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Asa Tribe hit a career-best unbeaten 181 to keep Glamorgan’s promotion hopes firmly alive and put his side in a dominant position on day one of this Rothesay County Championship match against Northamptonshire at Wantage Road.Glamorgan were indebted to the 21-year-old Jersey international after losing four wickets before lunch after winning the toss, Luke Procter claiming two scalps. Opening the innings, Tribe never looked in real trouble, helping himself to 25 fours and two sixes in a fluent, confident innings and accounting for the bulk of the top-order runs.Sam Northeast (17) and Ben Kellaway (23) kept him company in half-century stands, but it was not until Chris Cooke’s arrival that Glamorgan mounted a substantial partnership, the keeper scoring 84 (12 fours, one six) while adding 162 for the sixth wicket with Tribe. Although Cooke fell before the close, Glamorgan were in a healthy position at 367 for six.Earlier Northamptonshire handed first-class debuts to left-arm pacer Ben Whitehouse and off-spinner Nirvan Ramesh, 17, who became the county’s third youngest debutant since the war.Zain ul Hassan was the first Glamorgan wicket to fall in the eighth over, driving outside off-stump to Procter and edging an easy catch behind.Tribe dealt almost exclusively in boundaries. He drove handsomely through midwicket against the seamers before a punch through cover point off Whitehouse brought up Glamorgan’s 50 at the end of the 15th over.Whitehouse meanwhile unsettled Northeast. After the Glamorgan skipper punched one to the boundary, Whitehouse struck him on the arm causing a short delay. Northeast recovered to slap a wide delivery from Justin Broad through extra cover to bring up the 50 partnership with Tribe off 58 balls, but the all-rounder found some late movement to draw the edge through to second slip.Tribe though looked imperious, reaching 50 off 63 deliveries. He pulled dismissively against Whitehouse who was guilty of bowling too short throughout both spells.Procter struck for the second time when he jagged one back sharply to Kiran Carlson who offered minimum foot movement and inside edged to the keeper. The impressive Ramesh then claimed his maiden first-class wicket when Colin Ingram (18) attempted to turn the ball to leg and was well caught off the leading edge by Procter in the covers, and while Tribe took consecutive boundaries off Calvin Harrison, Glamorgan went into lunch four down for 115.Tribe started positively after the interval, sweeping Ramesh over deep midwicket for six, while Kellaway eased into his work with a sumptuous cover drive off Liam Guthrie and a reverse sweep off Ramesh as Glamorgan moved past 150, Tribe bringing up the half-century partnership off 59 balls with a backfoot punch off Guthrie.With Ramesh bowling consecutive maidens at one end, Northamptonshire turned to Broad to try to force the breakthrough and he instantly troubled Tribe outside off-stump. But it was Harrison who bowled Kellaway round his legs as he went to sweep.New batter Cooke took the aggressive option against Broad but was almost undone by one that jagged back and kept low.Tribe reached three figures off 150 balls with his first false shot, under-edging an attempted sweep against Harrison, the ball running past the keeper for four. He endured a few nervous moments against Procter who beat him several times outside off-stump, but he duly moved past his previous highest score of 107 made against Leicestershire in June, despite suffering from flu at the time.After tea Cooke swung Harrison over the leg side for six to bring up the 100 partnership off 183 balls before reaching his own half-century. He continued to attack, clubbing spinners Harrison and Saif Zaib over midwicket, while Tribe hit Zaib straight for six, Glamorgan going on to pass 300 shortly before the new ball became due.Tribe steered Procter through midwicket to bring up the 150 stand off 246 balls while Cooke cut Guthrie powerfully for four. The bowler soon made the breakthrough when Cooke pulled and was well caught low down by Broad at deep backward square-leg.With Tribe still content to capitalise on anything loose and joined by Timm van der Gugten, Glamorgan secured a third batting bonus point shortly before the close.

Manchester United owners INEOS are taking a page out of Chelsea’s book as they swoop to secure two of the brightest talents in South America ahead of the January transfer window.

BlueCo's transfer strategy finally bearing fruit at Chelsea

Todd Boehly was heavily criticised during the early days of his reign at Chelsea, with Jamie Carragher among his most vocal opponents, questioning the sheer volume of signings made under the American.

The Blues have seen a major success story emerge from their flock of young signings however, with Estevao Willian becoming a key member of Enzo Maresca’s first team, scoring crucial goals against Liverpool and Barcelona this season.

The Brazilian is just one of several South American recruits made under BlueCo’s ownership, with the likes of Andrey Santos, Kendry Paez and Aarón Anselmino all out on loan.

The Red Devils have begun to follow the path trodden by BlueCo since INEOS’ arrival, with 18 year-old Paraguay left-back Diego Leon signed in the summer and two more South American gems now seemingly on the way.

Indeed, Manchester United have agreed a deal for midfielder Cristian Orozco and a report from AS has revealed United ‘have already begun negotiations’ for Brazilian centre-back Luis Eduardo, with a bid expected in the coming days and weeks.

Eduardo could be the next Thiago Silva

Eduardo turns 18 in January and has very liittle senior experience, making just one appearance so far for Gremio’s first team.

However, the teenager captained his country to the semi-finals at the U17 World Cup in Qatar last month, which is where he caught the eye of scouts from both United and Chelsea.

Man Utd now confident they will sign "incredible" £70m midfielder in 2026

The Red Devils are ready to spend big in the market providing they can meet one key obligation.

BySean Markus Clifford Dec 1, 2025

Standing at 6 foot 1, he is not the tallest central defender around, but has been a weapon at set pieces for Brazil’s youth side, scoring three times in just 13 caps.

Similar to the 5 foot 11 Thiago Silva, the Gremio defender has been praised for his leadership, pace and timing, using his reading of the game to break up play rather than pure physicality.

United are expected to reinforce the first team in the January transfer window, but adding quality to the youth ranks can only boost their chances of returning to past glories.

Australia’s batting order for the first Test is still some way from being confirmed, but Labuschagne is currently the favourite to go in at the top

AAP31-Oct-2025

Marnus Labuschagne says he would have no issue opening for Australia in the Ashes, confident he is now much clearer in his own game than in recent summers.Labuschagne was denied another chance to bat in Queensland’s Sheffield Shield match with New South Wales on Friday, with the match ending in an early draw.Related

Steve Waugh sees his own career in Sam Konstas' early challenges

Smith proud of Labuschagne's 'pretty big statement'

Smith puts England on notice with sparkling Gabba knock

Khawaja on song for Queensland as Ashes loom

After rain washed out the opening day, Jack Clayton’s 113 ensured Queensland would not have to follow on.Sam Konstas was then more patient with the bat, before attacking later in the innings and being caught charging Sam Skelly on 41, before a draw was called soon after.Konstas won’t be there come the first Test in Perth next month, with the 20-year-old almost certain to be given time in the Sheffield Shield to find his game.Labuschagne is favourite to take Konstas’s spot at the top, in a move that would allow allrounders Cameron Green and Beau Webster to both stay in the team.Labuschagne has said throughout this summer his preferred position is No.3, while insisting he would be willing to open to get back into the team. He has done so just twice at Test level, out for 17 and 22 in this year’s World Test Championship final against South Africa before being dropped from the side.But on Friday he declared he would more than welcome the challenge to open in Perth in three weeks’ time.”I’d say ‘great’,” Labuschagne responded when quizzed on what he would say if asked to open. “It honestly doesn’t concern me, I just want to be playing cricket at my best.Sam Konstas whips through the on side•Getty Images

“This year I’ve been in in the first few overs a few times. You’re used to it batting No. 3, and I’ve batted there probably 95 per cent of my career in both formats.”So I’m very used to being in early. If I have to open, great. If I bat three, great. Wherever there’s a spot for me I’ll take it and we’ll go from there.”Forced to watch on from the sidelines in the Caribbean last winter, Labuschagne has since adopted a less-is-more approach to his batting. The renowned cricket nuffie no longer bats in the nets on match days, admitting he was getting in his own head and thinking too much about his technique.Small changes have been made to his grip and stance, while he has also put pressure back on the bowlers in his four centuries for Queensland to start the summer.”Mentally I’m a lot clearer on my game and not getting too much deep thought into certain dismissals or methods,” Labuschagne said. “It’s not the actual training in the nets, I absolutely love that, I can do that all day.”But at times I feel like my technique gets in a space where I go home and I’m like ‘maybe I want to do this or maybe I want to go and try that’. Now I’m trying to stay out of my own way really and go out there and trust my skills when I get to the middle.”

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 bottom of the 11th inning of Game 4 of the National League Division Series between the Phillies and Dodgers will be remembered largely for one reason: Phillies relief pitcher Orion Kerkering's throwing error that led to the winning run scoring in the form of Hyeseong Kim, ending Philadelphia's season and sending Los Angeles to the National League Championship Series for the second straight year.

But it very nearly could have been remembered for a different sort of mistake, one that was quickly remediated despite being missed in all of the end-of-game chaos.

In his haste to hurry home and score the winning run, Kim seemingly failed to touch home plate.

Fortunately for the Dodgers, Kim quickly realized what had occurred and, after Kerkering's throw sailed past catcher J.T. Realmuto's head to the backstop, doubled back to touch home plate.

It was another what-if moment in an eventful inning filled with them.

Leeds United “would sell” Wilfried Gnonto in the January transfer window, with it being revealed they would reinvest the money raised into a different key area of the squad.

The Whites may need to reshuffle their squad somewhat this winter, given that results have gone downhill considerably over the past few weeks, suffering defeats in four of their last five matches in the Premier League.

Losing games is one thing, but it will be particularly concerning for Daniel Farke that his side were beaten by fellow strugglers Burnley and Nottingham Forest, with Sean Dyche’s side running out 3-1 winners at the City Ground last time out.

There are some difficult fixtures on the horizon before Christmas, with the 2024-25 Championship winners set to take on Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool, which means they are at real risk of being cut adrift by the time the transfer window opens.

Leeds willing to sell Wilfried Gnonto to fund move for new striker

Consequently, Leeds may have to take drastic measures in an attempt to preserve their Premier League status, with top source Dean Jones revealing they are prepared to cash in on Gnonto, saying: “This is going to be a transfer window of opportunism and there are clubs who have been tracking Gnonto, wondering if he is finally going to leave. I expect someone to try their luck, and I have a feeling the player will have his head turned if a big enough side comes in for him.

“Leeds would sell him at the right price, I’m pretty sure of that.

“I get the feeling he’s a player they would now sell and then reinvest because they really are looking for some new life in their attack.

“Primarily that would be in the shape of a striker, but I wouldn’t rule out any player with attacking nous at this point because the club’s hierarchy know they have left the team short of options up top.”

The £40k-a-week winger has struggled on the injury front this season, being ruled out due to a calf issue, but he was unable to make a real impact even prior to being ruled out, failing to register a goal or an assist in his opening four Premier League games.

At 22-years-old, the Italian is still young, and he has previously received high praise from Junior Firpo, who said: “Nobody expected it, when he first came in. He is a shy guy, didn’t talk too much; on the pitch, too. But unbelievable from day one.”

However, Leeds clearly need to bring in a new striker, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin failing to hit the ground running, having scored just once in nine Premier League games, so it may be worth cashing-in on Gnonto to fund a move for a centre-forward.

Leeds and 49ers keen to sign Troy Parrott in January

Leeds and 49ers keen to sign Troy Parrott in January after Ireland heroics

This would be much-needed for Daniel Farke.

By
Henry Jackson

Nov 17, 2025

One of the biggest troubles for Leeds United this season is how poorly they have performed in front of goal. Daniel Farke’s side find themselves in a relegation battle, which many people expected would be the case. ESPN journalist Bill Connelly said they need “random bursts of quality attacking” to help them stay up.

Well, things haven’t worked out that way so far for the Whites. They’ve found the back of the net just nine times, better than just two sides, including bottom of the league Wolverhampton Wanderers. Leeds’ expected goals tally is just 12.94xG, the 12th best in the top flight.

One man who has struggled for his best goalscoring form is Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

Calvert-Lewin’s struggles in front of goal

Leeds secured the signing of Calvert-Lewin in the summer on a free transfer, after his contract at Everton expired. He was brought in with the aim of bolstering their Premier League goalscoring stocks, although it hasn’t really worked out that well so far.

The experienced 28-year-old, who has 11 caps and four goals for England, has not quite hit the ground running in a Leeds shirt.

In nine games for the club so far, Calvert-Lewin has only found the back of the net once, against fellow strugglers Wolves.

It was a good finish, too, from the new Leeds number nine. He got on the end of a loopy cross from Jayden Bogle, finding space between the Wolves defenders and heading home. That is the kind of striking instinct Leeds fans may have expected.

However, it hasn’t really worked out for Calvert-Lewin, aside from that goal. His underlying numbers are surprisingly low, averaging just 2.8 shots per 90 minutes, with an expected goals per game of 0.33xG. That places him in the 25th percentile for Premier League strikers.

With a huge game against Nottingham Forest next up, Farke may decide to rotate the striker out of the side in favour of a man who knows where the back of the net is.

Leeds’ Calvert-Lewin alternative

Ultimately, Leeds need to start finding the back of the net more consistently soon. Goals win you football matches, and right now, they could do with a few victories to help propel them up the table.

Chalkboard

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

Well, Farke could well make the decision to axe Calvert-Lewin against Forest this weekend, and bring in Joel Piroe.

The Dutchman is someone who knows where the back of the net is, and Farke even called him the “best finisher” he’s ever seen as a manager.

With strikes like this one against Bristol City in the Championship last season, it is easy to see where the Whites’ boss is coming from.

Piroe bagged from quite a tight angle outside of the area, which takes some doing.

Indeed, he has put up some impressive numbers in a Leeds shirt so far. In 102 games for the club, the striker has 33 goals and ten assists. Last term in the Championship, Piroe was the main man up front and bagged 19 goals with seven assists in 46 games.

His underlying stats showcase how deadly he can be, too. During the league-winning 2024/25 season, the Dutch striker averaged 0.56 goals per 90 minutes, with an expected goals tally of 0.49xG. Both of those stats placed him in the top 5% of Championship strikers.

Goals

0.56

95th

Shots on target

1.14

89th

Expected goals

0.49xG

95th

Shot-creating actions

2.43

84th

Goal-creating actions

0.38

91st

Bringing Piroe into the side for the trip to the City Ground could be a stroke of genius from Farke. He has a point to prove, having fallen out of favour this season. He’s only played 164 top-flight minutes, but would surely love to get more regular game time.

Calvert-Lewin has been out of form this season. With someone who Farke himself has admitted is a deadly finisher waiting in the wings, he could be the difference in helping find the back of the net more often.

Farke can get DCL firing by ditching Aaronson for "unstoppable" Leeds star

Daniel Farke can finally get Dominic Calvert-Lewin firing at Leeds United by unleashing this speedy winger.

ByKelan Sarson Nov 6, 2025

MatériaMais Notícias

Boca Juniors e Fortaleza se enfrentaram nesta quarta-feira (15), pela quinta rodada da fase de grupos da Sul-Americana. Após sair perdendo, o Leão achou, com Kervin Andrade, o gol de empate na partida. Depois de boa jogada de Marinho, a bola sobrou para o jovem, que empatou a partida já nos minutos finais. Nas redes sociais, os torcedores do Fortaleza enlouqueceram após o gol! Confira as reações!

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➡️ A boa do Lance! Betting: vamos dobrar seu primeiro depósito, até R$200! Basta abrir sua conta e tá na mão!

✅ FICHA TÉCNICA
BOCA JUNIORS X FORTALEZA
SUL-AMERICANA – GRUPO D – 5ª RODADA

🗓️ Data e horário: quarta-feira, 15 de maio de 2024, às 21h (de Brasília);
📍 Local: Estádio de La Bombonera, em Buenos Aires (ARG)
📺 Onde assistir: ESPN4 e Star+
🟨 Árbitro: Jesús Valenzuela (VEN)
🚩 Assistentes: Jorge Urrego (VEN) e Tulio Moreno (VEN)
📺 VAR: Juan Soto (VEN)

⚽ PROVÁVEIS ESCALAÇÕES:

BOCA JUNIORS (Técnico: Diego Hernán Martínez)
Sergio Romero; Luis Advíncula, Cristian Lema, Nicolás Figal e Lautaro Blanco; Pol Fernández; Cristian Medina, Ezequiel Fernández e Kevin Zenón; Miguel Merentiel e Edinson Cavani.

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FORTALEZA (Técnico: Juan Pablo Vojvoda)
João Ricardo; Emanuel Brítez, Pedro Augusto, Titi e Bruno Pacheco; Yago Pikachu, Zé Welison, Matheus Rossetto e Emmanuel Martínez; Juan Martín Lucero e Imanol Machuca.

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Boca JuniorsFortalezaSulAmericana

Oftentimes, after MLB managers are ejected, the absolute last thing you'll hear from them is some sort of mea culpa:

It just doesn't happen.

But something to that effect occurred following the Red Sox' 4-1 loss to the Houston Astros on Wednesday, during which Boston's manager Alex Cora was ejected in the seventh inning.

Cora's protestations began in the top of the sixth inning with Astros righthander Hunter Brown on the mound. After Brown walked Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran, he was called for a balk. Two batters later, Brown switched from the full windup to the stretch mid at-bat, prompting the Red Sox to object to ultimately no avail.

An inning later, Cora emerged from the dugout to further discuss the call—or lack thereof—with the umpires, who then ejected him. Cora explained what led him to emerge from the dugout and even surprisingly admitted that the umpires were correct in their ruling.

"First of all, they got it right," Cora said. "They got the call right. The only thing for me is that we've seen that situation before, that guys who have a regular windup and they ask the guys to declare. You don’t have to declare if you have a hybrid windup; that’s when you have to declare, because that way you’re not deceiving the runner.

"But throughout the last two years, we’ve seen situations that is a regular windup, and they’ve asked the pitcher to declare, that was the only thing. I went out there to educate myself to be honest with you. That’s what I told him. I want to learn. I don’t know if he took it that I was being sarcastic. I wasn’t. I was walking back, and he threw me out.”

Cora's ejection seemed to stem from a miscommunication with the umpire, as he insisted to reporters after the game that he wasn't trying to get tossed from the contest.

"…I hate getting thrown out," Cora continued. "My job is to be in the dugout and help this team to win games from the dugout. This whole thing about rallying the troops and getting thrown out—that's bull—-. My job is to be in the dugout…"

Hosts UAE eliminated after a sloppy display in the field, and eventually fell well short in a chase of 172

Danyal Rasool04-Sep-2025

Fakhar Zaman and Mohammad Nawaz punished an error-strewn display in the field from the UAE, helping Pakistan recover from a jittery 80 for 5 and seal a 31-run win. Having set UAE 172 to win, Abrar Ahmed, playing his first game this series, helped run through the top and middle order, removing each of Muhammad Waseem, Asif Khan, Rahul Chopra and Harshit Kaushik. UAE would end up folding with limited resistance, and the result guarantees Pakistan and Afghanistan passage through to the final on Sunday, with the hosts eliminated.Pakistan soon ran into trouble after winning the toss and opting to bat. Sahibzada Farhan made a brisk start once more but couldn’t find staying power, holing out to the short onside boundary. It is the fourth game in a row he has been unable to convert a start, and Saim Ayub fell soon after.Related

UAE recall Matiullah, Simranjeet in Waseem-led Asia Cup squad

Atal, Ibrahim and Afghanistan spinners brush Pakistan aside

UAE dragged Pakistan back post-powerplay, but sloppiness in the field was a harbinger of what was to follow. After Zaman and Nawaz were each put down off an excellent Haider Ali over, Pakistan found their opportunity to cut loose, flaying the UAE for 69 in the final four overs to post 171.The hosts’ response never truly got going, as if they were unsure how to pace the chase. Waseem was circumspect for once, and Alishan Sharafu wasn’t as belligerent at the top as he would be later on during his half-century, and the asking rate only climbed. Abrar was superb through his spell, and ran through the top order, getting rid of each of Waseem, Asif Khan and Rahul Chopra. Sharafu attempted to reignite a flagging chase with a sublime display of power-hitting at the backend, and while it did plenty to burnish his reputation, UAE’s fate in this tournament had already been sealed.Drops lose matchesDespite a vastly improved bowling showing, the first innings was littered with errors in the field for the UAE, who made their bowlers’ jobs much harder than they already were. It all came to a head in the 16th over.Left-arm spinner Haider Ali had conceded just six runs in his first three overs, getting rid of Mohammad Haris and Hasan Nawaz in the process. His final over represented a chance to break the burgeoning sixth-wicket stand between Fakhar and Nawaz, with the possibility of running through the tail afterwards. Having nearly yorked Fakhar first ball, he drew Nawaz into a miscue off the penultimate delivery, only for midwicket to grass it. So he made sure the catch Fakhar offered up the next ball was as easy as it could be, arrowing straight down to long-on. That, too, would somehow be dropped by Sharafu, to howls of anguish from the bowler. That frustration would become even more acute by what followed. The wheels come offBy the end of the 16th over, Pakistan were stuttering at 108 for 5, with the UAE dragging them below seven per over. They had had multiple chances to get rid of the Fakhar-Nawaz pairing, but so far, the damage was manageable. But it was now, the first delivery after those two dropped chances, that the momentum swung on a dime.Fakhar clipped Junaid Siddique for six over long-off, and though he got out of that over, the boundaries soon began to rain down. Fakhar smashed Muhammad Jawadullah for a pair of boundaries to bring up his half-century, but the real carnage came in the final two overs. Nawaz, who had found his innings a struggle until then, lashed Siddique for two fours and two sixes off the final four balls of the 19th, before Fakhar plundered five boundaries on the trot to finish the innings off. The final two overs had gone for 42, and the final five for 74. UAE were never to recover.UAE had no answer to Abrar Ahmed’s wiles•Emirates Cricket Board

Abrar’s career-bestAbrar had lost his place to Sufiyan Muqeem in the starting eleven, but spent that time honing more than just a flashy new haircut. Given his first opportunity, the 26-year-old wasted no time making a statement. In a dazzling display of modern legspin bowling, all of his variations were on display in the shop window, and on a spinning surface, the UAE could not muster a response. A brave over in the powerplay, where he packed the offside and challenged Waseem to beat it, yielded just two, and he snared his man off the first ball of the second sliced wildly towards point.Taken out of the attack, he returned for the 13th over, and his impact was instant once more. He had the courage once again to float one to big hitting Asif Khan, whose eyes lit up as he succumbed to temptation, leathering it high into the Sharjah sky. Shaheen Afridi and Nawaz orbited around it before narrowly avoiding a collision as Afridi held on, and while Rahul Chopra was unfortunate to be adjudged lbw off a googly two balls later, Abrar had earned his luck. He would sign off his spell with the scalp of Kaushik, and ensuring he finished with his best-ever T20 figures, 4-0-9-4 a true reflection of his artistry.