Category Uncategorized

Sri Lanka Cricket, who had already named a T20 squad ahead of the ODI series against India, have now announced a new 15 two days ahead of the one-off game

Andrew Fidel Fernando04-Sep-2017

Although Sri Lanka Cricket had already named a T20 squad ahead of the ODI series, two days out from the one-off match against India, the board has released a new squad, this one featuring legspinner Jeffrey Vandersay and seam-bowling allrounder Dasun Shanaka.Sri Lanka’s revised T20 squad

Upul Tharanga (capt), Angelo Mathews, Niroshan Dickwella, Dilshan Munaweera, Dasun Shanaka, Milinda Siriwardana, Wanindu Hasaranga, Akila Dananjaya, Jeffrey Vandersay, Isuru Udana, Seekkuge Prasanna, Thisara Perera, Lasith Malinga, Suranga Lakmal, Vikum Sanjaya

Also in this side are spinner Akila Dananjaya, who was Sri Lanka’s most penetrative bowler in the ODIs, seamer Suranga Lakmal, who has recovered from a back complaint, and allrounders Wanindu Hasaranga, Thisara Perera and Milinda Siriwardana. Seam bowler Isuru Udana has also been named, while Dushmantha Chameera and Vishwa Fernando have been omitted.Kusal Mendis, whom the management feels is suffering from mental fatigue, has been rested as well.Vandersay has not played a T20 for Sri Lanka since the World T20 last year, which is perhaps surprising, as he had been one of the team’s standout players in that tournament. His return was complicated by injury, but the selectors have tried other spinners ahead of him as well. Notably absent from this 15 is left-arm wristspinner Lakshan Sandakan – a more aggressive but expensive option.*On the seam-bowling front Sri Lanka have Lasith Malinga, in addition to Lakmal and Vikum Sanjaya. The most senior batsman is Angelo Mathews, and this will also be Upul Tharanga’s first match as full-time T20 captain.T20s are the one format in which Sri Lanka have a creditable record in 2017. They won both the three-match series against Australia and South Africa, and drew the two-match series against Bangladesh to keep a 5-3 win-loss record. The victories over Australia and South Africa, however, were against substantially depleted teams.The match is scheduled to be played at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on September 6.*The story had earlier stated Seekkuge Prasanna had been ommittted. However, he is in the squad.

A loss for New Zealand would dent their chances of a straightforward entry into the semi-final, while a defeat for West Indies would further hurt their net run-rate, which is already down in the negative

The Preview by Annesha Ghosh06-Jul-2017With one win, one loss, and one washed-out match, New Zealand are tottering at fifth place on the points table. They are coming off a narrow five-wicket loss to Australia, which went down to the penultimate over, but will take heart from the resistance offered by their bowlers in that match. They will also take heart from the form of their opponents – West Indies, finalists in 2013, have yet to win a match and come into this game having been dismissed for 48 against South Africa, their second-lowest total in ODIs.A loss for New Zealand would dent their chances of a straightforward entry into the semi-final, while a defeat for West Indies would further hurt their net run-rate, which is already down in the negative.West Indies captain Stafanie Taylor has stressed that “panic is not in our books”, but has also acknowledged it was “down to business time” for her side, with the threat of falling out of contention for a semi-final berth. “All the teams are in the business mood; we, too, do need to get into the business mood. It’s all about belief, going out there and getting the job done,” she said.No West Indies batsman has made a half-century in the tournament so far and they would look to heed the advice of coach Vasbert Drakes, who emphasised the importance of clarity: “I want the players to be clear in what they want to do, be clear in their decision making, be clear in their thinking.”Their chances of a turnaround will depend heavily on former captain and wicketkeeper Merissa Aguilleira finding form in her 100th ODI appearance, after scores of 1, 6 and 3 so far. Allrounder Deandra Dottin, who followed her 20-ball 29 against Australia with scores of 7 and 0, will also look to summon her might with the bat and deliver breakthroughs with her medium-pace.No West Indies batsman has yet struck a half-century in the tournament•AFPA cloud cover is likely to loom over County Ground for a major part of the day, which could assist the medium-pacers early. However, considering spinners have bagged 21 wickets as opposed to the 10 by the seamers in the three matches played so far at the venue, it’s unlikely New Zealand would risk tweaking with their four-spinner attack, led by the offspin-legspin pair of Anna Peterson and Amelia Kerr.New Zealand allrounder Amy Satterthwaite, who had returns of 6 for 17 – the best T20I bowling figures – with her medium-pace at this ground in 2007, could also find purchase with her offspin should the match be played on a used pitch. In assessing the challenges West Indies may pose, Satterthwaite echoed coach Haidee Tiffen, underlining the need for her side to guard against the mercurial nature of the opposition. “They are a dangerous side and a quality side as well and must be hurting with their start and we know that they’ll come back strong. They showed that in the way they won the World T20 title last year, so they know how to win games,” Satterthwaite said.West Indies’ resources in the bowling department are limited. Having lost their fast-bowling strike bowlers Shakera Selman and Shamilia Connell to injuries, their effectiveness revolves largely around Taylor’s offbreaks – she is the side’s leading wicket-taker in the tournament, with three dismissals. West Indies will look to left-arm spinner Shanel Daley and offspinner Afy Fletcher to back Taylor up in their pursuit of their first win on the tour so far.

Shai Hope battled to a gritty 90, leading West Indies into a handy lead, before Yasir Shah claimed another six-wicket haul to push Pakistan ahead on an attritional fourth day

The Report by Danyal Rasool03-May-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsYasir Shah claimed five wickets in the final session to turn the second Test in Pakistan’s favour•AFPIt was a memorable day of Test cricket at the Kensington Oval, but for West Indies, it was a cruel finish. After all, West Indies – led by a resolute 90 from Shai Hope that lasted over five hours – made Pakistan’s bowlers graft and toil for the majority of the day, but the defining period will be five minutes of chaos that saw his side lose three wickets in eight balls for one run. It might yet lose them a game they have grated their way back into on more than one occasion, but with the lead already 183 with one wicket in hand, the Test is still alive. Yasir Shah claimed another six-wicket haul to lead Pakistan’s fightback in the final hour.With West Indies leading by 154 runs with six wickets still in hand, thoughts may already have been turning to an early declaration on the final day. But all of a sudden, Hope sought to cover drive a flighted Yasir delivery through the air, perfectly picking out Azhar Ali at cover. The next ball saw Vishaul Singh, the other set batsman, drag an inswinging delivery from Mohammad Abbas onto his stumps. Six deliveries on, Jason Holder poked at one from Yasir, and even as the light eroded, Younis Khan was never going to drop that.There was still enough time for West Indies’ last recognised batsman – Shane Dowrich – to edge one that ballooned up for an easy catch to second slip. Yasir dismissed Alzarri Joseph soon after to take his innings tally to six, and West Indies’ hard work crumbled.They had begun the final session with the resoluteness that characterised their batting all day. The runs, which had begun to flow a little too freely, dried up after tea as Misbah operated spin from both ends, waiting for the new ball. The likelihood of a wicket seemed to recede with both Vishaul and Hope looking increasingly comfortable, and West Indies began to take hold of the game. Shadab came closest to a breakthrough with an lbw shout against Vishaul that Pakistan decided to review, only to be thwarted by the on-field umpire’s call. As a result, the breakthrough Yasir provided through Hope’s moment of ill-judgment will seem even more fateful, coming as it did at a time when the hosts were looking to bat Pakistan out of the game.Momentum in the first session had fluctuated, a half-century partnership between Kraigg Brathwaite and Hope steering West Indies into the lead. West Indies got off to a terrible start, having added only one run to their overnight score when Shimron Hetmyer, who had looked convincing on the third evening, was dismissed by Mohammad Amir. The manner of the wicket was identical to his dismissal in Jamaica, the ball seaming back in sharply to crash into the stumps.Hope and Brathwaite batted more positively after coming together, but just as it looked like West Indies might creep into the ascendancy once more, Brathwaite was undone by a combination of vicious spin from Yasir and staggering reflexes from Younis. Yasir pitched one well outside leg stump from around the wicket, which spun sharply across and clipped the shoulder of his bat. Younis dived to his right with agility and reflexes that belied his age, holding on to a splendid one-handed catch that could end up being as crucial as any runs he scores this game.The afternoon session was a cagey affair as Yasir resumed the session by bowling around the wicket again to exploit the rough, while Roston Chase and Hope kept him at bay. Mohammad Abbas and Mohammad Amir kept chipping away laboriously from the other end, as Misbah appeared reluctant to trust a misfiring Shadab with runs at a premium. But it was Yasir’s persistence from around the wicket that finally paid off for Pakistan when he drew Chase into driving him on the up. Chase hadn’t been able to get to the pitch of the ball, and the drive came straight back to Yasir for an easy catch, giving Pakistan a breakthrough they needed badly.

Four-fors from Varun Aaron (4-20) and medium-pacer Rahul Shukla (4-32) helped Jharkhand defend a total of 125 to beat Saurashtra by 42 runs at Eden Gardens. Saurashtra’s chase lasted only 25.1 overs with all ten wickets falling to pace. Aaron prised out key wickets in the middle order, before Shukla and left-arm seamer Jaskaran Singh cleaned up the tail.Like Saurashtra, Jharkhand, too, lost all their wickets to pace. Kushang Patel carved up the top order, first getting the early wicket of opener Anand Singh and then breaking a 43-run, second-wicket stand to trigger a Jharkhand slump in which they lost nine wickets for 64. Kushang, who was on a hat-trick in the 10th over, finished with 4 for 39, while Shaurya Sanandia cleaned up the lower order for career-best returns of 5 for 47. Jharkhand were propped up by a 40-ball 53 from Ishan Kishan and MS Dhoni’s 24-ball 23.Ashutosh Singh’s 98-ball 65 was in vain as Chhattisgarh suffered a four-run defeat against Hyderabad in Kolkata. Ashutosh’s wicket off the first ball of the final over left Chhattisgarh needing eight runs from five balls, of which they could only manage three. His half-century, however, had helped them rally after they were struggling at 78 for 5 in the 20th over. Ravi Kiran, Chama Milind and Mehdi Hassan and Mohammad Siraj took two wickets each for Hyderabad.Bavanaka Sandeep’s unbeaten 70 off 99 balls was the top score in Hyderabad’s innings as they were bowled out for 197 despite starts from the top order. Three run-outs and a slump in the middle overs – they lost four wickets for eight runs between the 25th and 28th overs – limited Hyderabad’s total.Jammu & Kashmir suffered a 24-run defeat against Services. Chasing 215, J&K were bowled out for 190, having lost their middle order during a four-wicket slide for only 20 runs between the 21st and 27th overs. Puneet Bisht and Ram Dayal resisted for J&K but once Bisht was dismissed for 45, J&K collapsed quickly and were out in the 46th over. Ahmed Bandy top-scored for them with 59 off 65 balls, having contributed heavily at the start. Left-arm spinner Vipin Singh took 3 for 41.Services, too, crumbled in the middle overs, after their top order, particularly Nakul Verma (68) and Shamsher Yadav (52), had done the hard work of establishing a platform with a 99-run partnership for the third wicket. They lost five wickets for only one run between the 37th and 40th overs, collapsing from 164 for 2 to 169 for 7, before eventually being bowled out for 214. Parvez Rasool took 3 for 36 while Mohammed Mudhasir and Manzoor Dar took two wickets each.

Erling Haaland has revealed the unusual sleeping habits that help to make him a goal machine, with the Manchester City striker taping his mouth shut!

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

Norwegian hit 52 goals last seasonIn prolific form again this termAlways looking to improveWHAT HAPPENED?

The Norway international hit 52 goals for Treble-winning City last season, allowing him to collect the PFA Players’ Player of the Year award, and has already found the target on three occasions in 2023-24. The 23-year-old frontman continues to terrorise opposition defences, with few able to find a way of containing the obvious threat that he poses.

AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Haaland is always looking to better himself – allowing him to remain one step ahead of his rivals – and that process extends as far as his bedtime routine. In order to be in peak condition every time that he takes to the field, the fearsome forward leaves no stone unturned in a bid to achieve marginal gains.

WHAT THEY SAID

Haaland has told Logan Paul’s YouTube show of his somewhat bizarre sleeping rituals: “Movement, training, biomechanics, I’m a bit into, to use your body and make it work and function in the best possible way – I’m really into that. And I think sleep is the most important thing in the world. So to sleep good, simple kind of things – blue blocking glasses, shutting out all the signals in the bedroom, I think is really important. [It’s about] small things. I think to do a lot of things is not good but to do small things every single day for a longer period really pays off.” He added when Paul revealed that he uses tape on his nose in a bid to open up his airways: “You should try and tape your mouth then! Why not! [Or] when you train? It would be a bit difficult. I have it, I sleep with it.”

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

GettyWHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

Haaland also said of using a sauna on a daily basis: “I have it at my home so I try and do it not every single day but almost every day. Sauna, steam room.” His methods may not be to everyone’s taste, but they are clearly working and there is the promise of many more goals to come from the current holder of the Premier League’s Golden Boot.

New Zealand opener Tom Latham has said his team will “certainly” be looking to go after whatever target Bangladesh set, if they can bowl them out quickly enough on day five

Mohammad Isam at Basin Reserve15-Jan-2017

New Zealand opener Tom Latham has said his team will “certainly” be looking to go after whatever target Bangladesh set, if they can bowl them out quickly enough on day five. The key to bowling them out, he said, would be to sow “doubt” in their batsmen’s minds.That the hosts could even think of chasing a win was down to Bangladesh’s late collapse on day four at Basin Reserve. The visitors ended 122 ahead with seven wickets in hand, but, in addition to some carelessness in the final half hour, they also had injury issues: Imrul Kayes was stretchered off with a thigh injury, while Mushfiqur Rahim will have to bat with hurt fingers should he be needed. Among the wickets were Tamim Iqbal – bowled by left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner after misjudging the length on an attempted cut – Mahmudullah – caught down the leg side – and nightwatchman Mehedi Hasan run out looking for a second off what turned out to be the last ball of the day. Bangladesh slipped from 46 for no loss to 66 for 3.”I wouldn’t say you sense the panic [in the Bangladesh batsmen], but we’ve got three world-class seamers and a very good spinner. If we can put the ball in good areas for long enough then hopefully we can create that doubt,” Latham, who registered his highest Test score of 177 in getting New Zealand to 539, said. “If we can keep taking wickets in clumps and if they don’t build any partnerships, that’s the key for us.”Possibly it might start going up and down and might start turning a little bit more. I still think it’s a very good batting surface though, and if we are chasing a score partnerships will be a key to winning. We like to play a winning brand of cricket and whatever the score is, hopefully it’s a reasonable chase and we’ll certainly be having a go at it. It’s a massive day tomorrow and that first hour is going to set the tone.”Latham said that fast bowler Neil Wagner was fine despite being struck three times during his 31-ball innings. Wagner was first hit on the helmet by a Kamrul Islam Rabbi bouncer before the same pacer struck him twice more off consecutive balls, one of which left him with a cut on his chin.”It’s never nice to see a team-mate get hit,” Latham said. “The medical team were out there and they were assessing him, and we’ve got to leave it in their hands. He was fine, he’s a pretty tough character.”

Leeds United's relegation has condemned them to at least another year of Championship football, just three years after they thought they had left that league for good.

Whilst their 2004 demotion came as a shock to most, their 16-year failure to return to the top flight surpassed all of these emotions. They had gone from a sleeping giant to a comatose one, and it felt like no matter what occurred they would never earn that romantic Premier League return.

That was until Marcelo Bielsa was appointed, and his magic enacted.

His team was steely and hard-working, completely enamoured with a hard-working philosophy that saw them dominate the division. It was the perfect storm, with Kalvin Phillips conducting from within its eye.

An academy graduate handed a show of faith in a league where the top-flight often send their youngsters to develop, he instead was allowed to learn on the job, quickly becoming their most influential player. That promotion year saw the 27-year-old maintain a 7.28 average rating, alongside 1.8 key passes and 2.6 tackles per game, via Sofascore.

Now, in an effort to repeat that feat at the first time of asking, perhaps they could once again seek to put their faith in the academy, with Sean McGurk surely high on the list for those deserving of a first-team berth.

Who is Sean McGurk?

His potential inclusion within the senior squad is made all the more likely given the expected exit of Luis Sinisterra, who The Athletic suggest could seek to move, with a reported release clause encouraging this. With the possibility of relegation now a reality, the Colombian will be a fine signing for someone out there should he find fitness.

After all, his tally of seven goals in all competitions, whilst slightly underwhelming, was largely marred by a lack of fitness throughout the term.

His failure to adapt to the physicality of the English game cost him, especially after the 23-year-old joined having hit 23 goals and 14 assists the season prior in Holland.

Although having posted numbers nowhere near this level, McGurk has remained one of Michael Skubala's most consistent performers from that left flank, with his six goal contributions in 17 games a solid return. He has been a mainstay in the side that recently earned promotion into the Premier League 1 Division 1.

Seeking to cut in from his wing onto that favoured right foot, the 20-year-old boasts similarly blistering pace and sought to outline his other outstanding attributes after joining the club in 2021: "People describe me as a player who is quite exciting, I like to create goals and score goals and I think that is the strongest part of my game."

Whilst that is yet to shine through in the U21s, perhaps a promotion into the senior squad could see him realise this potential at the Championship level. After all, it only takes the new manager to hand him a few starts to figure out whether he can terrorise the division.

With his frightening speed, quick feet and youthful energy, that is sure to be a given though.

As the search for a new permanent manager continues at Tottenham Hotspur, supporters will likely be fearful of seeing a repeat of the protracted quest to find a replacement for Jose Mourinho back in 2021, with chairman Daniel Levy having missed out on a string of potential targets before settling on Nuno Espirito Santo.

The fear will be that history may be repeating itself, with the Lilywhites having already seen a possible candidate in the form of former boss Mauricio Pochettino opt to join rivals Chelsea, while German visionary, Julian Nagelsmann – who appeared to be a favourite for the role – is also now out of the running.

With the end of the season rapidly approaching, Levy will surely have to settle on a new full-time appointment sooner rather than later, with the Englishman also likely to be sweating over the future of talisman, Harry Kane, with the England skipper being linked with a move to Manchester United amid his expiring contract.

According to Daily Express journalist Ryan Taylor, however, the north Londoners could well ease those fears over the 29-year-old's potential exit by turning to Bayer Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso as the long-term successor to Antonio Conte, with the 41-year-old's arrival at N17 possibly set to be enough to tempt Kane into staying put.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT about the future of the prolific striker, the respected insider stated: "It depends really. Obviously, he wants to win trophies, but at the same time, you could also launch a counter-argument for that as he's had Conte, he's had José Mourinho, he’s had Mauricio Pochettino and still not won a trophy.

"So it depends on what he wants to do, if he's happy to stay, I think someone like Xabi Alonso might actually excite him. I think it's clear Alonso is a forward-thinking manager with fresh ideas, and he's well respected in the game.”

This comes amid a recent report from Sky Sports that named Alonso as a target – in the wake of the shock Nagelsmann blow – with the piece revealing that senior figures at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium are admirers of the Spaniard.

Would Xabi Alonso be a good appointment for Spurs?

As per Taylor, the capture of the former Real Madrid and Liverpool midfielder may prove enough to sway Kane's thinking this summer, with 3-4-3-based Alonso having made a promising start to life as a manager at senior level.

Having taken the reins at Leverkusen back in October after previously spending over three years with Real Sociedad's B team, the up-and-coming coach has quickly caught the eye due to his fine work, having turned the Bundesliga side from relegation contenders to European hopefuls in such a short space of time.

With the German outift having been languishing in 17th with just one win from their opening eight matches of the season at the time of his arrival, the one-time Bayern Munich maestro has since guided his new side up to seventh in the table, as well as taking them to the semi-finals of the Europa League.

Currently trailing 1-0 following the first-leg meeting with Jose Mourinho's Roma side in that competition, Alonso has received notable praise from the former Spurs boss in recent times, with the Portuguese ace stating that he "has all the conditions to be a very good coach.”

The Tolosa-born gem has also received a glowing assessment from Leverkusen starlet Jeremie Frimpong who hailed him as a "great coach", with the hope being that Alonso can replicate such a turnaround in fortunes were he to move to north London.

On the evidence of his early work in Germany, it is easy to see why Kane – and his teammates – could be excited by the potential appointment of the World Cup winner.

West Indies coach Phil Simmons lauded the side’s top order for driving their four-wicket win over Australia in the ODI tri-series match in Basseterre

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Jun-20162:36

Top four have been asked to put their dancing shoes on – Simmons

West Indies coach Phil Simmons has credited the side’s top order for driving their four-wicket win over Australia in the ODI tri-series match in Basseterre. Marlon Samuels led the 266-run chase with an aggressive 92, after West Indies benefited from a brisk opening stand of 74 between Johnson Charles and Andre Fletcher, and Darren Bravo’s 39 at No. 3.Charles and Fletcher took advantage of the short boundaries at Warner Park to collect six fours and three sixes in the first seven overs. Their swift partnership also allowed Samuels and Bravo to settle and forge an 82-run stand for the third wicket. Once Bravo was dismissed in the 31st over, Samuels opened up to attack the Australian bowlers and helped ensure a comfortable victory for West Indies.”The pressure has been put on the top four to make sure that they set up whatever we have to do at the bottom,” Simmons said. “We know how devastating we can be at the end of an innings with the players we have, so the top four have been asked to put their dancing shoes on and make sure that we are in a position where the latter part of the batting can do what they do, and they’ve done that today and they’ve seen us through.”The 87-ball 92 was Samuels’ second fifty across formats in 2016, after his match-winning 85 not out in the World T20 final against England in April. He had a poor tour of Australia in December-January – scoring only 35 runs in five innings of the three-Test series – and copped heavy criticism, and one of his critics was former Australia legspinner Shane Warne, with whom he had an infamous run-in during the Big Bash in 2013. After his Man-of-the-Match winning knock in the World T20 final, Samuels made a reference to those comments and dedicated his award to Warne. Simmons, however, believed Samuels had left those feelings at the World T20.”I think the fact that he has taken us to victory in the game will be enough for him. I don’t think he’s still worrying about what some people in Australia said,” he said. “I think he answered that in the World T20 final. I think he’s left that there. He’s just happy to score the runs and help the team win.”The West Indies coach stressed the importance of the experience that Samuels and Kieron Pollard brought to the their line-up. Charles and Fletcher have opened in only six ODIs so far and with a young captain in Jason Holder, Simmons believed Samuels and Pollard were important to the side.”In every team you can see there’s experience. You have to have experience all through the team,” he said. “Most of the teams in the world, you have young guys coming in, but only one or two [youngsters] and the rest of the team is experienced veterans, you would call them; after five years, you are a veteran. It’s great to have him, it’s great to have Pollard back because he’s experienced in limited-overs cricket, young Bravo is getting there. So it’s great to have that sort of experience especially where Jason is a young captain and Carlos [Brathwaite] is young.”Despite the victory, Simmons had an area of concern he wanted the side to address, specifically the importance of set batsmen carrying on and finishing the game.”Marlon and Bravo finishing off the game rather than somebody getting out. It’s a case where we have two guys who have put us in a position and they need to carry on. I think there can be a little bit of improvement,” he said. “We are always looking to improve our fielding, which I think today was as good as it has been. And I think we are looking to improve on where we bowl in the first 10 overs and things like that.”

Fidel Edwards has suffered a fractured right ankle after injuring himself in warm-ups ahead of the final day of Hampshire’s County Championship match against Yorkshire at Headingley

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Apr-2016Fidel Edwards has suffered a fractured right ankle after injuring himself during a football game in warm-ups ahead of the final day of Hampshire’s County Championship match against Yorkshire at Headingley.Edwards will see a specialist on Thursday which will give a clearer idea of the length of time he faces on the sidelines but he is set to miss a considerable chunk of the season.On Thursday morning he posted Instagram photos of him in hospital in Leeds and said: “I broke my leg,” before thanking doctors for their help.Hampshire had been evasive on Wednesday when asked to confirm that Edwards had joined a long list of county cricketers over the years to be injured in a football kickabout, preferring to call it a “running injury – not a football injury”.Dale Benkenstein, Hampshire’s coach, was more forthcoming. “We were only 45 seconds away from the end of the game when Fidel went to kick the ball,” he told “I was just about to get the mitts on for fielding practice when his foot got stuck in the turf and all his weight went over on it. There was no-one near him, it was a really freakish fall and there was a loud crack.”Hampshire have suffered an extensive early-season injury list and will have to explore the loan market for extra resources. Reece Topley suffered a broken hand in the opening match of the season against Warwickshire, Chris Wood suffered a knee injury in the first innings against Yorkshire (although he was able to bowl in the second) and Liam Dawson picked up an abdominal strain in the same match.Despite their injury woes, however, Hampshire have secured battling draws in their opening two Championship matches of the season. Against Yorkshire, they showed considerable resolve to save the follow-on having conceded 593.They also face the prospect of losing James Vince next month with him being heavily tipped for a place in England’s middle order against Sri Lanka.