All posts by h79snht.top

Left-arm quick claimed 8 for 21, the greatest ever first-class figures for Tasmania, to bowl Queensland out for 104

AAP23-Mar-2022

Sam Rainbird took career-best figures of 8 for 21•Getty Images

Queensland’s slim hopes of reaching the Sheffield Shield final hang by a thread after an extraordinary record-breaking bowling spell by Tasmania’s Sam Rainbird.Queensland were dismissed for 104 after being sent in to bat on a green-tinged Bellerive Oval wicket. Tasmania batted confidently in reply to reach 4-157 at stumps on day one, a lead of 53 runs.Queensland were almost single-handedly undone by Rainbird who returned the best-ever bowling figures for Tasmania with 8-21 from 14.5 overs. William Brown took 8-31 in a first-class match against Victoria in March 1858 with his mark finally overhauled after 164 years.Rainbird’s figures were also the best for Tasmania since the state’s introduction to the Sheffield Shield – the previous mark was set by Peter Clough 38 years ago with 8-95.The figures were the 16th best bowling performance in an innings since the Sheffield Shield started in 1892. It was also the most economical eight-wicket haul ever achieved.”(It feels) pretty surreal, I was sitting there with the guys before and it still hasn’t sunk in,” said Rainbird. “You tend to have more bad days than good days in cricket, so when you have a good day like this it is really nice and you want to take it in.”Both teams wanted to bowl first so well done to (captain) Beau (Webster) for winning the toss and getting us in that position.”We bowled really well, and our batters batted really well.”We probably have the best of the conditions with bowling first and I think the wicket has flattened out a bit.”The 29-year-old unheralded Hobart local, who only returned to the side in place of the rested Peter Siddle, induced two separate Queensland collapses with the visitors losing 4-7 and later 6-21. Only three Queenslanders managed to reach double figures – openers Joe Burns (28), Bryce Street (23) and captain Jimmy Peirson (23).Both sides went into the fixture still in the hunt for a spot in next week’s season decider, but requiring other results to fall in their favour.Tasmania chased quick runs in the final session with Jake Doran top-scoring with 48 not out while opener Caleb Jewell contributed 44.Young fast bowler Blake Edwards (2-44) was a lone shining light in his return to the Queensland side, picking up Jordan Silk in the final over the day, having earlier knocked over the Tigers leading run-getter Tim Ward (15).

Levick triggers collapse but Jones responds in kind to seal match for Thunder

ESPNcricinfo staff18-May-2022

Georgie Boyce drives through the off side•Getty Images

Thunder 148 for 7 (Boyce 65, Lamb 50, Levick 4-22) beat Northern Diamonds 92 (Jones 3-23) by 56 runsThunder survived a manic late-order collapse to win a pulsating cross-Pennine Charlotte Edwards Cup clash with Northern Diamonds by 56 runs at Sale.After half-centuries for home openers Emma Lamb and Georgie Boyce, both sides suffered major batting problems on a pitch offering signs of uneven bounce.Lamb made 50 and Boyce 65, the pair sharing an entertaining 95 inside 13 overs. But Thunder slipped from 136 for one in the 18th over to post 148 for seven, with Katie Levick taking three wickets in three legitimate balls.The Diamonds, however, were about to undo all of their good work as, including the loss of returning England star Nat Sciver for two, they collapsed to 33 for six in the seventh over of their reply. They were unable to recover and were bowled out for 92 in 20 overs.Left-arm spinner Hannah Jones claimed an excellent three for 23 from four overs as Thunder claimed all five points on offer for a bonus point victory.Lamb’s fourth Thunder score of 50 or more and Boyce’s third were central to a competitive score and both came at better than a run-a-ball.The pair shared three sixes, two hit down the ground and the other over midwicket.Lamb reached her fifty first, off 40 balls, before falling next ball to a brilliant diving catch from Sciver running in from the deep midwicket fence off Abi Glen’s seamers (95 for one in the 13th over).Boyce followed her there off 42 balls, reached with a straight six off New Zealand off-spinner Leigh Kasperek.But she was the second of the six wickets to fall in the last 13 legitimate balls of the innings as Thunder subsided badly from 136 for one in the 18th.Levick (four for 22 from four overs) ousted Shachi Pai caught in the deep and Ellie Threlkeld and Laura Jackson both bowled at the end of the 18th and start of the 20th overs – but there was a wide in between to prevent a hat-trick being taken.She added the wicket of Laura Marshall with the penultimate ball of the innings, added to two wickets for the left-arm spin of Linsey Smith as the Diamonds’ four spinners returned combined figures of six for 93 from 14 overs.While the Thunder were missing England duo Sophie Ecclestone and Kate Cross due to IPL Challenge duty, the Diamonds were able to include Sciver as a batter only for her first appearance since the early April World Cup final in New Zealand.And she was thrust into early action with the bat as national colleague Lauren Winfield-Hill, seemingly hampered by a leg injury suffered in the field, was bowled for a duck four balls into the visiting chase trying to hit Jackson (two for 16 from four overs) to leg.But Sciver’s first innings of the 2022 summer lasted only 10 balls as she also was bowled pushing forwards at Jackson.And when Hollie Armitage slapped former team-mate Phoebe Graham to mid-on shortly afterwards, the Diamonds were eight for three in the fourth over.Jones then trapped Abi Glen and Bess Heath lbw in the sixth over before Kasperek was run out by Alex Hartley as the score slipped to a game deciding 33 for six in the seventh.Jones later bowled tail-ender Rachael Slater as wickets continued to fall with the game already decided.

تأكد هبوط نادي ليستر سيتي الإنجليزي إلى دوري الدرجة الأولى “الشامبيونشيب” بعد الخسارة من ليفربول بهدف نظيف عن طريق ترينت ألكسندر أرنولد.

وخسر ليستر سيتي بهدف على ملعبه كينج باور، ليتأكد هبوطه إلى الدرجة الأولى، بعد موسم واحد فقط في الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

طالع أيضًا.. أرنولد يرد بشكل قاطع على مستقبله مع ليفربول.. ويصرّح: هدفي أمام ليستر سيتي فريد من نوعه لي

وعاد ليستر سيتي الموسم الحالي رفقة إيبسويتش تاون وساوثهامبتون، ويبدو أنه سيرافق الثنائي إلى الدرجة الأولى “الشامبيونشيب” مجددًا.

وتأكد هبوط ساوثهامبتون منذ عدة أسابيع، حيث يحتل المركز الأخير برصيد 11 نقطة من 33 مباراة، ليلحق به ليستر سيتي الآن الذي توقف رصيده عند 18 نقطة بالخسارة من ليفربول.

ويحتل المركز السابع عشر إيبسويتش تاون برصيد 21 نقطة، وبفارق 15 نقطة عن السابع عشر وست هام يونايتد، مما يعني أن مهمة فريق سام مرسي تبدو مستحيلة.

MatériaMais Notícias

Prestes a enfrentar o Palmeiras neste domingo (3), o São Paulo vai em busca do seu bicampeonato no Campeonato Paulista 2022. A equipe conta com a vantagem da vitória no jogo de ida, que terminou com um placar de 3 a 1, com gols de Calleri e Pablo Maia.

RelacionadasSão PauloRogério Ceni ressalta melhora do São Paulo no Paulista e projeta final contra o PalmeirasSão Paulo02/04/2022ListasSão Paulo quanto perto do título paulista contra o Palmeiras? Redação do LANCE! opinaListas01/04/2022

No último ano, o São Paulo foi o campeão do Paulista, em uma final também disputada contra o Palmeiras, e assim, rompeu um jejum que era mantido desde 2005. Em 2021, a situação foi um pouco diferente. Ao contrário deste ano, o Tricolor não saiu com vantagem logo no primeiro jogo, com um placar que terminou em 0 a 0. Mas conseguiu garantir o título ao enfrentar o Verdão no Morumbi e vencer por 2 a 0, com gols de Luan e Luciano.

Agora, o foco do São Paulo é a busca pelo segundo título consecutivo na competição. O último bicampeonato disputado pelo time foi em 1992, quando já havia sido campeão do Paulistão em 1991. A equipe de 92 tinha craques que ficaram marcados na história do clube, como Cafu, Muller e Raí.

Agora, o São Paulo enfrenta o Palmeiras neste domingo (3), no Allianz Parque, às 16h.

Vitor Pereira will be well aware that the Wolverhampton Wanderers job he has taken on isn’t going to be a walk in the park.

But, having managed all over the world in the likes of Germany, Turkey and Saudi Arabia, the nomadic 56-year-old will hope he can be a success in another new country in England.

After all, fresh ideas from the dugout could be just what is needed to break away from the dire end of Gary O’Neil’s reign, with Pereira perhaps preparing to drop Andre in the centre of the park for his first Premier League test versus Leicester City.

Andre's struggles at Wolves

It does feel harsh to single out some Old Gold underperformers, considering the collective effort hasn’t been up to scratch, with the recently dismissed manager winning just two of his last 16 matches in charge.

But, summer recruit Andre has visibly struggled in matches over the last couple of weeks for the relegation candidates, leaving many worrying that his bumper £21m cost wasn’t value for money.

He would only last 45 minutes against Ipswich Town during O’Neil’s final game at the helm, having only won two of his five duels in the middle of the park, as the likes of Jens Cajuste for the visitors ended up controlling proceedings centrally.

Pereira could opt to start Tommy Doyle in his place instead when travelling to the King Power Stadium on Sunday, therefore, with the former Manchester City youngster notching up two key passes in a spirited second-half showing.

Of course, Andre did win Wolves’ September Player of the Month when O’Neil’s job security wasn’t a constant conversation, but in the here and now, Pereira might well deem him as not being worthy of being a concrete starter.

More pressingly, away from the midfield positions, the Portuguese boss will also need to show he can shore up the defence if survival is to be on the cards, with Santiago Bueno another name who could be axed for the game at the Foxes.

Bueno's poor performances in December

Once regarded as a “promising” talent by football journalist Lewis Kenn when signing an improved deal at Molineux in 2022, Bueno has slowly but surely become a regular in the first team.

This season, the Uruguayan has picked up nine Premier League starts, but he might not be able to get to double digits when facing off against Ruud Van Nistelrooy’s men next, when you look at how dire his numbers have been over December to date.

Bueno’s PL numbers across December

Stat

Everton

West Ham

Ipswich

Minutes played

77

90

90

Touches

59

42

67

Accurate passes

41/54 (76%)

28/38 (74%)

58/61 (94%)

Possession lost

13x

10x

3x

Total duels won

3/6

5/8

3/8

Tackles

1

0

2

Interceptions

0

0

0

Stats by Sofascore

In truth, no defenders exited the pitch away at Everton at the start of the month with their heads held high, but Bueno was notably below-par in that shocking 4-0 defeat, with possession squandered 13 times alongside only 50% of his duels being won.

His woes have continued on from this dire day out to Merseyside – with his showing against Ipswich also out-of-sorts – as only three duels were weakly won, resulting in his side succumbing to a third league defeat on the spin which ultimately cost O’Neil his job.

Pereira might well be prepared to bring in Craig Dawson into his side in his place, who will want to exorcise his own December-related demons if he is picked versus Leicester, having scored two tragic own goals against Everton.

Whilst Bueno has shone in the past for the Old Gold, bringing in someone of the 34-year-old’s experience could be key in initially attempting to fix such a porous defence, with Dawson amassing 300 appearances in the Premier League and counting.

Whatever lineup Pereira does field, the well-travelled manager will pray he can pick up a debut win against a fellow relegation rival to start his new tenure off on the best possible footing.

Related Pereira could turn "lightning" Wolves flop into his very own Neto

This Wolverhampton Wanderers flop could turn around his time at Molineux under Vitor Pereira.

Posts ByKelan Sarson Dec 17, 2024

يرى ربيع ياسبن نجم الأهلي الأسبق، أنه كان يجب توجيه الشكر للسويسري مارسيل كولر، منذ فترة كبيرة، مؤكداً على دعمة لمجلس الإدارة.

ويعيش النادي الأهلي في أزمة حقيقية، بعد توديعه منافسات بطولة دوري أبطال إفريقيا، بعد التعادل الإيجابي بنتيجة 1-1، على أرضه وبين جماهيره، وسط أداء غير مقنع من اللاعبين أو تدخل من الجهاز الفني.

وقال ربيع ياسين في تصريحات عبر قناة “الأهلي”: “كلنا في ضهر الأهلي، الأهلي دائمًا يبحث عن البطولات، وأي مسؤول في النادي يُحاول دائمًا أن يظهر على أحسن ما يكون، كل أولاده يخدمونه في أي وقت”.

طالع أيضاً.. خاص | كولر يربك الأهلي بقرار غير متوقع بعد إعلان رحيله

وأضاف: “قدر الله وما شاء فعل، وكان يجب توجيه الشكر لـ كولر منذ فترة، لكنها مدرسة الأهلي تنتظر التوقيت المناسب، وإن شاء الله نتخطى هذه المرحلة”.

وأوضح: “جمهور النادي الأهلي لا يوجد مثله، وهو الأعظم في العالم، دائمًا خلف الفريق ودوره في المدرجات لدعم اللاعبين، خرجنا من بطولة، ولكن هناك بطولات قادمة وكأس العالم للأندية، وإن شاء الله متفاءلون خيرًا”.

وأتم: “بالتوفيق للجهاز الفني المؤقت، نحن ندعمهم، أبناء النادي الأهلي دائمًا في ضهر النادي، كلنا ندعم الإدارة ونتمنى كل التوفيق لهم”.

Fair to say, Rangers boss Philippe Clement has plenty of work to do in the January transfer window.

Ahead of the New Year’s Old Firm derby coming up at Ibrox on Thursday afternoon, the Gers are a whopping 14 points adrift run away league leaders and fierce rivals Celtic.

The last-gasp defeat at St Mirren on Boxing Day, followed by a 2-2 draw at Motherwell three days later, has cranked up the pressure on Clement, hence why he’ll be looking to recruit reinforcements this month.

Rangers interested in new midfielder

According to a report by reporter Ižak Ante Sučić for Germanijak, Rangers, as well as Club Brugge and AZ Alkmaar, are interested in signing Varaždin midfielder Leon Belcar.

Transfer Focus

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

Expand Collapse

They add that the 22-year-old is contracted to the Croatian club until 2026, but that they plan to “make a lot of money on him”.

Varaždin president Dražen Vitez claims he is yet to receive any official bids for Belcar, only willing to sell his most-prized asset for in excess of €700,000 (around £580,000), with Karlo Lusavec’s move to Danish outfit Horsens being used as a benchmark.

So who is Belcar, and how would he fit into Rangers’ team?

Where Leon Belcar would fit in at Rangers

Belcar is a 22-year-old defensive midfielder, operating at the base of Varaždin’s back-line, starting all but one of their HNL matches this season, the only one he’s missed being as a result of a suspension.

Despite his defensive instincts, Belcar has scored three goals during this campaign to date, most-recently firing home from the edge of the area during a 2-1 victory over Šibenik in late November.

At international level, he’s earned six caps for Croatia’s U21s, although he won’t be adding to that tally, given that the Mladi Vatreni were heartbreakingly beaten by Georgia on penalties, thereby missing out on a place at this summer’s U21 Euros in Slovakia.

Instead, could Belcar spend 2025 acclimatising to life in Glasgow? Let’s see how he compares to Rangers’ two most-used central midfielders.

Leon Belcar vs Raskin & Diomande in 24/25

Statistic

Leon Belcar

Nicolas Raskin

Mohamed Diomandé

Minutes

1,352

1,028

1,091

Appearances

17

15

16

Interceptions per 90

1.1

0.5

0.5

Tackles per 90

1.4

3.3

1

% of duals won

58.2%

65.5%

54.2%

Fouls per 90

0.9

1.5

1

Average rating

7.04

7.33

6.99

All statistics courtesy of SofaScore

As outlined above, Nicolas Raskin comes out on top for most of the metrics included, but that should not be too surprising given his excellent form this season, with former Rangers defender Alan Hutton describing the Belgian as “brilliant”, adding that he has to be the first name on the teamsheet in midfield.

However, Belcar does compare favourably to Mohamed Diomandé, who’s made 28 appearances across all competitions so far, including starting seven of the eight Champions League or Europa League matches.

But this is exactly why Belcar – whose numbers are still “really impressive” in the eyes of Scottish football content creator Kai Watson – would be a success. He’s a different style of midfielder; Raskin excels out of possession, while the young Croat is at his best on the ball.

Rangers do have somewhat recent history when it comes to signing talent from the Croatian top-flight, with mixed success.

Following a Europa League qualifying victory over Osijek in 2018, Steven Gerrard was so impressed with what he saw he signed two of the White and Blues’ players.

Eros Grezda’s 17-game stint at Ibrox was, at best, unmemorable, but the other member of this double-deal was Borna Barišić, who would make 236 appearances for the Gers, becoming a cult hero, a key figure as they won the Premiership title in 2021 and then reached the Europa League Final the following season.

That same summer seven years ago, Nikola Katić joined from Slaven Belupo Koprivnica and, while he was far from a major success, his headed winner at Parkhead in December 2019 means he will never be forgotten.

Thus, Belcar could become the latest Croatian to make his mark in Govan.

Related He's like De Bruyne: Rangers could finally bin Dowell by signing £3.3m star

Glasgow Rangers are reportedly interested in a deal to sign the Romanian ace.

Posts ByDan Emery Jan 1, 2025

Agreement between Malaysia Cricket and landowners runs down after 18 years, with both parties involved in tariff disputes in recent years

ESPNcricinfo staff31-May-2022

A West Indies-South Africa game in progress at Kinrara Academy Oval during the 2008 Under-19 World Cup•Getty Images

Kinrara Academy Oval, Malaysia’s premier cricket ground, will host its last games this June as Malaysia Cricket (MC)’s agreement with the landowners runs down after 18 years. Over the past few years, the two parties had disputes over tariffs and the matter went to court, with the ruling earlier this year in favour of the landowners.MC said in a statement that the outstanding payments had been made, and an “amicable settlement” had been arrived at ahead of the ground’s curtain call.To sign off, the ground will host the ICC Under-19 Women’s Asia Qualifiers – a pathway tournament to the inaugural Women’s U-19 World Cup – from June 1 to 10, and then the Asian Cricket Council’s Women’s T20 Asia Cup from June 15 to 25. In between the two international events, MC’s domestic members have been invited to play a T10 Curtain Call Championship Masters from June 10 to 12. MC will vacate Kinrara on June 30.”We are pleased to announce that Malaysian Cricket has reached an amicable settlement with Perumahan Kinrara Berhad. By the settlement, Malaysian Cricket has fulfilled its obligation to pay Perumahan Kinrara Berhad,” MC’s statement, signed by president Mohammed Iqbal Ali Kassim Ali, read.”We place on record that Malaysian Cricket is truly grateful to the Kinrara Landowners for affording us this property the past eighteen years, giving us the ability to work the ground, bringing it to that of an international standard. At present, Kinrara Oval is one of two grounds with ODI status in South East Asia. The other ground being Bayuemas Oval.”Kinrara Oval has played host to numerous international and national tournaments – majestic and Iconic, it was ‘Home of Malaysian Cricket’. Given the history and legacy tied to cricket at Kinrara Oval, sentiments are strong and the reason for which the cricket fraternity had hoped to stay on. Nonetheless, we bow out gracefully, with gratitude, taking with us some of the best cricket memories.”Kinrara Academy Oval came together in 2003 with a team from New Zealand working on the turf and square, and the BCCI contributing USD 465,000 towards the floodlights. Since then, the ground has hosted ten men’s ODIs, 18 men’s T20Is, six Women’s ODIs, 25 Women’s T20Is and 25 youth ODIs.Some of the highest-profile games here came in the ground’s early years: a men’s tri-series in September 2006 featuring West Indies, Australia and India, in which Sachin Tendulkar topped the runs charts with 222 runs at 74, including an unbeaten 141. Then, in March 2008, Virat Kohli’s India Under-19 team won the World Cup at Kinrara.MC’s statement said the board will now “utilise YSD-UKM Oval – the ground at University Kebangsaan Malaysia – Selangor Turf Club, and Kolej Tuanku Ja’afar (KTJ), albeit work is needed to [elevate] the standard of the grounds. Moving forward, we are confident of finding a permanent ground to call our own”.An earlier statement from MC, from March 31 this year, had said of its dispute with the landowners: “Our position was that as a non-profit organisation and the national sporting association, with Kinrara Oval as the home of cricket in Malaysia, we strongly believe that the Majlis Bandaraya Subang Jaya (MBSJ) tariff for assessment should have been based on sports and recreation instead of commercial rate.”It was for this reason we had disputed the tariff and were taken to court, on which the judgement came against us.”

MatériaMais Notícias

Na tarde desta quinta-feira (21), no estádio dos Aflitos, em Recife, o Retrô surpreendeu e venceu o Náutico pelo placar de 1 a 0. Agora, a Fênix joga pelo empate na partida de volta da Final do Campeonato Pernambucano, que será realizada no dia 30 de abril, na Arena Pernambuco. O gol do triunfo do Retrô foi marcado por Guilherme Paraíba, aos 23 minutos, após cobrança de escanteio.

RelacionadasVídeoVÍDEO: expulsão bizarra em comemoração e mais; os melhores momentos da Náutico 0 x 1 BahiaVídeo16/04/2022NáuticoMãe de Júnior Tavares indica técnico ao NáuticoNáutico14/04/2022NáuticoLateral Victor Ferraz comemora retorno ao NáuticoNáutico13/04/2022

>Aplicativo de resultados do LANCE! está disponível na versão iOS

A partida
PRIMEIRO TEMPO
O Náutico foi melhor que o Retrô na etapa inicial da primeira partida da final do Campeonato Pernambucano. O Timbu criou várias oportunidades e poderia ter ido para o intervalo com a vantagem no placar. No entanto, o time Alvirrubro não contava com a grande atuação do goleiro Jean, que fez boas defesas e evitou que o placar fosse inaugurado ainda no primeiro tempo. O time do Retrô chutou apenas duas vezes no gol, mas sem levar tanto perigo.

SEGUNDO TEMPO
Assim como foi durante todo o primeiro tempo, o Náutico voltou do intervalo pressionando o Retrô e levando perigo. Até os 20 minutos, o Náutico foi dono do jogo, mas Jean brilhou novamente fazendo boas defesas.

Como quem não faz, toma… Aos 23 minutos, o Retrô resolveu ir ao ataque e acabou abrindo o marcador. Após cobrança de escanteio, Yuri escorou de cabeça para Guilherme Paraíba. Esperto na jogada, o zagueiro da Fênix mandou para o fundo das redes do goleiro Lucas Perri e inaugurou o placar: 1 a 0 para o Retrô.

A partir daí, o Retrô começou a amarrar a partida na tentativa de diminuir o ímpeto do Náutico e garantir o resultado positivo. O Timbu tentou de todas as maneiras empatar, mas chance clara de gol mesmo só construiu mesmo nos acréscimos com o meia Jean Carlos, só que o goleiro Jean brilhou outra vez e garantiu a vitória para a Fênix.

Vale destacar que a partida teve um acontecimento inusitado. O cachorro da polícia se soltou, aos 39 minutos, invadiu o gramado e acabou ficando com a bola obrigando a paralisação da partida, que foi reiniciada somente 3 minutos depois.

South Africa’s head coach did, however, say that the approach was possible only if “conditions allow you to play that way”

Matt Roller11-Jul-2022

‘There are certain conversations that we’ll have in our dressing room to try and counteract their aggressive approach’ – Mark Boucher•AFP/Getty Images

Mark Boucher, South Africa’s head coach, believes that other teams will try to play Test cricket using England’s new ultra-attacking approach after seeing their success under Brendon McCullum, but has cautioned that ‘Bazball’ may only work in favourable batting conditions.England have chased fourth-innings targets in excess of 250 in each of their first four Tests since McCullum’s appointment and have scored at 4.6 runs per over so far this summer, making a conscious effort to put New Zealand and India’s bowlers under sustained pressure.Related

Enoch Nkwe appointed South Africa Director of Cricket

Bazball broken down, it's pretty simple really

Brendon McCullum: 'I don't really like that silly term Bazball'

That has been possible, in part, due to excellent batting pitches and a batch of Dukes balls that have gone soft very quickly, resulting in minimal lateral movement for bowlers after the first 20 overs of any given innings.England’s next Test series starts on August 17 against South Africa. Speaking in Taunton ahead of his side’s first warm-up game since arriving in the UK, a 50-over match against England Lions on Tuesday, Boucher said he had been watching England play with great interest.”It’s probably the way that red-ball cricket is going,” Boucher said. “If you look at the introduction of T20 cricket, the run-rates have increased in red-ball cricket. There’s going to be times where the conditions don’t allow you to play that way but if the conditions allow you to play that way, I’m sure that you’re going to see batting line-ups try and put bowlers under pressure.”The conditions have allowed for England to play that way. That’s just about being smart and assessing conditions on the day. If you see a moment to really put the hammer down, we’ve seen how it can pay off, as England have shown us. I do think Test cricket is going that way.”We know how Brendon played and we’ve heard the conversations around him when he was coach of KKR [Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL] as well that he wanted to have this really aggressive style of play. It’s exciting to watch. I watched a lot of those games and England did really well.”It’s probably a little bit of an advantage to us in a way to have seen and we can expect them to come out and play the same brand of cricket that they are playing. A couple of things you need to understand is that you need to have the right players in your team to be able to do that, and the conditions need to be favourable as well.”Keshav Maharaj and Simon Harmer could play an influential role if the pitches dry out during the ongoing heatwave•AFP/Getty Images

Boucher was speaking on one of the first days of a heatwave in the UK, with temperatures due to pass 30 degrees Celsius this week and no rain forecast in the next two weeks, and said that he expects pitches to remain flat throughout the summer.He cautioned that if the weather remains hot, pitches could dry out, bringing Keshav Maharaj and Simon Harmer into the three-match Test series which runs from mid-August to mid-September. The two spinners were South Africa’s biggest match-winners during their recent home series win over Bangladesh, sharing 29 wickets between them in the two Tests, at a combined average of 13.48.”We’ve come to England now and every day has been hot,” Boucher said. “It’s been fantastic weather so the wickets have flattened out quite a bit. There are certain conversations that we’ll have in our dressing room to try and counteract their aggressive approach: we always speak about having a bit of aggression but being smart as well so that’s where our smartness is going to have to come into the equation as well.”There is a bit of time still to go to sum up the conditions and see if the wickets get even flatter and maybe a bit drier as well – that can bring spin into the equation, and we feel we’ve got all those different aspects covered in our squads.”Boucher was speaking for the first time since Enoch Nkwe, who resigned as his assistant coach last August citing “concerns about the functioning and culture of the team environment”, was appointed as CSA’s new director of cricket. He shut down questions suggesting that Nkwe’s return would be unsettling.”Besides reports of the past, myself and Enoch have always had a very good relationship and we had a nice chat before we left [for England],” Boucher said. “I’m quite excited to work with him. I think he’s got some fantastic ideas.”He’s been in the system for quite some time so he knows exactly what’s required. Enoch has already addressed that [the circumstances around his exit]. He said that the environment has changed and he’s happy with that situation.”