All posts by h716a5.icu

USACA has announced that its members had voted to ratify a different version of a revised constitution that had “minor edits” from the version approved by the ICC.

Peter Della Penna11-Apr-2017The USA Cricket Association announced, in a series of tweets, that its members have voted against ratifying an ICC-approved version of a revised constitution at a special general meeting in New York on Saturday. Instead, USACA announced that its members had voted to ratify a different version of a revised constitution that had “minor edits” from the version approved by the ICC.Among the differences in the two versions were that the ICC version called for an independent chairman of the board for the first three years following the constitutional reforms, with that person not having held any prior administrative role in cricket. In a press release ahead of last weekend’s SGM, USACA said its own version would not have this stipulation and criticised its inclusion in the ICC version as evidence of “complete mistrust for the entire USA cricket community” as well as calling it “patently anti-democratic.”The ICC version also suggested three individual directors elected under a voting process open to all members nationwide with one league director elected by member leagues. USACA’s proposed constitution would flip that, with three league directors and one individual director. Under the current USACA constitution, only member leagues get a vote in general elections and not individual members.The ICC-approved constitution vote also called for new elections to take place in September with a new board in place by October 2017, while the USACA constitution guidelines call the next election to take place in February 2018, allowing for the current executive board headed by president Gladstone Dainty to continue their three-year term which began in 2015.”Whilst much of the alternative constitution proposed by USACA is based on the governance structure proposed by the [Sustainable Foundation Advisory Group] and ICC Board, there are certain key elements missing that are central to the ability of a future USACA being effective at unifying all of the stakeholders of the sport in the USA,” the ICC declared in a statement ahead of the USACA SGM.”These issues have been made very clear to USACA, and the ICC Board will be considering the outcome of the 8 April SGM as well as the status of USACA’s compliance with all other reinstatement conditions as part of its determination of USACA’s future position as a member of the ICC, and whether to propose a motion to expel, reinstate or otherwise, at its April Board meeting.”Forty-five member leagues were declared eligible to vote at the SGM in a list announced by USACA two days before the meeting. USACA’s current constitution says that new members must go through a one-year provisional period prior to being eligible to vote on any measures but the list appeared to include as many as ten new members, none of which had been announced in any of USACA’s board meeting minutes that have been publicly released.The list of new members includes American Cricket Academy & Club, USA Global Cricket Academy, Florida West Coast Winter League, The Friendship League, and World Wide Cricket Academy. Also, two leagues – North Texas Cricket Association and Northern California Cricket Association – were given multiple votes, one each for the standard league competition and a second for a T20 competition. Many other leagues run a 40-over competition and a T20 competition but do not receive separate votes for each.The list of member leagues noticeably did not include some of the biggest leagues across the country who were previously listed as members of USACA. They include the Cricket League of New Jersey, the Midwest Cricket Conference and the Southern California Cricket Association.Ratifying a new constitution was one of 39 terms and conditions laid out by the ICC in order for USACA to be reinstated from their current suspension, which has been in effect since June 2015. ICC had warned USACA that failure to ratify the ICC-approved version of the constitution by an April 1 deadline may result in a motion being tabled at an ICC board meeting later this month to vote on USACA being expelled as an Associate Member.If the motion is tabled and approved, a vote to expel USACA could take place as soon as the ICC Annual Conference in June. It is expected that ICC Americas administrators led by USA project manager Eric Parthen would then continue to run US cricket affairs in a caretaker role until a solution can be reached.USACA was one of the two original Associate Members – along with Fiji – to become part of the ICC when membership was first expanded beyond Test Members in 1965. However, they have been saddled with administrative difficulties since the turn of the millennium. USACA’s current suspension is their third since 2005.

Sheikh Jassim’s bid to take over at Manchester United from the Glazers will be settled imminently, according to reports in Qatar.

What’s the latest Man United takeover news?

Jassim and Sir Jim Ratcliffe have been the front runners to take control at Old Trafford this year after the Glazers first put the club up for sale in November 2022.

The Qatar group led by Jassim has made five separate bids for the Red Devils, with the latest coming last month and was his final offer. His proposal is for 100% of the club and would clear Man United's debt, while also setting up a separate fund for the club and local community.

However, it has gone relatively quiet since that bid went in, although there was speculation that Jassim was in pole position to secure a takeover. It looks as if there could now be a big development around the corner at Old Trafford, with Qatari outlet Raya providing an update on Tuesday.

It is ‘expected that the Manchester United purchase contract will be signed by the Glazer family that owns the club within the next few hours’, with Jassim set to win the race ahead of competition from Ratcliffe.

The Qatari group ‘have now begun to express their confidence in the victory, and they believe that it is only a matter of time before the official announcement is made’.

Who could Sheikh Jassim sign for Man United?

Should Jassim’s takeover go through as which now is to be expected, it could help Erik ten Hag and United in the current transfer window. Jassim previously wanted 'things done quickly' so he could help Ten Hag in the transfer market, and it looks as if he has big plans at Old Trafford.

The Red Devils have brought in Mason Mount from Chelsea in a deal worth a total of £60m, and it looks as if a new goalkeeper is next on the agenda.

Ten Hag’s former goalkeeper at Ajax, Andre Onana, now at Inter Milan, is seemingly the top target to replace David de Gea, with personal terms already agreed. A new verbal proposal of €45m looks set to be made to Inter Milan, although the Serie A side are holding out for €60m.

Should Onana arrive after Mount, a new striker could be looked at, and Jassim seemingly wants to make a sensational statement signing to bring Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappe to Old Trafford. Reports have suggested that Jassim feels that the France superstar ‘belongs at Old Trafford’, with the forward into the final 12 months of his PSG contract.

Jassim could look to make an immediate impact, should a takeover go through, however, Mike Keegan has claimed that there could be an approval wait of up to 12 weeks, which may throw a spanner in the works for the Qatari group and result in the Galzers officially remaining in control at the start of the 2023/24 season, but the good news is that it looks like they are about to be named winners of the takeover race.

A round-up of the Vijay Hazare Trophy games from Group B, played on March 3, 2017

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Mar-2017A sterling batting effort from Delhi, in which they plundered 356 for 5, proved more than enough for Tripura at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack. Rishabh Pant struck a 72-ball 99, an innings that featured nine fours and five sixes. Dhruv Shorey (74 off 81) and Milind Kumar (72 off 48) pushed Delhi past 350. Shikhar Dhawan (18) and Gautam Gambhir (37) had added a 59-run opening stand to set a strong platform for Delhi. An unbeaten century from Yashpal Singh, 115 off 117 balls, kept Tripura in the hunt for the majority of the chase, but the middle and lower order failed to contribute much as Delhi’s bowlers kept chipping away. Opener Bishal Ghosh struck 59 off 68 balls. In the end, Tripura fell 70 runs short after finishing with 286 for 8. Fast bowler Suboth Bhati took three wickets.Dinesh Karthik and B Aparajith struck quickfire fifties to lead Tamil Nadu’s cruise past Kerala by six wickets in Bhubaneshwar to move to second on the Group B points table, tied with Maharashtra on 16 points. Karthik struck 15 fours in his 68-ball 88, while Aparajith was more sedate, taking 91 balls to accumulate 74. The pair added 145 runs in 135 balls. Tamil Nadu raced to their target of 231 with 64 balls remaining. Fast bowler Sandeep Warrier picked up all four wickets to fall. Tamil Nadu’s success though, was set up in the first half, restricting Kerala to just 230 from 50 overs. Spinners Rahil Shah, Aparajith and Washington Sundar conceded just 87 runs in 30 overs between them. Batting at No. 6, Sanju Samson hammered an 89-ball 84, featuring six fours and three sixes. Salman Nizar struck a 36-ball 49 to prop Kerala’s innings up in the end overs. The last 12 overs leaked 117 runs.A 249-run opening stand between Prashant Gupta and Shivam Chaudhary helped Uttar Pradesh put on 370 for 5, a total they defended by 104 runs against Maharashtra in Cuttack. The result snapped Maharashtra’s unbeaten run in the competition. Gupta hammered 12 fours and four sixes in his 117-ball 129, while Chaudhary struck 116 off 115 balls. Brisk contributions from Eklavya Dwivedi (33 off 27 balls) and Rinku Singh (37 off 15 balls) resulted in Uttar Pradesh hitting 64 runs in the last five overs. Fifties from Kedar Jadhav (68), Ruturaj Gaikwad (59) and Rahul Tripathi (57), all at a strike rate of over 120, gave Maharashtra hope, but legspinner Piyush Chawla’s 5 for 50 closed the game out for Uttar Pradesh.

Mauricio Pochettino starts his first day as Chelsea head coach on Saturday, with one priority at the top of his list.

After losing Mateo Kovacic, N'Golo Kante and Manchester United-bound Mason Mount – plus fringe player Ruben Loftus-Cheek, who has just joined AC Milan – Pochettino is in desperate need of a couple of new midfielders.

The Blues are reportedly confident of signing top target Moises Caicedo from Brighton & Hove Albion in a deal worth around £80m, but Pochettino will no doubt want another enforcer in the engine room to provide cover and ultimately challenge for regular starts.

Southampton's Romeo Lavia is one such player who has been linked with the west London outfit, and Football Transfers suggests Chelsea and Liverpool are now ahead of Arsenal in the race to sign the Belgium international.

Is Southampton's Romeo Lavia a good midfield option for Chelsea?

Lavia featured 29 times for the Saints in the Premier League last season, starting 26 of those games, and was able to hold his head up high at the end of the season despite the Saints' relegation to the Championship.

The 19-year-old led the way for pass-completion percentage among Southampton players (86.4), as per WhoScored, while also showing he is not afraid to get stuck in with his nine yellow cards – three more than any teammate.

That poor disciplinary record is something that will have to be worked on, and will no doubt come naturally with age, but it is also part of Lavia's role in the side to break up play.

Indeed, The Analyst ranks Lavia in the top 12% of all midfielders across Europe's top five leagues last season in terms of possession won, with that undoubtedly his strongest area.

The former Manchester City player also registered 1.90 blocks per 90 minutes last season, according to FBref, which is an identical number to Kante – the man he is effectively being eyed as a long-term replacement for at Stamford Bridge.

Signing a player from a relegated club, especially one that is reputedly valued at £40m, will not exactly get supporters' pulses racing. However, there are countless examples of such players going on to take full advantage of their second chance – Andy Robertson (from Hull City) and Georginio Wijnaldum (from Newcastle United) at Liverpool to name just a couple of fairly recent examples.

There is also a recent history of a player making the step up from Southampton to one of the Premier League's elite clubs and becoming an instant hit. Virgil van Dijk was signed by Liverpool for a then-record £75m deal for a defender in January 2018 that was, let's not forget, ridiculed at the time for the price tag.

Van Dijk had far more experience at that point than Lavia, granted, having played two and a half seasons in the Premier League and four seasons combined in Eredivisie and the Scottish Premiership, but that is an example of a Saints success story that Chelsea will hope to replicate.

Lavia is far from the finished product, as highlighted by the fact he is only ranked in the top 46% of midfielders for what The Analyst defines as "defensive actions", but he will only become better when playing alongside the likes of Caicedo – assuming the deal goes through – and Enzo Fernandez, who are both top-level talents.

The Belgian has already proved he can mix it with the best, too, as his midfield display in Southampton's shock 2-0 EFL Cup quarter-final win over former side Man City earlier this year showed.

As put by Independent Sport writer Benjy Nurick at the time: "Romeo Lavia was an absolute monster tonight. Quite possibly the best midfielder on the pitch. Seemed to win everything, so clean in possession, and controlling so much of the game."

Ultimately, £40m for a relatively unproven player is the going price these days, and it may just be a risk worth taking for Chelsea as part of their great squad overhaul.

Derbyshire have announced a sixth successive year of profit, with a surplus of £2653 in 2016

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Mar-2017Derbyshire have announced a sixth successive year of profit, with a surplus of £2653 in 2016. The financial results included a record turnover for the third year in a row, on the back of increased commercial activity.A new media centre at Derbyshire’s ground will be unveiled as part of hosting televised matches at the Women’s World Cup and although chairman Chris Grant set to stand down ahead of running for election to the ECB, the club has continued to go in the right direction, despite a difficult couple of seasons on the field.”I’m extremely proud to have overseen six successive years of surplus and grown turnover to record levels since being elected in 2011,” Grant said. “This has been a tremendous achievement given the huge challenge that keeping a first-class county afloat entails and is an enviable track record.”The increased revenue has allowed us to continue our commitment to increasing the cricket budget, while also investing in improving the ground.”It is also no exaggeration to say that the 3aaa County Ground is unrecognisable from what it used to be as a result of a £4m ground development programme, which will see the club host the opening fixture of this year’s ICC Women’s World Cup and Sir Elton John in concert.”Derbyshire finished bottom of Division Two in 2016, while failing to progress in either the NatWest Blast or Royal London Cup. Kim Barnett was subsequently appointed as director of cricket, with New Zealand’s John Wright coming in as a specialist T20 coach, among a host of comings and goings on the playing staff.

Manchester United are set to hold club-to-club talks with Chelsea this week over the possibility of closing in on a deal for Mason Mount.

How old is Mason Mount?

The early signs of the summer transfer window have indicated towards a potential departure for Mount from his boyhood club.

There promises to be significant changes made at Stamford Bridge this summer with the arrival of Mauricio Pochettino promising a new dawn for the Blues.

However, it does seem as if the 24-year-old midfielder may not be around long enough to see how those changes develop.

Indeed, the England international has been heavily linked with a potential move away from west London this summer with Old Trafford mooted as a potential landing spot.

And it has even been suggested that the 24-year-old is keen on making the potential move to United this summer amid the links to the Premier League giants.

With other Premier League clubs like Tottenham Hotspur making moves for the likes of James Maddison already this summer, it seems United are looking to step up their attempts.

Indeed, speaking on his YouTube channel, Fabrizio Romano has claimed there will soon be some fresh talks to try and complete a deal for the midfielder:

"It's important to say that they are going to have a direct contact this week and will happen very soon with Manchester United about Mason Mount.

"So the two clubs will speak, you'll remember a few days ago, Chelsea offered Manchester United the chance to discuss directly about the Mason Mount situation and now, from what I understand, Man United decided to speak to Chelsea.

"So there will be a direct club-to-club contact to decide about the story on what they want to do. Man United insist to pay £50m + £5m in add-ons. Chelsea still want £65m."

How much do Chelsea want for Mason Mount?

The Chelsea midfielder currently has just one year remaining on his current deal at Stamford Bridge leaving the Blues vulnerable to potentially losing him for free next summer.

And considering the player is believed to be open to a possible departure this summer, the west London side have set their asking price for their homegrown talent.

Indeed, Romano has reported the Blues are now looking for a fee in the region of £60m/£65m for the 24-year-old.

This comes on the back of Mount enduring a fairly underwhelming campaign with the Blues which saw him provide a return of just three goals and two assists in the Premier League (via Transfermarkt).

Perhaps in comparison to the £40m which Tottenham are believed to be paying for Maddison this week, Chelsea's asking price does seem slightly inflated.

The Leicester City man enjoyed a stunning return last season in what was a hugely underperforming side.

Yet, United could be set to pay considerably more for Mount this summer despite the Englishman having a season to forget.

Maybe United missed a trick in not pursing Maddison this summer, however, it seems they are keen to secure a deal for Mount this week.

Leeds United striker Rodrigo's agent is scheduled to hold a meeting regarding his client's imminent exit from Elland Road, according to journalist Beren Cross.

When did Rodrigo join Leeds?

Rodrigo first arrived in Yorkshire back in 2020 from Valencia and he’s since gone on to make 97 senior appearances after becoming a regular feature of the first-team, but there’s a strong chance that he could be set to depart during the ongoing window.

The Spain international will be out of contract next summer meaning that now will be the final big opportunity that the hierarchy have to cash in should they not want to risk losing him for free in 12 months time, and having established himself as their top-performing offensive player last season, he won’t be short of potential suitors.

The Whites will know that they are resigned to losing several of their big names in the coming weeks with stars like Jack Harrison, Tyler Adams and Robin Koch having already been linked with an exit, and if the following update is to be believed, the 32-year-old could be another to follow in their footsteps and seal a move away from the Championship.

Is Rodrigo leaving Leeds?

Taking to Twitter, Cross revealed that Leeds will meet with Rodrigo's representative possibly in the coming days to discuss his departure from LS11 after three years of service. He wrote:

"Rodrigo's agent, his father, set to meet Leeds top brass imminently to get the wheels moving on his exit. United not expected to make it difficult for him to move and get those wages off the books."

Should the 49ers keep or sell Rodrigo?

Leeds obviously won’t want to lose Rodrigo for nothing and the fee that they could potentially bring in for him will be appealing, but the centre-forward is such a standout player at the club so the 49ers should see if he could be tempted to stay by offering him a new contract.

The Nike-sponsored ace, who pockets £100k-per-week, racked up 14 goal contributions (13 goals and one assist) in 31 Premier League outings last season and recorded 66 shots over the course of the campaign, which was higher than any other of his teammates, as per FBRef.

Rodrigo, who has been lauded a “top talent” by CEO Angus Kinnear, also adds wonderful versatility to the squad with his ability to be deployed in seven different positions over the pitch, including all across the frontline and even in the midfield, so retaining his services is something that the board shouldn’t even have to think twice about if possible.

Misbah-ul-Haq has asked whether Australia’s abysmal recent record in Asia warranted a similar rethink the way one was suggested by Ian Chappell after Pakistan’s recent 0-3 whitewash

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Jan-2017Test captain Misbah-ul-Haq has hit back at Ian Chappell’s criticisms of Pakistan, saying they were “uncalled for and unbecoming” of someone with Chappell’s stature in the game.Speaking to ESPNcricinfo minutes after Pakistan lost the third and final Test of the series in Sydney – their 12th successive Test loss in the country over 17 years – Chappell had said Cricket Australia should reconsider the utility of a future Pakistan tour to the country.”Pakistan have now lost 12 Test matches on the trot in Australia, and somebody’s got to give them a kick up the bum,” Chappell had said. “Cricket Australia have got to start saying ‘listen if things don’t improve we will stop with the invites’.”You can’t continue to [play poor] cricket. You can’t bowl poorly, have conservative field placings and field sloppily and expect to play decent cricket in Australia.”Writing in his column for , Misbah, whose captaincy bore the brunt of further criticism, asked whether Australia’s abysmal recent record in Asia warranted a similar rethink.Australia have lost their last nine Tests in a row in India, the UAE and Sri Lanka; since 2008 they have lost 13 of their 18 Tests in Asia and won only one.”The comments do not make any sense or suit a cricketer of his stature,” Misbah wrote. “Australia themselves have been on the losing side in the recent away tours. They were clean swept by a Sri Lanka side that did not have Mahela Jayawardena or Kumar Sangakkara and some of their players didn’t even have 10 Tests to their names.”Then Australia lost the one-day international series 0-5 in South Africa. In the recent past they have been whitewashed by us in the UAE and in India. If we apply Chappell’s comments to Australia, does that mean if they continue to get whitewashed on the subcontinent on a regular basis then they should also not travel there? And if Australia does not travel to Asia or the Asian teams do no travel to Australia then how are they going to improve?”Misbah has come under pressure at home as well, though in this case for comments he made post-match in Sydney. Asked whether he felt his team represented the best chance Pakistan had in Australia to reverse the long run of defeats, Misbah had said, “Yes, you can say, but in ’99 when Pakistan came, I think that was one of the strongest teams ever, strongest bowling attack, in terms of experience, in terms of the batting, so many superstars in that team. We lost then as well. “That side, led by Wasim Akram, counted Waqar Younis, Shoaib Akhtar, Saqlain Mushtaq and Mushtaq Ahmed among its attack; Saeed Anwar, Mohammad Yousuf, Inzamam-ul-Haq and Ijaz Ahmed were part of the batting order.The Australian side that whitewashed them was soon to become one of the greatest in Test history, though some might argue that that Pakistan side was past its peak.Misbah’s comments, however, have been construed as an attack on the 1999 side. It has forced him to issue a clarification on Twitter, unusual for him and also indicative of the pressure he is under to retire from Test cricket.”My reply was that 99 team was our best team,” Misbah tweeted. “My aim wasn’t to disrespect them. I wasn’t trying to use them as an excuse. They’re our legends… have nothing but respect for the 1999 team. ‪@wasimakramlive who was captain then, is someone who I’ve worked with, & has helped me a lot”.In his column, Misbah said he was taking a “time-out” from the discussion about when he goes. “I want to spend some time at home and then play in the PSL. I will then analyse how much passion for cricket I have left in me and whether I can play on… The PSL will be important for me in making a decision on my international future.”

KL Rahul fell one short of a maiden double-hundred after leading India’s response to England’s 477 in excellent batting conditions at the MA Chidambaram Stadium

The Report by Karthik Krishnaswamy18-Dec-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details2:11

Chopra: Signs of a ‘very, very special’ player in Rahul

KL Rahul fell one short of a maiden double-hundred after leading India’s response to England’s 477 in excellent batting conditions at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. India dominated the first and third sessions of day three, thanks to two big partnerships involving Rahul: 152 for the first wicket with Parthiv Patel, and 161 for the fourth with Karun Nair. At stumps, India trailed by 86 with six wickets in hand, with Nair batting on 71. With him on 17 was M Vijay, who came in at No. 6 rather than his customary position at the top of the order because of a shoulder injury sustained while fielding.Having been at the crease for more than 100 overs, Rahul fell with stumps imminent. He walked off distraught, after reaching for a loopy, wide ball from Adil Rashid and spooning a catch to cover point, but by then he had ensured India were the likeliest of the two sides to force a win over the last two days.The draw, though, still seemed the likeliest result. It took until the 102nd over of India’s innings for England to call for their first review (another followed in the very next over; both were unsuccessful), indicating how friendly conditions were to bat in. But given the skill of India’s spinners, they may yet coax more life out of the Chepauk soil than their England counterparts.Rahul has had a stop-start series, missing the first and third Tests with injury, and had only made a top score of 24 in his three previous innings. He had been out to loose shots in all three innings, and he made at least one noticeable adjustment here, standing with his feet either side of the crease against the seamers rather than outside it. Perhaps the extra time this gave him allowed him to judge his off stump better, and he was far more certain when tested in the corridor.But his best work came against the spinners, against whom he laid down an early statement of intent, hitting Liam Dawson for sixes in the third and fifth overs of the morning. He continued to use his feet decisively thereafter, and reverse-swept with authority. Rahul’s mastery of the spinners played a big part in Rashid and Moeen Ali ending day three with a combined economy rate of 4.19 across 41 overs. Dawson, who offered more control but less of a wicket threat, bowled 23 overs, getting through more work than Alastair Cook may have wanted from his left-arm spinner.Nair joined his Karnataka team-mate Rahul at 211 for 3, after India had lost three wickets for 59 runs. This mini-slump began before lunch, with the wicket of Parthiv. Both openers had scored freely – at a run-rate of 3.63 overall, and at 4.21 on the third morning – and had looked in no trouble, with Parthiv playing some stunning straight and on-drives, showing the full face of his bat, off Stuart Broad. Then, having entered the 70s for the first time in his Test career, he fell in a moment of overconfidence. Having stepped out and whipped Moeen Ali over wide mid-on two balls previously, Parthiv left his crease again. This time, the ball drifted in a touch further, making him aim squarer and close his bat face. It also turned more, and looped to cover off the leading edge.On a pitch that offered them little help, England’s seamers took the key wickets of Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli. Pujara had begun ominously, hitting Adil Rashid for two fours in one over, but fell to an uncharacteristic shot in the third over after lunch, poking at a shortish, fifth-stump ball from Ben Stokes and edging to slip.Then Stuart Broad sent back Kohli, who hadn’t been dismissed for under 40 in his seven previous innings in this series, for 15. With Broad moving around the wicket and slanting the ball across him, Kohli had looked intent on putting bat to ball, leaving only occasionally, more often moving across his stumps to defend punchily into the off side. Then Broad slipped in a full, wide slower legcutter. Failing to spot the change of pace, Kohli drove early and into the lap of short cover.Rahul, who had by then moved to his fourth Test hundred, made a strategic retreat once Kohli fell, quietly picking up the runs offered to him by England’s defensive fields and cutting out the reverse-sweep entirely. Every now and then, he reminded England of his range of strokes: an inside-out drive through the covers off Rashid, a ramp over the slips when Stokes banged it short, and a beautifully placed flick off the legs, off Joe Root, when he deigned to bowl to him without a deep square leg.That shot brought up Rahul’s 150, in the 83rd over of India’s innings. England took the new ball two overs later, and the runs flowed quicker. Both batsmen sent edges flying through the slips – a loose drive from Nair was edged close enough to Cook at first slip to count as a half-chance – but there were also some pretty shots: a square-cut from Rahul off Broad, and a straight drive from Nair, also off the same bowler. This was the second time he had hit him in that direction, though this time it was the full-faced version rather than the wristy whip that had brought him his first boundary, before tea.India scored 35 runs in the eight overs that Broad and Jake Ball bowled with the second new ball, and continued to score quickly when the spinners returned. Nair reverse-slapped Moeen to the point boundary, then Rahul launched him for a straight six. A swept four off Rashid took him to 199, before he played, as he later put it, “a horrible shot”.

Liverpool are one of numerous clubs keeping an eye on Rav van den Berg, according to a report from The Daily Mail.

Who is Rav van den Berg?

The 18-year-old is a name that likely won't be familiar to too many yet, with the defender having only recently broken into the first-team picture at hometown club PEC Zwolle. He's worked his way up through the ranks at the club and having initially begun playing for their Under-17 and then Under-18 sides, he was promoted to the Under-21. His performances there – he played six times with one assist – then led to a first-team call-up.

He's now become a frequently used squad player for them. He already has 32 games under his belt for the club and even put his name onto the scoresheet on one occasion too, despite being a centre-back by trade. That's where Van den Berg predominantly plays his football, although he has also been used on a role on the right-flank as a right-back and has even been moved further forward into midfield once, and into right midfield on another occasion.

Now, having burst onto the first-team scene for PEC Zwolle, he is catching the eye of some European giants. According to a report from The Daily Mail, Bayern Munich and AC Milan have both registered an interest in the player, as have Ajax.

From the Premier League, it is Liverpool and Brentford who are monitoring the situation, but the latter are the most advanced currently and have now entered talks. For the Reds, they have not made an official approach yet, but it does seem as though he is on their transfer radar.

What is Rav van den Berg's value?

The giant defender – he stands at 6 foot 3 and may grow more yet – would be an imposing figure at the back, and does already have ties to Liverpool through brother Sepp. He spent last season out on loan in Germany and prior to that, was shipped out to Preston North End from the Reds. A move to Anfield then would reunite the two siblings.

There is no value mentioned in the report in regards to the younger of the pair, but Transfermarkt suggest that he could cost just 200,000 Euros (or around £171,000) to any interested party. The Mail's report does however say that he is seen as "one of the best emerging young defensive talents in European football", so this is the type of move that could be looked back on as a steal if he fulfils his potential.

Whilst Liverpool haven't made an official move yet, it seems there is some talent in the 18-year-old to have put him in the first-team already and at such a small fee, it may be worth the Reds launching a bid for the player this window.