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Melbourne Renegades paid for giving the former Australia captain a life in what became a one-sided derby

AAP29-Nov-2025Meg Lanning made Melbourne Renegades pay dearly for a dropped catch, spearheading Stars to a massive WBBL derby win.Lanning carried her bat through Stars’ innings, scoring 73, and was player of the match as they dominated for a 45-run win on Saturday in bleak, late-spring conditions at Junction Oval.Related

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Stars’ first win in four Melbourne derbies gave them top spot, one point ahead of Hobart Hurricanes, who were to host Perth Scorchers on Saturday night. It sets up a pivotal clash on Monday, when Hurricanes host Stars.While Stars posted their fourth-straight win, Renegades were well off the form that took them to last season’s title.Renegades’ fielding in particular let them down, most glaringly when Lanning was on 27 and cut Sarah Coyte to Deandra Dottin at backward point. Dottin grassed the straightforward chance and it proved a pivotal moment in the game.The previous ball, excellent glovework from Nicole Faltum had Amy Jones stumped off Georgia Wareham for 43 to break a dangerous stand of 62 with Lanning.Lanning hit seven fours and a six in her 58-ball knock. Captain Annabel Sutherland whacked two sixes off consecutive balls from Coyte on her way to a quickfire 27.In the same over, Alice Capsey and Naomi Stalenberg collided when chasing a ball and Lanning contributed a third six off the hapless Coyte.Stars’ Georgia Prestwidge caught Renegades’ malaise, dropping an easy chance from Dottin on the first ball of the innings. But fellow opener Courtney Webb spooned the easiest of return catches to Marizanne Kapp soon after and Renegades lost wickets steadily.Sasha Moloney took a scorching catch at backward point to claim the crucial wicket of Wareham for a first-ball duck off Maisy Gibson. Dottin and Faltum made 23 and Gibson claimed 3 for 17 from 2.3 overs.The undoubtable shining light for Renegades in the dreary conditions was Milly Illingworth, who snared 3 for 19 from four overs.Stars will now lose Kapp to South African international duties, while Sophie Molineux was a key absentee for Renegades.

Barcelona manager Hansi Flick has defended Lamine Yamal following a difficult Champions League performance against Chelsea, while also challenging the teenage forward to "step up" and prove his quality. Flick acknowledged the difficulty of facing Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella, whom he described as "one of the best in the world," but insisted that Yamal needs to lead the team's recovery from their 3-0 defeat.

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  Flick challenges Yamal after difficult Chelsea outing

  Yamal endured a difficult night against Cucurella as Barca were overpowered at Stamford Bridge and ended up being substituted with 10 minutes left. The winger's reaction to his withdrawal sparked caught attention in the media, but Flick moved to defend the 18-year-old and stressed he expects better against Deportivo Alaves on Saturday.

  "Lamine is fine and feels good. Many players aren't happy when we substitute them," he said at a press conference. "I was a player myself, and many times I didn't react as I should have. Cucurella is one of the best full-backs in the world; he's a very good player. But, for me, now it's Lamine's turn to step up and show that we need to forget the Chelsea game. This is when he has to show how good he is."

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• Barcelona seek reaction after 'tough' Champions League loss

  Barcelona's 3-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge was a significant setback, with an own goal from Jules Kounde and strikes from Estevao and Liam Delap condemning them to a heavy loss. The result left them in 18th place in the Champions League group stage table with seven points from five matches, placing them in the play-off positions rather than the automatic qualification spots.

  Flick admitted the defeat was "tough" and that the team was "feeling down," but he refused to solely blame the defence for the result. "When we lose and when we concede three goals, it's easy to say it wasn't a good match or that it wasn't the Barca we'd like to see. Ultimately, some people don't understand what we need to play with that high defensive line," he explained. "It's our own style; it's not just about the defenders. The forwards and midfielders also initiate the press. That's what I need from the players. The blame seems to fall on the defense, but that's not fair. If we don't all press effectively, we'll have problems, I want to make that clear."

• Injury updates and squad news ahead of Alaves clash

  Ahead of the league fixture against Alaves, Flick provided updates on several key players. He confirmed that Ronald Araujo will miss the match due to a stomach virus, adding to the defensive concerns after his red card against Chelsea.

  Midfielder Fermin Lopez is also out after feeling discomfort following the match at Stamford Bridge. "The tackle from Athletic Club affected him, but he wasn't seriously injured. It was after the Chelsea game that he felt discomfort. There's no other explanation. This is football, and things like this happen. Sometimes it's related to new boots. Now they have a new color every month," Flick stated.

  However, there was positive news regarding Pedri, who is expected to feature as a substitute in the second half as he continues his return to full fitness. Flick also mentioned that Marc Bernal, returning from injury, will get playing time, and Andreas Christensen could be an option in midfield, where he has been trialled alongside Eric Garcia.

  Raphinha, who Flick described as "one of the most focused players on the team," is also keen to make an impact after the coach admitted he had missed the Brazilian's influence.

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  What next for Barcelona?

  Barcelona face Alaves at Camp Nou in La Liga on Saturday. Flick stressed the importance of securing three points to maintain their lead at the top of the table. "Our goal tomorrow is the three points. Anything else is secondary," he said. Following the domestic fixture, Barcelona will look to improve their Champions League standing in their remaining group matches to secure a more favourable position for the knockout stages.

Leeds United have had a real problem in front of goal this season. The Whites are one of the strugglers in the Premier League, and look like they’ll be dragged into a relegation battle in their first season back in the top flight.

Indeed, finding the back of the net has been a real issue for Daniel Farke’s side. They’ve only scored ten times in the 2025/26 season, a tally that is only better than rock-bottom Wolverhampton Wanderers.

They’ve underachieved on expected goals, too, which currently sits at 13.36xG.

It is no surprise, then, that the West Yorkshire giants are looking to add a striker to their squad in January.

Leeds’ latest striker target

There have already been rumours swirling about a potential new number nine for Leeds. Indeed, AZ Alkmaar and Republic of Ireland hero Troy Parrott has been linked with the club, after reportedly being looked at in the summer as well.

However, if that move does not materialise, the Whites could instead launch a move for Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Garcia.

TEAMTalk are reporting that the Whites are set to make an ‘imminent’ bid for the Spaniard, after also showing keen interest in him last summer.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

However, they are not the only top-flight side looking to move in for the 21-year-old attacker.

Fellow strugglers Wolves and their Midlands rivals, Aston Villa, could make a permanent move, with Brighton preparing a loan bid.

This is a deal that could cost Leeds upwards of £17m this winter.

Why Garcia would be a good signing

It is clear that the Whites are looking to add to their number nine depth, with Garcia seemingly an apt alternative to Parrott. Indeed, he has become a genuine option for Xabi Alonso at the Bernabeu, despite a lack of game time this season.

The Madrid-born striker has made nine appearances for the club this term, but has been on the pitch for just 109 minutes. However, where he made a real name for himself was at the Club World Cup, where he scored four times and assisted one in just six appearances.

This form led writer Zach Lowy to describe him as a “world-class” operator.

Indeed, his underlying numbers from that competition in the summer showed just how good he can be when leading the line.

For example, the 21-year-old had a conversion rate of 44.44% and was a nuisance off the ball, winning 4.4 duels per 90 minutes.

One person who could be affected by this signing is young Leeds striker Harry Gray. The 17-year-old, who is the younger brother of Spurs midfielder Archie, is one of the finest prospects the club have produced in years.

The striker is one of the most highly thought of youngsters in English football. Football analyst Ben Mattinson once described him as “the real deal,” and it is easy to see why.

He has 18 goals in 27 games for the youth teams across his short career at Elland Road so far, including this hat-trick against Scunthorpe United this season.

Should Garcia make the move to Leeds this winter, it could be a concern that he might block the pathway for Gray. The 17-year-old is clearly rated by Farke, who has already given him his first-team debut last season.

Yet, the Spaniard moving to Elland Road could be bad news. This is a player who has broken into the first team at one of the biggest clubs in the world, scoring crucial goals in the Club World Cup.

It will certainly leave Farke with a choice, but perhaps the signing of Garcia is one that the Whites do not want to turn down.

Gray is a talented player, but four years his junior, and it would be understandable if they signed the Los Blancos star, whose arrival could spell bad news for the teenager.

Leeds flop is turning into an even bigger waste of money than Illan Meslier

Leeds United now have a bigger waste of money than Illan Meslier in this £28.5m flop.

By
Kelan Sarson

Nov 20, 2025

An analysis of the trends formed in IPL 2025

Shubh Agarwal05-Jun-202514:45

IPL 2025: Do both Pandya brothers get picked in the team of the tournament?

:Indian batters on top
The dominance of Indian batters was one of the most prominent aspects of IPL 2025. Not only did they score over 16000 runs, they also achieved that at a 150-plus strike rate – both were firsts for Indian batters in an IPL season. Their average of 29.76 is also the highest in a season.ESPNcricinfo LtdWhat makes it more noteworthy is the contribution from the uncapped batters. As many as nine uncapped Indian batters scored over 250 runs. The 2023 and 2024 seasons had six uncapped batters each doing so, which was the previous record.Related

• Big scores, big chases, big aggregates – the IPL 2025 runathon

• IPL 2025: Kohli, Bumrah, Iyer headline ESPNcricinfo's team of the tournament

• Arya, Prabhsimran, Suryavanshi and Rathi make ESPNcricinfo's IPL 2025 Uncapped XII

• IPL 2025 showed the might of the uncapped Indian batter

Prabhsimran Singh became only the second uncapped Indian batter to accumulate over 500 runs in a season, after Yashasvi Jaiswal in 2023. Prabhsimran’s opening partner, Priyansh Arya, scored over 450 runs in his debut season. The 14-year-old IPL debutant Vaibhav Suryavanshi broke the record for the youngest batter to score a T20 hundred.Most impressively, the uncapped batters stood their ground against bowlers with international experience. There were 10 entries of an uncapped batter scoring over 20 runs against international bowlers at a strike rate of over 200 without getting out, the most in a season.This pattern played a vital role in deciding the top four sides. Delhi Capitals’ (DC) two home wins came in Vishakhapatnam; in five matches in Delhi, they lost four and won a Super Over to garner two points from a tied game against Rajasthan Royals (RR). Chennai Super Kings won only one of their six matches in Chepauk. In total, seven of the 10 teams lost more than 50% of their home matches.Bowling offspin against left-handers as a match-up did not prove effective this season. Left-handed batters faced only 25.54% of offspin, the lowest in a season. In this match-up, they conceded 8.87 runs per over, only the third IPL season when they went at more than eight per over against left-handers, after 2008 (8.50) and 2018 (8.26).ESPNcricinfo LtdWhere were the close games?
IPL 2025 was a season that the faint-hearted would have enjoyed without many complications, as there were only a few nailbiters. While the 200-plus run chases were exciting to watch, five of them were finished as contests before the start of the final over. None of the 37 successful chases went to the last ball. Only six matches were decided with a margin of less than 10 runs. Throughout the season, only four matches were effectively alive on the final delivery, including the Super Over contest between DC and RR.ESPNcricinfo LtdOverall, only 21.13% of matches were close (with the margin under 10 runs or less than six balls to spare having less than three wickets in hand in a successful run chase). Only 2011 had fewer close games – 20.83%.Even the playoff qualification was quite straightforward, with the top four decided after the 63rd league game. That is seven matches before the league stage was over, the earliest the top four have been confirmed in a season.

Tony Meola reacted to Gio Reyna’s showing in the USMNT’s 2-1 win over Paraguay, praising his goal and chance created and noting his importance to the team despite lingering fitness questions. He said Reyna should be encouraged by the performance, which marked a strong return after a long spell away. The 22-year-old played 75 minutes on Saturday.

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  Reyna’s performance a positive step

  Meola noted that Reyna should feel encouraged by his recent display, which included both a goal and a chance created that led to Folarin Balogun's game-winner, marking a significant return to form after a lengthy absence from the national team. 

  “He should feel good about his performance, getting back to the national team,” Meola said on the podcast. “It’s a pressure moment for him. We talked about how this is the storyline for tonight. We can make up some of the other storylines, but Gio Reyna is the story.

  “He’s probably not even close to where he needs to be for his career with regards to fitness, minutes, and confidence, and all of that stuff. And we can only hope that his time at Gladbach continues to grow, and continues to get to a place where now he can go 90 minutes.”

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• Pochettino views Reyna as an exceptional talent

  According to Meola, head coach Mauricio Pochettino regards Reyna as an exception in the USMNT roster, highlighting the unique skill set and creativity he brings to the team. This distinction underscores the coaching staff’s belief in Reyna’s potential to influence games decisively when fully integrated and fit.

  “Mauricio Pochettino has been steadfast on if you don’t play at your club, you’re not playing in the national team,” Meola explained. “And then you go make, what he calls an exception, he’s the exception. Every manager has one of those but then you gotta go and you gotta play well. Then you gotta go and you gotta perform. You gotta show the manager ‘Ok you got faith in me? I got to give you something in the end.’ He gets a goal and probably the assist [for the second], he’s involved in the play and has great touches in the first half."

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  USMNT’s performance elevated

  Meola has regularly argued that Reyna brings a rare creative profile to the U.S. pool – quick feet, tight-space vision, and the ability to unlock defences – and reiterated that view after the Paraguay game. His position is straightforward: the USMNT is a stronger team when Reyna is firing on all cylinders, but that upside is only useful if the player can combine fitness and form consistently.

  “I still think and I’ve said this all along, we’re a better team when he’s at his best version,” Meola said. “And whether he comes off the bench or whether he starts, he can make an impact for this team.”

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  What's next for the USMNT?

  The USMNT will face Uruguay next on Nov. 18.

Combining consistency with destructiveness, he wrote a new template for T20 batting

Sampath Bandarupalli16-Sep-2024The England series is likely to be the last T20I assignment for Travis Head in 2024, a year that marked his resurgence in the format. Here’s a look at the numbers that show how he combined consistency with destructiveness.182.07 Head’s strike rate across all T20s in 2024, the second-highest among batters with 1000-plus runs in a calendar year, marginally behind Andre Russell’s 182.12 in 2019.2 Players who scored 1000-plus runs in a calendar year in men’s T20s while averaging 40-plus and striking at 175-plus. Suryakumar Yadav in 2022 is the other one.