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The winger is dealing with a minor injury and Milan are reportedly hesitant to risk him ahead of the Serie A season

Pulisic dealing with injuryCould miss final preseason gamesMilan set to face Leeds and ChelseaFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱Getty Images SportWHAT HAPPENED?

U.S. international Christian Pulisic could miss the rest of AC Milan's preseason, including an upcoming clash with former club Chelsea, due to a reported knock suffered earlier in the tour.

The U.S. men's national team star played Milan's preseason opener against Liverpool but reportedly suffered a minor injury in the 3-2 win in Hong Kong. He sat out the subsequent match against Perth Glory, with Milan's staff preferring to rest him rather than risk him in a friendly against the Australian side.

Now, per Gazetta dello Sport, Pulisic's condition is still seen as being day-to-day, and he will continue to be evaluated by the club's medical staff. It's uncertain at the moment if he'll feature in the club's final two preseason friendlies against Leeds on Aug. 9 and Chelsea on Aug. 10.

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Pulisic is no stranger to injury issues, and he suffered through a few during his standout 2024-25 season. Throughout the campaign, he missed several matches due to muscle issues, but ultimately did go on to make 50 appearances in all competitions for the second consecutive season.

Heading into the summer, though, Pulisic opted out of playing in the Gold Cup, telling USMNT boss Mauricio Pochettino that he needed a summer of rest one year out from the 2026 World Cup. That decision, ultimately, sent shockwaves throughout American soccer, putting Pulisic in the spotlight ahead of this 2025-26 AC Milan campaign.

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Pulisic had his best season for Milan in their most recent campaign, totalling 17 goals and 11 assists in all competitions, helping the club win the Supercoppa Italiana. It wasn't enough for Milan to earn European soccer, though, as they finished eighth in Serie A, prompting the arrival of new manager Massimiliano Allegri.

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GettyWHAT NEXT FOR PULISIC?

Following the two upcoming friendlies against Premier League sides, Pulisic and AC Milan will kickstart the campaign in the Coppa Italia against Bari on Aug. 17 and then open their Serie A season at home on Aug. 23 when they face Cremonese.

Dean Headley spoke to Cricinfo about his Ashes memories from 1997

14-Jul-2005Dean Headley played in 15 Tests – including six matches against Australia -before injury cut short his career in 2001. He is now a director of a newspaper in Kent. Cricinfo spoke to him about his role in the 1997 Ashes series.

Dean Headley © Getty Images
Fourth Test – at HeadingleyMichael Atherton and Nasser Hussain have always taken the mickey out of me for being a blocker, but in that match I hit 22 and I actually played some shots. I played a couple of drives off McGrath through extra cover, I hit a few fours, but then eventually got caught out at gully – then we had a collapse. But I enjoyed batting that day.I was out lbw for 3 in the second innings, which was probably a fair call! I leave it up to the umpires and, of course, at the end of the day I’ve also got to bowl. If you protest, they might not give you some wickets later.Fifth Test – at Trent BridgeIn the fifth Test at Trent Bridge, I’ve never played cricket like that. If I’m having a bad day, I’m having a bad day, but against Australia I played six Tests and seemed to bowl well in them. It didn’t all go our way – at Headingley, I went for over 100 runs for two wickets and I got hit all over the place, but my whole philosophy has been to try and to keep going. I’m not the best technical bowler but I bowl in my own style and it seemed to work.

The news that only three of the West Indies squad selected to tour Sri Lanka have signed the board’s match/tour contract raises the likelihood of another damaging dispute in the Caribbean

Martin Williamson26-Jun-2005

Shivnarine Chanderpaul: one of just three players to sign the board’s match/tour contract © Getty Images
The news that only three of the West Indies squad selected to tour Sri Lanka have signed the board’s match/tour contract raises the likelihood of another damaging dispute in the Caribbean. The long shot could be the cancellation of the trip, or even that the A team will be drafted in to take the places of the rebels, although it is far from certain that many of them would be willing to sign the match/tour contracts either.The latest standoff has come about because the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has insisted that all the players agree to a controversial clause – the much-debated clause five – which critics claim signs away their personal commercial and image rights, even though the board counters that it does not. This was the same issue which led to several players missing the first Test against South Africa in Guyana in April.That the board has again attempted to force this clause through has caused considerable unease, even anger, within the squad, and while they backed down two months ago, there seems to be a more steely resolve in their ranks this time. The West Indies Players Association (WIPA) has again found itself at loggerheads with the WICB, but as Dinanath Ramnarine, the WIPA chairman, insists, it is only carrying out the wishes of its members.The problem the players have with clause five is that it is, in their eyes, so one-sided. The claim is that the board can instruct players to void existing contracts, or decline them the right to enter into new ones, and yet is only willing to pay them on a series-by-series basis. The consensus is that if they had a system of central contracts, then this kind of demand would be more acceptable. The WICB claims that WIPA has not been willing to meet with it to discuss central contracts, although WIPA’s response is that this matter cannot be tackled until more fundamental issues have been resolved.

Dinanath Ramnarine insists the players’ board is only carrying out the wishes of its members © Getty Images
There are further issues in that it is suggested that the deal the board signed with Digicel means that any player “eligible for selection for the national side” falls under this umbrella of being controlled as to what they can and cannot do regarding personal endorsements. That would mean that any West Indies-qualified cricketer could be restricted concerning their use of their personal image rights, and yet get no benefit from the board.Although the board categorically denies this, the crux of the standoff remains the exact details of the Digicel deal. WIPA is quite adamant that the board has signed over rights over which is has no authority, but the board refuses to release the contract, arguing that it is a commercially-sensitive document and that the WICB, as a private company, has no obligation to make it public. That gives critics ammunition to counter that the deal is so one-sided that Digicel are effectively calling all the shots, adding that it is the very content of the contract which is the reason the board has kept the details close to its chest.The board’s moral high ground has been weakened of late by its reluctance to put certain issues before an independent arbitrator. WIPA is insisting that the WICB’s sponsorship with Digicel be included in the adjudication because it believes that players’ individual rights were sold to the company. The board wants to limit the adjudication to whether the personal endorsement contracts signed by players with Cable & Wireless were entered into as individuals or as members of the West Indies team. The end result is stalemate. And by insisting that it will abide by the decision of the arbitration, WIPA and the players have stolen the higher moral ground until now occupied by the board.Behind the scenes, there is much activity, and relations between the players and the board continue to deteriorate. Earlier this week Roger Braithwaite, the WICB’s chief executive, looked to shift the blame onto WIPA when he told reporters that his board “had made every attempt to avoid this [situation] by submitting the match/tour contract to WIPA on June 2 but there was no response by WIPA.” But Cricinfo has seen a copy of a reply sent by Ramnarine dated June 13 responding to this very matter.On Wednesday night, Ramnarine made another attempt to resolve the issue by again urging the WICB to agree to arbitration, but on Friday this offer was declined. With every passing day, the suspicion grows that there might be more to the Digicel deal than is being admitted. But if the matter goes to arbitration, then the details of the contract will have to be revealed.The net result is that the WICB has a squad of three players and it now seems unlikely that it will be able to make that up to a full tour party from within the A team currently in Sri Lanka. That would leave the board either trawling round the islands to find enough players or calling off the tour – and a cancellation would leave it open to financial punishment from the ICC and the Sri Lankan authorities.The only hope is that the arbitrator is allowed to do what he has been appointed to do and that, one way or the other, a solution is found. But history suggests that this sorry affair has quite some way to run.

The regular Monday column in which Steven Lynch answers your questions about (almost) any aspect of cricket

Steven Lynch12-Jun-2006The regular Monday column in which Steven Lynch answers your questions about (almost) any aspect of cricket:

Even with Warne around, MacGill has often been the main man © AFP
Is it true that Stuart MacGill has outbowled Shane Warne in the matches they have played together? asked Aaron Thomas from Melbourne
It is true, although there isn’t an awful lot in it. The two legspinners have played together in 16 Tests – five of them at Sydney – and Stuart MacGill has taken 82 wickets at 22.11 in those matches. Shane Warne has taken 74 wickets at 29.57 in the same games. MacGill shades Warne on strike rate, too – a wicket every 41.7 balls in those matches, while Warne struck once every 56.6 balls. MacGill’s best bowling is 8 for 108 against Bangladesh at Fatullah in 2005-06, while Warne’s best return when MacGill has been on the same side is 6 for 80 against West Indies at Adelaide, also in 2005-06.Who scored two different centuries on successive days in a Test match? asked Gokul Sudhakar from Delhi
Vijay Hazare, the prolific Indian batsman, did this in the fourth Test against Australia at Adelaide in 1947-48. On the third day Hazare made 108 of his eventual 116, then, on the fourth day, moved to 108 as India followed on. He was out on the fifth day for 145. It was quite a match for Hazare – he also dismissed Don Bradman, although he had made 201 before Hazare managed to bowl him.I know that Murali holds the record for five-fors in Tests – but who holds the ODI record? asked Asela from Sri Lanka
The man with the most five-wicket hauls in one-day internationals is Pakistan’s Waqar Younis, with 13. Muttiah Muralitharan comes next with eight, ahead of Glenn McGrath (seven), Lance Klusener, Saqlain Mushtaq and Wasim Akram (all six). For a list of the leading wicket-takers in ODIs, click here. You’re right that Murali leads the way in Tests, with 53 five-wicket bags in 106 Tests – exactly one every two matches – well ahead of Richard Hadlee and Shane Warne, who have both taken five or more in an innings on 36 occasions.Who has made the highest Test score for and against Bangladesh? asked Mohammad Imran from Dhaka
The highest individual innings for Bangladesh in their 44 Tests to date is 158 not out, by Mohammad Ashraful against India at Chittagong in 2004-05. Ashraful has made three of Bangladesh’s 12 Test centuries so far, a record he shares with his captain Habibul Bashar. The highest score against them is 261 not out, by Ramnaresh Sarwan for West Indies at Kingston in June 2004.Apparently the five players who have appeared in most Sheffield Shield/Pura Cup matches have only seven Test caps between them. Who are they? asked Graham Frost from Australia
Jamie Cox of Tasmania has played in more matches in Australia’s premier domestic competition than anyone else, with 161 appearances. He went past John Inverarity’s old record of 159 Shield appearances during 2005-06. Next up at the moment come Jamie Siddons (146 matches), Stuart Law (142) and Darren Berry (139). The top five did indeed win seven Test caps between them – and Inverarity accounts for six of those. Law won the other one. Darren Lehmann has currently played 137 such matches, so is likely to move up the table during the forthcoming Australian season. For a full list, click here.Who called his autobiography Perchance to Bowl? I’m guessing it was a wicketkeeper! asked Jamie McDonald from Cardiff
You’re right, it was indeed a wicketkeeper: John Waite, the first South African to win 50 Test caps. Waite made his debut on the 1951 tour of England, and played on till 1964-65, scoring 2405 runs in addition to making 141 dismissals behind the stumps. His book was published in 1961.And there are some possible additions to last week’s item on reverse-swept sixes:
Anthony Bull writes: “I am pretty certain that Craig McMillan did it against Pakistan in New Zealand in the Test where he set the record for runs in one over. Not sure of the other details.” Gareth Kiernan, also from NZ, adds: “Craig McMillan reverse-pulled Daniel Vettori for six in the Shell Cup semi-final in 1999, having reverse-swept him for four the previous ball. He was into position so quickly for the pull shot that it went over point.” Somesh Verma from Nepal ventures: “Andy Flower, on an India tour, hit four sixes, all through reverse-sweeps, in one of the Test innings.” [These might have been fours: Flower never hit more than two sixes in a Test innings in India – SL.]Fahim Khondekhar has another Flower story: “Andy Flower was playing an ING Cup game in Australia and while in the nineties he reverse-swept the bowler for six. What was amazing was his first attempt just barely cleared the fielder at square leg, and instead of losing courage he attempted it again the very next ball. Nice way to bring up your hundred.” John van der Westhuizen writes on behalf of a fellow South African: “When West Indies toured South Africa in 1998, they lost the Test series 5-0. On his way to a second-innings century, I saw Jonty Rhodes reverse-sweep a six in the Centurion Test, the last of the series.” Shanthal Perera writes from America: “Brian McMillan reverse-swept Murali, I think for a six, in one of the group matches in the one-day tournament in Kenya in 1996-97.” Rajesh Mehta has a slightly different memory: “During the first four-nations tournament in Kenya in 1996-97, I remember Brian McMillan of South Africa reverse-sweeping Sanath Jayasuriya for a six at the Nairobi Club.” And Andrew Schwilk from Australia concludes: “I can recall Darren Gough reverse-pulling Gavin Robertson for six in a one-dayer at the MCG, which is no mean feat.”

Sachin Tendulkar’s 154 was an expert innings from a batsman in control, someone who knew what the situation demanded

Siddhartha Vaidyanathan at the SCG04-Jan-2008

The Sydney crowd savoured a masterclass from Sachin Tendulkar © Getty Images
A banner at the ground summed up Australia’s affection for Sachin Tendulkar. “Commit all your crimes when Sachin is batting,” it read. “They will go unnoticed because even the Lord is watching.” Great players have a feel for the big stage and Tendulkar couldn’t have chosen a better moment to turn in such a regal performance. Efficient and authoritative, this was a flawless innings.He had a royal audience. Neil Harvey and Arthur Morris, two Invincibles, were here. Steve Waugh had come in, as had the prime minister. Morris couldn’t stop gushing about the ‘little’ batsman. “The Don and me were right,” he smiled. “Little men like batting on this ground.” A nonagenarian on a wheelchair entered the ground at lunch with only one question on his lips, “Is still there?” The adulation reserved for Tendulkar often make him appear like an Australian hero.When a bunch of school boys, sitting in the Monty Noble stand, were being noisy after lunch the teacher who had accompanied them screamed, “Nobody talks when Tendulkar is on strike”. Soon the boys started chanting: “Nobody talks when Sachin strikes”. The heartfelt applause when he reached hundred carried on for close to two minutes. First there was a cheer for the couple, then an even bigger one for the celebration. Sydneysiders knew they were witnessing something special; importantly they knew they may never see him again.Here was an expert innings from a batsman in control, someone who knew what the situation demanded. Tendulkar’s dazzling array of strokes make him the icon that he is but it’s his consolidation skills that make him revered. Some batsmen give you a chance, Tendulkar, in this mood, gives you no hope.It was an innings reminiscent of his 194 in Multan four years ago. Virender Sehwag had pummelled the Pakistan attack before India needed someone to build the advantage. It’s ideal for Tendulkar, a master at knowing how to make use of an advantage. VVS Laxman’s innings pushed Australia back but it took Tendulkar’s masterclass to open up the Test. Ignition is vital but it means nothing if there’s nobody to switch on cruise control.If Laxman loves batting at Sydney, Tendulkar seems obsessed with it. In four Tests here he’s rattled 148 not out, 45, 4, 241 not out, 60 not out and 154 not out. His average here is a staggering 326. Add a couple of fine one-day innings here, including a 54 not out in the 1992 World Cup match against Pakistan, and you have someone turned on by the SCG. “Sachin Cricket Ground,” said a banner fittingly.He ran hard, both for himself and his partners. He trusted the tailenders, a tactic which Brett Lee was to later term “brilliant”. Bowling to a great batsman is bad enough, knowing he trusts his allies more so. He refused to farm the strike and saw his tactic pay off with Nos. 9, 10 and 11.Here was an expert innings from a batsman in control, someone who knew what the situation demanded. Tendulkar’s dazzling array of strokes make him the icon that he is but it’s his consolidation skills that make him reveredAmid this run-accumulation were sparks of brilliance. Anil Kumble’s wicket perked him up: two fours dripped off his bat. Lee had trapped him with the wide one in Melbourne and he chose to slash more judiciously. Rarely did he flash awkwardly and, even when it was airy, it was well over. The second fifty came up in exactly two hours, a precision Tendulkar displayed through his innings, knowing when to score and when to leave.He chugged along with a bit of help from his friends. Sourav Ganguly conjured up some magical strokes to provide the impetus early on before Harbhajan Singh joined in the fun. “I’ve always believed that Harbhajan can bat,” said Tendulkar before cheekily adding, “and Harbhajan has believed in that more than I do.” Close friends who love to play pranks on team-mates, the duo thwarted the Australian attack – Harbhajan with unconventional shots, Tendulkar with mathematical exactitude.Tendulkar’s childhood coach loved to take him from one game to another, fitting in three or four matches in a day. When he was out in one game, he would be put in the back seat of the scooter and taken straight to another. Tendulkar has spoken about how that shaped him as a cricketer. It was fitting to see him walk into the press conference with the bat in hand. Nobody could get him out on the field and he was ready for more at the end of the day.

Osman Samiuddin on Pakistan’s recurring problems with extras in the ODIs against Bangladesh

Osman Samiuddin15-Apr-2008
Wide gulf: Pakistan’s bowlers have conceded 28 more extras than their Bangladeshi counterparts in the series so far © AFP
In few departments of the game have Bangladesh been visibly better than Pakistan in this series. Their batting, though improving, has been fitful and when they have scored runs, they have given away the fruits of their effort. Their bowling has broadly been ineffective, save the admirable Mashrafe Mortaza. Bangladesh’s youth possibly edges the fielding stakes, though not by much.But the one department where Bangladesh are better off is the discipline of their bowlers. In three matches so far, they have given away 32 extras, of which 19 were wides. Moreover, they have bowled just a solitary no-ball in the series, and that too was a beamer from Shahadat Hossain.In contrast, Pakistan have leaked 60 extras in three matches, of which 39 are wides and 10 front-foot no-balls. Against Zimbabwe earlier in the year, Pakistan conceded 80 extras in five games, with 62 wides and 10 no-balls. Under the free-hit rule, even a single no-ball is a sin and witha coach who is an ex-bowler himself, even more so. But this is an old, embedded problem that has afflicted most Pakistan pace bowlers through the 90s, briefly controlled when Waqar Younis became bowling coach two years ago.”It is definitely a concern for us,” Shoaib Malik, Pakistan captain, said. “The problem has been with controlling the new ball at the start. We have tried some new bowlers and that has affected it [the extras] as well. But we are working hard on it. If you make 300-plus and give away 30-40 extras, that takes away the advantage of such a big total and we really need to control this element.”Perhaps they can learn from their opposition, who work hard to eradicate the problem in net practices. “We’re pretty good in that department to be honest,” said Jamie Siddons, Bangladesh’s coach. “We can’t afford to give away runs through that. Discipline on that in the nets is tough. We know that is one of the things in a cricket game we can control and we do it.”The recent figures for Pakistan mask the fact that a number of new fast bowlers made their debuts in the series against Zimbabwe. Umar Gul has also just made his comeback from a long lay-off and has struggled to relocate his rhythm. Mohammad Asif is likely to make his return in Multan so there might yet be more headaches with extras.Pakistan might get away with such spendthrift ways against Zimbabwe and Bangladesh, but when the competition gets tougher at the Asia Cup or the Champions Trophy, Malik knows an extra 20-30 runs in each game will make the difference.

His path to the England squad has taken in Denmark, Kent, and a career-threatening knee injury. A look at the rise of a quick bowler with a fascinating story

Andrew McGlashan09-Dec-2008
Back after a severe injury, Amjad Khan is in the England Test squad, but that’s only part of his story © Getty Images
Denmark is famous for many things. Bacon, Carlsberg, European football glory in 1992, and Hans Christian Andersen, to name but a few. International cricketers have been rather thinner on the ground – after all the country’s most notable contribution to the sport until now was Derbyshire’s workhorse seamer Ole Mortensen. That could be about to change, however, after Amjad Khan, who was Denmark’s youngest player at 17, wascalled into the England squad for the Test series in India.The overseas route has been a common path into the England side for many years. The current captain, Kevin Pietersen, is just the latest high-profile import from South Africa; there have been a fair few of Caribbean descent, while Australia, New Zealand, India and Pakistan have regularly chipped in as well. Geraint Jones’ Papua New Guinea roots were often mentioned, but seeing as Jones learnt his cricket in Australia, Amjad’s passage to the Test squad is arguably the most obscure yet – for the talk of integration andcommon policies, Europe has hardly proved a hotbed of cricket talent.Amjad’s childhood wasn’t without cricket links, as his parents were from Pakistan and had a passing interest in the game, but moving through the professional ranks was still a success against huge odds. He could easily have followed Denmark’s national football obsession and was, in fact, on his way to practice as a six-year-old when he stumbled across a cricket match and quickly asked if he could play. Given that in 2007 there were 45 registered cricket clubs in Denmark, it’s fair to say that when a young Amjad was walking around Copenhagen in 1986 the chances of hearing leather on willow were slim.In 1998 he became Denmark’s youngest player when he was picked against Ireland in the European Championships, and in the next game, against Scotland, he claimed an impressive 3 for 34. Still, the professional game – let alone Test cricket – was a million miles away.His first significant step came when he appeared in the Natwest Trophy against a Kent Cricket Board XI in 1999, where he opened the bowling and took 2 for 38. What really furthered his cause, however, was the friendship between John Wright, the former New Zealand batsman, who was Kent’s coach at the time, and Mortensen. The pair had played together at Derbyshire and Mortensen recommended Amjad as a county prospect.Kent snapped him up and Amjad made his debut in 2001, before taking 63 wickets the following summer. By the time he’d completed his residency qualification and earned a British passport in 2006, the England selectors were already watching. “The defining image of the day was of Amjad Khan bowling hostile leg theory to the well-set Mal Loye and Stuart Law,” was how the reported one spell against Lancashire. “He showed the ability to reverse swing the old ball and looked to have impressed AndrewFlintoff, who was building a nice innings.” In the last few days, Flintoff has become a team-mate.Then, in a flash, the dream nearly ended. By a quirk of fate it was in Chennai, two winters ago, that Amjad’s career was almost finished. He was part of a fast-bowling camp training at the world-renowned MRF pace academy when he felt something click in his knee. A few days later he was sent home from the A-team tour of Bangladesh and the seriousness of the injury became apparent. He needed surgery on his cruciate ligament and was ruled out of the entire 2007 season.By a quirk of fate it was in Chennai, two winters ago, that Amjad’s career was almost finished. He was part of a fast-bowling camp training at the world-renowned MRF pace academy when he felt something click in his knee Less than two years later, however, he finds himself one dose of Delhi Belly away from a Test debut, and that too after playing only six Championship matches last season as Kent nursed him back into first-class cricket. He claimed 21 wickets at 20.61 in that time, and more importantly, showed he hadn’t lost the pace and swing that first caught the selectors’eye. Before his injury he was clocked at 93mph, and while those sorts of levels may be a way off yet, his ability to find reverse swing gives him a chance to fulfil a similar role to Simon Jones (they certainly have dodgy knees in common).”Amjad was someone we identified very early as a player who could have an impact. I remember Adam Hollioake once saying that Amjad had the X-factor as a fast bowler,” Simon Willis, the former Kent coach and now professional cricket manager told Cricinfo. “He’s had a few setbacks along the way, but his selection is down to a lot of hard work.”Don’t get me wrong, there were some very tough times and sometimes we had to keep him away from the cricket field for his own good,” Willis added. “But he is a very focused individual and maintained a positive outlook. Now is his chance to show what he can do.”A number of England players needed plenty of convincing before agreeing tojump on a plane and return to India, little more than two weeks after Mumbaiwas struck by terrorism. However, for Amjad there was never a doubt he would go back. He’d been called into the one-day party after the fifth ODI, but hadn’t had a chance even to get on the plane before all thoughts turned away from cricket. Even as thePerformance Squad arrived home from Bangalore a week ago, he was one of thefirst to state his desire to return.Although what happens on the field over the next two weeks has been putfirmly into context by recent events, no one can begrudge Amjad a feeling ofsatisfaction. His promotion is reward for months of toil, sweat and gymwork, and a little bit of good fortune more than 20 years ago in Copenhagen.If he goes on to have a successful international career, England fans willhave found their favourite Danish export.

In a summer of gloom, the two silver linings for New Zealand cricket shone bright on a lovely sunny day in Napier today

Sidharth Monga in Napier26-Mar-2009In a summer of gloom, the two silver linings for New Zealand cricket shone bright on a lovely sunny day in Napier. Ross Taylor and Jesse Ryder go back a long way. They both come from the Wairarapa region, they were both coached by Mark Greatbatch at around the same time, both dreamed of playing for New Zealand, they have punished many an age-group side together in the adjoining Nelson Park, and they rescued New Zealand from possible humiliation on a flat McLean Park track.Both have taken different routes to the Test team. Taylor has been the good boy who went down the straight, unobtrusive road. Ryder has had a colourful ride through the fields by the side of the road, with his off-field activities outshining the blatant talent. It was ironic, in that light, that Ryder was the calming influence to a nervous and flashier Taylor. In a way it was almost like Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli batting together at Test level, with Kambli playing Tendulkar’s game, and Tendulkar Kambli’s.But that is how Ryder and Taylor bat. Ryder is compact, always has the extra second on hand, looks relaxed, and is more in control. Don’t go by his bang-bang style in ODIs, Ryder is perhaps the most accomplished Test batsman going around in New Zealand today. Taylor is flashy, has quick hands, prefers the leg side, needs to keep seeing the scoreboard move, needs a release every few minutes.So it wasn’t a surprise in the way Taylor started his innings when New Zealand were down at 23 for 3. He opened the face of the bat to fetch a boundary off his third ball, and edged the fifth one to third slip where Yuvraj Singh dropped a tough chance. The quick hands were at play again, making him push at the ball early. He slashed the next one hard and edged over the slips. An over later he edged Munaf Patel again, just falling short of gully.”I haven’t scored any significant runs for a while now and I was probably a little bit more nervous than I have been in the past,” Taylor said. “I am probably a nervous starter normally, but today I was a little bit more nervous. I was happy with the let-off and as it worked out, I made them pay today.”The let-offs and the luck continued for Taylor as he kept expressing his love for the flamboyant strokes and leg-side play. When he got it right he was beautiful to watch, when he didn’t he was lucky to survive edges that fell short and ones that didn’t go to hand. Just after lunch, he got into an interesting little duel with Ishant Sharma. Taylor continuously moved to the off side, Ishant continued to line him for the lbw, and the quick hands kept getting him runs. In two Ishant overs, Taylor hit five boundaries – a swivel pull and a whip through midwicket, another flick off a straight delivery, and one drive from outside off to wide mid-on.

In a way it was almost like Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli batting together at Test level, with Kambli playing Tendulkar’s game, and Tendulkar Kambli’s.

At that point, Taylor got going. He looked the part until he reached the nineties, where he got nervous again, almost played one on, edged to slip, and almost ran Ryder out. But that’s when Ryder’s calming influence came in. “Jesse was a big help throughout that whole innings,” Taylor said. “He was geeing me on a lot. We got to give a lot of credit to Jesse. Just got to praise Jesse for his mature innings and for keeping me going and hopefully, I did the same to him.”Last week, when Ryder was on 98 and Chris Martin had to face five balls from Harbhajan Singh, Ryder was the same cool self, smiling, almost laughing, and keeping Martin going. He was unfazed today when Taylor hit straight to mid-on, called Ryder for a run, and sent him back. One wonders if there’s anything on the cricket field which can faze Ryder – he has seen much worse growing up. So it wasn’t surprising that when he walked out at 23 for 3 on a flat track, the inept-looking top order behind him and a series defeat looming, he was solid from the first ball.Ryder started his innings facing a fast offcutter from Zaheer Khan, and defended it off the front foot, from the middle of the bat. Two balls later, Zaheer erred too straight, and the wristy glance got Ryder a four. He was off. He was in the Hamilton state of mind, where he played second fiddle to the chancy Daniel Vettori. With edges flying at the other end, Ryder seemed on another island, calm and unaffected. Today though, he enjoyed more freedom, with the side only three down, and it showed in how he picked on Virender Sehwag.The only bowler to trouble Ryder was Harbhajan Singh, who conceded only 32 runs off 80 balls bowled to him. The others found it a tough task to get him to play away from the body. It would be easy to call Ryder the second fiddle to Taylor today, but he still batted with a strike-rate of 62.Together, they broke the record for the country’s highest fourth-wicket, reminded the local bowlers of horror stories at Nelson Park as well as how they used to bat together. “There was a few times we talked jokingly about the bush, it was good.” But – albeit on a flat deck – they were playing one of the best Test attacks going around.

Some have found the spotlight, some have found extensions to their career, the lesser known South African players talk about their IPL experience

Firdose Moonda20-May-2009It appears as though South Africa and the IPL have exchanged eternity rings. South Africa, the knight in rainbow-coloured armour, galloped to the tournament’s rescue when it searched for a new home. While not everyone in the country has embraced the IPL with loving arms, South Africa has presented some of its best cricketing crowds to the tournament.The IPL, in return, has gifted its temporary home with a brand of cricket it would never otherwise have had played on its soil, resurrected veterans such as Matthew Hayden, and provided the Twenty20 specialists such as Albie Morkel with a platform to perform. But the tournament’s greatest gift has been the birth of new stars such as Dirk Nannes and Shadab Jakati. More so the South Africans who were little known outside their country.One of those offspring has been 24-year old Roelof van der Merwe. The sturdily built left-arm spinner made his mark during South Africa’s ODI series against Australia in April. He played in four matches and took eight wickets at an average of 18.62. That, and his superb domestic form, earned him a place with the Royal Challengers Bangalore.van der Merwe has had two dream seasons for his domestic franchise, Titans. In 2007-08 he was the third-highest wicket-taker in the domestic Twenty20s, with 13 wickets at an average of 13.92, and received the Player-of-the-Year award. He also took away the Domestic Championship (45-over competition) Player-of-the-Year and Newcomer-of-the-Year awards.He followed that up with 30 wickets, at an average of 13.96, 14 more wickets than any other bowler in the 45-over competition in 2008-09. He has also been selected for South Africa’s World Twenty20 squad. van der Merwe regards his stint with the IPL as the best preparation for that tournament. “Being in a side with a lot of South Africans has meant we have a similar work ethic to the national side, so that’s going to be handy ahead of the World Twenty20,” he says.While he credits his dogged domestic determination for launching his career, he admits that the IPL will thrust him further into the spotlight. “Given the size of the spectacle, and the money involved, if you’re not already on the map, it will certainly put you there. And if you are on the map and do well, I can see it being a big advantage.”Dillon du Preez, who also plays with Bangalore, is hoping the event will bestow on him some of the benefits van der Merwe has experienced. du Preez originally played for the Eagles, but signed as a Kolpak player for Leicestershire in March last year and played a season in England. This year it all went bust.”I haven’t been able to secure a work permit for this season, so I won’t be going back,” he says. “At the same time, I still desperately want to play for South Africa, but given the calibre of players in the set-up it seems almost impossible.”He isn’t rolling over and playing dead just yet, and bared his eagle talons in his debut IPL match, taking two wickets in two balls of his first over, including that of Sachin Tendulkar. He also claimed JP Duminy in that match. Even though his future hangs by a filament, he doesn’t want to rely on the IPL to relaunch his career, and is trying to enjoy it as an isolated experience. “I am really enjoying being in the same change room as guys like Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid – and even Kevin Pietersen,” he says. “The only complaint I have is that I have probably had enough of Indian food for a while. I went for a steak the other night and it was beautiful.”

“Given the size of the spectacle, and the money involved, if you’re not already on the map, it will certainly put you there. And if you are on the map and do well, I can see it being a big advantage”Roelof van der Merwe

Over in the Kolkata Knight Riders side, Morne van Wyk views the event as an extension, and possibly a resurrection, of his career. “There are two things I would still really like to do in my cricketing career: play Twenty20 and ODI cricket for South Africa, and I would like to have a county stint,” van Wyk says. “But whether the IPL will pave the way for that, I can’t say, although I hope it will.”van Wyk, an Eagles opening batsman and wicketkeeper, is a seasoned campaigner and was the highest run-scorer in this year’s domestic competition, with 269 runs at an average of 38.42. Unlike some of the other South African players, who have been grateful the tournament has allowed them to spend time at home, van Wyk says he is looking forward to spending six weeks in India next year. “I was contracted on the day of the auction, long before it was announced that the tournament was coming to South Africa, and I was gearing up to play in India,” he says. “I was really looking forward to crowds of 70,000 or 80,000, the kind we never see at home.”van Wyk seems to see the half full glass in every situation and speaks of Kolkata Knight Riders’ failure without too much disappointment. “We all came into this tournament with high hopes and let our imaginations run wild about how well the team would do,” he says. “To be honest, it’s felt like being in a boxing match most of the time: we work hard and we’re up and ready to go, and then we keep getting knocked down. But it hasn’t been terrible. The real make-up of people is tested when disaster hits, and we have had no bust-ups, which is a credit to the calibre of players and management we have.”While he does hope the tournament will provide a much needed career injection, he is also blissfully soaking up the Bollywood-ness of being part of the most glamorous franchise. “I didn’t know anything about Shah Rukh Khan before this, and when I met him I thought he would be like any other celebrity. It’s been a real eye-opener to meet a man who is powerful yet so humble. He really did take the time to speak to all the players, not just a small chat, but really spent time getting to know us all. He calls himself our big brother, and he really is.”While most of the South African players in the IPL view the tournament by what they can take out of it, some are looking at things a little differently. Charl Langeveldt, also with Kolkata, says, “This is not about what value I am getting from them, but what value they are getting from me. I’ve brought lots of local knowledge and bowling experience to the side.” It has puzzled most that Langeveldt, who was the local Pro20 competition’s highest wicket-taker, with 16 wickets at an average of 13.31, has not played, particularly given the success of another local swing bowler, Yusuf Abdulla. That doesn’t seem to bother Langeveldt much, who shrugged off being left out of the starting XI and said, “The balance of the side is not quite right, which is the reason I will not play.”Morne van Wyk has had his fill of superstars, both cricket and Bollywood•AFPOne who is not laughing off being a paid spectator is Tyron Henderson. With the most wickets in Twenty20’s short history to date, a total of 75 at an average of 21.41, it’s similarly mind-boggling that he is sidelined. “I was initially bought because with the tournament in India they thought I could do a job with the ball, given the conditions,” Henderson says. “But now with Smith and Warne already occupying two of the four positions for internationals, there’s only two left, and unfortunately I’ve been the one who has had to sit out.”Even though he has been forced to warm the dugout, Henderson’s record in the game speaks for itself. In the 2008 Twenty20 Cup he scored 281 runs at 40.14 and took 21 wickets at 16.61 for Middlesex. He thinks this format of the game has given his career new legs, and allowed him to keep playing when he might otherwise have retired. “I’ll be playing in three different competitions: from here, I’m going to Middlesex, then I’ll come back home to play for the Titans in the Pro20 domestic competition and then back to the IPL. So, in a way this has allowed me to become a specialist Twenty20 player and given me a longer career.”Henderson has been serenaded by the IPL because it has given him the opportunity to eke out that extra bit of cricket, while most of the other South Africans’ love affair with the tournament has been sealed because it has allowed them to live some of their dreams. du Preez summed it up perfectly: “It’s really been something wow.”

In the wake of the bans on three former Pakistan captains, Cricinfo looks at some other instances of player bans and boycotts

Cricinfo staff10-Mar-2010WIPA-WICBFloyd Reifer led a makeshift West Indies squad to defeat against Bangladesh•AFPThe relationship between the West Indian Players’ Association (WIPA) and the board had been rocky since 2005, mostly over a new contract with sponsor Digicel. The situation flared up sporadically with isolated strikes and considerable ill-will, but it reached a flashpoint in July 2009, when the entire first-choice team pulled out of a home Test series against Bangladesh.The entire first-choice squad – thirteen players in total – including Chris Gayle, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Dwayne Bravo and Fidel Edwards, who were part of the battle with the board over annual retainer contracts, had not signed those contracts since October 2008.While WIPA claimed the players had played four tournaments in a row in 2009 without the contracts, the WICB said the demands of the players are unjust. The ‘second-string’ West Indies team, led by Floyd Reifer, went on to surrender the Test and ODI series, and even as the strikers and made themselves available for international duty following the appointment of an arbitrator to settle their dispute, the board decided to stick with the depleted squad for the 2009 Champions Trophy in South Africa that followed.Rebel ToursIt is too easy to forget how the spectre of South Africa haunted international sport through the 1970s and 1980s. Increasingly isolated as the stranglehold of sanctions tightened, the authorities in the republic used money to attract sportsmen who were willing to turn a blind eye to what was going on. The idea was to bring sport to an entertainment-starved (white) public and to give the impression to the world that things weren’t so bad after all. Across eight years, various rebel teams toured South Africa with impunity.The first to land were Graham Gooch’s 1982 team. West Indians, Australians – twice each – and Sri Lankans soon followed, and all were welcomed by the majority of the white South African establishment. The final batch of rebels led by Mike Gatting had assumed they were trading cash for a three-year ban, the punishment meted out to the 1982 squad. But no sooner was the venture revealed in the summer of 1989 than those involved found themselves vilified in the British press and rounded on by the public.At the end of it all, there were big heads which rolled. These suspensions ended the careers of more than half the 1982 squad including Geoff Boycott, the world’s leading Test run-scorer at the time. John Emburey, the English spinner,was twice banned for three years and both times returned to play for his country. Australian captain Kim Hughes, who had accused the ACB of fostering dissatisfaction among the players, thereby easing the recruitment process for the rebel tours easy, never played international cricket again. However, Terry Alderman, Trevor Hohns and Carl Rackemann returned to represent Australia in later series. The West Indians – Lawrence Rowe, Collis King and Sylvester Clarke among them – and Sri Lankans had a far more wretched time. Banned for life and socially ostracised, for some it destroyed their lives.Packer sagaKerry Packer signed on many of the world’s leading cricketers for World Series Cricket•Getty ImagesKerry Packer, a 39-year-old media magnate, had been trying to secure TV rights for his Channel Nine network in Australia but was thwarted by a cozy long-standing relationship between the Australian Cricket Board (ACB) and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. In 1976, after his offer was turned down even though it was worth more than the ABC’s, he decided to set up the World Series Cricket for his channel.From late 1976 through to May 1977 Packer set about signing players (at the time of the launch in May he had 35 contracted), from Australia, West Indies, England, Pakistan and South Africa, who were in sporting isolation. The Australians – including leading players such as the Chappell brothers, Dennis Lillee and Rod Marsh – were banned from all official cricket, including state matches, and while initially England wanted to do the same (to the likes of Tony Greig, Alan Knott, John Snow and Derek Underwood) the hardline approach at the county level was unsustainable in view of the High Court ruling.No Packer players, though, were picked for England after 1977. West Indies opted not to pick some players (Desmond Haynes, Deryck Murray, Richard Austin) leading to the remainder (including Clive Lloyd, Viv Richards, Andy Roberts, Joel Garner, Colin Croft) walking away, while Pakistan were perhaps in the biggest mess with a major split in their ranks over how to treat players .Qayyum reportWith the match-fixing lid blown off after the Hansie Cronje scandal in India, the radar turned towards Pakistan. Justice Malik Mohammad Qayyum, a Pakistan High Court judge, headed an inquiry that eventually handed fines to Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Aaqib Javed and Mushtaq Ahmed, and life bans to batsman Saleem Malik and fast bowler Ata-ur-Rahman from the game.Despite it being the result of a comprehensive and wide-spanning inquiry, the report, made public in May 2000, received some criticism for being too vague in its findings, implying involvement of players in the team by imposing fines but not confirming it beyond reasonable doubt. However, Qayyum regretted the fact that his investigation into games under suspicion at the 1999 World Cup – Pakistan’s loss to Bangladesh foremost among them – was blocked.Zimbabwe boycottThe sacking of Zimbabwe captain Heath Streak as captain in 2004 sparked a boycott from his team-mates, plunging Zimbabwe cricket into another crisis. Streak had presented the Zimbabwe Cricket Union (ZCU) with a set of demands, including a condition that all selectors have first-class experience, and said he would consider quitting the game if they were ignored. The ZCU response was to remove Streak from captaincy and announce his retirement.In protest, 15 players (including Grant Flower, Stuart Carlisle, Craig Wishart, Andy Blignaut and Ray Price) refused to represent the national team and signed a petition, calling for the instatement of a minimum wage and the establishment of a players’ association among other demands. The boycott resulted in the formation of a makeshift team, and the board, faced with a declining player-pool, announced a withdrawal from Test cricket in 2006, which stands to this day.