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ScorecardJack Shantry enjoyed a glorious day with the bat, not the ball (file photo)•Getty Images

Jack Shantry turned the clock back to a match played more than 100 years ago when scoring a career-best 106 in a remarkable Worcestershire recovery against Gloucestershire in the Specsavers County Championship at New Road.History repeated itself when Shantry romped to a second 50 from 14 balls in completing a hundred from the No 10 position – just as Dick Burrows had done in a similar transformation against Gloucestershire in 1907.Burrows made 112 as the county recovered from 78 for 4 to total 447 and this time they climbed back from 34 for 5 to reach 439. Almost spookily, each innings spanned 113.1 overs.Shantry, who made his previous century in a promotion-clinching win against Surrey in 2014, followed up his latest exploits by bowling Gloucestershire opener Chris Dent in an opening spell of 13-3-22-1.Having claimed maximum batting points for the fifth time in six attempts, Worcestershire were in a position to dictate, but the West Country side were kept afloat by Graeme van Buuren’s maiden championship century in reaching 226 for 5, still 213 behind at the close.The 25-year-old South African put on 120 with Gareth Roderick (60) and continued to bat sensibly and soundly in making 104 not out with 11 fours from 206 balls in his hundred.However four wickets fell in the final session. Roderick was lbw, playing round the front pad to Brett D’Oliveira, and Michael Klinger was a second victim for Shantry, also given out lbw after making 5.Worse followed for Gloucestershire with Hamish Marshall (34) well caught by Ross Whiteley at mid-wicket off Joe Leach and George Hankins (8) was taken behind the wicket attempting to pull Ed Barnard.So far the match has been shaped by the depth of Worcestershire’s batting. Worcestershire’s director of cricket, Steve Rhodes, called it “an amazing turnaround” which was made possible by Tom Kohler-Cadmore’s “excellent” partnerships with Ben Cox and Barnard on the first day.Kohler-Cadmore was eventually caught behind off Liam Norwell for 169 after picking off 35 fours in a six-hour stay.When he was out, having added 16 to his overnight score, Shantry had just got away with a miscue which looped wide of the slips and landed safely as Norwell came in from third man.On 39 at the time, the left-hander launched an onslaught against Craig Miles, the paceman conceding 44 in two overs, and in all he hit 11 fours and six sixes before he was bowled by Norwell (four for 70).Shantry’s domination was such that last man Charlle Morris did not score a run while facing of 21 of the 59 balls in their partnership of 69.

YouTuber Conor McGilligan has slammed Leeds United midfielder Marc Roca after he put in an abject display in the club's most recent defeat.

What's the latest on Marc Roca and Leeds?

The Whites were unable to do much to aide their fight for survival in the Premier League on the weekend as they beaten comfortably away from home.

Indeed, Javi Gracia and co travelled to the Emirates take on league leaders Arsenal and shipped four goals in a 4-1 loss. Gabriel Jesus netted a double, while Ben White and Granit Xhaka also got in on the act, making Rasmus Kristensen's consolation essentially redundant.

No doubt, it was a difficult afternoon for the entire Leeds team but they actually went toe-to-toe with the Gunners in the early stages of the game, right up until conceding a penalty for the first goal.

And while talking about this period of the match on the One Leeds Fan Channel, McGilligan lamented Roca's inability to help his team control the game with a bit more quality on the ball.

He explained (05:25): "It's Marc Roca who I thought was poor today, I think a lot of you are going to be shocked that I objectively called him out. But listen, he's up against two top operators in [Thomas] Partey and Xhaka who have been fantastic this season.

"But once again, you know, not been able to keep hold of the ball in periods of time where Arsenal aren't that great. That's always going to affect you know.”

Was Marc Roca poor against Arsenal?

When writing the player ratings for LeedsLive, journalist Beren Cross wasn't quite as harsh on Roca, giving him a six out of ten and writing: "Not a bad afternoon for the Spaniard to say he was under the cosh for a lot of the afternoon. Carried the ball well and got Leeds out of some tight scrapes."

Perhaps this is why McGilligan suggests fans will be "shocked" by his criticism of the Spaniard. However, when looking at the stats on SofaScore, you can see that Roca was pretty loose with the ball.

Indeed, he gave it away 13 times – the second worst rate amongst the outfield players for Leeds – and he also had a pass rate of just 79 per cent when Xhaka and Partey were up at (94% and 96%), while completing zero out of five attempted crosses.

All in all, it's easy to see why the midfielder who earns £50k-p/w left a lot to be desired on the day.

Having beaten Ireland in a last-over thriller, Oman, whose game against Netherlands was washed out, will head into their knockout shootout clash against Bangladesh high on confidence

The Preview by Mohammad Isam12-Mar-2016

Match facts

Sunday, March 13, 2016
Start time 1930 local (1400 GMT)Oman can ill afford a washout as Bangladesh are marginally ahead on net run rate•ICC/Getty Images

Big Picture

When the tournament’s schedule was first announced, few would have given Oman a chance of qualifying ahead of Bangladesh and Ireland from their group. Having beaten Ireland in a last-over thriller, Oman, whose game against Netherlands was washed out, will head into their knockout clash against Bangladesh high on confidence. But confidence alone won’t help them if the iffy Dharamsala weather intervenes. It has been raining for the last two days, and plenty more is forecast on match day. If there were to be another washout, Oman would endure heartbreak as Bangladesh are marginally ahead on net run rate.Oman would rely on Zeeshan Maqsood and Khawar Ali to power them upfront, to give Jatinder Singh and Amir Ali an opportunity to lend the finishing touches. Ajay Lalcheta and Munis Ansari, whose action resembles Lasith Malinga’s, will be key if Oman are to restrict Bangladesh’s in-form batting unit.That could be a herculean task if Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar and Sabbir Rahman tee off like they did against Ireland in eight overs before the rain came. Tamim, in particular, looks in fine touch, having made an unbeaten 83 and 47 against Netherlands and Ireland respectively. Sarkar and Sabbir would want to prolong their stay in the middle to take the pressure off the slightly out-of-touch Mushfiqur Rahim and Shakib Al Hasan.Bangladesh’s bowling may be a concern with Arafat Sunny already in Chennai to conduct his bowling action test after being warned by the ICC. He could be missed on a slow pitch, but Bangladesh have variety as Shakib, Mahmudullah and even Nasir Hossain can cover up in his absence,

Form guide

Bangladesh WLWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Oman WLLWL

Watch out for

Soumya Sarkar is becoming an expert in getting the side off to fast starts, but he has also been guilty of frittering the early advantage, as was the case against Netherlands and Ireland. The game against Oman could be a good chance for him to bat deep into the innings and bring up a score of substance.Amir Ali is a marketing manager at an Indian restaurant in Muscat but after his 17-ball 32 against Ireland, Bangladesh would have done well to mark him as one to watch out for in a high-pressure clash.

Team news

Against Ireland, Mohammad Mithun and Abu Hider replaced Nasir Hossain and Arafat Sunny. Bangladesh could retain this line-up, though Nasir’s bowling is handy in the shorter version. Bangladesh (probable): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Soumya Sarkar, 3 Sabbir Rahman, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim, 5 Shakib Al Hasan, 6 Mahmudullah, 7 Mohammad Mithun/Nasir Hossain, 8 Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), 9 Al-Amin Hossain, 10 Abu Hider, 11 Taskin AhmedUnless they spot something dramatically different in the pitch, Oman are unlikely to tinker with their starting XI Oman (probable) 1 Zeeshan Maqsood, 2 Khawar Ali, 3 Jatinder Singh, 4 Adnan Ilyas, 5 Mehran Khan, 6 Aamir Kaleem, 7 Amir Ali, 8 Sultan Ahmed (capt. & wk), 9 Ajay Lalcheta, 10 Munis Ansari, 11 Bilal Khan

Pitch and conditions

There’s more rain on the radar on Sunday. But despite being under covers for a long time on Friday, the pitch played well in the Bangladesh-Ireland game, though the bowlers preferred slower variations.

Stats and trivia

• This is going to be the first Bangladesh-Oman cricket match at any level.
• Tamim Iqbal is now 11 runs short of 1,000 T20I runs while Shakib remains at 979 runs.

Quotes

“We won’t be taking Oman lightly. We don’t have much footage for them, but we will prepare as hard as we do for India and Pakistan.”
“It is a win-win situation for us. If we win we go through to the next round, but unfortunately if we can’t do that we have still achieved a lot in this tournament.”

Media members have slammed Antony’s performance in Manchester United’s embarrassing 7-0 defeat to Liverpool, describing his display as ‘shocking’.

The Lowdown: United humiliated at Anfield

The Red Devils rocked up to Anfield full of confidence on Sunday afternoon but they ended up enduring one of their worst afternoons ever in the Premier League.

Liverpool led 1-0 at half-time after a tight opening 45 minutes, only to score six times in a galling second half, inflicting endless misery on a United side who appeared to give up on the game after the first couple flew in.

It was an afternoon full of awful individual performances, with the likes of Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro and Marcus Rashford anonymous by their recent standards.

The Latest: ‘Shocking’ Antony

It was Antony who talkSPORT’s Mark Goldbridge took to Twitter to rip into, however, slamming his effort levels at Anfield:

“I’ve defended Antony non stop but his effort levels today have been shocking. Not tracked back all game. If you don’t fight and work hard at Anfield then you don’t last long at United. Lot to learn.”

Speaking on BBC Match of the Day 2, Micah Richards said it was “like playing with 10 men” due to the Brazilian’s lack of running, while Darren Bent took to Twitter to compare the winger with Liverpool’s Darwin Nunez:

“If anyone tries to tell me Antony has had a decent season compared to Darwin Nunez they’re having a laugh.”

The Verdict: Simply not good enough

Antony has certainly divided opinion since moving from Ajax to United last summer, with some feeling that his game lacks substance in the final third too often while others enjoy his flair and bravery on the ball.

The former was certainly the case on Sunday, with the 15-cap Brazil international losing possession 18 times and also making no interceptions off the ball, in a horribly ineffective showing.

Antony’s work ethic was nowhere near good enough, allowing Andy Robertson to wreak havoc down the left flank, and his overall attitude came into question, too.

It’s only three goal contributions in the league all season for Antony – Mohamed Salah got four in one half against United – and much more is needed from him moving forward.

Manchester United could target a surprise big name arrival in the goalkeeping department despite the recent arrival of Andre Onana at Old Trafford, according to recent reports.

What's the latest news involving Manchester United?

According to The Manchester Evening News, both Mason Mount and Harry Maguire are set to be available for selection in the Red Devils' Carabao Cup tie against Crystal Palace on Tuesday after recovering from their respective injury concerns.

Due to Manchester United's shortage of players capable of playing on the right flank currently, the prospect of summer signing Mount being used on the right-hand side has been mooted in recent weeks. Erik Ten Hag hasn't ruled out turning this scenario into a reality, stating in a recent interview: "This has been discussed before, but we have options on the right and we will see how we fill it in. We have the options but also they have to be available and then you have to get the routines in. But the principles and rules – they are clear."

Recent reports emerging out of Italy have emerged claiming that Manchester United could look to make another move to try and lure Juventus midfielder Adrien Rabiot to Old Trafford in the January transfer window. Newcastle United and Atletico Madrid are also keeping tabs on the France international's situation, which is complicated further from his current employers' point of view as his contract at the Old Lady is due to expire in the summer of 2024.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, journalist Ben Jacobs also hasn't ruled out the possibility of Manchester United bidder Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani potentially submitting another bid as his quest to acquire full control at Old Trafford continues to roll on.

Who are Manchester United linked with?

According to reports in Spain, Manchester United are believed to view Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak as an extremely attractive potential acquisition at Old Trafford, though any deal would most likely occur next summer rather than in the January window.

Oblak is said to be open to a potential switch to the Premier League giants; however, Atletico Madrid will look to demand in the region of €50 million (£43 million) before sanctioning any exit for the Slovenia international.

Labelled the "best in the world" by Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone, Oblak has made a profound impact during his long spell in the Spanish capital, keeping 193 clean sheets in 398 appearances across all competitions for the La Liga giants, as per Transfermarkt.

As per FBRef, Oblak has excelled in comparison to his positional peers across Europe's top five divisions in the metric of goals conceded per 90 minutes, having shipped an average of just 0.82 combining his match involvement in the last 365 days, putting him in the 97th percentile for this statistic.

Despite current Manchester United number one Onana's inconsistent start to life at Old Trafford, it would seem harsh to look to bring in another elite-level shot-stopper in the mould of Oblak to compete for opportunities between the sticks so soon.

Glasgow Rangers secured a solid 2-0 victory over Ross County in the pouring rain at Dingwall, setting them up nicely for the trip to Eindhoven in midweek.

Michael Beale made a few changes from the 2-2 draw against PSV at Ibrox on Tuesday, and this included a start for Kemar Roofe – his first since April 2022.

Having lost their first Premiership tie against Kilmarnock and slipping immediately behind Celtic, all three points were required, and they duly delivered.

How did Rangers perform vs Ross County?

A solid, if unspectacular performance secured another win, and Beale will be pleased by how comfortably the game went by, especially in the first half.

Captain James Tavernier led by example with yet another wonderful performance, and his goal was a sight to behold.

Striding forward with purpose, the right-back looked in a menacing mood and unleashed a stunning, dipping shot that nestled into the top corner to give the Light Blues a two-goal advantage following Kemar Roofe’s opener.

Alongside his goal, the Englishman also demonstrated how effective he is going forward by making four key passes during the tie, while also succeeding with one successful dribble and taking three shots during the game.

Defensively, he won 50% of his ground duels along with making one tackle and one interception, as well as committing just one foul, which was good enough to help his team keep a clean sheet.

Read the latest Rangers transfer news HERE…

But as good as Tavernier was, it was centre-back John Souttar who was an absolute rock at the back for Beale against the Highland side, and he was a major contributing factor to the club keeping a clean sheet.

How did John Souttar perform against Ross County?

Speaking to the media before this match, fellow defender Leon Balogun praised the Scot, saying:

“I think he’s a very strong player. Last season didn’t go the way he planned as he got injured early on. Since I’ve come back, you can see that he’s a good defender and there are a few things that I’ve wanted to copy from him.

“We’ve got really good defenders in the backline and there’s no point being sour because we have big targets this season. In order to achieve them, you need a strong squad and that’s what we have.”

Against County, Souttar was a rock, while also showing how comfortable he is on the ball by taking 77 touches and completing 48 passes as he looked to start attacks from the back often.

Souttar won eight of nine total duels during the match, showcasing his physicality. He also made seven clearances, three interceptions and two tackles, and wasn’t dribbled past once across the 90 minutes.

It was a commanding performance by the former Hearts defender, and he has certainly emerged as a first-choice centre-back alongside Connor Goldson.

With two tough games against PSV and Celtic to come next week, seeing the 26-year-old in this sort of form will undoubtedly please Beale ahead of tougher tasks.

The India Under-19 head coach pointed out that while India’s rookies beat Australia in the final four years ago, more of the Australians from that title-bout have gone on to play senior international cricket

Annesha Ghosh in Mumbai05-Feb-2018

India’s Under-19 bunch might have got themselves the perfect result at the World Cup, but for head coach Rahul Dravid, their pursuit of excellence begins now. The onus to groom the youngsters for the rigours of higher-level cricket, according to Dravid, will rest as much on the players themselves as on the management going forward.”The challenges and the hard work start from here,” Dravid said in Mumbai after the team arrived in India, trophy in tow. “The hard work begins for them and for us as well, as to how we manage these boys over the next few years. Even if not a lot of them go on to play for India, it can happen… it’s not easy to get into the Indian side. It depends on the number of players who are performing – that makes it difficult to break in at times. If they go on to have successful first-class careers, then from thereon it becomes a stepping stone for international cricket.”Drawing an example from the title-winning batch of 2012, when India defeated Australia in Australia under the leadership of Unmukt Chand, Dravid pointed out that winning the World Cup alone will not be sufficient for the juniors to catapult themselves overnight into the national reckoning. He cited the instance of how only one player – medium-pacer Sandeep Sharma – went on to don national colours for the senior side, albeit only in two T20Is, whereas six of the members from the runners-up squad – Travis Head, Cameron Bancroft, Ashton Turner, Joel Paris, Ashton Agar and Gurinder Sandhu – represented Australia’s senior team subsequently.”It was quite interesting for me… during the World Cup they showed re-runs of some of the earlier finals, including that of the 2012 final, ” Dravid said. “In fact, I was watching that re-run, and I went back and started checking a few things.”It was interesting because the 2012 final featured India and Australia; the result of the final will tell you that India beat Australia. Six years down the line, while only one of those boys played a couple of one-day [T20I] games for India, four-five Australians have gone on to play for Australia. So, more of their guys have gone on to play first-class cricket. The debatable point is actually who won that final, if you look back six years later. So I think those are interesting chats and conversations to be had.”While acknowledging the limelight the World Cup triumph has brought on these cricketers needs to be savoured and not shunned in an attempt to being overly protective of budding careers, Dravid said it’s imperative that the players internalise the lessons that come with the experience.”The fact that they came to the [Mumbai] airport and saw the excitement, the noise and the people around them, I think that’s another experience [to remember]. Coming up and fronting up to you guys [the media] is another experience for them. So I’m glad they’ve had these opportunities to have these extra experiences because they won. So from my point of view that’s the plus point.”Being known players, it’s not going to be that easy for them, at least for a short period of time [while] playing domestic cricket… you know somebody talking about this performance, highlighting this performance, the expectation that comes with this. I think it’s a good learning [experience] and a challenge.”

The Western Australia captain stitched three solid partnerships to steer the total past 300 on the opening day in Perth

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Nov-2017
ScorecardMitchell Marsh guides one onto the leg side•Getty ImagesCaptain Mitchell Marsh’s 141 propelled Western Australia as they posted a solid 355 for 7 against Queensland on the opening day at the WACA.The hosts lost their opener Jonathan Wells for a duck in the second over to seamer Luke Feldman, after having elected to bat first, but the 72-run second-wicket partnership between William Bosisto (60 off 131 balls) and Hilton Cartwright (42 off 45 balls) put them in a strong position. With Brendan Doggett breaking their stand, it was Mitchell Marsh at No. 4 who stitched three solid partnerships to further bolster his side – 92 runs with Bosisto, 56 runs with Ashton Turner and 98 runs with D’Arcy Short – to steer Western Australia past 300, before Feldman struck again to dismiss him.Shortly before stumps, Short (59 off 88 balls) and Andrew Holder lost their wickets in the space of four overs to Jack Wildermuth, who finished with 3 for 69 on the day.

West Indies’ bowling coach had good things to say about his wards, especially legspinner Devendra Bishoo who has found form once again after a disappointing tour of England

Liam Brickhill in Bulawayo22-Oct-2017West Indies bowling coach Roddy Estwick credited an “outstanding” bowling attack for setting up West Indies’ first-innings lead over Zimbabwe in the first Test at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo. Estwick, who has worked with the team’s bowlers for the last 18 months, gave special mention to legspinner Devendra Bishoo, who had a quiet tour of England but came to the fore with 5 for 79 against Zimbabwe.”Over the last year the bowling department has been functioning well, so I’m not surprised that we were able to bowl them out under our score,” Estwick said. “The bowling unit has been outstanding all year, and once Bishoo came to the party. I wasn’t surprised we restricted them to this score.”Bishoo, who took just three wickets across two Tests in England, picked up the fourth five-wicket haul of his career and ran through Zimbabwe’s top order with a combination of spin, bounce and accuracy in helpful conditions on the second day.”He didn’t have the best tour of England,” Estwick conceded. “It’s a difficult place to bowl. But if you look [at the last year], he got 30 wickets in that period so he’s been quite successful. He got eight wickets in Dubai on a flat track as well, so he does his job. The bowling unit has been outstanding; you can’t fault them. They’ve been able to stay on the park and stay fresh. It’s been a long year but we keep going and we keep getting teams out.”Estwick suggested that West Indies had taken their cue from Zimbabwe’s first-day bowling effort, when the patience and consistency of the seamers set up the spinners’ demolition. “Obviously we learnt from the way that Zimbabwe bowled in their first innings where they were patient and soaked up pressure,” he said. “We tried to do the same thing, block it with our seamers and try to get wickets from the other end.”West Indies’ lead stood at 148, with nine wickets standing, at the close of play, but in what has been a fast-moving, see-sawing Test match so far Estwick also warned against any complacency. “[The pitch] is going to get a bit more difficult because it’s going to lose pace, and that means strokemaking is going to get difficult. Zimbabwe lost 7 for 53 [58] after lunch, so the game can change very quickly on a pitch like this. We’ve got to try and take the game as long as possible. Bat until lunchtime and then assess from there. You can’t get ahead of yourself on this pitch. There’s a lot of cricket left.”

Leeds United will be craving another promotion hero to crop up sooner than their last.

It took 16 long years before the Whites could make their triumphant return to the Premier League, that which was undone in just three short seasons. Now, the search is once again on to find someone to assume that role.

Daniel Farke is sure to be a key player in any success they earn in the Championship, given his proficiency in getting teams promoted from the level, but he will need to forge a team not only capable of claiming that prize, but ensuring that their top-flight stay is not a short one.

Fortunately, rumours are persisting to link them with one man who could occupy that crucial role, as a creative leader ready to spearhead that charge.

Seeking to tempt those who already have a track record of excelling at this level, few seem more available at this moment than Gustavo Hamer, given how his Coventry City side failed in their playoff push and have since lost star man Viktor Gyokeres.

While transfer insider Dean Jones has suggested any deal might not be that straightforward, the respected journalist did state that the former Netherlands youth international could potentially emulate the success of Leeds legend Pablo Hernandez, in the second tier.

Despite that, he told Football FanCast just how influential the Dutch-Brazilian maestro could be, should the Yorkshire outfit bring him in: "Yeah he could definitely be a Hernandez-type figure for them, but convincing Coventry to sell him after they've just lost Gyokeres isn't going to be easy. I'm sure Coventry will try their best to keep the rest of that team together the best that they can, but he is a great player and at this level, he's really hard to replicate."

How good is Gustavo Hamer?

To liken him to someone of Hernandez's quality should speak volumes for just how good this 26-year-old has been of late.

With nine goals and ten assists in the league last season, Mark Robins' £4m-rated midfield general actually outperformed the figures posted by the Spaniard during Leeds' promotion year.

However, it could be argued that his apex came the term earlier, as the former Valencia man had recorded 24 goal contributions in the league alone to outline himself as a true star despite failing to win the playoffs. His bravery in dropping to their level proved to be a catalyst that ignited their eventual Premier League return, which they could now once again rely on from Hamer.

After all, it would take a degree of courage for the former Feyenoord gem to make this move to a freshly-relegated outfit, even if they are one of the biggest clubs in the division.

To further emphasise the similarities between these two stars, during their two most impressive respective seasons, both would blend technical quality with defensive steel.

The 38-year-old, whilst recording three key passes, also maintained 1.6 tackles per game, via Sofascore. Meanwhile, his potential successor saw his key passes drop to 1.8 per game, but his tackles rose to 2.6, via Sofascore.

If Farke is to assemble the team in his image though, with the quality already at his disposal and more that is hopefully set to come, Hamer could underpin any potential promotion push they make in the coming campaign.

As a consistent performer at this level, and a charismatic character to boot, he would hopefully fill the creative void that has arguably been left since Hernandez departed in 2021, helping to secure an instant promotion at the first time of asking.