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The former City duo have been crucial for Mikel Arteta's table-toppers, but that doesn't mean it wasn't the correct call to let them go in 2022

At a number of points this season, Manchester City's decision to sell Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko to Arsenal looked like a fatal miscalculation. When City decided to move both players on in the summer and the Gunners came in with attractive offers, no one at the club could have imagined that Mikel Arteta's side would become title contenders the next season.

Little did Pep Guardiola and the City board know it, but they were fuelling their greatest rivals for the Premier League crown.

The striker and left-back have been among Arsenal's two most important players in their surprise title bid, and both will line up in Wednesday's title showdown at the Etihad Stadium.

If they can inspire Arsenal to victory and send them eight points clear at the top of the table, City are likely to be criticised for gifting the Gunners two of their most influential players.

But whatever happens on Wednesday and at the end of the season, City were right to let the players leave.

GettyClinical Jesus, influential Zinchenko

It cannot be denied that Jesus and Zinchenko have turned Arsenal from a good team into a great one, an "unstoppable" side as Guardiola dubbed them ahead of Wednesday's match.

While Jesus was struggling to get into the City team even before the arrival of Erling Haaland, he has proved to be the perfect striker for Arteta. He has been mostly clinical when he has been on the pitch, scoring nine goals and contributing five assists in only 18 league starts.

But he has also managed to link Arsenal's attack superbly, getting the best out of fellow forwards Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka, the team's leading scorers.

Zinchenko has also struggled with injuries, making only 23 starts, but he has had a huge influence on the team both on and off the pitch.

The Ukrainian believed Arsenal were capable of a title charge at the start of the season, and his team-mates laughed at the thought until he was proved right following the team's blistering first half of campaign, in which they took 50 points from their first 19 matches.

It is tempting to conclude that he developed his winning mentality while at City, where he lifted four Premier League titles, four League Cups, one FA Cup and reached the Champions League final.

AdvertisementGettySelling Sterling was also a risk

It is tempting to say, with hindsight, that it was foolish to give a direct rival like Arsenal two valuable players with title-winning experience.

However, this is not the only time they have sold an important player to a fellow competitor. Last summer, they also sold Raheem Sterling to Chelsea.

At the time, before Todd Boehly started sacking managers for fun and buying every player under the sun, Chelsea looked like more of a threat than Arsenal and Sterling had just finished the season with 13 goals for City.

City also took a risk when they sent Joao Cancelo on loan to Bayern Munich in January, and could have ended up rueing that move when they were paired with the Bundesliga side in the Champions League quarter-finals.

In the end, City comfortably beat Bayern 4-1 on aggregate and Cancelo was benched for the first leg.

The truth is, whenever you sell a player, you risk living to regret it if they go on to succeed in their new team.

Getty ImagesSell to a Premier League side or sell to no one

City also had little choice but to sell Zinchenko and Jesus to a top Premier League side given the growing financial might of the English top-flight in comparison to other leagues in Europe, which are still feeling the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

Barcelona, who had bought Ferran Torres off City for £46 million in January 2022, had to perform a series of financial manoeuvres to finance their lavish spending in 2022.

Real Madrid spent a total of £70m on Aurelien Tchouameni last summer, while their only other major signing, Antonio Rudiger, arrived on a free transfer.

Atletico Madrid, the third force in Spain, spent under £25m last summer.

Arsenal, though, were able to offer £50m for Jesus and £30m for Zinchenko. That is equivalent to Juventus' total transfer budget last summer and far more than AC Milan, Inter and Napoli spent.

If City wanted to make any money from Zinchenko, Jesus and Sterling, they had to sell them to a competitor.

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GettyIn profit despite signing Haaland

City took the gamble of strengthening Chelsea and Arsenal, and as a result managed to end the summer in profit, despite doing some eye-catching spending of their own.

They brought in £143m through the sales of Sterling, Zinchenko and Jesus, plus Pedro Porro.

That windfall allowed them to spend £51m on Erling Haaland, plus a reported weekly salary of £865,000.

They spent a further £42m on Kalvin Phillips, while also adding Manuel Akanji and Sergio Gomez to their squad for a combined £26m, all without having to worry about breaking UEFA's financial fair play rules down the line.

For a club with one of the richest owners in football, City managed to balance the books while improving their squad.

Strengthening Arsenal was a small price to pay for an outstanding summer of business.

GOAL breaks down how players fared in the final pre-World Cup friendly

For the second time this international window, the U.S. men's national team limped through a lifeless 90-minute performance.

And, with the World Cup less than two months away, there's reason to be worried about that fact.

Following a 2-0 loss to Japan to open the window, the U.S. improved ever so slightly in a 0-0 draw with Saudi Arabia. The performance was a little bit better against a team that was a little bit worse, but it was nothing that will inspire confidence as Qatar looms.

There were a few players that looked solid enough, although there weren't many that truly stood out. And, as the clock ticks, there are still so many questions that don't have answers after what essentially felt like a waste of an international break

With that said, here's a look at how USMNT players fared against Saudi Arabia:

GettyMatt Turner

Relatively solid, making a few key saves including one just seconds into the game. Distribution wasn't perfect, but, overall, another good outing for a player that probably should start in Qatar.

Rating: 6/10

AdvertisementGettySergino Dest

Playing on the left, it wasn't anything special from Dest. He did what he usually does in terms of getting into the attack, and he did what he usually does in terms of having a few shaky defensive moments.

Rating: 5/10

GettyAaron Long

Another rough outing for Long, who probably shouldn't start in Qatar. Nothing catastrophic leading to a goal, and the U.S. did maintain a clean sheet so you can't hit him too hard, but distribution was poor once again.

Rating: 5/10

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GettyWalker Zimmerman

Much better this time around. Passing was significantly improved as he hit several good long balls, although he would be better served playing next to a batter passer than Long.

Rating: 6/10

Jurgen Klopp's men have been in imperious form this term and Goal has picked out some of the key moments from their incredible campaign

Liverpool are 25 points clear at the top of the Premier League and look set to win the title for the first time ever.

It has been 30 years since the Reds lifted the top-flight trophy and with 27 wins from their first 29 matches, that drought is in line to end.

Goal takes a look at the 10 moments that defined Liverpool's impressive season.

Getty Images10Chelsea 1-2 Liverpool

One of the biggest questions surrounding Liverpool heading into the 2019-20 season was whether they could improve on their poor record against the "big six", having won just one of their last 10 away Premier League games at those sides.

The Reds went to Stamford Bridge after starting the campaign with five straight wins and continued that run thanks to two first-half goals, with Roberto Firmino opening the scoring before Trent Alexander-Arnold powered home from 20 yards out.

It was not easy from there and Chelsea had a goal disallowed by VAR for offside before N'Golo Kante pulled one back, but Liverpool held on to maintain their 100 per cent record.

AdvertisementGetty Images9Fabinho gets injured in November

Fabinho became an integral part of Liverpool's midfield after signing from Monaco in summer 2018, establishing himself as a regular starter in October.

The Brazilian picked up where he left off at the end of last season, starting 11 of the Reds' first 13 Premier League games, but disaster struck when he picked up a ligament injury against Napoli in the Champions League in November.

Losing any key player can temporarily derail a season, especially after such an impressive start, but Liverpool refused to buckle and won all eight league games that Fabinho missed.

Getty8Liverpool 3-2 West Ham

After 26 games of the campaign, Liverpool were romping to the title with a 19-point buffer over Manchester City and a game in hand on them.

That fixture saw West Ham visit Anfield and it looked to be business as usual when Georginio Wijnaldum opened the scoring, but the Hammers turned the narrative on its head to lead 2-1 with just 22 minutes left.

It was a scenario that previous Liverpool sides would have struggled to overcome, especially having suffered a 1-0 defeat at Atletico Madrid just days before, however Mohamed Salah's shot squirmed under Lukasz Fabianski before Sadio Mane netted the winner with just six minutes to go.

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Getty7Aston Villa 1-2 Liverpool

Newly-promoted Aston Villa were unbeaten in their last four home league games prior to this fixture and were just seconds away from making that five after Trezeguet's goal looked to have given them all three points.

Dean Smith's men held off Liverpool, who were below their best, until the 86th minute when Andy Robertson crashed home a header to at least preserve the Reds' 10-month unbeaten run in the league.

Another famous comeback was then completed deep into injury time when Sadio Mane flicked a header agonisingly past the outstretched arm of Tom Heaton to make it 10 wins from 11 games in the 2019-20 season for the Reds.

West Indies batsman Lendl Simmons will miss the World Twenty20 after suffering a back injury

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Mar-2016West Indies batsman Lendl Simmons will miss the World Twenty20 after suffering a back injury. The West Indies Cricket Board has not yet named a replacement and it is understood that the selectors, led by former captain Clive Lloyd, have not yet agreed on a unanimous choice.Dwayne Smith, who won the Man of the Match in the final of the Pakistan Super League after helping Islamabad United take the title last month, remains a favourite. The selectors, however, could also pick Barbados batsman Jonathan Carter, who was a part of the squad for the 2015 World Cup. Carter, who has only played ODIs for West Indies so far, made his debut in January 2015 against South Africa and went on to play three matches in the World Cup, scoring his only ODI fifty in the tournament. He has scored brisk hundreds for West Indies A and Barbados in the past and has played 51 T20 matches, scoring 906 runs, including one century and five fifties.Simmons is the fourth player from the West Indies squad to be ruled out of the World T20 in India. Sunil Narine, Kieron Pollard and Darren Bravo had earlier withdrawn from the team.Narine, who had been banned from bowling in internationals in November last year due to a suspect action stated cited “insufficient progress in the rehabilitative work” on his action as the reason for his withdrawal. Pollard had not rehabilitated sufficiently from a knee injury he suffered last November, while Bravo pulled out by stating he wanted to focus on Test cricket.Simmons was a part of the West Indies squad for the 2009, 2012 and 2014 editions of the World T20, although he did not play a game in 2012 when the side won the tournament. He has played 34 T20Is since his debut in June 2007, scoring 761 runs at an average of 25.36 with four fifties, and his last game in the format was against South Africa in January 2015.Since his last international appearance, Simmons has played in T20 leagues around the world, including the Indian Premier League, the Caribbean Premier League, the Bangladesh Premier League, the Big Bash League and the inaugural Pakistan Super League. In that period, he has scored 1406 runs in 46 matches at an average of 32.69 with 13 fifties.

Fast bowler Chris Jordan, who took a career-best 4 for 11 against Gujarat Lions, credited the stunning partnership between AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli for setting up a win for Royal Challengers Bangalore

Nikhil Kalro15-May-20161:16

‘The batting was surreal to watch’ – Jordan

Several T20 records broke on a sweltering Saturday afternoon as Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers stunned Gujarat Lions with an onslaught so severe that it took the pair only 96 balls to plunder 229 runs. That record partnership gave Royal Challengers Bangalore’s bowlers a total of 248 to defend and they responded by dismissing Gujarat Lions for 104, completing the win by a record margin of 144 runs. Chris Jordan, who took a career-best 4 for 11, lauded the astounding batting display from de Villiers and Kohli.”Coming into a team of this calibre, I was hoping something like that would happen, hoping I’d be able to witness something like that live,” Jordan said. “What a performance! They really showed their class today. They went through the gears. When they needed to take a single, they took a single. When it was time to go, they went. I don’t think they mis-hit a ball, which was phenomenal. They really set the game up for us bowlers to go and express ourselves and take the wickets we did.”What would Jordan have done had he been up against Kohli and de Villiers?”Who knows?” the England fast bowler grinned. “You just have to back your plans, and hopefully execute. They had every answer for the Gujarat Lions bowlers. To see that hitting live, it was so clean, there was dexterity about it, there was class about it, and sheer, brute force as well. They went through their repertoire of shots today and gave everyone watching a treat.”Jordan, who was signed as a replacement for Mitchell Starc, was unimpressive in his first three IPL games, conceding 132 runs for one wicket at an economy rate of 12. Despite the four-for against Lions, the fast bowler stressed he needed to improve his precision and temperament.”I set quite high standards for myself. It’s important not to get too high or too low, and stay as emotionally stable as possible because you can bowl even better and go the distance, which I probably did in the first three games,” he said. “I can only take what I got today, and take the confidence into the next game. I need to improve on precision and temperament. I don’t think I’m back to my best as yet.”Jordan also threw his support behind the misfiring Chris Gayle. After failing in Royal Challengers’ first two games, Gayle flew to Jamaica for the birth of his first child and his form has not improved on his return from the break. Gayle has five single-digit scores in as many games this season.”I don’t see much wrong with him at all,” Jordan said. “His emotions are always consistent. He’s one performance away from everyone forgetting how his IPL has gone so far. He has that wow-factor about him. He can play one innings and score 100 off 50 balls. Everyone will talk about that for the rest of their lives. He’s a strong character.”

Ryan Sidebottom completed the fourth ten-wicket haul of his career as Yorkshire moved a step closer to retaining their Division One title

Andrew Miller at Edgbaston08-Jul-2015Yorkshire 213 (Bairstow 108, Wright 5-40) and 289 for 7 dec (Rhodes 79, Finch 73*) beat Warwickshire 69 (Sidebottom 6-34) and 259 (Hain 106, Sidebottom 5-42) by 174 runs
ScorecardRyan Sidebottom completed the fourth ten-wicket haul of his career•Getty ImagesIs anyone capable of catching Yorkshire now? A patient but ultimately irresistible fourth-day performance secured the reigning County Champions their sixth victory of an increasingly formidable campaign. With 20 more points in the bag, and their nearest challengers Middlesex forced to settle for a draw at Trent Bridge, they take on Worcestershire at Scarborough next week knowing that the title is theirs to lose.Ryan Sidebottom, inevitably, was the catalyst, just as he had been in Warwickshire’s first innings. Having extracted Varun Chopra with his fourth ball last night, he claimed each of the next three wickets to fall to complete the fourth ten-wicket haul of his tireless career, then returned after tea to bowl Oliver Hannon-Dalby to complete match figures of 11 for 76, the second-best of his 18-year career.”Ryan bowled a ruthless line and length,” said Jason Gillespie, Yorkshire’s coach. “He put a shoebox on a length and was hitting it all the time and attacking that off stump. He was the challenging the batsmen with every ball he bowled. It was an exceptional performance. His days of playing for his country are over, but to have that desire is full credit to him and shows how much he loves the game of cricket. It’s fantastic for us to have a resource like Ryan Sidebottom.”For Warwickshire, the only notable source of resistance came from the 19-year-old Sam Hain, whose technique and mannerisms are eerily reminiscent of Jonathan Trott and whose ability to bat within a bubble was equally laudable in his team’s trying circumstances. With only the No. 11, Boyd Rankin for company, he brought up a richly deserved century from 190 balls with 16 fours and a six, before being pinned lbw by Tim Bresnan to cue Yorkshire’s gleeful celebrations.”It was nice on a personal level,” Hain said of his hundred. “But as a team, you just have to hand it to Yorkshire over the past four days. They were just better than us and we have to stand back and say well played.”With more dank weather in the offing, Warwickshire had resumed in the morning on 43 for 1 and if, as seems highly unlikely, there had ever been an intention of hunting down their target of 434, it was emphatically scotched in the seventh over of the day. Trott, so adept at picking runs off his legs, was for once bowled around them as Sidebottom curled one into his stumps and then, two balls later, unfurled that trademark inswinger to pin Laurie Evans plumb lbw for a duck.From 58 for 3, Warwickshire rallied through a fourth-wicket stand of 51, but it was never comfortable viewing. Ian Westwood, who might have been run out from short cover inside the first ten minutes of the day, survived two dropped catches in consecutive overs as Aaron Finch at second slip and Jack Leaning at third deprived Steve Patterson and Bresnan respectively of the breakthrough.Back, though, came Sidebottom, with a full and straight delivery that moved just enough to pin Westwood flush in front of the stumps for 40, and at 109 for 4, Yorkshire had broken the back of Warwickshire’s batting.Peter McKay, who had missed much of the match with a finger injury, came and went at No 6, well caught this time by Finch off Patterson, and though Rikki Clarke resisted for a while, much as he had done in Warwickshire’s abject first innings, the introduction of spin lured him into an error. James Middlebrook tossed one up onto his toes, and Leaning under the lid clung onto a firm clip.Jeetan Patel crashed three fours in an all-too-brief stay before wellying Jack Brooks to short extra cover for 13, and Brooks struck again two overs later to bowl Chris Wright for 6.Hannon-Dalby resisted long enough to allow Hain to move into striking distance of his hundred but then unwisely elected to shoulder arms to Sidebottom armed with the new ball. Chopra and Westwood had shown the folly of such an approach in the first innings and Hannon-Dalby duly departed with his middle stump flattened for 8.The margin of Yorkshire’s victory – 174 runs – was especially impressive given their struggles with the bat on the first day. And Gillespie, never one to count his chickens, was mindful of the room for improvement even after their fourth Championship win in a row.”With the bat, Jonny B aside, we could have done better,” he said. “But after day one, I think the way we went about our work was exceptional. I’m very happy.”We have plenty of games to go, and there are some very good teams in this competition. We just need to focus on our process and continue to play the consistent cricket.”You look down Warwickshire’s line-up, and they’ve got all bases covered. To come away with a win is incredibly satisfying.”

Adelaide Oval will host the first-ever day-night Test against New Zealand in November and a T20 against India on Australia Day next year, with Cricket Australia announcing its international and domestic schedule for the 2015-16 season

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Jul-2015Adelaide Oval will host the first-ever day-night Test against New Zealand in November and a T20 against India on Australia Day next year, with Cricket Australia announcing its international and domestic schedule for the 2015-16 season.Australia 2015-16 at home

v NEW ZEALAND
Nov 5-9 1st Test, Brisbane
Nov 13-17 2nd Test, Perth
Nov 27-Dec 1 3rd Test, Adelaide

v WEST INDIES
Dec 10-14 1st Test, Hobart
Dec 26-30 2nd Test, Melbourne
Jan 3-7 3rd Test, Sydney

v INDIA
Jan 12 1st ODI, Perth
Jan 15 2nd ODI, Brisbane
Jan 17 3rd ODI, Melbourne
Jan 20 4th ODI, Canberra
Jan 23 5th ODI, Sydney
Jan 26 1st T20, Adelaide
Jan 29 2nd T20, Melbourne
Jan 31 3rd T20, Sydney

New Zealand will kick off the international summer with the first Test in Brisbane and the second in Perth before the day-night encounter in Adelaide. That will be followed by another three-Test series, with Hobart, Melbourne and Sydney hosting West Indies in December and January.India will then travel to Australia for a series of five ODIs in Perth, Brisbane, Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney. India will also play three T20s in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney, where the SCG will host its first T20 international since February 2010, as part of a new seven-year agreement between CA, Cricket New South Wales and the SCG Trust that will see the SCG play host to all international cricket in the state from this summer.Australia Women will also take on India Women in three ODIs and three T20s during the same period as the men. The T20s will be played as double-headers prior to the men’s matches and will be broadcast live.The Sheffield Shield will be taken outside Australia for the first time with a match between New South Wales and Western Australia to be played in Lincoln, New Zealand. The match will be used as preparation by the Test side for the return series in New Zealand in February.The first round of the Shield will involve day-night matches in Adelaide, Melbourne and Hobart in the last week of October ahead of the day-night Test.Also in February, New South Wales and South Australia will play a Shield match in Coffs Harbour as a tribute to the late Phillip Hughes.The Matador BBQs One-Day Cup will kickstart the domestic season in October and will be played at five grounds in Sydney.The schedules for the Big Bash League, starting on December 17, and the inaugural Women’s Big Bash League, beginning on December 5, will be announced later this week.”The ICC Cricket World Cup was the biggest sporting event in our country since the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000,” said Mike McKenna, the CA executive general manager of operations.”Many Australians come from non-cricketing cultures and the World Cup was a great chance for the game to showcase itself and earn new fans from all parts of our increasingly diverse community.”We want to build on this great momentum. Following the World Cup, we are determined that local Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Afghan, Sri Lankan and other overseas-born fans who packed Australia’s grounds with good-humoured noise and colour are able to maintain their passion for cricket as part of their adopted Australian lifestyles.”This summer promises to be another history-making season for cricket in Australia. Test cricket will be played in every state including an inaugural day-night Test match between Australia and New Zealand in Adelaide, a step designed to make following the cricket much easier for fans to attend the game or watch on television.”

Police told a Dhaka court on Monday that they had found no proof of the charges brought by an actress against Rubel Hossain. In the final report, it also sought the Bangladesh fast bowler’s acquittal

Mohammad Isam06-Apr-2015Police told a Dhaka court on Monday that they had found no proof of the charges brought by an actress against Rubel Hossain. In the final report, it also sought the Bangladesh fast bowler’s acquittal.The investigating officer, inspector Halima Khatun, submitted her findings to the Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Court. The court is scheduled to hold a hearing on the report on April 13.The actress, Naznin Akhtar Happy, had filed a case against Rubel on December 13 last year with Mirpur police station on charges of making false promises of marriage. Two days later, Rubel was granted bail for four weeks. But on January 8, he was sent to jail under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act. Dhaka Metropolitan magistrate Muhammad Anwar Sadat passed the order after Rubel surrendered before the court and pleaded for bail.He was granted a second bail on January 11 after which he was also allowed to travel abroad as he had been selected in Bangladesh’s World Cup squad.A couple of days after Bangladesh’s win over England, Happy said that she did not want to continue the case against Rubel.

Teenager Matt Critchley made history in only his second first-class game when he became the youngest Derbyshire player to score a century

Press Association10-May-2015
ScorecardThere was no joy on debut for Hashim Amla, seen here honing his football skills•Getty ImagesTeenager Matt Critchley made history in only his second first-class game when he became the youngest Derbyshire player to score a century on a memorable opening day of the Division Two LV County Championship match against Northants at Derby.The 18-year-old leg-spinner from Chorley came in with his side in trouble at 103 for 6 with South African Test captain Hashim Amla falling for one on his Derbyshire debut to fellow countryman Rory Kleinveldt.But Critchley launched a thrilling counter attack which took him to a hundred containing 11 fours and two sixes off 141 balls and with Tom Taylor shared a Derbyshire record eighth wicket stand against Northants of 162 that put the home side in charge before Azharullah wrapped up the innings to finish with 5 for 59.Critchley was unbeaten on 137 from 179 balls out of 343 and Northants played out a maiden over from Mark Footitt before the close.The visitors decision to put the home side in after winning the toss for the first time this season had backfired but it had looked questionable in the morning when Derbyshire’s openers took advantage of some inconsistent bowling.Ben Slater and Chesney Hughes added 65 from 18 overs as Kleinveldt and David Willey struggled with their line but Azharullah shifted the balance by removing them both in the space of three overs.Slater pushed at one that left him to be caught behind for 37 and Hughes, who was dropped at second slip off Azharullah on 13, was bowled playing no shot.Amla’s innings lasted only seven balls before he was trapped on the crease by Kleinveldt and Northants appeared to have taken control when Steven Crook had Shiv Thakor caught behind and Harvey Hosein pouched at first slip off consecutive balls after lunch.But the rest of the day belonged to Critchley who batted positively to put Derbyshire firmly back in the game although Northants did not help their cause when Alex Wakely dropped him at second slip when he was on 20.It was a costly miss as the youngster played with confidence and maturity way beyond his years, pulling Crook over long leg for six on his way to fifty from 67 balls.Taylor also displayed his batting credentials as the pair recorded the highest ever eighth wicket stand in the history of games between the two counties before Critchley brought up his hundred in style by pulling Josh Cobb for his second six and was sportingly applauded by all the Northants players.Kleinveldt finally broke through with the second new ball when Taylor was caught behind for a career-best 49 and Azharullah mopped up but Critchley had changed the day and he said: “I only found out two minutes ago (he was the youngest centurion) and had no idea when i was batting.”I’m very proud although it’s not really sunk in yet. I tried to play nice and positive, there were a few nerves but I just tried to back the way I play and go for my shots and it came off.”The umpires kept telling me, ‘remember this day’ and if anything ever goes wrong, go back to this.”Derbyshire skipper Wayne Madsen said: “It was an incredible innings, he played fearless cricket. As a youngster playing his second game for us, he came out and showed the exuberance of youth and batted brilliantly.”He played strong shots and really took the game away from them after we were in a lot of trouble. It’s an incredible feat and he’s just buzzing at the moment.”Azharullah admitted: “They (Critchley and Taylor) both batted really well and the dropped catches didn’t help as well. We were in good shape early on but we bowled a bit too short in the afternoon and in the first hour as well. That’s not the first time, we did at Leicester this season as well so we need to work on that.”

A summary of the matches from Group C of the Ranji Trophy on January 30, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Jan-2015
ScorecardFile photo: Varun Aaron picked up two wickets to keep Jharkhand on top of Goa•Getty ImagesParas Dogra’s second double-ton of the season enabled Himachal Pradesh to post a mammoth 535 for 5 on day two against Tripura at the Maharaja Bir Bikram college stadium in Agartala.Himachal captain Bipul Sharma set up the declaration with a rapid, 119 off 136 balls, that included 13 fours and three sixes. The innings was part of an unbeaten 218-run partnership between Bipul and Dogra as none of Tripura’s eight bowlers, three of whom conceded more than 100 runs, could find a way past them.Himachal carried the momentum into their bowling when Rishi Dhawan struck in the fourth over, picking up Samrat Singha for 6. Dhawan struck again when he had Abhijit Dey caught by Karanveer Singh reducing Tripura to 64 for 2 in the 17th over.The hosts, however, were revived by opener Bishal Ghosh’s unbeaten 81 off 120, with 13 fours. Ghosh had Rakesh Solanki for support in a third-wicket partnership of 79 runs.
ScorecardJhakrand rode on Saurabh Tiwary’s 162 off 269 balls, and despite their lower-middle order failing, managed to post 385. Shiv Gautam could only add four more to his overnight score of 72 as Goa kept picking up regular wickets. Vedant Naik, the 18-year old offspinner, hastened the end as he struck twice in the 130th and 136th overs to wrap up the innings. His four wickets cost 67 runs, while Amulaya Pandrekar and Darshan Misal ended with two apiece.Jharkand came back strongly with the ball as India fast bowler Varun Aaron struck in the sixth over to remove Swapnil Asnodkar for 7. Amogh Sunil Desai was the only batsman from the top five to make more than 18 runs, but he was bowled for 55 off 113 balls in the 36th over. Left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem, who had taken the wicket, finished the day with highly economical figures of 14-6-24-1. Goa could manage only one run in the next five overs before Aaron dismissed Misal for 16.
ScorecardAssam finished day two on 199 for 6, with a lead of 62 runs, despite losing regular wickets. An unbeaten 61-run partnership for the seventh wicket between Syed Mohammad and Swarupam Purkayastha was their saving grace.Andhra’s surge began when Gokul Sharma, Dheeraj Jadhav and Arun Karthik were dismissed in the space of three runs forcing Assam from 97 for 2 to 100 for 5. Seamer Cheepurapalli Stephen claimed 2 for 52 from 24 overs, while legspinner Marripuri Suresh bowled 26 tight overs for only 39 runs.