As the season careens into its stretch run, there seems to be a pronounced lack of stakes to the proceedings. Sure, teams are still fighting for playoff spots, but how hostile are these races at the moment?

A Phillies-Mets knife fight for the NL East that we were hoping for a month ago has failed to develop, with New York floundering for months now. Likewise in both Central divisions, where the Tigers and Brewers hold 10- and six-game advantages, respectively. The Yankees, Red Sox, Mariners and Padres are all within striking distance of making their division races interesting, but even still, all four of those teams are very likely to make the postseason even if they fall short of first place.

As of this writing, FanGraphs currently gives 10 teams at least a 96% chance at making the postseason, with the Astros (90.7%) and Mariners (76.8%) rounding out the 12-team field. The team with the next-best odds? That would be the Rangers, who, despite being just 1.5 games out of the AL’s third wild-card spot, have just a 12.2% shot of crashing the field. Last year at this time, the Mets were the team outside the playoff picture with the best odds of making it (38.7%), and eventually did so as part of an inspired run to the NLCS. While the Rangers or another team could make a similar surge, it’s looking unlikely.

Rather than dwell on the absence of white-knuckle pennant races, let’s shift our attention to a different cohort of teams: the also-rans. FanGraphs currently assigns nine teams a whopping 0.0% chance at making the playoffs (the site is not quite ready to wave the white flag on behalf of the Angels, who own MLB’s longest active playoff drought and whose current odds are 0.1%). Though these clubs might be ready to flip the page to 2026, that doesn’t mean there aren’t reasons worth tuning in for their final few weeks’ worth of games.

Here’s a player on each of these teams that’s worth tuning in for over the last stretch of the regular season, playoff hopes be damned.

Los Angeles Angels: SS Zach Neto

Neto has been among the few bright spots for the Angels all season long. The 2022 first-round pick broke out last year, his first full season after being rushed to the majors in ‘23, and has taken his game up a level this year. Through 120 games, he has a 117 wRC+ with 25 homers and 24 stolen bases, giving him an outside shot at becoming just the seventh shortstop to record a 30–30 season.

Newcastle United fans will be growing extremely restless with how poor their beloved side’s away form continues to be.

The inconsistent Magpies must wish they could play in front of their passionate St James’ Park masses every week, with another away day loss in the Champions League against Marseille meaning the Toon have lost their last four matches on the road.

In stark contrast, Eddie Howe’s men have won their last six matches in a row back on home soil.

Of course, home advantage is a common phrase uttered in football – hence the labelling of certain home grounds as fortresses – but this Jekyll and Hyde form will seriously be worrying Howe, with TNT Sports pundit Joe Cole saying “there’s too much of a gap” between the strugglers at their very best and their very worst, after the defeat in France.

Anthony Gordon is seriously letting his side down wherever they’re lining up at the moment, though, with a regret now possibly in the air that PIF didn’t cash in on the up-and-down performer when they could’ve.

Latest on Gordon's future at Newcastle

Indeed, during the summer of 2024, Liverpool were reportedly keen to tempt the England international to Anfield, with last summer also seeing them come back with more interest, as he was touted to have a bumper £100m price-tag above his head.

Gordon warranted all this fervent interest, too, with 37 goals and assists coming his way across two campaigns for Howe’s men.

His confidence was so sky-high that the Liverpool-born forward even labelled himself a “nightmare” for defenders to contain, amid interest also coming from top-flight rivals Arsenal.

Now, however, he has thudded back to reality, with zero goals or assists coming his way from seven Premier League games so far this season, with just 40% of his dribbles accurately completed, as per Sofascore, as he continues to look a worrying shadow of his former self.

Consequently, Liverpool have moved on to another batch of high-profile targets in attack in the form of Michael Olise and Antoine Semenyo, with writer Thomas Hammond stating that a forthcoming sale of Gordon would be “favourable”, just to get him off the books, concerning his ongoing no-shows.

While he has contributed massively to his own downfall, his Newcastle career could be in even more tatters by the emergence of this promising star on Tyneside, who PIF signed on a free transfer earlier this year.

The "explosive" star who can end Gordon's career

Howe could soon have to be bold with what he does in the St James’ Park hot seat, with the current state of affairs unfolding, leading him down the unwanted path of a dismissal.

For the tie at the Orange Velodrome, Howe did bravely decide to gift 16-year-old Sam Alabi a chance from the substitutes bench, with Antonio Cordero another promising star that might be in line for some first team chances soon, partcularly if Gordon continues to frustrate.

For the time being, the former Malaga winger is out on loan in Belgium with KVC Westerlo, but when he returns, he will have even more senior action under his belt, as he attempts to unsettle Gordon, with his standout time in the senior squad at Malaga, leading to one analyst page hailing him as an “explosive” talent.

Despite only being 19, Cordero – who has also been labelled as “exciting” by former Magpies sporting director Paul Mitchell – managed to tally up a weighty 60 appearances for the senior side, with goals and assists aplenty also coming his way.

LW

33

5 + 6

RW

16

2 + 3

AM

2

0

RM

1

0

Looking at the table above, Cordero would manage to tally up a blistering 11 goal contributions for his former employers down Gordon’s usual left-hand side from just 33 appearances.

The hope will be that Newcastle landing the teenage sensation for nothing proves to be a masterstroke in time, with Cordero further capable of also playing as a right winger, or as a number ten if needed.

The promising youngster has even been noted as being “like Gordon” by analyst Ben Mattinson, with Newcastle perhaps better served now to look to the future and put their energy into the Spaniard, than persisting with Gordon to come good.

In a few years, he might well be a household name on Tyneside, with the ex-Everton attacker off the Magpies roster, subsequently.

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Eddie Howe must now ditch this Newcastle United defender alongside a woeful Nick Pope.

ByKelan Sarson Nov 26, 2025

Devine and Amin have also moved up, to No. 8 and joint No. 10, after their exploits with the bat at the World Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Oct-2025

Tazmin Brits goes rough-and-tumble to hit the ball fine during her century•Getty Images

Tazmin Brits’ match-winning 89-ball 101 against New Zealand in the women’s ODI World Cup on Monday night has placed her in the top five of the ODI rankings for women batters, where she is joined by Ash Gardner, who scored a century of her own, 115 in 83 balls, also against New Zealand at the World Cup, last week. Gardner is at No. 5.For Brits, it was a jump of two spots, while for Gardner, there was a seven-spot gain. Smriti Mandhana, Nat Sciver-Brunt and Beth Mooney remain the top three, but the rise of Brits and Gardner has pushed down Ellyse Perry, Laura Wolvaardt, Amy Jones, Hayley Matthews, Alyssa Healy and Marizanne Kapp.Also on the rise are Sophie Devine, up seven places to No. 8, and Sidra Amin, who has moved up three positions to joint No. 10 with Chamari Athapaththu. Amin is in sixth place on the World Cup run-scorers’ table following her 81 against India.ESPNcricinfo LtdFor the record, Brits, Gardner and Devine are the only century-makers at the World Cup so far, and Devine is currently the leading run-scorer, despite New Zealand losing both their games in the tournament, with 197 runs in two innings. Gardner is a distant second with 115 runs.It was the fifth century in 2025 and fourth in five innings for Brits. Her prolific run-scoring form took shape in April when, in her first ODI of the year, she scored 109 against India in Colombo.Five games followed without a three-figure score, though there was a 57 against West Indies in Cave Hill in June, but then came the magical sequence of 101, 101*, 171*, 5 and 101, the blip coming against England in South Africa’s World Cup opener. No woman has scored five centuries in ODIs in a calendar year before Brits.

Rangers are heading into their most hectic period of the season with a depleted squad, making Danny Röhl’s already difficult task even more daunting.

During the international break, first-choice centre-back duo John Souttar and Derek Cornelius both suffered long-term injuries, while Mikey Moore and Youssef Chermiti also missed Saturday’s narrow 2-1 victory over Livingston.

On Thursday night, the Gers will welcome Braga to Ibrox in the Europa League, very much in need of a victory, considering they sit rock bottom of the gigantic table, without a point to their name.

Given all the injury issues, which “colossus” will be starting this pivotal European tie, hoping to replicate a recent Rangers legend?

Connor Goldson's Rangers career

Plenty of figures have been key to the success Rangers have enjoyed in the last decade.

Steven Gerrard delivered the only Premiership title since 2011, Giovanni van Bronckhorst led the Gers to the Europa League Final while, in terms of players, captain James Tavernier as well as Connor Goldson were central figures for many seasons.

When the then-26-year-old defender arrived in 2018, he was not very well-known and had hardly any top-level experience.

Goldson’s time at Brighton & Hove Albion was derailed by a heart defect detected during a routine screening, requiring preventative surgery, eliciting fears that he may never play again, thereby making just three Premier League appearances for the Seagulls.

Nevertheless, after making the move north of the border, he would become a rock at the heart of the Light Blues’ defence, representing the club 309 times, winning all three domestic trophies.

The centre-back scored plenty of crucial goals, bagging both during a 2-0 victory at Celtic Park towards the start of the title-winning campaign, before departing to join Aris Limassol in the summer of 2024.

Given that Wes Foderingham, Leon Balogun and Ross McCausland also now ply their trade at the Alphamega Stadium, whoever is Aris Limassol’s head of recruitment must enjoy watching Rangers season review DVDs.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

Fast-forward to the present day, Rangers have not had a dominant, reliable centre-half since Goldson’s move to Cyprus, but could that be about to change?

Rangers' new Connor Goldson

With Souttar and Cornelius sidelined until Christmas at least, this has presented opportunities for others, with forgotten man Emmanuel Fernandez at the front of the queue.

On Saturday, the man who joined from Peterborough United in the summer for a reported fee of £3.5m started for the first time since August, marking the occasion by breaking the deadlock inside nine minutes; his towering header did not give Livingston goalkeeper Jérôme Prior a chance.

Overall, Fernandez’s statistics at the weekend made for impressive reading.

As the table documents, Fernandez put in a dominant display against Livingston, ranked first for defensive actions, blocks, duels won and aerial duels won, while only Nicolas Raskin completed more passes.

As already alluded to, this was just the centre-back’s third start for the club, scoring on debut against Alloa and then in the lineup at St Mirren the following weekend, but he had seen just a solitary minute of action since 24 August beforehand.

Nevertheless, he certainly staked a claim for more involvement in Röhl’s team and, well, considering the scarcity of alternatives, the German coach does not have much choice.

The Englishman was certainly popular at his former club, with Peterborough Chairman Darragh MacAnthony labelling him a “colossus” and a “gentle giant”, also adding that he is a “great organiser and talker”.

Like Goldson, the majority of Fernandez’s experience prior to arriving at Rangers has come in the EFL, even representing non-league clubs Sheppey United, Margate and Spalding United.

Thus, joining the Glasgow giants is the 24-year-old’s massive move, now looking to take a gigantic step forward in his career – just as Goldson did before him.

So, after seeing very limited opportunities up until this point, he will be thrust into the limelight, poised to make his European debut when Braga visit Govan on Thursday night.

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By
Ben Gray

Nov 21, 2025

Celtic are keen to appoint a permanent successor to Martin O’Neill and now look to be well down the road in that regard, as fresh details over Wilfried Nancy’s arrival and potential backroom team emerge.

The Bhoys enjoyed a productive weekend of Scottish Premiership action, even if it was a little fortuitous, claiming a dramatic last-gasp victory over St Mirren before Heart of Midlothian lost out at Aberdeen to narrow the gap at the top of the table.

Four points separate the top two heading into a busy schedule, with Celtic holding the advantage of a crucial game in hand against Dundee United days after they collide with the Edinburgh side in a blockbuster clash at Parkhead in a couple of weeks.

From a position of real uncertainty, the Bhoys have edged their way back into title contention and will hope to capitalise as Hearts continue to falter, albeit O’Neill made it clear after their win in Paisley that he isn’t sure how much longer he will be in interim charge alongside Shaun Maloney.

He said: “There’s relief as much as anything else, but you enjoy winning football matches – that’s what it’s about. It keeps confidence alive as much as anything else and keeps momentum going.

“At this minute, I haven’t heard anything more. I would reckon I would probably be on the plane for Rotterdam and maybe not much longer. If the board announce a new manager in the couple of days, I will walk into the sunset.”

O’Neill looks likely to be in charge for Celtic’s trip to face Feyenoord on Thursday in the Europa League and could be in situ for their match against Hibernian on Sunday. However, it doesn’t look like he will be sticking around for long after that.

Viduka 2.0: Leeds plotting move for £21m star who's "built like a brick"

Leeds United are reportedly interested in signing a star who could be Mark Viduka 2.0 for the club.

ByDan Emery Nov 22, 2025 Wilfried Nancy set to add four new faces to Celtic backroom staff

Previously, it became clear that Columbus Crew manager Wilfried Nancy is set to take over at Celtic after his side bowed out of the MLS Cup playoffs, though there has since been quiet over the details of his arrival.

Now, PLZ Soccer report that Nancy is set to begin his journey at Parkhead from the start of December, if not before then, with the Bhoys’ home clash against Dundee on the third day of the month likely to be his first game in charge.

Four of Nancy’s own staff are set to take on new roles in Glasgow over the next week, should their contracts be signed off, with Dermot Desmond sparing no expense making the new boss feel at home in the face of recent fan pressure. Kwame Ampadu is likely to be one of the new faces following his work alongside the 48-year-old in the United States.

Wilfried Nancy’s record at Columbus Crew

Matches

136

Wins

71

Draws

32

Losses

33

Trophies

MLS Cup (2024)

It remains to be seen whether Maloney will form part of the Frenchman’s backroom team after his sterling efforts during his period as interim assistant.

Celtic fans have had to wait nearly a month to find out the identity of their new permanent manager, though they will be relieved to see that the hunt for a new boss is finally nearing an end.

Mohammad Naim had posted a reaction after he and a few other Bangladesh players were abused by some fans at the Dhaka airport on Wednesday

Mohammad Isam17-Oct-2025Phil Simmons has urged the Bangladesh players to refrain from posting on their social media handles. This in the wake of Mohammad Naim posting a reaction after he and a few other team members were abused by some fans at the Dhaka airport on Wednesday upon their return from the UAE following the series against Afghanistan, where they won the T20Is 3-0 but lost the ODIs by the same margin.”I don’t agree with players having anything to do with social media,” Simmons said at a press conference a day out from the ODI series against West Indies. “It is your right as a person to be on social media, to say what you want on social media. But as an international player, as a national player for Bangladesh, my players should not be on there.”Naim was part of a group of players that came face to face with some individuals at the airport. Separate footage also showed Taskin Ahmed and his family facing similar abuse from fans.Related

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Bangladesh’s cricketers quite regularly post on Facebook, which has been a topic of discussion in the BCB and among the team management for many years. It is, however, not clear if the board has spoken to the players on the matter or imposed any restrictions on their online presence.Simmons was also critical of fans racially abusing Jaker Ali, as has been reported at some cricket grounds and is regularly seen on social media.”I would say one thing, it is not nice to bring racial tones into anything to do with players,” Simmons said. “I don’t care where you’re from, the racial part of it against Jaker Ali I am disgusted with. That’s not nice. But I don’t want my players answering anything on social media.”Mohammad Salahuddin, the Comilla Victorians head coach, had in fact referred to the matter at a BPL press conference last year, pointing to that as the reason for Victorians player Jaker’s non-selection to the Bangladesh team.”The boy is black, which is why the board doesn’t see him,” Salahuddin had said in February 2024. “He is playing well in the last few years. His strike rate has helped us as he scores important runs. He is a sensible cricketer. I think he should get a chance.”Jaker had made his international debut in October 2023, but has become a regular in the team more recently.Although Salahuddin’s statement in support of Jaker, he faced backlash for his choice of words. When told about this after Friday’s press conference, Simmons admitted that he was aware of Salahuddin’s 2024 statement.

New white-ball captain prepares to turn team’s results around in first assignment at the helm

Vithushan Ehantharajah28-May-2025During last year’s men’s Hundred, Harry Brook received a light-hearted but necessary reprimand from Sky Sports commentator Mel Jones.Brook, in his first season as captain of Northern Superchargers – his first leadership role in professional cricket – had made a habit of forgetting team news. On one occasion, Jones offered some polite advice: “Come on Harry, you need to get better at this – you’re going to do a lot more of them!”On Wednesday in Birmingham, in Brook’s first pre-match press conference as white-ball captain, he flexed his improvement, running through the XI for Thursday’s series opener against West Indies. Barring a momentary hesitation when moving from the middle order into the tail – “Bethell six… Jacks seven… ermmm… Overton eight” – a full team, in order, was read off the dome.Granted, this is the least you’d expect from an England captain in a sport so beholden to detail. But the bar is on the floor as far as English white-ball cricket goes. Every win, no matter how menial, should be savoured.Related

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Even more so on the field. Three poor global outings, an ODI record of 13 lost out of the last 17 – seven of them in a row – and the loose threat of not qualifying for the 2027 ODI World Cup mean the issues of the last era hang over this group. The first job of any new leadership team is to fix previous mistakes.And yet, arguably the biggest part of the last regime remains integral to this revamp. Jos Buttler’s part in the solutions to the problems he failed to avoid has him back in his most comfortable position behind the stumps. He has not kept in ODIs since 2023’s tour of West Indies, though he did marshal from that position during last summer’s T20 World Cup.”I think Jos is the best white-ball batter in the world,” crowed Brook. Whether that remains true, the fact is his numbers bear out that he is a better player with the gloves and without the captaincy, in every metric. His work with Gujarat Titans – “he’s been banging it in the IPL,” – is further testament to this particular combination of keeping without wider responsibility.Buttler was not at Edgbaston on Wednesday, another perk of being unburden by captaincy meaning he can lean on the fact sessions are optional. Having trained on Tuesday, Buttler opted for an extra night at home having only just arrived back from India at the start of the week.Both Jacob Bethell and Will Jacks got back to the UK in the last 48 hours, which is far from ideal but with them comes the variation in the slow-bowling department which was absent during the Champions Trophy and high on the wish list when Brook had his initial conversations with managing director Rob Key. Bethell’s return comes after injury, and as such is as you were. But Jacks’ – high-class and under-utilised – is a nod to doing things differently.Jamie Smith as an opener that straddles both camps, as a newer take on an old thought. An inkling head coach Brendon McCullum had during the Champions Trophy – where Smith averaged 8 at No.3 – that moving further up the order might suit him better. Pushing Smith towards the danger which, in this case, seems to be the new ball.”He [McCullum] actually said it in Pakistan to me, and a few lads… he just had this burning desire (sic) that Smudge could be an amazing opening batter in one-day cricket. So, we’re giving it a crack and see how he goes, hopefully he does well.”The travails at first drop against the white ball highlight the punt being taken. Smith’s professional opening experience amounts to 22 T20 and three first-class innings. Set against his success down at No.7 in Test cricket, and the fact a swap with Jacks, who is actually an opener, puts players in more familiar roles – it seems a peculiar move. But, crucially, a positive one in the minds of a captain, coach and management set-up who cannot quite fathom why a bunch of undoubtedly talented players have been in such a funk.The group will be challenged early on under Brook, as is his wont, and the loose promise to England’s new skipper at this juncture he will be afforded his full wares for each series. And while that is clearly at odds with the lay of the land, notably limited overs tours of New Zealand and Sri Lanka that sandwich the Ashes, patient improvement is the name of the game. Returning to those glory days set in motion by Eoin Morgan will take time.Nevertheless, West Indies arrive respectfully wary of their hosts for that recent history. Shai Hope had no problem lauding England as trend-buckers while also reiterating they are not here simply to be a character in someone else’s story. Indeed, they have their own redemption having missed 2023s ODI World Cup altogether. Now ninth in the ICC rankings, three points behind England, automatic passage to 2027’s edition is far from guaranteed.”As a opposition coming in to play against them, you certainly want to showcase your best skills because they kind of set the benchmark of one-day cricket,” Hope said.”But again, I’m not going to focus too much on what they’ve done in the past. I know they’re going to be looking at us as trying to start their new winning streak. It’s within our power to make sure that we don’t let it happen.”

And does Angelo Mathews hold the record for the most Tests played at a single venue?

Steven Lynch24-Jun-2025Tharindu Rathnayake picked up three wickets in the first innings of his Test debut – two with offspin, the other with his left arm. Is this the first time anyone has done this in a Test? asked Divy Tripathi from India

The versatile Sri Lankan spinner Tharindu Rathnayake marked the first innings of his debut, against Bangladesh in Galle last week, with three wickets. The first two – left-handers Shadman Islam and Mominul Haque – came with offbreaks, but Rathnayake often changes his bowling style when faced with right-handers so his fingerspin still turns away from them… and he disposed of Litton Das while bowling orthodox left-arm spin. In the second innings he again dismissed Mominul with an offbreak, then Liton and Jaker Ali with his left arm.It seems certain that this feat is unique in Test cricket: we don’t know how some bowlers delivered, but I’m sure that someone changing mid-stream and having any success would have been commented on and we’d have known about it! The only men I’m aware of who have even bowled with both right and left hand in Tests are Pakistan’s Hanif Mohammad (it seems he had switched to slow left-arm at the end of Garry Sobers’ then-record 365 not out in Kingston in 1958) and Graham Gooch of England, who enlivened the closing stages of a drawn Test in Calcutta in 1982 with some bowling impersonations, including at least one ball delivered with his left hand. Neither of them took a wicket with their “wrong” arm, though. Rathnayake’s Sri Lankan team-mate Kamindu Mendis has occasionally bowled left-arm in first-class cricket, but his three Test wickets to date all came with right-handed offbreaks.Karun Nair returned to India’s Test side at Headingley after missing 77 matches. Was this a record? asked Vinesh Maharajan from India

Karun Nair reappeared for India in the first Test against England at Headingley after missing his country’s previous 77 five-day matches. He’s quite high on the list, but not at the top: the Indian record-holder is the left-arm seamer Jaydev Unadkat, who missed 116 successive Tests between his debut, against South Africa in Centurion in December 2010, and the second of his four caps, against Bangladesh in Mirpur in December 2022. Two Indian wicketkeepers also missed more Tests than Nair: Dinesh Karthik 87 between January 2010 and June 2018, and Parthiv Patel 83 between August 2008 and November 2016.The only man from anywhere with a bigger gap than Unadkat is the England offspinner Gareth Batty, who missed no fewer than 142 Test matches between June 2005 and October 2016, when he was recalled at 39 to face Bangladesh in Chattogram.Angelo Mathews, who just retired, played his 34th Test match at Galle. Was this a record? asked Mohan de Silva from Sri Lanka

That’s a good spot, as I hadn’t seen it mentioned anywhere: Angelo Mathews played 34 Tests in Galle, which is indeed the record for a single venue. Next at the moment is Jimmy Anderson, who played 29 Tests at Lord’s, while his long-time new-ball partner Stuart Broad had 28 matches there.Mahela Jayawardene played 27 Tests at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo (his home ground), while Mushfiqur Rahim is likely to add to his current total of 27 at the Shere Bangla Stadium in Mirpur. Mushfiqur recently became only the 19th player to extend his Test career beyond 20 years.No other player has played as many Tests at a single venue than Angelo Mathew’s 34 in Galle•AFP/Getty ImagesWho holds the record for taking the most Test wickets at home before taking his first wicket abroad? asked SM Nazmus Shakib from Bangladesh

That’s an unusual question – and the answer is an unusual character: the South African medium-pacer Jimmy Blanckenberg, who took 56 wickets in 13 home Tests on the matting pitches used there at the time. He then toured England in 1924 with less success, taking just four wickets in the five-Test series. After this Blanckenberg had several seasons in the Lancashire League, although he also ran into controversy there, apparently refusing to shake the hand of the black West Indian allrounder Learie Constantine. After his stint in the leagues Blanckenberg rather disappeared from view, and his death details have never been discovered, although there’s a theory that he passed away in Berlin in 1955. If any historians out there have more details, do let me know!The Middlesex legspinner Walter Robins took 52 Test wickets in England before finally claiming one overseas, in Australia in 1936-37, while fast bowler Rodney Hogg picked up 51 in Australia – including 41 in his maiden Ashes series in 1978-79 – before touring India the following season, when his first scalp was that of Sunil Gavaskar.Turning the question around, Jasprit Bumrah collected 79 wickets overseas before finally taking one in India. That’s the record, unless you include the legspinner Yasir Shah: he took 207 wickets before finally taking one in Pakistan, but that included several in “home” Tests in the UAE and elsewhere while security concerns precluded matches in Pakistan.In the World Test Championship final, Aiden Markram scored the only century of the match in the fourth innings. How often has this happened in a Test? asked Dylan McKenzie from South Africa

That superb 136 from the South African opener Aiden Markram, which did much to decide the destiny of the World Test Championship mace, was indeed the only century of the final at Lord’s. It’s a relatively rare occurrence: this was the 39th Test match in which the only century was scored in the fourth innings. Markram had done it before – also against Australia, in Durban in 2018 (the Aussies still won that one, though).Markram is one of only three men to do this twice, the others being fellow openers David Warner and Dimuth Karunaratne. But Sri Lanka’s Mahela Jayawardene uniquely scored the only century of a Test in the fourth innings on three occasions: against South Africa in Colombo in 2000 and also at the Sinhalese Sports Club in 2006, and against Australia in Galle in 2011.The first such instance was by Australia’s Joe Darling, whose fourth-innings 160 was the only century of the match against England in Sydney in March 1898. There were only 17 further cases in the 20th century, but 21 since 2000.Shiva Jayaraman of ESPNcricinfo’s stats team helped with some of the above answers.Use our feedback form, or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

Exiled players now living in Australia have trained at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru and watched India vs Sri Lanka

S Sudarshanan30-Sep-2025

Afghanistan’s women cricketers in exile have been involved at a global event for the first time, albeit only as spectators.A total of 17 formerly contracted Afghanistan women’s players attended the ACA Stadium in Guwahati on Tuesday to watch India face Sri Lanka in the opening match of the Women’s ODI World Cup 2025 as part of a 12-day programme offered by the ICC with support from Cricket Australia (CA), the ECB and BCCI.They have also undergone coaching at the VVS Laxman-led BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru, met with players from some of the top teams competing at the World Cup and played some matches.”Most of the players are now based in Australia,” Mel Jones, part of the ICC’s initiative, said on commentary during the match. “They’ve got a few players in Canada and the UK as well. They’ve been put through their paces.”They’re smiling at the moment. That might have been a few ice baths that they had to enjoy over the last couple of days as well. Fitness testing, match simulations, matches, wonderful coaching from the coaching staff at the Centre of Excellence. The ICC, the ECB, BCCI, Cricket Australia have come together to host this tour.”Related

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Powerplay: How cricket helped Afghanistan women escape

Powerplay: More than just a match for Afghanistan Women's XI

The players do not represent Afghanistan as they are not recognised by the ACB but many are playing in league structures in Australia, having fled their country after the Taliban takeover in 2021. Since then, women have been increasingly excluded from public life in Afghanistan, cannot attend university or secondary school and their voices cannot be heard in public. As such, the ACB is unable to ratify a women’s team, despite contracting 25 players in 2020.Not all those living in Australia have made the trip to India as some faced visa challenges but most of them played in an exhibition match between an Afghanistan XI and Cricket without Borders in Melbourne in January.They had not received any official communication from the ICC between their exile four years ago and April this year, when the ICC announced a support package for Afghan female cricketers in exile. Funding for these players comes from the ICC, BCCI, ECB and CA and not from the ACB’s disbursements and will include training camps and trips, such as this one.By inviting them to a World Cup game, the initiative – firmed up at the ICC’s annual conference in July – aims to give the players exposure and allow them to experience the atmosphere of a high-profile women’s international. Their experience was enhanced by the presence of India, New Zealand, England and Australia at the CoE during the World Cup warm-ups and Sophie Devine, the New Zealand captain, presented them with a jade necklace.”It’s gorgeous,” Jones said. “A jade necklace, that represents courage and determination and that’s exactly what these women, these players, have shown after the last four years and going into the future as well.”All going to plan that future mimics almost the Afghan men’s cricket team, whereby they can go through these high-performance programmes, they can create a team that can then be in qualifiers for T20 Women’s World Cups in the future.”

Lucas Paqueta's red card in West Ham's 2-0 home defeat to Liverpool has brought fresh allegations of "match-fixing" from fans across social media. The Brazilian was shown back-to-back yellow cards for dissent in the 83rd minute at the London Stadium, as he hounded referee Darren England in the aftermath of Niclas Fullkrug's foul on Dominik Szoboszlai.

• Bizarre Paqueta red draws allegations from fans

  The 28-year-old has opened himself to further allegations of impropriety. Paqueta cleared his name from allegations of spot-fixing during the 2022-23 season, where suspicious betting patterns were linked to games where the midfielder picked up bookings. Despite being exonerated by the FA after an investigation, the governing body sanctioned the former Lyon star for "failing to comply with a requirement to answer questions and provide information to The FA’s investigation into breaches of the Rules", issuing a warning over his future conduct. 

  Paqueta returned to the Irons starting lineup on Sunday, after serving a one-game suspension for accruing five bookable offences so far this term. In a relatively well-tempered clash with Liverpool, Paqueta went unpunished by the referee until the final moments, when he saw fit to persist in berating England despite the attempts of his teammates to control him. Two quick yellow cards confirmed Paqueta's fate in a bizarre incident that has set fans' tongues wagging on social media. 

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• Fan reaction to Paqueta red

  ChelsChris03 posted on X: "That absolutely has to be match fixing from Paqueta. Simply no way it’s not."

  The GunnersD3an questioned Paqueta's decision making, writing: "Paqueta is such an idiot, he was definitely looking for that Red. That’s such an absurd behaviour, what a liability of a player."

  Dieggo added: "He wanted to be sent off. Weird guy."

  Fellythered joked: "[Paqueta is] Never beating those betting allegations." 

  Fredtheted simply suggested the Brazilian's conduct, "is suspicious". 

• Nuno and pundits react to 'ridiculous' Paqueta red

  Former players and pundits also took the chance to question the midfielder's decision making. 

  Speaking on the BBC Radio 5 Live broadcast livve from the Olympic Stadium, former Birmingham City and Republic of Ireland forward Clinton Morrison said: "I don't know what he's doing. If you're not happy with the decision, he's not going to change his mind. Darren England hasn't had the best game but Paqueta wouldn't give it up, he kept going and going, even his international teammate Alisson said stop.

  "You can't keep going over and goading the referee. You've let your team down. It's ridiculous." 

  Former West Ham keeper Robert Green said on that the Brazilian was being "completely irresponsible" and that he had "lost his head", before also calling Paqueta's behaviour "ridiculous".

  West Ham's manager Nuno Espirito Santo then used his post-match comments to address the situation. He said: "I'm not going to comment too much. First of all I'm going to speak to Lucas and try to understand his frustrations and his behaviour.

  "We need all the player and we are going to need them until the end of the season. Every player out, we're going to miss them."

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• Paqueta speaks out

  Paqueta took to social media after the game to hit back at the criticism levelled at him by the Sky Sports commentary team. He wrote in a passionate post on : "It's ridiculous to have your life and career affected for two years without any psychological support from the federation. Perhaps this ridiculous behavior is just a reflection of everything I've had to endure and, it seems, have to continue enduring! I'm sorry if I'm not perfect."