GiorgioScalviniand Atalanta's Matteo Ruggeri
Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera (page 6) report that Arsenal could make a £44 million bid for Lookman and hijack Inter Milan’s long-winded talks for the 27-year-old, coming after the Nerazzurri’s most recent £39m offer was turned down.
The former Everton, Fulham and Leicester star is perhaps best known for one of the most scintillating performances ever witnessed in a cup final.
Lookman’s 2024 Europa League hat-trick both won the trophy for Atalanta and ended Bayer Leverkusen’s unprecedented, season-long unbeaten run – with the African standing out as a star player in Bergamo ever since then.
His 20 goals and seven assists last term, with five of those strikes coming in the Champions League, are testament to his obvious quality and Arsenal would have a serious player on their hands.
Newcastle United aren’t giving up on their chase to sign an attacking reinforcement and are now reportedly set to take their next key step towards their top target.
Eddie Howe admits Newcastle "frustration"
The Magpies have faced an endless brick wall in pursuit of their top targets so far this summer – whether it’s been Joao Pedro, Bryan Mbeumo or Hugo Ekitike. Reports are now even suggesting that Manchester City could hijack their move to sign Burnley shot-stopper James Trafford. But Eddie Howe and everyone else involved at St James’ Park are not giving up on welcoming much-needed reinforcements just yet.
The Newcastle boss shared his thoughts on a frustrating summer recently, admitting that Newcastle were hoping to get any business done early but have simply been unable to get deals over the line.
All involved in Tyneside will be desperate not to miss out on any more targets and reports are now suggesting that they’re working to ensure that their striker problem is finally solved.
Newcastle expected to take key Wissa step
As reported by GiveMeSport, Newcastle are now expected to submit an improved offer to sign Yoane Wissa after Brentford rejected their opening bid worth around £25m. Whether that second bid, which will reportedly be worth £30m, is successful remains to be seen, but the striker has told the Bees he wants to leave.
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Having already lost Mbeumo, Brentford are reportedly demanding as much as £50m to sell Wissa this summer. Given that he has just one year left on his current deal and has already left the Bees’ pre-season camp amid transfer speculation, however, there could yet be room to negotiate that valuation.
Starts
34
34
Goals
19
23
Assists
4
6
Expected Goals
18.5
20.3
A player who former Brentford manager and new Tottenham Hotspur boss Thomas Frank described as “incredible” alongside Mbeumo last season, it’s clear to see why Newcastle want Wissa.
Yoane Wissa celebrates for Brentford
The Brentford star would provide immediate backup for Isak, who has already suffered an injury concern in pre-season, and could even partner the all-important Swede.
Shubman Gill must have wanted to feel good about himself before he got down to work. At the start of India’s training session in Canberra on Friday, he went around to the back of the nets facility, where only throwdowns were possible, and that too from about 10 yards, and for the first few minutes, he was totally freestyling. Big booming drives. Lovely back foot punches.After a little bit of this, he asked India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate to help him drill down on his defence. Now the balls were coming down on a good length and he focused on meeting them under his eyes. Somehow the sound off the bat was louder than he was trying to whack them. That left thumb that he injured in Perth doesn’t seem to be giving him a whole lot of problems anymore.Gill began with throwdowns from up close, then graduated to facing them off the sidearm and then capped it off by fronting up against Akash Deep and Yash Dayal at full speed. “He is batting right now and our physio will evaluate him and I will know his status after that,” the other assistant coach Abhishek Nayar said on Friday afternoon. “But from what I have seen, he is looking comfortable batting and he looks like he can bat [in a match]. He is batting in the indoor nets and we will know if he can play the practice match or not.”Related
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India arrived in Canberra on Wednesday night to a group of fans waiting for them at the airport. Then they hit up the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for a little “how do you do,” and under significantly overcast skies that did in the end bring rain that lasted almost right through the training session, focused on the challenge of playing against the pink ball. India will ramp up prep for the second Test in Adelaide with a day-night match against the Prime Minister’s XI which is scheduled to start on Saturday, but the weather forecast for it is pretty poor. The first day of the two-day game might well get washed out.Perhaps in anticipation of that, India’s batters got nice, long, sessions to get used to the pink ball and all the mischief it is capable of. Yashasvi Jaiswal had barely figured out what shot to play when he was rapped on the pads and he hated it. Standing there, with his legs crossed and his hand on his hip, he had to listen to Ravindra Jadeja gloat. “That ball swung away, didn’t it?” There was a hint of surprise in those words, and also of the challenge that now lies ahead of this team. Day-night Test matches are sometimes bowler-dominated affairs, especially in Australia.”Whether it’s a pink ball or a red ball, the difference is really in the mind,” Nayar said. “Of course, there is a bit of difference between the two – the colour is different, there is more lacquer – and we are lucky that we have got six-eight days to get ready. When we were in Perth, too, we were training with the pink ball. Rohit [Sharma] was training [with the pink ball] too. So we have started our preparations. We will continue to focus on our game, and do what we need to do.”India have only played four pink-ball Test matches so far, the last of which took place in March 2022. They will be back at the venue of 36 all out, but this time the vibe is completely different. The joy of Perth has seeped into the fringe players who are here as well, who began the day playing that game where you get a bunch of people around in a circle and try to keep a football from hitting the ground. Sarfaraz Khan had a bit of trouble with it and everybody piled on him, laughter ringing out over the delightfully intimate Manuka Oval, Sarfaraz himself joining in.1:21
Clarke: Australia has some work to do to keep Kohli down
Rohit was waiting in the tunnels at the Optus Stadium, greeting every Indian player that was coming back on a high after that 295-run victory last week. His return – after becoming father to a second child – has lifted the team even higher. Rohit had already begun playing against the pink ball in Perth and he backed that up in Adelaide, though he looked a little rusty in between bringing out some of his signature shots – including a pull on one leg, which he took care to keep down.”When Rohit Sharma is around, there’s a lot of laughing and joking around,” Nayar said, “So the morale and the environment is good. The morale is excellent anyway. Rohit wasn’t around initially, but he was very much with us [in spirit] all through. So there wasn’t much of a difference.”With a chill in the air, a song on the speakers ( by Glass Animals) and an image of Gandalf from frozen on the big screen, where all he could do was bob his head back and forth with a content smile (clearly he is a fan of the band), this felt like a session where the Indian team was slowly reacquainting themselves with the grind after a few well-deserved days off.Rishabh Pant spent virtually all of it running around the outfield. KL Rahul did 100-yard sprints over and over again. Virat Kohli attracted the attention of the fans who had come over to watch and what they saw was a perfectionist who yelled out in frustration when his drives resulted in edges, delighted in meeting it off the middle soon after and threw a thumbs up at Mukesh Kumar when he got the ball past his edge.Jaiswal, who perhaps did more work than most, switched priorities and tried his hand at fast bowling as training came to a close. Coming off a two-step run up from the boundary’s edge, he very nearly had Dhruv Jurel bowled on the leave, his hands flying to his head as the ball just whistled past the top of those bright yellow flexi cricket stumps. It didn’t seem like he enjoyed himself though. “Being a fast bowler is hard work, yaar,” he said to plenty of laughter and padded up again to face more throwdowns.
Neil D’Costa says Marnus Labuschagne has to keep trusting himself as he tries to rediscover his Test form
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Manjrekar: Bumrah’s contributions ‘unreal’ in all three formats
Marnus Labuschagne’s long-time batting mentor has cautioned him against over-training ahead of the second Test in Adelaide and be less rigid in his gameplan as he attempts to emerge from what is the most serious batting slump since he became an international cricketer.While collectively Australia’s top order is underperforming, Labuschagne is the one squarely in the spotlight after two ugly innings at Optus Stadium. On the first day he laboured to 2 off 52 balls before missing a straight delivery from Mohammed Siraj and on the third evening left a delivery from Jasprit Bumrah that would have smashed the stumps.Related
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Frazzled Australia left searching for answers
Labuschagne faces vital week as Australia resist panic changes
The twin failures left Labuschagne with 123 runs from his last 10 innings of which 90 came in one knock against New Zealand in March. Overall this year he is averaging 24.50 in Tests to follow a 2023 where that figure was 34.91 having been above 60 in three of the previous four years.Labuschagne was already back in the nets while the opening Test drew a conclusion in Perth on Monday and was expected to train individually before the squad links back up a day earlier than planned in Adelaide.”I’d probably just half what he usually does. Just try and clear it up a bit,” Neil D’Costa told ESPNcricinfo. “Keep working on reacting more, not having such rigid plans. Every batter goes through this. Almost everyone around 30 years old – I don’t know why it’s that number – seems to have this glitch. He’s a guy we all know, he loves playing cricket. He never leaves a stone unturned. He’s super fit. Does he overthink things? I don’t know, possibly everyone does.ESPNcricinfo Ltd
“When someone gets to the stage where they are the No. 1 player in the world, they are going to become a target. He couldn’t keep going. He’d be averaging 80. At some stage, I don’t want to say it had to happen…it happens to a lot of players. They try a bit too hard and like [Virat] Kohli you have to keep trusting yourself, trusting your processes, trust what you do. Go back and find a way the next day.”Labuschagne’s lack of positivity at the crease came under significant focus after his first innings. “The manner that he’s been playing, for me it’s such a negative mindset, and he has been for a little while,” Aaron Finch said on . “What that does, when you’re coming up against great attacks – Jasprit Bumrah is as good as we’ve ever seen, Siraj a very good fast bowler – it just allows them to settle in, you’re not putting much pressure on them, so their margin for error becomes huge.”D’Costa, who has already spoken with Labuschagne since the Test, believed he was within his rights to think he could leave the delivery from Bumrah. “That ball was 8.3 metres [from the stumps], that’s going over the stumps all day, every day,” he said. “It just hit the top of the stumps. With a millisecond to make a decision, he saw the length and let it go and it skidded. Are we going to lose sleep over that? I’m not. Would you like him to score runs, absolutely.”Marnus Labuschagne left a lot of balls in the first innings…and fell leaving one in the second•Associated Press
Labuschagne’s two lbw dismissals in Perth come amid a period where a tendency to be caught playing away from his body had crept into his game which D’Costa partly attributes to him working on his white-ball batting.”If you look at how he plays, he lets a lot of balls go. He always has,” he said. “Think maybe he was working really hard at being a one-day player so for a little while he lost that. And he started nicking. Let me tell you, they [India] bowled so well. They knew exactly he wanted that ball on leg stump. They did not bowl there. If anything, they bowled wide. This team is really well prepared. They executed very well.”After the defeat, captain Pat Cummins acknowledged Labuschagne’s difficulties would be a focal point in the days ahead.”Marn, along with quite a few guys in the team, didn’t have the week we would have wanted,” he said. “It’s no secret how hard the batters, particularly Marn, works in the nets. He’s always trying to find those small marginal gains. This week will be a lot of conversation with the coaches around his approach and what he could be doing differently.”