Eight talking points from India’s first Test squad of the post-Rohit, post-Kohli era

Sidharth Monga24-May-20251:19

Agarkar on Gill: ‘We’ve taken feedback from a lot of people’

This is a landmark selection for India. This is the first time since the tour of South Africa in 2013-14, India’s first series after Sachin Tendulkar’s retirement, that they embark on a big tour looking to create future superstars. There will naturally be plenty of questions. Ajit Agarkar, the chairman of selectors, answered them all. Well, most of them.Related

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Sai Sudharsan, Arshdeep and Karun Nair in India's Test squad for England tour

Confident and assertive, Gill must now chart his own path

What will the top four look like?Everyone is eager to know how India’s batting will line up now that all four of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane are out, but that is a decision the selectors will leave to the team management of captain Shubman Gill, coach Gautam Gambhir and vice-captain Rishabh Pant. It does seem likely that Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul will open with B Sai Sudharsan to follow at No. 3 and Gill to take Kohli’s No. 4 position.Why no Shami?Mohammed Shami played the Champions Trophy, and is playing the IPL, but his last Test was the WTC final in 2023. Since then he has played only one first-class match, in November 2024. He was just not fit for the strains of Test cricket.”We’ve sort of been trying to get him fit for the series, of course, but he’s had a little bit of a setback over the last week or so,” Agarkar said. “He’s got some MRIs done. I don’t think he was going to be able to play five Tests, and at the moment I don’t think his workload is where it needs to be. It is just the medical guys who’ve told us that he’s been ruled out of this series. We were hoping that he’s available for some part of the series at least, but if he’s not fit at the moment it’s very difficult to keep waiting.”India’s Test win at Perth came under Jasprit Bumrah’s captaincy•AFP/Getty ImagesWhy not Bumrah as captain?India’s only win of their 2024-25 tour of Australia, in Perth, came under Jasprit Bumrah, who also captained in Sydney when Rohit left himself out, but a stress reaction in his back meant he was unable to complete that Test, his fifth in a five-match series. That injury caused him to miss nearly five months of cricket.India don’t want to lose Bumrah the bowler when striving to get him to captain, which would mean he plays every Test. Plus the medical staff has advised the selectors that Bumrah is unlikely to be able to play all five Tests in England.”He is more important to us as a player,” Agarkar said. “We want him fit. There’s always that extra burden when you’re leading and managing 15-16 other people. There’s a lot that it takes out of you. We’d rather have him bowling as well as he does than putting that extra burden on him. He is aware of it. We’ve had a chat with him, and he’s okay with it. He knows where his body’s at at the moment, and he’d rather look after himself and be bowling-fit.”Why Arshdeep Singh?From the squad that went to Australia, Harshit Rana has been replaced by Arshdeep Singh. While Rana has the physical ingredients needed for a Test bowler, he showed on his debut tour that he didn’t have the control that he will perhaps acquire with a couple of full seasons of first-class cricket.Arshdeep has not played a lot of first-class cricket in recent months – only five matches across the 2024-25 domestic season, three in the Duleep Trophy and two in the Ranji Trophy – but he brings the experience of five County Championship matches for Kent in 2023. As a left-arm swing bowler, he also brings a point of difference to the squad.”He’s had a little bit of experience of county cricket as well,” Agarkar said. “Obviously plays every game that is available in domestic cricket. We’ve watched him, tall guy with the Dukes ball. There’s [left-arm] variety but there’s also body of work in red-ball cricket, and he’s been in decent form over the last couple of years. He’s just a quality bowler. We needed five seamers because Booms [Bumrah] is unlikely to play all five Test matches so we needed adequate cover. This provides us with a little bit of variety as well.”2:39

Agarkar: Karun’s experience was factor in selection

What has Sarfaraz done wrong?Sarfaraz Khan scored twin half-centuries in his debut Test, and stroked his way to 150 in Bengaluru as India fought a big deficit. He averages 37.10 after six Tests. He didn’t get to play in Australia at all, however, and that perhaps is a signal that the team management has sent to the selectors, who have now picked a more experienced middle-order batter in Karun Nair.”Sometimes we just have to make those decisions,” Agarkar said. “Sarfaraz did play the three Test matches [against New Zealand] in India. I know he got a hundred in the first Test, didn’t get runs [after that] and missed out in Australia. Sometimes those are decisions which the team management takes. Whether it’s fair on somebody or unfair on someone, those are the choices that you make in the best interest of the team.”At the moment, we felt Karun has put up heaps of runs over the last couple of seasons. He’s played a little bit of Test cricket early in his career, has played a bit of county cricket. We feel that he’s batting well enough. Also now with Virat not there, clearly lacking a little bit of experience in the batting. Jaiswal is touring [England] for the first time. I know Gill has played one Test match [there]. It’s only KL and Pant who have played a series there before. So we felt Nair’s experience could help. Sometimes it is going to be unfair on somebody else but eventually you’ve got to make choices.”How does Thakur fit in?When India went to Australia late last year, Shardul Thakur was making a comeback from a surgery and didn’t have the bowling workload under his belt to get selected. When fit, he can provide balance by being the fourth seamer who can bat at No. 8. Through the Australia tour, India struggled because none of their three allrounders – Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Reddy and Washington Sundar – could be used as a wicket-taking bowler in those conditions.”Shardul is a bowling allrounder,” Agarkar said. “With the way sometimes the team is structured, you need that seam-bowling option who can bat a bit. Nitish Reddy showed what he can do with the bat [in Australia], but yeah, he’s a batting allrounder at this point. Hopefully his bowling keeps coming on as well.”B Sai Sudharsan scored a century against Australia A at Mackay in October 2024•Getty ImagesDid Sai Sudharsan get picked on IPL form?Sai Sudharsan does seem to have an underwhelming first-class record: 29 matches and average under 40. Having said that, he has excited almost everyone who knows batting. He has a hundred against the touring England Lions and one when playing away against Australia A. He has a county hundred as well, albeit on a flat Trent Bridge track.”Last year when England Lions came, he played the A tour,” Agarkar said. “I watched it. He got runs there as well so it’s not like he’s not got runs in red-ball cricket. We’ve not picked him because of IPL. We’ve known he’s a terrific red-ball player. He’s shown the right temperament and seems to have the game to succeed at the top level. Once he plays we’ll probably get to know a bit better, but seems to have the goods. I don’t think his IPL performances have made us pick him for Test cricket. We’ve been looking at him for a while, at least since I’ve been here, for a couple of years, but there’s never been any place in the team to pick [new] guys. Now that we’ve had this opportunity [he] certainly deserves it.”So what does the starting XI for Headingley on June 20 look like?It is too early to say because the team management also looks at how players are going in the nets, but we can take an educated guess.1 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 2 KL Rahul, 3 B Sai Sudharsan, 4 Shubman Gill (capt), 5 Rishabh Pant (wk), 6 Karun Nair, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Shardul Thakur/Kuldeep Yadav, 9 Prasidh Krishna, 10 Jasprit Bumrah, 11 Mohammed Siraj.The choice between Thakur and Kuldeep Yadav comes down to the conditions. If the pitch is not expected to help spin at all, it might be better to have a fourth seamer at No. 8. If there is spin expected, it is important to resist the temptation of playing a spinner just for his batting ability. If India do feel the need to play Washington Sundar or Nitish Reddy, it is ideal to do so at the expense of a batter.

Manchester City are reportedly considering a January move for Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo, as Pep Guardiola's side look to ease the goalscoring burden on Erling Haaland. Semenyo is set to be one of the Premier League's most in-demand players in the winter window and has attracted strong interest from Liverpool, but the Cityzens could trump them to a move in the hope of bringing new life to their title challenge.

• Man City could make Semenyo swoop in January

  As reported by The Times, Man City are 'exploring' a move for Semenyo and could opt to trigger his £65 million ($86m) release clause, which becomes active on January 1 for the early part of the transfer window.

  The 25-year-old has already scored six goals in the league so far this season and laid on three assists, staking his claim to being one of the division’s most dangerous forwards after 13 goals last term. His form has attracted the interest of many of England’s biggest clubs – most notably, struggling Liverpool – as reports of the clause emerged earlier this autumn.

  While City are ‘not yet fully committed’ to making a move according to the report, they are said to recognise the value that the Ghanaian could offer in sharing the goals with Haaland, who has scored 14 of the club’s 27 league goals. Phil Foden became just the second City player to surpass one league goal with his match-winning performance against Leeds United on Saturday.

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  Semenyo could share goalscoring burden as Haaland's team-mates falter

  Semenyo could also help fill a hole in attack when Egyptian forward Omar Marmoush departs for the Africa Cup of Nations. Ghana have not qualified for AFCON for the first time in 21 years, so Semenyo himself will not be competing in the tournament.  

  Elsewhere in the City forward line, wingers Savinho and Oscar Bobb have struggled to impact games so far this season, while Jeremy Doku has begun to take his game to new levels but has still scored just once in the league. The Belgian and Semenyo could form a devastating wide pair flanking Haaland if the Cherries man were to arrive at the Etihad.

  Bournemouth’s outstanding early-season form has tailed off in recent weeks, with Andoni Iraola’s side falling away from the top four and towards mid-table. This only makes it more likely that their star man will depart in the winter, with interest likely only to ramp up as we near New Year’s Day. 

• 'In January, we will talk' – Iraola

  Speaking on November 21, Iraola declined to speculate about what will happen regarding the future of Semenyo in January, but appeared to have an air of resignation to the fact that their talisman will be hot property when the window opens.

  "We are in November and Antoine is our player. He will continue being our player," Iraola told reporters.

  "In January, you can ask me about the market. For now, I am not worried about the next market. It is November and I am more worried about the situation of players for tomorrow. In January, we will talk about whatever happens."

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  Foden on City's lack of goalscorers this season

  From a City perspective, the need to share the goals around the team and that fact was reiterated by Foden following Saturday’s 3-2 victory over Leeds.

  “If I look over the pitch, we’ve got loads of goalscorers, but for whatever reason it’s not really kicked off yet — but I think it’s starting to do that now and other players are helping Erling with the goals,” said Foden, who has scored six times in all competitions.

  “It can’t just come from him every game. As you can see today, when he’s fully marked out of the game other players have to step up.”

  He added: “When the opponents get better in the later stages of the season, we can’t afford to play like this because we’re going to lose the league.

  “We have to put things right and get better and just work hard on the training pitch.”

Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav and Sahibzada Farhan have also picked up demerit points

Danyal Rasool04-Nov-2025

Haris Rauf missed the first ODI against South Africa on Tuesday, and will be unavailable for the second one as well, as he serves an ICC ban. He has accumulated four demerit points, from two separate offences that occurred during Pakistan’s matches against India during Asia Cup 2025.Though the ICC said on their official website that Rauf’s violations took place on September 14 and 28, they in fact occurred in the games on 21 September and the final, 28 September.Each time, the offence involved a breach of Article 2.21 of the ICC Code of Conduct, which concerns bringing the game into disrepute. As Rauf did not accept the charge on either occasion, formal hearings were held, after which the sanctions were handed out. Once a player accumulates four demerit points within a 24-month period, a two-match suspension is automatically triggered.Rauf’s sanction was one of many that resulted from incidents during the three India-Pakistan games across the Asia Cup. India captain Suryakumar Yadav also picked up two demerit points under the same charge, following comments he made after India’s win over Pakistan on September 14.While ESPNcricinfo reported on the sanctions at the time, the ICC only officially made them public on Tuesday, five weeks after the conclusion of the tournament. Sahibzada Farhan also received an official warning and a demerit point for an offence on September 21, though, once more, the ICC attributed it to September 14.Jasprit Bumrah picked one up for a gesture he made during the final. Meanwhile, Arshdeep Singh was charged with a breach of Article 2.6, which pertains to using a gesture that is obscene, offensive or insulting, for actions on September 21. He was ultimately found not guilty.Suryakumar and Agha led India and Pakistan through a heated set of matches•Associated Press

All the charges resulted from a trio of ill-tempered games between India and Pakistan at the Asia Cup, during which political tensions spilled over onto the field. India refused to shake hands with the Pakistan players in any of the three games, a move Pakistan captain Salman Agha criticised as “not in the spirit of the game”. Suryakumar countered by saying a “few things” were “bigger than sportsman’s spirit”.The tension between the two sides nearly led to Pakistan pulling out of the tournament altogether, after they blamed match referee Andy Pycroft for barring the players from shaking hands, a version of events the ICC disputed. The standoff resulted in Pakistan’s game against the UAE being delayed for over an hour before the PCB and the ICC cleared the air.The tournament ended with the first-ever Asia Cup final between India and Pakistan. India won a thrilling encounter in the final over. However, the drama was not done. At the presentation ceremony, India’s players refused to accept their trophy from ACC president and PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who insisted on handing it over himself. After a lengthy delay, India celebrated on the podium without the trophy. It is understood the trophy has still not been given to the Indian team.Rauf will become available for the third game of the three-match ODI series against South Africa, which is currently being played in Faisalabad.

Manchester United are pursuing new reinforcements in January and could now be set to submit a bid for one of Europe’s most high-profile midfielders.

Man Utd looking towards the January window

Admittedly, the Red Devils have enjoyed a mixed start to the Premier League season and will now look to take advantage of the chance to move up a few places within a tight collective of sides all vying for a spot in the European slots.

On Monday, Manchester United’s frustrating defeat at home to Everton brought back some old scars that have been a feature of Ruben Amorim’s tenure at the club, with his side unable to break down a spirited Toffees outfit despite having a man advantage for most of proceedings.

Falling flat in attack, Joshua Zirkzee’s emergence after failing to earn a regular place in the side this season was questioned by BBC Radio Manchester’s Gaz Drinkwater, who believes Kobbie Mainoo and Mason Mount should’ve been brought into the starting side instead.

He said: “Bring Mount and Kobbie Mainoo into the starting XI. He obviously doesn’t see Mainoo as a midfielder because he can’t get in the team in that position. Amorim sees him as a number 10 or maybe even a false-nine type player where maybe they [the front three] interchange a bit.

“I don’t understand the logic of bringing in a totally cold Joshua Zirkzee into the game, who has basically had zero minutes this season, and he did nothing.”

Man Utd plotting "bargain" deal to sign "imposing" Ligue 1 defender who scouts love

He could complete Amorim’s back three.

ByTom Cunningham Nov 27, 2025

Without doubt, the Red Devils will need to recruit wisely in January as they begin to feel the effects of a hefty schedule, and they could now be set to lodge a bid for a high-profile midfielder.

Man Utd ready bid for Federico Valverde

According to reports in Spain, Manchester United are preparing a £87m bid for Federico Valverde, and he may be allowed to depart amid a spate of up and down performances for Real Madrid.

The Uruguay international may now be set for a change of scenery and would be open to a move elsewhere, potentially re-establishing himself as the central part of a project at Old Trafford.

Five similar players to Federico Valverde

Declan Rice

Arsenal

Bernardo Silva

Manchester City

Eduardo Camavinga

Real Madrid

Nicolo Barella

Inter Milan

Moises Caicedo

Chelsea

All data courtesy of Football Transfers

Labelled “superb” by Thibaut Courtois, Valverde has registered four assists in 17 appearances across all competitions this season. Overall, he has scored 32 times and laid on 35 goals for his teammates in 340 appearances for Los Blancos, cementing himself as a fan favourite.

Amorim is confident that his versatility, quality and combativeness could form a new dynamic in the engine room as they look to reclaim their place among the elite of English football.

Real Madrid aren’t totally closed off to selling Valverde, creating a scenario that could work out for all parties if the 27-year-old makes a headline-grabbing move to English shores.

If this is to be the end of Martin O’Neill’s brief return, what a way to sign off.

On Thursday night, Celtic ended a 16-match, four-year-long winless streak in European away games by beating Feyenoord 3-1 at De Kuip, coming back from a goal down to do so; Yang Hyun-jun, Reo Hatate and Benjamin Nygren all on target.

This means O’Neill has won five of six matches since being parachuted into the role following Brendan Rodgers’ shock resignation.

The 73-year-old, alongside Shaun Maloney, is set to remain in charge when the Celts visit Easter Road to take on Hibernian on Sunday lunchtime, but there is optimism that Wilfried Nancy will take over soon, potentially in time for the visit of Dundee on Wednesday.

Once the Frenchman does swap Ohio for Glasgow, one of Celtic’s breakout stars from this season could well become a key figure, currently on course to replicate an active club legend.

Callum McGregor's importance at Celtic

While players, managers and board members come and go, Callum McGregor remains a constant, the heartbeat in both the team and the club as a whole.

Thursday saw the captain make his 540th appearance for the club, starting 21 of 22 matches so far this season, accumulating 1,939 minutes out of a possible 2,040 so far (95%).

When Scott Brown departed in 2021, his leadership and all-around brilliance was supposed to be impossible to replace, but McGregor has transitioned into this role seamlessly, lifting 24 major trophies to date, and it is incomprehensible to imagine a Celtic side without him.

As well as winning back the ball and keeping the team ticking in possession, McGregor continues to produce key moments, lashing home a 95th-minute winner at St Mirren last Saturday night, having scored a similar rocket against Rangers in the League Cup semi-finals earlier this month.

Having joined the club as an eight-year-old, McGregor continues to set an example to all those in the Celtic academy dreaming of representing the first team one day, but who is currently on course to follow in his footsteps?

Celtic's next academy star

Celtic have endured rotten luck in terms of injuries this season.

Cameron Carter-Vickers could be out for the rest of the season following achilles surgery, Jota remains sidelined after rupturing his ACL in April, while Alistair Johnston suffered a torn hamstring against Kairat in August, only to aggravate the issue 26 minutes into his return when Sturm Graz visited Parkhead.

With Johnston, who has been so excellent since joining the club, having started only five matches all season, most would have expected Anthony Ralston to deputise, but it appears as though Colby Donovan has leapfrogged him in the pecking order.

After featuring sporadically during pre-season, scoring against Cork City at Páirc Uí Chaoimh in July, the 19-year-old made his competitive senior debut against Livingston when Rodgers made wholesale changes in between the two legs against Kairat.

Well, since then, he hasn’t really looked back, starting just two Premiership matches, but included in the lineup for four of the five Europa League fixtures, these against Crvena zvezda, Braga, Sturm Graz and now Feyenoord, putting in an excellent display in Rotterdam.

The table below documents how well he has played in Europe so far.

Minutes

283

9th

Assists

1

2nd

Completed passes

151

7th

Key passes

3

6th

Big chances created

2

3rd

Passes into final 3rd

14

5th

Progressive passes

18

4th

Passes into box

4

3rd

Shot-creating actions

6

7th

Goal-creating actions

3

1st

Successful dribbles per 90

1.8

3rd

Tackles

7

2nd

Touches

227

6th

Average rating

7.10

2nd

As the table documents, Donovan has been excellent in the Europa League this season, contributing in a wide variety of ways.

The teenager ranks highly for all the in possession metrics, recording an assist for Liam Scales’ crucial equaliser against Sturm Graz, while only Arne Engels and Benjamin Nygren have created more big chances, ranked first in terms of goal-creating actions.

Given that incoming manager Nancy deploys a 3-4-2-1 formation, his Columbus Crew side featuring flying wing-backs Max Arfsten and Andrés Herrera, his imminent arrival could be great news for the youngster.

Speaking ahead of the clash with Braga, then-manager Rodgers praised Donovan’s “outstanding” performances, labelling him a “real bright spark” as well as heralding his “personality” and “mentality”.

Well, these all feel like compliments that could be thrown the way of a certain McGregor, whose leadership is as invaluable as his quality to this team.

Thus, it is certainly still early days, but all the signs suggest that Celtic supporters are rightly excited about Donovan, who will go on to have quite the career should he manage to match McGregor’s achievements and make 500+ appearances for the club.

Celtic man was finished under Rodgers, now he can be undroppable for Nancy

Celtic’s wait for a European away win is over, beating Feyenoord 3-1, with a star Brendan Rodgers once labelled “sloppy” playing like an £100m man.

Nov 28, 2025

MatériaMais Notícias

Lorran e Rayan Lucas se apresentaram no Ninho do Urubu, neste domingo (9), após passarem uma semana treinando na Granja Comary, com a Seleção Sub-20. O técnico Tite comandou a primeira atividade com todo o elenco que está à sua disposição para o confronto contra o Grêmio, pela oitava rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro.

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➡️ Tudo sobre o Mengão agora no WhatsApp. Siga o nosso novo canal Lance! Flamengo

O Flamengo solicitou à CBF a desconvocação do meia Lorran, pois não gostaria de perder o jogador durante o período da preparação para o jogo contra a equipe de Renato Gaúcho, visto que o jovem jogador é o principal nome para substituir o uruguaio Arrascaeta. Tal atitude gerou um impasse com a entidade máxima do Futebol Brasileiro.

Outros clubes do Brasileirão, como Palmeiras e Corinthians, fizeram o mesmo em relação aos seus jogadores, respectivamente: Estêvão, Luis Guilherme e Vitor Reis (Palmeiras), Wesley e Breno Bidon (Corinthians). Com isso, a CBF acatou o pedido dos clubes e antecipou o fim do treinamento neste período de Data Fifa.

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Além da dupla, o técnico Ramon Menezes também convocou uma trinca da base rubro-negra: o lateral direito Lucyan, de 17 anos, o zagueiro Iago, de 19 anos, e o atacante Wallace Yan, de 19 anos.

Desfalques

Tirando os convocados (Erick Pulgar, Varela, De La Cruz, Viña e Arrascaeta), o Flamengo tem o lateral esquerdo Ayrton Lucas voltando de lesão, por conta de uma lesão no músculo posterior da coxa esquerda, e o volante Alan com a mesma lesão, mas na coxa direita. No entanto, o lateral faz fisioterapia e vive a expectativa de retornar no jogo contra o Grêmio. Enquanto o volante continua em processo final de recuperação na academia, sem trabalhos com bola.

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➡️ Siga o Lance! no WhatsApp e acompanhe em tempo real as principais notícias do esporte

Flamengo e Grêmio se enfrentam na quinta, às 20h (de Brasília), no Maracanã, pela oitava rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro.

Tudo sobre

FlamengoFutebol Nacional

The year 2026 is a big one for the United States, which turns 250 on July 4—and Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber seems set to celebrate America's semiquincentennial in style.

Schwarber will play for the United States in the World Baseball Classic, USA Baseball announced Tuesday morning—shortly before news broke that he had re-upped with Philadelphia for five years and $150 million.

The 32-year-old also competed in the 2023 event, slashing .214/.450/.643 with two home runs and four RBIs for the American silver medalists. In 2025, Schwarber led the National League with 56 home runs—the second time in four years he's led the Senior Circuit in the category.

Joining Schwarber on the team are Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson, Dodgers catcher Will Smith (a '23 alum), and Brewers second baseman Brice Turang (an accomplished player on the United States's under-15 team).

The Americans are scheduled to open WBC play on March 6 against Brazil.

كشف مصدر بـ نادي الزمالك عن موافقة القلعة البيضاء على رحيل أحد نجوم فريق الكرة البازرين خلال الفترة المقبلة.

ويعاني الزمالك من أزمات قوية في الفترة الماضية، بسبب عدم قدرته على دفع المستحقات المتأخرة لبعض لاعبيه ومدربيه السابقين، وحرمانه من القيد.

وعلم بطولات، أن هناك اتجاهًا في الزمالك للموافقة على رحيل حسام عبد المجيد خلال فترة الانتقالات الشتوية في يناير.

ويأتي حسام عبد المجيد، مدافع الفريق الشاب، ضمن أكثر الأسماء التي تحظى بمتابعة واسعة، خاصة بعد بروز اسمه مع الزمالك ومنتخب مصر الأول خلال الأشهر الماضية.

طالع | بشرى سارة لجماهير الزمالك قبل انتقالات يناير

ويأتي موقف إدارة الزمالك حال توفر عرض مادي قوي في ظل عدم وضوح موقف اللاعب بشأن تجديد عقده.

كما يرغب مسؤولو الزمالك في الاستفادة المادية من رحيل اللاعب الذي ينتهي عقده الموسم المقبل.

Ex-Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur icon Gareth Bale has revealed the real reason why he announced his retirement from football at the age of 33. The former winger brought the curtains down on his illustrious professional career just months after Wales were knocked out of the 2022 World Cup group stage after finishing bottom with just a point from their three matches.

• Bale took retirement at just 33

  Bale started his professional journey at Southampton in 2006 after graduating from the Saints' youth system. After an impressive debut campaign at St Mary's Stadium, the wide man caught Tottenham's attention and the north London club snapped him up. He spent the next six seasons at White Hart Lane, before completing a dream move to Real Madrid for a then world-record transfer fee.

  In Madrid, he won every major trophy on offer, including multiple La Liga and Champions League titles. In 2022, Bale joined MLS side LAFC where he spent a season before hanging up his boots in January 2023. His retirement announcement came in the aftermath of Wales crashing out of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar in the group stage.

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  Why did Bale took an early retirement?

  In a chat with , Bale revealed how his father's ill health prompted him to quit football at just 33. He said: "I feel incredibly fortunate to have realised my dream of playing the sport I love. It has truly given me some of the best moments of my life. My dad got ill and that played a massive role in my decision. People don't know what anyone's going through at home but I soon realised there's more to life than just football. [My dad] sacrificed everything when I was younger. He took me everywhere. Without my dad and my parents, I wouldn't be where I am today."

  He added: "I achieved so much in my career so playing in a World Cup was pretty much the last thing that I wanted to achieve. It didn’t go amazingly well for us, but it was the first time in 64 years. After that, I didn't feel like I had anything else left to achieve, goal-wise."

• Is Bale really obsessed with Golf?

  During his time in Madrid, Bale had once held aloft a now-infamous flag which read 'Wales. Golf. Madrid. In that order' after his nation qualified for Euro 2020. The incident did draw some criticism in Spain and since the former Wales international has been closely associated with the sport, with many believing that he is obsessed with golf.

  However, later in the interview, the Spurs icon cleared the air as he claimed he "never used to play golf that much" and would only pick up his clubs "once every two to three weeks" – and always "on a day off".

• AFP
  

  Did Bale have a fallout with Ronaldo

  Speaking about his relationship with former Madrid team-mate and Portugal icon Cristiano Ronaldo, the Welshman said: "I'm not really in touch with that many [old Madrid team-mates] – a few of the Wales boys – but I always got on with everybody. I never had any problems with anyone. I never had any big arguments. Sometimes the media might say about me and Ronaldo, we never had an issue, never had an argument, never had a fight, never had anything."

Another New Zealand-West Indies game, another last-over finish, another heartbreak for West Indies.For the longest time, the stars seemed to be aligning for West Indies. After Shai Hope’s unbeaten 69-ball 109 took them to 247 for 9 in the rain-reduced 34-overs-a-side contest, the visitors would have fancied their chances. And they were in this, particularly when New Zealand found themselves at 194 for 5, needing another 54 runs off 29 balls. But then, as it has so often happened in the white-ball leg of this tour, Mitchell Santner came clutch and took New Zealand to a five-wicket win, giving them an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.With the equation coming down to 40 off 18 deliveries, Santner took on Matthew Forde, who, by then, had gone at only four runs an over. Santner carted Forde for 4, 6, 4 to take 18 runs off the 32nd over. Santner then smashed Shamar Springer for four and six in the second-last over, leaving New Zealand eight runs to win off the 34th.Related

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It could still have been anyone’s game, but Jayden Seales bowled a chest-high no-ball, which Tom Latham calmly glided over the wicketkeeper. Then Santner fittingly sealed the chase with a crash through extra cover as New Zealand prevailed with three balls to spare. Seales was distraught, flinging his cap to the floor, sinking to it himself, and needing help from several of his team-mates to come off the field.As has been the case all through the series, the second ODI ebbed and flowed all the way through. Chasing 248, Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra found the going tough on a treacherous Napier surface. But once the duo settled down, the runs started to flow. They added 106 runs off 99 balls, New Zealand’s first century opening-wicket stand in ODIs in 74 innings since February 2020.They were quite scratchy early on, though, against some tight West Indies bowling. Forde got the ball to move both ways as Conway played out a maiden first up. Ravindra got going with a couple of runs before Conway got off the mark with a crisp square drive through point. There were a couple of very tight leaves, while both batters were beaten several times outside off with the exaggerated movement as New Zealand squeaked to 13 for 0 after five overs.Conway took the attacking route when he thrashed Seales through point, while Ravindra deposited him over deep midwicket for the first six of New Zealand’s innings. Romario Shepherd was introduced into the attack right after the powerplay, but was unable to stem the flow of runs.Rachin Ravindra had a century opening stand with Devon Conway•AFP/Getty Images

Ravindra, by now in full flow, pulled Forde over cow corner before Conway went after Justin Greaves, pulling him over deep square leg. Springer was dumped over the leg side fence twice in an over as New Zealand started catching up. Ravindra reached his sixth ODI fifty in style by slog sweeping Roston Chase for six.However, Ravindra fell soon after, when, in a bid to up the scoring rate, he sliced Greaves to backward point, where Chase timed his jump to perfection. Will Young, short of runs, came in at No. 3, and failed to inject any momentum into the chase. He was beaten multiple times, and fell 14 balls into his innings, slog sweeping to deep square leg.Mark Chapman came and went as the hosts lost three wickets in a hurry. Conway, meanwhile, stood firm and continued to rack up boundaries regularly. He reached his fifty off 54 balls, and stepped on the accelerator with the required rate climbing. Just when it seemed Conway would break his century-drought, he fell for 90, thrashing a cut off Springer straight to point.With the required rate now past ten an over, Latham and Santner joined forces. They took their time to settle in, targeting the short square boundaries on both sides. It wasn’t until the 31st over, with the required rate in excess of 13, when Santner flipped the switch, and, along with Latham, took New Zealand over the line, helping them register their 11th straight bilateral ODI series win at home.Earlier, West Indies captain Hope showed his class as he single-handedly propelled his team from 130 for 6 in 24 overs to 247 for 9 in 34, on the way notching up his 19th ODI century.Shai Hope made 109 not out off 69 balls•AFP/Getty Images

The match, supposed to start at 2pm local time, was delayed by close to three hours due to rain and a wet outfield. When the toss did eventually take place, Santner, with a smirk on his face, had no hesitation in bowling first. From the outset, it was clear that batting would be hard work. Kyle Jamieson got the ball to move heaps as West Indies played out three maidens in the first four overs.After multiple wafts and across-the-line attempts, Ackeem Auguste pumped Matt Henry straight over his head in what was the first commanding shot of the day in the fifth over. But West Indies soon lost John Campbell, whose difficult innings was ended by Jamieson. He got a length ball to move away from off stump, and Campbell, looking to flay him across the line, only managed a thick leading edge that nestled into deep third’s hands.West Indies, having managed just 18 runs in the reduced powerplay of seven overs, targeted Blair Tickner, brought into the side in place of Jacob Duffy. Auguste first clubbed him over his head before Keacy Carty sliced him over point for four more.Carty’s innings was, however, short-lived as he fell soon to Jamieson, whose opening spell read 5-2-12-2. West Indies continued to go after Tickner as Hope got into his groove. He first hooked Tickner to the vacant deep midwicket fence, and then laced him through covers to bring up 6000 ODI runs. Among his compatriots, only Viv Richards has got to this mark quicker, by one innings (141 vs 142).Nathan Smith made an impact with the ball•Getty Images

West Indies lost Auguste soon, with his attempted pull spooning straight up for Jamieson to take a catch running back from midwicket. That didn’t impact Hope and the incoming Sherfane Rutherford, who refused to curb their aggressive instincts. Hope pulled Santner deep over midwicket, while Rutherford thumped Nathan Smith twice into the stands to get West Indies moving again.However, two quick wickets got New Zealand back into the game. Santner first got rid of Rutherford while Smith breached Chase’s defences with a peach of an indipper that decked back to castle his off stump. While Greaves also fell relatively early, Hope continued on his merry way.He reached his fifty off 42 balls, and just went up a gear. At 130 for 6 after 24 overs, Hope took charge and belted the bowlers all across McLean Park. He got decent support first from Shepherd, who pumped Henry for two sixes in three balls, and then dumped Tickner over deep midwicket.Once Shepherd fell, Forde took Jamieson to the cleaners, thrashing him for three fours and a six. Hope moved through his 90s in a flash, crashing Henry for back-to-back fours before reaching his first ODI century against New Zealand with the straightest of straight hits in the final over of the innings. Arms aloft, he soaked in the applause, finishing with 13 fours and four sixes. But it wasn’t enough.