Ireland will welcome the experience of Josh Little and Mark Adair and search for a change in fortunes after losing the Test series

Mohammad Isam26-Nov-2025Bangladesh’s busiest year in T20IsWhen Bangladesh enter the field on Thursday, they will play their 28th T20I in 2025, making this their busiest year in the format. They go into this series without their main fast bowler, Taskin Ahmed, with the BCB having given him an NOC to play the Abu Dhabi T10 till November 30.Bangladesh’s fast bowling stocks have reached a level of quality that the team management is comfortable enough to give someone like Taskin a break. The current squad includes Mustafizur Rahman, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Shoriful Islam and Mohammad Saifuddin in the fast-bowling department. They also have their best spinners in the format – Mahedi Hasan, Rishad Hossain and Nasum Ahmed – all available for selection.Related

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Saifuddin returns but no Taskin for first two T20Is against Ireland

Ireland look for sub-continent comfortIreland have played just six T20Is this year, which leaves them with a bit of a gap in form and experience. Chattogram has Bangladesh’s best batting conditions, which is good news for Ireland, who couldn’t quite get enough runs in the Dhaka and Sylhet Tests.Captain Paul Stirling will have to lead from the front, as he often does in Ireland colours. The likes of Ross Adair, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker and Curtis Campher provide the middle-order punch. Ireland will also hope to see runs from allrounders George Dockrell and Gareth Delany, while newcomers Ben Calitz and Tim Tector will no doubt look to soak in as much experience as possible.Consistency eludes BangladeshBangladesh captain Litton Das has to step up in the run-making as the batters look for consistency in T20Is. They haven’t had the best of times in 2025, particularly against West Indies last month, when they couldn’t chase modest targets in Chattogram.Saif Hassan is the man in form, as he fights for a position in the top order with Tanzid Hasan and Parvez Hossain Emon. Bangladesh’s top order is exciting but they don’t often click together. The likes of Towhid Hridoy and Jaker Ali will mind the middle order, while Nurul Hasan has attempted plenty of shots in his return to the T20I side recently. The selectors have picked Mahidul Islam Ankon ahead of Shamim Hossain, in an attempt to rejig the No. 4 or 5 positions.Josh Little is back for Ireland in the T20I setup•ACBIreland bowlers know betterHaving played a role in the Test series, the likes of Matthew Humphreys, Barry McCarthy and Craig Young would have gained good knowledge and understanding of Bangladesh conditions. Seamers McCarthy and Young didn’t play the Dhaka Test but left-arm spinner Humphreys has looked far better as the tour has progressed.They will also welcome the addition of experienced bowlers like Mark Adair and Josh Little, who have past experience of playing in these conditions. Legspinner Ben White, too, has played in Bangladesh before, so Ireland can feel confident of possessing a handy bowling attack.Batting first more viable in ChattogramWest Indies found out last month that the Chattogram pitches have better bounce and movement in the second half of night games, despite the onset of dew after 8.00pm. They defended middling totals like 165 and 149, and later chased down 151 in the third game. Teams batting first will look to beat the average total of 155 from the October series. Bangladesh will also feel that they must end the year well, particularly this being their last T20I series ahead of the 2026 T20 World Cup.

Everton have now reportedly set their sights on a former Liverpool midfielder who has starred ever since completing a move away from Anfield.

Moyes "thrilled" with scrappy Bournemouth win

After being shoved to one side by Newcastle United last weekend, Everton entered Bournemouth in need of a reaction and David Moyes got exactly that. By his own admission, it wasn’t his side’s prettiest affair, but they did get the job done courtesy of Jack Grealish’s second goal of the season.

Moyes shared his delight with reporters at full-time, saying: “It was a tough performance. It maybe wasn’t our tidiest or the cleanest we’ve had, but I thought we were the better team in the game.

“But could we score a goal, or could they score a goal? I think whoever got the goal first then, it would have probably gone that way. Having said that, after getting the goal, we had a couple of other chances to get a second one.

“But, look, I’m thrilled. Bournemouth is not a place where Everton have had a great record. So for us to go away, two away wins in the road on the bounce at the moment is really good.”

The performances haven’t always been there for Everton this season, but they’ve still managed to get over the line more than once to set up a strong foundation for the rest of the campaign.

It would be a major boost if they managed to secure a top-half finish in their first season at the Hill Dickinson Stadium and it would no doubt leave them well-placed to welcome reinforcements such as Tyler Morton. The former Liverpool gem could be on his way back to the Premier League and the Toffees may yet pull off a shock move.

Everton keeping tabs on Tyler Morton

As reported by TeamTalk, Everton are now keeping close tabs on Morton following his rise to stardom at Lyon this season. Since swapping the Anfield reserves for first-team football in France, the midfielder has looked likely to become one of Liverpool’s biggest regrets.

Dubbed a “fantastic footballer” by journalist Bence Bocsak back in September, Morton could come back to haunt Liverpool courtesy of one of their biggest rivals.

For Everton, signing the 23-year-old would hand them a direct replacement for James Garner, who is on course to leave the Toffees as a free agent when his contract expires next summer.

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In terms of profile, the young midfielder has showcased his ability to control games with his passing range over in France and could finally hand Moyes the control that he needs to take Everton to that next level. For the right price, the Toffees could get one over on their rivals and land a rising star.

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No men’s internationals have taken place in New Chandigarh, but most of the India players have been here during IPL 2025

Sidharth Monga10-Dec-20251:28

Why did it feel like Hardik batted on a different pitch?

Big picture – New Chandigarh makes men’s international debut

There is a feeling India are such strong favourites for the home World Cup in two months that the one way to deny them a successful title defence is to catch them on the wrong side of the toss on a damp pitch or a dewy night.South Africa discovered first-hand in Cuttack that India are formidable even on such a night. They will now scramble from eastern India to the north-west with no training day in New Chandigarh and go again on Thursday evening.Related

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India will be aware that despite their 6-2 head-to-head record against South Africa in recent encounters, T20s can surprise any team on a given night. They want to have reacted to almost every kind of contingency in their nine remaining matches at home before the World Cup. New Chandigarh will be just one such stop.This, incidentally, is the first men’s international at the venue. India and Australia played two women’s ODIs there in September this year.

Form guide

India WWWLW
South Africa LLLWLThere is nothing wrong with South Africa’s combination, but India might just be a bit too strong for them in these conditions•Associated Press

In the spotlight – Arshdeep Singh and Quinton de Kock

The first over of the chase in Cuttack set the tone for the rest of the night. Arshdeep Singh sought to make the most of whatever movement was on offer, and he got the dangerous Quinton de Kock in the first over. It is a match-up that Arshdeep has had the better of in all T20 cricket: 41 balls, 38 runs, five wickets. Watch out for this contest again. Perhaps South Africa might let Aiden Markram take first strike because de Kock is a key batter for them.

Team news – Changes only if conditions ask for them

In Cuttack, India were close to their best XI if you leave aside the question of Rinku Singh. If the pitch is dry, they can stick in Kuldeep Yadav for Arshdeep; if they worry about batting depth, Harshit Rana can play in Arshdeep’s place. Other than that, they don’t need to fiddle.India (probable): 1 Abhishek Sharma, 2 Shubman Gill, 3 Suryakumar Yadav (capt), 4 Tilak Varma, 5 Jitesh Sharma (wk), 6 Hardik Pandya, 7 Shivam Dube, 8 Axar Patel, 9 Arshdeep Singh, 10 Varun Chakravarthy, 11 Jasprit Bumrah.South Africa might have lost big but the combination didn’t have much wrong. At a pinch, they might think of an allrounder in Lutho Sipamla’s place.South Africa: 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Aiden Markram (capt), 3 Tristan Stubbs, 4 Dewald Brevis, 5 David Miller, 6 Donovon Ferreira, 7 Marco Jansen, 8 Lutho Sipamla/Corbin Bosch/George Linde, 9 Keshav Maharaj, 10 Lungi Ngidi, 11 Anrich Nortje.1:29

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Pitch and conditions

With no tall stands around it, the playing surface of New Chandigarh tends to not get affected too much by the dew. Teams batting first in the IPL hold a 6-5 record in New Chandigarh. Scores of above 200 have been defended successfully, as has been a 111. Fast bowlers tend to hold sway there.

Stats and trivia

• Only three players have hit 100 sixes and taken 100 wickets in T20Is. Hardik Pandya is one wicket short of joining this list of Sikandar Raza, Mohammad Nabi and Malaysia’s Virandeep Singh.
• Arshdeep has taken the joint-highest powerplay wickets for India: 47. He is tied with Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
• Jasprit Bumrah is only the fifth player to have taken 100 wickets in each of the three international formats. Shakib Al Hasan, Lasith Malinga, Tim Southee and Shaheen Shah Afridi are the others.

The defending champions completed a dominant performance against Tasmania to enter the BBL break in good spirits

AAP07-Dec-2025

South Australia secured a Sheffield Shield double against Tasmania, beating them for the second time in four weeks.After winning in Hobart last month, the reigning champions backed it up by completing a comprehensive 10-wicket win at the Adelaide Oval on Sunday.Even without captain Nathan McSweeney (Australia A) and star quick Brendan Doggett (Ashes duty), SA proved too strong for Tasmania at home. The hosts claimed a first-innings lead of 231 after centuries to Jake Lehmann and Liam Scott powered them to 426.Related

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Scott, Lehmann tons help SA dominate Tasmania

Tasmania, missing Test opener Jake Weatherald and allrounder Beau Webster, were skittled for just 195 on day one. They didn’t fare much better in their second innings, but at least were able to force SA to bat again.Tim Ward (66), captain Jordan Silk (46) and a solid contribution from allrounder Nikhil Chaudhary (42) helped Tasmania to 260. Nathan McAndrew ended Ward’s resistance when he nipped one between bat and pad.Jordan Buckingham was the star with the ball, collecting 4 for 49 and 4 for 58. On the third day he trapped Ruwantha Kellapotha lbw with a full toss and had Nikhil Chaudhary pulling down the leg side.SA had no problem chasing down the minuscule target of 30, with Mackenzie Harvey and Henry Hunt completing it in six overs.A win was vital for SA, who entered this round in fourth spot on the ladder, just behind Tasmania. After a drought-breaking title win last season, SA started slowly with three-straight losses, but are in striking distance of another final berth going into the BBL break.

Big-money transfers certainly haven’t been alien to Manchester United in recent seasons, with the hierarchy forking out a pretty penny on players in the transfer market.

The Red Devils’ transfer record currently sits at £89m, with such a fee being forked out for the signature of Paul Pogba back in the summer of 2016.

However, the club have previously come close to breaking such a record, especially after forking out a deal with £86m for Antony’s signature just a couple of years ago.

The hierarchy have seen first hand that spending big on such players doesn’t equal Premier League success, especially with the Brazilian leaving for just £19m last summer.

That hasn’t stopped the board from wanting to replicate such deals in the upcoming window, with numerous big-money deals touted ahead of the January market.

Man Utd’s hunt for new additions in January

Over the last couple of weeks, United have ramped up their efforts to land Nottingham Forest midfielder Elliot Anderson, with the Red Devils even entering talks to land the Englishman.

However, a deal would likely be another expensive one, with Sean Dyche’s currently demanding a fee in the region of £100m for his signature in the coming months.

Ruben Amorim’s men aren’t alone in the pursuit for Anderson’s services, as rivals Manchester City have stormed into the race to land the 23-year-old in the near future.

He’s not the only big-money player currently in the Red Devils’ sights, as the hierarchy have identified Real Madrid superstar Vinícius Júnior as a potential transfer target.

According to one Spanish outlet, Amorim’s men are currently preparing a club-record €150m (£131m) bid for the Brazilian, with the forward having just over 18 months left on his deal at the Bernabeu.

They also state that the player himself could be tempted by a move to the Premier League, especially given his recent fall-out with manager Xabi Alonso.

Why United’s £131m target would be Amorim’s next Garnacho

Not all of United’s stars have joined in massive transfers, as seen with winger Alejandro Garnacho, who joined for a minimal fee from Atlético Madrid as a teenager.

The Argentine managed to force himself into the first-team reckoning a couple of years ago, with the youngster registering nine combined goals and assists in his first season as a professional.

His next two seasons with the Red Devils would follow in a similar vein, as the 21-year-old scored 21 times and registered 15 assists – one of the best returns in the first-team squad.

However, it wouldn’t be enough to maintain his future at Old Trafford, as Amorim constantly made an example of him for his attitude issues which resulted in him being frozen out of the squad.

Garnacho would depart the club during the summer, joining Premier League rivals Chelsea in a deal worth a reported £40m – a decent fee given his failures in Manchester.

Despite the sale, Amorim could get his next version of the Argentine in January, especially if the hierarchy sanction a club-record move to land Vinicius.

As previously mentioned, he’s constantly had his own disciplinary issues, with it all coming to a head in the meeting with Barcelona, as the Brazilian reacted furiously to being substituted.

Such issues could lead to his exit from the Bernabeu, potentially leading to a switch to England and finally getting a taste of the greatest division in the world.

However, despite his struggles, he’s managed to impress on the pitch in recent times, with his numbers leading to Thierry Henry labelling him the “best in the world”.

Vinicius Junior – stats in 2025/26

Statistics (per 90)

Tally

Games played

13

Goals & assists

9

Progressive carries

8.9

Progressive passes

4.8

Pass accuracy

80%

Key passes

2.9

Passes into final third

1.9

Take-on success

38%

Carries into final third

2.9

Stats via FBref

Vinicius has already registered nine combined goals and assists in LaLiga this campaign, a tally that would make him the most effective player in Amorim’s current side.

Tallies such as 8.9 progressive carries and his 38% take-one success further highlight the talent he possesses with the ball, potentially having the creative nature to provide those around him with opportunities.

His passing stats also make for excellent reading, with the Brazilian making 2.9 key passes per 90, 1.9 of which going into the final third – arguably making him the perfect all-round attacker.

£131m would be a massive statement of intent from the board, but it’s a deal that would no doubt hand the first-team yet another world-class attacking option.

However, his attitude will certainly need to be watched, especially given the recent decline of Garnacho, with Amorim needing to keep the attackers’ feet firmly on the ground.

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Posts ByEthan Lamb Nov 29, 2025

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