Rahmanullah leads Afghanistan to 284 against England

Published at : 15 October 2023, 07:31 pm
Rahmanullah leads Afghanistan to 284 against England
Photo: AP

Flamboyant opening batsman Rahmanullah Gurbaz hit a blistering 80 as Afghanistan, buoyed by some lusty late hitting, made 284 against defending champions England in the World Cup on Sunday.

Afghanistan's last four wickets yielded a crucial 94 with the recalled Ikram Alikhil making 58.

Gurbaz, 21, piled up his runs off 57 balls with eight fours and four sixes to register his eighth score in excess of fifty in his brief ODI career.

However, he was furious that he was unable to go on to make a sixth century when he was involved in a disastrous run-out mix-up with captain Hashmatullah Shahidi in the 19th over.

Shahidi pushed the ball into the leg side and sprinted off for the run.

Gurbaz failed to make his ground and England skipper Jos Buttler whipped off the bails from a throw by substitute fielder David Willey. An angry Gurbaz smashed his bat into a chair as he departed with his team on 122-3.

The ball before his dismissal, Rahmat Shah had been stumped by Buttler off Adil Rashid as Afghanistan undid all of their impressive early work.

Gurbaz had needed just 33 balls to get to his half-century as Afghanistan, put into bat, stormed to 100 without loss from 77 deliveries.

Once Gurbaz was dismissed, England's spinners dragged the champions back into the contest in the middle overs.

The impressive Rashid finished with 3-42 from his 10 overs having initially broken Afghanistan's 114-run opening stand when he had Ibrahim Zadran (28) caught.

Rashid also accounted for the dangerous Rashid Khan who struck a quickfire 23 off 22 balls before his innings was ended by Joe Root diving catch.

But the recalled Alikhil chimed in with a 66-ball 58 after surviving being hit on the shoulder by a 147 km/h delivery from fast bowler Mark Wood.

Mujeeb Ur Rahman added 28 to the total off 16 balls as Afghanistan finished strongly.

England's seamers endured a day to forget with Sam Curran conceding 46 runs off four overs and new ball bowler Chris Woakes coughing up 41 off his four.

England went into the game after a loss to New Zealand and victory over Bangladesh while Afghanistan suffered heavy defeats by six wickets to Bangladesh and eight wickets to India.

Brief scores:

Afghanistan 284 all out in 49.5 overs (Rahmanullah Gurbaz 80, Ikram Alikhil 58; Adil Rashid 3-42) v England.

Mushfiqur to play for Fortune Barishal in BPL 2024

Published at : 24 September 2023, 03:42 pm
Mushfiqur to play for Fortune Barishal in BPL 2024

Bangladeshi wicketkeeper-batter Mushfiqur Rahim is set to feature for Fortune Barishal in the forthcoming Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).

 

Mushfiqur had played for Sylhet Strikers in the last edition. His price was fixed at 80 lakhs in the players' draft according to the category. Which means he was in 'A' category.

The top category player will play along with other star players like Tamim Iqbal, Mahmudullah, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, and Khaled Ahmed in Fortune Barishal.

Neymar quits PSG to sign for Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal

Published at : 20 September 2023, 05:06 pm
Neymar quits PSG to sign for Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal

Neymar said he was relishing “new challenges and opportunities in new places” after he joined Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal from Paris Saint-Germain on a two-year deal Tuesday, becoming the latest big name lured to the oil-rich Gulf state.

The Brazil forward, 31, ends a six-year stay in the French capital and follows in the footsteps of Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Sadio Mane in swapping Europe for the Middle East.

“I have achieved a lot in Europe and enjoyed special times, but I have always wanted to be a global player and test myself with new challenges and opportunities in new places,” Neymar said in a statement from the Saudi Pro League.

“I want to write new sporting history, and the Saudi Pro League has tremendous energy and quality players at the moment,” he added.

Neymar ‘in negotiations’ over Saudi move as Mbappe returns to PSG good books

Published at : 20 September 2023, 05:05 pm
Neymar ‘in negotiations’ over Saudi move as Mbappe returns to PSG good books

Neymar was “in negotiations” on Sunday to become the latest football superstar to decamp for Saudi Arabia, leaving Paris Saint-Germain just as Kylian Mbappe was brought back in from the cold by the French champions.

A source close to PSG told AFP that 31-year-old Neymar “no longer figures in the club or manager’s plans” with the Brazilian immediately linked to Al-Hilal in the Gulf kingdom.

Another source in Saudi Arabia said that “direct negotiations” between Neymar’s agents and the Public Investment Fund (PIF) were ongoing.

PSG get better of Dortmund in Champions League opener

Published at : 20 September 2023, 05:03 pm
PSG get better of Dortmund in Champions League opener

Paris Saint-Germain got their Champions League campaign off to a winning start on Tuesday as a Kylian Mbappe penalty set them up for a 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund at the Parc des Princes.

The French champions had dominated the first half without overly troubling the Dortmund defence, but they went ahead four minutes after the break when Mbappe scored a spot-kick awarded for a Niklas Suele handball.

Achraf Hakimi added a memorable second, and PSG could have won the Group F encounter by a far more handsome margin in the end.

The result immediately puts them in control of the group, after AC Milan and Newcastle United drew 0-0 earlier, and coach Luis Enrique will hope they can build on this performance when they visit the English side next in a fortnight.

"It was an almost perfect evening," said Luis Enrique.