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GOAL takes a look at how the U.S. could line up against El Tri on Thursday night.

Talk about being thrown right into it. B.J. Callaghan's first game as the U.S. men's national team interim coach? A Nations League semifinal against Mexico. The stakes don't get much higher than that, now do they?

That does add a layer to it all, though. We generally knew what to expect from a Gregg Berhalter-coached team. We came to know what to expect from an Anthony Hudson-coached team during his few months in charge. Callaghan, though? It remains to be seen.

Does he stick with Berhalter's 4-3-3, or does he go with the 4-2-3-1 Hudson turned in the last round of the Nations League? Does he make any big change stylistically to add his own flavor, or does he stick with what this team has done so well through the last four or so years?

That isn't the only question, though. The big one revolves around one player: Folarin Balogun. Does the newly-committed striker get thrown right into the lineup for his debut, or does it make sense to ease him in by giving Ricardo Pepi the start?

GOAL takes a look at what lineup Callaghan should go with for Thursday night's semifinal:

GettyGK: Matt Turner

These will be important minutes once again for Turner, who hasn't really had much to do at Arsenal over the last six months. Because of that, every start takes on extra importance, especially ones in big games like this.

Turner's first-choice status is beyond doubt as Sean Johnson is very much a backup and Drake Callender almost certainly isn't being handed a debut in a semifinal against Mexico. So, yeah, Turner it is.

AdvertisementImago ImagesLB: Antonee Robinson

Another player that is basically locked in, Jedi remains the go-to left-back.

Of the two World Cup fullbacks, his spot is significantly more secure, so, while Joe Scally may be lurking as an option on either side, he likely won't be taking the Fulham star's starting spot any time soon.

Because of that, Robinson is a safe bet to start, providing experience and danger on the left-hand side.

Getty ImagesCB: Miles Robinson

It's been two years since Robinson's famous Gold Cup-winner against Mexico and, unfortunately, we haven't seen enough of him since.

His 2022 was ruined by an Achilles injury, which kept him out of the World Cup, but the Atlanta United star is back to his old ways again after a few months of MLS play.

When healthy, it's arguable that he's the best centerback in the pool. Because of that, and his history against Mexico in a big game, he's in.

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GettyCB: Walker Zimmerman

It could be tempting to play Auston Trusty or Chris Richards here to give them the big-game experience, but Zimmerman is the steady hand here.

If a permanent coach were in place, maybe we'd see a younger guy get thrown to the wolves, but Callaghan is an interim job, and his job is simply to win. Zimmerman is the guy that gives the U.S. the best chance to do just that, so he's the likely starter.

More than 90,000 spectators watched 3-3 draw at Camp Nou in aid of research into nervous system disease

Barcelona and Manchester City interrupted their respective starts to the season to play a fundraiser at Camp Nou for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) research.

A crowd of 91,962 was at the stadium to raise money in aid of former goalkeeper Juan Carlos Unzue, and they were treated to an entertaining 3-3 draw.

Argentine striker Julian Alvarez gave City the lead before Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Frenkie de Jong scored for the home side.

Cole Palmer equalised, Memphis Depay put Barca back ahead, before Riyad Mahrez scored an injury-time penalty after Erling Haaland was tripped.

Unzue, who was diagnosed with the progressive neurodegenerative disease two years ago, was proud to be able to raise such a large amount to fund research at the Luzon Foundation.

"It's not easy to set up these games. Football can generate fantastic revenue, it unites people, today it has shown it," he said.

The Winners

ALS research:

All funds raised through ticket sales for the game go towards aiding ALS research through the Luzon Foundation.

More than 90,000 spectators were at Camp Nou, but the amount of cash has not yet been announced.

The game was arranged in aid of Unzue, a former Barcelona team-mate and friend of City boss Pep Guardiola, who was diagnosed with ALS.

He spoke to the players and coaches prior to the game and gave an honorary kick-off, as well as addressing stadium.

“Thanks to the two clubs for their sensitivity to our cause,” Unzue said. “Thanks to all of you who have bought a ticket to be here today."

Cole Palmer:

The 20-year-old said he was not treating the game as a friendly and saw it as an opportunity to show what he could do.

He almost scored with a chance that he created for himself in the first half before rounding off a neat move with a well-timed run at the back post.

Palmer is highly-regarded and his performance will add more belief that he can cope with big occasions.

“When I go out there, I’ve got to take my opportunity – tonight wasn’t really a friendly for me, because I’ve got to prove myself," he said.

“When I play, I have to score and have to assist so I’m glad I’ve done that."

Barca's sales pitchers:

The financial situation at Camp Nou continues to be a minefield with a busy end of transfer window still expected.

New signing Jules Kounde made a start, but has been unavailable for the first two games of La Liga as he has not yet been registered.

Barca will either sell or ask players to take wage cuts before they can buy or make any more manoeuvres in their squad.

So it may have been useful that all three goalscorers have been linked with other clubs, although it's not clear whether any will leave.

Aubameyang, who got the first, is a Chelsea target, De Jong has been chased by Manchester United all summer and Depay has been linked with Juventus.

Bernardo Silva:

Speaking of transfers, if the City midfielder didn't feel special before, he will have done after the post-match press conference.

Both coaches took the opportunity to praise the Portuguese star, who has has been linked with a move to the Catalan giants all summer.

“I love Bernardo as a player," Xavi said. "He understands everything and has an amazing ability to make decisions."

Asked about his future again, Guardiola said: "We want Bernardo Silva with us but I don't want anyone to be unhappy here."

City fans will be happiest when the transfer window shuts and his stay is confirmed once and for all.

AdvertisementThe Losers:

Luke Mbete:

The night was marred by a sickening clash of heads that saw the young defender leave the pitch on a stretcher.

Mbete has impressed coaches at the club and has been around the first team squad in training as he continues to develop.

With injuries to Aymeric Laporte and Nathan Ake, the Camp Nou friendly was an opportunity to get some minutes under his belt.

But after clashing with Barcelona defender Andreas Christensen, the game was stopped for nearly 10 minutes while Mbete received medical attention.

Hopefully, the 18-year-old will make a quick recovery from what was a nasty incident.

Kalvin Phillips:

The £42 million ($50m) midfielder looked to be in some discomfort as he pulled up in the 56th minute holding his right shoulder.

Phillips has been waiting for his opportunity and will hope that the setback is not too serious, but he has had issues with his shoulder before.

He dislocated his shoulder during his time at previous club Leeds United and missed more than four weeks, although at one stage it looked like he might have surgery.

The 26-year-old was brought in to offer cover and competition to Rodri, who has been in outstanding form for the past two seasons.

He has played just a few minutes in the Premier League, but with the schedule moving to two matches a week, opportunities are set to come more regularly.

Ratings: Defence

Stefan Ortega 6/10:

Looked confident with the ball at his feet and made a couple of decent saves, but will be disappointed by the way he was beaten at his near post for Aubameyang’s opener.

Rico Lewis 7/10:

The 17-year-old continues to impress after breaking into Guardiola’s squad and showed no fear at Camp Nou and looked happy to play as an inverted full-back.

Kyle Walker 7/10:

With Aymeric Laporte and Nathan Ake injured, Guardiola experimented with him at centre-back and he was comfortable in a position he has played in for England.

Ruben Dias 6/10:

Playing alongside a new partner in the centre of defence and was fairly solid, if unspectacular.

Sergio Gomez 7/10:

His first appearance in a City shirt – back in Barcelona where it all started – and made a strong start, getting forward well at left-back.

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Midfield

Kalvin Phillips 6/10:

Showed at times why he was the top target to compete with Rodri and will get better as he grows accustomed to Guardiola’s demands.

Bernardo Silva 6/10:

He received a warm welcome from the Barca fans after being linked with a move to the Spanish club for much of the summer, but had a fairly quiet evening otherwise.

Cole Palmer 7/10:

Grabbed a goal by making the perfect run to be on the end of a typical City move and is never afraid to show his personality on the pitch.

ScorecardAlviro Petersen was able to play with freedom after Lancashire’s solid start•Getty Images

Old Trafford on a blissful Monday morning in May. The leaves on the trees girdling the red-brick Town Hall are green with all the delicate effrontery of an English spring.Inside the ground, a medium-pace bowler runs up to the wicket and delivers a ball which passes perhaps nine inches outside off stump. The willow-thin batsman lets the ball complete its journey while holding his bat extravagantly high, as if excluding the merest possibility of outrageous accident. The bowler shrugs, turns and walks back to his mark while the batsman plays his leave again, as if something about the original execution displeased him. In the early stages of Ken Dodd’s marathon one-man shows he encourages his audience to chant: “Time matters not one jot.” One can rather imagine Haseeb Hameed nodding in fervent agreement.Certainly the cricket seemed held in gentle suspension when Lancashire’s Hameed was occupying the crease for nine minutes short of five hours in taking his score to 62 in the first session of this game. The pace quickened markedly after lunch as Alviro Petersen hit 13 fours in a pedigree 81 off 85 balls to extend Lancashire’s lead beyond 200 and reinforce their dominance. But Petersen is 17 years older than Hameed and has played exactly 200 more first-class matches. He is stronger, cricket-fitter and knows his game far better. At the moment Petersen has more of everything…except time.Comparisons between the two players were therefore of limited value and they threatened to deflect attention away from the career-best 137 made by Luke Procter on a day when Lancashire extended their first-innings lead to a colossal 347 before they were bowled out for 456. The home side’s late clatter of wickets was caused largely to a splendidly defiant spell from Tino Best, who took four wickets in 23 balls, finished with 5 for 90 and greeted every success with a lovely explosion of Barbadian joy.This was still far and away Lancashire’s day, though, not least because they claimed the important wicket of Jimmy Adams, caught at second slip by Karl Brown off James Anderson, in the hour before the close. They are playing very much like a team bubbling with self-belief and this is obvious in all their disciplines. Petersen built on Hameed’s work and Procter combined well with both his partners in century-plus stands.Hameed deserves credit for opening the Lancashire innings with impressive solidity and for the smooth grace with which he drove the ball through the covers. Although only 19 years old and with more than 15 cricketing summers before him, he bats as if every innings is precious. Hameed plays a minimum of 12 shots every over, six to the balls bowled and then at least one after each of those six, as if he is still searching for a shot so perfect that it defies experience or description. He leaves the ball as a matador might manoeuvre a bull, the bat a muleta before it becomes a sword.What Hameed needs to do is develop the ability to work the ball around in the manner of Procter who spent much of the morning pushing ones or twos and keeping things moving The stance of Lancashire’s No. 3 may remind one of an arthritic rent-collector trying to see under a door of a late payer but he knows his strengths and he is revelling in his new responsibilities.Indeed, it seemed that the many Lancashire supporters at Old Trafford would be greeting at least two centurions this run-soaked afternoon but it was not to be. Hameed pushed forward to Mason Crane’s penultimate ball before lunch and edged a good leg-spinner to James Vince at slip.Simon Barnes once wrote of cricket as a wonderful metaphor for death and one imagines that each of his dismissals is accompanied by a sense of mild bereavement for Hameed. At one stage it seemed nip and tuck whether, if Hameed was to score his first century for Lancashire, he would do so before the county completed the building of their new hotel But such frivolous speculations suddenly became as nothing. Hameed departed, smacking his bat against his pad in an abyss of disappointment. Lunch had become funeral meats and they will have tasted no sweeter to the young Prince of Farnworth than they did to his Danish counterpart.The cricket in the afternoon session only deepened the woe for Hampshire as 146 runs were piled on in 33 overs. And only a flint-souled Jesuit would have no sympathy for Hampshire at the moment. Deprived for varying lengths of time of Fidel Edwards, Gareth Berg and Chris Wood, they are trying to make do and mend until Sean Ervine and Reece Topley are fit to wear the colours again in around a fortnight or so. James Tomlinson must feel like one of the last Texians at the Alamo, albeit that Hameed currently lays the gentlest of sieges.

MatériaMais Notícias

Domingo, 16h, Maracanã. Daqui a dois dias, Fábio Carille tem um dos compromissos mais difíceis da sua carreira. Há sete jogos sem vitória, o Corinthians enfrenta o Flamengo, o melhor time do Brasil na atualidade e em simbiose absoluta com a torcida. Após retornar como unanimidade, o técnico do Timão é hoje um dos maiores responsáveis pela má fase do time, e sua demissão passou a ser cogitada com frequência incomum para quem foi de interino a ídolo da torcida em tempo recorde. O elenco carrega também uma enorme parcela de culpa, e a desmotivação atingiu aquele estágio de difícil reversão. E boa parte deste grupo foi formado com o aval do próprio treinador, que não consegue colocar em campo um esquema que não seja um misto de covardia e falta de inspiração. O Corinthians hoje dá sono e agora corre o risco de ficar de fora da Libertadores por mais uma temporada, algo difícil de aceitar quando se olha a folha de pagamento do clube e a quantidade de vagas que a Conmebol disponibiliza para o Brasil. Uma forte pancada contra o Flamengo pode ser o fim da linha para Carille. Se hoje a multa da rescisão é um dos impeditivos, isso pode ir para o ralo caso o placar de domingo confirme o abismo que separa hoje os dois clubes de maior torcida no país.

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A round-up of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy matches on March 29, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Mar-2015 South Zone A hat-trick from Ashish Reddy helped skittle Goa out for 118 and sent Hyderabad on their way to an eight-wicket win in Kochi. The win also booked Hyderabad’s place in the Super League, as they finished second in the South Zone. Goa, batting first, were held together by a 59-ball 67 from Darshan Misal, but a collapse either side of his knock meant the team only made 118 for 9.Their top order was wrecked by Ashish, who removed Sagun Kamat, Amogh Desai and Rajat Shet off successive deliveries in the first over. Chama Milind then rattled the middle order, picking up three wickets including the crucial scalp of Misal on his way to taking 3 for 22. Hyderabad aced the chase in 14.3 overs, thanks to Tirumalasetti Suman (34), Tanmay Agarwal (31) and Akshath Reddy (39*).Ashwin Hebbar and KV Sasikanth helped Andhra defend 129 against Tamil Nadu at Kochi. The win helped them to the South Zone title. Tamil Nadu fell short by 29 runs with none of their batsmen getting going, with their top score, 28, coming from their No. 11 Rahil Shah.Andhra, who were put in to bat, got off to a patchy start, finding themselves five down for 68 in the 12th over. Their best partnership came for the ninth wicket with Sasikanth adding 36 with Bandaru Ayyappa, helping steer the total to 129. Anthony Dhas and Aswin Crist picked up two wickets each for Tamil Nadu.Tamil Nadu’s chase never found momentum, with only two of their top eight batsmen getting to double figures. Half the side were out with just 39 runs on the board. Hebbar picked up three wickets and Sasikant backed up his quickfire 27 with 2 for 9. Tamil Nadu’s best stand also came for the ninth wicket, with Shah and Crist putting on and unbeaten 57, but it wasn’t enough to see their side home.An incisive bowling performance followed up by an unbeaten half-century from Mayank Agarwal powered Karnataka to a five-wicket win over Kerala in Kochi. Kerala, having been sent in, were restricted to 117 for 5 from their 20 overs. Most of their batsmen made starts, but no one was able to cross 28 as the team struggled to string together a meaningful stand. S Aravind was the pick of Karnataka’s bowlers, ending with figures of 4-0-17-2.Karnataka had little trouble chasing down the total, and got off to a bright start with the openers Agarwal and Pavan Deshpande compiling 57 in 8.2 overs. The visitors suffered a brief slide, losing five wickets for 43 runs, but Agarwal’s 68 not out off 47 balls saw the team home in 15.4 overs. East ZoneJharkand beat Assam by eight wickets in a 11-over-a-side game at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack. Having been put in, Assam made 100 from 11 overs riding mainly on Rishav Das’ 29-ball 50.Jharkand’s left-arm spinners Shabaz Nadeem and Sarfaraz Ashraf picked up two wickets each.Jharkand’s chase suffered an early jolt when Swarupam Purkayastha dismissed Virat Singh for 2 in the third ball of their innings. However, their batsmen kept the momentum going. Ishan Kisan made a 12-ball 28, which included two fours and three sixes, before Ishank Jaggi and Saurabh Tiwary put on an unbeaten 64-run stand to guide Jharkand home with five balls to spare.Laxmi Shukla’s unbeaten 35-ball 47 set up a thrilling 1-run win for Bengal against Odisha at the Barabati Stadium. The win proved only a consolation for Bengal, who didn’t make the knockouts since Jharkhand moved above them with their win over Assam. Odisha were already through.Having chosen to bat, Bengal made a strong total of 168 for 6, thanks to Wriddhiman Saha’s 15-ball 33 at the top of the order, Shukla’s fireworks at No. 6, and twenties from Manoj Tiwary and Sudip Chatterjee. Govinda Podder’s 28-ball 36 kept Odisha in the hunt, but they were well behind the asking rate when he was dismissed in the 16th over, and needed 63 to win off 30 balls with five wickets in hand. Abhilash Mallick (16 off 12), Deepak Behera (21 off 10) and Suryakant Pradhan (24 off 9) kept their hopes alive, but they fell agonisingly short, and didn’t do their cause any good with three run-outs near the end of their innings. Central ZonePuneet Yadav’s 43-ball 48 held a faltering Rajasthan innings together and steered them to a total of 133, which proved enough for them to beat Vidarbha by 11 runs and go through to the knockouts with 12 points from four games.Batting first, Rajasthan were reduced to 57 for 5 by Vidarbha’s new-ball pair of Shrikant Wagh and Ravikumar Thakur, before Puneet staged their recovery with partnerships of 30 and 42 with Rajesh Bishnoi and Chandrapal Singh for the sixth and seventh wickets. Vidarbha ran through the lower order, with Wagh finishing with four wickets and Thakur with three, as Rajasthan lost their last four wickets for four runs.Vidarbha’s chase began solidly, with Himanshu Joshi and the debutant Aditya Shanware adding 56 for the first wicket, but their innings stalled thereafter, with four wickets going down for 24 runs, and the legspinner Aditya Garhwal sucker-punching them with the wickets of S Badrinath and Ravi Jangid off successive balls. When Jangid was dismissed, Vidarbha needed 54 from 37 balls, with five wickets in hand, but they could only manage 42.A three-wicket haul from the medium-pacer ACP Mishra and a 35-ball 42 from Vivek Singh were the cornerstones behind Railways’ six-wicket victory against Uttar Pradesh in Indore. However, the result did little to help either team, with both failing to reach the Super League.UP, choosing to bat, failed to produce any significant partnership, as they were pegged back by blows at regular intervals from Mishra (3 for 17) and Karn Sharma (2 for 23). Piyush Chawla slammed 44 off 36 balls, but he was the only player to make more than 22 as UP were kept to 138 for 8. Asad Pathan and Vivek made a strong start to the chase, adding 57 in 6.1 overs, before handy twenties from Faiz Ahmed (25) and Rongsen Jonathan (20*) guided Railways home in 18.1 overs.

حالة من السعادة الكبيرة أنتابت المدرب البرازيلي روجيرو ميكالي مدرب منتخب مصر الأولمبي بسبب الأداء المتميز للاعب حسام أشرف مع فريقه بلدية المحلة في بداية الموسم الجاري.

وعلمت “بطولات” أن ميكالي أرسل رسالة عبر مساعديه لحسام أشرف مهاجم بلدية المحلة.

إقرأ أيضًا..خاص | تفاصيل تقرير ميكالي عن معسكر أكتوبر.. ملاحظة وحيدة

وأكد مدرب منتخب مصر الأولمبي للاعب  إعجابه بما يُقدمه هذا الموسم في الدوري، وإنه سيعود لصفوف المنتخب الأولمبي خلال الفترة المقبلة إن لم يتم اختياره للتواجد مع منتخب مصر الأول تحت قيادة البرتغالي روي فيتوريا.

وتابع ميكالي لحسام أشرف، بأن الاستمرارية على الأداء الجيد هو التحدي الذي يواجه اللاعب خلال الفترة المقبلة، والتركيز فقط في تدريباته ولعب كرة القدم وترك كل شيء يؤثر على تركيزه خارج الملعب.

ويتواجد حسام أشرف في صدارة ترتيب هدافي الدوري المصري برصيد 4 أهداف بالتساوي مع بيرسي تاو لاعب النادي الأهلي وجوب مابولولو لاعب الإتحاد السكندري.

ويجري منتخب مصر الأولمبي استعداداته لخوض غمار منافسات دورة الألعاب الأولمبية “أولمبياد باريس 2024″، في أغسطس المقبل.

وتلقى منتخب مصر الأولمبي اعتذارًا من نظيره الأمريكي عن اللقاء الودي الذى كان من المقرر أن يقام بالقاهرة خلال فترة التوقف الدولية المقبلة في نوفمبر.

الجدير بالذكر، أن روجيرو ميكالي المدير الفني لمنتخب مصر الأولمبي، طالب اتحاد الكرة بأن تكون المباريات الودية المقبلة داخل مصر أو في بلاد قريبة تجنبًا لإرهاق السفر.

MatériaMais Notícias

O Bahia acertou a contratação do atacante Thiago Andrade. O jogador chegou a Salvador na última quarta-feira e assinou com o Tricolor de Aço até dezembro de 2020. Cria de Xerém, das categorias de base do Fluminense, Thiago chega inicialmente para fazer parte do elenco Sub-20. Após a passagem pela equipe carioca, ele atuou durante seis meses no Portimonense (POR).

– Estou muito feliz e motivado por assinar com o Bahia. É um grande clube do futebol brasileiro e encaro como uma oportunidade essa minha primeira experiência no futebol nordestino. Espero alcançar todos os objetivos do meu novo clube e os meus pessoais. Bora Bahêa – disse o jogador.

O vínculo de Thiago com o Bahia é válido até dezembro de 2020 com opção de renovação por mais duas temporadas. O jogador já está à disposição da comissão técnica.

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وجه الاتحاد الإنجليزي لكرة القدم، اتهامًا إلى قائد ومدافع تشيلسي، ريس جيمس، بعد ما حدث خلال لقاء البلوز أمام أستون فيلا في الدوري الإنجليزي.

وشهدت المباراة خسارة تشيلسي على ملعبه، ستامفورد بريدج، بهدف دون رد، وتم طرد المدافع مالو جوستو، ليواصل البلوز معاناتهم هذا الموسم.

وخرج ريس جيمس، وواجه أحد المسؤولين في النفق بعد صافرة النهاية، ووجه ألفاظًا نابية، واستخدم عبارات مسيئة للمسؤولين.

اقرأ أيضًا.. بوتشيتينو: مودريك السبب في جلوس بن تشيلويل على مقاعد البدلاء

وجاء في بيان الاتحاد الإنجليزي: “تم اتهام ريس جيمس بخرق قاعدة الاتحاد الإنجليزي E3 بعد مباراة تشيلسي في الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز ضد أستون فيلا يوم الأحد، 24 سبتمبر”.

واختتم: “يُزعم أن المدافع استخدم كلمات غير لائقة أو مهينة أو مسيئة، أو سلوك تجاه حكم المباراة في النفق بعد المباراة، وأمام ريس جيمس حتى الجمعة 29 سبتمبر للرد على هذه التهمة”.

When bullets meet balsa wood there is generally only one winner. The metaphors regularly employed should have warned that Lancashire would find Sussex’s attack hard to handle

Paul Edwards at Old Trafford05-May-2014
ScorecardSteve Magoffin caused Lancashire predictable problems (file picture)•Getty Images

Meringues, balsa wood, talcum powder. A variety of metaphors connoting flimsiness have been employed to suggest the frailties of Lancashire’s batting in 2014. Ramrods, a gun barrel, bullets. The similes used to explain the virtues of Sussex’s bowling for much of this still young season have been equally instructive.So when Chris Nash’s powerful, if hardly irresistible, forces came into contact with the very moveable objects known as Lancashire’s batsmen, something approaching cricketing carnage was predicted. So it proved. This game’s much-vaunted uncertainty can only do so much, we thought.But even Werner Heisenberg, who knew a thing or two about uncertainty, might have been pushed to suggest that there was an unlikely quality about Lancashire’s collapse to 80 for6 in a mere 34.5 overs.Even Robert Peston could not have deepened the gloom pervading the Old Trafford pavilion in mid-afternoon on the second day of this game. “It’s all right redeveloping the ground,” grumbled one member, “What about redeveloping a few of the ruddy players?”At this point, Tom Smith, who has actually been in vaguely respectable form, was joined by the diminutive wicketkeeper Alex Davies, who was only playing his sixth first-class match because Jos Buttler is with the England squad.Wile Smith is in decent nick, Davies is a determined little so-and-so in the Lancastrian tradition of George Duckworth and Warren Hegg. And even as the skies darkened around Old Trafford this May Bank Holiday, the pair lifted the mood of the home supporters with a truculent, industrious, unbroken stand of 77 for the seventh wicket. When bad light ended play 21.3 overs early, Smith had passed forty for the fourth time in seven innings and Davies was 41 not out, which is his career-bestSmith measures 6ft 3ins in height, seven inches taller than his partner, and their batting styles reflect the difference. The experienced all-rounder utilises his height to drive the ball in an imperious fashion; Davies prefers cuts, pulls and deliciously timed clips off his hip. Smith is a genial fellow, who smiles a lot and is self-deprecating about his talents; Davies, you sense, likes a fight and relishes the struggle.Both batsmen displayed a secure defence and, indeed, this was a sine qua non for anyone hoping to resist Nash’s bowlers, particularly Steve Magoffin, whose 3 for 31 runs from 17 overs were nothing less than his deserts. The Australian began Lancashire’s subsidence when he moved one off the seam and had a blameless Paul Horton brilliantly caught one-handed by second slip Michael Yardy, who dived to his left to complete the snare. Magoffin then had Luis Reece lbw, playing no shot. The rookie opener has scored 62 runs in seven Championship innings and must hope that the rest of May affords him kinder wickets than the green seamers of April.Lancashire were poorly placed on 32 for 2 at lunch and their decline accelerated in the early afternoon. Magoffin’s accuracy was too much for Brown’s defensive push and Prince’s back foot slash off James Anyon inside-edged the ball to Ben Brown. Prince remains the prize wicket for Lancashire’s opponents, although that title does not take much earning at the moment.Steven Croft was recalled for this game but played down the wrong to his fourth ball and lost his off stump to Anyon. He trudged off, possibly reflecting that scoring 197 off Yorkshire’s second team at Northop Hall, a picturesque but small ground in North Wales, is not ideal preparation for playing Divison One cricket.Lancashire’s travails on Monday were completed – although no one thought it so at the time – when Luke Procter misread slow left-armer Ashar Zaidi’s length and was lbw on the back foot for 26. Once again, most frustratingly for himself and others, Procter had played himself in, only to get himself out.The rest of the day belonged to Smith and Davies, who both played outstandingly well against a fine attack. Indeed, Sussex should be in the hunt for the County Championship this summer.One cannot be so sanguine about Lancashire’s prospects. The Old Trafford side’s Division One batting woes in 2012 were chronicled in black-bordered detail at the time. This season Lancashire’s average partnership going into this game was worth just 21.5 runs. Raising that bar should not be the responsibility of Alex Davies, although there can be little doubt that he would be up for the fight.

Allrounder Abhishek Nayar has failed to recover from a left-thumb injury and has been replaced with Mumbai team-mate Suryakumar Yadav in West Zone’s squad for the Deodhar Trophy

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Mar-2014Allrounder Abhishek Nayar has failed to recover from a left-thumb injury and has been replaced with Mumbai team-mate Suryakumar Yadav in West Zone’s squad for the Deodhar Trophy, to be played at Visakhapatnam from March 23 to 27.Nayar, who averaged 55 with the bat during the West Zone one-day league for the Ramakant Desai Trophy, was one of the few bright spots in an otherwise forgettable campaign for Mumbai. Nayar hurt a ligament in his left thumb while attempting a catch in the tournament, where Mumbai finished in last place.He was expected to recover in time for the inter-zonal one-day championship but a slow recovery has resulted in him being sidelined from the tournament. Nayar told ESPNcricinfo that he will take “at least a week more” to regain full match-fitness.Nayar’s injury has presented Yadav, who led Mumbai in the one-dayers, an opportunity to impress the national selectors. West Zone, the defending champions who will be led by India batsman Cheteshwar Pujara, open their campaign in the semi-final on March 25. They will face the winner of the quarter-final between Central Zone and East Zone.