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Gill’s recent form is compelling, but he hasn’t played a T20I for a year, and in his absence other contenders have emerged and succeeded as openers

Shashank Kishore13-Aug-2025

In Shubman Gill’s absence, Axar Patel was given the T20I vice-captaincy•AFP/Getty Images

There’s no question about Shubman Gill’s place in the Indian team in two out of three international formats. He broke records as a batter while leading India to a 2-2 draw in England in his debut series as Test captain, and played important roles in India’s run to the 2023 ODI World Cup final and their triumph in the 2025 Champions Trophy. Gill could even be the next ODI captain, whenever Rohit Sharma quits that format too.But India’s next assignment is the Asia Cup in September, to be played in the T20I format as preparation for the 2026 T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka, and the question arises: does Gill fit into India’s plans for the shortest format?His most recent T20 form is compelling – 650 runs at a strike rate of nearly 156 in IPL 2025. He’s going to be a cornerstone of Indian cricket for the next decade. Both are reasons in his favour, but the selection question is more complex.Related

Asia Cup 2025 in UAE starting September 9; India vs Pakistan on September 14

Gill shows he is ready for the grind of India's Test captaincy

It has been a while since India picked a full-strength T20I squad; the last time they did so was for the 2024 T20 World Cup, which they won in the USA and West Indies. Gill was a travelling reserve for that tournament, outside the main 15. Since then, India’s T20I selections have been influenced by scheduling and injuries.Gill was captain of a second-string team for the T20I series in Zimbabwe immediately after the World Cup last year. He was vice-captain of a near full-strength squad for the T20I series in Sri Lanka later in July that year. As Test cricket took precedence, however, Gill was not picked for India’s home T20Is against Bangladesh in October, the T20Is in South Africa in November, and the home T20Is against England in January this year, which were scheduled soon after the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and shortly before the Champions Trophy. In his absence, Axar Patel was elevated to the T20I vice-captaincy.The scheduling crunch is ever-present. For example, the Asia Cup final is on September 28, and India’s home Test series against West Indies starts on October 2. This time, however, the selectors have to zero in on the best T20I combination for the Asia Cup with the larger goal of defending their World Cup title next year. They begin from a position of immense strength: since winning the World Cup, India have won 17 out of 20 bilateral T20Is.In Gill’s absence from the T20I side since August 2024, Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson have become the incumbent openers. Abhishek, the top-ranked batter in the format, scored 279 runs at a strike rate of nearly 220 in India’s most recent T20I series, against England in January. While Samson had low scores in those five matches, he had hit three hundreds in five preceding T20Is.Yashasvi Jaiswal is one of the frontrunners to open the batting•AFP/Getty ImagesThe selectors could weigh up whether they want to continue with two ultra-explosive openers in Abhishek and Samson, in keeping with India’s brand of T20I cricket, or go for a more consistent yet aggressive option.Like Yashasvi Jaiswal? Jaiswal, like Gill, has not played a T20I since July 2024 due to India prioritising his Test performances in a packed calendar. However, in India’s previous full-strength squad, Jaiswal was picked as the back-up opener ahead of Gill for the 2024 T20 World Cup. He ended up being a back-up only because India made the relatively late decision to open with Rohit and Virat Kohli, whose retirements since then have put Jaiswal back as one of the frontrunners to open. At the time, Gill was coming off a not-so-hot performance in IPL 2024, and there isn’t a massive difference between his and Jaiswal’s numbers in IPL 2025 either.If the team management doesn’t want to break Samson and Abhishek up at the top, it’s hard to see how Gill – or Jaiswal – can feature in India’s first-choice T20I XI. And if the selectors want to keep the Asia Cup squad size to 15 – they will have to do that for the World Cup – it’s hard to see how they can pick all four of Abhishek, Samson, Gill and Jaiswal, given the need for back-ups for other types of players in the squad. Samson, though, has the advantage of doubling up as a wicketkeeper too.It could boil down to a choice between Jaiswal or Gill in the squad – who the selectors feel will have the stronger impact during India’s T20 title defence.

For the first time in the MLB, Shohei Ohtani pitched against former Angels teammate Mike Trout. More than two years after Ohtani struck out Trout to win the World Baseball Classic for Japan in 2023, he took the mound to face Trout again.

Ohtani hit a leadoff triple in the top of the first inning to help the Dodgers take an early 3–0 lead. He then took the mound and struck out Angels' leadoff Zach Neto before Trout came up to the plate.

The at-bat began with a nod of acknowledgement from both Ohtani and Trout. Ohtani then threw two strikes against Trout on four-seam fastballs, reaching as high as 98 miles per hour. With a 3–2 count, Ohtani delivered the final strike on a sweeper, one Trout didn't even swing on.

Trout, who said "He won Round 1" after Ohtani struck him out during the WBC, was simply left smiling after Ohtani took Round 2 this time.

Ohtani played alongside Trout on the Angels from 2018 to '23 before signing with the Dodgers in free agency in late 2023. Ohtani made his return to pitching earlier this season after suffering a torn UCL in 2023, and has now taken the mound for the first time against his former team.

After not allowing a run in the first inning, Ohtani did up two runs in the second—including a solo home run from Taylor Ward and a sacrifice fly from Luis Rengifo that drove in Yoán Moncada. The Dodgersadded two runs in the fourth, and lead the Angels 5–2 through three and a half innings as they look to claim their first game of the series.

When Manchester United meet Everton on Monday it will be exactly one year since Ruben Amorim took charge of his first game against Ipswich Town. It has been a highly eventful and not always happy 12 months featuring explosions of anger, fall-outs with players and many defeats. Many people, including the man himself, thought he might not even end up completing a year in the job.

But Amorim is still here and he feels far more equipped to succeed than when he arrived. There are some signs he is succeeding, albeit at a slow pace. When he arrived United were 14th in the Premier League table, on 11 points from nine games, with four defeats and a goal difference of -3. 

They ended the campaign in an even worse position, slumping to 15th with 42 points and a goal difference of -10. They lost 18 matches, 14 of them on the Portuguese's watch. They are in a better position now, sitting much higher up the table with 18 points after 11 games and a goal difference of plus one. They have lost three matches but are unbeaten in their last five, their longest spell without a league loss since February 2024.

According to Opta, United's 12-game rolling points-per-game average dropped to 0.83 at two stages last season after Amorim had taken charge, the lowest it had been since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013. Amorim then managed to outdo himself early in this campaign when that average dropped to 0.75, almost half the amount it was when Erik ten Hag was sacked. But now their rolling points-per-game average is at 1.75, the highest it has been since December 2023.

Performances have also improved. According to Opta, United's non-penalty expected goals (xG) per game has increased by 20 percent, from 1.24 under Amorim last season to 1.48 this term. United are therefore both defending and attacking better than before. The improvements show that the club's hierarchy, above all co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, were right to keep their faith in their manager and resist sacking him at the lowest points of last season, as well as in September following the defeat at Brentford, when the most important pundits on English television were saying enough was enough. 

Now Amorim needs to build on the momentum and start to pay Ratcliffe back by delivering irrefutable, and not incremental, evidence that the team are improving and that he can take them back to where they belong…

GettyRuthless approach

Five out of the 16 players that appeared in Amorim's first game at Ipswich one year ago are no longer at the club. While Amorim had little say in Jonny Evans retiring or Christian Eriksen leaving when his contract expired, he had a big say in the departures of Rasmus Hojlund, Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho and Andre Onana.

Rashford has the paradoxical status of scoring the first goal of the Amorim era and then being the first to be hounded out of the club by the manager. The forward was cast aside from the squad on the day of the derby at Manchester City just three weeks after the coach's debut match at Portman Road, never playing for the club again. 

The player's wavering commitment to the team both during matches and off the pitch had been bubbling under the surface for a long time and Ten Hag did not know how to handle the situation properly, giving him lenient punishments for stepping out of line before. Amorim, by contrast, took a ruthless approach to one of United's highest-paid, and their most famous homegrown player of the last decade.

AdvertisementgettyChanging the culture

Amorim cut Garnacho a little more slack after also dropping him for the derby but the tempestuous winger repeatedly defied the manager's authority and was ordered to find a new club after his petulant response to not starting the Europa League final. Amorim also took a no-nonsense approach with Jadon Sancho, Antony and Tyrell Malacia (the Dutch defender is now back in the squad) by placing them in the so-called 'bomb squad', forbidding them from training with the first team. 

It may have reduced the players' market value but it also sent out a clear message about who was in charge. Leny Yoro recently praised the manager's approach to the players who tested his authority, declaring: "We cannot build something with bad energy or bad atmosphere or bad characters." 

The revelation from that Amorim singled out Manuel Ugarte for criticism on the same day he told Garnacho he had to leave also demonstrated that he held everyone to the same standard given he had worked with the midfielder at Sporting CP. also revealed that Amorim has made the players give more of their time to signing autographs and posing for photos for fans before and after matches at Old Trafford. Indeed, Amorim has led by example in this respect: he regularly attends to autograph and selfie hunters at the training ground.

Getty Images SportRaising the bar

That might seem like an insignificant detail but it is another reminder of how committed Amorim is to changing the culture of the dressing room and it seems to have worked, with the team looking more cohesive. The job, however, is far from complete. The way the team froze against Grimsby, when Amorim said "the players spoke really loud", was a reminder that they struggle to get up for every single game.

Hojlund and Onana did not show the coach a lack of respect or lack of commitment to Amorim in the same way as Garnacho and Rashford, although he was similarly merciless with the duo, essentially determining that neither player was quite good enough to play for his team. The jury is still out on whether that was the right decision with regards to Hojlund, who has impressed on loan at Napoli while his replacement Benjamin Sesko has struggled to settle into the team and is now injured for at least a month. 

The decision to let Onana join Trabzonspor on loan and sign Senne Lammens, however, looks like a masterstroke, with the Belgian giving United some much-needed peace of mind in goal. Onana's reported eagerness to sign an improved contract after the whole squad saw their salaries cut by missing out on Champions League football, which apparently did not go down well with the coach, further feeds into the sense that Amorim is improving the culture within the team.

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AFPFighting in adversity

A sign that this change in culture is benefitting the team on the pitch can be seen in the amount of late goals United have been scoring this season. They have struck in the 80th minute or later in their last four games, with each goal proving crucial to the final result. Harry Maguire's 84th-minute header against Liverpool saw United snatch a first win at Anfield in 10 seasons and showed their resilience as they could quite easily have caved in when Cody Gakpo had levelled a few minutes earlier. 

The following week Bryan Mbeumo scored in the sixth minute of added time to kill off Brighton's comeback from three goals down, ensuring United won 4-2 rather than swallowing a damaging 3-3 draw. Amad Diallo's wonder-volley in the 80th minute grabbed a draw at Nottingham Forest, as did Matthijs de Ligt's 95th-minute header at Tottenham in the last game. Towards the start of the season, Bruno Fernandes' penalty in the 96th minute gave United victory over Burnley after they had twice surrendered the lead in the second half. 

In total, the late goals have been worth an extra six points from 11 games so far this season, or eight if you count Mbeumo's strike against Brighton as preventing the Seagulls from completing their fightback. In Amorim's 27 league games last term his side scored after the 80th minute in five games, salvaging a total of nine points. "We fight in every adversity," said Amorim after the draw at Tottenham.

Karun Nair left out of the 15-man squad while Pant remains injured

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Sep-20253:28

What does the squad for the WI Tests tell us?

Ravindra Jadeja has been named the vice-captain of the India Test squad for the two West Indies matches next month – it’s his first time in the position, though he has been vice-captain in ODIs and T20Is in the past.Shubman Gill will lead in his second Test series after debuting in the position in England earlier this year, but the injured Rishabh Pant, who was the vice-captain on the tour of England, hasn’t recovered sufficiently to make the squad. Pant, who had fractured his foot while batting in the fourth Test in England, is currently recovering at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru. Dhruv Jurel and N Jagadeesan are the two specialist wicketkeepers in the squad, with Jurel expected to be the first choice to stand behind the stumps.Jasprit Bumrah is also part of the squad, although there is only three day’s gap between the Asia Cup final, on September 28 in Dubai, and the start of the first Test against West Indies from October 2 in Ahmedabad.ESPNcricinfo LtdFrom the expanded squad that toured England, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Akash Deep, Anshul Kamboj, Arshdeep Singh and Shardul Thakur have missed out, along with Pant. Abhimanyu, Akash Deep and Kamboj have been included in the Rest of India squad for the Irani Cup, which will be played against Vidarbha from October 1 in Nagpur. Of them, Akash Deep had reported to the CoE recently to recover from a niggle he had picked up in England, which kept him out of the Duleep Trophy and recent India A matches.Coming in are Axar Patel, Devdutt Padikkal and Jagadeesan, who had been flown in for the final Test after Pant picked up his injury.On the exclusion of Nair, who had scored 205 runs in eight innings in England with a best of 57, chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar said at a press conference in Dubai while announcing the squad: “We expected more from Karun. Padikkal offers a little bit more at this point. Wish we could give everyone 15-20 Tests, unfortunately it doesn’t work that way. Padikkal was in the Test squad in Australia, played against England in Dharamsala, got a fifty there. He’s shown some decent form. Frankly, we expected a bit more from Karun.”Related

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Meanwhile, one of Nair’s likely replacements, Sarfaraz Khan, is currently recovering from an injury.The rest of the squad wears a familiar look, and with spin expected to play a bigger part at home than pace, India have named Jadeja, Washington Sundar and Axar as the three spin-bowling allrounders, as well as Kuldeep Yadav. Nitish Kumar Reddy is the fast-bowling allrounder, with Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna the frontline quicks.On Bumrah’s availability – it had been confirmed before the five-Test tour of England that he would play only three Tests to manage his workload – Agarkar said, “This team has been picked for both the Tests, so he’s available for both Tests. We’ve had a fair break after England. He didn’t play the fifth Test [at The Oval] either. So there’s been a five-week break. Even this tournament [Asia Cup] has been fairly spaced out till the last week. So no, he’s ready and keen to play both Test matches.”India’s two Tests against West Indies, starting on October 2 in Ahmedabad and October 10 in Delhi, is their second of six series in the 2025-27 World Test Championship cycle. Their cycle began with the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy series in England, where India drew the five-Test series 2-2.Having earned 28 out of the maximum of 60 available points for five Tests, India are third in the WTC points table, with 46.67 percentage points. Australia and Sri Lanka are above them with 100 and 66.67 percentage points respectively. West Indies have zero percentage points, having lost three Tests to Australia in June-July.India’s squad for West Indies TestsShubman Gill (capt), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, B Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ravindra Jadeja (vice-capt), Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav, N Jagadeesan (wk)

Leeds United will surely already have one eye on the January transfer window as they desperately try to climb out of their relegation mess in the Premier League.

Indeed, Daniel Farke’s men are only one point shy of dropping into the bottom three positions at this moment in time, with some transfers through the door potentially transformative when it comes to their current dismal fortunes.

After all, the West Yorkshire outfit have splashed the cash with some vigour previously in the Premier League in the frantic January window, having once forked out a jaw-dropping £35.5m on Georginio Rutter mid-way through the 2022/23 season.

Back then, it didn’t save the Whites from the relegation trap door. But, Leeds could well fancy another statement move in this fashion to try and make survival a reality, with Ivan Toney audaciously on their shopping list…

Leeds' interest in Toney

If Leeds are in the hunt for a proven Premier League goalscorer that can put away goals by the bucket-load, Toney will surely be very high up their list.

Before moving to the Middle East with Al-Ahli, the clinical 29-year-old had managed to bag 36 Premier League goals for Brentford from 85 total clashes, leading to Sky Sports’ Jamie Carragher hailing him as “one of the best attacking players” in the entire daunting division.

It’s not the greatest shock to read, therefore, that a raft of top-flight clubs are now interested in pursuing Toney’s signature, owing to the 6-foot-1 marksman wanting to return to English soil to maximise his international opportunities under Thomas Tuchel, ahead of the approaching World Cup next year.

Leeds had been noted as an interested party, alongside the likes of Everton and Tottenham Hotspur, but it looks as if the financials involved with the statement deal could stop the Whites dead in their tracks – according to an update from TEAMtalk – with Toney earning a staggering £400k-per-week pay-packet in the Saudi Pro League.

This will be a gutting development, considering Leeds have just three away goals all season long.

But, they could forget all about their Toney heartbreak by finally bumping up a free-flowing goalscorer from the U21 ranks to the first team picture.

Leeds can forget Toney by unleashing "one of England's best prospects"

Instead of forking out millions on both a combined transfer fee and wage costs for Toney, Leeds could finally give one of their own a go in the Premier League.

After all, Leeds have a glittering track record when previously gambling on homegrown prodigies coming good, with both Kalvin Phillips and Archie Gray springing to mind, instantly.

Could Harry Gray be the next notable name who lives up to his Thorp Arch hype?

Already, the U21s goal machine has been labelled as “one of England’s best young prospects” by Como scout Ben Mattinson, alongside being dubbed the “real deal” in front of goal at just 17 years of age by Mattinson.

His goalscoring numbers certainly back up all this wild hype, with a hope that Gray – who has a lethal seven goals from just nine games this season – can soon enter into the Whites’ senior mix and be as equally unerring, with Toney’s failed move pushed to one side comfortably, in the process.

25/26

9

7 + 2

24/25

8

3 + 0

23/24

11

8 + 0

It’s not even the boldest claim in the world to suggest that Gray could make waves in the senior game very shortly, with one senior appearance already under his belt.

Journalist Alan Nixon has suggested, though, that the 17-year-old hotshot will be subject to interest from the likes of Derby County and Hull City in January over a loan move, which would be very beneficial to his future development, much like Toney started to make strides in the senior game himself with a string of EFL loan stints.

Still, at some point in the near future, do not rule out Gray becoming Farke’s leading man in attack, with Leeds’ continued goal-shy performances perhaps seeing the German unleash the teenager into the men’s ranks in the New Year, over chucking him out to the Rams or the Tigers temporarily.

Farke must drop Ampadu to unleash Leeds star who's like Declan Rice

Daniel Farke could boldly drop Ethan Ampadu by unleashing this Leeds United star in a new role.

ByDan Emery Nov 16, 2025

Also, who holds the record for the most international runs in a calendar year in women’s cricket?

Steven Lynch07-Jan-2025I noticed that there were no players in Australia’s team in the Boxing Day Test who were in their twenties – Sam Konstas is 19, everyone else was in their thirties. Has any Test team ever had nobody in their twenties before? asked Reece Lane from England
That’s a good spot. Australia’s team in the absorbing fourth Test against India in Melbourne last week was the first to contain a teenager (the precocious Sam Konstas) and ten thirtysomething players. It happened again in the final Test in Sydney, even though Australia changed their team: newcomer Beau Webster was born in December 1993, so is already 31.There have been four previous Tests in which all 11 players on one side were over 30. Three of them were fairly recent matches involving New Zealand: two Tests against Pakistan in Karachi in December 2022 and January 2023 (when their youngest player was Ish Sodhi, who had turned 30 in October 2022), and against England in Wellington in February 2023, when the youngest was Will Young (born November 1992).Many years before, at Headingley during the 1921 Ashes series, England fielded a team composed entirely of players over 30, even though four of them were making their Test debuts. The youngest back then was Vallance Jupp, who was born in March 1891. (Thanks to Ian Hill for his help with this one.)Jasprit Bumrah took his 200th Test wicket in Melbourne, and still averages less than 20. Has anyone else matched this? asked Deepak Kanwalkar from India
Jasprit Bumrah’s remarkable form in Australia took him past 200 wickets during the fourth Test in Melbourne, the landmark wicket being Travis Head. Going into the final Test in Sydney, Bumrah had 203 wickets at 19.42.No one else has had an average below 20 at the time they took their 200th Test wicket – next comes Joel Garner at 20.34 (he ended with 259 at 20.97). It should be noted, however, that the average of South Africa’s Shaun Pollock briefly dipped under 20 later on: after his 50th Test, he had 210 wickets at 19.86. He finished with 421 wickets at 23.11.Laura Wolvaardt scored a huge amount of international runs in all three formats last year. Did she break the record? asked Brydon McKenzie from South Africa
This turns out to be a slightly complicated one. South Africa’s Laura Wolvaardt did break the record in 2024 – but she only held top spot for a short time as she was overtaken herself late in December.At the start of last year, the calendar-year record for runs in all three women’s international formatswas held by England’s Nat Sciver-Brunt, with 1346 in 2022. Wolvaardt passed that in 2024, finishing the year with 1593 runs in all – 223 in Tests, 697 in ODIs and 673 in T20s. But that was passed in December by India’s Smriti Mandhana, who finished with 1659 runs in the calendar year – 149 in Tests, 747 in ODIs and 763 in T20s. Mandhana is also fourth and fifth on this list: she made 1291 international runs in 2018, and 1290 in 2022.Sciver-Brunt remains England’s record-holder. Sophia Dunkley comes next for them, with 1093, also in 2022. Their team-mate Maia Bouchier made 974 in 2024, including a century on her Test debut in Bloemfontein in December.Smriti Mandhana overtook Laura Wolvaardt by 66 runs to record the most runs in a calendar year in women’s internationals – 1659•BCCIZimbabwe’s Brian Bennett scored his maiden century and took his first five-wicket haul in just his second Test. Has anyone done this double quicker than that? asked Keith Casey from Zimbabwe
Brian Bennett scored 110 not out and then took 5 for 95 during Zimbabwe’s run-soaked draw against Afghanistan in Bulawayo last week. He was the third man to collect his maiden century and first five-for in his second Test, after Jack Gregory for Australia against England in Melbourne in 1921 and Roston Chase for West Indies vs India in Kingston in 2016.Only four other men have achieved this double in the same Test – but one of them was making his debut: Bruce Taylor scored 105 and took 5 for 86 for New Zealand against India in Calcutta in 1965. Like Bennett, Taylor was 21 – but now that some confusion about his date of birth has been resolved, it can be confirmed that Bennett is the youngest to achieve the feat, being around six months younger than Taylor was. It should be noted that Chamani Seneviratna also did this in what turned out to be her only women’s Test, for Sri Lanka against Pakistan in Colombo in 1998.Bennett joined a distinguished cast of men who scored a century and took five wickets in an innings in the same Test at any stage of their career – and again he is the youngest to have done it. Ian Botham appears five times on this list, and R Ashwin four. The only other Zimbabwean to do it was Paul Strang, against Pakistan in Sheikhupura in 1996.One man from each side in the recent Bulawayo Test was making his first-class debut – how often has this happened? asked David Protheroe from England
Six people made their Test debut in Bulawayo last week, and you’re right that for two of them – Newman Nyamhuri of Zimbabwe and Afghanistan’s AM Ghazanfar – it was their maiden first-class match too.This has been an unusual occurrence over the years, as this list shows. Since 1900 there had been only eight additions until last week, including two in 2023 from Ireland, where very little first-class cricket is played. It was more frequent before 1900, mainly because South Africa also had a limited domestic programme at the time. It’s therefore not too surprising that the last instance of two opposing players making their first-class debut in the same Test was in Port Elizabeth in 1896 – Audley Miller for England and Joseph Willoughby for South Africa.Shiva Jayaraman of ESPNcricinfo’s stats team helped with some of the above answers.

The New York Yankees are adding a veteran pitcher to the organization, having agreed to sign former Los Angeles Dodgers standout Kenta Maeda to a minor-league contract, according to a report from MLB Japan.

Maeda, 37, has spent the past two seasons with the Detroit Tigers, spending time in both MLB and the minor leagues. In 2025, he's made just seven appearances for the Tigers, logging a 7.88 ERA with eight strikeouts and six walks in 8.0 innings. He started 17 games last season and has a 6.09 ERA.

In his prime, Maeda was a reliable mid-rotation starter. In his best season in 2020, when he was with the Minnesota Twins, the Japan native finished as the runner-up for the American League Cy Young, losing out to Shane Bieber. That season, a shortened 60-game campaign due to the outbreak of COVID-19, he had a 2.70 ERA with 80 strikeouts and 10 walks across 66 2/3 innings and 11 starts.

It's not clear if the Yankees intend to bring Maeda to the Bronx, though he figures to start out in the minor leagues for the time being.

Inter have joined Manchester United in the race for Karim Adeyemi, with the Borussia Dortmund winger leaning toward a move away from Germany next summer. His camp has already held early talks with both clubs, signalling a growing market for the 23-year-old. With contract renewal far from likely and tensions rising at BVB, Adeyemi’s future is now one of Europe’s most intriguing storylines.

Adeyemi’s future drifts away from Dortmund

Speculation around Adeyemi’s next step has intensified after fresh reports indicated the Dortmund forward is “far from” considering a contract extension. The 23-year-old’s deal runs until 2027, but figures close to the player suggest he is leaning strongly toward a move in the summer, even if BVB have not yet been formally informed of his intentions. United have already held early contact with Adeyemi’s representatives, with super-agent Jorge Mendes, who recently orchestrated moves for Leny Yoro and Manuel Ugarte to Old Trafford, now central to discussions. According to , Inter have also entered the scene, with initial communication taking place as the Serie A giants monitor his situation and map out potential scenarios for 2026.

The growing interest comes at a time when the forward has faced both on-field struggles and off-field complications, creating a sense of uncertainty around his long-term prospects at BVB. This rising tension naturally widens the lens on what his next career chapter might look like.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportAdeyemi in a slump amid off-field troubles

Adeyemi has neither scored nor assisted since late September, a stark contrast to the bright early-season form that once re-established him as a key figure under Niko Kovac. In recent weeks, tensions have bubbled over publicly. During BVB’s 1-0 win against Koln, he threw a water bottle toward the bench after being substituted, leading Kovac to respond sharply: “I think that's unnecessary. It's okay that he can be angry sometimes, but that's unnecessary, he's an adult.”

The strained dynamic flared up again during the 1-1 draw with Hamburg, where the pair argued after Kovac substituted him in the 66th minute. These moments paint a picture of a player battling for composure as form dips and pressure grows. Off the pitch, the €450,000 fine for illegal possession of weapons added an unexpected layer to his year. Adeyemi addressed the incident publicly, calling it: “A huge mistake… one that I deeply regret, that cost me a lot, and that I remorse deeply.”

BVB and the German Football Association (DFB) imposed additional community service, with sporting director Lars Ricken stressing the club’s stance: “We took the matter very seriously. However, it should also be taken into account that he had to pay an expensive fine, no one was harmed and the player is still not considered to have a criminal record."

This combination of sporting frustration and personal turbulence has made Adeyemi’s situation one of the more complex transfer stories heading into the summer window.

Mendes working on Adeyemi's future

Behind the scenes, Mendes is believed to be shaping the German international's next move, leveraging his strong network in England and Italy. United’s long-term need for wide players and Inter’s evolving transfer vision for 2026 both position Adeyemi as a strategic target rather than just an opportunistic one. The legal issue, stemming from what Adeyemi described as ordering an online “mystery box” that unexpectedly contained restricted items initially raised questions about club interest. Yet early indications suggest that neither United nor Inter view it as a deal-breaker, especially given the player's transparency and the swift completion of sanctions.

His community service commitment and willingness to publicly explain the situation have helped stabilise his image in the eyes of potential suitors. This rehabilitated narrative now plays into a broader storyline: a talented winger whose Dortmund chapter appears to be winding down as new doors open.

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AFPSummer window battle looms

All signs point toward a decisive summer for Adeyemi. Inter and United are expected to intensify discussions once the season ends, while Die Borussen wait for formal communication before planning their next steps. With no extension in sight, BVB may be forced into a strategic sale rather than risk a depreciating asset over the next two years.

Adeyemi’s immediate goal will be to break his scoring drought and repair ties with Kovac as Dortmund push through the second half of the season. But with rising transfer noise, increasingly public tension, and strong interest from two European giants, the stage is already set for a major battle for his signature. His next defining chapter appears to be approaching and Europe’s biggest clubs will be watching closely.

West Ham manager Nuno Espírito Santo has seemingly changed his tune about one member of the Hammers squad he reportedly didn’t fancy, with the tactician speaking highly of him in the build up to this weekend’s clash against Burnley.

Nuno has been very experimental with his Irons team selection since taking over from Graham Potter in September.

One of his first orders of business was axing James Ward-Prowse from the matchday squad entirely, despite the midfielder being vice-captain and an ever-present under Potter.

The 30-year-old hasn’t made a single matchday squad during Nuno’s time in charge and all signs point towards Ward-Prowse leaving West Ham when the January transfer window opens in under two months time.

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Everton 1-1 West Ham

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Leeds 2-1 West Ham

West Ham 3-1 Newcastle

While the writing is on the wall for Ward-Prowse, Nuno has been chopping and changing his preferred options in recent weeks, especially after striker Niclas Fullkrug’s latest in a long line of injuries.

The Portuguese deployed Lucas Paqueta as a false nine against both Brentford and Leeds United, but to no avail, with Nuno tinkering his full-back and midfield choices for the two defeats as well.

Against Newcastle last weekend, Nuno finally found a winning formula, electing to gift highly-rated youngster Freddie Potts his first Premier League start for the club whilst dropping Paqueta back into midfield, with Max Kilman and Jean-Clair Todibo impressing after swapping sides at centre-back.

Striker Callum Wilson was also handed his first start under Nuno.

The Englishman, who signed on a free transfer from Newcastle in the summer, was finally given the nod but replaced on the hour-mark by Tomas Soucek after putting in a decent shift against his former club.

According to reliable club insider ExWHUemployee last month, when asked why Nuno wasn’t playing Wilson in place of Fullkrug initially, the manager simply didn’t “fancy” the 33-year-old as an option.

However, he now appears to have changed his mind.

Nuno changes tune about Callum Wilson as he makes "very important" West Ham claim

Speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of Burnley, Nuno was adamant that Wilson is a “very important” player for West Ham and praised his performance at home to Newcastle.

The 51-year-old also strongly hinted that Wilson is in line for another start against Scott Parker’s side at the London Stadium.

Wilson was once one of the Premier League’s most prolific strikers, scoring 18 top flight goals for Newcastle in 2022/2023 before a plethora of injury problems dampened his form.

So far, the ex-Bournemouth hitman has been fit and readily available for all of West Ham’s games since joining, and Nuno will be praying that continues, at least until January.

West Ham are believed to be in the market for a striker, and this is backed up by the likes of Sky Sports and Fabrizio Romano, with Fullkrug apparently deciding to leave West Ham when the winter window reopens.

WA’s tilt at a historic Shield four-peat ended suddenly with the squad now facing a transition phase

Tristan Lavalette20-Mar-2025For the smattering of rusted on fans in the terraces, it was an unfamiliar end to the Sheffield Shield season at the WACA.Three years ago, euphoria erupted around the iconic ground when Western Australia ended a 23-year title drought and then 12 months later it was similar jubilation when Cameron Bancroft hit the winning runs to once again thwart Victoria in the final.The loudest roars actually might have been heard last year when Joel Paris took a blinder of a one-handed catch in the gully to secure WA’s hat-trick of titles after a comprehensive victory against Tasmania.Related

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But this time around, as their hopes of a historic four-peat faded away in front of just a sprinkling of fans, the reverberation around the WACA came from the triumphant Victorians mobbing retiring Peter Siddle after he snuffed out WA’s unlikely chase of 382 runs off 84 overs.Underlining how incredibly tight the competition was beneath league leaders South Australia, the 34-run defeat meant WA not only missed the final but they had the ignominy of finishing the season in last place in what will make a strange sight in the record books for years to come.There was a hollow vibe among players and officials, a frustrating case of what could have been in a season that never came together for a WA team hampered by inconsistency, injuries and international unavailability.”It’s just been a bit of a frustrating year for the group,” WA captain Sam Whiteman said. “No doubt we will reflect over the next few months and get back to work in June.”WA started the season hoping to become the first state to win four in a row since the competition expanded to six teams in 1977-78. It loomed as a very difficult task, almost impossible as gleaned from Shield history and other sporting leagues, and there had been signs of slippage last season before they regrouped late.WA did start well with back-to-back wins over Tasmania after a drawn home opener against Queensland to sit on top after three rounds. But they fell away badly after that with only a vintage performance against Queensland at the Gabba keeping their season alive.WA had entered the final round in fourth position, but other results remarkably went their way and they had the chance to leapfrog second-placed Queensland.

“Losing a few games out here has been a bit disappointing because it’s been such a fortress the last three years. No doubt we’ll get back to the drawing board and look to keep getting better. I’m sure it’s not the end of the successful period for WA.”WA captain Sam Whiteman

Reflective of their season, WA’s inconsistent batting just couldn’t put it together against Victoria when they needed to the most with Hilton Cartwright and Cooper Connolly scoring half-centuries but it wasn’t enough.No.4 Cartwright was WA’s only consistent batter through the season, finishing second overall in runs with 861 at 57.40. Out of the other batters who played more than three matches, No.3 Jayden Goodwin had the next best average at 32.50.With Connolly limited to just three matches, where he scored four half-centuries from five innings, due to international call-ups, WA’s batting was fragile and exacerbated by injuries and struggles from openers Whiteman and Bancroft, normally such a prolific pair at the top of the order.It feels like a million years ago now, well before the Sam Konstas phenomenon, but Bancroft started the season in the frame to open for Australia in the first Test against India after being the best batter across the previous couple of Shield seasons.However, Bancroft fell on the first ball he faced this Shield season to trigger a wretched run that left his Test aspirations in tatters. He finally found form with a century against South Australia in round five, but a nasty collision in the field during a BBL match at Optus Stadium sidelined him for two months.Bancroft returned for the last two Shield matches and did make a determined 86 in the second innings against NSW. But he never quite regained his heft of old, where he looks immovable at the crease, and nicked off on 35 in the run chase against Victoria in a dismissal reminiscent of his early season rut. He made 344 runs at 26.46 compared to an average of 48.37 across WA’s title-winning seasons.Whiteman started with a century against Queensland, but his season was derailed by numerous injuries and he finished with a pair against Victoria. He made 285 runs at 25.9 compared to 41 across the three-peat.As their season hung in the balance against Victoria, WA had considerable batting firepower on the sidelines with Josh Inglis, Aaron Hardie and Mitchell Marsh sighted at various stages having a hit in the WACA nets as they prepared for the IPL.Inglis only played three matches this season, while Marsh and Hardie combined for three games. Cameron Green was also an unmistakable figure at the nets as he makes his way back to the field after missing the entire season due to back surgery.Inglis, like Green, looms as a three-format player for Australia and will likely only play sparingly in the Shield in the future. Marsh, Hardie and Connolly also may miss significant time next season due to white-ball commitments for Australia.Veteran Ashton Turner’s Shield future could be under the microscope after averaging just 27.60 from 12 innings, with just one half-century. He was unable to consistently reproduce the type of counterattack in the middle-order that had revived his red-ball career in recent seasons.A fully-fledged transition is probably not required just yet, but the development of Goodwin, Sam Fanning and Teague Wyllie – heralded as the ‘rat pack’ by local media as coined by coach Adam Voges – will be key and the “nucleus of the WA batting for the future,” according to Whiteman.Jayden Goodwin showed glimpses this season•Getty ImagesThey had opportunities through the season with varied results. Left-handed Goodwin, 23, had the most success and his gritty batting has impressed the national hierarchy leading to Australia A, CA XI and Prime Minister’s XI selections this season.But he did tail off at the back end of the season and was fortunate to hang on to his position for the Victoria match ahead of 24-year-old Fanning, who hit two half-centuries from his previous three Shield innings. A cavalier left-handed batter who has floated around the batting order, Fanning though for now seems stuck in either two modes – aggression or defence. He hasn’t quite found the right tempo at Shield level.For a wider audience, Wyllie might be the best known of the trio having in October 2022 become the youngest player since Ricky Ponting to post a Sheffield Shield ton. His reasoning over his muted century celebration went viral.But it’s been tough going ever since for Wyllie, who has noticeably been anchored to the crease with minimal foot work. He played just two matches this season, scoring only 30 runs at 10.If he does not find himself consistently playing at the next level, Connolly, still only 21, looms as WA’s talisman having struck five half-centuries in his first seven Shield innings. “He’s probably going to be in-and-out of Australian squads for a fair chunk of time,” Whiteman said of Connolly. “But no doubt long-term he can be a No.4. Some of the impact that he’s had in four or five first-class games has been amazing.”WA’s bowling was their strength through the season although there are several unknowns moving forward. Quick Matt Kelly’s future could be in doubt due to a slew of injuries, while veteran Cameron Gannon justified his one-year extension with a solid season but may struggle to stay in the XI next season if Lance Morris and Jhye Richardson are fit and firing.Morris, currently a Cricket Australia contracted player, was limited to four matches due to restrictions over his workload coming off a stress fracture last winter in what has been a source of frustration for him.Brody Couch did prove a decent like-for-like replacement for Morris in his debut WA season after crossing over from Victoria, finishing with 23 wickets at 25.65.Brody Couch is mobbed by his team-mates after claiming a hat-trick•Getty ImagesThere will be intrigue over whether exciting quick Mahli Beardman, who turns 20 in August, will be ready to handle the rigours of red-ball cricket having shown flashes of his considerable talent in the BBL and One-Day Cup.Beardman, who believes he’ll eventually clock 150 kph, was a reserve player in Australia’s squad on their white-ball tour of the UK last year to underline his standing among the national hierarchy as a future prospect. During the Victoria match, Beardman at intervals showcased his athleticism with sprints on the ground as national selector Tony Dodemaide watched intently from close range.Offspinner Corey Rocchiccioli bounced back from a sluggish first half of the season to finish as the Shield’s equal leading wicket-taker with 38 at 27.71. His mentor Ashton Agar, however, only played two matches although did bowl well in favourable conditions on east coast surfaces. The left-arm spinner’s Test career appears all but over although he is believed to be still committed to playing Shield cricket for WA.Perhaps WA’s first priority for next season will be to re-establish their WACA fortress having only won the solitary home match. They suffered losses to South Australia – in the shortest outright result in Shield history in a match lasting less than five sessions – and Victoria. In their previous 15 home matches before this season, WA had won 11 games and lost just twice.”Losing a few games out here has been a bit disappointing because it’s been such a fortress the last three years,” Whiteman said. “No doubt we’ll get back to the drawing board and look to keep getting better.”I’m sure it’s not the end of the successful period for WA.”